You Wear Insanity Well
Rated: M for mature content and mostly language
Disclaimer: If I owned anything here…well than I probably wouldn't be here…
Summary: "I wouldn't ask this from you unless it was an emergency. Mind you, I still hate you, you bastard, but this isn't about me. Just help me please? Help me save my baby."
Note: Ugh. I hate school and I hate writers block. Thanks guys for being so patient with me. As usual, three reviews.
012: You Need to Confess
(feelings unknown and you're all alone)
Soft fingers drifting though his hair.
There was murmuring. His head felt too foggy and soft to understand the words.
Rocking, back and forth. It was comforting. He felt warm.
There was a loud bang and he twitched. The rocking stopped. Slowly, he felt like he was waking, emerging from a dense fog.
The last of the fog finally left him, but he felt as if he didn't want to leave. He clung desperately, but then the floodgates opened and the foggy world was lost to him.
It was bright and his eyes squinted uncomfortably against it. Everything was hazy and all he could see was red. He was confused, disorientated. He didn't understand.
Then he heard it. This horrible high keening and his vision blurred even more. The red vanished from what little he could see, but the horrible deafening sound continued. He grew restless and he felt himself kick out when his center of gravity shifted without warning. The sound pounded on.
"Minato, goddammit! I just got him to sleep!"
Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States
05:39 UTC
His hand, rough around the fingertips and palm, trailed lightly across the expanse of her calf, enjoying the way her silken skin felt against his. Her toes curled instinctively against his touch, rustling against his T-shirt. She moved then, her body warm as her shoulder pressed flush to his. "This is wrong you know." His whisper could barely be heard in the air, but somehow, he knew that she heard him. His eyes drifted over toward her and they were met with her coy stare.
Sakura looked over toward Naruto, the corners of her mouth upturned in a slight smile. His eyes glittered back at her in the early morning light that seemed to slip underneath the drawn curtain in his room, bathing it in a natural bluish light. She shifted her head slightly against the pillow that was propped up against the wall. "We haven't done anything..." She said, reveling in the feeling of his hand traveling farther up her leg, sliding under the hem of her cotton shorts toward her hip. She shivered. "Yet."
His hand stopped and she felt the comfortable warmth that was generated from his palm. He gave an inaudible sigh, his eyelids fluttering closed for a brief second before opening again. "I respect your father, Sakura. His house his rules." He lifted his eyes up to meet her green stare, which was, as he expected, unhappy.
A smile couldn't help but snake its way onto his face, but it suddenly disappeared under the gloom of his remembered dream. He turned his head abruptly away from her, but she didn't seem to notice his change in mood. The LED clock sitting on the bedside table blinked 5:40.
"We can't stay here forever, you know."
His words were unexpected, and Sakura didn't like the sound of them. She moved to draw her legs from off his torso, but he suddenly gripped her calf with surprising strength, forcing her to stay. She froze. "Eventually," He murmured. "They will track us back here. I don't want to be here when that happens."
Sakura turned her head away, forcing her body into an awkward position as she was still angled toward him. Her heart was thumping wildly and uncertainly within her chest. Somewhere within the vicinity of the house, a bed creaked on its springs. Naruto noticed her change in demeanor and relaxed his grip on her leg. His other hand snaked up from under the covers between them and lifted up so that his fingers could graze under her chin. She flinched. "Are you afraid?"
The words were so quietly spoken that Sakura couldn't be sure if she heard them or not. But her heart was telling her that she heard correctly, and she couldn't manage to find the words to respond. She kept her head obstinately turned away from him. His fingers flickered against her skin once more before disappearing. "Talk to me." He whispered, and her heart lurched.
"I don't want to be." She whispered back, her head still turned away. "I want to be strong, for you, but I can't help it. I don't think I can stand being everywhere and no where at once." Her words came out in a heated rush. Her cheeks burned red, but not in embarrassment.
"I would never ask that of you." Naruto replied solemnly.
Sakura head turned sharply toward him and her green eyes were wide. She felt the prickle of tears threatening to form and she forced them away. She remained silent, her eyebrows twitching slightly as her expression became darker, yet when she spoke, her voice was calm and even. "You would leave me?"
Naruto opened his mouth to heatedly respond, then closed it, perturbed by Sakura's response. Sighing, Naruto closed his eyes and passed a free hand over his face. Sakura remained unmoving beside him.
