A crinkle of dusty brown paper under dried, pale fingers. Sasuke whispered in the deep recesses of a cave, reading the parchment one faded character at a time. Under two hundred feet of rock, dwelled a burial chamber filled with hidden manuscripts from the times of the first Hokage of Konohagakure, including many research materials and ancient body charts filled with information pertaining to none other than the single most dangerous weapon in the ninja world, the ten-tails. A monstrous being that once ravaged the world, subdued by a man of the name Hagoromo and separated into nine pieces. What Sasuke knew of this beast and it's history was bordering on everything, or so he thought. Upon stumbling on this secret chamber, he had come across a secret left by Hagoromo himself, one that he made the future descendants of the known world swear to protect. It was a secret that if stumbled upon by the wrong person, could lead to the world's demise. This secret that was hidden inside the burial chamber of the first Hokage was found by none other than the Uchiha, and with each passing line, his surprise increased. Once finished reading every last entry, he reclined against the stone wall. A hot sigh, and a gleam in his eye, and the wheels of his mind turning over the new information. A smirk played at his lips, he chuckled out of dry humor.

"This could get interesting."


~Two Months Later~

"What the hell were you thinking Naruto!" Sakura shouted behind the Uzumaki. Naruto was practically flying above the roof tops, but it didn't surprise him that he would still be late. Nonetheless he raced on to the village gate. He was hoping that his old time sensei would be late, just like old times! It was too much to hope for that Sai would be late-Naruto was pretty sure that wasn't even in his vocabulary-and Sakura was perfectly capable of being timely, enough so to check on Naruto and make sure he didn't sleep in...again. I just don't know what it is, he thought, I've just been wiped for the past two weeks. I probably get twelve solid hours of sleep each night! Naruto kept pondering over his unusual sleeping habits, even when he had greeted Kakashi-sensei and Sai. The group was exchanging pleasantries before they all exited the gates. Sai inquired as to how Naruto was holding up. They all could tell he had been a bit run down from the last couple weeks. Naruto laughed off his concern, but still held the question in his head. Was he really holding up well?

Besides the down-right ridiculous sleeping patterns, Naruto's body seemed to be functioning wrong. His senses felt heightened or something. If there was a slight breeze, Naruto felt the chill straight to his bones. If it was even slightly warm outside, Naruto's body sweated like it was sweltering. At random moments his hearing would become so sensitive he could hear the puffs of breath from his teammate training a good distance away. Sometimes his eyesight would blur beyond comprehension, making the lines in his vision blob and bubble together. He would shake his head till his vision returned to normal. Sometimes his head would fluff up, and he would nearly pass out. There were one too many times when Naruto had swayed and staggered, but managed to hook onto something before falling over. He'd get weak-kneed, tongue-tied, random cravings, and even that. It was the first time when that happened to him, that he decided to see Baa-chan about his improper bodily functions. Although Tsunade was all-wise in her medical expertise, she saw nothing wrong with Naruto and left the cause of Naruto's abnormalities to stress. Naruto still felt off, but accepted the diagnosis nonetheless. Ever since then, he's been shortening his training, and engaging in non-stressful activities-such cooking classes, meditation, and hot baths. The stuff seemed to work on everything but his sleeping.

Like clockwork this morning, Naruto still managed to oversleep, and was met with a very angry Sakura pounding on his door. He had rushed through breakfast, his shower, and the process of changing, but by some stroke of luck he had managed to pack for the mission the night before. Which was why he had arrived at the gates with two minutes to spare. However, since the usual recap of the mission at hand was unnecessary for our accomplished ninja, they proceeded in with the escort mission. Naruto recalled Shizune's presentation of the B-rank mission from a week ago.

This mission is relatively simple and would be easy enough to be labeled as C-rank, but to ensure that the hospitality and respect the leaders of the Gyojinma Village expect, we must act as though it is grave importance to us that they return home safely. You will be taking a week and a half long trip, escorting the prime minister of Gyojima Village back to the Land of Rivers. You will meet up with their own personal guard at the border, and then return home. The only real threat to his safety, is that there are some relatively important documents being exchanged between our village and theirs. The prime minister will be taking these documents back to his village to do some editing, revising, and-in the near future- signing. While I don't have the clearance to divulge what those documents hold, I can ensure that they are not the type of thing you want to end up in the wrong person's hand. Nonetheless, I'm sure it won't be too much for you to handle. Other than the threat of a rival village, there shouldn't be anyone else trying to attack you.

