Thank you guys who reviewed even after my half-a-year late update... I really appreciate your support! Completely objectively, miss QuietMoon is my best reviewer ever. Since she started reading, there hasn't been a single chapter that she wouldn't review. To be honest, I wait for her reviews anxiously each time I update'

I do not own Naruto…But Itachi would still be alive if I did.

'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'o'

Sakura had woken up feeling a twitch at her stomach, that day. The previous night, sleeping next to Sasuke hadn't felt comfortable at all. Even though it was a week since she had moved in with him, and with the help of remembering their old times together, she thought she had grown used to the fact of sleeping next to him, feeling the warmth of his body, hearing his slow breathing…It amazed her how peaceful he looked when he was asleep; how slow his inhales and exhales were, in contrast with when he was awake, much more with when he was in battle or training. He looked more like the hurt and abandoned, selfishly isolated and even misunderstood child he hid inside him. He was forced to become an adult with cruelty at the tender age when all the other kids think of how much they love their parents; he had to be thinking that there no longer existed for him, the words and the beings, father and mother. Times like those, and since it was summer and they were leaving the windows open, the moon sent its pale rays over their bed and lent him its grace, and Sakura savored the moments.

Thinking of all those, dreaming of all those, made her wake up several times in the night towards the 23rd of July. She was waking up, not making a sound so as to not wake him too, embracing her shoulders or her knees, thinking of everything again and again, and then she slept again for a bit, then woke up afterwards, to fall asleep again…Until a nightmare kicked her for good out of sleep at six in the morning, and she just sat at her place expressionless, thinking. Her stomach hurt but she was not hungry, it wasn't because of that. It felt as if a stone with sharp edges had been thrown into her, as if a whole bunch of roses with huge thorns or a family of bees resided in her belly, pinching her with their stings. Only at the thought though she felt nauseous; she'd better not throw up at the certain place and time…

A heart-throbbing, stressful feeling had descended upon her from last night. Fear, anxiety, insecurence, lacking self-control…It seemed as if all those feelings were consuming her, but she needn't search to find the reason why. It was right in front of her, right on the opposite side of the room, hanging in front of the long, full-body mirror, long and white and ethereal…The kimono she'd wear today, today for her wedding, hanging in front of her eyes, with its white silk shimmer in the morning light that flooded the room; it was embroidered with cherry blossom petals, just like her, and green branches at the corners of her long sleeves…Same with the bright, light pink obi which would be tied around her, only the embroidered area consisted of white Bitteralmond blossoms and flowers….And a golden thread had been used for these branches, as well as the inner part of the flowers. Just looking at it made Sakura feel nervous and her heart skipped beats anxiously.

She sighed and looked over at Sasuke's side on the bed, he was still sleeping. Of course he would. Any normal human being would. Even if he were a soon-to-be king, even if he was tortured by carrying every tormenting feeling deep down alone, he still had a normal sleeping pattern. Not like her. Ever since she was practically thrown out of Konoha, her sleep pattern had become unusual, she would wake up several times before she could finally close her eyes and fall deep into it. And even then, nightmares would always crawl near. Waking up in such early hours in the morning was not anything unusual, not anymore.

She felt him move beside her now, and turned to see. Was he awake or still sleeping? He had a small smile on his lips, from what she could see from the part of his face that wasn't hidden by the pillow. A small smile. A smile, nevertheless. Which meant that he had, if not anything else, a pleasant dream? His face, expression was peaceful, calm and he looked like a little kid.

He turned over to the other side now, his pillow in his arms; forehead facing the bedsheets. A dark object appeared from under the pillow, something that looked like a framed photograph. She raised her arm to it and took it, purely out of curiosity. Indeed, it was a photograph which depicted him as a child. Him as a child with a peaceful look, a cheerful smile, climbing up to a tree branch from the shoulders of his mother…

His mother…Was that really her? Was that really Uchiha Mikoto? Sasuke looked so much like his mother….So much that it seemed to Sakura that had it been for Sasuke to have long hair, he'd look exactly like the woman in the picture. She looked over at him again, he looked more like the happy little child now that he was asleep. Her hand extended from her body unconsciously and she stroked his hair, gently, trying not to wake him up; she knew how light his sleep had always been.

