AN: I do not own Naruto or any of it's characters.
The best time to ask his mother anything was when she was cooking.
He'd been holding onto the question for the better part of a day, barely containing the dam within him from bursting.
"Kaa-san, I have a question for you."
"Yes"
He ripped the band-aid off the wound.
"Who is Uzumaki Kushina?"
His mother dropped the pot from her hands.
"I'm sorry, I don't know who that is" She lied, reaching down to pick up the pot.
Shikamaru had suspected such a denial would take place.
He held out the photo.
"Then why is her name written behind a photo with you in it?"
Her face go through various emotions: denial, grief, despair and finally acceptance.
She put everything away and guided him to the living room.
"The first time I saw her, I thought I would hate her for the rest of my life. She was the prettiest girl in our class, and all the boys fawned after her, even your father. At first sight she was a total girly-girl, but then she punched out Taeko-kun on her first day for comparing her hair to hot sauce (That's Kiba's dad). Somehow we all ended up having the friendships of a lifetime, right until she..."
She choked back a sob, and Shikamaru could guess the next part.
"How did it happen?" He gently asked.
"I think that's something you should ask your father."
"Then tell me one thing, was she Naruto's mother?"
A long silence.
"Yes" she breathed out.
"Why did you do nothing? All this time your best friend's son lived not a kilometre away by himself, and you didn't even raise a finger to help him."
His mother looked at him stunned, as if he had just slapped her across the face.
"Some things my sweet, even I cannot tell you" and with that she left the room, dinner preparation lay forgotten.
His father arrived an hour later, and the state of the kitchen straightened his spine.
"Is your mother alright?"
He didn't know how his parents did it, automatically sense what the other was feeling without talking to each other..
"She hasn't come out of your room for an hour."
"What happened?"
He gulped, apprehension bubbling in his stomach.
"I asked about Uzumaki Kushina."
His father sighed.
"You should have come to me first."
"You told me to figure things out on my own."
"I told you to speak to Naruto directly, not sneak around him."
"I'm not sneaking around him."
"Asking about his past to anyone but him is sneaking".
"Fine. Would you rather I just marched to his doorstep and refused to leave until he told me everything?"
His father snorted "I doubt it'd take long for him to dispose of you".
He was almost stung by the easiness his father had dismissed him.
"We're going to have to make dinner today. Start chopping onions and tomatoes."
Some thirty minutes later, he was going upstairs to his parents room, dinner tray in hand.
He had no idea what the dish was, but at this point he wasn't about to complain.
His mother never got this upset, even when she was yelling at him or his dad, which happened quite often.
Knocking on the door, Shikamaru waited for his mother to invite him.
"Come in".
He nudged the door open slowly, trying to peek in to see her.
Her eyes were puffy and red, and a scrapbook was on her lap.
Shikamaru set the tray on the bedside table and sat on the foot of the bed.
"I'm sorry".
He meant that truthfully, even if he didn't know what he was apologising for.
His mother was the strongest person she knew, and for her to break down this way must have meant it was something very sensitive.
"You don't need to be, you did nothing wrong."
He handed her the glass of water, making sure no beads of condensation trickled down the side - his mother hated when that happened.
She smiled at his gesture, "You're not as lazy as you like to think."
At his puzzled gaze she beckoned him closer.
He shifted next to her and she took his hand in hers, interlacing their fingers.
"I suppose I also hold some of the blame. After all your inquisitive nature comes from me. Certainly not from your father. We should have told you long ago, but the Hokage forbid any mention of it and it was too painful a topic to rehash. We had hoped you would become friends naturally, and for a while that seemed to go well. But then you started asking questions, and one way or another you drifted apart. I tried to push you in his direction to quell his loneliness, but your father thought that would be unfair on both of you. Asking you to befriend him if your mind wasn't in it might cause you to push him away and make things worse, so we were forced to watch you turn your backs at the other."
"I-I didn't know that. Had I know I would-"
"Have tried harder? Done better? We all have regrets, but what matter now is what we do going forward. I regret not being there for Kushina's son, but it may have raised suspicions, may have got people asking questions that needn't be asked. We all tried to make things easier wherever. When he was a child we would send bottled milk over, when he got older we'd send his favourite food - ramen through his ANBU details. Trivial actions which he doesn't know of, but it "
"What about Naruto's father? Why didn't he do anything?"
