Omake
Note: This is set between chapters six and seven of 'Naruto and the White Fox'. Personally, you can choose whether or not this is canonical with his story. This was mostly just for fun. [:-)
This omake has been approved by Mad2theMax88
If one were to look at the front of the Uchiha's residential complex that evening, they would have paused to take in the unusual sight that greeted them. More specifically, at the sight of the two identical blondes, both seeming of age 12, being walked out by the lady of the house; one Uchiha Mikoto.
No one would be faulted for doing so, as the Uchiha's rarely get many visitors…these days.
"Good-bye, Uchiha-san!" spouted the clone on the left, the Naruto clones doing their best to be polite to Mikoto. After all, didn't mom say to be gentlemanly...? Whatever the heck that's supposed to mean.
"We had lots of fun!" The other clone smiled.
"Well I'm glad. Thanks again for carrying Moka and Yuki home," came Mikoto's reply.
"Ah don't worry about it, Uchiha-san!" cried the one to the right, trying to wave off the thanks.
"You're friends of our family now! We need to watch each other's backs," proclaimed by the one in the left, with an equally boisterous face.
'Yes, we most certainly do.' Turning from the door, Mikoto called out; "Oh Sasuke! Aren't you going to say good-bye?"
Upon hearing this, Sasuke just leaned back his head from a hidden corridor behind the front door
and quirked his eyebrow, puzzled at his mother's request.
"What's the point? They're just Shadow Clones."
"Oi, we're still alive enough to kick your ass, teme!" one of the clones so very loudly proclaimed, while the other crossed his arms and nodded a "uh-huh!"
"One, you're not 'alive enough' to count in my book, and two, I puffed out enough of you guys to make a small fogbank. All from fighting several of you guys at the same time. What makes you two any different?" Sasuke countered in bored and condescending tone. Smirk included.
"Sasuke! Is that how you treat people after they helped carry your sister's home?" admonished Mikoto.
Unbeknownst to Mikoto though, in the time she had her head turned away from them, the two Shadow clones quickly seized the opportunity to give Sasuke several profane gestures, causing Sasuke to roll his eyes.
"Well?"
Giving his mother a face that practically griped, 'Do I really have to?' All he received for his
trouble was a look that said 'Young man, if you don't, I will make it very troublesome for you in the upcoming weeks. I'm still your mother, don't you forget,' which finally caved in what little resolve he had and, incidentally, further cemented his opinion that girls are crazy.
Giving slight sigh, he walked to the front gate door and gave the two a small bow, the two of whom having quickly assumed the 'all-too-innocent look' when Mikoto turned back to them.
"I thank you, for carrying Moka and Yuki home."
"Finally, some respect from you-"
"Don't push it," Sasuke muttered; then, in a louder voice, quickly said, "Well, don't let us keep you from being on your way. Bye."
And with that, the door was hastily closed, though not quite slammed, on their faces.
The clones muttered under their breath about stupid temes as they overhear Mikoto ask where Sasuke learned to be so rude, "because it certainly wasn't from me!"
As the two started walking back on the empty road, one of them gave a nudge to the other and muttered, "Man- never figured Sasuke to be a 'momma's boy'".
Those were the last words ever uttered between them, before two kunai's struck them in the back,forcing them to disappear into puffs of smoke.
"Sasuke, what are you doing on top of the wall? Not to mention so fast?" Mikoto asked, surprised. Honestly, she turns her head for one second…..
"It's nothing Mom. Just thought I heard some pests." Sasuke lies, through his teeth.
After a brief considering look, raised eyebrow and all, she just gave a short shrug and left it at that.
"Are they all tucked in?" whispered Misato as they walked into the household.
"They are all asleep." Sasuke quietly confirmed.
"That's good; could you wait in the living room while I get the tea? I think we need to
discuss a few things." Mikoto said as she walked into the kitchen.
"…? Alright; you need any help?" Sasuke asked, having a somewhat vague idea where this was going.
"Just clean up the table if there's any mess."
The Uchiha girls almost always end up using the table for some thing or another, and though she tells them to clean it up after they're done with using it in what seems an uncountable amount of times now, more often than not they forget to do so, much to Mikoto's frustration and consternation.
As Sasuke set up the small table, he couldn't help but feel a bit of unease, wondering what this
is all about. Although, it would make sense that his mother would like to talk about the happenings of earlier that day with him. After all, it's not every day that you find out that your fellow classmate and teammate turns out to be part demon, nor that the apparent alliance between the two clans now turned out to be much more binding than he thought it would ever be.
Oh, Sasuke heard about that alright. Was enough to allow Naruto a few punches in whilst they were both brawling at the yard, 'which, knowing him, the idiot probably counts as 'wins'; luckily the chances of anyone believing him would be slim'.
