Naruto leapt up from the chair like he'd been zapped. "This is insane! I'm not doing it!"
Kakashi didn't flinch. Tsunade just raised an eyebrow. Shikamaru folded his arms. Sakura sighed, as if she'd seen this coming from miles away.
"I mean, come on!" Naruto threw his hands in the air. "Marriage?! That's the best you could come up with? How does this even make sense?! You're talking about shackling someone's life to mine just to make the paperwork go away!"
"Technically," Shikamaru drawled, "we're shackling your life to hers."
"Not helping, Shikamaru!"
Kakashi steepled his fingers. "It's not just paperwork, Naruto. It's diplomacy. You're the only person in the entire Elemental Nations who can stand between her and a death sentence and not start a war. No one would dare touch the woman married to the Hero of the Fourth Great Shinobi War. Not the Daimyō, not the Kage, not even those vultures in the Land of Iron."
"Yeah, because I'm the cage!" Naruto barked. "You're basically putting a leash on her and wrapping it around my neck instead!"
"That's the point," Tsunade said bluntly, arms crossed. "To them, it looks like she's under control—safe, domesticated. A docile Uchiha housewife under the thumb of the man who saved the world. She becomes politically untouchable and you become the excuse."
Naruto looked at all of them like they'd grown a second head. "Domesticated?! She's Sasuke Uchiha, not a damn puppy!"
"You're not wrong," Kakashi said. "But this gives her a legitimate position in the world again. Not as a shinobi, but as someone protected by the most powerful village. She won't be hunted. No one will be able to exploit her bloodline. And she'll get a shot at rebuilding her life."
Naruto's fingers clawed through his hair. "We're not even lovers! We're just—friends! Best friends! That's all it's ever been!"
"Do you think Sasuke is sexy?" Tsunade asked casually.
The room went dead quiet.
Naruto gawked. "What kind of question is that?!"
"You told me you liked C-cups," Shikamaru added with a shrug. "There you have C-cups."
Naruto whipped around. "You—fucking traitor!"
"And Lord Jiraiya once told me you liked girls who weren't too tall," Kakashi said with a lazy smile in his eyes.
Naruto looked betrayed on a spiritual level.
Sakura piped up, surprisingly soft but cutting all the same. "And you've always been… obsessed with Sasuke. That wasn't just rivalry, Naruto. You chased her across nations. You nearly died for her. Multiple times. You never did that for me—and I proposed to you."
Naruto winced. That one hurt. He rubbed the back of his neck, staring at the floor.
"This is ridiculous," he muttered. "It's not like that. It's… it's not."
"Is it?" Tsunade asked, watching him sharply. "Because for someone who claims they're just friends, you're awfully ready to risk your whole life for her. You were willing to get executed with her. You carried her broken body back from the Valley of the End like she was your whole damn world."
Naruto didn't say anything.
He couldn't.
His thoughts were a wildfire.
"But what about Sasuke?" he asked, finally, voice small. "Her freedom? Her choices?"
Tsunade looked at him, something softer in her expression. "Do you want a dead Sasuke… or an alive one?"
Naruto clenched his fists. His breathing was shaky. "But… Hinata… she confessed to me…"
"And?" Kakashi asked gently. "Do you even like her?"
Naruto opened his mouth.
Closed it.
Opened it again.
Nothing.
Sakura nodded to herself like she'd known it all along. "You never liked Hinata that way. You like her as a classmate. Maybe even a teammate someday. But you never looked at her the way you look at Sasuke."
"I don't—!" he tried, but the words caught in his throat.
Truth had a cruel way of cutting deeper than kunai.
He looked terrified. Like some part of him had just cracked, and he didn't even know what it was made of until it splintered.
But more than that, he looked trapped. Between duty and friendship. Between loyalty and something else he hadn't dared to name.
"Sasuke…" he whispered. "She'll never forgive me for this."
"No," Tsunade admitted. "She probably won't. She'd rather die with dignity than be tied down like this."
"Then how do we—?"
"We'll convince her," Kakashi said. "It won't be easy. But leave that part to us. You've already done enough."
Naruto swallowed, hard.
He looked up, eyes bloodshot with the beginning of something he wouldn't call tears.
"You're asking me to be her jailer."
"No," Kakashi corrected. "We're asking you to be her sword and her shield. Like you've always been."
Silence.
Naruto shut his eyes, took a deep breath, and opened them again. Steady this time. No more excuses.
"I swear," he said, voice low and resolute, "if she says no, I'll run. I'll take her and disappear. I'll hide her in the mountains or across the sea. No one will ever find her. I won't let them kill her."
A long pause.
"Then," Kakashi said softly, "is that a yes from you?"
Naruto nodded.
"…If—and only if—she says yes."
