The Uchiha Fraud
Chapter Fourteen

"You know," Naruto started, breaking the silence. "I always knew you were a jerk - an UGLY one, at that, but never a liar."

"And I always knew you were deaf," Sasuke shot back. "For the hundredth time, we don't need unnecessary distractions."

"How is Sakura-chan a distraction?" the blonde retorted. "YOU'RE the one who got her into this mess. Maybe not DIRECTLY, but you totally did." He paused, then added, "Idiot."

Sasuke ignored him, choosing instead to tap his fingers against the armchair - deep in thought.

To think that Suigetsu would openly come back and show his face again at the manor. Didn't he tell that bastard to never come back? And how was it possible that he managed to sneak past Kiba and Shino? The pair was notorious for their surveillance. But then again, Suigetsu had an interesting background... and they worked alongside each other for so long.

Of course he would have known the ins and outs of the compound.

If Sasuke had a choice, he would not have hired anyone - bodyguard or not - due to the potential risk of THIS incident happening. Apparently he wasn't as intelligent as he thought if he managed to make the same mistake twice by hiring some random woman through Naruto... and getting into this horrible mess. Of course, going back to the sole reason why Sakura was needed in the first place made Sasuke want to punch himself in the face.

Hard.

But of course, Sasuke suspected that Suigetsu would be unfaithful to him... Karin's infidelity was just salt on the wound.

A thought suddenly occurred to him...

Suigetsu's file.

Sasuke pulled open his drawer, flipping through the various tabs, though the manila folder marked 'Hozuki Suigetsu' was nowhere to be found. He sat still for a moment, closing his eyes and tried to remember the last time that he had the folder. It was sitting on top of his desk - opened... then he was called in for a meeting and left the room with—

"Do you have Suigetsu's file?" Sasuke demanded, scaring Naruto who was absent-mindedly balancing a pencil on top of his lips.

"Wha? Why would I have it?"

"Because I left it on my desk," Sasuke replied, gritting his teeth.

"I don't get it..." Naruto said slowly, rubbing his chin. "Why would I know where it is?"

"Because I was running late for a meeting," he explained impatiently, "And I left the room with the folder open... on the table. In the room. With you."

"Well how the hell am I supposed to remember?!" the blonde snorted, crossing his arms in a huff. "This was probably like ages ago."

"This was five months ago when I was contemplating on burning it."

"Not my proble—"

"Do you remember or not?" Sasuke interrupted, feeling the need to bash his friend's head.

"No..."

"Great," Sasuke said sarcastically, "you've been a wonderful waste of time."

"Well this is your own damn fault for being irresponsible!"

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Hmm... Naruto thought, eyeing Sasuke from his peripheral vision, open folder on a desk. As smart as Sasuke seemed to be, how the hell was he supposed to remember what he was doing five months ago?! Well, five months ago he remembered eating a new brand of instant ramen... oh yeah! It was in the bastard's office.

There was menma in the package... gross. And there was this special seasoning... Jerk was complaining - as usual - about the smell staining his cushions. Oh! He was sitting with a folder... the first bite of the ramen was the best, though it tasted a little weird at first. Bastard got a call - interrupted his lunch - and made his way out of the office after telling him not to touch anything. Especially the folder.

The folder!

Naruto finally remembered.

"Hey! I remember now," he said excitedly. "I went to sit on your desk because my hand was getting tired of holding the bowl up then I accidentally spilled my noodles... on your..." Naruto's eyes widened after remember perfectly what happened. "Folder."

Well, shit.

Sasuke didn't know whether or not he should be grateful or furious.

"Well?"

Naruto let out a nervous laugh.

"I tried to dry it off with a napkin but the papers soaked up too much water," Naruto replied, avoiding eye contact. "So... I panicked and stuffed it into the trash."

Sasuke froze.

"You... threw it away?"

"Uh, yeah."

"You do realize," Sasuke started, clenching his fists, "that those were confidential and important, right?"

"I panicked..." Naruto half-whined. "What else was I supposed to do?"

"NOT trash it?"

"You were going to kill me..."

"And you think that I won't do it now?"

Spending time with Mikoto was a bittersweet affair.

