The Uchiha household was relatively quiet, with only the sound of flour being slapped on the counter. Uchiha Sarada had never made dango before, but she remembered her Papa briefly mentioning that it was her Itachi oji-san's favorite food. It filled her with a childish glee that her late uncle had such a sweet tooth, and left her wondering why her Papa hated them so much.

It was currently four in the afternoon and Sasuke had sent a message to Sarada saying he'd be home by six. Sakura was called in to do an emergency operation at the hospital, so Sarada decided that she would make something for her uncle. She didn't visit Itachi too often, usually only going when her father would be home to take her. When they would go together, she would sit in the grass by his grave, and listen to her father update him on everything that's going on in his life, smiling proudly whenever he'd bring up a new jutsu that he'd taught her.

Sarada knew that her father still had a hard time talking about his past. Since the incident at the last chunin exams, he'd been much more open to talking to her, but she had never asked about exactly what happened between him and Itachi oji-san. He would have a sad smile when he talked about her uncle, and Sarada never doubted that Papa loved oji-san very much. Smiling to herself, Sarada carefully sliced the mochi into equal parts and rolled out perfect spheres, before skewering the sweet balls and plating them.

They look pretty good, she thought, I wonder if oji-san would like them? Setting the plate of dango off to the side, Sarada started to clean up her mess, knowing her Mama would have a heart attack if she saw the amount of flour smeared across every inch of the kitchen counter.

"If I'd known how much paperwork went into being hokage, I might've considered a different path…" Naruto moaned as he rubbed his cramping hand, having signed off almost 200 forms already.

"No you wouldn't," Sasuke retorted as he scribbled a messy "Uzumaki Naruto" exactly like Naruto's signature; the sharingan had its perks after all.

"You're right-ttebayo… How much more do we have left?"

Sasuke looked around him and let out a long sigh. "About six more stacks."

It was almost 5:30 and Sasuke had told Sarada he'd be home by six. Not wanting to disappoint his daughter, Sasuke stood up from his place on the floor. Raising his hand up into a familiar seal, he said, "Kage bunshin no jutsu." With a puff of smoke, three more Sasukes appeared in front of Naruto, each grabbing a stack of papers.

"Wait Teme, why have I never thought of using my kage bunshin to do paperwork with me? That's such a genius idea-ttebayo!"

"That's because you're an idiot."

"Hey! Don't disrespect your hokage like that!"

"Yeah whatever, just shut up and finish your paperwork."

"Kage bunshin no jutsu!"

Three more Naruto appeared and the group of eight began plowing away at the rest of the paperwork.

Sarada wiped the sweat off her forehead and smiled. The kitchen was spotless, the dishes were washed, and Itachi oji-san's dango was ready to be eaten. There was still fifteen minutes until Papa returned. Sarada went to her room and sat down next to her bed. Extending her arms as far as they would go, she reached for a thick book under her bed.

Having Mitsuki here right now would be fantastic, Sarada thought as she ended up stretching her whole body to reach the book. After a few minutes, she pulled the book out and dusted the cover.

The Uchiha Clan, read the cover. She had borrowed this book from the library some time ago and kept renewing it even after finishing the book multiple times. It told of the history between the Senju and Uchiha clans, the rivalry between Hashirama and Madara, the creation of Konoha, the first three ninja wars, and the downfall of the Uchiha clan. Sarada frowned a little when she flipped to the last page.

Shortly after the attack of the Kyubi and the death of the fourth Hokage, Konoha was once again plunged into turmoil. As the village began to distrust the Uchiha Clan, there were rumors of a civil war to be waged between the most powerful clan in the village and the village itself. However, nobody expected that the clan would be betrayed by one of their own, Uchiha Itachi. In one night, the clan was massacred, and only Itachi's own brother, Uchiha Sasuke was spared.

To Sarada, the ending was too abrupt to satisfy her curiosity. While her Papa confirmed that what was written in the book was factually accurate, he had sternly told her that Uchiha Itachi was a hero. There was nothing but good words said about her oji-san from both of her parents. Sarada chose to believe her parents, knowing they wouldn't lie to her, but that didn't mean she lost her curiosity. She wanted to ask her Papa so many questions.

Why did Itachi oji-san massacre our clan?

Why did he spare you?

How did he die?

Why do you love him the way you do now?

She was deep in thought and didn't hear the front door open and close. It wasn't until she heard someone call her name that Sarada snapped out of her thoughts. 6:00 on the dot, read her bedside clock. She felt a warmth in her heart that her Papa had come back exactly when he said he would. She put the book back under her bed, careful not to push it too far under this time, and went downstairs.