"Sakura, do you know why I fell in love with you?" Naruto finally asked.
Sakura didn't answer, but her head inclined toward him to show that she was listening. Her eyes drifted toward him.
"I never knew love, not really." Said Naruto quietly. "Never a parent's love...I was positive that I wasn't even capable of it, not after what I had been through, what I had seen." Naruto paused then, and a light smile crossed his face. "And then you came, bursting at the seams with it, all for a man named Sasuke Uchiha, yet you seemed to be willing to share some of it with the man with ulterior motives who claimed he could help you win back your fiancee."
Sakura leaned forward, pressing her forehead into the side of Naruto's temple. Her hair swung forward, hiding her expression and tickling Naruto's ear.
"You came with me that day." Continued Naruto, his voice lower than before. "I don't think I'll ever know why. You abandoned all rationale to help me. I want to one day act with the same..." He paused, as if he were searching for the right word. "...Selflessness? Yeah, selflessness that you showed that day."
Naruto turned his head so that his own forehead was pressing against Sakura's and he reached forward with both hands to cup her face. "I love you, Sakura. So if I have to leave you because I think that you're in danger, then I'm going to do it."
Sakura ducked away, burying her head in the crook of his shoulder. "You let so many people underestimate you." She murmured against the cloth of his shirt. "They don't know how truly courageous or wise you are."
George Bush Center for Intelligence
Langley, Virigina, United States
07:14 UST
Neji had always liked the idea of painting, the idea that you could start with a blank canvas and at the end have a masterpiece that was bursting with both color and meaning. As a child, when he had time to spare between his studies and being groomed as a member of the Hyuuga clan, Neji used to watch his grandmother paint. He loved the way her hands, gnarled; hobbled and withering with age, used to grip the paint brush with such determination and elegance that you would never guess hands such as those could make such a beautiful picture. Most of all, Neji liked that a story could be portrayed with just one image. That you could look at a painting and understand a story that might take an author both pages and countless words to describe.
Neji liked to consider himself a painter. Certainly it wasn't in the same way his grandmother painted and unfortunately, the stories that he painted could not be portrayed through images. But as Neji sat back, hands resting lightly on his desk, he had to argue that the paintings he created were no less stunning than those that his grandmother made. It just depended on who you asked.
It had taken him a few days and was an arduous process, but Neji had come to paint the story of Jeffrey Porter, a man of multiple identities and deception. And while it wasn't a complete picture, it should be enough to give Naruto a heads up on just who was trying to kill him this time.
There was a quick squeak of the printer as it spewed out Neji's files within a matter of seconds. Neji tapped his fingers against his desk for good measure as he casually glanced around. The office was practically empty; the skies outside dark, grey and bleak. Neji finally laid his fingers to rest before scooting back in his chair and collecting his files. Marcus' face stared back at Neji from the top sheet before Neji dropped it from his view and made his way around his desk toward Anko's office.
It would be another forty minutes or so before those not working overtime started to arrive, but somehow Neji knew that Anko would be at her desk.
Neji gave a quick rap on her door with his knuckles before turning the handle. It opened easily and sure enough, the former KGB agent was sitting at her desk, short dark hair swinging in front of her face as she scrawled her signature on a document in front of her. At the sound of the door opening, her dark eyes glanced up toward Neji. Upon seeing him standing in her doorway, stack of papers in hand, her expression did not seem pleased; as if she could guess the intent of his visit.
Straightening out, she clicked her pen with a decisive flick of her thumb and gestured for him to enter with her head. Neji nudged the door shut with his arm before seating himself in one of the plush chairs in front of Anko's desk. Anko had her arms folded across her chest when Neji glanced back at her. "I suppose its safe to assume that you ignored my orders."
"Were they ever really orders?" Neji asked, carefully placing the stack of papers on the edge of her desk.
Her eyes darted down at them for a brief second before they were once again trained on Neji. "If you wanted to keep your life, then they were."
"What if the only way I stay alive is to unravel the whole thing?"
Anko's face grew terse at his words. Her arms dropped away from her chest and they hung there, motionless and defeated for a moment before she brought them to her desk. One perfectly manicured nail tapped at her desk before curiosity claimed her and she grabbed the files that Neji had brought in. Neji's face remained impassive as he watched Anko scan and flip through them.
"This man is..." Said Anko finally, leaving the statement hanging in the air for Neji to question.
"Dead." Finished Neji.
