Chapter 20. Truth

"Truth is not for comfort."

|Naruto|

"The cause of the fire that broke out on Hatake Street hasn't been discovered yet, but I'll take a look at it before heading home." I clapped my hands, "Alright guys, when's the last time we finished up this early on a Monday? Go, and have a nice day!"

As the crew cleared out of the meeting room, I took a quick look at my phone and saw a missed call from Ino.

'I'll call her later.' I thought to myself as I slipped my phone into my pocket.

Konohamaru was waiting for me by the door.

"Something wrong?" I asked as I approached him, lifting my bag onto my shoulder.

He shook his head, "Nah, I figured I'd come with you to the site; you know two minds are better than one."

I shrugged, "Why not? Come on."

As we walked down the hall, I made sure to check in on some of the guys who had been having it rough last week, and those interactions lengthened our walk downstairs by ten minutes.

"Wow, Nanadaime." Konohamaru said once we had reached the car, "You're really amazing."

I raised an eyebrow as I started the engine, "How?"

"Even when you're not happy, you're encouraging others to stay positive. I don't know how you do it." He commended me.

I realized he was talking about the divorce, "Just gotta keep moving. When things get tough, you can't use that as an excuse to shut down."

"And are things tough?" He questioned, "Being married for sixteen years and suddenly calling it quits…that can't be easy, are you okay?"

I forced a laugh, "Look at this guy! Little brother looking after me now, eh?"

"Naruto-nii." His tone turned serious, "You've always buried yourself in work when you were dealing with something and now isn't any different. I can't really give you advice but…it's not good to bottle things up."

I swallowed hard and rubbed the back of my neck, "Thanks Konohamaru, but I'm fine, hontōni."

"Naruto-nii—"

An incoming call cut him off and he turned to the window as I answered it with Bluetooth, "Hello?"

"Hello, are you free?" Hinata quietly inquired.

"Yeah, actually. It was a slow day today so I…" I trailed off as I realized I was offering details that hadn't been asked for, "Yeah, I'm free."

She accepted the first part of my answer and continued, "Um, so Ino invited us to celebrate Sakura's birthday and—"

"I'm not going." I interrupted at the mention of Sakura, "Sorry, I know you were still speaking but I can't go, it's gonna be a long workday."

Konohamaru nudged me when he heard that lie but I paid him no mind.

"I-I know but she said everyone'll be there so if I show up by myself it'll seem weird." Hinata tried to persuade me.

I slowed down at the red light, "Then don't go. Make up some excuse, maybe take the kids somewhere; nobody's forcing you to go, ya know."

Konohamaru slammed his fist on my leg and I clamped my mouth shut as I glared at him. He shook his head before crossing his arms.

"…Naruto-kun, please." Hinata finally said, "You don't owe me anything more than what the court decides, but if you could do this one thing for me…"

Her voice wobbled towards the end and I felt my chest tightening, "Alright, I'll go. When is it?"

She shuffled on the other end, "5 o'clock but knowing Ino, things will probably start at 6."

"Good, so I'll swing by the house around 5:30 and pick you up." I waved for the pedestrian to cross, "Make sure to be ready, ya know."

"Okay." She was silent for a moment before speaking again, "Naruto-kun?"

"Yeah?"

"…Never mind, I'll tell you in person. Have a nice day at work." She hung up before I could respond.

Before I could start to worry about what she had to say, Konohamaru interrogated me.

"Okay Naruto-nii, what was that?" He shoved my shoulder, an annoyed look on his face.

I shot the same look back at him, "That's what I should be asking! What gives, attacking me mid-call like that?"

"I hit you because you were acting like a dick! I know you're getting divorced and all, but you don't have to be an ass to her!" He voiced his disapproval.

I reflected on my answers and tried to figure out what he was referring to, "I don't know what you're talking about."

He facepalmed, "Look, the site's up ahead, let's just focus on looking it over."

I nodded as I parked the car by a fire hydrant, "Way ahead of you."

While normal civilians would be heavily fined, and in some instances have their car towed for such an action, a shiny yellow sticker on my front windshield let anyone walking by know that I was a member of the Konoha Fire Department.

I had only ever used it twice during my tenure as a firefighter, and right now was the second.

