Chapter 4: Like Mother, Like Daughter

"There are times when you question whether the person beside you really is family."

|Sakura|

Sasuke wasn't beside me when I woke up, and while he had told me he would be starting Monday, I hadn't expected him to leave before nightfall. No matter how little we spoke to one another, I had grown accustomed to him being in bed, even if he was fast asleep with his back to me. But now even that was gone.

A knock came at the door, and I quickly rubbed my face before sitting up and walking over. When I opened the door, I found Sarada standing in the hallway.

"*Ohaiyo, Mama." Sarada greeted me, albeit while avoiding eye contact and fidgeting.

"Ohaiyo!" I returned the greeting as I headed downstairs, "Why are you up so early?"

"It's not early." She informed me as she followed down, "It's 11:20."

"Really?" I questioned in disbelief as I grabbed the kettle off the stove, "Wow, I was out like a log. So, what's with the shadiness? Do you need anything?"

"Um, I was hoping you'd reconsider your decision about that party on Wednesday."

I sighed and turned to her as I filled the kettle with water, "Sarada, we've already discussed this."

"But we didn't!" Sarada pressed on, "You kinda just said no without listening to me."

"I don't have to. You're not going, end of discussion." I turned on the burner and set it to medium before placing the kettle on top.

"Mama—"

"Sarada, no."

"No, no, no!" She stomped her foot, "Everything's always no with you!"

"Hey!" I turned to her, "What's gotten into you?"

"Nothing's gotten into me, I should've done this a long time ago!" She remarked as she slammed an open cupboard shut.

Going over to her, I quickly grabbed her hands and forced her to look at me, "Look, I know you're upset about not being able to go, but I don't expect a temper tantrum from a fifteen-year-old!"

Sarada pursed her lips before wringing her hands free, "You know what they say about me in school, Mama? That's Uchiha Sarada, Inspector Sasuke's daughter, she must be a good girl!"

"So what?" I crossed my arms, "That's not bad."

"It is!" She insisted, her face reddening, "Daughter of Inspector Sasuke? Don't invite her, she'll just rat us out."

"Sarada—"

"Hey, I'm having a party! Should I invite Sarada? No, it'll be a waste, she doesn't go to these kinds of things. Sarada's such a moral girl, she would never have fun!" Her voice cracked, and I watched as tears pooled together in her eyes, "For Kami's sake, they call me Police Princess! And now the one time, the one time someone invites me, I don't show and prove that everything they say about me is true."

"I'm doing this for your own good." I tried to explain to her.

She took off her glasses, rubbing away the tears that threatened to spill over, "You always say that! And when I was a kid I fell for it, but I'm not a kid anymore! You just wanna ruin my life; you and Papa!"

"Ruin your life?" I repeated, my tone indicating the ridiculousness of that statement before I realized what else she had said, "*Chotto, what does your dad have to do with this?"

"I saw him leaving early in the morning, around 7 a.m., and I figured I'd ask him for permission instead. But I didn't wanna just jump into it like that, so I asked where he was going." Sarada's voice wavered but the look on her face told me that she was burning with fury, "He looked right at me and didn't say a word! But I'm supposed to believe that he loves me? Someone like that actually cares about my well-being?"

"He does, Sarada." I said, trying to assure her of her father's compassion, "He really, really does."

"No, he doesn't!" She sniffed, "Kami, my life is the worst: Papa who can't even pretend to care, and Mama hell-bent on running my reputation into the ground."

"I'm–We're not trying to—" I pursed my lips, trying to think of the right words to say, "It seems like everything's against you right now but it's not, trust me. You'll understand when you're older."

"Really Mama? You're gonna use that line on me? Hontōni, both of you are just so..." She shook her head as she stepped back, turning away from

"Where are you going?" I asked as I followed her, "Sarada?"

"This family is a nightmare!" She grabbed a hoodie from the coat rack by the door, "And if I spend another minute in this house, I'll go crazy!"

