#but yeah. in sincerity as far as his depression goes. he is not our sweetie perfect did no wrong but however

[lesbianraskolnikov]

I do appreciate our favorite book guy deeply and the ways i may project on him. Realistic written depiction of when all of this isnt so fun! And can make you unpleasant and nothings very fun... its downright embarrassing even

[faintblueivy]

Is she beautiful? - A borusara story Chapter - 3

Hello everyone! I’m back with the next chapter of ‘Is she beautiful?’ Previously, some of you were a bit upset with the ending of the last chapter, but I have done my best to correct that here. Let’s just say that I have put my heart and soul in this chapter!

Hope you like it!

It was beta-read by @roopshasil.

The first two chapters can be read here:-

Chapter -1

Chapter-2

Disclaimer: Naruto and its characters do not belong to me.

***

Chapter-3

Forgiving is hard

 "Sarada.“

Her mother’s soft voice floated through the closed door, sounding muffled.

“Go away, Mama!”

She buried her face deeper into the pillow trying to choke back her sobs.

“No honey. I’m coming in.”

The sound of the door opening and light footsteps approaching made her tense. But then, the loving pats on her head and the comforting presence and warmth of her mother calmed her down slightly. Sakura did not say anything. Knowing Sarada, trying to coax out a talk is not going to work. She knew that by now. Her daughter will not talk unless she is ready.

No words were exchanged before Sarada whispered in a broken voice, “Why did Papa say that? Does Papa think that bad of me?”

Sakura felt her heart crack at this.

No he doesn’t. If anything, he considers you to be the purest form of life in the entire messed up world he has lived in. It’s just that he’s too scared to imagine you making the same mistakes as him. He is scared to think the possibility of you getting so engrossed in your goals that you would voluntarily choose loneliness. But you, my child…you are not the one at fault here. He is. You’re not him. He’s just being paranoid.

There is so much Sakura wanted to tell her but she decided to refrain, because explaining the complications of Sasuke Uchiha’s life would require her daughter to be slightly older and a bit more mature, and not to mention, a bit more closer to her father. So, she tried to explain things as consisely as possible.

“Of course not silly. Papa would never think badly of you. It’s just that Sasuke-kun has never been a people’s person and has a hard time dealing with his feelings. And the other thing is that, I’ll be honest, he does not know you that well. He has been gone for far too long and is not sure how to behave around you and talk about your issues. He is awkward, I guess? And he is learning to how to be a father to you, so might make mistakes every now and then. I’m not asking you to forgive him, Sarada, I just need you to talk to him and tell him what you have in your heart. Will you do that, for Mama?”

Sarada nodded softly, her face still in the pillow, but after a while, got up, wiped her tears, removed her glasses, washed her face and put them back on. Sakura almost laughed at the look of pure determination on her daughter’s face.

It looks like you are heading out to face a battle, sweetie. Well, maybe it is, for you and your father. Don’t fail. Good luck, Sarada and Sasuke-kun.

Sakura watched her daughter’s back and wondered about the irony that despite wanting the best for their children, sometimes, parents do or say things that instead ends up in an opposite and disastrous way.

I’m sorry Sasuke-kun. You’re going to learn it the harder way.

….

He felt an overwhelming guilt gnawing at his conscience.

Maybe I was wrong? Maybe I should have phrased it differently? Maybe I should not have been that harsh?

There were so many maybes in Sasuke’s train of thoughts that regret almost swallowed him whole. He exhaled a deep breath and leant on the Sakura tree in the backyard of their house.

“Papa.”

His daughter’s voice startled him as he turned his head to look at her. Her red and puffy eyes behind the glasses reminded him again of his inappropriate and ruthless question.

“Sarada, look-”

He made an attempt to apologize and explain himself when she cut him off.

“Papa, we need to talk.”

She said this with so much assertiveness that he is simply able to nod, as she walked over to him and sat beside him and tucked her knees behind her arms. They sat there for a while in silence, not sure from where to start before Sasuke decided to speak out.