Wiping my nose as I got out of the car, I looked up at the charred building that stood before me. What was once a liquor store had been reduced to charred brick, planks, and ashes. Preliminary searches had failed to discover the cause of the fire and while I was thankful there hadn't been many people inside when the store flared up, I needed to find the answer.

"I have a bad feeling about this…" Konohamaru muttered as we entered the rubble.

The outer walls were still standing since the building had failed to completely burn, yet most of the flammable substances such as the paint and floorboards had been eaten up.

"Watch your step." I warned him as a part of the floor I had stepped on fell in, "I'll go upstairs, you stay down here."

"Will do, Cap'n." Konohamaru mockingly saluted me and I rolled my eyes before climbing the broken stairway.

I ran my hand along the wall before rubbing my fingers together and found them to be covered in ash. Touching the other walls, I got the same results, but only became more puzzled.

"This doesn't make any sense. Where was the fire?" I murmured to myself as I looked at the floor.

For there to be ash, the walls had to be facing the oncoming flame. Yet the floor didn't look as if it had hosted the flame, but also showed signs of being touched by it.

A creaking of the floorboards broke my train of thought, and I stared at the sound's origin, a room in the back. There was no doubt in my mind that this building had been set ablaze by an arsonist, and since it wasn't uncommon for criminals to revisit the scene, I quietly inched towards the room, ready to grapple whoever my hands managed to catch.

Once I had reached the doorway, I resolved myself and jumped into the room. What I saw was beyond my expectations: a young man was crouched over a small crate with a glass pipe and a lighter.

"Come on, come on…fucking piece of junk." He cursed under his breath as his lighter flickered weakly.

He was so occupied in trying to smoke…whatever it was he was trying to smoke; he hadn't even noticed my presence.

I walked up behind him and placed a hand on his shoulder, "Kid, what are you doing here?"

He quickly turned around and shook my hand off him, and that's when I got another surprise. This wasn't just any young man, this was Ino's son, Inojin.

"Inojin?" I called his name in shock, "What…?"

His lime green eyes widened, and I knew he had recognized me. Before I could start to ask what he was doing, or why he was here, he shoved me back and dashed out of the room. Blinking, I recovered my balance and ran after him.

"Wait!" I called, but he was already flying down the stairs, "Konohamaru, stop him!"

"Naruto-nii, did you—who the hell?!" Konohamaru yelled and I met him at the bottom, "Somebody ran outside, did you see that guy?"

"Yeah, I'm on him!" I answered as I went outside.

I looked all around but couldn't spot any sign of him. People continued walking down the street at their own pace, and it was as if he'd disappeared into thin air.

'Damn it.' I thought to myself as I re-entered the building, "He got away."

"Sorry." Konohamaru apologized, "He pushed me but I didn't think to grab him."

"No, it's not your fault." I assured him as I climbed the stairs, "Besides, I'll be seeing him soon."

He followed me, "Really? When? How?"

I went to the backroom and looked at the glass pipe he'd left behind, "He's a friend of Boruto's. Got any gloves on you? Need to preserve this, ya know."

He reached into his back pocket and pulled out two white surgical gloves. I took them from him and picked up the pipe.

Upon closer inspection, I could see a white, crystal-like/powder-like substance, and quickly shut my nose, "We've gotta go to the police."

"Why? What is it?" Konohamaru asked, looking down at the pipe.

I carefully covered it with both hands, "Some kinda drug."

"Oh shit." He cursed, "What the hell is going on in this city? We've got arsonists running around burning things up, now drugs? It's like the calm before the storm."

"If this is the calm," I shook my head as we started for the stairs, "I don't want to see the storm."

|Sasuke|

"Say that again?" I asked Sasori to repeat himself, not believing what I'd just heard.

Sasori scratched his head, sighing, "I got invited to Sakura-san's birthday party by her friend, Ino was the name? Don't know how she got my number, but I figured I'd drop in on Sarada to let her know we're still watching."

"Maybe score some panties." Hidan added, and Sasori elbowed him.

"How many times do I gotta tell ya? It ain't like that with her!" Sasori quickly denied any deeper relationship.

"If there's nothing between you two, then my name isn't Kakuzu." Kakuzu chuckled, laying down a plus four card.

