"That is settled then. Itachi will begin attending village council meetings in preparation for his ascension as clan head. Fugaku, you will still oversee clan meetings until you and Itachi feel he has been well enough acclimated to see to his birthright. With Itachi's prodigious mind, I doubt the wait will be long." Fugaku nodded and stood to return back to where his family knelt listening to the proceedings. Fugaku took his spot between Itachi and Mikoto and waited for the next order of business. Agira made an annotation on the meeting scroll to note that they had finished addressing the growing changes in Itachi's responsibilities. She passed the scroll to Kohaku who cleared his throat as if to grab everyone's attention, even though the room had already been respectfully quiet with no objections to Fugaku's proposal.

Izumi tried her best not to squirm, but the hairs on the back of her neck were rising in defense. She had been enduring the derisive remarks about her breeding and fertility, or lack thereof, for years now. All she had to do was make it through the next few minutes and she could escape back to her home to sob in peace and pray for another month. Why the gods refused to answer her prayers, she couldn't comprehend. She'd done everything the Uchiha medics and monks had told her to; she'd left countless offerings at the temple, and still the gods denied her heartfelt pleas. But what churned in her gut the worst was how they denied Itachi, who she knew would be an outstanding father, and now their refusal would force Sasuke to sacrifice his own future for her insufficiency. Izumi felt terrible for wishing that the council would be quick with dispensing Sasuke's official marriage scroll. She felt terrible for praying that Sasuke would take it without fuss so she could escape. She felt so incredibly terrible that she could feel her body heating, her clothes tightening, her throat constricting against her dinner threatening to expel out of her. Her body felt fuzzy and her head throbbed. Tears prickled behind her eyes. Her lungs screamed at her to breathe but she just couldn't draw in air. She had to get out. She had to—.

Itachi's cool hand settled over her own trembling ones and squeezed gently. Izumi turned to look at him, but his eyes were straight ahead on the council like every other clan member in the room. Itachi gave her three gentle squeezes, telling her privately that he loved her, that he was by her side. Izumi let out a long breath that she'd been unconsciously holding and nodded her head imperceivably to everyone but him. She turned back to see that Sasuke had stepped up to the tatami mat Fugaku had vacated and bowed, almost too shallowly, to the council before taking his seat. Izumi felt Itachi tense and knew that he was mentally shaking his head at his younger brother's near challenge. Sasuke had never been one to posture on, always addressing the council with the barest decorum deserving of their position, but tonight it seemed he was being particularly ornery; the shallowness of his bow almost bordered on blatant disrespect. While Agira and Teiga made little sign of notice like they usually did, Kohaku's black eyes narrowed to snake-like slits.

"How pleasant of you to join us, Sasuke. You were sorely missed at the meeting last month where we discussed quite important matters about the future of the clan," Kohaku formed every word as if they were a distasteful meal on his tongue.

"Forgive me," Sasuke said in a haughty tone that made it very clear that the words were not meant as an apology. "The Hokage personally requested me; I believed, by accepting such a mission, that I was showing the prowess of the Uchiha clan." Sasuke looked the council member directly in the eye with his own gaze narrowed. While others viewed eye contact as sincere, to the Uchiha, direct eye contact could also be a challenge or insult. Deliberately looking a Sharigan user in the eye could easily be seen as a dismissal of their visual prowess as trivial or inconsequential.

Shisui snickered at his younger cousin's words while Izumi made a nearly futile attempt to hide her smile behind her sleeve. Itachi shot both his cousin and wife a firm, disapproving look. Izumi gave an apologetic wince but Shisui kept his smile firmly in place.

"It's good for the runt to give them a little hell; keeps 'em alive and active," Shisui whispered loud enough that it was obvious he wanted everyone in the room to hear. Itachi slowly blinked and took a deep breath. Sasuke smirked confidently at the panel, waiting to see if they would address or ignore Shisui's truthful comment. Kohaku turned his frigid glare onto Shisui who held his hands up innocently. Teiga looked up to the ceiling to ask for patience and Agira shook her head fondly. As Kohaku opened his mouth to retort, Sasuke cut in.

