Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and Boruto nor its characters.

Note: Please read Author's note at the end

"Well then, we'll be off." Kakashi said when Sasuke had finally let go of Sarada. "It's going to be a long journey."

With that, along with another round of waves, well wishes and goodbyes, Kakashi and Sarada departed for their mission.

"What's the Land of the Moon like these days, anyway?" Sarada queried inquisitively, massaging her shoulders from the slight sores she received from sleeping in an uncomfortable position the previous night during the midst of their travels. Though, she wasn't complaining, given that the both of them now sat in a rather luxurious carriage that had been specially appointed to bring them to their destination. Lined with gold and jewels, carved and crafted out of the finest of materials, Sarada was sure whoever hired them was no mere normal civilian.

"Well, from what I have heard and seen, it's definitely more developed than the last time I visited, which was a very long time ago." Kakashi noted; recalling that even back in his Hokage days he never exactly made any formal visits to the Land of the Moon ever since the mission with Sakura, Naruto and Lee. When Naruto took over however, he had indeed made a few brief visits, both informal and formal to strengthen the relationship between the Land of the Leaf and the Land of the Moon—and of course, to spend some time with an old friend, who was now a King in training.

"And definitely, this carriage we're in just screams how much the Land of the Moon favours the Leaf." Kakashi remarked, leaning back to rest against the comfortable wine-red cushioned seat. Needless to say, he appreciated the sentiment and favouritism. It was undeniably better than having to walk the entire way, while facing enemies left to right. So, like Sarada, he wasn't complaining at all.

"Hm… Do they have Shinobi here?"

Kakashi shook his head. "No. If anything, the culture here is much different from that of the Leaf's. For one thing, they have a King—we have a Hokage. That's just the surface… Ah, and they're popular for casinos, resorts… though back then I didn't manage to enjoy all those facilities… and not like I can now." He sighed, shaking his head as he mourned the demise of the possibility of having such a vacation; wondering how he had missed this spot back in his retirement days when he had more time to travel about. Then again, this was more of Tsunade's vacation spot with the casinos and all. Kakashi's had been more Icha Icha related, and wherever Gai dragged him.

"But if there's no Shinobi, or anything related to that… why would any Shinobi want to harm this place?" Sarada asked, having recalled some of the details Kakashi had briefed to her along the way. They had apparently been assigned to protect the Royals' Science Investigation Lab given that they had spotted a few suspicious figures wondering around the vicinity; whom the King feared to be Shinobi, which then resulted in him reaching out to the closest Shinobi allied nation they knew.

"Well… that lab of theirs had recently gotten their hands on some powerful sources of energy—calling and believing it to be 'Chakra'—which was meant to be transported to the Leaf at a later date as some of the researchers there believed it had closer links to Shinobis as opposed to ordinary things. It wouldn't surprise me if any rogue Shinobi or anyone like that to be interested. Though, it is indeed rare of any Shinobis to be negatively involved or interrupting their affairs unless they were hired to usurp the King… but given our close ties, the chances of that ever happening is lower." Kakashi explained, "Unless, of course, it involves them. And if so, we must be prepared for an escalation to a S-rank mission."

Them. Kakashi had been ambiguous in addressing what Sarada assumed to be a dangerous organisation made up of skilled Jonin. He hadn't wanted to reveal too much about them to her, telling her that there was no point in worrying her if in the end, the enemies involved in this mission had no ties to them. And as promised beforehand, Sarada complied not to mention the slightest word about it to anyone.

"…Are they that dangerous?" She wasn't that highly skilled of a Shinobi compared to the other veterans like Shikamaru or Ino in this field after all. Granted, she was excited to have her own special mission with her sensei, as Boruto did with her father. But, she wouldn't want it to be at the cost of being incompetent should this 'them' be too much for her.

"I promised both your parents to ensure that you come back in one piece, there's no need to worry. Konoha has faced worse, and we're all still standing and thriving during these more peaceful times." Kakashi answered, "Though, with your strength I doubt you need much protecting."

Strength, huh? Sarada pondered. By right, receiving such a compliment—no matter how seemingly trivial—, especially by the Sixth Hokage should've at least drew out a little smile on her face. Though with both her current progress on Chidori and the information that at her stage, she wasn't meant to learn Chidori weighing on her mind, she wasn't sure if she should accept that compliment from someone of Kakashi's position. And now that she was reminded of it, she decided to bring it up in hopes to clarify his intention which till now, she hadn't been able to decipher at all.