"Don't you dare walk out of this house, young lady!" I warned her.

She stepped outside.

"Sarada, if you close that door—!" I was cut off by a loud slam.

"Damn it." I put my hands on my head, massaging my forehead with my palms, "What's wrong with her? Usually, she'd just pout and give me the silent treatment but this? This is a ridiculous escalation!"

'You've spoiled the girl, she doesn't have a hint of discipline in her.' The voice in my head scolded, 'And it doesn't help that she's heard your weakness around Sasuke-kun. If you have an ounce of backbone, you'll yank that door open right now and let Sarada know exactly what will happen to her if she doesn't come back this instant.'

I shook my head, "No, no, that's not what this calls for. She's pissed that she can't go to the party all her friends are going to – I get it. I'll let her take this walk and cool off, she'll be back in a few hours."

'Tch. Your stupidity astounds me more and more each day.'

I returned to the kitchen just as the kettle began to yell, and I brought out the things necessary for my usual tea before pouring some of the water into a mug.

"Maybe I am stupid." I muttered as I made myself a cup of tea.

*Ohaiyo means 'good morning'

*Chotto means wait, again part of that phrase with matte

|Sarada|

I stomped angrily as I made my way down the street. This was the last straw; I was done listening to Mama. Or Papa. As a matter of fact, I was done with both off them, but Mama was going to feel the worst of it.

"Fucking stupid." I cursed as I wiped my eyes, "Why would I let someone like her make me cry?"

No matter what she said, I would be attending this party and any events planned after. I would never ask for her or Papa's permission again. As far as my parents was concerned, I was going to start counting myself as an orphan because there was no way those people were my family.

Once I had reached Yamanaka Court, I brushed my hood down and walked up to the distinct yellow house I'd eaten dinner at last night and rang the doorbell. While waiting, I shoved my hands into my pockets and tried to press them as close to my body as possible. As upset as I had been, maybe heading outside with only a hoodie in snow season hadn't been the best idea.

"Yes?" Inojin cracked the door open, "How can I…Sarada?"

I nodded my head, "Gomen. I know it's the end of the long weekend b8t—"

"Shhh." He brought a finger to his lips as he grabbed two coats from behind the door, "Ka-san just got off the phone with Sakura-oba. She said she'd call her if you—"

"Inojin? Who's that at the door?" Aunt Ino called from inside the house.

"Just the mailman dropping off a package!" He answered quickly before turning back to me, "See? We can't be here."

Handing me a black coat, he shut the door and descended the front steps. I quickly zipped up the coat he had given to me and followed him. We went around the back of his house, and he stopped me before proceeding under his patio. I saw a blue tarp get tossed to the side before he returned with a black mountain bike.

Inojin patted the handlebars, "Get on."

No stranger to impromptu bike rides like this, I took a seat on the handlebars and rested my back against his chest. He waited for me to get comfortable before pushing off with his right leg, and down the street we went.

"The snow's so pretty." Inojin commented as we rolled through the neighborhood.

"Yeah, it is." I said with a nod.

The rest of the ride was relatively silent and while I wasn't exactly sure of the time, it felt like we had only been on the bike for thirty minutes before the number of houses began to wear down and more corporate buildings began to show their face. I knew we had entered the metropolitan area of Konoha when Inojin narrowly avoided a green taxi.

With a laugh at that near death experience, he managed to bike us to Tea Avenue, and we stopped at Ichiraku's. I waited for him as he locked up his bike and then opened the door.

"So, why'd you bring us here?" I asked as we entered the ramen shop.

"I think a hot bowl of ramen can cheer anyone up." He responded, pointing under his eye to further clarify, "Unless those tear streaks are from the cold."

I scrubbed my cheeks viciously, "Damn it, why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"I didn't know how to tell you." He admitted, walking over to a booth by the back, "For you to cry is...well, what would make the Police Princess burst into tears?"