He turned again, face up to the ceiling. He was still sleeping, though the happy expression was long gone. His brows were furrowed, his mouth was slightly open and his whole face was a mask of fear; agony seemed to have conquered him. Sakura let the object fall from her hands and went closer to him. She placed her hand over his shoulder and leaned above him.

"Sasuke…" she whispered in his ear.

Almost as if he was responding, he grabbed her arms.

"Mum! No! Mum!"

Three words came out of his lips, three words uttered by a voice that Sakura had never before hear coming out of his mouth and now everything, from the way he slept, his figure, his facial expressions and his voice to the words he said and his dream showed him as he really was.

"…Sasuke…"

"Mum!" he shouted, still sleeping. "No! Not mum! Please, don't do it! Mum!"

"Sasuke…" Sakura shivered. Such things were happening from the first day they were together, back then. Not the same nightmare again, no!

"Noooo! No, don't do it, niisan, don't- MUM! NO!"

With one difference, this time, it was even more difficult to wake him. She pushed and pulled him back and forth, grabbing his shirt, she kept calling his name to wake him but he just wasn't out of his reverie. She shook him wildly but he was still asleep, screaming.

"Why did you do it, niisan? Why? Why did you kill them? Why?"

"Sasuke!' In a final and desperate attempt to wake him, the pink-haired girl slapped him, and when he opened his eyes, everything seemed to go on in fast forward. He woke up at once but was crying, crying hard like a kid abandoned in the forest, grabbing tightly on her sleeping yukata and whispering incoherent words. Sakura stroked his hair and kissed his forehead as she embraced him; soothing words would be useless in his case. Not that they weren't working; he just didn't want to hear them.

"Sssh…Calm down…It was just a dream."

"Why did he do it, Sakura?" Sasuke asked, his voice broken. Sakura felt him pressing his head on her as he held her tighter and she patted his back.

"I thought you already knew."

"He only lays crap on me…He always has. He was never truly there."

"Come to think of it, though, Sasuke…In contrast with your father who was always busy taking care of Konoha's people and your mother who had so many in her head, and yet still managed to find time for you, that brother figure was really by your side. He showed you things around, and even though he wasn't able to come and watch you in your training hours, he was the one who taught you the moves. Right?" But what the hell am I saying? I hate this man. How can I now find such gentle words just to calm Sasuke?...she wondered. Suddenly, she realized that she wa praising the man she hated most, for the sake of her one love.

"Even if you're right, that still doesn't change the fact that he killed our whole clan and family and destroyed my happiness. It will never change. He stole from me what was most cherished. Even…even the fact that I've got this damn curse on me is because of him!" Sasuke raised his voice in the last sentence. Sakura closed her eyes and hugged him tighter; not so much because she wanted to calm him or because she was afraid, but she felt like doing it. Sasuke loosened in her arms and she felt him stroking her arm that was around his neck.

"Maybe you're right. I should have been the last person to praise him to you, especially after what he did to me."

"Don't remind me…That's another reason to hate him."

"Sasuke…All this hatred is nerve-breaking. Why don't you just let it go for the time being? You're going to become the King today, and Konoha is still in war. You have to think of a way to end the war instead of hunting down one dream? Ambition? Thought? Call it as you wish, but selfish it will be no matter what names you give it." Sakura said; thoughtful as she continued stroking his hair, more out of numbness now rather than consciously doing it.

"You're…kind of right, you know…King…Guess that means I'll have a whole bunch of responsibilities now, hm? No more slacking hours?"

"Weren't you bored?"

"Huh?"

"I mean...All those hours you weren't called anywhere, weren't fighting…Weren't you bored? What have you been doing?"

"Daydreaming….Rejecting maids who were in love with me-"

"Meanie."

"Yeah, sure, whatever you say. You weren't the one to have them all around."

"Yeah, but I am a medic nin. Do you know how many men that were brought to us to heal them have asked me out? And not only here in Konoha; back when I was under the protection of Mizukage and working at their Medical Centre, they were hitting on me too."

"But you never gave in."

"Hey, boy, we never had any more than kisses and hugs, and after what Itachi did, I was scared to bits to even see them naked to examine or heal them; some time after I asked Mizukage if I could only take children as patients, and luckily he agreed. But even if I wasn't for Itachi or any of them, I'd still reject them." Sakura said with a steady voice. She looked at the clock right on the opposite wall, it was still only 6:30 in the morning.

