Just wanted to say a quick thanks to all my reviewers!

For the last chapter, some of you had questions, so I decided to answer some of them! If there are any more questions, feel free to ask and I'll answer them in the next chapter!

(Some of you may have asked the same questions but I'll just copy the one I see first xD)

KrimsGirl asked: If Sakura gets pregnant (and I really hope she is) will the baby exist in the "real world" too?

Answer: The Infinite Tsukuyomi is still Genjutsu, so unfortunately - no, should anything happen - physically - it wouldn't effect the body in the real world.

DiizGiirlJess asked: Omg what did Sasuke do to prevent her from being questioned any further? He even thought of getting her pregnant by force?

Answer: The first part of your question will be explained at some point. As to the second, no - Sasuke wouldn't force Sakura. He was thinking more along the lines of tricking her into it.

cutecookiechick said: I really thought they would interrogate her.

I just wanted to clear this up. Obviously they have no proof that Sakura is a traitor, yet. So she'd have to go through questioning first until they can establish whether she needed to be interrogated or not.

Hope this helped!

On to the chapter!

Dark Paradise

Chapter 10 – I Know You Care

"I know you care, I see it in the way you stare. As if there was trouble ahead and you knew it...I'll be saving myself from the ruin."

Sakura hadn't spent the night at Sasuke's. She didn't know if she could spend the night being so close to him, knowing what he wanted from her. Now - he'd gone from outright demanding she stay to...some sneakier tactics. But she wouldn't let him have his way. So, she'd snuck into her bedroom - hid the scroll and shinobi alliance forehead protector beneath her floorboards and snuggled into her own bed for once. She wouldn't - refused - to admit that she had a little trouble falling asleep without Sasuke's assuring presence behind her. Assuring? When the hell had Sasuke become assuring to her? He'd always been intimidating and scary even...but never assuring. The realization was disconcerting and didn't help in her sleeping issue at all. Eventually, though, she managed to get some sleep and woke up well into the morning to the sound of her parents fighting. Sakura laid still for a moment, listening to their muffled voices.

She could make out her name, and Sasuke's and she sighed, immediately feeling guilty about doing this to them, silently she reminded herself it wasn't real when her father's voice cut through her thoughts, "She is getting married! Tomorrow!"

Oh, shit. Sakura had momentarily forgotten about that. She sat up quickly and slipped out of her room to brush her teeth, she heard the door slam once - as her father left and then a few minutes later it closed again and Sakura peered out of the window to see that her mother had also left. Sakura took a quick shower and got dressed before she hopped from the window again and made her way to the Uchiha's. She needed to speak to Mikoto about the wedding arrangements - Sakura had put it off for too long.

"Haruno Sakura."

Sakura stilled, a chill running down her spine and the animosity in her friend's voice.

"I-Ino..."

The blond said nothing, her eyes narrowed on Sakura and stayed.

"I can explain!" Sakura blurted, knowing what this was about but she had no clue what to say.

"Good." Ino said simply. "Because we don't have a lot of time. I'd prefer we did this inside to get away from your shadow."

Sakura's eyebrows twitched and Ino gave a stiff nod. "Follow me."

Sakura followed Ino inside, wondering idly who would be following her if Sasuke had taken care of things as he'd promised.

Ino's mom was in the flower shop and gave Sakura a friendly wave before returning to her customer.

Ino led Sakura to her bedroom, closing the curtains for good measure.

"So. Talk."

"I didn't know how to tell you." Sakura said slowly. I didn't know how to tell you that this is the Infinite Tsukuyomi.

"Tell me what?"

"I'm pregnant."

Ino barked a laugh. "Right. Safe little Sakura is-" she cut off, seeing Sakura's expression and Ino paled. "Shit."

"That's why we had the wedding moved up. I wanted to tell you...but I knew you'd be disappointed..."

"I am." Ino confessed. "What does this have to do with being taken to intelligence?"

"I...screwed up a serious mission, Ino. My chakra was screwed up and I hadn't realized it's because I'm pregnant. They...think I'm a traitor. The elders. But the Hokage cleared me."

Ino gave a sigh of relief. "That's bad, about what happened. Are you ok?"

Sakura nodded once.

"Good, because we have a lot to do before tomorrow. Let's go find your mother-in-law."

x-x-x-x-

Sasuke sat on his bed, staring down at his hands. He'd seen Itachi that morning...at breakfast. His brother had acted like nothing was out of place, and it was so convincing that if Sasuke hadn't been sure Itachi knew - that he wouldn't have known at all. Frustrated, he ran a hand through his hair and tried to swallow around the tightness in his throat - the familiar tightness he'd felt that day after he'd killed his brother. He could understand why Itachi hadn't told him, but the truth was - the truth Sasuke would never admit was...that it hurt. The realization that it had been the real Itachi all along. Now that he knew, there was this hollow feeling in his chest that wouldn't seem to go away. The few moments with Sakura had chased the pain away briefly, but it had returned the moment that she left him. Idly, he reached up, fisting his hand in the shirt on his chest. 'No matter what you decide to do from now on... I will love you forever.'

