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CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

"I am terrified by this dark thing

That sleeps in me;

All day I feel its soft, feathery turnings, its malignity."

- Sylvia Plath -

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Chakra cloaks his body, red as blood and far more sinister. He doesn't have the courage to look, but Naruto knows that Mom lies on the altar next to him. Emptied, broken, discarded. Just like he'll be someday, when he becomes more trouble than he's worth. She's dead she's dead she's dead, and it's the Kyubi's fault, the Hokage's fault, his fault.

Naruto fights against the chains restraining him, but he can't escape. Now that chakra is seeping into his body, forcing itself beneath his skin. It hurts, everything hurts, but the worst thing is the Kyubi's voice, so deep and ominous.

Kill them, it says. Kill them all.

Naruto screams for his mother, his father, Sasuke and Sakura, Hinata—maybe Hinata can save him—

"Naruto!"

He jerks awake and attacks without thinking. Naruto has her pinned down with a hand around her slender, white throat before he realizes it's Hinata's neck he's about to snap.

Kill them all.

Naruto lets her go and scrambles backward, staring down at his hands. They look normal, but they're not. Nothing about him is normal anymore.

"I'm sorry," he says. "I didn't mean to…"

"It's okay, Naruto."

He looks around, reorienting himself. He's in Suna, in the hotel bed he and Hinata share. That was just a dream, but it felt so real.

Because I am real.

"Shut up!" Naruto shouts, and Hinata flinches back. "That wasn't—I didn't mean you."

Naruto closes his eyes and puts his hands over his ears. It doesn't help, of course, because the voice is coming from the inside.

Hinata grasps his wrists and tugs them down, her touch as gentle and light as a butterfly's fluttering wings. In the ways that count, she's the strongest person he knows, but it would be so very easy to hurt her. Even if he wasn't a monster.

Naruto opens his eyes, and finds himself looking directly into Hinata's. The byakugan is silver and pale, like the moon outside their window.

If Hinata had any good sense she'd be telling him to pack his shit and hit the road, but instead she climbs onto his lap and hugs him. She's small and soft, a comfort to hold. Her tenderness chases the Kyubi away, and slowly Naruto feels his mind calm, coming back to himself.

"I'm sorry," he says again. "I had a really bad nightmare. Didn't mean to go all crazy on you."

Hinata puts her first finger to his lips, gently shushing him. "You don't have to apologize for being in pain."

Maybe she doesn't realize how close he came to hurting her. If she doesn't, he should warn her.

Before Naruto can figure whether he's brave enough to do that, someone knocks.

Hinata climbs off of him, pulls on a robe, and answers the door. It's a messenger, and although Naruto can't hear what's said, he can see that it surprises Hinata.

"Go on ahead," she says to the messenger. "We'll be along in a few minutes."

"What's going on?" Naruto asks.

Hinata closes the door, turns to him, and says, "Your father and Gaara are calling a meeting, and they want us there. Both of us."

"They want you? But…"

It seems a little rude to ask Why? But Hinata isn't a general, and she's barely trusted amongst the resistance as it is. Which, Naruto has to admit, isn't entirely unfair. Since she didn't join the rebellion so much as get dragged into it. By him.

Hinata fidgets, tapping her first fingers together. "Do you think we're in trouble?"

Naruto thinks about how distant his father has been, and the coldness that has come between them since he and Hinata ran away. He hates that he's growing apart from his dad, especially since it seems to be over Hinata. But calling a meeting with the Kazekage at midnight doesn't sound like the time for a personal scolding.

"I don't know," Naruto admits. "Let's get ready. We shouldn't leave them waiting."

By the time they reach the tower, Naruto feels awake and alert. The nightmare still bothers him, but it's receding into the background. He suspects that he'll find bigger troubles than a bad dream behind the war room door—and he's right.

Because it's not just his dad and Gaara he finds. Neji is there too, and so is Haruno Mebuki.

It doesn't make him proud, but Naruto has been avoiding Mebuki since he arrived. He's certain that she hates him, considering that his actions led directly to Sakura being captured, and he hasn't felt brave enough to face her.

And Neji. Well, he's just about the last person Naruto wants to see right now.

"Will you just tell us what this is about?" Mebuki asks Neji. "If you have news about my daughter, I want to hear it."

Neji bows his head respectfully. "I'm sorry. I had strict orders from Lord Hiashi to deliver the message to the five of you at once, and no sooner."

