I am actually so, so sorry. This was a long, long time coming. Please know that I did have my reasons for taking so long. Life decided to whack me in the face with a mallet. A mixture of no time, no energy, and no motivation really just destroyed me. I won't waste your time with a huge authors note, but please know that I am incredibly sorry, and I hope that this chapter sort of makes up for my huge absence. Also, this chapter wasn't edited. It's 2:30am. I really don't have the energy and I just want to get this out.

Thank you so much to:

Betsy
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Thank you all for your wonderful reviews. They mean the absolute world to me :)

Dedication: all of my readers and especially my reviewers for being so patient. I couldn't ask for anything more.

Chapter 21

.:{*}:.

Lifting the Veil

Sakura POV

Everything about the man sent chills down my spine. His orange saffron slits for eyes; his skin, so tanned and weather-worn it looked to be made from leather; his cropped black hair that stood up like a hedgerow. Everything, from the snarl on his lips to the tightly roped muscles that wound around his body, made fear gather in a cesspool at the bottom of my gut.

"Sentoki," Sasuke hissed beside me, and I jumped at the noise. It sliced the air in two, like lightening to a brewing storm. "Of everyone I expected to betray my family, you were not one of them. How long have you been planning this?"

Sentoki said nothing, but motioned to some hidden guards. They immediately stepped forward and bound us tightly. So tightly I could barely feel my fingertips after a few moments. The guards then pushed us all to the middle of the Throne Room and forced us to the ground.

"I have been planning this for years," Sentoki eventually rasped, his voice as gnarled as a dying stump. "Years and years and years. Working my way up through the ranks of the army until I became the leader of it. Building up my allies and my name within the court. Gaining your trust and your confidence; working my way into the council and picking off the members of your family one by one. All for this moment."

Sasuke glared at him; I had never seen anyone spew such venom from their eyes alone.

"You're the reason my family is dead?" he hissed.

"Partly," Sentoki replied, becoming more at ease as all of us were subdued before him. "I did the planning and the scheming, and others did the doing. I planned the death of your parents all those years ago, and yet I never laid a finger on them."

"Who killed my parents, then?"

Sentoki spared Sasuke a glance, a smirk pulling at the edges of his mouth. "Karin," he replied simply.

I felt my stomach drop, and could barely stop myself from stuttering, "K… Karin killed them?"

"Yes, you annoying little fool," Sentoki spat at me. "As a servant, she had access to every room in the palace. It only took a few sweet words to convince her. All the titles and riches she could desire, if she would only do as I asked." He paused, savouring the moment. "She drugged the wine that the guards were given at midnight – poor girl who delivered it was executed, of course – and once the castle slept she snuck into their room and slit their throats. Simple. Easy. And no one ever suspected her or me."

I felt as if I was going to be sick.

"Karin was the one who poisoned Ino, too. The little bitch was annoying, and an alliance between Otogakure and Sunagakure so soon would have been disastrous to my plans, whereas a war between the two of you would have benefitted me greatly. And Sasuke's growing attachment to you was getting in the way. Killing two birds with one stone, really. Except neither of you died, which was infuriating. Sasuke rescued you from the dungeons before I could make Orochimaru and Kabuto finish you, and that idiot, Karin, didn't put enough nightshade into Ino's potion. But it doesn't matter. In the end, I have won anyway."

"Where is my brother?" Sasuke demanded, and I could sense an undertone of fear in his voice.

"I don't know. He left the day after you did and hasn't come back. The coward probably fled. Good. It made the coup de tat far easier."

I could feel Sasuke shaking with rage beside me. "What about my sister? What about Yue?"

