Hallelujah, this is the final chapter of this masterpiece of mine (and yup, not ashamed to say that), and thank you all for the lovely support. :') And now that this is over, I will go back to "The Sun-Kissed Bride" to give the rest of it my full attention.

Anyone wants to follow me in the future, you all know what buttons on the profile to hit. :D

REVIEW WHEN YOU FINISH. :3

Chapter Ten

Life is But a Dream

Sasuke had believed in her, but he was a goddamned fool! Why did he not listen to Itachi the first time?!

If I had, this could have saved so much trouble.

But then again, it wasn't like anyone else in their country could have predicted this as much as they would predict a man going after his woman whom he saw as his property, wouldn't accept she could leave him. It made him wonder how poor Lee was going to handle this, and why the hell he let himself be with such a sociopathic woman, now that he was going to call Sakura Haruno just that.

"And not only everything we found, but this was also it," Itachi told them both, reaching into his coat pocket to pull out a plastic bag, and what was inside caused Sasuke to audibly gasp sharply, his throat tight with the pain of the past several months which had been an eternity in hell for him and his family. We never thought we'd see it again, and it had been hidden near our midst all this time!

"Mom's ring...Naru's," was all Sasuke could utter as he allowed himself to be bewitched by the tear-shaped blue diamond cradled by leaves of white ones. To see his wife shed the tears delicately down her cheeks made his throat crack all the way down to his heart.

"That sick bitch had it all the time. Why would she take it?" she demanded, teeth loudly rattling as her temper threatened to unleash itself.

"All we know is that she's hysterical and keeps apologizing, swearing it was all a prank and nothing else," Ibiki Morino said, announcing himself from behind them. "Never thought she'd be caught. She really thought she'd get away with it when she didn't bother using any technology that could be more easily traced than paper. That's what happens when you let a fingerprint or two slip."

And what happens when you become desperate.

After this, he was going to be wary about trusting to have another woman friend who wasn't Hinata. What that thieving slut - yeah, that WAS what she was, so who the hell was she to call his loving wife that?! - did was cruel and wrong in a thousand ways to hell's bottom. He wanted so much to unleash his wrath on her personally, say he should have issued the restraining order when he had his chances. She was going to pay now for ruining their lives the way she did, but they were also going to work together and move forward. They had to be all right after this, right?

His heart hardened at once when he looked at the mess his ex-girlfriend and stalker was: her red-rimmed eyes and puffy cheeks, her unkempt rosy hair, and her murky eyes filled with so much pain that it made him ill. He was never going to fall for that.

~o~

Before the police could even consider taking her to trial, an expert psychologist was brought in, Naru learned.

"Psychoanalyzing - she deserves to be locked up permanently," Fugaku growled, slamming his empty teacup atop the table. "For threatening my family - especially my grandchild." He nodded in her direction, in which she cradled her bulge with both hands, one atop and the other below.

She's locked up now, awaiting trial, and that also means Sasuke and I will have to testify. In the states, it's a worry; they say when you put the victim on the witness stand, you're placing them in the line of fire which is the stalker's eyes all over again. I'll have to be in front of that woman who tricked us, planned to get Sasuke back all this time, and chose to do it just when we got married.

How long had it been? Since we got out of college, or before which was that one Christmas? Or did she really snap when she learned we were engaged?

So many questions were running through her head, amplified when Itachi told them all what he knew so far. "It appears to be a mental disorder, but until we hear from the psychologist, it's just surface guessing. When we brought her to the station, she broken into her fits and insisted she didn't mean to hurt anyone, that it was all a joke and that her life was hard on an emotional level - especially when there were too many demands. I suppose I understand since this can happen to anyone." Itachi scowled then. "But it does NOT excuse anything."

"Yeah, what happened with her father, I bet," Sasuke grumbled. "I'll never stop holding that against her, since she let it run her life when we were still together."