Hiashi. Just hearing the man's name makes Naruto want to rip him limb from limb. After what he did to Hinata—not to mention the whole Branch House—it's no less than he deserves.

"What's the message?" Naruto asks.

Neji stands straight, employing that perfect Hyuuga posture that sometimes makes him look like a cardboard cutout. "Lord Hiashi is offering to trade Sakura for Hinata."

The worst part is the expression on Mebuki's face. Hope flashes across it, but it dies quickly. Because exchanging one girl for another would be barbaric, and of course everyone will say no.

But no one says anything, so Naruto does. "That's ridiculous! We can't just—no. No, we're not handing over Hinata."

"That wasn't the entire message," Neji says.

His voice remains so even and calm that Naruto can't begin to guess what he's thinking. Surely he doesn't want Hinata to go back to Konoha. If Neji really loves her, he'll do everything in his power to keep her out from under her father's roof.

"Lord Hiashi has promised that no harm will come to Hinata. She won't be punished for running away. He also wanted me to tell you that this is an arrangement of his own design. Ostensibly, I'm on a mission to Iron Country right now. The Hokage knows nothing about this deal, but Lord Hiashi is certain that they can complete the exchange before he becomes aware of the situation."

Naruto looks at his dad, who is frowning. And quiet.

"You just rejected a bribe to send Hinata back to Konoha a couple of weeks ago," Naruto says. "Because it's wrong."

His father says, slowly and evenly, "Sakura is worth far more than a suitcase full of ryo. Tsunade tells me that she'll soon surpass her—if she's free to train, instead of stuck in prison."

"She's not in prison," Neji says. "Sas—the Hokage has put her under house arrest in a discreet location."

Gaara sighs. "So breaking her out without alerting anyone is feasible."

Neji nods tightly. "Yes."

"Nah," Naruto says. "This is insane. Sasuke would kill anyone for taking Sakura away from him. He loves her—"

That gets everyone's attention, and Naruto realizes too late that he's revealed a secret. It's not his dirty laundry to air, but it's relevant, and maybe it will save Hinata.

"Sasuke and Sakura have been seeing each other for a long time. If we steal her behind his back, he's gonna lose his mind," Naruto says frankly. "He's been pretty conservative in war preparations so far, but if we take Sakura away that'll change. I promise."

His father says, "Maybe. But more likely it will destabilize Konoha's leadership, if the Head of Hyuuga and the Hokage are at each other's throats." He turns to Neji. "Hiashi has to know that exchanging Sakura for Hinata without Sasuke's permission is guaranteed to cause trouble. Is he planning to move against the Hokage?"

"I don't know Lord Hiashi's plans," Neji says, in such a wooden voice that it's impossible to tell if he's lying. "I've simply been instructed to lay this offer on the table, hear your answer, and take it back to Konoha."

"The answer is no!" Naruto shouts. "How could you even ask this, Neji? Hiashi's probably lying about not hurting Hinata. If we give her up, he could kill her. If you care about her at all, you'd never—"

"Naruto," Hinata hisses, and it's the angriest he's ever heard her. "Neji's just the messenger. This isn't his fault."

He opens his mouth to argue, but she holds up her hand, and that simple gesture silences him.

She says, "Sakura is an incredibly powerful kunoichi, and… I'm not. Even if I was strong, I'd be useless in battle against Konoha. All my father has to do is activate my cursed seal, and I'll be debilitated."

Naruto knows what Hinata is about to say, but he feels frozen, too scared to speak.

"I think we should do it," Hinata says, with no trace of her stammer. "I believe that Father won't hurt me, and Sakura isn't safe. This is the path that causes the least harm."

He finally finds his voice. "Not to you!"

"He's right, Hinata," Neji says, and Naruto could hug him.

Until he goes on. "Hiashi plans to marry you off as soon as you're home. You know the laws of our clan as well as I do; relationships with outsiders are strictly forbidden. Your father is more ashamed than angry, and he wants to fix your mistake. He sees it as the only way to restore your honor."

"Did he say who he has in mind?" Hinata asks.

She doesn't blush at that question, but Neji does.

When he doesn't answer, Hinata whispers, "Oh."

"'Oh' what?" Naruto asks. "Who…?"

Neji looks away, his jaw tight, cheeks bright pink, and it clicks.

Hinata doesn't protest.

She wants him.

