Daylight

A New Dawn Pt.4

His tormented heart which had been beginning to heal with the ticking of time since that morning he had collapsed with his best friend on top of statues piled  atop each other, had started to expand fiercely at an alarming rate. His heart felt like the lightning of his own chidori coming to life. He watched as Sakura stood in the middle of her office taking in everything she had just witnessed through Sasuke's illusions and as a single tear strolled down her perfectly arched face. 

"Sasuke... I never knew. Your brother... I'm so sorry. I knew you had a complicated past, but, I never would have thought..." Her words trailed off as Sasuke sat up from the chair and padded towards her, his feet light on the tiled floor. He brought his thumb to her cheek and rubbed the tears away, as if he was erasing all his past mistakes with one swift motion. He was greeted with a rose blush. The corners of his lips swirled upwards slightly forming a shy smile for her watery leafy-green eyes. The moment lasted for a second, but that second was etched into eternity for Sasuke with the help of his Mankegkyo Sharingan. 

Sakura fumbled with her feet like a newborn horse until she was near her desk. Whilst she placed on the remaining labels onto the five scrolls with medical supplies sealed inside, she muttered, "You know, when I saw you touching your forehead like that, I thought you had a headache. But now I understand, your brother loved you dearly".

Sasuke looked at her inquisitively. "And why would I have a headache?"

Sakura's fingers instinctively found the ends of her pink locks. "I thought maybe, being with me all morning, you must have finally got sick of me." A nervous bubble of laughter escaped her lips. 

"Sakura. I meant what I said." He realised that all those times he rejected her and called her 'annoying' over the years had cut deep wounds that weren't apparent on the surface of her smooth pale skin. "You're not annoying". He hated repeating himself. But some wounds were harder to heal, even for the most skilled medical ninjas, and other forms of medicine were necessary. 

"Sasuke, thank you. That means a lot". The sparkle in her eye, and the glow of her face with the sunlight raining down on the long locks of her hair, spoke a thousand more words than she could say. Sasuke took one last look at her slim figure, before picking up the scrolls and placing them in his satchel. And with that, they both headed out and made their way to the market stalls. 

***

Sasuke decided that he was grateful to Naruto and Kakashi for setting him and Sakura up. Although he didn't like people interfering in his decisions, he resigned his stubborn feelings and accepted that his comrades had his, and hers, best interests at heart. He suddenly couldn't imagine another moment without her rosy blushes and her hair swaying in the wind, and how her gaze quickly averted whenever she noticed him staring intently at her. He savoured the way he could see her reflection in the shiny ripe red tomatoes that he bought from a stall, and his heart desperately reached out to be by her side. But Sasuke knew he needed to stop following his heart's desires, as that was what made him known as the notorious criminal he was known for today. Instead, he refocused his mind on seeing these moments together as a way to say goodbye. Maybe this way, she would be able to hold on to these memories until they could lock their eyes together with each other again. 

As they headed towards the village gates, Sakura looked up at Sasuke. "I know your brother wanted to keep his life private, and I respect his wishes. But I want to say something, if that's okay?" 

Sasuke nodded a small nod to signify his permission. Sakura lowered her voice to a whisper so that only Sasuke could hear by straining his ear. "Itachi was a great man. And I know he would be proud of you. I know I am". She tilted her head away from Sasuke's gaze to cover her flushed cheeks with a pink curtain of hair.