Naru stopped thinking about it since a long time ago, but she never forgot. Her mom used to talk about Kizashi Haruno, a colleague who was on her level of genius and originality; while Kushina was working at home so she could be close to her daughter, Haruno was often away so that his wife raised their only daughter most of the time. They got along well - or so Kushina had thought.

Her mother and Sakura's father were both top candidates for constructing a brand new therapy center in Tokyo, and it ultimately went to Kushina who would have to go on a rare visit in person - away from her family, even for two weeks - which made Kizashi clearly snap out of the blue. He felt he deserved it more, and it earned him being removed from the office for a while until he cooled down...but it just led to him building up to the point where he not only used a bomb he acquired through a friend's help, but he was not in the right mind that he thought he could get away with this, since the purchase and timelines were traced back to him. Kushina Uzumaki and other innocent civilians died for nothing.

Now, his daughter was no better than he was, when she took to stalking her ex-boyfriend and his new wife as well as endangering their unborn child.

I'm no psychiatrist, but it seems that her father's arrest and life imprisonment traumatized her to the point that counseling didn't help - if Mom tried to get it for her - but how would it explain her crazy behavior towards me and Sasuke?

A couple days later, she found out: a multi-personality disorder which included inner Sakura - called the "dark half" - who had been kept low on medication until the breakup with Sasuke Uchiha, the events leaving her too morose, hence her so-called darker side coming out of the woodwork, so to speak. It made her wonder if Lee knew about this, or if Sakura did a damned good job hiding it well from even her own boyfriend of many years. It also saddened Naru to know that even a healthy, loving - so she thought - relationship with Rock Lee didn't stabilize her as well as they'd thought.

And this brought forth another issue: no doubt Lee was devastated and likely to have issues trusting the woman he loved again, despite still caring for her. He was just so kindhearted and had been so lucky when nice guys like him generally would be broken over by a pretty girl...this being a possible example.

That pink-haired bitch destroyed people's lives in a fate worse than death.

A part of Naru was wondering if justice would really be served, or if Sakura would just pick up with her ways and hunt them again out of vengeance for retaliating. She had a plan now: she was not going to be scared anymore; she intended to protect her family and herself now, after relying on everyone else.

In the meantime, on the positive side: her late mother-in-law's ring - no, her ring which had been stolen - was found in Sakura's possession, but it was going to be held in evidence, and now she was worried she'd never get it back, since her heart had been torn apart all over again after seeing it in Itachi's grasp. That ring had history; it had been won by Fugaku for his wife, and then their youngest son gave it to her, his future wife, on their first Christmas together before they really got serious.

Distraction was needed. The baby's room had been prepared in the house, but it would have to be in the same area as its parents because of safety reasons. One more month to go.

She was excited for this next chapter in their lives, but hardly had much time to truly enjoy the experience because of the living nightmare which would hopefully finally be over soon.

And flashforward to the next month which passed.

"Oh, there she is! There she is!" Jiraiya chortled as he took the adorable, cooing thing into his arms, offered by none other than the mother who could never get enough of this.

Thirteen hours in labor, and this little princess had been worth the trouble, as well as without fear of something happening. With Gaara and Hinata going through the trouble of being there, along with her father, and even a heartbroken Lee who was still coping with what the woman he loved had done. No one blamed him for anything.

Sasuke kissed her forehead in the aftermath and whispered that she did great, his eyes misted when he looked at their daughter who had been screaming and wriggling in the nurse's arms, cord severed and about to be taken to be cleaned up and examined for abnormalities. Mana Uchiha - full of spirit already.

Mana might as well look more like her mother in the face, as well as the eyes, while she had her daddy's gorgeous raven hair. Now, at two months old - and two months short of Hinata and Gaara getting married in the middle of summer to approach - she was a giggly and laughing little thing, happy and innocent, needed all the protection there was...

...except, like everything in life, it was just a dream that would eventually be one day replaced with a nightmare.

