Author's note: When my friend requested a year ago that I would write this fic, I thought it wouldn't be longer than fifteen, twenty chapters tops. Because surely the story couldn't turn out that much longer. I've grown wiser since then and realised that I should never expect to hit the first number I have in mind LMAO So instead of twenty chapters, this turned out to have thirty-four in the end.

I want to thank you all for coming on this journey with me. I had a lot of fun writing this story - even when it made me curse at times - and I'm so happy to see how many people have enjoyed reading this story thus far! Thank you all for your continuous support, it really meant a lot to me!

And Meehalla, thanks for letting me rant at times about this story and for supporting me whenever I felt insecure about this story :)

For the last time, thank you to the following reviewers: lashayluv; Safieri; celestia193; GeminiAngie; Ern Estine 13624; kawu93; solitare1; yaoiluvur; 12anarose; rebeccaantwi88; Meehalla; AlyssJocelyn; SehunsBae37; HeartSNS; yukino76; Melyway; lazyrebel; M4573R; meow mew chan; The Only Love For Soujiro Seta; dark blue princess; therezwaffleinem; almahiya09; Uchiha Naruko; virtualwrite; Arw165; La p'tite Antillaise; Mkayemolina; cherryenchanted; bookworm51485; Naledi; Kitsune Knight of Darkness; inuyasha16451; Suma Akila; Redfoxshadow; ShishiSerite; Jesi Lee Dizon; Guest; Ariadne; TheDamagedOne24; yaoiangelbaby; Laural1477; TheBeauty; Sweetciel; ayowe

Thank you so much for the reviews! I never expected to get that many!

Warnings: Mentioned permanent disability; some angst; minor flashbacks to the attack; character death; set a couple of years in the future; Sasuke's pov

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Kishimoto owns it.

For the last time, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter!

Chapter 34: Epilogue

Rain was gently falling down outside; the droplets created a steady 'plick, plick, plick' sound as they splattered across the windows, slipping down in thin rivulets.

The window in his study stood ajar and the fresh scent of rain drifted inside, accompanied by a soft hissing sound whenever a car drove past the house. The clouds were a dark grey and didn't look ready to disappear any time soon.

Given that it was autumn, having an evening full of rain wasn't that surprising. Hopefully the rain wouldn't turn into a storm; he knew one person who wouldn't be able to sleep through the night then.

"So we're going to move the meeting to this Friday then," Itachi concluded on the other end of the line. "That way we'll all be able to attend."

"Sounds good to me," Sasuke murmured, twirling a pencil between his fingers. His desk chair creaked softly when he leant back a bit and he crossed his legs.

The meeting being postponed would give him more time to prepare himself so that he could deal with Hidan's antics. Even after working there for five years, the older man loved to taunt him and generally disrupt any meeting Sasuke was attending. He was a pain in the arse, but Sasuke had become adept at handling him – and if the man went out of line, Sasuke could still count on either his brother, Nagato or Kakuzu stepping in.

Hidan might like taunting Sasuke, but even he didn't dare to go against Itachi, Nagato or Kakuzu – especially the latter could be quite vicious and unforgiving in the way he handled Hidan.

"Now that we've got the boring business part out of the way," Itachi said lightly, "you mind telling me what's on your mind?"

Sasuke blinked, becoming more alert. "What? Nothing's on my mind," he denied instantly, dropping the pencil on his desk.

"That might work with someone else, but I know you and I can tell there's something bothering you," Itachi retorted; his voice carrying a sharp edge. "You've been distracted since the beginning of our call and Kisame told me you left work earlier than usual."

"You have Kisame acting as your spy?" the younger man asked unimpressed.

"Of course not," his brother replied irritated. "But you cancelled a meeting with a client you share with him and he knows you would never do that without a good reason, so spill."

"Are you mad at me because I didn't attend the meeting?" Sasuke asked, resigned to the upcoming scolding. He should have realised that cancelling that meeting – one he was supposed to have attended with Kisame – wouldn't go unnoticed.

Itachi sighed. "Kisame could handle that meeting on his own, so there's no issue with that," he said dismissively. "I'm not angry at you, Otouto, I just want to know what's bothering you."

"You ever thought I might not want to share that?" Sasuke sniped annoyed.