"Why not? Wasn't anyone of them attractive?"

"Looks don't build up love, idiot."

"Then?"

"For me, what counts most is the heart. And from all the men I've ever associated with, I still and always love you. Because you've got a heart. Because even though you act cold and distant, you show no mercy, you're a blockhead-"

"Hey!"

"-you're violent and cruel sometimes and most of them you don't think before you speak or act, you're real. You're not fake and you know your weaknesses. Trying to come up with lies and false-philosophies to hide them is useless; and you've never done this. You're real and even though Naruto says you're a cold hearted bastard, I love you. And I love you for what you are. Remember that."

Sasuke remained silent after that. Her words weren't fake or trying to fool him; she was speaking from her heart. He knew that what she told him wasn't a lie, it couldn't be. Sakura had proved her love thousands of times. He was proud to have her by his side, not so much because he would be certain that she'd be faithful, but because he was sure that her love would complete him. When his parents were still alive, the subject "love" didn't so much bother him, it was needless to say that his family loved him. But when king Fugaku and queen Mikoto had descended, he realized how much "love" bothered him. How greedily he sought for it but how pridefully he rejected it whenever he came across it, in fear of himself appearing weak in the eyes of other people.

With Sakura, things were different. He loved her and she loved him too, deeply, truly, with all her heart and mind. Her little confession just moments ago made him realize how deep and meaningful her feelings were. Sakura actually cared for him.

"You idiot." He caught himself saying, inside his head. "Of course she cares for you. Otherwise, why heal you when you were battled to death by that Suna nin? Why agree to marry you after you hit her and reduced her, humiliating her in the middle of the street? Had it been for anyone else, they'd have gone back to their mother's crying."

"Sakura's mother died three years ago." Sasuke thought to himself. But the lingual battle with himself made him think back at the incidents; indeed, he had done so much to her that he now wondered how she bared staying with him.

"Sakura…Oh, dammit, you're such a wonderful person…" he whispered.

Sakura blinked. "Excuse me?"

"I love you so much, my little cherry blossom. I love you beyond the deepest depths of the seas and the far end of the sky." Sasuke said and kissed her, pushing her back and laying next to her. Sakura closed her eyes and smiled inside; who said that the curse was taking over him? If it was for him to be that sweet and tender, then she'd do all she could to let him stay this way forever.

"Hey, blondy…"

"What again, redhead?"

"Are you sending this hawk off without the message it has to deliver?"

"Eh? Ah, dammit! Bring it here, tomato!"

"Why you peanut! Watch your mouth!"

"And you watch your manners! Show some respect to Leader of the Houses, dammit!"

"Mr. Leader…"

"What?"

"You still forgot the purple ribbon."

"Aaaaargh, damn, Ladybug, I'm gonna kill you!"

"Oh, you will? And then how will you live, mr. Corncob?

"I'll manage."

"Yeah, sure."

"Bring the ribbon here, Kushina."

Neji was waling up and down at the corridor right out of his uncle's room, arms crossed up before his chest, looking down when in reality he wasn't really looking at anything in particular. Deep in thought he was, wondering whether his letter to Tenten had the right things written, if someone else would open it before her, and still if he should write a new one. He wasn't even sure if Tenten got it, but since the hawk he sent returned and wasn't hurt or anything, he supposed that she got it, and his heart felt lighter.

On the other hand though, the letter to Tenten wasn't his only problem. After Hanabi was taken away too, Hiashi had fallen in depression and now was bedridden. Irritated because he couldn't keep an eye on everything as he used to, he was striking his nerves on anyone who would be unlucky to be near him at those times. For Neji though it was different, because, even though he got a promotion, to Hiashi he was still the one to hold responsible for the loss of another daughter, and he knew that very well. That fact wasn't Neji's problem though, what was bothersome was the punishment. Hiashi knew he had him; the curse seal of the green swastika symbol on Neji's forehead would eventually start hurting him, giving him the feeling that a heated blade was cutting him open. The pain was subsiding quickly now because he had grown used t it. The last month Neji learned to bear with it and even wait for it as a part of his daily routine.

This all went on until Hiashi got the first nervous breakdown.