She's gonna get what's coming to her, but these things...they never end. It happens to anyone, changes someone's way of life out of fear. Always looking over their shoulder. What if this happens to Mana when she grows up? Over in America and Canada, stalking is illegal, but at least they are dealt with better compared to here. Just words; women fight for themselves, since most men don't care about who they are as people. The police can't help them as they can do it right with other crimes.

Naru was just considering taking her brother-in-law's advice to heart after this mess was over with. Itachi was going to leave the police force, just as he planned, and he offered her a spot on an activist program which was standing up for women being stalked, as well as included an adjoined therapy program for stalkers in general. That did include spurned husbands and boyfriends who wouldn't take no for an answer, even went far as to consider taking the women's lives - and it all had to begin with one young woman dying, and an investigative reporter finding the truth himself before bringing it to the light.

She was more than happy to be a part of something that made a difference, even if she'd spend the rest of her life in something futile. She accepted that things would one day be better, and that mistakes could be fixed.

If not her being the change, her daughter could grow up and pick up where she left off.

Seeing the family she had - her husband and child, father and brother-in-law, father and grandfather - made her happy to be alive.

Naru turned away from her family's scene to look at herself in a tall mirror on the wall, taking in her slim figure in her favorite knitted orange dress, though her belly was still full and rolling with fat that she was still working to get rid of. Hardly did she ever go to the gym, but it felt enlightening along with the sugar-free drinks and foods to help.

Sometimes, she would forget that there had been no trouble at all.

Sasuke came up to her then, Mana in his arms, and she turned to embrace them both as well as kiss the man she loved, who had been with her through this dark dream which was going to be replaced with a better one.

~o~

Sasuke could not believe what kind of defense that his ex-girlfriend and stalker had gotten. The day finally came, and it was the first of many to follow until a verdict was secured.

"Yes, it is true that stalkers in this country - and any other in the world - are often jilted men and women who feel wronged by their partners, or ones they see as potential, and go to extreme lengths to get them. But let me tell you that my client is a well-functioning young doctor at the general hospital, puts her heart and soul into everything, and she's just had a hard life which includes both a father who brought his mistakes down onto his family, and now a boy who abandoned her because she was just being a girl with big dreams and ideas. She clung to old, easier memories that she coped with better than what was in front of her, and what she did was common for a girl in love with her ex, even going as far as to misunderstand something from a distance as unfaithfulness. She clearly thought that was what it was with Mrs. Uchiha and Mr. Sabaku."

Sasuke resisted scoffing, clenching his fists. Why did he have to sit and listen to this woman's shit? He could tell Minato was impatient, as the man was fidgeting with his pen and contemplating a fantasy of whatever he wanted to do with it. Naru sat beside him; still, no one knew they were father and daughter, so imagine that witch using that information as favoritism to her and her client's advantage.

"Perhaps Mrs. Uchiha should have done something like leave her husband for her own sake. She was just lucky to be alive, if what anyone believes to be true that my client had the intentions of, quote, 'cutting her up into pieces and feeding them to the dogs'. As you have discovered, it was just a fantasy to help her deal with the stress -"

The judge interrupted her impatiently. "If you are finished, Ms. Utatane, I would love to hear the defense from Mr. Namikaze, in terms of the victim herself." Minato stood up then from behind his table, though Naru refused to look at anything or anyone but ahead.

"Your Honor, true as it is that Miss Haruno is a respected medic from the hospital, it's also solidly confirmed that she made terroristic threats against Mrs. Uchiha. This is clearly jealousy with a broken heart. This is common as much as the lack of police involvement, the same as it is for men who relentlessly pursue women they won't accept in letting go. Sasuke Uchiha will be glad to testify on his wife's behalf after we hear her side; they both have felt extremely unsafe in the last year of their lives. Anyone can sarcastically tell him that it would have just been someone who still loved him and was trying to win him back. The countless letters sent have made everyone's hackles rise and remain that way until the suspect was apprehended -" He was interrupted by Mieko Utatane, daughter of notorious prosecutor Koharu Utatane. The judge clearly favored her mother over this new generation, somehow.