"You ever thought I'd let you get away with brooding?" the older man shot back. His voice softened when he continued after a pause, "Did something happen?"

Silence fell between the two of them while Sasuke ordered his thoughts. He might as well tell his older brother; there was no point keeping it a secret as he'd most likely find out on his own anyway.

"Konan called me this afternoon," he started slowly, recalling their short conversation which had occurred a few hours after lunch. She had called him an hour before he would have left for the meeting actually. He had been going through his notes for the meeting when her name had flashed across his phone's screen.

"Ah. What did she have to tell you?"

"You know she's handling all the letters Sakura sends me?" Uttering her name – even after five years – still left him with a very foul and bitter taste in his mouth and the familiar anger and hatred – hatred he had never expected to feel for his ex-wife – flared up once more, burning ugly in his stomach.

Her attack on Naruto, coupled with the obvious premeditated intent behind it as she had hidden the knife within her boot, had resulted in her spending twenty years behind bars. Near the end of her sentence she would get psychologically evaluated again to determine just how much of a risk factor she still was.

If the sentencing had been left to Sasuke, he would have her rotting in prison for the rest of her life for what she had done. In his opinion she didn't deserve any shred of mercy.

Not after what she had done.

She actually had had the balls to send him letters once she had been locked up. He hadn't read any she had sent him; they had either got ripped to shreds or set on fire. How she could even think she still had the right to contact him infuriated him. After a couple of months of continuously destroying her letters, he had got fed up with it and had called Konan, asking whether there wasn't a way to stop the letters from being delivered to him.

She had suggested that she would have the letters sent to her, so that she could check the content before destroying them, just in case.

Just in case Sakura was planning to do something against Sasuke's son. Being confined into prison severely limited what she could do, but she also shouldn't have been able to hide a knife on her person in a courtroom, so Konan had decided it was better to be safe than sorry.

Sasuke had agreed with her suggestion; the horror of that day etched into his mind forever. He wouldn't be able to bear it if something happened to his son too.

After his call with Konan, all of Sakura's letters and any other correspondence concerning her were sent to the lawyer instead. The less Sasuke had to do with Sakura or even the memory of her, the better.

"Yes, I know," Itachi murmured darkly. "What made her call you?"

"Apparently Sakura got into a fight with a group of three women a month ago," Sasuke said blankly. The rain was slowing down, he noticed absentmindedly when he chanced a look outside. "I don't know what the fight was about; I didn't ask."

"Are we talking about a physical fight or an argument?" Itachi asked cautiously.

Sasuke blinked. "A physical one. They pushed her over the railing from the third floor. She landed badly." He paused, still reeling a bit from what Konan had told him. "She's paralysed from the waist down; they don't think she'll ever be able to walk again."

He hadn't wanted to believe Konan at first when she had given him the news. He could believe that Sakura had got into a fight with other women – she had never been one to stay passive – but that she had actually got hurt so badly that it left her paralysed? That was harder to imagine.

Yet he couldn't say he felt sorry for her. The time for that had long since passed. He might not really rejoice in her suffering, but he also couldn't find it in him to pity her. She had made her bed when she had decided to attack Naruto – now she had to lie in it and suffer the consequences.

If she thought the news of her injuries would soften him up, she was sorely mistaken. Still, the news of her accident had taken him so off guard that it had become somewhat difficult for him to concentrate on his work. It was why he had left the office earlier than usual, figuring it'd be pointless to remain there while he got almost nothing done.

"Seems like karma is getting to them one by one, huh?" Itachi mused aloud after a short bout of silence had passed between the two brothers.

"Seems like it," Sasuke agreed quietly; his gaze drifting towards the dark sky.

The one who had forged Naruto's signature back then, Yakushi Kabuto, had been found dead in his cell two years ago. Officially his death had been ruled as a suicide, but Konan had quietly informed them rumours were going around in the prison that he had been killed before he could be released. Yakushi's former employer, Orochimaru, was said to be behind the murder, but nothing could officially be linked to him.

Sasuke didn't particularly care one way or another, but with Sakura's accident, it did look like some form of karma was doing its rounds.

