note: written for SasuSaku-Headcanons on tumblr.
prompt: Sasuke, Sakura, and their lives as footnotes to the world. Their roles in a myth or influence in history.

i.

Don't go out at night, the parents of the village hidden in the leaves will say, for if you do, The Uchiha will snatch you in the dark and take you away. They never specify which Uchiha, but the elder generations of Konoha know just which ones to fear.

To where? the children will ask curiously.

But the parents will only smile grimly and glance out the window. And when the children do so too, they soon avert their eyes for fear of the blood red of the Sharingan possibly looking back at them.

.

Sakura knows better than to expect that anyone could truly ever hold Sasuke, so when she sees him leisurely strolling through the streets of Konoha in a drab black cloak, clearly headed for the village gates, she steps into the moonlight to reveal herself and lets him walk by her.

"This again?" she whispers, mostly to herself.

Sasuke's footsteps stop. He doesn't turn around to face her, but his stopping is enough for her to realize that he expects something.

"I'm not going to try stopping you," Sakura states. She sounds breathless. Her stance is loose. She has no intention of preventing Sasuke from his inevitable and much too easy escape from Konoha's detainment for his near total destruction of the entire shinobi world. "But… please don't do this. Please." She sighs. "Don't make things harder for yourself. For Naruto. For Kakashi-sensei."

"For you?"

She almost flinches.

He turns ever so slightly, mostly peering at her from the corner of his eyes, and it's enough to make Sakura curl into herself. Inside, she rages, furious with the pitiful little girl she's becoming all over again, but she can't help it. Again, she sighs.

"Why are you leaving?" she asks, her desperation leaking out. "Kakashi-sensei is the Hokage now! You know he's doing everything he can to help you. Why are you—"

And suddenly, he is behind her, and it's four years all over again.

Logically, she should know better.

He's going for the neck, she tells herself. He's done it before. Twice before. Move. Move. Move. But she doesn't – she can't. Sakura is frozen and she can feel is warm breath on her neck, searing her, branding.

"Let me tell you a story," Sasuke says. He almost sounds sweet, but there's a hint of bitterness to his voice as his hand creeps along her shoulder to her neck to the side of her face to gently turn her head. She meets his eyes briefly and that's just enough for him to pull her into his world, his mind, his memories.

That night, Sakura finally learns the truth about the Uchiha massacre.

That night, Sasuke finally takes her with him.

ii.

There is a village in southeast Tea Country that speaks of the sudden but brief appearance of a kind, nurturing woman that the children called an angel and the adults called a blessing. She's remembered for her unnatural skills of healing, her lovely pink hair, and the dark-haired protector that followed her every step.

.

On the road, they become friends.

Sasuke, as luck would have it, is pleasant company.

He speaks very little but he certainly listens to everything. His sentences are short and to the point and they are limited mostly to brief responses to her lengthy stories.

And sometimes he even asks her questions.

In exchange for a ride from a farmer with his horses and cart, Sakura offers to heal the man's wrapped leg. An accident with some tools, he explains, that was poorly dealt with. When they find themselves seated between bales of hay following Sakura's easy mending, Sasuke can't help himself.

"When did you begin your medical training?" he asks.

Sakura blinks, almost astonished by the question. "Huh?" Then she flushes slightly and clears her throat. "Er, well…" She shrugs. "Maybe a few months after you left?"

"Were you alone?"

She frowns. "What do you mean?"

"Did you train alone?"

"Well…" Sakura shrugs as she trails off. "Shizune-neechan was there too. She taught me a lot of things. She's an incredible chemist and a poisons master. And then maybe six months after I started my medical training, Ino started too."

"I see."

And then the next day: "When did you do the Chuunin Exams?"

"Um," Sakura begins, thinking. "Well, I competed in the ones the year after we did them."

"Where?"

"Stone."

"Who were your teammates?"

"Ino and Chouji – hey, what's with all the questions?"

"Tch, don't be stupid."

And the day after: "What have you been up to these past few years?"

This one catches her off guard with its frustrating vagueness. "Huh?"

The scowl marring his face makes her wary. "You heard me."

"But I didn't understand you."

He snorts snidely and to Sakura, it's like he's a little genin in the midst of a childish squabble with Naruto all over again.

"What have I been up to…" she drawls, thinking. She shrugs. "I don't know. A lot of training, I guess. I was usually only ever with Ino and Lee-san." She sees the way he stiffens at the latter name and finally understands his questioning. "Oh. Oh." Unable to help herself, Sakura grins.

