So if you thought the cliffhangers and plot twists were bad before, you're wrong lol. I've got quite a few left up my sleeve. Pregnancy has been exhausting me and I've been working for what seems like forever, so between work and Pixie I haven't gotten much writing done. I know this chapter is a little short, but the next one will more than make up for it when I get to proofreading and finishing it up. I can't promise when it'll be up, but I hope this can tide you over til then.

Sakura woke under the covers alone. She knew Itachi would be gone when she woke up, but she still felt sad he was gone. It probably would've been harder for them if he had stayed. She showered, dressed, and packed her things. She noticed that he'd left his ring and she took that too. She said her goodbyes to the inn keeper and Keiko. She told her everything had worked out, and she would stop by again if she was in the area. She made the journey home to Konoha where she immediately went to Hinata's to see her daughter.

She wasn't surprised to find that her baby was pulling herself up and walking with the assistance of a couch or chair. Mitsuki was now a little over 10 months old and when she saw her mama she cried out in glee. Hinata and Naruto smiled and asked her if everything was ok. She assured them it was, and soon she would be able to reveal everything to them. With Mitsuki in tow she went to inform Tsunade about what had happened. After she made her report she returned to Kakashi's to find he was away on a mission. The next few days she spent with just her daughter, smiling and laughing as Mitsuki showed her all the things she'd learned in Sakura's 10 and a half week absence.

She rocked Mitsuki in her newly acquired rocking chair as the infant started falling asleep late into the night. "Mama has been out making sure you grow up in a safer world than we're living in now," she whispered softly. A small smile appeared on Mitsuki's face and her eyes shone with understanding. Her hair was growing like weeds, and you couldn't see her scalp at all anymore. Sakura mused that maybe she could put it up in tiny pigtails. "You really do look like your father," she said ghosting her hand over the baby's face. Mitsuki conked out and Sakura put her in her crib. She went to the kitchen to get a drink and thought about making some food when she heard a familiar voice.

"You say that like it's not a bad thing," Kakashi said. She narrowed her eyes at him before she realized who it really was.

"Sasuke?" she asked.

"Imagine my concern when I heard you abandoned Konoha to look for Itachi alone. Then to find out when you return, that no punishment is taken out. The order to hunt you down is cancelled without a second thought," he said dangerously, dropping the henge. "What made you return after 10 weeks of travel? Did you find him?" he asked, obviously aware of the truth.

"There's something you need to know before you get angry," Sakura said. Her heart started racing in her chest. It was almost as if Sasuke was looking at her as though he was going to kill her…

"Where is he?" Sasuke growled.

"I don't know whe-" Sakura was cut abruptly short when his hand clamped around her throat. She gasped for breath as she was slammed against the wall.

"S-S-Sasuke," she croaked. He lifted her off the floor, sliding her up the wall as her hands tried to pry him off.

"Where?" Sasuke yelled. And for the first time since she was born, Mitsuki started to cry. Her shrill wail pierced the house. From the sound of it she was fidgeting rather alarmingly, hitting the sides of her crib with her hands and feet. Sasuke dropped Sakura who choked out a few breaths before coughing violently, holding her throat. She curled up in a ball as tears of pain leaked from her eyes. Sasuke went in to find the source of commotion. Suddenly everything was quiet…

"No!" Sakura shrieked, scrambling across the floor into her bedroom. Sasuke had picked Mitsuki up, who quieted but fidgeted all the same. She looked to see her mama was ok and then turned her gaze back to her uncle.

"Mitsuki was a name my brother promised me he'd name his daughter. I'm sure he told you the story right?" Sasuke asked, glaring at Sakura who shook her head. He was offended by the fear emanating from her. "Do you think I'd murder a child? Much less my niece?"

"There are things we need to discuss Sasuke…" she repeated. Sasuke sat on her bed, rocking the infant in his arms.

"What could you possibly have to explain? You fell in love with my brother? You betrayed me? It doesn't get much simpler than that Sakura," Sasuke quipped.

"No… It gets a great deal more complex than that… Do you remember what you said to me on my birthday, about why you left?" Sakura asked. Sasuke didn't dignify her with an answer. "You said you left to protect me. Itachi-"

"Don't!" Sasuke growled. His jaw was clenched to suppress the rage building inside him. "If you believe what he said then I'm disgusted I ever trusted you in the first place."

"I did believe him. He told me the truth and all his sacrifices were for you! He was going to fight you to the death so you could surpass him! So you would have the Mangekyo Sharingan and all its powers," Sakura burst out.

"Don't think your feelings for my brother, or this child will sway my desire for revenge Sakura," Sasuke retorted. Sasuke started to wonder what the fuck he had said to her.

