Sakura was waiting in her purple long sleeve shirt with distressed sleeves, and short green leggings, adorned with the red ribbon on top of her head. She was so excited she got ready hours ago and was getting impatient waiting for her parents. She walked to her parents' room to check on their progress.

She cracked open the door and observed as her mother was still choosing between outfits, while her father was waiting for her to finish. Sakura pouted and opened the door wider in disappointment. How could her mother take so long choosing an outfit when she knew how impatient she was getting.

"Mommy? Can we go yet?"

"In just a bit, Sakura. Mommy's almost done getting ready."

Sakura pouted and walked back downstairs, sitting on the last step, waiting for her parents. She waited as the minutes ticked by. Sakura was just about to walk back upstairs when her parents finally came down. She quickly got up and grabbed her parents' hands as they walked her to the Uchiha Compound.

They walked through the busy streets of Konoha, as the Uchiha compound was on the other side of the village. When they finally reached the house, Sakura let go of her parents' hands and knocked on the door. She brushed her dress and tightened the ribbon on her hand, giving herself one last check. The door opened and Mikoto stood in the door, with Sasuke running towards the door.

Sakura grinned hugely and waved as Sasuke took her hand leading her inside the house.

"Hello! Goodbye!" Sakura called as Sasuke led her away.

"Sakura! You have to properly greet before going inside!"

"Don't worry about it," Mikoto smiled. "We're so glad to have here. We've wanted to meet her ever since Sasuke couldn't stop talking about her."

"We hope she'll be well-behaved while she's here," Mebuki smiled.

"Please, come in for some tea."

"Oh, we don't want to impose," Kizashi said.

"Please, I think it'll be great to get to know each other since our children are such great friends," Mikoto stepped aside, inviting them inside.

Mebuki and Kizashi walked inside and followed her to the living room. Mikoto set some tea on the stove as they sat down. Fugaku greeted them, and Mikoto joined them, setting some fruit and cookies on the table.

Sasuke led Sakura to their backyard where Itachi was training. Itachi shifted his hand back about to throw the kunai when he felt eyes on him. He spun it around his finger, putting it back in his back as he turned his head to see Sasuke and Sakura.

"Hello, Itachi-san," Sakura bowed.

"Hello, Sakura. What will you two be doing today?" Itachi asked.

"Nii-san, play hide-n-seek with us!" Sasuke said.

"I don't know Sasuke."

"Please! We need more than two people to make it fun!" Sakura pleaded.

Itachi sighed and looked from Sasuke to Sakura. It was one thing to tell Sasuke he was too busy, but they had a guest today. He didn't have a mission, and he couldn't think of any excuse to say no. They were waiting for his response, and finally, Itachi sighed and conceded.

Sasuke and Sakura grinned as they told Itachi he was it, and he had to count to thirty while they hid. Itachi turned around and began to count while they ran off. Sasuke and Sakura ran back inside through the house.

"Sasuke. Stop running," Fugaku said.

"But nii-san's it! We have to hide before he finishes counting!"

"Go hurry and hide! You may not have much time left," Mikoto laughed.

Sasuke and Sakura ran to go find their hiding place before their time was up. They watched as they scattered through the house. Mikoto and Mebuki laughed at their children's cuteness.

It wasn't long before Itachi begrudgingly walked into the house. He felt the stares coming from their parents and turned to meet their gaze. As the moms and Kizashi smiled, Fugaku had his usually stoic face. He sighed and walked to the first room looking for signs of either Sasuke or Sakura.

He opened the door to Sasuke's room and checked under the bed. Then, as he was about to turn around and leave, he heard giggles coming from the closet.

"I guess, there's no here," Itachi said playfully. Sakura continued to giggle, giving away her position. "Guess, I should check the other room." More giggling ensued, and he put his hands on the closet door. He opened it to find Sakura sitting on folded blankets inside the closet.

"You found me! Now, let's go find Sasuke-kun!" Sakura grabbed Itachi's hand and led him to the next room. She opened the closet, searched under the desk, and the bed while he waited by the door. It wasn't long until she decided they needed to check another room, and grabbed his hand leading him to the next. "Sasuke-kun's a good hider. Is he always this good when you guys play?"

"We don't usually play hide-n-seek."

"Why not? Your place is so big! It's the best for hide-n-seek!"

"We just don't play games a lot."

"What do you guys do usually do for fun?"

"Shuriken training."

Sakura stopped in her tracks and looked at him. He wondered if he had something on his face, or if he had spoken in gibberish. She just stared at him, and he finally opened his mouth to break the silence.

"What is it?"

"For a bunch of geniuses, you guys don't know much about 'fun' do you?"

Itachi couldn't believe how this little girl had little disregard for their Uchiha bloodline. Most people would never speak to a Uchiha this way, and it impressed him. She was someone who was going places.

"Guess not."

"It's a good thing I'm here then!" Sakura continued leading him to the next room. She did the same as the previous room, but they couldn't find Sasuke. She stopped to think about where he could be. "Do you know where Sasuke-kun could be?"

"Hm, there's always the office."

"Office? Let's go there!"

Itachi walked towards the office with Sakura following behind. Usually, they didn't step foot into Fugaku's office unless he requested their presence, which made it the best hiding place in this instance. Itachi opened the door to the office and Sakura stepped inside. She scanned the room and looking for places Sasuke could hide. She eyed the filing cabinet but figured he couldn't fit in. Then she turned her head to the desk. It didn't look like anything was under there either. This was the last place he could be.

She eyed the couch. It started to look a little lumpy the harder she stared. As she picked up the cushions, she stared right into those coal eyes and grinned.

"Found you!"

