Chapter Seventeen

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Nearly Two and a half years ago.

Naruto hadn't properly seen his wife in nearly three months. Drafting the Declaration for Civilian Rights had taxed his time and brain power. He didn't have that much brain power, so he found himself spending a lot time away from home. Sometimes he spent weeks in another country. When Sasuke left to start his stupid war in Mori no Kuni nearly six months ago, Naruto was forced to hang back on the International Forums and hold the meetings in Konoha. Even now when the Declaration had been completed, he was still caught up in forums as the Declaration was in its baby stage and they had to watch it make its first steps, guiding through pitfalls and accomplishments. And still, he hardly ever saw his wife and child what with managing this and explaining how he could let Sasuke go start a war in Mori no Kuni. Didn't people understand that even though he was the Hokage and he was no war hawk, he didn't let Sasuke do anything? Sasuke turned a simple retrieval mission into a war! He tried to put that whole debacle from his mind. These days he came home really late and left really early. Friday night however, was a rare night in months that he was able to leave the office relatively early.

The night was clear, hot and bright. It was the fifteenth of July. When he'd pass through the Village there were many people milling about buying watermelons that were in season and of course eating popsicles and cold soup from street vendors. Many were talking of buying watermelons and heading down to the lake for a late night swim. They waved to him enthusiastically and he smiled and wave and headed home to his wife and son. It was just nearing nine o'clock.

The house was quiet and he entered from the kitchen. She was sitting at the table with her weapons scattered on the round kitchen table. She was in the process of sharpening her shuriken and kunai. A bottle of oil was on the table for lubricating some of the bench stones. The weapons glinted from the light overhead. He walked in on her testing one of the kunai by gently passing it on the edge of her arm where in a smooth motion it took off a few strands of hair with no effort whatsoever.

"Honey, I'm home!" He shouted dramatically and she looked up in glee. She ran and jumped into his arms and kissed him.

"Whoa! I should stay away more often." He laughed and set her down. She grinned like a loon and he grinned too knowing that not a lot of people saw Hinata like how he did. Most people wondered how he could be with a woman like that, someone who looked like a grey stormy night to his sunny midsummer's daydream. She was shy and quiet to his rambunctious attention-seeking. Did he care what people said? No, not in the least. They didn't know her like he did. In the wider world she was a shy wallflower, but he knew her here in this house like no one else did. She toned him down. He lifted her up.

"Where's the brat?"

"The brat is sleeping. He went to bed early, so he might be up soon."

He moved to a bedroom and indeed his son had fallen asleep in his crib in an odd position. Why did he like to sleep with his butt in the air? Naruto chuckled and ruffled his son's hair and gently eased him into a better position. The boy fussed a bit, but then settled down fairly quickly. Naruto wished that he could spend more time with him. He was coming up on two now and had hardly seen his father much in the last two months. Hopefully his work would settle down soon now that the Declaration was finished and pilot programme was on its way to completion as well.

He went back to the kitchen and stood near the table. She was standing awkwardly at the counter.

"You umm, do you want something to eat?"

"No baby, I ate already."

She nodded and stood there just looking at him.

"What?"

"Nothing."

He knew what she was thinking. They had shared a sort of psychological symbiosis and he supposed that's why they got along so well. Put another way, opposites attract and he needed her as much she needed him. That was the unique intimacy of their relationship – there were lots of things that didn't need to be said, only understood.

"Come over here."

She smiled shyly and walked over to him. She put one of her small hands on his stomach and the other on his back.

"You've gotten thinner." Her brow furrowed in quiet consternation that this is what his dream job was doing to him. He laughed.

"I think I might need a proper physical." And he smiled devilishly.

"Pervert." She whispered and they laughed together at an inside joke. They settled down quickly and simply looked at each other. The need to simply lie down next to each other was overwhelming.

He kissed her roughly as things heated up and she found herself backed up onto the kitchen table. The tablecloth shifted and something fell, but was overshadowed by her yelp when she grazed her hand on a shuriken. Naruto took her hand in his. It was just a scrape on her pointing finger and a small trickle of blood had appeared, in stark contrast on her fair skin. He took the digit into his mouth and sucked on it. They moved to the bedroom and he threw her down onto the bed with glee. She giggled like a girl, everything else forgotten.

