End of The Uchias
A/N I never liked the end of the series or the follow on. Sakura was never, in my opinion meant to be with Sasuke. After betraying the village, trying to kill her and Naruto and all the other nefarious deeds the little emo did, she'd be crazy to go back into fan girl mode and marry him, Right? What if it wasn't love that made her marry him but some thing else. This is her story as told by the Ninth Hokage.
I never thought I would be putting these words down in a diary. I never thought that I would put the truth of the "Last Uchia" here but it's something that must be done for future leaders to understand. So, before I turn the hat and robes to my successor I will document the sins of the Seventh, my mothers and myself.
The first thing I noticed about myself and my mother was that we shared no common features, don't get me wrong, I loved the woman and I still do but unlike my friends, there is nothing I share with her. The woman was a mystery, why did she give up her duties as one of the most powerful ninjas this village ever produced? Why did she leave her position as the director of the hospital to raise me and play wife to an ever absent husband? As I was young I wanted my answers and for my sins I got them.
One day after classes I watched my classmate Bolt paint the Hokage Monument in a bid to gain some attention from the Seventh, his father. I always felt close to him but I never understood why and lately those feelings had me confused. So I went to my mother to find out why I felt that way. So I went home and found my mother dusting, she noticed me when I entered the room asking what was wrong.
I remember looking at her and finally asking,"Why are boys so weird?".
Mother looked at me for a moment and asked if this was about Bolt. I nodded yes as she sighed. "I wasn't supposed to tell you until you were older, but I think the time has come", I remember her telling me.
"Sarada, I want you to promise me that you will look after Bolt and keep him out of trouble", she began. As she spoke I had no idea why she had said that about bolt but I let her continue. " You and Bolt can never, ever have any kind of relationship other than as friends, do you understand?" she asked me. I told her no, I did not understand, why couldn't he and I be more than friends. Why was she saying these things to me?
Mother sighed heavily and looked me into my eye and dropped the bomb on me. "Sarada, what I am telling you is an SS class secret, known only to me, the Hokage, his wife and Shikamaru, do you now understand?" I swallowed finding my mouth very dry but quietly told her I understood. "Very well", she continued, " Bolt is your brother, and no, not like you think, he's your twin".
For the longest time the house was completely silent, I could hear the leaves in the wind outside and the sounds of food cooking on the stove. The noise of the clock was deafening and all I could do was stare at mother like she had lost her mind. "Wh...what...no, why, why would you say that?" was what I was all but yelling at her, "You cheated on father? You are in love with him, tell me, TELL ME NOW!"
Mother waited until I was done and out of breath before she finished. Looking at me she said, "It's true that when I was your age I loved your father but that's getting ahead of ourselves. Let's talk about you and your brother okay?" she asked me with a small smile. I nodded, and she went on, " The night before I married your father the man I do love came to me and we made love for what may have been our last time. The next night, my wedding night, your father and I had sex.
I was shocked, made love to another man and had sex with my father? What the hell? How was that possible and how is that idiot bolt my twin brother? All these questions were racing in my head as mother sat on the couch and waited until I cooled down. I was still confused as she began again and tried to explain the things I was thinking.
"When you and Bolt were conceived my body passed two eggs that month instead of one. The first egg was your brother, the second was you. That's how fraternal twins are made, two eggs, one father most of the time but in this case two fathers," she stated letting that sink in, " You and Bolt share a mother but have different fathers, that's why your relationship can never go beyond close friends."
Mother looked at me and took my hands, " Sarada, did you ever wonder why Naruto looks after the two of us like we were his family?"
I looked back at her and said, "I thought that it was because of the way he saw his team mates, I know he calls father his brother in all but blood."
"That's part of it, but for me and Naruto it's more, see, he...he's loved me from the moment he saw me. You know he used to beat up the kids that would bully me when I was a little girl," mother said with a far away look in her eye," I used to be so mean to him because I thought I loved your father more, even when he would say he had no use for me," she whispered at the end.
Had no use for mom? That was news, I'd never heard that before they never mentioned that in the academy when they talk of the hero's of the Fourth Shinobi War. I asked my mother why would father think that.
"Your father suffered a great tragedy as a boy, his older brother killed almost all of the Uchia clan one night leaving Sasuke the only survivor. He wanted your father to live for himself and find happiness, but your father decided to become an avenger instead. It twisted his mind to the point he betrayed the Leaf and his team," I looked at mother like she had lost her mind but it got worse as she went on.