"My brother filled me in on what seems to be my impending engagement," Sasuke pulled everyone's attention back to the matter at hand. He was eager to have all of this done as soon as possible. Honestly, he wasn't even sure why they were giving him a whole list of women in the first place. If the point of his marriage was to quickly produce the next generation, it seemed far more practical to fertility test one woman and arrange their marriage, not go through a whole parade of courting one woman only to switch to another.

"Then you are well aware that even with years of… diligence, Itachi has yet to have a single heir," Kohaku slid his gaze over to Izumi. The urge to vomit came rushing back to her, but she stamped it down before her stomach could begin convulsing. Itachi allowed his eyes to bleed crimson for only a millisecond, but of course the elder had seen Itachi's warning; he would not let anyone, elder or no, make disparaging comments about his wife.

"As Itachi's heir," Teiga cut in to relieve some of the tension in the room, "it has become quite dangerous for you to continue to take Anbu missions without an heir of your own. As such, a marriage scroll has been compiled for you. The head of the clan and council have agreed on the contents of this scroll." He held the red scroll up for all to see. All members in attendance were well aware that the scroll had been agreed upon; it was simply required formality for those who were also members of the police force to know that clan matters had proceeded by protocol and that the scroll had not been tampered with, which would have nullified the agreement. Teiga laid the scroll back on the table until it was time for Sasuke to receive it.

"Before we hand over the scroll, there is a concern we would like to rectify," Agira spoke firmly. Both Fugaku and Itachi exchange glances, unsure of what concerns the council would have that wouldn't have already been brought up during the initial revealing of the scroll. Sasuke rolled his eyes and Izumi cursed lightly under her breath. Typical. Of course, it was too much to hope for the old coots to conduct something swiftly! Shisui's eyebrow rose with intrigue and he gave a smug look to Itachi, who refused to meet his cousin's eye. Shisui shook his head and turned back to Sasuke, curious as to whatever supposed grievance the council had. Mikoto looked up to her husband, trying to decipher if he was at all aware of what the council could have possibly found as cause for concern. Fugaku turned his head slightly to the side, signifying that he wasn't aware of anything either. He scowled and crossed his arms; he was not a fan of being kept deliberately in the dark, especially in matters that involved his sons.

The council said nothing more for a few moments. Sasuke rolled his eye when it became clear that the council was waiting on his response specifically before airing their grievance. He was in no mood for their dramatics.

"And what concern would that be?" Sasuke pressed.

"Our concern hinders around a…rumor, we'll say, one that was confirmed early on," Agira began.

"It is known that you had and are still having certain dalliances with a civilian woman." Teiga examined the young Uchiha's face, almost waiting for him to make the same declaration as his brother 10 years prior. When that proclamation did not come, he proceeded. "What are your intentions with the girl?"

"I was evaluating the qualities my wife would need," Sasuke replied smoothly, not denying the rumors but also not fully telling the council what he knew they wanted to hear. With all the trouble they'd given him when he had made clear his request to join Anbu, Sasuke was reveling in a little turnabout. All members of the council frowned, clearly not enjoying his cryptic answer.

"And did she possess any of these qualities?" Kohaku huffed impatiently.

"In miniscule amounts," Sasuke shrugged. "The civilian won't be a problem."

"That's good to hear Sasuke," Teiga nodded.

"We trust that you have been careful. We would hate for the main branch to be hampered by illegitimate blood," Agira lowered her tone. While not meant as a threat, it was very clear to everyone in the room that Sasuke spawning an illegitimate child from a civilian girl would not be tolerated, even if the clan needed a clear heir in the next generation. Izumi tried not to take Agira's comment personally, but every mention of illegitimate blood and children brought her back to the taunts she had suffered as a child. She wondered if those wounds would ever heal, or if her own child would face those same harsh critiques. 'If I ever have one,' Izumi thought downtrodden.