"That's because Naruto's father is dead."
The hollowness in her voice chilled him to the bone.
"Who was his father?"
"I don't think that's my story to tell, or anyone else's. That's something Naruto should tell you, not by you forcing or coaxing him into; but by forging a relationship with him where he trusts you enough to."
That was his cue to leave.
He placed the dinner tray on his mom's lap, kissed her cheek and bid goodnight.
When he went to bed that night he realised he'd never found out what was in the dish.
Perhaps some things were meant to be unknown.
Next morning
He didn't come here often, not seeing any point in disturbing the departed.
He laid the flowers at their shrines, yellow daffodils for his father and blue rosemarys for his mother.
Jiraiya had told him those had been the flowers at his parent's wedding.
Today, he decided to sit in front of his mother.
"I guess I should say I'm sorry, for not coming more often. But I don't want to feel close to you only by talking to an empty grave. Things have been...difficult. I realised I'm not the only person in the world to have suffered. I suppose that makes me selfish. I wonder, how much did you suffer? What did you do with your suffering? Did you talk to others, or to each other about it? Or did you erect a mask around others so no one ever suspected anything? I suppose I'll never find out. Before, that used to make me sad. But one can only feel so much sadness. I've stopped thinking about what I don't know about you, and thought about what I do. You're both heroes, to the public and to me. Your sacrifices saved everyone's lives, including mine. I wonder if anyone will one day speak of me in the same breath as the two of you."
Naruto got up, feeling he'd said enough for a day.
Then he remembered something else.
"One more thing, my teammates. I think you would've liked them. Sakura at least, I wonder if even you could have liked Sasuke. They're not bad as teammates, and Sakura tries a lot to keep us together, as much as Sasuke and I try to stay apart. Maybe because being around each other reminds us of everything that we've lost".
Before leaving he said one last thing.
"There's this girl...Ino."
"It's good to have you back."
"It's good to be back Hokage-sama."
He activated the privacy seals, and looked at the pair expectantly.
Sarutobi had made a career on reading people and body language.
The two were positioned facing away from each other, their eyes fixed resolutely on him.
He saw Kakashi's hand ghosting unconsciously to his pouch, where he stored Icha Icha.
As good as Kakashi was, Sarutobi had been the one to teach him everything he knew about concealing emotions. (AN: This is one of my head canons, that after his team's death Kakashi decided to join ANBU, and Hiruzen was the one to help him initially because he felt bad for him)
And he could tell something else had happened on this trip he wasn't going to be intimated with.
No matter.
So long as it hadn't interfered with the mission.
They recounted their mission, from the morgue in Tottori to the Palace of Sand in Suna.
He knew Anko could tell when Orochimaru was nearby, and suspected it had something to do with the cursed seal near her collarbone.
If Orochimaru had infiltrated this deep into an allying village, chances were they would not remain allies for much longer.
He needed to speak to the council.
Two hours later
"The date has been set. The chunin exams will be held six months from today. The preliminaries will take place a month prior."
"Which nations will be attending either event Lord Hokage?" Hiashi questioned.
"We were surprised by both results. Almost all the shinobi villages will be participating in the main event in Takigakure; and there is an issue I would like to bring to your attention we have received an unusual request for the prelims."
"What is the request Hokage-sama?" Tsume asked.
"The council remembers that Otogakure was one of the possible replacement venues. They have now submitted an appeal to be invited to the prelims, here in Konoha."
"That's a very unusual request" Chouza frowned.
Sarutobi nodded "I agree. Hence I would like to know what my council thinks of it."
"Considering they are a relatively small village, I believe this request can be entertained. Their presence and participation would also allow us to monitor their capabilities."
"There is another I bring your attention to. Earlier today, our friends returned from the Sand. They were able to confirm Orochimaru's presence deep inside Sunagakure, in such a place and position that it would be impossible for the Sand to miss."
He saw red in Tsume's eyes "I say we attack, Lord Third. Show them what Konoha thinks of those who harbour our traitors."
Ever the first to rise to any perceived deception, not considering that treachery was a shinobi's bread and butter.
Hiashi spoke to counter her "That would be very rash, Inuzuka-san; not to mention setting a dangerous precedent of attacking allying states on the basis of paper-thin evidence."