"… Actually, Kakashi-sensei, about Chidori… Papa said I shouldn't be learning it at my level, given that I only have one tomoe in both my eyes." Sarada mentioned, "So… why?"

"Ah, so you've heard. I was planning to tell you during our next training session, but now that you've brought it up…" Kakashi straightened up his back slightly, adopting a more serious tone, "Sasuke's right. While you can still technically use it, it's at a great cost as it narrows your vision, putting yourself in a much more vulnerable position. One tomoe in both your eyes aren't enough to counter that side-effect." He explained, and Sarada had initially expected him to go into the reasoning of why despite all that, he still decided to teach her, instead he had posed a question to her. "Knowing this and having felt the power Chidori could offer you briefly… how do you feel about it?"

"How… do I feel?" Evidently, Sarada had been a little taken aback by his question. Aside from all the whys, she never really considered what she'd do after should Kakashi had confirmed her father's words were the truth. Based on Kakashi's words, she could still train and she could still be able to do Chidori—but at a cost.

However, if the situation demanded her to use it to save her friends or herself, why shouldn't she? Not to mention, Sasuke hadn't exactly forbade her from continuing despite her undeveloped Sharingan.

The momentary power she had felt when she tried to channel her chakra into Chidori—the strain and pain it had given her said it all about the strength it could give her. In that way, it was satisfying to think about the amount of power she could summon.

Sarada was leaning more on the side of using it despite her undeveloped Sharingan. How she felt emotionally was something else. On one hand, she was disgruntled at the fact that once again, her Sharingan was limiting her. On the other hand, if Kakashi had let her start early, wouldn't it mean he had some sort of faith in her abilities to actually be able to do it, despite said limitations?

"I… I just wish I had two tomoes, it'd make everything easier, in a way." Sarada confessed, "Though… in an event where I am cornered, I would use it… and I would still like to improve on it. It is powerful after all, right? More powerful than the other lightning Jutsus I've picked up, that's for sure. I need it." Like any other Shinobi in training, Sarada wanted to become stronger. Everybody was improving and evolving their Jutsus, or learning newer ones with greater intensity. She couldn't fall behind.

"Personally, like your father who shared his concern, I don't recommend using it at all actually, not at this level." Kakashi countered with an unexpected answer, throwing Sarada into bewilderment. Huh? Sarada was disappointed more than anything. Then what was all that training for?

"Then why did you teach it to me?" She tried to contain her frustration, but to no avail it some of the rage stirring within her slipped out; which Kakashi chose not to comment on.

"To get a feel." He responded nonchalantly. "And… to get an answer."

"An answer?" Sarada frowned.

Kakashi nodded. "An answer." He confirmed before continuing, "Confronted in a situation when you 'need' it, what will you do?"

"What will I do?" Hadn't she just told him what she would've done?

"Push yourself too much and too hard at a level higher than your current capability comes at a great cost. Those chasing power the brash way, all will lose something and in the worst case, someone. While there's nothing wrong with chasing what's ahead… the issue comes when they completely discard and disregard what was behind. I don't need the complete answer now. I just want to see the progress." Kakashi explained, to a Sarada who was more flummoxed than anything at this lesson he was trying to teach her. "So, what does strength mean to you then, Sarada?"

Unable to fully understand Kakashi and his analogy, Sarada found herself struggling between emotions that she held herself back from expressing. "Wh—"

"And look, we've reached the city!" Switching the topic and mood abruptly, Kakashi cheerfully gleamed as he motioned outside the carriage's window, where it revealed the buildings painted in myriads of different colours, in plentiful various shades. Despite only just having a glimpse of the city, Sarada already understood what Kakashi had meant by the difference in culture. The vibe it gave off was distinct from Konoha's. And it wasn't just the colours—but the tourism aspect Kakashi had mentioned, having already passed quite a few casinos upon entering the country. She wondered if Tsunade had ever visited this place; and if she did, how much did her wallet suffer?

From Kakashi's point of view, things were much newer since his last visit. And as they neared the castle, it was apparent to him how more industrailised they were when he noticed more science labs built as compared to before; which Kakashi assumed was because aside from the money they reaped from the tourism sector, they had also wanted to tap into the science and technological aspect of the economy to further boost this country's wealth.

I wonder how those two are doing these days, anyway… Kakashi pondered.

Turning his attention to Sarada momentarily, it appeared that her frustration and perplexion had dissolved into fascination the deeper they travelled into the city. He hoped it'd remain that way, and more than anything he hoped he'd get a little bit of her answer by the end of this mission.

"Kakashi!" exclaimed Michiru—the King— the moment he spotted the white-haired man alight from the carriage.