As Sasuke's mind momentarily went over the implications of what his mother's proclamation
entailed, his mother made her way in, carrying tray holding the tea, still steaming.
After a few minutes of slowly drinking the hot tea, Mikoto finally broke the silence. "So, exciting day today wasn't it?"
"...Yeah," was Sasuke's only reply.
"So Sasuke, why don't you tell me how you realized that Haruhi was a Kyuubi?" Mikoto asked.
To that, Sasuke nodded and told Mikoto how he was able to deduce that Haruhi was a kyuubi. He told of their first meeting that fateful day on the roof, how she boasted of her shape-shifting powers, and, amongst other things, how when he first laid eyes on Naruto's mother at their household that day, that he recognized her eyes, even though he was certain they had never met before.
As he related all of the clues to his mother, Mikoto simply sat and listened, gently sipping her tea all the while. When he finally finished, she had her eyes closed, deep in thought. When she finally opened her eyes, she set down her tea and gave her son a long look.
Needless to say, the feeling of unease Sasuke had felt earlier quickly grew into that of extreme discomfort, as though he was treading some very dangerous ground.
"What is it? If you're upset about me not telling you about Haruhi earlier, it's because Kakashi told me to keep her presence a secret. And I guess I should've been able to pick up the signs sooner…" Sasuke only ever showed this emotion to her, the feeling of failure.
"Sasuke, it's not about that." Mikoto said trying to comfort her son.
"Then what is it?" Sasuke asked.
"While I'm proud of your deductive skills…no, very proud of your deductive skills, I have to
ask….What were you thinking?" Mikoto didn't yell or raise her voice. The question was asked as if it was over dinner.
Blinking in surprise, he barely had time to process the question before Mikoto pressed on.
"Honey, you just revealed, in front of an actual bijū that was disguising herself, that you knew she wasn't human. On her home-ground, with the nearest people that could be of any help beyond easy hearing distance; and us, all by ourselves, with three non-combatants on our side." Mikoto stated calmly.
Thought frightened at first Mikoto understood Haruhi wouldn't do anything to harm them; however Sasuke had done something very stupid, reckless, and irresponsible. Sasuke had put her whole family in danger. Those three and her son are the last of her family. She can't help but feel protective of them.
Which is apparently something that she needs to drive into her son, so that he might not ever do something so recklessly stupid again. She honestly doesn't want to, she really didn't; but this is one of those things where there really is no choice. Better here in her home where he is safe than in the battlefield, where it could get him and his teammates pointlessly killed.
As the implications of what might have happened set in, eyes widening at the very thought, Sasuke found that he couldn't say anything.
'Good,' she thought to herself, 'because I'm not finished yet.'
"And what was that for? What was the point of endangering your entire family with this reckless and thoughtless act? Unless my sense of hearing is losing its edge, it's so that you could get
stronger." Mikoto stated with near-incredulity in her voice, nearly spitting out the last words.
Sasuke remained silent, though his hands were formed into fists and he could not stop the small twitches on his face. Right now, he knew, she was at one of those points where he'd never doubt that she was shinobi of the leaf. Right now she was furious.
"I will admit that there will be a time when you must throw everything into the air in order to complete a mission. A time when all else fails, where you have to trust in luck that things will turn out alright," She allowed a small pause to let that sink in.
"But you… you didn't even think about the consequences of your actions when your family was right there. When we were just having a friendly outing with an ally, you, on a whim, without planning, revealed what lesser people might out-right kill to keep hidden! You were lucky it was the Uzumaki's, and not anyone else." Mikoto scolded.
"I would have thought of something. I would have gotten us out!" Sasuke spat out, unable to take it quietly any longer.
"How? How would you have gotten us out?" Mikoto asked, unimpressed.
She watched his face as he struggled to come up with a way for all of them to get out alive, when there was a Kyuubi, a Special Jounin, and worst case scenario, Naruto sides with his mother instead of protesting, which if it comes down to it, Haruhi could just knock him out to get him out of the way, bringing in his Shadow Clones to the mix.
She watched him struggle for a few seconds before finally sighing and gently grabbing his hand.
"Sasuke, as your mother, I love you. And I believe with all my heart that you will become the finest Uchiha in the clan's history; but you aren't perfect, nor are you omniscient. Nobody is. If that had happened with anyone else, barring a miracle, we would have all been slaughtered."
Feeling as though he'd been punched in the face, Sasuke shook his hand out of his mother's grasp. He kept his head down, kept his eyes to the floor and hid them in his bangs,
hiding them from Mikoto.
"Isn't that a bit hypocritical?" Sasuke finally asked, trying to change the subject. "You're
risking our family by swearing to come to their aid, 'come hell or high water', when as far as I know they could turn on Konoha and bring it all down on us."