It was about twenty past ten when Naruto decided that he did want something to eat. He got up to use the bathroom and she lay on the bed for a while still feeling satisfied and loose all over. When she heard the water stop from the shower she got up, still feeling lazy and sat at the edge of the bed naked. When he emerged from the bathroom her back was to him and he could just see the outline of her and the round side of her full breast and arousal hit him again.

"You okay?"

She half turned and smiled and nodded. It was an image he'd not likely forget soon.

He moved to pull on his drawers and she finally got up, pulled on a thin robe and went to the kitchen to make a sandwich for him. She moved languidly as she was still coming down

Naruto heard her sharp cry when he was just pulling on his boxers. He was in the kitchen in less than a second.

For a moment he simply froze, unable to react. Hinata was standing there with her hand over her mouth in shock. Then he moved to action. In an instant the kitchen was alight with the bright yellow flames of Naruto's Nine Tails Chakra Mode. He placed a hand on his son's chest with the intent of using the Yang Release to stabilize his son's life force…only nothing happened. He picked up his son.

"Wait here!" He commanded to Hinata and she nodded dumbly as he left in a flash. She stared at the bottle of oil that had spilled on the ground, at the table cloth that had shifted and was now partly hanging over. All of the other weapons were still on the table minus one kunai. She was in shock, but somewhere in her brain she was able to piece together what most likely happened. She felt a sickening pain in her stomach and she began to tremble as she stared at the fine trickle of blood on the tiled floor.

XxxXxx

The boy's eyes were open and slightly bulged and given his naturally pale, almost colourless Hyuuga eyes, he looked eerie. The hue had drained from his face, but a purple-ish tinge remained near the lower half of his face. Blood had seeped out of his nose and mouth and had dribbled onto his chin and the area smelled high of fresh blood. With death there came a loss of tension in the muscles, causing his skin to sag and his jaw to look protruded. There actually wasn't much blood on his neck, however, seeing as how the kunai was still stuck there. The kunai had just grazed his spinal cord, but it resulted in diminished upper arm capacity and the child could not remove the object on his own. Blood had rushed down into his trachea, lungs, nose and mouth and he was unable to cry for help. He had quietly drowned in his own blood.

Shizune decided that she definitely did not want any of the Hyuuga Clan or any of Naruto's and Hinata's closest friends seeing something like this. She looked at Sakura who was dry heaving in a corner, her eyes shut as tears leaked out their sides and decided that no one else would have to live with that image. She called for another assistant and pulled the curtain close. Her heart was beating abnormally fast and a sickening sensation was in her stomach. Shizune stopped and for a moment she could not remember what she was going to do. She kept seeing Naruto's face. She realized then that his grief had touched her. This was something that she trained for – how not to be swallowed up by a patient's loss. She took a deep breath and set about cleaning up the child's body. She could do this, but she wondered about Sakura and of course, Naruto and Hinata.

Word of the tragedy travelled like a relay. The first patient out of the clinic told the first person he saw out of the hospital. "The Hokage's son is dead! Hokage-sama's son was killed!" The news spread as if Naruto had dripped gasoline all along the path to the hospital when he entered and someone else dropped a match on it with their words as they exited. The latest person to hear the news was a young boy of eleven or ten. He ran past the library shouting the news to everyone who he encountered, unaware that Shikamaru was smoking a cigarette, standing in the shadows of the side of the building. The boy suddenly found himself unable to move and panic spread over him. Shikamaru moved from the dark to the light.

"What did you just tell that couple over there?"

The boy looked terrified, unable to move a muscle and wondering who was this man.

"Th-the Hokage's son was killed."

Shikamaru felt his heartbeat stop.

"What? Where did you hear this?"

"It-s all o-o-over. The Hokage brought his son to the hospital. He was killed."

Killed? Shikamaru's mind was in a tizzy as he raced over to the hospital. He released the boy from his ninjutsu and the kid fell over in fright and relief.

By then most people knew that Naruto was at the hospital and that his boy had been killed. Hanabi Hyuuga found herself at the hospital in record time. She was dressed in her Jounin uniform and was ready to receive any instruction from the Hokage on hunting down her nephew's killer. She'd already instructed all of the available and able-bodied Hyuuga nin to be on standby for her orders. She was ready to command the entire Hyuuga Clan if necessary to hunt down the person responsible. As soon as she arrived she used her Byakugan and went straight to where Naruto was. He was seated in a green painted room upstairs looking dazed and confused. The room was probably used as a waiting area/meeting hall for the nurses. There were posters on good hygiene and lung diseases. Three chairs and two of those pew-like classroom table and chair set made up the furniture. Louvered windows took up most of one wall and behind that a balcony that led to other balconies that connected other sections of the hospital. The crisp and clear sky could be seen from here, stars brilliant like diamonds against a velvet sky. Below was a perfectly manicured inner courtyard. Naruto was sitting behind one of the pew-like school benches looking rather incongruous with his height and expression of shock. He was still barefooted and bare backed. Sakura was standing next to him looking like she was barely holding it together. They looked up when they saw Hanabi enter.