Itachi didn't ask what he thought about Sakura's injuries; he knew his brother's feelings regarding the pink haired woman and none of them were positive. Instead he asked, in a lighter tone of voice, "Anything planned for this weekend?" It was casually posed, as if they hadn't just been discussing someone they knew being disabled, but it was what Sasuke needed to shake those dark thoughts away. Neither of them wanted to discuss Sakura any longer than necessary.

The younger man released a soft sigh, running his free hand through his hair. "Yeah, we're going to the graveyard. Yukio made some pictures he wants to show off," he replied before changing the subject, "Have you heard of mother this week?"

A low chuckle travelled through the line. "Yes, yesterday as a matter of fact. She was thinking of going abroad for a week, but she would call the both of us before she makes a decision, just in case we need her babysitting skills," he answered amused.

Sasuke snorted, amusement chasing away the last tendrils of his dark thoughts. Of course mother would be worried that her two sons might be in need of a babysitter during her holiday. That didn't surprise him in the least. She definitely loved doting on her grandchildren and grabbed every chance to babysit them.

"And Fugaku?"

Itachi sighed loudly. "Nothing really new there," he replied. "Apparently he signed over the corporation to the Hyuuga completely last month."

Sasuke let his breath escape slowly, mulling over this particular piece of information. After they had discovered Fugaku had been the one to help Sakura get into contact with a forger, neither Sasuke nor Itachi had been interested in ever talking to their father again. Mother hadn't been happy about her husband's involvement either to say the least, but she hadn't said anything about it until several months later when she had informed her sons that she would be divorcing Fugaku.

The divorce had been kept on the downlow; Sasuke doubted many people outside of the ones closest to the former couple knew about it. For Mikoto, Fugaku willingly offering his assistance to Sakura in order to take Yukio away from Naruto had been the straw that broke the camel's back. She had remained quiet for years, even after he had kicked out their eldest son, carrying the sliver of hope in her that everything would turn out okay in the end, but ultimately he had gone too far.

Whether it was a consequence of the divorce or not, Fugaku had during that time period also taken a step back from his company, leaving the director's post mostly in hands of the board. Sasuke knew that the Hyuuga family had been interested in the corporation for years, but Fugaku had held them off all that time, refusing the take-over.

Until now apparently. Fugaku had officially retired and Uchiha Corporation was now in the hands of the Hyuuga.

Idly Sasuke thought their ancestors would be rolling around in their graves if they knew their precious company was in the hands of their sworn rival, but he couldn't say he cared much for it. He had said that company farewell the day Fugaku had kicked him out.

He and Itachi chatted idly for a little while longer, discussing Yukio's and Aihime's upcoming school trip, before Deidara acquired his husband's assistance with a particular art piece of his and they said their goodbyes.

Lowering his phone, he checked the screen and noted that he would have to charge it overnight, lest he wanted his phone to give out on him tomorrow at work. Opening the top drawer of his desk, he retrieved his charger and stood up, bending down to reach the socket next to the desk. Plugging one end of the charger into the socket and the other one into his phone, the screen lightening up as it started charging, he straightened out again and put his mobile on the desk. He'd come back for it in the morning.

There was a faint knock on the door before it was pushed open and when he turned around, he was greeted with the sight of his son, staring up at him with his deep blue eyes. The five year old boy was dressed in his light blue pyjamas; they were his favourite and evidently he had dressed himself as some buttons of his pyjama top were askew. His feet were bare and he curled his toes; his small hand resting against the door. His black hair was as wild as ever, looking like it had never seen a brush before.

"Story time, papa," Yukio declared, padding closer.

Sasuke chanced a glance at the clock and noticed that it was already edging past eight o'clock. "So it is," he agreed and raised an eyebrow. "Did you brush your teeth?"

"Yes! Look, see!" Instantly Yukio bared his teeth, even standing on his tippy toes so that his papa could get a better look at them.

Sasuke nodded approvingly. "Very good," he said and his son beamed, lowering himself again. "Did you wash your hands too?"

"Yes, I also wash my face!" the boy stated proudly and held out his hands, showing them off by flipping them back and forth, proving that he had washed them.

There were still faint traces on the back of his left hand of the orange felt-tip pen he had used to colour the drawing he had made with his cousin earlier this afternoon, but Sasuke knew from experience that stains like that took a little while to be completely washed away.

"Well, it looks like someone definitely earned two stories tonight," he announced and smiled when Yukio cheered loudly, clapping his hands while jumping up and down. "Which story do you want first?"