Over the years, Michiru had evidently aged, with grey hairs already sprouting and wrinkles creeping and stretching out onto his skin, coupled along with some of his fats beginning to sag. Regardless, he still had this bright, childish aura that he carried around. Oh, to be this carefree. It wouldn't surprise Kakashi if it was Hikaru, the Prince, who took on more responsibilities.

One thing that did change, though, was his perception on money; Naruto had told him before that they had loyally committed themselves to a bunch of other policies to aid those living in poverty. And while he and Michiru's ex-wife, Amayo, were still separated, his change of heart and view on money at least helped better their relationship.

To think that mission and the friendships made back then had impacted them and this place so much.

"Your Maje—"

"No need to be so formal!" He cackled, "No one's around here anyway. Thank you for coming her—oh, who's the little one?" He motioned to Sarada curiously, who had been initially captivated by the castle, resulting in her failure to notice the King. "She looks… familiar?"

"Ah, she's Sarada." Kakashi nudged the Uchiha, who flinched before quickly adjusting herself, bowing her head slightly in a both respectful and apologetical manner for neglecting to address him. "Remember Sakura?"

"Ah," He felt a chill run down his spine, "The awfully strong pink-haired Shinobi who nearly crushed my hand?" Eh?—Sarada thought, eyes widening. Mama did what to the King?!

"And with good reason." Kakashi assured, before nodding towards Sarada. "She's the child of Sakura."

"Oh!" He exclaimed, "No wonder! Wow, it almost felt like yesterday I saw them... time really flies, huh?" He laughed lightly.

"It really does." A new voice emerged, belonging to none other than Hikaru who strolled over to the mini gathering. He had grown very much, Kakashi noted; he was taller and unlike his father, was on the more muscular side of the spectrum, which he assumed was due to the archery training Naruto had told him that he had embarked on. Save for the shape of his pair of glasses, the boy had changed by a lot.

"As what my father said, thank you for coming here once again."

Kakashi shook his head. "No worries, with our nations having a good relationship and all—and with Naruto's promise, we'll come to your aid if needed… So, let's get to it then, shall we?"

.

.

.

The Royal Lab was situated near the castle, and was specialised in handling more… interesting specimens and objects; like a strange looking flower that Sarada found herself hovering around. It was pale blue with elongated petals with a contrasting neon orange centre, the stem was a dark shade of green that could've been easily mistaken for black. What was interesting about it was that around its petals and stem, there appeared to be glowing crystals growing on it—or ice, Sarada couldn't tell. Either way, it was as if this specimen of flower had emerged from a fictional world from one of the books she read, she couldn't help but be mesmerized by it.

Though unfortunately, she didn't have the luxury of time to admire it for that long as Hikaru led them towards the 'Chakra' in question that Kakashi mentioned earlier. As for Michiru, to no one's surprise (except maybe Sarada's), had decided to retreat back to his quarters for some 'much needed' rest.

Glowing bright purple in an enclosed pentangon-shaped bottle, Sarada didn't really understand how it was linked to Chakra until she got closer to it. Whether it was something linked to the entire complex subject of chakra itself, it was definitely emitting some sort of energy that Sarada was unable to describe, Kakashi as well, whose eyes narrowed, examining the strange object.

"The liquid inside was extracted from another questionable item that our guards found near the coast. Its properties on the other hand are… we have a summary, if you'd like to look at it." Hikaru mentioned. "Otherwise… what do you think?"

"Hm… well, Sarada?" Kakashi turned to her, and it didn't take Sarada long for her to figure out he wanted a more in-depth look at it.

Giving a nod, Sarada activated her sharingan and scanned the bottle from top to bottom. "It's…" It's something, alright. Sarada thought, unsure of what her eyes were precisely telling her. On one hand, she could tell the liquid was concentrated with something peculiar, and while it really resembled chakra, something didn't feel quite right. "It's—"

"Dad!" came in a voice, reverberating around the room. It was from a young boy; younger than Sarada by at least 5 years, who came rushing into the room, heading towards the direction of Hikaru. "Found you! Grandpa said you'd be here!" He giggled cheekily.

