Chapter 37:

"Mom!"

Sakura leapt backwards just as her mother covered her face, yelling a slew of "What are you?—what do you think you're?—how could you do?—" towards the young couple. Sasuke pulled down his shirt and pulled up his pants, trying to look as presentable as he could…given their situation.

Pointing an accusatory finger at her mother, Sakura shouts back."You can't just walk into people's houses like this!"

"I thought you were in trouble!" The woman explains with venom in her voice. "You're late for our dinner. You're never late. I knocked!"

Sakura shields herself with her arms as Sasuke quietly comes to a stand. She glances at the clock. "I am not late!"

"You're late for being early!" Mrs. Haruno bites back. She huffs and throws arms up in the air, chancing a glance towards her child. "How on earth was I supposed to know you were…I…I thought you had more respect for yourself than this. You're on the floor!"

Sasuke doesn't thing he's ever experienced anything so awkward in his entire life. He brushes imaginary dirt off of his shoulders, unsure whether to help Sakura cover herself or leave the house altogether. It was odd to hear Sakura get scolded—or anyone, really.

The last time he was disciplined, he was pretty sure it was for sneaking in stray cats. That was a big leap from…this.

"You talk about respect, yet you don't wait for me to answer the door? I'm an adult, you know. I deserve a little privacy!" Sakura pauses then and looks towards the bathroom. Yet another curse falls from her mouth. "You've got to be kidding me."

She brushes past Sasuke and runs to the door, her mother hot on her heels. Making sure to keep at least three paces behind, Sasuke follows too, now suddenly realizing there was a sound of running water.

Sakura grabs a robe from a hook and tiptoes past the flooded floor, her feet turning pink from the heat of the water. Slipping and sliding through sudsy water, the woman cranes for the faucet and finally, after two angry turns, it's off. Reaching deep into the tub, she pulls the plug and plops down on the toilet unceremoniously.

Add, "Destroying your own bathroom," to the long list of "What the hell else can go wrong today?" The woman tells herself.

"Right, right," her blonde, middle-aged mother begins, making her way to the closet to drag out every towel Sakura owned. "You're an adult. You're responsible. Now look at this mess."

Her voice is thick with sarcasm.

"Can we please not do this right now?"

Mebuki pulls up her sleeves and begins to soak up the bathwater as best as she can, but there's too much to absorb and the cloth fills up quickly. Hiking up her ankle-length dress, Sasuke watches as she waddles to the bathtub and wrings out the sopping material as if she'd done this a thousand times before. She was a working woman, without a doubt.

"When shall we do it, then? Do you have time for anything, anymore? What with this nursing stuff, and raising your ninja rank, and now I walk in on you right before—"

"During," Sakura interjects with a sneer.

Jesus Christ.

The remark brings out the worst of Mebuki.

"You're nineteen years old for god's sake! Show a little decency! Your father said I was wrong, but I've always had a feeling those men sneaking into your house at all hours came for more than just healing."

The accusation was not true at all, but that didn't mean Sakura wasn't offended. She stands, puffing out her chest. "Oh yes, mother, I'm just a huge slut. I even have special advertisements posted in the paper!"

"Oh I bet," Mebuki hisses back. "What, you can't get pregnant so you think you can be reckless? Is that right?"

"That's what this is about, huh?" Sakura throws her head back in laughter. "That's why you resent me?"

"Resent you?" Her mother retorts. "I just don't understand you! Everything I have ever done, I've done it for you. But you continue to fight me!"

At this, Sakura becomes serious once more. "You try to control everything, mom! You never wanted me to become a ninja, but I had to! I did it for us! Because we were poor, because I didn't want father to have to work three jobs, because I was tired of the struggle—don't you understand? I even helped you both become ninja! I believed in myself even when you didn't."

"Well, now what are we left with? The Haruno die out with you. You expected me to be OK with the only child I could have, risking their life for this damned village? Risking your life for some old woman you hardly knew—what was her name? Chiyo?—and look what it got you. Impaled and barren."