"The dragon and the prince!" Yukio instantly declared, grinning.

"The one your Uncle Gaara wrote where the prince rescues the dragon?"

"Yeah, that one!"

"All right, go grab your book and get into bed, I'll be there in a sec," Sasuke promised and after a quick hug around his legs, Yukio ran out of the room, down the corridor to his room.

The book Gaara had gifted Naruto five years ago had proven to be an instant hit with their son. He loved listening to all kinds of stories, being partial to fairy tales, but he absolutely adored the stories his uncle had written. Especially the story about a prince who was sent to slay a dragon, but ended up rescuing him when he found out that the dragon was just misunderstood and very lonely, was one Yukio could listen to again and again without ever growing bored of it.

Not for the first time it made Sasuke wonder whether the story was an allegory, but he figured there was no point in asking. His son loved that story and that was all that mattered. If he wanted to have it read to him every night, then so be it. It wasn't as if reading to his son and seeing the wonder in his eyes – his eyes which were a perfect mixture of his and Naruto's – was just a hardship after all.

After closing the window, he shut the door behind him and made his way to Yukio's bedroom. The door of his room was ajar, spilling soft white light onto the floor and the opposite wall. When he entered, he noticed that the curtain were half drawn and his son was sitting up in bed, Gaara's book lying on his lap, already open at the right chapter.

"Story, papa," Yukio reminded him as if ages had gone by since he had appeared in Sasuke's study.

Smirking amused, Sasuke first walked to the window to fix the curtains. "Yes, yes, you impatient brat," he said, pulling the curtains properly shut. "I just needed to close your curtains a little more."

As soon as he sank down on the bed, dipping the mattress, Yukio pushed the book onto his lap and snuggled deeper underneath his blanket. Curling his hands around the edges of the sheet, he looked at the older man with big, dark blue eyes. "I'm ready for the story, papa," he said eagerly, wiggling underneath the light green blanket. His plushie, the orange fox with nine tails which Naruto had bought so long ago, was resting next to him on his pillow and after a moment, a hand reached up to curl fingers around one of the bushy tails.

Sasuke stared at the sight of his son holding the fox for a moment before he shook his head slightly and cleared his throat, tilting the book slightly towards him so that he could read the pages better. "All right, here we go. Once upon a time, there was a prince who lived in a far away country. This prince was very much loved by his people and …"

The book was gently closed and silently returned to its rightful shelf. The lamp on the nightstand was turned off in exchange for a small nightlight near the door, so that it wouldn't be too dark in the room.

Yukio was fast asleep; the heavy blanket barely stirring with his gentle breathing. Adjusting the blanket, Sasuke bent down and brushed a kiss on his son's forehead, caressing his hair back lightly. Yukio scrunched up his nose slightly, but remained fast asleep, tuckered out after a day of playing with his cousin and listening with rapt attention how the brave prince rescued the dragon from an evil witch.

Reading aloud for so long left his throat quite parched, though, and he decided to drink a glass of water. The clock of the microwave read a quarter to ten and he blinked surprised, not having realised how long he had been reading. After drinking some water, he put the glass in the sink and turned off the light in the kitchen; the humming of the fridge dying out as he checked the living room, flicking on the light there.

Yukio's toys were no longer strewn across the floor, but put back in his toy box. After lowering the lid of the toy box, he closed the blinds and absently placed the quilt back on the couch. The newspaper of today was still on the coffee table and he resolved to throw it out in the morning. The television was shut off and he stood in front of it for a moment, contemplating whether he should watch something or not.

In the end, he decided to leave it off; the exhaustion lingering in his body, making his limbs heavy, difficult to ignore for much longer. There was no point in falling asleep on the couch; his body surely wouldn't thank him for that. He'd call it an early night.

Turning off the light, he left the living room and went to check the front door. There had been a time when he hadn't been too much bothered by the door being left unlocked through the night. This was a fairly quiet neighbourhood and burglaries were unheard of, so if one evening the door hadn't been locked, it hadn't been a big deal.

Now he couldn't rest easily without the door locked. Despite knowing rationally that there was no way Sakura would be able to escape prison, he had lived the past five years with the fear that one day she'd be back to try to take away the rest of his family. It led to him checking every window and door every night just to reassure himself that nobody would be able to enter.

