One Way or Another

A Sasu-Hina One-shot

Disclaimer : I don't own Naruto.

A/N : Events take place after the last chapter of Naruto Shippuden. I assure you, the outcome is SASUHINA. Please do not get discouraged if the initial parts are cannon.

My exams have finally, finally, FINISHED ! I'll have more time to update, so I do hope you all look forward to the oncoming chapters and new fics !

This, however, was not planned. I woke up in the middle of the night one day and was struck with this idea. You may feel that it is pretty random and vague and might even think that it does not make sense. I apologize in advanced because I tried my very best to express my emotions.

Bear with me and my exploding feeeeeeeeels.

Enjoy.

It is kind of uncanny that a sentence, a mere sentence can set your life in reverse gear. A simple, stupid sentence.

A look, a smile, a sentence. A different kind of acknowledgement.

You kind of find yourself stranded between the skies of fantasy and the grounds of reality, just simply hanging by a thread between those two worlds.

Then one fine day you wake up in a foreign bed, with a foreign arm draped around your waist. You tell yourself to be happy, to finally be satisfied because the one you love is right beside you, holding you with a contented smile on their face.

But you absolutely cannot fathom as to why you're just.. Incomplete.

Then like a fool you think back to the time when he uttered that astounding sentence to you just a few hours before you were going to say your wedding vows to his best friend.

The look, the smile, the sentence. That different kind of acknowledgement.

You then decide that you would keep that acknowledgement intact.

One way or another.

:SxH:SxH:

"Kaa-chan !"

The Uzumaki placed her knife on the chopping board and turned around with a small smile gracing her lips. With a twinkle in her lavender-orbs, she opened her arms wide and let her nine-year old ball of sunshine crash into her. The girl nuzzled her head in the crook of her mother's neck, blushing up to the tips of her ears. Hinata, noticing the crimson splattered all over Himawari's face and neck, giggled softly.

"Hima-chan, what's the matter ?" She asked, holding her daughter at an arm's length.

"Himawari saw Bo-nii and Sarada-san sitting near the Academy playgrounds." She blushed some more, poking her fingers together.

"I see. Were they trying to play a prank on Shino-kun ?" Hinata asked, patting her daughter's red cheeks.

"Kaa-chan ! Let Himawari finish the story." The blue eyed girl whined, pouting. Hinata chuckled and asked her to continue, turning back to her vegetables still lying uncut on the chopping board.

"I swear Kaa-chan, I saw Bo-nii and Sarada-san.. This close !" The girl placed her hands a few centimeters away from one another in front of her nose. As soon as the words escaped from her mouth, Hinata's knife slipped from her hand and cut her finger. Himawari rushed to her mother's side and saw Hinata yelping in pain. Suckling on her finger, Hinata gave her daughter a reassuring smile before sending her off to wash her hands. When she heard the footsteps fade away, she leaned on the kitchen counter and massaged her pounding forehead.

'Boruto and Sarada ?'

It is kind of uncanny to be in love with someone who isn't your wife. It all happened because of that stupid sentence.

A look, a gasp, a sentence. A different kind of acknowledgement.

You kind of find yourself stuck between the sweetness of the false words and the bitterness of the truth, just simply confusing your own taste buds as well as yourself.

And one fine morning, you wake up to the smell of mouth watering food and laughter, both feminine and childish. You sit up on the bed that felt foreign and smelt foreign, telling yourself to cheer up and embrace your loving family because second chances are hard to find.

But somehow you just slouch and rub your face, comprehending on how you just felt.. Incomplete.

And like an idiot you think back to time when you barged into her dressing room and shouted that sentence at her just a few hours before her wedding with your best friend.

The look, the gasp, the sentence. That different kind of acknowledgement.

You then choose to keep that awkward acknowledgement intact.

One way or another.

:SxH:SxH:

"Mama, please ! Papa might hear –"

"Hear what ?" The man walked in through the door and grabbed a bottle of water kept atop the kitchen counter. Sarada gasped a lungful of air and looked at her mother helplessly.

"You're home early." Sakura commented, winking at her daughter in the process. Sasuke chose to ignore the little exchange and replaced the cap of the bottle. He replied with a non committal grunt and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him. The green-eyed woman made sure that her husband was nowhere to be seen or heard and got on with the dishes lying untouched in the sink.

"So, what happened exactly ?" Sakura asked, lathering a plate with dish soap. Sarada blushed and looked away from her mother's face splitting grin. Fighting the maroon hue spreading all over her chubby face, she huffed softly.

"Mama, Boruto is stupid. B-But he is not st-stupid, too." She mumbled, rubbing her palms on her knees. Sakura's laughter echoed throughout the Uchiha residence, eliciting a stream of squeals from the youngest Uchiha.

"I understand what you're going through." Sakura replied with a giggle, masking her inner turmoil.

'I understand because I felt the same way about Naruto.'

Wiping her hands with a towel she made her way towards her daughter. Sarada merely looked at her mother with a scrunched face. Sakura patted the girl's head and bent down to her eye level.