" I caught your father as he was sneaking out of the village, he knocked me out and left me on a bench," she recalled with a small frown, Naruto was put on a team to retrieve him and I begged him to bring Sasuke back. Naruto did, making it a 'promise of a lifetime' as he called it even though looking back it must have torn his heart in two."
Mother went on about how bad Naruto and everyone else had been hurt. Father, she told me had used not one but two chidoris on the guy and he still lived. I was told about the Sevenths three year training trip with the Toad Sage and how much mother missed him. Mother also told me about putting everything she had learned under Lady Tsunade to improve herself in order to stand by Naruto's side.
It was not just to bring my father back that she wanted to get that strong, what she told me shocked me to my core, " Naruto wanted to be stronger to keep his promise to me. I wanted to be stronger to kill the bastard, he hurt all of us and almost killed Naruto. I couldn't let that happen, I was getting stronger because I loved the blond Baka, and I wanted to stand by him as his wife," mother finished.
Mother wanted to kill my father, she wanted to be the Sevenths wife. By now my head was spinning and seeing me like that worried my mother. She got up and began getting dinner ready. At first I wasn't sure the I wanted to eat but once the food was before me I ate more than my fill. Mother told me to lay down and take a nap, that she had something to do, so I went to my room and lay down.
While I slept mother had contacted the Seventh and when I awoke I found him and Lady Hinata sharing sake with my mom. I never knew her to drink but as she had been the Fifth's student it wasn't that shocking. What was shocking was the Seventh pouring an extra saucer with a grim look on his face. I sat down and the drink was offered to me. I looked at mother and she gave her permission so as I took a sip the Seventh began to speak.
"Sarada," he began in a grave tone, "you have been told an SS class secret, one that would destroy the village if found out, do you understand this?"
I was shaking as I spoke, "Y..y..yes, Ho...Ho...Hokage-sama, I...I understand," looking the man in the eye.
Naruto nodded, "Good, now you will be told everything after you take the blood oath, okay?" Again I shakily agreed to the oath.
After the ritual, Naruto began speaking again, but this time it was in the voice that I knew, the voice of my 'uncle' not the one he had used as Hokage. " Your mother, Hinata, Shikamaru , myself and others wrote the books on history that you and others in the Elemental nations use. There is and old saying 'the Victors shall be the ones to write the history', that is what we did here, we rewrote history to prevent future wars."
"The truth is, I made a mistake sparing your father's life. He still walks in darkness, and although he's been 'reformed'," as the Seventh said that he had made air quotes and continued, "He is at best disturbed, at the worst? Insane," he finished with a sigh. I asked how this could be, if he was that bad why let him go without supervision. At this the three adults smiled as if they were in on a joke before mother spoke up and let me in on it.
"Sarada, the reason that he's wandering free as he is is that his team works for the Hokage, Karin is Naruto's cousin and agent. She has the key to put Sasuke down if he ever gets out of control again. There are also blood seals on him that are unbreakable and as he had them placed willingly it would be suicide for him to betray the leaf like he has before," mother explained giving me a smile, "besides, the man is truly sorry for all he has done and the reason he's out there is to protect the Leaf and our allies."
I looked at mother and took all of this in. Father was not who I grew up thinking he was. Granted, I never knew the man and while I wanted to see and know who poppa was before I grew too old I had to accept that it may never happen. "Why is he still gone? Mother said that he had a self proclaimed mission of atonement, surely that's over by now," I asked the Hokage.
The man smiled at me," Never could hide things from you huh? You're like your mom in that respect, she was," he smiled at mother at this point, " and still is one of the smartest people I know, that's one of the reasons I fell in love with her," he concluded.
"Yeah, about that..." I looked at the three in front of me, " How is Lady Hinata okay with this? How can you love both of these women at the same time? This is, this is very confusing to me. I want you, the ALMIGHTY Hokage to explain all this to me," I remember demanding of the Seventh.
