*Continuing from chapter 15
(N) Heartened Playback
"How did you find me?" she replies tensely with a scowl.
Sasuke looks at her vacuously, making the answer blatantly obvious.
"You followed us?" she queries in a demanding tone.
With grinding teeth, he swallows, profoundly trying not to detonate after walking down the corridor and hearing the unforgettable moans he used to elicit when she's nearing orgasm.
"I said where is he?" he restates.
Though he's trying his best, Sasuke can feel his anger inching closer and closer to the edge, and when she asks him to leave he nudges her out of the way and steps inside.
Within seconds Hinata grabs his arm "Your temper is way out of control, get out now!"
He turns to her and grabs her firmly then squints his eyes.
"What do you take me for?" he asks calmly before shaking her forcefully.
With veins protruding on his neck he adds "You were getting fucked!"
"Sasuke… keep your voice down," she uneasily says as she tries to weasel out of his hands.
Her indifference to his statement makes him certain about what he heard and his bulging eyes stare at her begrudgingly as he lets her go.
Now incensed, he bows his head and then crudely drags his hand down his face, sighing softly before suddenly erupting.
"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR FUCKING MIND?!" he swears at her at the top of his lungs.
Hinata yanks her body away while hissing at him and when Naruto hears the outburst he steps back into the room.
While doing the buttons on his shirt he looks at Sasuke impassively.
"Are you deaf? She said keep your voice down. Can't you see that you're embarrassing her?"
Sasuke turns to him and observes his disheveled appearance, lipstick smearing his cheeks and collar, with his shirt hanging out of his pants.
Though he came intending to smash Naruto's head in, he can't help but wonder how much more brain damage he needs before he'll get the picture and soon realizes that taking her by force won't be a winning strategy.
He decides to try a more subtle approach to bend her arm in order to rid his life of Naruto.
He says calmly "I'm done playing this game with you Uzumaki."
Naruto scoffs "Don't you think-"
"I don't want to hear your worthless thoughts… Out of the thousands of women in this city, you chose mine to fuck with," he interrupts with a malicious grimace.
He turns to Hinata and adds softly "Can we talk alone for a minute?"
"Not happening," Naruto retorts simply.
"I don't want to argue I just want to talk to you." he requests while smiling faintly at her.
Hinata sighs softly as she ponders about Sasuke's state when he looks at her gloomily, and not wanting to garner anymore unwanted attention from a fight breaking out between the men she agrees in order to give them some distance.
"Naruto, please give us a minute."
When he looks at her concernedly, Hinata says "I'll be fine."
Naruto rubs his head as he walks towards the exit, staring down Sasuke who keeps his eyes latched on to Hinata.
When the door closes Hinata moves to the other side of the room and crosses her arms while Sasuke takes a deep breath in preparation to surrender to his misery, after feeling that he's out of options.
Moving a bit closer to her he begins slowly "I'm sorry for being curt with you just now, but I'm sure you know how this feels."
Hinata's brows knot in perplexity as she wonders what he means.
"Why would you invite him in after everything that happened at that restaurant?"
"That's none of your business," she replies with a bothered expression.
He lowers his glare a bit "Can I ask you a question?"
Hinata nods warily and he continues in a hush "Would you have come home that night, if you never met him?"
Hinata grips one of her arms a bit tighter as she ponders and Sasuke presses on calmly.
"Or if you didn't go out that night… And you heard the way I screamed your name, saw the way I bolted straight to your room instead of walking past, short of breath, panicking, losing myself with tears running down my face… Would you have held me?"
As he continues to put his harrowing anguish on display a tear falls from his eyes and Hinata rubs her throat, feeling it dry as she struggles to find a convincing answer.
"If you were in bed and I got on my knees, and pleaded my heart out to you the same way I did that night… Would you have listened?" He tears up more as he thinks about what could have been and sniffles.
"…Would you have cried in my arms, allowed me to comfort you, and believed just as much as I did that we could be ok… If he never took you home with him?"
His tone weakens "If I came to you just a little sooner, would you believe me when I said I love you? Would you have felt that I still loved you just as much as the days when I fought for you, the day you ran away with me, and the day you promised to follow me for eternity?"
A sudden feeling of grief penetrates Hinata, rendering her thoughts more vulnerable as they start blotting out.
"You know it's true Hina or else you wouldn't be tearing up right now."
She looks at him with wounded eyes and exhales softly "T-that's n-n… That's not the point."