"That means you admire him, ne ?" Sakura explained, tucking a dark lock of hair behind Sarada's ear, smiling at her daughter. Sarada looked at her sock clad feet and shook her crimson face, eliciting another squeal of laughter from the pink haired Uchiha.

Outside the kitchen, Sasuke slumped against the closed door and pinched the bridge of his nose in slight agitation.

'Sarada and Boruto, huh ?'

It's kind of uncanny to see the person you love holding the hands of a child that isn't yours, watching the pair go about their own activities while you stand there in the background with your hand clasped around your own child's.

A moment, a glance, a bitter truth. A different kind of ignorance.

You kind of find yourself wedged between your own emotions, telling you to scream in desperation and at the same time advising you to keep your mouth shut in silent agony.

And one day you just happen to snap and bits and pieces of your self-respect go flying out of the window as you stand in front of her, giving her your all, even if it's all summed up in a mere sentence. Deep in your heart you know that it won't work, that she'd always choose the sun over the darkness of the night –even though she herself is the moon that illuminates you all over.

But somehow you just face the heart shattering reality and contemplate on the fact that you both were just.. Meant to be.

And like a dunce you stand there in front of her in broad daylight, asking her to give away a part of herself she could never control, her heart.

The moment, the glance, the bitter truth. That different kind of ignorance.

You then conclude that you want this ignorance to fade away.

One way or another.

:SxH:SxH:

"Oi..Was it tuna or mackerel ?" Sasuke asked his daughter while weighing the two packages with his hand. Upon receiving no answer, he looked down towards where the girl was clutching his robe tightly with her nimble hands. Sarada was staring off into space with a flushed face. Sasuke placed the packages back on the aisle and followed her line of sight, his breath hitching in his throat.

A few feet away stood the half counterparts of the Uzumaki family, deciding over what vegetables to choose from. Uzumaki Hinata held up a bunch of greens, showing them to Boruto who just scoffed and plucked a few potatoes from the produce. A grimace and a whine later, the basket was filled with greens and potatoes both, a satisfying smile on the two faces.

A few minutes passed before Boruto noticed her. He paused in his ministrations of trying to knock over a pile of bathroom mops and gaped at the ebony eyed girl openly, his eyes widening and a small blush dusting his cheeks.

"Ah, Sarada-chan !" Both the Uchihas whipped to face Hinata who smiled at the girl widely, beckoning her over. Boruto and Sasuke noticed the exchange between the two females with something stirring deep inside their stomachs, making them sweaty and weird all over their bodies. Hinata then waved the kids off with a goodbye, probably telling them to go and bask in the sunlight while the adults got the shopping done. With matching grins and flushed cheeks, the Uchiha and Uzumaki ran out of the store promising to meet them at the gates.

The silence that followed after was quite uncomfortable.

Hinata looked over to Sasuke who in turn tried to avoid her gaze. Finally grabbing the tuna with his hand he placed it in the basket, overly aware of how the ex-Hyuga was staring at him with her doe-like eyes.

"Ohayou Gozaimasu, Sasuke-san." Hinata mumbled softly, grabbing some of the tuna as well.

"Ohayou." Sasuke murmured back, unable to move away from the aisle.

"How is Sakura-chan doing ?" She asked with a smile, turning to face him.

"She's well."

Hinata nodded and hummed a tune, placing more items in her basket. Sasuke stood there, transfixed by the way she moved around. Being a mother suited her.

'If only..'

"So, my daughter and your son.." Sasuke started, clearing his throat and shifting the basket in his arms.

"They do look adorable, ne?" Hinata replied, looking at him while suppressing a giggle. Sasuke sighed and let a small smirk grace his lips. Glancing at the basket in her hands he held out his hand.

"If it's heavy, I'll help."

Hinata flushed and refused by shaking her head. Sasuke mildly glared at her, outstretching his arm even more. A firm gaze matched Sasuke's as she hid the basket behind her skirt. Some more glaring ensued which caused the woman to laugh. Sasuke did not budge and tapped his foot impatiently, almost too ready to activate his Sharingan. Finally a sigh broke out and Hinata handed the basket to the obstinate Uchiha.

The two walked slowly towards the cashier in an eerie silence. On the way they were greeted by a woman old enough to see the previous Ninja Wars with her own eyes waving them over to her. Grasping hold of Hinata's sleeve, the woman shifted in her wheelchair.

"You both.. I once knew two youngsters like you, the ones with the white eyes and the ebony ones.. Walking around the training grounds, the dark haired girl babbling away while the brunette lad listened to her with a small smile on his face."

Sasuke coughed awkwardly and saw Hinata throw a narrowed gaze at him, smiling at the old woman politely and urged her to continue.

"A Hyuga and an Uchiha, they both were." The woman coughed, grasping the arms of her wheelchair. Surprised by the statement, Hinata and Sasuke shot each other wary, uncomfortable looks.

