Disclaimer:I do not own Naruto or any of the characters. This fanfiction was made out for pure enjoyment. No money was made off of this story. Naruto and its characters are owned by Masashi Kishimoto.

Summary: Uchiha brothers are miraculously back in Konoha. Home sweet home? Not quite. Obstacles are ahead of them. With a council member determined to wipe out the Uchiha clan, it seems impossible for them to have a normal life again. With the help of two ANBU members, they just might make it possible.

Chapter 3

Truth

Miho was clad in her everyday clothes. No longer in her ANBU uniform, she wore black shorts that stopped mid-thigh along with a red off the shoulder top. A black vest was over that top that held straps and hidden pockets for weapons and what not. She wore black ninja boots that had little heels at the bottom; the heels were helpful for high jumps. Which, she needed, since she was jumping from tree to tree following Itachi.

It wasn't hard keeping up with the Uchiha. She jumped from tree limb to tree limb as if she were skipping. Itachi walked below her on the dirt road. People's eyes stared at him as they whispered rumors to each other. Without a doubt Itachi Uchiha was just as attractive as his little brother. Though his reputation striked fear into girls' hearts instead of sexual needs. Girls fanned themselves as soon as Itachi walked past them, while some hid behind their friends. Miho rolled her eyes at their reactions. He was just a man to her. The older Uchiha was well aware of her presence, and he sighed as he questioned her actions.

"I'm wasting training sessions to watch over you, might as well get as much exercise as I can," she said as she landed softly on the ground as they stood in front of a company building. Before he could walk in, she started again. "I'm going to have to watch you work."

"I know," he said simply before walking in. She smiled before walking after him. He had his own office, isolated from everyone else for more reasons than one. Miho sat down in the corner of the room as he started to record numbers into books. She crossed her legs and leaned back in her chair, gazing at him as her hand started to take notes in a scroll. It didn't require her to look down at the scroll to see what she was writing.

"I'm sorry," Itachi abruptly looked up at the girl across the room from him. He had a confused look on his face, he didn't understand why she was apologizing. She didn't do anything wrong, or, he didn't know she did or not.

"For?"

"Your clan," he cringed up at his desk. Never, he never heard an apology for what he lost in that massacre. It was always assumed he was long over it. As if it meant nothing to him. When in fact, it meant almost everything to him. Almost, because he still had Sasuke. He started to work again, writing numbers and doing mental math in his head. Miho made note of his reaction. His expression, his little movements, the way he seemed confused at first. Thinking she struck a nerve, she decided to say something about herself. "My parents died when I was young, I don't remember then that much. They died from sickness, it was incurable," she continued.

"Who took care of you?" Itachi couldn't help but ask. If she was willing to tell him, he'd take what he could get.

"No one."

. . .

Training was intense. Sasuke and Sakura were against each other, which consisted of numerous situations where it was body against body. Both had injuries from each other, but nothing too serious where it required medical attention. Bruises and cuts were normal, and weren't going to be permanent. It ended up being a tie, Kakashi called the training session to an end before the winner could even by placed. Between Naruto and Sai, it was Sai. Naruto passed out from both exhaustion and starvation. The blonde didn't eat breakfast that morning, again.

"How about we all go to Ichiraku's for lunch? Sai, carry Naruto," Kakashi suggested as the artist picked up the blonde, muttering something with the word dickless in it. They made their way to the ramen shop with Kakashi in front, reading his book. Sasuke mentally questioned how he never got tired of reading their stories. Sakura stood by him, he assumed she was watching him from the corner of her eye.

"A month and fifteen days…" Sasuke reminded himself, sighing at the thought.

"Enjoy the pinkette."

"She's nothing more than a teammate."

"You know she's more than that. She's Sakura." His thoughts were interrupted as he heard the blonde ninja yell in joy. Which meant Naruto was awake, and probably came to his senses from the smell of hot ramen.