At the moniker, I felt my tears start to come back, and quickly shook them away, "Don't...please, don't call me that."

"Oh gomen, I didn't mean—" He cut himself off by sighing, as a waitress came around, "Let's just eat."

I allowed Inojin to order for the both of us, simply telling the waitress "I'll have what he's having."

When she left, the lingering awkwardness from earlier returned. Inojin drummed his fingers on the table while I stared at my hands in my lap.

'Police Princess…' I couldn't get over the term.

Clearing my throat, I decided to ask about it, "Where did that name even come from?"

"Hm?" He turned to me, raising an eyebrow, "What name?"

"Police Princess." I said it with as much neutrality as I could muster, "I know Iwabe isn't the creator."

Inojin pursed his lips, "There's no point in learning about that. It's honestly a dumb nickname for you that nobody should be using. Gomen, I really shouldn't have said it earlier."

I waved my hand, "It's fine but I just wanna know. Who came up with it?"

"Sarada—"

"If you know then tell me." I interrupted, snapping my head up, "If you don't then say so."

He sighed, "Boruto."

My mouth dropped open, "What?"

"It was a long time ago, maybe in seventh grade." Inojin scrambled to cover for him, "I think you reported him before he could pull of a prank, and he was whining about it to us. He called you Police Princess and the name just…stuck."

"Seventh grade?" I said with even more disbelief, my heart tightening, "No, but that was when…"

I trailed off as something that had never sat right with me from back then became clear.

"That makes perfect sense." I nodded slowly, silently chiding myself, 'Stupid, I really am so stupid.'

Inojin shifted uncomfortably, "Sarada, I'm sure he regrets making it up."

"Oh, he will." I assured Inojin as the waitress returned with our bowls, "Trust me, he will."

|Sasuke|

A glance at my watch told me the time: 4:05 p.m. With a heavy exhale, I tapped my foot and scanned the room. Aside from Karin and I, there were only three other people in the near vicinity. Two of them were playing pool at a table in the corner, and the bartender stood behind the counter shining a glass.

'Something's not right.' I thought to myself as I watched Karin line up her shot before failing miserably, hitting the cue ball to the right instead of dead-center, 'They were supposed to be here at one o'clock and it's been three hours past that.'

After arriving at the precinct around 8, Karin and I had gone through a thorough refresher course on the personas we were to assume. As poor newlyweds Mr. and Mrs. Fujikage, we were looking to join the organization under the ruse that, with the rising costs of living in Konoha, clean-cut jobs wouldn't keep us going for much longer. Itachi and Shisui had even handed us rings to solidify the family end.

Nothing about my new identity or the stories I would have to tell bothered me, but the physical changes I had to go through ticked me off. The empty glass in my hand allowed me to stare at my distorted reflection. For the purpose of making myself unrecognizable, my hair had been bleached blond, and I had been given specifically prescribed teal contacts.

'I look like a knockoff Naruto.'

Karin, on the other hand, had not been dealt such a bad hand. Her usually red hair had been dyed jet black, and she wore amber brown contacts. At least her transfiguration wasn't so comical. I thought that look suited her.

"Aw darn. Your turn!" Karin laughed as she handed me the pool stick.

I took it from her and lined up my shot before hitting the cue ball with a decent amount of force. Straightening up, I watched as both the 3 ball and the 5 ball rolled into the left corner hole.

"You're a good shot." A voice commented from behind me, "I take it you're Toshiaki-san?"

Turning around, I met the voice's owner: a man with long blond hair, half of which was hanging over his left eye while the rest was pulled into a ponytail. It was similar to the way Ino wore her hair.

I nodded, "Yes, that's me."

"Good!" He clapped his hands together before turning to Karin, "And you must be Misaki-san?"

"Correct!" She beamed, playing up the sweetness of her character.

Part of me internally cringed as I watched her cheeks curl up. Sure, it was in her packet and it was how she had been told behave but something about it felt off. I made a mental note to apologize to her again once we were alone.