"Perhaps their love was not to be inked in the pages of destiny, for the boy was chosen as the heir of the Hyugas, while the girl was promised to the next leader of the Uchihas."

Eyes widening with a doubt of realization, Sasuke gulped and stared at the elderly woman intently while Hinata avoided the woman's appreciative glance directed at the two dark haired adults.

"Maybe your love is destined to last. I feel it. You see these eyes," She pointed at her pupils with trembling fingers, "They see everything. You both make an adorable pair. I wish to see how your children would turn out to be like." The woman wheezed and then coughed, slouching in her wheelchair. Hinata, somewhat flabbergasted, froze on the spot while Sasuke said nothing, slowly grasping onto what the granny had said.

A teenage girl suddenly appeared out of nowhere and blushed in front of the two dark haired adults, bowing and apologizing.

"I apologize for her behavior, Uchiha-sama and Uzumaki-sama. She's old and probably wonky, so she says things without thinking. If you could just excuse us." The girl turned towards the old woman and scolded her.

"That's the Hokage's wife and the Hokage's right hand man, Baa-chan ! Don't go off imagining things you old bat."

Sasuke cleared his throat, placing his hand at the small of Hinata's back –who just jumped at the contact –and led her towards the cashier in complete silence. After getting his things checked out, he waited for the Uzumaki to show up so that they could go collect their kids.

Exiting the store, Sasuke stopped walking a few minutes later and held out his arm in front of the bluenette. Hinata looked at him questioningly, sensing the tension in the air turning and tumbling around and forming a big black cloud over their heads.

"If our kids get married someday, I'll somehow succeed in getting attached to you for the rest of my life. It's destiny, Hinata.. And.. And I don't plan on changing it."

A surprised gasp filled the air as Hinata's bag of groceries fell down from her small hands. The two dojutsu users looked at each other with emotions burning behind their eyes. Sasuke stepped towards the woman slowly, grasping in the change of the atmosphere that surrounded them while Hinata stood fixed on her spot, enchanted by the way the three tomoes in his Sharingan ablaze eyes spun lazily. He finally stopped when he was a few inches away from her, still looking at her with those smoldering eyes.

"S-Sasuke-san, someone might see." Hinata squeaked, placing her hands on the Uchiha's chest to push him back. Sasuke ignored her and grasped her hands lightly, holding them against his chest and getting satiated with the feel of her palms and her fingers splayed against his heart.

"Do you feel that, Hime ?" Sasuke whispered, bending down towards her. Hinata's mouth went dry upon sensing the loud thudding of Sasuke's heart through his chest. Looking up towards him with tears welling in her eyes, her lips trembled.

Holding back a mournful cry she shoved him back, bending down swiftly to collect her groceries fallen on the ground. Sasuke accepted the shove as a form of rejection and bent down as well, handing the Uzumaki matriarch the fallen greens and potatoes. Hinata reached to grab them but as soon as their fingers brushed, her hands paused in mid air. The dark haired pair froze and looked into each other's eyes, lavender clashing with onyx.

"Maybe you are right." The woman whispered softly after a few minutes passed by, pushing her fingers slightly against his. The man, noticing the movement against his own fingers, repeated the motion by pushing his fingers forward. A small smile graced the Uchiha's face as Hinata let out a small giggle at the uncanny contact.

The Sharingan user and Byakugan user were brought out of their enchantment with one another upon hearing two figures running in their direction.

"Kaa-chan !"

"Papa !"

The pair snatched their hands back and scooped up the groceries, awkwardly creating some distance between their bodies. Hinata's flushed face wasn't doing anything to help calm the situation. Sasuke, without paying any heed to the broken trance, smiled at his daughter and beckoned her over while Boruto fussed over his mother's crimson cheeks.

"Papa, does Hinata-oba have fever ?" Sarada asked, looking towards the Uzumaki son trying to convince his flushed mother to help her with the bags. Sasuke caught Hinata's eye and shook his head.

"It must be the heat, Sarada." He said with a non committal shrug, even though his eyes reflected the amusement in his voice. With that said, all the redness from Hinata's face drained, only to be replaced by small droplets of sweat and a willingness to avoid his obsidian gaze. Noticing her face, Sarada nodded at her father, unable to understand the small exchange going on between the two adults.

"Bo-kun, go say bye to Sarada-chan and Sasuke-oji." Hinata looked away and muttered to her son, who shyly approached the Uchiha pair. Boruto bowed to Sasuke and laughed when the Uchiha pulled on the boy's cheeks jokingly. Turning to face the ebony eyed girl, he cleared his throat and mumbled a soft goodbye, smiling at the youngest Uchiha brightly. The said girl blushed darkly and waved towards the boy, bowing to his mother in farewell afterwards. Hinata smiled at her and patted the raven haired girl on the cheek.

"Do come over in the evening, Sarada-chan. You can always play with Hima-chan and Bo-kun, ne ?" Hinata said and saw the girl blushing profusely and nodding her head. Hinata looked at the older version of the girl standing a few feet away with a twinkle in his ebony eyes and fought the urge to slap that smirk off his face –after blushing and calming her nerves down, of course.