"If you're angry, there's only age old politics to be reckoned with. You're not gonna like what's in store for you Sasuke, but you must forgive your brother for making the only choice he had to make," Sakura said cryptically. She went in her closet and retrieved the box that wasn't supposed to be opened until Sasuke had killed Itachi. Ironic how it was now being used to keep that from happening… "Would you prefer to read it for yourself, or would you like to hear it from me?"

"You're already doing such a great…" Sasuke began sarcastically but trailed off upon seeing the object in her hands. He silently put Mitsuki in her crib and unconsciously gravitated toward the pink haired girl. He gently touched the box's edges before taking it from her in a daze. "Where did you get this?"

"Itachi," came her reply.

"After I started at the academy, Itachi suggested we make this to hold things that were important to me. He gathered the materials and we put it together…" Sasuke whispered. He disregarded the scrolls and notes, placing them neatly on Sakura's bed. His hands roved over the items left inside from his childhood; the first kunai and shuriken that Itachi bought him, a ticket stub from the first and only movie they ever went to, a few drawings they had doodled together… He picked up a small glass figurine of a weasel he'd gotten as a birthday present, and ran his hand over a smooth stone Itachi had used to teach him how to skip rocks. He lost himself in memories, looking over and touching each object in the box. His trip down memory lane ended abruptly when he imagined that this was all some kind of trick to change his mind.

"Are you ready for the story?" Sakura asked.

"If he wants me to know he can tell me himself," Sasuke snipped.

"Stop acting so immature!" Sakura scolded him much to the Uchiha's shock. "If you don't want me to tell you, then look at the proof!" Sasuke hesitated, but sat down to sift through the papers. The most damning evidence in the pile was not that Konoha ordered the massacre, nor Itachi's obvious willingness to do so; it was the instructions to Itachi in his father's handwriting… The fact that his father was asking Itachi to lead an attack on Konoha and slaughter hundreds of innocent people; people who were not ninja and had no way to defend themselves… It was ironic that that was the way he'd seen his family when he was a 7 year old boy. He felt disgusted.

To think that all this had started upon Konoha's formation was inconceivable. Itachi had sacrificed his life to cover up the horrors of his family and left it up to Sasuke to purify the name Uchiha. He was leaving his secret to Sasuke and trying to make up for his deceit by giving Sasuke a niece. For over a decade now, he'd been lied to, shunned and forced to hate. He died inside every time he remembered his loving older brother and wondered how he could have faked those loving emotions.

"Tsunade knows the truth. She wants you to return to Konoha to help defend against Madara. All your crimes will be forgiven," Sakura said, but her words fell upon deaf ears.

"So you lied to me too?" Sasuke asked. "You don't love me at all?" He kept a calm collected face, but inside he felt vulnerable. His eyes flickered with hurt for only a moment but Sakura saw it. Everything in his life was suddenly a lie. The only one who remained true to him in the face of all this was Naruto…

"That's not true!" she protested.

"Weren't you just playing a role to-"

"No! Sasuke I've loved you for such a long time… As much as it hurt, I loved you…" Tears streamed silently down her cheeks as she spoke. "I meant it when I said it; I mean it still…"

"But now you love Itachi," Sasuke stated. She would've expected it to sound like an accusation but it didn't.

"When he took me, and told me the truth my heart went out to him. You were both suffering. It was our love for you that brought us together. Fate dictated that the choices he intended to act out were not to be. He craved a normal life but he buried all his desires for your sake. If we had only met that once, and you had taken your revenge before Mitsuki was born things would have been different. When he disguised himself as Kakashi and snuck into Konoha to help me with the birth something more started growing between us. I tried to tell myself it was nothing but as Mitsuki grew up being separated from him became unbearable," Sakura explained. She paused to watch his reactions. His face stayed just as calm and collected as it had been which worried her. He seemed to be contemplating something.

"Itachi is taking care of some things and then returning to Konoha. Madara plans to destroy this place… This is our home Sasuke. Konoha needs you and Itachi to defend it. Mitsuki needs all of us to protect her," she said.

"How did you convince him?" Sasuke asked.

"I don't know… I pleaded with him," Sakura answered, trying to remember exactly what it was that had made him change his mind. She could think of nothing, because he had nearly let her walk away forever.

"Did you cry the same tears for him that you cried for me when I left?" Sasuke asked bitterly. He sneered at her and then turned him attentions to Mitsuki. Sakura visibly flinched at his cold remark. What could she say to him? He had every right to be angry.

"He kept telling me we couldn't be together because it would hurt you," she offered in amends. "Please don't be angry at him for our relationship. I'm the one you should be angry at," Sakura entreated. She felt like they were finally making some progress.