Mikoto tried to steel herself, fighting the urge to strangle her own son. 'Don't you think I don't know what you're trying to do? Who do you think your mother is?' Regardless, she went on as if nothing was amiss.
"There is nothing shameful in aiding a comrade in their time of need. Because one day, it might
come to be that we will be the ones who will be in need of help. Especially, when there's no one else to turn to." Mikoto countered.
'For that is when you know who are truly your friends,' Mikoto thought.
A snort was the response that she got. Well, that's fine too. She was just about to take the problem to its head anyways.
"Your still letting what happened all those years ago run your life, aren't you?" Mikoto said softly, in a tone that could barely be heard.
Thump!
'Ah,' Mikoto thought to herself. 'That hit the mark, didn't it?'
Haruhi wasn't wrong when she told Mikoto that Sasuke had issues. She just severely and that is used as an understatement, underestimated the full extent of it.
In a knee-jerk reaction, Sasuke's fist struck the table, faster than an eye could blink. Those words, more statement than question, rang something deep inside of him. They had always tried to avoid speaking about what happened all those years ago. It wasn't healthy, but the pain was still raw, still hurting. A point that is now made even more obvious.
"What do you want me to do?" The words that came out of his mouth were strained, almost a
growl.
Mikoto kept herself still, with no words spoken. Even she didn't know how to answer that. Mikoto couldn't say 'let it go', but she would never say 'go forth and take vengeance for our clan.' Especially since she knew why that tragedy happened.
Sasuke then jumped up, his normally frowning face turned into a full grimace.
"He nearly killed everyone, Mom! In fact, he practically did! Just us, just everyone in this house, is all that's left! He killed Dad! He killed Auntie and Uncle and Grandma and Grandpa! And he made me watch them all die again and again and again. And you want me to forget about it? What he did to us?" 'what he did to me?!'
"I don't ask that you forgive your br-… Itachi. I don't and can't ask that you forget about what happened. But whatever you say Sasuke, I have already lost one son before that night. I don't want to lose another like I did Itachi…" Mikoto said those words with sorrow.
"You are the eldest of the children, Sasuke. They look up to you and they love you, and you have to realize that your life isn't merely your own. Whatever happens to you, affects us as well" Mikoto continued.
"Don't just lump me with them," whispered Sasuke, resentment in his voice. "They barely remembered that night. I had it nearly ingrained into my skull. I haven't been a child since that night."
"If you don't want me to treat you as a child, then don't act like one!" snapped back Mikoto. The mother was pained by her son's words, but she hid that fact."If you intend on being a clan head and a shinobi of the leaf, to be worthy of that crest and headband, then start acting like it! Do you remember your duty and obligations? Or have you forgotten that? What are they?"
"...'To protect my family and my village; to lead them to peace and prosperity. To Guide them in adversity and uncertainty; to do whatever is necessary.'" Sasuke recited back.
Nodding, she then looked at him in the eyes."Does a clan head drag down everyone else just so that he could gain personal satisfaction? Does a clan head only think about himself, ahead of his people and his village?"
He knew the answer to those rhetorical questions. He knew, yet…
At this moment, Sasuke was at a loss. He felt himself being torn and struggling at the inside. For it was never only for the pride of the Uchiha that was driving his vengeance. It wasn't only because he wanted to avenge his loved ones and for what Itachi did to him, as Mikoto might have thought. It wasn't that simple.
No, Sasuke Uchiha utterly, utterly hates Itachi. But most of all, he hated himself. He hated himself for not being able to do anything as Itachi got away with murdering his cl-, no… his family. He hated himself for being so weak, exactly as Itachi said he was. Because Itachi said he was. That's why he still hates himself. Because he still is weak and that is something that he will never forgive him-self for.
Suddenly, without him noticing, he finds himself enveloped in his mothers' arms, holding him as if on a lifeline.
"I've already failed as a mother once. I can't bear it… if I fail again with you." Mikoto whisper more to herself than to Sasuke.
'….How dare she? How could she do something like that?' Sasuke thought as he watched his mother.
After what seemed like an eternity, Sasuke let out a deep breath he didn't remember holding, and
gently patted his mother in the back as he returned her hug. "Okay, Mom. I'll be careful from now on. This family is all I have left. I won't endanger it again."
When his mother broke out of the hug to look at him, Sasuke struggled to force his face into an
approximation of a smile. It was the best he could do, since it's been so long that he pretty much forgot how too, but he tried anyway, not wanting her to worry. Mikoto saw this, and gave a small smile back for the thought.
One last thought occurred to her. "Sasuke you know Naruto took the same oath as you right. That the village comes before everything, even your own clan?"
Sasuke nodded, "That means if they turn on the village then we will try and stop them and I would expect them to do the same to us." Sasuke sighed as he lost another argument to his mother.