It's a dark thought, and he can't tell if it's his own or the Kyubi's.

"Well, it's not your choice," Naruto says to Hinata, and even without looking he can feel her anger. "I'm against it. Gaara?"

Maybe he can't depend on his father here, but Gaara knows what's right.

"I agree with Naruto," he says. "Setting a precedent for sacrificing comrades is dangerous."

He feels like he just took his first breath since walking into this room. "Thank you, Gaara."

Mebuki speaks up. Her voice wavers when she says, "Sakura wouldn't want to be freed if it meant giving up Hinata. I didn't raise a selfish girl."

Naruto nods to Mebuki. "You're right. And she's a lot like her mom."

"Well, there's your answer Neji," Dad says, sighing.

Hinata grabs Neji's hand and storms out of the war room.

"Hinata!" Naruto shouts. "Where are you going?"

She looks over her shoulder at him. "To talk to Neji. And don't bother spying on us again. I'm going to use my byakugan, so if you try I'll catch you."

"Hinata!"

She ignores him this time, and Naruto clenches his fists. The door shuts behind her and Neji with a soft click, but she might as well have slammed it in his face.

Hinata knows how Neji feels about her, and now she's running off for a private conversation. On the heels of Neji admitting that, if Hinata had her way and returned to Konoha, they'd be getting married. She's threatening to use her byakugan to keep him out of her business, and while it's fair that she doesn't want to be eavesdropped on, how's Naruto supposed to take that?

Obviously, she and Neji will be talking about things that she doesn't want her boyfriend to hear.

.

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"What happened to our house?" Sakura asks. "Did it survive?"

Sasuke lies on his back beside her, still breathing hard. He was quick tonight, and Sakura can't decide whether she's thankful for that or not. It drives her mad when he takes his time, drawing out her pleasure until she feels like she'll die if she doesn't come. But the longer it takes him to finish, the longer she gets to enjoy the intimacy of being joined. And the rush of power too, because she knows now that Sasuke won't stop visiting her. He tells himself it's only for his pleasure, but she knows better, no matter that he does his best to make these encounters one-sided. He's here simply because he can't stay away.

After a long while, Sasuke finally answers. "It made it through the uprising, but we need every available house now. I had it renovated, along with all the other salvageable abandoned buildings and houses. I'm sure someone has moved in by now."

"Oh. Well, that's good I guess."

And it is, but absurdly, Sakura feels angry. That was their place, hers and Sasuke's. She imagines a real family living there now. A husband and wife who share the master bed, and a son—no, a daughter—to occupy the little room down the hall. She hates this imaginary couple and child for having what she and Sasuke never will.

Sasuke takes her right hand and squeezes it. A wordless gesture, and he doesn't even look at her when he does it, but she can feel the comfort he's conveying. The promise that he mourns their what-could-have-been too.

Sakura glances over at the clock. Half past one in the morning. "Are you staying?"

Sasuke has spent the last five nights in her bed. It's becoming a familiar pattern: he comes over no earlier than eight, fucks her until one of them tires of it, falls asleep by her side, and wakes her in the morning to have her again. Sakura said no yesterday just to see if he would stay when sex wasn't in the cards. And he did.

"It's too late to go home," he says.

Sakura cuddles up to him. Everything about this arrangement is twisted, but she can't make herself feel guilty for enjoying moments of softness.

Because it won't last much longer. She decided to focus her efforts on Genjirou rather than Akinobu, and she's making good progress toward gaining his trust—and more importantly, his sympathy. Soon, she'll be ready to ask for his help acquiring the key to her manacles. Then she'll escape, or Sasuke will catch her and throw her in prison with the other rebels. Either way, their interludes in this quiet little cabin will end soon.

"Hold me," Sakura says, and Sasuke does, even though he has no obligation to follow orders from her.

She slips into sleep easily, as if things are simple and she's safe, when neither is true. Sakura's dreams are vague and shadowed, but even in that indistinct darkness, she aches. So many nights of unfulfillment have caught up with her, and she wakes with a moan on her lips. She bites it back, just barely. Sasuke is still asleep, his arm slung around her, cupping her belly possessively. Sakura squeezes her thighs together, needing so acutely that it's painful. Her skin burns with embarrassment as much as arousal, and she can feel her heartbeat between her damn legs. She thinks she woke up on the brink of orgasm, so surely it would only take a few moments of attention to get off.

