Sealed

Sealed

V



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Author: Ms. Trick



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Note: Reviews make my life. No seriously.



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Chapter 5



Sakura had never been inside the Hyuuga complex before but she wasn’t surprised at its size; somehow she had always imagined it to be something like this. She glanced around, admiring the decorations. White and red lanterns had been strung all around the large courtyard in the centre of the compound. And the temporary altar that had been set up at one end of it was surrounded by a semicircle of large white candles that cast a slight glow over the guests seated closest to the front, which were the immediate family members of the bride and groom.



Sakura looked for Hinata’s dark head and frowned. The eldest daughter of the main house should be sitting with her family near the front. Sakura found Hyuuga Hiashi’s unmistakable form and his youngest, Hanabi, dressed up like a doll at his side, but Hinata wasn’t with them. After another scan of the courtyard, Sakura found her sitting next to Kiba and his sister.



“All this for the wedding of a member of the branch family?” Someone was saying.



“Yes, it’s strange...Hyuuga Hiashi has been...different since the Chuunin exam.”



Bored, Temari glanced at the two strangers behind her from her place next to Sakura, idly wondering what had changed.



“C’mon,” Sakura said, tapping Temari on her elbow before making her way towards an open place to sit. Guests were sitting on tatami mats that had been laid out across the entire courtyard and untaken seats were quickly disappearing.



“Sakura!” A voice called.



Both Temari and Sakura looked behind them to see Ino waving them over to where they were sitting. Her other arm was through a bored Shikamaru’s.



Sakura happily sat next to her blonde friend and Temari sat on her fiancée’s other side. The seat next to her was quickly filled by an old man in glasses.



“Gorgeous necklace,” Ino said, reaching up to Sakura’s neck to lightly run her fingers over the beads. The afternoon sunlight played over the different coloured glass.



“Temari got it for me,” Sakura said with a grin.



“Oh, I’m jealous! Shikamaru hasn’t gotten me anything yet,” Ino said, playfully elbowing him.



He grumbled something unintelligible in response.



Sakura craned her head to try and get a view of the altar while Ino kept on chattering to the half-asleep genius. His eyes lazily flew over Ino and Sakura and then Temari’s dark green ones trapped his gaze.



Her face was unreadable. Shikamaru acknowledged that he was no Neji; he couldn’t read people like books. The only thing he knew right now was that Temari was looking at him and she wasn’t looking away. And he had somehow gotten himself into a staring match with her. He groaned inwardly.



“What do you think, Shikamaru?”



“What?” He said, shifting his attention to his blonde team mate.



“Weren’t you listening to a thing I said?!” Ino screeched.



Shikamaru winced and Temari scowled. “Uh... no. Keep your voice down. Maa, women are so tr--”



“Finish that sentence and you’ll regret it,” Ino interrupted, shooting a glare at her fiancé.



“Eh...Oh look, a wedding.”



With Ino successfully distracted by Neji and TenTen’s entrance, Shikamaru rolled his eyes and then closed them, wondering how mad Ino would get if he slept through the entire ceremony. Oh well, it might get her to stop acting like he had actually proposed to her.



- - - - -



Neji always managed to carry a regal attitude about him and his black, white, and red yukata merely served to emphasize this. TenTen stood next to him in her ornate, white wedding kimono, visibly excited. Her hair was still in its usual buns but they were tied with white, red, and gold cords.



She looked very pretty, Hinata thought as the bride and groom took their seats in front of the priest. Tsunade sat directly behind them.



The priest’s height over the two sitting genin reminded Hinata that no matter how regal Neji was or how pretty TenTen was, they were still just kids. Hinata felt her stomach flutter. She was only twelve after all but soon it would be her approaching an altar.



She glanced at Kiba without having to move her eyes (ah, the uses of almost 360-degree sight). She sighed quietly, feeling guilty and a little ashamed that she had cried over not marrying Naruto.



Kiba heard her sigh and leaned to whisper in her ear, “I bet you’ll look prettier.”



She blushed and to Kiba’s delight a smile graced her features. Akamaru, lying between the two, accompanied the compliment with a lick to the girl’s hand. Cheered, Hinata scratched behind the little dog’s ears.



She loved Kiba as a team mate, as a friend. She could learn to love him as a husband, she thought decisively. She could. They were getting married at sunset tomorrow. She’d let herself have a few moments of weakness today but resolved by then to be completely happy with her soon-to-be husband.



She looked back up at the altar bathed in candlelight and the shallow afternoon shadows. She carefully avoided looking at the backs of the heads of her family, not wanting to remember her father telling her to sit with her new family, the implications laid into the words carefully; she already might as well not be a Hyuuga. She really shouldn’t be surprised.