"'Dad'?" Kakashi raised a brow at Hikaru who was quick to wave a dismissing hand. "It's—" Though, he stopped in his sentence halfway when the child was within listening distance. "Raku! What are you doing here? I already told you it's dangerous! Why didn't the gua—"

"But I wanted to see you!" Raku whined, arms crossed with a pouting look. "Besides… I didn't want to—"

"And weren't you supposed to be with your mother today?" Hikaru frowned, his fingers pinching the bridge of his nose. Heaving a deep sigh as he tried to collect his thoughts, he continued, "Raku—"

"I don't want to!" He argued, stomping his foot in protest, clearly distraught at the mere idea of being with his mother. "I want to spend my day with you!" He started to plead, forcefully pushing aside his distraught and replacing it with puppy-eyes in hopes of convincing the Prince otherwise. "Pleaseee?"

"Raku…" Hikaru bit his lip, it was hard to say no, for sure. But he didn't wish to waste the time of the Leaf Shinobis who were offering their precious time to help them. Kneeling down to meet Raku's height, both hands squeezing his shoulders with much warmth, he said, "I'm on official business. I can't. And didn't you promise me you'd spend time with your mother?"

"But…" Raku frowned, looking down and away from Hikaru's own pleading gaze.

Seeing that this conversation may not go anywhere, Kakashi interjected, motioning towards Sarada. "Why don't you spend time with Sarada and escort her around? She's new here."

What? Sarada's eyes flickered to the direction of Kakashi, strongly hinting to him with her gaze that read nothing less than objection to his absurd idea. After all, she was meant to be on official Shinobi business with him too, was she not?

"Yeah, why don't you?" Hikaru encouraged, before forking out a few notes of money, passing it over to him. "Take her on for a tour in my stead. Besides, didn't you want to try that new flavour from that ice cream shop?"

"Fineee…" Raku resigned; he didn't mind Sarada being a substitute all too much. He just wanted someone's company in his mini adventures. And more than anything, at the very least…

"It's better than seeing her…" He mumbled.

"Raku." Hikaru cautioned sternly. Raku flinched, though he didn't make any effort in apologising, nor did he appear regretful for the words that had left his lips. Instead, he made his way towards Sarada, tugging on her hand. "Come on! There's a loooot of places we have to go!"

"E-Eh… but I'm on official business too—"

"Don't worry about it!" Kakashi reassured; besides, Sarada's obvious uncertainty over the glowing substance told Kakashi enough about what he needed to know. "Just take him back to his mother and then come back here," Kakashi whispered quietly into her ear, "It's best to go with him anyway, with him supposedly being the Prince's son, he could be in danger. We're supposed to ensure the safety of the Royals too, after all."

"But, Sensei—"

"Come on! Before the queue gets long!" Raku urged, before forcefully pulling away Sarada who was caught off guard, finding herself stumbling off before she could finish voicing out her own protest.

Damn it.

As much as Sarada really wanted and tried to enjoy herself on the tour Raku took her on, she really couldn't. Because while the Land of the Moon's culture intrigued her, she knew her adventure belonged in that science lab.

Was it because of our conversation earlier that Kakashi-sensei decided to give me this trivial task? Sarada found herself thinking, still a little aggravated at the whole Chidori issue. She didn't understand what was wrong with her answer—if there was really no choice, wouldn't anyone do anything to save their friends, regardless of the risk it would inflict on them? Or was she missing something?

It was either that or Kakashi had wanted to discuss about the 'them' that he refused to tell her. While she respected his decision to remain ambiguous, he didn't have to send her off to babysit Raku, right? Granted, Kakashi had a point that Raku's life might be endangered; but then couldn't they just keep him with Michiru or within the castle's premise?

Or was it because my Sharingan couldn't fully decipher that glowing substance…? Sarada sighed, wondering if her Sharingan had been fully developed, would Kakashi still had send her off? Would she be able to know what the substance was?

I just don't understand. Sarada's brows furrowed, finding her heart sinking even more the more she started to ponder. Even Sarada was self-aware at how horrid her paranoia could be at times whenever it came to analysing her skills, and the fact that her Sharingan hadn't gotten a second tomoe at all in two years just made it all worse. And perhaps, had been the root source of her paranoia. What happened to me, honestly…? Aside from Boruto, Mitsuki and her classmates in general, no one really knew about this side of hers. This unconfident side.

It wasn't like she feigned confidence about her abilities all the time; though, when she was alone during those rainy days or met with a simply unacceptable failure, she—

"Sarada!" Raku shouted, startling the Uchiha back into the present.

The young boy had been in front of her, jumping up and down with his hands waving in hope to grab her attention. "Finally! Geez, you were spacing out so much! Were you even listening?" He pouted.

Ah, right. There was Raku. Sarada didn't even know how he was going to get him back to his mother, wherever she was. "I…—"

"Well whatever, just wait here!" Raku patted the dry space of the fountain, before sitting Sarada down. "I'll go get the ice cream, it's getting waaayyy too hot." He complained, a small giggle following after as he zoomed off to the ice cream shop ahead before Sarada could say anything.