"It's not? Because from where I'm standing it seems like there's only one thing in the way of me reaching you… and he's right out that door."
He adds intently "I bet you don't know that I haven't heard or seen Sakura since the day you slapped me, because like I told you, she was lying… Or that I spend my days shedding tears for you, and nights wide awake staring at the door, hoping you'll come home to me."
He wipes his eyes as they start to get heated from remembering his torment but he continues slowly in a low tone.
"And all through my pain and suffering that you refuse to acknowledge, I've fought for you… I'm still fighting for you and you saw. Yet here you are, right after watching me embarrass myself, locked in a room with him, moaning, covered with hickies, and losing your scent…"
He gives her a grim look "…You reek of him," he says through tightly clenched jaws.
"And even so I'm still willing to hold on to you and I'm putting up with all of this because I love you more than anyone can in this godforsaken world…"
Hinata bows her head and sniffles and Sasuke, wanting to effectively continue stoking the flames of contrition, walks over to her.
He invades her space then cups her chin, lifting her head so she can see his eyes.
"So why are you making this so hard for me? How much more will I have to take?"
"I can't sleep, I barely eat… I have no one, and you know that. This divorce will kill me, do you not care at all?" he adds abjectly.
She stutters as she empathizes "Of co-ourse, I care… But Sasuke you cheated, and you-"
He interrupts hard-heartedly "Does that make it right, to do this to me?"
Hinata folds her lips and her brows knot as he presses her buttons.
"Don't you see, you're the one cheating on me…" he adds.
Her eyes dart side to side as she breathes heavily. The instances he drums up fill her with guilt and now sinking deeper into the abyss Sasuke grabs at straws.
"We're still married and until the day we aren't that's all people will think about when they see you with him. They'll think that you're being unfaithful to the man you pledged your heart to, it's disgraceful… Do you want to live like that? Have you decided that you want to be unhappy?"
He wipes the tears from her face then kisses her on the cheek "I won't ask for a divorce because I can't be without you… So go ahead and choose to end me like you know you can… Or come with me, free from judgment or suspicion."
He gently tries to pull her to leave with him but Hinata keeps her back firmly pressed on the wall.
She shivers with her stomach clenching as she tries to ascertain why she's now feeling the same dread she felt all those nights ago. The sight makes Sasuke perturbed for choosing this course of action but justifies it as a means to an end.
"Remember this, so long as you're my wife you can always come home. To all the comfort, happiness, and love that I've given you for all these years… I've given you that haven't I? I'll never turn my back on our marriage, even though you have."
Now viewing it as propitious, he leaves her to dry, thinking that this latest tactic will at least tug at her heartstrings enough to make her consider his plight more. In any event, he discerns that it is a moot point and is ready to bide his time until she realizes that getting divorced is proving to be an indomitable feat.
Underestimating the sheer depth of Naruto's tenacity, he figures that after a while Hinata's altruism will be too overwhelming, and incentivizing Naruto anymore would just be far too inconsiderate.
Then playing perfectly into her husband's hands, when he exits Hinata curls up on the floor and as she reflects on her actions she begins to sob quietly.
After losing her lawyer earlier she soon becomes fraught with a terrifying sense of hopelessness and culpability.
After a short while, Naruto returns to the apartment, thinking that he's given them more than enough time to have a discussion.
He knocks on the door and calls for her calmly and Hinata quickly wipes her face the best she can, not wanting Naruto to panic about something being wrong.
She smiles faintly and as she prepares to end their night here, Naruto hits her with his prudent concern.
"Tell me what happened," he requests tenderly.
She responds calmly "…Nothing, I'm fine."
Naruto holds her waist and pulls her close "You're not a very good liar, so please tell me."
Hinata freezes on account of his unrelenting perceptiveness and when he sees the change in her expression he lifts her and brings her over to the couch.
He holds her tightly making her head rest on his chest and when her breathing steadies he urges her to tell him what happened, and Hinata gives him an abridged version of everything Sasuke said to her as calmly as she could.
When she's finished, Naruto shakes his head in disgust, finding it abhorrent that Sasuke would try to use her compassionate disposition against her.
"He really is a class act isn't he, please tell me you kicked him out after he said all that."
Hinata squeezes her legs together and with one hand on her thigh, she tightly grips her dress.
He looks down at her "Tell me you don't believe a word of what he said Blu."
