Chapter 4- The Ties That Bond

NOTES: Yes, I ripped off the title for the chapter. It's such a good title though. I've been trying to get back to some Naruto roots here, and that's why I wrote a 7 page long epic fight. These things, along with my additions, have caused me to make slow progress though, so bear with me. For those of you who are weak of heart, this chapter is going to contain some hard core emotional content not for the faint of heart. Be warned.

Sakura sat staring out a window. The snow flew outside, blanketing all the world in snow. It was cold enough that she had to wear a coat indoors. She had left along with Kiba and Sai not three days ago to go to the Land of Iron. She had to find Naruto before it was too late.

Still, she didn't rest easy at night. Maybe it was too much night-time tea. She wondered what her place was, what it was that she was supposed to do to make a difference. She kept thinking back on the tearful cry for help she made to Naruto nearly three years ago. The life she led then seemed like a foreign concept to her now.

Kiba came up to her and patted her on the shoulder. "Sakura we'd better be moving on. If we linger, will never catch Naruto in time."

Sakura's resolve hardened as she remembered her mission. This was no time to mope around. "You're right, let's get going."

…

"So you're Sasuke Uchiha, eh?"The lord Raikage sensed a dark aura around him. Much to be expected, considering his recent involvement with the Akatsuki. "You've got a lot of nerve coming here after hunting down my brother!" A prepared to attack. As Sasuke turned to face him it appeared that a battle would soon break out.

However, a blast came into the room from above, filling the whole room with dust. "You'll have your chance for vengeance soon, Lord Raikage." His voice was rhythmic and made the whole room shake. "But not today." The kages looked up to search for the source of the voice, and saw the destroyer of the Leaf. His eyes were cruel and powerful, as though one mere glance could shoot someone full of lightning.

"You!" The Raikage prepared for another attack. "Leader of the Akatsuki, you ordered the attack on my brother!" The Raikage shouted in rage and his whole body was surrounded by a giant ball of lightning. "I'll give you what you deserve!"

The battle continued for several minutes, with A eventually discovering Pein's weakness. A launched a series of lightning strikes at Pein, then charged at him from behind immediately after he had used his jutsu. However, out of nowhere, a woman blocked his attack with what appeared to be angel wings. Then, with an incredible display of power, Pein pulled together giant beams from the building, causing the roof to collapse. As it did, he trapped the Raikage underneath the materials, rendering him immobilized.

"Now Sasuke, do what you came here for," Pein instructed. Sasuke nodded his head and walked over to Gaara.

"So you're the Kazekage now, huh? Seems you've learned. People will follow anyone with power." He looked down into Gaara's eyes, which were fixed on him. "I have a message for you to bring to Naruto."

"Oh, and what might that be?" Gaara asked cautiously

Sasuke smiled and readied his chidori. He two fought briefly, with Sasuke charging with his chidori. Gaara dodged it and attacked with his sand coffin jutsu. Driven mad by his new power, Sasuke summoned his Susanoo and used it as a shield. Blood poured out of his eye as he attacked Gaara with it. Gaaara held his ground for a while, but without the power of the one tails he wasn't much of a match for him. Sasuke's Susanoo charged in and broke straight through Gaara's sand shield. Gaara was grabbed and imprisoned while Sasuke readied one last chidori.

Just when it looked like Sasuke was about to end the fight, he was pushed back by a force not even he could resist. "That's enough Sasuke, you've made your point." Pein turned back toward the kages. "I am here with a proposal. It's quite simple, really. Join us or die!"

The kages looked at Pein in shock. "You must be quite ignorant if you think we'll join your Akatsuki," Onoki mocked. "Just who do you think you are?"

"We are Pein of course. We are the one God meant to rule over this world. We will untie the world in peace, and obliterate anyone who dare stand in the path of the almighty."

"And people say I have ego issues," A intervened, somehow still conscious. Though restrained, he still didn't seem to hold back with his intimidation.

Pein looked at him cooly, unfazed. "Perhaps you'd like a demonstration?" And with that Pein used his jutsu to pull A's bodyguard toward him and lift him up into the air. With just the two words 'Almighty Push' he crushed his trachea and collapsed his entire rib cage. The shrivelled up corpse that used to be a strong man fell to the ground. Pein didn't seemed I the slightest bit weary from the jutsu, it looked as easy as crushing a soda can.

