Chapter 14 : Misunderstood

Sasuke released her and took some steps backward. It was him who looked scared now.

Naruto approached Sarada in a hurry asking her if she was alright, then turned to face Sasuke clearing that "She's not an enemy, she came with me." Sasuke's face was really disgusted at the situation. He didn't understand what's going on. Worse, he didn't want to understand. He really didn't, as curious as the girl's eyes' colors made him curious and alerted. He turned his back to them and saw another girl. Out of patience he asked Naruto angrily : "What the hell is going on ?"

The Hokage approached Sasuke and explained himself : "I didn't bring these kids with me from Konoha. I met them on my path and they have been attacked by a white boy with Sharingan. He was also wearing clothes with the Uchiha crest. I couldn't leave them along, nor return them to Konoha, so I brought them with me."

Naruto haven't seen Sarada's eyes it.

He smiled fairly, and decided to introduce them, starting with the one Sasuke was facing : "This is Chou-Chou, she's Chouji's daughter." She saluted Sasuke who didn't change his dark and perplexed face emotions.

"And this is Sa…" Naruto was cut by Sarada's furious run toward the Castle's entrance, and exit, and ended up calling her as he tried to run after her "Sarada ! What's wrong ?!"

Sasuke was frozen. He was too perturbed by the heavy flow of thoughts that was crossing his mind and heart. She's from Konoha. She has the Haruno symbol on her back and… Her eyes' colors…

It was another clone like that white boy. It wasn't a genetic modification trying to get Uchiha eyes. Unless… Her mother tried something to make them look like that ?

Sakura was few kilometers away from the Boundary Castle. She have been summoned by the Nanadaime, Naruto, who informed her that Sarada is with his Original version going to the Boundary Castle. He explained that he have been followed by her and her friend. When she asked him why, he couldn't answer, he has no clear idea. She wasn't worried by then, Naruto is trustable, there is nothing to worry about. So, she was heading out until a question popped in her head. Stopping at the door's knob, she turned herself lightly and asked him about his reason to send his original form instead of a clone. His reaction, accompanied with Shikamaru's embarrassed face made her turn herself fully to face him, and advance some steps forward, asking him again the same question.

"I've an appointment with Sasuke." He replied with a desolated face. The Haruno have been running toward the frontiers since then.

Sasuke.

Why Sarada would even think about him ? What does she know about him ? Did anyone tell her anything about her and him ? Did she heard from somewhere about their short relationship ? Is Sarada thinking he's her father ?

"Who's my father ?"

Those words torn her heart. She was frightened about her child more than ever.

Sasuke is awesome. That's how she felt about him. He have been consumed by darkness during the time preceding the Third Ninja War, he have done a lot of crimes, hurt a lot of people. He even tried to rebuild his clan with someone else. That darkness is still existing as a defense for his injuries; whenever he found himself hurt, that darkness reappears lightly : like when he tried to kill Naruto for a Revolution of the Ninja world or when he tried to hurt her by telling her he've tried before to have children, with someone else…

Sakura believes and acknowledges Sarada to be Sasuke's daughter. During her pregnancy she could never tell him about it for the simple reason "he wasn't trusting her enough". How ? He was absolutely surer that he's sterile, and the person who diagnosed him was Karin, and not her. In simple words, for a reason Sakura ignored, he trusted Karin more. He trusted another woman more than his fiancée, so how could his fiancée tell him something totally opposite that could indulge an infidelity. Since he trusted the other person more than her, he would surely see her as a traitor, and that's what he've done.

The Castle was just a kilometer away now. Sakura tried to regain her calm to at least stand strong in front of him. Her fear rose alertly when she saw Sarada leaving the Castle in a hurry. Could she have asked him if he was her dad ? How would he react ? Would he think Sakura have brain-washed her daughter her whole life to believe that Sasuke is her father… ? How much have Sasuke changed since ten years ? She has no idea. Would he be consumed again by darkness now ? Could he try to hurt her ?

She won't forgive any single tear he would have made Sarada spill.

She loves him, too much, is ready to sacrifice herself for him, forgive everything, but… Sarada was another subject, she was somehow ready to sacrifice him for Sarada.

"Sarada !" yelled Naruto as he followed the Haruno marked girl.

Sasuke couldn't move from his place, as if frightened of the repercussions of any bad movement he could make. He could hear his own heartbeats, the birds' singing outside stopped, Naruto's yellings and footsteps' disappeared, the creamy-skinned girl next to him was speaking, but he couldn't hear her. All he could hear was silence. He was facing himself. His chest was heavy and his feet felt broken as if he was about to fall.

He was shocked.

He couldn't realize exactly why but his inner self did know. His brain was still under the shock of the late gathered data.

A girl came with Naruto. She has the Haruno sign on her back, like Sakura. She has the same eyes' shape like Sakura. She looks nine to twelve years old. She came here before Naruto, she should have tricked him. She has eyes' colors and patterns like that white boy. And called him "Papa"…

There are four possibilities; either that white boy, infiltrated Konoha in such a shape and replaced Sakura's daughter from long ago, or Sakura have tried a genetic modification on her daughter so that she looks like an Uchiha, or that girl changed her eyes' shape like any shinobi could change their appearance… Or…

"No !" he said out-loud, awakening himself from his train of thoughts. He's not ready to think about that heart chilling last possibility.

"Sarada ! I'm talking to you ! Stop and come back here, you're under my responsibility !" claimed Naruto with a more severe tone, that made Sarada stop.

Her shoulders' shivering looked like she was crying, and indeed she was, Naruto thought, when she returned to face him with not just her tears, but bloody colored eyes.

Naruto was under a light shock and relieve, but it didn't last long, he was attacked again by that white skinned Uchiha.