The bastard nearly smiled. "That was one of my more genius plans. You see, upon his arrival in Otogakure, I immediately got Orochimaru to befriend Inoichi and place Karin as Ino's serving girl. I could see incredible opportunity in the situation, and I wasn't about to let that slip. And with him, Inoichi had brought a man – a Hyuuga from Konoha – named Hizashi. And from what I could gather from Orochimaru's small bits of meagre information, this Hizashi was looking to form an alliance between our three nations." I could feel Neji begin to tense beside me as Sentoki began to talk about his father. "I knew, even then, that an alliance between the three nations would undo everything I had been working towards, so I got Orochimaru to befriend him. And as if by some happy chance, your sister happened to overhear a message that Karin was passing on. She was telling him how Orochimaru was trying to organise a meeting with him and Itachi about an alliance between Konohagakure and Otogakure, with a marriage between a Hyuuga and an Uchiha. And when Yue brought it up at lunch time the next day that spelt her complete undoing. I made Orochimaru forge a note from Sasuke to Yue, urging her to meet him at the stables that night, and of course I had Orochimaru tell the Hyuuga to meet him at the stables too. As Orochimaru had trained Yue, he knew her fighting style, and was easily able to kill the Hyuuga while making it look like Yue had done the deed. And once Yue arrived, we strangled her with a pillow, leaving no trace of blows or poison, just like the Hyuuga's fighting style. And even better, Sasuke soon waged war on Konoha, which was just what I needed to weaken Otogakure further."

Normal POV

Sasuke and Neji were visibly shaking with rage as Sentoki – almost gleefully – revealed the way that their family members had been killed.

"But then," Sentoki continued, "you somehow caught Orochimaru, Kabuto and Karin. I still don't know how you managed that. Pray, tell me how?"

"A letter was found," Sasuke snarled, and Sakura was grateful that he didn't tell Sentoki it was her who had found said letter. "It outlined your plans, and we arrested them for it."

"Ah," Sentoki said under his breath. "That does explain it. It doesn't matter, of course. Their capture gave me the perfect opportunity to get you out of Otogakure."

"And why would you want that?" Sasuke questioned, anger lathering his voice.

"It would have been more difficult to overtake Oto with both you and your brother here. Though I had hoped that you would have been killed in Konoha. No one in this world seems to be any good at killing people. That is getting incredibly frustrating. Though, I suppose that this way, I'll be able to kill you myself, a pleasure I had always hoped to have."

Sentoki began to draw his sword, the razor sharp edge glinting in the dying sun.

"Before you kill me," Sasuke interjected, "I just want to know one thing."

Sentoki stayed his hand, the action an invitation for Sasuke to speak his final words.

Sasuke took a deep breath, the hesitation seeming awkward considering Sasuke's usual indifferent and impenetrable demeanour. "Why did you do all of this?" he asked, his voice unusually silent. "Why did you kill my family, instigate a war – almost two wars – and try to take over Otogakure?"

Sentoki was silent for a moment, and he looked down his crooked nose at the young prince. "Power. Respect. My family had nothing and I was beaten for everything as a child. I wanted the power to beat anyone as everyone had had the power to beat me, and I wanted the respect of everyone who had ever been foolish enough to not believe in me. And what better way to gain power and respect than to bring the royal family to their knees? It took years, but now I have the entire Otogakure army fighting for me, as well as the Council. You are powerless, and you are alone. Now that's enough talking. Time for you all to die. Starting with you." He pointed his now drawn sword at Sasuke. Sakura watched as he savoured the moment, feeling like she was either about to faint or vomit. Or both. She watched as he drew the sword back, and held it for a moment. It was as if time slowed down, before he swung it forwards, aiming for Sasuke's neck.

"Stop!"

Inches from his target, Sentoki faltered and instead turned to look at the person standing at the door.

Sakura had never been so glad to see anyone in her life as Itachi stood at the entrance to the hall.

Sentoki smirked an almost knowing smile, before saying, "Perfect."

There was no emotion on Itachi's face as he stepped forward. "Stand down, Sentoki. The Sunagakure army is falling into the city as we speak. You're outnumbered. Stand down."

Sentoki reacted in a way no one expected: he laughed. "You think that after all this effort and all these years I'll simply stand down?" he cackled. "Even if you defeat me, the Council will never let you rule. You have no army. You have no Council. Stand down, Itachi. Even if you've won the battle, you will never win the war."

"Otogakure has needed to change for years," Itachi countered. "The Council has been corrupt for decades, which in turn has influenced the court. If you will not stand down, then you will die."

"And you will die with me," Sentoki said, almost prophetically.

The next few moments happened quickly. Itachi flicked his wrist in a quick motion, and hundreds of Sunagakure soldiers ran into the hall, swords glinting in the dying sunlight. A group of Otogakure soldiers raced forward to meet them, and soon the castle was filled with the sound of steel biting into steel and flesh, the cries of the wounded and dying, and footsteps as more soldiers entered the fray.

Within moments, Sakura could feel warm, recognisable hands tugging at the bonds that bound her.