From then, the group had decided what the lineup for the mission would be. Sai and Naruto would tail the carriage-yes this man was equipped with a carriage-Sakura would lead in the front, and Kakashi would be lookout from above. At first Naruto objected to being in the back with Sai-the guy was unbelievably creepy-but as he waited for the Prime Minister and his lackeys to arrive, he figured that Sai was simply the best option. At least with Sai, he could get some proper silence to get lost in his thoughts. Sai would be way too focused on the mission to even start a conversation with Naruto, even if it had to do with the mission at hand. It was then that Naruto noticed that the rest of the troop had arrived. The Prime Minister was decked out in a relatively bright blue carriage the color of the sky. Not only was it embellished by little gold, jingling trinkets, but there was a pretty impressive red flag to complete the whole ensemble.

"It's like he wants to get targeted?" Sakura murmured into Naruto's ear. Naruto flinched, startling Sakura.

"Naruto are you sure you're okay?" Naruto gave a weary smile, this time not sure if he would be able to laugh off this one. Naruto had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach, and he couldn't shake off the unusual nerves in his system. He felt like something was coming for him. Something that he may not really want to meet.

"I hope so." he answered.


Kakashi skimmed through his book, every so often glancing up and enacting his sharingan to scan the area. Just like before, no life forms of chakra had been detected other than those in Kakashi's team, and the guards that the Prime Minister was traveling with.

"Damn." He whispered. Kakashi had skipped the page he was on for the third time. Going back to the beginning of the chapter, he skimmed through to the page he left off at. It was the climax of the erotic fantasy novel he was addicted to reading at the moment. The antagonist was holding captive the protagonist's lover, and with each passing day during her captivity, the women fell less in love with the protagonist, and more in love with the sadistic antagonist. In the chapter, Kakashi hadn't been able to finish the sex scene between the two. It was bordering on panicky that Kakashi had been too busy lately to finish the story. Especially when he only had three more chapters to go before the end of the book. Kakashi did another sweep of the woods, and something caught his eye. Naruto's chakra was behaving strangely. At random moments it would dim, and fade out almost completely, as if Naruto had no chakra at all. Then, it would flare up in great huge bursts, like there was so much chakra that couldn't be repressed. Kakashi watched the Uzumaki's expression, but it neither faltered nor reacted. It was as if Naruto was completely oblivious to his misbehaving chakra. Naruto just stared ahead, glassy eyes and all. Now that Kakashi thought about it, Naruto had been off for a while now. He hadn't spoken very much that morning, and he seemed almost sluggish. Kakashi knew about his weird sleeping habits as of lately, but if anything Naruto should have been bouncing with energy after all the rest he's been getting. Kakashi would approach him about it the next time the carriage stopped to set up camp. Now, back to his story...

"Damn it!" He whispered. He'd done it again.


Sakura trudged through the undergrowth of the forest, amazed at how a simple escort mission could turn into a tedious babysitting job. The Prime Minister had insisted on taking this so called "shortcut" through the forest to get back to his village rather than the leveled, dirt main road. No, he just had to be difficult, and spend every thirty minutes stopping the carriage to give the horses a rest. Every thump from the wheels over a tree root or a small bush had Sakura grinding her teeth. Now Sakura understood why the trip would be a week and a half. With this pace, it would take them a week just to get to their destination. Sakura figured that if anyone were to strike, they'd have plenty of time on their hands since the carriage wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. When the carriage was moving again, Sakura retook her position in the front, walking with a sense of purpose. Not ten minutes later, she was asked by a guard to stop and wait, because the carriage had to move slowly over a rather lumpy space of land. Sakura's patience was wearing thin, very fast. She had already tried to nicer approach of suggesting that the minister simply walk along with the escorts, while his personal guards trail behind with the carriage, but he dismissed the idea as soon as Sakura had bothered to open her mouth. The Prime Minister was known to be a sexist, and had made this pretty clear the minute he had laid eyes on Sakura.

"You assigned a women to this job? Are you sure that she is even capable of protecting anything. In my village, a woman's place is kept in the homes doing the cooking, cleaning, and child raising, not running around playing heroine. I would deeply prefer professionals for this kind of thing." Sakura kept her bright smile up, but was squeezing her fist tightly. Sakura's anger was swelling to the point of overflowing. Shoving down her scathing insult to fire back at him, she simply nodded her head in response and turned away.

"Incompetence has it's limits. If this idiot had bothered to dwell on the practicality of this mission rather than the luxury and exuberance of his supposed status, then we would have covered significant ground in the past five hours, rather than a measly eight miles. Please make it known to your minister that we ninja have our own schedules to keep to, and if he really is concerned for his own safety, he would leave the stupid carriage and walk like he actually has a place to be or take the damn main road!" The guard looked her up and down scathingly. Scoffing off her comment, he turned away, disregarding her completely. If Sakura had one more bigot disrespect her authority, she would not be held accountable to whose head she bashed in first. Sakura took a deep breath, letting her frustration out in hot, heavy puffs of air. She needed a distraction. Badly.