"Hokage-sama, we must act quickly. The Hyuuga will lead the hunt if you so wish."

Naruto looked at her and blinked multiple times. Hanabi looked to Sakura.

"Hanabi-chan," Sakura said quietly before her voice broke. She led Hanabi outside onto the balcony. The glass louvers were open and Naruto could see clearly as Hanabi's eyes widened and her face crumpled in disbelief. He saw her turn to him with pity. He saw all of this, but it registered as something else, as if it were happening to some other Hokage. He saw her run back inside and put a hand on his shoulder. The intensity of her stare was hypnotic.

"Where's Hinata? Does she know?"

That snapped him into sensibility. He abruptly stood up and was out of the door in a second. Hanabi didn't know if she had it in her to face her sister as she received the news and for a moment she hesitated. Then she remembered that she was Hyuuga. She hardened her features and was out the door in a moment.

Sakura wondered where the hell was Sasuke when Naruto needed him the most. She ran out the room. She had to get a message to Sasuke.

XxxXxx

The house was quiet and the kitchen light was on. Everything was in the same way that he met it when he came home earlier that night and déjà vu struck him. When he'd left the hospital it briefly registered to him that a crowd was gathering there, no doubt hearing that he was there and assuming that Hinata was there too. But no, she had stayed home, obeying his command to stay there and await word. He wondered why she agreed to that. Maybe because she already knew the outcome and she was taking this time alone to accept it, he wondered as he entered his house. He found her in the kitchen. The tablecloth and all of the weapons and sharpening tools were gone. She was on her hands and knees scrubbing at the spot with a scrubbing brush. A bucket of water that looked rather clean was next to her. The floor was immaculate. She scrubbed the already clean floor and dipped the brush in the water and kept on scrubbing. Fascinated for whatever reason, he stood there and simply watched. She didn't even seem to notice him there. When she dipped the brush in the water again, rippling its smooth service, Naruto emerged from his reverie.

"Baby,"

She looked up startled and stood up straight, dropping the scrubbing brush in the water. Her eyes were bloodshot. She was wringing her fingers.

"Baby," Naruto started shaking his head. He could barely get out the words and every time the reality struck him he started shaking his head in defiance and denial. His voice cracked and he could barely get out the words. "Baby he didn't make it."

Hinata nodded vigorously.

"Okay, okay. S-s-s-so when can we visit him?"

"Hina-hime baby, I said that he didn't make it." Somewhere in his mind he was upset that she kept asking him to repeat the words he now hated the most.

"I know. I know, but he'll be alright, right?"

Naruto paused and looked at her, his mouth frozen in a parallelogram of grief and confusion and stifled anger.

"Hinata!" He said firmly and she jumped. In a much softer tone, "He's dead."

She was as still as a flagpole. And then her lower lip trembled and she started blinking really quickly as she struggled to control her breathing. Naruto caught her before she hit the floor.

XxxXxx

The house was packed with mourners and well wishers stood all outside on the lawn. Hanabi was dressed in a black kimono and was busy like a bee organizing the wake to be held later tonight and of course accepting condolences together with Naruto who sat in a stiff chair in the living room and looking absolutely exhausted. He seemed to have aged twenty years in ten hours. He wearily rose and went to meet his father-in-law.

"She still hasn't awakened?" Hiashi asked and Naruto shook his head. They moved to the bedroom.

As soon as Hiashi neared the bedroom he experienced a sinking feeling of despair and unimaginable sadness. The morning sun was bright and the place was stiflingly hot, but it seemed unable to penetrate this room. He too felt unable to move further and he and Naruto stood at the threshold. Melancholy was almost visible, palpable. He had lost his beloved grandson and the way that Hinata looked lying on the bed – unmoving and pale – he briefly wondered if she had died too. Judging by the look of worry on Naruto's face, it was clear that he was in agony wondering if he would lose his wife too. Naruto told him in brief words what had happened exactly and Hiashi accepted it rather well, most likely having already heard the story from Hanabi and therefore, had time to process it.

