thefictionvixens Chapter 448 Before the Wedding
Chapter 448 Before the Wedding
In the Uchiha clan patriarch's residence, the lights in the study remained on all night.
The large Japanese-style desk was covered with all sorts of lists, patterns, invitation drafts, and sample books from various shops, and the air was filled with the faint scent of ink and paper.
Fugaku Uchiha and Mikoto Uchiha sat facing each other, the stack of documents between them almost blocking their view, but their pens never stopped writing, and they occasionally exchanged opinions in low voices. The atmosphere was busy but not anxious.
The realization that their daughter was finally getting married filled the parents with indescribable complex emotions.
Mikoto's feelings were particularly direct; joy welled up from the bottom of her heart, spreading to her eyes and lips. She wore a gentle yet excited smile throughout; she had waited so long for this day.
From the time when Satsuki stubbornly wielded a kunai as a child, to the time when she buried her obsession with Naruto deep in her heart as a girl and gradually revealed it, and now to the time when they finally got together... As a mother, she has witnessed all the emotional journeys her daughter has taken. How could she not be overwhelmed with emotion at this grand and perfect ending?
Thinking back to that day, when Satsuki, with an undisguised shyness and happiness, showed her the pure white kimono Naruto had made for her, along with the exquisitely designed wedding ring that shone with gold and sapphire, Mikoto's heart almost leaped with joy.
Those items, in terms of materials, craftsmanship, and the sentiment they conveyed, far surpassed those Fugaku had chosen for her own wedding. Although she and Fugaku were also in a free-love marriage, Fugaku, acting as the clan leader, inevitably brought a touch of the Uchiha's rigidity and formality to his choice of wedding items, emphasizing tradition and symbolism more than personal romance.
Like Naruto, incorporating colors that represent certain meanings into wedding ring designs truly touched a soft and longed-for corner of Mikoto's heart. It made her feel incredibly happy for her daughter, yet she couldn't help but feel a faint, uncomplaining envy for the past.
The preparations are numerous and complex, including finalizing the guest list and assigning seating levels, planning security measures from the shrine to the banquet venue on the wedding day, selecting the bride's accessories, choosing the flowers and styles for the venue decorations, finalizing the banquet menu and drinks, and even arranging entertainment programs...
Every single matter required careful consideration and decision-making from the elders. And this was only part of what the Uchiha family needed to worry about. On the in-laws' side, Kushina Uzumaki and Minato Namikaze were equally busy—writing invitations, planning their honeymoon itinerary and arrangements, discussing the details of decorating the bridal chamber…
Both sets of elders were determined to make the wedding as perfect as possible.
Despite being busy, everyone except Fugaku Uchiha seemed to be enjoying themselves.
Fugaku sat upright behind his desk, his back ramrod straight. His face remained expressionless, devoid of the sadness and reluctance of a daughter's marriage, nor any obvious excitement or agitation. Only a faint sigh, a reflection born of the passage of time, remained.
He was currently finalizing the guest list for the most important main table. The main table symbolized the core connection and recognition within a family. He picked up his pen and meticulously wrote down the names.
Fugaku Uchiha, Mikoto Uchiha, Minato Namikaze, and Kushina Uzumaki.
The pen paused here, and then he solemnly added another name: Umino Iruka.
This was Naruto's teacher during his student days, who provided Naruto with care like a teacher and a father during those difficult years when Kushina and Minato both "passed away".
...Zuoyue is getting married.
The thought resurfaced, causing Fugaku's fingers, gripping the pen, to tighten slightly.
The stubborn and indomitable little daughter has finally found her own home and is leaving the "Uchiha" family where she was born and raised to build a new family with Naruto.
Suddenly, Fugaku's brows furrowed even more as he thought of a more practical question: after getting married, should Satsuki... change her surname to "Uzumaki"?
According to social tradition, it is common practice for a woman to take her husband's surname after marriage. Given Naruto and Sasuke's current relationship, and Sasuke's undisguised and obsessive possessiveness and devotion to Naruto, she probably wouldn't have any objection to this, and might even be eager to do so.