As Mebuki steps forward, Sakura does too, matching her own mothers stance though tears pour down her cheeks. Sasuke tries not to interrupt…but Sakura could easily lose control and do something she regretted. He'd never been a bystander before. He shifts his feet, ready to break things up.

"But if course it didn't stop there. You became friends with the fox-boy, risking your life, almost getting yourself killed. And don't even get me started on Sasuke."

At the mention of his name, Mebuki now turns her sights on the Uchiha. He had seen her face on the faces of many others. Loathing, hatred, disgust. Though she looked at him, her words were for Sakura.

"How many times have I held your hand and your hair as you wept over this garbage until you vomited yourself dry? I lost my daughter to. She was never the same after you left. And if I had my way, Uchiha, you would have stayed gone! But no, no, I've never been that lucky."

Sasuke had long since moved past being offended by people's reactions and opinions. Yet, for some reason, the fact that Sakura's mother not only held him, but Naruto to such low regard…

Sasuke steps towards Mebuki, slowly, and grabs the towel from her so he can wring it out into the fast-emptying bathtub. Both women become quiet, watching, waiting. Tossing the towel back on the ground to sop up more water, the man speaks, making sure not to look the older woman in the eyes.

"I'm sorry."'

He was. He is.Sasuke had no idea just how much his departure had destroyed Sakura. And truthfully, he wouldn't have cared. There are paths in life that everyone must choose. Not all paths are right. Sometimes, there isn't even a fork—there isn't another option that you can see to take. Maybe Sasuke was blinded, or maybe he was manipulated, but whatever the reason…

"I…have a lot of things I want to say to you—Sakura's mom—that aren't the nicest things to say. It's been a long time since I've had to mince my words. But, I want you to know that…I…understand that I put Sakura through pain that she did not deserve. In turn, I put you through the pain of watching your child suffer. That is not something I wish on any parent. For that, truly, I am sorry."

Sasuke doesn't want to hurt her ever again.

The man wipes his brow and, still keeping his eyes shielded, reaches out to gently clasp Sakura's wrist. "Rest,"

"Sasuke, I—"

"Today has not been good. I'll fix the bathroom. Will you…please…go rest for me?"

Sakura is quiet for a second. Sasuke stands still, careful of his presence, making sure not to intimidate Mebuki and also finding trouble meeting Sakura's gaze. Everything is just so wrong. It's too much. Nothing will ever go right, as long as he is here, in Konoha—

Sakura peeks her head below, forcing his eyes to meet her own and gathering his chin against the soft palm of her healing hands. "You don't have to hide your face from me. I'm not scared."

Sasuke's brows furrow. She's not scared. She's not scared and she should be. Sasuke couldn't even trust himself—how could she have so much faith in someone like…him? Why does she fill the need to comfort others when she is breaking down in tears, right before him?

"Thank you for being thoughtful, anyways." She huffs out. "I think…that I will lay down."

Guiding her out of the ruined bathroom and across the hall, he shuts the door once he sees that Sakura is cocooned into her nest of blankets. Sakura retires, where she can punch her pillows and curl into a ball until the tears stopped flowing and she can sheath her feelings back into her core, where they belonged.

Sasuke wants nothing more than to be with her, in this moment, but there were things to be done. Mebuki played a major part in his acquisition. There was no time like the present.

"I'll walk you home." He says to the woman, padding his way out of the hall and into the kitchen, careful not to intimidate her.

"I don't need you to walk me home." Mebuki says, walking passed him. "I don't want to talk to you. I've got a mess to clean up."

Deftly, Sasuke swoops down for his abandoned coat and pulls it on. "I'll handle it."

He waits but she doesn't relent. Giving in, Sasuke heads to the kitchen to place a quick, important phone call to a friend. Little words were exchanged, and by the time the conversation had finished, Sasuke was booted up and headed for the door. He watched as Mebuki paced around hallway, in and out of the bathroom, gathering more things to help clean the overflown tap and pointedly ignoring her daughters houseguest.

"Mebuki," Sasuke calls out.

The woman huffs. "I am NOT going."

Flicking his eyes and head upwards, Sasuke catches her eyes. The older woman stills. Opening the door Sasuke Uchiha leans against the doorway and says, "I'm not asking."