She doesn't even pull up her nightgown. That much movement might wake up Sasuke, and this is already risky. It doesn't matter; she's so sensitive that, even through the fabric of her dress and underwear, one touch spikes her pleasure halfway to release. Just a minute, all it will take is a minute—

Sasuke grabs her wrist with bruising strength. His ragged breath warms her ear, and she can feel him getting hard against her.

"Please," Sakura says. She hates how pitiful she sounds, but she doesn't have enough pride to keep silent. "Please let me. It won't take long, I promise—"

Sasuke lets go of her wrist, and Sakura could cry from relief, because he's finally allowing her to—

He yanks up her nightgown and slips his hand beneath her panties. It's clear that, no matter how selfish he's been lately, he hasn't forgotten how to please her. Because he strokes her just right, with the exact speed and pressure it takes to unravel her the fastest. Sakura whimpers, sobs, and begs.

"Don't stop this time. Please, please, please—"

Sasuke buries his face in her hair while he caresses her, and she can feel his hot breath against her scalp. His fingers are clever and quick, as skillful as always. It doesn't take long for Sakura to arch up, her legs going rigid and toes curled, her body clenching around nothing as she rises closer and closer. She wishes he was on top of her, inside her, taking her.

As soon as she thinks it, her wishes come true. Sasuke turns her onto her belly, pulls her panties down, and pushes inside her. Usually it takes more foreplay than this to get her ready, but right now she's so wet that he fills her completely with one forceful thrust. Sakura shouts into the bedding, coming so viciously and beautifully that she isn't sure she'll survive it. Sasuke doesn't stop. He rocks into her hard and fast, his hand between her legs again, giving her everything he's been denying for weeks. Again, again. She comes once, twice, then stops counting. All she knows is that Sasuke is heavy on top of her, his fingers and cock are doing things to her that should be criminal, and his body fits with hers perfectly. Like he was made to give her this, and she was made to take it.

"I can't anymore," she says. "It's too much."

Sasuke finally draws his hand out from between her legs, but he keeps fucking her. His rhythm has gone all to hell, and Sakura has never heard him sound like this before. Completely, utterly wrecked, like he's lost all sense and control entirely. Then he comes, and if she had any strength left, she thinks his broken shout might drag her down with him. As it is, she already feels like another climax might kill her, and that she'll probably walk bowlegged for the next week.

Sasuke stays on top of her for a long time, taking short, shivering breaths. Without even seeing his face, she can tell he's angry at himself for giving in. She bites her lip as another voluptuous wave of pleasure washes over her. It's only an aftershock, but it still feels incredible in the wake of weeks of teasing.

"Thank you," she murmurs. "I needed that."

He grunts as he pulls out of her, a sound she can't interpret. Maybe he's angry or annoyed. Or perhaps that was just a guttural expression of leftover pleasure.

Sakura can't find the energy to move. Her whole body has been turned to liquid or lead or both. Sasuke nips the nape of her neck. Then he slides his hands all over her, along the outsides of her thighs, her hips, her waist. His touch whispers along her left shoulder blade, so delicate she almost can't feel it. He runs his fingers slowly down her spine, like he's counting each ridge. When he has reached her tailbone, he grasps her ass instead. Not hard enough to truly hurt, but not gentle either. Then he flips her onto her back and starts all over again. Touching touching touching, every place that matters and a few that don't, like the crook of her right elbow and the small, strawberry-colored birthmark on her ribcage.

"What are you doing?" Sakura asks.

"Taking inventory," he says, very seriously.

She giggles. "Of what? My whole body?"

He brushes his thumb over her left nipple, and when she gasps, he says, "Of what belongs to me."

Sakura considers swatting his hand away. "I don't belong to you just because you keep me in this cute little box."

His smile is infuriatingly smug. "No. You're mine because you want to be."

Sakura searches for a good comeback but can't find one.

"You're an arrogant bastard," she says, in lieu of anything meaningful.

"Yeah," he agrees easily, and that's even more annoying.

"Is it going to be like this from now on?" Sakura asks. Ridiculously, she feels shy. "I mean, was this an exception? Or are you going to start letting me…?"

"Is that all you care about? Whether or not I let you come?"

His voice has taken on that superior tone he often adopts when he gives her shit.

"Excuse me for wanting to enjoy sex," Sakura says dryly.

