Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Retrograde

Chapter Four

Voices quietly echoed through the halls of the Uchiha hideout and his head snapped up. His eyes narrowed as they grew louder as the intruders got closer to his location. He glanced back at his unconscious brother before standing, hand hovering over the hilt of his sword. But it drops away the moment he recognizes their chakra signatures.

Sasuke relaxed against the stone throne behind him again, tired. He hadn't realized how stressful it was going to be seeing Itachi again. Although he'd long since accepted what his brother had done to protect Konoha and its people, and Sasuke especially, it still hurt whenever he thought back on every single interaction he'd had with him. And to see him alive again in the flesh, to undo Itachi's death, it's almost more than he can bear.

He forcefully dragged his gaze away from his brother as Naruto walked through the doorway first with Hinata at his side. "If we weren't used to dealing with your genjutsu, Sasuke, we wouldn't have gotten in here, you know," he said with an annoyed scowl. "You made it way stronger than you told my shadow clone you would!"

"That's because Zetsu was lurking somewhere outside, loser," he answered distractedly.

"What!" Naruto relaxed almost instantly and went still as he went into Sage Mode, his eyes now orange-red with crosses for pupils. He and Hinata began searching for the creature, but Sasuke ignored them. All of attention on was focused on Sakura.

His wife stood in the doorway staring at him with wide, unsure eyes. Sasuke frowned at her in confusion, not liking what he saw. She seemed wary of him, like she didn't quite believe he was standing there in front of her.

Something about seeing that look on her face made him sad.

"Sakura?"

Her green eyes quickly swept over him before lifting to meet his gaze. A mixture of wariness and hope stared back at him and a lump formed in his throat. "Sasuke," she breathed. "You're here."

"Of course, I am," he returned softly. He took a hesitant step closer to her, resisting the urge to reach out and grab her and hold her tight to his chest. "Where else would I be?"

"Not here," is all she says, and it makes his eyes sting.

Sasuke lifted his arm and waved for her to come closer. "Sakura, come here," he said firmly. Once she was close enough, he gently poked her on the forehead. Her face flushed red and her eyes grew wide as she reached up to touch the spot. And almost immediately she launched herself at him, wrapping her arms tight around his waist.

"Sorry," she mumbled into his chest.

He hugged her back, gently pressing his face against her hair. The comforting scent of Sakura's favorite shampoo mixed with a little bit of sweat filled his nose and he tightened his grip on her. "It's okay," he reassured. "I understand, Sakura."

Her fingers dug into the fabric of his shirt as she vigorously shook her head. "No, it's not, Sasuke," she disagreed. "I should know better. It's just…"

She trailed off, but he could very easily guess what her next words were going to be. It was plain to see on her face with the way she looked at him before. He could only imagine what was going through her head, the painful mix of emotions and memories that his current appearance had stirred up from their past. Sasuke understood completely. It was the same for him when he looked at Itachi.

But he knows that she can find a way to cope. And knowing his wife, she'll deal with her mixed-up emotions about him long before he'll ever sort out his own about his brother. For all he knew, Sakura would probably figure something out before they'd even returned to Konoha.

She's stronger than me after all.

Sasuke rested his head against hers as he carefully worded his response. It was most likely going to piss her off, but he would much rather have her angry at him than at herself. He tightened his arms around her and closed his eyes tight as he prepared for the worst. "I can pick a fight with Naruto on the way back to the Leaf like we did after the war if you'd like," he suggested casually as Sakura tensed against his chest and tried to break from his tight grip. "Or we can remove my arm right now and say it happened during my fight with Itachi."

She punched him firmly in the gut, making him wince and bite at his lip to keep from shouting out. "No! Don't you dare even think about doing that to yourself, Sasuke Uchiha!" she cried out, glaring at him. "As a doctor and as your wife, I'd never let you do that to yourself. That's not the problem and you know it."

He smiled softly, pleased. "I do know," he agreed, liking the new spark of emotion in her green eyes. "And I won't. I was only worried about you."

Sakura searched his gaze and her expression softened as she sighed against his chest. "Your terrible plan worked. Happy now?"

"Yes. More than I was before."

They stand there quietly for a moment, arms wrapped around each other as they listened to each other's breathing. Sakura pulled away first, pressing a kiss to the corner of his mouth. "I'm going to check on Itachi," she murmured, turning all her attention onto his brother.