Mifune sighed and turned to Pein. "What is it that you want? What is your plan for this world?"

"We will create peace," Pein replied. "It's really that simple. We will capture all the tailed beasts, and use them to recreate the ten tails." This caught the attention of the entire audience. Everyone knew well the story of the Sage of Six Paths and how he stopped the ten tails from destroying the world. If it was somehow brought back, that couldn't be good news for the ninja world. "Through the use of this tailed beast weapon, we will stop the world from fighting. Fear will ultimately be much stronger than hatred."

"No one will buy into your plan! " Lady Terumi argued valiantly. "There will always be those who resist you. You can't control the world with fear."

"Of course there will be some who resist," Pein slyly replied, still not even slightly agitated. "No matter how pointless it is, there will be those who try. Some will be dealt with to send a message, but the others will be controlled. You see, not only do we have the rinnegan on our side, but the sharingan as well. Madara Uchiha yet lives, and he will use his ocular powers to control people by projecting has sharngan onto the moon. The entire world will know true pain as they see their loved ones either killed or brainwashed, and thus they will no longer resist!"

The kages were in shock. Madara Uchiha? How could he still be alive? "You're bluffing," Terumi accused. "I am the greatest liar in the ninja world, and I can sense a tall tale when I hear one. Madara Uchiha died hundreds of years ago. And besides, no man could have that kind of power. If Madara's alive, then where is he?"

"Right here." A black figure shot out of the ceiling and landed next to Sasuke, Conan, and Pein. His face was completely covered, save for one eye that stared out at them. The eye of the sharingan.

"It cannot be!" Gaara gasped under his breath. He gazed into the eye. Chills shot through him as he felt the terrible aura of the sharingan.

"Enough of this!" A broke free from his restraints and charged at Madara, preparing to strike a killing blow. Surprisingly, Madara didn't even try to dodge the attack, much less cast any sort of jutsu. He just stood there and watched as A's strike went straight through him. A stood in shock, wondering how he could possibly come up empty.

"Now do you understand? There is no victory here for you." Madara paused to give them a cold intimidating stare. "We will bring a lasting peace to the world that will go unbroken for an eternity. I will become the ten tails' jinjuriki, and with that power I will control everything." Madara glanced around the room. "Now, will you join us, or try to resist us?"

"We could never join such a cause!" Gaara's looked at Madara without fear. The young leader would never give in to such a corrupt cause.

"Then it's war then," Pein replied. Pein looked around the room. All of the shinobi looked on them with hatred on their faces. The same hatred he had seen in the war he experienced as a child. "This marks the beginning of the Fourth Great Shinobi War."

"We'll slaughter you like pigs!" A's anger seemed to still be at boil thanks to his desire for vengeance. "The Akatsuki we'll be destroyed!"

Madara laughed loud enough for everyone in the room to hear him. "Confident bunch. Very well, prepare yourselves! The next time we meet it will be on the battlefield." And with that Madara cast some sort of teleportation jutsu, and the four Akatsuki disappeared before their very eyes.

After a long pause, it was Mifune who finally broke the silence. "Well then, what are we to do about this declaration of war?" This set up a log argument and debate, with all sides arguing about everything; open war, stealth missions, who would lead this, could the others be trusted, and even what type of food would be supplied to troops. Finally, it was Gaaara, the young leader who spoke up.

"Enough!" Gaara shouted loud enough to silence the entire room. Full of determination and a little rage, Gaara addressed the entire council. "When did all of you forsake yourselves? How could you leave the future of the entire ninja world in limbo over petty arguments? They only way we can win is if we stand together! If we don't, we don't stand a chance."

The room fell silent once again. Finally, Lady Terumi spoke up. "The Kazekage is right. We must stand together. Most of the room nodded in agreement, although Onoki sat still."

"Very well, we shall form the Allied Sinobi Forces," Mifune announced. Again the room nodded in agreement. "We samurai of the Land of Iron will also participate in this war. Who will lead the force on the battlefield?"

Again, a great deal of disagreement followed. A, Terumi, and Onoki all argued to be in charge. Finally, the room settled on the lord Raikage, but Onoki was dissatisfied with this decision. "How can I accept such a decision?"

The council took a practical approach into breaking Onoki's stubbornness. They grabbed his walker and bolted it to the ceiling, letting all the blood rush to his head. After an hour, the stubborn old man finally yielded, and agreed to cooperate. At last, everyone was on the same page.