—T~T—
Darkness. It had been her world for days now—maybe weeks. Time didn't flow normally down here, in the pit beneath the Hokage Tower. The only light she knew came from the sound of footsteps and the occasional clang of metal trays. Her vision was sealed under thick visors, blinding both her Rinnegan and Sharingan. She wasn't sure if the seals over her hands were tight enough to cut circulation or if she was just numb by now.
She didn't ask to use the bathroom, though she needed to. Uchiha pride was a cruel master—too proud to beg, too proud to speak. The guards outside were polite, silent. Not perverts, no. But men nonetheless. That alone was enough to keep her silent.
Then came the hiss of a sliding door and the sharp scent of clean fabric. Two pairs of footsteps echoed in the silence. One familiar, dragging ever so slightly on the left. The other—softer, lighter, but burdened.
"Good evening, Sasuke," came Kakashi's voice, smooth and casual like they were meeting for tea. "Hope you're enjoying your stay."
She smirked faintly, even though her lips barely moved. "As pleasant as a stone cell can be," she said. "Not that I'm complaining."
"We're sorry," Sakura added, her voice hesitant. "It's for the best."
"It's fine." Sasuke tilted her head slightly toward the sound. "How's Naruto?"
A pause followed. The kind that tells you everything before anyone speaks.
"He's… fine," Sakura finally said. "Busy with his studies. Preparing for the Hokage seat."
Sasuke nodded to herself. "Of course he is. He always does what he says he'll do." Then her tone dropped, flat and sure. "So? What brings you here? I doubt it's a social call."
Kakashi chuckled awkwardly. "You know us too well."
"I've known you since I was twelve. You're not subtle. Just get to the point."
Silence. Then a long, deep exhale from Kakashi.
"…The Shinobi Union has reached a decision. About you."
Sasuke's body didn't flinch. Her breath didn't hitch. She sat wrapped in that restraining cloth like a ghost inside a coffin.
"They want me executed."
It wasn't a question. It was fact. It was prophecy.
"…Yes," Kakashi said quietly. "Declared this morning."
Sasuke inhaled through her nose. Exhaled through her mouth. "I see."
And that was all she said. No outrage. No tears. Just cold acceptance, like she'd known this moment would always come.
"I tried to negotiate with them," Kakashi added.
"Why?" she asked, and for the first time there was a trace of surprise.
"Because you're my cute little genin."
"Shut up," she muttered. "Just tell me what you cooked up."
Kakashi's voice turned serious. "You will be stripped of your shinobi status. Permanently."
"Acceptable," she said. "I figured as much."
"You'll be under 24/7 surveillance."
She tilted her head, amused. "Not surprising. Who'll be watching me? Someone from Kumo? Iwa? Mist?"
"…Naruto."
Sasuke paused.
That… wasn't bad.
In fact, it might be the only option that didn't disgust her. If anyone had to see her at her lowest, it was better it be him. She owed him that much, at least.
"When am I being released?"
"Tomorrow."
"Fine. Thank you, Kakashi."
There was a long beat. Then Sakura, quiet and uneasy, spoke up.
"You'll try to kill him."
Sasuke blinked under the visor. "Excuse me?"
"Because…" Sakura faltered. "Because sensei did something you'll hate."
There was a shuffling noise—like Kakashi waving his arms. "Wait, wait, Sakura, no—let me—don't just drop it like that—"
Sasuke's voice sliced through the room like ice. "What did you do?"
Kakashi went silent. Even the ever-chirpy Sakura struggled to speak.
Sasuke spoke again, voice lower, colder. "What. Did. You. Do?"
A pause.
Then finally, Sakura's voice, shaking with the weight of what she had to say.
"You'll be under Naruto's watch… twenty-four-seven. Not just as a tenant. Not just as someone under house arrest."
Sasuke's breath caught. "Then as what?"
"…As his wife."
The silence that followed felt like the collapse of a universe.
For the first time in months—maybe years—Sasuke had no words. Her mouth opened but nothing came out. Her mind, so often sharp and ready, hit a wall it couldn't climb.
Wife.
The word didn't even register fully.
She'd imagined death.
She'd prepared for execution.
But this…?
This was worse.
This was life. Shackled to another.
This was being turned into someone's something—a role, a position, a symbol to satisfy the fears of the world.
Her lips trembled before they shut tight. Her fists, still bound, would've crushed bones if they could.
And Naruto…
Why would he agree to something like this?
He wouldn't.
He couldn't.
Not unless…
Her breath grew shallow, like the cell had shrunk and the air had vanished.
When she finally spoke, her voice was like frozen steel. "That idiot. That damn idiot."
But her heart thudded just a little louder.
Because deep down, she knew—
Of all the ways to live again… being chained to Naruto might be the only one that didn't feel like a curse.
