Author's Note: So I have to admit that I have never been a SasukexSakura fan as those of you who have read some of my other Naruto fics will know. But it has is cannon and I got this idea and decided to run with it. I may come out with another in a similar vein but I'm not sure just yet. We shall see. I have never written a SasXSak fic until now so I hope it is as it should be. I hope you enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or the characters.
Sarada had dreamed of this moment. Dreamed of it so fervently that she was not entirely convinced she was not in a dream right now. It could have been a dream except for one pesky detail. Her mama was as she had always envisioned her. Her idealised version of her mother in such a situation was in fact how the pink haired kunoichi usually carried herself, laughing and smiling contently while they chatted away about everything and nothing. The fly in the ointment was the impassive visage of her papa who seemed incapable of saying anything other than 'ah' and could not crack a grin to save his life.
This was not what she had in mind when she thought of their first meal out at a restaurant together as a family. It was not carefree or easy. It was difficult mostly because her papa didn't seem to be enjoying himself much. And she was not sure of it was more or less annoying that her mama did not seem at all bothered by that fact.
Either way the dinner was over too soon. She had a mission briefing to get to. And so her Papa had paid for their meal, and all three had exited the familiar restaurant together. She was not sure why her parents had automatically walked in the direction of Ichiraku. None of the Uchihas particularly liked ramen but almost like it had been agreed upon without anyone saying anything their feet had led them to the shiny red countertops. They had eaten and left and not once, save a short greeting to the owner Ayame, had her Papa said one word.
"Now don't forget if you're going up north you'll need to take your winter cloak. It will be cold this time of year." Sarada nodded as her mother pushed a few strands od dark hair out of her eyes with a proud smile. The sound of the time echoed out from the train platform near by and Sakura straightened herself. "I had best get to the hospital. Anata, didn't you have a meeting with Kakashi-sensei?"
Black eyes shifted to look at green ones for a second before he turned on his heals and began to walk away. "Ah."
Sakura kissed her brow and then jogged to catch up with her husband. "Stay safe and let me know where you're going if you can!" Sakura called out with a wave as the pair wandered off, both headed in the same direction. Sarada just stared at them in confusion. It did not even look like they were married. They did not hold hands, did not kiss, nothing. They just walked next to each other, and not even that close together. Sure her Papa had told her that he was connected to her mother because of her, Sarada's, existence but somehow that did not seem to be enough. It certainly did not say much about the feelings they had for each other.
She knew they loved each other but she wanted proof! Or rather she wanted proof that her father loved her mother. Her mother was easy enough to read but her father... he was complicated.
Sarada frowned and nearly jumped when a voice chimed in from her right. "Nice to see them together isn't it?"
"Nanadaime Hokage-sama," Sarada greeted with a smile. It was always nice to see the man. He made her smile and set her at ease. She loved her father but she could not always be herself around his silence or brooding. With Naruto she could. It just seemed to come naturally.
The blonde man gave her a cheeky grin and pointed his thumb to the establishment she had just exited. "Wanna join me for some ramen?"
Oh yes, she had forgotten about his particular fondness for the food. Now that she thought about it he was probably the reason every member of her parents team seemed to congregate at Ichirakus. She was not hungry and she had that meeting to go to, so as much as she wanted to sit and have a meal with her mentor now was not a great time. Politely she stated, "I just ate."
He casually waved off her excuse. "Well you can just keep me company then," he said putting a hand on her shoulder.
She looked back to the kages tower nervously. "I'll be late for a mission briefing."
She was surprised to hear him laugh. "Yeah, with me. It doesn't count as late if you walk through the door before I do," he said with a nod and while they both knew that was not true she decided to accept the invitation now before things got awkward. Besides it was rude to turn down an invitation from your kage.
So in they went and she was not surprised to find that just like her parents the owner knew him and seemed to know him quite well. He came here often and if the implication from Ayame was correct, the three sanin had all be frequent visitors of Ichiraku since they were genin. He ordered his usual and settled into a seat next to hers. He rested his elbow on the counter and turned her way.
"Earlier it looked like you had something on your mind. Wanna talk about it?" he asked casually. She was not sure how he did that but she supposed there was not much point in hiding it from him. Normally she would keep such thoughts to herself but with him she felt comfortable enough to admit the problem, albeit in the round about way.
"It's silly," she admitted pushing her glasses back up the bridge of her nose.
The hokage let out a small sigh and shook his head. "Is it about your parents?" She was not surprised he had figured it out. He had witnessed the way she was watching them and had then invited her to sit with him afterwards. No doubt he had known the subject of her worries before he had even opened his mouth to greet her.
"It's weird," she said and then looked down at her reflection in the glossed wood. "They're weird."
It started with a twitch of his nose that wiggled his whiskers. She could tell he was trying not to but eventually humor won out. The hokage titled his head back and let out a laugh that made him grab his stomach and wipe away tears from his eyes. After a moment the gales of laughter died down. "Can't argue with you there," he said eventually, leaning his elbows back on the counter.