"Gaara?" she exclaimed, and tried to twist around to see him.

"Try not to move, Sakura. These ropes only tighten every time you do," he replied gently.

She did as she was bade, and within moments her hands were free. Rubbing her raw wrists, she turned to look at the red headed man while he started to free the others. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

"My brother is captain of the Sunagakure army, and I am here to help him fight." He didn't look at her as he said this, and within seconds Neji, Juugo, Naruto and Sasuke were free. The four of them instantly picked up nearby swords from fallen soldiers and ran into the fight. "Sakura."

The girl turned to look at Gaara.

"Get out of here. Get somewhere safe. You can't fight. You'll die if you stay here. Go. Go!"

Not wanting to leave, but knowing he was right, Sakura darted around fighting soldiers and over dead and dying men, and fled deep into the castle.

Gaara watched her go until she was out of sight, then hefted his sword and met the first Otogakure soldier he could find head on.

Though a war was raging on about him, Itachi only had eyes for one person. He didn't move, and no one dared strike him. It was similar for Sentoki: though he made no effort to move, no one got within a metre of him.

Itachi's eyes narrowed, and hatred filled every crevice of his being. He had realised Sentoki's treachery the moment he saw Orochimaru's disfigured corpse. No one else in Otogakure had that skill with a blade besides himself and Sasuke, and few people had access to the dungeons. He had purposefully sent Sasuke away, fearful that his brother could be Sentoki's next victim, and then had gotten word out to his people in secret to not resist Sentoki. The fewer people that died in this war, the better.

And then he had fled.

Not in fear or cowardice, but in determination. Sentoki had to be stopped, and the only place that could help Itachi was Sunagakure. Itachi had to go himself, had to beg for help himself, as there was no one left in Otogakure that he could trust. His army, his Council and his court had presumably been taken over completely. Itachi needed to go by himself, for his own safety and the safety of his people: if he wasn't there, then Sentoki may have taken over with as little bloodshed as possible. And it seemed that that was what had happened, Itachi was able to observe, relieved. At least, when he had walked in to the city, there were no dead bodies or blood stains anywhere.

Sentoki began to prowl forwards, and Itachi instantly perked up, the grip on his sword becoming tighter in the process. And then he too, began to proceed. He moved forward, with sure, steady steps, his eyes never wavering from the figure of Sentoki. He was blind and deaf to the battle raging about him; he heard no screams, nor shrill singing blades; not fighting soldiers, nor dead and dying bodies underfoot. There was only the man in front of him; the man who had brought his family and his empire to its knees.

And he would make him pay for it.

The moment Sentoki was in range, Itachi lashed out in a movement almost too quick to follow, but Sentoki met his sword just as fast. Not deterred, Itachi struck again and again and again, his swing fast and deadly and exact each time, yet Sentoki met him, move for move, every time. Then, with a great heave, Sentoki forced Itachi's strike back, and suddenly Itachi was on the defensive. He parried the lightning fast blows, a bead of sweat forming on his brow. Itachi's eyes began to narrow in concentration, his tired muscles strained against Sentoki's weight. He could feel the small bead of sweat begin to creep down his forehead, moving millimetre by millimetre down his slick skin, its trail tickling the nerve ends as it moved down, down, through the fine hairs on his eyebrow, and then slowly it trickled into his eye. Reflexively, Itachi flinched, and in that brief moment of hesitation, Sentoki struck. His sword dug deep into Itachi's side, and blood immediately began to spill out of the wound.

Itachi grunted, more in shock than pain, and stepped back, away from the offending sword. His foot caught on the dead body of a soldier, and he went reeling back, falling to the floor. Dazedly, he put his hand against his side and pulled it away. It was covered in hot, sticky blood. The world seemed to blur in front of him. It took on an opaque undertone, and as if in slow motion he watched Sentoki raise his glistening, blood drenched sword high above his head, a look of hatred and determination and triumph mingling into a gruesome expression on his face. The world went quiet, and Itachi could feel the beating of his own heart, his breath and it passed out of his lips, his blood as it pumped out of his wound. And he felt at peace. He would die, but he would die fighting for his people and for what he believed in and for trying to make Otogakure a better city. And that was what mattered.