With her being disabled, there was no way she would ever be able to harm his family again, but he still checked the front door just in case. It was a habit he would have a hard time shaking off.

After reassuring himself the door was locked, he turned off the light here and carefully made his way upstairs again, turning on the light there.

Walking to his bedroom, he passed some framed pictures on his way and he halted abruptly when a flash of blond attracted his attention. He turned his head and stared at the picture. It had been taken five years ago, by Deidara if he remembered correctly, and it featured just him and Naruto during Naruto's birthday. They had just started eating cake and hit by a sudden bout of mischief, Sasuke had smeared some of the whipped cream on Naruto's nose. The picture had been taken right when Naruto had reared back with a laugh, his eyes scrunched shut, while Sasuke had had a small smile on his face. It wasn't visible in the picture, but they had had their fingers laced together; their rings resting against each other.

Pure happiness radiated from the picture; despite what had happened before, they had been very happy that day.

Two months later Sakura would snap and attack Naruto.

His nails dug into the vulnerable flesh of his palms as he remembered the utter terror he had experienced that day. Those first few seconds in which he had been frozen, not really comprehending what exactly had happened until Sakura had been dragged away and he had seen the hilt of a knife protruding from Naruto's chest.

The way his heart had stopped when he met blank, blue eyes, saw blood slowly spreading out across Naruto's shirt. The screaming of the other people had been muted as if he had been underwater. Naruto's name had been torn out of his throat as blinding panic had settled in, as his brain had finally comprehended what had happened. He had caught Naruto right before he had sagged down, had pleaded with him to stay awake, not to close his eyes, just focus on him, please, Naruto, you can't close your eyes, you can't go to sleep, I need you to stay awake, need you to keep looking at me …

His hands had been slick with red when the ambulance had finally arrived. Naruto had been completely unresponsive by the time they had raced outside with him on the gurney.

He would never forget that feeling of terror he had experienced that day; it would be forever etched into his mind, no matter how many years would pass by. The hours spent in the hospital, waiting for news which never seemed to come, of praying to whatever deity that was up there to just let Naruto survive, to not let him die, not this soon, not like this, not when their lives were finally about to start …

Wondering just what the fuck he was supposed to tell his son if his daddy didn't survive, how the hell they would both survive without Naruto there, the man who had always been his rock, his light, the one who had made him start really living his life.

He wouldn't wish that kind of fear, that paralysing terror, on anyone. Nobody should experience that horror, that strangling sensation, the way his heart had felt on the verge of being ripped out. The way his heart had hung in the balance, just like Naruto's life …

Averting his gaze from the picture, he took a measured breath and continued his way down the corridor, taking a brief stop in the bathroom to brush his teeth. The wind was picking up outside and he cocked his head, wondering whether there was a storm brewing after all. Well, he'd notice if he felt Yukio crawling in the bed.

There was moonlight spilling liberally in the bedroom when he opened the door. The curtains hadn't been drawn yet and before he closed them he turned on the lamp on his nightstand, so that he wouldn't be in complete darkness when he changed into his pyjamas.

That done, he climbed in his bed with a sigh, rubbing over his eyes. He was surprisingly exhausted; the call with Konan having seemingly sapped him from his energy. At the same time, it felt like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Sakura wouldn't be able to harm them again and that thought eased something in him.

He must have dozed off, because he woke with a start when he felt a weight settling next to him in bed. An arm was slung around his waist; a hand coming to rest on his chest. When he looked down, he was greeted by the soft gleam of the golden ring adorning the ring finger.

His wedding band, signifying a marriage of four years so far.

Turning his head, he met deep blue eyes. The other man smiled and reached up with his hand to tuck his hair back, cupping his cheek casually. "Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you," he murmured.

Dark eyes blinked. "It's okay; I wasn't really asleep. Not yet at least," Sasuke sighed, pushing his cheek into the warm hand cupping it.

"I went to check on Yukio. He didn't even stir," he chuckled lowly. "I think the play date with Aihime-chan tired him out."

"Hm, he drew more pictures that he wants to show off this weekend."

"Mum and dad will love them, I'm sure."

