𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐄 | sasuke uchiha

10

"Um... would you like to go for a walk tonight? After dinner?"

After having [Name] and Sasuke spar together on the training grounds until the sun began to set, Madara made his way back to Akinobu's home and left it to Sasuke to accompany [Name] back to her house. On the way there, Sasuke unsuspectingly made his request, catching the Kouhage by surprise.

"Sure," came [Name]'s soft reply. "I wouldn't mind."

Sasuke let out an internal sigh of relief, having doubted that [Name] would actually agree to meeting him. He found that the more time he spent with [Name], the easier it became to relax around her. And although he hated to admit it, Madara had been right.

If you don't want to be her friend, at least be friendly. Things will be more bearable.

"Well... here we are. I'll wait for you out here tonight, okay?"

With a small smile, [Name] bowed at Sasuke as they reached the front gate in front of her household.

"That sounds good."

As [Name] turned and opened the gate, she couldn't help but feel complete sorrow.

Unseen to Sasuke, tears began to fall from the Kouhage's eyes, and she quickly closed the gate behind herself as she entered the property. Choosing to avoid heading into the house while she was in the middle of her waterworks, [Name] instead headed to the pond as she tried to recollect her composure. However, she couldn't help it. The more she thought about her inevitable marriage with Sasuke, the more her heart ached at the thought of being so suddenly torn away from Naruto. She hadn't told him of the Uchiha's preposition yet, but there was no doubt that her uncle had alerted the Uzumaki of the decision to have [Name] married off to the Uchiha instead.

It pained her that Naruto was getting married to that woman from the Hyūga, but now that she was getting married off to a man from the Uchiha, it seemed to be the final nail in the coffin for [Name] and Naruto's romance. In fact, [Name] envied the Hyūga woman, because she knew that Naruto would treat her well. And although Sasuke had seemed nice enough, it was difficult to come to terms with showing him any romantic affection, considering her heart truly belonged with Naruto. She had a feeling that Sasuke was as disinterested in this marriage as she was, but they had both been trying to be as amicable as possible in order to ensure that things would be easier for the both of them.

Under the cover of darkness, [Name] knelt by the pond, clutching her knees as she attempted to soothe herself. And the more she tried to suppress her feelings, the harder it became. 

So, in the end, she just burst out into tears.

Her pain was inconsolable; not only was she leaving behind her family, friends, and everything she had ever loved, she quite possibly would have to leave Naruto in the past as well. 

She was unsure how much time passed as she sat in the dark, crying out her soul, but when Mai's hand placed itself on her shoulder, [Name] wasn't surprised.

"[Name]-chan?"

The servant girl sat beside [Name], frowning at her with concern. As she did so, she brushed [Name]'s unkempt hair out of her eyes, reaching out so that she could pull it back into a bun. Mai knew much more than [Name] had let on to the Uchiha- she was, in much simpler terms, [Name]'s best friend, and the closest thing she had to a sibling. And as such, Mai didn't even need to ask her why she was crying.

"[Name]-chan... would you like to send a letter to Naruto?"

[Name] shook her head fervently, unable to communicate with the Uzumaki after he had been so sure of their future together. They had been so close- but then the Uchiha had to come along, and ruin their almost perfect plan.