Itachi closed his eyes, waiting for the death blow, but it didn't come. Instead, his ears detected a cry, someone screaming his name, and a desperate clang as someone intervened. Itachi opened his eyes and there was Sasuke, his little brother, sword in hand and beating against Sentoki in a hatred and anger Itachi could never express. Sasuke was always the more emotional of the two, whether he cared to admit it or not. Itachi nearly smiled, and his heart started to swell with pride at the man he had turned into.

In the next moment, Itachi felt hands grip under his arms and haul him slowly out of the battle. Almost with a drunken laziness Itachi looked back to see who his helped was, and was surprised to see a tuft of pink hair.

"Sakura?" he questioned, his words slurred. "What are you doing here? You shouldn't be here, it's too dangerous."

"That's what everyone's saying," Sakura replied, grunting with the effort it took to haul him out of the hall. "But what use am I, if I can only stand around and do nothing while there are people in here I can save?" She sounded almost angry. "I'd be no use at all. And I'm quite tired of being useless."

At this, Itachi did smile. "I can see why my brother loves you," he managed to say before passing out.

Sakura paused for a moment, unsure of what to say. Did Sasuke love her? She wasn't sure. There was no time to dwell on that, though, as Itachi's lifeblood drained out of his body and onto the red-streaked marble floor. Precious seconds could be the difference between life and death.

She managed to haul Itachi out of the Great Hall and near some medical supplies she was able to scavenge during her initial flight from the battle. Itachi had lost a lot of blood, and was still losing it. His face was a sickly milky white colour and his hands had gone cold. Sakura tore away his shirt and quickly applied some rubbing alcohol to the wound, making sure no infection could grab hold, before tying a bandage around his middle as tightly as she could, and hoping that that could quell the worst of the bleeding. If it didn't cease soon, Itachi would die. Just for added measure, she held her hand against the wound as tightly as she could, as if that could somehow force Itachi's blood back into his body.

"Sakura!" The girl tensed and turned, unsure whether the voice belonged to friend or foe, before she spotted Tenten.

"Tenten!" Sakura exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"Helping," the brunette girl replied. "What can I do?"

Sakura didn't hesitate. "Hold your hand hard against the wound. We must staunch the bleeding, else he will die."

Tenten nodded, her features turning to that of grim determination, and without hesitation she held her hands against Itachi's hip.

"I need to go back inside and help more of the men. Stay here," said Sakura, and left before Tenten could reply.

.:{*}:.

Sasuke was blinded by rage and hate and anger. His world had focused on one thing, and one thing only: killing Sentoki. Somehow, he felt that if that could be achieved, then everything would be okay. Everything would be alright. He felt that it was kind of funny. All of the story books lied. Anger and hatred wasn't red. It didn't turn the world red. It did, however, paralyse him, in the sense that he was unable to do anything but exert all of his efforts into killing Sentoki. It reared up like a serpent, starting in his belly and slowly unfolding, like a cobra, through his chest, up his throat, and clouding his mind. It blurred the edges of his vision. It made his body pulse. And he had never felt more alive.

When Sasuke saw Itachi fall, he knew he had only a matter of moments to stop his death. He only had seconds to save his older brother, and protect the person who had always saved and protected him. He had almost leaped onto Sentoki's sword himself, anything that would deflect that killing blow, but he was able to parry it instead, and force it off course.

And now, Sasuke gritted his teeth as he used every piece of knowledge he had to try and kill Sentoki. Which was unfortunately no easy feat.

He's been holding out on me. All those years, all those spars, he was holding out, Sasuke thought. And that was true. Where Sentoki was a difficult, but beatable opponent during sparring, he seemed near impossible and invincible now. Not a single one of Sasuke's thrusts hit the man, and while Sasuke's muscles began to shudder under duress, Sentoki looked as if he could continue all night and well into the next day.

Sasuke hated that.

But with every passing moment, Sasuke became more and more exhausted, while Sentoki seemed to become stronger and stronger. His grin turned maniacal, his eyes fanatical in the ever-encroaching dark, seeing victory soon at hand with every slash of his sword.

