Sadly, it's come to that time: This fic will be ending soon. I already have the two final chapters written up and am in the process of editing them. I'm particularly proud of these last three, so I hope you all enjoy them as much as I do.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or anything associated with it. All rights to Naruto belong to Masashi Kishimoto and the other proper entities.

Summary: Sasuke leans away as the girl turns to him, and his mother doesn't need to be any closer to guess as to the expression on his face. The girl's body language changes in an instant, and Mikoto recognises the posture of a little girl in love. It's kind of adorable.

Rating: T

Genre: Friendship/Romance

Pairings: SasuSaku

Hatsukoi

Chapter Thirteen

Haruno Kizashi gets the shock of his life when his wife comes out into the back garden to tell him that Uchiha Sasuke is here to see him.

He's never really had much to do with the young man, despite the fact that he's been dating his daughter for the past three years. His impression of Sasuke is of a quiet, reserved young man who is serious about his work and his family. He's never failed to be polite, if a little terse, in their limited interactions, but he makes his daughter happy.

That's enough for Kizashi to like him.

"Sasuke, my boy!" He booms when he enters the sitting room. Mebuki has brought them tea and made herself scarce, though Kizashi is willing to bet the house that she's trying to eavesdrop from the kitchen. "It feels like an age since I spoke to you last!"

"It was at Kakashi's inauguration, I think." Sasuke inclines his head.

He's sitting in a formal seiza at the low table; Kizashi may only be a genin, but even he can read the tense set of Sasuke's shoulders and the rigidity of his spine. "So, what is it that's brought you to our humble home? You know Sakura is at the hospital today?"

"Yes." Sasuke says with a nod of his head.

Kizashi takes a seat and begins to serve them tea. "So, what can I do for you, then?"

Sasuke closes his eyes and takes a breath. "I've come to ask for your blessing." He says simply, meeting his eye. "I would like to ask Sakura to become my wife."

Ah. So that's it. He's suddenly not so surprised.

"You hardly need to ask me." He smiles at the young man. "We're not so old-fashioned. Sakura's free to do what she wants."

Sasuke's posture relaxes and he rubs the back of his neck. "In my clan, it's tradition for a man to seek the blessing of his intended's father prior to an engagement." He murmurs, reaching forward for the tea Kizashi pushes towards him. "My father would never consent to the marriage without your approval."

"Well, you'll get no objections from me." Kizashi laughs merrily. "Her mother, maybe, but that's only because you're both so young. But so long as you make my Sakura happy, I'm happy. And you're already pretty good at that."

Sasuke smiles behind his teacup.

Sakura brings him home for dinner the next week, clutching his hand and beaming up at her parents. "Sasuke-kun asked me to marry him!"

Kizashi was right that Mebuki held reservations due to their age, but she's still as enthusiastic as any mother of the bride-to-be—at least, in her own, overbearing way—as she bundles her daughter off into the kitchen to help with the food.

When they're seated around the dinner table, Mebuki peppers them with questions.

"Where will you live?" She asks as she reaches forward for a serving of rice.

"It's traditional for a newlywed couple to live with the groom's parents for a year before moving out on their own." Sasuke says stiffly, clearly uncomfortable with all the attention. "Sakura will move into my parents' house while we build our own."

"In the Uchiha district?"

"Yes. My father has already reserved a plot by the main gate, so Sakura can be as close to the hospital as possible."

Mebuki gives him a sharp look. "It would be easier for Sakura to live outside the district if the idea was for her to be closer to the hospital, wouldn't it?" She says with a hint of disapproval.

"It's fine." Sakura interjects before Sasuke can open his mouth. "I don't mind the walk. If it's an emergency I can just take the rooftops."

That ends that line of questioning, at least. Kizashi can see Sasuke's discomfort; Mebuki's questioning is well-meaning, but bordering on the domineering. Were he still seventeen, he'd be beet red by now. But the boy has grown over the years; he's been practically family for so long that the blushes that used to accompany him to family dinners rarely make an appearance anymore. He thinks sadly that Sakura isn't a little girl anymore, either. She's nearly twenty, and is getting married. If he's not careful, he's going to start tearing up at the dinner table.

