Epilogue: Happily Ever After
And so, the happy couple had a beautiful wedding on the coast of the sea with the sun setting, casting wondrous rays of red, pink, and purple into the evening sky. And for an even bigger surprise, the bride’s mother was able to attend the wedding because her health had been steadily improving.
After the wedding, the couple went on a two week honeymoon in a far off land while the bride‘s mother watched over their ten month old son. It was during the honeymoon that they conceived their second child, a beautiful baby girl named Kasara.
“Is that me, mommy?” asked the three year old girl, who, conveniently, had the same name as the baby girl in the story.
Sakura smiled. “Yes, it is. Now, please go to sleep, or I’ll have your father come in and make you go to sleep.”
Kasara squealed in delight at their little game and shoved her head under her covers with stray strands of pink hair peeking out from underneath. She peeked her onyx colored eyes out from under her sheets to look up at her mother.
Sakura leaned in and kissed her daughter good night before heading to the door and turning out the light. “Sleep tight, Kasara.” She shut the door gently behind her before she moved on to her five and a half year old son‘s, Hari’s, room.
“Hey, sport,” Sakura found him in his bathroom that adjoined his room brushing his teeth. “You about ready for bed?”
“In a sec, mom. Dad says I need to go for at least a minute,” Hari replied as he used his clock to count the seconds. Sasuke was sitting on the bathtub watching him
“Your dad’s a smart one,” Sakura smiled at her husband as she leaned up against the doorframe of the bathroom.
Sasuke grinned as he got up and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. “I better go tell Kasara good night.”
“She’s waiting for you.”
As soon as Hari was finished, he ran into his room and jumped on his bed. Sakura joined him, leaning up against the bed frame.
“Mom, when is Uncle Naruto and Aunt Hinata coming over? I want to play with Hiro and Akito,” Hari asked.
“Naruto‘s family, Neji‘s family, Shikamaru‘s family, Ino‘s family, and everyone else is coming over tomorrow for the BBQ, remember?” She ruffled his raven black hair as she kissed him on the forehead.
“Ugh, Mom, that’s not cool. I’m almost six. Six year olds don’t get kisses from their mommy,” Hari said through the giggles.
“Then I have a few more months to give you as many kisses as I can.” She grabbed him and ran kisses over his head while tickling his sides. He giggled and screamed before she would let up. “Now, go to sleep. You’ve got a big day tomorrow.”
“Who wants more?” asked Sakura as she passed out the plates of food. Squeals of delight could be heard from in the yard as the parents watched their kids run around. It was a good thing Sakura had moved in with Sasuke at the Uchiha compound, there was a lot more room for all the kids.
“Me!” Naruto raised his hand before coming up to grab his third helping. “That last mission has me starved.”
Sakura shook her head as Sasuke came up from behind and wrapped his arms around her waist and said to Naruto, “Doesn’t Hinata feed you at home?”
Naruto grinned as he took a seat next to his wife and wrapped his arm around her, digging into his food with his free hand.
“So, Naruto, would you tell us what you called us all here for? I’m dying to know,” Ino wined.
“She’s not kidding, either,” Choji explained. “She’s been driving me nuts, trying to get me to tell her, and I don’t know what it is!”
Sakura chuckled. That was just like Ino.
“Well, as you know, Grandma Tsunade is getting a little old. She wrote up a will about a week ago, and in that will…” Naruto paused for a dramatic effect. “She announced me as her successor!”
“Oh, Naruto, that’s wonderful!” Sakura squealed as she jumped on him to hug him. “This has been your dream since you were a kid. I’m so proud of you! I can’t believe you made it!” Sakura cried.
“He’s been working so hard, I wasn’t surprised,” Hinata beamed with pride.
“Oh, I bet Hiro is just so proud of his dad!” Tenten said. “He’s been talking about that’s what he wants to be when he grows up, a Hokage.”
“He’s got the potential. He’s been hanging out with me more than he has with Naruto, so chances are, he’ll make it,” Sasuke teased.
“Hey,” Naruto shot him a glare, though a playful one.
“And to add to the excitement, Hinata just found out she’s pregnant,” Sakura added. As Hinata’s doctor, Sakura was the first to find out, even Naruto didn’t know, but she couldn’t hold it in any longer. Hinata blushed a fierce red as everyone congratulated her and Naruto while Naruto just sat there and stared at his wife, unable to move. Once he found his composure, he leaned in and kissed Hinata passionately, sending her face to redden even more.
“Well, as long as we are all sharing good news, Neji was promoted in the ANBU rank. Now, he’s first in command!” Tenten exclaimed excitedly. Neji beamed as everyone clapped him on the back.
“Ya, well Gaara is finally marrying someone!” Temari cut in. “She’s a woman from a very prestigious clan. They are to be wed in six months!”
“No way!” Choji said. “Gaara? He has a heart?”
Temari punched him in the shoulder. “His fiancé is pregnant too!”
“Wow, that’s great!” Kiba nodded. “But, speaking of pregnancies, I just found out Kim’s pregnant too!” Kiba had married the girl from his work a few years back, a year after Sasuke and Sakura’s wedding.
“Oh, we’re so happy for you guys. Too bad she couldn’t make it,” Sakura smiled. “And, I have my own news. I’m pregnant again!”
“What?” Sasuke’s head snapped to his wife’s so fast he had whiplash. Sakura had not shared this piece of information with him. “How long have you known?”
“About a week. I’m three months along,” Sakura replied sheepishly. She didn’t know how she had been able to keep it a secret for so long. But, she was happy and proud.
“Anyone else have something they want to share?” asked Naruto asked.
Everyone laughed.
“You know, our lives may not have been easy, but it sure turned out great, didn’t it?” Sakura said absently.
“What do you mean?” asked Ino.
“Well, think about it. We all had our ups and downs. You know. How I hated Sasuke for so long, and now we are happily married with two kids and one on the way. I know you, Ino, didn’t exactly get butterflies in your stomach when you saw Choji before we graduated. Hinata’s shyness and Naruto’s obliviousness prevented them from being together for so long. Neji’s pride was so big, he couldn’t see around it to Tenten. Kiba was sort of a loner, and Shikamaru was just too lazy to care about anything. Whereas now, everyone is happily settled down with the perfect life.”
Everyone nodded.
Sasuke wrapped his arms around Sakura and squeezed her shoulders gently, kissing her lightly on her forehead, taking in the strawberry scent from her shampoo. Everyone seemed to cling to their spouses as they thought about what Sakura had just said.
Just then, all the kids ran up and jumped on their parents’ laps. Kiba got up, disappeared into the house, and reappeared with Sakura’s new camera. Setting the timer, he ran into group before the picture was taken.
He glanced at the image displayed on the screen. “I know what we can call our lives,” Kiba said.
“What’s that?”
“A fairy tale.”
“With a happy ending.”
THE END!!!!!!!!!
Oh, the end. I’m sad, for I really enjoyed writing this story. I just hope you all enjoyed reading it. Please comment so that I know if you all like it!