Sasuke is on top of her again in an instant, her wrists pinned over her head. He must feel her bracelets, the steel cold under his hands. She certainly feels them, digging into her skin.

"You always enjoy it, whether you come or not," he says. "Because you love me."

To anyone else, that would sound like an accusation. It isn't, though.

Sasuke has the strangest way of asking questions.

Sakura hums. "You keep telling me that."

"It's what you said, the first time I visited you after the uprising," Sasuke reminds her. "Or was that a lie too?"

Dawn light peeks through her blinds, casting silver lines across Sasuke's proud, angry face. But beneath that anger lies pure vulnerability.

"You know it wasn't a lie," Sakura says. "Just like I know you still love me too."

That's a leap of faith, but his abashed expression tells her that she's right. And even now, caught beneath her captor in a remarkably comfortable prisoner's bed, Sakura can only feel happy. Because she isn't alone in her love.

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Hinata doesn't return to their room until after dawn. Searing desert sunlight is already shining through their gauzy curtains when she opens the door. She looks composed, her hair neat and clothes in order. Not like she did anything unfaithful. Physically, anyway.

Naruto has spent the last seven hours pacing, failing to sleep, and pacing again. The Kyubi is as restless as he is, and it keeps whispering things to him that he decidedly does not want to hear. But even when the Nine-Tails is quiet, Naruto has plenty of his own anger to deal with.

"That must have been a long conversation," he says, as evenly as he can manage.

Hinata nods faintly. "Yes. We had a lot to discuss."

Naruto waits for her to elaborate, but of course she doesn't. Hyuuga business is Hyuuga business.

"Are you going to apologize?" Hinata asks.

She has to be joking.

"For what! Not letting you sacrifice yourself?" Naruto asks. "Unless you want to go back to Konoha."

Hinata strides over to him, and for a moment he thinks she might push him, but she doesn't. Only gets in his space and looks up at him with her moonstone eyes. For a moment he resents her byakugan, because even though her doujutsu is beautiful, it's also a mark of all the things he can't understand about her.

"Of course I don't want to go back," Hinata says. "My father will be furious. Even if he keeps his promise about not hurting me, he'll never forgive me for what I did."

Naruto reaches out to touch her cheek, but Hinata turns her face to the side. It's a subtle rejection, but it hits him like a punch to the gut.

"I didn't know you weren't allowed to have a relationship outside your clan," Naruto admits.

He feels stupid for not realizing, because the Hyuuga do everything they can to protect the byakugan. Of course they wouldn't want to risk people outside their clan from inheriting it.

Hinata's shoulders stiffen. "Yes. Breaking that taboo has… consequences. But we haven't slept together, so my Father wouldn't punish me as harshly."

Naruto flinches. "Is that why you don't want to make love to me? In case you have to go home?"

If so, he can't be angry at her for trying to avoid punishment. He wants her to be safe more than anything.

Hinata won't look at him. "No. I'm just afraid I'll get pregnant."

That doesn't make sense. He remembers Sakura once telling him that all kunoichi get contraceptive shots four times a year, unless they request to opt out of them.

"Well, that's easy enough to fix," Naruto says. "The Suna hospital isn't anything close to Konoha's, but I'm sure they've got birth control—"

"No." Hinata shakes her head. "I don't judge women who choose that, but it's not the way things are done in my family."

"But you're not with your family," Naruto says.

He's just confused and wants her to explain, but Hinata must take that wrong, because she frowns.

"Leaving Konoha doesn't mean I'm not Hyuuga anymore," she says. Her words are patient, too kind to be patronizing, but they also convey that she doesn't expect him to understand.

"All I meant was that, since you're free, why do you have to follow those rules?"

Hinata wraps her arms around her waist. "Do you know why my clan is so much smaller than the Uchiha?"

Naruto feels like the subject just changed for him, but not for Hinata.

"No. I never really thought about it."

She's so quiet for so long that when she finally speaks, Naruto jumps.

"Carrying a baby with the byakugan is hard on mothers," she says softly. "We're not sure why exactly, but according to clan tradition it's always been this way. Passing on our doujutsu is a great gift, but it's also difficult. The rate of miscarriage and stillbirth is high. My mother lost a baby before I was born, and two more between me and Hanabi." She looks away then. "Preventing or ending a pregnancy on purpose, when it's already so hard to carry a baby to term, is considered a great dishonor. Unless… the father is an outsider. Then it's required."

