A/N: Hey look I updated a little earlier! And because I love my readers so much even though I'm sick with hypotension I present you the next chapter. And I did it through my phone again; I'm super sneaky I should be a kunoichi! (Hey that rhymes!) xD

And for all who wants some SakuSasu fluff, here it its.

And because some are confuse, I labeled the alternate characters. And as you might notice the alternate Sasuke calls the alternate Sakura as Sakura-chan. While Sakura calls Sasuke, Sasuke-kun.

I should shut up now and take a rest. I'm feeling wuzzy again, something about not having enough blood. Blahhh.

Chapter IV

It was a silent walk towards the compound. The streets were dimly lighted by the street lights. It was already past five when they got out of the tower. They avoided contact with other shinobis or civilians easily since the district was pretty much deserted.

Seeing it was dinner already and the four were emotionally exhausted, Naruto offered to buy some take outs, ramen of course, while Kakashi excused himself for a meeting he needed to attend.

The Uchiha Compound was not shy in its glory. It stood proud despite its age. Entering the compound made one feel intimidated and inferior.

"Why is the compound so dark and gloomy looking?" alternate Sasuke asked his other self. In the other world the compound was brightly lighted (maybe because he threw too many parties) and had a home-y feel to it.

"Hn." Sasuke ignored him. Sakura however gave the alternate Sasuke a small smile. Alternate Sakura did not even pay any attention.

"Are okaa-san and otou-san home?" alternate Sasuke asked innocently while looking over some empty rooms.

Sasuke stopped momentarily. He turned his head over his shoulder. It was hard answering your own curious self. But it was Sakura who answered for him as she placed her hand over Sasuke's shoulder.

"Sasuke uhmm.. He's.. I mean in this world Sasuke-kun's parents and the rest of his family are.. dead.." Sakura gave a comforting smile at the shocked Sasuke and even the alternate Sakura showed some respect. She gave a low bow at Sasuke and smiled a little to the still-shocked alternate Sasuke.

No one dared to ask how or why. It wasn't the right time.

It made sense though, why would the Hokage risk them if there were people in the Uchiha mansion.

"You two can stay together in this room." Sasuke said to the alternate Sakuras and Sasukes. Some of the rooms can not be used. Only the main wing was used. Sasuke did not feel the need to renovate the place entirely.

"I'll bring some extra clothes for you." Sasuke turned to his alternate self. The other Sasuke was already checking the room out.

"And I'll get some for you after you guys settle in." Sakura said to her alternate self too. Alternate Sakura gave a small nod.

"You should take some shower and rest. You haven't slept at all. We'll call you as soon as Naruto is back." Sakura advised them. They were really tired. A good long shower sounds so great right now.

"There's one in your room. There's another bathroom just down the hallway. I'm sure you know where it is. Spare towels are found inside the cabinet." Sasuke said to his other self who gave a thumb up. Sasuke fought the urge to roll his eyes.

"I'll see you guys later. Ja ne!" Sakura waved goodbye as she head out of the compound.

After seeing Sakura left and making sure the two parallel characters were comfortable, Sasuke walked towards his own room. He was also tired and the thoughts that the family he never had a chance to grow up with were very much alive somewhere were consuming his mind. He needed a long shower.

Xxx

By the time Sakura returned to the Uchiha Compound, everyone was busy eating ramens. She took a while to get back, having to pack some clothes and getting a long shower for her as well.

"Neh Sakura-chan you're here! Me and Sasuke, not Sasuke-teme, here were talking about the other world!" Naruto explained as he jumped out of his place. He seemed to be excited as he pulled Sakura to the seat beside him.

"Dobe." Sasuke uttered under his breath as he watched Naruto dragged Sakura. But the sight made his heart grow lighter. He would never admit how comforting it was to have his closest friends beside him.

Alternate Sakura looked over Sasuke who was muttering something under his breath and could not help but smile a little. She knew how hyper alternate Sasuke could be and Naruto, in this world, was equally active. She suddenly missed the shy blonde. But more so, because she can seem to sympathize with Sasuke. It was hard leaving alone and even though she won't admit it, just like Sasuke, it was nice having some friends over. No matter how loud and obnoxious they could get.

"CAN YOU BELIEVE IT SAKURA-CHAN! HINATA-CHAN IS IN LOVE WITH ME AT THE OTHER SIDE!" Naruto rejoiced. He was jumping excitedly on his seat momentarily forgetting the ramen in front of him.

"I don't think that's far from reality here Naruto." Sakura winked at him but the blonde did not seem to get it. Sakura gave a healthy laugh over Naruto's obliviousness and soon enough alternate Sasuke joined in too after getting what she meant. Alternate Sakura settled for a small knowing smile while Sasuke remarked on how much an idiot Naruto was.

"I can't believe Naruto's actually quiet in the other world." Sakura wondered how different the other world could be. A shy Naruto actually exist? That was one thing she would never get over with. She was amazed that there was a world where they existed in the exact opposite. What do they have there? How is everyone there?