"You know that shinobi are taught to avoid such foolish actions." Sasuke bristled at Agira's implication that he would be so careless. Avoiding unwanted pregnancies was drilled into every shinobi either at puberty or when they made chunin, whichever came first. For shinobi who made chunin at incredibly young ages such as Kakashi, Shisui, and Itachi, they were refreshed on the techniques to prevent pregnancy again when they hit puberty. On top of that, the training that Itachi and Sasuke received had been reinforced by their parents.

Being from one of the Four Noble clans and also the most powerful clan in Konoha, their mother had made sure they knew that an "accidental" pregnancy was not a tactic above any woman looking to gain prestige and socially advance. Since Itachi had been in love with Izumi since they were 13, it wasn't as risky for him; no one was surprised that they married. And Sasuke was no idiot; as he grew older, he knew that many of his so-called "admirers" were women who had hoped to land Itachi. Which was another reason why his arrangement with Sakura worked so well. She was a medic who had no intentions of settling down with children just yet. Never once had he been concerned that Sakura would miss her biannual dosage of birth control. And if she somehow forgot to schedule the appointment, he knew that she would immediately perform the backup jutsu that would make her womb inhospitable. He had no trouble coming inside of her. He'd fought and almost died by her side plenty of times. He trusted her with his life.

Kanami on the other hand, never. Sasuke always pulled out and came into his hand to make sure there wasn't even a possibility that she could get a hold of his seed. He knew she wasn't malicious, but he'd also never take the risk of her getting pregnant when he knew that she had her eyes set on a shinobi husband; it wasn't an accident that they'd met in a bar almost exclusively frequented by shinobi. No. He didn't trust Kanami with enough certainty to say that she wouldn't try it, and that lack of trust was a quality that had made him sure he could never marry her.

"There is one last question, regarding your former teammate, Haruno Sakura," Agira prompted, pulling Sasuke out of his thoughts.

His eyes narrowed and he resisted the urge to ball his fist. "What about her?"

"We are also aware of your continued involvement with her." Sasuke cringed when he heard his mother's gasp from behind him. If he'd have known that his status with Sakura was going to be aired in front of his mother, he'd have asked for another month-long mission. Sasuke could practically see it now: his mother pacing in the kitchen, ranting on how she was the last to know, him trying unsuccessfully to inform her that it was only physical and an uncomfortable thing to talk to one's mother about, all the while his brother and father would sip their tea quietly at the family table. He wasn't looking forward to that dinner at all.

"Beyond comrades, my relationship with Sakura is based purely on physical release. We agree that when I am formally engaged, the physical aspect will end and we will go back to being close friends and comrades, as we were before," Sasuke bit out nearly every word feeling his mother's unwavering glare on his back. Agira's eyes slid to Fugaku, her brow raised at Sasuke's emphasis on the engagement as the end of his physical involvement with his former teammate. Fugaku met Agira's eyes briefly but was much more concerned with keeping an angry Mikoto in her seat. Agira turned her eyes back to Sasuke and nodded, satisfied with his answers. She nodded to Teiga, who held out the red scroll for Sasuke to take.

"This scroll contains all of the information on your marriage timeline. You will have 3 months to make a decision on your future wife. At the end of the 3-month timeframe, you will begin formal courtship and have until your 25th birthday to make a formal proposal. Your wedding will then be held by the Winter Festival. Be advised Sasuke, that if Itachi and Izumi have still not conceived in a year's time, we will expect your wife to be pregnant within 6 months of the marriage, or we will have to annul it for a more fertile option. If that is the case, we will speak on Itachi and Izumi's marriage at that time as well," Teiga spoke firmly and clearly, giving Sasuke and Itachi both their clear ultimatums: 18 months, that was the maximum amount of time the council was willing to extend their wait for an heir.