"This is not paper-thin though" Inoichi spoke, "We have solid proof of Suna aligning itself with a village enemy."
Hiashi calmly explained "Exactly, Yamanaka-san. WE have solid proof. But can this proof be replicated on the international stage? Would the other Great Nations just watch whilst we invaded Suna? No, we need to seek other options."
Of all the council members, Danzo respected Hiashi the most. He had the same pragmatism, and if necessary ruthlessness that Danzo had at that age. He didn't mind what people thought of him, so long as his clan and village benefited.
That was the only issue Danzo had with the man - clan first, village later. He had always disapproved the Hyuga's regressive clan hierarchy, finding it a waste of good fighting shinobi. And the fact that they were the only clan in the village he didn't have a mole in.
Shikaku spoke next "There is another option, to let things be as they are planned."
Seeing the looks of revolt and incredulity on some faces, the Nara head held his hand up to explain.
"If we do anything now, it would be premature. I believe there is more reward in waiting. Let our enemy come to us, rather than us haphazardly hunting him. Orochimaru thinks he will surprise us. I say let him believe this. There are ways to thwart his plan without being obvious. The first would be to not extend an invitation to the Kazekage - after all since when did a Kage leave his seat for anything as trivial as preliminary qualifications? That reduces the number of troops Suna can realistically send without being suspicious. The second would be to insist on providing Konoha security to Suna's teams. Officially, as they are still our allies this would not raise too many eyebrows. They would still keep their jinchūriki heavily guarded, but we could have our team follow him at all times. Our own forces could be silently readied for an attack, and this way if and when Suna attempts any treachery they would be caught red-handed, and we could demand several reparations and accessions from them, which they would have no choice but to agree to."
Danzo was glad that Shikaku had said this.
If the council was unsure before, it was sure now.
There would be no change in the chunin exam prelims, he was sure of it.
If the Jounin leader found no flaws in it, neither would anyone else.
Rather, they would not think to look for any.
No one voiced any objections, and Sarutobi ended the meeting.
He loved his job sometimes.
Being a wolf hiding in sheep's clothing.
And he would get the fox hiding in sheep's clothing.
A warm hand rested atop his shoulder.
His cane flew upwards to strike his assailant.
It was caught and stopped mid-air.
"Danzo, I have something that requires your urgent attention."
From Sarutobi's tone, Danzo knew this wasn't a question.
"Very well."
"It was discovered by Jiraiya in a cave near the Land of Forests."
His eyes turned red.
"What is the meaning of this?"
"I think you know the answer to your question."
"Is this someone's idea of a sick joke?"
Yet even as he asked the question he knew the answer.
It was someone's idea of a sick joke.
"How did he?"
"He knew somehow, just like he always does. He knew Jiraiya would venture into the Land of Forests tracking him, and caves have always been his favourite."
Danzo could not bear to cast his eyes upon it anymore.
Doing so would unwrap memories he'd long sealed away, emotions he'd long buried.
Such insolence would not go unpunished.
The Snake wanted to play mind games?
He would feel just how deep an eagle's claws pierced.
"She once told me not to mourn the perished, but cherish their memories."
"Save your apologies. They didn't work then, and they certainly don't work now."
Danzo was being taunted, and he would not tolerate it.
He left the room, failing not to take a last look.
On the table lay a pendant designed with a rising phoenix.
This had been given to Orochimaru a long time ago by a woman.
His dead wife.
"Home sweet home."
Kakashi was draped over the couch, chugging through a bucket of ice-cream while flicking channels on the TV.
Contrary to most shinobi who derided it as an 'idiot box' that poisoned the mind and dulled the senses, he was quite grateful for this contraption.
No longer did he have to sit alone in a sea full of couples at the cinema watching the Icha Icha series as they stared at his weird get-up and outbursts of emotion.
The plan had been a long hot shower, removing his hair dye and spending the rest of the day lazing around watching TV.
Of course someone had to ruin that.
The doorbell rung and Kakashi grumpily opened the door.
Anko turned up on the other side of the door, whirling a senbon around her teeth.
He suddenly found himself at a loss of words.
How to speak to a girl after sex
Nope. He was empty in that department. Normally he just escaped while the girl was asleep.
No chance of that this time.
He blinked, realising she'd been standing outside while he was thinking.
"Please, come in."
Anko looked like she was going to object for a moment, but stepped in, locking the door behind her.