"No… I hurt you when I left. I hurt you enough to leave you with a broken heart. Even if you were waiting for me to return, your heart was still looking for someone that would return your love. Itachi has caused only misery to those around him-"

"Sasuke, no-"

"No? Weren't you miserable until Mitsuki was born? Didn't he leave your heart aching, wishing for his return? Didn't you constantly wonder why he had abandoned you? Left you all alone with these overbearing feelings of pain? No matter what you say, he'll pay for the pain he's caused us both," Sasuke said dangerously. He was gone before another word was spoken.

A feeling of dread settled in Sakura's chest. She hadn't gotten a chance to tell Sasuke most of the things she wanted to say; most importantly that Itachi was sick… Mitsuki whimpered in her bed and Sakura picked her up. She stroked her head and held her close, bouncing her a little until she curled serenely against Sakura.

"Was all this for nothing?" she whispered. "Is he still going to die after all this?" What could she do? She smiled as a tiny hand touched her face. In less than 2 months she would be a year old. "Will you be upset if I leave again Mitsuki?" she asked. Mitsuki pet her cheek the way she usually did when she sensed Sakura was upset. Sakura took this to mean she would be forgiven, just as she always was once Mitsuki saw her again. Nothing could beat that feeling of walking into a room and having someone light up with excitement and affection just because they saw you. She knew her mother would always come back and so Mitsuki didn't give the people who watched her a hard time. "I'll bring your dad and your uncle home safe; I promise," she whispered, hoping she wasn't telling a lie.

She rushed to Hinata's and found Naruto there. Sakura seemed to be in a panic which caused Naruto to become very alarmed. Once Hinata was holding Mitsuki, Naruto pulled her outside.

"Sakura, what's wrong?" Naruto asked.

"Sasuke was just here. Please go inform the Hokage. I need to go after him!"

"Sasuke?" Naruto murmured as if everything was suddenly in slow motion. "I'm going with you!" the blonde insisted.

"Someone has to tell the Tsunade or we'll be chased down by ANBU and dragged back here!" Sakura protested. Hinata stood in the doorway to her yard, holding the baby. Timidly she interrupted.

"I… I don't mean to eavesdrop, but don't you think it's safer to go in a team? Tsunade said he's been traveling with a team of 3 other people recently," Hinata voiced softly.

"Where's Kakashi sensei? He can come and we'll drag Sai along and-" Naruto paused as he heard Sakura sniffling. She fell in a heap to the floor and covered her face as she sobbed. Naruto dropped down beside her and Mitsuki squirmed until she was put down. She walked to her mom and pet her hair in concern. Sakura looked up at her.

"Mama's ok baby," she assured Mitsuki, opening her arms to pull her daughter close. "By the time we have a team together they'll be gone. If we go now then we'll just end up hurt…" Sakura whispered, having totally forgotten about Sasuke's companions.

"No Sakura! We have to try! We-" he stopped as Hinata put a hand on his shoulder. He turned to look at her, who looked down at Sakura and her baby.

"Naruto… That's not a risk Sakura can afford to take now," she whispered. "If the nine tails starts to break free, then you could end up…" but she didn't finish. Sakura still had a small scar on her arm from when he'd attacked her. He bit his lip and cursed to himself.

"Sakura, we'll go see the Hokage together. Even if we leave in the morning, they'll only have a few hours on us. We'll get Yamato sensei and Kiba and Sai. We'll take Kakashi sensei if he gets back in time. We'll find them, and we'll bring Sasuke home this time," Naruto stated. Sakura looked up at him and half smiled.

"There's nothing we can do now but wait…" she whispered.

"What? Wait? Sakura," Naruto rambled in confusion.

"There's a chance that if we find him, he'll reveal some things to you, just to upset you. Things I've kept hidden from you," Sakura said. Naruto narrowed his eyes. "Walk with me to the training fields where we won't be overheard." Hinata ushered him off, taking Mitsuki into her home. "Thank you Hinata."

"Don't worry about it," she assured. Mitsuki curled up on the couch as Hinata took out a picture book and began to read to her.

"Now, when I tell you this, please don't interrupt. It's hard enough that I lied to you in the first place. I won't be able to get everything out if you interrupt," Sakura requested. Naruto agreed, but found it hard to do so as her story progressed.

"I can't believe it… What an asshole that guy is," Naruto growled, immediately siding with Sasuke. "I know you love the guy but, but think about Sasuke. Itachi deserves a beating for what he's done."

"I should've known you'd side with Sasuke," Sakura said with a laugh.

"But I guess… he really was doing the only thing he could do, right Sakura? That's what you believe?" Naruto asked. Sakura nodded. She stared at him, wondering why he looked so sad. "I'm sorry you couldn't trust me," he whispered, looking at the grass.