The four of us were sitting down in the mess hall, playing Uno. It had long since cleared out once breakfast had ended, but with nothing to do, we decided to hang around and play a friendly game.

To say things were slow was an understatement. Since the bank robbery had occurred, none of us had received any tasks. We'd been sitting on our asses for two weeks straight, and other than Orochimaru and Kisame getting Gekkō's apprentice Ryōgi out of prison, nothing notable had happened.

The authorities had been alerted of Tentō's disappearance, and now you couldn't go anywhere in or around the city without seeing a poster or a billboard with his image and details about him.

"That's that Madoka money going to work." Kakuzu had quipped when we first saw a picture, "If we're not careful, they'll be breathing down our necks in no time."

Because the three of them hadn't gotten Tentō from Shojoji due to Suigetsu and Jūgo's interference, they were especially supposed to stay put.

During our time in quarantine, I'd learned of how they'd found the boy and cringed at their methods. Hidan had been so reckless in public, there were at least fifteen people that could point him out if he ever popped up again, not including Sarada.

"Toshiaki, your turn." Hidan brought me out of my thoughts, and I tossed in a red two, "What're you thinking about, *Fuku-Taicho?"

I put on a light smile, "Whatever Sasori's intention's may be, I think it's a bit risky to jeopardize your freedom for a birthday party. Send her a card or visit her once the boy's been returned. Right now, we shouldn't be doing anything unnecessary."

"Ah, come on Toshiaki-san." Sasori waved his hand, "I ain't like these two that act off impulse; I'll be careful, promise."

"It's not that I don't trust you," I assured him, "I just don't think it's a good idea. Have you told Oyabun about your plans?"

"That's another thing." Sasori clapped his hands together, "I'll need ya to cover for me."

Kakuzu whistled, "Here we go. If Pain catches you, you're dead."

Hidan laughed, "Don't listen to them, Scorpion, I got your back. If he asks where you are, I'll tell him you ate something bad. Boom, you'll be shitting all day."

Sasori turned to me, "Ya know I can't rely on these two so whaddaya say?"

I still hadn't figured out his connection to Sakura, and I wasn't exactly about having someone so dangerous be chummy with my wife, but if doing this could solidify his trust in me, it would make getting by much easier.

"…I'll cover for you." I reluctantly promised.

Sasori grinned, "Thanks a bunch! Really, I knew ya were the man!"

"Good luck Toshiaki," Hidan snickered, "You're gonna need it."

"Uno out." I tossed down my final card as I stood up, "When's the party?"

"5 o'clock, but I'm fixin' to leave for the city around then and get there after thing's start. I'm only going there for Sakura-san anyway." Sasori answered, "Where ya going?"

"To contemplate what I'm going to say to him when he asks about you." I waved my hand as I left the mess hall.

'How the hell did Sakura get involved with him?' I wondered to myself as I stood by the elevator, 'I'm wasting time.'

We had been with Akatsuki for roughly a month, and while this was supposed to be a three-month operation, but it was becoming increasingly clear to me that three months was too short of a time frame.

Although we'd come at a time when they'd been particularly active, it didn't change the fact that this organization had formed decades ago and was still running. I was sure that they had done things more heinous than kidnapping and bank robbing. Frankly, I was beginning to feel like The Six had overestimated my abilities.

Then there was the matter with Karin…she had signed up to be my partner and had been retraumatized within weeks of being undercover. She was a grown woman and capable of solving her own problems, but since she had told me her story, I couldn't help but want to protect her.

'Speak of the devil.' I stepped back as the elevator doors opened.

Out stepped Suigetsu and Jūgo, happily chatting away. When they recognized me in front of them, their conversation came to a halt and they nodded. I returned the gesture before getting on the elevator and pressing the second floor.

Just as the doors were about to close, a brown hand got in-between and forced the doors open.

"Sorry about that." Kisame apologized, "This thing takes forever."

"It's fine." I said, pressing the Close Door button.

We stood in silence as the elevator slowly moved up.

"Those two were pretty happy for guys who got some toes cut off. Though, I guess it could've been worse if you hadn't stepped up, right?" Kisame grinned.

"Well," I thought back to a week ago when the Gedo had been assembled to witness their punishment, "It would've been hypocritical if I had just stood by. Besides, Hidan's a maniac, he would've gone overboard."