Her smile immediately puts Sasuke on the defence, and she sees him prepare some sort of snide remark to keep her at arm's length, so she's quick to clear the air:

"It's always been you," she says bluntly, clearly, looking straight into his eyes to make sure he knows that she's serious. "I've been training because all I've ever wanted to do was help you – to make you happy."

He nods and they continue along the way.

.

On the road, they slowly get to know each other once again, but on the day Sakura makes it clear that she's sick of wandering and wants to settle down somewhere, they become Hana, a travelling healer, and Satoshi, her odd job taking companion. They find a medium-sized village in the southeast end of Tea Country that, luckily enough, has been untouched by the Fourth Shinobi War.

Still, the people there suffered their own ailments, so despite their initial distrust for outsiders, Sakura's warm personality and healing hands immediately win them over. The doctor in charge of the clinic immediately hires Sakura and leases the loft above the place to her and Sasuke.

"Home sweet home," Sakura says idly, dropping her backpack with a dull thud. She glances over at Sasuke and finds him still examining their new living space – particularly the one bedroom with one bed.

They've shared beds before, naturally, back in their genin days, even more recently in their wandering days. But those nights always had a notion of temporariness attached to them. This is much more permanent.

Sensing what she can only perceive as unease, Sakura smiles at Sasuke and lays a gentle hand on his shoulder. "We can just share," she suggests, "for now."

"Aa." He stares back at her intensely. "For now."

But they never discuss the prospect of getting another bed or looking for a bigger apartment. Instead, they adapt.

Slowly, Sakura gets used to the fact that Sasuke tosses around at night, clearly plagued by nightmares. Sometimes she gathers him into her arms, gently but firmly to make sure he doesn't hurt her or himself with a flailing limb, and simply holds him. She whispers soothing words and hums lowly until, finally, his thrashing stops and he falls into a semblance of restful sleep, his arms twisted around her.

Likewise, Sasuke learns to fall asleep with the lamp on because Sakura likes to read before going to bed, no matter how late it may be. He opts for wearing a shirt and pants as opposed to a simple pair of boxers because despite her claims that she certainly is not, Sakura is a terrible blanket hog. And he learns to skirt around her in the morning and let the aroma of freshly brewed coffee wake her, because Sakura is never kind to the person that dares wake her in the morning.

They get used to each other.

Sakura simply brushes off the way Sasuke will, without thinking, wrap his arms around her at night and hold her like a vice, while he begins to expect the smell of lavender tickling his nose come morning.

They never bring up the bed situation again.

.

They have rituals.

Sakura wakes up to the smell of coffee brewing and the sound of pots and pans clanging. She tries not to be annoyed by the unwanted wakeup, but is grateful that Sasuke cooks them breakfast. They eat in comfortable silence, Sakura guzzling her coffee and Sasuke sipping his tea, until, finally, Sasuke says goodbye and heads downstairs to work.

Sasuke, without some sort of defined skill like Sakura's, takes to odd jobs around the village, some days fishing, some days building, some days hunting. Naturally, he's proficient at all tasks and is well-received by the villagers.

They fit in.

.

And then one night, their night time rituals still occur despite their wakefulness.

They had both stumbled into bed, exhausted, nearly an hour ago, and now Sakura faces the window, her eyes trained on the line the moonlight cuts into the room. She stays still, caged within Sasuke's strong arms, his face buried in her neck.

What are we doing? she wonders.

She wonders this every night, also wondering how long it will last, why it's even happening, and when, just when, is she going to feel the repercussions for these decisions she's making?

She feels him inhale.

"What are we doing?" she decides to ask. He doesn't answer, but the tightening of his grip tells her he's heard her, so she turns over to look at him directly. "Sasuke?" she whispers.

He looks troubled. "What?"

"Why did you bring me with you?"

Surprisingly enough, he doesn't break eye contact. He doesn't say anything immediately, opting to take her hand and hold it in his own.

She can see it is in his eyes: I don't want to be alone. Not anymore. I'm tired of running – tired of running from you.

So Sakura smiles. Shyly, tentatively, she leans forward and presses her lips against his. It's more chaste than seductive, but it's enough for Sasuke to let go of her hand and run a hand through her hair, holding her close to him.

In the village, they become lovers.

iii.

A famous poem was written nearly a century ago based on a painting of a fair maiden being stolen away by a demon. The artist behind the painting has never been revealed, but his work has inspired many. In this particular one, the fair maiden is seduced by the demon, making the apparent kidnapping a consensual thing. She abandons her duties and follows the demon into the wilderness, but when her family realizes what has happened, they venture into the forest and rescue her.

.