Anko wasn't surprised and if she was, her face was the perfect mask. There was silence for a long while, as if Anko was trying to comprehend something that she knew she shouldn't. And Neji didn't dare interrupt the silence, instead remaining content with his place on the chair. And then finally, Anko lifted her eyes to Neji, only it wasn't a simple glance, she was asking a question. It was a question that Neji understood perfectly, as if Anko had somehow divined the question to him.
"All I want is your support. For you to stop questioning my every move. For you to trust me. Unless you would prefer to attend to my funeral." Neji replied smoothly. An answer to her question.
Anko sighed, eyes rolling in response, but she merely pulled open a drawer in her desk and stored the stack of papers inside. Then she turned back to the paperwork on her desk - a clear indication that Neji should take his leave.
Neji's smile was brief as he nodded his head to Anko in thanks as he got up and headed toward the door. Although he really had no reason to, his shoulders already felt lighter as he made his way out of her office.
He had his next move mapped out, and without Anko monitoring his every move, covering him if need be, it would be significantly easier to accomplish.
He would need to book himself a flight to Italy - straight into the lion's den.
Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States
18:31 UST
He was watching her from across the room.
Watching as she tucked a stray pink strand of hair that swung in front of her face every time she bent forward behind her ear; watched as those small delicate hands of hers smoothed down the backside of her silk forest green dress every so often, as if she's afraid she's flashing someone. She never is, not that Naruto would necessarily mind if she was. He watched as her green eyes darted around anxiously and he can practically see that Sakura is wearing herself thin with worry.
Waiters and waitresses, dressed in crisp white shirts and black aprons bustle past him; the smell of food wafts in the air. Brightly colored fall flowers in vases, although autumn has practically past at this point, adorn practically every surface available. Mr. Haruno is no where to be seen, although Naruto is certain that if he were present, he would be the subject of his glare.
Despite the chaos around him, a small smile crosses Naruto's lips, because he can't help but think about how cute and innocent it is that in the midst of all their current problems, Sakura would fret and worry over the impending visit of the cousin that she apparently hated. He took a sip of his drink - the one that Mrs. Haruno brusquely shoved in his hand before bustling off to go fret over something else and absentmindedly ran his hand over his silk tie. It's forest green and courtesy of Mr. Haruno as Naruto didn't currently own any clothes that would be appropriate enough for an engagement party. Mrs. Haruno thought it would be cute if Naruto and Sakura matched and Naruto didn't have the heart to tell her he thought it was tacky.
Naruto focused his attention on Sakura once more, watching as she straightened out the tablecloth on one of the tables that didn't need to be straightened. He contemplated walking over to her when his thoughts were interrupted by the shrill sound of the doorbell.
Sakura paused, her wide eyes turned toward the doorway while Mrs. Haruno screech of "Kenji they're here!" from somewhere down the hall resounded across the house. She came barreling down the hall, dress swaying against her hips before Naruto himself could even move an inch to open the door himself. Mr. Haruno sauntered out of his study just as Mrs. Haruno pulled open the door, blasting the living room with the cold winter air.
"Karin, my darling! Congratulations!" Mrs. Haruno squealed from her spot at the door as she wrapped her arms around a woman.
Naruto put his glass down on the table as he strained to make out the woman from beyond Mrs. Haruno's frame, ignoring as one of the caterers hired for the event swiped a coaster underneath his drink before he could ruin the mahogany table. As Mrs. Haruno ushered Karin, a red headed woman Naruto can only assume is Karin's mother and and a blond haired man into the house, Naruto was distracted by Sakura bolting to the bar and ordering a drink.
And all at once, the party came to life. The living room suddenly became flooded with guests, all laughing and jolly, shedding their winter coats into the hands of waiting coat checkers. Waiters and waitresses were now flooding the Haruno's decent sized living room with trays filled with hors d'oeuvres while the bartender set up in the dining room started churning out drinks to accommodate the new guests. The speakers were blaring slightly with the sounds of classical music. Mrs. Haruno's face was flushed with excitement and even Mr. Haruno seemed pleased as he chatted amicably.
Naruto watched the excitement from afar, suddenly content not to step into the party and mingle as he usually would. He found himself suddenly out of his element in the intimate gathering of the Haruno's friends and family. Naruto realized with a pang of sadness that he was usually the party crasher - the one that was never invited, the one who was never actually acquainted with anyone at the party. It was a sobering thought and Naruto was trying to wrap his mind around the concept when he felt a slender hand on his arm.
