Chapter 128 - Saying Nothing

Karin ended up startling Sakura quite a bit by interrupting her in the middle of a check-up to ask if she was available; Karin had simply tracked down Sakura's chakra and gone to where she was, instead of going to her office and waiting there like any other person would have.

"Wait for me in the hallway, okay? Jeez!" Sakura said, waving her off, so Karin did. "Sorry, another doctor at the hospital…" Karin heard her say, in explanation, as the door closed, which made her smirk.

Sakura finally left, giving advice out the door, and a wish for her patient to feel better soon. "Karin, seriously, could you have waited?" she said.

"No, I couldn't," Karin replied.

Sakura sighed. "Walk with me; we can talk on the way to my office."

Karin did not waste any time. "I sat in on a therapy session for Yakata today. My son was invited to talk to him."

"Maiya-kun got to you two, then? I had a feeling you'd-"

"Why doesn't Yakata have a home to go back to, Sakura?"

Sakura paused, and looked at Karin, though she continued to walk. "A home?"

"He said that his parents told him they can't go back to Tamina. Do you know what happened? He mentioned Naruto's helping them, okay."

"…we can call him once we get to my office. Honestly, I barely know anything about this…"

"Do you know about Uchiha Takeru, then?" Karin said.

"Takeru? What… about him?"

"Yakata brought him up in therapy today. He said that he was he one that told him about his identity as a clone of Itachi, okay," Karin said. Her voice had gone very flat, smooth and cold, like metal.

Sakura hung her head, sighing. "Of course it was Takeru…"

"He's one of Sasuke's sons, right?" Karin said.

"And the one that's the most like him, by far," Sakura replied. "A real pain in the ass on his best days, but…"

"He's dead, so we can't do anything with him, right?"

"…no, he's… still in a coma, actually," Sakura said, looking fairly startled. "Who told you he was dead?"

"Yakata. He was partially conscious while Orochimaru possessed him, and he… witnessed the attack on Takeru, okay." She scoffed. "And it seems like Orochimaru purposefully sought him out to take revenge on him for Yakata's sake…"

"That's… certainly upsetting…" Sakura said.

"How is his recovery going?" Karin said.

"Takeru? He's had two surgeries so far to repair the damage on his back, but so far we don't know when he'll wake up…" Sakura replied. "But we're certain he'll pull through."

"As soon as he's awake I want an account of his actions recorded and sent to me and Maiya-san," Karin said. "I want to know how he found out about Yakata's identity and why he did such a thing."

"…of course, Karin, we'll be sure to get that information," Sakura said.

"Yakata needs to know he's still alive, too. I don't want him thinking he has an actual death on his hands, okay… Even with Orochimaru's involvement…"

The softness of her voice gave Sakura further pause. "Of course, Karin," she finally said. "I understand."

(Unspoken but desired by both women was for Takeru to understand and possibly pay for the consequences of his actions, informing Yakata like he did.)

(But his current condition seemed both an obstacle and a solution to this.)

They finally reached Sakura's office, and Sakura made a phone call to the Hokage Manor. Midway through, she covered the mouthpiece of the phone with her hand and asked Karin, "You want to meet Naruto in his office, or do you want him to come here?"

"Have him come here, okay," Karin said, and Sakura repeated her words into the phone, and shortly thereafter hung up.

Naruto arrived a few minutes later, smiling, but worry in his eyes. "Hey, Karin, hey, Sakura."

"Hey, yourself. Thanks for getting over here so quickly," Sakura said.

"Yeah, of course," Naruto replied. "So, Karin, Sakura tells me you finally got to meet Yakata-kun, s'that right?"

"Yes, I did," Karin said.

"So what's the problem? You worried about how we're treating him, y'know?"

"Not in the least, the medical staff seems to be doing a fine job, okay," Karin replied. "It's more to do with the situation of his family. They're homeless, aren't they?"

"Yeah, for the time being…" Naruto said.

"What happened in Tamina that's keeping them from being able to return?"

"Well, s'far as I can understand, Yakata-kun caused a lot of trouble an' such when Orochimaru possessed his body, and when he ran off the villagers took it out on his parents, an' ran them outta town, y'know," Naruto replied.

