Chapter 8: Pride and Honour be Damned

(December 2009 - Christmas Eve)

Despite the fact that he had mastered the art of civil conversations and courteous greetings, if one more person asked him about his engagement to Hyuuga Hinata, Sasuke was going to storm out of his mother's annual Christmas party.

Let the Uchiha pride and honour be damned.

To think he'd escape the Uchiha farce when Mikoto decided to take him with her and relocate in Manhattan as her way of leaving his father three years ago, Sasuke realized he had definitely been naive. Really, he couldn't blame anyone but himself.

Aso, maybe he could blame his mother for not cutting it off cleanly with his bastard of a father.

The woman was seriously righteous to the core. Being too caring and compassionate for the Uchiha reputation, she decided to keep his surname and put up with the facade of managing the company in Manhattan instead of asking for a divorce and taking half of his father's assets.

And now he was stuck in this predicament of having a fiancée whom he never met, answering to questions and congratulations from what seemed to be everyone in the Upper East Side. Seriously, how had news travelled when he and his mother only found out nineteen hours before?

Life was definitely peachy when Uchiha Fugaku was involved.

"Enjoying the evening, little brother?"

Sasuke jerked his head up at the voice as his mask of nonchalance was momentary ripped off.

"What are you doing here?" The younger brother demanded as his eyes momentary flashed red. His brother was at a party he didn't receive an invite for, dressed in an impeccable black suit and holding a glass of champagne. Something was wrong.

Uchiha Itachi just didn't do affluent parties. If it weren't for direct orders from the patriarch or the matriarch of the family, Itachi wouldn't even bother showing up at social functions. Even then, he still played hooky. Sasuke couldn't even count the number of times his brother ditched quarter way through the night or hadn't even bothered showing up at all.

So to see his endearing brother at his mother's party countries away, something was definitely wrong.

"Why so dubious," Uchiha Itachi quirked an eyebrow as he casted him a mocking smile. Of course, he didn't fail to mention, "foolish little brother?"

Sasuke's gaze darkened as he said accusatorily, "Mother didn't send you an invite."

"I'm wasn't aware that family members needed an invitation to come to the annual Christmas event." Sasuke refused to fall for the sincere act.

"You didn't show up the past two years. Why now?" In his head, he wondered if it had anything to do with engagement, and as always, Itachi read his mind.

"The world doesn't revolve around you, my brother. I decided to take a vacation and fly to Manhattan for the winter break. Don't tell Okaa-san."

"Why?" The younger brother asked. His eyebrows arched in puzzlement as his lips dipped into a frown. The request was strange. It wasn't like Itachi ever updated the family on his agenda. "What are you hiding?"

Before the other sibling replied, a loud voice boomed across the ballroom, in which Itachi took a sip of his champagne, which Sasuke knew translated to an eye roll of annoyance.

"Itachi!" Both the Uchiha brothers tilted their head to the voice, in which an older, rotund man was joyously venturing towards them. Sasuke nearly cringed when the man ungracefully stopped a waiter to try three of the pastries on the tray.

"Hello Antoine," Itachi said in perfect English.

As the two began their idle chatter, Sasuke took the opportunity to excuse himself as he had to find his "fiancée."

"I believe your fiancée was with her cousin near the lounge at the entrance. She's a charming girl; quiet but nevertheless, exquisite."Antoine's wink reminded Sasuke of a Cheshire cat.

True to Antoine's words, Sasuke found the said couple in the lounge. The back of Hyuuga Neiji was to him as he faced a girl.

It took Sasuke five seconds to recognize that the woman wasn't a Hyuuga. The woman didn't bear the Hyuuga's trademark pearl white irises, nor did she have ebony hair. Instead, her hair was platinum and the floor-length scarlet red dress that flared out above the waist accentuated her green eyes. Sasuke almost missed her agitation because he was busy thinking how oddly broken she looked.