Sakura looked back, seeing Naruto sitting on one of the tree trunks behind the carriage. He looked just as annoyed as Sakura felt. Sakura really did feel bad for Naruto. During the recent training sessions they had had, he was forced to end them short. He's just been more and more exhausted lately. One moment he'll be fine, the next, it's as if he just ran all the way around the land of fire. Naruto had already told her about the check-up with Tsunade, but Sakura-despite all her respect and adoration for Tsunade- felt that she had misdiagnosed Naruto. Something really was wrong with him. This sluggish, spastic, weak version of Naruto was not stress-induced. There's something in Naruto that's causing this, she just needs to figure out what. As soon as they set camp-which by her calculations would be very soon-she would confront Naruto about it again.

"If her royal pain in the ass would please start moving, we are a bit pressed for time, as you so stated. I do believe you were the one that was supposed to be leading to group." The guard smirked when Sakura growled at him.

"So be it, sexist bastards the lot of ya." Sakura stomped ahead, forgetting about Naruto for the time being.


It was late into the night now, when the Prime Minister finally decided it would be a proper time to set up camp. While his guards began unpacking his tent supplies, the rest of the group set up a small fire in the center, and others put up their shabby tents as well. Naruto was reclining against a tree, gazing up at the moon. It was nearly full, just a few more nights and it would be full. Naruto loved to watch the moon when he was awake. Ever since the whole sleeping fiasco, he was out by seven o'clock each night. Somehow, it's eerie brightness settled the unrest in Naruto's stomach. He felt the moon pull him in, inviting him to a secret place, one that's hidden away from the world. Naruto laughed dryly. There was no such thing as a hidden place, no solace like that exists. Especially one that let's him forget about everything. Naruto didn't know why, but at that moment, the moon reminded him of Sasuke.

Maybe because both of them only ever shined in the darkness, or that both of them gave off that gaping, empty, ominous vibe. Maybe it was because much like the moon, Sasuke had a habit of pulling people to him, then pushing them far far away. No matter what it was that made Naruto think that way, he needed to stop. Sasuke was an entirely different problem to be dealt with. Naruto had long accepted that getting Sasuke back would take a very long time. And Naruto only had a limited amount of time to devote to the Uchiha's cause. Nonetheless, Naruto moved on with his life, trying to put off that task until he had the physical ability, and the emotional strength to deal with it. Until then, Sasuke would wait. Now whether the Uchiha knew that or not was another story. Naruto smiled wearily, just imagining how Sasuke would have taken that thought.

"Me? Wait on you? Don't insult me dobe. I don't need help from an insignificant low life usuratonkachi."

Naruto went from chuckling, to outright laughing. He tried to stop, but every time he would remember something else about Sasuke -things he said, mistakes he made, situations he got caught in- that had him leaning over with laughter. When Naruto had finally calmed down, he felt that warm fuzzy feeling in his stomach after a good laugh. He felt good, and let out a contented sigh. Yeah, those were the good ol' days alright. Such a shame how things had changed. Naruto thought on about the old days, when they weren't broken apart, when they were still just "Team Seven". Naruto still had that photo they took together on his nightstand. Every so often he would look at it, wondering when it all went to hell. Sometimes Naruto would think it was when he fought Sasuke at Valley of the End when they were still just chunin. He still blames himself for not being strong enough to bring him back, but sometimes Naruto thinks it started even before that. Sometimes Naruto thinks it started in the chunin exams, during the Forest of Death, when Sasuke had been cursed by Orochimaru. It was that mark on Sasuke that marked his change from good to evil. It was only a matter of time before he truly chose the dark side. But even then, there was something always off about Sasuke, like he was haunted. Now Naruto knows that he was. He was haunted by the tragedies of his past, and the death that surrounded him. Regardless of what it was, Sasuke is what he is, and it's only up to Naruto to try and change that.

And change that he would, he made a promise to himself that he would not rest till Sasuke came home. And this time it would be for good. Feeling this sense of motivation, Naruto pushed himself off the tree. Naruto knew that the only way he would get closer to saving Sasuke would be by training. And the only way he could train was if he got this stupid mission done and over with. Needless to say, Naruto had just about had it with the Prime Minister and his eccentricities. The stupid carriage was slowing them down, and the constant stop-and-go patten was driving him nuts. What was even worse was that even though there was a paved road not a few hundred yards away, the guy still chose to ride through this mess. And whenever you try to reason with the guy, it was like pulling teeth. Naruto had just about outright fought the man on many occasions during the ride. Had it not been for Kakashi and Sai holding him back, somebody would have been unconscious for most of the mission and woken up with a sizable bump on his head. How Naruto just wished to wring the bastards little neck till-

"Naruto!" Sakura cried. Naruto looked up abruptly, his foot hovering mid step. He stopped, and turned to face a pretty ticked off Sakura.

