A/N: Alright, it's been a minute! Time got away from me, and I'm sorry. I have a bunch of half-written pieces, and I'm not super fond of any of them. Any requests are definitely appreciated! This takes place just days after the end of the War.

Home

When Sasuke woke up after the War, he expected to find himself in chains. In a prison. Seals over his eyes, ANBU all around, and maybe – just maybe – if he was very lucky, a slight shield from the worst provided by those he'd hurt the most.

What he hadn't expected was a hospital bed in a double room, Naruto's bed pushed closed to his with only a small end table (overflowing with gifts for Konoha's hero, he assumed) separating them. He hadn't expected to see his best friend munching on sweets, eyes wide and joyous, smile pulling at the bandages that lined one side of his face. He hadn't expected to see Kakashi slumped on a chair in the corner, book open, or that only two ANBU seemed to be present, one outside the door and another on the roof above them.

Most of all, he hadn't expected the warmth against his leg to be Sakura curled up on the foot of his bed in the fetal position, her back pressed against his calf.

He was so surprised, in fact, that he jolted, reached for a weapon he didn't have with a hand he didn't have, legs pushing back against her.

"Oi!" Naruto grumbled through a mouthful of strawberry. "What the hell, asshole? Let her sleep!"

Sasuke froze, glancing over at him, slowly starting to process what was happening. "Why…why am I in a hospital?"

Naruto swallowed and looked at Sasuke like he'd grown an extra head. "Because you needed healing. I thought you were supposed to be the smart one, but –"

Sasuke's irritation grew, and he scowled. "No, moron, I was fine. Sakura saved us. I should be in a cell."

Naruto picked up another strawberry. "Yeah, like Kakashi-sensei or Sakura-chan would let them throw you in a cell until you were recovered. I guess you really did turn stupid out there."

Sasuke didn't say anything. He looked back down at the woman sleeping at his feet. She looked…well, she looked worse than he was pretty sure he and Naruto did. "Did anyone heal her?"

Naruto threw a strawberry at him. Sasuke reflexively caught it and threw it back. "Kind of," the blond said softly, and he was oddly subdued. "Granny Tsunade got a crack at her, so the worst of her injuries are healed. But she…"

"She what?" Sasuke demanded.

"She refused to let anyone else attend you," Kakashi said from the corner, finally looking up. "Some have been very vocal in their determination that you are a traitor, and she wasn't willing to you're your wellbeing to anyone else. There still will be a trial, Sasuke. But given that I have a bit more influence now, I was able to help support Sakura's determination that your wounds be completely treated before we proceed."

Sasuke wanted to thank him but wasn't sure how. "Is she okay?"

"She's fine," Naruto said, voice muffled by fruit. "She's just tired and drugged is all."

Sasuke whipped his head back around to stare at him. "She's what?!"

"Ino eventually got fed up with her refusal to care for her own wounds and to let anyone other than our team into this room," Kakashi explained. "Ino has some medic training, too. She brought Sakura food, drugged it, and even then, she passed out here. Trying to carry her out resulted in her nearly tearing your blanket because she refused to let go. This seemed like the best compromise."

Sasuke nudged the medic with his toe. She didn't so much as twitch. "How long has she been out?"

"Oh, since early this morning," Kakashi said calmly. "I expect it'll be another couple of hours before she wakes up. Ino's made herself scarce in the meantime."

Despite himself, Sasuke smirked, and Naruto outright laughed.

Even Kakashi's visible eye seemed a bit brighter. "Sasuke, now that you're awake, how are you feeling?"

Sasuke took stock of his injuries. Everything seemed to be either completely healed or healing. His eyes stung, but that was to be expected. He frowned. "The arm I lost…hurts."

"That's what you get for being an asshole," Naruto said, throwing a package at him. "Here – I hate those."

Sasuke looked at it. Dark chocolate? "Don't try to distract me," he muttered. "If you'd just given up on me like you should've, this wouldn't have happened, moron."

"You love me for it and you know it!" Naruto's smile was dazzling, and Kakashi's laugh had Sasuke looking down and away, focusing again on Sakura.

He pressed his leg just a little closer, and she seemed to shiver. "Someone get a blanket for her," he said. "Don't you two look out for her at all?"

"Hey!" Naruto said indignantly. "You're one to talk!"

Kakashi rose, taking an extra blanket from the closet and draping it over her. "Glad you've remembered teamwork, Sasuke. Now, I'd like to have Shikamaru explain the process to you for what's going to happen next. There will be a trial, and unfortunately all five villages will be involved, given that your attacks included more than just Konoha. Is that acceptable?"

Sasuke nodded.

"Good. Shikamaru?"

The man stepped inside, and Sasuke was surprised to realize the presence he'd taken for ANBU was actually his former classmate. "Hey there, Sasuke," he said, hands in his pockets. "You ready for a rundown of what happens next?"

His hand tightened slightly on the blanket. "Yes."

"Okay. You'll be imprisoned. Your chakra will be sealed until the end of the trial, at which point you will be sentenced. The five Kage will be the ones passing judgment, and there will be testimony from members of each of the villages, although the most important witnesses will be from Konoha and include Naruto and Sakura. We expect the trial process to take approximately a week. You will not be present for it, but you are allowed visitors, once a day, to include Kakashi-sensei and myself. Although Kakashi-sensei, Naruto, and Sakura will fight for leniency, I hope you are aware that not everyone in the village supports that outcome, and expecting it may be foolish."

Sasuke inclined his head. "I understand."

"Shikamaru!" Naruto slapped at his arm. "Don't be stupid. Everything's gonna be fine."

Nara shifted slightly towards him. "Naruto, you have to realize that things aren't as simple as you want them to be."

Sasuke suddenly felt his heart lift, because he'd heard people say things like that to Naruto before – he'd said things like that to Naruto before, and –

"Sasuke." His best friend looked him right in the eye. "Everything is gonna be okay. I'll make sure of it. I promise."

Shikamaru dropped his head into his hand. Kakashi laughed.

Naruto gave him a brilliant grin and a thumbs up. "And I never go back on my word!"

"I know," Sasuke said quietly, smiling slightly. He looked back up at Shikamaru. "Can we wait until Sakura wakes up? I won't fight you."

The man hesitated, scratching the back of his head. "This would be the best opportunity for you to run, you know. Seems dumb to stretch it out."

Sasuke lifted one shoulder in a half shrug and let his eyes slide towards the window. "I won't be in prison long. Not with that idiot making promises."

"Hey! You're the idiot! If it hadn't taken you so long to listen to me, I –"

"A few more hours won't hurt, I don't think," Kakashi interrupted calmly, returning to his book.

Shikamaru sat down on the edge of Naruto's bed and started picking through the treats left by his admirers. "You're lucky Sakura wouldn't let anyone else in here. You've got some good stuff. Chōji would be all over this."

Naruto started to argue about what he was and wasn't willing to share, Kakashi returned to his book, and Sasuke glanced down to meet slightly open green eyes. Again, he shifted his leg very gently against her back. She smiled, winked, and closed them again, curling up even more tightly.

Sasuke knew he couldn't stay in Konoha. There was too much to do, to learn, to understand, about himself and the world. But it was nice, for a few hours, to let his team protect him, to pretend that Sakura was asleep and Naruto would win and Kakashi could keep the wolves at bay.

For a few hours and no more, Konoha could feel like home again.

A/N: I hope you guys enjoyed this one! I still feel like it's a bit rough, but I'm not getting any closer with my rewrites. Let me know what you think!

-MN