"Let's not talk about it!" Despite her sallow eyes, she still shone through with her character. Neji's eyes shifted to a cold look, which Sasuke was sure it only happened when Neji was less than impressed with someone.

"No, there's a lot to talk about. For example, let's talk about who or what made you run to America," Neji's deep voice rumbled through the room. "Sakura."

"It was you." Sasuke said, "At the Uchiha manor on Christmas Eve with Hyuuga Neji."

Sakura opened her mouth to protest, but no words seemed to be able to formulate on the tip of her tongue. Instead, large emerald eyes stare frantically at him and Sasuke realized she was still the same vulnerable girl at the party.

"You're also Vida Winter. That story was about you." His voice was firm as he stared relentlessly at her, willing her to admit his accusation. Just as he had vowed a couple of weeks back, he was going to unveil Haruno Sakura's story.

It seemed ages before she regained her composure, and it made Sasuke uncomfortable, because the pink-haired woman looked sad. Sasuke had always been taught to be a gentleman, but here he was, causing a girl distress.

"Why do you want to know about the truth so much?" Her voice was mellow, but her eyes were sombre.

"It's for my role. If I understand more about the story, it'd be easier for me to portray my role." However, something in him disagreed. 'You never needed to understand the full story before. In fact, that's how you create your character. You don't need to depend on references, and if you do, there is the novel you can read.'

Sasuke frowned. Why hadn't he bothered reading the book after the script was handed to him? Surely, it would give him a lot of in depth explanation. And now that he knew the character was based on Neji, Sasuke pretty much had his character down.

Yet there was another thought that nagged him and his frown deepened. Does that mean Haruno Sakura was in a relationship with Hyuuga Neiji?

"Yes you're correct." A sigh escaped her lips as she looked up at him with resignation. "I was at the Uchiha Christmas Eve party, where you mistook me as Hyuuga Hinata." Sasuke wasn't going tell her he'd known. The only reason why that situation arose was because they had caught him standing behind the doors of the ballroom. "I'm also Vida Winter."

Her confession was so direct that he didn't know what to say. So Sasuke asked the only question that was nagging on his mind. "Are you dating Hyuuga Neji?"

Sakura raised a single eyebrow before her rosy lips tipped into a slight smile.

"They're fictions, Sasuke. Fictions only have so much of the truth in them."

"So what made you run to Manhattan?" This was the significant question that would reveal everything if she decided to unlock it.

Sakura took a sip of her hot chocolate and sighed disapprovingly with a shake of her head. "Didn't you read the book?"

"I read the script." Sasuke shot back.

"Really?" The pink-haired woman gave him a pointed look.

"The reason why Miki ran away was because of..." He trailed off and his eyes widened in realization. The red dress. Itachi's protectiveness. Itachi's strange request. Sakura's aloofness. Jiraiya. Hyuuga Neiji. Vida Winter. Broken.

"Hikari is four this year."

-;-

The last person Neji expected to have dinner with was Uchiha Sasuke, and truthfully, Neji wondered if it was a good thing. He had never been Uchiha's acquaintance, simply because their life ran on different spectrums; Uchiha went to chase after his dream of being a world-class actor while Neji stuck to his fate and became the general manager of Hyuuga Cooporation. Their paths once crossed from the social functions which required their presences, but neither of them ever made an effort to converse past than necessary.

"So I need to verify something with you," As always, Uchiha went straight to the point. Neji narrowed his eyes, as his gut feeling told him that accepting this dinner was a wrong move on his part. "It's about Haruno Sakura."

At the name, Neji let out a chuckle. Of course, only Haruno Sakura was capable of causing such nuisance without meaning to. Only Haruno Sakura was able to make things impossible happen. Yet, because it was her, only Haruno Sakura would make people accept her for the things she'd done.