Thinking it was Sakura, Naruto turned, his face already animated in an attempt to disguise his current thoughts when he found the girl in front of him was definitely not Sakura.
The first thought that jumped in his mind was red. Everything was red, perhaps too red. And with the color red came the sobering memory of the dream that had shaken Naruto awake in the wee hours of the morning only earlier that day. The memory came like a jolt to Naruto's brain, causing him to sputter and blink his eyes rapidly as if something had startled him.
The girl in front of him, the one with all too red hair had started to laugh, and her laugh was like a high tinkling bell. It was pretty to hear and it offered something for Naruto to think about, to distract his mind from the color red.
"Sorry, did I startle you?" The girl was asking. Her voice was almost just as high as her laugh, yet there was something rough about it. Naruto shook his head, pushing the memory out of his mind with one final shove.
"No, sorry." Said Naruto, focusing his eyes once more on the girl. "I guess I just wasn't ready to be spoken to by someone as beautiful as you." The charm came out of him easily, as if it was second nature; a defense mechanism.
The girl's eyes - a dark shade of purple, almost hidden behind thick black framed glasses - narrowed and her red lips curled into a coy smile. "Well now, Sakura found herself a real playboy didn't she?"
Naruto allowed himself a smile. "Karin, right?" He asked, extending his hand out toward her. He seemed certain that only a relative of Sakura's could have such bright and flaming hair. And from what Sakura had explained of her esteemed cousin, this girl was sure to be her.
Karin exuded confidence; from the way half of her hair was curled into tight ringlets while the other half simply curled in at the ends, to the way her stiletto heels were easily two inches higher than every other in the room. Her black strapless dress was tight, showing off her ample curves and her long fingernails were painted black as well. She had large, clunky black bangles dangling from both of her wrists. Naruto could tell just by looking at her that she was the type who didn't give a fuck what anyone thought of her, and that in and of itself was what drew people in, what made her so attractive. And yes, Naruto would be lying if he said he didn't at least find her somewhat attractive, somewhat alluring.
"At your service." Karin answered, taking Naruto's hand in her own and giving it a firm shake. A black diamond ring was glittering on her ring finger. "And I could only presume you are Naruto, Sakura's new boy toy."
Naruto dropped her hand, opening his mouth to protest such a label when Karin laughed again, her ringlets shaking with her head. "Don't worry, no one has called you that or implied anything of the like. I just like to mess with Sakura and her boyfriends."
Naruto allowed a smile cross his face as he reached over to grab the glass he had set on the table previously. "No worries. Some how I think boy toy is the last thing Sakura's family would be calling me."
Sakura couldn't help it. Her eyes were narrowed and her fists were clenched as she watched Karin suavely chatting up Naruto. Her Naruto! And he of all people had the gall to laugh at whatever was coming out of her deceiving mouth. How could he? He knew how much Sakura despised Karin, so why did it seem like he was flirting with her? God, the thought made Sakura so infuriated. Especially when Karin had the gall to look so goddamn perfect. Even while looking like some punk-rock, hipster princess, she seemed to both blend in the crowd, yet be different enough that people could look at her just once and still remember her later. Her style was outlandish sure, but never gaudy. Sakura knew for certain that if she tried to pull of such a look, she would be labeled gaudy for the rest of her life.
Just once, Sakura wished that she could be as memorable as Karin seemed to be where ever she went. Looking down at herself, Sakura sighed. It certainly wouldn't be tonight, not while she stood there looking as frumpy and forgettable as ever in her mom-dress. And she was literally wearing her mom's dress too, because when on the run, dresses for your cousin's engagement party really aren't on the top of your list of things to bring with you. And they didn't have time to shop for a new dress either much to Sakura's dismay. So instead she had been forced to pick out a dress from her mother's closet.
The dress she picked wasn't a complete waste. It was dark green and strapless, bunched up around the bust and stopped short just above her knees. It was a dress her mother could no longer fit into, but kept anyway in case of an emergency. But still, the fact that it was her mother's dress was enough to make Sakura burn with embarrassment for the entire night. She needed a drink. Another drink.
Sakura turned, pivoting from her spot against the bartenders table and proceeded to order the strongest drink from the menu. The bartender gave her a sympathetic look, as if he understood her pain before spinning a bottle between his fingers.