"Naruto, we need to talk. Now." Sakura stomped over to him, and grabbed his arm. She yanked him a good distance away into the underbrush. Sakura took a deep breath, getting her bearings before she spoke. At first she started to open her mouth, but closed it right after. This pattern went on for another minute. It wasn't until Naruto broke the silence that she really had something to say.

"Um, Sakura? Don't you have something to tell me?" He asked. Sakura took another deep breath. She lifted her head, and looked him head on.

"Look Naruto, there's something wrong with you. I don't think it's what Tsunade diagnosed, I think it's more. You need to tell me now if there's something you're hiding. Did you take anything recently? Did you get hit by some jutsu that's making you act like this? It just doesn't add up, this is beyond weird and I need to know right now if you-"

"Woa, woa, woa. Hold up Sakura, what makes you think I'm lying? I was serious about what I said the first time I told you. I really have no idea what the hell's wrong with me. Everything just started up randomly two weeks ago. That's it okay? I wasn't hit by any weird jutsu unless it was when I was unconscious or had my memory erased after it happened, but you heard Baa-chan. She would have been able to detect if any memories had been tampered with. There was nothing, she said my chakra was perfectly normal. What I told you was the absolute truth." Well, thought Naruto, not the complete truth, there is that, but I doubt I'll ever tell her something like that.

Sakura pursed her lips, not really accepting the answer, but not having anything to rebuttal, she let it go. Naruto huffed, glad that the interrogation was over. They walked back together in silence, each lost in their own thoughts.

Kakashi called out to them, "Naruto, Sakura, dinner's ready. Sai managed to catch some fish, so we had them grilled. I think this coupled with our non-perishables will do nicely." Sakura smiled again, as she came closer to the fire. Naruto took the skewered fish offered by Sai and sat down to eat. They dug in for their meal, relishing in the relatively warm and starry night. It was when they were all huddled together that Naruto felt closer to them, even when everyone felt so far away. However, it was in the back of Naruto's mind when he felt like someone was watching him. He would look back every so often, but was met with the same empty sight. Even when Naruto went to sleep, he still felt a pair of eyes on him. He managed to stay awake for another two hours past his usual bed time, but still had an unrestful sleep that night.

As their journey went on, the dense, bumpy forest gradually gave way to flatter, grassy plains and meadows. They finally were making some headway on ground cover, and they were closing in on the fifth day. Although, every now and then the minister would want to stop just because it got too hot, or he wanted to get some light exercise. Despite this, they were close to their destination, and then it would be easy going back to Konoha. Sakura had managed to hold her temper for majority of the mission, and much to her surprise, they hadn't been attacked yet. Sakura began to let her guard down. Little did she know just how big of a mistake that would be.

It was toward the evening of the fifth day when it happened. They were going down a steep hill that would lead into the marshland, when Sai felt a disturbance. Kakashi noticed it too, a new life form had appeared a couple hundred yards away. On alert, he made a motion down below to Sakura. Sai was focusing on where it was coming, then poof! It was gone just like that. Sai looked around suspiciously. It couldn't have just disappeared, now where are you coming next? Kakashi called down to Sakura.

"Stop." he said. Immediately they all stopped moving. After two beats, the minister whined from inside.

"Why have we stopped moving! I have places to be thank you." It was then that they were attacked all at once. It went from just one person detected to a whole squad of ninja coming from everywhere. The guards immediately formed a small huddle around the carriage. The ninja were fast and accurate, taking out most of the minister's personal guards within the first minute. Coming on to a disadvantage, team 7 began rapidly forming clones to help occupy the sheer numbers. Sakura and Kakashi took care of the front area, and were relatively successful in taking down enemy after enemy. Sakura's brute strength and precision combined with Kakashi's accuracy and bukijutsu, they made quick work of the ninja they faced. What they didn't know, and what Sai picked up on was that this was all a distraction. The real purpose in this happened to be in the back, facing off another ninja-one that he thought he wouldn't be seeing for a while.

When the ninja had attacked, Sai ignored them, waiting for the real "star of the show" to make an appearance. He was right of course, a second after the attack started, Sai sensed the presence. It was coming in fast, and it was coming in Naruto's direction. Using his beast mimicry technique, he blocked the incoming force from crashing feet first into Naruto's back. Naruto was pushed out of the way, landing on the upper branch of a tree. The force however, exploded the ink clones Sai made, and was calmly standing on a tree below. He stared blankly up at Naruto, and when their eyes met, Naruto's mouth dropped. It's Sasuke, he thought, Oh my God it's Sasuke! While Sai's own surprise wore off quickly, Naruto stood there just gawking at Sasuke. Without any indication, Sasuke launched himself at Naruto again. Just like before, Sai deflected Sasuke and pushed Naruto farther away from the group. When Naruto still didn't react, Sai called out to him.