They talked about some of their friends. Sakura and Naruto were laughing when alternate Sasuke told them how he was surprised to see a lazy side of the Hokage and how big her assets were. He didn't say a word back then knowing Tsunade might kill him. He didn't want his pretty face being beaten up again.

Alternate Sakura joined in the conversation too when she asked Ino's preference in clothing. Sakura and Naruto got their mouth gaping open when she told them that Ino was a demure lady in the other world. Alternate Sakura never thought that the day would come when Ino would be wearing clothes that left so little to the imagination.

Sasuke remained quiet in his seat. He would sometimes comment on Naruto's actions. Other times he was twitching from embarrassment when his other self was completely making a fool of himself.

"Neh.. This is a weird question but what is Sakura-chan like? I mean how are you like?" Naruto turned to the alternate Sakura. He noticed that she was silent; giving only few comments and smiled a few times.

Alternate Sakura did not know how to answer. She felt all eyes on her as she started to speak.

"Well.. I'm mostly known as the hero's daughter. My father and mother saved the village from an attack of the Kyuubi.." she stated. She saw Naruto's eyes filled with questions but decided to continue.

"However they did not exactly stopped the Kyuubi. They merely forced the Kyuubi out of the village. They then formed a seal in the entire village that will prevent any more attacks from the Kyuubi. They died creating that seal of enormous power. They used up every ounce of their chakra and life force.." she narrated, her eyes starting to show tears. She felt alternate Sasuke's hand on her shoulder. He gave her a light smile.

"Growing up was hard. A lot was expected from me. The council wanted to fully exterminate the Kyuubi and they felt that I'm the one who should be responsible for it seeing that my parents only did half the job. I went through a lot of pressure. I trained until I became strong enough. I'm not stupid my strength can't take on the kyuubi. I earned a lot of negative comments from the council. I'm still learning but I never felt like I caught up with them.." Sakura ended her story, not wanting to continue any further. Alternate Sasuke was still patting her back but alternate Sakura's tears did not fall. She merely gave him a weak smile.

"We grew up differently but I know how she's feeling. I know how much it hurts trying to prove yourself and still ending up short..We're not so different at all.." Sakura thought to herself as she looked at her alternate self. She wasn't from a prominent family but she knew very well the feeling of trying to keep up with her powerful teammates. She then looked over Naruto and Sasuke. "I'm the deadlast.." she frowned.

"Hey.. Hey.. You'll always be the best to me Sakura-chan." alternate Sasuke said, his words caring and soothing. He smiled that sweet smile of his that makes anyone's heart melt.

"That's right. The two of you" Naruto looked at the two Sakuras "are the best kunoichis ever!" he said while slurping on his ramen. "I bet both of you.." this time he turned to the two Sasukes "thinks the same way too!" he looked at them for some sort of confirmation.

"Of course both Sakura-chan are the best!" alternate Sasuke quickly responded giving the two Sakuras a big hug.

"And you teme? Don't you think they're the best?" Naruto looked over Sasuke. He was smirking like there was an underlying message between his questions.

"Aa." Sasuke responded rather boredly.

"You're no fun teme." Naruto answered his best friend. He could not help but to compare the two Sasukes. They were very much different in all the possible ways. The other Sasuke was talkative and enthusiastic. The teme was well teme. Naruto could not help but want to know on what areas where they similar. Tsunade did say they would share some common grounds.

"Hey Sasuke, what is your life like?" Naruto asked to the alternate Sasuke. He was really curious.

"Well I pretty much live a normal life, in shinobi standard of course. Obviously, I'm from the Uchiha clan. We head the police force, otou-san being the head chief. My nii-san decided to join the Akatsuki, a group of mercenaries under the Hokage.." Sasuke told them cheerfully. Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke had to keep in mind that things were opposite but found it still shocking hearing that Akatsuki worked hand in hand with Konoha. "Being the youngest, I'm mostly the spoiled brat. My nii-san and I are pretty close too. He trained me when I was younger so I learned a lot of moves from him. Sakura-chan was trained by Tsunade, I was trained by Orochimaru and Naruto was trained by Jiraiya. We're called the Sannins' Disciples back home." he said with pride. He noticed that his other self was very edgy. He somehow knew that although his other self kept a cool facade, he could tell something's troubling his mind. "But I had some troubles too. I'm always trying to excel and somehow pass my nii-san but failed a lot of times. My parents didn't pressure me nor did Itachi, I was the one who put the burden to myself..." the listeners could tell the sudden drop in his voice as he continued his story. "I failed every time until I finally quit trying. I got into girls and became alcoholic and I did not took missions for a long time. The Uchiha clan was planning on disowning me even. There was a time that I was tempted to just quit being a shinobi altogether.." he sucked some air to breathe. "But my family, friends, team 7 especially Naruto..." he looked over to the alternate Sakura. "and Sakura-chan did not give up on me. I knew I wanted to be a shinobi again when I protected Sakura-chan from a surprise attack. I almost died but Sakura-chan saved me... And it hit me how rewarding it was to save someone's life, to extend your service, to live as a shinobi.. I got what Itachi was always trying to say to me, he said that to prove yourself as a true shinobi you are willing to protect the ones you love.." alternate Sasuke finished looking at the alternate Sakura. He saw her gave him that rare genuine smile of hers. He really liked it when she smiled like that.

