Disclaimer: Naruto and all its characters are the properties of Masashi Kishimoto. No profit is made off of this fan-fiction story. Any additional original characters located in this story are designated at such and belong to the author, Jae (Dirtyangel).

A/N: Hey, all! I humbly present you with a new chapter. Now, I'm off to go finish the next one, before summer sucks me into a dark abyss of things...

As always, thank you to everyone who takes the time to fav, kudos, and review. I'm surprised each time I see those notifications in my inbox. The fans of this story are the absolute best!

Cheers!

—.&.&.—

XII.

To Know You

Sakura adjusted the focus of her microscope to get a different view of the cultures she'd been studying. She observed them for a few moments before looking away and jotting down notes in her journal. Several minutes went by repeating this process: Observe. Take notes.

The lab was empty aside from her, and it would be a few more hours before any of the lab technicians or assistants began muddling in. It was the perfect time of morning for her to check in on some of the experiments her techs were working on, as well as take care of the paperwork she'd been neglecting. If she were to be honest, Sakura didn't look forward to addressing the pile that had gathered in her inbox, but that small inconvenience was a necessary evil.

Since Naruto's return, she'd stepped away from her duties as lab manager in order to make herself available for Tsunade's needs. It was a move that she knew the Hokage appreciated, even if the older woman wouldn't have asked directly out of respect for Sakura's position. But Sakura had wanted to make her own contribution to the effort of resettling Naruto; and selfishly, she'd also wanted an opportunity to speak to him so she could make her own observations of the man he'd become.

So far, her assessment was mixed. On the one hand, she saw a man who was somber and more reserved than the boy she remembered. He was weighed down by the loss of his wife and seemed reluctant to look back on the life he'd had before that. On the other hand, Sakura had the image of a father painted through the eyes of Naruto's son, Kanaye. To Kanaye, Naruto was far from a muted personality. He was his idol, a bastion of paternal safety, and one of the main sources of Kanaye's happiness despite the unkind tragedy of losing his mother.

Taking these two personas and aligning them with what she knew of Naruto's old self, as well as the person his letter hinted at, felt like stacking two varying sides of the same coin. Yet, it made Sakura wonder: Did she really know Naruto at all?

Sakura paused what she was doing and leaned back in her seat. She hadn't expected this notion to bother her as much as it did.

A knock sounded from somewhere behind her.

Swiveling her chair around, Sakura found Ino standing beside a workbench near the lab entrance.

"Hey, Forehead."

A small smile dimpled the corners of Sakura's mouth as she answered: "Hey, Pig."

Ino smiled back as she approached Sakura's work area.

"What are you doing here so early?" she asked. "Don't tell me you're trying to show the rest of us up, or something."

Sakura gave her a skeptical look before sighing and placing her head in a propped-up hand.

"Hardly. I'm just trying to catch up on a few things, that's all."

Ino settled in the spot to Sakura's right. Resting her hip against the workbench, she folded her arms. She was wearing the pale-yellow lab coat of the medical nin uniform. However, underneath it she had her casual shinobi-wear. Sakura suspected the blonde had borrowed the coat from one of the lounges.

"Is that so?" Ino asked airily. She gave a passing glance to the setup Sakura had in front of her. Then her sharp eyes flicked back to Sakura's face.

"That wouldn't have anything to do with what's been happening with Naruto, would it?"

Sakura tensed before straightening her posture and allowing her hand to fall flat on the workbench's surface. She grimaced.

"It's because of a lot of things, Ino," she said, plainly.

It was Ino's turn to give her a skeptical look.

"Come on, Sakura. It's not like we don't know that he's back in Konoha. Everyone from the old teams have been talking about it for the past week. It's just that no one's built up enough nerve to ask more. Hokage-sama has everybody pretty tight-lipped about it."

Sakura eyed the blonde wearily as she turned back to her work.

Tsunade had been explicit with her instruction to all parties involved in Naruto's arrest: They were to keep any discussion about him to an absolute minimum. Nothing was to be shared outside of what was publicly known, and anyone who broke this information embargo would have to answer to the Hokage directly.

"I don't know any more than you do," Sakura lied. "The whole thing is complicated, and Hokage-sama hasn't shared very much."

The other woman frowned, turning to face her fully.

"That sounds like the same crap answer Sai gave me when I asked him."

