Last Time:
Karin was standing on the steps of Konoha Central Hospital, and she was crying. And a familiar face to Sakura stood beside her.
"Tayuya?" Sakura approached the TV.
"You know her?" Naruto asked.
"We go to school together," Sakura mumbled.
Tayuya had her arms wrapped around Karin and was supporting her as she seemed to be sobbing uncontrollably. It was a convincing performance, and the paparazzi outside was eating every bit of it up.
"When Karin mentioned to me that Sasuke could potentially be cheating on her, I didn't want to believe it," Tayuya spoke. "I knew that Karin and Sasuke had a rocky start, but Karin was determined to work on their marriage and get back to when the two of them were head over heels for one another. Haruno Sakura, however, took it upon herself to get between the two and distract Sasuke from his wife."
Infidelity: Chapter 29 – Declaration of War
Sasuke waking up when he did was one of those miraculous moments where a patient defied all the odds that had been stacked against them. Or, to better explain the "miracle" that's happened: the sound of Karin's blubbering was enough to wake Sasuke up and demand the TV be turned off.
Very rarely had Naruto ever truly seen Sasuke be mad. Despite his constant state of "cool, calm, and collected," Sasuke was terrible at hiding his true feelings. He could show irritation, disgust, worry, among other things like happiness, relief, and content. Right now, all Sasuke's pent-up emotions towards Karin were prevalent on his face, and he was beyond furious.
Sakura was hesitant for a moment, but she took careful steps towards Sasuke's hospital bed and sat on the edge of it. She took his hand in hers and placed another gentle hand on his cheek, "Sasuke. Sweetie, I need you to breathe."
Sasuke's jaw had never been clenched so tightly before. Any tighter, and Sasuke was sure he'd possibly break his teeth and mess up his jaw. She wanted to convince herself that she was exaggerating, but she'd never seen Sasuke like this before. She was scared. Not for himself or anyone else in the immediate vicinity but scared for Karin. It was an odd thought, but she'd seen enough behind the Konoha Elite's curtain to know that the Uchiha wasn't the type to take blasphemous remarks about themselves lying down. They seemed the type to mow anyone bold enough to say anything and make them regret ever having the thought.
"Breathe for me, please," Sakura pleaded.
It took a moment, but Sasuke complied. He took a deep breath in and felt every nerve in his body ache. His muscles burned, and his bones screamed as he felt the results of his accident hit him all at once. With Sakura's help, he laid back down while Hinata hurried out into the hall and called for a nurse. Sasuke's grip tightened on Sakura's hand as the pain bore down on him, and Sakura squeezed his hand in return.
"I'm here," she cooed. "It's okay; I'm here."
A nurse was in the room a moment later and administered morphine directly into Sasuke's IV. It took a moment, but Sasuke loosened his grip on Sakura's hand as the pain subsided. Before the nurse could get any closer to Sasuke to check his vitals, Naruto managed to grab her and convince her to give them some time. She was reluctant but agreed and stepped out.
"I'm so sorry," Sasuke apologized as tears filled his eyes. "I didn't mean for any of this to happen. I swear I didn't."
Sakura smiled a bit and nodded, "I know. Let's focus on getting you better, okay? We'll deal with this other mess later."
"No. No, I need to deal with it as soon as possible," Sasuke argued. "The longer Karin has the lead, the more she'll spout lies and bullshit to make it seem like you're the bad guy. She's not allowed to do that. I won't let her do that, not to you. She can say whatever she wants about me, I can take it, but she doesn't get to say anything about you."
"I can take it; I'm a big girl," she assured him.
"I'm sorry to say this, Sakura, but Karin's statement affects you more than you may realize," Hinata said. "The one thing Konoha thrives off more than anything is scandals, and they love to demonize whomever they can. And I'm not saying this to scare you; I'm saying this because I'm speaking from firsthand experience."
"It was a nightmare when Hinata and I first got engaged," Naruto said. "The Outsutsuki played the situation as if Toneri were the victim and Hinata and I were the bad guys. Things got dangerous."
"Dangerous?" Sakura repeated.
"Women whom I'd never met felt the need to confront me and tell me how much of a whore I was," Hinata said. "I had more than enough run-in with strangers who felt they were obligated to know what was happening in the privacy of my bedroom. Men felt they were entitled to me because they got in their heads that if Naruto could take me so easily, then I'd let any man have me."
"After some effective persuasion from my Uncle, the Outsutsuki retracted all their previous claims," Naruto revealed. "It took a while, but people moved on. They forgave and forgot and left Hinata and me alone."