"Naruto! Get yourself together, we're in the middle of a battle." Naruto shook off his shock, but it was too late. Sai couldn't block Sasuke's next attack, and he was already preoccupied with the other ninja. He could only watch out of the corner of his eye as Sasuke brutally beat Naruto left and right. It started out with just a knee to the stomach, but in midair as Naruto fell over, he had the back of his head stomped down. The momentum flipped him over the branch and made him fall. Sasuke didn't let up, and charged for him. Naruto used his substitution jutsu in an attempt to trick Sasuke, but not even a second after the jutsu ended, Sasuke launched a kunai knife in a random direction. The kunai landed right in Naruto's palm, pinning his hand to the base of a tree. Naruto cried out when his hand was impaled, and gritting his teeth, yanked it out. Blood spurted from the wound, dripping down Naruto's arm. Naruto had one split second before the next impact came. He head was smashed into the tree again, then continually battered from left to right. Six on the right, seven on the left, and an uppercut to finish it off. Naruto's head was bleeding now, and he was dizzy. Sasuke swung a full 360, and kicked Naruto off the branch, sending him spiraling to the left. While he was spiraling, Naruto got his bearings enough to land on his feet on the side of the tree. Sasuke was right behind him again, but this time Naruto was ready.

They engaged in hand to hand combat, firing out kunai, shuriken, bombs, needles, and wire. It was a constant blur of where each one was. There was a constant barrage of clinks of metal on metal. Projectiles were deflected into countless directions, littering the trees and ground. The more they fought, the farther away Naruto was pushed from the rest of the group. He's trying to isolate me, he thought. Naruto tried a different maneuver, using a few of his clones to direct his attention elsewhere. Sasuke used his sharingan and saw where the real Naruto was going. Shooting out a line of fire, he blocked Naruto from that direction. Naruto countered by using substitution again and trying a different route. This one was directly above Sasuke, so Naruto dropped paper bombs attached to kunai down on top of him. Sasuke launched his own set of kunai to deflect these, and succeeded in landing a hit to Naruto's side. Naruto took the blow but it gave him the break he needed get around Sasuke. Naruto took this chance and ran with it, literally. Naruto was sprinting across the tree tops to get away from Sasuke. He dodged as many projectiles as he could as Sasuke threw them from behind. Naruto was so close, he just had to get to where Sai was again, and he would be safe.

Naruto saw his team up ahead, Kakashi and Sakura were with Sai now, and they were racing to help Naruto. He began to smile with relief, he was safe. He was bleeding profusely, he was exhausted, and his symptoms were starting to resurface. He could feel the strength leaving his legs as he jumped from branch to branch. Naruto didn't see Sasuke pass under him, but felt it when he felt the sudden force push him up. Naruto felt a hard pop and the base of his neck, and the consciousness left him as his world faded into darkness.

Sasuke caught Naruto's limp body, and folded it over his shoulder as he landed. Sakura watched with fear as Sasuke slung Naruto's body around. Then her fear morphed into anger. She couldn't believe that after all this time, Sasuke shows up, and takes away the one person she really cares about. No matter what happened in the past, this she would never forgive him for this. She growled out.

"Sasuke, I swear on everything important to me, if you kill him, the next body they find dead in the road will be yours." Sasuke turned his bored expression to her. His frown morphed into a smirk, and he retorted.

"And what exactly do you plan to do? I've come for what I need, and nothing more. You couldn't even land a hit on me even with Kakashi and that freak you have next to you, so don't waste my time trying. I'm done here." And before anyone could react, Sasuke disappeared.


Naruto woke up in a cave of some kind. It was dark outside, nearly midnight by the height of the moon. At first, he felt fuzzy about his memories of how he got there, but then they flooded his mind all at once. The mission, the ambush, Sasuke, the fight, and the darkness. The sudden onrush was too much for Naruto's head, and he keeled over. When he got his bearings again, his stomach began heaving. He raced to a corner of the cave and threw up the contents of his stomach. When he had got that out of his system, he wobbly made his way to the front of the cave. At the opening, Naruto peered up into the sky. He was met with the fullness of the moon and the endless stars. Naruto felt as if the sky was going to swallow him up. He looked down over the edge of the cave, and was meet with a drop so long he got vertigo. Naruto collapsed back into the cave, rubbing his hands over his face and neck. He was bordering on panic. Naruto knew something was definitely wrong with him now. He had virtually no strength in his arms and legs, his head was as stuffed up as the stuffed animals in his room, he felt hot to the touch, but his insides felt cold. He didn't think he would be able to muster up enough chakra to scale down the wall, so that left no options on getting down. Naruto didn't even think he could formulate a proper thought, let alone speak. His tongue was heavy in his mouth, his breath erratic and shallow. He just kept asking himself why Sasuke brought him here. What does he want with me, why did he bring me here, is he going to kill me or something?

