I have to say that I just COULDN'T RESIST your pleas for a sequel showing their kids. I hope you will warm up to them as much as you did their parents.

Suggestions are always welcome.

"He has no friends, Naruto." The hokage could only watch helplessly as Hinata's brow furrowed with worry over their only son Norihiko. The eight-year-old was content to sit alone on the green grass with the marbles they had just bought him while others his age pranced around the playground playing games normal kids would've tried joining at least once. Not 'Riko', though. Was he content to play all by himself?

The playground they were in was recently built for in the school grounds, a gift from the Uchihas. It was ironic, really, as the Uchiha kids rarely made appearances anywhere near it.

"He'll be fine, love. He's probably still getting to know the other kids." Naruto said, putting what he hoped was a comforting hand over his wife's tense shoulders.

She relaxed into him, only to look up at his hopeful expression skeptically. "It's been three months since school started. I think the adjustment period is over-staying its welcome, dear."

He could only sigh tiredly at her as she turned her gaze back to their number one concern for the moment. This obviously bothered her a lot as she had yanked him out of his office just to show him how introverted his son was. "Look, I didn't have many friends at that age either. Maybe if-"

"His cousins hate him." Hinata said in a small, pained voice. He stared at her clear, pale blue eyes, dark hair and pearly white skin- beautiful, but all painfully Hyuuga and no doubt the side of the family she was referring to- before his demeanor darkened visibly. "Naruto?" When his face showed no sign of softening, she faltered. "You have to understand… He's the only light-haired Hyuuga. On top of that, he's also the only light-haired Hyuuga with the bloodline limit."

Naruto turned his glance to Riko. It was true. With his pale blond hair and eyes identical to his mother's, he stood out like a sore thumb among his darker cousins (not to mention his siblings) and was obviously the favorite of the 'Old Man Hyuuga', the head of the clan, the man Naruto hadn't thought would live this damn long. So that was it, huh? They were all jealous. And it didn't help that Riko was the son of the most powerful man in Konoha either. But his cousins hadn't always been this way…

"When did it start?" Naruto asked coolly, feeling his hands clench into fists subconsciously.

"Naruto, I have something to tell you about…"

"What are those?" A small voice piped, causing Riko to jump slightly. The marbles in his hands spilled into the floor.

"Marbles." Riko muttered impatiently, scooping up as many as he possibly could without standing or offering the stranger a glance. He managed to pick them all up to start forming a strange formation.

"They're cool. Can I play with you?"

Tilting his little bond head, Riko cast an appraising look on the only brave soul to approach him and attempt civility. The sight he saw made him catch his breath- he couldn't believe his eyes. "You have… pink hair?"

"Hmmph." The little girl murmured crossly, so used to having people comment unfairly about her hair that it was getting downright annoying. She didn't know that he wasn't trying to tease her hurtfully. She also didn't know that she looked like an angel to him right then; the sun was hiding right behind her head, laying a halo around her chin-length locks and illuminating her pretty little face, giving it a sort of ethereal quality.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you." Riko apologized, any kind of animosity gone in an instant, but she started walking away. He was under her spell now. Being just too young to understand what that meant, he settled with camaraderie as the first step. "You can play with me if you want."

"Really?" The girl turned and crossed her arms haughtily. Amusement lit up his features at the fiery spark her gray eyes had to them. "And why would I want to do that?"

Riko grinned sheepishly. "Because… I seem to have lost my marbles over you."

They had both collapsed into fits of laughter after that.

The sound of their son's laughter mixed with someone else's jolted Mr. and Mrs. Uzumaki out of their violent argument.

"Hinata… do you know who that is?" Naruto asked in indecipherable tones, gesturing to the little girl who had caused the strange outburst of positive emotion from his son.

"Yes. Isn't that… Isn't that Sachi Uchiha?" Hinata's voice was shaky and her eyes red from having shed tears over their argument, but she was grateful for this small form of relief from her bad day. It didn't matter that Sachi was different. The point was, her son had a friend now. Then something occurred to her. "Naruto, did you tell Sakura to do this?"

Naruto kept his gaze on the two figures, huddled together and playing happily, undisturbed. A slow smile spread on his face. "No, actually, I did not persuade her to do this." He looked back at Hinata and suddenly noticed her half-broken state. "I'm so sorry Hinata." He pulled her into a tight hug. "I'll do it. I'll do whatever you want. Just don't look at me like that, okay? It's just a stupid name."

"It's most certainly is not!" Hinata cried indignantly, tables turning in her mind. Naruto was right! They couldn't take that last bit of normalcy from their son. "It's our name-" Naruto smiled at the use of the word 'our' "-and if they think they can take that away from him then-"

"No, really, it's okay Hinata. I don't mind if they want to call him Riko Hyuuga instead of Riko Uzumaki- he's still my son and I will love him all the same. Besides…" Naruto smiled bitterly. "I don't think the old man would have it any other way."

"It's just so unfair." Hinata complained half-heartedly, realizing how easily she had switched to his side of the argument and him to hers. At least I know we still care about how the other thinks and feels after all these years, Hinata thought not unhappily. "Just because he has the bloodline limit doesn't mean he's their property!"

Naruto nodded silently, still pondering, when a brilliant smill appeared again. "I know! Why don't we let Riko decide!"

