Disclaimer: Naruto not mine. I'm just reminding you.

A/N: Hisashiburi-desu minna-san! It's me, hakujou no sakeme. Here's the edited version of Chapter 26. We finally worked the kinks out and we're currently finalizing the next chapter. Please enjoy! ^o^

Chapter 26: Tea time with the Uchihas

"Where is he??"

"Did you find him?"

"Wherefore art thou Sasuke-kun??"

"SASUKE-KUUUUUNNNNN!!!"

Fan girls searched left and right for any signs of their missing idol. The faction split into three groups: one group inside the mall, the second at the supermarket and the rest, at the parking lot. The search went on for another hour and when there was no still no sign of Sasuke, they decided to call it quits.

Sasuke breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the mob left. They were hiding behind the bushes to avoid detection from his fan club. He glanced at his partner, still shocked from the events. She didn't even hear Koichi's cooing voice, finally waking up from his slumber. Not wasting any time, he grabbed Sakura and Koichi and towed them towards the black convertible.

"Yes!" he cheered as he got the door open.

He turned to Sakura. "What're you standing there for? Hurry up and get in."

"………."

"Oi! I said get in!"

"………."

He pushed the dazed girl inside the car then took his place at the driver's seat. Putting the key into ignition, the raven-haired boy sighed in satisfaction as the engine fired up immediately. All he has to do is to wait for Itachi to get in the car and vroom back to safety. Minutes passed and there was still no sign of his brother anywhere.

Did he get mauled by the girls too?

"Stupid 'nisan! Serves him right for doing his girly stuff at a time like this!" the young man muttered under his breath.

Not long after his brother came into view, plastic bags on each hand. Sasuke rolled his eyes in annoyance when he got inside the car. "You're late."

"Tsk, tsk. I claimed our bags at the baggage counter, my uptight little brother. You caused a ruckus in the supermarket." the older Uchiha answered flippantly. His brother snorted in response and put the car in reverse.

"It wasn't my fault."

"So you say. Now drive us home."

Sasuke smirked then backtracked out of the parking lot. The trip home was quiet except for Koichi's simpering sounds. Glancing at his passengers, he saw his oh-so vain brother staring at his fingernails ands Sakura was well, bowled over. Sighing, he turned his attention back on the road when something hit him. He pulled the car to a halt.

Itachi didn't even look nor was surprised at the sudden stop. Sakura hit her head at the window. "Ow!" she exclaimed, rubbing her forehead. Koichi giggled, finding his mother in pain amusing for him.

"Nisan," he began, annoyed that his brother continued picking on his nails. "She can't stay with us."

His brother sighed. "You always come up with the good solutions. You tell us what to do."

"What?! I…nevermind," Sasuke blubbered then kept his mouth shut. Driving and arguing at the same time was not a good idea. For now, he'll just concentrate on getting back to Itachi's house.

Home was probably the safest place for them now.

Konoha Academy

In the dorms…

"Whew, I'm beat!" Naruto slumped against the sofa. Tenten placed Sachi next to him and headed for the kitchen. She opened the fridge and pulled out a baby bottle. By the time she got back, the blond lad was playing with the infant simulator. Sachi giggled, bouncing up and down on her father's lap.

"Here." Tenten said, offering the bottle. Naruto grinned, taking it and feeding their daughter.

The two sat in silence until she spoke. "I wonder how Sasuke is doing."

"Nah, who knows? Hyuuga's raging bull temper is no match for Sasuke's destructive behavior. I'm still shaking in my shoes whenever I remember that time he and Hyuuga fought," Naruto answered, still coddling Sachi.

Still fuming over the events in the grocery, the pigtailed girl sighed. Sasuke chose Neji's weak girlfriend over them. Meaning, he chose that girl over her. What did he see in her anyway? She wasn't that pretty. She has weird pink hair, pale complexion and bright green eyes.

She was nothing more but a whining bitch.

