AN: I apologies for not having this ready sooner. Life kinda hit me hard. It's been a bit of a struggle to write recently. I would also like to address that this was written before the ending to Gaiden, where we find out Sarada is Sakura's daughter. Although I know the outcome, Sarada will still be Karin's daughter here (honestly how it was written in Gaiden, it was 50/50), since I was writing this before the ending, and will mean I would have to change a lot, which I rather not do. But here you guys go! I hope you guys like it!
"I used to think that the worst thing in life was to end up all alone. It's not. The worst thing in life is ending up with people who make you feel all alone" - Robin Williams
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Chapter 3
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Akane felt nostalgic.
"Oh man, I'm so excited!" Akane exclaimed, walking with the Hokage right beside her. She was hyper and eager to parade around the village with Naruto. She felt as though he was her actual dad. She remembered this scene being all too familiar: Akane and her father walking down the streets of Konoha, with Naruto talking to the villagers and helping them as they made their way to Ichiraku's. She used to complain about how she was starving and how her father would take too long as a child, but now she was more delighted than anything to see that it felt as though nothing had changed.
Same ole, same ole.
"Thank you, Hokage-sama. I don't know what I'd do without my pet cat," a little girl exclaimed as she pets her cat, Pa. Naruto simply chuckled, ruffling the little girl's hair.
"Don't worry too much about it. Just make sure to keep her out of harm's way next time," he told her. The little girl nodded and she ran off.
"Sorry for all the interruptions, Akane-chan. I'm sure you're starving by now," Naruto said, figuring she must have been annoyed that he constantly had to stop and address villagers. However, this was part of his job – plus, they were his family, too.
Akane couldn't help but smile.
This scene was indeed, very nostalgic.
She shook her head no. "It's no trouble at all, I'm used to it. It's part of the job, after all."
Naruto held a serene smile in thought as he looked off into the distance. He couldn't even imagine what his life would be like with a different family, with this girl right beside him.
"Was something like this a normal occurrence?" he asked curiously. She tilted her head in thought and then a toothy grin arose.
"Definitely! I can't even remember when I first tried Ichiraku ramen! Probably when I was old enough to eat it because you were there whenever momma was too busy at the hospital to cook, or you didn't feel like cooking. And you never felt like cooking," she said, remembering the memories. Naruto's smile brightened.
"Especially anything with vegetables in it," she continued, making a disgusted face. "But hey, I never complained, of course. Your cooking was really nasty." She began to giggle, her face scrunching up as though she tried something sour.
Naruto smiled, his eyes gleaming with hope, feeling as though this memory should belong to him, too.
Maybe. He couldn't help but think that maybe they could all create new memories together.
"What's your favorite type of ramen then?" he inquisitively asked.
"Well, of course miso ramen with extra pork is the best at Ichiraku's!" Naruto smiled, feeling the exact same way.
"You have great taste! Me too!" Naruto gave her a thumbs up.
"I already know that," she giggled out at his typical dorky self. Her father would never change. He was always incredibly dorky. However, his easygoing self and all his quirks made her feel as though he was the greatest dad in the word.
"Hokage-sama!" Teuchi greeted, excited. "I haven't seen you here in who knows how long!"
"Don't worry, I always get my ramen delivered! Unfortunately, issues pop up one after another! It's hard to keep up," Naruto explained, and Teuchi nodded in understanding.
"You sure work hard. Maybe too hard. Your face changed quite a bit!"
"Yeah, the bags under his eyes says a lot. You seem as though you need more sleep!" Ayame observed as she walked up to them. Naruto chuckled, nodding.
"I wish. I definitely hold more respect for Tsunade-baachan than when I was a kid. No wonder she drank a lot," Naruto said, and they all laughed.
"Well, is it going to be the usual for you, Naruto?" Teuchi questioned. Naruto nodded eagerly.
"You bet!" He looked towards Akane, smiling.
"If I remember correctly, you like miso ramen too, right?" Akane instantly brightened at the thought, excited that Teuchi remembered her even in this world.
"Most definitely!" she exclaimed, her eyes brimming with enthusiasm and her mouth drooling at the thought.
"You've been coming here almost every day for the past month. I hope I wouldn't get too old," Teuchi joked, and they all chuckled.
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"Dad? Akane-chan? Akane-chan, what are you doing with my dad?" Boruto questioned, raising an eyebrow at the peculiar scene. Both his teammates Sarada and Mitsuki stood beside him, wondering something similar. It was rather odd of his dad leaving his desk, let alone come down to Ichiraku's at regular hours. Naruto generally had his ramen delivered to him.