I wonder why he doesn't want to see his mother, though. Sarada thought, arms stretching to the back. Did they have an argument? Or… hm…

At least from Sarada's perspective, it didn't seem like it was just an argument. She wouldn't necessarily call it malice—that would be too strong of a word. But undoubtedly, she could sense some sort of underlying tension between him and his mother. A grudge? Sarada wondered.

Well, whatever it was, Sarada sincerely hoped he'd have it resolved.

Family was something important to Sarada. Regarding her mother in particular, she was grateful for everything she did and sacrificed for her. With her father being absent for a long period of time, her mother had to take on both the roles in a sense. It wasn't to say Sakura had effectively replaced Sasuke; but she did her best to fill up the gaps and void. She appreciated her so much for that. So whatever argument she had ever found herself in with Sakura, no matter how much tears were shed or anger that was spat, she would always come back home. Because all in all, Sakura was her mother, and she loved her.

And then there was her father. She was grateful for everything he did to protect Konoha, and appreciated that now he was trying his absolute best to make up for lost time. She admired him as much as she admired her mother; just in a different way. For one thing, she admired her father's proficient use of his sharingan, just how much did he had to do and sacrifice to reach that point of a fully evolved sharingan? Not to mention, to even acquire the Mangekyo Sharingan.

I wonder how much I must train to reach to that point… of getting that Mangekyo Sharingan… Sarada innocently thought. Surely, a lot of sacrifices were made, like time and all…

One thing she wished her father would do, however, was tell her more about his past—or at least the full history of the Uchiha Clan. She was an Uchiha after all, did she not have the right?

Is he not telling me because of my one tomoe? Sarada considered, before shaking her head, an attempt to rid that ridiculous thought. No, no, no Sarada. That's a very silly though—

What had cut off her train of thought was when she saw Raku leaving the ice cream shop, albeit he was being shooed into the dark alley next to it, by what appeared to be a couple of kids around his age. And Sarada knew better than to assume it was just his friends or anything to shrug off.

Was Kakashi right? Sarada tensed, swiftly making her way towards the dark alley in panic. She couldn't lose the Prince's son.

"Rak—"

"Is this for your mommy, hm?" One of the taller kids asked, holding up one of the two ice cream cones up in the air and out of his reach. "Did you steal it?"

"No I didn't! My dad gave me money… so give it back!" Raku yelled with much fury, though before he could even attempt a jump to snatch it back, another kid pushed him to the ground; a satisfied grin spreading across her face as the chocolate dessert stained the ground, splattering across his face along with some dirt. "Your dad?" The girl scoffed, with the rest of the kids who were either laughing at his pathetic state, or pointing fingers at him; mocking him. "That's a crime to even say such a thi—"

"Hey!" Sarada fumed, storming towards the crime scene in a heartbeat upon witnessing such violence. She needed to act. "Stop that! What are you even doing to him?!" She scolded, before getting in between them to prevent any harm from happening.

While these people weren't exactly the enemies she anticipated when Kakashi said he might be in danger, it didn't mean she wouldn't protect him. Though, seeing that they were kids who were evidently much younger than her, she figured wielding a kunai to use against them wasn't the best idea.

"Or what?" The tall one mocked, looking at the of them with much contempt. "Do you even know who he is, glasses girl?"

Sarada scoffed, unamused by the lame nickname given to her, "No, it doesn't matter. He did nothing to you and yet you attacked him! So, apologise and help clean this mess!"

"He did do something!" The girl argued, "You must be new then… Well, let me tell you what he did—"

"It wasn't my fault!" Raku snapped, forcing himself to stand up; Sarada noted how his knees were trembling, more so because it was scraped from the impact of the fall rather than fear. He didn't look frightened at all, just indignant. "That was not me—"

"Still is!" Another boy retorted, tongue sticking out immaturely. "Because of you—"

"Enough!" Sarada interrupted once again. While she was at a complete loss as to what these kids were arguing about, it didn't matter. "He didn't do anything wrong just now regardless, so apologise and—"

"And what? Glasses girl gonna fight us with her books? Ooo, scary!" The taller boy taunted, before purposefully dropping the ice cream in his hand, letting it fall to be contaminated by the dirt. It took every effort for Raku to control an oncoming outburst; to no avail however, his face was already scrunching up. Sarada noticed, eyes softening towards him with concern and worry—though, internally her patience was thinning.