When they finally entered the bedroom the smell of urine was high. Naruto walked over to the bed and realized what had happened.

"I'll call Hanabi to come clean her up." Hiashi said.

This seemed to annoy Naruto. "I can take care of my wife, Hiashi."

Hiashi stared at him as Naruto silently dared him to suggest otherwise. Was it him or was everyone looking at him with blame, judging him and Hinata for the negligent parents they were? It was an accident, he wanted to shout. Stop blaming us!

Hiashi nodded and left the room. Naruto walked up and slammed the door in his father-in-law's face. He knew that he was angry for other reasons, that Hiashi was not blaming either him or Hinata, but he was angry nonetheless and he had to take it out on somebody. He turned to Hinata and his heart melted into sadness and self-pity. His eyes began to well up, but he swallowed thickly and focussed on the task at hand. He undressed her and changed the sheets and gently cleaned her. When he was done he crawled into bed with her noting the appeal in sleeping away grief. He lay staring at the ceiling and tears began to flow, falling to the sides of his face. He remembered how the blood had snaked down his son's nose and mouth and onto his jaw and neck. He would have suffered so much! A strangled cry escaped and he clasped his mouth quickly. Suddenly he felt a touch on his arm and he looked to see Hinata staring up at him.

"Tell me everything that happened. I want to know exactly how he died."

Naruto stared at her. He was planning on keeping her in the dark, but he knew that she would need to know.

"He suffered. He suffered a lot..." He began.

XxxXxx

The funeral services had to be held outside. The amount of mourners were simply too many. Hanabi organized the sectioning off of the quadrangle. The service was held late in the evening at around six o'clock. The sun was still out and the atmosphere was thick with heat and misery.

No one had seen Hinata since everything happened. She hadn't made her presence known at any of the three nights that the wakes were held, instead staying locked away in the bedroom, trapped in that narcissism of grief as she was. Naruto and Hanabi therefore, had to handle everything.

Her absence was not going to be tolerated for the funeral, however. Naruto came up the aisle with Hinata. His left arm was tightly holding his wife by her shoulders to keep her walking upright. She looked like she lost ten pounds in those few days. Naruto's face was grim. It was odd for guests to see their usually happy Hokage like that and the reason of the exact cause of his expression made their eyes water and their throats burn.

The priest was an old man who was had been disillusioned after the war. He performed so many funerals after that and he was losing the sight of his purpose, of anyone's purpose. But the Hokage, that young man that exuded hope in every kind smile and every kind word brought back his belief. Now though, now here was a struggle. Could he convince that couple that their child was in a better place now? Could he bring them to believe in hope the same way that Naruto had done for him? Everyone recited sutras, but would they listen to the words and carry them to their hearts? He could only hope.

Honoured One, mayest thou preach to me in detail of all the

places where there is no sorrow or trouble, and where I

ought to go to be born anew. I am not satisfied with this

world of depravities, with Jambudvipa which is full of hells,

full of hungry ghosts and of the brute creation. In

this world of depravities there is many an assemblage of the

wicked. May I not hear, I pray, the voice of the wicked in the

future; and may I not see any wicked person.

He looked over to Naruto and Hinata who were sitting on the floor right next to the altar. They looked hopeless.

XxxXxx

Naruto sat on a bench nearing the gates to the Konoha. It was two o'clock in the morning. He had been home alone drinking. He had been doing that quite a lot lately. His brain felt muddled and restlessness got the better of him. His house was quiet, really quiet and lately the silence got the better of him and he found himself here.

There was no Hinata and of course, no little baby boy anymore. It was February now. In a few months it will be a year. And still there was no Sasuke. Word was sent to him on the day that the tragedy happened, on the seventh day, on the 49th day and when the 100th day anniversary was held at the ending of October word was sent to him too. He had responded to them all – will come as soon as possible – and he had never shown. Naruto knew how the war in Mori no Kuni was going – dreadfully. The civilian death toll was high. There were multiple rebel groups and guerrilla warfare was their speciality. Some of the groups were ninja, some were civilian. It was easy for Sasuke to think that he was the strongest, but everyday someone came up with a new and terrifying jutsu, everyday he was challenged by creativities in warfare. Naruto knew that Sasuke loved that. Every day was a training session for him, a test of skills, an answer to the boredom. Mori no Kuni was not about retrieving Rock Lee anymore or if ever and Naruto could understand that Sasuke saw this as a challenge; really he could. But how could he seriously not come back now?

