Yes, I know, I took a really bad picture, but I was in a rush.

Please enjoy this chapter!

Sakura's POV

The return to Konoha was fairly quiet. No one attacked, and they arrived safely back at the village.

Sasuke was quiet, as usual, but something was off about him. He looked uncharacteristically angry, as though he was confused and furious at the same time.

For the millionth time, Sakura wondered what Garaa had said to him.

As they neared the gates, he said shortly, "When can I leave?"

Kakashi gave him a sideways glance. "As soon as we write our mission reports, and discuss a few things with Lady Tsunade."

Sasuke let out a frustrated huff of air, clearly annoyed.

"Um...Sasuke, you can write your report at my house," Sakura offered timidly. "It's closer to the Hokage's office."

His gaze turned to her, seeming somewhat softer. "Ok."

They walked to Sakura's house together. When they got to her door, Kakashi cleared his throat. "You two will be okay?"

So she wasn't the only one to notice Sasuke's off behavior. But she gave Kakashi-sensei a nod, chirping "Everything will be fine!"

When the other three left, Sakura and Sasuke walked inside. She noticed Sasuke peering around her home, blushing slightly when his eyes fell on a rumpled article of clothing on the floor. The one time she'd seen the inside his apartment, it had been very neat and clean. Sasuke was obviously a very fastidious person.

Surreptitiously, she snatched the clothes, saying, "The kitchen is this way, there's some paper on the counter."

Darting quickly away, she tossed the clothes into her bedroom, berating herself over her sloppiness and thanking her lucky stars that her parents weren't home to see the mess.

When she came down, Sasuke was clenching the paintbrush in his fist, his brow furrowed as he stared at the still blank sheet in front of him.

"What's the matter?" Sakura inquired.

"Not sure what to write," came the muttered reply. "Never done this before."

Sakura smiled. "It's not too difficult, just talk about what happened over the course of the trip, point out any significant places that might be utilized on later missions, and just touch briefly on the overall success rate of the mission. Here, why don't I write mine, then you can look it over to get an idea."

"Sure," he murmured, not seeming to pay much attention.

Tentatively, Sakura reached over and lay her hand on his shoulder.

His head snapped up, but she kept her hand there as she asked quietly, "What's the matter, Sasuke?"

He shook his head. "Nothing, okay?"

Sakura's brow creased. "Sasuke, what did Garaa tell you?"

He stayed quiet for the longest time. Just when Sakura thought he wasn't going to speak, he finally answered.

"He said...that going down the path of revenge would only end badly. I'm still going to do what I planned, but he just made me a bit uncertain about my choice. It's infuriating. I won't let myself be swayed, but now there are seeds of doubt. Do you know what I mean?"

Sakura thought for a moment. "I think I do..."

He raised his eyebrows, not convinced that she did.

"Now just hold on, let me finish. I think that when a belief you feel strongly about is challenged, you automatically rise to defend it. Even if another person is speaking common sense, you can't bear to accept that your belief is mistaken. It makes you feel like your life was wrong, and it's enough to drive you to despair."

Sasuke stared at her for a moment before shaking his head and laughing. Sakura felt her face get red. "Oh, now you're going to laugh!?!"

He held up a finger, still smirking. "You know, Haruno, you're too smart for your own good."

Sakura could feel herself smiling. "And you're too arrogant for yours, Uchiha."

"Heh...I guess you do have a point there...thanks. For giving annoying but truthful advice."

A feeling of warmth coursed through her. "You're welcome, Sasuke-kun."

He lifted a single eyebrow at her. She blushed, chastising herself for using an honorific. "Uh...never mind. I'll just write my report now."

"You do that."

They sat there in silence, Sakura acutely aware of the soft splashing her paintbrush made on the paper and the fact that Sasuke was sitting right next to her. She hurried through her paper, feeling a bit self-conscious about his watching eyes.

Finally, she finished, scrawling her name at the top, and handing the paper to Sasuke. "Here, read it."

He took it from her hand and began skimming through it, his eyes moving up and down the page.

After a few minutes, he handed it back. "You miswrote something in the second paragraph. This kanji right here--" he gestured with his hand, "is wrong." Swiftly, he took his own brush, dipped it into the indoor, and corrected it.

"Ah--yes, of course," she stammered. "Thank you."

He gave her an arrogant glance, a small smirk playing up his lips, before putting his brush to his paper and beginning to write.

A spark of annoyance flared up in Sakura. He was still acting so high and mighty! Well, she'd show him! Just wait until she read his paper, she'd tear it apart! She'd find every little mistake there was and wave them under his perfect nose. Then they'd see how smart he really was.

Finally, he finished, silently handing it to Sakura to be read over. She snatched it, determined to find something wrong that she could call him out on.

However, as she moved down the clean lines of kanji, she found, to her dismay, that it was perfect. Not a single mistake, every detail completely covered. It was better than any of hers.