She shook her head, trying to clear it and turned her entire focus onto the ceremony.



Neji seemed to be executing the entire wedding as he would a mission and TenTen seemed to be acting like the thirteen-year-old girl she was for once. She was delighted and was finally allowing herself to think about Neji like a girl and not just like his team mate.



Neji relaxed when the ceremony ended and nothing had gone drastically wrong. He wouldn’t admit to anyone how nervous he’d been beforehand. Glad he hadn’t embarrassed himself, he extended his hand. The now Hyuuga TenTen took it with a smile that Neji found himself returning.



- - - - -



Most guests lingered after the wedding, enjoying the lavish Hyuuga hospitality. But Sasuke left Naruto chatting with Chouji and Shikamaru and made his way through the afternoon to the Hokage building, where Shizune had forced Tsunade to return not long after the reception started.



Sasuke entered the Godaime’s office and stopped. Momentarily thwarted, his eyes searched the room for her.



“What can I do for you now?” sighed several stacks of paper wearily from the expansive desk.



Sasuke blinked and Tsunade pushed aside one of the stacks of documents that were so tall they were hiding her from view.



Sasuke inwardly snorted to himself, thinking of how Naruto would love this part of being Hokage.



“Why does Naruto have no family?” Sasuke asked.



Tsunade paused mid-yawn, close to admiring Sasuke’s lack of tact. She dealt with politicians and thus straight forward people were appreciated. She continued her yawn and added a stretch. She hadn’t even changed out of the formal kimono she had worn to the wedding.



“Why do you want to know?” She asked, her head coming to rest on her hand.



Sasuke folded his arms. “If I’m going to marry the idiot, I would think I have a right to know if I’m to expect any in laws.”



“Naruto is the last Uzumaki,” she said with a dismissive wave. “Much like you’re the last Uchiha.”



Sasuke frowned. “You’re ending two lines with one marriage? Why are marriages in the village needed if not for their offspring?”



Tsunade scowled from between her miniature skyscrapers of work. “I said we’d discuss children later. Children are expected from heterosexual couples but they’re not downright required. I’m not breeding ninjas, I’m simply enhancing the village’s prosperity in appearance if not specifically population.” She waved her hand again. “It’s politics.”



There was a pause before Sasuke said. “You haven’t answered my original question. Why wasn’t Naruto taken in by another family?”



“You weren’t,” Tsunade pointed out lazily.



“I begged not to be.”



Tsunade silently debated whether telling Sasuke about the Kyuubi before the wedding was a good idea. She saw Sasuke noting her hesitation. She was still nervous about Naruto’s marriage but...she figured that she had tricked the Uchiha heir enough. Opting for honesty then.



Sasuke didn’t comment on her uncertainty and merely waited for her to say something.



“This really should be up to Naruto but...sit down, Uchiha.”



He sat in one of the chairs facing her desk because she made it obvious she wouldn’t be continuing until he did.



“You know the story of the Nine Tails?” She said reluctantly.



“That it was defeated by Yondaime?” Sasuke supplied, curiosity piqued as this seemed to be right on track with his thoughts from earlier.



“It wasn’t defeated...It was sealed inside your team mate.”



Sasuke expected himself to be more surprised but all he felt at that moment was the familiar satisfaction of something finally being solved. Along with the mysteries surrounding Naruto, the mysteries surrounding their marriage were made clear too. Tsunade really didn’t care about their children at all; she just wanted to take care of her precious Naruto. And, Sasuke reasoned, I’m the best candidate. Maybe even the only candidate.



Sasuke’s mind flashed to the second part of the Chuunin exam, something he didn’t enjoy thinking about. That entire thing had been a chronicle of him failing and Naruto succeeding spectacularly; he had to work not to let his disgust show on his face, lest Tsunade take it the wrong way. But he had had a good look into Naruto’s eyes in the Forest of Death. It was a wonder he hadn’t sooner guessed those red eyes hid something.



Tsunade waited for Sasuke to respond. On the inside, her stomach was clenching anxiously.



“I assume no one was told so as to spare Naruto?” He finally asked, calm as ever.



“Aren’t you clever? Yes, and as you can see, it hasn’t worked all too well,” she said, a little bitterness creeping into her voice. “Now, if you don’t mind, I have actual piles of work to do. I’ll see you back here this evening, so...shoo.”



- - - - -



Sasuke’s head was buzzing and he left the Hokage’s office on autopilot. As such, he was almost surprised when someone stepped out into his path. Brief irritation sizzled through him at his absentmindedness. He watched Sakura stare at her fidgeting hands for a few seconds. Then his patience packed its bags.