"Sniff... That was so touching.. Why can't Sasuke-teme be more like you?" Naruto commented while puffing his nose. In the middle of it, he found it hard not to cry.

"You're a great shinobi at heart Sasuke. In my opinion you don't need to surpass your brother. You're great as yourself already" Sakura remarked at the alternate Sasuke. She was also immensely touched by his story. She wondered how Sasuke took the information in. She knew how sensitive Sasuke could be.

Sasuke did not know what to say. Millions of questions were floating in his mind. Just by the mere mention of the family, he missed so badly, made him uncomfortable. He wanted to ask his alternate self some questions but decided now wasn't the right time. Besides he won't be getting them back. And it hurt him to know that.

"We should take our rests now. It's getting late." was all Sasuke did when he stood up and took the empty ramen boxes with him.

Sakura sensed some discomfort towards Sasuke and it was beginning to worry her. "Neh.. Sasuke-kun's right. We need to sleep now. We'll continue this tomorrow.." she said to the group. Sasuke appeared with them a minute later.

"Okay guys I better go now! See ya!" Naruto waved goodbye and said his goodnights to everyone before heading out to his apartment.

The two pairs were now left by themselves. After fixing some other mess they made their ways to their rooms.

"You guys comfortable there?" Sakura asked to her other self as they stopped by their room. Alternate Sakura gave a nod and alternate Sasuke answered with a loud yes.

"Good night guys." Sakura said closing the door behind her. She found Sasuke was leaning on the wall adjacent to the room.

It was the first time they were left alone after her confession and it suddenly made an awkward tension between them.

"So.. Uhm.. Sasuke-kun where can I stay?" Sakura asked. She was trying not to sound nervous but failed miserably.

Sasuke held her hand and pulled her with him. Sakura was shocked on the contact as she blushed ferociously. Good thing Sasuke had his back on her. They stopped outside of his room.

"But Sasuke.. This is.."

"You'll stay with me." Sasuke answered plainly as he started to open the door. He made a way for her motioning her to come in.

"Ano.. Okay then.." Sakura replied as she walked inside Sasuke's room. She had been inside Sasuke's room a few times. She was the unofficial medic-nin of team 7 so she conducted some of her healing procedures in their respective homes whenever they called for her. She wasn't surprised on how big yet simple Sasuke's room was. She made her way to the bed and sat down gracefully.

"You can change now." Sasuke sat at the other side of the bed. He felt her weight lifted and he watched her went through her stuff and continued to the bathroom. Sasuke did not need to change. He was already in his sweatpants.

It was already dark when Sakura went out. She opted for another shower. The only light was from a lamp at her side of the bed. She could make out Sasuke's outline in the dark. He faced the window outside and slept peacefully.

Sakura made her way to the bed silently. She was dead tired. She expected to fall asleep the moment her head meet the pillow but was wrong. She could not fall asleep. Maybe because the thoughts of today's event went occupied her mind or maybe it was the fact that Sasuke was as wide awake as her.

"Go to sleep, Sakura." Sasuke told her, his back still facing her.

"Why aren't you asleep yet?" Sakura asked him instead. She knew from the way of his tone something was troubling Sasuke.

"None of your business." Sasuke stated but there was no icy pang in his voice, just sadness.

"I'm your friend, Sasuke-kun. I'm here for you." Sakura said. Even at his back on her he knew Sakura was giving him a smile. Then he remembered his alternate self and how open he was. He wouldn't be opening up pretty soon but maybe just a little he wanted to talk someone about his problems.

"My family." that was all he needed to say for Sakura to understand the turmoil he was going through.

Unconsciously Sakura placed her hand on his shoulder. And surprisingly he did not reject her touch. He suddenly felt better and less troubled.

"It must be hard to know they're alive. It's hard knowing mine are dead in the other world. But those lives don't belong to us Sasuke-kun. Just as our lives here don't belong to them.." Sakura said while caressing her hand over Sasuke's shoulder. And yet again he did not tense on her touch. Sakura felt him breathe some air before speaking.

"I miss them.."

Sakura's eyes went wide when she heard Sasuke's confession. Sasuke, even though he returned back to Konoha, kept some little distance between him and his team. But sometimes Sasuke would show some of his hidden emotions to Naruto. This was the first time Sasuke sought for Sakura's advice.

"They may not be the exact family you have here but you should know that they love alternate Sasuke, and that's you in there. They love you Sasuke-kun and I bet they miss him right now too.." Sakura explained, she gripped Sasuke's shoulder a little to show some emphasis. A little later Sasuke placed his own hand over Sakura's and returned her action.

"Arigato Sakura."

xxx

A/N: I'm ending here. The chap was meant to be a transition phase so it didn't contain that much. I hope you guys still like it. Writing with your head spinning isn't really inspiring. Blahh.

But I tried my best for you guys (cookies!).

Mistakes will be edited during the next upload. Sorry it's hard typing using your phone. Please be kind.

And now I need you people to hit the review and comment away. Please for the sick :3