Karin sighed. "Is that so..."

"Yeah, like, I figure they can stay at the hospital for a little while, but I'm tryin' to get them somewhere to live here or nearby until they figure out what they wanna do," Naruto continued.

"I'll keep them for as long as necessary, but… well, living at a hospital isn't the best of situations," Sakura added, throwing an apologetic nod in Karin's direction towards the end.

"So what do you have in mind for them?" Karin said.

"An apartment or something, I dunno. I figure I can have some money diverted to pay for it until they get back on their feet, y'know," Naruto replied. "But at the same time I'm real busy with repair efforts, an' the Uchiha family got their house totally destroyed so that's also a thing, so it's been kinda hard…"

What probably began as a glare softened with a flick of Karin's eyes into something more thoughtful. "Are you only thinking about options in the immediate area, okay?"

"Wha-? Yeah, I guess, 'cos it's more convenient, y'know…"

"What about further out? The suburbs? I assume there hasn't been as much damage there, okay," Karin said.

Naruto scratched the nape of his neck. "Well, yeah, there hasn't, but it's more expensive to live there, y'know… An' I'd probably get yelled at by the Council if I end up spending too much money on this, even if I added, like, my own money to it…"

"Then why don't you use my money?" Karin said.

"Your money?" Naruto said. "Karin-san, um…"

"I have far too much of it to throw around, right now, since the Taki clan appears to have gifted me and Ooda most generously for his recent actions, okay," Karin replied, matter-of-factly. "Yakata's family could use it more. We'll pay for a house and even start them off with some savings. We have more than enough for that."

"Karin, you could really do that…?" Sakura said.

"Of course I could," Karin said, looking somewhat put-upon. "It's entirely within my means."

Naruto and Sakura exchanged somewhat bewildered expressions.

"Well, come on, are you going to accept our money or not?" Karin said.

"Um—well, where is your money, y'know…?" Naruto said.

"I have the check from the Taki clan in my room," Karin said. "I imagine your government has means of converting it into cash, okay?"

"Oh, uh, yeah! I'll, uh, talk to Andou-kun about it, and he can probably find a house in the price range of the check in the meantime, y'know…"

"Good. Why don't you come with me back to my room so I can give that to you, okay?" Karin said. "I'll let you say hello to Osato, too," she added, smiling.

"When you put it that way, there's no way I'll say no, y'know," Naruto replied, with a grin. "You need anything from me before I go, Sakura?"

"No, I'm… fine," Sakura replied. "I'll, uh, put in a memo about Takeru for you though, Karin."

"Ah, thank you," Karin said, and nodded. "Well, then, let's get going."

She and Naruto left, and after jotting down the memo, Sakura returned to work.

Two days later, Maiya came to collect Karin for the family therapy session. Ooda decided to stay back in his room for the time being, since the focus of the meeting was supposed to be on his mother, and not him.

(He also didn't want to startle Yakata's parents overmuch, figuring his mother and Yakata would be able to gently introduce him over time, if at all.)

And the session, for the most part, went well. Karin introduced herself and spent the majority of the hour responding to Satoko and Gishi's questions and fears, confirming with them that Yakata was a normal child of extraordinary birth, and that his recent violence was not due to his nature as a clone, but Orochimaru's influence and possession.

(The very mention of the twisted doctor's name made Satoko tense up terribly. Yakata put his hand on her shoulder once or twice in response, a gesture that made Karin smile to herself.)

There was anger, also, mostly directed from Gishi to Sasuke. "He lied to us," he said, when the subject arose.

"In my opinion, saying that Yakata-kun was Itachi's son was the only way he could explain it, okay," Karin replied, gently. "I'm not trying to excuse him for… misleading you and… essentially taking your son from you, but even I can only think of Orochimaru as the father of my Ooda, okay, and not his origin or anything."