When she still doesn't respond Naruto eases her head up so he can see her face but she shifts her gaze as she tears up from retelling the event.
He sighs "Don't be like this… If you think carefully about the things he said, you'd see that he's trying to-"
"I know what he's doing I'm not an idiot," she interrupts with a sob as unbidden tears overrun their banks.
She sniffles and shortly adds in a pitchy tone "…But is he wrong about me, when I've been-"
"He's dead wrong," he rebuts sternly.
Hinata hangs her head low in anticipation for Naruto to tell her he's had enough, when he turns to her fully and uses his thumbs to clear her eyes.
As he caresses her cheek her rayless gaze focuses on him and in no uncertain terms, he explains Sasuke's gas lighting attempt to exploit her sympathy.
"I know that your heart still has a lot of love tucked away for him, and it sucks to think of moving on when he says he's hurting, and that you may never want to feel that deeply for someone again, but don't try to think that he's being reasonable because he's not."
He takes her hands then adds softly "Blu think about it, that night you didn't even have a ring on."
"The way you felt about your marriage changed way before I ever met you, and you know what caused that… The emptiness you were forced to go home to, and the loneliness you felt as you went to sleep… All the unheard cries, and all the ignored pleas that's what did it, not meeting some guy downtown."
"…And now instead of trying to show you that he's learned from those mistakes he comes here and tries to convince you to stop making him feel guilty for hurting you. It's unfair and it's inexcusable, when he was the one who first thought to step out of your marriage, and consciously chose to do things that made both your lives miserable."
Hinata's body tenses up on the couch and Naruto gently places a hand on her shoulder and rubs it.
"And I hate it… I hate that he still has the power to damage you. I can't stand that he's trying to make you think that you're getting more than what you deserve, when I know your gut is telling you that he's selling false hope."
Hinata's brows knot and she shuts her eyes, deliberating with her conscience.
"You can hear it can't you? Don't run away from yourself."
When Naruto sees her slowly bowing her head, he figures that it's too painful for her to hear and gives her some time to process rather than press any further.
The air becomes heavy as they sit in silence for what felt like hours until she eases her back on the couch to sit comfortably.
Then while looking up at the ceiling she softly exhales "I know you're right… But it's still hard."
"I know… It's hard to fight when your heart's been drunk for so long, and that's fine. Remember I had to go through this too,"—Hinata tilts her head towards him and he does the same before he softly asks— "…Do you want me to tell you how I'm sure that it gets better?"
With trembling lips, she nods and when he strokes her cheek, Hinata closes her wet eyes.
"Because I found you," he whispers.
When she reopens them, she's greeted with a heartfelt smile and sweetly lucent eyes.
"I never dreamt that I could ever feel the need to settle down again, but you've made me willing to take that leap one day… So I'm positive, in time you'll heal," he adds caringly.
Soon after Hinata gently falls back onto his chest, and with her eyes closed, she rubs her lip with the back of her thumb. As Naruto looks down at her thinking, he delicately squeezes her in his arms and pecks her on the forehead.
She inhales deeply "I'm sorry Naruto… I cried for him when you told me not to."
He rocks her as he replies soothingly "Gosh can you take a second to feel sorry for yourself first, I can wait."
She takes a minute then sighs, now feeling comforted by Naruto's unwavering patience and thoughtfulness.
"God I'm dense, I must be hurting your brain."
He replies frivolously "No kidding, I guess that explains the headaches."
She replies softly with a growing smile "Wow, that's kind of mean to agree to, how will you sleep?"
"At night, comfortably, on my side," he says jocosely as he runs a finger down the length of her side.
She giggles and as they talk more Hinata soon realizes something worrying and unravels herself from his arms to get up.
She walks over to the entrance table then grabs her phone from her purse and Naruto watches her for a few minutes as the blue light beams on her face.
When she glances up and sees that he's eyeing her invitingly she walks back over to the couch and sits.
"What do you think about this?" she says as she shows him her phone.
"It's a building."
Hinata face palms "What do you think about me moving there?" she says with a giggle.
"Right, I guess you can't stay here now that he knows about it huh?"
She nods as she scrolls through more listings "It's getting close to the holidays, so I want somewhere that has a nice view like I have here... But I might just have to settle."
Naruto rubs his chin as he thinks then covers her phone with his hand.
"Why don't you move in with me?"
Hinata's eyes widen as she tenses up slightly and Naruto grins at her expression.