Naruto to his credit just laughed and filled my saucer, he told me of all of my poppa's misdeeds, the attempts on not only his life but on mothers life as well. I was told of the endless training, pursuits and heartbreaks while chasing after my father. He left nothing out, if I didn't know these people and see the things that were left from the war and fathers pursuit I would have sworn that it had come from a second rate manga or anime. You know one that strings the reader along for years before throwing all the romantic tension, character building and proclaimed love out the window at the end to satisfy a couple of very vocal and annoying fan groups.
But that was just my imagination, right? I mean who would ditch his long time partner and love interest to marry someone he barely knew? The Seventh had a reputation for being and idiot when he was younger but surely he wasn't that big of one, right? Right? Anyway, my mind was going off track and I had to force myself to the present now so I asked them about what mother said, Naruto making love, father having sex with momma.
Lady Hinata spoke up now, having been quiet all this time, " Sarada, Naruto and Sasuke were offered to be placed in the CRA, the Clan Restoration Act. It's voluntary but some of the past councils tried to make it sound as if it were a mandatory action with no way out," As she explained she took my hand and looked into my eyes, Naruto agreed to it in principle, your father rejected it. The marriage between Sasuke Uchia did happen and after you were born it was quietly dissolved by the Sixth, per your father's wishes."
"WHAT!?" I was on my feet glaring at my mother, "HOW, HOW COULD YOU LIE TO ME?" I was demanding. Mother for her part looked ashamed, "Sarada, you have to understand, while your father proclaimed to want to restore his clan, he understood that madness followed in their wake. Sasuke only went along with our marriage to keep the council quiet. There are... things that we can't and won't tell you until you are way older, but by the time the war ended and we brought him home, the Sasuke that we all knew was gone," she finished.
"He hated the Leaf, he still does to a degree," Naruto filled in, "He's loyal only to me, your mother and the rest of the Rookie Nine, no one else. He agreed to one child, just one, and then the marriage would be dissolved. He chose your mother for two reasons, one he trusts her," the Seventh explained to me as I asked about the second reason, " The second reason is love, but not as in man and wife. It's a family love, just as he and I see each other as brothers he sees your mother as a precious sister. No more, no less, once you were born he held you, gave you your name and left," the Hokage told me.
"As soon as he left and your birth was confirmed the Sixth annulled your parents marriage and you and Bolt were brought back to the Leaf," Lady Hinata finished for the three of them.
"Wait, what do you mean brought back to the leaf?" I asked.
Lady Hinata still holding my hands began to tell me this bit of information, " When your mother was confirmed to be pregnant with twins and told me and Tsunade that she had slept with both men in her life I was asked to look at the children's chakra signatures. I detected both men's chakra to be present. As I was already married to Naruto the decision was made, I, Sakura and Lady Tsunade would go to Suna to have the babies. It was made known that not only was Sakura pregnant but Naruto, not to be outdone, had given me a child too. Suna was chosen because of Naruto's friendship to the Kazekage and that the secret could be kept," as she finished my mother took up the explanation.
"It was to be known that the two of us were in Suna for health reasons and to be away from the stress of my job running the hospital and Naruto's training to assume the Hokage seat. Tsunade was with us to help keep the secret and to deliver our babies," mother told me with a warmth in her voice that I hear only when she talks about me, " Sasuke was kept in the dark about everything though I think he suspects that Bolt is mine and Naruto's. Anyway, you were born and it was easy to convince your father that I had been faithful to him," mother had a sad smile when she told me.
" You two were raised in two different households but you were together as much as we could arrange," Naruto began speaking to me again, " We raised you to be as close to brother and sister as we could without coming out and saying that your two actually were. I, as your godfather, was for more than reasons of friendship. Once I took office your father contacted me, he had found a threat to not only the leaf but all the nations, one bigger than Akatsuki ever was and he was ordered to track it and find out all he can about it," at this the Hokage looked down as he told me the truth about poppa's mission, "I'm sorry Sarada but the chances of your father and team Taka coming out of this alive are slim to none, but he would die a hero keeping the lie to the end."
I had a lot to think about, my best friend and would be crush is really my twin brother, my mother didn't love my father and their marriage was a fake, well it was real once, because of my father not having feelings for momma. Not only that, poppa's side is prone to madness and had anger issues. AND, to top things off the Hokage has put him on basically a suicide mission. Oh, yes, let's not for get the fact that my father is not only an ex-criminal and traitor but that was covered up by the present and past Hokages to prevent a civil war in the Leaf because of his past transgressions and there is other things that I was not going to be privy to if ever. Yeah, that sounded right.
