When she was 12 she looked forward to those precious days when her father came home.
But she already felt that she was different then.
When she was 14 she often missed him and tried her best to improve herself for him and to make him proud. Because she never believed she was good enough the way she already was. Even when her mother told her otherwise. Her mother was a different story anyway.
Now she is 16 and no longer blind, not only thanks to her current eyes though. She gets things now and is furious.
Just furious when he eats dinner with them as if it would be routine. Strictly speaking it's everything but that.
Her mom is happy that he is home. She always is.
The dinner was made with a lot of tomatoes today. Of cause.
Decently she was sitting on the Table. Straight Back. Strong shoulders. And she already noticed that she was different again. Trying to be perfect again. She bit her lower lip in self-disgust.
She focused her red glasses, like she always does and stroked her black bangs behind her ears.
She felt his glance on her and she started eating instandly.
"Your hair got long." He commented his action.
She looked at him. And just nodded slowly while chewing some rice. She was wearing an angrily tied pony tail today. Her hair reached the middle of her back.
It's not like she wanted to grow it out or something. She was just busy studying so much so she forgot to cut it. She just noticed that she was that much busy studying she didn't even get to see auntie Ino.
She'd cut her hair immediately.
Sarada looked back at her father. "Yours too."
He stopped chewing just to start again the next second. Did that hurt him? Good. She thought.
She was hurt as well. But nobody asked. So she'd never tell.
"Are you applying for the Jounin-exams yet?" He asked then.
She didn't react. On the outside. On the inside her wall started to crumble and she… yes she was disappointed of his ignorance. Ignorance of her Life. The ignorance he actually chose.
"Sara-chan was recommended by Kakashi-sensei to the anbu-pre-force." Sakura said proudly and happily. Not feeling the mood of her daughter.
"Is that so."
He said. Casually.
He said. Emotionless.
She just kept eating.
"And how are your missions going?" He asked. At least it was a question that sounded like one. Yay. More or less.
But she was just more hurt.
"I'm currently not going on missions. I have to study. For the exam. For the Pre-Anbus." She stopped eating.
"You would know that if you would be interested in my kind of stuff not only when you actually are in this house." She said.
Trying to be as calm as he always was.
But she was burning inside. First, because she was furious. Second, because that happened now. She felt sorry for her mother.
He didn't even react to that. At least it looked like he wasn't.
"What about your team then?" He continues.
She stops eating. Lays her chopsticks down.
"My team? Do you even know my teammates? We are all Chunin anyway. We don't get missions as a team that often anymore. Besides, I don't have time for missions since I got applied for the Pre-Anbus as Mama said."
She sounds angrier. And she doesn't really care anymore.
Lie.
She does care. She only wish she wouldn't.
Her mother gave her a look. Well. The look.
"Sarada."
She starts eating again. She really wanted to.
She just couldn't.
Biting her lips and pressing her eyes together, she laid her chopsticks down again.
"Why are you even here Da-. Father?"
She looked at him.
"I don't get it. You came and went for the last 16 years. My whole life, actually. I know your past. The past of both of you. And I still don't get why you are doing this. Well I do. But then I don' be honest. That's not even the point."
She stood up. Got louder.
"You don't know me. Do you know that? I am your fucking daughter.
You missed like my whole life. It feels like you only care about my grades. My Shinobi-rang. And you don't even know shit about that.
Were you ever interested in me as a human being?"
She was crying.
She was angry.
She was desperate.
"I know one thing now. I always tried to make you proud. I always tried to be perfect for you. To be a daughter the so called Great-Last-Uchiha should be capable of.
That isn't me. I am not myself when you are here.
I am 16 for Kamis sake! I'm no longer your little princess. I am not a child anymore! And I hate it! It makes things even more difficult!"
She was screaming. He was looking at her and Sakura didn't know where to look at.
"I just-
I fucking hate you, Dad! It's like… This house doesn't even feel like home when you are here!"
She walked out of the living room, wanted to go upstairs. But stopped at the first porch.
He was still watching her. He didn't seem to say anything though.
She faced him again.
"You know what?" she asked bitterly.
"Not only thanks to your so called precious-blood, no, but thanks to you I don't need them anymore." She took her red glasses and threw them in front of his chair. He looked at them and then rapidly back up to his daughter. Only to see her glaring at him with red eyes he knew so well.
1,2…3 Tomoe included.
She had fully awaken her Sharingan. Because of him.
He thought back to the reasons that caused him to fully awake his Sharingan and clinched his fists. His face didn't seem to show that emotions though.
Sarada went upstairs. Fastly, angry and crying quietly.
He slowly turned to his wife who was nearly crying as well.
He sighed. Maybe sadly, maybe angrily, maybe just because he needed air.
"Did you know about that?" He asked her, trying to stay calm as he picked up the red classes of their daughter.
His loved wife covered her mouth with her tiny hands as she slowly shook her head.
"N-No. I thought she wasn't able to…" She broke off.
"S-Sasuke-kun I'm…" He looked at her.
And he knew that she had known him long enough to read his emotionless look by now.
She started crying.
"I love you" She managed to say between sobs.
He sighed again, but this time his lips were slightly curled up. So slightly, you wouldn't even notice.
He stood up, went behind her chair and placed a sad kiss on her pink crown. "I know, Sakura."
She stood up and hugged him and started to cry more.
"I'm sorry" she mumbled into his chest. He hugged her back and said nothing. He just absorbed her touch. Was old enough to know that he needed her now. Was old enough to admit it.
When he went upstairs as well (too late to describe it as following Sarada), and opened her door, her room was empty.
Empty and cold.
The window stood wide open.
He still went into the room. Sat down on her bed. And waited.
There were a lot of people, who waited for him, because he was special to them. Now it was time that he waited for someone that was special to him. And that someone was his daughter, who had the feeling he didn't care about her.
The window was still wide open. He didn't want to close it. Didn't want it at all. Sarada should know that she was welcomed home. That the door of her home stood wide open. Or the window to her room.
He knew that he did things wrong. That she felt alone and unloved of him. But that feeling was a lie. And it was too late.
But not too late to talk to her.
And he really needed to talk to her. He knew the feeling of being alone. Sasuke didn't want her to feel that aswell. Never.