AN: I just want to take a moment and thank everyone who reviewed, fav'd, alerted, or pm'd. I'm sorry I didn't have time to reply to everyone, but I want you all to know, from the apex of my heart, I truly appreciate you and the input you give! I've read them all, and each one helped me finish this chapter. I'm so grateful to have all your support!

I'm thinking what it would look like if I expand it, and I can already feel the emotional rollercoaster all the characters and I (and possibly you) will be put through if I do. I don't know if I'm prepared for that just yet, but I might be… xD I still haven't made up my mind. In either case, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

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Chapter 5

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Sakura watched Sarada with doubting eyes. She noticed that Sarada was quieter than usual. To anyone else, Sarada might seem normal, but Sakura could tell something was wrong.

All through brunch, Sarada seemed in a daze, her eyes longingly gazing out to the Hokage monument.

"How long do you think Papa will stay?" Sarada finally asked. Sakura frowned, a thoughtful expression as she contemplated the question.

"Depends on his next mission," she finally answered. "Knowing him, he probably wants to uncover more information so he can protect us all. As of right now, I haven't heard anything yet," Sakura said in thought. She frowned, hoping it wouldn't happen anytime soon.

Although, now that she thought about it, it might be easier if he was gone until they figured out what to do with the whole Akane situation. Sasuke was obviously smart, and so would most likely figure it out before they had a chance to work out what they wanted to do next.

Rationalizing his departures was the only way she could get through them after all.

How frustrating.

Sakura sighed, deciding to not deal with that train of thought at the moment. Right now, she was with Sarada, and she was going to spend as much time with her as she possibly can. She caringly brushed strands of Sarada's dark hair away from her eyes. She looked at her and saw almost a replica of Sasuke – similar hair, eyes… similar distant expression on said eyes.

"If there's anything you need to talk about, you know I'm here, right? I'm always here for you," Sakura placated, her hand moving over the table to cover Sarada's. Sarada stared at her for a moment, as though coming to a decision.

"Hey, you know, Mama… It's just – I can tell, you think I'm still going to leave like before, don't you? To find her, right? You're still worried about that," Sarada questioned, already knowing the answer. This took Sakura by surprised, her hand tersely moving back to her own lap. However, she immediately forced a smile, hoping Sarada wouldn't see right through her.

"What are you talking about, Sarada-chan?"

"You look worried. But you should know, that I can't leave… at least, if I do, it won't be for long. I'll come back, you know. Did you forget what my dream is?" Sarada wondered, her eyes glazed with a determination Sakura had only seen in another before. This put her mind at ease slightly, knowing her dream she was so determined to achieve would be here, in Konoha.

Sarada was thankful by her mother's relieved expression. Sarada decided long ago it was best to leave out many things from her mother, because she didn't want her to worry any more than she had to.

Even when I leave, you won't be able to stop me, no matter what you say or do.

Sakura couldn't read Sarada's thoughts, so when Sarada smiled, she saw a different, new kind of smile – she couldn't put her finger on what was so different, but the fact that it left Sakura wondering was not as reassuring as she would like.

"You've changed," Sakura noticed, observing her closely. She should have known – or better yet, she should have noticed it sooner. Becoming a genin, going on missions, taking the chuunin exams… she should have figured as much. Sarada was a ninja, she was understanding more about the world they live in today, now understanding what duty, honor, and the will to protect precious people, was starting to signify.

She remembered the first time Sarada declared she wanted to be hokage.

"I managed to support one Hokage, I can support another future one," Sakura thought, her mind wandering to the past of the previous boy who declared his dream to be Hokage to everyone he met – lingering thoughts roamed her mind, undesired and unwelcomed. Sakura passed a smile down at Sarada, however, hoping things could stay like this for just a little while longer. She refused to let these moments get sullied by melancholic feelings.

Still, it seemed like Sarada learned more than just jutsu from their training.

"Hey, why don't we go to a clothes shop – do a little window shopping before we head to the flower shop? We can go visit Ino, yeah?" Sakura suggested, a tender smile curling up on her features.