"You forgot this" she held up his bandages that he'd been wearing during their mission as a cover.
"Oh".
She kept it on his coffee table "Well I should get going."
But she didn't.
"I guess."
He remembered that he wasn't wearing a mask, and that for the first time in years he was showing his face, his full face to someone.
The need to cover himself didn't materialise.
Anko seemed to realise that too, and came closer, close enough to cup his face and marvel.
"I really should go" yet her hand stayed warm on his cheek.
He gulped; the last time she'd said that she'd been moaning underneath him within five minutes.
Screw it.
No one knew who made the first move, and neither cared.
All that was important was their lips on each other, her hands in his hair and his on her back.
He felt the door collide against his back, and felt thankful for locking it.
He pushed back with the same force.
One of her hands left his hair, clearing the table behind her.
He lifted her onto the table, taking off her shirt and moving his lips down her throat.
She moaned and stripped him of his shirt, her nails roaming his front.
He groaned and kissed that spot on her throat he knew she loved, earning a breathless 'Kakashi' from her lips.
Hearing her moan his name indecently like that only spurred him on.
Moving back slightly, he undid her bra and turned his attention to her breasts.
Her moans only grew louder and lewder.
Later in the afternoon
"I feel like my head is going to explode."
Ino was perhaps the first person in history, and the last to feel their head was about to spontaneously combust from meditation.
Instead of calming her down in order to relive the moments before she had mind-walked, all it did was agitate her.
"Good, so long as it doesn't actually explode. The cleaning up wouldn't be worth my time."
She hoped that was a joke.
"This isn't working" she huffed five minutes later.
"How so?" Inoa asked her.
"The meditation is trying to calm me down, but I was anything but calm when it happened. I was terrified out of my mind."
"So we need to scare you instead."
"Yes. But how are you going to do that?"
Inoa flashed her teeth in an unpleasant smile "I can think of a few ways."
And the next thing Ino knew the world turned pitch black and all the air escaped her lungs.
"What is this?"
"Be patient girl" Inoa's voice chided.
"Ar-are we in your mind?"
"No, we're in your mind and if you don't keep quiet I'll keep you here permanently."
That shut her up quick.
She heard Inoa's voice after a while.
"Here we go, just what you need."
The scenery changed, the darkness replaced by a farmhouse.
Ino saw herself walking ahead, side-by-side with Naruto.
She realised what was going on and turned to face Inoa.
"Get me out of this."
"It's your mind" the hag snorted, "you control it. Not the other way round."
Her breathing quickened as the memory progressed.
She tried closing her eyes, but the memory just resumed in her mind.
Naruto alerted her of something inside, and he drew his weapon.
She followed suit and together they slowly approached the building.
This time it was somehow worse.
Back then she'd been too stunned to fully process everything, her senses numbed by the mindless brutality.
This time, there was no such reprieve.
Light escaped through the broken wall panels, as if pointing to the scenes of atrocities like an evil spotlight.
The smell of burned animal remains marred the environment, and Ino almost choked on the taste of blood in the air.
She saw herself melting into Naruto's arms, and he thankfully returned the gesture, turning around as if to shield her from what she'd witnessed.
She thought that was very gallant of him.
Then, the ground gave way under her feet and the world started spinning.
Ino regained consciousness half an hour later, gasping for breath and shivering violently, rubbing her arms to generate heat.
"For a while I thought you wouldn't wake up"
"Wou-wouldn't, or wi-wished I wou-wouldn't?" Ino chattered her teeth.
Inoa waved her off, "What's important is that you're back."
Ino settled inside her blanket, saying nothing for the next five minutes.
"The things I saw, I didn't notice them the first time" She shrugged off the blanket, feeling adequately warm now.
"That is quite common. One's mind can sometimes be focused on everything but what is in front of them."
"So you're saying that I lack focus?"
"I'm saying that you had never seen such viciousness before, and you stopped thinking. It happens, especially the first time. Eventually you get used to it."
Ino shuddered. She didn't ever want to get used to such insanity, though from the way Inoa spoke she could certainly had.
"By the way, your boyfriend's cute. Hold on to him or someone else will snatch him."
She blushed pink "That's not my boyfriend. That's Naruto, and he's an idiot."
Trying to switch the topic, she remembered something.
"You said I could get stuck in my own mind. How does that work?"