"Sakura? Oh my God you're here!"
Sakura turned, her hand reaching for her drink which the bartender enclosed her fingers around before she could drop it.
And there she was. Her best-est friend in the entire world clad in fishnet tights and sky high velvet blue pumps that matched the ruffled blue dress she was wearing.
"Ino!" Sakura exclaimed, jumping up in excitement at the sight of her platinum blond friend. Her drink sloshed from her cup slightly as Sakura all but ran over to her friend in her giddy excitement before pulling her in for a bear hug.
"God I've missed you!" Ino exclaimed, hugging her best friend close to her with both of her arms. "I wasn't even sure you'd be here! I tried calling you like three times and you never answered. It kept giving me some bullshit that your number had been disconnected." Ino explained as they pulled away from each other, her baby blue eyes wide in confusion.
"Oh yeah..." Said Sakura sheepishly, pausing a moment to take a sip from her drink. "It's just this...new thing I've been trying. Hahaha...no cell phone." Sakura winced internally, knowing how lame that must have sounded.
"What? Why?" Asked Ino, her perfectly plucked eyebrows furrowed in confusion as she tried to make sense of Sakura's half-assed explanation.
"Oh just...you know." Said Sakura, waving her hand frantically as if that would help smooth along her explanation. "Eliminating stress by eliminating technology. It's...sort of hard to explain..."
"Um, ok Sakura, sure. I just can't believe you're here!" Said Ino, prying Sakura's drink out of her hand and taking a gulp out of it herself. "I thought I'd see you in hell before you'd come to Karin's engagement party."
"She is family, Ino." Sakura replied, reclaiming her drink before Ino could drink it all.
"Fuck family!" Exclaimed Ino, which earned her a few disgruntled stares from the guests around her. "That bitch was macking on your fiancee at your engagement party. I mean, the nerve!" Exclaimed Ino.
"God," Said Sakura as she took Ino by the wrist and dragged her away from the guests who were now giving Ino dirty looks which the blond was either promptly ignoring or just didn't notice, "You can't be drunk already can you?" Ino was notoriously famous for being the first to get sloshed at parties.
"Calm your tits, Sakura, I've only had one drink." Said Ino, looking away as she swiped her long bangs away from her eyes. "So far."
Sakura rolled her eyes and took a sip of her drink. "Try to contain yourself this time, Ino. I'm sure my dad will be absolutely thrilled if he has to drive you home in your drunken state since he so thoroughly enjoyed it the first time when we were drinking during my seventeenth birthday."
"Psh." Said Ino, waving her hand at Sakura as if to dismiss her. "That was ages ago. Now let's steer the topic onto something more pressing. Like, where the hell that hunk of man candy whom you left me to go to Morocco is."
Sakura had to both roll her eyes and smile at Ino's description of Naruto. "He's over there, talking with the queen bitch herself." Said Sakura, pointing through the crowd.
Ino turned, following Sakura's finger to where Naruto was still amicably chatting with Karin. Ino turned back, shaking her head as she pried Sakura's drink from her fingers once more. Sakura said nothing and didn't even try to stop her friend this time as Ino downed the drink in one go. Shaking her head, Ino thrust the glass back in Sakura's hand and grabbed her wrist. "Let's go jack some bitches up."
Casa della Uchiha, Piazza Navona
Rome, Italy
21:05 UST
"Why are you asking about Glaido?"
"Because those NATO officers that Asuma was investigating? They were all involved."
Snow was gently falling, covering the Piazza in a light layer that looked as if someone had sprinkled powdered sugar everywhere. Despite the late hour, tourists were still outside, lifting their hands and observing the skies as the snow drifted past lamp posts. It was a picturesque image, despite it being rare for snow to fall before December.
One person, however, was not to join the festivities outside. Sasuke Uchiha chose to remain inside, silently observing the falling snow from the window of the study. The Uchiha manor was silent - both of his parents were out on social events and Itachi away on business although he often lived in his own upscale apartment not too far from the ancestral Uchiha home. Sasuke glanced at the watch on his wrist. He wondered if Hinata was home yet.
Suddenly feeling remorseful, Sasuke ran a hand through his hair - a gesture he was accustomed to doing when he was stressed. Ever since Asuma's death, the task of finding his murderer (because Sasuke was sure now that something had pushed Asuma to kill himself) had consumed him and Sasuke knew that he had allowed it to. Hinata had merely become a figure in his peripheral vision - a person who he now realized that he had barely seen within the last few weeks. And here he was, hiding out in his family home because he knew that the house would be empty and that he would be able to conduct his research in peace.