"Really, Papa, I, I think it's… it's easier for me to, to keep thinking of Itachi as, as, as my father, because… w-well, he sort of still, still is…" Yakata added, tugging on his father's shirt. "E-Especially because… because I can think of him as, as a little like you, and… and I'm less scared, b-because it feels like he's more… more separate from me…"

Gishi's face loosened, and he ruffled Yakata's hair slightly in response. "If that works for you, then I'm fine with it, son," he replied, and it made both his wife and his son smile greatly.

("I'm still not pleased with that Sasuke fellow," he mentioned, quietly, later on. But this was something nobody could argue with.)

In all respects, it was exactly what Maiya wanted for them. But towards the end of things, there was an unexpected addition.

Out of nowhere, Karin suddenly said, "Oh, so he made it! Come on in, Naruto."

And indeed, it was Naruto, who entered Yakata's room with a gleaming white smile. "Hey guys!"

"Hokage-sama! What are you doing here?" Maiya said.

"Well, Sakura said that you all got together for some sorta therapy thing an' that I could find you here," he replied. "I mean, the Honbo family. You guys!"

"What do you need from us, Hokage-san?" Gishi said.

"I don't need anything! I actually got something for you guys, y'know!" Naruto replied.

"Something for… us?" Satoko said.

(And Karin closed her eyes, breathing evenly, waiting for it.)

Naruto nodded, grinning, and produced a set of keys from his jacket pocket. "Check it out: the keys to your new house!"

"A, a new house…?!" Yakata's eyes widened.

"Yup! I guess someone heard about your situation an' decided to donate some money so you guys could have somewhere to start over here in Konoha."

"You… you can't be serious…!" Satoko was almost squeaking.

"Not at all, Yakata-kun's Mom," Naruto replied. "If you all are for it, actually, I could take you there right now so you can check it out."

"Mama, Papa, c-can we, please?!" Yakata was filled with such uncharacteristic energy that Karin couldn't help but laugh a little.

"I don't… see why not," Gishi said. "Um, Maiya-sensei, that is, unless you're not done with us yet."

"Guys, totally go for it!" Maiya replied. "I'm too glad for you to care," she added, and laughed.

"I'll make my way back to my room, then," Karin said. "Satoko-san, Gishi-san, you all have my information, okay?"

"Oh, of course, of course… And we'll see you again, I imagine?" Satoko said, visibly needing to gather herself.

"Yes, I think we will," Karin said, adjusting her glasses.

(She heard, as she left, Naruto responding to a question she had expected to be asked much earlier: "I dunno who left the money! It's a non-muss donor or something. They just left instructions that it was to be used for you guys, y'know… Anyways, Andou-kun here has paperwork for you to sign…")

(She paused in a patch of sunlight that fell into the window-lined hallway, and felt the warmth and comfort of it, and of knowing that things were going to be okay.)

Yakata loved the new house. And she found this out when the boy himself quite unexpectedly entered her room the next day.

"Ooda-san! Ooda-san! You, you, you have to hear this!"

Unfortunately, Osato was taking a nap during this time, and Yakata's excited shouting woke him up. He began to cry, loudly.

"Oh! Oh, I'm, I'm so sorry, I didn't… I'm sorry…" Yakata shrunk into himself, ducking behind the doorframe.

Karin went to get Osato, and rocked the baby against her shoulder to calm him. "Yakata-kun? What are you doing here?"

"Yakata? Yakata's here?!" Before anyone could stop him, Shingetsu had run up to the door and was nose-to-nose with Yakata. "Hi!"

Yakata stumbled back a few steps. "Wh-who are you…?!"

"Shingetsu! Get your butt back in here!" Suigetsu half-shouted. "Jeez!"

"Sorry, Daddy!" Shingetsu almost sang, returning inside, which allowed Yakata to peek through the doorframe again.

"I, I, um, I… is, is, is Ooda-san here…?" Yakata said, almost in a whisper.

"I'm here, Yakata-kun." Ooda came to the door and spoke soothingly. "You, um… should probably have called ahead…"

"…I'm, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry…" Yakata closed his eyes tightly, hanging his head. "I was, I was just so excited, I… I forgot…"

Ooda smiled. "It's all right. What is it?"

