Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ A Mother's Son ❯ Uchiha Blood ( Chapter 4 )

Kakashi drummed his fingers lightly on the counter. He stood, leaning against the cupboard, listening to Aniline talk. He had asked her over to hear more about the arguments that Naruto and Sakura had been having. She talked quickly, and he found himself mesmerized by the way her body moved, even as she stood still. She had dark skin, the color of coffee, and brown hair that swept just past her shoulder. Her eyes were brown, best described as chocolate.

“So…just trivial stuff, right?” he asked, when she finally stopped to draw breath. “Eighteen year olds struggling to be responsible…that sort of thing?”

Aniline nodded pensively. “Mostly…at first.”

“At first?”

“Well, in the beginning, when they first moved here, Sakura, bless her, would only tell me about the trivial stuff. It was only much later, maybe six months back, that I learnt about the other stuff. The stuff that really stirred them up.” Aniline pulled a photograph from her pocket. She showed it to Kakashi. It was folded down the middle, and when he looked at it, he recognized it instantly. It had been taken by the ocean. Sasuke and Sakura sat on a rock; Naruto was the one taking the picture.

“This is from one of our missions.” He said, fingering the picture's torn edge. “Why do you have it?”

Aniline shrugged. “She gave it to me. That boy there, that's Dai's father. She said…she told me that only Naruto and her knew that Daisuke wasn't really Naruto's.” Aniline paused, fishing in her pockets again. Not finding what she was searching for, she resumed her thought. “They had a lot of fights about him.”

“About Daisuke?”

“About the other boy. The father.”

“Sasuke.” Kakashi supplied. “His name is Sasuke. He must've left before she knew about the baby. I didn't even guess that they were sleeping together.” Aniline looked at him, eyebrows raised, her eyes going from the picture in his hands to his face. He didn't need to ask what she was thinking. How could he have been so oblivious?

“Well, anyway. This Sasuke, she missed him real bad, and I think Naruto, poor boy, he got jealous that even after all he did for the girl, she only wanted Daisuke to know his dad.” Aniline smiled to herself. “She said to me once, she said, `Sometimes I love that boy with all my heart, and sometimes, I can't stand to look at him… cause all I see is Sasuke'. I felt her pain right then, I did. Sasuke broke her heart, and Naruto has spent three years trying to fix it. Usually, they fought about how she couldn't let go of the past.”

Kakashi nodded thoughtfully, sitting down in the chair opposite to Aniline. “I should've known.” He said sullenly. “When she quit the team, right after Sasuke left, I thought she was just sulking, you know?” he laughed bitterly. “But then, Naruto told me the whole story, or well, not the whole story, as I can see now. He told me that she was pregnant, and that he had to take care of her. My whole team, gone, in one weekend.”

Aniline nodded sympathetically. “It's a story to break a thousand hearts, that's for sure.” She picked up her bag and went to the door, stopping suddenly as she exited. “If you need help, call me. I'm here in a second, okay?”

Kakashi nodded. “Sure.” As she closed the door, he moved into Sakura's room. Sitting cross-legged on the edge of the bed, he watched the steady rise and fall of Sakura' chest as she breathed. His thoughts traveled back to Aniline's confessions.

“And I remember thinking…what kind of person doesn't love her own son?” she had said, tears threatening to spill onto her cheeks. Kakashi had looked away, not able to meet her eyes then. “But I figured it out. She loved the boy, but her heartbreak kept her from showing it. For the first few months, she couldn't look at him. Naruto had to be both the mom and the dad…it must've been hard. I remember hearing that argument from across the street. Mind you, they weren't stingy with volume.”

Kakashi had grinned to himself then. He knew that Sakura had no qualms about yelling. Coupled with Naruto's ability to take everything the wrong way, that must have been a doozy.

“A failure…he called her. Told her she was letting her son down. I had thought that was harsh, but not after I heard her reply. She told him, and I quote, `I never asked for your opinion. This is my problem, why the fuck are you here?'. And Kakashi, his answer made my heart hurt. My husband looked at me strangely then, I just started crying in the middle of dinner. He said, and he yelled it, and it's the type of thing you'd think to whisper but, oh it hurts to say, he said, `Because I love you, even though I shouldn't. And I'm sorry. I'm sorry Sakura.' It all got real quiet after that, and then, minutes later, I hear a knock on my door, and she and Daisuke are on the step.” Aniline patted her heart. “The sight of her, it was heartbreaking. I let her in right away, sat her down, and she told me everything that night.”

“Everything?” Kakashi had asked. “What do you mean?”