Naruto's thoughts were interrupted by a noise outside the cave. Cautiously, he crawled behind some of the rock-bed protruding from the right side. He peered through a split in the rock, and much to Naruto's dismay, it was Sasuke holding a bag of something. He emptied its contents onto the cave floor, and out poured a variety of things. A mat, a blanket, a bottle of some liquid, a red jar, some scrolls, and food. Naruto's stomach growled at the sight of it. He couldn't stop the sound from escaping him, and felt his heart rate increase ten beats a minute. Sasuke made an annoyed expression before sighing.

"Figures, lucky for you I happened to have extra money to buy food. If I had known you would sleep another three hours after I came and got you, I would have waited till night fall. Now I have to bother with all these unnecessary things." Sasuke sighed again, and began to undress. He started with his arm guards, then his shoes, and then his belt. His apron fell to floor in a graceful sweep that stirred the dust around him, and into Naruto's wide eyes. Nonchalantly, Sasuke picked up his apron, and set it with his other clothes. Then he stretched his arms up, down, and left to right. There was a brief pause as his bored eyes scanned the room, and he whispered quietly to himself. And suddenly, he reached down, snatched a piece of fruit he had bought, and tossed it in Naruto's direction.

"Eat. I won't have you pass out on me tonight." He proceeded to set up the mat and the blanket, along with starting a fire. Naruto mulled over the piece of fruit, not sure what it was, but was hungry enough that it wouldn't matter. He would eat just about anything.

"I don't understand. Why feed me if you're just going to kill me?" Sasuke started at that, turning an incredulous look on the Uzumaki. He rolled his eyes, letting out an exasperated sigh.

"I'm not going to kill you. If anything I need you alive for the next nine to twelve months." Naruto was shocked when he said this, pausing in between bites of dried meat that he had been handed. His chewing slowed down as his mind turned that over and over.

"And why specifically nine to twelve months?" Sasuke smirked this time, something Naruto wasn't ready for. Naruto felt chills run up and down his body. It felt like the room spiked another ten degrees. He soon realized that that was happening again. Why it was happening now of all times? Well, It probably had something to do with the way Sasuke was looking at him. Sasuke stood up, still staring Naruto in the eye. He started walking around Naruto, slowly, as if he was trying to see him from every angle. After taking a full circle, he reclined against a stone, crossed both hands, and placed most of the weight to his heels to steady himself. When Sasuke finally spoke, his words would change everything Naruto ever knew about himself.

"Do you know who Hagoromo is?"

"Of course I do teme!"

"Well, about two months ago I came across a burial tomb for the first hokage, and stored away inside one of his many jars, were ancient writings by Hagoromo himself. And can you guess what these writings foretold?"

"I'm guessing it will have something to do with me, since you abducted me in the middle of a mission."

"As both you and I know, when Hagoromo separated the ten-tails, he began a study of them, much like you would a new breed of animal. And to my surprise, he discovered something about their behavior in a human host-the jinchuuriki. While the tailed beasts will take on the characteristics of an animal but cast them off once inside a host, there is one behavioral trait that still remains in tact, and it occurs every five hundred years. Do you have any guess as to what that might be?" Sasuke had started walking around again, and he ended up crouching right behind Naruto, and was whispering everything in his ear. Naruto tried to shy away, but found the effort to do so evaporating with each heavy breath in his ear. Something had him pinned-he realized suddenly-not figuratively but physically. He was using some kind of ninjutsu on him.

"I-I don't...ha...know." Sasuke lips brushed against his ear, and he felt the blood rush from his head.

He whispered "The trait that remained...was the need to reproduce. To mate. Just like the animals they embody, they have mating seasons where the jinchuuriki become aroused and fertile, he or she can bear children-regardless of gender. And do you know what happens when that jinchuuriki bears fruit during that mating period?" Naruto thought he was going to go insane with all his bodily functions misbehaving. He felt sensitive to everything. Sight, smell, sounds, touch, everything felt heightened. Though whispered, Sasuke's words blared in his ears. Naruto could smell the sweat on Sasuke's neck, could feel to roughness of his chapped lips. Naruto's vision blurred to predominantly unrecognizable. And his head was cloudy, he could barely manage to answer.

"No." Sasuke chuckled darkly in his ear. Naruto felt it go straight to his groin.

"The child's chakra will be a fusion of the tailed beast and the mate. Once that child reaches maturity, their chakra will become unstable, and the mate can then harvest the chakra, and use it to their disposal. Can you imagine the power one would have if they could control that child to their fullest? If the mate was say, someone just as powerful or even more so than the jinchuuriki, imagine what strength that child would hold. Why, the one who holds that power would be the strongest person in the world. Eh, Na-ru-to?" Sasuke had managed to snake his hand up Naruto's shirt, and was tilting his chin back to look him in the eyes. Naruto's breath was heavy. He tried to move his head away, but Sasuke's hands were like an iron grip. His voice sent chills running all over him to even to most sensitive places. Naruto was holding back his cry, he wouldn't give Sasuke that satisfaction. Whatever this was for Sasuke, Naruto was gonna give it everything he had not to loose.