He wasn't hospitalized but he stayed stuck to his bed for good now. The Hyuuga clan had no head now, so the lead went immediately to the elders. But old as they were, they had softened and made more close-to-people decisions. It was better now. The side and main branches finally seemed to be equal, since there was no one now to make the line between them look so visible. That was better for everyone in the clan, and although Hiashi didn't approve of it, he couldn't do something to turn it to his favor anymore.

Tsunade was dropping by every now and then to check on Hiashi's health. When the first shock hit him, she'd taken care of him with her assistant, Sakura. A medical nin always stayed by his side now; not so much to take care of him, because he was able to move the upper half of his body pretty well, but because someone had to be responsible for him, in charge so that Hiashi, who was now more violent than ever, wouldn't do anything to harm himself or somebody else.

Tsunade and Sakura walked out of Hiashi's room; Neji stopped walking and turned to them.

"How is he, Godaime?"

"He still has some months left. Luckily, maybe even a year. Be careful though." Tsunade said.

"Luckily? How can the fact that my everyday tormentor will live on for maybe even a year more be lucky?" Neji said, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"That really depends on how you act towards him; if you don't do something to him, there's no reason to—"

"Forget that Sakura, why would I want to irritate a sick person; much more a person who does harmful things to me? He holds me responsible for Hinata-sama's and Hanabi's loss; but you know what? I believe that's only an excuse. The truth is in his eyes and I can see it/ He's envious of my father who, in spite of the fact that he was on the side branch got to have a son who inherited the Hyuuga bloodline limit as well; while the best he could get was two daughters, and only one of them seems suitable for it. He'll never accept Hinata-sama and Hanabi the way they are, he lives in an imaginary world, thinking of both of them as his priced daughters who were kidnapped because of my own carelessness. He's a crazy. And he wants to drag me down to hell with him." Neji said, hitting the wall with his fist. "It's unfair!"

"Neji!"

"Oh, boy, you're all so stubborn…Even if it is this way, Neji, you shouldn't feel responsible for it. As I'm told, the one who took Hanabi away was Hinata, so now, wherever they are, they're together. They can protect each other and support themselves." Tsunade said, crossing her arms over her chest. "And you know I'm right. I don't think I can do anything to break the curse and remove the seal, but the only thing you can really do is be patient."

"But why me? Why can't I just…flee? Leave here and go live on my own, like a normal person? Because of him, I'm not even able to see the one I love! It's unfair!"

"Neji, don't think that others lead totally normal lives either. Sasuke and I are getting married today and yet look at me; I'm still working. And he doesn't have an easier life either. As far as I know, Shikamaru doesn't want this marriage, but he will go for it to please the ones who love him." Sakura said, looking at him straight in the eye.

"Sasuke doesn't have another choice; he wants to be King, remember? If he didn't want he'd gave up on the royal heritance and he'd pass it down to someone else. It's his choice, and he loves you too, so? Where's the problem? As for Shikamaru, he made his choice as well. Our difference is that you all can draw your lines and do what you want without any sequences or fear of someone else; I can't do that. I'm not free. I've got a whole clan going after me and worse, Hiashi. Until he dies, he'll just keep on torturing me, and no one can tell him to stop; he's the head of the family. When he dies, I'll be finally free, and the curse seal will be inactive until Hinata or Hanabi take control."

"Sensei had told me that things are rough inside the Hyuuga clan but I didn't imagine they'd be that rough." Tsunade said, scratching her forehead.

"Sensei?" Sakura asked, looking at Tsunade.

"Sandaime."

"Ah, yes."

"Well, you see it, you live it!" Neji said.

"NEJI!" A voice echoed like a thunder in the hall; Tsunade and Sakura froze while Neji only covered his ears, closing his eyes. "WHERE'S YOUR REPORT?" Hiashi howled again.

"And you hear it too. That's how we are every day. Nothing ever changes. If you can do something to make him leave earlier, do it. I'm not going to say any more." He said and turned his back, opened the door and entered Hiashi's room.

"Shishou, he's having it really rough…Can't we do something?...Anything?"

"Normally, the Silver Fog would report such things to Leader but since away and unaware…You have to report these as Konoha's representative, and so the Hyuuga clan's too. You're the Iris, right?"

"Shishou, how did you know?" Sakura asked, eyes wide open.