Sasuke squeezed his eyes shut. He thought that the realization of his family's imperfection here would bother him the most...but that wasn't it. It was Itachi. It always seemed to come back to Itachi for him.

His bedroom door opened and Sasuke's head snapped up from where he was sitting at the edge of his bed.

Itachi, who looked like he'd been about to tease Sasuke about something, faltered. "Little brother, are-"

"I'm fine." Sasuke said tightly, simply staring at his brother. Itachi paused for a breath and then he exited the room, closing the door behind him silently. Sasuke stared at the closed door for a long time. No, it wasn't about everything coming back to Itachi. What it came down to was...no matter what Sasuke did, he always ended up disappointing his brother.

x-x-x-x-

Ino, Sakura and Mikoto spent the rest of the day running so many errands that Sakura was happy when the older woman announced that they were officially done, she wanted nothing more than to go home (to Sasuke's room) and flop down on the bed, but Ino foiled her plans when she'd dragged Sakura back to her place and dressed her in the shortest, tightest red dress she could find - and then they rushed off to meet the rest of the girls. Hinata, Tenten, Moegi and even Temari was there. Where? A place that Sakura would normally never go to. She'd refused to go in but Ino and Tenten had dragged her inside and into the private room, laughing their evil little laughs as they went.

"Sasuke isn't going to like this!" she said stubbornly. The girls erupted in fits of giggles and Moegi just sat there, red-faced.

Music turned on and Sakura vaguely recognized the song as Need You Tonight by INXS. She threw Ino a full-powered glare but it was interrupted by the door slamming open and a really muscled guy walking in dressed as ...Oh God...Kakashi-sensei!

"The Copy Ninja, Sharingan Kakashi has arrived." he announced, sauntering in. Sakura covered her face with her hands as Ino shook with laughter.

He reached Sakura and pulled her face from her hands. "Let's have fun tonight." his eyes were charming and somewhat sexual and Sakura's blush extended down her neck. The man stepped back, cupping himself and Moegi made a startled sound. The stripper began shedding his clothes sensually, grinding his hips in the air in a very suggestive way. Hinata passed out somewhere after he shed his shirt, which Tenten found hilarious.

He was down to a very small, red underwear and the Kakashi mask when he went around to each of the girls - giving him special attention. Ino and Tenten were having so much fun that they almost ripped his small little cloth right off of him. Moegi sat very still, sometimes biting her lip, but mostly just staring very shyly at him. Finally he came over to Sakura, grinding his hips right in front of her. Sakura swallowed and pursed her hips. He produced a cloth from somewhere and covered her eyes, evoking some appreciative sounds from the girls. The stripper took Sakura's hands and dragged them down his much defined torso and she swallowed heavily. He stroked over her bare shoulders, down her arms - to her thighs where he finally spread her legs and slid down in her lap, making slow sexual movements against her. Sakura made a strange choking sound low in her throat, trying very hard to focus on the sound on Ino's laughter instead of the man above her.

x-x-x-x-

When Sakura finally escaped, she was stumbling out. Ino had managed to give her a few drinks and hold her down for another embarrassing lap dance and when she looked up she shouldn't have been surprised to find Sasuke waiting for her.

She fell uneasily into his arms and leaned up to kiss him. He tasted like he'd also had a couple of drinks, but definitely looked more sober than her.

Sasuke leaned down and pulled the heels off her feet and tossed them aside.

"Hey! Those are Ino's!"

"Don't care."

He lifted her up easily, making Sakura squeal in delight, and disappeared into the night. Sasuke was asleep long before they reached his bedroom and Sasuke laid her down on his bed before cutting Ino's slutty dress off of Sakura. He tossed it into the wastepaper basket. Sasuke got a shirt from his closet and went over to Sakura, trying to work her into it.

"Hmm," she mumbled, "Sasuke-kun..." and placed sloppy kisses onto his neck. Sasuke huffed in half-amusement and half annoyance. He pulled her up, yanking the shirt down over her head before slipping his arm around her waist and giving her a proper kiss for no damn reason at all. Mostly because she was drunk and wouldn't question it.

Sakura grinned up at him sleepily, "You are trouble, Sasuke-kun."

He grunted and laid her down on the bed.

"Sakura," he gave her a little shake. "Hm?"

"Why didnt Itachi tell me? That he knows."

Sakura, still very drunk – didn't even deny it and gave him a sad smile. "Maybe he just wanted to be your brother here...and not the one who did all those horrible things." she leaned up and kissed him before falling back onto the bed. Asleep within seconds.

Sasuke stared down at her, letting out a shaky breath. He headed to the bathroom, taking a quick shower before crawling into bed with her and pulling him against his chest, hoping her presence would chase the pain out again.

He let out a shaky breath. Well, fuck. He was getting married tomorrow and Sakura still wasn't pregnant. Sasuke groaned, burying his face into her hair. He'd have to fix that. Soon.

x-x-x-x-

NEXT CHAPTER – Sasuke's party AND a wedding!

Review!

Zana-Lee

xoxo