"It's a lovely evening," Hinata declares to her husband as they walk down the street. Naruto adjusts his scarf—a homemade, long, red thing that he's been waiting to pull out of the closet since the first chill.

"Why do you think I have to bring our wet-vacuum? Do you think a pipe burst? It's not that cold yet." He mutters as he fumbles with the cord. It's fallen three times already, causing him to stumble. Finally, the man throws it over his shoulder and bounds up the steps to Sakura's home.

Coiled into a lazy spiral, a large, thick snake pokes his head up from its resting place by Sakura's door. He's only slightly taller than Naruto if he was stretched out, and his scales glitter from dark green to pale purple. Blinking orange eyes, he speaks. "So, you're finally here?"

Naruto always hated how snake summons spoke their "s"-es. He shivers involuntarily. "Who're you, creepy worm? Where's Sakura?"

"I am Mamushi, son of Manda." It hisses, gliding around in a slow circle. His nose was held high with superiority, and then after a few seconds, he answers the second question. "The Slug Princess is still holed up."

He slinks past Naruto and towards Hinata, tasting the air with his tongue. To no one in particular he whispers, "Pregnant female, too?"

Naruto steps over the snake and into Sakura's home, calling out to her. Just as he rounds the corner, she opens up her bedroom door and greets him with wearied confusion and puffy, swollen cheeks. "Naruto?"

"Sakura, hey," the man says, ensnaring her in a bear-like hug. She was already dressed in pajamas.

Her eyes are sore from crying, and his embrace is just what she needed. He smelled like ramen and fresh air. Perfectly Naruto.

"Oh, Sakura, are you alright?" Hinata asks. She's stopped waiting for permission when entering Sakura's home—her husband was too quick for that. Sakura peels away from him and engulfs the white-eyed woman into her arms, careful not to add any pressure on her budding midsection.

"It's been an incredibly long day."

Naruto notices a sloshing noise, and turns his head to her restroom. Water had made its way over a rolled-towel barrier. "I guess that's why Sasuke asked be to bring this?"

"Did he?"

Sakura thought Sasuke had been gone for longer than expected. The walk to her house took only ten minutes on a good day. She wouldn't blame him if he hightailed out Konoha at that point. Getting in between one of the famous Haruno mother/daughter battles could scare even the most hardened of ninja.

"Yeah, he called us about thirty minutes ago. What happened, anyways?"

Sakura takes a deep breath, running through the bare bones of the entire ordeal. "I overfilled my bathtub and got into a fight with my mother while Sasuke was here. I haven't even gotten to shower after my spar with Hinata. As if my day can't get any worse, I still have to clean up that, before Ahiru gets here in a few hours…"

The Kyuubi rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

Naruto was a kind man. He was caring and gentle and bright and charismatic. It's probably one of the reasons Hinata had fallen so hard for him. In her family, being graceful and proper came before any other emotions, and Naruto could so easily offer his generosity like it was his second nature.

"Say, why don't you take my wife to that bathhouse in central?" He announces. "You remember the one, right? When you stole Sasuke's towel?"

Sakura smiles at the memory, but rolls her eyes in response. "I'd love to do that. But, I'm sure it will be closed by the time I finish cleaning and doing laundry. I won't have time."

With a glimmering grin and a heartfelt wink, Naruto offers a thumbs-up that could rival even that of Rock Lee's and, dare she say it—Gai Sensei. "That's why I'm here! I'll fix everything as good as new, believe it!"

"Oh, Naruto," She begins, ready to deny him. It was too out of his way, too much of a hassle. She'd been taught to fix her own mistakes, to deal with the blows and figure out a resolution. As a single female, living all alone, Sakura hadn't been able to rely on anyone in a while. "I couldn't—"

Mamushi takes this moment to enter the home, staying as far away from Sakura as possible. Snakes and slugs didn't really get along. The fact that even his most dreadful of poisons wouldn't work on her made him feel suffocated in her presence. "I am…obliged to offer my assistance. So please, Head Mistress, go..."