"Boruto, hey!" Naruto turned and waved in the middle of slurping up a mouthful of noodles. Boruto looked at him questioningly, seeing as his father seemed different than how he usually is. It made him feel uncomfortable - unsettled. However, Akane's bright smile changed that, making a small smile crawl up his face.
"Hi, Boruto-kun! The Seventh was just talking to me about possibly staying here a little longer," Akane interjected, a wide grin spreading across her face. "I really like it here, and I made so many new friends. I hope we can spend more time together!"
"Really? That's great!" Boruto exclaimed, a huge grin plastered on his face now. They all agreed. During the chuunin exams, they became close friends.
"What about your team? Are they staying as well?" Sarada wondered. Akane shrugged.
"I don't know, actually. They haven't said anything to me, but I think they'll be heading back tomorrow like originally planned." Sarada nodded, her mind already reeling with thoughts and possibilities with this new information. Sarada was extremely calculative. She couldn't just brush off the Hokage's technique that Akane seemed to use so effortlessly. Of course the Hokage couldn't just stand there and let a ninja from a different village walk away without at least an explanation for this.
But the mystery fascinated Sarada. She wanted to know why an Iwagakure ninja was able to use the Hokage's techniques. She looked up to the Seventh during the chuunin exams, watching his eyes widen with clear astonishment.
This told her that it was unexpected for him, too.
However, this didn't explain why they were here at Ichiraku's, having a meal. Although, she had to admit, this would be like her sensei to do. The first day of her first training session, Naruto treated her to ramen.
This girl, Akane, became a good friend to her. She was a loudmouth, and she was initially annoyed with the girl, not expecting much from her. However, by the end of the chuunin exams, Akane got Sarada interested and intrigued by her as well.
Sarada made sure to watch her carefully.
Admittedly, there was also an unspoken rivalry. Sarada remembered the pink haired girl boast about how she would become Hokage at times.
Sarada's dream is to become Hokage, too, after all.
And also…
Sarada looked over to Boruto, noticing the blatant blush adorning his cheeks when he stared at the girl. Her lips pursed, annoyed.
She was definitely going to keep an eye on her.
Sarada quickly got back to the situation at hand when she heard her sensei's voice.
"Would you like to join us?" Naruto asked.
"Of course!" Sarada said, smiling towards both Akane and her mentor.
"What did you think of us? Did you see my match? You left before I could ask you," Sarada reminded. Naruto nodded, a big grin forming.
"Definitely! Wouldn't miss it for the world!" Naruto's grin spread.
"Yeah, but you miss everything that goes on with your actual family," Boruto muttered, crossing his arms. Sarada and Akane both saw the pain in his eyes, frowning at the sight of the boy looking away with his arms crossed.
Naruto's face was stern, in thought at first, but soon smiled when Teuchi walked over. He dismissed his son's harsh words, peeved at the thought. He also felt guilty at the thought, knowing it was honest, to say the least.
Things were difficult. His job left a toll on him, and he himself couldn't forgive himself for being such a bad father and husband.
"Boruto, I was really impressed with your performance at the Chuunin exams as well. Sasuke trained you well," Naruto complimented, and Boruto's eyes widened a bit at the remark. His lips pursed, attempting not to form a smile.
"T-thanks," he stuttered, stuffing a mouthful of noodles into his mouth so he could stop himself from saying anymore or showing that he may actually care. Both Akane and Sarada watched him curiously, both with a gentle expression on their face as they noticed Boruto attempting to feign disinterest and fight off a smile at his father's words.
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Ichiraku and Ayame both came over, holding more bowls of ramen that they brought down on the counter.
"Enjoy!" they said. Two pairs of eyes gleamed with excitement at the sight of ramen.
"Itadikimasu!" Naruto and Akane exclaimed as they began slurping up a mouthful of ramen.
Boruto, Sarada, and Mitsuki watched, both in shock and amusement. It was already Naruto's and Akane's second bowl.
Boruto held a disgruntled face at the scene. He didn't want to admit it, but he was peeved at the fact that Akane was having dinner with his father. It certainly seemed odd, seeing as he never had the time of day to see him or his mother and sister without it being a shadow clone.
It was always the same: his father would make time for strangers before his family.
That's what it felt like, at least.
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After they consumed the rest of their ramen and chatted more, Naruto looked outside and realized he stayed longer than he should have.