"Huh. It'll do." She muttered, handing it back to him.

She felt him scrutinizing her, and looked up to see a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"What!" She said defensively.

"I think it's good...better than good, don't you?" He smirked.

She flushed. "Don't flatter yourself."

"Was there anything wrong with it then?"

"...shut up and let's go." Sakura stormed out of her house without waiting for him, humiliated. She could have sworn she heard a deep chuckle just before the door slammed.

Sasuke's POV

He couldn't resist teasing her. He knew she'd be picking his report apart after he'd pointed out her mistake, so he'd purposely put more effort into it than he normally would have, making it so that she wouldn't have anything to say.

Sakura was so readable. She wore her heart on her face, allowing him to predict her exact thoughts. This opportunity had been too good to pass.

However, he didn't want to waste any more time. He got up, following Sakura out the door. He found her already half-way to the office, deliberately ignoring him.

Jogging to catch up, he settled into her fast pace.

"Hey," he said, grinning in spite of himself.

She ignored him still.

He became serious. "Sorry."

Sakura sighed, slowing down. "No, I'm sorry. I was just a little annoyed. I had no right to slam the door like that."

Sasuke smirked. "I know."

Sakura's face turned cherry red. "You--you are so full of yourself!!! Forget it! I'll slam the door in your face whenever I want!" She marched off, fuming.

Sasuke chuckled to himself again, ambling after her.

*************************************

Tsunade sat there at her desk, looking solemnly at the five ninja in front of her, particularly Sasuke. "So, Sasuke, it seems from what your team has said, you can be trusted by this village."

Sasuke gave a curt nod. While informing Tsunade about the mission, his team had conveniently forgotten to mention the part where he'd refused to assist Sakura against the attacking ninja. He was nothing but grateful.

"You wish to return to your home," she continued, "and then what? Do you plan on returning to the village? Or will you stay there? If you do decide to stay, won't you be alone? I thought you said your people were wiped out."

Sasuke gritted his teeth, his hands clenching into fists. "They were...and I plan on having my revenge."

"But where will you stay? If you accomplish your goal, what will you do then?" Tsunade asked.

This gave Sasuke a pause. "...I don't know," he muttered. In truth, he had come to like the village and its inhabitants. He wasn't so sure. His home had probably been completely destroyed, and he would need a new place to live. Not to mention that Sakura happened to live in this village as well...Ahem.

"But that's not important now. What I need to do is leave. The sooner I head out, the better."

"Well then, I suppose there will be no stopping you," Tsunade conceded. "How do you plan on getting there?"

Sasuke looked at her steadily. "Fly."

"Ah...I see." She said awkwardly. She still hadn't completely adjusted to the fact he had wings. "Are you leaving now?"

"Yes," he said, patting the small pack of provisions he'd brought.

"Um...Sasuke-kun," Sakura said nervously. "Can we...see you off?"

"Yeah teme, we can't let you leave by yourself, you might get hurt!" Naruto grinned.

Sasuke paused, deliberating. "Yeah, why not," he muttered.

"Alright!" Naruto cried. "So we get to see you fly?"

He smirked. "No dobe, I'm taking a train."

Naruto's face fell. "Oh."

Sasuke punched his arm. "Idiot."

"Why would you take a train?" Sai asked. "I thought you said you were flying."

Everyone slowly turned to stare at him. "How did someone as dumb as you become a ninja?" Sasuke wondered.

"I...don't understand," Sai said, confused.

"Never mind, Sai," Kakashi said quickly.

The group trecked up the stairs to the roof of the office. "So this is it, Sasuke?" Kakashi asked.

"Maybe," Sasuke replied. He thought for a moment. It would be nice to return here, to this place Sakura and the dobe were at. Perhaps, one day, he could come back, after he'd fulfilled what he needed to do. Maybe he could form real bonds with them. "If I succeed in my plans, we'll see. But, for now...thank you. For everything." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm not good at goodbye speeches...so..." He stood there awkwardly for a moment, not knowing how to end this.

Suddenly, Naruto extended his hand. Sasuke looked up in surprise. "Don't let us down teme. Even though you've been a real jerk for most of the time, you're not really a bad person, or angel, or whatever. I expect you to come back, got it? I get attached to thickheaded idiots like you."

Sasuke swallowed, feeling a slight pang. You really let them get to you, huh, he thought grimly. To bad it's time to go. I'll never admit it out loud, but I will kinda miss them. Especially Sakura and the dobe. Extending his own hand, he grasped Naruto's, giving it a firm shake.

And with that, He spread his gigantic raven wings, glinting blue-black in the sun, and took off into the sky.

So, the end of this chapter! It's not lame, is it? I tried to make it kinda sad, but, you know...

But yeah, some emotional scenes next chapter!

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