"Wow," was all I could get out, taking one more saucer of sake, "So, I have one last question." Looking at momma I asked " What did you mean Naruto made love and father just had sex?" Momma looked at her feet, Naruto looked like he wished to be somewhere else and Hinata was bright red.
"Well, Sarada, it's like this," momma whispered, "Naruto, when he's with me or Hinata takes his time and sees to our needs first. Think about what you want your first time to be like," I did and to my embarrassment I had a small nose bleed as momma continued, " Multiply that thought by ten."
"Fifty," Hinata whispered as I looked at her in shock, "What? It's true, ask your mother of you don't believe me," she challenged.
Mother cleared her throat, a little blood leaking from her nose as well, " Anyway, as I was saying, Naruto makes a woman feel loved and wanted and has a way of making it feel like a girls first time every time he's with them," mother was saying as Hinata nodded in agreement, "Your father, didn't care about my feelings, he'd kiss me if I was lucky, stick a finger in to see if I was wet," she spat out, with some venom I noticed, " and then if I was lucky he'd stick that short pathetic thing in and if he lasted more that a couple of minutes, well that was a miracle," she said making me more than a little red hearing about my father's, well, shortcomings.
Naruto smirked and added " Sarada, you see he was always in a hurry when he was young. In a hurry to learn a jutsu, in a hurry to fight, in a hurry to be powerful. I guess that being in a hurry is a habit of his," he would of laughed if not for mother hitting him on the head calling him a baka.
I took one last drink of sake, and asked what I was to do now. "Nothing" I was told, the blood oath would prevent me from opening my mouth and momma promised to tell me more of my father and his clan. I said my good nights and went to bed and prayed that things would stay as they were for as long as possible.
About a year later, momma and I got into a fight as I was questioning her decision to let father go off to who knows where. She had gotten so angry she wrecked the house and we had to stay at a friends. As I was gathering things together that I knew were important to her I found that the family picture was hiding another photo underneath. In it were my poppa, two men I had never seen before and Naruto's cousin Karin. What took my breath was the fact that Karin was holding me in her arms as a baby and I noticed Karin and I shared similar features. Even down to the glasses, I looked like Karin Uzumaki and to me that meant the three had lied to me.
I went to see the one man that I had trusted in all of this and the only father figure in my life, the Hokage. I walked to the tower and into his office. As I walked to his desk I asked to speak to him alone indicating the blood seal on my chest. "ANBU, Out!" was all he said and the room was empty save me and him. Activating the privacy seals he asked me what was wrong as he opened a messenger scroll. I told him what I had found in my house and when he laughed I thought he was an idiot like momma always said.
"That, my lovely child is not for you," he said, " that is to protect you and your mother. It was staged in Suna shortly after you were born." I must have looked like a baka myself as he continued his explanation, That photo is a dead end, so that if someone was fishing for info to hurt Sasuke they would target Karin and their team not you or your mother, see that photo was placed there to look like that was the real pic not the one visible.
"And by extension my real family not a caretaker like former fan girl Sakura Haruno," I finished.
Naruto nodded, "You are your mothers daughter, very smart and short tempered," he said while laughing. His face then turned serious, I have a message from your father, he found a viable threat to the Leaf and possibly the other nations as well. I have to meet him, you and one friend will accompany me as a C rank mission. Do you accept this mission Genin Uchia?"
I was shocked but I accepted, finding my best girlfriend ChoCho, and meeting the Hokage and his adviser Shikamaru out side the walls of Konoha. I won't bore you as to the battles we had with Shin and his clones and the aftermath other than to say what was written later was another fabrication of the Hokage and his friends in order to protect my father. While it was written that the Seventh was upset at fathers supposed infidelity it was for show as we had ChoCho there with us as was the myth about mother and father showing great affection for each other.
True, he came home for a while but it was mostly to help me with my sharingan and to enlarge the Uchia clan. Mother was having none of that though, he had requested the marriage dissolved she pointed out. If he was going to stay it would be in the guest room. I spent the next few years learning at poppa's side all of the family and clan jutsu's and getting to know him better. To say that I loved my father was an understatement, I got to know him as a man and as a father. I might add that Sasuke Uchia was a very protective father and I was a very clingy daddy's girl.