Sasuke climbed out from the couch and put the cushions back. He gave her a high-five for a job well done. They ran out of the room leaving Itachi alone. He contemplated whether to follow them or to go back to his training. He had to admit, this probably was the most "fun" he had since he entered the academy. He couldn't remember the last time he played a game or had any time for himself that didn't include training.

He closed the door behind him and walked back off toward the living room. Their parents were chatting happily, even his father's expression softened, and there might have even been a hint of a smile on his face.

He walked back to the backyard to continue his training when he found that Sasuke and Sakura were already there, training themselves. They were throwing shuriken, with a surprising amount of precision for their age. Clearly, Sasuke was training her as well.

"Those are some excellent throws," Itachi said.

"Sasuke-kun's been teaching me! I have gotten better! A lot better!"

"I'm sure you'll both become excellent shinobi when you graduate."

He watched them continue to throw their shuriken. Suddenly, Sakura stopped and walked over to him. She signaled him to bend down to her height and he did. She cupped her hands over her mouth as she whispered into his ear.

"What kind of girls does Sasuke-kun like?"

Itachi looked at her and then at Sasuke. He wasn't surprised by the question, but he had figured they were already "dating", well if you can call two eight-year-olds who like each other and spend an inordinate amount of time together, "dating".

He looked back at her and gave it some thought. Sakura stared at him intensely until he answered.

"He likes girls with long hair," Itachi had no idea if that was true, but he had to give her something, and Sasuke did say once that he thought their mom's long hair was really pretty when he was three.

Sakura nodded once before going back to Sasuke's side. He watched as they threw shuriken, and then turned his head to observe their parents. It was strange to see his parents enjoy the company of those outside the Uchiha clan, well his father anyway.

In all the twelve years he's been alive, the last time he recalled his father smiling like that was maybe when Sasuke was born. It gave him a little hope that peace would continue. He couldn't help but feel that there's a chance that things will be alright. Maybe the clan could change their mind.

After dinner and more hours of playing. Both Sasuke and Sakura had fallen asleep. They were on the floor holding hands as they fell asleep. Their mothers cooed at the sight and didn't want to disturb them, but it was getting late. Mebuki picked up Sakura, and Mikoto picked up Sasuke. They said their goodbyes quietly, not wanting to disturb their children.

Mikoto tucked Sasuke into bed, and turned out the lights, shutting the door. Itachi headed toward his room to get ready for bed as well. Fugaku cleared his throat and Itachi stopped in his tracks. He turned to face him, and he could tell by the look on his mother's face, his relief from earlier was short-lived.

"We're having a clan meeting in two hours," Fugaku announced. "Your attendance at this meeting is required."

"I haven't attended a meeting in months, and will continue not to do so," Itachi said.

"You will be the next head of the Uchiha clan. You will attend the meeting," Fugaku demanded.

Itachi knew there was no arguing with his father when he got like this. He told himself, just one last meeting. Maybe, this was his chance to get his clan to change their mind about the coup. It didn't help that Danzo, the Anbu Root leader, was ready to use lethal force if necessary. He had to choose between his family and everyone else in Konoha. The citizens of Konoha were innocent. It was the elders on both sides who couldn't let go of the past. Except for the Third, he pushed for a more peaceful reconciliation between the two. For a war to break out because of power would harm everyone else. It would cause a civil war in Konoha. He didn't want that.

Sasuke stirred from his sleep. He reached across his nightstand looking for a cup of water to quench his thirst. He opened his eyes to find no cup. He got out of bed and walked towards the kitchen when he heard feet shuffling near the front door. He walked closer and noticed his parents and brother leaving the house. Curiosity took over the need for water. He put on his shoes and followed them silently.

They walked across the compound to the Nakano Shrine. Sasuke wondered where they were going. Especially at this time of night. Is this something that they did often? He continued following as quietly as possible. He watched as they move a mat to reveal a hidden staircase. They went down, shutting the hatch behind them. Sasuke waited a beat before carefully opening the hidden door. He could hear voices below. A lot of voices.

Sasuke carefully made his way down. He kept himself hidden as he walked down the long hallway. He finally saw a light at the end of the hallway and carefully hid behind the opening. It seemed like almost everyone in the clan was there. His parents, his brother, his aunt and uncle, and all his neighbors. But why were they all here? He watched as his father cleared his throat.

"Thank you for attending this clan meeting at such a late hour. We are getting closer to executing our plan to rid the Hokage, and the other elders. The Uchiha has been looked down upon since the village's creation, even though our clan was also a founder of the village. Then after the Kyuubi attack, Konoha exiled us to one segment of the village and we've been under scrutiny and surveillance for too long. We will take back our rightful place in Konoha."

Sasuke's eyes went wide as the words his father spoke registered in his brain. He couldn't believe what was happening. Is this really what's best for the clan? War and death? Sasuke kept trying to understand as the clan clamored in agreement.

He met the Sandaime when they visited the Hokage Rock Mountain for class one day. The Sandaime was always kind to him. Was he really part of the reason the Uchiha separated from the village? Did he really have ill feelings towards the Uchiha? He couldn't believe it.

His thoughts swirled in his head as he tried to make sense of this new information.

"We will begin the coup and take over Konoha leadership in three days."

Itachi was about to protest and try to persuade them otherwise when Sasuke burst through the door.

"Stop!"

Everyone stopped and turned to see the young Uchiha with his tears in his eyes.

A/N: Please review/follow/favorite this story if you liked it! I am making SasuSaku GIFs on my Tumblr at foreheadpokesoflove for SasuSaku month! You can request SasuSaku/Disney/Pixar/Marvel/Sailor Moon and more!

Also, I think I changed my mind about continuing the story here. *SIGH* I FEEL SO WISHY-WASHY. Maybe I'll just keep all plans to myself until I figure it out myself.