Naruto feels sick, then furious, then sick again. He thinks of Hinata, so soft and gentle, being hurt like that. And he feels the heat of that red, red chakra boiling just below the surface of his skin.

No. He can't lose control.

"I would never let anything like that happen to you," Naruto says. "I swear it."

He would kill first, die first.

Hinata takes his right hand between both of hers, and it's only then that he realizes it's curled into a fist.

"I believe you," she says. "But it's still hard to shake the fear that if we made love, and a baby came of it, that it would be taken away from me. That's why I want to wait."

"I respect that," Naruto promises. "I can wait however long you want to."

His fist unfurls, and she lets him go.

"I'm still mad at you," Hinata says, although she doesn't sound it anymore. "I made my choice, and you took it away from me. And poor Sakura will be stuck among enemies forever."

"No she won't. She'll figure out a way to escape soon, if she hasn't already."

Naruto has to believe that. Because if he doesn't, then Hinata is right, and he sacrificed one of his two best friends in the world without a second thought.

.

.

"Look at him, walking around with his head held high. Like he didn't just come from fucking his outsider whore. Some Hokage. Fugaku must be rolling over in his grave."

The man who spoke is on the other side of the street, confident that he can say these things without being overheard.

Sasuke disillusions him of that by striding across the road, grabbing him by the throat, and pinning him against the wall of a tea shop. He gasps and sputters, dark eyes bulging as he reaches for a kunai—

Sasuke gets to it first and holds it to the man's neck. Close enough to cut, but not close enough to kill.

"If I ever hear you call Haruno Sakura a whore again, you won't have a tongue to say it with a third time. Do you understand?"

He nods, undoubtedly too strangled to agree out loud. Sasuke digs the kunai a tad deeper just to watch the bastard squirm, then lets him go.

Half of Konoha seems to have stopped to watch, and Sasuke knows that tongues will be wagging for the rest of the day. There's no way he can stop it, unless he wants to cut them all out. People will say he cares more about Sakura's honor than that of the Uchiha bride he discarded—never mind that Masami was the one who did the discarding. They'll call him reckless, weak, and traitorous at the very least.

His meetings go slowly. First the council, which is as tedious and frustrating as always.

Apparently Kondo Masahiko, the last Fire daimyo's grand-nephew—a man of significant wealth and influence—has ignored Sasuke's summons to Konoha. Sick, he claims, but it's obvious that he just wants to stay out of the war. Which they can't afford, because the man's pockets are deep enough to field his own army, and he has connections to the Earth and Lightning daimyos. A few words in the right ears, and the alliances Sasuke has been working to acquire will be secured.

Mikio tells him the police are doing their best, but fights are breaking out all over the place. Between Uchiha and Hyuuga, between the old clans and those without meaningful names, between random drunkards quarreling over the same bottle of sake. Tempers are running hot all over the village, and Mikio says they should withdraw some of their troops from guarding the western border. They need more strong shinobi at home to keep the peace, unless they want another uprising. Sasuke gives him and Tetsuya permission to arrange it.

Still no word from the Akatsuki, so he has another fight with his councilors about whether they should make the first move.

There's more, of course. There's always more.

By the time Sasuke meets Hana at the training grounds that evening, he's tired and pissed off and his patience has worn thin. This is ostensibly a sparring session, which is believable enough. With Neji out on a mission to Iron Country, Hana is the strongest ninja the Hyuuga Clan has to offer. Apart from Hiashi, but no one expects him and Hiashi to fight unless it's to the death.

Hana doesn't look well. Pale purple shadows surround her eyes, and he thinks she's lost weight in the short time since he last saw her.

"Are you sick?" Sasuke asks.

She stiffens. "Yeah. Don't worry, you can't catch it."

Something about that must be funny to her, because she lets out a sound that might be a laugh if it wasn't so broken.

"You don't seem all right. Are you having second thoughts?"

Hana glares at him. "I'm sick, Sasuke, not cowardly. And things are moving along fine. Not as quickly as I'd like, but it isn't easy to unite the lowkin and the highkin."

"The what?"

Hana sits on a fallen log and wipes sweat from her bare forehead. "The Branch House is divided according to how closely you're related to the Main House. The lowkin, like me, are distant cousins of the Head family, and we make up the majority. The people who have more direct blood ties are called the highkin. They get better quarters, more money, more privileges. It's a very smart system, because it keeps us constantly fighting each other instead of the Main House."