"I'll never... never...let you...ha...you can't have me. Your sick...in the head, nah, Sasu..ke." Naruto smiled mockingly, as if to prove his point that the Uchiha had no control over him. Sasuke felt insulted. Here he was, with complete control over Naruto's body, and no escape for the Uzumaki, and even at his literally weakest moment still manages to challenge him. Sasuke was anything if not competitive, and if it was Naruto challenging him, well he was up for it.

"I accept." Sasuke dragged his fingers lightly down the center of Naruto's chest. The sensation was tingly and itchy at the same time. Naruto fidgeted in his seat, but couldn't resist as Sasuke pulled him to his chest. Naruto felt one hand circle his seal, while the other teased his lips. They rubbed across the top, and pushed on the bottom. When one finger dipped into his belly button, Naruto felt the start of a whine crawl up his throat. He bit his lip to prevent anything else from escaping. Even if his body would betray him, Naruto would be damned if he let his voice do the same. Sasuke's finger tried in vain to penetrate his mouth. Naruto's lips wouldn't budge, and it would be no fun forcing them open. Sasuke wanted them to open on their own. Sasuke let his other hand plunge beneath Naruto's waistband, and fondle him slowly, teasingly slowly. Naruto bit down hard on his lip, enough so to draw blood, Naruto tried to focus on the iron taste rather than his erection. With each press of Sasuke's fingers, Naruto felt the blood in his body rush to his groin. Naruto hoped it was the jinchuuriki making him this horny, because he really didn't want to think that Sasuke's touch felt that good.

"Naruto, spread your legs." He whispered. Naruto body obeyed the command just as Sasuke ordered it. With more access, Sasuke's foundling increased. His hand moved faster, gripped more harshly, and slowed to a teasing halt. Naruto couldn't stop himself from gasping at the ministrations. That was all the time he needed. Sasuke slipped his finger into Naruto's mouth. Naruto felt violated in both parts of his body. Those fingers slipped over his tongue, teased the roof of his mouth, and elicited sounds from himself that he only made during his own masturbation. Sasuke felt his own desire itch in his pants. Wanting some friction, Sasuke turned Naruto around and pulled him into his lap. Their erections rubbed up against each other. Sasuke groaned when he felt Naruto's cock throb beneath his pants.

"Ah! N-no. Stop, Sa-sasuke..." Sasuke held both of Naruto's hips steady, and rocked the both of them together. Facing each other made Naruto feel awkward, and he tried to look away from the Uchiha's piercing eyes. Sasuke leaned forward, and kissed against Naruto's neck. He began sucking at his pulse, licking, and biting his way to a hickey. Naruto tried in vain to hide his moan, but one thrust of the Uchiha's hips had his mouth wide open.

"Ah!" He cried. Sasuke's pace increased with each new sound from Naruto's lips. He felt his cock swell with each throb of Naruto's. He was feeling something deep in his belly and it grew with the grinding of their groins. Sasuke had one word to describe what he felt right at that moment, it was hard. He felt fucking hard, and all he wanted was release. It was almost as if Sasuke was the one in heat, not Naruto. Unbeknownst to Sasuke, Naruto was at his limit. With the nine-tails' enhancing his arousal, Naruto's climax was approaching quickly. It was only a matter of time when...

"A-AH!" Naruto came in his pants, his essence filling up his boxers. And all too quickly Sasuke's came too. When Naruto came, Sasuke felt each ribbon of cum against his cock. Each ejaculation pushed Sasuke farther and farther over the edge. It was Naruto's cry that finished the deed. Sasuke let out a groan as he rocked himself to completion. When his breath finally caught up with him, he looked at Naruto again. What he saw nearly took his breath away.

It was the most erotic thing he had ever seen. No woman had ever looked this arousing, ever. Naruto's hair was mussed up, his cheeks bright red, his lips shiny and swollen, his mouth wide open and breathing hard. It was his eyes that really turned Sasuke on. Those deep blues had morphed into dark violet, and shined brighter than any star. While Naruto's mouth may have said no, his eyes only screamed more. And more was what he was going to get. Naruto was mumbling incoherent words, still coming down from his high. Sasuke shushed him with his own lips, in a tentative kiss. It was a simple kiss, just lip on lip, but there was an emotion hidden in that kiss that neither of them could place. As their eyes met, Naruto realized what he was doing, what he was letting Sasuke do. He broke the kiss, and pushing Sasuke away.