Ichiraku expanded; it was no longer just a little booth with ramen. Due to the word getting out that they were the best ramen shop, it expanded into a full restaurant. The prices were the same, but it was just larger and more comfortable to eat there. When Team Seven were seated to their table and ordered, Sasuke and Sakura saw a sight to behold. There in the corner of the restaurant was Itachi and Miho enjoying their lunch. Sasuke was amused; he witnessed his brother laugh with the girl that sat next to him. It wasn't something he saw every day. Sakura was also astonished that Miho was giggling at the remarks Itachi was making. It genuinely looked like they were having a good time.

Naruto followed Sasuke and Sakura's gaze, his jaw dropped. He whipped his head back to Sasuke and Sakura. "Oi teme! What's your brother doing with Miho?" Sasuke looked at Naruto.

"You know Miho?"

"I introduced him to her last year," Sakura answered Sasuke's question without looking away from her cousin and Itachi. It just seemed weird to them. Sakura knew Miho wasn't the type to trust people easily. Sasuke assumed Itachi would be closed off to everyone in the village. Now, they witnessed both of their family members engage in what seemed like flirting.

. . .

"Are they still looking?"

"Yes," Miho couldn't help but laugh at Sasuke and Sakura's expression. "You think it's mean of us to play with them? They probably think we're flirting," her brown eyes skimmed his face. Itachi just smiled and chuckled.

"I see no problem with it." Miho couldn't help but blush a little bit, she turned to her ramen and started to eat it. Itachi couldn't help but think about what happened to Miho and her family. Clues were hidden, but they were there. The way Sakura and Miho didn't talk about their family, it just seemed like there was something to hide. Miho though, seemed more nonchalant about it. As if she became jaded because of what happened. Itachi didn't encounter any Harunos or Kawanos in Konoha, not even in other villages and districts.

"Perhaps Sakura is the last Haruno and Miho is the last Kawano."

. . .

"I think they're toying with us," Sakura finally said as she tore her eyes away from the sight that was across from them. In reply, Sasuke just gave a shrug. Both decided to give up on staring at them and let them have their ways. Though, they couldn't help but listen to the laughs their relatives shared. It was just so foreign to them. The sound of Miho's giggles and Itachi's laughs. It just seemed too genuine.

Miho and Itachi left earlier than Team 7. Both were side by side, Miho was shyly smiling at the ground before she looked up and walked besides him towards the Uchiha complex. Leaving Sasuke and Sakura behind. Both noticed the time, it was already around 9pm, an hour after their siblings left. Both finished dinner and decided to bid their goodnights to their friends.

"Hai. It's getting late,we'll see you later Kakashi-sensei," Sakura said with a little bow. Kakashi nodded as his goodnight. However, Naruto was still eating his food. The jinchuuriki whined and moaned before they could all depart.

"Are you kidding me! I'm only on my fourth bowl guys!" Sakura shook her head in reply, giving a "You're hopeless" look at him. Sasuke gave his signature "hn" and Sai just walked away. Kakashi already left in a cloud of smoke. Sasuke and Sakura both left the fox to his food, too tired to even bother with him. The blonde, however, did not know he had to pay for all his teammates.

"NANI!" his yell was heard throughout the whole village.

Meanwhile, Sakura laughed at Naruto's yell. They were already out of a 5 mile radius from the poor ninja. Sasuke listened to her laugh. It was probably the purest thing he's ever heard in his life. Her smile was a sight to behold to him. But as always, he would never allow himself to even utter the words out loud to her.

Striking up a conversation, Sakura asked, "The moon's beautiful tonight." Her green eyes were looking up above at it. Along with the stars that danced around it, it was just a breathtaking sight to her. Sasuke's eyes followed her's.