"Very well then, the meeting of the five kages concludes here" Mifune announced.

"What of the Leaf though?" Terumi asked. "With Danzo absent, they haven't consented to anything."

"I'll speak to the one man I trust, Kakashi Hitake." Gaara offered. "I'm closest with the Leaf, they will respect my council in this matter."

"So be it." Mifune turned to the council and shoved a staff into the ground. "The Allied Shinobi Force of all five villages and the samurai's of the Iron is hereby formed. This team will be led by the lord Raikage. We will next meet on the battlefield. Prepare yourselves!"

…

"The Akatsuki are now at war with the shinobi," Madara announced to the others. "It is time for us to decide what our next move is. We cannot fight this was without first securing the other two tailed beasts."

"It would also be useful to locate Kisame," Konan pointed. Kisame's absence had managed to go unnoticed until that point.

"Perhaps he died trying to capture the eight-tails?" white Zetsu offered. "Or he successful captured it and kept it for himself." Black Zetsu added.

"He remains alive, can feel his presence," Pein added. "We can only assume he was unsuccessful in capturing it. It can't be helped, he was instructed to escape alive. We have another plan for the eight-tails."

"What of the nine-tails though?" white Zetsu asked. "He's under close guard by the Leaf, it will be difficult to reach him." Black Zetsu laughed at his other half. "Scared to get our hands dirty are we?"

"The matter of the nine-tails has already been taken care of," Madara assured. "We will have a shinobi familiar with the Leaf infiltrate and capture the nine-tails jinjurki. And for good measure, we'll make sure he's permanently killed after the beast is extracted. We can't have another Gaara, we need to make sure we finish the job this time."

"And who would you suggest for such a job?" Konan asked. "You can't possibly be considering sending Kabuto…" It was no secret that she didn't trust Kabuto much. It seemed all too convenient that he just happened to show up when the Akatsuki needed him.

Kabuto seemed to show no offense to this comment. Rather he turned to Madara, looking for an answer. The others quickly followed suit. Madara turned to Sasuke, who caught his glance. "Sasuke, how would you like to infiltrate the Leaf, and get your revenge by exterminating the Naruto?"

A twisted smile formed on Sasuke's face, madness written all over it. He looked on with interest. "Nothing would please me more."

"So it's decided then." Madara turned to the rest of the Akatsuki. "Sasuke will secure the nine-tails, and Kisame will capture the eight-tails. Once those two are secure, we will proceed with the plan. Until then, you are all dismissed."

Suddenly, Pein waved him off, signalling for everyone to remain where they were. His eyes widened as he turned to a corner of the room. "We aren't alone!" He used his jutsu to blast a hole in the ceiling, revealing a man pale as ash. He wore a headband made of shiny steel. On it was an insignia… the insignia of the Leaf Village. "He's a Leaf shinobi!"

Sai quickly pulled out a scroll. An eagle emerged and charged at the Akatsuki, spreading it's wings and keeping them from being able to pursue the intruder. Pein pushed it back with his jutsu, but when he pushed it back into the man, he fell over and disintegrated into a puddle of ink. The man had been nothing more than a clone.

"Damn it!" Pein swore. "What are we to do now? They'll know we're coming!"

"Good." Madara's response surprised the entire group He seemed calmer, rather than panicked. "Let him go. He won't tell Naruto about our plans. If they do, the truth will tear him apart."

…

A ran through the snow as swiftly it could carry him, along with his guards. Where the hell had B gone off to? Who did he think he was, going off into the wilderness like that when the whole village thought he was dead?

"My Lord Raikage, I see something up ahead."

A looked forward, and sure enough a giant sphere of water appeared in the distance. "We need to head there, now," A ordered.

They tracked down the sphere of water to an empty grove in the forest. Once there, they saw B battling with a shark-like monster. The monster charged at B, who dodged but was clearly running out of gas. His half-assed counter barely would've harmed a fly. A sensed the urgency of the matter and charged in. His guards quickly pulled B out of the water as A used his lightning to send shockwaves through it.

Kisame, unable to handle the electricity, was forced to release the jutsu and send water flowing off into the forest. While he was distracted, a sent a lightning blade through him, causing Kisame to collapse. Only, it wasn't Kisame. A white Zestu clone appeared in his place.