Sakura removed the slide she'd been examining from the microscope's stage, replaced it in its storage, and then selected another one.

"Okay. So why did you think I'd tell you differently?" Sakura asked as she adjusted the focus of the microscope.

"Because you're the one who's been popping up around town with that little boy of his."

The intensity of Ino's stare conjured up phantom tingles along the side of Sakura's temple, but Sakura stayed firm in ignoring it.

"Sorry to burst your bubble, Ino. But I don't have anything else to tell you."

Ino huffed out an exasperated sigh.

"I don't know what the big deal is," she said, unfolding her arms and placing her hands on her hips. "They're either going to let him go or keep him locked up. It's not like they're going to kill him, right? He was never classified as a missing-nin."

Sakura didn't respond right away, but soon realized her mistake in doing so. Her prolonged silence was too lengthy to not seem suggestive.

Ino gasped, already jumping to her own conclusion. "Are you serious?! I didn't know things got that drastic—"

"They're not going to kill him, Ino," Sakura said irritably. Her fingers had tightened around the head of the microscope in an attempt to restrain herself. A muscle above her brow was already beginning to twitch.

News of Naruto's demotion hadn't been announced yet and Sakura was not in the business of leaking that information. However, Ino's persistence was becoming a pain in the ass, especially when she asked leading questions.

Ino blinked; then narrowed her eyes.

"So, you do know what's going on! You lyin—."

"Drop it, Ino," Sakura warned.

"Why should I, Forehead? I knew him, too. Plus, this is starting to feel repetitive. You Team 7 guys were the only ones who ever really knew what was going on, and the same thing is happening now."

Sakura pursed her lips as she tried to concentrate on what she was viewing through the microscope's eyepiece. Beside her, Ino shifted and slammed a hand down on the workbench's table top.

"You don't have to be an asshole and completely ignore me, you know," she groused.

"Then learn to take a hint!" Sakura snapped back, looking up from her work.

A rumbling tension roiled between them as they stared each other down. Ino's expression seethed with determination while Sakura's had reached peak annoyance. The pink-haired woman gravely considered taking her lab journal and whacking Ino in the face with it.

"This is ridiculous, you know," Ino spat. "You guys either want people to care or you don't."

Sakura's frown deepened, unclear of Ino's words. The blonde folded her arms again, her features twisted with irritation.

"I'm personally getting sick of this. When that jerk left, everyone changed. For months—months—people were just … sad. You, Sasuke, Hinata, a whole bunch of others.

"But the rest of us, we were just confused. No one thought he'd leave, and the worst part was, anyone who knew anything didn't want to talk about it. What was that supposed to accomplish? All it did was make people sadder, or angry, or indifferent. It was stupid! Now he's back and you guys are doing the same damn thing over again. It pisses me the hell off!"

Ino held Sakura's attention with an intense gaze for a few heavy moments before she closed her eyes and sighed. She pinched the bridge of her nose, seeming to reign herself in.

"It wouldn't hurt if someone could just say something worthwhile. Like 'hey, Naruto's here to stay' or 'no, he's really a traitor.' I'd also love to stop feeling dumb every time my kid asks me about the little boy you keep popping up around town with and all I can say is 'let's see'."

Ino's hand fell away from her face and she gave Sakura a bland look. Sakura stared back, silent and a little dumbstruck. Her expression teetered between apologetic and confused.

"Um…" Sakura couldn't find her words. "I … didn't—know that's how … you felt."

Ino rolled her eyes, but she appeared less irritable.

"Yeah, well, that's how it is; and I'm not the only one who feels that way," she said.

Sakura looked down at her hands; her demeanor becoming thoughtful. She hadn't considered what some of the others might've felt about the subject of Naruto. She'd known about some of the mixed reactions there'd been among the other teams when he'd left. How could she have overlooked the fact that there might be the same feelings again?

She sighed, turning her chair to face Ino.

"Listen, I'm sorry you're feeling that way," she started. "Believe me when I say that you'll know what's up very soon. I just can't tell you right now, and neither can Sai. So, don't be angry with him. I'm sure he wants to tell you."

She offered up an apologetic smile when Ino pouted.

"How soon are we talking?" Ino grumbled.

"Very soon," Sakura allowed.

Ino breathed in deeply and released it through her nose. She narrowed her eyes at Sakura for a few beats before shrugging her shoulders and stuffing her hands into the pockets of her coat.