The morning after.
Sasuke walked down the stairs leading up to the bedrooms and walked into the kitchen
where his mother was making breakfast. Mikoto looked over her shoulder and gave
her son a smile. Sasuke just shrugged and grabbed something that was already on the table.
"Well, looks like the fan-girls are waiting out-side." Mikoto loved this part of the
day. It was agreed upon that she would do recon for her son before he left the
house and walk into a female ambush.
Mikoto got to talk to a few of the girls, a traitorous action to her son, if he ever found out. Despite what some might think, the Uchiha mother did actually liked some of them. They would make good wives and better mothers…but they also would make horrible ninja. However, she does have to give them kudos for the ambush and stalking skills, unhealthy though it may be.
Sighing, "Won't they just give it a rest?"
Sasuke wanted to rebuild his clan, but he wanted a strong wife for his children. Plus… he hadn't really given much thought what kind of girl he wanted, other than that major point. Someone who could defend the clan against another…night like that time all those years ago.
'These girls are just a pain.' The boy thought to himself.
"No such luck honey." Mikoto didn't like that the village treated him like royalty, but she loved the fact that she was going to get grandchildren out of him. 'One of those girls is going to rape him one day.' Mikoto saw Sasuke hog tied and screaming like a girl in her head and giggled a little at the image. 'Well it might just do to mess with his head a little bit.'"Oh Sasuke, have you ever thought about finding a girl to ask out? It might break
their hearts enough to drive them away." Mikoto watched Sasuke out the corner of her eye.
Coughing on a drink "…Are you going insane woman?" Sasuke is and will forever be a brooder to the outside world, but he was much more lively with his family.
"It's not that bad! Besides, who knows? Maybe the girl you choose will end up being
your soul-mate or something, and it'll solve both the fan-girl problem and the 'continuing the Uchiha-line problem'!" Needless to say, Mikoto was having a hard time trying to keep from bursting into a fit of giggles. For one thing she might not be able to stop once she does.
"I can't believe this…" Seriously, what brought this on? Sauke had never heard his mother say these words, ever. Mikoto just agreed to 'help him'? Never once did she suggest what she was suggesting now.
"What, can you blame me? At my age" Mikoto faked a pout and crossed her arms, "And seeing you grow up so fast, it makes me think about grandkids."
"You're not that old, Mom!" Sasuke was trying to stay calm, he honestly was… but good grief was his mother was doing a good job at messing with his brain.
"You think so…? Maybe I should start dating again before it's too late, then. I could always rebuild the clan. Then you wouldn't have to worry about that, I wonder who is available. Sasuke, you have any ideas?" With that, Mikoto just drove the last nail home as Sasuke nearly pulled his hair out and just got up to leave, trying to forget the last 20 minutes of his life.
What can she say? She loves being a mother. Even with days like yesterday.
'We're not a perfect family,' Mikoto thought as Sasuke waved and grunted his good-byes to his siblings. 'And I will be the last to claim that we are. But I think, with a little luck, we'll do just fine.'
"Oh, Girls? Didn't you want to ask Sasuke if Naruto could come over and play? If you run quickly, you might catch him before he leaves the gate!" Yep, Mikoto most definitely loves being a mother. Where else could she embarrass the hell out of someone and know they will come back every day to do it all over again. It is her god given right as a mother and she will not give it up for anything.
A/N- Hey there folks, this is battydragon89 here. As Mad2theMax88 might have said earlier, this omake was done mostly for kicks. In case you've never heard of me, I am the head editor (mostly self-proclaimed, since we're mostly a two-man operation) of this here fanfic.
I've pretty much worked on it since the very first chapter, trying to make things read as smoothly as we can, as well as adding a couple jokes here and there. Not to mention bouncing back ideas with him, as well as being the guy who introduced him to for the first time.
Yes, I claim credit for dooming his soul to the world of fanfiction….he blames me too, by the way.
For this Omake, we kind of switched things up a bit—I wrote out most of it (i.e. the dialogue, the concepts and all that such) while Mad2theMax88 edits it so that it stays in with our fic's cannon, as well as add in a few bits as well.
Admittedly, I had a hard time ending the scene between Sasuke and Mikoto; which is why, if anyone notices, that scene didn't seem to flow. I came up with two ways to end it, both of which were rejected due to incompatibility with, in one way or another, how Mad2theMax88 planned out his fic. They still stand well on their own though, if I do say so my-self; or at least, I'd like to think so.
Well, with that said and done, please review. Also, some constructive criticism would be nice as well.
P.S.-Don't blame him for the late updates; I will admit that the main reason for the lateness is my-self. Procrastination and perfectionism is not a good mix, not to mention college.
This also goes for most of the chapters (except for one chapt; I don't remember which, but he had writers block for a while, so it was both our fault that time).