"It is," he averted his gaze on the girl next to him. No, rather, the woman next to him. He saw it now. The way her soft pink hair flowed down to her shoulders in little waves. The way those emerald orbs twinkled and competed with the stars in their beauty. The way her pink white skin illuminated under the full moon above them. The way her lips just begged for his attention, and how he craved to just capture them with his own. Sakura Haruno was a woman to him now, and he felt like an idiot to only realize it now. "It's…" He couldn't finish his sentence. He couldn't say how much more beautiful she was compared to the moon.

"Hm?" she looked at him with a curious expression on her face. Her eyebrows furrowed as she looked at him.

"Nothing."

It was silent the rest of the way.

. . .

They sat in the living room drinking green tea made by Itachi. Miho's eyes stayed on him as she observed her project. Feeling her brown eyes on him, he decided to let her do as she pleased. If it meant staying in total silence and her staring at him, he had no right to tell her to stop. Though, it surprised him when she started to talk. "I know you're curious about my background. As your brother is curious about my cousin's background." He looked up, crimson met with chestnut. He said nothing.

"I was passed from relative to relative. At the age of twelve I decided to stop and live on my own. What was left of my family respected my decision. That's when Sakura's parents decided to bring me into the Haruno family. They treated me like their own, Sakura's father was my mother's brother," she said setting down her teacup momentarily. "You can imagine me and Sakura became very close. Though, she started to resent me. For reasons that I can understand. It was because when I became an ANBU member at the age of seventeen, I became emotionally detached from my family. You know? More head than heart," she took a sip of her tea again.

Itachi thought about what she was telling him. Miho did seem emotionally detached to most things. He expected it, it seemed like she was a jaded kind of girl. Perhaps that's why she put up a wall, he could almost feel the thickness of that wall. She thought with her head, and not her heart. Not like Sakura.

"About a year ago, almost two I think… There was a mission. Tsunade ordered me to not go on it, same as Sakura. We had other things to tend to. Both the Kawano and Haruno clan went though. They all died," she said rather bluntly while setting down her empty teacup on the coffee table. Her brown eyes darting to the hands that were folded on her lap. "Sakura was devastated. That's when her and I started to rekindle our bond. She said she wished she was as emotionally detached as I was. She thought I didn't care, or it didn't hurt as much as she hurt her," she trailed off, "she was wrong." Miho abruptly stood up. Her eyes were watery as if they were on the verge of spilling. She took the cups that were on the coffee table and the empty teapot as well. "I'll wash them," she quickly turned around so her back faced him.

"Miho," Itachi said, but the girl was already in the kitchen. He jumped to his feet and rushed after her. As she set the teacups and pot into the sink, she heard Itachi call out her name. She turned around to face him. His crimson eyes were enough to make the tears spill. The same shade of crimson was one of the signatures of the Kawano and Haruno clan.

"I should have spent every moment with my family. And now they're gone," she got that to come out of her trembling lips. It was like she had to face the news all over again as if it were Tsunade telling her these words. Before she even contemplated what was going on, she was caught in a tight warm embrace. Her mind started to comprehend what was going on. Itachi Uchiha was holding her against him. He was hugging her.

"I'm sorry," his voice broke her of her thoughts.

"For?"

"Your clan." Miho couldn't help but laugh through the tears that were spilling. Those were the same words she told him that morning. It was like she was living a story, a déjà vu moment. She let out a sob as she buried her face in his shoulder, her small hands gripping his black shirt. Her body trembled and went into little spasms as she choked on her tears and gasped for air. It wasn't normal for her, to be crying on a stranger. But at the same time, he didn't feel like a stranger.

Itachi didn't understand why exactly he was holding the girl against him. It just seemed acceptable to do. It seemed like she was in pain, and he decided to do something about it. She gave him the feeling of being understood that morning, he felt as if he had to reciprocate what happened before. His head turned toward the direction of the door as he heard it open. The sound of someone unlocking the door and turning the knob. He was still holding Miho against him when Sasuke and Sakura saw the sight. Both had an expression of shock on their face. Sakura had the decency to immediately look away once it processed and went to her room, while it took Sasuke a few moments to do what she did.