Sasuke sat still in her bindings, silent as a tomb.
"So," she finally said, voice devoid of weight, "if I refuse… I die. That's it, right?"
"Yeah," Kakashi replied quietly. There was no dramatics, no softening of the truth. He knew better than to insult her with lies.
Sasuke tilted her head back slightly, visor pressing into the wall behind her. Cold stone against her scalp, cold steel wrapped around her pride. It should've made her feel something. Anything. But there was just… stillness.
It made sense, in a way. She hadn't planned on living this long anyway.
She had lived her life by the edge of her blade, in shadows and vengeance. She had gutted every joy she might've had with her own hands. She killed the brother who died with a smile on his face, not for his own peace but for hers. And even after knowing the truth, what did she do? She waged war on the very people he protected. She'd turned her back on everyone—Kakashi, Sakura, the entire village. Even Naruto.
Naruto.
She tried to kill him too. More than once.
And still… he came after her.
Every. Single. Time.
He lost his hand in their final fight. If it weren't for Tsunade and Naruto's own relentless spirit, he might've been disabled forever. And what had she done to deserve that loyalty?
Nothing.
No, worse than nothing. She had spat on his friendship, thrown his love back at him, laughed in the face of every hand he extended.
And now they wanted to give her back a life?
With him?
She wasn't blind to her sins. She wasn't deluded enough to think herself worthy of mercy.
And even if she survived, married, freed—what then?
The world would whisper behind her back. Some would shout it out loud. The murderer. The traitor. The monster Uchiha. There would be no peace. Only tension. Only suspicion.
And Naruto… he deserved someone radiant, someone kind. Someone who hadn't drowned the world in blood. Not someone like her.
She wasn't even that pretty.
She was scarred. Emotionally twisted. Riddled with regrets and guilt. Her body was lean and sharp like a blade, not soft and inviting like the girls Naruto could easily have if he wanted. And emotionally? She didn't know what love even looked like anymore. Let alone how to give it back.
As if reading her mind, Sakura leaned forward, voice clear and cutting.
"You're thinking too much," she said. "We all know that Naruto's always been obsessed with you."
Sasuke flinched. That word—obsessed—landed like a stone in her gut.
"Who else," Sakura continued, "would chase a friend across the world? Get beaten by some random Rain shinobi while already bleeding out—just because he wouldn't give up on you?"
Kakashi's voice followed, calm as ever. "Who else begs the Raikage on his knees not to kill a friend? And almost starts a war just to keep you alive?"
"You didn't have anyone," Sakura said softly. "But he was always there. Even when we gave up, he didn't."
Sasuke's mouth twitched. "That doesn't make it love. He's just a fool."
"You were his first kiss," Kakashi added, teasing just enough to break the heaviness.
"T-that was an accident!" Sasuke snapped, actual heat rising to her cheeks for the first time in… gods, she didn't even know.
"In the Academy, yeah," Kakashi said, amused. "But it still counts. And you were his too. I'd bet my pension."
Sasuke grit her teeth. "That means nothing."
"Then why do you care?" Sakura said gently. "Why haven't you just told us to get lost?"
Sasuke had no answer.
And in that silence, the weight returned. Thicker. Heavier.
Kakashi's voice was no longer playful. "We don't have much time. The Union wants a decision. What is your answer?"
The air in the cell turned brittle.
Sasuke turned her face away slightly, the side of her cheek pressing to the inner lining of the visor. The quiet stretched out until her voice finally reached them, steady and soft.
"Give me a night."
Kakashi nodded. "Alright."
"But remember," Sakura added, kneeling slightly closer, her hand ghosting near Sasuke's restrained fingers, "if anything happens to you, if you give up now… everything Naruto endured for you, every sacrifice—would become meaningless."
"He'll suffer more than anyone else," Kakashi said, solemn now. "Again."
They stood, their footsteps echoing as they retreated. The cell door creaked closed behind them, locking the silence back in with her.
Sasuke sat there, still swaddled in her bindings, alone in darkness.
And for the first time in years, she felt something crawl into her throat.
Not regret.
Not fear.
But something small.
Something tender.
A flicker.
And it sounded just a little like… Naruto.
Naruto sat on his futon, elbows resting on his knees, face buried in his hands. The lunch Hinata brought sat untouched on the table, growing cold beside the half-read textbook Iruka had guilt-tripped him into tackling. His new arm, still wrapped in cloth and chakra-weaved bandages, twitched occasionally, unfamiliar and awkward. The prosthetic didn't ache, but everything else did—his brain, his chest, his damn soul.
Marry Sasuke?
The words still echoed like a bell rung too close to his head.
What the hell is going on with my life?
He let out a slow exhale and leaned back, staring blankly at the ceiling. The cheap plaster above him cracked slightly in the corner. He had fixed it once. A poor job. Like he was doing with everything else lately.