Fugaku felt it was unrealistic to ask Satsuki to keep the "Uchiha" surname, and it might not suit his daughter's wishes.
The Uchiha bloodline and pride are not merely tied to a surname. However... the thought of carrying on the legacy still lingers in his heart.
He pondered for a moment and decided to find an opportunity later to subtly bring up the matter to Naruto, asking if, if they had children in the future, they could consider having one of them inherit the "Uchiha" surname.
Suppressing the thought for the moment, Fugaku continued writing. Behind the main table was the adjacent "Teacher and Friend Table." He wrote fluently there.
Jiraiya (Naruto's teacher, the Fifth Hokage), Kakashi Hatake (Team 7's mentor), Sakura Haruno (Team 7's teammate), Gaara (Naruto's best friend, the Fifth Kazekage).
Further on is the "Special VIP Seat," with an even longer list that includes many of Naruto and Satsuki's classmates and friends from their school days, as well as teachers who had a significant impact on their growth: Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Choji, Sarutobi Asuma, Sarutobi Konohamaru (and the accompanying Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen), Rock Lee, Might Guy...
The pen tip dances across the paper, and names fall one by one onto the paper.
"husband……"
Suddenly, Mikoto's gentle voice interrupted Fugaku's thoughts. He looked up and noticed that the bright, joyful smile on his wife's face had faded somewhat, replaced by a faint layer of unease and sadness. She stopped writing, her gaze drifting aimlessly to a point in the distance.
"Satsuki... probably won't allow it."
Mikoto's voice carried a hint of uncertain hope, mixed with the sadness of already knowing the answer.
Fugaku paused for a moment, then put down his pen. "...Satsuki won't allow it." He spoke slowly and calmly. "There's nothing we can do about it."
He knew perfectly well what Mikoto was talking about. It was about the name that remained vacant on the ever-growing guest list, at the upcoming wedding destined to be filled with laughter and blessings—the name of their other child—Uchiha Itachi.
The eldest daughter who chose to betray her family, kill her own relatives, and was ultimately forced to live abroad.
"Yes..." Mikoto lowered her head, her voice even more dejected, "She... has never forgiven Itachi."
This is an unspoken consensus. Inviting Itachi Uchiha to the wedding? The very idea carries a cruel naiveté.
Regardless of Itachi's current whereabouts, there's absolutely no way he could get past Satsuki. Mentioning that name during the most important and happiest moment of Satsuki's life, even just a tentative inquiry, would be like rubbing salt into a wound that hasn't fully healed—an absolute taboo that would be unacceptable.
Seeing his wife's dejected expression, Fugaku felt a pang of pain in his heart. How could he not miss his eldest daughter, who had once been so outstanding that she made him proud, yet ultimately walked a path he could not fully understand?
But that's the reality: the family tragedy, the children's choices, and the chasm of time have already severed many possibilities.
"...That's true...she has never forgiven Itachi." Mikoto repeated the sentence, as if trying to convince herself to accept this helpless reality.
She took a deep breath, trying to suppress her disappointment, and when she looked up again, she forced a gentle but slightly strained smile.
"However," her gaze regained its firmness and maternal glow, "it's okay. I'll take more videos and more photos... I'll record every detail clearly: how Satsuki looks in her white kimono, how Naruto puts the ring on her finger, how they exchange vows, and everyone's smiling faces at the banquet."
"Later...maybe one day, when things are different...I can show these to her. Let her know that her sister has finally found happiness. Our Satsuki is married."
As Mikoto spoke, tears welled up in her eyes, but behind those tears lay an all-encompassing maternal love and expectation. She knew the road ahead might be long, and hope might be slim, but she was willing to preserve this complete joy, leaving a gentle window for the absent child and for any impossible reconciliation in the future.
Fugaku looked at his wife quietly, without saying anything, but simply reached out and gently squeezed Mikoto's hand across the desk piled with documents.