"Ja ne, Sasuke-san." She said, turning around with one hand clutching the bags and the other clutching Boruto's hands while the boy glanced back every few seconds, staring deeply into the girl's eyes.

"Ne, Papa.."

"Hm ?"

"Boruto is so stupid."

The man just chuckled and walked home with his daughter.

It's kind of uncanny to feel that the person you initially thought you were in love with, isn't the person you actually love.

A thought, a feeling, a sudden revelation. A different kind of secret.

You kind of find yourself jammed between reluctant acceptance and bursting defiance, refusing to lose your life yet ready to risk it all.

And one evening you happen to stumble across the two people you were most afraid of seeing together, your husband and the one you love. You want to run towards that person and bury yourself in his arms, you want to explain the whole scenario to your husband –who is still in love with someone who is not you –and live a life worth dying for.

But then you just walk towards your husband without any thoughts on your mind because you just feel.. Guilty.

And then like a muttonhead you greet him with a dutiful kiss and wish the one you love a good evening without a trace of any love lingering behind your words, asking him about the bliss of his own married life.

The thought, the feeling, the sudden revelation. That different kind of secret.

You then choose to let your emotions be a secret.

One way or another.

:SxH:SxH:

"Hina!"

The woman turned around upon hearing her name being called from behind. She froze in her steps upon seeing her husband.. With Sasuke. Hinata swallowed hard and let a smile grace her lips, although it looked more like a grimace. Walking hurriedly to the blonde, she fell in his arms as she did every day, every night. Kissing her square on the lips, Naruto grinned down at her, somehow managing to not take her breath away like he always had.

The sudden thought fluttered across her mind and she turned towards the other man, gesturing Naruto to put her back on the ground. She cleared her throat and smiled in a Sai-ish way, looking at the Uchiha through lidded eyes.

"Ah, konbanwa Sasuke-san." She greeted, doing a half bow in his direction. The man straightened up and replied with his own muffled greeting, bowing in the same way as Hinata did. The two raven haired people stood in uncomfortable silence while the blonde Hokage continued blabbering away of 'how paper work sucked and how he and Shikamaru managed to pull a prank on Gaara, dattebayo !'.

Sasuke looked at Hinata's clasped hands and thought back to their previous meeting, pushing his fingers together in the same way the bluenette had, eliciting a loud gasp from the said woman. Both men whipped their head towards her flushed face, one utterly confused and concerned while the other smirking and resisting the urge to chuckle.

"Diajoubu desu ka ?" Naruto asked, placing a hand on her forehead. Hinata nodded and gave him a sheepish smile and flicked her gaze at the Uchiha. She cleared her throat and decided to make small talk with the ebony eyed man before the blue eyed one sensed any apprehension coming out of both the ravens in humongous waves.

"How is married life treating you, Sasuke-san ?" Hinata asked without a trace of emotion behind her words. Glancing at her warily, Sasuke faked a smile.

"Everything is well, though sometimes my joy exceeds my expectations." Sasuke replied with a hint of sarcasm. Naruto, without noticing the dark cloud of tension swirling up in the air, laughed and socked the Uchiha on the back.

"Of course, with a woman like Sakura-chan by your side.." Naruto started and then stopped, realizing the unspoken emotion behind his words. He silently looked at his wife who behaved as if everything was normal, as if she didn't suspect a thing regarding his previous feelings for the ex-Haruno, standing there with a plastic smile and staring off into the horizon. He then slid his gaze towards his ebony-eyed best friend, who at the moment sported a scowl on his face as he glared at the lavender-eyed woman without paying heed to the blue-eyed man standing between them.

"Why are you glaring at my wife, teme ?" Naruto asked, narrowing his eyes at the Uchiha. The raven just scoffed and crossed his arms, his onyx eyes never leaving the Uzumaki matriarch's stone face. Naruto growled and grabbed Hinata's hand, whisking her away after him.

"See ya later, teme." Naruto called out, walking away briskly with Hinata in tow. Hinata stumbled on her feet trying to catch up with her husband –all the while glancing back at the person she loved, the person who was currently looking at her with a small smile and adoring eyes. She wiped her unshed tears with her free hand as they slowed down at the entrance of the Hokage Residence.

"Are you crying because of what I'd said back there ?" Naruto asked, turning around to face her in front of the main door of their home.

"Ano.. Said what ?" Hinata asked, feigning ignorance as she slipped past him and opened the door, removing her sandals before stepping into the house.

Naruto stood on the gravel path leading to the doorway, staring at her back as she disappeared inside the house. He heard his children squeal and laugh inside, probably due to their doting mother's affection. He rubbed his face and thought back to the time when they all were younger, where relationships seemed to be as easy as slurping down a bowl of ramen.

'Ramen and.. Sakura.'

It is kind of uncanny to be surrounded by the arms of someone who isn't yours in the first place.