When I became a Jonin father came to me and said that he was leaving again, that this time he wouldn't be coming home. I knew what that meant, another threat to the Leaf and it's peace. I also knew that the threat was father. His control had been slipping over the years, part of it was his age and the Uchia curse, but I think part of it was the fact that he knew that mother had found comfort in Naruto's arms and bed. By this time She and Lady Hinata had journeyed to Suna four more times, once for Himawami, another for Shinachiku and the last two times were for Minato and Kushina as well as Jiraiya. The twins were Naruto and Hinata's, the other boys were my brothers but they all lived with their father.
Mother let me in on another secret, father was given a seal to prevent him for siring anymore children. This was ordered by the Hokage, his advisers the Fifth and Sixth, Shikamaru, my mother and the rest of the Rookie Nine. Everyone involved knew how dangerous the Uchia clan could be to the village, any village they belonged to. At some point, their arrogance would begin to erode the general order of things demanding that they run things as they were the 'elite' of the Shinobi world. My father knew that too, and he knew too well that his sons or the sons of those sons would develop those tendencies and he sought to protect the village as he knew how. To confront it as far from home as he could.
When I was in my second year as a Jonin Sensie mother asked me to come to her office in the hospital, she had been coaxed back to her old position when poppa was living with us. I met her there as soon as I could and sat in front of her desk. "Dear, I was given this to give to you," she said handing me a scroll sealed with a gold band, "it involves your future."
I took it and held it in my hand for a moment before removing the band holding it closed. Opening it up I read the contents, looking at mother I lowered the scroll and said, "It's a marriage proposal, some noble from Iwa wants to marry me." Mother raised an eye brow saying, "I thought that's what it was, Iwa and the Leaf have never been known to see each other as equals. They are most likely trying to make closer ties to us with this method," she concluded.
"But why me? Why not one of the other Rookie Nine offspring?" I asked. "Honey it's because of who your father is, as far as the villagers are concerned the Uchia clan is as close to royalty that you can get in Konoha. Besides, the only kids that could be considered would be your sisters and you know about the bad blood between the Namikaze's and Iwa," Mother told me. Sisters, meaning Bolts sisters, meaning Naruto and lady Hinata's daughters and Naruto would be damned if he sent or allowed his girls go to Iwa.
There was one more thing that I had just realized, Iwa would not only want me for the political union but for my eyes, the Uchia eyes or as mother, poppa and Naruto called them, those cursed eyes. I threw the scroll on mothers desk as if it had burned me. She looked at me knowing in a glance what my answer would be. My answer was no, no I would not marry and leave my home village, no, I would not allow an outsider to claim me and live in the leaf and NO, Iwa let alone any other village would never get the sharingan. I decided at the moment that the Uchia clan would die out with me.
Two years after I rejected the Iwa proposal I was called to the tower along with momma and the Rookie Nine. As I walked into the Hokages office my eyes fell on the messenger hawk, it was one that father used to send letters and small gifts to me. Seeing it there on Naruto's desk made my heart sink. The Hokage was crying I noticed, mother and Hinata were on each side comforting him as best as they could. In that moment he looked older than his forty years, older and in some ways defeated, almost broken.
Looking up to see that all of his classmates were there as well as Lady Tsunade and Lord Kakashi and myself he stood and held out the scroll the hawk had brought to him. With a choked voice he looked at us and began to speak, "Team Taka are on their way back, they have sent me this message," reading from it he continued, "The mission has been completed, no viable threats to the safety of the leaf and her allies from this quarter has been assured," taking a breath he continued, "Our leader Uchia Sasuke fell in single combat taking the last threat with him. We are returning to the Leaf bearing his remains and...and...an..." Mother was the one to place her fingers on the mans lips silencing him and taking him into her arms as she had many times before I was born. Hinata hugged him from behind and the members of the room allowed their leader the privilege to cry without fear or reservation.
I was stunned, I knew it was coming, he told me to expect it but it still hurt. Poppa, poppa was dead, he was gone and his team was bringing him home. At that moment I became the last Uchia in the Village Hidden In The leaves, and I was very lonely. Aunt Ino put her arms around me and with that action my tears started, I don't know who cried harder me or Naruto but it was close. I also noticed that everyone of my fathers classmates were also crying to some degree, Kakashi-sempie was just standing there showing no emotion but I knew he would grieve in private later on.