"And I'm Deidara." The man introduced himself, holding out a hand, "I apologize for getting here so late. Can you believe the boss told me everything but the time we were supposed to meet?"

As I shook his hand, I couldn't help but notice the teal ring on his right index finger, "It's fine. We managed to occupy ourselves."

"We definitely did." Karin chipped in, "Although Toshiaki-kun was trying a bit too hard against me."

She rubbed my shoulder for an added effect, and I quickly patted her arm, "Well, I couldn't just give you the win."

Deidara shook his head and laughed, "I like a competitive player, hm. Don't worry Misaki-san, now that I'm here Toshiaki-san won't be able to bully you in pool anymore. Are you two ready to leave?"

"Lead the way." I nodded as Karin grabbed my hand and interlocked our fingers.

With a chuckle, Deidara led us out of the bar and to the parking lot, where a matte black Toyota Camry sat running. Ushering us in with a wave of his hand, I noted that the windows were tinted and that the seats were a custom red leather.

Karin whistled as she settled in beside me, "This is nice."

"Isn't it?" Deidara grinned to her before climbing into the driver's seat, "It's a standard company car. If the boss likes you, you'll be getting yours in a week or two."

"Wow, that quickly?" Karin questioned Deidara in that false voice of hers, "That would be great."

I felt her squeeze my hand and we didn't have to exchange looks for me to understand what she as trying to tell me.

"About the boss," I chipped in as Deidara backed out onto the road, "Can you tell us what he likes? What he dislikes? We wouldn't hate to leave a bad impression during our first meeting."

"Aa, I get you. Well, the most I can say is that he's a very serious man." Deidara informed us as he adjusted his rear-view mirror, "He likes things to be done in a timely manner and an orderly fashion. And he will never leave anything to chance, hm. I hope that helps."

"It does." I assured him as I sat back, slipping an arm around Karin's shoulders, "It helps a lot. I'm sure we'll be fine."

"I should warn you though," Deidara met my eyes through the rear-view mirror, "Above everything, even order, there are two things the boss asks of us: honesty, and loyalty. Lie to him or backstab him in any way and you'll wish you were dead."

"Noted." I said as I turned to Karin, who had laid her head on my shoulder and shut her eyes.

Upon closer inspection, I could see that she had actually fallen asleep on me, and I wondered what she had done on her day off that could have tired her out so much. Deidara took one look at her resting face and offered me a light smile, as if the two of us had share a little secret. Silence enveloped the car and the took the opportunity to stare out of the window and memorize as many landmarks as I could along the way.

After about twenty minutes into the drive, my mind began to drift to other things, particularly the events of last night. The alcohol I had been served in the Yamanaka's cellar had gotten to me faster than I had assumed, and I ended up behaving in a loose manner. I could still feel Sakura's hand on my cheek as she assured me that she was ready to know each other again. And like the fool that I was, I had almost admitted my weakness to her.

'Get through this, Sasuke.' I told myself as I relaxed my fists, 'Bring down this organization and you'll have ground to stand on.'

|An Hour Later|

I hadn't realized when I had fallen asleep, but I could still feel the drowsiness on my eyelids as my eyes fluttered open. A glance out the window revealed that outside was pitch black, and I quickly checked my watch. With the time reading 5:17 p.m., I figured that were an hour out, and although I didn't like not being able to see my surroundings, I knew that we couldn't have gone too far.

From my earlier recollection of landmarks and locations, combined with the barrage of trees surrounding us, I deduced that we were somewhere Northwest of Konoha. My brain couldn't recall any relevant town or city in this region, and so I sat up. A considerable weight on my right side called my attention to the spot and I saw that Karin was still fast asleep, even snoring lightly. Her hair had managed to free itself from its confines and was now falling in front of her, so I took the liberty to move it to the side.