"I see."

Sasuke sits beside her and wordlessly holds out his bottle of water. Hana hesitates for a moment before accepting it. Then she takes a long drink, wipes her mouth with her shirt sleeve, and gives it back to him.

"Thank you. It's hot out here."

It isn't particularly warm in Sasuke's opinion, but he learned from Sakura years ago that invalidating a girl when she's under the weather is a ticket to getting yelled at.

"Is Neji on board?" Sasuke asks. "This won't work without him."

Hana runs a shaking hand through her hair. "I haven't told him yet. His… friendship with Hinata has made him complacent. I know he resents being under Hiashi's thumb, but he's made it his mission to protect the Main House. He won't agree unless things are already in motion."

The sky is a predictably darkening blue, a breeze rustles through the leaves around them, and Hyuuga Hana just managed something that most people can't these days: she surprised him.

"That's a cold way to treat your lover," Sasuke says, not without some bitterness. "You and Sakura would get along."

"We do, actually," Hana says. "And Neji isn't my lover."

Sasuke scoffs. "Don't lie to me. I'm not stupid."

She clutches the front of her shirt, twisting the fabric over her belly in her fist. "Fine, we're fucking. Are you satisfied?"

"I'm not sure whether I should respect your dedication to freeing the Branch House, or judge you for lying to Neji."

"Why not both?" Hana asks lightly. "It seems that's how you're treating Sakura for a similar crime."

"It's not the same," Sasuke snaps.

Hana shrugs. "No, but it isn't terribly different either. We're both doing awful things to make our world better. At least, better as we see it. I think the rebellion is full of shit, but then, I'm sure they'd see what I'm up to as petty intra-clan squabbling."

"Hardly. The Branch House has far more reason to complain than the rebels," Sasuke says.

"We do," Hana agrees. "But not everyone has my clan's unfortunate talent for suffering in stoic silence for generations. I mean, we both know Sakura. Does that seem like her style?"

No. It definitely doesn't.

Later, after night has fallen and he and Hana have parted ways, Sasuke walks through the woods to Sakura's cabin. Crickets chirp their summer song, and the humidity of the day begins to dwindle. With every step he takes, he hears Hana's words, about how she and Sakura both do awful things to make their world a better place.

He believes that Sakura does truly love him. That although she lied about many, many things, her feelings for him are real. It's just that her ideals will always come first, and that stings. Because Sasuke is nearly certain that if their roles were reversed, she would have the strength to stay away from him.

But when he reaches Sakura's cabin, that hard truth doesn't stop him from opening the door.

.

.

AN: Once again, I have shamelessly ripped off Sintari's story Rosemary for Remembrance, which is my Hyuuga Bible. Although I'm handling it differently, I got the idea of Hyuuga mothers having difficult pregnancies from her fic. If you haven't read RfR and NejiHina is remotely your bag, I can't recommend it highly enough.

Kondo Masahiko, the last Fire daimyo's great-nephew, is named for the performer of one of the Shippuden closing songs, "Awaken! Wild"

Yes, I am putting my baggage with mental illness on Naruto's relationship with the Kyubi in the least subtle way possible. Thus the Sylvia Plath quote at the beginning. Being a jinchuriki is a little like being bipolar, in that sometimes you're miserable and sometimes you're filled with powerful but destructive energy. Speaking of which, these back to back updates are sponsored by my manic episode! XD

Jokes aside, mental illness is very serious, and if any of y'all are ever struggling, my DMs are open here and on tumblr. 3

One last note:

This might sound a little crazy, but I have to ask. Next to Something / ReyloTrashCompactor and I wrote a few novels. Because we're absolute DORKS we wrote AUs of our own original stories. Like… a lot of AUs. Which are just sitting on our Google Drives gathering dust, because they're AUs for books that may never see the light of day.

But I've seen another fanfic writer I deeply admire posting AUs of her soon-to-be-published novel under the Original Works category on AO3. Y'all seem to enjoy my content when it's about angsty fantasy ninjas making out, so my question is, if you could read AUs of my original works for free on AO3, would you be interested? Keep in mind that these AUs are already written (and boy do we have a lot of them), so posting them wouldn't take away from my fic writing time.

Regardless, thanks for your support on this story! More TVOTE will be coming your way soon. If you have a minute, let me know what you thought of this chapter. :)