“What are you doing following me?” He asked apathetically.



She took a deep breath and swallowed a lump in her throat but words still weren’t coming out of her mouth.



Sasuke sidestepped her slowly and kept walking.



Tears toppled down her face as she finally found her voice. “Why?”



He stopped, hearing the tears in her wavering speech. He inwardly cringed. He had no experience or interest in crying girls.



“Why am I not good enough?” She continued. “Why won’t you open up to me? Or tell me anything?” She turned and pleaded to his back. “Why won’t you say anything to m--”



“Why do I have to tell you anything?” Sasuke snapped. “It’s none of your business. Stop concerning yourself with what I do.”



Sakura quietly swallowed again. “You’ve always hated me, huh?” She said with a sad smile, remembering their first day as Team 7, when Sasuke had criticized her lack of sympathy for Naruto’s orphan status. “And I guess you’ve always understood Naruto even if you didn’t like him.”



“I walk a different path than you guys,” he said slowly. “I try to think it’s my path to do the things we do now but my purpose is revenge no matter who I’m married to. I can’t become like you or Naruto.”



“Are you going to choose to be alone again?” Sakura asked desperately. “You were the one who taught me solitude was painful. I understand that so well right now. I have a family, and I have friends. I even have a fiancée. But to me...if you ever leave, it’ll be the same as being alone.”



“Things change,” he said, his voice a dull monotone that sharply contrasted Sakura’s emotion infused words. “You’ll forget me. Besides, even if I don’t go anywhere, I’m getting married.”



“I...Sasuke, I love you so much!” She sobbed, her final defences crumbling. “If you’re with me, I’ll make sure you won’t regret it. Every day will be fun. We’ll definitely be happy. I’ll do anything for you. I know about your clan. Please. I...I’ll help you with your revenge. I’ll do something! Please stay with me!”



There was a pregnant pause as her words flew into the air and hung there for a few seconds.



“You really are annoying,” Sasuke said, intentionally sounding as heartless as he could--the sooner she let him go, the better, whether he left the village or not. He started walking again, not even sparing a glance behind him.



“I won’t be coming to the wedding,” she mumbled, her voice small and defeated.



Sasuke’s steps paused as he thought about this. “Naruto will be upset.”



- - - - -



Naruto watched the last of the golden light from the sunset hit the wall of his little apartment. It made the gem on his necklace sparkle; his wedding outfit left it in plain view. He was standing with his arms out as Iruka fastened and fitted the yukata around his antsy twelve year old self.



Naruto’s mouth had been running non-stop since his sensei had arrived there.



He’s nervous, Iruka realised.



“Ne, you have to marry too!” Naruto said suddenly. “I just remembered, your birthday’s at the end of May, right? It’s only the beginning, so you’re still twenty-four.”



“Until May 26, that’s right” Iruka supplied with a sigh. “We all have to do what’s best for the village, Naruto.” Then he muttered, “Even if that means marrying Anko.”



Naruto snickered.



“You’re one to laugh. She’s just like you,” Iruka said, swatting his former student playfully.



“Oh, so you’ll like her.”



Iruka laughed and suppressed any of his trepidation about his own betrothal; this was Naruto’s day after all.



“Hold still. Let’s straighten you up a bit more,” he said, tugging at thick red cord acting as a belt.



“I don’t see why I have to get all dressed up,” Naruto grumbled. “No one’s really gonna be there.”



“Nonsense, we’ll all be there, and besides, it’s orange, your favourite colour,” Iruka prompted as he stepped back to inspect his handiwork.



Naruto swung his arms, testing the comfort level of the orange yukata jacket. White spikes decorated the hems of the sleeves and his shoulders were accented with black. A blue cord tied in front of his chest. Iruka smiled as Naruto tested a kick and nearly lost his balance on the white sandals, but at least there were no complaints about the black pants he wore under the jacket.



“Plus there’s the party after. With ramen,” Iruka added and watched as his former student’s face cracked into a grin.



“Almost makes marrying the bastard worth it.”



- - - - -



Naruto tried not to fidget as he stood in front of Tsunade’s desk, which had been haphazardly transformed into an altar. It had been cleared of the papers that crowded it earlier and the flames of the large candles reflected blurrily in its now gleaming surface.



Half of Sasuke’s mind was paying attention to Tsunade as she read through the ceremony in front of them and the other half wondered why Naruto kept glancing at him like that. He hadn’t gotten his hair cut that short. It was about the length it had been before the start of the chuunin exam. And besides, Naruto was one to stare, Sasuke thought. He wasn’t the one with face paint on.