Inoa smiled again, though there was a hint of playfulness.
"It doesn't. Once the memory had finished you'd have made it to the physical realm safely. The danger is in entering another being's psychical world."
"Do you enjoy being a sadist?"
"Quite. Now help me up, these knees don't work like they used to."
Evening, Konoha Market
Naruto was just walking back from Mount Hokage. He hadn't meant to stay there as long as he did, but the quietude and seclusion of the place made him into staying for hours. He often went there to clear his head. At that distance he could even pretend he wasn't the village pariah, that the shopkeepers were just honest businessmen who never made a face when walked by their stores, that most of the shinobi and kunoichi in the village didn't hate him for existing.
Not that the civilians knew his truth - they had just been told that it was his family that was responsible for causing the Kyubi accident all those years ago.
Which he supposed wasn't a lie, just an incomplete truth.
He saw Ino coming out of one of the shops, balancing a combination of flower pots and bouquets like an expert juggler.
Any other day he'd have turned around and walk in the opposite direction.
Today he approached her.
"We have got to stop meeting like this."
She looked up, surprised to see him.
"What do you mean, 'like this'?"
"As in unplanned."
She smiled coyly at him.
"Are you asking me out on a date?"
He cocked his head.
"Maybe."
He didn't know where this irrational confidence was coming from, but he'd ride his luck until it lasted.
"Not on your best day blondie" she teased him, and handed him a bunch of flower pots.
"You do realise we're both blondes" he objected, nevertheless following her with the goods.
"I know, but you're more blonde than I am."
"That makes no sense whatsoever" Naruto huffed.
Ino giggled, and her laughter felt like a crystal melody to him.
He wouldn't lie that she'd invaded her thoughts more than once since that night, and even his dreams...
He blushed scarlet as he remembered her lips on his skin...
Kami, he had to stop before he turned worse than Kakashi.
They went from shop to shop, house to house making deliveries.
Him staying outside, Ino going in to deliver flowers.
If she wondered why, she did a good job of hiding it.
Instead they passed the time making small talk, and it wasn't until they'd finished that Naruto realised what had happened.
"You spoke to Sakura!" he accused her.
She smiled "My lips are sealed."
"You liar. Using me to do your work; you're both terrible people.".
Ino feigned being hurt "Oh, how shall I ever recover. Uzumaki thinks I'm terrible."
He pinched her elbow in retaliation, and she yelped before pinching his cheek and running away, her laughter echoing like a symphony.
Naruto couldn't help but smile.
In the future they'd look at this moment as their beginning.
What he wouldn't find out however was the hurt look on Hinata's face as she saw them from across the street, realisation dampening her day.
Sometime during their tryst they'd relocated to his bedroom, and Kakashi was currently lying down, Anko on top of him.
She kissed his chest lightly, sitting up.
"I need to take a shower."
His hands found their way around her bottom.
"So do I. Again."
She laughed, a wicked glint in her eyes.
"Too bad we both can't shower together."
Kakashi grinned and picked her up, consuming her squeak of surprise with his lips.
"I think I've found a remedy for that, my lady."
She laughed into his chest as he carried her to the shower and turned on the hot water.
Moving her lips along his, "You are a bad, bad boy."
Pinning her to the wall, they locked lips passionately.
"And what do you do to bad boys?"
Her hand snaked down to his groin, reawakening his libido.
"I punish them."
"Then punish away."
Midnight
If Kakashi had suspected he was addicted before, he was damn sure of it now.
They'd been going at like rabbits, only separating for dinner.
He didn't know what was fuelling this, but he wasn't going to complain whilst she kept coming back to him.
Later, when she had left he would be annoyed with himself, but he couldn't help getting aroused when she looked at him so amorously.
He could feel her soft breathing on his neck, and he found it pleasantly ticklish.
"You're not asleep."
It wasn't an accusation.
"I couldn't sleep. And after all we've done, I'm too tired."
He agreed. He'd lost count the second time in the shower.
Kakashi was glad his house was sound-proof or his neighbours would've had him kicked out for all the noise they'd been making.
Now that their lust had abated, the self-conscious started creeping in.
They weren't boyfriend girlfriend, certainly not.
But then what were they?
Fuck buddies?
"This is the first time we've slept with each other."
She looked up at him from his chest.