“Just…everything. About Daisuke, about her own failures, about how she felt so horrible for feeling like she couldn't love Dai…about how she just wanted Naruto to get it. It was a hard night, for everybody.”

A soft mew from Sakura broke Kakashi from his thoughts. He moved to her side, but she made no other noise, and his hope was crushed, disappointment weighing him down. He watched her sleep, noting how much younger she looked.

While awake, responsibility made her seem as if she was a thousand years old. Now, she looked like a child, just a girl of eighteen. Kakashi was grateful for Aniline's help. She had bathed and changed Sakura, something Kakashi had not been looking forward to, just for the sheer weirdness.

“What's going on inside your head?' he whispered, as Sakura's eyes began to race behind her eyelids. A frown marred her face, and Kakashi hoped her nightmares ended quickly, for her sake.

“God…I need you, I'm sorry, come back… come back…please…Sasuke…” Sakura sat atop a large cliff, her feet dangling over the edge. She looked out onto the sunset, where her memories played like a drive-in movie. She saw herself, belly swollen, curled up behind the school, clutching a photograph and whispering to herself frantically. She knew what came next, yet couldn't pull her eyes away.

In the theatre of her mind, Naruto appeared, pulling Sakura up from her position on the ground, and taking the picture from her hands. He was saying something, Sakura couldn't hear him, she was too busy begging.

“I promise I'll be good…IpromiseIpromiseIpromise!”

“Sakura, come on, we've got to get home.” Naruto's brow furrowing with worry, the sky was dark, the town silent.

“Stay away from me!” Sakura screamed, tearing herself away. “I don't need this!” She ran away clumsily and Naruto stared after her, tears rolling down his cheeks silently. Slowly, he started after her, staying behind her, letting her run out her energy. Finally, Sakura collapsed against a building, and again, Naruto was there to take her home.

The forest was silent, save for the call of animals, and cracking of twigs. He moved quickly, knowing exactly where he was headed. If Sasuke wasn't staying in town, which he obviously wasn't if nobody had seen him, then he was in one place. He soon found the worn down path that had grown over in parts.

This had been Team 7's hideaway, but Naruto hadn't been there for years. He swung himself from a tree branch, landing in the cave easily. He looked around, the place was lived in. “Dai?” he called, knowing he blocked the only exit. If Sasuke was here, he would need to escape by fighting. “Dai, are you here?”

“He's gone.” A painful wheeze further down the tunnel exposed Sasuke's position. Naruto was next to him in a flash, ready to kill. Then, he saw Sasuke's injuries.

“Where is my son?” Naruto demanded. Sasuke laughed harshly, spitting blood from his mouth.

“Your son? Is that what you're calling him now?” Sasuke asked bitterly. “He's nothing of yours, asshole.”

Naruto grit his teeth in frustration. “Tell me where my son is!” he demanded. “Is he here?”

Sasuke shook his head. “No, he's gone. Long gone, by the looks of things.”

“What are you saying?” Naruto asked slowly. “Who took Daisuke?” When Sasuke didn't answer, Naruto shook his shoulders urgently. “Sasuke, you impotent bastard, who took him?”

Sasuke spat out more blood, knocking Naruto's hands away. “My…brother…he was here.” Sasuke admitted finally. Naruto gasped sharply.

“I thought you went away to kill your brother!” Naruto said, horrified. “Are you telling me you didn't?”

“That's exactly what I'm telling you. Why do you think I've been gone so long? I fought Itachi right after I left. I lost, yet he let me live. I've spent the last three years learning how to use my legs again.”

Naruto said nothing, processing this new information. He knew he could go no further tonight, so he moved away from Sasuke, who did not seem to be mortally wounded. “You hurt Sakura badly.” Naruto commented.

“She'll be fine,” Sasuke retorted. “I missed most of the important organs, and it's nothing the Hokage can't handle.”

“Yea, that belly cut healed real easy.” Naruto agreed. He continued, his voice turning icy. “But her head injury put her in a coma, and she might never wake up.”

“What?” Sasuke demanded. “Head injury? What head injury?”

“The one she got when she hit the floor, you fucking bastard!” Naruto responded. “If she never wakes up, I'm holding you responsible. I'll kill you for it.”

Sasuke hung his head. “I never meant…”

“Why does your brother want Dai?” Naruto asked, needing to change the subject, before he hurt Sasuke.

“Something about…preserving Uchiha blood. He didn't say much, just knocked me around, took the boy, and left. I don't understand it though…why does he keep letting me live?”

“I have no idea, but I think it might be better, if next time, he doesn't.” Naruto responded, settling down to sleep.