"Awake, Toshiaki-san?" Deidara's sudden question broke the silence, causing me to snap my head up.

'That's right.' I reminded myself, 'He's driving.'

Facing forward, I nodded, "Aa. How long was I out?"

"You fell asleep thirty minutes into the drive." He chuckled, glancing back at us, "Not enough sleep last night?"

I scoffed lightly, "No, definitely not."

"Was it her?" He asked, fiddling with some knobs on the dashboard.

"I'm not sure I understand what you mean." I responded, being open about my confusion.

"Were you, ah, getting busy?" He smirked, holding up two fingers and opening and closing them rhythmically.

Now getting his drift, I quickly shook away that image that my mind had conjured as a result of his words, "No, no, it's not that."

"No need to be shy with me, hm." He smiled at me through the rear-view mirror, "She's quirky, and I know those types have a lot of energy for the bedroom."

"…No comment." I covered my face with my hand, trying hard to block out the scenes my brain was creating.

"So that's a yes?" Deidara laughed lightly, "Good, shows you two are close. I was going to say it earlier, but I figured it wouldn't have made much sense. The boss is also a family-oriented man; he really believes in taking care of loved ones so you two coming as a pair is a plus."

"That's great." I said as I looked down at Karin, "That's perfect."

At the mention of loved ones, I couldn't help but picture Sakura and Sarada. Sakura consumed most of my daily thoughts, but I realized I hadn't given Sarada any consideration recently. It didn't help that she had caught me as I was leaving the house this morning and inquired of my destination. It also didn't help that I had ignored her instead of offering a lie or telling her to ask her mother.

I mentally facepalmed. My own father had never been particularly interested conversing with me, a trait of his that I resented and had promised not to emulate when Sarada had been born. Come to find out, I had been doing it all along, and this morning had been the clearest instance of it.

'Sakura, Sarada, wait for me. I swear when I get back things are going to be different. '

"We're here!" Deidara announced as he put the car in park.

I lightly shook Karin as Deidara took the keys out of the ignition, "Okiro."

"Hm?" She questioned in a whiny tone as she stretched her arms, mumbling, "Five more minutes please."

Deidara laughed as he stepped out of the car, "The boss will definitely like her."

Karin rubbed her eyes as I stepped out, "Where are we?"

I went around and opened her door before helping her out, "I'm assuming the main house."

"That would be correct! Although it's not exactly a house." Deidara snapped, pointing at solar lights illuminating a walkway that went up the side of a hill, "Just follow those lights and you'll understand, hm."

Karin laced her arm through mine and up the path we went. Deidara was right, this place was not a house. As we went around the hill, a huge traditional-styled compound came into view. Perhaps huge was an understatement, if the Uchiha compound in Konoha took up its own city block, then in comparison this mansion would take up ten.

There were numerous house-like structures littering the inside of the sizeable walls, with a giant house in the center indicating the main building where the boss and other important individuals would likely reside. Towards the back, behind the compound, I could barely make out a line of cars, and I figured that was where they parked their vehicles.

"Buddha have mercy." Karin murmured under her breath as we took in the site, "There's a lot of them."

Itachi and Shisui had sorely miscalculated. This organization was much larger and much richer than we had anticipated. A quick glance behind us told me that we were in the deep woods, and there was no sign of any populated road in sight. Except for the stars above, and the lights by our feet and in the compound, everything was pitch black.

'How the hell are they supposed to find this place?' I asked, wondering about the worst-case scenario, 'If Karin and I get caught…'

Thankfully, I didn't get to continue down such a narrow scope of thinking, as Deidara patted my shoulder before slipping by.

"Why are you guys stuck like a deer in headlights?" He joked as he continued past us, heading for the main gate, "The gate's right there."

"Well, we didn't want to just stroll in like we owned the place." I quickly explained as we followed him.

Deidara smirked back at us just as four men practically materialized in front of the gate. One of them stepped forward to shake Deidara's hand and they exchanged some words before the men stepped aside.