Although Sasuke and Naruto refused to leave the office, the two managed to go out and spend Mikoto's last few hours in Japan at a restaurant that she especially enjoyed. But of course, the woman never ceased to surprised Sakura. After their "Dinner Date," her mother-in-law grabbed the luggage from the trunk of the limousine and took off on the next flight to America. Sakura was disappointed that Sasuke wasn't there to see his mother off... who knows when the next time Mikoto was able to visit.

And now... here she was, sitting alone inside their shared bedroom - wondering what the hell she was supposed to do about the camera incident.

The whole charade was supposed to be temporary, but now she was going to be permanently stuck playing a role that she didn't want to be apart of. Yes, Sasuke was a handsome man... more than handsome, really. Absolutely gorgeous. But she didn't belong in this superficial world, to put it simply. She had ambitions of being a doctor, of doing extraordinary things in her life. And yet, the moment that was labeled 'Uchiha Sakura' officially, all her credibility will be burned to ashes.

Sakura groaned, letting herself fall back as she stared aimlessly at the ceiling.

Was that the only reason why she was worried about the fake marriage being revealed to the public?

"I just wanted a normal life," Sakura said to herself quietly, reaching up to grasp at air. "But of course, money led me to my doom."

If she had anything to be grateful about, it was the fact that she had met such a wonderful person like Mikoto. She lacked a mother-figure in her life so it was... comforting, to say the least. And then there was her son—

Who may or may not have feelings for her.

But how did she feel about all of this?

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"Ah, get a grip, Sakura..."

There was no time to think about Sasuke or anyone's feelings... not while Suigetsu was in the picture. There was a nagging feeling in her gut that told her that Sasuke wasn't being completely honest with her about his former bodyguard. It seemed random and unlikely that the guy would just show up due to his ex-girlfriend who he hasn't seen or heard from in months. But the question is... what exactly is he trying to cover up?

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There was only one way to find out.

"Good thing Shikamaru is a technical genius," Naruto joked, wincing a bit due to the painful feeling in his stomach. "Don't see why you had to punch me, though. Didn't know you were such a savage."

"You needed to learn a lesson," Sasuke replied, scrolling through the information on his laptop.

High school education... Irrelevant.

College...

Unknown.

"You know what I was just thinking?" Naruto asked, folding his arms behind his head. "Menma is worse than vegetab—"

There.

"Otogakure," Sasuke interrupted.

"Hey..." Naruto's eyes widened. "Isn't that the same place where..."

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"Orochimaru."

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"So it wasn't Karin, after all?"

Naruto sat up quickly.

"Sakura-chan!"

She ignored him, opting to look at Sasuke instead, though his eyes remained glued to the screen.

"No," Sasuke finally said. "He found a job at Otogakure after I fired him."

Sakura sighed inwardly, relieved that he wasn't intending to keep secrets.

"But who's Orochimaru?"

There was a pause.

"You see..." Naruto chuckled nervously, looking at Sasuke for permission. He must have received a nod of approval because the blonde continued. "There was a... problem almost five years ago with the bastard's company."

"And Orochimaru?" Sakura asked, getting impatient.

"Helped me," Sasuke reluctantly answered.

"Well, more like the bastard took what he needed and left."

"He made me an offer and I refused," Sasuke correct, glaring at Naruto. "There's a difference."

"Whatever," Naruto said, waving his hand. "The snake didn't take it well though."

"Obviously not," the Uchiha heir said sarcastically.

"So... now what?" Sakura pressed. "He's using your old bodyguard to get under your skin?"

"That's not it."

There was something more to it... but he just couldn't put his finger on it.

It was strange, because why would Suigetsu be involved?

What was Orochimaru propositioning... and was Karin part of this, too?

Sasuke tensed.

"How long ago since Suigetsu was first employed?"

"Hmm... this was back in October," Naruto thought out loud. "It was the same year that I met Hinata, which was... oh! Three years ago!"

"But if the incident was five years ago, and you employed Suigetsu three years ago..." Sakura said slowly.

That bastard had been trying to sink his claws in since three years ago.

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And Karin was only the beginning.

Author's Note: Can't believe that it's been a year since I've last updated... oops. But, I'm back! I know this chapter is extremely short especially considering that it's been a while, but please bear with me. Thank you for being so patient and continuing to stick with me despite my sporadic updates. It really means a lot!

Hope you enjoyed the chapter!