What does she have that I don't?

Sachi cooed and giggled as Naruto tickled her sides. He grinned then glanced at his partner who seemed to be preoccupied with her thoughts. He nudged her on the shoulder. "Hey, you okay? Sachi needs some motherly affection from you."

Tenten waved a hand dismissively. "She likes you more than me."

Naruto shook his head. "That's not the point." He patted Sachi's back tenderly then continued. "We're in this whole thing together. And from the looks of things you're busy thinking about something. Or someone."

The girl glared at him. He only batted his eyelashes in an innocent manner. "Don't try to fool me. You're ultimately smitten to Sasuke-chan's charm! Admit it, I know you do."

"So what if I am?" Tenten crossed her arms. "It's not like Sasuke's going to notice me anyway! I already told him what I felt and yet he chose that girl over me!"

Naruto patted her head. "I understand how you feel, T. But we promised not to mess with Sasuke's affairs. He's going to get our heads if we do it again." The baby fussed in his arms. He stood up. "I'll just put Sachi-chan in her crib."

Tenten nodded her head as he left the room.

Uchiha house

Itachi ushered Sakura inside while Sasuke parked the car. The tiny girl felt home instantly, stepping inside the house. Koichi slept soundly in her arms and was about to put him on the couch when she caught Itachi's bemused gaze. She flustered. "Um…is there something wrong, Itachi-san?"

Instead of a reply, he chuckled. "My, my, my. You couldn't possibly allow my cybernetic nephew to sleep on the couch. What if he contracts a virus?" He snatched the baby off her hands and walked towards the end of the hallway. The pink-haired girl followed him to a room and saw him putting the baby in bed.

"Now let's leave while the baby's sleeping," he whispered quietly, ushering her out of the door.

"Anou, Itachi-san. Koichi is not Sasuke-san's child. He's an infant simulator who can recognize his parents by means of their voices. The only voices he responds to are mine and Suke-san's," Sakura told Itachi as they head back to the living room.

"Okay. So can you explain to me why the baby responds to my brother's voice?" Itachi asked plaintively.

"I…I thought the baby was programmed to instantly recognize his parents' voices by means of their voices and touch. I have no idea why," she answered quietly.

Like him, she was also confused. The supermarket incident didn't help either. Worse, he couldn't demand explanation from Sasuke right now. He seemed ticked off from being called "Daddy" by a robotic infant and saving her from Neji's fury. Stepping on his territory was a big no-no. His friends didn't even dare to stop them from getting at each other's throats.

Was the overly popular Uchiha Sasuke actually on equal footing with Hyuuga Neji?

She blinked when she felt Itachi's hand on her shoulder. "Come, you must be very hungry. I apologize for what my brother had done this time. He didn't mean to take you away from your boyfriend. It's just that he knows more about Neji-kun's homicidal tendencies than you seem to think," he explained.

Sakura nodded. She was still baffled but she chose not to ask.

The front door opened and Sasuke went inside. He caught the two staring bizarrely at him.

"What?" he asked.

Itachi smirked. "Sakura-san and I are hungry. Go and make dinner."

His brother glared at him. "M-me? But I just drove you guys home!"

"But your cooking tastes way better than mine."

Fuming, Sasuke headed for the kitchen. Sakura sat down on the sofa, relieved of not seeing his irritated expression. Itachi also went to the kitchen and came back with steaming mugs of hot tea. "Here, I'm not sure if you're a fan of this. It's tea." The pink-haired girl accepted the mug with heartfelt thanks. He seated himself next to her and sipped his drink.

She stared at the pale bland liquid. The soothing aroma of the tea filled her nostrils. She sipped her drink and her eyes widened. The tea was warm and delicious!

'Wow, Itachi-san sure knows the right amount of sweetness. This is no ordinary tea! Its milk tea with a splash of honey!' she gushed. Milk tea was her favorite drink in the whole wide world! The girl happily sipped her drink, letting the liquid burn her tongue.