"I should be heading out now," Naruto thought aloud. "Akane-chan, I still need to talk to you. I'll walk you home." He was about to usher her out, holding the flaps of the stand up, but Akane took a step back, looking rather sheepish and nervous. Her eyes were averted to the ground before glancing over to Boruto for a split second, and then, looking up to him.
"Hokage-sama, um, it's alright. Maybe it will be best if you stayed with Boruto-kun and his team. I think Boruto-kun wanted to talk to you?" she wondered, looking to Boruto for confirmation. Boruto looked up from brooding into his ramen towards Akane, a small blush rising to his cheeks when their eyes met. He soon scoffed, however, crossing his arms.
"I don't need to talk to that old fart," Boruto declared, his brows furrowing and a glower on his face.
"Boruto! That's your father, be more respectful, shannaro!" Sarada chastised.
"Now that you train under my dad, you're on his side?" Boruto bit back, annoyed. Sarada fixed her glasses, shaking her head.
"No, it's not like that. I just know your father is a good man," Sarada retorted.
"Maybe to you," he said under his breath, averting his eyes. Sarada sighed, shaking her head.
Maybe someday, Boruto won't feel this way.
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Sakura cursed under her breath, annoyed that Naruto was dragging her along in all of this speculation on who is that girl's parents. Sakura never felt more determined to prove the goof wrong. He was acting crazy.
She had to ease his head and calm his concerns. She could tell the more time he spent with her, the more he would most likely treat her like his own daughter, even if she wasn't of course.
She wasn't sure why she was feeling such anxiety.
Her eyes darted across the pages, the results now blaring, her retinas burning at the news.
She promised herself she wouldn't cry.
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"Akane, I still have important things to work out with you. So it's best you come with me. Boruto, we will discuss this later. Goodnight you guys," he said in farewell, leaving their team to look confused.
"Goodnight!" Akane waved, before running off to Naruto's side.
Both Akane and Naruto walked in silence, before Akane stared up and noticed his dull eyes and blank features.
"I think Boruto-kun would have liked it if you talked to him," Akane said.
"I mean I tried earlier, but he always acts like it's unimportant now. He acted like this before, but I think even more so now that he is training with Sasuke," Naruto thought aloud. "Sasuke is making him even more unconcerned with everything," Naruto added, crossing his arms and shaking his head. Maybe it wasn't the best idea to have Sasuke train Boruto.
They were becoming so similar.
"I never thought my son would hate me so much."
"I wouldn't say he hates you. He just… misses you," Akane said, attempting to find the right words. Naruto smiled warmly.
"He knows I'm busy. I tried so hard to stay with them initially, but it got so tiring being Hokage. Eventually, it just got easier staying at the office. I saved a lot of time and was able to get more work done that way. But that meant not being able to see my family. I had to sacrifice a lot... No, they had to sacrifice a lot. It's a tough job."
Akane pursed her lips. She did not want to mention how he always found time for them, even if they had to stop by and pay him a visit themselves at times when things got rough.
She couldn't wrap her head around why this Naruto was so much different. She remembered her father's eyes, warm and inviting, his lips always forming a smile… a genuine smile.
This man was more stern and dull.
The only time she saw the warmth back she remembered so much, was when he was eating ramen, or looking at her at times, surprisingly.
"Well, from the looks of it, it seems to me that you should keep trying. Don't give up!" she said, attempting to cheer him up.
"Akane-chan, if only there was the time. When I was a kid, I always thought that being Hokage would be a piece of cake and I would always be protecting the village from one threat after another. But now it's more paperwork and talking to ambassadors or Lords or the council and other officials. The Hokage position is more diplomatic than anything else," Naruto told her. She remained silent, continuing to process this.
"But, it's worth it, isn't it? It's what you always wanted?" she wondered. "You're happy with being the Hokage? You're happy with your life?"
"Yes, of course I am happy with my life, fulfilling my childhood dream. I just didn't expect so much paperwork," he laughed.
Akane became lost in thought, the differences between this Naruto and her father boiling to the surface finally.
She once asked her father this exact question when they used to walk home.
He would always answer with a big, toothy grin - with an energy that this Naruto did not have. He would tell her that it was always worth it no matter what. Her father spoke of protecting everyone when the time came made it all worthwhile, that he could never be happier.
A heavy feeling welled up in her chest as she continued to think of his past answer.
She realized, that although he is identical to her father, he was definitely a different Naruto.
Her father managed to make time for everything. It truly was difficult for him at times, and she saw it was hard work for him, but he was usually physically there with them from what she remembered. He would have multiple shadow clones in his office, or even bring Akane there before she was old enough to attend school.
