Work Text:
"Thank you."
He caught her even before the crying pink haired kunoichi of his started falling.
And for a moment, he just stood there, holding her.
This was a lot harder than he thought; saying goodbye to everything he knew, every comfort he had.
But he had to do it. He had already vowed to avenge his family, to kill Itachi. He had to leave.
He had to leave them behind, leave her.
Her, who surprisingly became very important to him along with the dobe and their perverted teacher.
Her, who had just confessed to him. Not in her usual annoying and casual way, but wholeheartedly--a sincerely heartbreakingly beautiful way.
Her, who had just offered to come with him. To betray the village she had sworn to protect the moment she wore her forehead protector.
Just to help him.
Because for some reason, she saw something in him that made her think that he was worth caring for. Even though his own brother didn't even think he was worth killing; didn't even bother.
And he knew her feelings were sincere. It was different from all the other girls since the academy who would confess to him daily.
Sakura had known him. She had seen him at his best and at his worst. She had seen him bruised and defeated and vulnerable--not the cool guy everyone in the academy seemed to think of him. She had known about what happened to his family more than all their other peers, even more than what Naruto knows. She had known his goal. And she had even known he would betray Konoha tonight.
Yet she still continues to choose him.
He closed his eyes and tried to breathe. He needed to get her somewhere--he can't just leave her here.
But he also have to hurry up. He can't go back to the heart of the village. If Sakura had known he would be leaving tonight, it might be likely that his other teammates would somehow suspect, too.
Although he doubt that. Sakura had, ironically, always read him the best.
And he couldn't quite understand it. Out of all the members of his team, he had expected hed to understand him the least.
They didn't have anything in common. She have her parents and her friends. She had always been free to express herself, to form bonds, to have a future free of something as dark and tragic as what he was bound to do. She had never been like him.
She was light. He was darkness.
He picked her up to her arms and looked around, still undecided on what to do.
He saw the bench then. It would have to do. They were still inside Konoha, so it wouldn't be too dangerous for her. He can't risk going back.
He moved towards it and set her down gently. And then for a moment, he could only stare at her.
There were still tears running down her face. And she truly looks like she is hurting.
Hurting for him.
He knew he had to go. He was running out of time. He needed to be far away from Konoha before dawn, or he might not be able to escape.
But it just felt wrong to just leave now. To just leave her here after everything he told her.
Even for the last time, he couldn't really give her anything in return. He knew his 'thank you' wasn't enough, would never be enough.
Not really knowing what he's doing, he found himself raising his hand and reaching out to her. Without thinking about it first, he had placed his pointer and middle fingers abover her and gently touched the tips to her forehead.
He really didn't understand why he did it. It was something Itachi had always done to him when they were younger. A gesture he used to cherish and crave. Something he thought was his brother's way of showing affection to him.
And maybe that was it. It was the only thing he'd known. And it was his brother who betrayed him who had always done it.
And wasn't that what he's doing now? By betraying Konoha, he was betraying Sakura and everyone else sworn to Konoha.
Maybe it was just fitting.
Subconsciously, smiling in a self-depreciating way, he closed his eyes again for a moment.
And then he murmured to Sakura, even though she couldn't hear him,
"Mata kondo na."
He then started for the gates once more, this time without looking back.
--
Original headcanon: The first time Sasuke poked Sakura's forehead wasn't right before his redemption journey, but before he left Konoha for the first time. It was a confusing moment for him. He hated Itachi at the time, he shouldn't associate the act to any form of affection, but in that moment he was vulnerable, and he didn't feel like his 'Thank you' was enough. He truly appreciated Sakura's feelings for him and everything else she has done, and was ready to do--offered to do. So he poked her forehead, thinking to himself, "Maybe next time."