"So you made him go underboard." Kisame laughed loudly, holding out his hand, "I like you T-chan, and there's not a lot of people that can convince the boss on the spot like that. I want us to be good friends."

I shook his hand, "Aa, let's get along."

The elevator dinged as it arrived on the second floor and I stepped out before looking back at Kisame.

He shook his head, "Got something to talk about with the boss, but I'll see you around, right?"

"Yep." I nodded as the elevator doors closed.

Once I heard the whirr of the elevator, I went to my room and quickly shut the door behind me.

"Misaki?" I called for Karin once I saw she was not in bed.

When I'd gotten up this morning, she had been sound asleep; a quick look at my watch told me it was 1 p.m.

I cracked open the bathroom door and saw that the lights were off.

'Where did she go?' I asked myself as I looked around the room.

With a glance, I couldn't spot any note she would have left, and I couldn't remember her mentioning any plans.

"Damn." I muttered under my breath as I sank into the couch, "Of all the times to disappear, although she probably wouldn't have been able to go. Still…"

I had wanted her to go with Sasori to Sakura's birthday party, mostly to keep an eye on things and make sure he didn't get out of hand, but also to get some background on their dynamic.

As stupid as Kakuzu and Hidan's jokes about romance were, my brain was forcing me to connect dots that didn't exist. I knew that there was no way Sakura would betray me, but I couldn't see any other reason for their relationship. Why else would a bumpkin from Sunagakure and a Konoha native be together?

'Even if that's the case, that she really did cheat on me,' I chided myself, 'Do I have the right to say anything?'

My relationship with Karin these past few weeks had been questionable to say the least, but…

I sighed as I covered my face, "I'm a hypocritical piece of shit, what right do I have to say anything?"

I sat staring up at the ceiling for a moment before shutting my eyes, 'Kami in Heaven, it's been a long time and I know I've got a lot to atone for, but if you'll honor one request of mine I'll…owe you, big time. Please, protect my family. Please.'

*Fuku Taicho means Lieutenant

|3rd Person|

"The fucker's been dodging me for days, but word around town is he's holed up in there." Kū handed a copper housekey to Mitsuki, nodding his chin at the dilapidated blue house across the street, "You know what to do."

Mitsuki took the key, "I just have one question: what's he doing here?"

He jerked his thumb at Inojin in the back and Inojin opened his mouth to fire a response, but his eyes met Kū's in the rearview mirror and he decided against it.

"Inojin, could you give us a minute?" Kū turned around to look at him.

Nodding, Inojin pulled on his hood before stepping out of the car and crossing the streets. Mitsuki tapped the dashboard as they watched him and once Inojin was a considerable distance away, he turned back to Kū.

"You know the guy's hooked on shabu, and boy is addiction a killer." Kū laughed, "I haven't given him a real dose in a week and he's desperate for some more so I promised him if he did this job, I'd give him eight grams."

"You're bringing your own downfall with this kid." Mitsuki unbuckled his seatbelt, "If he dies, it's over for you guys."

"Don't worry." Kū waved his hand, "I only let him get high in my presence. Besides, you aren't really feeling this gig, right? The boy's a little bit like you; I just need you to show him the ropes."

"Then I don't have to break up with Sarada." Mitsuki tilted his head.

Kū shook his head, "I honestly don't get what you see in that girl, but you should break things off with her regardless. Now that your dad—"

"Father."

"—knows about her and she knows about his work, the longer she's around, the more likely something else will happen to her. What do you think he'd do if he came home in one of his moods and saw her hanging around?" Kū questioned.

Mitsuki sighed, "He doesn't come home."

"But what if he does?" Kū repeated, and watched as Mitsuki's face twisted, "Exactly. Only Buddha knows how he'd dismember her in the name of science. You need help breaking up with her or something?"

"No, I've got it all figured out." Mitsuki scratched his head, "I thought about what you said, and I realized I have to make her hate me."

"What are you gonna do?" Kū raised an eyebrow, intrigued at Mitsuki's statement.

Taking a deep breath, Mitsuki explained how he was going to break things off with Sarada. When he was done, Kū clapped his hands.

"Cuzzo you dirty dog!" Kū roared with laughter, "When we first got here, I thought the old you might've been extinguished but this…this proves you're still in there somewhere! Let me help, I'll throw some icing on the cake."