The blonde had--after Iruka had left to get himself ready for the wedding, of course--artfully decorated his eyes with thick red streaks. It wasn’t as complex as the pattern he’d managed to achieve for his ID photo but it was just as dramatic. Four strips of red paint spread out from each eye to the edge of his face, like the tails of the fox hidden away inside him.



Just missing one, Sasuke thought grimly, counting the streaks.



Tsunade could have been yodelling for all Naruto knew. He peeked at Sasuke again. His team mate looked remarkably grown up in his wedding yukata. It was long, coming down past Sasuke’s knees, and blue, Sasuke’s favourite colour, with a large white diamond patterning each arm. The thick cord belt around his waist was dark red, like Naruto’s, and, also like his soon-to-be husband, he wasn’t wearing the forehead protector. The layer under the jacket was white. Even Sasuke’s boots were white.



Sasuke’s outfit was making Naruto realise that he was really marrying Sasuke. Naruto gulped. And in a wedding the groom and the...other groom had to kiss. It was bad enough accidentally kissing the bastard in front of their entire class but now he had to do it ON PURPOSE in front of Tsunade, Iruka, Kakashi, Jiraiya, and Shizune, who were all standing behind him.



Of course, his audience was a little less attentive than Naruto’s anxieties would have him believe. If he had had the nerve to look over his shoulder, he would have seen that though Shizune seemed to be paying attention, she was actually prioritizing what the Godaime would need to get done by tomorrow, Jiraiya and Kakashi had finished making bets and were both grinning, and Iruka was smiling, glad to be there for his favourite student but a little distracted by thoughts of his own wedding. The four were collected in a rough semicircle behind the two genin.



One of which was silently fuming. Sasuke couldn’t get his mind off of Itachi’s disinterest in him, how it had become about Naruto. He glanced at his future spouse’s wandering blue eyes and remembered them fierce and staring at him on the hospital rooftop as the blonde stated calmly that he wouldn’t be a dropout forever. Sasuke’s fists clenched a little.



And then there was the fox, silently supplying Naruto with exceptionally strong, if poisonous, back up chakra. Sasuke eyed the blonde and felt his anger morph into curiosity. He wondered exactly where the power stopped being Naruto’s and became the demon’s.



His focus brought Tsunade back into the foreground and Sasuke noted that the ceremony was just about over. He spent a brief moment being glad that his wedding was not the tightrope affair that the Hyuuga one had been. Then Tsunade stopped speaking and rolled up the scroll in her hands.



“Did you decide on a last name?” She asked.



Sasuke said ‘Uchiha’ at the same time Naruto said ‘Uzumaki’ and inevitably, this entailed a glaring match. Kakashi rolled his eyes at the usual routine. But he understood the quibble with perfect clarity, even if neither of the boys had spoken of it: both Naruto and Sasuke were orphans both unwilling to lose one of the last links to their families.



“I’ll take that as a ‘no.’ Why don’t we just hyphenate it in alphabetical order?” The Hokage asked in a wheedling voice.



“Alright,” Naruto said flippantly. “Not that it matters that much. I won’t need a last name when I’m Hokage after all.”



Tsunade’s eye twitched. She took a deep breath and then calmly continued, stepping aside to leave access to the scroll open on her desk.



“I pronounce you Uchiha-Uzumaki Sasuke and Uchiha-Uzumaki Naruto. Sign this, kiss, and then let’s go party!”



“Hokage-sama!” Shizune admonished.



Tsunade had the urge to stick her tongue out at her assistant but restrained herself, turning to watch the two genin nudge each other out of the way to sign their new names on the marriage scroll.



Then, surprisingly without incident or further prompting, both boys leaned in and softly, briefly put their lips together.



Tsunade raised an eyebrow as the kiss ended quickly and both boys looked away, blushing and already intent on forgetting the other’s existence.



“Well that’s that,” Kakashi said, unfolding his arms. “The food’s at Naruto’s apartment, if I remember correctly.”



“Yep!” Naruto said, enthusiasm back at maximum levels. “Ramen! Plus, we can be as loud as we want ‘cause it doesn’t matter if the neighbours complain.”



“Why?” Iruka asked, appearing puzzled.



“Well, for one, the old lady’ll be there...” Tsunade looked at him balefully. “...And for another, the bastard’s getting a house or something and I have to live with him afterwards.”



Sasuke itched at the slipshod explanation and supplied: “I become the proprietor of the Uchiha Estate when I come of age or get married. So we’ll move back there.”