"Only after one letter has been smudged with my client's prints, but you cannot link that to the past 'threats', Minato. She was dismissed as an annoyance and nothing more."

"An annoyance," Minato said through his teeth, "who threatened to have Naru Uchiha miscarry, to expose her as a false adulteress just so that Sasuke Uchiha would be available to her. That's intruding and violating into two lives. Had they'd seen her coming, Sasuke could have defended them both together, but Haruno covered her tracks so well. According to our psychologists, she possesses criminal intelligence to do these things. And if her father could kill Kushina Uzumaki, Naru's mother -" It was difficult for him to say her name in these strenuous circumstances, much less use her. "- then there is no doubt Sakura could have."

The judge nodded, grumbling something under his breath. "No doubt there is much sense, yes. A whole family has lived in fear, as do thousands in this country every day. And despite her diagnosis of schizophrenia, your client is suitable for trial, Ms. Utatane."

The woman with her tight-ass brunette hair bun, pressed navy suit and stern but elegant features, scowled subtly and curtly nodded. Beside her, Sakura appeared to still be crying after all of that. Aware of the people in the courtroom staring at her, glaring even. Her rosy hair was extremely unkempt and in a rushed ponytail; who knew how long it'd been since she had proper hygiene. For just a moment, I pity her.

Before Naru could be called up, the explanation from Judge Mitokado went on: female stalkers were generally single, educated and in their mid-thirties, but Sakura was a decade less than that. Given her diagnosis history, it was a miracle she still functioned in society. And if they threatened their victim who didn't answer to their delusion, violence was likely even if they hysterically insisted no when they were caught by authorities. They were always motivated by anger, abandonment, jealousy - all obsessive.

"I had never done anything to anyone in my life," she said heatedly, not afraid and looking right at Sakura, which made him proud. Even Fugaku and Itachi watched with him in the front row. "So, I was doing everything I was supposed to do, but then this person comes out of the blue to threaten to kill me if I didn't leave the man I loved. They even went far as to wish our baby died somehow. And called me a cheater when Gaara Sabaku was just my best friend since we were kids. I never once loved him like that." She glared right at Sakura who only covered her eyes like the coward she was. "You," Naru said directly, "changed my whole way of life, violated my safety. You started it at my wedding day where I deserved to be happy, then picked up after my grandmother's funeral and even now...and you took away a valuable piece that my husband gave me. That and everything you did makes you a criminal!"

Minato then held up the ring which was still in its plastic bag as evidence. "Is this the ring?"

She nodded. "It was Sasuke's mother's. My father-in-law won it at an auction for her. Sasuke gave it to me on our first Christmas before we got serious."

And just to be expected, she received no sympathy from Utatane who viciously called her out for being stupid, and then she was objected by Minato who was sustained by Mitokado, who in turn warned the prosecutor about making personal comments. "Then answer this, Mrs. Uchiha: if your life was so perfect, how could you let this happen to you?"

It took all of Sasuke's self-control to not jump out and violate protocol. He threatened to bite his lip and draw blood at the boiling in his body. That bitch was going to be crucified if he had anything to say about it. "My life is never perfect," Naru spat. "I just chose to make it joyous, as we all should. That's what my mother taught me, even when things got bad."

"Until she was killed along with others, by my client's father," Utatane said snidely. "You knew she was related to Kizashi Haruno, did you not?"

"I did and forgot until now."

"Oh, did you now? Then I can safely say that this isn't a mere false accusation because of the sins of the parents being brought down on the daughters."

Naru was flabbergasted before she recollected herself, dismayed and furious that the woman was twisting this on her. "Hey, that woman stalked and harassed me and my family! She made me scared for my own life and my daughter's; I'm not gonna let her get away with that!"

Utatane leaned in over the witness stand, keeping a foot's length away as she toyed with her. "She's not getting away with anything, because she's just the victim of your own vicious lies." And she was saying that when she knew there was a strong case against Sakura, and was fighting a losing battle. And hell, there are all those letters and the fingerprints on Mom's ring which are now nothing but Sakura's. That's just enough to condemn her.