His tail can hold a wrench, at least. He could even wipe the floor a bit. Mamushi would really do anything to get the primagravida Slug Princess out of her home and away from him.

Toot sweet. Or tout sweet? Whatever, silly humans.

Before Sakura could utter another protest, Hinata grabbed her by the hand and tugged her towards the door. She looked exhausted and mentally drained—years older than her true age. A good bath and a heart-to-heart beckoned them. Hinata, after all, had loved their visit earlier in the day.

Blowing a feathery kiss to her husband, who caught it in his palm and slapped it to his mouth, Hinata bounded out of the home with Sakura curled around her arm.

Naruto's heated cheeks only lasted a brief moment before he looked at the snake beside him and narrowed his eyes. Crossing long, orange clad arms the Kyuubi-man bit out: "Alright, caterpillar—tell me why everything smells like sex in this damn house. What do you know, and what the hell is going on?"

Funny, Mamushi thought, I don't think snakes are supposed to be afraid of frogs. Why am I shaking?

Being around Naruto had certainly started to influence her, and it was for the better. Hinata was still reserved and a bit timid, but opening up to her friends had gotten much easier. Bonding with her peers had been limited to the equally strange, but equally important Kiba and Shino—the three leveled with one another and spent many a night relishing each other's company and friendship.

But Hinata's bond with Sakura was a little bit...more.

In a way, Hinata felt like she owed Sakura. She was the push that ultimately led to her Naruto—to the love, to the first kiss, to the happily-ever-after that seemed like a silly, childish daydream in her head. Now, as a young woman, she was married and expecting her first child. Oh, life was so strange.

The winds of change blew heavily in her favor, and if possible, she would bestow the blessing upon Sakura.

After a leisurely stroll towards the middle of Konoha, the women paid for their baths and made their way to the shower area. Hinata wasn't much of a talker, and Sakura enjoyed the fact, because that left her free to communicate with her Inner Sakura without interruption.

As she argued back-and-forth with her subconscious about whether Sasuke would be long gone or hard at work beside Naruto right now, Sakura followed her long-haired friend into the onsen. Together they sunk under the hot liquid. The water left her skin feeling soft as the exfoliators and minerals seeped through her pores. She soaked a spare rag and plopped it atop her already damp hair, enjoying the steam and the therapeutic heat.

The aches in her muscles ceased to exist and the weightlessness of the deep bath decompressed her spine, popping trapped nitrogen and carbon dioxide bubbles from the fluid between her joints. In all, it's just what Sakura needed after an eventful 24 hours.

Wait, had it even been 24 hours…?

"Sasuke and you…" Hinata begins, tapping the ends of her index fingers together. "I…saw the marks…"

Sakura's thin eyebrows turn up. She's thankful that her cheeks are already flushed from the bath, but feels the familiar tingle dance around the tops of her hears and the nape of her neck. It seemed their thinking was on the same wavelength. "Oh, I…yeah…"

To be honest, she'd forgotten about the hickeys. It felt as though they were permanent fixtures to her body now—like being with Sasuke physically changed her.

Some women liked jewelry to keep them connected to their loved ones. Sakura wanted a few scars to take Sasuke with her. Physical proof of where he'd been—of where he'd explored. Something to look at as a decrepit old woman with only her memories to keep her company…

She thinks back to when she saw the rough stripes on Naruto's smooth back, during their training in the Forest of Death. He had just taken off his shirt to plow through the water when the flaming scratches caught her eye. Hinata hadn't healed them, because they both wanted them to remain.

Sakura understood now.

Smiling silently to herself, she dips a bit lower into the water and blows a few bubbles out to the surface.

"I'm very happy for you." Hinata beams, and though the mist makes her face hazy, Sakura can sense the light coming off of her. Sakura had always heard that pregnant women "glowed" and Hinata was a living testament to the fact. The woman uses her towel to dampen her cheeks, never losing her demure grin.

There weren't very many people in the bathing area, so there wasn't a real need for the women to keep their voices down. Still, Sakura paddles to her side, because talking about this felt like the biggest secret in the world, and she couldn't contain it much longer. She just had to tell someone.

She just had to say it aloud.