He turned to Naruto and Hinata only to look away as they shared a kiss. A beat passed before he walked over to them. "Well?" he asked.

"Zetsu's gone," Naruto told him. "We couldn't find any trace of him just now and we definitely didn't sense him when we arrived."

Hinata nodded her agreement. "And the old team you put together wasn't out there either," she added, reaching into her shuriken pouch. "But we found this."

Sasuke took the folded sheet of paper she offered him. He quickly scanned the haphazard scribblings, noting that the hand of whoever wrote the note was shaking near uncontrollably. "Hn," he snorted, crumpling it up and dropping it at their feet. "Seems I scared them off. What about Kisame Hoshigaki? I assume he wasn't out there either."

They shook their heads. "There wasn't anyone out there when we arrived. Only that note," Hinata told him, pointing at it.

"Will he wake up on our way back to the village?" Naruto asked.

He followed his gaze to see Sakura kneeling beside Itachi's head as she healed his eyes. "No, he won't," he answered, watching her. "Only if I lift the genjutsu. It's too strong for him to dispel on his own. And I doubt they'll be able to get him out of it or enter his mind since I used my Rinnegan."

Naruto nodded before throwing his thumb over his shoulder in the direction of the doorway. "Good," he said, briefly meeting his gaze. "I'm going to go check on Kakashi-sensei and the others real quick. Hopefully he stopped them from getting caught in your trap." He quickly pressed a kiss to Hinata's cheek before jogging out of the room.

Once he was gone, Sasuke turned to her. "Can you look at my eyes?" She nodded, and he went over to sit at the base of the throne, activating his Mangekyō before she could ask. Hinata kneeled beside him and wordlessly activated her Byakugan.

He silently watched her search his eyes, reminded of the last time she did this. Of how she'd taken the time to sketch the chakra pathways of his eyes and compared them to those of her sister and father's Byakugan and the lack of them in Sakura's to show him the difference. The intricacy of the dōjutsu had surprised him, with his being much more complicated than the Byakugan and the pathways of her family's dōjutsu unique to each of them. Naruto's great aunt had taken one look at her drawings and was immediately sure that they would be able to do something so he could keep his eyes.

They had performed the seal mostly successfully, but now the only thing left was to make sure his eyes were the one's he'd had before.

Hinata glanced over her shoulder at Itachi before looking back at Sasuke. "Your eyes are the same as before. And they're the same as your brother's, too," she told him, tipping her head toward him.

Sasuke nodded slowly, relieved. "Good," he sighed, "Means I'm not going to go blind."

"It also means that the only problem with the seal is related to our chakra," she said, tucking her long hair behind her ears.

He frowns, but isn't surprised. "I noticed I didn't have all of mine," he told her. "More than half, but it's not a problem. All I have to do is gather more."

"I didn't lose any, unlike the rest of you. Sakura lost some of the chakra in her seal and only the yang half of Kurama is sealed within Naruto again," Hinata said, surprising him. "I think you and Sakura lost chakra because you'd both used a lot of it right before the jutsu was cast even though Naruto gave you some of his."

As she says this he thinks back to before they had cast the jutsu and he remembers pouring a lot of chakra into his Susanoo in order to catch Sakura, whose seal had been fully activated, before fighting the Ōtsutsuki she had been dealing with.

"Sasuke..."

He looks up to see Sakura's pinched expression as she chewed anxiously at her lip. "It's Itachi..."

Sakura bit at her lip, eyes downcast, as she pulled her hands away from Itachi's chest. She took the time to carefully fold his arms to rest on his stomach as she avoided her husband's gaze.

"What about him?" he asked.

She squeezed her eyes tight as he got to his feet, his slow footsteps loud in her ears as he came closer. Fear churned in her stomach as she tried to sort her suddenly jumbled thoughts. She didn't want to tell him, not after he'd come one step closer to getting his brother back after all the pain and sadness that he had faced.

It was going to hurt him.

Sasuke's hand gently came down to rest on her shoulder and she choked back a sob. "Sakura," he whispered calmly, "What's wrong with Itachi?"

