SasuSaku OneShots

🌸Legends Part 2🌸

[Naruto AU, angst, bittersweet]

Sarada sat at the table in the kitchen, waiting for her Mom and Papa to get home. She'd went to visit Boruto's house and talked to his mom.

"Sakura..." Hinata Uzumaki pursed her lips, "did... Sasuke tell you?"

"He didn't tell me anything, which is why I came to you." Sarada replied, "do you know anything about her? I asked Lord Seventh and Papa. They responded differently, but neither of them told me anything."

"I'm sorry, Sarada, but I can't tell you anything. It's not really my place to do that."

"Why would she need someone's permission to tell me anything about this woman? It's a simple question, isn't it? I just want to know who she is..." Sarada groaned as she rested her head on the table. At the sound of the opening doors, she quickly stood up, "Mom?"

"Hey, Sarada." Karin came through the doorway into the kitchen, dropping all the groceries she'd gotten, "you're home early."

"Yeah, uh, Lord Seventh let me go." Sarada pulled out the photo and set it on the table in front of her.

"Hm?" Karin glanced at it, then gasped, staring in horror at the picture, "where did you get that?!"

"From Lord Seventh." Sarada crossed her arms, "what's so bad about it? It's not like it's been banned from the village, has it?"

"No, not... Necessarily..." Karin muttered, "it's been banned in this household, I can tell you that."

"Huh? By who?"

"By your Papa."

"Why?"

"Let me tell you a secret." Karin glanced around, "Sasuke has this picture in his closet. He supposedly doesn't want me or really any of us mentioning the girl in the picture, but... I can't tell you everything."

"But why?!"

"It's for your own good. Please trust me, Sarada."

"I mean..." Sarada stared at the picture, "I trust you, but I don't see why not knowing about this is for my own good..."

Karin sighed, "we're trying to protect your happiness."

At the sound of the door opening, Sarada grabbed the picture and slid it into her pocket.

"I'm home," Sasuke called.

"Welcome home, Sasuke." Karin smiled as he walked right past her and gave Sarada a pat on the head, "how was training?"

"Eh. He seems to be getting better little by little." Sasuke shrugged without stopping to let Karin take his cloak, "I had to go have a word with that loudmouth Naruto..."

"Yeah..." Karin nodded as she and Sarada watched him head up the stairs.

"What was that?"

"Hm?" Karin looked back at Sarada, "what was what?"

"That!" Sarada pointed at the stairs, where Sasuke had just left, "he didn't even pay you any attention. No kiss, not even a hug! What kind of parents do that?"

"Ah..." Karin blushed, "I-I don't need any of that, honestly. It's okay, Sarada, honest."

"Hm..." Sarada peered her eyes at the stairs as if Sasuke were still there, "why doesn't Papa ever just tell me things? Like a normal papa..."

"He wants to, he really does. But it's really for your own good." Karin sighed, "trust us. We know what we're doing."

___________________________

Sasuke dropped his katana and cloak to the side of his bed and faced the window. He gazed outside for a moment before sitting on a chair nearby and reaching into his back pocket. He pulled out a picture, and the picture was of him with the same pink-haired girl about thirteen years ago. He smiled sadly and set it on his bedside table.

"Why would you give her that?!"

"She asked, what was I supposed to tell her?" Naruto flailed his arms, "wouldn't me not saying anything only make me look even more suspicious than I already do? I warned you, Sasuke, from the very beginning."

"I know, but..." Sasuke rubbed his forehead, "I don't think Sarada would be okay if she ever found out... What would she do?"

"Who?"

"You know who."

Naruto sighed, "I don't know. She's strong, you know."

"Yeah, which is why going into this plan, I knew everything would be okay."

"But Sarada is smarter than we thought." Naruto crossed his arms, "she's been doing her research but hasn't found anything. Apparently, she went to go see Hinata, too. Good thing she didn't say anything."

What would happen if Sarada found out? Sasuke brought his hand up to his eyes. Would she... Awaken her mangekyo? It almost scares me to think that she could turn out like me...

Sasuke turned at the knock on his door, "come in."

"Sasuke?" Karin peeked her head in, "we need to talk."

"What did she ask you?"

Karin pursed her lips as she slowly shut the door behind her, "yeah, about that..."

______________________

"I talked to the hospital. It's a relief her birth records aren't there."

Sarada froze at the sound of Karin's voice in Sasuke's room. She pressed her ear against the wood and listened.

"She's gotten so deep into this. She just really wants to be like her..." Sasuke muttered.

Karin laughed, "I wonder why."

"But she can't know." Sasuke replied quickly, "you've been a good mother figure for her, Karin."

"But I'm sure she could've done better... I mean, she's her..."

"I know. But it's coming close. Sarada would be heartbroken if she had to witness that."

"I suppose..." Karin sighed before there was a slight silence, "have you seen her?"

"Every night."

"She's doing worse, you said?"

"You can't tell, but I know she's in pain."

That was all she had to know. Sarada got up from the floor and ran to her room, slamming the door behind her. There really was another girl.

Every night Papa's gone... How could Mom know this and be okay with it?! Sarada fell against the door and took her glasses off, wiping her eyes. What are they hiding from me?!

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