Sakura was still processing everything. Their first kiss had been mere weeks ago, and already they'd taken each other. It was like a floodgate of emotions had opened. Years of bashful touches and wanton thoughts and "come hither" looks finally exploded into an all-night, and-again-in-the-morning, and-again-on-the-floor-of-her-hallway escapade.

It wasn't enough, though. It would probably never be enough. She was so in love she couldn't stand it. "I…I'm happy for me too. I've never been this happy."

It was strange for Sakura to admit it. In her youth, Sasuke had been the reason for her orbit. She revolved around him, he was her world. But when he left, and after the initial shock and tremors left her broken, but alive, Sakura had to rebuild her entire solar system by hand. She'd learned to rely on herself, first and foremost. Her missions were tough, and her training was agonizing, but it was all worth it because she was worth it.

It was all worth it because Sasuke was worth it. And he'd never know just how much both she and Naruto cared for him, and just how much they were willing to do to bring him back.

But her love was different from Naruto's. Her love was different from her mothers, and Itachi's.

Sakura loved a lot of things, that was true. She loved her childhood cat, (who only had one eye) and her grandmother (who, coincidentally also only had one eye), and the coffee mug she kept hidden until the first snowfall of the year, every year. (Don't worry, the mug is eye-less.) She loved all of these things.

This was different than those kinds of "love". It was an indescribable pull that yanked at her very bones.

"He is very…thoughtful, when it comes to you." Hinata says, running her palm over her hidden belly. She was only a month along and barely showing, but she knew the child that thrived in her womb. Soon she wouldn't be able to enjoy such warm baths, so she would savor the relaxation for as long as possible.

When Hinata answered the telephone earlier, she couldn't figure out who was speaking. The voice was familiar but the tone was off. Sasuke sounded so…relaxed, and it confused her. She'd never heard such a mellow timbre.

"Come to Sakura's. She needs you…and a bring water-vacuum."

Hinata would dare say that everyone needed Naruto—or someone like him. Helpful, kind, and brutally honest when the situation called for it; he was simply…lovely.

"Well, if it isn't Billboard Brow and Naruto's Baby Momma! Fancy meeting you two here!" Ino makes her presence known with haste. Ino was fun.

Ino was happy and charming and everything Sakura had ever wanted to be. She had always been a beauty in Sakura's eyes. Her skin was rosy, but fair, and her hair was a tawny shade of blonde that women paid hundreds of Ryo for in solons every other month. China blue irises peeked from almost-white lashes, roaming over Sakura and Hinata in the way that only Ino could pull off.

Friendly, but dubious all at the same time.

"Ah, Ino, I'm so happy to see you!" Hinata greats wholeheartedly, moving slightly so that all three woman flanked one another. "We haven't all been together since we went to that party. What a wonderful coincidence."

Ino waves her hand in the air, as if batting away Hinata's words. "We're adults now. We can't possibly see each other all of the time. I'm just excited that we met up by happenstance—I've been meaning to speak with both of you!"

They exchange laughter and chatter while soaking up the earthy, skin-soothing minerals. To think, Ino, Sakura, and Hinata were all veterans of war at such young ages. The women relished moments like this, because they knew all-too-well just how fleeting they would be. Take Amu, for example, and Ahiru who would never get to know her father.

"I have an announcement." Ino says suddenly, causing Hinata and Sakura to turn towards her sharply. The woman twirls around in the water, letting her hip-length hair trap her in a loose tangle. "Sai is going to ask me to be his girlfriend, officially, as soon as he's back from his latest mission."

"You-you're not official yet?" Hinata asks, falling back into her habitual stutter. It seemed to come out at the most random of times. No one bothers asking how the bombshell knew Sai was going to ask her.

"Well, not technically. I mean, we've gone on dates and messed around…I've stayed at his house a few nights and made him dinner…stuff like that. But he hasn't asked and that's super important."

Hinata thinks back to her first, actual date with Naruto. The smell of Ichiraku and his shoulder brushing against hers—blushes and stutters and fumbling chopsticks even though they'd kissed on the moon only weeks prior. They waited a whole month before locking lips again, and three months to get married.