"No, dear, that's too big to be placed on an eight-year-old's shoulders, don't you think?" Hinata asked patiently. It was in these moments of his pure stupidity that her love for him was tested.

"Mom, dad? What do I have to decide?" Both parents jumped at the sound of their little one's voice.

"Nothing, dear. You're just to decide whether you want Miss Uchiha here to be your friend now." Hinata lied smoothly, ruffling her Riko's already tousled locks and stealing a glance at the Uchiha. She looked so much like Sakura it was eerie. But then, she noticed that gray irises replaced what should've been green. What a strange combination...

"You can call me Sachi, ma'am. Sir Hokage already knows that as well." Sachi told them sweetly as Riko blushed in the background. She was aware that her parents adored the Hyuuga-Uzumaki and she had gotten to know the Hokage on several occasions. It was too bad that they- she and her two brothers- couldn't meet as much people as they wished. Sachi kept asking her parents about that, but she couldn't seem to get a straight answer.

"Hey Sachi. Tell your mother to bring you out more often, will you?" Naruto requested wryly and she nodded. "Where is she anyway?"

"Talking to a teacher." Sachi hid her frown. Her mother would explain later, but she knew that it wouldn't be good.

"I like her, mama." Riko whispered into his mother's ear secretively. Straightening, Hinata smiled slyly at him. He just blushed even more and turned to Sachi shyly. "You're my friend now." Realizing that the bluntness of his words gave her no chance in the matter, he added, "If you want..."

"Sure." Sachi smiled warmly, and they both knew that this would be the first friendship they had ever formed with someone in their age group. "It was nice meeting you, Mrs. Uzumaki."

Realizing that she never gave the girl her name, Hinata became red-faced with shame. "It was a pleasure meeting such a well-mannered young lady such as yourself, Sachi." And she found that she meant it.

"Say hello to your parents for us." Naruto added.

Sachi smiled, and with a last wave to Riko she sauntered off to the direction of her mother.

"Hey honey!" Sakura called, smiling warmly and putting a loving arm around her eight-year-old daughter. She was just walking out of the school when her daughter managed to catch up with her.

Sachi looked up at her mom worriedly. "Did I do anything wrong?"

"No." Sakura sighed tiredly. She steered her daughter towards the street leading to their home. "They just don't understand how amazing you are."

"I don't get it." Sachi whispered, but she did. She was always underestimated for her size, gender, and general warmth.

"Your teacher thinks you cheated during the last exam." Sakura told her blankly, carefully watching her daughter's face for any unexpected reaction. Sachi simply looked hurt and Sakura's heart broke for her baby girl. "But you see, I don't think you did."

"I didn't. Why would they think that?" Sachi asked in broken tones.

"Because you perfected it." Sakura said, grinning in spite of herself. Sachi grinned back. "You little genius freak."

"Hey! You're supposed to be my mother and tell me how awesome I am!" Sachi complained, but she was smirking. Sakura noted that she looked so much like Itachi when she did that.

"I'm afraid your ego will kill your thinking, honey." Sakura told her in a mock worried voice. It was just astonishing how she could talk so easily with her daughter without fear of being misunderstood.

Sachi was a weird kid. When she did something wrong, spanking was never an option. Whenever Sakura resorted to that, Sachi always reciprocated, and the whole day was spent with them spanking each other back. But... if she simply talked to Sachi and treated her like a mature human being, her daughter would feel shame, apologize, and never repeat her mistake ever again.

"Oh, I'm humble, mama. Just not around you." Sachi replied with what she hoped to be a comforting answer. Sakura just laughed at the ridiculousness of it all.

They settled into a comfortable silence, watching as the townsfolk couldn't help but sneak peeks at the mother-daughter pair. From a far one couldn't tell whether their eyes were both green or gray, so they looked like versions of each other. Of course, everyone was also aware by now whose child this was aside from Sakura's- they seemed to be waiting for some kind of outburst of violence that never came.

"So what happens now?" Sachi asked softly, humbly lowering her gaze from the piercing glances directed at her. She had been informed a few years back about how people would react to her by her father himself. He told her that this was all his fault and that she should just try to be patient and as cordial as possible to break their cold fronts. Loving her father to bits, Sachi just couldn't understand how he could do anything to warrant their distrust.

"I managed to convince them to let you take another test, this time with no one else around." They were right by the gates of the Uchiha compound now, and Sakura turned to her daughter and look her right in the eye. "If you ace this one, they will never pester you again. Are you up to it or shall I simply tell them to go to hell?"

Sachi took a few moments to rationalize. "This is the only thing that'll convince them, mama. I need to do this for us, the Uchihas."

"You do understand that if you ace this, you might be ostracized by your peers." Sakura warned, knowing all the hurt and fear that'll come from this choice.

"Bring it on." Sachi suddenly smiled. "It's okay. I made a friend today."

"Oh?" Sakura tried to hide her excitement. She knew how hard it was for an Uchiha to make friends out there.

"Yep. His name is Riko Uzumaki." Not waiting to see her mom's expression, Sachi bounced off to where she heard her brothers' playful banter in within the gates.

Sakura just stared after her with a wonder-filled expression. Uzumaki, eh? Who could've known?