Sarada stared at her for a moment, before she smiled and nodded her agreement.

"Okay," she approved, taking a few more bites of her omusubi with okaka and tomatoes.

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"Hey, are you alright?" Sakura asked, staring down to Sarada as they continued walking to the Yamanka Flower Shop. Sarada stared up at her mother oddly, wondering why she was so paranoid. She found it odd, curious as to what could shake her mother so much. This was the second time she asked her this.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I was just thinking about what Naruto-sama said today," Sarada said, observing Sakura's expression. "He was in our house in the middle of the night, you know. He said he was looking for Papa," Sarada explained, her eyes never leaving her mother's face. She spotted a small twitch in her mother's lips, but other than that, nothing out of the ordinary in her mind.

"Oh, was he?" she asked, feigning ignorance. Sakura guessed that's how she somehow made it back to her home, as though it was all just a distant dream. "That's odd, don't you think? I figured, with all his clones everywhere, he would know where your Papa was more than anyone." Sakura laughed, and Sarada continued to watch her.

"Yeah, that's what I said. But who knows. Naruto-sama has been acting so different lately, don't you think?" Her eyes continued to stare, able to see the physical movements her mother made, but unable to truly see what she was thinking.

"I haven't really talked to him all that much, Sarada-chan," she lied, a sad smile resting on her features.

"Oh. Well, I noticed he has. Ever since the chuunin exams, actually."

"Yeah?"

"I guess everyone has come out of the exam a little different," Sarada explained, watching the distant buildings now, unsure what to make of her mother's facial movements.

Silence ran between them.

"Hey, are you okay?" Sarada asked this time, eyeing Sakura curiously. It was an endless game of check up between the two today, but things seemed out of the norm that it felt necessary to do so. Sakura waved her off, a sheepish giggle rising.

"Of course I am. What makes you think that?"

"You've been acting strange since this morning," she analyzed. Sakura shook her head, wondering if she was the one who was acting different this whole time. She gave Sarada a reassuring grin.

"I'm fine, just a bit tired is all."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah," she answered, and was soon thankful that the Yamanaka shop was in view from their distance.

"Why don't we see how Ino and Inojin are doing?" she asked, a hopeful smile rising on her face. Sarada simply nodded.

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"Sakura and Sarada-chan," Ino greeted, leaning against the counter. Sarada smiled, greeting her – basically – aunt, with a hug. Sakura greeted her with a light smile – no hug necessary between the two longtime friends.

"What are you guys up to?" she asked. Sarada made her way to the different flowers, smelling different colored tulips and daisies and daffodils.

"We just came from brunch and a little window shopping," Sakura explained.

"And you didn't invite me?" Ino asked, pretending to be offended. Sakura smirked.

"Mother – daughter brunch," she simply said, and Ino laughed, continuing to arrange a bouquet of flowers.

"Well I'm glad you stopped by. I am so bored," Ino whined. "What's been going on?" Sakura shrugged.

"Nothing much has happened, really," she confessed. "How about you?"

"Still trying to train Inojin," Ino began, sighing at the thought. She took a deep breath, ready to unload her rant she has been saving especially for Sakura. "Trying to get the other brats together so they can finally train to form our awesome Ino-Shika-Cho trio," Ino began, already getting herself upset just thinking about how they barely had a chance to train because of the other two. It was so hard to get all of them together, and it ticked her off that they would rather be doing other things or being lazy than worrying about training.

Ino scoffed, "Kids these days."

They all laughed.

"Yeah, I heard from ChoCho, how much she would much rather be eating than dealing with you," Sarada said, making Sakura giggle. Ino fumed, her face scrunching up into a grimace.

"Yeah, well they're ninja. They're going to need to learn it sooner or later. I know their missions for now don't really require advance ninja techniques, but you always have to be prepared. Thank goodness Inojin actually follows direction," she began. "I swear, they can be so lazy. Remember back in our day?"

Sakura shrugged. "They're Shikamaru's and Choji's child, respectively. What did you expect?"