"I was the Golden Cloud once…When your Leader's father was Leader himself…Who is the Cloud now?"

"Tenten. She says she lives in Amegakure, but for as long as I lived there, I hadn't seen her at all."

"Maybe she lives in the forest. She needs the woods for her training; she's a weapon's mistress, no?"

"Well, yeah, as we need special parts of training grounds…I guess that goes for her too."

"Oi, Shikamaru…" Nara Shikaku's voice called lazily for his son. " Do you know what day it is today?"

"July 23, Uchiha Sasuke's birthday and the middle of the summer." Shikamaru replied lazily. "Why?"

"You're forgetting something really important." Shikaku said. "And if you're doing it on purpose…"

""Huuh? What do you mean? What is it that it's today and I should remember?"

"Your wedding, you idiot!" Shikaku threw him a pillow.

"Ouch! Oh, crap, it's today? I had completely forgotten about it…"

"Better go get ready, you idiotbox. I know how long it will take you and you got only five hours."

"…Shikamaru closed his eyes, the pillow Shikaku threw still on his face. He stood up and the green pillow fell on the tatami mat floor without a sound. He walked out, not caring to answer his father. "I'll go cloudwatching…Need to think…"

The streets were full of joyous people. People who were making preparations for the ceremony tonight. People who were gossiping about the three couples; he even heard Temari's name being mentioned and remembered; some people knew about them. He walked on forward, head up, looking at the sky. And then he bumped on someone.

"Oi, watch where you're going…Don't go cloudwatching in the middle of the street!"

"Asuma!"

"Yep. Hey, what's with the long face?" the man asked, patting his student's back.

"Need you ask? I'm getting married tonight!"

"No more freedom, huh? He said indifferently, lighting a cigarette.

"It's not that…Can't we go somewhere less crowded? I need to talk to someone….I can't keep them in and go on like that anymore."

"Everyone's out in the street so…Let's go to my house."

They walked silent, passing by people who wanted to stop them to congratulate Shikamaru for his choice and Asuma for his students. Shikamaru slapped his forehead mentally every time it happened. (He was too lazy to get his hands out of his pockets.)

"Well, who knows? Naturally it's the bride who seems melancholic, but this…"

"Who knows? Ino-chan is way too happy to connect to the word, you know? She's the last girl you'd think of as a melancholic bride!"

"Come to think of it, Shikaku was like that too!"

"Really?"

"Yep. And now he's all lovey-dovey with Yoshino-san, even after all those years."

"Then everything's okay!"

The two who had this conversation walked on laughing and Shikamaru felt like his head was boiled; gossiping in Suna, gossiping in Konoha…He knew that people just were like that, but what pissed him wasn't the fact that they were talking about him, or Temari, or anyone, but the fact that they were jumping to conclusions; and most of the times, irrelevant.

"Damn you all…" he mumbled and sighed. After a while, they reached Asuma's house. It hadn't changed at all from the last time he had stepped there. The only thing that seemed to be off was that it was…Tidily messy. One picture of Kurenai, one of Konohamaru and one of Sandaime Sarutobi were together on a table, a board of shougi set on the low food table, its pawns scattered all around, along with a forgotten cigarette and a box of matches. A Jounin vest was on the couch; it seemed to have something that looked like coffee stain on it, and a burned point betrayed the presence of ashes. Shikamaru shook his head; the mess in his room was greater, and he didn't mind this at all. After all, Asuma was going through his own rough time now too.

"Sorry it's that messy; I hadn't found the courage to do any housework since Kurenai was…" Asuma said, scratching his chin.

"Hey, don't worry. M room's even worse since I don't let my hag get in and clean anymore; that's nothing compared to it. As long as there's a place to sit and talk…" Shikamaru said, showing some of the pillows that were around the shougi board.

"I'm not in the mood right now."

"Who said I wanted to play? I'm not in the mood either. I just needed a quiet place to sit and talk, that's all."

"Then move it and sit down." Asuma said, lighting anew cigarette. He blew the smoke off and threw the match out of the window; it landed on a tone in the yard. "So? What did you want to talk about? I knew that you're not so well lately, ever since you came back from Suna five months ago you're really a mess. What's the matter, boy?" Asuma asked, sitting down next to his student.

"Well…It's about Temari…And Ino, eventually.