Frustrated from a pointless fight, A released all his anger on B. He lectured him for his irresponsibility for what seemed like several hours. At last, A sighed. "We need to take you some place safe," he said to B. "The Akatsuki will be after you. Go find Naruto and bring him to the Cloud along with Kakashi and Yamoto. We have something important to discuss."

…

"Are you sure?" Sakura knew what she had heard, but she could scarcely believe it.

"Without a doubt," Sai assured her. "Sasuke intends to kill Naruto and capture the nine-tails for the Akatsuki. He used his fight with me to send a message of just how powerful he has become."

Sakura looked down, trying to accept this reality. How could Sasuke become so twisted? Naruto had once been his closest friend.

"Sakura." Sakura looked up at Gaara. His face looked empathetic and sad, as if Gaara understood what Sakura was feeling. "Sasuke has been lost. He is no longer the teammate you once knew. You can't save him."

The team looked on Sakura with concern, but she was surprisingly calm. She looked up at the team with nothing but determination on her face. "We have a mission to carry out." Her eyes were so fierce they could've been ablaze. Sakura turned to Gaara. "We have to find Naruto."

Gaara nodded. "I also have business with Naruto, as well as Kakashi. I am told the two are traveling together."

"Will you come with us then?" Kiba asked.

"No." Sakura's resolve hardened again. "I need to speak with him first. Alone. You all should wait here, I'll send them to you when I am finished."

"Sakura you can't go alone in the sn…" Kiba began, but her gaze stopped him. Any argument seemed pointless, no one could stop her. "What will you do?"

"I'll do what I should've done a long time ago." And with that Sakura disappeared by herself into the snow, leaving the others behind.

…

Being on watch was so boring. Naruto hated waiting around for things to happen, he would rather make them happen. Everything Madara told him made him feel a sense of urgency he couldn't contain. To make matters worse, he had agreed with Captain Yamoto and Kakashi sensei to not tell anyone about what Madara had said until they decided it was the right time. All the conspiracy stuff about Itachi, could that really drive Sasuke to join the Akatsuki?

Naruto stared out in to the snow. It was falling pretty heavily now, making the area dark. The lights around the cabin they were in were lit, almost as if it were the pitch dark of midnight, even though the sun had not quite set yet. As Naruto watched the snow fall, he thought of Sakura, probably half a world away in the Leaf Village, winding down from a day of training. With her old sensei dead, she was training with an old student of Tsunade's. Naruto tried to recall his name. Coin perhaps.

Thinking about Sakura made him smile. There wasn't one person in the world he was happier around. More himself around. Sakura brought out the best in Naruto, always motivating him to do bigger and better things. She had always believed in him, and he fed off that faith.

He really, truly loved her. And because of that, he held the promise he made to her all those years ago more dearly than anyone could possibly imagine. He remembered her tear covered face, crying for Sasuke to return. He would do anything to bring him back for her. To bring Sasuke back home.

Something moved in the distance. Naruto sat up to make sure he wasn't imagining thing. He saw it again. It was moving towards him. A white silhouette, moving across the snow like a ghost. He called for Yamoto and Kakashi, who came to his side immediately, prepared to defend against any threat. As the figure came closer, it became clear that it seemed to look somewhat familiar. The robes the figure war were embroidered with the Leaf insignia.

"Show yourself!" Yaamoto ordered. "Who are you?"

The figure pulled off the robes covering it, so that her face and signature pink hair were visible. She looked up at them. As she stared into her eyes, there could be no doubt who stood before them. "Sakura, what are you doing up here?" Naruto asked in disbelief. He jumped down to her. "Come inside it's cold out here."

Sakura stood there, not showing any indication of being cold. "Naruto, I need to speak with you, just you." Yamoto and Kakashi looked on at them, unsure what her intentions were. Still, they trusted her so the disappeared back inside the cabin.

"What's this about Sakura?" Naruto asked. "You come all this way, alone and in the snow. This must be important."

"You're right, it is important." Sakure hesitated, choosing the right words. "Naruto, I've been thinking about things a lot lately. About how Sasuke's gone, and how the whole world is beginning to change." Sakura looked down at herself and then back at Naruto. "We've changed a lot too, haven't we?"

"We have," Naruto agreed cautiously. He had absolutely no idea where she was going with this, half expecting to get punched for something he didn't deserve, or perhaps at least only kind of deserved.