"That's a good point. But I mean, my teammates were lazy bums, but they wouldn't skip out on training. It's this new generation's lack of duty. Just wish they could be like Inojin. He actually listens," Ino praised.

"That's because you would nag him otherwise," Sakura added, making Ino glower.

"Yeah, yeah." She huffed out air, blowing her hair out of her face.

"Well, we were just window shopping while we headed over here, I was thinking you might like to join us," Sakura invited. Ino's eyes brightened.

"Yeah, definitely. Maybe we can find Sarada-chan something cute, besides your old hand-me-downs," Ino suggested. Sarada's face brightened at the proposition, and Sakura looked at Ino with irritation, wondering what was wrong with what she used to wear. Ino merely giggled, taking off her work apron and calling for Inojin to watch over the store and to finish rearranging the flowers.

Inojin simply smiled, giving a curt, "Yes, Mother," and doing what he was told.

"My perfect child, knows exactly what to do," Ino praised, her eyes gleaming with pride.

"Just like his father." Sakura nodded, noticing how similar Inojin's personality was to Sai's.

"Yeah, he is. Too bad our lovely Hokage has him working so much nowadays. Well, not as much now that the exams are over, but still." Sakura nodded, understanding. "Why don't we walk and talk?"

They continued to talk, with Sarada right by Sakura's side.

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Compared to the recent few hours with Ino and Sarada, coming back to a silent Uchiha residence felt a little out of place and lonely.

Sakura had the best day with her daughter. It was nice after the nightmare she experienced last night.

Afterwards, however, Sarada went to receive her mission at the Hokage Tower.

This left Sakura alone to her thoughts, finally able to drop her smile, her anxiety rising at her racing thoughts.

What was she to do at the moment? She didn't expect Sasuke back soon. He was either training or doing research – even when he was technically off on a mission, it seems he would still be thinking too much about it to let it go, especial an S-rank mission he spent years away from to complete.

She understood how important that mission was. She understood how dire it was for him to uncover the truth to prevent a possible threat before it causes havoc. He was doing it for the good of the village, serving his village.

But a part of her was upset with him – the petty (but understandably so) part of her that was upset that his daughter had spent years asking about him, Sakura being forced to lie to her, and waiting for him to come back.

This was because she knew, a big part of her always knew – Sasuke wasn't one to stay in one place, to stay idle. She knew he was one to roam other parts of the world, to long for somewhere else besides Konoha – besides their home.

She knew this from the first time he left the village. What he sought after was solace for the loss he could not replace, never replace.

She understood that, but always knew it would affect Sarada.

But that's why, before Sarada-chan became a genin, she was with her a lot, practically at her hip. Now, she found that Sarada would be off on her own adventures more and more, seeming to need her less and less.

"But that's how life goes," Sakura said to herself, thinking how Sarada was at least better than her towards her mother when she was a kid.

Sakura settled for making herself tea, feeling reminiscent.

She wondered if Naruto was still busy with Akane. Her mind wandered, wondering how Naruto was dealing with it.

She frowned, even after a long absence, she knew him too well. She knew what he was thinking.

She heard a lot from Hinata, how he is so busy with everyone else, that he has no time for them. Hinata always told her she understood, but Sakura would have probably told him off by now.

Sakura sighed just thinking about him.

He could be so giving and considerate. Throughout all the years she had known him, he was the most altruistic person she had ever met.

And he was also very dense. She guessed, that he probably didn't realize just how much damage he was causing by not being there for his family, too. If he wasn't the Hokage, she probably would have went in there herself and slapped him for her, so then maybe he could get it through his head.

She remembered she almost did one time, about ready to stomp into his office and demand he take a break for his family. If it weren't for Hinata, pleading for her not to, she would have had a lot to say.

It was for the best, in hindsight, considering she had quite a bit of sake that night.

She frowned, pausing in her tracks as she heard the tea kettle scream, the steam flooding out. She quickly poured herself a cup, taking in the scent of the herbal tea. It calmed her.