"No more questions, Your Honor." And by this time, Naru had broken down and started crying, then accepted the tissues from Judge Mitokado before getting off the stand to go and take her seat. She ended up being with Hinata who snarled and stuck her tongue at the back of Mieko Utatane who didn't so much as sense it. However, a few people who cared to notice the action sniggered before sobering up, agreeing the woman deserved it.

And here goes nothing.

Sasuke found himself on the witness stand, getting gentle but firm understanding from Minato as well as aggressive near-attacks from Utatane who was relentless in getting HIM to feel guilty about leaving her client when they were young, denying her when she tried to reconnect with him and snapped when he married his new girl. "Naru, my wife whom I love and is the mother of my child," he growled back at the insufferable woman, "was a marked target because of the threats. My brother was right about Sakura from the start, and I wish I had listened. Just as I should have taken him seriously when he suspected she was the one. I really thought she'd moved on especially when she was with Rock Lee - and I wish I had shunned her on graduation day when I had the opportunity."

But even that never would have stopped her anyway. Just as you can never get rid of persistence fast. Just as the police never took us seriously until the damned Christmas vacation.

"So, you're saying my wife and I brought it on ourselves," he snapped at the woman, not acknowledging the silent appraisal from Minato. "We didn't. We were tricked. You can say what you want, but you're wrong."

It appeared the jury was agreeing with him without openly saying it. He just hoped they wouldn't be swayed by that horrible woman in front of him.

~o~

Her nerves were on fire as she waited to be called onto the stage before the audience. She was so exhausted that she wished she could just go back home with her family, but she came too far to give up now.

All those women knew of her story and were here for her to lift their spirits and add to the cause. And after Itachi was done with his speech, he called for her, making her heart jump against her ribcage.

Standing before them all - and seeing her family and friends there - Naru mustered her courage and walked up the stairs to the podium where the microphone was. In her work uniform, which was the sapphire velvet blouse and rose-embroidered pants, she presented herself with pride and dignity without the real need to impress anyone, just to empower herself. The event was recorded for the media, and if Sakura got the time to watch, just let the bitch cry pathetic tears now.

It was enlightening to see Counselor Utatane's face when her client had no choice but to plead guilty to the counts of stalking and criminal threats. And that also meant Mikoto's ring was given back to her, right after everything was cleared. It made Naru cry more tears of joy; add that postpartum hormones were still to blame.

Her brother-in-law who was going to leave the police force officially by the end of summer smiled and nodded his support and acknowledgement, believing in her. All the more reason for her to be here, just as it was for her to look at Sasuke with Mana asleep in his arms.

"I didn't think I could ever be happy again, as I am sure all of you have felt," Naru said hesitantly, earning a load of nods and murmurs which eventually silenced for her to continue. "I was stupid to think, at first, that the police would be on our side just because I was part of Itachi's family, if not by blood. It showed they were like a lot of the authorities in this country. That woman who couldn't let my husband go ruined both of our lives, even thought she could get to us through our friends and family. It shows that female stalkers are just as serious as the male ones the majority of you endured. It's something we are going to start taking seriously together. I'm here now to keep speaking and keep fighting with all of you.

"It's the idea that Japan is dominated by the male population; they refuse to let go of the fact that you leave them - and that fact is true with the case of Sakura Haruno, Sasuke and myself. She pretended to move on while trying to get my husband back, and I still can't believe we fell for it. It shows you have to really be careful with who you trust. Even someone like me, who never hurt anyone, is easily targeted by such people." Naru paused to reach into her pocket and pull out a tissue; this caused several other women in the crowds to do the same as she clearly got to them. "Thankfully, we managed to get a restraining order against her in addition to the mandatory counseling."

Not only me and Sasuke, but she isn't to go anywhere near Gaara and Dad - whom she now knows, after we won - Hinata, Grandpa, Fugaku and Itachi. Absolutely no one. And she has no one except her mother whom she doesn't get along with, what few friends who didn't abandon her...and poor Lee.