He should've seen this coming. After all, they really didn't have anything in common except for their acquaintance with the pink-haired woman. Neji wasn't ignorant to the news that had been in the pages of The Gazette. True, he wouldn't have seen it if it weren't for his secretary, who apparently, was an Uchiha fan. And now that Sasuke took the effort to seek him out, Neji knew that the Uchiha had dug up the truth.

So he put down his fork and asked, "What about Haruno Sakura would you like to know?"

The lines on Sasuke's forehead creased into a frown. Sasuke hadn't expected the Hyuuga to be this open. No, if anything, Hyuuga Neji was one to hold secrets to his grave. And as if Hyuuga knew what thoughts were running through his head, he said, "I promised myself that I wouldn't lie about it."

"Why?"

"She owes the world the truth."

He hadn't expected to see her at the Uchiha manor. Her hair was slightly bleached to be platinum blond and the eyes were no longer blue, but green. If Neiji hadn't taken a second glance at her, he probably would not have recognized her.

The reason for the second take on her had to be her dress. Her scarlet red gown flared out boldly at her waist. It was almost as if she was part of the Victorian Age. However, Neji instantly knew the reason for the dress.

"Itachi-kun, why did you bring me here?" Sakura's voice cracked as her eyes darted in every direction to see if any eyes were on her. Somehow, she managed to miss him. "I thought you said it would help my situation."

Itachi took a sip of his wine. "Jiraiya."

The girl's emerald eyes reflected confusion. "Jiraiya? Isn't he that perverted writer?" She grimaced at the thought.

"Don't underestimate him," was Itachi's response. "He has connections to everyone and everything. His help is indispensable if you want to get rid of your past."

"But I don't know him. There's no reason for him to help me. I'm pretty sure he can't even do anything."

"What are you saying, Sakura?" Itachi shook her head with disappointment. "You know Naruto. That's enough reason for him to help you."

"I don't want to take advantage of Naruto!" Sakura snarled as her voice raised a higher pitch, "I'm already in his debt. There's no way I'm asking more help from him. And this is illegal!"

"If we don't get Naruto to help you, then my plan is null. Everything up to now has been illegal - faking your death, forging autopsy reports and documents. Jiraiya's role is quite simple in actuality."

"What do you mean?"

"It's quite simple. Jiraiya is known for adopting children. Being a millionaire that he is, it's easy for him to get the paperwork done. Deidara has already falsified your death. Now we need Jiraiya to work the paperwork on your legal documents and adopt you."

"There's no way he's going to help me with it!"

"He will, because Jiraiya owes me a favor," Both Itachi and Sakura whirled around to face him. Sakura gasped as her face paled while the older Uchiha tilted his head in acknowledgement.

"N-Neji." Sakura whispered quietly.

He stared straight into her eyes. "Excuse me Uchiha-san, but I believe I would like to have a chat with my dead fiancée."

Uchiha Itachi nodded his head and excused himself, "Use the lounge."

Surprisingly, Sakura seemed to know more about the Uchiha manor than she let on. He followed her to the entrance, where it was now vacant and opened the lounge door, which was at the side of the manor. He followed her in.

"How did you know it was me?"

"You should give me a bit more credit since I was your fiancé. We did spend quite some time together."

"I'm sorry." She bowed her head in shame. They had been engaged to each other since they were twelve. Sakura was not his ideal type of a woman. She was weak and loud, clumsy at times, selfish, materialistic and held onto falsified superiority. Being her fiancé, Neji had learned to tolerate her. After all, he had believed that everything was ordained, so there was no point in going against it. Sakura was the opposite. At fifteen, she told him that there was no way she was going through with their marriage.

"I like someone else," She'd told him. "So I can't marry you."

She never went into details, but because they were in the same class, it was evident who she was infatuated with. Arisugaki Sai. A boy was adopted into the Arisugaki family. He was known for his paintings and sketches, but his furtive demeanor and lack of social skills were the magnetism that attracted the girls, including Sakura.