The taller boy lifted up his hands, clenching them and went into a spar position. "Come on th—"

"I said, apologise." Sarada cut him off, fiercer this time. And before any of the kids could even retaliate, her sharingan activated; red eyes glowing ferociously, threateningly, with the dimness of the alley making them ever more so malicious, like a wild animal glaring at its prey.

"A-AHHHHHHHHH!" The kids screamed in unity, before making a run for it.

While no apology was given, the outcome was satisfying enough.

Showing it to them was enough to scare them off after all… well, not like I would've used it against immature troublemakers like them… Sarada thought to herself, the red glow slowly fading back, reverting back to her original obsidian hues that offered nothing but concern for Raku, who found himself staring blankly at the pool of melted sweetness, finding himself so pathetic.

"It's okay, Raku…" Sarada spoke gently, holding out her hand. "How about we get you cleaned up?"

Hesitatingly, Raku accepted her hand, pulling himself up and off the ground. Though, he didn't respond; only offering a small nod as he sniffed his nose. Tears were bound to fall out soon enough, Sarada was sure. Thankfully she had a packet of tissues on her.

It didn't take long to free Raku from the scent of his sickening sweet dessert; albeit the process had been a little awkward given that it was the fountain's water she used to damp the tissues she had, helping him wipe off the ice cream and dirt off his face and knees, before using the dried ones to dry him off. People stared at them weirdly, it was inevitable. It couldn't be helped, Raku didn't want to head back to the castle, and with his silence, Sarada didn't know where the nearest river was—so they had to make do with what they had and what was nearby.

"When you head back home, just be sure to wash your shirt properly… it has a few small stains, nothing impossible to rinse off though." Sarada advised, before discarding the last of the dirtied tissues into the nearest bin. "… Do you want to head home now? Maybe if you told your dad what happ—"

Raku shook his head vigorously, rejecting her suggestion once again. And as much as she wanted to drag him off, she couldn't bring herself to not when he looked so dejected sitting on the fountain's ledge, with cloudy eyes that threatened to rain anytime.

"… At least they're gone now, right?" Sarada said softly, "It's okay—"

"It's not…" He finally spoke, surprising Sarada a little. "… You know, one of the cones of ice cream was meant for you. And he threw it…"

"…Oh."

"And… I really wanted to try the new flavour I bought for myself…" He grumbled.

"You can still buy a new one?" Sarada tried.

"Not hungry." He replied curtly, bringing his knees to his chest, hugging them closely. "…You're not going to ask what they were talking about?"

Sarada shook her head. "It doesn't matter. At least from what I observed, you did nothing to trigger that incident regardless." She said, knowing better than to judge. "You don't have to talk about it, if you wish not to." And as much as she was indeed a little curious, it was clear to her that she shouldn't pry. It didn't involve her after all.

"… You were very cool there though, Sarada…" He decided to say, and Sarada knew it was his attempt of switching the topic; she decided to go with it. "Being a Shinobi must be very cool, huh? Especially from the Leaf… Dad always speaks well of them, especially the Hokage Naruto…"

She could sense some enthusiasm fighting its way through his sorrow, and not wanting the conversation to lose its momentum, Sarada smiled, "Mhm! The Seventh Hokage is amazing! He's kind, and treats everyone like family!"

"Really? Oh and I heard he was very strong too!" Raku beamed, and Sarada took it as a victory on her part for spreading the eagerness back to his re-kindled talkative spirit. "Oh and you must be very strong too! Those bullies were soooo scared when your eyes when red with anger hehe!" He chuckled, his hands flailing about as he recounted the incident. "How do you even do that? Do I need red glasses for my eyes to turn red?"

"It doesn't work that way!" She laughed lightly, "It's… a family thing, you could say. My Papa has it too—the sharingan, that is. Though, it's much stronger than mine… I hope to be at his level soon though."

Raku listened attentively, intrigued by the Shinobi. "I'm sure you will! Even though you didn't fight there… the fact that you were hired to be here just goes to show how strong you are!"

"I'm… no—"

"Yes you are! Your bravery, the way you stepped in between the fight, most passer-bys don't do that, you know… And! And again, you were so cool!"

"Eh?" Sarada chuckled nervously, by now she was flustered by the compliments he showered with when she hadn't even demonstrated any of her sharingan's abilities other than the fact it glows red when activated. She didn't understand, but decided not to question it all too much.

"I want to be strong like you one day." He spoke, "But definitely I want to be as strong as Captain Ryohei… have you heard of him? He's famous here! There's a statue this big of him." Raku said, spreading his arms as wide as he could in a futile attempt to give an estimation of how enormous the statue was.