“I’m sorry, Sarada. I should not have said anything like that.”

His voice was sincere.

“No, Papa. I think that you might have been correct.”

Sasuke’s eyes widened at her words but she looked on straight ahead.

“After you said that, I found myself thinking about it, a-and I think you might have been correct. I mean, I do not want people to think that I supported Boruto’s unfair behaviour, but, then I also realised that this is just a small part of reason I am upset about this.”

Sasuke listened carefully, tilting his head to a side to let her know that she can continue.

“Papa, I-I am more upset about how people are behaving towards him now. They are talking about him behind his back, and yet loud enough for him to hear. They keep taunting him everywhere he goes. I understand that he has made some mistakes and should be punished appropriately, but he risked his life to make things right, too. Why can’t people see that?”

“I heard a few people saying that he must have cheated from the beginning to have such a good record. But I know that he didn’t. Yes, he is not exactly a hard worker and things come easy to him but they are now simply disregarding all his efforts and talents like they previously did just because he is the Hokage’s son. But now the only difference is that they call him a cheater.”

“He has courage and strength, he had stood up to protect me from those enemies even when he was as scared as well, he went to another dimension, putting his life on line to bring back his dad and even defeated a God to save everyone. Why can’t people see that?”

By the time she stopped talking, her fingers were digging into her arms making slight depressions. Sasuke had been watching his daughter intently for the entire span of time she was talking. Raising his only arm, he patted her head lovingly making her look up at him in surprise.

He said softly, “Sarada, people talk. The commoners, the ordinary citizens were not there to see him fighting Momoshiki. They were not there to see his courage or his adoration for his father. Actually, this world is a society of hypocrites. And there is no way out of it. He will have to learn to bear the consequences of his actions, and you and Mitsuki as well. And I’m so proud to have you, Sarada. I am proud of the fact that you are not going to abandon him.”

“Eh? Of course, I can’t. He is too much of an idiot to look after himself if I’m not around.” She said haughtily and Sasuke chuckled.

“But” the sadness in her voice made Sasuke look at her again, she continued, “I never imagined that he would actually do something like this. He did not even let me and Mitsuki know. It hurt. I am not sure why but I always thought that we were close enough for him to tell me everything. I guess, I was being overconfident with our friendship? He did not tell me, and I’m not even sure why and when we have drifted apart so much.” She smiled at him ruefully.

Sasuke found himself lamenting over about his own helplessness as a parent, knowing that the dilemma his daughter is struck in, that it is an argument between two friends, and a broken lifelong friendship is at stake. That this is an issue they have to solve by themselves without any outside interference.

He knew that Sarada has not been talking to Boruto. And this had been troubling him a lot. But the boy has pretty much apologized repeatedly but currently Sarada has refused to give him her forgiveness.

After all, forgiving is hard.

But fortunately, Sasuke also knew that if that kid is anything like his father, then he is not going to give up till his daughter accepts his apology and as much as he understands his daughter, then luckily for Boruto, he has got a soft spot in Sarada’s heart.

He smiled. A part of him was glad to have this conversation with Sarada. Now, he understood Sarada better, even if it was a fraction.

“Sasuke-kun, Sarada! Come inside! It’s dessert time!” Sakura’s melodious voice is loud enough from the inside of the house for them to hear and the young child beside him beamed as she jumped up and looked at him with barely contained glee.

“Come on, Papa! Let’s go!”

…

Sarada was in her pyjamas. She was so sleepy after the eventful day that she felt like she would crash into the bed and fall asleep within a minute. Her plans were ruined when there was a knock at her curtain covered balcony window.

“Sarada.”

A too familiar voice came, low enough that if she would have been sleeping, she would not have been disturbed.

Her feet moved before her mind could grasp at the situation. She slid the curtain away and came face to face with Boruto.

“What are you doing here, Boruto? It’s so late!” She whispered furiously.

He rubbed the back of his neck, a habit out of embarrassment.

