The plan
After everything has settled, I help everyone so that Mui and Ryūzetsu can be buried next to each other. I then tie Ryūzetsu's bandana around her gravestone and vow to treasure the life she selflessly returned to me. I do what she believed and be a guiding light by protecting the things people cherish.
I have to protect Sasuke and the village. I made the mistake of letting go easily.
I can't afford to make the same mistake again.
"So..." Sakura appears next to me as we walk away from the prison, "what was up with you two back there?"
"What do you mean?" I ask absentmindedly, thinking of something to conquer Danzō with when we return.
"You and Sasuke." She says, pointing behind her at Sasuke talking to the Hokage. "I never expected either of you to care about someone to that degree. I haven't seen him in years so I was just wondering since it's strange to see you accept affection like that."
I shift my attention to her, grinning wearily. "Sasuke thinks of me as home and as someone he wants to stay close with." I shrug. "I think of him in the same perspective, dattebayo."
"What about everything you told us before?"
"I lied." I put my hands behind my hand, looking up at the sky. "I just didn't want you all to know that the person I wanted to be with was the person you all expected to be with also."
"I don't think of him the same way I did before, Naruto," Sakura says. "I was infatuated with him, yes, but I grew up and found love in myself and the world. Sasuke deserves to be with you, like how you deserve to be with Sasuke. I'm not against anything, nor will I try to be, because the way Sasuke looks at you assures me that he'll be happy from now on."
I look down at her soft expression and smile. "Thank you, Sakura."
She smiles then sighs. "That being said," she looks down, "what are you going to do about Danzō? He'll figure out a way to get rid of Sasuke again, you know?"
"I may not have a clue what to do about him, but," I take my hands from behind my head and clench one of them into a fist, "I'll do whatever I can to keep Sasuke happy."
"Danzō fooled all of us." She mutters, looking up at me. "I thought he was a genuinely good person, but... he admitted to the coup d'etat and framing you. We knew you were innocent but to hear someone we trusted to say something like that... we were beyond angry."
"He plans to commence his despotism plan and I think I have a wild guess what he'll do."
"What?"
"He'll take the village apart, starting with the strongest defense then he'll gradually work his way down to the weakest. He thinks I'm the pawn that is strong enough to fight so I have to be smart and stay out of his radar for now. Sasuke will have to do the same since he's still known for the genocide."
"Speaking of that plan, Naruto," Sakura frowns, "I think he already started."
"Why?"
"A bunch of our shinobi was found dead and Kakashi-sensei is beginning to behave weirdly. Ever since he brought in the Akatsuki members, he hasn't acted as he would normally. I think Danzō is already slowly trying to dominate the Fire Nation, and, in my opinion of everything, he has been insinuating his plan from the very beginning. Starting with you."
"I don't understand..."
"I shouldn't be the one to tell you a hypothesis for a serious situation like this, but, as your friend, Naruto, I can't allow you to take any more casualties. I have to say what I believe, even if it'll be useful in this ordeal that Danzō started selfishly."
I slowly breathe in and out to try and control my emotions about everything, preventing myself to be controlled by rage again. "Tell me, Sakura... Be honest with me. I will listen."
"It concerns your father, Naruto."
"I will still listen." My voice makes my mood more evident, but I still wear a neutral expression.
"Naruto―"
Sasuke interrupts Sakura by walking in between us, holding my hand. "Listen to her, Naruto. Carefully." He says before turning his attention to Sakura. "Believe him, Sakura. He will listen."
I tighten my grip on Sasuke's hand and nod in reassurance to Sakura. "I'm okay, Sakura. I can handle it."
Sakura sighs. "For starters, Minato seems to be doing what Itachi is doing. Playing spy for the village while staying out of sight and out of everyone's radar. But, unlike Itachi, Minato is playing his cards more carefully. He left his family, never communicates with them, and strays away from anyone that would utter his location."
"What does Minato have to do with Danzō?" Sasuke asks.
"I'm getting there." She crosses her arms over her chest. "Years ago, the Demon Fox rampage seemed to occur out of the blue, but the Hokage believes Danzō orchestrated everything. It was too easy. Minato managed to seal the chakra inside of you without any interruptions and Kushina was able to keep the fox still without getting injured. She had just given birth, had the fox's chakra forcibly pulled out of her exhausted body, and still managed to do that. I think he expected for all of you to die, hence his odd reasoning to stick behind on the fighting."
"The Uzumaki clan is strong after all." I mutter.
Sakura nods. "But finding out that you all survived caused a rift in his plan, so, to balance his control over everyone until he can set his new plan into motion, he requested the Akatsuki to keep everyone inside to keep an eye on them. Though, some curious villagers got brutally murdered for leaving the village. Minato must've realized something was off about this and left to find answers out of the village."