"Captain Ryohei? No… not to my memo—"

"EHHH? Really?" He gasped, and before Sarada knew it, he was on his two feet, hands already clasped on her wrist, ready to drag her off for another adventure. "Come on! It's not too far from here, I bet you'll love it."

"So he's not really your kid?" Kakashi inquired, before flipping to the next page of the report regarding the 'Chakra' that Hikaru had gave him. "Or is it a complicated royal affair that a nosey Shinobi like me shouldn't know about?"

Hikaru scoffed, "I don't get myself entangled in those sort of affairs." Was the first thing he decided to clarify; he didn't want any misunderstandings. "It's not anything secretive, anyway." He sighed, back resting against the wall while Kakashi continued to scan through the report, though the eyebrow he raised once Hikaru had finished his sentence was enough of a signal for Hikaru to continue, if he wished.

"It's a long story. The Land of the Moon had its own set of issues and fair share of insurgencies. Raku's mother belonged to one of those rebellion groups that caused harm to the people; and if anything, she was the leader. However, after a series of events, she turned over a new leaf and after she paid for her consequences, she now lives somewhere in the outskirts, since tensions still exist. And unfortunately, Raku was born during a period where we were still transitioning back to peace and stability. His biological father passed away before he could've seen him, his mother was serving her sentence and no orphanage wanted to accept someone with her blood. Even if I force them to, who's to say they wouldn't abuse him behind my back?"

"So you took him in?"

Hikaru nodded. "There wasn't much of a choice. Everyone knew who his mother was, at least the other few kids who were born from similar families, we were able to mask their identity. Raku, we couldn't. He takes on more after his mother, features-wise. And I didn't want a kid homeless." He paused momentarily. "And at a point… his mother and I were friends, before things got complicated."

"Hm… regardless, it was still kind of you." Kakashi murmured, eyes still fixated on the report regarding the substance; and while the terminology got more complicated to a point he couldn't tell what was going on, he did manage to spot a few errors in the report when it came to mentioning chakra. Well… it's probably best to bring this back to Konoha. He pondered, before setting the report down, gaze now looking towards the glowing substance.

Hm… who would've thought there were this much similarities between Raku and Sarada? Kakashi pondered, Though… one major difference is that only one of them remains ignorant.

And that was where things grew differently; though the root of where it all stemmed from was the same. One could only wonder what'd happen if that ignorance was wiped out, would hatred begin to sprout? Indignation? Forgiveness? Or would vengeance wither the girl?

Maybe there was more for Sarada to learn here than Kakashi had initially anticipated. It all just depended on what Sarada would make of Raku's family situation.

"So… what do you think?" Hikaru spoke, motioning towards the 'Chakra'. "Don't you have the same eye as Sarada? Sharingan, was it? To my recollection, yours had more… comas in it, which I presume to be more powerful?"

"Sharp eyes, and what a good memory you have, Your Majesty." Kakashi remarked with a laugh, hand raising as he pointed to his normal, plain eyes that no longer hid behind his headband. "Unfortunately, I don't have them anymore."

Hikaru blinked. "Oh. What happened?" He asked, "Was it…the war?"

Kakashi responded with a half-hearted shrug. "It's a long story, complicated Shinobi matters and all that… and it's not one I should tell."

Disappointment started to spread across Hikaru's face, displeased with the unrequited information shared between the two men. However, he knew better than to pry, and decided to let go.

"Anyway," Kakashi continued, turning back to face Hikaru. "I think its best we transport this back to Konoha. But rest assured, we'll fulfil our stay and guard the lab overnight."

Looking back, Sarada knew that Raku, being a child who had child-sized small arms, could've never been able to properly estimate the enormous size of the memorial statue no matter how much he stretched them. Yet, she was still amazed at the colossal size of the statue that she could've sworn was about as high as Konoha's seven hokage carved mountains from the ground.

Okay, maybe she was exaggerating just a little. But, its size aside, she wouldn't have anticipated for it to be built in literal gold; even with the memorial plate that articulated his legacy being adorned with what she assumed was real gems and jewels—no way those could be fake, not when they were glimmering brightly. Well, that and aside from some tourists that left the city to the quieter, tropical parts of the island; she could've sensed some of the castle's guards lurking about, who were most likely wearing normal clothes instead as a disguise.

"Isn't this cool?" Raku asked, already jumping up and down in excitement—what an energetic child, Sarada couldn't help but think. "Isn't he cool?" He added on when he noticed the Uchiha reading his legacy.