Amused at her reactions, Itachi chuckled. "So, how's the tea?"

Kami-sama, she was close to tears because of the taste. "Yes! I love it. Milk tea with honey is my favorite!"

He chuckled. "Wow. I thought it was just my imagination. Good thing you like milk tea. At first I didn't like the taste but after putting a dollop of honey and a few drops of mint, it's actually quite good."

Sakura gulped on her tea. "R-really? But it's delicious. It has the right amount of sweetness."

"Yeah, but I'm not the one who's the expert in tea making." Itachi winked.

Her eyes grew twice as their normal sizes. She almost dropped the mug on the floor. "Y-You mean to say…the one who made this tea is…"

Itachi finished his tea. "Sasuke."

She gaped. "H-How? That's so unlike him!"

He chuckled. "I understand. I guess you still don't know him that well. After all, the two of you just met. And according to him, he would wind up in weird situations whenever he's with you."

"I…I have no idea. It just happens. Whenever Sasuke-san and I meet, he's always in a bad mood. Most likely because I was the one who caused problems between him and Neji-kun," she blushed.

"I see. And you don't know the reason is, right?"

"Yes."

He was enjoying his time tarnishing his brother's reputation.

"Do you want to know why?" he asked slyly.

Sakura blushed.

He gave her a cocky smile. "Guess not. Wait here, I'll just see how our chef's doing."

"Umm…okay."

In the kitchen…

'Hmm…good,' Sasuke thought, as he tasted his dish. He turned off the stove and removed the pot. Itachi entered the kitchen and gave a whiff. "That smells great. Sukiyaki?" he asked.

"Yup," his brother answered, ladling the soup into three bowls. Itachi tried to sneak a taste on the soup when his hand got smacked by a ladle. "Stop that! If you wanna eat now then set the table. I don't want your grubby hands touching my dish!" Sasuke exclaimed, moving the bowl away from his brother's hands.

Itachi rubbed his sore hand. He then went to the cupboard and took out plates and utensils. Setting the table, he gave Sasuke a knowing look. "You gave the poor girl quite a scare this afternoon. She thought the rift between you and Neji was her entire fault."

The lad stiffened as he put rice on bowls. "I don't know what she's talking about."

"Oh, I don't know. Why take her home with us when you can simply drop her off at school? Her husband must really be worried sick about her." Itachi mused. He smirked as he heard a ker-plunk!

Sasuke literally dumped the empty pot in the sink. "Have you lost your mind? Drop her off at school? Husband worrying about her?!! Hello, I'M HER HUSBAND!" When he saw Itachi's eyes widen, he coughed then added, "Ehrm…I mean, husband on that school project."

His brother laughed out loud. "You're sooo cute, Sasuke-chan. For a moment there, I thought you were a lovesick Romeo pining for his Juliet. Fine, she's your wife for your school project. Regardless of the fact, YOU married her during your school festival. And I have solid proof of that marriage in my computer."

He threw the ladle at his brother's direction.

Itachi avoided it easily. "You're such a sourpuss. Sakura-san will not like you any longer if you continue on being one."

Sasuke crossed his arms and stuck his tongue.

7:00 PM

The soft tick-tock of the clock caused Sakura to wake up. "W-What happened?" She looked around and realized that she slept on the sofa. Hugging a throw pillow, she mumbled. "Mmm…this is so nice. I want to stay like this for a long time."

"Mammmeee!" A small voice whined, breaking up the silence.

She was still trapped in her own dreamland. "Nnh…what's that voice? It sounds like Koiichi-kun…"

Her eyes snapped wide open. "KOICHI-KUN!" She then rushed to the room to where the baby is.

Sure enough, Koichi was there. He was lying on his back on the bed. He wiggled his tiny arms and legs, as he heard his mother's voice. Sakura smiled, picking Koichi up and nuzzling his cheek. "My poor widdle baby. Did you miss Mommy? I'm sure you did!" The simulator answered her with a high-pitched squeal.