She forced herself to take a deep breath and bury the overwhelming desire to not tell him. To spare him from the pain. "He's very ill…"

His hand stilled on her shoulder for half a second before gently encouraging her to turn to face him. Confusion and uneasiness stared back at her when she met his gaze and the dread came back to form a heavy pit at the bottom of her stomach. Sakura pulled his hand from her shoulder and tightly squeezed it between both of hers to comfort them both.

"What do you mean? I thought you were healing his vision…" Sasuke's eyes slid away from hers to land on Itachi beside them.

Sakura coaxed him to sit, her hands still tightly wrapped around his. "And I did," she reassured him, watching as his expression slowly became devoid of emotion. "But when I checked for other injuries…I found his internal organs in very bad shape."

"How bad?"

"I can't heal the damage completely. But if I make some medicine to slow it down and further ease the pain, then maybe—"

"Sakura." She flinches at his sharp tone and he softens. "Just tell me, Sakura," he pleaded, tightening his hand around hers. "I need to know."

She sighed and pressed her forehead against his, forcing him to look at her. "From what I'm able to tell Itachi has been terminally ill for awhile and it's spread across his vital internal organs," she murmured softly. "He's been taking something to slow it down, but I don't think he has much time left. If I make some medicine I think I can heal him some with constant treatment...but beyond that—" She shakes her head. "I don't think there's much I can do."

Tears are streaming down his face by the time she finishes, and Sakura knows she's crying too. She didn't want to tell him, to cause him this pain. Her pain over her own momentary inability to separate the Sasuke who had left her behind and the Sasuke who was now her husband was nothing compared to what he was going through now. She desperately wishes that she could heal his brother and completely take away his sickness, but it's beyond hers or even Lady Tsunade's abilities.

But she will do everything within her power to help Itachi.

"But I swear we'll find a way to completely heal him, Sasuke," she promised, pulling him closer, "I swear."

He nodded, tightening his hold around her waist as he pressed his face against her neck. "I know."

The warmth of his tears spills across her skin and she held him close, threading her fingers through his dark hair. Soft whispers drew her attention and Sakura's eyes quickly swept across the cold stone walls of the room. Naruto and Hinata stood in the doorway discussing something and judging by their expressions it was serious.

"What's wrong?"

They paused at the sound of her voice and turned to look at her. Naruto crossed his arms, his expression serious, and Sakura was reminded of when she'd watch him and Hinata help Fumiyo with the fūinjutsu. "We've been in here too long. Kakashi and Captain Yamato are starting to get worried," he told her. "They think an Akatsuki member was the one to put up the genjutsu trap and has captured us."

"Then let's go," Sasuke grunted, pulling away from Sakura. "Naruto. Come help me."

Naruto shot her a questioning look and she shook her head. He frowned, but stepped forward anyway. "Sure, Sasuke."

Sakura joined Hinata in the doorway to watch the boys each sling one of Itachi's arms around their shoulders. Sasuke's expression was neutral at best, but she could tell he was really upset. Naruto definitely knew and probably wanted to ask. But Kakashi was worried. They couldn't stay here anymore.

"Is he going to be okay?"

She bit at her lip, glancing at Hinata out of the corner of her eye. "He will be. I'm sure of it," she told her, unsure whether she was trying to convince her or herself. Hinata nodded and offered her a small reassuring smile in response.

Once they were ready, they made their way out back out of the Uchiha hideout. Almost immediately they spotted the rest of their squad with Kakashi standing at the front with his Sharingan uncovered. He stood the closest to the edge of the genjutsu trap's barrier with his back to the others as he desperately searched for a way to penetrate it. Sasuke dispelled the trap once they were close enough and relief immediately spread across their sensei's face before quickly transforming into shock and confusion.

"Hey, sensei! Look!" Naruto called out excitedly as he wildly pointed at the two Uchihas beside him. "Look who we found inside!"

Kakashi rushed forward with the others close on his heels. "Sasuke! What? I thought—" He gestured toward his unconscious brother and seems to struggle for words. "What happened?" he finally settles on.

"Kakashi," Sasuke greeted, "It's been awhile."

"Sasuke…" He froze and Sakura can tell he's finally noticed his mismatched eyes. They stand there in awkward silence until Kakashi visibly shakes himself and pulls his hitai-ate down again. "So. That genjutsu was you then?" he asked.

Her husband nodded once. "Yeah. I didn't want my fight with Itachi interrupted."