Either way, she remembered that her father always found a way to make it work. She remembered always being able to tell when he was stressed, but it would soon dissipate when he was with them.
She wondered, what made his eyes so somber.
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When Naruto came back from dropping Akane off at her apartment, he went straight to the laboratory, hoping the results came in. He was shocked to find Sakura slumped in front of papers, her hand holding her forehead as though she was battling a headache. He noticed she was trembling. Small tremors began to crawl up his own spine.
"Sakura-chan," he whispered, seeing her head cast down in defeat. He took a few steps closer to her, unsure how he should approach the situation. His hands were about to barely graze her shoulder, before she moved it away, most likely out of reflex.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
"I-I don't get it… our DNA… It matches. It's positive." Naruto's eyes widened. He wanted to smile, his heart rising and falling so fast - too fast, realizing his doubts were gone. He knew she was his daughter. Akane was his daughter.
She was their daughter.
But he restrained himself, his eyes drawn to Sakura's sullen eyes. Her cheeks and nose were rosy and inflamed, her eyes fighting back tears again, but it was easy to tell she was crying earlier.
"Naruto, you're definitely the father, and I'm definitely the mother… how, how is that possible?"
Sakura's world was crumbling down.
She gave up. She lost hope.
And she was exhausted.
There was only so much she could do to keep her family together. She felt as though she was creating a house of cards, with flimsy, tattered cards.
They just didn't hold up.
She didn't hold up. She was falling, just like her family.
"I did the test three fucking times! I honestly don't get it," she choked out, exasperated.
She couldn't help but wipe the tears brimming in her eyes as she fought back a scream. She was so frustrated; she began to sob. Naruto frowned, feeling as though seeing Sakura cry was all too familiar, bringing back old memories. Granted, now, they were adults, and he was sure Sakura wouldn't cry like this in front of many anymore.
But this.
She was devastated – tearing at the seams.
All Sakura could think about, was how this would ruin everything she worked so hard to preserve. Everything she was constantly trying to keep together.
And now, just like that, she could kiss that illusion goodbye.
She hated to admit it, but that was all she had to hope for. That illusion, that someday, Sasuke would stay for good, and Sarada would smile at both of them again, and they would be a happy family….
It was all torn asunder.
Now, she was lost and broken. Not just broken, she was shattered.
"Sakura-chan, it's alright, we'll get through-"
"How can you say that, Naruto?" she interrupted, her voice hoarse as she spoke in between wails. "How can you honestly say it'll be okay, when everything is falling apart? Naruto, you have a wife and children. What are they going to think when they see we have a daughter together?"
"Sakura-chan, let's not worry about that right now." Naruto frowned, hoping to ease her qualms.
"Easy for you to say. You don't know how bad it is, Naruto. You don't. You can't possibly understand how much pain this will cause. Our images, everything, it's all going to shit!" she seethed in between sobs. "We didn't even do anything, but the fact that the DNA test results match will cause so much speculation and so many accusations. Naruto, your Hokage title could be at stake, your favorability ratings will fall so bad when nothing happened between us. What will they think? And you don't want me to worry?"
"I know this is hard, Sakura-chan. We don't have to say anything right now, okay? For right now, it'll be between us. I will be okay. You will be okay. We will be okay. I'll make sure of it, I promise," Naruto declared. He then finally moved closer, finding the strength to embrace this trembling woman, because he wasn't sure how else to placate her woes. She was shattered, and all Naruto cared about at that moment was mending the broken pieces. His fingers lightly grazed her hair, breathing her in and smelling the scent of cherry blossoms that ameliorated his own fears.
He could feel her shaky in his arms, but he didn't mind being a sturdy support for the time being.
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It was a long day for Akane. She fell asleep right when her head hit the pillow. And she smiled whilst in her sleep, because the memories she'd dream about became so vivid.
She could practically taste the ramen, feel the joy when she hugged her father.
"Akane-chan, you know you could never beat me in a ramen eating contest," Naruto had said, sticking out his tongue. A younger Akane's eyebrows furrowed at the thought as her hands were placed on her hips.
"You wait and see, Papa! Someday, I will be Hokage and beat you in a ramen eating contest too!" Akane declared, pointing at her father.
"Well, you better keep training, Akane-chan! You'll only be able to beat me through hard work!" he recommended, making Akane pout.
"When are you going to teach me your other jutsu, then?"