"Eventually?"

"Well…"

"First things first."

"Okay. As you already know, three years ago, I was with Temari. But back then something happened to her and she left so suddenly, without even saying goodbye. Looking back at it now, she was kinda weird for about two weeks before she left…The fact is, I didn't know what happened until the last time I went to Suna…She's got a son, you know. He'll be three this year."

"You went that far with her?"

"Asuma! Well, I did, but…The problem is…she's not sure if the kid's mine."

"What? Why?"

Because…She said that…Itachi raped. And I know that it's not a lie, Sakura confirmed it; he had done the same to her and got her pregnant. Sakura was told by Tsunade to leave the kid in the woods and he's the one who had been hurting the messengers from Suna and Konoha; anyway, because of that…Temari didn't even want to see me."

"But why? It's not like it's your fault or anything."

"She…seemed as if she was afraid of my reaction if I saw her son, and most of, if I touched her. Every time I did, she cried. But I can't understand why she gave in and... And just because she was like a female quarterback back then, and she doesn't know who that kid's father is, she's hidden his existence from everyone…Well, apart from that old Chiyo and that Matsuri girl, Gaara's student or secretary or whatever she is.

"And what does that have to do with you and Ino?" Asuma mumbled.

"Can't you see? I still love Temari, I never stopped loving her! The wedding that's here for me and Ino was arranged by our parents and all through these years we're engaged I was forced to pretend I loved her…When I…The last time I went to Suna, to inform them of the pirate attack, Gaara sent me to spend the night at Temari's house because their inns were filled, and I made out with her!...I…I can't keep on pretending, Ino might be getting on my nerves all the time but she doesn't deserve this."

"I knew this marriage was a bad idea after all…You and Ino just aren't cut out to be together. Your clan techniques may match but you two don't. Temari…I don't know a thing about her, but judging from what I see and from the kind of women the Nara men seem to give into…She's your ideal girl." Asuma said, blowing the smoke off, creating rings and ripples in the air. " And this isn't about Ino, and we both know it. It's because you love Temari, and don't give me that crap and look, and you care for her so much that your worries rub off all the time."

"What? You…You don't think that they've…understood anything, right?"

"You're like an open book-"

"WHAT?"

"- -to me! Shut up when I'm talking!" Asuma slapped Shikamaru's neck. "You're like an open book to me, even though I'm not your father."

"Better you than pops."

"Hey."

"He's really troublesome."

"Everything's troublesome for you, man."

"Except for Temari…" Shikamaru murmured. "Well…what do I do now?" he asked, his brows furrowed.

"You go marry Ino like nothing has happened, and you hope for a miracle to happen." Asuma raised his shoulders.

"Are you crazy? I can't do that! After the ceremony's over, they'll be expecting us to…She'll be expecting…" Shikamaru said, a slight red color spreading over his cheeks.

"Why the blush? It's not like you haven't done it before or anything…"

'Asuma!"

"Don't shout. Am I not telling the truth?"

"It's not that! I…can't even think of myself with Ino…like that. Especially now, she's the one who's completely inexperienced and will be waiting for me to do everything."

"What are you afraid of?"

"I'm not…Everything! Her eyes, her thoughts, her touch…Her whole existence! I can't imagine myself with another woman! Not to mention that I'm worried whether I'll be able to act normal for the rest of the day or not. I've got a really bad feeling."

"Then get rid of it."

"Easy for you to say. You married the woman you loved."

"Shut up."

Maybe he was right, feeling bad, because Ino was really making a fuss about the night, talking to everyone that was around to listen; their customers at the shop, her parents, the flowers…She was overflowing with happiness, that much that Inoichi had to sent her out to go get water to calm things for a while.

"Pretty joyous, isn't she?" Ino's mother whispered.

"Well, she;s getting married! I would act like that too if I was her. Weren't you all excited back then too?" Inoichi told her.

"That was you, dear."

"Oh well…" the blond man scratched his forehead.

A LITTLE SOMETHING, everonye. As some of you may remember, today is my birthday. This chapter was supposed to be WHOLE, but since it's not finished in the typing yet, and I haven't posted anything in about two months, I decided to split it up and post up TODAY, so not to break the tradition of one KC chapter uploaded on my Bday. I'm finally 17.

Enjoy the first part! o