"You knew them when they were genin," she started and then turned to him with a pleading look in her eyes. No one wanted to talk about her parents when they were younger, most specifically her father, and she was not really sure why. Everyone smiled when they spoke of Sakura as a girl but they all got quiet when Sasuke was brought up, or the topic of the two of them together in their younger years made its way to the forefront. She figured most felt they had no right to talk about it, but if anyone else did it was Naruto. "Have they always been like... well, that." Her finger pointed to what they had witnessed outside even though she was sure her parents were now well on their way to their respective meetings.
Blue eyes crinkled and then became thoughtful. "Yeah." She was surprised and disheartened to hear that. She had hoped he would set her mind at ease by telling her some far fetched love story where her father had wooed her mother and won her heart through painstaking planning or a grand romantic gesture, not dissimilar to the ones Cho Cho was always discussing. Sarada shifted her gaze away but brought her attention back to the man next to her as he continued, his voice sobering up considerably as he delved into the past. "Your mom, she loved your dad from the very start. It was sort of unhealthy, actually. He was a pompous jerk who ignored almost everyone unless he wanted to fight them." He looked happy and sad at the same time as he thought back on events with a small smile that made the faint whiskers on his face lift. "He was that dark brooding genius type that girls tend to go for when they are really young. At least, most of the girls in our class did. But he never paid them any attention. At first I thought it was the same between him and Sakura-chan but I was wrong. Took me a long time to realise that."
Ayame stopped by with glasses of water, which he accepted with begrudging tolerance. Sarada would have laughed under normal circumstances. She had over heard Boruto say that his mother was insisting that they all start drinking either tea or water and that none of them were happy about it. Even so it was nice to see their Kage trying to stick to his new diet, if it could be called that.
"I realised that even in the small things, he acknowledged her. It may not have always been nice, or in the way she would have wanted but that didn't seem to matter to either of them in the long run. He even went so far as to shield her from danger, many times, something that he only does with those he cares deeply for. She was the first person I ever saw him protect. Then he cut us all out of his life."
She remembered this from the records department. That, and every now and again when adults though she could not hear someone called him the Uchiha traitor. It was upsetting to be sure but she had quickly figured out why he had been labelled as such. "That's when he left."
Naruto nodded solemnly. "Yeah, nearly broke her but your mom was strong, even back then. I still don't really know what passed between them the night he disappeared but what I can tell you is that we both worked hard after that to catch up to him." Blue eyes were bright and she could see there was so much that he could tell her but did not. A great deal must have transpired between them, not just the Uchihas but between the three of them that she did not know of, and there was plenty she knew he was keeping to himself. "She really loved him. It was hard for a while and she tried not to, I think, but it was difficult for her to hide it. You know how your mom is. She's very upfront with her emotions. Even after he tried to kill her-"
He instantly regretted his rambling as a little squeak escaped the girl. "Papa trid to kill mama?" she asked in shock. She had certainly not expected to hear that. Red eyes blazed at the new piece of information that had her more protective virtues on display.
The Kage had the decency to look away sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head with blunt nails. "Guess they didn't tell you that. Sakura-chan's going to kill me," he said as his face fell. After a moment he was back to grinning. "To be fair, he tried to kill all of us at one time or another. Got pretty close a couple of times..."
Her riled emotions calmed a bit and her eyes faded back to black. Sarada thought back to the first time she remembered seeing her father properly. He had pointed a sword at her, scared her half to death and then reached for her with his sharingan spinning. She was not sure if his intention was to kill her but he had initially thought she was an enemy so it was possible he had.
Naruto's voice cut though her thoughts with confidence. "The point is that when the war was over and the dust had settled you dad had changed a great deal. He was still repressed and a pompous jerk who is prone to violence but... it's hard to explain." he stalled for a moment thinking of the best way to express his thoughts. "He didn't see us as a weakness anymore."
That was all well and good but it still did not answer the burning question in Sarada's mind nor did it give her the kind of solid evidence she was looking for. She wanted someone to say that they had seen it, seen more traditional affections pass between her parents that was... definitive for a start. A declaration maybe. She had never even hear her father say he loved Sakura and he had plenty of opportunities to do so. No matter how she looked at it they had a strange relationship, one she did not fully understand. Sarada let out a long sigh. "But they don't really talk. it's not normal."
Naruto shrugged. "Maybe not. We've been friends a long time and I was too young to notice it back then but looking back I can tell you that they were always watching each other. Your mom was obvious about it. Your dad was harder to catch, but still, it was there plain as day if you knew what to look for. They were always aware of each other; still are. Don't ask me how or why but they seem to understand each other without having to say a single word."
She thought on it. It was true, she had seen them act as such many times. With her Papa home more often they were interacting as a family much more and she had to say that they did seem to understand each other. Sometimes they understood each other better than pairs that spoke openly. It was a fact she would need to mull over a bit. This was a new perspective, one she had not thought of and perhaps it would bring in more answers to her questions in time. "And after their travels? After they brought me home?" she asked, truly intrigued.
"It's only gotten worse... or better I guess as they've gotten older. You've seen them fight together. Those two are attuned to each other in a way that's rare."