"Fine."

She glanced down at her feet, wiggling her manicured toes in a careless gesture.

"So," she spoke up again, breaking the brief silence. "What's he like? Is he the same guy, or did he turn into some kind of sociopath?"

Sakura grimaced and gave her a thoughtful look.

"That's such a loaded question."

Ino peered back at Sakura with a sidelong glance.

"It shouldn't be. Unless he has turned into a sociopath.

Sakura huffed out a tiny laugh as she turned back to her work.

"No, he's not a sociopath. Just … different. To be honest, I don't know if he was always this way or if it was something he grew into."

"Explain?" Ino asked curiously.

Sakura's face hovered momentarily over the microscope's eyepiece as she thought about how she wanted to word her next statement. Her musings from earlier were still lingering on the sidelines of her mind.

"He's melancholy and overly cautious," she said. "I knew in the past he would act like things were fine, even though they weren't; but this seems persistent."

Sakura placed a steadying hand on the microscope and looked over at Ino.

"He'd told me that his wife died a few years ago. Kanaye—that's his son—mentioned that she'd gotten really sick. I'm guessing it was pneumonia. It's fairly common in those tiny villages out in the countryside."

Ino's expression softened in sympathy, "Wow, that's hard. A loss like that would make anyone sad."

"Yeah…" Sakura agreed. She toyed with the base of the microscope. She thought about how reluctant Naruto was to talk about himself. "I'd agree, but I feel as if there's more to it. He deflects a lot when I bring up the past. I've mentioned this to Sasuke, but it's obvious he's still angry with Naruto."

A small laugh shook Ino's shoulders as she looked up at the ceiling. "No surprise there. Sai told me about how Sasuke just shut down after he stopped searching for Naruto. I couldn't tell but I guess now that I'm no longer trying to get in his pants, I could see it. Those two used to be joined at the hip, or rather, the fist—with the way they used to fight."

Sakura shook her head at Ino's comment; then finally peered back through the microscope's eyepiece.

"Sasuke's just really complicated when it comes to his feelings. I think he doesn't really know how to handle them, and anger is his safe space. It's no different from when Sai used to do that smiling thing."

Ino gave her another skeptical look. "Whatever you say. I still think I ended up marrying the right one between those two."

"Ha! As if you really had a chance with Sasuke, Pig," Sakura teased.

The blonde next to her swatted her arm in retaliation.

"Don't you even go there! I had a way better chance than you ever did. I wasn't afraid of showing off a little skin if I needed to. That's why I'm the one that's married."

Ino had taken her left hand out of her pocket so that she could flagrantly show off her wedding band.

"Bitch," Sakura chortled.

Ino's expression was too pleased. She took her other hand out of her pocket and turned around to lean forward against the workbench.

"You're too good for Sasuke, anyway. Somehow, I feel as though if you two had gotten married, he'd still be emotionally checked out. That's not what you deserve."

Sakura smiled.

"No, you're right. It was a little hard accepting it, but Sasuke and I aren't a right fit. I'm not what he needs. We're better as friends."

"It's a shame you never slept with him, though. I would've loved to hear what that was like."

"Why are you so crass?"

"Excuse me," Ino sniffed. "When you were dating that last guy you were with, you had no problem with how crass I was. Need I remind you who asked whom to go lingerie shopping with them?"

Quietly clearing her throat, Sakura stayed silent and readjusted the focus of her microscope.

—.o.—

Sasuke stood in front of the weathered gates of the Uchiha compound. The hazy tint of dawn filtered over the horizon behind him, revealing the Uchiha crest embossed on the heavy wooden doors. Moss and grime covered the exterior walls, and the overgrowth of several trees hung unabashedly over the tiled awnings. It was a surprise not to find this all vandalized. Two decades had passed since Sasuke had last been here.

He took a deep breath and released it slowly. There was no use in getting distracted by the lumbering ball of anxiety weighing deep in his gut. Sasuke had already agreed to having Naruto and his son here in his old home. It was better to get this out of the way—with no one to bear witness to his weakness.

Sasuke approached the gate after wrestling past an annoying jolt of hesitation. From his pocket, he retrieved a tiny envelope. Inside was a key that he allowed to slip free into the palm of his hand.

