Sakura couldn't sleep.
The hospital was quiet, save for the soft hum of chakra monitors and distant footsteps. She lay awake in her apartment, staring at the ceiling, Naruto's words echoing in her mind.
When I get back… can we talk?
Her hand pressed lightly against her chest.
"Idiot," she whispered.
Why now? Why after everything—the war, the losses, the years of pretending she didn't notice how Naruto always stood between her and danger?
A knock interrupted her thoughts.
She froze.
No one knocked this late.
Sakura slipped from bed, kunai in hand, and approached the door. She opened it—
—and Naruto stumbled inside, bleeding.
"NARUTO!"
She caught him before he fell, arms instantly steady, heart racing.
"Hey, Sakura-chan," he rasped. "Guess I came back early."
His jacket was torn, blood soaking the orange fabric.
"You're an idiot," she snapped, already glowing with medical chakra. "You were supposed to be leaving tomorrow!"
"Yeah… plans changed…"
She laid him down on the couch, hands moving expertly, but they trembled despite her control.
"Who did this?"
Naruto smiled faintly. "Someone strong."
Her jaw tightened. "You promised."
"I said I'd come back," he murmured. "Didn't say I wouldn't make it dramatic."
She wanted to punch him.
Instead, she healed him.
Green light bathed his skin, sealing wounds—but not the ache in her chest. When she finished, she slumped beside him, exhausted.
Naruto looked at her quietly.
"You were scared," he said.
She didn't deny it. "I'm always scared."
Naruto reached out, hesitated… then gently took her hand.
"I don't want you to be," he said. "Not because of me."
Her breath caught.
"Too late," she whispered.