"But he had to know, right?" Sakura mumbled, wondering if Naruto really didn't notice.

Sarada would constantly talk about Boruto; how he would deface Naruto's face on the monument (not like she herself didn't see what he would do), among other pranks. It was obviously done to get his attention.

He had to have seen that. Right?

"Gah! Why am I getting so caught up in Naruto's family problems?" she wondered, shaking her head. She had her own problems to deal with, anyways. She sighed, shaking her head. She knew why. She worried about Hinata and the kids.

At the moment, they were in the same predicament. Kind of.

"It's better if no one had to endure this kind of pain," Sakura said to herself, clenching her heart.

Still… knowing him, he would be more concerned about this new development. He was probably doing everything in his power to fix their predicament, or something… whatever it was. She didn't think there was a Hokage manual guide for what to do when a daughter from a different dimension comes in and turns around everything they've once known.

Naruto must have told her what she uncovered with the DNA results by now.

She frowned, feeling guilty by this.

Like before, she felt like she was leaving the burden on Naruto, when he already had so much on his plate.

Now that she was alone, the fact that there were other, more important things at hand, came to her mind. Naruto asked her to only run the DNA results for him, and he said that's all she had to do. Still… Sakura bit her lip, feeling conflicted by this whole ordeal. She should be there, shouldn't she? This is as much as her problem as it is his, right?

She wanted to focus on Sarada and Sasuke, but her mind drifted, feeling the fact that Akane was here a much bigger problem. And she was here, doing nothing about it, letting Naruto take care of it all once again. He only asked her to talk to her and do the DNA test, probably because he knew how she would respond if he told her to do more. He knew what she was focused on.

"I mean, Sarada-chan will be on a mission after all. It's not like I can't do anything about this," Sakura thought to herself.

She stood, deciding whatever happens with Akane and Naruto, she needed to be there, too.

She never asked for this, but it wasn't solely Naruto's responsibility, not anymore.

If anything, that was her daughter too.

That thought still shook her, wondering how that came to be, how their paths changed so much.

Regardless, the sooner they figured out more about Akane and how she got to their world, the sooner she could go back where she rightfully belonged.

She was sure, she would be happier there than here, anyways.

Apparently, the problems here were not hers. Things were different, and maybe even better in a different world. She couldn't be sure, but she knew Akane would be better off with parents that were together and didn't have as many obligations.

She needed to go back to where she belonged. To the happy family she didn't think was possible, but a family that she once wondered about many years ago.

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"Oi, oi," Naruto grumbled in his sleep, trying to swat whatever was tickling his cheek away. He nuzzled his head into the pillow, before rolling over on his back. He could distinctly hear little giggles. His eyes fluttered open, his daughter coming into view. He smiled.

"Himawari-chan," Naruto mumbled, still exhausted from yesterday – he didn't get as much sleep as he needed. The girl in question, giggled, before saying a high-pitched "good morning" and running out the door. He presumed, to retrieve something as she seemed excited and he could hear rummaging from the other room.

He yawned, this type of morning being a rarity for him nowadays. He stretched, getting the crooks from his neck before walking to the bathroom.

He looked in the mirror, absolutely shocked (and a little bit horrified) by his appearance.

"EH!?"

He continued to stare at his appearance in the mirror, remembering exactly why the buzzcuts stayed after all these years.

"I need a haircut," he realized, eyeing the braids and pig tails curiously. His brows furrowed, attempting, but failing, to unbraid hair – it seemed like more of a knot than a braid, his hair too short, yet not short enough to stop the hair malfunction.

"Papa, you like it?" Himawari asked with the biggest smile on her face. He grinned, excitedly explaining how thankful he is that she made him look so pretty.

"Did you do this to my face." Himawari blushed, shaking her head no.

"It was actually Mr. Snuffles," Himawari explained, pointing to her stuffed bear. Naruto grinned, bending down to meet her eye to eye.