A tear, a whimper, a touch. A different kind of night.

You kind of find yourself tied between the place you thought you belonged to and the place you visit once and never want to leave ever again.

And then one night you happen to bump into him, just after you've had a fight with your husband over dinner. You want to just forget it all and escape the realms of the real world and live in a forever enchanted genjutsu with this man right in front of you.

But you just stutter a greeting and have small talk, trying to make the obvious longing vanish in thin air. Trying to ignore the way your mind just screams.. 'Give in'.

Although, this time your 'buts' don't work.

And like an emotionally damaged wreck, you finally allow yourself to taste heaven, to have a glimpse of it, to feel it in your arms only if it's for a little while.

The tear, the whimper, the touch. That different kind of night.

You then decide that this night is the only one that would remain inked in your memory, in your heart.

As if it was destiny.

One way or another.

:SxH:SxH:

She walked slowly on the path, rubbing her arms through the thin haori she managed to grab before exiting the house. Wiping the snot from her overflowing nose, she sniffed and clenched her fists.

"I swear I didn't mean to –"

"Of course, it was a slip of tongue."

"Believe me, Hinata ! There is no one for me but you.."

"And Sakura-chan."

"What's that supposed to mean ?"

Hinata looked him in the eye and demanded a silent explanation. Naruto rubbed his face in agitation. Taking a seat on the sofa he looked at his wife with pleading eyes while she sighed and cleaned up the dining area. Naruto stood behind her and reached out for her shoulders, only to see her flinch and duck before the contact was made.

"I th-think I'll go out for a stroll. I-I'll be back in a few hours or s-so.." She placed the towel on the rack and proceeded towards the main door of the mansion.

"Hinata !" Naruto called after her.

"The kids might wake up, Naruto-san. Please do lower your voice." She felt tears collecting in her eyes as she slipped on her sandals. Behind her Naruto gasped sharply, probably because of the formal tone she chose to address him with.

"I'm so, so sorry Hime." He whispered, taking a step back. She opened the door and looked at him with the corner of her eyes and muttered,

"Apologize to our children."

She blew her nose and wiped it with the edge of her sleeve, trudging slowly towards an unknown direction. Many young Chunin and Jounin passed her by and bowed to her in respect, wisely keeping their mouths shut about the Hokage's wife's disheveled appearance. Surely new rumors would be flying about the next day but Hyug –Uzumaki Hinata was rather occupied to fret over them.

What had she done? Did she just give Naruto the permission to love another woman yet stay with her, too ? Moreover, had she not even thought about her children before making this drastic decision ? And even if they both were to separate, what would the kids say ? How would they retaliate ?

Hinata stopped and leaned against the pole of a street light, breathing harshly and letting her tears soak the ground. She visibly shook and clenched her teeth so as to not cry out in agony. Her face was turning purple as the minutes flew by, her nose an angry shade of red due to excessive wiping.

A hand shot out of the dark and grabbed her by the shoulder, pulling her against someone's chest. If the lavender-eyed woman hadn't been going through a panic attack, she would've surely spun around and given the person a beating they deserved for trying to molest a woman at night. But she wouldn't, because she couldn't.

The woman did not put up a fight, did not struggle in the person's strong hold because she strongly felt that she deserved it. She deserved it because she was in love with a man who was not her husband –with a man who was her good friend's husband –because she left her kids in the house with an emotional wreck of a father in the middle of the night.

So she might as well pay for her sins.

The captor led her through the training grounds into the small hot spring that was hidden deep within the forest, all the while maintaining a strong hold on her body. He finally set her down beneath a willow tree, letting her catch her breath before the deed was done. Hinata said nothing, just cried. Cried for the man she chose to love and then cried for the man she accidently fell in love with.

"What did he do now ?" A gruff voice asked, laced with all sorts of emotions. Hinata gasped and finally looked into the eyes of her 'captor', slumping against the tree at the sight of his chiseled features set into a harsh glare directed towards the ring on her finger. Hinata looked at him with a blush on her face, her mouth agape in a trance.

"S-Sasuke-san !"

"Drop the honorific."

Hinata blushed some more and pressed back into the trunk of the tree, avoiding his Sharingan lit gaze. Leaning down towards her, he captured her face with his fingers, forcing her to look him in the eye.

"What are you doing out so late, Hime ?" He whispered, trailing his eyes across her petal-like lips.

A tear fell down from her opal eyes and landed on her plump lips. Sasuke closed his eyes, trying to control himself and not go bonkers on the blonde Hokage. He swooped down and with the swipe of his tongue, licked the salty droplet off her lips. Hinata whimpered at the touch, crumbling in obvious desire.

"I-I.. Sasuke.." Hinata whispered, grasping the hand that held on to her chin. She placed her palm against his, their fingers splayed against one another's. Sasuke looked at her face, devoid of any kind of apprehension.

"What is this, Sasuke ?" She finally sighed when her intertwined their fingers together, pressing them against his cheek.