"Welcome," Deidara waved his hands, taking a bow, "To Kikyō Castle."

|Sakura|

"Oh Ino!" I cried, "What am I going to do?"

"What you're going to do is calm down." She said as settled into the space next to me, "Sarada'll come home soon."

"But what if she doesn't?" I persisted, shaking my head, "She left the house around eleven this morning and it's about to be six o'clock! Oh, Kami!"

"Sakura, listen to me," Ino grabbed my face, forcing me to look at her, "Sarada is fifteen, you hear me? Fifteen. She's reached that angsty age where she exercises her desire to be free. We did it too and nothing ever happened, so quit worrying; it's normal."

"Normal?" I would've laughed if I weren't so anxious, "Was there ever a time you and I left our homes for over six hours and didn't tell our parents where we were going?"

"No, but—"

"Then what part of this is normal?" I cut her off, checking the clock again, "I don't even—Maybe I should call the police."

Ino sighed, "Don't call the police. Look, Inojin left the house early in the morning as well. How much do you want to bet those two are together right now?"

"So your son is enabling my daughter." I glared at her, "Is this the good part of the 'hands-off' parenting you told me about before?"

"What, would you rather he be home here with us and leave Sarada all alone?" She rolled her eyes, "Honestly, Sakura, I'm not even your kid but I feel like you're suffocating me. Kami alone knows how Sarada must feel."

I bit my lip at that comment, "I…Am I really that bad?"

The look on Ino's face softened, "You're approaching things the wrong way. I know you mean no harm, and deep down Sarada knows as well. It's just kinda hard to remember that when you're being so…uptight about it."

I held my head in my hands and sighed, "All this stress because I said she couldn't go to a damn party. You'd think Kami himself was gonna be there."

"Matte." She shifted as she leaned against the arm of the chair, "Is this the same one we talked about a while back? The one that Inojin is going to?"

"Yes!" I groaned as I shut my eyes, "Is that why she's so mad about it? Maybe all her friends are going."

"Sakura, for Kami's sake!" Ino kicked my leg, "Let the girl go to the damn party!"

"Ow! And no! So something can happen to her?" I questioned as I rubbed where her kick had landed, "No way! I'd rather she hate me for the rest of her life than risk a tragedy."

"You talk as if they're going to war." Ino shook her head, "With all the kids there, nothing's gonna happen. Even Sai-kun would say the same."

I was shocked to hear his name come from her mouth, especially after the events of last night which she had yet to explain to me. But with a look to the right, I saw Sai coming down the stairs and immediately understood. Turning back to her, her eyes flashed with a silent plea not to freeze, and I quickly nodded.

"Sai, please tell me you don't agree with her." I squeezed Ino's hand before returning my hand to my side.

"Unfortunately for you, I do." Sai smiled as he passed by and made his way to the kitchen, "Our kids aren't babies anymore, especially Inojin. If there was the slightest possibility of danger, he would have told us long ago that he wasn't going anymore."

I crossed my arms, "Really? And you'd believe him?"

"Of course!" Sai called from the kitchen, "We trust him to make the right call, and because he has that trust, he does!"

A jingle of keys in the front door stopped me from responding, and Ino and I turned our attention to it. The door swung open and in walked Inojin and Sarada, chatting away with takeout bags from Ichiraku's Ramen Shop in hand. As Inojin looked up and met our waiting faces, he slowly stopped talking and that's when Sarada followed his gaze. Our eyes met and she immediately turned on her heels.

"Wait right there, Missy!" Ino yelled, "Inojin, stop her!"

Immediately, Inojin stepped into her path, blocking her from running right back out the front door and she looked at him in bewilderment. He offered her a silent apology before turning her around and nudging her inside the house, and I heard her calling him a traitor, among other things.

"Your mother has something she would like to tell you, so instead of running away like a five-year-old, have a seat and hear her out." Ino ordered, taking Sarada by the shoulders and forcing her into a chair.