And then—
"You're not seriously considering this idiocy, are you?"
Naruto jumped slightly, blinking.
Kurama's deep growl rang from inside his head, louder than usual, filled with actual concern this time—not the snide jabs or bored rumbles Naruto had grown used to.
"Damn, you're louder than usual."
"I should be! You're about to ruin your life. You want to tie your fate to an Uchiha? Haven't they done enough damage?"
Naruto didn't answer. He just rubbed his face, groaning.
"Listen," Kurama continued, his tone surprisingly not sarcastic, "I get that you're emotionally compromised, but there has to be another way to keep her alive. Marrying her isn't the only route. Let's think this through like shinobi for once."
Naruto blinked. Kurama being rational? This was weird.
"You got something better then?" he muttered aloud, arms crossed, jaw set tight. "Cause I sure as hell don't."
"Plenty. For starters—fake her death. Use a transformation jutsu, a shadow clone, stage an execution. Fool the Union, let her disappear forever."
Naruto hesitated, then shook his head.
"That was my first idea, remember? Tsunade said that was dumb. Everyone's watching Konoha right now. The moment we announce she's dead, someone'll demand a body. DNA, chakra, something. You think I can trick Gaara? Hell, I can't even lie to Shikamaru."
Kurama growled again.
"Fine. New plan. Let her defect. Say she escaped custody. Make her a missing-nin again—"
"Nope," Naruto cut him off. "They'll send hunter-nin. From Kumo. From Kiri. She won't last a week. Especially not with her chakra sealed and eyes blocked. And if they catch her? Execution. Or worse."
Kurama clicked his metaphorical tongue.
"Alright, then what if you declare her your personal vassal? Use your status. You're a hero. You've got influence. Say she's your responsibility, like a parolee. No marriage required."
Naruto sighed, rubbing his temples.
"They already shot that down too. Said it was too risky. I'd have to be with her constantly. Not just living with her—but responsible for her behavior, her every move, her every word. If she even sneezes the wrong way, they'll use that as an excuse to overrule it. But if she's my wife, then it's different. They'd be forced to respect the bond. They can't just override a legal marriage between two Konoha shinobi."
Kurama's chakra rumbled low, angry.
"Marriage. What a stupid tradition. You humans cling to such outdated nonsense."
"Yeah, well," Naruto mumbled, dragging a hand down his face, "humans built the world we live in. I don't get to ignore it, even if I saved it."
Kurama fell quiet for a beat. Then he said, "Why not just… take her and run?"
Naruto raised an eyebrow. "That's your great idea? Run? You want me to become a missing-nin?"
"Why not? You've survived worse. You can handle whatever the world throws at you."
Naruto snorted bitterly. "Yeah. And destroy the peace I fought for? Let the Shinobi Union collapse just because I wanted to save one person?"
"One person," Kurama echoed, softer now.
Another silence.
Then—
"...It's not just 'one person' to you, is it?"
Naruto's breath caught.
He didn't answer.
Didn't need to.
Kurama huffed, something like a sigh. "I've been in your head too long, idiot. I can feel it. That ache. That pull. You want to save her—not just because she's your friend. You love her. You always have."
Naruto flinched. "Shut up."
"Don't act like it's shameful. I hate the Uchiha as a rule, but you…" He paused. "You've always been different around her. Even when she wanted to kill you. You'd die for her. Again. No hesitation."
"I'm not in love with her," Naruto muttered, a little too fast.
"You're the world's worst liar."
He groaned and let himself fall backward on the futon, arm draped over his eyes.
"I'm not even sure what love is, alright?" he mumbled into the quiet. "All I know is—if they kill her, something inside me is gonna die too. I feel like I won't be able to breathe right anymore."
Kurama was silent again, but Naruto felt the fox's chakra settle low in his chest. Not hostile. Not mocking. Just… present.
Then Kurama said, quieter than Naruto ever heard him speak:
"Then marry her."
Naruto blinked. "What?"
"If all other roads lead to her death, and this one leads to her life… what are you still afraid of?"
Naruto's throat tightened.
Kurama snorted. "It won't be easy. You're both damaged. You're both stubborn. But if you really care about her… you'll make it work. Don't marry her because they told you to. Marry her because she's the one person you'd break the world for. Even if she breaks your heart in the end."
The room felt smaller suddenly. The words hit too hard. Naruto swallowed, fingers curling around the edge of his shirt.
"…You're really soft sometimes, y'know that?"
"Tch. Don't get used to it. Stupid monkey."
Naruto closed his eyes. The thoughts wouldn't stop swirling, but there was at least one thing he knew for sure now.
Whatever Sasuke decided tomorrow… it would decide everything.