Naruko grabbed Sasuke's hand and nearly pulled him out the door like a stubborn mule. She was so hungry. It wasn't until they were halfway there she realized that people weren't regarding her in the usual way. Since the war, people had waved and greet her whenever she went out. Today it was like she was a kid again, everyone staring and pointing, whispering to themselves. When she heard someone say Uchiha she realized these people were all looking at Sasuke and not her. She held his hand tighter and looked over at him with a smile. "Sasuke, This is like our first date right?" He blushed and looked away putting his chin in the air to look superior. "You're still a loser" He replied. "And you're still a bastard." She said with a smile knowing that he knew she meant she loved him. They had dinner that night at Ichiraku's, Naruko's favorite ramen place. "Ah Naruko, you're back! We heard rumors about your last mission..." Ayame began, then paused to glance at Sasuke. She looked embarrassed and glanced at the floor before continuing. "We're glad you're back safely."

Ayame looked surprised when Naruko laughed so hard she almost fell off her seat. "AHH! Don't remind me of that!" Naruko yelled. "Having to be rescued by this bastard. AHHH!" She looked adorable with her face combination of anger and laughter. She looked so funny even the calm, collected Sasuke began to laugh. She so rarely heard him laugh that she looked over at him surprised for a second. She recovered quickly to yell "HEY!" at him, but he just continued laughing. "Idiot" he said with a smile before putting his hand on her neck to pull her in for a kiss. "Quiet down already." He continued. Ignoring the dumb looks of shock on Teuchi and Ayami's faces. The rest of the meal passesd pleasantly. Naruko always had something funny to say and Sasuke was reminded what it was like to be happy. He even opened up a little in order to tell Naruko a particularly humorous story from his childhood. Then they made their good byes and headed home.

Public opinion on Sasuke was changing. He had won several villagers respect by saving Sakura, Hinata and Naruko. But several continued to whisper about the boy who had only recently attacked the village. Then there had been that business where he fought by Naruko's side and had saved the world. But before that he had attacked the five Kage summit. No one knew quite what to think about the last surviving member of the Uchiha clan except Naruko. As they walked home that night to the sounds of the whispers she knew what had to be done. Her mind was set, all she could do now was hope that Sasuke would forgive her.

They were both exhausted when they got home to Naruko's apartment. They had been up fighting all night and she could see the dark bags under Sasuke's eyes. She loved him so much, that's why tomorrow there was something she had to do. Something she had to do for him that could cause her to lose him forever. She walked into her bedroom leaving the door open behind her. She began undressing, taking her skirt off first, then her bra off from under her shirt.

He watched her undress from the doorway. Sasuke didn't know what had happened but something had changed during their dinner. She was quieter and more serious now. He wondered if it had something to do with the way the villagers reacted to him. He had known they were likely to be resistant to his ideas and the change he wanted to bring to the way the village was run. But he had not planned on Naruko. His love for her was in the way of his goals. The world had to change, he had to change it. He had lost everyone he ever loved, his whole family, because of the leaders of this village. All because the system on which the village was built was wrong. If he didn't stop it, more wars could start, more people would die, more children could lose their families.

He could never become Hokage and make these changes while Naruko lived. She had become their hero and he was just a piece of gossip. He loved her, he was sure he couldn't kill her to take her title. His only real option was to believe in her and trust her to guide the village the right way. She was amazing, no matter what she had never given up on her self. She honestly seemed to want the same things as him, and she had the power to accomplish them. Yet there was still a nagging in the back of his mind. Why couldn't he trust her?

They could never be a normal couple. Like Itachi had said, they were opposites that were actually two sides of the same coin. They could only succeed when they worked together. As she turned towards him, blonde hair down, in nothing but a t-shirt and panties he looked into her deep blue eyes. He had almost lost her, almost lost the other half of himself, and realizing that he knew he had to trust her. She would do the same as he would, she could change the world, and she would let him stand by her side while she did it.

He walked into the room and wrapped his arms around her. He just held her, not saying a word. But she could feel him. He would never leave her again. She never had to worry again, he was always going to protect her and stand by her side. She stayed there in his arms for what seemed like ages taking comfort from him and enjoying his warmth. Eventually she leaned back to kiss him. Then said softly, "let's go to bed Sasuke, it's been a long day." He moved towards the bed as she took his shirt off and unbuttoned his pants. He removed his pants and got into bed felling asleep before she even managed to get the covers over him.