Not that he expected Hinata to bother him, but because Sasuke realized that he didn't want her to see what he was researching.
There was a distant sound of a car door slamming shut. Compared with the dead silence in the Uchiha manor, the sound made Sasuke jump from his seat. Rising, Sasuke flicked back the curtains covering the window with his finger; just wide enough for him to peer out. It was the neighbor, carrying his young son out of the car while his daughter spun around, face lifted to the falling snow. With a scowl, Sasuke pulled away from the window and returned to his seat.
Operation Glaido - a dark time in Italian history, just as Kakashi had said. And now just the thought of it was making Sasuke paranoid.
Glaido was before his time, before Kakashi's time even, yet the repercussions of it were still being felt today. Sasuke realized with dread that it was not something that he wanted to be dragged into, but it appeared as if Asuma had unwilling put himself right in the middle - and Sasuke had foolheartedly followed him in. Sasuke knew enough about Glaido from his own studies of history and politics and garnered enough information from Kakashi to begin to put the pieces together. Glaido was codename for a secret operation in Italy involving NATO after World War II. Glaido was a "stay-behind" operation that operated for the sole reason that if Italy were to become overrun by any enemy military action, there would be troops at the ready to perform a resistance. On the surface, Glaido didn't sound all that threatening. NATO sponsored a lot of stay-behind operations in European countries in the aftermath of World War II, especially because of the Communist threat presented by the Soviet Union.
Glaido, however, only fueled further political unrest in Italy that resulted in bouts of terrorism and social conflict.
Asuma probably didn't know that the NATO officers whose disappearances he was investigating were involved in Glaido. It took Sasuke a vast amount of digging - unnecessary digging - to discover that small thread that strung them all together. And the only reason that prompted Sasuke to dig so hard was to prove that the NATO disappearances and Asuma's suicide had absolutely nothing to do with the ITP. Even if it was only to put Kakashi and perhaps even his own mind at rest.
But Sasuke had to ask himself, was this any better? What motivation would anyone have to track down and possibly murder those having to do with Glaido? And furthermore, if someone prompted Asuma to kill himself because he got to close, what would they do to Sasuke if he got too close?
Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States
19:21 UST
Naruto wondered perhaps if he was in for a scene when out of the corner of his eye he saw Ino striding up, blond hair flying behind her, and dragging a slightly aggravated, slightly confused Sakura behind her. Karin stopped mid sentence when Ino stomped short right next to them.
"Ino." She exclaimed exuberantly. "God, I haven't seen you in forever!"
"Yeah," Ino replied without enthusiasm, "It's been too long."
The smile on Karin's face faded, as if she were suddenly sensing the sullen and almost violent mood that both Sakura and Ino brought with them. Naruto took a large gulp of his drink. It was to Karin's credit that she was quick on the uptake.
"Ino." Naruto finally sputtered out when the silence seemed to be too thick with tension. "How are you?"
Ino turned toward Naruto and suddenly her smile was sugary sweet. It was almost too much for Naruto to take. "I've been fucking fabulous, thanks. And I was feeling fucking fabulous right up until I saw you talking with this bitch here." And at this point Ino turned her murderous gaze upon Karin.
"Ino!" Sakura hissed as both Naruto and Karin's eyebrows rose in surprise.
"Maybe I should leave..." Naruto murmured uncertainly, his eyes roving the living room as he were looking for a black hole that would allow him to escape his current predicament.
Karin, however, brushed off Ino's comment with a shake of her ringlets and sighed, looking toward Sakura. "Sakura, you aren't still mad about what happened at your engagement party last year are you?"
Before Sakura could get a word in, Karin brushed past Ino, who had daggers in her eyes and placed both of her hands on Sakura's bare shoulders. Sakura glanced down, uncertain of what exactly was going on. Karin's diamond ring was glittering under the light.
"Babe, you know I wouldn't do anything to hurt you." Karin said, her eyes sympathetic. "I was going through a rough patch at the time. Suigetsu and I have always had this on and off and then on again thing. Obviously it's on right now," She said with a giggle. She reflexively moved her left hand, making her ring catch in the light, "But at that time it was off. And babe, you have to admit that, that Sasuke boy was one hot piece of ass."