Cuddling Koichi, she paced around the room. "I'm relieved to see you're okay, Koichi-kun but I wonder how daddy is doing. We have to call him after dinner so he wouldn't get worried." She looked around the room and sighed. It was definitely a boy's room. Everything from the navy blue wallpaper and the furniture was spic and span.

"Itachi-san sure is a neat person. Everything is in their proper place," she mused.

But before she could gather her thoughts, the door opened. "Oh! Itachi-san! I'm sorry to barge in but I can't help but look in your room. It's so clean!" Upon saying it, she turned around to face him.

Her jaw dropped and her cheeks turned into deeper shades of red.

And Koichi-kun made happy and loud squeaky noises.

Which wasn't helping her at all.

Uh-oh.

Wrong person.

…………

Itachi is grinning from ear-to-ear.

'Now this was nice', he mused as he stared at the two people sitting across the table. Sipping his tea, he gave Sakura a small smile. "Are you all right, Sakura-san? You look so uptight." He glanced at his younger brother who was eating in a hurry.

"Is my dear brother bothering you?" he asked.

Sasuke choked on his food and Sakura shook her head. "Uhm…no, not really."

The older Uchiha sighed as he picked salmon with his chopsticks. "I see. And here I thought he was glaring at you to death." He put one in his mouth and chewed. "Ototou, that sashimi will not turn to mush even if you glare at it."

The tensed boy averted his gaze. He gave him a dark look. "May I ask why I have to stay the night HERE? More importantly," he added with annoyance laced in his tone. "Why does SHE have to stay TOO?"

Itachi rolled his eyes. "You told us yourself. She IS your wife. And should a husband abandon his wife especially at a time like this?"

"I'm not her husband!" Sasuke fired back.

Sakura bit her lower lip.

Sensing her discomfort, Itachi waved a hand dismissively. "Sasuke. As a full-bloodied male, you should be able to do this task without having me wring your neck."

"But…"

"No buts. It's already decided. Now finish eating and don't forget to wash the dishes."

Sasuke didn't say anything. He resumed eating.

After listening to the entire conversation, Sakura chose not to interfere. She was a burden to them---to Sasuke's case. And now, Itachi's decision had caused another gap between the two of them. She quickly finished her meal and darted back to Sasuke's room.

Koichi might be in need of a diaper change.

9:30 PM

Koichi slept fitfully this time.

Sakura sighed in relief that she didn't need to change his diaper. Tossing the unused diaper back in the bag, she looked at the clock in the bedside table. "30 minutes before 10. I wonder if Suke-san is sleeping right now," she mused. Flipping her cell phone, she dialed Suke's number then placed it next to her ear. Ringing sounds could be heard from the other line and after the 10th ring, the pink-haired girl hung up.

"Not answering? He must've gone to bed early," she mused. She glanced at Koichi and smiled. 'This is a perfect chance for me to go exploring,' she thought playfully. She tiptoed from the bed and quietly went out of the room.

…………

10 missed calls.

Sasuke sighed, slipping his phone back in his pocket. He needs to focus his attention in doing his duty---that is, washing the dishes. He plopped the dishes in the sink after scrubbing them. After rinsing them dry, he stacked them neatly inside the cupboard. Then again, thoughts of the previous call plagued his mind.

'Why in the hell would she call me at this time?' he thought.

Giving her his cell number was a wrong move. The only reason he gave her that was because they need to communicate with each other for their school project. "That dumb brother of mine! If he thinks he's getting his way this time, I'll make sure that he had another one coming!" he grumbled, closing the cupboard.

Finally, he was done. He was now wiping the sink when he heard footsteps. Shrugging his shoulders in a casual manner, he resumed wiping the counter.

"Sasuke-san?"