Yakata opened his eyes, chancing a shy smile. "My, my family, we… we moved into our, our, our new house today…!"

"Your new house!" Ooda said. "You found a place to stay?"

"Yeah! We, we received it as… as a gift! And this, this morning we all got our things and, and we moved in…!" Yakata was quite unable to stand still all throughout his speech, rocking back and forth a little in his excitement.

"That's wonderful! I'm really glad for you," Ooda replied. He leaned back a little. "Mom, did you hear that?"

"Yes, of course I did." Karin had succeeded in calming Osato, and was putting him back down. "I'm really glad for you too, Yakata-kun," she continued, giving him a smile that spread into her eyes.

"Th-thank you! It, it means a lot…!" Yakata said.

"So Yakata's livin' here now?" Shingetsu said. "He's livin' here in Konoha?"

"Yes, little brother, that's what it looks like," Ooda replied, with amused patience.

Yakata leaned sideways, trying to get another look at Shingetsu. "Is, is that your little brother…?" he said. His eyes narrowed as he saw more of the room. "Wait, Hozuki-san…? You're, you're here too…?"

Suigetsu looked mildly surprised, and grimaced slightly as he thought of what to say. "Oh, uh, hey there, Yakata-kun."

"He's my son Shingetsu's father, okay." Karin had made her way effortlessly to Suigetsu's side, and nudged him with a trickster's smirk replacing her warm smile.

"Oh!" Yakata stepped past Ooda and further into the room. "I, I didn't know you, you two were married…!"

Karin's smirk widened as Suigetsu, looking fairly distressed, glanced between her and the boy. "…yeah, well, don't go spreadin' it around everywhere…" he finally said, and crossed his arms.

"So, so you are Ooda-san's l-little brother, then…?" Yakata asked Shingetsu.

"Yup! An' you're Yakata!" Shingetsu replied.

"H-How do you know my name…?"

"Duh, my big brother told me all about you. Like, how you're both clones 'n stuff. That's pretty cool." He grinned expectantly at Ooda.

(In his eyes, Ooda saw a clear message of "I did a good job, right?" and he nodded in return.)

"Ah, I, I see…!" Yakata said, and stared at his fingers, which had wandered to his mid-chest. "It's, it's very nice to meet you properly, then…"

"Yeah, same!" Shingetsu replied.

"I, I think, actually, I, I might have seen you before, um, when, when, when your father used to come into town…" Yakata continued. "I just… didn't, didn't really know your name…"

"I didn't even know you existed!" Shingetsu replied, far too enthusiastically.

"I-is that so…"

"Yakata-kun, would you like to meet my other little brother, then?" Ooda said, gently.

"Oh, yes, yes, I would!" Yakata said, and picked his way past Shingetsu and over to Osato's bassinet. The baby still hadn't fallen back asleep, and was wriggling slightly under his blanket. "Oh… he's, he's so cute…!"

"His name's Osato," Ooda said.

"O-Osato… H-Hello there…!" Yakata said, and waved using a few of his fingers. "He's, he's so little… how, how, how old is he…?"

"Only a few days old," Ooda said.

"Wow…!"

"Would you like to hold him?"

"Oh! No, no, that's, that's all right, I don't need to…" Yakata's hands pressed closer to his chest, that same "keeping-away" motion that Ooda had seen during therapy.

"Fair enough," Ooda said. "So, would you like to tell me about your new house?"

"Yeah! I wanna hear about it too!" Shingetsu said.

"Oh, well… it's, it's enormous…!" Yakata said. "It, it has two floors, and, and guess what…!"

"What, what?" Shingetsu said.

"I, I get my own room!" Yakata seemed particularly excited about this. "I've, I've never had my, my own room before, so I'm, so I'm really excited…!"

"That does sound really exciting," Ooda said.

"Yeah! There's, there's a big bed, and, and a desk, and a bookshelf too! N-Nadeshiko, she, she said she's going to go shopping with me soon so, so I can have my own books too…!"

"Lucky! I wanna go shopping." Shingetsu waved his father down. "Daddy, can we go shopping?"

"No."

"Aww! Why not?"