Mitsuki pulled on his hoodie before stepping out of the car, "No. It's bad enough you're making me do this. I'll take care of things myself."

Crossing the street, he climbed up the steps and met Inojin at the door. They pulled on disposable gloves before Mitsuki unlocked the door.

"Ready?" Mitsuki asked Inojin, searching for the slightest hint of hesitation so he could send him back.

Inojin nodded quickly, and Mitsuki scowled before opening the door.

The two of them entered the house and immediately noticed it was unnaturally quiet. They crept into the living room and Inojin began turning it upside down.

While he did that, Mitsuki silently climbed the stairs and began checking each room. From master bedroom to guest room, there wasn't a sign of Garashi, the man Kū had been looking for.

With a silent sigh, Mitsuki climbed down the stairs and returned to the living room. Inojin had moved on to the kitchen but after opening some roach infested cupboards, he reached for the basement door.

As soon as Inojin touched the doorknob, the door flew open outward, hitting Inojin square in the face and sending him tumbling back. A brown-haired man armed with a knife lunged after him and Mitsuki just barely managed to trip him.

Even having fell, the man was determined to stab one of them and after gauging the distance, he decided to go after a disoriented Inojin.

"Get down!" Mitsuki yelled, looking for something to throw.

Instead of listening, Inojin grabbed the knife with his left hand, drawing blood in the process, and kicked him square in the chest. Tossing the knife aside, Inojin pounced on the man before he could get up and began repeatedly punching him in the face.

As Mitsuki watched, he was reminded of Kū's words from earlier: "The boy's a little bit like you."

Seeing that the man was barely conscious, Mitsuki grabbed Inojin's shoulder, "Enough."

Inojin looked up at him and Mitsuki instinctively lifted his fists, "You gonna fight me too? Enough, before you kill him."

Reluctantly, Inojin got up and went into the kitchen to rinse off his gloves.

"Garashi," Mitsuki called the man's name as he crouched beside him, "Tell us where the money is and we'll let you live."

"Don't…have it." Garashi wheezed.

Mitsuki clicked his tongue, "That's a problem. I don't like getting my hands dirty for nothing, give me something so I can spare you."

"P-Pocket…" He coughed as he tried to lift his left arm, "Golden…card…"

Mitsuki searched the man's pocket and brought out a sleek leather black wallet. The only thing inside was a golden card with the word KARA embossed on it.

"Kara?" Mitsuki read it aloud, "What is this? What does it mean?"

But Garashi had finally lost consciousness.

Slipping the card in his back pocket, Mitsuki stood up just as Inojin returned from the kitchen, "We're done here."

"Okay." Inojin answered quietly, following him outside.

Once the door was shut behind them, they descended the front steps and crossed the street to the car.

"You got it?" Kū asked as they got in the car.

Mitsuki shook his head, handing him the card, "He said he didn't have it, but gave me this instead."

Kū turned the card over in his hand before attempting to bend it, "The hell is this?"

"You tell me." Mitsuki buckled up before leaning back in his chair, "He passed out before I could get him to explain."

"Ah, whatever." Kū grumbled, setting the card down in his cupholder, "Let's just—"

"Excuse me?" A woman tapped on Kū's window, "What are you doing here?"

Mitsuki and Inojin froze but Kū put on a warm smile before reaching into his back pocket and pulling out a badge, "Official business, ma'am. We're actually in the middle of an operation so if you could move on…"

She put a hand to her mouth, "Oh, I'm so sorry! What with all the crime recently, I wasn't sure if…well, again, sorry for wasting your time officers."

Kū nodded, "Be safe."

She returned the smile before walking away and Inojin let out a heavy breath, "Kami, I thought we were done for."

Mitsuki nodded in agreement before gesturing at the badge, "Where'd you get that?"

"Not me, Kirara." Kū put back in his pocket, "We owe Officer Uchiha for this one."

"You stole from Sarada?" Inojin interjected, and Kū shot him a look, "Not that it matters to me, I just…"

Ruffling his hair, Kū turned forward and started the car, "I get it, she's your friend. Cheer up though, it's just a dummy badge that cops use while their official one is being made. They won't even miss it."

"Better hope not." Mitsuki crossed his arms, "Never get on an Uchiha's bad side, that's like starting war with the police."