Jiraiya opened the door to the hall and was greeted with a sight he usually found only in his dreams. His mouth opened and his eyes popped...



The hallway was literally packed with girls dressed in their most revealing or flattering outfits. It was like the most perfect heaven Jiraiya could envision...then he realised that they were all far too young for him. All of them.



They all focused on him intently as he scanned the room. The Frog Hermit then closed his mouth and looked up at the ceiling tearfully as he admitted to himself that these girls were not, in fact, here for him.



He looked at them one more time before slowly backing back into the Hokage’s office, closing the door.



“Hokage-sama,” he said, turning to face Tsunade with a serious look on his face.



The stoic tone startled her.



“Two things...” he continued, holding up the appropriate amount of fingers. “One, there is an actual army of young ladies outside your office...”



“What?” Kakashi asked as he approached the door.



He opened it and gazed over the eager girls casually. He nodded, coming to his conclusion, and then closed the door on the fangirls littering the hall outside.



“Sasuke, you may want to exit a different way,” was all he said before the masked jounin vanished.



Naruto smacked his forehead and his hand came away with some of the red face paint on it. He went to wipe it on the yukata but then stopped sheepishly when he caught sight of Iruka watching him.



Tsunade groaned. “It’ll resolve itself...what was the second thing you wanted to say?” She asked Jiraiya.



“Well, I think, in the best interests of the village...we should get married too.”



His face betrayed no sense of a joke, and so Tsunade hit him.



- - - - -



True to his word, Naruto’s little apartment was nearly vibrating with all the noise. An old man in glasses was perched silently near the window. He settled into a comfortable position and put himself under an invisibility jutsu for good measure. Though it was true Naruto lived on the second to highest floor, carelessness was blatantly unforgivable. He scanned the group of people crowded inside, picking out the designated pairs.



Suddenly, the Hokage came into his view. She was pulling Naruto aside, apparently to tell him something very un-partyish. Tsunade leaned down and said what she needed to say; she appeared apologetic, the spy noted. The good spirits of the party slowly drained from Naruto’s countenance but then he nodded and smiled, effortlessly brushing off whatever was said. The spy pushed up his glasses and refrained from snorting as the boy was apparently reassuring the Hokage. She eventually smiled and ruffled his hair and he scowled at her good-naturedly.



She wound her way back into the little crowd towards the gaggle of adults, moving around TenTen, who was trying to get the Hyuuga cousins to dance. Hinata was smiling but she kept refusing until Kiba came along and managed to get her to move by taking her hands in his.



The spy caught sight of an extremely late guest approaching the building below him. He pulled himself onto the apartment roof and made his way over to the small ledge above the hallway outside of Naruto’s front door. He heard the doorbell ring and the door open.



“Sakura-chan!” Naruto’s voice called out happily. “...Sakura-chan? What’s wrong?”



“Naruto...” She broke off miserably.



Naruto moved away from the door and she leaned against the railing underneath the spy’s position. Naruto came to stand next to her.



Inside, Sasuke saw Naruto leave quietly and curiously went to follow him. He was about to push open the door, which hadn’t been fully closed, when Naruto’s voice carried towards him.



“How many times do I have to tell you not to worry about him?” He was saying in a cheerful tease, clearly trying to lighten the mood.



“I told him we’d be happy,” Sakura said quietly.



Sasuke rolled his eyes, really hoping the pink-haired girl wasn’t trying to go through Naruto to win him.



“Happy? Him? Bahaha, Sakura-chan, you really don’t know Sasuke at all!” He laughed loudly, half-hoping to make his team mate angry enough to distract her from being sad.



When she didn’t say anything, he forged on. “Eh...he probably doesn’t know the meaning of the word. Sasuke’s not looking for fun or happiness, Sakura-chan. I mean...killing his brother won’t even make him happy. Not really.”



Sakura frowned and, unseen, Sasuke did the same.



“Nothing else will though,” she said. “Revenge seems like the only thing.”



“Nah,” Naruto said brashly. “I used to think about revenge a lot as a kid. But even if it does make you happy, it never lasts for long.”



Sasuke listened, surprised, as Naruto effortlessly and unknowingly described exactly what Sasuke himself had concluded about revenge. The Uchiha heir was not stupid. He knew revenge was not going to make him a happy person--Naruto had hit the nail on the head. Would his dead parents be pleased if he killed their son? If he murdered Itachi, would life be simple and good again? No. Of course not.



But that wasn’t the point.



“You gonna stay? Iruka-sensei got me ramen!” He heard Naruto say.



As Sakura quietly declined the offer, Sasuke retreated from the door, wondering just how far he’d accidentally let Naruto in.



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