"I am surprised you did not kill your brother. Did you not have the intestinal organs to follow through?" Sai asked, completely oblivious.

Sakura winced, unable to resist the urge to face palm. She'd forgotten how blunt and socially awkward Sai had been. He'd been more sensitive to other's emotions and much better at reading social situations in the years after the war that it had completely slipped her mind that he'd be like this again.

"It's guts, Sai. Guts," Naruto stressed before shaking his head. "But that's not important right now. Sasuke's decided to return to the Hidden Leaf and he's bringing Itachi with him!"

Kakashi looked to Sasuke for confirmation and at his nod, he pulled a blank scroll from his pouch and quickly wrote a note for the Hokage. He sent it off ahead with Pakkun before ordering them to move out. They traveled as fast as they could back through the trees to Konoha, wary of whoever else could cross their path and cause more trouble. Naruto and Sasuke carrying Itachi between them were in the middle of their group with everyone else flanking them at all sides.

They'd only stopped once to rest before making the rest of the trip home. No one spoke the whole way back despite the mission being a success. Sakura was sure everyone had thought it would end in failure with Itachi dead and Sasuke still refusing to return to the village despite doing what he'd sworn to do.

But that was before, and this was now. They'd completely and truly altered their past. The future was uncertain now, but that only meant everything they did going forward from this point on could lead to changing the terrible future they had come from. In a way, they had completed the easy part of the unspoken mission Lord Sixth had given them. But that only meant the hardest part was now to come.

They had to remain vigilant from this point forward and never let the destruction they'd witnessed come to pass.

It was almost midnight when they finally reached the main gate to the village. Lady Tsunade stood at the front with Shizune and a handful of chūnin and jōnin at her side. A stern expression was painted across the Hokage's face as she ordered the shinobi at her side to seize Itachi and bring him to T&I for questioning. Sasuke readily handed his brother over to them only for him to be grabbed as well.

Anger bubbled up inside of Sakura and she leapt forward to stop them only to be grabbed from behind and her arms trapped at her sides. "No, you can't, Lady Tsunade!" she yelled out, struggling desperately against Naruto's iron-tight hold. "You can't do this! He's done nothing wrong, shannarō!"

Sakura slammed her head backwards, but Naruto dodged her strike at the last second, tightening his grip on her. "Sakura, you need to calm down," he hissed into her ear as she continued trying to break free.

"Let go of me, Naruto!" she screamed. "You know just as well as I do that Sasuke's innocent!" Stopping them from taking her husband and locking him in a cell for no reason was her only priority and she wasn't going to let anybody get in her way. She lifted her foot up with the intention of splitting the ground open, but ended up stomping at air.

Naruto had her lifted completely up off the ground, his face pressed against hers, as they watched as chakra suppression tags were put on Sasuke. "He'll be fine, Sakura. Granny Tsunade isn't going to hurt him."

"I don't care! You know he—"

"Sakura, we're not alone," Hinata whispered urgently, suddenly standing in front of them. "We know how you feel. But there are eyes on us."

She quickly scanned around them for the first time. Everyone was watching the three of them with a variety of expressions on their faces. Kakashi, Captain Yamato, and Shizune were sending her sympathetic looks and the Anbu and other shinobi that came from T&I were on edge, ready to move in at a moment's notice. And there was remorse and pity on Lady Tsunade's face as she looked on.

"Sakura." She met Sasuke's gaze and he shook his head once. "Don't."

A frustrated sob escaped her, and she nodded, all the fight leaving her. "Okay…"

Sasuke sent her a reassuring smile before turning his back to them.

She watched helplessly as they led him away, ignoring and hating the looks of pity everyone around them was sending her. Once he was out of sight, Naruto finally released her and she started walking.

"Where are you going?" he asked, but she could hear the real question behind his words. Are you going to try and break him out?

She shook her head without looking back as she realized just how physically and emotionally drained she suddenly felt. "I'm going home to get some rest," she called out tiredly. "It's been a really long day..."

Naruto sighed to himself as he watched Sakura disappear around the corner of one of the buildings. He understood her reaction just now, but it wasn't going to help any of them. If he hadn't stopped her, he was sure she would have blown their cover in her effort to keep Sasuke out of another cell.