"He risked being labeled as a missing-nin to do this?" Sasuke asks, presumably finding my father's action a bit strange but believable.
"It's my hypothesis, not a solid fact," Sakura says matter-of-factly. "As I was saying, I believe Danzō planned to destroy the village right then and there, failed, and decided to do things secretly."
"So, I'm the proof of his failure?" I ask, feeling a mix of emotions inside of me. Frankly, I don't know if I'm proud or disappointed.
"Kind of in a way." She looks at Sasuke. "I think Danzō would've used Itachi, regardless of the reason behind his command to slaughter the clan. He knew how proud Itachi was of his home and wanted to manipulate him into doing the dirty work."
"If Danzō isn't satisfied, who will he go after next?" I ask, disliking the gut feeling I'm having about this. "Kakashi-sensei?"
"Kakashi isn't naive, and he isn't close to weak. So, naturally, Danzō will target him."
"And you said Kakashi has been behaving strangely?"
"That's correct."
"How strangely?"
"I can't put it into words. You'll have to see him for yourself."
"Then let's hurry home and see what Danzō has done to Kakashi."
***
A few hours after leaving the prison, all of us are on a boat to ride back to the Fire Nation, and Sasuke and I decide to come outside for some fresh air.
The entire realization is causing us to stress miserably.
"What will you do for your nineteenth birthday?" Sasuke asks. "It has been seven years since you have seen me, so you must've celebrated it well for these past years without me."
I lean against the boat. "Mom could barely get a smile on my face for seven years. I smiled just enough to show that I was grateful for her effort each year but I was still burdened with despair from your disappearance. I lacked the energy to feel happy about being older. But, now that I've found you again, I want to do whatever you want to do as well."
"It's your birthday. Why ask me for ideas?"
"Because we always did that as kids, right?"
"Yeah..." Sasuke smiles sadly, "you're right."
"So," I brush a hair from Sasuke's face, tucking it behind his ear, "any ideas?"
Sasuke looks up at the moon and smiles. "I just want to be with you." He meets my soft gaze. "Isn't that enough?"
"I want to do the same."
"I've always imagined that, after I returned, we should go on a nightly walk and gaze at the stars while eating ramen."
"That sounds fun." I smile softly. "Let's do it."
"Are you sure? It's your birthday."
"I'm not excited about my birthday if I'm not with you. I love my mom, she did her best for years, but she knows that I'm more completed inside if you're there too."
"I complete you?" Sasuke's cheeks blush slightly.
"You've always completed me. What's a sun without the moon?"
Sasuke snorts. "Dobe, you're not taking lessons from Kakashi to flirt, are you?"
I pout. "Kakashi-sensei wouldn't know how to flirt without his book."
"Speaking of him flirting, are him and Iruka still being painfully obvious?"
"Not anymore. It took Lord Hokage to get them to admit their feelings. She pitied them and almost pushed their heads together to see development."
"Would she have done the same for us?"
I laugh, thinking of Tsunade's reaction to my constant mumbling about Sasuke. "She would've done worse."
"Like what?"
"Anything to see us together."
Sasuke leans closer to me, inches away from my face. "What would you do to be with me?"
"If the moon were to fall, I'd save you from it to be with you."
"The moon won't fall."
"You won't know that."
"I do know that."
"How?"
"Because I know."
"Can't you let me sound cool?"
"Not a chance, Dobe."
I purse my lips as Sakura comes outside, stretching her arms above her head. "What's wrong, Sakura?"
Sasuke turns to see Sakura approaching us. "Didn't sleep well?"
She leans against the boat beside Sasuke and shrugs. "It would be better with a proper pillow."
"It's a boat. What do you expect?" I ask sarcastically.
"A bed." She says.
"Sucks for you then." I mutter, looking away.
"Anyway," she looks at both of us, "did I interrupt something?"
"No?" Sasuke quirks a brow. "What's to interrupt?"
She groans. "Not you guys too..."
"Huh?" I look confused at her.
"Nevermind," she walks away from us to go back with the others, "I'll go back to sleep. Try not to stay up too long."
When she closes the door, Sasuke looks at me while I'm still looking confused.
"What did she mean?" I ask.
"This." Sasuke pecks my cheek and walks away.
I feel the cheek he kissed and feel my heart race in my chest. "T-Then why did you pretend to not know?"
"Because I wanted to see how'd you react. Clearly, you're dense."
"I'm not dense, dattebayo!"
"You are too." Sasuke stops before he disappears inside and smiles at me. "If you want more than that, you should wait until your birthday."
"I didn't ― Sasuke―"
"Goodnight." He says in a sing-song tone before disappearing inside.
I turn to face the waters, pouting. "That was unfair, Sasuke..."