"Yeah I move fast like that," he adds.
She starts nervously playing with her fingers thinking about what her friends will say and Naruto chuckles at her adorable moment.
"I'm joking, it'll just be until you find the perfect spot, that way you don't have to rush… And remember I do have guestrooms."
Hinata bites the inside of her lips then sighs "Sounds like a calculated scheme for free cooking again," she quips.
"Oh god no, how can you even think about me like that?" he questions with a serious expression.
Hinata stutters as she tries to correct herself "No I-I- um I didn't-"
"I'll have you know, I planned to bribe you generously in advance," he interrupts, humored by her panic then impishly cocks his head to the side.
Hinata breathes a sigh of relief then laughs softly, and when he faces her with a huge grin she cups his cheek and kisses him tenderly.
As they separate he smiles warmly at her.
"What do you say, will you come with me?"
She nods as she looks into his soulful eyes, and as she does she realizes that she has been staring at her future all this time.
Now no longer clinging to the familiar, all Hinata's worries about the unknown begin to clear up and her usual amatory responses get overridden by profound curiosity.
Sasuke has made it painfully clear that his love is becoming toxic, and he isn't willing to do any meaningful work to make fixing their marriage a worthwhile endeavor for either of them. With her blinders off Hinata's heart feels unbound enough to reciprocate Naruto's affection with the same energy.
"On a scale of 1 to 10, how good do you think your friend is at getting someone out of a contract?"
"You'll need a bigger scale for an honest answer," he asserts.
Afterward, Naruto stands and he stretches an arm out to her.
"Ready to go home?"
Suddenly, Hinata feels a burning tingle in her chest and as the kindled spark grows bigger, its incandescence seeps through her eyes.
Then as she gently places her hand in his, Naruto's beguiling blue eyes meet hers with shared understanding, and makes his lips softly curl into an infectious smile, both fully accepting that they'll soon take their very first step on equal ground.
A week later
"No, he's still not here yet," Naruto says over the phone to a nervous Hinata.
"Okay," she replies softly then hangs up.
Naruto grins then shakes his head. She's been calling him all day to find out if Shikamaru is willing to take on her case.
Having opened up to Naruto fully about her legal dilemma and after exhausting all other possible options in the city, Hinata is mentally frustrated from thinking that she'll never be freed.
It also worsens her anxieties to have all her eggs in one basket and Shikamaru is now her only hope to get her out of both agreements.
As soon as he puts the phone down it goes off again and he chuckles before answering her.
"Why don't you just be honest and tell me you miss me?"
She laughs then replies playfully "I do, seeing you every day is hardly enough."
As she giggles he adds "He'll be here any minute, I'll let you know as soon as I find out so keep calm."
She inhales deeply "Okay."
A few hours pass and Naruto prepares to head out for lunch when his secretary informs him that Shikamaru has arrived.
When he comes in, they spend a little over an hour catching up and talking about his relaxing vacation. Then Naruto begins to fill him in on what's been happening while he's been away.
"You've lost me, I thought her name was Hinata, who's Blu?"
"It's what I call her." Naruto replies while rubbing the back of his head.
Shikamaru eyes him blankly "You aren't wasting any time are you?"
Naruto rubs his neck nervously while looking to the side "I'm moving her in with me too."
He chuckles slightly "You don't have to take a jest so literally."
"I'm serious," Naruto replies with a fixed gaze.
"Oh okay, well then… I didn't think you had it in you to go that far again, and with someone already spoken for no less." Shikamaru cautions him coolly.
Naruto replies with a cryptic smile "Yea it's, complicated you know… That's actually one of the reasons I asked you to come here as soon as possible."
"And here I thought you were just excited to see me," Shikamaru replies.
"I said one of" —His grin fades as he adds—"She wants to get divorced, but she's been having a hard time finding a lawyer willing to represent her."
"I don't doubt it, that guy is a menace, he can bury your whole career if you don't work in his favor," Shikamaru replies warily.
"Plus a lot of people think their marriage got to this state because of her affair with that truck guy,"
Naruto shakes his head "That's a lie, she's never had an affair."
"That's hardly convincing when lately she's been seen out with you more than her husband… And I can't validate the source but, it's been circulating within the firm that she has been pretty abusive to him throughout the marriage. It's alleged that she even did it at his head office."
Naruto's eyes become distant after hearing his statement and his jaw drops slightly, but Shikamaru continues.