Ahead of him, a heavy chain and padlock were threaded between the door handles. The seal for a security ward lay over the lock as well as the door seam. Sasuke released it before using the key to open the lock. The sound of the shackle unlatching was a deafening echo in his ears. His hands were trembling.

"Stop," he whispered into the morning air. "This means nothing, so stop."

Itachi was gone. His family was gone. All that was left was him and this aging estate and his silly fear. He would do what he had to do, like he always did. He would house Naruto here for six months, complete the Hokage's task of reintegrating him, and then move on. That's what was needed of him.

The trembling in his hand took a minute to dissipate; but when it did, Sasuke removed the lock and chain in one fluid movement and entered the compound.

—.o.—

Naruto looked himself over in the mirror as he washed his hands. His eyes appeared tired despite how awake he felt.

It had been a few hours since he'd woken up. In that time, he'd done more introspection—going over his conversation with Kurama and trying, unsuccessfully, to remember more from the time he'd left.

He could do this, he reassured himself. He had no choice but to do this.

Naruto turned the faucet off, dried his hands, and stepped out of the bathroom. He found Kanaye laying on his bed, toying with his forehead protector.

"You're supposed to be getting dressed, you know," the older blond chided as he walked over to the couch that held their traveling packs.

Kanaye hummed a reply while he rolled onto his back and held the headband above him.

Then he asked, "You're really gonna let me stay with you, right 'tousan?"

The tone of his question was guarded, which gave Naruto pause. He grimaced down at the bag he was sorting before turning to look over at Kanaye.

His son was still on his back, staring intently at the forehead protector. Something about the boy's fixation with the item bothered Naruto.

"That's the plan," he confirmed. "I wouldn't lie to you about that, Na-chan."

A brief silence lapsed between them; then Kanaye placed the headband over his eyes and said, "Okay."

This bland response did nothing to wipe Naruto's frown away, but what could he do? Since he'd told Kanaye that he would be staying with him, the boy's mood had been hovering between melancholy and relieved. Naruto was at a loss of how to assuage this obvious anxiety. He'd given Kanaye as much reassurances as he could, but he also wanted to manage his son's expectations.

They were both treading into murky waters with little means to navigate them.

Naruto sighed and turned back to his task.

A minute later, Kanaye spoke again: "Where are we gonna live after we leave this inn, 'tousan?"

Naruto secured the drawstring of his pack. "It won't be permanent, but we'll be staying with Uchiha-san for a while."

More silence.

"Why?" came the unhappy rebuttal. "I don't like jerk-face. He's always angry-looking, and he's mean to you."

Naruto pursed his lips into a grim expression.

"It's rude to keep calling him that, Kanaye. His name is Uchiha-san, and his and my relationship is a little complicated right now. But he's a good person. While we're with him, he won't do anything to hurt you."

Behind him, Naruto heard a dissatisfied huff and quiet grumbling. He smiled wryly to himself. Sasuke made such great impressions on Uzumaki men, he thought.

—.—

Another hour passed before Naruto and Kanaye ventured downstairs for breakfast.

While they ate in the dining parlor, the innkeeper's wife swept in to cheerfully greet them. Naruto threw on a flirtatious smile and offered up his own good morning.

His flirting was reflexive—a habit he'd developed over the years. Back home, he used it to keep some of the older women amicable and less gossipy. Here, the tactic seemed to work just as well. The innkeeper's wife had yet to ask him about why he barely left the inn.

The older woman went through her usual fare of blushing and giggling behind her hand. When Kanaye said his polite hello, she gave him a gentle pat on the head.

"I wanted to share some news with you, dear," she said, moving in on Naruto's right side. "Your friend, the handsome dark-haired fellow, just settled your bill. He mentioned that your cousin asked him to help you check out."

Naruto kept an appropriately surprised look on his face.

"Oh, that's sweet of her. She must feel guilty about not being able to see us off."

He purposely kept his statement vague. Naruto had picked up a few days ago that everyone at the inn assumed that Sakura was the supposed relative he'd come to Konoha to visit. He'd neither confirmed nor denied this, but it helped that Kanaye had taken to referring to Sakura with familiar honorifics.

The innkeeper's wife made a soft tutting sound. "Don't hold it against her. Many of the shinobi around here always get spirited away by some mission or the other."

Naruto responded with a smile. Through the corner of his eye, he caught Kanaye frowning and poking at his food.