At his raised eyebrow, she explained "In Suna, that was Iwabe and Namida. Now...it's different."
He wanted to ask her how it was different.
They were two warm bodies back then, just as they were now.
It was so confusing.
"You look good without the mask" She complimented him.
"Thanks" Even though he never thought of it. As a shinobi strength and stealth were all he'd ever thought on, looks taking a backseat.
That was partly why he wore a mask, so he didn't have to waste time worrying about his looks.
"You're beautiful too."
That wasn't a lie, or flattery.
With her hair undone and her doe-brown eyes, she looked angelic.
She hugged closer to him, muttering "Thanks."
He smiled slightly; turns out he wasn't the only one who didn't know how to receive a compliment.
"Tell me about your team."
He was slightly hesitant at first, but she was a good listener, and he found himself telling her everything, from how he'd scared them to how proud he was of their hard-work and progress.
She looked particularly proud when he recounted threatening to cut Sakura's hair, no doubt her work in T&I involving such similar scenarios.
He talked until he felt her head drop against his chest, her soft snores filling the apartment.
A small smile developed on his face and he clutched her closer, sleep claiming him.
Next morning, Training Ground Three
"Kakashi-sensei! When did you get back? And what are you doing here on time?!"
He realised she was correct, he was on time. Still, the incredulity in her voice hurt.
"That was only the once Sakura-chan, I've always been on time since. And to answer your first question, I came back yesterday. I should say, it's good to be back in Konoha.
"It's nice to have you back sensei."
"I trust all of you have been training hard?"
"Hai" all three genin nodded.
"Good, because today I'm going to make you work extra hard. I spoke to Kurenai-sensei; she was pleased with your efforts...for the most part."
He lingered at the last part, and smirked inside his mask when he saw the self-doubt creep into Sakura's smile. Even the boys seemed unsure of themselves.
Good, he thought.
A shinobi must always question themselves.
Sakura raised her hand, "Uh sensei, just one quick question before we start?"
"Yes Sakura. And you don't need to raise your hand anymo-"
"Why are you wearing women's perfume?"
Her question sliced through him like a hot knife through butter.
Anko had left in the early hours of the morning, giving him a long, slow kiss before leaving his apartment.
She didn't turn around, and something about the kiss told Kakashi it was a farewell.
The thought saddened him more than he'd admit.
So he improvised on the spot.
"Uh, I was out of some so I borrowed a female neighbour's".
His students looked at him with varying levels of dubiety before turning around to enter their training ground.
Noon
"That's enough for now. Let's have some lunch, and then you can have the rest of the day off."
His students seemed thankful; Kakashi-sensei had rode them hard.
He'd made them do target practice with both hands at once, and then spar against each other, teaching them different styles.
As they made their way to Ichiraku's, for that was where they went by default, she looked at Kakashi-sensei.
"How was your mission sensei?"
He answered without giving anything away.
"It was alright."
His tone must have given away that he wasn't in the sharing mood, because the rest of the way went without any questions.
Teuchi and Ayame greeted Naruto and him warmly, and whipped up four specials for them.
He saw Sasuke from the corner of his eye look at his teammate accusatorily, almost threatening him to eat more.
A chuckle escaped his lips - looks like Sasuke had experienced first-hand the limitless pit that was Naruto's appetite; or rather his wallet had.
Mercifully for him Naruto wasn't in the mood.
He laid back in content and semi-closed his eyes.
Kakashi ruffled the blonde's head and bid goodbye to the trio, going home to get some much needed rest.
Training had been different.
Kurenai-sensei progressively upped the ante in training.
Kakashi-sensei was the opposite - he expected and demanded full energy from the beginning to be maintained until the end of training.
She was glad today was a half-day, she was going to go home and work on her origami, she hadn't had a chance since she made genin.
Naruto had other ideas.
"Get up lazy cats, day's not over."
"What do you mean?" Sasuke-kun frowned, "Sensei has left, and I expect all of us are going home now."
"That's where you're wrong. I'm going to go home and fulfil my wonderful post-ramen lethargy. You two will be doing something different."
Neither Sakura nor Sasuke-kun understood him.
"Well, we went to Ichiraku's that day because that's what I wanted in exchange for my help. What about what Sakura wanted? Did you stop to think of that?"
Oh.
He looked at them guilefully, as if calculating the variants of a chess game and they were his pawns..