Sasuke stood and grabbed the scroll, feeling its almost negligible weight in his hand; he never imagined something with such power over the future of him and his clan would take up such little space. When he turned around to go back to his seat, Sasuke shared a look with Izumi and nodded to Itachi. Sasuke wouldn't fail them; if he produced an heir, there would be no need for Itachi to defect from the clan. And there was no doubt in his mind that Itachi would defect. He'd been ready to abdicate to have Izumi; it was no stretch of the imagination what he would be willing to do to keep her.

Sasuke tucked the scroll into his pocket and took his place in between Izumi and Shisui. Agira made an annotation next to the matter of Sasuke's marriage scroll, then made a small mark at something lower on her administrative scroll. She looked up at Shisui as if she were dreading the words that would come out of her mouth next.

"Shisui, I'd suggest that you begin looking into possible marriage prospects as well. Since you are directly after Sasuke in the line of succession, you'll need to find some woman willing enough to put up with your antics," Agira's lips tilted upward slightly.

"Don't worry Baa-chan. I've got someone in mind," Shisui said confidently. The entire council room turned to him in amazement. "But she'd be more likely to punch me halfway across the village than say yes." He smiled and stuck his tongue out at Sasuke. Sasuke glared and flicked the older man on his hitai-ate. Shisui retorted, rubbing his forehead and complaining about Sasuke's lack of respect for his elders. The whole council room sighed and dropped their heads, aware of Shisui's taunting rivalry with Sasuke, and also knowing that Sakura would indeed punch Shisui halfway across the village than say yes.

Sasuke stared at his ceiling. The compound almost taunted him in its quiet as he struggled to get to sleep with how his thoughts raced. He turned his head to look at the red scroll standing ominously on his dresser, beckoning him to open it.

When the council meeting concluded, Sasuke walked back to his home, not avoiding his mother, but definitely thankful that his father had shushinned him and his mother away as soon as the meeting finished. If anyone asked, he had chosen to take a leisurely stroll around the clan's compound; he was definitely not walking home in order to give his father enough time to calm his mother off her war path. During the entire walk, his left hand had fiddled with the scroll in his pocket, ever reminding him of its presence and need for action.

When he arrived home, relieved not to see his mother waiting at his dining table, he'd set the scroll on his bedroom dresser and gone about his nightly routine: washing up, eating, and meditating before bed. But whereas his nightly meditation sessions were usually peaceful enough to guide him into sleep, tonight his mind would not find its meditative state. His thoughts kept racing back to the scroll curious on what it contained, then scolding himself for letting it cloud his thoughts. He wasn't planning on opening the scroll until it was much closer to when he needed to make a decision; as an elite shinobi, he wouldn't need three months to decide on a woman to court, and many of the women in his clan he'd known his entire life anyway. Opening the scroll now would just bring unneeded headache. So why then had his mind decided to fixate on it?

Sitting up in frustration, Sasuke threw on a shirt and his jōnin pants and grabbed his weapons pouch. Once he had secured the pouch to his leg, he took one last look at the scroll and shushinned over to Sakura's.

He landed quietly on the balcony and entered her room through the window, mirroring the way he'd visited her a month prior and many other times. He saw her sleeping form cuddled under the blanket and smirked lightly, feeling the pressure of the scroll and its impending consequences fade away. He took off his shirt, pants, and weapons pouch and climbed into her bed. Sakura shifted over to let him in but didn't turn around to face him yet.

"How'd it go?" Sakura's sleep-dazed voice floated through her otherwise quiet apartment.

"The usual," He grunted, settling on his back with his arms behind his head. Sakura turned over to face him. As he looked up at the ceiling, she studied his profile: the aristocratic line of his nose, his high cheek bones and full lips, his biceps, toned from hours of training. She listened to their breathing, his slightly faster, and waited for when he was ready to talk. She had almost fallen back asleep when he finally spoke.

"I'll be married by next year's Winter Festival," He spoke slowly, warm baritone filling the space between them.

"The Winter Festival, good times," She gave a him a small smile made languid by her drowsiness.

"Hn. Maybe for you. I seem to remember my ass cheeks frozen in the snow," He huffed.