At this, Naruto really wanted to turn around and gag, but he supposed that staying where he was would be some sort of moral support for Sakura. Ino was rolling her eyes beside him, muttering obscenities under her breath.
"This one's not so bad either." Said Karin, jerking her head in Naruto's direction. "But you know I love you right?"
Sakura opened her mouth once again to respond, but was cut off by Karin's loud yell as she waved someone over. Naruto watched as a man, no older than himself with a mop of silvery hair weaved his way through the crowd and planted himself next to Karin, pulling her in by the waist. She squealed in delight which made Ino wrinkle her nose in disgust and Sakura take an immediate step backward.
"Oh babe, stop it." Karin said, feebly pushing away at her fiancee who had put his lips to her neck. "You remember my cousin Sakura, and my friend Ino." She said, gesturing toward the two girls who looked like they wanted to be anywhere but there.
The man, who Naruto could only assume was Karin's fiancee Suigetsu, finally pulled himself away from Karin's neck and eyed both Sakura and Ino. "Oh yeah," He said nonchalantly, "We met once...around, somewhere." He gestured loosely with his hand in a haphazard way. His black tie was already slackened around his neck and Naruto had to wonder if Karin's fiancee was perhaps drunk already.
Karin only giggled at his response, but Ino merely grunted in disgust and muttered some excuse about needing another drink before stalking away. Sakura looked uncertain at the situation, as if she just had no energy left to be mad at Karin any more.
As Karin briefly introduced Naruto to Suigetsu and they shook hands, Naruto wondered whether all family functions happened to be this dysfunctional.
Rome, Italy
11:19 UST
Demurely tucking one ankle behind the other, Hinata swept a strand of long hair behind her ear as she gazed absentmindedly at a poster that was taped to the wall. It was of the human body, sans limbs with one half depicting the musculature and organs, the other half being a normal skinned body. Labels written in Italian pointed out each of the major organs. Unfazed, Hinata turned her head away. At university, Hinata had once taken an anatomy class for a semester. Despite her demure appearance, she had immensely enjoyed taking the class, even when the professor had rolled in a cadaver lying on a steel gurney and announced that they would be 'digging in'.
She smiled briefly at the memory as her pale eyes swept across the room. The tinge of alcohol hung in the room, making Hinata's stomach curdle. Pursing her lips tight, Hinata willed her stomach to stay strong as her nose upturned.
The door clicked open and was momentarily distracted from her churning stomach as her doctor strode in. She was young and stylish, her hair pulled back into a ponytail with a few stray strands framing her face.
"Well," She said, pulling off her thick framed glasses with one swift movement as she tucked her clipboard and folder under her arm. "Your blood test will be sent to the lab. We should get the results from those in a few weeks. I'll call you as soon as we receive them."
"As for the stress that you were talking about earlier," The doctor continued, turning to put down her clipboard and folder down on the table, "It's important for you to keep your stress levels down. I suggest buying a stress ball or perhaps engaging in another activity that keeps your hands busy. I've heard the art of origami can really be helpful."
"Grazie." Said Hinata, a polite smile gracing her face as she rose from her seat. "And what of the stomach troubles I've been having lately? Is there something I can take for that?"
"Oh, that should be going away soon." Said the doctor smiling. "Congratulations, by the way."
The expression on Hinata's face faltered as she stared at her doctor in confusion. "Whatever for, Dr. Binachi?"
A brief look of shock passed over the young doctor's face before she replaced it with a beaming smile. A nauseous, anxious feeling crept it's way through Hinata's stomach. Instinctively, she took a step backward toward the door.
"Then allow me be the first to tell you the good news. You're about four weeks in, a little early to be getting morning sickness, but I can assure you it is perfectly normal."
The blank look on Hinata's face must have told Dr. Binachi something, for she added, with a slight frown on her face, "Your pregnant, Hinata. You're going to have a baby!"
Random Fact: The Uchiha matriarch wanted her sons to be well rounded and thus, Sasuke Uchiha is accomplished in both English and Italian literature, can speak Latin, Spanish, French, Italian and English, can fence, play the Mandolin and dance the Tarantella
Note2: So obviously this is a work of fiction. I had to make certain pieces of history fit in with my story line. However, if you are confused by any of the events mentioned here, feel free to Wikipedia it or message me and I can try my best to explain it.