Suddenly, Sasuke could feel himself pushed away from the side, and he fell hard to the ground, Sentoki's sword clipping the edge of his shoulder. He stood up, ready to kill whoever had interrupted, but fell into shock as Gaara stood where Sasuke had stood, his eyes steady and even, his gait and swing calm, calculated, and collected. But Gaara's talent did not lie in physical strength: his talent was speed. While Sentoki's strokes were powerful and heavy like Sasuke's and Itachi's, Gaara's were not, and while Gaara was able to evade the worse hits by nimbly darting out of the way, Sentoki was a trained killer, and was nearly as fast as Gaara. Sasuke could quickly see that Gaara was hoping Sentoki would slip and fall in the gore that matted the marble, or trip on one of the mangled corpses. But Sentoki was no clumsy oaf, and his steps were strong but sure. And behind Gaara's calm façade, Sasuke could see panic begin to well up. Sentoki was quickly gaining the upper hand.

It happened in moments.

One second, Gaara lunged for Sentoki, and the next Sentoki had batted Gaara's sword from his hands, then in one sure movement, stuck his sword deep into Gaara's chest. Satisfaction bubbled onto Sentoki's face like blood bubbled to Gaara's lips. His eyes turned glassy, his face drained itself of blood. He turned to look at Sasuke, his sea-green eyes almost screaming orders at Sasuke.

Your chance is now. You have a few seconds. Kill him now! Kill him! KILL HIM!

Sasuke didn't hesitate and neither did Gaara. Gaara's hands grabbed the hilt of Sentoki's sword in a vice like grip, pulling the sword deeper into his own chest and compelling the man to stay where he was. He couldn't let go of his sword. Not even for a moment.

And that moment was all Sasuke needed to slice his sword through Sentoki's neck.

His face showed genuine surprise as it rolled away from his body, which slumped down, finally defeated, onto the cold marble steps.

As if his death had been an alarm, the entire room stopped, and turned to stare at the fallen Sentoki.

But Sasuke didn't care for that. He didn't care for any of it. The moment Sentoki's head had hit the floor, so had Gaara's dying body, sword still stuck right through his chest. And in that moment, Sasuke didn't care whether he liked or loathed Gaara. All he knew was that he had come to Otogakure's aid when they had called for it, and then had given his life to save a city and save a people he barely cared for. Sasuke scrambled over to him.

Sasuke had no words for Gaara. He cradled his head off the ground, as carefully as he could, desperately trying to think of something. Nothing he thought of seemed to be worthy. "Thank you," he finally managed to whisper, though even that felt wrong. He felt that he should apologise or make promises or write speeches and songs, all in Gaara's name. But how?

Gaara smiled, then grimaced as death took a tighter grip on him. "Take care of her," he managed to whisper, and Sasuke nodded desperately, as if that one simple motion could save him.

But it couldn't. Gaara's head fell back and his eyes turned to glass as his life fled to the netherworld. Sasuke gently laid Gaara's head on the ground, then raised his hand to close Gaara's unseeing eyes for the last time.

The fighting still hadn't resumed when Sasuke stood up. "Otogakure army," he said in a numb voice that carried throughout the hall. "You will be tried for your crimes and treachery against Otogakure. If you were merely a pawn, you will not be punished. If you were a key player, then you will be executed. Anyone who tries to escape will die immediately."

Sasuke felt exhausted. Where was the glory that came with victory? He felt nothing. His family had been avenged, but at what cost? Through the crowd, he spotted a head of pink hair, but she wasn't headed for him.

"Gaara?" Sakura whispered, her voice holding a quivering note of hope that he may just be asleep. Though that hope was futile considering the sword sticking out of Gaara's chest. "Gaara!" she screamed, and pushed her way through the crowd towards the dead man. The man Sasuke presumed to be Gaara's brother was hot on her heels, and the two of them raced towards Sunagakure's fallen leader.

Sakura seemed to be inconsolable as tears fell freely from her eyes and she whimpered out Gaara's name, touching his cheek, his hair, his shoulder, and part of him that wasn't covered in blood or filth.

Gaara's brother - Kankuro, Sasuke thought his name was - merely looked at Sasuke and asked, "How did he die?"

Sasuke swallowed. "He died distracting Sentoki just long enough for me to kill him," he managed to say. Kankuro nodded once, then ignored Sasuke.

Sakura was still weeping.

Hers weren't the only tears that were shed over fallen soldiers that night.

The war was over, but a new battle had begun. Itachi had healed, but would Otogakure?

The two brothers had to somehow rebuild Otogakure.

And in the meantime, they had to trial every Otogakure soldier that had taken part in the war.

