Master of the House


Sasuke is more amused than worried when childish offerings begin to clutter their doorstep, all addressed to Sarada.

It begins with drooping bunches of gray-brown weeds, charmingly ugly crayon portraits, then even a half-emptied pouch of half-melted candies. Perhaps a different little girl could be swayed by such abundant tributes, but the Uchiha blood flows thick in Sarada's small veins. She simply frowns and steps over the growing pile of annoyances, until it finally grows so large that she must step around it. Seeing this, Sakura remembers her own childhood pursuits all too well and sternly orders Sarada to be gracious and write thank-you letters for each of the offending gifts, lest she suffer the eternal shame of ending up married to someone she has rudely snubbed…again, and again, and again.

Sasuke responds to the jibe with a derisive "tch," and a smirk, too pleased with the outcome of his own love life to be appropriately remorseful. And when this sends Sakura into a pleasantly dangerous fit of rage, he catches Sarada's eye and glances pointedly at the door. Ever quick on the uptake, his daughter takes full advantage of the distraction and wastes no time escaping the threat of endless thank-you notes. When he is certain Sarada is safely headed far, far away, Sasuke takes one for the team and lets his wife have her [very sexy] way with him.

Later, Sasuke wonders if it is bad that Sarada knows she has his tacit approval to do whatever she pleases. It is, after all, a very sharp contrast from his own childhood, where his father had only ever expressed his eternal disapproval. But later in the afternoon when Sarada's unwanted mountain falls victim to the most glorious katon she has ever produced, he can barely hide his smile. He pokes her forehead and somehow neglects to mention the incident to Sakura.

That evening, Sarada clambers onto his lap unsolicited and gives him a big, grateful kiss on the cheek before she wanders off to go sharpen her kunai.

For the moment, Sasuke is the #1 man in the lives of not one, but two lovely Uchiha ladies, and it feels damn good.


A/N: Who do you think rules the Uchiha household? Despite what Sasuke thinks, my money's actually on Sakura ^_~