"Naruto, when I think of Sasuke, I realized I don't care anymore. I don't feel a thing for him, because he's not relevant in my life anymore." She paused, blushing a little bit. "Someone else has stolen my heart away from him. Someone who has always been there for me, and would do anything for me."

Naruto was not exactly smart with this kind of thing, so he was still completely oblivious to what was going on. What did she mean she didn't care about Sasuke anymore? He remembered once again how devastated she had been when he left. Had she really moved past that?

"I suppose you wouldn't have noticed since you were gone so long. The whole time you were gone, I missed someone so badly my heart would ache. But it wasn't who I thought it was. No, it was someone else!"

"Oy! You can tell Kiba we had a deal!" Naruto snapped. "How could you fall in love with Kiba after all we've been through?"

A flicker of rage crossed Sakura's face. She punched him so hard he fell head first into the snow. Realizing she had probably gone too far, she dug Naruto out, who had become unconscious. Perhaps Yamoto and Kakashi had been wrong to trust her.

Naruto looked so peaceful when he was asleep. She had never noticed it before, but he had always slept with a smile on his face. This time, it gave the impression that he was happy she had hit her. Whatever world he was in now was all his own.

Sakura had confessed her feelings for him. The two got married, and on their wedding day, Kakashi read the vows He was such a good minister. Sasuke was the best man, having seen the error of his ways and returned to the village. And on the wedding night, oh man that was special. When she took off her shirt…

"Naruto!" Sakura woke up Naruto with a splash of water. She seemed a tad bit worried. Such a shame, she had interrupted the best part. Still, those concerning eyes of hers made him feel guilty somehow. Why couldn't he do more for her, be more for her?

Sakura was looking away her hair covering her eyes. "I'm sorry that I hit you." Naruto was in shock. Never before, not a single time, had Sakura ever apologized for hitting him.

Naruto looked at her, and lifted her chin so he could see into her eyes. "No, I'm sorry. I was an idiot, and you were telling me something important right?"

Sakura looked away and nodded, blushing once again. "Naruto, I…" she paused for quite a while, with no sound but the crackling of the fire. She seemed frozen, unable to finish her sentence. Just as Naruto began to ask her again, she turned and kissed him.

The warm feeling of Sakura's kiss sent Naruto into heaven. It was everything he had ever hoped it'd be, and then some. Time seemed to stop as the entire world vanished except for the beautiful thing in front of him. As they pulled apart, Sakura gave him a sheepish smile, and blushed once more. "Naruto, I love you."

Naruto was still unable to process what had just happened. Eventually, he found his words. "So you came all the way here to confess your love? Are you sure this is the right time?"

"Now might be the only time. Naruto, the Akatsuki are after you. They want the nine-tails and they'll stop at nothing to get it. Sasuke's even a member now, and who knows what they'll have him do.

So Sasuke was actually an Akatsuki member then. It seemed crazy that he would join an organization like that. Still, it was odd that Sakura had confirmed that information to him. She had been in the Leaf this whole time. Or at least, that's where she said she was. She didn't seem even slightly bothered her long time teammate was working with the enemy. Something wasn't right.

Saskura embraced him, and pulled him close. She kissed him again, and then rested her head in his chest. "Naruto, I've given up on Sasuke. You're the only one I love now. Please don't throw your life away over some silly promise you made to me so long ago. It doesn't matter anymore."

Naruto's eyes opened wide in sudden realization. He pushed her away and gave her an angry glance straight in her eye. "How dare you play with my emotions like this? How can you lie to me, tell me you love me, when you really love Sasuke? How can you break my heart by telling me the words I've wanted to hear my entire life, only for them to be false? How can you lie to yourself and make yourself believe that this is the way you feel?"

Sakura was stunned. She had not expected and outburst like this, and stood there in shock for several moments. The shock gradually turned to sorrow, and tears rolled down her eyes. "How can you question my feelings for you, after all we've been through. You mean the world to me, Naruto, and I can't lose you the way I lost Sasuke." Tears were streaming down her face in desperation now. "Please don't leave me here alone!"

Naruto's expression softened as he saw the emotional wreck Sakura had become. He hugged her as she cried herself out. "Sakura, do you really love me?" Naruto asked.

"I do," Sakura insisted. She tried to gather herself and regain her composure as best she could.