"We don't need to, that's why."

Throughout all of this, Karin and Suigetsu remained standing together near the sink, and Karin added, "You heard your father. We don't need to buy anything right now, okay?"

Shingetsu puffed up his face annoyedly, and turned his back on them. "Fine."

Yakata actually laughed, but then returned immediately to Ooda.

"The, the best part, I think, is, is it's really close to the flower shop, so I can, so I can go to work with Nadeshiko a-any time I want…!" He covered his mouth with both hands, almost as if he were saying too much. "I, I can walk to the hospital, too, so, so I can keep talking to Maiya-sensei, and, and it was really easy to visit you all too…!"

"Convenient!" Ooda said.

"Yeah! Yeah, it, it really is…!" Yakata nodded a few times. "You, you want to come and see it…?"

Ooda, who had previously been smiling easily, paused, almost frowning. "Well, I'd love to see, but, um… I don't know so much about… going out in public, see… I don't know what people would think…"

"Ah…!" Yakata closed his eyes tightly again. "I'm, I'm so sorry, I, I didn't consider that…"

"I suppose that just means you're used to my face, though, doesn't it? If you didn't think of it," Ooda followed up, and Yakata nodded, smiling uneasily. "Maybe after I get some proper clothes, Yakata-kun, I can visit? I don't want to go walking around in a blanket…"

"Yeah, that, that would be kinda silly…" Yakata replied. "I, I hope you can visit soon, though! Before you, you and your family have to go home…"

"I'm sure we'll all be able to visit eventually, okay, Yakata-kun?" Karin said.

"Oh, yes! You, and, and everyone else, I'd, I'd love to have you come and see…!" Yakata said.

"We'll come around, don't worry," Suigetsu said.

"Yeah, I wanna see your room an' everything!" Shingetsu said.

"Okay! I'll, I'll be sure to tell my Mama and Papa when, when I get home…" Yakata said. He bowed, then. "I'm, I'm sorry for intruding, anyways, I, I'll remember to call ahead next time I, I want to visit…"

"You're welcome any time, Yakata-kun," Karin said. "Just… be quieter next time coming in, okay?"

"Oh, I'm, I'm sorry, I promise, I, I'll be quieter…" he said, almost whispering.

Karin laughed. "Don't worry about it, okay?"

"Yeah, seriously, you don't have to worry about being quiet, kid. You're practically a mouse," Suigetsu added.

Yakata laughed a little. "O-Okay… Well, I, I should get back to my Mama… I just, I just wanted to let Ooda-san know about, about the good news…! I, I guess you all heard it too, then…"

"It's great news, Yakata-kun," Ooda said. "I'm really glad for you."

"Mm!" Yakata nodded. "I'll, I'll come back to visit soon!"

"Take care, Yakata-kun," Karin said.

"Yeah, bye!" Shingetsu added.

"Good, goodbye!" Yakata said, and with a wave of his hand he left the room, almost scurrying.

There was thick quiet in the room as they all, silently, waited for him to leave.

"…so I did a good job, right?" Shingetsu said, first. "I didn't mess up?"

"You did perfectly. I'm really proud of you, little bro," Ooda said, which made Shingetsu crack into a wide smile.

"Yay! Cool!" He boogied where he stood, a tiny victory dance, before addressing his parents where they stood. "Hey Daddy, Mommy, so did you get married or something?"

Suigetsu looked almost offended. "The heck did you get that idea?"

"'Cos that's what you told Yakata-niki. Was that just a fib, though?"

"…yeah. 'Cos it's easier to understand," Suigetsu said, and folded his arms tighter, narrowing his eyes.

"So… you're not married," Shingetsu said.

"No, Shingetsu, we are not married, okay," Karin said. She dug into Suigetsu's side again. "Your dad's too stupid to be my husband."

"Yeah, an' you're too ugly to be my wife, so we're even," Suigetsu replied, without any hesitation.

"So you're not gettin' married?" Shingetsu said.

"No, Shingetsu," they both said, equally flat and equally teasing.

"Aw, okay," Shingetsu replied, and that was the end of that.