After a long pause he spoke.
"I'll tell you what Sakura wants. You Uchiha Sasuke, are going to have a picnic with Haruno Sakura. She'll make all the food, all you have to do is show up and pretend to be an actual human being for one meal."
Sakura felt like a fish on dry land. Even her mouth went dry.
She tried to speak, but her vocal cords had betrayed her and left her mute.
Sasuke-kun had not yet spoken, and she didn't know if that was a good or bad thing.
When he did speak, she was stung by the disinterest in his tone.
"What do I get out of it?"
Naruto looked at both of them seriously, "Tell you what. I'll even let you use my sanctuary up at Mount Hokage for your picnic spot. How's that?"
Sasuke-kun immediately nodded, and again she was wondering what was up with these two.
"So then, how does that sound Sakura?"
Both boys looked at her, and she wanted to disappear like one of Naruto's clones.
On one side, it was a picnic with Sasuke-kun.
On the other side, he'd only said yes after Naruto had coerced him.
Naruto slipped away, leaving them to sort out the details.
She took a deep breath.
"How do you like onigiri bento?"
"I'll see you at 7 o'clock" and then he walked away.
She almost fainted as reality settled in.
I'm going on a picnic with Sasuke-kun
Spinning around, she ran and caught up to Naruto glaring daggers.
"What were you thinking playing matchmaker like that. Are you out of your mind?"
"It's what you get for spilling your guts to Ino. She made me her delivery boy because you told her I helped you carry groceries. I'll be honest though, I'm not doing this entirely out of revenge. I want something else out of this. I want to know why you took that letter from Sasuke's house."
For the second time in as many minutes she couldn't speak.
"Don't worry" He cajoled her, "I'm just curious. What would an upstanding kunoichi like Haruno Sakura be doing stealing from someone? From her precious Sasuke-kun of all people."
Finally she regained her voice.
"We're his teammates. We're supposed to look out for him. A memory like that...it would only send him down the wrong path. I took to heart what you said the other day, and I think we should try and rectify the situation."
Naruto snorted "So now you think it's okay to take his life into your own hands. To steal and deny his private property? I think he'd have a few things to say about that."
For a second Sakura wanted to yell at how unfair he was being. At least she was trying to help.
But she would be a hypocrite for saying that, because what else had she done if not the same?
"What I'm trying to say is that you were...partially right. Sasuke-kun has been in a bad place ever since...ever since that night. As his teammates don't you think we should try to help him?"
Naruto stared at her for a moment.
"Have a nice first date. Make sure to get home by 10:30, and no funny business!"
5:45 PM, Mount Hokage
The crisp evening air chilled her, and she scolded herself for wearing her usual sleeveless attire.
Sakura was already at the spot where they'd last been, and set everything up.
Her mother had been happy for her, and even insisted on helping with everything - from the food to her get-up.
Her father had reservations - his only daughter going out with a boy was surely a source of worry, but after she'd calmly explained that it was her teammate he acceded.
"You're early."
She almost jumped up in surprise.
Instead she moved for her kunai and slowly turned around.
Her shoulders dropped in relief.
"Sasuke-kun."
He nodded at her, half-obscured by the trees.
"Good to see you vigilant."
A light flush appeared on her cheeks at his praise.
He stood at the periphery of the clearing, as if hesitant to come closer.
"Are you going to stand there the entire time?" she teased him.
He grunted and moved closer, settling down on the mat she'd laid.
"Why do you think he did it?"
"Who?"
"Naruto. Why do you think he set as up like this."
The 'for a date' went unmentioned, but Sakura hoped that was his implication.
"Why does Naruto do anything? I guess he thought it would be funny."
"He has a twisted sense of humour then."
She brought out the food and split it into two portions.
Handing his plate to him, she watched with some nervousness as he popped a bento ball into his mouth and chewed.
Setting the chopstick down, he looked at her in surprise.
"This tastes amazing."
The flush on her cheeks reappeared as she tried not to stammer.
"Thanks. I'm glad you like it. I made it myself."
They ate in a comfortable silence for a while longer, until Sasuke-kun finished and looked at her intently.
His intensity almost frightened him.
"Tell me, what do you see in this place?"
The question caught her off-guard.
"I don't understand?"
"This place that we're in right now, what Naruto likes to call his 'sanctuary'. What do you see in it?"