They are trained shinobi who can recognize scouts when they see them, so there's absolutely no surprise when, in her daily stroll through the forest and towards the coast, Sakura is met by the mask of a lion, covered slightly by a black hood.

"Haruno Sakura." Her name is muffled behind the slab of porcelain.

"No," she's quick to deny. "You are mistaken. You may call me Koizumi Hana."

The man with the lion mask tilts his head ever so slightly, challenging her, but Sakura does not falter.

Finally, he relents. "Indeed. My apologies."

This is only the beginning.

.

The man with the lion mask follows her back into the village with little to no subtlety.

He follows her to the market, to the tool store, to work.

.

Sakura keeps the encounter to herself until the man with the lion mask returns, this time more audacious.

He wears a disguise that reeks of genjutsu and enters the clinic, apparently in need of assistance. He does what he can to gain some sort of private audience with Sakura, but his attempts are all thwarted. Sakura patches up his shallow, self-inflicted wound and sends him on his way.

Still, he reappears after closing when Sasuke is on the outskirts of town working.

"The Hokage-sama declared you dead two years ago," the man with the lion mask tells her. "Yet here you are."

She holds her chin up defiantly. "Here I am."

"As I am sure you are aware, as a loyal shinobi of the Hidden Leaf Village, I am bound by honour to report my sightings of you, Haruno Sakura."

"I am."

"But I am sure you are also aware, as a loyal friend of yours, I would never do such a thing."

She can't help it – her legs go out from under, but the man with the lion mask is quick to catch her, supporting her fragile form. Sakura clings to him, grateful and relieved, whispering her thanks over and over until finally they remember themselves at the man with the lion mask lets go of her.

He takes a step back and seems to be observing her from behind his mask of the lion. "You look much less hag-like from when I last saw you. In fact, you appear to be glowing." She can hear his smile. "I take it that whatever fool you disappeared for is making you happy?"

"Very."

That appears to be enough, so the man with the lion mask nods.

"Farewell, Koizumi Hana."

.

Despite Sakura's assurances that Sai would never betray her, Sasuke is eager to abandon the home they've had for the past few years for the sake of their safety.

Naturally, Sakura is quick to follow.

iv.

Although the perspective seems entirely archaic, many believe that a ninja village is considered only as strong as the clans that inhabit it.

Mixed responses come the day the Ninth Hokage expresses his regret over the extinction of the Uchiha clan and the Sharingan, ranging from utter outrage to a shared remembrance for that long lost glory.

.

Dramatics aside, Sasuke never outright states that he'll never return to Konoha.

He doesn't have to.

Sakura simply knows.

Even when Naruto becomes Hokage and Uchiha Itachi's struggles are revealed and Uchiha Sasuke is pardoned, Sasuke is quite clear on his utter distaste for the place he once called home.

They've spent the past year travelling between the safe houses and compounds that once belonged to the Uchiha clan. Surprisingly enough, they weren't as attached to the home they first shared together, but Sakura supposes that's because they've come to learn that home is not a physical space.

But this needs to end.

Sakura is twenty-six and long ago she remembers how she would have blindly followed Sasuke to ends of the earth because she loved him. She still does and maybe she still would, but he isn't her priority anymore.

"We can't keep doing this," Sakura tells him one night. They're in one of many Uchiha strongholds, this one located in the east end of Fire Country along the coastline.

She eyes Sasuke, king of the ashes, possessor of riches and glory but reduced to hiding away so that he may live in some semblance of peace.

"I've followed you for years," she says. "And I would follow you forever, I'm sure, but it's not just about you and me anymore."

Her hands fold in front of her lower abdomen and Sasuke's Sharingan follows the movement.

He's speechless.

"I know we've never had this talk," Sakura acknowledges almost exasperatedly. It's been the two of them for nearly a decade and never have they ever truly addressed their future. They've discussed the immediate few months, but never something so far and permanent as starting a family or what sort of things they'd like to grow in their garden when they grow old together. Sakura's a complete loss as to where his mind is going, so she takes his hands in hers and holds him like a lifeline. "Are you mad?"

"Mad?" he repeats. Then he laughs. He laughs a fully belly laugh and his eyes almost water. He grins, beams, and this is the happiest Sakura swears she's ever seen him.

He grabs her and holds her tightly, pressing her body flush against him.

"I assure you," he begins, "that I am anything but mad."

So they flee as far as they can to protect their child.

.

They decide that they will keep him away from the life of the shinobi, from the possibility of the Sharingan, and the infamy attached to his heritage so that he can live a happy and safe life without the risk of being detected and desired by any of the shinobi nations.

They run away and leave nothing behind but their names and their influences until they become mere footnotes to the world.

fin