"Great! Then I have to thank Mr. Snuffles more than anything. I love it, Mr. Snuffles is really good at this stuff, neh?" Naruto grinned, taking the stuffed bear's arm and shaking it in gratitude. "I'm going to have to ask him to help me again later." Himawari watched, her eyes widening in shock at first before she sheepishly looked down to her feet.

"W-well, actually… Mr. Snuffles just helped. I'm the one who did most of the work."

"Well, next time I need to look so pretty, I will go to you, Himawari-chan," Naruto promised, making Himawari cheer and jumping for joy.

"You really like it?"

"Of course, Himawari-chan! It's awesome, I love it!"

"Come to the tea party then! I got you ready and everything. It's all set up in my room," Himawari urged, hoping he would. Her small hands grabbed onto his thumb, trying to pull him. Naruto frowned, knowing he couldn't personally be there.

"How about a clone go with you? I need to go to work soon," Naruto tried to explain, already feeling anxiety from being late to work. Shikamaru was not going to be happy about that. There's no way he would show it, but he could already see his nonchalant backlash or his oh so annoying passive aggressive snide remarks (now he'd be lucky if he got off with a sigh and a muttered, "troublesome"). if Naruto misses another meeting and Shikamaru is forced to explain to the daimyo that a reschedule is in order.

Which, Shikamaru liked to explain, is never pleasant.

Granted, it didn't happen a lot, of course. Still, when it happened, it was always annoying to reschedule.

Himawari averted her eyes at first, a bit dejected, but soon grinned, nodding excitedly. He made the familiar hand sign, before a clone appeared. The Naruto clone stared at the original and gave a hearty laugh before turning to Himawari. The original Naruto ruffled her hair, giving a kiss to her head, and soon going back to fixing himself up in the bathroom.

On top of his hair, his face was cluttered with makeup. He hurriedly splashed water on his face, knowing he was pressing for time.

Definitely couldn't go in looking like this.

He chanted this in his head as he continued to pluck hair clips out of his hair.

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"Ah, I'm sorry, Naruto-kun. Himawari-chan was supposed to just wake you up," Hinata began, continuing to prepare breakfast.

"Don't worry, she did, just not the way I expected," Naruto laughed, before grabbing a slice of toast and putting it to his mouth. As he did so, he prepared his things to leave.

"Off to work, bye," he said, in such a haste that he pressed his lips in the juncture between her lip and cheek, before running out the door.

"Wait, Naruto-kun," she was about to warn, but he was already gone.

Hinata blushed, looking in the mirror and noticing the pink lipstick that was planted on her cheek. She giggled. she was so busy preparing breakfast, she didn't have time to look at his lips or the rims of his eyes before it was too late.

She automatically knew; that was Himawari's doing.

Naruto was already out the door before she could comment on it.

She hoped that wouldn't cause too much trouble, however.

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"You're late," Shikamaru sighed, shaking his head.

"Yeah, sorry," Naruto apologized, fixing his robes. He turned to the person beside Shikamaru, awed.

"Sakura," he greeted. Sakura smiled, seeming a bit anxious.

"Sorry for intruding. I heard you're already late for a meeting," Sakura began.

"No, it's fine," he began, when Shikamaru coughed, giving him a look that it would be too troublesome to reschedule again. Naruto nodded. "As much as I would love to catch up, however, Shikamaru will nag me if I am late again for my next meeting."

"I understand. It's just, it's about a previous problem," she started. Naruto had a feeling he already knew. He grabbed her arm, ushering her a few steps away from Shikamaru, although that wouldn't do much good if he wanted to talk to her in private.

"Shikamaru, go explain that something came up and I apologize for being late. Just need five minutes," he ordered, and Shikamaru nodded, heading to the meeting room.

Naruto sighed taking a deep breath, finally.

As he was falling asleep last night, he came to a decision. No matter what, he would stay by his family's side. No matter what his lingering feelings told him, no matter how much they surfaced when he got a glimpse of what could have been, there was no way he could trade it for the life he had now.

He was immersed in guilt, reminding himself that to long for one, would mean he'd devalue his other life, his life – the one he had now. Sure, it appeared he would have been happier if maybe other decisions would have been made, if other circumstances were drawn.