Once everyone regained their composure Naruto spoke again, this time not as a grieving friend but as our Hokage, " Team Taka is returning home with Uchia-sama's body. They will be here in three days. I will make the announcement to the citizens first and then the council..."
"The council should be notified first Naruto," Shikamaru interrupted.
" THE COUNCIL BE DAMNED!", Naruto exploded his eye becoming slitted and red as he began again, "The council be damned to hell for all I care. They are the reason for my brothers misery all his life. They can fucking wait."
The room was still for a bit as our leader gained control of himself, " Sarada, what you hear in this room is to be added to the oath you have already swore to, understand?"
"Yes, Hokage-sama," I replied.
"Very well," he went on, "The council, former council elders and the traitor Danzo Shimura ordered your uncle Itachi to terminate the leaders of a coup de tate against the village and Hokage. They did this under the guise of the Third Hokage. That leadership was your grandfather and the Uchia clan council."
My heart froze at the news, this was why no one that grew up with Naruto or mother respected council members or the council itself. It also explained the sudden deaths of the former elders after Naruto took office.
"In carrying out the illegal orders the emotional stress drove your uncle over the edge and he wound up killing everyone but your father. Shimura and the elders had a back-room deal going with other Uchias to get more outside control of the clan but Itachi fucked that up when he went on his rampage. Because he did his job so well and to cover their tracks your uncle was branded a traitor with a class S designation and a kill on sight order. Your father was fed with lies and whispers to get revenge, most likely in his sleep or in a genjutsu by Danzo's ROOT agents and under the orders of the council," Naruto finished.
"If not for the council and Naruto I would have classed your father as a missing nin with a capture or kill order but Shimura and the elders did all they could to prevent that in order to cover their tracks," Lady Tsunade added, "The council is the bane of this position and look out only for themselves, one day they are going to go too far and a strong leader is going to end them," she finished.
Now for the third time in my life what I thought I knew and what was real were very different things. The only difference this time was that I was older and I had more control of myself. The council did all of this huh? Well vengeance is for those who wait. I pushed those thoughts to the back of my mind and paid attention to what was being said, and that was lots of yelling.
Naruto took control unleashing so much killer intent that even the former Hokages were cowed. "This is not up for discussion, his name will not be on the memorial stone and he will not have a public funeral. This was his decision, made before he left and witnessed by my advisers and his wife," Naruto yelled out giving no intention of talking this out. Ino looked over at momma and asked her if it was true. Momma nodded her head yes it was true.
"Let me explain everyone," we all looked at my mother, she looked like hell, her eyes were red with tears streaking her cheeks and her hands clenched, "Sasuke was not pardoned for his crimes and he did not serve any punishment for them. He left before that could happen, Team Taka were his keepers while outside the village. They were employed as mobile jailers for lack of a better term. Sasuke's 'journey of atonement' was a bullshit excuse for him to duck responsibility for his actions. You all know that even as kids he never owned up to anything and the council reinforced that line of thought. He is not the hero that the council claims him to be and if it were as powerful as it once was Naruto would have been exiled or worse and Konoha would be as Whirlpool is now. So as his widow I am in agreement with my husbands wishes. And that is no tribute, that is his wish and that is what it will be," mother proclaimed, even though they had not shared a bed in almost twenty years and was divorced from him for as long, momma played her part to the bitter end.
Two days later the announcement was made stunning the village. Naruto in his Hokage voice told the village of his last mission fighting to protect Konoha to the end praising him for his dedication and love of the village. What a crock I thought, he hated Konoha, he knew that his charm as the last Uchia had been tarnished by his selfish actions. Only those that had deluded themselves to be blind to fathers actions were upset as all of his crimes and misdemeanors were laid bare. They howled as it was announced by myself, as momma was playing the grieving widow, that father asked to not be placed on the Memorial Stone or be given a pubic funeral. I told the crowds that he would not lie in state and that only family and close friends were to attend the ceremony.
The next day the farce continued. Naruto, the Seventh Hokage, Hero and Victor of the Fourth Shinobi War was summoned by the civilian council of advisers. No council since the war had had the gall to summon the Hokage, especially after Danzo had been eliminated by poppa and here they were trying it out most likely for old times sake.