According to him, last Christmas season, Sakura had been with him the entire time, which explained to all of them that the distraction for her which was her boyfriend made her not target the entire Uchiha family enough to track them to Hokkaido - but that didn't mean she didn't find time for those letters.

She was just one of the twenty-something percent of the stalker population that didn't see what she did was wrong, only she insisted she was apologetic for this, in addition to threatening the life of an unborn child, which was a complete violation of the Hippocratic Oath. It was a shame she was going to have to keep her job after everything she did, but the condition was that she leave Konoha and never come back, which also meant that Rock Lee had to choose between breaking up with her or going away with her if he still loved her.

He chose the latter, clearly deluded by "wherever you go, I go". He was just gonna learn the hard way what a really crazy person she was if Sakura didn't change her ways.

"I get that stalking can be difficult to prove in the early stages," Naru forced out, "but you lose trust when your life is in danger. Especially when you hear about other cases and wonder if THAT could be you. But I survived and stand in front of you today. The woman who tried to destroy my life is gone, and I hope it stays that way. But if she ever comes near us again, we're gonna work together and make sure she's locked up for good. I don't wish on her what she threatened me, except it's often come to that in thousands of cases."

That's what she became: a survivor. Just like a lot of these women while others were still suffering like she had. She found a new purpose in life besides what she was still doing for herself, and that was helping them while patiently preparing in case her old tormentor ever intruded again. I hope to God she never comes back.

"Maybe the police will start getting their act together in the near future, but until then, we are in this together. If you can't protect yourself alone, you have people you love. Don't ever be afraid to ask for help."

And when she was done speaking, Naru thanked everyone and left the stage to be embraced by her loved ones who had always been there for her: her grandfather who raised her since the death of her mother. Her father who helped her win this case and was now going to be in her life from now on. Her roommate and childhood friend who were getting married in a couple days now.

And finally, her husband and their little girl who cooed and reached out for her. She bent down and kissed the top of Mana's soft dark head before accepting Sasuke's warm lips which washed away all the worries she had.

And finally, there was a light that shone bright at the end of the tunnel: Lee came back to Konoha, but he was devastated because of the wake-up call. Sakura tried so hard to rehabilitate, but she took her own life. Cut her wrists and throat in the tub, after leaving a note saying that she was sorry for breaking Lee's heart and dragging him down the way she did. She really did love him, but she should have done something to stay away from Konoha because of a former love who rekindled her obsessions. She only wanted her needs met, but it was all taken from her.

She'd lost the will to live.

It was a sad end, in a way, in that it HAD to be this way. She'd been getting the help she needed, but she couldn't do it anymore. And Naru called her a coward for giving up after having everything - except the one person. It made Lee feel like he was worth nothing, but then Gaara had to step in. He had his secretary, Matsuri, step up to help Lee heal, just be there for him and give him what Sakura couldn't. Someone to genuinely care about him.

The nightmare was over. A new dream was beginning for all of them, even if these things never truly went away.

"5 Things You Must Do If You Have A Female Stalker" is the article I used on female stalkers in general, paraphrasing this and that. Some of it also came from the Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones case which set the tale's foundation. That and this video on YouTube: "Japan's Stalking Crisis | 101 East".

Utatane (whom I made into the daughter of Koharu who was on the council in ninja-canon) attacking Naru the way she did was inspired by the court moment near the end of the Law and Order: SVU episode in the eleventh season, "Savior", dialogue and all.

Mana - Japanese name meaning "full of spirit". Just what can't be stamped out in midst of everything that has happened. :D Although, stalking victims in general feel like a part of them has been murdered, especially in their emotional lives - if they're fortunate their physical lives weren't taken. According to stalking victim/activist Lenora Claire, "no amount of therapy EVER restores you back to who you were".

God, I am so proud of this tale. Took longer than expected, but that's what you need to do most of the time if things don't naturally flow faster than intended. Great story means precision, I always say. :3