She still wasn't getting his point, but tried anyway "A lot of trees around, and the village in front of us.
"Exactly" Sasuke-kun nodded his head, "And do you think Naruto's telling the truth?"
She tensed "Truth about what?"
"About this place."
"Well, he said he likes to come here often, I don't see why he would lie about that."
"Not the what, but the why? Why does he come here so often?"
"Maybe he just likes the view?"
Something similar to a snort came out of Sasuke-kun "Naruto is not one to sightsee. There is something he's not telling us, something that has to do with this place."
This line of questioning was worrying her.
As far as she knew, only Ino and herself knew about Naruto...status. She'd promised her best friend not to tell anyone, and even Sasuke-kun was not an exemption to a promise.
So she tried her best attempt at a diversion.
"Maybe it's because he's an orphan."
She realised instantly that was the wrong thing to say.
He glared sharply at her, and she had to quickly explain herself.
"I meant it in a different way. Naruto has never had anyone, so maybe that's why he comes here so much. Maybe up here the loneliness is a bit less sad, maybe he feels happy up here. Is that such a wrong thing?"
His eyes narrowed "I'd say you were naïve if I didn't know you were lying. You're just like him you know, you're both pathetic liars."
She persisted in her efforts.
"Does it matter why he comes here? It's his personal business."
"If that's what you think you're not half as clever as I thought you were."
He didn't know what her interest was in steering him away from this topic.
It didn't matter.
Sasuke had come here to unearth the truth, evening picnic or not.
Sure the food had been great, and Sakura was good company, but he didn't have the time for such frivolity.
He had to get better, stronger; everything else be damned.
What did Naruto come here and do?
He looked at one side, and then the other.
Look underneath the underneath
Then the entire world in front of him added an extra dimension as everything appeared crystal clear.
The colours turned crisper, and the contrasts between objects sharper.
His father as the Police Commissioner had known every nook and cranny of the village, which he passed on to Sasuke.
And at this height and angle, pretty much the entire village was visible.
Both the civilian and shinobi sectors could be seen.
And the view wasn't the same as from the top of a mountain - where everything was a miniature dot or line.
Konoha's roads were straight, they were curved and zig-zagged. His father had once told him this was to diminish the chances of a successful land-based invasion.
He could accurately gauge the distance between two landmarks - the gap between two streets, the twists and turns needed to go from the Hokage's Office to the Jounin Headquarters; the long, winding path from the Hyūga compound to the Uchiha Colony; and the from the Shinobi Academy at the centre of the village, to the Deer Reservations at the village outskirts.
Could it be?
A place such as this would be well served as an observation post - remote, nigh invisible and affording the observer full view of the village.
And Naruto was using it to spy on everyone.
Sakura's voice echoed in the silent night "Are you alright Sasuke-kun?"
Turning around to face her, a silent elation was evident on his face.
He concentrated, and he could visualise a blue network of veins running through her.
Her chakra pathways.
"Sasuke-kun" she gasped, her pretty features warped by the panicked expression on her face "your eyes."
He touched his eyes and felt a warm liquid.
He looked down on his lap to see a pool of blood.
A smile came to his face, as crimson droplets of vindication poured down his cheeks.
His Sharingan had awoken.
Danzo had a WIFE?! DUN DUN DUUUUN!
Sasuke activated his Sharingan! DUN DUN DUUUUN!
No Hinata is not a stalker, I am going to mention her POV in the next chapter.
To RedHood001, thanks so much for your continued support and critique, it has been very helpful to me.
And I understand another reader that muscle memory can be transferred via shadow clones - I guess it does so in canon, and I appreciate you pointing that out. However I always felt it was too hax, especially to someone with monstrous chakra reserves like a jinchūriki, hence in my story it's going to be this way.
One more thing, I guess I have been pretty loose between Japanese and English. I try and use the appropriate pronouns wherever possible, as well as the correct translations. That is something I will have to resolve, e.g. Konohakagure no Sato or the Village Hidden in the Leaves; both are the same yet either can feel out of place in specific scenarios.
P.S I have not forgotten about my other stories. I still have a lot of good ideas for Genesis of the Leaf. The Flash story is a bit of a struggle, as I have not watched the show for a few years now. But I am going to do those stories again, and I hope you enjoy them as much as you have this.