Grief had changed Naruto. Never before would reproach have been able to enter his heart, but now it was settling there like fine sediment.

A light fog curled near the ground where Naruto sat. The moon hid behind the clouds. He rubbed his face with his hands. Loneliness was crippling him. He had a village, he reminded himself. Though his only interest he had lately was drinking at least two bottles a day. He had friends too. But the people he wanted the most were not there. Maybe Hinata will change her mind. He only gave her the divorce because Hiashi begged him too. He told him that she was feeling stifled by her guilt, by her belief that she had disappointed him, by his obligation to stay at her side when clearly he blamed her in his heart. He told Hiashi that that wasn't true. Hiashi said that it didn't matter; the point was that was what she believed it to be true. Naruto reluctantly agreed to the divorce. She will change her mind. That was his thinking. And so he gave her what she wanted in the hopes that everything will come back to the way they were in the beginning.

He was beginning to have doubts though. Hinata avoided him. Sakura worried about Sasuke's stiff replies and he hardly ever saw her. Sasuke didn't show. Naruto tried to remind himself that he had a Village. He was a father to his people.

He sat there for a long while and then he got up he walked straight out of the gates. No one saw him again for months.

XxxXxx

Civilians generally faced the brunt of war. They were the ones that suffered the most. They were used as pawns and as hostages. Hokages and other world leaders ignored them. They took what they wanted from them and left them there in the cold. It was the reason that Mori no Kuni was the way that it was. Civilian dissatisfaction could account for two-thirds of the problem in most countries where there existed a Hidden Village. Civilians had rights too.

That's what Naruto had said, but Sasuke couldn't care less. He wasn't present at the International Convention for Civilian Rights – a convention that Naruto had spearheaded. Sasuke simply didn't care. He hadn't even read the Declaration.

He supposed that he should have. He'd been in Mori no Kuni for almost a year now and was just starting to regret his desire to come here. Naruto had warned him not to start a war with the forest nation, but did he listen? No. He had said that it would turn into a Kiri debacle all over again. Pshh! Whatever! He ignored Naruto and pretty much everything and everyone else.

Lately though he'd become disillusioned. Why was he here fighting this war? What was his need to do something like this? He didn't care for Rock Lee, so why was he fighting this hard?

He tried to remember his brother's fervour for the love of his Village and of the people that inhabited it. He tried to remember the little family-like atmosphere he had with Team Seven before he left for this stupid war. There was Naruto and Sakura and Kakashi. There was Hinata too, but she was neither here nor there for him. There was his godson whom he had to admit he liked very much, but now he was no longer here. Kakashi had been injured in the war and was back in Konoha since late last year. Sakura kept writing him, begging him to come home. Naruto wrote him in the earlies, but after the tragedy he hadn't heard from him since.

Now he was stooping by a river on the edge of Mori no Kuni washing out a pan that was used for breakfast this morning. Yesterday, blood had run down the river and now it was clear as if nothing had every happened. All this time in Mori no Kuni and it was pointless, he felt. There was time that could be put to better use. He remembered suddenly and with strange sentimentality the time before with these people – Naruto and his family, plus Sakura and Kakashi. He didn't want to be here anymore. With startling clarity he realized that he needed to find some other purpose in his life. Warmongering for no good cause held no meaning for him.

But return to what?

He looked up and saw a figure among the trees.

"Sasuke Uchiha – the housemaid." Someone emerging from the morning mist said.

"Naruto?"

"Hey, teme."

They stared at each other and Sasuke noted that there was something different about the dobe. He looked the same, but there was a fundamental change about the blond idiot. He supposed that it was grief. Sasuke wondered if there was a marked difference about him too after the Massacre.

"Did you know that the entire world is asking for you to be tried in a military tribunal for crimes against humanity?"

"Those are the international laws that you created?"

Naruto grinned. He almost laughed. He hadn't done that in months.

"Will you come quietly?"

Sasuke smirked. "What do you think?"

Naruto's grin broadened. Sasuke noted that the smile didn't seem to reach his eyes though. Something had fundamentally changed about Naruto and between them.

XxxXxx

Naruto couldn't help but notice that Sakura didn't seem to be giving up on him. He also noted that her sudden interest in him happened after he returned with Sasuke in tow, having successfully managed to extricate Sasuke from that military tribunal trouble without either of them resorting to violence. She was here again in his house for the fourth time this week. She'd stopped by to make dinner and clean up. He'd told her that he didn't feel the same way about her, but she kept coming around still. However, he had to admit that he appreciated her decision to try again at being his friend.