But, Hinata didn't think Naruto had ever asked her to be anything but his wife.

She turns to look at Sakura who is dipped low into the bath, letting her hair float along the top layer of water. Here lately her moods have been up and down—she dithered from careful politeness, to self-doubt, to random spells of anger and fake smiles.

Now, she was being carefully polite. "I'm happy for you. You and Sai make a wonderful couple."

Ino is all smiles, which is truly a wonderful sight. She dunks her hair fully into the water and when she comes back up, steam swirls around her head like a halo. "Almost everyone is in a relationship now. I'm so happy for us."

Sakura's eyes go wide and she looks towards Hinata, giving off her best, "How would she know?" look.

Because, how would she know?

But Ino was her best friend, and as her best friend, Sakura knew that Ino knew everything. She could find even the most hidden of secrets. Perhaps it was just a Yamanaka trait—or perhaps it was just an Ino thing, but regardless, Sakura knew there was no point in lying.

Ino could read Sakura like a book.

"Oh," The blonde begins, twisting her lips into a sly smirk. "Was it supposed to be a secret? The whole town is talking about it, so there's no use in hiding."

"The…whole town?"

Now, this was unusual. How on earth would all of Konoha know about her and Sasuke? After all, Sasuke and Sakura don't even know what they are!

Sakura bites he lip. She's not sure if she feels dizzy from the revelation, or from the heat of the bath. She stands up fully, exposing the tops of her breasts as she looms nose-to-nose with Ino.

"Who all knows?"

Is this why Sasuke was gone? Had her mother found out?

Wait…what…what was there to find out? That woman already knew the just of it! Her mother had walked in on them, after all…

Ino is scanning Sakura's body, eyeing the scattered dots of maroon bruises that proved the loose gossip. "Does that matter? I'm curious about the details. How was it? Is he big? Looks like he's a bit rougher than I'd imagined..."

Sakura's eyebrows draw together. "Is he big? What…? I mean...you've seen him, haven't you?"

Ino looks…offended by the question—as if Sakura had said something absolutely outlandish. "I don't just sleep with everyone, you know! Of course I haven't seen him!"

Sakura looks down into the water, at the green-tinted reflection that rippled her features. She worked through the questions in her mind—Ino had certainly seen Sasuke nude. It was before the second part of the Exams in this very place. She'd called her the next day, gushing about it, thanking Sakura for stealing his towel.

And anyways...how would the whole town know what was going on? Sakura wasn't that popular...

Something wasn't adding up.

"Ino…who do you think I'm sleeping with?"

The woman scoffs and turns to Hinata, as if the black-haired woman would respond for her. When Hinata made no move to answer, and darted pearl-eyes between the two, Ino withdrew a frustrated sigh and broke the silence.

"Mr. Brown hair, brown eyes? Obviously I'm speaking about Yuma Hojo."

Sakura laughs. Literally laughs, right there, with her two best friends directly by her side and warm water all around her. "What the hell kind of idiot would believe I'm sleeping with that guy!"

Ino stills. She is confused—utterly confused. "I…didn't believe it either…but I asked him. He said that you've been dating for a few days. And the other night…a bunch of people saw him leave your house late. Now with the evidence staring at me right in the face…" She says, pointing towards the visible marks that can only be left from a naked spar, or a few good rounds of great sex... "…What else am I supposed to believe?"

And all of a sudden Sakura sends a burst of chakra to the flatness of her feet, forcing her body to stand atop the mineral water. With shocked eyes, Ino follows the creamy, not-so-childlike curves of her best friend's body just as Sakura hisses out venom.

"I'm going to kill him!"

The anger radiating off of her is almost palpable. Ino was smart enough to step a few inches back, and she runs into Hinata in the process. With a quiet whisper, she asks: "If she's not with Hojo, then who…"

And when Hinata says, "Sasuke Uchiha, of course..."

Ino feels the very earth shatter around her.

Sakura's done the impossible—and Ino simply cannot believe it.

She won't believe it...

She can't.

Because…how?

Sakura is long gone before she has the chance to ask.