As acting clan head of the Uchias I entered with the other Shinobi clan heads. Every once in a while one of the Rookie Nine would send a bit of killer intent towards the civilians and I thought why should they have all the fun? One of the councilmen walked up to me to give his condolences and to tell me how much of a insult to my father that he would be denied the recognition of a hero.
I smiled as I took the man's hand into mine and squeezed with all my might giving as much or more KI that had been released that day as I told the man, "Yes thank you. But I remember my father speaking of you lots of times while he was in the village training me," he perked up at hearing this, thinking that maybe my anger at him was a mistake as I dropped the smile and spoke again, " He told me to stay away from you. That you could not be trusted and that you had hurt my uncle Naruto very badly when they were children. He also said that you were only interested in how much status you could gain by being his friend. That you pressured the Third to allow him to be a Shinobi when clearly he was not trustworthy enough. And he said he knew about the fox hunting parties you would organize," at that his eyes grew wide as he lost control of his bladder. I also noticed that many of the senior council members were looking very worried now as the Hokage entered with his wife and advisers, including mother.
"Sarada! Release that...man and remember your place as a clan head. You, get to your seat...NOW!," the Hokage had barked at us two as he made his way to his seat, mother frowned at me as she passed as well.
"Yes Hokage-sama," was all I could muster. The man that I had my fun with just scurried to his without a word.
"Now," Naruto began," anyone care to tell me why my council of advisers summoned me like a dog? Anyone? You there do you know why?" he said pointing at the councilman that I had scared.
"W..w.w...well Hokage-sama, it's about your decision not to honor Uchia-san. It is an insult to his name and status as a Hero of the Leaf," the man said as others voiced their agreement.
"I see," our leader said more to himself than to the council, "even though it was his wish that he not be honored and confirmed by his widow and daughter?" the Hokage asked, "As far as I'm concerned this meeting is over, and let me tell you one more thing, summon me like a dog one more time and this council is history, you are advisers and as of now any power left to you by my predecessors is hereby removed. Oh, before I forget, all that paper work you send to the Hokages desk? You know, reports of lost cats, fences needing painting, the crap you try to bury us under so you can run things your way? From now on, you do it, earn the Ryo that the village pays you. Get out of here, all of you,"
Father was interred in the Uzumaki tomb, Naruto had asked me if I would mind him changing my fathers name to Uzumaki as it was something that they had discussed many times before he had left to roam. Father, Naruto said, hated the Uchia name because of the pain it brought and that he would have taken the Uzumaki name since Naruto's parents were poppa's god parents as his were to Naruto. I readily agreed since poppa had mentioned it to me a couple of times. So, in a tomb that contained people that would have loved him in life father was laid to rest, not as an Uchia but as an Uzumaki.
After a week of grieving momma came to me and placed an object in front of me. While I was looking at it momma asked if I knew what it was. Picking up the small jar I said, "Poppa's eyes?"
She nodded, "Yes, your fathers eyes, he asked me before he left if I would transplant them into you when the time comes...that is if you want me to."
I let out the breath I was holding and very slowly turned the jar in my hands, "When," I asked, "when can we do this?"
Momma smiled at me and said, "In the morning if you wish, Tsunade and Hinata will be helping."
"Fine, in the morning," I realized that I was smiling for the first time in days, I thought to my self that poppa was always going to be with me until I die.
A few years after my surgery I found my mind wandering to my brother Bolt. I had not thought of him in anyway other than as a brother since the truth was told many years ago. Momma had moved on, taking residence with Naruto and Hinata as the Hokage's second wife. Naruto had volunteered for the CRA years ago and he was only now following through with it, it was scandalous at first but the three of them were happy. But what was going to be a scandal was what I was thinking.
As I said, I had not thought of Bolt as anything other than brother and treated him as a close friend. He had been told the truth shortly after poppa's death and he took it in stride but I knew he still longed for me. I was beginning to feel that way too so when I approached momma I was very nervous. I plead my case telling her how much I loved him and how much he loved me. Momma and Hinata sat and listened, as I reminded momma of my decision that the Uchia line would die out with me and that I had my tubes tied in secret. Bolt had also entered the CRA and if I were to be married first I would be matron of his house and would ensure the girls that followed me were the right ones for him. I promised that there would be no children from the two of us.