"You know your mom doesn't want you learning so many jutsu before you fully control all of your chakra," Naruto reminded. Akane pouted more, batting her eyes, and giving a puppy dog expression that made Naruto melt.
"Awww, Daddy, but I want to be the best," she announced. "Don't you want me to be the best? I'm an Uzumaki, the daughter of the best Hokage ever! Shouldn't I live up to that?" Naruto whimpered a bit, realizing Akane knew how to sucker him into doing anything. When it came to having an extra cookie, to a later bedtime when she was a baby, she knew just how to make him cave in and accept. The only thing that could combat her sweet talk and puppy dog eyes was remembering Sakura's fiery.
"Your mom would kill me if she knew I went behind her back again like this," he reminded her, thinking how furious Sakura was when she learned that Akane learned how to make shadow clones. When she presented the technique to Sakura, she ended up passing out from exhaustion and using up all of her chakra in two clones.
Akane continued to pout. She was definitely unrelenting.
"Okay, this will be your first mission," Naruto said between chuckles. Akane's eyes widened, excited. "Your mission is to convince your mother that you are capable of learning more jutsu. If you're able to do that, then we'll talk."
Akane deadpanned.
"You just want to get away from talking to Mama about this, don't you?" Akane wondered, already knowing the answer. He chuckled, ruffling her pink tresses.
"One day, you will understand."
"I don't think I'll ever understand." She shook her head. "Can we at least get some ramen today? I'm starving!"
"You're always starving," he chuckled out. "But so am I! Let's go to Ichiraku's today!" Naruto created numerous shadow clones to stay and handle paper work as they both head out, their destination being Ichiraku's.
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Akane sighed contently in her sleep, these dreams making her want to continue on sleeping for eternity. She shifted a bit as a different memory came alive in her mind.
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"Papa, is it worth it? Are you happy being Hokage?" she wondered. "I always see you doing paper work, and that seems so boring!" she exclaimed. Naruto stopped in his steps, and he turned to her and kneeled down so they could be eye to eye.
"Akane-chan, don't you know? I wanted to become Hokage since I was a little kid! It's been my lifelong dream! Of course it is worth it. Being Hokage means so much to me. If I'm being honest, I didn't expect the paper work and all the other diplomatic needs like dealing with foreign policy or small little stuff like making sure our trade deals and our economy is high, and there are enough jobs for our shinobi, and regular villagers, but it makes sense now that I'm in this position," he stopped himself from getting to deep in the political and economic side of his job, knowing she would not understand. He scratched his head, realizing he could get a little carried away explaining that aspect now. "But, I love it," he continued. " My decisions effect what happens to the people of Konoha, and I can make a big difference in their lives for the better. And, even though all of that was new for me, there is one thing that makes it more than worth it: I get to protect my family. Not just you or your Mama, but everyone in the village. All of you, are what make it worth it, what make me happy to be Hokage."
"Isn't it stressful, dealing with so many people?" she wondered.
"Yeah, of course it is. Every villager's problem tends to become my own. But that's why I have you and your mama to make it all better and keep me sane." Her blue eyes sparkled, happy that she could do something to help her father.
"Papa, I want to be Hokage!" she exclaimed.
"Really? Why is that?"
"I want to protect everyone, too!" Naruto grinned, a mixture of pride forming as he picked his daughter up and gave her a piggy back ride. She laughed as Naruto jumped off towards the hospital.
Naruto, deciding it might be faster to not go through the front entrance of the hospital, came in through an open window. It was an empty consulting room. He placed Akane on the bed.
"Akane-chan, wait right here while I surprise your mother," Naruto said, grinning from ear to ear. Akane nodded, waiting for her dad to return.
However, Akane was not one to wait patiently. After 10 minutes, she was bored.
"What's taking them so long?" she wondered, jumping down from the bed and heading out the door.
It took her a bit at that age (to her, all the white halls looked the same), but she was finally able to find Sakura's office. She tilted her head, wondering why it was so dark in there. She thought her mom might be making rounds, and that's why it took her dad so long to find her. That was her first hypothesis before she heard her mother's voice in her office. However, it became quiet again. Akane waited, wondering if she was just hearing things.
She waited quite a few moments, before she heard harsh whispers from the other side of the door again.
"Naruto, no! You know she is extremely young for that."
Akane didn't understand why her mother's office would be so dark if she was still in there.
"Sakura-chan," she could hear him whisper loud enough for her to hear. And then all she could hear was shuffling.
Silence. More stifled noises.
"Mmmm, Naruto, stop. Not right now! You know-" was all she was able to hear before there was more silence.