"Speaking of bad sides…" Kū started but the look Mitsuki gave him made him trail off, "All I'm saying is, you should really take your own advice, especially after what you told me."

"It'll be your fault." Mitsuki looked out the window, "Remember that."

Kū snorted, "Yeah, I'll remember. You two have a party to get too, right? Make sure to look sharp."

"What about what you promised?" Inojin interjected.

Kū looked at him through the rearview mirror, "You want it right now? I don't have a pipe for you to smoke it with."

"I'll take it like it is." Inojin stretched out a shaky hand.

Mitsuki caught Kū's eye and seemed to be telling him not to do it but Kū reached under his seat and brought out a small Ziploc bag with a white block. Handing it to Inojin, Kū shrugged at Mitsuki, as if he was trying to say, "It's not my life."

Inojin practically snatched it out of his hand before crushing up the white block and pouring a bit of the powder into his hand.

"The party's in two hours, don't take that shit." Mitsuki decided to speak up.

Inojin glared at him, "Don't tell me what to do. Besides, I'll be sober by then."

Before Mitsuki could get another word in, Inojin lowered his nose to his palm and sniffed. Exhaling heavily, he leaned back into his seat and closed his eyes.

Kū and Mitsuki exchanged looks before Kū put the car in drive, "What're you getting the lady for her birthday?"

Mitsuki rolled his eyes and kept quiet.

"I'm serious," Kū continued, "How 'bout a bottle of wine? Adults love their liquor."

"No liquor." Mitsuki crossed his arms, staring straight ahead, "No gift, nothing."

As their car drove off, a hooded figure made sure they turned the corner before crossing the street. He walked up the front steps of the same blue house they'd come out from and smirked when he found the door was still unlocked.

Quickly stepping inside, the man met an unconscious Garashi.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk." The man shook his head, patting Garashi down as he searched him for something.

When he couldn't find it, he slapped Garashi twice, somehow waking him up, "Finally. Where's the card?"

"They…took it." Garashi rubbed his eyes, "I tried to—"

That was all he managed to get out before the man shot him.

"Fucking junkie," The man cursed, "Why the hell did this man have a card? Huh, Delta?"

A curly blonde-haired woman shut the front door behind her as she entered the house, "How should I know? And what're you saying my name for?"

The man rolled his eyes as he turned to her, "Not like anybody's listening. I figured you'd know since this was originally your mission. Guess Jigen doesn't place as much faith in you as you'd like to believe."

The man removed his hood to reveal his short purple hair. His hazel eyes shined mischievously as he mocked her.

"Watch it, Deepa." Delta snapped back, "I'm number one for a reason. You're number seven, remember?"

"Ranks can change." Deepa grinned, "Remember?"

Shaking her head, Delta walked over to Garashi's dead body and bent down to pick up the knife on the floor, "Well, yours won't be changing anytime soon. You didn't even ask if he knew anything about Kawaki."

Deepa shrugged, "He didn't; if he did, he would've offered it up as soon as he heard my voice."

"Ugh." Delta sighed, grabbing a Ziploc bag from on top the fridge and dropping the knife inside, "Fine, let's go. I hope you keep this same energy when you have to report to Jigen."

"Why would I report to him?" Deepa snickered, "You're the mission leader on this one."

Gritting her teeth, Delta continued outside. Once she was on the sidewalk, she brought out a flip phone and dialed a number.

It rang twice before the line connected and she bit her thumb, "Yeah, I got nothing over here."

A voice laughed on the other end and Delta scowled, "It's not funny! At this rate we're gonna lose him and if that happens…"

"Don't worry." The confident voice answered, "Koji's already on it."

Delta nodded her head, "Okay. I trust you."

The line dropped and Delta turned to catch Deepa coming down the steps.

"This was the mission?" Deepa shoved his hands in his pockets, "Shit, you're really down bad if he thinks you can't handle this by yourself."

Quickly grabbing him by the throat, Delta lifted him off the ground, "I'm only gonna tell you this once. Shut. The Fuck. Up."

She dropped him and he fell to the floor, hunching over as he tried to catch his breath. While Deepa struggled to recover, a black Suzuki pulled up beside her and she hopped into the back.