Neji knew how Sabaku Sakura functioned. She was a hopeless romantic, who was attracted to the idealistic fantasies of saving a mysterious, handsome boy with a dark and broken past. Sakura probably dreamt of being the girl to change the boy, teaching him how to smile and to feel.

He didn't feel angry though, because he never felt anything for her. He simply let her go. Yet, she was Sakura, who had been bred in nobility, where pride and honour was everything, so she knew that consequences of her action. He knew she felt guilty for her actions, as if she owed him.

"If you want to apologize," Neji said, "Then tell me the truth."

"Let's not talk about it!" She bit out, suddenly angry and he knew that he was on the right track. Sakura had always been the type to get fervent when she had to face her problems head-on.

"No, there's a lot for you to tell. For example, let's talk about who or what made you run to America," Neji's deep voice rumbled through the corridors of the manor. "Sakura."

Sakura tensed up and she looked at him. "You know, don't you?"

There had been controversy at their school after she disappeared and never showed up at school. Some thought she'd eloped with another guy and ran away. Others thought that the shock of having her best friend in the hospital traumatized her. Girls theorized that it had to be related to her love confession. Boys lamented over the fact that their object of in-class distraction was no longer present.

After summer break, the newspaper had established her death. Sabaku Sakura's body was found in a canal bed. Her body was mutilated and scrapped beyond recognition. It was months before they fished out her body, which resulted in a rotting body. Nevertheless, DNA analysis tests were conducted and the body was identified as the suspected girl.

But here she was, present in the living flesh. Just taking a look at her, Neji instantly knew that strings were pulled for her to escapade. He didn't say anything; he just closed his eyes and breathed deeply, trying to calm down the migraine that was threatening to overcome him.

Her eyes were serious, and once again, Neji was reminded of the girl who told him she can't marry him. She stood proud with dignity, even though in that moment, she was probably feeling the most vulnerable. Perhaps motherhood could really change a person, because this Sakura in front of him had changed. She no longer possessed those pair of emerald orbs which shone with idealistic dreams and whimsical fantasies. Her smile was no longer bright and full of vanity.

"What are your plans?" He asked.

"No idea, but I'm not going back to-" her sentence abruptly cut off when she looked behind him.

Neji turned to find Uchiha Sasuke standing at the door of the lounge. His eyes narrowed.

"I'm Uchiha Sasuke." The said Uchiha brother turned on the lights and strolled in with a courteous smile on his face. "Please to meet you, Hyuuga Neiji and Hyuuga Hinata."

At Neiji's cryptic answer, Sasuke furrowed his eyebrow, unsure of what he wanted to say. The secrets of Haruno Sakura were beginning to overwhelm him, and all he knew was that it was related to her past. Her past was one that everyone in his life seemed to know except for him. He hadn't been present. Somehow, that thought bothered him. How had Sakura gone through so much without anyone to help her?

"So what is it that you wanted to verify?"

Sasuke realized that he truthfully didn't know. Perhaps it was him overreacting, because he could've waited to hear it from the prime source of Haruno Sakura rather than Hyuuga Neji. He knew she wouldn't be happy if she learned that he'd gone to Hyuuga Neji for answers. In fact, she'd probably end up ignoring him again.

"How long have you known Haruno Sakura?"

A bemused glint flashed across Hyuuga's eyes as his mouth subtly curved up. Sasuke didn't like that look, for it indicated something that Hyuuga knew but Sasuke, himself, was unaware of it.

"We've known each other for nine years."

"And she tells you everything?" Somehow, the line came out as a question when he intended it to be a statement.

Hyuuga chuckled, "Of course."

The answer didn't settle well with Sasuke.

"You should've seen your face." Somehow, Neji reminded Sasuke of Itachi, who used to play games with him. The glare on his face darkened.

"The thing with Sakura is that even though she's hiding from the world, she can't get far because she's unable to lie. If you ask her what you want, she'll eventually tell you, but she's good at evading and skimming the bare surface. Aside from me, the one who knows everything from her past has got to be your brother."