"And the worse part about it is that dozens – if not hundreds – of strangers are going to share their 'stories' about the two of you," Hinata added. "Out of all the stories that are going to come out, only a handful of them might be true. So, I'm sorry, but we can't leave this alone. Not if we want to make sure you still have a life at the end of this."
Sakura pursed her lips together. She hadn't considered half of that. She looked at Sasuke, and she knew she was doing a terrible job of hiding the fear and worry that filled her eyes. Then suddenly, Mikoto's words came back to her. Then she thought there couldn't be a scandal if the supposed third party removed itself from the equation. She could disappear and wait for the dust to settle, but she'd have to leave Sasuke. He couldn't go with her; his mother wouldn't allow it. Worse of all, his grandfather wouldn't allow it.
"Maybe Sakura should go out of town for a while?" Sasori suggested. "Sasuke can't go out and make a press conference like this, and sending Sakura out there on her own is just like leading a lamb to the slaughter. Young Lord, maybe you or Lady Hinata can go out and make a statement on their behalf?"
Hinata rubbed her chin. Sakura wasn't sure what it was, but something was different about her. She'd always seem so sweet and docile, but the Hinata she saw now was the opposite of that.
"I wouldn't mind going out and making a statement," Hinata said as she looked at Sasuke, "but how much am I willing to reveal? I can drag Karin through the mud and reveal her for the despicable human being that she is, but I could also make it a soft enough blow to make the press curious. After that, we can leave breadcrumbs and let them draw their 'own' conclusions. Or, rather, the conclusions we want them to draw."
"You can do that?" Sakura asked.
"Please," Hinata scoffed, "I'm a Hyuuga. Nothing is impossible."
"Tell them about Karin's pregnancy and my vasectomy," Sasuke requested. "Leave the rest to me. I'll own up to my mistakes in the situation, but I'm not going to let them say what they want about her."
"Is that all right with you?" Naruto looked to Sakura.
She hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Do what you think is best. I'll go along with it."
"Good." Hinata walked over to the nearest mirror and pulled out a makeup kit. She freshened up, and once she was satisfied with her look, she fixed her hair. "Let's go, Naruto. We'll need to show a united front of both their sake."
"I'm right behind you." Naruto pat Sasori's shoulder, "The only doctors allowed in this room are Nawaki, Shizune, and Tsunade. No one else, do you understand?"
Sasori nodded, "Of course, sir."
"Will the press still be out there?" Sakura asked.
Deidara nodded, "Yeah. They're dying to hear from anybody in Sasuke's camp, whether that be his parents, Itachi, or even Lady Hinata and Young Lord. It'd be a shocker if you went out there, but you've never faced down a gossip-hungry swarm of paparazzi on your own before. It'd be overwhelming, and they'd hit you with questions you didn't think they'd be ballsy enough to ask."
"It sounds overwhelming," Sakura admitted.
"It can be," Sasori agreed.
"Turn on the TV," Sasuke requested. "I want to see."
Deidara complied, and just as he turned on Sasuke's TV, Hinata and Naruto were stepping out of the hospital. The crowd clamored at the sight of them, and Hinata and Naruto allowed them to hurl their questions at them. It was amazing to watch because Hinata and Naruto stood side by side with firm backs and didn't buckle underneath the flashing of their cameras.
Hinata raised her hand, and the crowd died down, "Let me start by apologizing for the abhorrent display of complete and utter ridiculousness you were subjected to just moments earlier with Karin. Crocodile tears were always her strong suit."
"You're saying that Sasuke-san isn't having an affair?"
Hinata sighed, "No, that part is accurate, and I'm going to allow my friend to address all of you on that matter once he's well enough; however, I'd like to make one thing clear: Sasuke-san and Karin's marriage was one of convenience for her. As you all know, Sasuke-san is a handsomely wealthy individual, he's also considered an elite amongst the socialite community, and with marriage to him, Karin hoped to gain that same wealth and status for herself.
"I won't stand here and lie to you when I said that wasn't some version of their story where Karin and Sasuke were in love with one another," Hinata continued. "When we were younger, yes, Karin and Sasuke were madly in love, but that love died the moment Karin decided to pursue a relationship with another individual whom I'll allow the courtesy of remaining anonymous.
"To make matters worse, this affair did not stop," Hinata revealed. "Karin is still involved with this individual to this day. I had hoped she'd learned the previous errors of her way when she had broken my friend's heart, but it seems her selfish ways continued into adulthood."
"Sasuke had tried to work with Karin when it came to their marriage, but she was uncooperative and left Sasuke to struggle on his own in this loveless marriage," Naruto added. "And though Karin did announce her pregnancy to you in such a dire situation, Sasuke-san has asked her to share with you all that the child isn't his."