The Hokage easily rejected his attack, but was again attacked, when Sasuke interfered. After some hits and spells exchanged, another version of that white Uchiha, an adult version of it, attacked them from a dead angle, but it was neutralized by a condensed attack that smashed him on the ground. It should have broken his bones. He's literally neutralized.

It was Sakura, clearly, as she spat on her opponent "Don't approach my daughter !"

"Mama !" said Sarada vividly.

"Sarada !" said Sakura hardly, she was too worried about her, she wasn't realizing she was there, ok, standing in front of her. All she could see before her eyes was her daughter, and nothing else. Sher ran toward her to hug her.

When Sakura arrived, Sasuke felt more alarmed, even if he couldn't let that show. He knew he should read Sakura before she read him, so he didn't miss any move, expression or word from her. The way her face softened from the anger it was consuming it moments before she faced that girl, could tell him how much she loved her. She seemed to be able to hide a lot about that girl in order to protect her, but… Wouldn't brain-wash her to put her on a painy path. That included modifying her genes too, she wouldn't do it. And that girl, didn't seem to be an infiltrated… Spy… She would have helped the enemy now, but didn't…

So that means…

Void devoured him in an instant when he found himself facing the only remaining possibility. He felt despair, shame, regret, sadness, pain, anger… He couldn't deal with all those emotions, because he should react to the present he was living, to the moment; Sakura was running toward him.

He didn't know what to do. He didn't see her from a decade, and, apparently, she was still so in love with him. That's Sakura. She have forgiven a lot in the past, it isn't like she wouldn't forgive a fault that… Lasted ten years. Ten years.

Sakura's face didn't change, her face was so lighted with joy right there, he would like to ask for pardon and to open his arms, but… His ego. It isn't him who would do the first step, it's not him who's going to say that that girl has Sharingan, and is Sakura's daughter, so she's Sasuke's too. He wouldn't do that, he would wait for someone else to say that, and hear Sakura's response, to open himself. His ego was still huge he thought, or maybe, he was just shy deep inside. Or, ashamed of his faults.

She was few centimeters away when he noticed she was looking somewhere else.

He felt broken when she passed next to him, toward someone else. The shame he felt was doubled. Sakura have changed. At least, he's not the person she loves the most now…

How to react ? He didn't know.

"Are you hurt ? Sarada ? Why did you come here ?!" asked the mother warily. "I'm fine, mama… I… Just wanted to..."

"To what ?!" asked Sasuke internally. To meet your papa ? He could have killed you, thinking you're a foe. He could have hurt you. He could have put an end to the life of his own child because of all his foolish and insane previous decisions.

"To meet the legendary Uchiha Sasuke." She answered gently with a smile. Sakura returned a tired smile to Sarada as she hugged her more tightly, saying "You're a curious girl after all."

Naruto could notice the density of the atmosphere, Sasuke wasn't going well. He could figure out why…

"the legendary Uchiha Sasuke". He was no more her Papa. So Sakura totally ignored this girl's plan; she came here secretly, she tried to meet Sasuke secretly away from Naruto, she called him Papa, and… With Sharingan on.

His heart hurt him, he wasn't sure if it was stabbed or totally broken. It's as the memory of his parents being slaughtered. But seems it was going to break more, now that he heard Sakura's footsteps approaching him, felt her standing next to him and whispered as she avoided eyes contact. Her words buried him :

"I'm sorry if my daughter caused you troubles. She's just a hyperactive curious kid, forgive her."

Next Chapter :

No more chapters for this fic, I assume this arc of "Uchiha's Future" completed, yet, I'll continue to write what comes next on a new fic :

"Sasuke's Redemption"

I hope you enjoyed the plot.

I wrote this because I remember I asked myself when I read Naruto Gaiden, and saw those Uchiha Sarada focused episodes from Boruto, about Sakura's reaction toward Sasuke :

She didn't see him from long ago, at least since Sarada's five years old, but when they meet, she'll first ask Naruto if he's going well, the give him a look and simply pass beside him, and in the anime, that scene is animated on slow-motion, as if they had a fight, or their relationship isn't going well, or maybe that's Sarada's perspective.

So I wanted to develop the question. And instead of making a real problem in the couple, I preferred it to be a MISUNDERSTANDING, and that was the initial name of the fic I wanted to write, but the misunderstanding I choose was treason or cheating. At the same time, I questionned myself : what if one of the remaining Uchihas we knew since the beginning of Naruto, Sasuke and Itachi, were sterile, or just one of them was ? I started then a fic where Sasuke is the one sterile, and another when it's his brother who is so. What would be their, the Uchiha's, FUTURE ? So that misunderstood that happened with Sakura and Sasuke was all because Sasuke wanted to see Sakura less perfect so that he could look less embarassing, and show less emotions or flattering. And that's why he wouldn't like to believe in her diagnosis. He wanted to believe that she was, at least, less competent in the field of biological analysis, at least, since she was powerful and cunning on all domains, in a way he couldn't surpass her, unless it's a pure matter of power.

The redemption he tried to earn years ago after he was accepted back to the Shinobi world seemed to work, he found peace, until he felt rejected and betrayed by Sakura. He felt a new gate to darkness opened, so he did his best to try gain back that peace by avoiding Konoha. But now that he met Sarada, his whole efforts seemed to have built an enormous wall between him and Sakura, one he's not believing anymore to be able to destroy it, especially after the coming manners of Sakura, a new Sakura, colder, harsher, without eyes full of love and warmth, a Sakura he modeled.

I hope you enjoyed it.

Thanks for everyone's critics, either good or bad, they're all important to me, I'll try to make up my language, style and grammar.

And ! All I wanted was to convey a story, so forgive my poor vehicule.