"And with it being so high profile you would have to be pretty loony to represent her. It's like a cash cow that could set you up for life. Needless to say, everyone wants to be on the winning team," he adds.
Naruto looks at him dumbfounded "What did you say?"
"I'm serious it's a sweet deal," he replies in a lively tone not answering his real concern.
Shikamaru groans tiredly as he thinks about the easy cheque and stretches in the chair.
He puts his hands behind his head then adds in a relaxed tone "Not much work and still get a huge cash drop"— he yawns as he looks up at the ceiling—"I could go on vacation for a whole year with that kind of money."
Naruto sighs frustratingly and bundles his fists tightly as he connects the dots that explain why Hinata has been having a much harder time getting another lawyer.
He's seen the effects of Hinata's unreal devoutness to her husband firsthand, and Naruto knows that he's yet to experience even a quarter of it.
However, it seems as though Sasuke keeps finding new ways to prove to him that any compassion that was left in their union was strictly one sided, and now all he wants to do more than ever is free her from its shackles that tether her to him and holds her back.
"Shikamaru I need you to get her out of this marriage," he says firmly.
Shikamaru closes his eyes and sighs "Did you not hear the part where I said 'he can bury your whole career'?" —He looks at him lazily then adds— "Why should I go through all that trouble Naruto?"
"Because he doesn't deserve her dammit!" he shouts as he bangs the desk with his hand.
Naruto clenches his fist and scowls furiously as he thinks aloud "I can't believe that piece of crap is this vindictive to her, to go as far as to trap her it's- it's."
He looks up and sees Shikamaru arching a brow then sighs as he rubs his face gently to calm down.
Then he murmurs in a monotone voice "I'm sorry about that… He's the last person who should ever have someone like her… He claims that he idolizes her but he can devalue her in an instant."
"He threatens her, embarrasses her, tries to manipulate her and that's all after he's cheated. She's been so on edge about not getting a lawyer and that's his fault too… He doesn't care about what she needs, he just wants her back under him. It makes me so angry I can't even think straight," he adds with a detesting glare set on the desk.
Shikamaru eases a bit from his laid back position as he considers Naruto's now drooped posture and gloomy countenance after his speech.
"This is going to be such a drag,"— he slowly lifts his arm and rests his head on his fist—"You're falling for her, aren't you?" he adds with a lazy look in his eyes.
Naruto's eyes start beaming as he looks up at him, though a little stunned by what he was asked.
"If I'm falling for a married woman?" He reiterates with a chuckle, giving himself some time to consider his question.
Shikamaru's mein remains stagnant as he replies "Are you going to answer me or what?"
Naruto's eyes nervously ping pong from one end of the desk to the next as he slowly leans back in his chair, he lets out a faint sigh then slowly says whatever comes to his mind.
"Well, there's still so much I don't know about her… All I do know is that, I like the way I feel when I'm with her, I get this tingly feeling every time like my heart's trying to touch her or something. I think she's the most beautiful woman I've ever met, and sometimes I feel like I have to pause to just take it all in."
Shikamaru listens closely as Naruto's tracking eyes become more luminous while he speaks.
With a winsome smile, he adds "Her compassion is so deep that it should be criminal, she even feels hurt when she sees me in pain... I like the way her cheeks burn up when I look at her sometime, she's modest and she stutters a bit but it's so adorable that I wish she wouldn't hide it. She's probably more witty than funny and says the most unexpected things out of nowhere, it's always a treat to follow."
He licks his lips before adding "…And when she kisses me, my heart starts racing and it's like my head pops, and all I can think about is her… I think she's-"
"Alright alright you'd think she's the only woman on earth the way you're going on," he interrupts.
Shikamaru rubs the back of his neck with both hands and sighs tiredly as he looks at the ceiling, thinking about the mountain of work he'll have to do right after his vacation.
He adds in a limp tone "I have to meet with her and get some more details."
Naruto's appearance instantly becomes vibrant "I knew I could count on you."
He grabs his phone to text Hinata when Shikamaru replies candidly.
"I admire your hopeful enthusiasm Naruto but don't thank me yet. Sasuke has tons of weight in this and I doubt he'll go easily. He has a massive legal team, the video of him has been wiped by whoever posted it, and most have clued in that something is going on between you and his wife."
"I'll need some serious leverage for her to get anything out of this, and right now I have nothing other than Hinata's word to go off of." He mindfully adds.