Most, it seemed, had been fed lies or threatened to fight. Threats such as familial deaths had been common enough, and others said that Sentoki had merely told them that the Uchiha's were planning some terrible treachery with Sunagakure to rule Oto with a tyrannical hand, and they were too naïve and obedient to question this piece of information.

Others proudly boasted the part that they had to play in the uprising, and they were executed swiftly for their crimes.

The entire Council was executed.

Any members of Court or servants who had actively plotted in favour of Sentoki were executed.

There were a lot of executions.

Gaara was mourned in Otogakure, and a minute silence was ordered throughout the city in his memory. His body was taken back to Sunagakure where sacred burial rights were to be administered.

When Sasuke asked Kankuro who would lead Sunagakure in the future now, Kankuro merely answered, "Me. I didn't want to lead a country. Gaara was better with people. But now I suppose that I don't have a choice."

Sasuke and Itachi gave their condolences and their thanks to Kankuro before he left, and left a silence hanging in the air that rang with We will never be able to repay the debt that we owe you. A few thousand Sunagakure soldiers stayed behind in Otogakure in order to see that the city wasn't retaken by rebels. No one tried, but no one wanted to risk it, either.

Sakura and a few other nurses did their best to save the soldiers that they could. Neji had come in with a bad gash below his eye, and Sakura had given him to the care of Tenten, who had proven herself a gentle nurse and a fast learner. It wasn't surprising for Sakura, somehow, when she saw Neji squeeze Tenten's hand a little longer than necessary on more than one occasion, and Tenten walk away blushing a delicate pink. She felt happy for them both. Happy that Neji may have found someone to love and care for who may be able to return it properly.

Nearly a month to the day that Sentoki had tried to overthrow Otogakure, it was time for Naruto, Neji and Sakura to leave. Sakura had barely seen Sasuke in that month, and had spoken to him even less, and she felt horrible that she wouldn't get a chance to do so. There was so much left unsaid. So many words that would never be shared between them. She regretted it. Bitterly.

As she was thinking this, she heard someone hiss her name. "Sakura."

She turned towards the voice and found Naruto. He beckoned her towards him, and she walked up to him without hesitation.

"He's in the garden. Didn't think he'd let you go without saying goodbye, did you?"

But Sakura wasn't listening.

She was running.

She pelted towards the garden, as fast as her legs would carry her. And there he was. Sitting on the little bench she so loved, just in front of the koi fish pond.

He turned to her as she approached, but didn't say anything. She didn't know what to say. Good bye, maybe? But good byes were so final. She didn't want this to be final. She wanted to find some sort of loop hole, where they could be together and they could be happy.

But that was impossible.

Because Otogakure hated her, and Konoha hated him. Staying in Otogakure for nine months nearly destroyed her last time, what would a life time do? And if Sasuke went back to Konoha they would probably lock him back up and torture him again.

"Sasuke, I -"

"Take care of her." Sasuke looked at Sakura, interrupting her. She looked quizzically at him. "Those were Gaara's last words to me. Take care of her. But I'm so bad at taking care of you. Why would he leave that for me?"

Sakura didn't know what to say to him.

"I can't just leave Otogakure. Not now. Not after everything that has happened. But I can't let you go either. Asking you to stay here, though, is impossible. We both know that."

Sakura just nodded. She couldn't think of anything to say. Everything he said was the truth.

"I almost wish I wasn't the prince. I wish I could just pack up my bags and go with you to Konoha and not be tortured on arrival. But then, if I wasn't prince, I probably would have never met you, and I think that that would be the greatest tragedy of all."

He's still right, Sakura thought bitterly. He wasn't like Tenten, who, last anyone heard, was heading for Konoha with Neji. She had said that she has no life left in Otogakure – her grandmother had died peacefully during the coup.

"You need to stay here," she eventually managed to choke out. "And I need to go home. And as much as I wish things were different, we can't change that."

Sasuke nodded his understanding at her, and without a word, left.

Sakura felt ill, and soon raced over to the nearest bush to heave up her stomach.

Their departure felt like all kinds of wrong. There was too much fake happiness. Too much underlying sadness, and Naruto, Neji, Sakura and Tenten soon left. Sakura couldn't look Sasuke in the eyes and she hugged him one last time. She gave Itachi a final kiss on the cheek, then left with the others.