Sasuke knew that there wasn't anything but a platonic relationship between the two of them. Itachi had come out of the closet a few years ago, but the fact that Itachi was someone so important in her life made Sasuke envious. He wanted to be there for her. He wanted to be the one who helped her through it. He wanted...

Sasuke's eyes widened.

He wanted to be someone significant in her life.

"It's evident that you have some sort of feelings for her, Uchiha." Neiji said, "But with your aspirations and dreams, you need to let her go. Haruno Sakura will only bring you to your demise. Leave her while you can, because once the truth unravels, it will be like the aftermath of war."

He wanted to be someone significant in her life.

Surprisingly, his world didn't come crashing down as he thought it would. Being an icon, he had dedicated his life to the entertainment industry. Every action he took, was solely towards rising to the top, and with Hatake Kakashi as his manager, Sasuke knew that his future was set as long as he followed the plan.

Dating Karin had been a move made by both Karin and Sasuke's companies to boost up their image. In the beginning, it was Karin who chased him. She'd purposely call him up to rehearse with her for their movie production. Sasuke had found her annoying. And then somehow, along the way, he grew soft the actress with red hair and had even made it official.

Perhaps it'd been his best friend, Yamanaka Ino, who had given him an earful for leading the girl on that made him surrender to Karin and ask her out. Ino never shut up about his single life, calling him a workaholic. Thinking back, he missed Ino's snide and infuriating voice. He missed his best friend, who always poked her nose into his business even when they were countries apart. And it was thanks to Ino that Sasuke went to Kakashi about Karin. Too bad Kakashi had given him the affirmative, which resulted in his two-year relationship.

If he were to compare his feelings for Karin to his feelings for Sakura, Sasuke wouldn't be able to explain it properly. With Karin, he felt like he had an image to live up to, which he did since their relationship was so publicized. He always had to be on guard whenever they went out for dinners or hit up galas and film festivals. He knew he liked the girl, because he cared for her enough to listen to her rant about trivial matters and pay attention to her likes and dislikes.

With Sakura, it was different. Sasuke always felt like he had to be on guard for her mood swings, but at the same time, it elated to him when she opened up. He had to be the one to prod questions because she was so defensive, yet he genuinely wanted to know more about her - her likes, her dislikes, her family, her past. And even if he didn't know much about her, he felt like he had to be protective of her.

He never thought he would like someone who was so insignificant to the world. He thought that if he did, it would be like throwing his career down the drain. Ino would definitely be thrilled of his emotional development.

They were merely acquaintances and his feelings for her weren't deep at all. But the fact that there was already somebody telling him to back away didn't settle with him. Sasuke didn't like to be told what to do. Yes, he did vow that he'd put his acting before anything else, including love. Perhaps it was the reason why he never felt much anger towards Karin and her infidelity. He never cared for their relationship enough to let it make an impact on his life. So what about Sakura that was different? They weren't even friends, let alone in a relationship, so why did he care for her?

Something tugged his heartstrings and his mother's explanation on not divorcing his father came back to him.

"There's no logic in it, Sasuke; we just can't control how we feel. Even if I want to, my feelings for your father won't leave. It's not the Uchiha pride or honour, it's just raw emotions. Those are the worst, because they never make sense and they will continue to stay with you."

"You have two options: either leave her or leave the entertainment industry."

The Uchiha's trademark smirk spread across Sasuke's face in response, "I'm taking both."

-;-

There used to be a time when hope surged through his bones when he visited the dull white room at the end up the corridor on the third floor. He would stand outside her door with a single stem of violets and a sketchbook cradled under his arms, hoping that would be the day when she woke up. However, four years had robbed him from that belief and Sai decided that if he could, he would throw away just anything in order for her to come back to him.