"Why the Suzuki?" Delta wrinkled her nose in disgust at the common car.

The driver sighed, "What would a sports car be doing in this kind of neighborhood?"

"Doesn't matter." Delta checked her nails, "If anybody said anything, we'd come back and deal with 'em like we usually do. Are you done yet? I wasn't even serious."

She aimed the latter half at Deepa who was still on the floor. Pulling himself up, he cleared his throat and got in upfront.

Delta smirked as she crushed the flip phone, tossing it out of the window, "Let's go."

|Sakura|

"I don't know Ino, maybe we should just cancel the whole thing." I told her.

"What?" She stopped in her tracks, "Are you crazy? I didn't spend two hours decorating this place so you could call it off! Besides, it's 5 o'clock, everyone's probably on their way."

I groaned, "Why did you have to do this? I told you I didn't want a party."

Ino rolled her eyes, "It doesn't matter what you wanted, it's what you needed. You've been down in the dumps since Sasuke left and letting your birthday quietly pass by would've only made things worse?"

"Says who?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Sakura, come on!" Ino grabbed my hands, "Promise me you'll actually try to enjoy this."

"Ino…"

"Promise me." She cut me off, dramatically batting her eyelashes, "Pretty please?"

I sighed, "I promise, but—"

The doorbell rang and she released me to answer it. Even though I usually couldn't have cared less about how I looked, I found myself patting my hair down and trying to look presentable.

'I swear, I'm never celebrating my birthday again.' I thought to myself as I dropped my hands.

"Um, Sakura?" Ino's voice was full of confusion.

I wondered who could've been at the door for her to sound like that, and for a second, my heart raced at the thought of Sasuke coming to surprise me. When I remembered what I had learned from Taiko, I flushed the image from my mind.

In the doorway stood someone I hadn't been expecting.

"Ka-san?" I couldn't stop my mouth from falling open, "What are you doing here?"

"I can't come wish my daughter a happy birthday?" She offered a weak smile before turning to Ino, "May I come in?"

"Of course, of course." Ino quickly stepped aside and shut the door behind her, "I'll be in the kitchen so you two can…yeah."

I tried to get Ino to meet my eyes so I could tell her to stay, but with her purposefully looking at the ground, she brushed past me and left us alone.

"…It's been some time since we last saw each other." Mom tried to start a conversation.

I nodded my head, "Two years. How have you been?"

"I'm living. If anything, I should be asking you that." She touched my arm softly, "How are you, Sakura?"

I had been asked this question by everybody under the sun and yet it was only in my mother's presence that I could completely pour out my tears.

She didn't say anything, simply stepping forward and wrapping her arms around me before rubbing my back. We somehow ended up on the couch and I continued to cry on her shoulder for a couple more minutes.

Even when the tears had stopped flowing, she did nothing but put her arm around me and hold me close.

Finally, she spoke, "That gave me a pretty good idea but I'm gonna need some details."

Nodding slowly, I wiped my eyes and shared everything that had happened recently. From Sasuke taking an extended "shift" to Sarada's unreasonable behavior…the only thing I held back from her was my affair with Naruto. I could tell my mother many things; that I had cheated on my husband was not one of them.

"Hm, so Sarada's already at that age?" Mom leaned back into the couch, releasing me, "Staying out with boys all-night, where have I heard that before?"

I sniffed as I gave her a look, "I never gave you a hard time."

"Oh?" She raised an eyebrow, "And who told you that? It took every ounce of strength in my body to go to sleep knowing you weren't home some nights. 'What can I do?' I used to think to myself, 'She has to come home eventually.' I got with the program pretty quickly, but don't even get me started on your father…"

At the mention of Dad, she trailed off and I shook my head, "He gave me an earful every time and I still didn't listen. If he were still here, I wonder how disappointed he'd be."

"Oh Sakura." She touched my hand, "Don't think that way; your dad loved you more than you could ever know. That's why he—"

She cut herself off abruptly and I turned to her, raising an eyebrow, "That's why he what?"

"Not on your birthday. I never thought I would tell you, but…" She waved her hands, "Next time."

I realized my jaw had unconsciously clenched at those words, "No, whatever you wanted to say, say it now."

"Sakura—"

"Now, Ka-san."