Naruto stepped back and gave her a sympathetic glance. "I can't go back on my promise. I won't. I would do anything in the world for you Sakura, and I know what you want more than anything is Sasuke. Even if that isn't what you feel now, or what you think now, it's what you really want. I would go to the corners of the earth to find him for you. And that's exactly what I'm going to do."

Sakura seemed frustrated now. "If you'd do anything for me, then listen to me. I don't want you to bring back Sasuke anymore. The promise we made doesn't matter anymore. Please Naruto!" She gave him a desperate glare similar to a man on death row begging for his life. "Come back to the village with me. Forget about Sasuke!"

Naruto didn't seem to believe this. He looked on at her with his arms crossed, disbelief all over his face. "You know, as long as I've known you, all I've ever heard you talk about is Sasuke. You've turned me down countless times, and each time it hurt a lot more than you can believe." Naruto looked down at the snow as he remembered his childhood. He remembered chasing Sakura, doing his best to show his feelings for her, only for her to reject him and run to Sasuke over and over again. His heart began to ache at the thought of it.

"Why would you love me now, after all this time? You always ignored me, completely disregarding my feelings so that you can be closer to Sasuke." Naruto paused looking out into the snow. It was falling steadily, but somehow it seemed fitting. The wind had stop blowing, leaving only the quiet of the snow as it slowly consumed everything. "There was never space in your heart for me, Sakura."

For a moment, guilt flashed across Sakura's face, but it was gone so quickly that it was hard to tell if it was really there at all. The feeling was replaced by rage, as Sakura's face hardened. "If you don't care about me, then I'll head back to the Leaf myself!"

Naruto tried to intervene. "Sakura…"

"No, I'm done. You took my feelings and dismissed them as false. You're going to get yourself killed on this stupid Sasuke quest!"

"Sasuke's my friend!" Naruto argued. "There's still good in him, and I will save him."

"He's trying to kill you!" Sakura shouted out at him. She looked guilty immediately after saying that. She probably shouldn't have told him that, but she did. Naruto's face was covered in shock. "The mission he has been assigned by the Akatsuki is to capture the nine-tails, and kill its jinjurki host." She turned her back to him, trying to make him understand. "If you want to go pursue a reckless mission like this fine. But you'll have to do it alone." She started to move away into the snow.

"Sakura wait!" Naruto grabbed her arm, trying to stop her.

Sakura was unable to speak, her back still faced toward Naruto as she looked off into the snow. It was at least a foot deep now, and still it fell just as before. Her voice shook as she finally spoke. "Leave me alone, Naruto. I'm going." She pushed his arm off and started walking off again.

Naruto ran after her and grabbed her arm again. "Sakura…"

Sakura was clearly losing her resolve now as she tried to fight him off. "Let me go!" she shouted. She kept trying to break away and as she did Naruto restrained her, until finally she collapsed on the ground and began sobbing.

"Naruto, I'm sorry!" she said much more faintly through her tears. This was no longer the usual Sakura with her strong will and powerful energy. Sakura's will seemed to be completely broken as she lay there in the snow. "Through all those years I ended up hurting you, not even realizing it. I don't know when I started loving Sasuke, maybe it was when we first met. I'm sad now because that team will never be together again. I'm sad because Sasuke won't ever come back. And most of all, I'm sad because I don't love you the way you love me. You've always been kind to me, Naruto, and all I did was break your heart."

Naruto looked at her and saw the kind of weakness he never expected to see for Sakura. "Sakura, it's okay." She gasped, surprised by his willingness to be so forgiving. Her tears momentarily stopped as he grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet. She looked into his eyes, and was shocked at how familiar they seemed. That same stupid idiot who stopped at nothing to embarrass her was there in front of her.

"How can it be okay?" she asked him. "You've never been good enough for me, all I've done is make you miserable."

Naruto hugged her. The suddenness of his hug made her feel confused. Such a warm, tender response from a person she had done nothing but hurt. "You've been Sakura, and that's all I can ever ask for," Naruto said with a smile on his face. "There's more to what's going on with Sasuke. He feels betrayed too, and I still believe I can bring him back. And when I do, it'll be for you."

Sakura pulled away from. "And despite all of that, you still love me?" She searched his face for any hint that he might be hiding something beneath that same stupid grin, but as always, Naruto's cheerful appearance was sincere.

"Always," Naruto answered with a smile.

"Idiot."

…