Just like any other visits, Sai never spoke. Tsunade-sensei had told him that there was always a chance that people in a coma were aware of their environments, yet unable to communicate, but Sai decided that it was just not worth it. Besides, he was never the type to talk. It had always been her who did the talking. So he did what he did best. He drew. Landscapes. Mountains. Silhouettes. Her. Always her.

"Yamanaka-san is as healthy as she can be." Sai looked up to find Ino's designated nurse, Otoha. There was a smile on her face that shone brightly enough to capture Sai's attention. He was quite adept at analyzing people's features and the smile Otoha wore today was a lot brighter than her usual.

"Did something change?"

He knew he shouldn't be hopeful. Not after what four years had done to him, but nevertheless his skin was tinkling and his heart was speeding in anticipation.

Otoha's smile widened. "She woke up three days ago."

It was such a simple sentence, yet Sai felt alive for the first time in his life. He felt light, as if his soul had separated from his body. He hadn't felt this way since the time they dated. While Sai was not a believer of fate, he knew that there was a force that linked him to her.

"Don't stare at me like that," The nurse grinned at Sai's stunned expression. "Go in right now. Yamanaka-san is probably bored out of her own mind since her parents are on an international business trip and won't be back for another week."

"How come you didn't inform me?"

"The doctors believed it was mandatory for Yamanaka-san to rest for a bit before she is permitted visitors..." She trailed off, as if she wanted to say something else, but decided against that.

"And?" Sai prompted.

There was a sad gaze in her eyes as she informed him the truth, "Yamanaka-san specifically said she didn't want to see anyone except for one person."

His eyes hardened as his chest burned in anger. He knew who it was even before she mentioned the name. He would always be second in Yamanaka Ino's life. Always second. Or even third. He wasn't even sure how high he ranked on Ino's list of important people, but he knew that no one could be Sabaku Sakura. No one. It was infuriating.

"I couldn't bear to tell her that Sabaku Sakura is dead."

-;-

"Sai!" Ino's chirpy voice echoed through the room as her blue eyes lit up at the sight at him. For a patient who had woken up after four years in coma, she was awfully chirpy. And even with the pstient's gown, she still shone brightly, just like her golden tresses. "You've become more handsome."

He could only stare at her, like a deer staring straight on at the headlights.

"What?" She asked him with a pout, "Can't I compliment a friend after four years of fighting on the verge of life and death? The world has definitely changed. The pixels on the television have gotten better, but the clothes are weird. Do you think I'm still good enough to be a model?"

He knew that Ino had always been optimist at heart. Regardless of being a Yamanaka, she was generous and loyal. In fact, he remembered that she had the object of envy. People envied Ino, but they admired her all the same because she displayed the traits of a dignified queen and seemed to breathe life to her surroundings.

"... new celebrity crush. Need to tell Sasuke-kun to hook me up!"

"How can you talk so much for losing four years of your life?"

She paused, detecting the hint of irritation in his voice. To ease the coming of the storm, she smiled at him and said softly, "I did miss four years of my life, but I'm back, aren't I?"

It was infuriating to think how she could treat the accident as if she had gone on a long vacation overseas.

"Don't glare like that, Sai."

"Why didn't you let them inform me that you woke up?" He demanded as he clenched his sketchbook. His voice was hoarse and the pain was evident. "Why her?"

Her eyes softened in understanding. "You know how important she is to me."

"She's also the reason that robbed you four years of your life!" It was now pure anger. He couldn't hold it in anymore. Sakura had no right to see Ino. Not even if Ino did forgive her for throwing her into a four-year induced coma. Even if Sakura was alive, Sai would never let her see Ino.

Ino looked at him with unwavering eyes, "I still want to see her."

He breathed in and even though he knew it was going to hurt her, he was going to tell her the truth.

In the next fifteen seconds, Ino felt like she had truly been robbed of four years of her life. The Yamanaka dignity and pride crumbled and all she could do was cry.

A/N: Wow. It's been a year, right?