That explains why his statue wasn't built in stone, was the first thing Sarada thought upon finishing her reading. To think he…

"He—"

"HE IS, RIGHT?" Raku finished her sentence for her, "Aside from all the things he did to protect us, he went against those bad Shinobis even though their strength differed… I wish I was as strong as him in that way, to have that much courage…"

Courage and strength, huh? Sarada pondered, looking up towards the statue. To go against Shinobis with such a Jutsu up their sleeves… It's definitely admirable.

And she found her thoughts leading back to the issue of her Chidori.

Wasn't it the same thing? Placed in a predicament, driven into a corner, you'd use everything—despite thr risks, to protect the ones you love, even if it means…

So why did Kakashi not agree with her answer? It didn't make sense. She doubted a veteran like himself hadn't been placed in a tight situation like that before, right?

"You know," Raku spoke, tugging on Sarada's shirt, dragging her back into reality, "My dream is to be like him. I want to protect Dad, Grandpa and…" He paused momentarily, before continuing, "and everyone in this home… then maybe people would stop looking at me that way. I… really want to prove them wrong, that I won't be like her." He muttered the last part, and while Sarada managed to catch the last of his words, she decided not to press on it.

"Do you think its possible?" Raku continued before Sarada could even cut in. "For me to become that strong…"

He looked up to her, eyes pleading for either answer or some form of validation.

Sarada merely smiled, kneeling down to reach his height as she ruffled his hair. "Anyone can be strong, you just need to train hard and in due time that dream will come true!"—why couldn't she believe this? That all things happen in their due time?— "Just believe in yourself." She chuckled, giving him a thumbs up.

His eyes lit up with as much sparkle as the gems embedded in the memorial plate, if there had been a trace of despondency and doubt in his eyes before, they weren't present anymore. Her words meant a lot to him, for seeing a flicker of her strength had been enough to convince him just how powerful Sarada was, and could potentially be. After all, he had heard tales about the might Shinobi like her possessed; and ah, how he dreamed of becoming that strong.

"What about you then, Sarada?" He asked.

Sarada blinked. "Me?"

"What's your dream?" He continued, "I mean you're already a Shinobi right? What's next? Oh! Or have you already achieved your dream?"

Achieved? It was almost a laughable matter; what Sarada dreamed wasn't something that could be achieved at her age—or at all for that matter; it was something to be earned.

"Well… it's—"

"Raku!"

Interrupted, both Sarada and Raku turned towards the direction where the owner of the distressed voice called out the boy's name. From what Sarada could make out of the figure that ran towards them, she appeared to be an adolescent woman, hair kept slightly unkempt and with clothes that had a few unappealing stains here and there that contrasted the yellow attire she wore. Her features—to which, Sarada had to do a double-take—looked all too similar to a friend she had made not too long ago. "I've been looking everywhere for you!" She exclaimed, and while she didn't sound exasperated, exhaustion came clear in her tone.

All it took was one look at Raku to confirm Sarada's suspicions. She wasn't sure what the state of their relationship was like, but that look of apprehensive he wore, coupled along with the sudden tenseness that infiltrated his nerves told her enough. What she didn't understand was why he reacted like that in the presence of his mother, who looked nothing more than an ordinary, innocent civilian to her.

Author's notes:

WOW it has been a hot minute but this chapter is out! (And i hope it is okay? If not feel free to provide constructive criticism! Much appreciated :))

Again, I don't really know the next time I can update. And the reason behind is the same as always: Life sucks. I'll probably be able to update more regularly in December or next year if everything goes alright?

I initially had something else in mind to add onto this chapter/arc, but decided to postpone it a little later because I think it coincides better with that other chapter/arc I have in mind. Regardless, I believe this arc still holds some importance to Sarada's character. Aside from this, I hope y'all are ok with me adding minor OCs (e.g. Raku)? It won't be as often, but yeah. That aside, I've mentioned this countless times before but my Naruto lore memory is very weak since it has been a while since I indulged in the series. And with life's craziness idk if I will have the time to do so, so my apologies if I go off-track lore-wise slightly. I hope you'll still enjoy this story regardless. If I make any (major) changes, I will be sure to inform y'all in the Author's Notes.

Regardless, thank you for reading and staying tuned regardless, it means a lot! While I don't reply to all the comments mostly because lack of time, that or it was kinda very late, just know that I really appreciate them and the kudos too :) I have them all starred in my email lol.

Please Leave a review, Constructive Criticism is welcomed.

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