He didn't want him locked up either, but he'd seen Grandma Tsunade when she saw his Rinnegan. Shock and distress had immediately flashed across her face before turning wary and he knew Auntie Fumiyo had saved Pervy Sage from Pain. She'd seen the kind of destructive power the Rinnegan possessed through whatever injuries Pervy Sage had and his great aunt's firsthand account. Even though he didn't agree with the decision, Naruto understood Granny Tsunade's decision and he knew it wasn't one he could fight against without revealing things that he couldn't possibly know.

He sighed again and said goodbye to Sai and Captain Yamato before making his way through the village. Everywhere he turned the buildings and roads looked different but not at the same time. It was strange but heartwarming to see Konoha like this again though. The last time he'd walked through these streets more than half of the village had been in ruin filled with tents and makeshift buildings built from Captain Yamato's Wood Release. But to see everything the way it was before everything that happened, before Pain's attack, before it had been properly rebuilt after the war, it sent a strong feeling of nostalgia through him.

"Glad to be back, Naruto?" Kurama asked, startling him.

Naruto stopped in the middle of the road and tipped his head back to look at the Hokage Rock. A smile spread across his face as he looked at the familiar stone faces watching over the peaceful village and he nodded. "Yeah," he said softly. "I am. Now we'll be able to stop those Ōtsutsukis before they even get the chance to make a move."

"That's true, but not what I meant," the old fox said dryly. "I was talking about your Master being alive again."

His smile grew and he nodded vigorously. "Yeah, Kurama. I'm really excited to see him again." But then his smile faded, and he brought his hand up to rest on his stomach where the seal lied. "I'm sorry about getting you locked up again."

Kurama opened his eyes just enough to peer at him through the bars as he entered his mindscape. The old fox let out a huff of breath that sent the water underneath his feet rippling. "Don't apologize, brat," he said, closing his eyes again. "We discussed this before you even finished the seal."

Naruto nodded with a sigh. "Yeah, we did," he agreed.

"Now leave. I'd like to finish my nap," Kurama dismissed him, sending out a gentle wave of chakra that pushed Naruto out.

He chuckled at the old fox's erratic behavior before turning and making his way home. Before he knew it, he was standing in front of a set of unfamiliar buildings in one of Konoha's residential areas. A glance toward the Hokage Rock and the wall surrounding the village let him know he was at the right location but his house wasn't here.

A warm hand slid into his and he glanced down to meet Hinata's pale eyes. "I made the same mistake," she whispered, threading her fingers through his.

"I just thought of home and forgot," he said, pulling her in close.

They quietly stood there on the deserted street wrapped in each other's arms. It had been a long time since they'd last had the quiet moment like this. Everything had just gone to shit in such a short amount of time. Every waking minute had been devoted to either making the seal or protecting what was left of the village. Naruto almost couldn't remember the last time he and Hinata had the chance to be like this.

He gently cupped her face in his hands and pressed his lips to hers. She gasped softly in surprise before returning his kiss, her small, slender fingers tugging at the fabric of his jacket to pull him closer. Naruto pulled away first and pressed his forehead to Hinata's as they stood in the abandoned street.

"Do you want me to go with you tomorrow?" she whispered as she reached up to stroke his cheek.

Naruto shook his head once. "No. I think I'll be okay," he told her. "Besides, you'll probably have a training session with Neji that you can't miss."

She nodded silently in agreement as she pulled away. "I should go before my father sends someone to look for me," she murmured softly before pressing another brief kiss to his lips.

He watched Hinata walk back down the narrow street until she turned a corner and disappeared. A quiet sigh escaped him without his permission as he turned to walk in the opposite direction. His small empty apartment awaited him on the other side of the village and he really didn't want to go there. He briefly considered turning around to look for his great aunt's house and staying there but quickly scrapped the idea. If anyone happened to go looking for him, it'd be hard to explain the situation without casting suspicion on himself or Aunt Fumiyo and that was the absolute last thing they needed.

It was bad enough Sasuke got locked up already.

As he climbed the stairs of his apartment building, his every movement felt sluggish and heavy. Naruto hadn't realized just how tired he was. It was more mental than physical though. He felt like he could run and fight for days on end, but his mind definitely wouldn't be able to keep up.

A yawn forced its way out as he dug into his pocket for his keys. He finally found them after some searching and unlocked the door, stepping inside the familiar space. The door shut behind him with a quiet click as he stifled another yawn and chucked off his shoes.

