The Lost Uzumaki (Kakashi x OC)

Chapter Fourteen- Broken Trust

"I can't wait to spend the first night in our new place all by myself." Naruto shimmied his arms beside his sister. Mei shot her brother's back a glare as she pouted.
"Our old place doesn't have a balcony like this!" He called from the kitchen. Naruto walked through the living room space and opened the balcony just enough to peak his head out. Their new space was at the highest floor, facing the North of the village.
Meilani smiled beside her tall green dresser next to her room's door. She gathered the last of her supplies and placed them in her bag upon her bed. She gave her new room one last glance, smiling contently at the Queen-size bed centered against the wall. It's lilac sheets and white comforter stood out against the plain beige walls that still needed a little more decorum.
"You plan to sleep on the balcony?" She joked, entering the living space. She nearly dropped her bag when she saw Naruto kneeling in the corner going through a few of the old photos she had hidden in the previous kitchen floors. "Naruto,"

"What the hell are all these?" He whispered, flipping through them. The one of her farm home, the one with her dad's old team, the one with her and Minato in front of the Academy.
A picture of pregnant Kushina's side-profile knitting a green scarf. The very scarf Mei spent weeks searching for but with no avail.
"Why haven't I ever seen these before?" He turned to face Mei, heartbreak in his eyes. "Y.... You've been hiding these from me?"
Her mouth open and closed, but only panic rose from her throat.

"I was ordered not to." She stammered. "The Hokage-"
"Why the hell did Granny Tsunade order you to hide these from me?!" Naruto's shout cracked with pain in the end. "Why would you listen?! This is..."
"It wasn't Tsunade." Her nose tickled watching tears stream from his angered state. "Sarutobi forbid me from telling you anything, no matter how much I begged." She stepped forward, kneeling in front of him. "I had no choice, fish cake. I swear, or else I'd have-"
"Get back."
She was taken aback by his words until she saw the orange chakra oozing out of his body. She slowly retreated, her hands extended in front of her.
"I love you. If I had a choice, none of this would be the way it was. I'd have the whole place surrounded by pictures-"
"Just shut up!" She flinched back when the chakra formed an ear. With one hand she searched blindly through her bag for a certain seal. She stopped when the chakra disappeared and Naruto collapsed into a ball. Silent tears streamed her cheeks. As close as she was, she knew he would refuse her comfort.

"Why?" He asked between sobs. "Why do you know so much and I don't?"
"There.... There are things that you will learn soon, but you can't know yet. It's too dangerous for you. Sarutobi.... I don't know his reasonings, but I couldn't question him about it."
"You should have."
"I tried Naruto, but I can't disobey a Hokage's orders." She gently placed a hand on his shoulder. Her own voice cracked despite the control of her tears. "I'm sorry, Naruto, I'm so sorry. It... It wasn't going to be for forever, just until you were old enough."
He said nothing when he stood and turned away from her.

"I could have used those pictures growing up, especially while you were away." His blue eyes seemed even icier when he looked at her. "But no, you had to be selfish."
"Selfish?" She stood and advanced him. "Everything I do is for you, kid. Everything! The only reason you stayed here when I left is because Sarutobi forbid it! I would let you follow me to the moon and stars if that's what you wanted. Just as I would follow you. You know why? Because you're my brother. Because you're the last thing mom and dad gave this cursed fucking planet, and I swore to them that you'd be loved and protected as long as I breathe. If that meant that I had to obey Sarutobi's orders or never see you again, then you bet your ass that I'd listen to him."

She grabbed his shoulders, forcing him to look at her. "I had every intention of giving you the pictures one day. Just on the right day. I'd have never been able to do so if I were banned from the village."
As he sniffed, she wiped his fresh tears away.
"I don't know what to believe." He rubbed his eyes. "Why would old man threaten to kick you out of the Leaf? It just doesn't make sense."
"I don't know, kid. He had methods of protecting people that didn't make sense to anyone except him."
"I.... I don't know if I can trust you anymore, Mei."
Her chest felt as if shrapnel burst through her body. "What? Naruto, please."
"I'm going to ask Sakura to watch the place for you. I don't think I can be here.... I need space."
Mei's shoulders lowered, and her chin tilted down. "Okay.... If that's what you need. The lease on the other place won't be up for another few weeks. We can talk when I come back."
He walked to the door. "I think I'm gonna need longer than that."
He hesitated to say more, but decided against it and slammed the door shut. She waited 5 minutes for him to come back. And then another 10. Soon, her apartment was filled with anguished sobs muffled against a maroon throw pillow. Meilani's body shook violently with each cry while she kneeled on the floor in child's pose. Her mind continued to replay Naruto's broken-hearted face over and over.
If there were another time where she cried this way, it was lost to her.