The young girl nodded. "I see." It was still not quite what she was looking for but she understood what he meant. They had their own ways of doing things and so far it had been working for them. As much as she wanted to hear it, that was not something he owed to her. Only Sakura needed to know how her husband felt in that respect and she seemed quite assured so the stoic man had to be doing something right.
The hokage leaned back as far as the stool would let him. "To be honest I'm just glad your dad found the one woman in the world who loves him enough to learn his weird language," he said with a chuckle at her fathers expense. He reached out to ruffle her hair. "Pay close attention, read between the lines, and watch his eyes. It's hard to see but it is there."
"Couldn't he just learn to speak her language?" she asked. It would be easier on all of them if he could just be more direct, more understanding, more...
The hokage shrugged absentmindedly, as if what he had to say was sort of a forgone conclusion, one that he had resigned himself to many years before. "He probably should but he's stubborn. Sometimes its easier to just accept someone the way they are."
Sarada supposed that was true. At the very least it was something to consider. Her talk with Naruto had given her much to think on and she would do so as soon as this next mission was finished. "Thanks Hokage-sama."
"Anytime Sarada-chan," the man said with a cheeky grin, one she was glad to see as he was often too tired or busy to relax and have some fun. His whole face lit up as a big steaming bowl was dropped down in front of him. Ayame smiled and both watched as their great leader got excited over his favourite food. "Ooooo! This looks so good!" He broke his chopsticks and immediately began to chow down.
It was ages until she was heading home again. She was not sure why that briefing had taken so long. The mission itself was not difficult but it would be arduous. So she was heading home to gather her things and have a quick rest before leaving at first light.
She took the shortcut to her house though the alley way that lead past her bedroom window, which she left unlocked for occasions such as this one. It was late and her mother was usually tired from work. Better to enter without waking anyone. She slid her window open and quietly climbed through. She grabbed the things she needed quickly. Most of them were all in one bag, a trick she had picked up from her mother who had set it up for her upon her graduation from the academy. She just needed to add her winter cloak to the pile. As if her mothers words had been a seal of fate, Sarada was in fact heading up north, a trek that at this time of year would be fridged.
She was about to settle in for the nap she had planned when a thud had her investigating. She silently made her way down the hall, red eyes blazing in case there was an intruder near by. She turned the corner and paused.
Her mother was getting ready for bed, standing in front of her vanity after a long day at work. She was removing her hidden weapons and setting them on the table one by one, a ritual Sarada had seen her preform many a time. The thud she had heard had been her fathers sword falling near the door where he had discarded it. Her fathers broad shoulders were as ridged as ever but this time, instead of walking away he was walking towards Sakura.
Her mothers vanity mirror was not big but it suited a woman of Sakura's needs. The table was covered in medical gear, weapons, and her hi-ate, all of which could be seen in the reflection. But none of that was important. Right now it was showing her something Sarada thought she would never see.
Sasuke's right arm reached out to touch his wife's slim waist and he pulled her back to the bed where he gently settled the tiny woman onto his lap. Sakura had a light blush on her cheeks but smiled with gentle eyes as she turned her head to look at him. "Anata..."
Obsidian orbs closed as he leaned in to rest his face in her short pink tresses. "Sa-ku-ra..." It almost sounded as if he was reprimanding her, which Sarada found odd, but the pleased expression on his face said something else as the medic leaned into his embrace.
"Sasuke-kun." His arm tightened around her waist as he shifted his weight, and action that silently guided his wife to turn her body to face him. Her arms wrapped around his neck. Nimble fingers massaged the muscle there coaxing a grunt of appreciation from him.
Without warning Sasuke's hand, now resting between Sakura's shoulder blades guided her forward for a tender kiss. When they pulled apart Sarada did her best to will away the joyful tears that threatened to give her way. It was there in the mirror as they pulled apart, clear as day, all the proof she had ever been looking for of her parents affection for one another.
The usually cold and impassive visage of her father had been replaced. Love, gratitude, and adoration shone out from his inky depths. He was not hiding anything right then, all the feelings he kept hidden from world laid bare before the woman he loved as he showered her with unspoken affection. The medic seemed aware of what he was trying to tell her for she had the most blissfully content expression.
"I love you too," Sakura said with a grin. Quick as lighting Sasuke pulled her in for another embrace and suddenly Sarada found herself embarrassed. Her nose crinkled in the same way the other kids did when their parents did something gross. Now was as good a time as any to head off. She heard the bounce of the mattress and a breathy giggle and decided she would spend the night at Chocho's. Silent as a shadow she raced back to her room and grabbed her things, quickly scribbling on a piece of scrap paper a couple details of her mission.
As she snuck out of the window she smiled. It was nice to know her parents really did love each other. She was glad to have witnessed some proof. With that in mind she made her way to her friends house. Content in the knowledge that their bonds did exist and were far stronger than she had expected, she would leave the pair to bask in their weird version of love, unspoken or otherwise.
End Comments: I have a few like this where Sarada wants more proof of her parents love. This one I happen to like the most right now. In any case I enjoyed it and I hope you did too. as always reviews are welcome but please no flames. I do not have a beta reader so please forgive any mistakes you may find. I do my best to fix them when I catch them. Until next time!