"It wasn't about trust Naruto. I made a promise to keep a secret. The only reason I'm telling you now is because I've convinced Itachi to return and so Sasuke doesn't use it to turn you against me. I went through a lot of self loathing and suffering keeping that secret. It wasn't easy for me. I locked myself away for 7 months so I wasn't reminded of it," Sakura explained. She forced her tears away.

"It's alright. I probably couldn't have kept my big mouth shut anyway," Naruto joked. He put an arm around his best friend and she rested her head on his shoulder.

"There's going to be a fierce battle ahead for us," Sakura whispered. "I was supposed to keep Sasuke in Konoha so that him and Itachi didn't end up out of commission. If they're both injured and Akatsuki realizes they've been betrayed we're not going to fare so well Naruto…"

"We've got plenty of top ranking shinobi to defend Konoha. I mean if things had gone like Itachi had planned, we might not even have Sasuke back here before Madara attacked. You're a believer in fate. If something is destined to happen it will, and if not, then something will happen to prevent it."

"Naruto…" Sakura whispered, starting to tremble. He turned his gaze on her in concern. "I'm so afraid Naruto… What if we lose? What if it's all my fault for wanting something I couldn't have?" she asked, lip quivering.

"Don't cry Sakura. This is our home. We'll protect it with everything we've got," Naruto assured her.

"What if I leave Mitsuki an orphan? What if there's no one to-" Sakura was cut short when Naruto spun her to face his stern glare. He was grasping her shoulders tightly to make sure she saw the look in his eyes.

"Don't say that. Everything you've ever done was to help someone else Sakura. Even if you had an ulterior motive in wanting Itachi to come back, having him here would be an asset to the village. You can't afford to think about death, or you won't be concentrating when you need to be helping people during this battle. You don't have anything to blame yourself for," Naruto said. Sakura blinked a few times in shock before conceding to him.

"Thank you Naruto," she whispered. He held her as she wept to rid herself of her anxiety.

"It would probably be better for us to stay in Konoha. I want to be here if anything happens…" Naruto said. Naruto brought the exhausted heap that was his best friend back to her house and put her to bed. He returned to Hinata's to pick up the baby and kissed his lover. "I'm going to stay with her tonight. She's really upset and I'm worried about her," Naruto said. Hinata smiled and nodded. He returned to Sakura's and put the baby in her bed, and found Sakura looking at him with a tired expression.

"Won't Hinata be jealous?" she asked. Naruto shook his head and grinned.

"She doesn't worry. She knows you're more like my sister than the girl I used to have a crush on anyway," Naruto replied. "I'll be on the couch if you need anything," he said pointing with his thumb to the living room. She fell into a deep sleep.

"No!" she screamed. No matter how fast she ran, she felt like it was in slow motion. Itachi was to the right on his knees, bloody and bruised. Sasuke was to the left, sending his Chidori Current through his Kusanagi sword, running toward him. She was crying, and suddenly a memory flashed through her mind. Sasuke… Naruto… The Chidori and Rasengan… She was crying, yelling for them to stop, running to get in between them… Her memory faded and she skidded to a halt between them closing her eyes and spreading her arms out wide to protect Itachi. She heard Sasuke groan to try and stop, but the momentum behind the attack was too great. She smiled bitterly… Kakashi wouldn't be able to save her this time. She heard the crackle of electricity and…

"Sakura!" Naruto was shouting. She shot up out of bed with a terrified gasp. Her breathing came in frantic pants. She felt where her heart was, but there was no gaping wound or even a scratch. Mitsuki was groaning insistently, shaking her body against the frame of her crib. Naruto picked her up and put her beside Sakura who was still totally out of it. She was blinded by tears of shock. She let out whimpers of distress as she tried to focus on her surroundings. "What happened? You were screaming! I thought someone was killing you!" Naruto shouted, waving a hand in front of Sakura's unresponsive face.

"Someone was…" she whispered, staring off into space. She pulled her blankets off and walked to the bathroom. She locked herself in and turned on the cold water. She sat in the tub and cooled off under the icy spray, still in her pajamas. She stripped her soggy clothes and put a towel around her chilled body and went out to face Naruto. "There's a way to save them both. I can still be their salvation," Sakura said.

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked suspiciously. "Sakura, what did you dream about?" Sakura just smiled at him. She had made her decision the moment she'd realized she had a choice.

"I won't let all I've done be in vain," she said. Naruto felt extremely ill at ease with how she was talking. She had just told him that someone was killing her in her dream didn't she? "It's time I made a sacrifice," she whispered to herself. Naruto was too lost in his own thoughts to hear what she had said.