Bolt and I were called into the Hokages office a couple of days later, there we found Naruto, Hinata, momma and Karin waiting for us. Naruto motioned to us to have a seat so we sat down on the couch. Without looking up at us he kept his head in a scroll he had in his hands but he began speaking to us, "It's come to my attention that you two wish to marry even though you know of your actual relationship, is this correct?"
We both nodded and he continued, not as uncle and father but as leader of the village, " You understand the risks if you have children and of the problems you have if it is found that you are actually brother and sister?"
Again we nodded, I found my voice and told Naruto that my tubes were tied and the chance of pregnancy was non-existent. He nodded, and looked at the three women in there with us and back at us. Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly he looked at us for the first time, "You two have our blessing, Sarada, I trust that you will protect him from himself as you always do?" I nodded and told him I would.
I won't bore you with the wedding, that's a story for another day but in the end I out lived all of my dear husbands other wives and grieved with him with every loss. Mother Hinata passed first out of our parents, I was as heartbroken as Bolt was. A few years later Karin left us in her sleep, Poppa Naruto was just as sad as when Hinata left him. But it was when momma passed in his arms was when I watched as the Seventh and most likely greatest Hokage that the Leaf had ever seen broke down and cried for days. Going through papers Bolt and I found out why, Naruto and my mother had been married since their return from Iron country when they were searching for my father. Momma had been on a long term SSS class mission overseeing the Uchia estate as Karin and Team Taka watched over my father. It had been under orders from the Fifth and Sixth Hokages and Naruto had been read into the mission and agreed to it. For his brother he would do anything, even if it meant being away from his first love.
We talked to him after we had found all this out and asked him about his rejection of mamma's confession. "It was an act, at that point we didn't know who to trust and Sai was part of ROOT. If Danzo even thought that we were together it would have been a disaster. He would have used Sakura-chan against me if he had the chance. We had decided to protect Sasuke as much as we could, our plan was to bring him home alive," Naruto looked like he would break down at anytime, " I want to tell you something Kakashi-sensie told us years ago, always look under the underneath. The story of my life and those of the Rookie Nine, especially my wives, are carefully crafted lies. You two are the only ones that know even a part of the truth. After I pass, then you can know the truth, unless one of you become Hokage," he ended with a grin.
A year after momma passed Naruto resigned and passed the hat to Konohamaru just as he always said he would. I served under him as his Jonin Captain and Bolt served as head of ANBU. Naruto made a fantastic grandfather and later great-grandfather, his Uzumaki longevity serves him well, as it does my Bolt. Kono was a great Hokage not as good as the Seventh but better than the Third, his grandfather. Soon it was time for him to step down and it was a great surprise when I was chosen for the job. Naruto was happy and Bolt was beyond himself.
I took the oath and the job as seriously as my predecessors and made changes based on information I now had as Hokage. My dear husband had some revenge against the former council members that had harmed his father. Bolt, looking over ANBU records was overwhelmed at the number of incidents involving his father. There are no statute of limitations for crimes against a clan head and heir and Naruto held two clan seats. He was as we found out during that time, the last of the royal family of Whirlpool so any assault was considered an attempt on the life of a Diamiyo.
I, gave the okay and Bolt ruthlessly hunted down the persons responsible. Elderly men and women were shocked as ANBU agents stormed their house and took them into the night never to be seen again their assets seized and used to fund the hospital and orphanage as well as other charities that the Seventh Hokage championed. I had my own revenge as I made laws that put all the power in the hands of the Hokage, my father in law was not happy about that, we had kept the raids and revenge from him but we think he knew.
I did do the one thing he had never been able to do, declare Ichiraku Ramen the official food of Konoha and made the original stand a historical site. The old man had passed years ago and his daughter and grandchildren continued the business because of Naruto's patronage and his getting all the kids and grandchildren hooked on the stuff. The declaration of 'Ramen Day' that coincided with the old man's birthday and made my father in law jump for joy.
All in all I think I did a good job as the leader of the village and I passed the hat on to one of Shikamaru's grand children and I leave him and those that follow this journal of my families lives after the war. I kept my promise to my mother and in laws, when I die, the Uchia line dies with me. And since my father was posthumously adopted into the Uzumaki clan and I took my beloved husbands name there are no more Uchias, and I pray there never will be. My name is Sarada Uchia Uzumaki Namikaze and I was the Ninth Hokage of Konoha.