"What about kids?" Mebuki moves on. "Have you talked about that?"

"Okaa-san!" Sakura splutters as Sasuke chokes on his miso. She thumps him on the back as he coughs.

"It's a valid question." She sniffs. "That conversation should be had before anything is legally binding, don't you think? So you're both on the same page. You don't want to be five years into a marriage and discover that your partner doesn't want children."

"Of—of course we're going to have kids." But Kizashi catches the questioning look that she shoots her fiancé out of the corner of her eye, and knows that that conversation hasn't been had yet. Sasuke nods nearly imperceptibly, and Sakura relaxes. "We just haven't decided when or how many yet."

"As you pointed out," Sasuke says a little drily, "we're still young. Sakura has her work at the hospital and I'm training to take over the station when my father retires. We'll both be busy for a few years yet."

Sakura nods, cheeks a little pink. "When we're ready we'll talk about the details." She says with finality.

"Well, I suppose that's sensible."

"Come now, Mebuki," Kizashi wheedles, "this is supposed to be a celebration, not an interrogation."

"Oh, fine." Mebuki huffs, shoving a piece of tonkatsu in her mouth. "I'll stop."

"Thank you, Okaa-san." Sakura sighs. Kizashi catches her squeezing Sasuke's hand under the table. Perhaps the young man isn't as composed as he projects.

Their lives become a flurry of wedding preparations. Kizashi often returns home to an empty house while Mebuki and Sakura are at the Uchiha manor planning the ceremony. Sometimes, the Uchiha matriarch and her son are in their sitting room with his wife and daughter, cooing over fabric samples or flower arrangements or seating charts for the reception.

Their wedding date is set for the autumn. Mikoto tries to push for the spring, but Sakura laughs and insists that she likes the rustic colours of fall better.

"After all, a spring wedding is such a cliché for someone like me." She grins as she passes Kizashi a plate of senbei. He's just returned from a mission and has been harangued into helping. "I'd get lost in all the cherry blossoms. Besides, having it in spring would mean that we'd have to wait another six months." She says with a blush. "We kind of don't want to."

"Not if you did it this spring, you wouldn't!" Mikoto insists.

"That's two months away!" Mebuki says dismissively, with a shake of her head. "Not nearly enough time to get everything sorted properly. And she and Sasuke have such hectic schedules at the moment, getting the time off would be next to impossible."

Mikoto must sense defeat, because she acquiesces with little more than a disappointed sigh.

"Where is Sasuke, anyway?" Kizashi asks, peering at the three women one at a time. "Shouldn't he be helping with this?"

"He's on a mission." Sakura sighs. "And he has been. I'll run everything by him when he gets back."

Mikoto's eyes shine. "He never says so, but I can tell he's excited." She chuckles while Sakura giggles. "In that quiet way of his, anyway. I've never seen him as happy as he has been the past few weeks." Here, she beams at Sakura. The girl ducks her head and makes a sound of embarrassment.

"I remember when they were children," Mebuki sighs. "Sakura used to come home gushing about Sasuke-kun all the time. Even before they were placed on the same team. Never did I think we'd be here all these years later."

"Okaa-san!" Sakura splutters. "Don't say things like that! It's embarrassing!"

"It's okay, Sakura-chan." Mikoto pats her hand. Then, Kizashi sees a gleam in her eyes. "I knew from the moment I saw you splashing in that river with the boys that you were in love with my son. I've always had confidence that the two of you would end up together."

Sakura near-screeches and slams her head into the table in embarrassment, covering her head with her arms. Kizashi pats her shoulder. "There, there," he soothes.

The only response from his daughter is a sound like a dying animal. The two mothers laugh.

As is tradition for the Uchiha clan, they hold the ceremony at the Naka shrine. Mebuki clutches his hand as they watch them perform the san san kudo, sniffling as she takes her own sips of saké. The boy's father is stoic, but he can see Sasuke's mother fighting back tears through a beatific smile as well.

And that is the day that Haruno Sakura becomes Uchiha Sakura.