Sarada looked at me once again and a sour look began to grow on her face before Ino shook her finger.

With a sigh, she wiped her face and looked up at me, "Okay, I'm listening."

"Good." Ino said before walking back over to me.

"Um, that was kind of you but what exactly am I supposed to tell her?" I asked under my breath.

"The party, dumbass!"

"I already told you, no." I hissed through clenched teeth.

Sarada began to stand up, "Ino-oba, I love you, but it's clear Mama has nothing to say to me so I'm just gonna—"

"It's about the party." Sai interjected, coming from the kitchen, "You'll want to hear this so just...sit tight."

I gave Sai a nod of appreciation for preventing her from walking out on me and he offered me a light smile.

"If you want to salvage whatever is left between the two of you," Ino said in a low voice, "Then I suggest you give her the answer we're all waiting for."

With that last comment, Ino stepped back and folded her arms, waiting to see what my final verdict would be. I looked at Sarada and her onyx eyes glinted with a sliver of hope. It was just a party, teenagers went to them all the time. There was no real reason to be worried, right? Why couldn't I just let her go?

'Sasuke-kun isn't here to help you.' The voice reminded me, 'If anything happens to her, what will you tell him when he comes back?'

I shut my eyes at the truthful statement. Things had been peaceful and perfect on the Sarada end of life, but if she were to be hurt in anyway while he was gone, how would I forgive myself? How would Sasuke forgive me?

'There will be other parties.' I assured myself as I resolved to answer her, 'This one is not for her.'

I opened my mouth and began to speak, "I know...I know that going to this party means a lot to you and I want you to enjoy your life Sarada, I really do. But this time...this time, you can't go. Gomen."

Sai sighed while Ino shook her head, and all eyes turned to Sarada. I was surprised that she was still here, expecting her to run away as soon as I had finished crushing her hopes. Instead, she sat perfectly still in the seat Ino had forced her into and pushed her glasses back onto her face.

"Ino-oba, Sai-oji, thanks for trying, but as you can see Mama has no intention of letting me go. What can I do?" She shrugged her shoulders and she stood up, "That's that."

She calmly made her way for the door and turned around to look at me, "Come on Mama, what are you waiting for?"

I looked at Ino and Sai in shock as Sarada stepped outside and made her way down to the car.

Ino threw up her hands, "You better get going before her mood changes."

"Right?" I confirmed as I stepped towards the door, "We'll talk later."

"Aa." Ino nodded, blowing me a kiss before heading upstairs.

Sai followed after me and spoke just as my foot touched the first step, "Listen Sakura, that face Sarada made when she shrugged isn't a face of defeat or acceptance; she's planning something."

"Planning something?" I became confused, "What do you mean?"

"Maybe she—" He cut himself off before shaking his head, "Just...from my experiences, that's the face of someone who's decided to stop playing by the rules. If you don't want Sarada to end up hating you, I suggest you make it very clear why you don't want her at this party. Otherwise, she's going to be trouble in the future."

"Arigato." I thanked him before continuing to my car and unlocking the doors with the press of a button.

As Sarada got inside, I looked at her again, "That coat isn't yours, is it?"

"Inojin lent it to me." She responded, refusing to meet my eyes, "I'll give it back to him at school."

She buckled her seat belt as I started the car, and even turned on the heater before leaning against the window.

"Listen," I started as I backed out of their driveway, "Your father is gonna be at the precinct day and night starting today so he might not have been all there when you spoke to him this morning."

"Mm." Sarada hummed in acknowledgement.

I sighed, "What I'm trying to say is, I don't want anything to go wrong while he's not here. Please, I need you to know you understand. If something were to happen to you…"

"I understand. Hontōni." Sarada nodded, and I found her look at me, "Trust me, I understand completely."

I offered her a light smile before turning my attention back to the road, "Okay."