"If I remember correctly your ass cheeks were frozen because you were getting a hell of a blow job." Sakura's smile widened as he blew air out of his nose, a clear sign that he was laughing. The promise of them fooling around had been the only reason he'd ever said yes to going to the festivals when they were teenagers. They'd sneak out to the training fields while the rest of the village was enjoying the festivities then be back by the time the fireworks went off or the lanterns were lit; no one even knew they were gone, and if anyone noticed their clothes were a little wrinkled or Sakura's hair wasn't as perfect as Ino had styled it, no one said anything. Silence settled between them as they both thought of their next words.

"And the list? Who's on it?" Sakura yawned through her question. Sasuke shrugged his shoulders. Sakura waited for a moment before realizing—"You didn't open the scroll?"

"They gave me three months to make a decision. I'll deal with it when it's time," he replied nonchalantly.

"Three months?!" Sakura whispered harshly. In three months he was supposed to figure out the woman he'd spend the rest of his life with?!

"Three months isn't a lot of time, Sasuke! How could they think you'll find someone to truly love in only three months?" The drowsiness had almost completely slipped away as she felt anger towards his clan rising in her gut.

"Don't be annoying, Sakura. You know this isn't about love." He looked at her fiery green eyes in the starlit darkness and narrowed his own. Sakura wasn't oblivious to how his clan worked, and being friends with Hinata, she wasn't oblivious to how the clans with the most prestige and strongest kekkei genkai operated to preserve the clan and family prowess.

"If it isn't about love, Sasuke, then it's at least about you not being miserable for your entire life. You deserve to be happy, and I don't think three months is anywhere near enough time to decide who you're going to be with for your entire life. There's no way your brother and father agreed to this," she whispered in disbelief. How could he just accept this? She didn't get why he was so willing to throw away his happiness for his clan. Even Itachi had taken a stand against the council when it came to his love for Izumi! Sakura could feel hot tears pooling in the corners of her eyes. Her tears began to slip in thin lines down her cheeks.

"My brother and father designed the list. Besides, whoever is on there is family, Sakura. It's not like it's some random woman I don't know or a diplomat's daughter from another village. And if I don't choose a woman and get her pregnant, Itachi and Izumi will defect from the clan rather than have their marriage annulled for childlessness. Itachi has loved Izumi since they were children; do you think I'm going to squander their happiness for my own?" When she gave no response, Sasuke sighed and turned towards her. He gently brushed her tears away and wiped his fingers on her comforter.

"Sakura, you know I can't do that," he whispered softly. She picked up on his underlying plea for her to drop the subject for the night. There was so much more that she wanted to say, but she could tell that she'd only be smashing her head against the Hokage Mountain to get it to move if she tried to push the conversation tonight. She nodded and Sasuke turned on to his back once more.

"If you're so determined to do it this way, then Naruto and I are vetting the hell out of her!" Sakura proclaimed. Sasuke 'hned" and smiled at the ceiling.

"I'm serious, Sasuke Uchiha! We're going to make sure there is at least a shred of happiness in your life, and she better be able to provide it. You got that?" Sakura pouted and waited a full minute before he finally agreed to let her and Naruto vet his prospective choices whenever he got around to opening the scroll. Sakura yawned and snuggled further into the blankets until only her eyes and head could be seen.

"Do you have an early shift tomorrow?"

"Yeah, first thing in the morning," Sakura yawned again, feeling the pull of sleep dragging her body back. She held out her hand in between them, and Sasuke took it, a holdover gesture from when they were on missions and it was too dark to see each other.

"I'll be gone before sunrise,"

"No don't worry about it. Just sleep," Sakura squeezed his hand and promptly fell back asleep. Sasuke looked over at her sleeping form cocooned back in her swath of blankets and shook his head. He looked up at her ceiling and felt his eyelids finally weigh down with exhaustion. He fell into a comforting sleep, swayed along by the rhythmic sounds of her deep breathing and the chirping of the crickets outside her window.