He placed an arm on the back of the boy's chair and let his fingers comb through Kanaye's hair in a comforting gesture. Kanaye didn't stop frowning, but he stopped playing with his food and began eating again.

"I suppose you're right," Naruto said to the older woman. "Thank you for letting us know. If he's still out there, would you mind letting him into our room?"

He reached into his pocket to retrieve their room key. The innkeeper's wife took it from him with a nod.

"That's not a problem, dear."

She left the dining parlor in the same flare as she'd entered.

When she was gone, Kanaye ducked his head out from under Naruto's hand and peered over at him.

"Does being a ninja mean that you have to say untrue things, 'tousan?"

Naruto gave him a weary smile as he removed his arm from Kanaye's chair.

"Not always, kiddo, but sometimes you need to. It's called subterfuge."

Kanaye made a face at the word he used. He tried his hand at saying the word himself, which made Naruto laugh.

The blond leaned down, so he could gently bump heads with his son.

"I know I may say or do somethings that you're not used to; but just know that, at the end of the day, I'm still your same ol' 'tousan. Okay?"

Kanaye looked at him through the strands of their meshed hair. Naruto's words must have given him some comfort because he smiled for the first time that morning.

Naruto let out an internal sigh of relief.

Not long after that, Kanaye scarfed down the remainder of his food, including what Naruto offered him off his own plate.

They left the dining parlor and made their way upstairs; Naruto leading the way.

As they drew closer to their landing, a tiny flutter of nervousness filled Naruto's stomach. Thoughts of his past relationship with Sasuke slunk their way to the forefront of his mind. How was he supposed to broach the subject with the other man? Outside of Sasuke's cold attitude toward him, there'd been no allusions to their involvement. Was he even sure what Kurama shared with him was a real memory?

Naruto shoved his uneasiness aside and finished his trek up the stairs. Soon he was at their door, turning the doorknob.

Inside, Sasuke was seated on the couch, staring out the window. His gaze immediately slid to Naruto when the door opened, and the blond froze.

Behind him, Kanaye poked him in the back.

"Hey, why'd you stop?" he asked.

The boy's voice snapped Naruto out of his trance.

He entered the room, holding the door open for his son as Kanaye did the same. Sasuke was already on his feet.

"Is this everything you have?" the dark-haired ninja asked, gesturing to the packs on the couch.

"Yeah," Naruto answered as he closed the door. He re-centered himself and focused on what was happening. Now, he was officially starting his probation. There was no more time to think about what he should be doing or how he should do it. There was no to time to be unsteady over emotions.

Sasuke gave a short nod before picking up a plain, thin envelop from the couch. He walked over and handed it to Naruto.

"Here. These are residency papers for the kid. Sign them when we get to the estate but look them over now. You'll need to decide whether you want to put him in a civilian school or the Academy when the new academic season starts."

Kanaye's interest piqued at the reference to him. His eyes followed Naruto's movements as he took the envelope from Sasuke.

"What's the Academy, 'tousan?" the boy asked.

"It's where you learn subterfuge," Naruto replied with tongue in cheek.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at him but said nothing else. He stepped away, toward the window.

Naruto's gaze trailed him before the blond averted his eyes down to the envelope in his hand. He pulled out paperwork outlining information about Kanaye's place of birth, citizenship to Fire Country, and a registration form for denizenship to Konoha. Naruto frowned at the section on the form that was for shinobi enlistment.

Over by the window, Sasuke was running two fingers along its frame. A faint sizzling sound whispered from where he stood, and the scent of what Naruto identified as chakra filled his nose. He looked up in time to see a tag flutter into Sasuke's hand. It burned away when the man snapped his fingers.

"Whoa…" Kanaye said with some awe.

"So, that's how you were keeping tabs on me while we were here?" Naruto said as he filed the paperwork back into the envelope.

Sasuke didn't look at him, but he responded: "Don't put too much stock in it. Nothing's subtle about you, so keeping tabs on you is child's play."

Naruto bit back a sarcastic comment, substituting it with a mild glare.

He ushered Kanaye ahead of him, toward their packs, where his son dutifully picked up his smaller bag as Naruto grabbed the other.

"If you're done being a dick, we're ready to go—Sasuke-sensei," Naruto said, unable to help himself.

That did get Sasuke to turn around; all be it, to narrow his eyes. Naruto smirked and gestured for Sasuke to lead the way.

—.&.o.o.&—