Sasuke smiled absently, studying his grinning face. Naruto quirked an eyebrow, looking amused, as he shifted closer to the dark haired man. In doing so, his shirt slipped down, revealing the beginning of a thin scar.

They had been nearly too late. It had been Naruto's sheer stubbornness and his ability to fight against the odds that had let him survive Sakura's attack. The doctors had been ready to give up on him, because the knife had struck a very bad place, but Naruto hadn't been ready to go yet and had fought back. Against the doctors' expectations, he had survived the operation and had kept steadily improving.

Now the only thing left to remind them of that awful day was the thin, white scar marring his chest. At the same time it was proof of Naruto's strength, evidence that he was unwilling to give up no matter what happened.

"I'm glad I asked Ero-sennin where their graves were," Naruto continued with a wistful smile. "Even though he'll never get to meet them, it feels right to bring Yukio with us when we visit their graves."

A year after he had been attacked, Naruto had decided to visit his parents' graves for the first time. Sasuke didn't know why he had never visited them before and he hadn't asked. That first time Naruto had gone alone, saying he needed to be on his own for that visit and Sasuke had respected that. He had joined the blond on his second visit at Naruto's request and since then he always accompanied his husband whenever he went to visit his parents. This weekend would be the first time Yukio would join them and the little boy had been busy with drawing pictures for his grandparents all week.

"Hm," Sasuke hummed in agreement, before narrowing his eyes slightly. "What are you hiding?" he asked, becoming suspicious with the way blue eyes were shimmering.

"I'm not hiding anything," Naruto protested laughing.

"Yeah, and Deidara doesn't like blowing shit up," Sasuke retorted unimpressed. "Fess up. Did you do something?"

"Well, I suppose you could say I did something," Naruto mused aloud and sat up, twisting around to his nightstand. "As a matter of fact, I've got something for you."

The dark haired man sat up as well, curiosity piquing. "What did you get me?"

"Just a sec," Naruto said, rummaging through one of the drawers. He was grinning widely when he turned around again; something clenched in his fist. "You ready?"

"I have no idea what for, but sure, I'm ready," Sasuke snorted.

His breathing hitched and he stilled when Naruto opened his hand, revealing four familiar – even when it had been years ago since he had last seen one - white sticks. A closer look showed a clear plus sign displayed on the small screen.

"Four tests?" he murmured; his eyes fixated on the thin sticks.

Naruto shrugged bashfully. "Just in case," he replied lightly. "I took them this afternoon, was waiting for the right moment to show them."

"You're pregnant," Sasuke breathed out, wonder colouring his voice as his eyes drifted from the positive pregnancy tests to Naruto's stomach covered by his shirt. For now his stomach was still flat, but soon, in just a couple of months, it would become rounded once more as his belly swelled with their baby.

Their second child.

They would become parents for the second time.

"We're having another baby," he said amazed, his hand reaching out to palm Naruto's stomach. Right underneath his hand their baby was growing.

"Yeah, we are," Naruto murmured, his voice thick; his hand coming down to rest on top of Sasuke's.

When Sasuke looked up, he saw blue eyes shimmering with a wet sheen and a tender smile playing around pale pink lips. He leant over to press their lips together, pouring all the love he felt for this amazing man into their kiss.

Sakura had tried to take him away from him, but she hadn't succeeded. She had lost and they had won. She had tried to destroy his family, but they had come out on top and now their family would grow bigger; a little brother or sister for Yukio would soon be joining them.

"I love you," he whispered when they drew apart slightly.

Naruto smiled and Sasuke felt like he would drown in the love he saw reflected in those deep blue eyes. "I love you too," he murmured and their mouths met again in a soft kiss.

They had endured some hardships along the way, but in the end they had been worth it. They were worth having Naruto with him, in his arms, and having Yukio sleeping peacefully down the hallway. They were worth the little being safely growing inside his husband's stomach.

He had his family and in the end that was all that mattered. Tomorrow was the first day of the rest of their lives.

Together, as a family.

The End

AN2: Did this make up for the suffering I put you through with the previous chapter? LOL I hope you enjoyed this epilogue!

For the last time, please leave your thoughts behind in a review; should you spot any mistakes, please point them out to me.

I hope to see you all back in my future stories :)

Cuddles

Melissa

P.S. For more information about my upcoming and posted stories, please visit my profile.