The walk was quiet. No one cared to break it. Sakura was too exhausted, a feeling she had started to become accustomed to, and the rest seemed to be feeling similar.

They seemed to be in a hurry to get home, at any rate. Neji had an official letter from Itachi for Hiashi, a peace offering of sorts, suggesting that the two meet and discuss the possibility for an alliance.

Sakura didn't care. She just wanted to go home. Go home and forget all about Otogakure and Sunagakure and Sasuke and Gaara and love and heartache and lies and scandals and murders and just everything that had happened over the past year. Forget it all. Because maybe if she could forget, then she could gather some semblance of normality, and maybe, just maybe, she could fall in love with someone and have a family and grow old and pretend that only eleven months ago she had been standing in a hospital watching the Otogakure army race towards the gates with death and blood lust in their bones.

Maybe.

Maybe she could forget.

Itachi turned to Sasuke, surprised.

"Truly brother, you astound me."

Sasuke turned towards his older brother, questions in his eyes.

"If you want to go after her, go. I will not stop you. And you will not be held accountable to the role of Prince, anymore."

Sasuke said nothing, but his eyes conveyed everything. He grabbed his brother's shoulder for a moment, and walked away.

Moving faster than he thought possible, Sasuke gathered a few belongings. Necessities. Anything he couldn't make, he left behind. And before he knew it, he was on his horse, and thinking of ideas.

Where would we go? What would we do? How would we live?

He almost immediately thought of the little run down shack he, Sakura and Neji had stayed in over a month ago. With a bit of effort, it would be easily hospitable. There was a vegetable garden, the woods were filled with game, a well. It wasn't in Konoha, nor was it in Otogakure.

It was perfect.

They had only maybe an hour's head start on him, and so he caught up to them quickly, pushing his horse as fast as it would go.

"Sakura!" he called, to get her attention, and he could see her startled expression as she turned back to look at him.

"Sasuke?" she questioned, and he jumped down in front of her, not even waiting for the beast to stop running beneath him.

The others exchanged glances, and stared between the two, before deciding that they would give them privacy, and they kept walking.

"Sasuke, what are you doing?" Sakura asked, confusion lathered thick in her voice.

"The hut, Sakura!" Sasuke panted. That didn't help ease her confusion at all, and Sasuke took a deep breath to calm himself and make himself understandable. "The hut, which you healed me in when we escaped Konoha, we can live there. It's not in Konoha, it's not in Oto. It's safe!"

Sakura was about to bombard him with questions, he could see that, so he didn't stop.

"Itachi and I talked. Sort of. Well, he talked. He said I could give up my title. Which I guess I just did. Don't you see? I'm not prince anymore, I don't think. Well, I won't be for much longer, anyway. There's the vegetable garden, and the well. I can hunt. It just needs a bit of fixing up, but we could do it."

Sakura had never seen Sasuke so excited; had never heard him stumble over his words before. Sasuke, so calm and sure and collected, didn't stumble over things like words.

And yet, there he was, right in front of her, dark eyes glowing like hot coals, alive with excitement and happiness and hope.

And Sakura just couldn't say no to him. She couldn't leave him again and try to sort out her life. Because her life wouldn't be complete without him. It would be half a life, and what kind of life would that be? Sasuke was arrogant and rude and selfish and an absolute pig, and she loved him so much it hurt. And if there was any chance of them being together, she would take it and hold it so tightly that it would never have the chance to go away.

"Okay," she managed to squeak, Sasuke's excitement catching. When he took her in his arms and spun her around, she had never felt more alive. She let herself laugh and smile, and held him just as tightly, so that he could never leave, either. Not that he would.

And for the first time since January, she felt genuinely, completely, and utterly happy.

So… Merry Christmas! Um. Yeah. It's still 2:30. I can't think of much to say. I hope that this even partially made up for my huge, gigantic absence.

Also, congratulations to Wings Of Silver Wishes and watchingtherain1 for guessing Sentoki. I think someone else guessed him, but I'm just too tired to go through my PMs. So if you did, please let me know and I'll add your name ASAP :)

Also, probably fit to tell you, next chapter is the last one. And considering that it's supposed to be short, it should be out soon. I want this story finished before the New Years, dammit! This chapter was supposed to be two, but then one thing led to another and it ended up as one. It's been an absolute rollercoaster, so thank you for sharing it with me :)

Much love, SapphireRivulet xoxoxo