But there was no way he could ever regret his wife or his children. He loved them too much.

Hinata always said he had such a big heart.

Maybe that was his problem: he had too big a heart. He longed for both lives.

He wondered if that made him selfish.

His thoughts were soon forgotten, however, when he felt eyes on him.

But it was odd now, having Sakura's peering eyes on him.

Sakura didn't mean to look at his lips. But they seemed oddly different. Her gaze shifted to his eyes, knowing they were darker, and not because of the bags.

"Makeup?" Sakura eyed him curiously, raising an eyebrow.

He could feel his face heat, his ears and cheeks turning a light pink hue, like he was still that boisterous young genin again. Just like that, he felt like he went from a strong Hokage to the awkward little boy he once was. He was too embarrassed to make eye contact, feeling so, so awkward as realization struck him: he must have not been able to wash away all of the makeup.

He grabbed a tissue from his desk, dabbing it with his saliva and soon tried to wipe it off. He grumbled, wondering why it wouldn't come off with water.

"Neh, sorry," he apologized. Sakura said it was fine, and mentioned it must be water resistant. She grabbed a tiny bottle from her bag and poured some liquid on a pink cloth.

"Here," she said, offering him a handkerchief to wipe it off. "Don't want you looking like that for your next meeting," she teased. He stared at the pink cloth for a moment before taking it.

"Ah – thanks," he said, wiping before looking down at the smudge of lipstick and mascara on the handkerchief. He handed it back to her, but she held her hand out, a motion that told him to keep it.

"Anyways," she continued. "Look, about the previous night."

"Sakura-chan, if you're curious at all, don't worry, I have it all covered. I told her about the results already." Sakura nodded.

"Still," she began, but a sharp knock interrupted her.

"If you want to discuss this more then we can later, when I have more time," he reassured, offering a grin. He went to his desk, jotting down an address before handing it to her. "In the meantime, why don't you go pay Akane-chan a visit? She most likely wants to talk to you," he suggested, already moving behind his desk once more to get his papers in order. "She'd really like to talk to you, actually," he added, his eyes perusing the meeting notes Shikamaru left on his desk. He read through them as he tried to usher her to the door.

Sakura nodded, very surprised by this Naruto. When his eyes were darting through his papers, she could see how tired and annoyed he was when reading through them. She never saw him like this, but she supposed this was common for a Hokage. She frowned.

She remembered seeing Tsunade in similar situations: tired and cranky all the time.

However, she didn't think Naruto would let the position consume him, too.

But it did, paperwork ironically becoming his demise.

"Was there anything else?" he asked when he noticed she didn't make any movements to leave. She shook her head.

"Sorry. You just look… tired," she explained, observing him more. Frankly, he made her feel tired and old. Naruto took a moment to look down at her, offering a hackneyed smile.

"Neh, I am. I was finally able to go home yesterday. Even that didn't help as much as I would have thought – or liked."

She would have told him more, would have lectured him if need be, because obviously, this was unhealthy. Even Hokage's needed a break.

She assumed that's what the bottles of sake were for.

Her lips pursed, knowing this was a bit too excessive. She remembered the days she would openly lecture him and even bonk him on the head a few times until he got it through his thick skull.

He'd only listen half of the time, but it was better than nothing. She would take what she could get.

But now, she knew that wasn't her place. Instead, with a disappointed sigh, she merely bowed, giving a small farewell to her Hokage before turning away.

"I'll see you later, Naruto."

.

Akane eyes fluttered open, rubbing the crust from her eyes. She looked towards the spot Naruto's clone was last night, to only realize he was gone. She frowned, realizing that Naruto's clone must have puffed away while she was sleeping.

She laid back down, arms folded behind her head and her eyes focused on the ceiling.

She was thankful that those previous dreams didn't occur last night. However, they were still on her mind. She was trying to decipher what they could mean.

"Should I tell Papa?" she asked herself. She smiled at the idea of going to meet with her Papa and Mama, but her smile soon fell.