“Yeah…you are right. It is late. I shouldn’t have come but I just wanted to say thank you for the candies. Hima was very happy. And um…well…”

“Well what?”

Sarada was not sure whether she was annoyed about his presence or at the fact that she was talking to him. Although, a part of her found it funny that he came here, in the middle of the night, just to thank her for some silly candies.

“Well…you know… I am really sorry about that…about everything that happened.” He whispered. His clear blue eyes were down cast, unable to look the girl, his childhood friend in the eyes - for breaking her trust on him, for deceiving her.

Sarada exhaled a deep sigh. If she did not have had that conversation with her Papa about this matter, she still would have ben mad at him or maybe…herself?

“Go home, Boruto. It’s getting really late. We will talk about it sometime later, okay?”

“Yeah, I probably should.” He smiled softly with melancholy. He turned towards the open balcony to leave.

“Hey!” She called out to him and smirked.

“What?” He looked back at her warily.

“Just because we had a conversation now doesn’t mean that I have forgiven you.”

He returned her smirk with a grin of his own.

“I know!” He yelled and jumped out of the balcony, leaving behind a smiling Sarada.

….

Cold wind whipped against his face and his golden bangs danced around as jumped from roof to roof. Although he would get into a lot of trouble if his mother found out that he had snuck out of the house so late. But he just wanted to have a talk with her.

And now that they had a talk, however as small as it was, it was still something. In fact, something is always better than nothing. Boruto grinned widely.

The victory grin was wiped off from his face when a familiar figure flickered in front of him. Boruto stopped hastily, almost crashing into the person. He looked up startled. The eyes, the same shade as his, stared down at him.

“Eh? D-dad? W-what are you doing here?” Boruto looked up at his father in panic.

“Should not I be the one asking you that? You’re lucky that this was one of the rare days when your mom was sleeping when I returned home or you would have gotten into a lot of trouble, boy.” Naruto stared at his son sternly.

Boruto gave his dad the best puppy eyes he could. It always used to work when he was a kid though he doubted its validity now.

“Don’t tell mom, please?”

Naruto smiled slightly, “Fine. But where were you?”

Boruto turned pink in embarrassment.

“I went to see Sarada, to say sorry, you know.”

Naruto turned pale immediately. He picked his son up and pokes and proded him fervently.

“H-hey! Dad what are you doing?!”

Boruto is hardly able to speak. He giggled, laughter threatening to burst out of his chest due to all the tickling. Naruto put Boruto down and grabbed him tightly.

“Sasuke did not hurt you, did he?”

“Eh? O-of course not! Why would he do that?”

“Thank god!” Naruto exclaimed.

“Dad! You didn’t answer my question.” The young kid pointed out again.

“Well, I don’t think I’ll like a little punk poking his head into my daughter’s room so late at night.” Naruto said nonchalantly.

Boruto turned pale. Naruto laughed and turned around with his back to his son and crouched down.

“Climb up!”

Boruto looked at his father in a nonplussed way.

“You’re giving me a piggy back ride? Don’t you think I am a bit old now for this?”

Despite saying this, Boruto was hardly able to control himself from grinning as he climbed up on his father’s back. Naruto returned his grin with a wide one of his own.

“Nope! Do you know I have seen Kakashi-sensei getting a piggy back ride, when he was, I think he was twenty nine back then?” Naruto told him.

“W-what?! Are you kidding me?! Old man Kakashi?!”

Boruto’s loud yell of astonishment made Naruto laugh harder as he remembered that scene.

And somewhere in Konoha, Kakashi sneezed.

“Looks like someone is talking about me.” He mused.

***

The balcony scene was a request from @roopshasil which I could not refuse. Actually, Sasuke being a hard parent is my personal headcanon. And sometimes things like this happen in real life too when parents make mistakes while handling their children. I felt that in accordance with Sasuke - Sarada situation since Sasuke does not know Sarada as well as Sakura does. That of course, does not mean that Sasuke loves her any less!

I am really excited to know your thoughts regarding this chapter! Please review!

Thank you!

See you again!

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