Naruto retorts quickly "If there's anyone who can do it, it's you, besides that's not the major concern, she actually needs your help with something else too."
Shikamaru rubs his temple "I… Should have stayed gone," he replies disconcerted.
Naruto stands with a goofy grin "I'll make it worth your while."
He invites Shikamaru to join him for lunch and as the men exit the elevator and into the lobby, they both can't help but notice the small crowd gathered around the screen at the front desk. They overhear excited and anticipatory comments and when Naruto moves closer the conversations stop.
He recognizes Mabui among the group and calls her over.
"Do you know what all this commotion is about?"
She sneers at them both, genuinely astonished "You haven't heard at all? Do you not watch Karin."
Naruto scratches his head as he looks over at Shikamaru who shrugs his shoulder, indicating that he has no clue either.
He turns back to Mabui "What's that?"
She rolls her eyes "She's like the biggest daytime talk show host in the city."
Both men look at each other equally disinterested and she continues.
"She's been promoting this week's guest and it's been hinted that they have the real tea on a scandalous affair from a while back. Today she's dropping the bombshell."
Just as Naruto prepares to ask her about the parties involved, someone shouts that it's about to start, causing Mabui to quickly run over and rejoin the group.
Naruto, now interested to see what the big deal is also follows with Shikamaru.
When the program starts the excitement in the room quickly heightens, and Naruto raises his brow at the site of the person seated in the guest chair, it was Kiba Inazuka. Someone begins to shush the crowd as they listen attentively to hear the truth behind the scandalous photo.
Unconvinced jeers soon become loud gasps and soft murmurs as Kiba details everything precisely.
Depicting Hinata as a caring and loving wife who had no affection for anyone other than her husband. He explains that she's never once shown interest in having an affair and that he had the moment staged so he could help a friend's dying gossip site with views as well as see if Hinata's feelings were as strong as the ones he had for her.
Pictures of her slapping him and storming away get splashed across the screen and the interview ends with Kiba sincerely apologizing to Hinata for the mess he's made to her marriage.
As the crowd begins to share their changing perspectives about what happened Naruto looks over at Shikamaru with a big toothy grin.
"Looks like you got your leverage."
Naruto heads over to Hinata immediately after treating Shikamaru to lunch and thanking him profusely for being willing to go up against Sasuke's onslaught.
While walking to her office door Naruto smiles animatedly overjoyed that Hinata has one less worry.
He enters after knocking and when he does Hinata smiles puckishly at him.
"Isn't this a surprising turn of events, looks like you missed me more than you led on."
"Well yeah, I couldn't make it that obvious," he replies as he walks over to her desk.
She giggles brightly as she finishes up her report of a scan "Just give me one second."
After a bit Hinata glances up at him and blushes when she sees doting eyes caressing her features.
"What?" she asks nicely.
Naruto lifts his brows, not realizing that he was staring so much then scratches the back of his head.
"Nothing, you just look so studious."
Hinata wraps her hair delicately over her shoulder "Did I not strike you as the erudite type?"
In seconds his eyes widen "No you did. It's just that, it's extremely attractive."
She replies suggestively in a playful tone "Oh yeah, wait until you see me with my gloves on."
Naruto sucks in air through his teeth as he leans backward with slightly bent knees "Ahh you see, now that just sounds hot."
Hinata laughs at his mannerism, using her hand to cover her face. She pauses on her report then gets up and walks over to him.
While straightening his tie she says "As fun as this is, please just tell me if he said no."
Naruto takes his hands from his pocket and holds her waist and when he gives her a broad grin Hinata returns an excited and delightfully pleased smile from picking up on his cue.
She kisses him passionately and as she holds on to him tightly Naruto experiences total and perfect bliss from knowing that soon he'll have her endless affection locked and padded solely for himself.
Hope you enjoyed the read.
For those of you who didn't catch the notice I left a few weeks ago on my profile, long story short my life just got a lot more life than I was prepared for and I had to deal with that.
Thanks for all the great feedback as well as the cheers in the meanwhile too.
I saw a few apologies for, I guess, hurtful reviews? Please don't worry. I really don't take any of this personally at all so feel free to be honest, not everyone will like what I write and it's totally fine.
We're winding down now, and will be at the start of the last plot point which will affect Naruto and Sasuke very differently, but with a very lasting impacts
Happy reading till next time