Naruto made to walk further inside but stilled. He drew his arm back, forcing the spring-loaded mechanism to activate, and threw the kunai that readily filled his waiting hand. Instinct took over, quickly pumping adrenaline through his body, and he sent a handful of shuriken flying as he leapt at the intruder.

The intruder catches his kunai and dodges to the side at the last second, the three shuriken hitting the wall where their heart was with a muted thud. Moonlight illuminates the silhouette of the person standing in front of him and Naruto lands short of tackling them to the ground when he sees her pretty red hair. Relief flooded through him as he relaxed from his defensive crouch, dropping the shuriken in his hand back in his pouch.

"Auntie," he sighed as he stepped closer to her. "It's just you."

Fumiyo chuckled and hugged him tight to her chest in a near suffocating hug. "Of course, it's me, boy. Now. Let me look at you," she murmured, gently guiding him to stand in the dim light coming through the window. "Oh," she cooed, her cool fingers framing his face. "So handsome and so, so adorable."

He grinned in embarrassment as his cheeks grew warm. "I don't think I look that much different, Auntie."

She playfully pinched his cheek and drew him into another smothering hug. "Despite the circumstances that brought us here, I'm glad I got to see you like this," Fumiyo sighed, her voice slightly tinged with sadness. Whatever embarrassment Naruto felt washed away at her words and he tightened his arms around her. He was glad, too. Now they'd be able to catch up on some of the time they had lost.

"Why were you hiding in the dark?" he wondered aloud. "The neighbors aren't shinobi."

"No, they aren't," she agreed, gently guiding him to sit beside her at his small dining table. "I was going to wait outside, but Iruka seemed to have the same idea as me when he heard your team had returned."

A frown pulled at his mouth as he stared at her in confusion. "Why would Iruka-sensei come see me this late at night?" he asked.

She sighed, pushing her bangs out of her eyes, and he noticed the sling securing her arm for the first time. "For the same reason I'm here now," she told him as she gingerly took one of his hands in her own. Her tired purple eyes met his and she sighed again. "I saved Jiraiya from Pain, just like I promised you I would," she began, fingers curling tightly around his. "He…he was already in really bad shape by the time I'd arrived..."

"But Pervy Sage's alive, though, right?!"

Auntie Fumiyo vigorously nodded her head. "Yes, yes, yes! He's very much alive, Naruto," she quickly reassured him, wide purple eyes frantically sweeping across his face. "Jiraiya's lost an arm and has quite a few stab wounds from all the chakra receiver rods that hit him. Some internal bleeding. But Tsunade and all of the doctors and nurses at the hospital have taken very good care of him."

He's had worse injuries than what she's described during his entire shinobi career and he knows Master Jiraiya has suffered worse at both his own and Granny Tsunade's hands. But the worried look in his great aunt's dark purple eyes doesn't make any sense. He doesn't understand why she's looking at him like that. If he's alive, then there shouldn't be anything to worry about.

"But then why did you and Iruka need to come see me right now?"

Her hand tightened around his and a pained look crossed her face. "Because we wanted to you to be prepared before you went to go see him," she whispered.

He stilled in his seat as his heart beat frantically in his chest. "What's wrong with Pervy Sage, Aunt Fumiyo?"

"All the trauma Jiraiya sustained caused him to fall into a coma and they don't know when he'll wake."

Her eyes suddenly went wide, and she launched herself at him, wrapping him tightly in yet another suffocating hug. He doesn't understand why until he feels the hot tears streaming down his face and a sob tears its way from his throat. Naruto grabbed desperately at the back of her haori as she tried to comfort him. "He'll wake up, Naruto," she swore, "Jiraiya's too stubborn to die in a peaceful way like that. And besides, Tsunade won't let him. Have faith."

He nodded, still tightly clinging to her jacket. She was right. If Pervy Sage was going to die, he'd do it battle like he had before. And Grandma Tsunade would use everything she knew about medicine to heal him and bring him back to them.

But it didn't mean it still didn't hurt.

"Will you stay?" he asked, scrubbing his face with the back of his sleeve. "Just for a little while, Auntie?"

Fumiyo pulled away just enough to look at him and after a moment she nodded, gently rubbing his back. "Yeah. I think I can do that."

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