Where I Belong

By: Alice Burton

Prologue

"You're not forgetting anything, right?" My fiancé, Karin, asked as I was finishing packing my suitcase with everything I needed for my flight back to Konoh. My hometown. "Toiletries? Credit cards? Passport? Clean underware?" She says playfully reminding me of the things I'd likely to forget whenever I travel, as I sealed my travel bag shut and locked it.

"Yes, mom. I've already doubled checked everything in my bag." I said to her with a grimace on my face. God, how I hated to be reminded twice. Not like I don't appreciate what she was trying to accomplish here, but damn, I am not a child anymore.

"Sorry." She giggled and wrapped her arms securely around me. "It's just that... You'll be apart from me and I can't help but feel lonely." She spoke as if this would be the last day we'll see each other, but I knew she was just exaggerating things. It's just for the weekend really.

"It's just for three days." I reminded her.

"Three long days!" She couldn't stress those words enough. "Do you really need to go to that reunion of yours? Why not just miss it? Or better yet, take me along with you?"

I shrugged her request off for the nth time this week. Don't get me wrong, Karin is a great person to be with but sometimes there are times that I want to be by myself. To be myself.

It seems Karin got the message and stopped being clingy. This is what makes Karin and I compatible. We get each other without having to say what we think. We understood each other. That is why she'll make a perfect wife for me. She is perfect. Although some-especially Suigetsu, would disagree. Saying that:

'Being compatible is great and all but where is the love, man?' qoute and quote by Suigetsu himself.

Love.

Where the hell does he get these stuff from? Even Juugo which was supposed to be the most leveled headed person in the group also ended up agreeing with Suigetsu. Agreeing with Suigetsu?! The same guy who had his teeth craved into sharkes teeth because it seemed like a good idea to do it. Man, and here I thought no one was dumber than Naruto. The same Naruto that had his face tatooed with whiskers on Halloween night back when we were in junior high school. Because he wanted them to look real since he was supposed to be the Nine-tails Fox God. On second thought, no one was dumber than Naruto. That's when I knew that both Juugo and Suigetsu have gone seriously crazy. Is love the only thing that keeps a relationship going? I don't believe that's the case. You can live with a partner even without including love in the equation. As long as the two of you have a mutual understandment with each other then that is good enough for me. Yes, it's good enough for me. Love is nothing but trouble for me, really. Nothing good ever comes up whenever love is involved. It's a nuisance. Just when you thought every thing is going to be better then suddenly, when you least expected it, when you are in your most vulnerable moment. It hits you. It hits you really hard. It doesn't give any exception to anyone, not even me. That is why I hated it. I refuse to acknowledge it. It doesn't exist. Karin also feel the same. And that is enough for me. Whatever this is between me and Karin have is enough. Yeah, its already enough.

"Alright. Alright. Just..." Karin spoke again as she was fixing my collar. "Just call me as soon as you get there. And also... come back home to me as soon as your reunion is done, alright?" she said appearing quite sadden since I would be leaving her in a couple of minutes.

"I will." I promised her and kissed her lightly on her red lips. "Don't let Suigetsu do whatever it is he wants while I am gone. And make sure Juugo keeps a close eye on him as well. I also want you to call me whenever something is up." I spoke to her and she gave me a nod in return. Although I am her fiancé, I am still her superior when it came to work related problems. And it seems Karin doesn't let personal problems interfere with work which is a plus in my book. Karin is a professional which makes us very much compatible with each other. So who cares if the relationship between the two of us is platonic. If we are happy then its no ones goddamn business.

"I'll see you in a few days." I say to her and kissed her again. As our lips part she looked at me as if there was something she was going to say but then shook her head and just smiled. "I'll be just a call away if you need anything." she said and took a step back giving me room to maneuver my bag to roll to my side. I nodded to her in return and left.

Truth be told, I never really planned on going back to Konoha after I got my Master's and Lawyer's degree and had passed the boarding exams. To me, Konoha never really felt like I belonged there. Sure, I was born and raised there for most of my life but it never felt like home to me. I made connections there and there are colleagues from my elementary to my university days. Though I never made any attempt to reconnected with any of them after I suddenly left Konoha. Especially to Naruto. It was as if I severed all ties with all of them after I got my lawyer's licence and boarded the first flight to Oto. My reason for leaving Konoha and living in Oto was simple, really. Oto's Akatsuki Law Firm. Ever since I was little, I always dreamed of working for this top notched law firm all my life and follow behind my elder brother, Itachi's footsteps. Everyone who knew me back in Konoha knows this.

For two and a half years of living in Oto and working for my dream job, you'd think by now I would feel homesick? Actually, I love living in Oto as much as my own hometown. To me, Oto is a place where I don't have to live under anyone's standards. Where I don't have to worry about reputations and all those stupid shit that everyone in Konoha expect me to do. Konoha was a prison. So you can't really blame me if I never wanted to go back there.

So why am I riding first class on the first flight back to Konoha? Two words: Haruno Sakura. For some reason-despite my change in contact details, she somehow figured out how to get a hold of me. My guessed it had something to do with Itachi. Damn bastard. She called me suddenly and demanded that I should try-no, that I should be at the reunion she and Ino had planned for months. To bring the gang back together and just talk about old times. Of course, I declined her the first time but she kept on calling me again and again. Stubborn person as I am, I never falter at her advances and kept on declining her. And after when I thought that she gave up in asking me, she suddenly mentioned about Naruto. Something about him she mentioned made me reconsider my decision in never setting foot in Konoha ever again. She never really told me what exactly was up with Naruto and that he was still the same person he was since elementary school. But the way she spoke of Naruto was somewhat had this unsettling feeling as if she was trying to hide something from me. Naturally, I didn't want to have anything to do with Naruto but the two of us had been through alot together. And as much as I don't want to admit it but, to me, Naruto became like a brother I never really wanted but still want him to be. It's kinda funny really when I think about it. I hate Naruto. I hate him because I can't really hate him as much as I wanted to hate him. It doesn't make sense but that is how I feel whenever I am around him.

The two of us are like two opposites sides of a magnet. Like oil and water. But for some reason we connect perfectly like two jigsaw puzzles to complete a whole picture. There wouldn't be a Sasuke without a Naruto and that goes the same for the other. I don't actually know when or how it started but all I know is that the person who is more affected and is probably hell bent pissed of me leaving is him. Without a doubt.

So when Sakura mentioned something about Naruto despite her attempt in trying to sound cheerfully as she spoke of him, I couldn't shake this feeling that something was up. That something was definitely up with Naruto. I try to not really think about it too much and Sakura did say it was nothing, but damn it, I just couldn't shake this odd feeling that Sakura was hiding something about Naruto.

So here I am trying not to stab myself for not having more self-control with myself. Cursing myself as I think back that maybe somehow Sakura was just using this 'something is wrong with Naruto' thing with me. I could vaguely remember she had done something similar back in highschool.

"This better be worth the trip." I grumbled as I waited for the plane to finally arrive and land on Konoha. This was going to be a long weekend.

Preview of Chapter 1:

"Sasuke..." she started to sob at the mention of my name and held onto me tightly-holding on to me like her life depended on it, like she once did two and a half years ago.

Really, Sakura... are you doing this on purpose? Are you trying to guilt me for what I did to you and Naruto? Because if you are then it is working like a charm.

Alice says:

Thank you very much everyone for taking your time in reading the start off chapter of my debut story: Where I Belong.

I know I may not be the sharpest tool in the shed when it comes to word play but I do try my best. I just hope I don't confuse anyone with what I wrote here.

Please look forward for the next chapter.

(=^ω^=)