His eyebrow shot up, seeing Sakura in the kitchen. "What the hell are you doing here in the kitchen Haruno?"

The girl squeaked. "I-I'm sorry, Sasuke-san! I didn't mean to startle you. I was just looking around."

He didn't say a word. Once again, the uncomfortable feeling nagged his brain. The girl stirred up memories of their past encounter. Cursing, he turned his attention to his work. Sakura just looked at him. Silence filled the room which unfortunately, was bad for Sasuke's taste.

He decided to break the silence.

"Something on your mind, Haruno?" he asked.

She yelped in surprise and bumped her arm against the table. "Uh…it's nothing! I was just…"

"Big deal. If there's something that you wanted to say, say it right now," he retorted as he tossed the rag on the sink.

The girl fidgeted nervously under his gaze. Finally, she looked at him. "Anou, Sasuke-san…"

"What?" he asked.

Her green eyes were shining, as though she discovered something big about him. "Sasuke-san, I was wondering…" she began, her voice laced with curiosity.

He shifted to one side. "What is it?"

She smiled, closing the distance between the two of them. "I just wanted to say…"

Kami-sama, she's gonna kill him. "Say what?"

She squealed in delight. "I just wanted to say that I love the milk tea you made earlier! It was the best tea I had ever tasted!"

There was a long silence or rather; a heavy curtain of depression fell above their heads. Sasuke's heart didn't skip a beat. Yet, he sighed in relief. She made no mention of suspicions about his alter ego or whatsoever. The suspense was going to kill him someday. Despite the suspense and the near-heart attack, a tiniest hint of a smile made its way across his face.

Itachi was right.

She was a fascinating girl.

And she likes milk tea.

"Do you want a cup of milk tea?" he asked her.

Her eyes went wide. She bobbed her head up and down in excitement. "Yes!"

He smirked. "Okay."

Meanwhile…

Itachi went back to Sasuke's room to check up on his ward, only to find out that she wasn't there.

'I wonder where she went. I'll just put the PJ's here,' he said to himself, placing the clothes on the bedside table.

He saw Koichi sleeping peacefully on the bed. The infant simulator was life-like with its small chubby fingers and cute round face. To think the principal would draw funds for a high-class technology such as this in Home Economics, what an amazing improvement.

"Unbelievable. Before, we used flour sacks to act as babies. If we drop even a single speck of flour, we get a D. Hmm…I wonder if…" he trailed off as he continued watching the baby.

Suddenly, an idea hit him.

………….

"How is it?"

"Mm-mm! It's delicious!"

"……….."

"Is something wrong, Sasuke-san?"

"Er, nothing."

The two of them were hanging out in the kitchen drinking milk tea. Sakura happily sipped her drink while Sasuke enjoyed his own cup. The milky sweet aroma wafted throughout the room and it gave a sense of utter satisfaction. To Sakura at least, who seemed to be content with just a simple cup of tea.

She stared at the Uchiha who drank the concoction as if it was water. He caught her staring at him.

She giggled.

He glared. "What are you snickering at?"

"Um…it's nothing! It's just you looked so funny earlier."

Sasuke crossed his arms as he continued to glare at her. "It's not something you have to laugh about."

"I'm sorry," she apologized ruefully.

Instead of getting annoyed, he sighed. He raised a hand then patted Sakura on the head. The pink-haired girl blushed. Amused, he cocked his head to one side. "You know, you're pretty weird for a girl."

Now that was unexpected. "I-I'm weird?"

Sasuke raised a hand dismissively. "No need for an explanation. You're weird."

Her jade eyes widened. "Weh? That's not fair! Why not???"

He flicked her on the forehead. "Simple. It's because you're weird."

"Eh! That's mean! You're so mean, Sasuke-san!" She stuck her tongue at him.

He smirked as he watched her fume in irritation. It was sooo nice to get back at her for a change. Seeing her cheeks puffed out like a balloon…it was a funny sight. It makes him want to poke her cheeks with a needle and watch her shrivel like a stalk. That'll make her even prettier.