"I don't know, Hinata." Hinata let a small smile grace her lips when she heard him use her name. She placed her other hand on his shoulder, trailing it over his arm and elbows. When she reached his hand, she placed it on the small of her back, eliciting a sharp intake of breath from the Uchiha.

"What is this tension ? What are we doing, Sasuke ?" She asked him, looking into his hooded eyes. Sasuke tugged her towards him and touched his nose with hers. Hinata closed her eyes and let her emotions flow, letting everything go.

He lifted her chin up and brushed his lips with hers, finally letting himself succumb to his desires. Hinata squeezed his shoulders as he decreased the gap between their bodies, his scent wafting up her nose. Capturing her lips and sealing the unsaid deal with a kiss, Sasuke gathered the woman in his arms and laid against the willow tree, shielding them from the clutches of the real world.

"We're going to have a small glimpse of heaven, Hime."

It is kind of uncanny to come across someone who's wife was with you three nights ago, especially if that someone is your best friend.

A forged smirk, a normal greeting, an unspoken truth. A different kind of news.

You kind of find yourself embedded between wanting to comfort him and wanting to bitch smack him across his tanned face.

And during the Graduation Ceremony at the Academy you see how perfect your best friend's family looks, despite the bad news. You look at them talking and laughing and putting on a show for the whole village, portraying that the Hokage's family matters have not gone out of hand.

You stand there with your own little family nest, your hand firmly clasped around your little girl's while you wife walks to them and says 'hi' leaving you behind feeling.. Regretful.

And like a nincompoop you fake a friendly greeting and bow to the woman who means the world to you, watching her hand held by someone who is not you.

The forged smirk, the normal greeting, the unspoken truth. That different kind of news.

You then decide to let this news and its consequences run their course.

One way or another.

:SxH:SxH:

"Ah, Sakura-chan !" Naruto waved towards the pinkette, conveniently avoiding his wife's cold stare. The pinkette approached the Uzumaki family with a gleeful smile on her face, Sarada and Sasuke in tow. Hinata tried to snatch her hand away from Naruto's strong grasp, but the blonde just held onto her more tightly as the distance between the Uzumakis and the Uchihas decreased.

"You all look so cute together!" Sakura squealed, pinching Boruto's cheeks and ruffling Himawari's hair. Sasuke and Sarada approached the group, the latter flushed in the face. Boruto's cheeks colored as well, beads of sweat visible on his forehead. The adults noticed the silent exchange of words between the two newly made genin, reminiscing about their own last days at the Academy.

"So, is it safe to ask if you're in the same team ?" Naruto finally asked with a wide grin on his face. Sakura broke out in a squeal of laughter upon noticing the big, gleeful smiles on the twelve year olds' faces.

"We're in squad seven with Nowaki, just like you three !" Boruto exclaimed, jumping on his toes while Sarada nodded excitedly, both proudly showing off their newly received hitai ate.

As the four gushed around with high pitched squeals and barks of laughter, Sasuke slid his gaze towards Hinata who was smiling at Boruto, talking to Himawari in hushed and adoring tones. He walked over to the midnight blue haired pair and ruffled the youngest Uzumaki's hair, eliciting a small giggle from the girl.

Their eyes met and the air surrounding them suddenly sparked. Everything, everyone transported to another dimension, leaving the two secretive lovers sinking into the other's eyes.

"Ne, Hinata !" Sakura called out, holding both Sarada and Boruto's hands. Hinata jumped and let a small squeak out. Looking away from Sasuke, she gulped and let a false smile make its way on her face.

"We're taking the kids to meet their sensei, if you want we could take Himawari as well." Sakura smiled and tucked a lock of rose colored hair behind her ear. An audible intake of breath echoed from the raven, the raven standing beside the Byakugan user. Every single pair of eyes in the small group turned towards the Uchiha who was clenching his fist beneath his cloak.

"Is everything alright, Sasuke-kun ?" Sakura asked, her voice rising in concern. He slowly nodded and looked away, staring at the other families gathered there in the spacious training ground.

Every single family present there looked perfectly content, perfectly normal and perfectly surrounded by a blanket of love. And when one would look towards the Uchiha-Uzumaki family, they would think the same.

Perfection.

Sasuke snorted at the thought as he saw Naruto stare at his wife with a loving and longing gaze, while he openly adored the Hokage's wife with his own ebony eyes. He turned back to them and saw the backs of his wife and his best friend, between them the three children walking and laughing.. Like a normal family.

"They look like the perfect family, ne ?" He heard the woman whisper, her mouth set into a thin line as she gripped the edges of her blouse. Sasuke didn't bother to reply as the answer was clearly in front of their eyes.

"If I'd left him on the alter that day, what would've eventually happened ?"

"That would've been us."

"It's for the best, Naruto."

"Bu-But why ?! I thought we were happy !"

"I was. But now, I'm not so sure."

Naruto clenched his hair in obvious distress. Hinata wiped a tear threatening to fall down from her eyes, turning her back to the Uzumaki.