"Now who's being the unreasonable daughter?" Mom muttered as she sat up, "Your father was…sick. I didn't realize it, but he noticed the changes in himself right away. He started to hear things, see things…at first, we laughed it off as effects of exhaustion, but the hallucinations got worse."

"Wait, wait, wait." I raised a hand, "Hallucinations? You're telling me Tou-san was mentally ill?"

She made a solemn face, and I could feel my stomach start to turn, "Th-That's impossible; I never noticed anything. What was it?"

'Please don't say what I think you're going to say.'

"He was a schizophrenic, most likely." My stomach lurched, "He never got diagnosed officially but I later found family records saying his grandpa had it so—"

"It runs in the family?" I interrupted again.

She held her head up with her hands, "As far as I know, it's only those two. Nobody has it on my side."

'Oh Kami. Oh Kami, please.' My upset stomach had been upstaged by my tightening chest, and it felt like the room was closing in on me, 'I'm not a schizophrenic, am I?'

"Ding, ding, ding!" She sashayed into the room, "Winner, winner, chicken dinner! You didn't really think seeing me all those times was normal, did you?"

"This doesn't make any sense." I crossed my arms and hugged my stomach, ignoring her, "In the first place, what does this have to with what you were saying? He loved me so much he became mentally ill?"

Mom rolled her eyes, "Of course not. Your father loved you so much, he hid his illness. He didn't go to a hospital, didn't go for treatment, nothing. Except for me, nobody knew about it, and he wanted to keep it that way."

"Why?" I snapped my head up, "You're not supposed to let it run unchecked. He needed medicine, counseling, otherwise he'd start thinking—"

"About suicide?" She nodded slowly, "It got so bad, Sakura, especially around your junior year. I tried to convince him, tried to get him to the hospital, but he wouldn't listen."

Tears welled up in her eyes and I looked at her in a new light, "You told me that Tou-san died in his sleep. Was that a lie?"

She scrubbed her face, "Let's stop talking about this, it's your birthday. By the time we're done, the mood will be ruined…"

"Screw the mood!" I stood up, "Was it a lie or not?"

"Because of how you're acting." She leaned against the wall, "You can never be smart about things."

'What are you talking about?' I watched her out of the corner of my eye.

"Do I have to remind you?" She rolled her eyes, "When Sarada wanted to go to a party, how did you act? When Naruto wanted a relationship, what did you say? When you found out about Sasuke's affair, how did you feel? You're too emotional."

I tightened my fist at the last sentence, 'Shut up. Right now.'

"Or what? You gonna scream in front of Ka-san and let her know you got the same illness? That would be the smart move; after all, look where hiding it got Tou-san? Six feet under."

'Shut. Up.'

"Of course, I know you'll never do it because you're just like him; a fool looking for a reason to die."

"Ka-san," I said abruptly, turning to look at her, "What do I not know?"

She cleared her throat, "He did die in his sleep, but—"

The doorbell rang, cutting her off and as the voices grew louder, I realized people had started to arrive.

"Oi!" Choji's loud voice boomed, "What's there to eat? I'm starving!"

"Mattaku…" Shikamaru clicked his tongue, "From hearing that, you wouldn't know the guy ate on the way here."

"As usual." Ino sighed, "That's Choji for you. There're some ribs in the kitchen, if you wanna help me take it to the dining room—"

"Lead the way!" Choji's voice came nearer, and he greeted me once he was inside, "Sakura! Happy Birthday!"

With Ino's hopeful face in the background, I forced a smile, "Thanks, Choji."

"He's not the only one here." Karui popped up behind him, giving me a quick hug, "Everything okay?"

She was looking at Mom behind me as she asked this.

I quickly nodded my head, "She was just crying about how big I've gotten. You'd think she'd be used to it by now."

"You're never to old to be your mom's baby." Temari walked in, a hand on her hip, "Ain't that the truth, Ka-san*?"

Mom wiped her face again with her elbow, "Yeah, that's the truth."

*Temari calls Sakura's mom "Mom" in a respectful way, it's like calling your friend's mom "Mom" because you're so close to your friend.

A/N: Sorry for the long hiatus! Two months and no update? I know how terrible that is but it won't happen again. Just want to let everyone know the story is 70% complete and should be wrapped up by the end of March. You'll see what I mean in the following days.