𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐄 | sasuke uchiha

87

"Please allow us to leave the village."

As Naruto bowed before his great uncle with both his children flanking his sides, Ashina raised an eyebrow at his adopted son. On Naruto's left, Himawari coughed and wiped her nose, eyes glazed over as she stared at her father. On his right, Boruto sat with his arms crossed impatiently, just wanting to return home already. He was already suspicious of the woman who had turned up today, and suddenly wanting to speak to Ashina didn't make him trust his father any more.

"Where is this coming from?" asked the Uzumaki leader pointedly, his suspicions growing by the second. "Does this have something to do with the woman who arrived this morning?"

"Yes."

Naruto was blunt, not caring what anyone thought of him anymore. He had conceded to his family the first time around, and he had learned his lesson. He wasn't going to make the same mistake again. He had failed to fight for [Name] the first time around, and all that had led to was five years of misery for both of them. But not this time.

He was determined to make it work.

"Disown me, erase my existence from the clan records, do whatever you want," said Naruto through gritted teeth, prostrating flat before Ashina. "Please, just let us leave."

"Leave, and go where?" asked Ashina with a sneer, glancing at Boruto and Himawari. "With your two young children, how will you cope?"

"We'll manage fine."

"Hmm, but I suppose you're not planning on remaining alone, are you? By 'we,' do you mean you and that Kouhage woman?"

"Yes."

"Do you realise how dangerous that is?"

"Yes. But Madara is no longer a threat."

"And how can you be so sure of that?"

Sitting up straight, Naruto closed his eyes. He thought of Sasuke and Tobirama, whom he trusted with his whole heart to keep the possessive Uchiha at bay.

"Because I know."

Ashina sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"You've always been a thorn in my side," he said disapprovingly as he shook his head. "Why are you so desperate to leave here?"

"It's unsafe for [Name] and I to stay here, together."

"So running off somewhere completely unknown will be any better?"

"It's not somewhere completely unknown."

"You really are stubborn, aren't you." Ashina scowled, narrowing his eyes at Naruto. "But-"

Suddenly, Boruto leapt to his feet in protest, surprising the two men as he glowered at them.

"I'm not going anywhere!" yelled the boy, swiping his arm in the air. "Why do we have to leave, otou-san?!"

"Boruto," snapped Naruto, glaring at his son to sit down. "Sit down."

"No! Okaa-san just died, and now- you want us to leave?!" shouted Boruto, stomping his foot on the ground. "Why?!"

"Boruto, you don't understand," argued Naruto in irritation, gritting his teeth. "Just sit and be quiet for now. Look at Himawari, she's quiet. Follow her example."

"She's quiet because she's sick! And she's sad! You can't be serious about leaving! This is our home!"

"Boruto, you need to understand, [Name] is a very fra-"

"I don't care about her!" shrieked Boruto shrilly, tears springing to his eyes as he continued yelling at his father. "I don't care! We're not leaving!"

"And I'm not leaving you," insisted Naruto. "This isn't up for debate, Boruto. Go wait outside while the adults finish talking."

"It's not fair!" cried Boruto, wiping his eyes with the back of his arm as he stood his ground. "Why do you control everything? Why don't you ever listen to what Himawari and I want?!"

"Boruto."

This time, Ashina spoke up.

"Your father is right. This is an issue for us adults to talk about. Wait outside."

Tears streaming down his face, Boruto shot his father one last look of contempt before storming out of the room, making sure his anger was known by slamming the door behind himself. It was only when Naruto heard soft sobs coming from his side that he was reminded of Himawari's presence, guilt crossing his face as he saw her crying.

"Look at what you've done," sighed Ashina, as Naruto reached down and scooped up his weeping daughter in his arms. "Are you happy? Is running away to be with this woman really worth it?"

"Shh..." whispered Naruto as he hushed his daughter, looking up at Ashina in desperation. "Please. We'll make it quick. We can be gone by the morning, if you want."

"There will be no such thing."

Ashina shook his head.

"If you're so thickheadedly determined to stay with this woman, then by all means... she is welcome to stay here with us," he said in surrender, shocking Naruto to the core. "But it will be on my conditions."

"Oji-sama... you know that's dangerous..."

"I know. But what can Madara do? He's under Hashirama's jurisdiction. He can't do anything."

"Oji-sama, please," said Naruto seriously. "Don't heed Boruto's words too much. He'll be fine if we leave."

"It's not Boruto I'm worried about." Ashina's worried gaze turned down towards Himawari, who was nestled comfortably in her father's embrace. "Himawari has always been a sensitive child. I can't risk you taking her on a perilous journey. I don't want you to go anywhere if the children will be endangered. For the most part, I don't want you going anywhere with them until Himawari is at least ten."

"Oji-sama!"

"[Name] may stay here until I see it fit for the children to leave. But once Himawari turns ten, it's up to all of you to make the decision. Either you all leave together as a family, or she leaves by herself."

Although Naruto wasn't entirely satisfied with his great uncle's ultimatum, he could at least breathe a sigh of relief. Himawari wasn't going to be turning ten for a while, so for now, he had a short term solution regarding his plans to stay with [Name].

For now, there was hope.

***

"Onii-san, that guy is going nuts. Even his own clan have shunned him. What do we do?"

Hashirama sighed as Tobirama aired his concerns about Madara in his office one day, staring glumly out of the window.

"As long as he isn't hurting anyone, I'm not worried," frowned Hashirama. "Have there been any complaints?"

"Apart from him trying to restart old rivalries by claiming we're set on crushing the Uchiha clan once more, no, not really. But he has made a request."

Hashirama raised an eyebrow as Tobirama cleared his throat, ready to deliver the Uchiha's appeal.

"He wishes to be able to celebrate his daughter's first birthday alongside Sasuke and his family," said Tobirama, the expression on his face already showing how little he believed Madara would get what he asked for.

"Oh, I see- is it near that time already?"

"Yes. I visited them yesterday- apparently, she turns one next week."

Hashirama let out a low whistled, leaning back in his seat with his arms behind his head.

"Time really does fly," chuckled the Senju. "But, doesn't that mean the anniversary of [Name]'s desertion is near too?"

"It's about a month away, so yes."

"... you're keeping an eye on him, right?"

"Of course. Trust me."

"Be careful."