"We won't be living apart, no. I've had enough time to think about this and.. And I feel that as soon as the kids are mature enough, we'll break the news to them. Till then let's put on a.. Show.. A happy charade and live like the parents they deserve, ne ?" She said, paused at the doorway leading to the garden.

"Why are you doing this, Hinata ? Is it because you feel that I-I.."

"The truth is often hidden in the words you do not speak, Naruto." Hinata's words seemed to bring him out of his reverie. Naruto's eyes clenched shut as he refused to shed tears –for himself, his wife and his two little angels.

"I am really, really sorry, Hinata. Gomen." He let go of her hand and she relaxed, her posture not so stiff anymore.

"Like I said before, apologize to our children. We both should, for they have irresponsible parents who just fell out of love." A hiccup echoed through the house. Placing the bottle of Sake on the table nearest to her, she hiccupped again.

"I'll be in my office, you should get some sleep." Naruto said in a soft tone, walking away from her towards the room nest to their bedroom.

Hinata exited through the door and escaped into the night, her mind screaming at her to go back inside the house while her body itching to seek out solace, specifically from someone called Uchiha Sasuke. Without thinking or feeling anything, she continued in the dark, thinking about how Boruto and Himawari would take the news a few years later.

'Gomen ne, Bo-kun, Hima-chan. Your parents just.. Are not in love with each other anymore.'

"Hi-Hinata ?" Hinata paused to see the object of her distress standing in front of her with a concerned expression on her face.

Sakura had just finished a night shift at the hospital and all she wanted was to go home and lay in her husband's arms –and fantasize about someone else –but she came across a wary, dejected looking and most probably drunk Uzumaki trudging the streets of Konoha at eleven in the night.

She looked at the lavender eyed woman from head to toe, her eyebrows rising up a notch with every glance. Hinata sniffled and looked at the pinkette dead in the eye, the silence between them hanging like a dead body, unable to move and stinking the whole situation up.

"He's all yours." Hinata croaked and pushed past the Uchiha matriarch, who stared at the bluenette's running form in shock.

Hinata ran till her legs burned and her throat cried for a sip of water and ultimately she found herself sitting beneath the same willow tree where she'd promised him that one day she would solely be his. Hugging her knees to her body she cried –bawled with her nose running like an overflowing pipe –and smacked herself with her hands.

She was not supposed to be like this. She was supposed to be the Hokage's dutiful and beautiful wife. She was supposed to be the perfect mother who made her children delicious bentos and sang a lullaby to them at night, not drinking until she saw nothing but a constant blur.

She cried out in agony, yanking hardly on her hair. Banging her head on the trunk of the tree, she kicked her legs in the air.

"-nata! Hinata !" She vaguely heard someone call out her name and shake her relentlessly. Letting go of her hair –without noticing the numerous strands of midnight blue heaped together around her fingers –she looked up towards the man who managed to break through her panic attack.

"S-Sasuke ! I-I d-don't know what happened –I need to go home ! Yes, I'll go home and.. And.. And then.. Nothing !" She held onto him, crying into his shirt. Sasuke resisted the urge to unleash his Susanoo on the sunny haired blonde he just beat up fifteen minutes ago and clutched onto the woman for dear life. He let her sob into his chest as he smoothed her midnight blue hair with his fingers, trailing his hand comfortingly on her back.

"It's nearing fucking midnight. What do you want ?" Sasuke grumbled, leaning against the wooden post in their old training grounds. Naruto rubbed his neck and looked at ground with lidded eyes pooling with wetness.

"We.. We might separate."

"What ?"

"We can't work.. We don't fit together properly."

"What. The. Fuck..?"

"After the war I'd seriously thought it could work. After Boruto and Hima, I-I was perhaps the most ecstatic man alive.. Twelve years later I still am ! But you know what Saku- uh everyone says ! Old habits die hard, and mine are persistent upon not dying!"

"What about Hinata ?"

"No more Hinata."

The sound of a fist clashing against a nose echoed throughout the clearing.

"Arigatou, Sasuke." Hinata nuzzled into the Uchiha's chest, whispering in choked sentences. The ebony eyed man cradled her in his arms, breathing in the scent of her midnight blue hair.

"What happens now, Sasuke ?" She said in a hushed tone, tracing patterns on his shoulder. Grasping her face with his long fingers Sasuke closed the distance between the two, brushing his lips softly against the woman's.

"We stick together, one way or another."

It is kind of uncanny..

No.

It is kind of blissful to see your daughter getting married to the love of her life, to watch her walk down the aisle in her mother's wedding dress with a beautiful and delicate smile brightening up her features.

It is also kind of heartbreaking to walk down the aisle with her, to give her away to the man waiting at the altar and to realize that she isn't your little girl anymore.

A huge smile, a tear waiting to be shed, a day to let go of his daughter. A different kind of wedding.

:SxH:SxH:

It is kind of uncanny..

No.