The press erupted with questions. Hinata let them throw their barrage of questions at them, and when she raised her hand again, they silenced themselves.
"Sasuke-san had a vasectomy several months before the two of them getting married," Hinata announced. "Even though Karin and Sasuke did consummate their marriage, that was one of two times that the two of slept together in the span of five months. And though the chances of Sasuke getting Karin pregnant aren't exactly zero, even after a vasectomy, they're close enough that the likelihood of Sasuke being the father of her child is slim to none."
"At this time, we ask that you allow Sasuke to rest and recover as he's suffered severe injuries from his accident just earlier this evening," Naruto added. "We also ask that you don't chastise and demonize our friend, Haruno Sakura, as she's not the woman Karin has made her out to be."
Hinata and Naruto retreated inside, and the press still hurled their questions.
Upstairs, Deidara turned off the TV, and Sasuke's phone immediately started ringing. Sakura picked it up and saw Karin's name on display. She didn't hesitate to answer, "Yes?"
"Huh? Who's this?" Karin sounded furious herself. "Wait, it's you. What do you think you're doing answering my husband's phone, you tramp?"
Sakura sighed, "Sasuke's incapacitated at the moment."
"That's bullshit. Hinata wouldn't have gone out there if Sasuke hadn't asked her to," Karin argued. "Put him on the phone."
Sakura looked at Sasuke, and he looked tired. He lacked the necessary energy to put up with a conversation with Karin, so she handled it, "Maybe some other time. And there's no need to be angry with Hinata, or Sasuke, or even me. You did this to yourself. You decided to aim low, so Sasuke's decided to aim lower. I tried to tell you that Sasuke attempted to find a suitable solution that left your reputation intact, and since you've opted to go this route, he's more than happy to join you on it. I hope you're ready for what comes next."
Karin scoffed, "You think they'll pick the mistress over the wife?"
"They'll pick the mistress over the rapist," Sakura argued.
Karin was stunned to silence.
"Goodbye." Sakura hung up.
Sasuke smiled, "This isn't the drugs talking, but I fucking love you."
Sakura giggled, "Get some rest. I'll be here when you wake up in the morning."
"You shouldn't have to be dealing with all of this." Sasuke sighed, "I promised you peace, and this is the opposite of peace. I hope you can forgive me."
Sakura held his hand, "Just, don't scare me again as you did earlier. You promised to love me for the rest of your days, and I'm not ready for that to end. I need at least another week or two."
Sasuke chuckled, "The minimum I can do is a week and a half."
"Darn." Sakura sighed, "I suppose it'll do."
"Good."
"Get some rest," Sakura urged.
It wasn't long before Sasuke was asleep. Naruto and Hinata returned to his room shortly afterward and tried to convince Sakura to go home for the day, but she refused. Sakura complimented Hinata's tenacity with approaching the press, and she accepted all the praise with the utmost appreciation.
With Sakura's refusal to go home, Naruto left Deidara and Sasori with the two of them. They set up in the waiting room and left Sakura alone with a sleeping Sasuke. She kept an anxious eye on him, but eventually, she fell asleep shortly after the sun rose.
Elsewhere, Karin found herself the subject of countless questions and accusations. Hinata revealing her infidelity and Sasuke's vasectomy left her in a complicated position, and she was quickly running out of options on how to get out of it. So, she made a phone call.
It rang a few times, and Karin was sure they wouldn't answer. Just before it went to voicemail, though, they answered.
"What were you doing?" Karin demanded to know.
"Minding my business," Itsuki grumbled. "Why are you calling me?"
Karin sucked her teeth, "This has just as much to do with me as it does you. You want Sakura, don't you? Then do something."
Itsuki rolled his eyes, "Just because you fucked up doesn't mean I need to help you unfuck up this mess."
"You're the one who told Tayuya to bug Sakura's phone, so you could copy all those photos off of it," Karin sneered. "I didn't expect Hinata to go out there and do what she did so soon. I would've at least had a few days before Sasuke made a statement, but I guess he woke up early."
"What a miracle," Itsuki joked. "So, what are you asking me to do?"
"Get Sakura as far away from Sasuke as possible," Karin grumbled. "I need to control the narrative."
Itsuki sighed, "Fine. Don't call me again." Itsuki hung up and looked at the muted video playing on his screen. It was one of the many videos he'd recorded for himself of Sasuke and Sakura. A pair of stolen panties were wrapped around his erection, and an eerie smile came onto his face, "It won't be too much longer now, Sakura. I promise I'll fix this."
To Be Continued…