No, it's better if she didn't tell either of them.

She looked to her hand, flashbacks of blood covering her fingers making her sit up. She decided it was about time she got ready, anyways.

She had a feeling that Naruto wasn't telling her everything. He said Sakura needed time to deal with the fact that her DNA matched, yet she felt there was something else that he didn't want to tell her.

She had to admit, she was a bit on edge when she first realized her parents weren't together in this world. It was odd, to say the least. Seeing someone like Boruto, at first, freaked her out to think that there was a world where she wouldn't be there child… a world where she didn't exist, where she wasn't with them. It was uncanny how certain chain of events can change lives so easily.

She wondered how this happened. She wondered what was so different about this world – what chain of events changed, that caused this to happen.

Either way, a part of her felt so out of place coming here, being here in a world where her parents held completely different lives. Another part felt right at home. It was just weird.

Another part felt selfish when she looked at both Boruto and Sarada. This Sarada wanted to be Hokage and is getting trained by Naruto. They were the ones who experienced her parents. They were there when they were little and the ones that took care of them.

This Naruto never got to hold her in his arms or be with her as a kid. He wasn't there to fight off all the monsters in her closet (when she actually believed in them), and he wasn't the one who would help her in her training.

However, she knew one thing was the same: this Naruto still had a loving heart. She was so happy, when they talk and when he said she can call him Papa. It's like he had this unconditional love for her, despite just meeting her. It made her feel warm on the inside, knowing that even here, her Papa would still love her.

She's still afraid that maybe Naruto spreads himself too thin, at least, that's what she remembered her mother complaining about before. She was inclined to believe, that no matter what dimension, her father would always tried to give as much of himself to everyone.

However, she was worried, especially here, he may not have enough to give.

This Naruto and Sakura don't have the unconditional love her real parents had, she was sure. Since they just met. Yet, Naruto was willing to give her as much love as he can, given the circumstances…

Given that this world seems to be held up by so many restraints.

"After all… it seems… the world I once knew, is gone for now. This is my new reality. Until, I can go back, of course." Akane halfheartedly chuckled.

Akane frowned, soon gulping, because a haunting thought ran through her head.

"If I can ever go back."

She wasn't sure if that could ever happen anymore.

Not if her dreams meant anything.

And she was afraid, terrified, that they did.

She was terrified that if she tried going back, the only thing she would see was blood – the only thing she would be left with being heartache.

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AN: Akane and Sakura bonding session next time, with many questions answered! This was setting things up for what's to come. Please excuse the language, but this chapter was a real bitch to write, so I hope you guys enjoyed it (although I'm worried it was a bit confusing). I'm still feeling odd with this one, I may edit it some more. Next chapter should come out sooner than this one (if all goes according to plan and nothing comes up). I also updated the poll in my profile if you want to vote what you think I should work on!

Also, IMPORTANT! I just want to apologize for not bringing in another important person that I should have, but have been holding off: Sasuke. I know many people are speculating and feeling he's the big bad guy, but he's really not, at least not in this story. I'm trying to be realistic here, and so I'm just trying to give a realistic perspective on how characters feel about Sasuke in their point of view. Not to say he didn't do fucked up stuff (like Naruto, like all of them, really), but hopefully I will get the chance to explain it better for you! At the same time, I still need to give his, and, it's okay to speculate of course, but just remember the whole story isn't presented yet! So I hope no one is thinking I'm bashing him or hating on him, because that's the last thing I want to do. I don't want to give anything away for next chapter, but I will say that things will become clearer about him next chapter. Hope no one is turned off, or anything because of this, I just want to say that the whole story hasn't been given yet. I mean, you are free to stop reading of course, I totally understand that. Just want to be clear about this and warn that things won't be easy for anyone! But hopefully you guys will trust me in writing this!

Please review and let me know what you think or if you have any questions at all! Also, if there are any errors or something I need to fix, please let me know! I edit the chapters, but I can't always catch my own mistakes. Your input means a lot! Till next time!