It was September now. He sat at the sofa and read through a magazine article that talked about his approval ratings. It was at 98%. Well, would you look at that, he thought, with no particular feeling of satisfaction or disappointment. The article talked about the mitama matsuri that passed two months ago in July and his role in establishing that festival for visitors to pay respect to all of the fallen ninja that had sacrificed their lives for Konoha. He had initiated the festival just a couple years after he became Hokage. It went on to list his pioneering role in civilian civil rights and how he was what the people were waiting for. The article further commented on his peacekeeping and diplomatic roles and his mentorship to young ninja, both men and women, of he was worshipped. The column briefly mentioned his self-imposed exile and talked of a "rudderless ship" and "a nation without a beacon", but mentioned that he was "received with wide open arms" back into his Village for "sticking to his nindo and never abandoning a friend in need". The write-up only briefly touched on the tragedy and made just a one-off comment on his divorce, instead focussing on how Naruto liked to help ninja with psychological trouble and listed a whole bunch of ninja that he'd help. There was even a picture of Hinata teaching in the Academy! The article didn't mention her specifically in relation to psychological problems, but the picture placement was rather suspicious and telling. She looked unaware that the picture was taken.

No wonder she wasn't speaking to him, he thought morosely. From her point of view this article might be considered propaganda!

Naruto flung the magazine onto the coffee table, disgusted. Sakura came to stand next to him with dinner set on a tray.

"Would you like to eat over here or at the table?"

He took the tray from her and she sat next to him, kind of close actually. He pretended not to notice. He ate in silence and she simply sat next to him thinking. She eventually picked up the magazine and her eyebrows rose in surprise, most likely when she saw Hinata's picture.

"How is she doing?"

"Not good. She's regressed since I left. I had to move her off of active duty."

"I thought she was doing better. I mean, she even suggested that you move on with someone else."

One could practically hear the thud all the way in Suna from the way she awkwardly dropped in the last part.

"How did that topic come up, anyway?"

She began to blush a bit. "I was drunk and told her that I wanted someone like you. You're a good guy, a really nice guy."

Naruto placed the tray on the coffee table and turned to face her, his face a picture of scepticism.

"And you only recently realized this?"

"Yes."

"Do you know why?"

"Not really."

"Hmm. You're sure you're not feeling bad that I left and you're trying to make up?"

"What? No – It's just –"

"It's just what? You've ignored me running after you for years. Suddenly you change your mind right after I leave? Sure it's not guilt?"

"So what if it is guilt? Why can't guilt be the thing that finally sets things right? I have treated you horribly. Say what you want about Sasuke, but he was relatively gentle about everything. I was a right bitch to you. When everything happened all I could focus on was Sasuke. You leaving was a scathing rebuke and I'm sorry that I only see things for what they are now, after you've been hurt. But like I said, sometimes it's the guilt that makes us want to change our ways."

Tears were glistening in her eyes and there was a long pause. She took Naruto's hand and he looked down at their intertwined hands and blinked. She had interrupted him. An idea had come to him, but her touch made him forget. They sat in uncomfortable silence for a while and she eventually got up to go. He let her leave.

Later that night he was distracted. He took a bath and went to bed and thought about all sorts of things, but his brain was restless because he knew a thought had come into his mind and was there standing on the threshold waiting to spring on him again. He fell asleep a bit troubled.

It was only when he was having his daily glass of milk the next morning that he remembered the thought. The thought came from Sakura's words that guilt can finally set things right. To him, Sakura just wanted absolution. She didn't really love him and they both knew it. And Hinata kept saying that she was feeling stifled by her guilt, that he was blaming her for her mistake. Would two wrongs make a right? Would she feel better knowing that he could fuck up too? That's why she kept pushing him to Sakura, right?

This wasn't like him. He had to deliberate and deliberate. But when Sakura came over again three days later he had made up his mind. He was not perfect and not a God as they liked to say. He was only human, just like everyone else and he could and would make mistakes too.

You'd think he would learn that a simple mistake sometimes had vast consequences. When Sakura told him that she was pregnant he remembered the night his son died. It was a simple, careless mistake that started it all.

A/N: This was a very tough chapter to write. Comments? Let me know what you think!