"Neh, Sakura-chan, you know you like it…" More inaudible sounds.
"Not so loud!" her mom whispered just loud enough for her to hear. It was still hard to figure out a lot of what they were saying, however.
More muffled sounds.
Akane raised an eyebrow, wondering what could be going on inside her mom's office, and better yet, what her mom thought of her learning a new jutsu. That, of course, was Akane's main concern.
"What do you say, Sakura-chan?" she could hear her father ask.
Even more muffled sounds.
"Fine, maybe just one jutsu. One, Naruto! I'll think about it more," she finally gave in.
And Akane cheered, but soon covered her mouth when she heard a gasp.
"Was that Akane-chan?" Sakura snapped, and Akane could tell by her tone, that she was glaring at her father.
She was caught snooping. Akane gulped.
She could tell her mom was lecturing him by the harsh whispers she could barely make out and the shuffling and movement she heard in the room.
"Sakura-"
"We'll finish this later," Akane heard Sakura say sternly. They were mere inches from the door now. Sakura opened it and was surprised.
"Akane-chan, what were you-" Sakura began when she spotted her little girl on the other side of her door. Sakura was a bit winded at first but soon was interrupted by an excited Akane. Sakura's hair was a bit disheveled, as well, and her white coat button was misplaced, but Akane was too eager to notice.
"Mama! So I can really learn more jutsu? Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she cheered, hugging her.
"Your father and I will still discuss this… tonight." Naruto could tell by the tone in her voice, that she meant business. His chest constricted and he gulped.
"Why don't we go home now?"
"Sakura-chan, I need to go back to the office, but I'll be home later tonight."
"You better," she said, giving him a quick kiss on the lips.
"Akane-chan, if you want to learn that jutsu, you have to be good for Mommy, okay?" Naruto said, kneeling down and kissing her forehead.
"Of course," Akane said, nodding furiously.
"I'll be home to tuck you into bed," Naruto said, waving goodbye as he poofed away. Sakura sighed, shaking her head.
"Your father is a bit too unpredictable at times…" she trailed off shaking her head more, but still amused. "Let's go home," she said, taking Akane's hand.
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That particular memory faded, and she wasn't sure what was going on anymore as her head moved from side to side.
A sleeping Akane began to toss and turn, her dream turning into something else entirely, something she never saw before.
A profuse amount of sweat ran down her forehead as she continued to shake, her arms clenching and her breathing quickening.
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"Akane-chan, let's go."
"What about Papa and Mama?" Akane wondered.
"Don't worry about them, they will be fine," a man – she couldn't make out his face – said, attempting to usher her away. She paid no mind to this man, however, running where the explosion took place.
"Akane!"
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Akane's chest felt as though a massive weight was crushing her lungs. She tried to breathe. All her muscles constricted, and she wanted to scream. To no avail, however.
She was stuck.
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"Akane-chan? Where did you go?" her father's voice called. "Akane-chan?"
"Papa!" she attempted to scream, but her chest stopped rising, and she felt as though she couldn't breathe.
She had no idea where she was. She was frozen, completely trapped in rocks and branches and some sort of wire that felt like it was severing bits and pieces of her skin.
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Akane was tossing and turning.
Her dreams seemed as though they were glitching, in a way. Different memories intertwined with others, until she was gasping for air, fighting for a breath.
Her fingers dug into her bed sheets, screeching out as she jumped up from bed, her eyes wide, frantically attempting to see if she was truly back to reality.
Her heart pounded, her chest feeling crushed under the weight she was feeling earlier. She gasped for air.
Her sweet memories had turned into night terrors. Her old memories had her seeing red. In her last memory, all her senses picked up were blood. She could still smell the odor of rotting flesh or the sight of the crimson liquid. She could even taste the copper on her tongue.
She didn't understand what all of this meant.
But she was left to see red all night.
All she wanted was for the feeling of blood seeping through her hands out of her mind.
However, she knew you don't always get what you wish for.
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AN: Completed! Finally! I apologize again for the long wait for this chapter! Sorry about the hospital scene, I just thought it'd be hilarious, and I was definitely laughing while writing it! xD Humors never a bad thing imo haha, especially with that serious turn of events.
IMPORTANT: If it ends up taking too long like last time, I will be posting up previews to this fic on my forum! I also have a picture of what Akane looks like over there too! Links are in my profile!
Thanks for reading, and I hope y'all let me know what you think, or if you have any questions! :D Hopefully I can get the next chapter up sooner.