Wait a sec…prettier?

Sasuke blinked and looked at Sakura again. She was still pouting like a sour tomato.

Weird… and yet attractive.

What the hell?

He blinked again. Since when did she look so pretty? Her puffy cheeks and that pouting expression…oh man, it's supposed to be funny. But in some cases…it really made her attractive. Well, to him. He has no idea what Neji saw in her. She was annoying, she did nothing but cause him trouble.

But he couldn't blame her. It wasn't her fault.

Though that puffy cheek thing looked tempting, he couldn't resist touching it.

"Wait! Wha…?" Sakura exclaimed as Sasuke placed his palms on either side of her cheeks. The air whooshed out of her mouth. "W-Wait…what is going on? This isn't the reason I'm looking for!" she blurted out, her arms flailing wildly in the air.

"Be quiet, Haruno."

"But…!"

"I said be quiet! Geez, don't make me repeat myself!" Okay, now he's annoyed. She's the only girl who really brought out the worst in him. At least Tenten knows when to step out of his way whenever he's angry. The attraction he felt earlier was quickly replaced with growing irritation. Seriously, this girl can disperse a good atmosphere in less than a second.

But, she's still cute.

Yeah.

Cute.

WTF?

Am I having a nightmare?

He pinched her cheeks.

Hard.

"OWWWW!!!!!" Sakura yelped in pain. "That hurt!!!"

Sasuke immediately released her cheeks.

She put her hands up her face. He blinked then realized that it wasn't a dream. He was getting attracted to her and that was scary. He brought his hands to her face again. She looked up at him and he leaned down.

Closer….and closer….

"SASUKE!!!!!!!"

They both jumped in surprise as they saw Itachi burst inside the room. The older Uchiha was panting heavily, his eyes huge. In his arms, Koichi was giggling. Sasuke raised a brow. "Is there a problem, 'nisan?"

Itachi tensed. "Um…yeah. Actually, you guys would need to sit down because you're not gonna like it…"

"Just spill it 'nisan." Sasuke rolled his eyes. His day was already ruined; surely this one wouldn't even shake his wits off. Sakura on the other hand was suspicious. What did Itachi-san meant by they're not going to like it?

To answer her question, the baby squealed happily. Well there's nothing new about that. Koichi's still being his usual self…

"Dadeeee!!!!"

Both teens stared wildly at the Koichi who seemed to have sprouted a new head. Sasuke didn't move, actually couldn't move at all. What the heck was going on? Infant simulators were supposed to be programmed to respond by their parent's voices and touch. But this one was different! He turned to Sakura, only to find her passed out on the floor. Muttering curses under his breath, he bent down and scooped her off the floor. Itachi was still holding the baby who was beginning to become annoying by the second.

"Dadeee!!! Dadeeee!!! Dadeeee!!!"

The pink-haired girl woke up to find herself in Sasuke's arms. She looked at her surroundings and saw her baby. She smiled but it was gone the moment Koichi waved and yelled the words "Daddeeee!!! Dadeee!!!" H-How was that possible? Suke-san is supposed to be Koichi-kun's daddy! How come Koichi-kun called Sasuke-san and Itachi-san his daddies?

Does that mean…she cheated on Suke-san????

NOOOOOOOO!

Sasuke felt Sakura's body give way and looked down to see her unconscious again. He sweatdropped.

'This is going to be one heck of a night….'

A/N: And there you have it! I'm very sorry for the late posting! Lots of catching up to do with school and stuff. Please don't kill me!!! Ehem, anyways time for the next question! We missed giving you guys questions at the end of the chapter so now, here we go!

"What will happen to Koichi?"

a. He'll get dismantled.

b. He'll get fixed.

c. He'll spill the beans about Sasuke's identity.

B/N: Stay tuned for our next chapter! Ja ne! minna-san! ^o^