It is kind of delightful to see your son getting married to the love of his life, to watch him wait at the end of the aisle sweating profusely yet appearing as charming as he could be in his wedding robes, a shy and contended grin lightening up his features.

It is also kind of heart breaking to watch him fret over the fact that the rings had been missing prior to the ceremony, realizing the fact that he isn't your little boy anymore.

An encouraging smile, a face glistening with shed tears, a day to finally see her son become a man. A different kind of wedding.

:SxH:SxH:

"Take care of my daughter-in-law, Bo-kun." Hinata said teary eyed, stroking her son's cheek. Himawari sniffled and hugged her brother, wiping her nose on his robes. Placing a hand on her hair, he rubbed her head softly and enveloped his mother into a hug with his other arm.

"Boruto, make me proud son." Naruto thumped on his back, ruffling his golden locks. The newly married Uzumaki grinned and looked over to his blushing bride being smothered with hugs by her mother.

"I'll be fine Mama." Sarada smiled tearfully as her mother showered her face with kisses for the umpteenth time. Sasuke walked over and put his hand over the bride's head, ruffling her hair. Wiping a tear from her eyes, the newlywed woman enveloped her father in a bone crushing hug, closing her eyes and relishing the feeling of his hand settling down her askew, ruffled hair with gentle and affectionate strokes.

The son-in-law walked towards the Uchiha and grinned, receiving a small smack on his head from his smirking, ebony eyed father-in-law.

"You better take care of her. She's my baby and always will be." Sasuke finally mumbled, wiping the tears of surprise escaping his daughter's ebony eyes. The whole wedding party was stunned into silence, watching the loving exchange between a reluctant father and an emotional daughter.

Finally, Sasuke's expression mirrored Sarada's as a single tear slid down his cheek.

The whole place erupted with cheers and applause.

It is a stroke of luck to find the person you are meant to be with.

And if you find yourself wrapped around that person after you've accepted the fact that you'd never be together, you promise yourself to never let them go.

Because.. It is love. Pure and untouched.

Untamed.

You don't care anymore. Let them say what they want to, let them stand in your way if they want to.

All that matters is her smile and her laughter.

All that matters is the way she screams out your name in pleasure and then collapses in your arms every night after hours of loving each other.

In the end you find yourself not so stranded anymore. You are not wedged, jammed, stuck, tied or embedded between the choice of happiness and duty.. Between what is wrong and what is right.

Because she is right.

Because you both are complete.

And you both are meant to be.

One way or another.

:SxH:SxH:

"Finally attached, ne ?"

The Hokage grinned and downed another shot of his drink, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. Sakura laughed uncomfortably, edging away from the slightly drunk blonde. The dark haired counterparts of the group sighed and sipped their respective drinks slowly.

The wedding had ended ages ago, the guests had left a few hours after. The four in-laws were at the Uchiha residence, drinking and talking till the wee hours of morning until the rays of the sun swept through the windows of the kitchen and illuminated their faces.

"I feel so.. Old." The pinkette mumbled, slumped in her chair. The lavender eyed woman sitting across her nodded –too enthusiastically –and took a bite of the onigiri kept at the centre of the table.

"Who knew one day we'd all be sitting here.. Just eating and drinking.. After everything happened." Sasuke swished the contents of his glass and stared into the amber liquid, ignoring the looks of pain, shock and surprise shot at him.

Naruto looked at the midnight blue haired woman sitting next to Sasuke, playing with the ends of her kimono's sleeves. With an uncalculated move he reached over the table to rid her fingers from her sleeve, only to slip and fall on Sakura's lap ungracefully.

"I guess it's time leave, ne Naruto ?"

The drunk blonde looked towards Hinata and nodded. Placing a hand on Sakura's shoulder he steadied himself up, straightening his orange-gold robes. As he kept his glass on the wooden table with a small thud, the Nanadaime punched Sasuke on the arm in farewell and reached for his beloved's hand, clasping it around his own large ones.

"Let's go, hm ?" He threw a salute towards the other two still sitting at the table and walked towards the main door with his darling in tow, waving a cheerful goodbye.

As the door shut loudly, the woman sighed and collected the dishes and the bottles scattered on the table. Sasuke stood up with a small smile and embraced her from behind, eliciting a tiny gasp from her. Turning in his arms, she laughed as he bit on her nose playfully. Grabbing her face gently, Sasuke lowered his mouth on hers, swiping his tongue against her already open lips.

"Sas- ah.. I have to-mph – clean !"

Grinning down at her, he snatched the utensils from her hands and tossed them atop the kitchen counter. Bending down he picked her up and hung her upside down from his shoulder, smacking her behind in the process.

"Sasuke ! Naruto and Sakura might still be in hearing range." She squealed, laughing loudly.

"Let them hear you scream my name, Hime.I'd told you, we'd be together, one way or another." He smirked as he carried her into their bedroom.

-Fin-

Finally finished !

It was originally supposed to be a poem, but then my brain went and did some shit on me.

So, VOILA !

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:)