"Stop. I don't care what this is about anymore, but stop. We're both guys! This is wrong Sasuke, so wrong. Just...just..." Naruto's words faded with Sasuke's steamy gaze. Slowly, their heads moved closer and closer together. Before their lips met again, Sasuke whispered, "Naruto...Shut. Up."


"Spread your legs more." Sasuke's hand dragged along the ridges of Naruto's penis, earning a reaction that pleased the Uchiha. Naruto moaned and whined and twitched with need. Naruto's body was slick with sweat, despite having all his clothes removed besides his boxers-although they were on their way down his legs. Sasuke teased Naruto, fondling his balls, and rubbing at his leaking head. Naruto mewled again, this time pushing against Sasuke's groin. Sasuke grunted in response. He twisted the head, then pumped it back and forth at a sadistically slow pace. Naruto whined again, scratching the rock he was leaning against. He panted just like an animal in heat. I am in heat he thought. Before his capture, Naruto had thought his symptoms couldn't have possibly gotten worse. Now, at the hands of the Uchiha, it was indescribable. His skin was slick with perspiration, it tingling everywhere he touched him, his smell intoxicating him, his taste leaving him breathless, his own desire jabbing him in his backside. Naruto had gotten a pretty good idea just how big the man was, and Naruto was a little more than worried.

"N-no! Not there, ah." He moaned. Naruto felt another climax coming on. This would be the fifth time. Naruto didn't realize that this is what animals felt like in heat. Hell, if Naruto felt like this at the time, he would fuck his brains out too! Naruto was biting and swallowing back moans with every twist and pump of the Uchiha's hands. There were moments when Naruto couldn't help but buck into those hands. He didn't want to admit it, but there was something about being in Sasuke's arms that felt so...right. Back when they were kids, he was skinny and lean, but now his muscles are defined, his back broader, arms meatier. He was much more stronger than Naruto would have given him credit for. The differences in the two of them had never been so apparent before. Back when they were kids, it was an even playing field. Sasuke could pitch it just as well as Naruto could hit it, and now...things are very much different. How cruel, puberty is a bitch, Naruto thought. While she seemed to do Sasuke well, she just left Naruto less endowed in certain areas. Shit, now I feel insecure, Naruto couldn't have ever imagined their reunion would be like this. Sasuke, so predatorial and overbearing, touching him, licking him, monopolizing him.

"Naruto, turn around." Sasuke squeezed his hips to emphasize the urgency. Naruto whined and fidgeted, but complied. He kept his eyes downcast, trying to ignore what Sasuke was doing to him, what he was planning on doing. Sasuke nudged Naruto's face up with his nose, looked right into his eyes. He was smirking.

"Na-ru-to, say my name. I want to hear you scream my name. Say my name Naruto." Sasuke whispered all this into his ears, like the beats to a song. Naruto tried to move his face away, in vain of course. Sasuke's hand was moving much faster, and Naruto couldn't help but thrust his hips with it. He was fidgety, twitchy, clenching and unclenching his body, all with Sasuke murmuring things into his ear that turned him on even more.

"Nn...mph...ah...n-nah!" Naruto's moaning erupted into a loud shout, and another climax claimed him. He was left huffing and horny. His orgasms didn't leave him feeling relieved. They just left him unsatisfied. He wanted something more, something more than just Sasuke's hands, but he had no idea what.

"Still haven't had enough huh? Don't worry, I'll take care of you right now. I even bought some nice things to prepare you." Sasuke released Naruto, to crawl over and grab the red jar, and the bottle of liquid from earlier. Naruto had collapsed onto the mat that was laid out. He was catching his breath, while rubbing his groin. He was trying to expel the need that kept building up in him. He felt like his balls were swelling to the size of grapefruits, and no amount entertaining his cock would staunch the desire.

Sasuke knew he wasn't in the right mind anymore. It wasn't about the power, or the control anymore. It wasn't even about his competing with Naruto, he simply wanted it. He wanted to make Naruto his. He wanted to claim Naruto, claim his body, destroy his innocence, corrupt his purity, monopolize his very existence. Sasuke didn't want to face up to it, but from the moment he had first laid eyes on Naruto in that erotic state, he knew he wanted to take him. Right then and there all his sense of purpose, of reason, flew right out the window. He was having sex with Naruto simply because he wanted to. Nothing more, nothing less. Sasuke turned back towards Naruto. He was bent over at a delicious angle, his ass proudly on display. Sasuke licked his lips, already buzzing with excitement over what he would do to that ass. Sasuke walked back to the mat, swinging the red jar in his hand. He kneeled down to Naruto's face, and nuzzled his ear.

"Sit up Naruto." He whispered. Naruto shook his head. The pain was unbearable, but his embarrassment was stronger. Sasuke reached under his stomach, and eased Naruto up. He set the bottle of liquid aside, and opened the jar to reveal a thick red paste. Naruto in his muddled state- looked at it questioningly. Sasuke smirked, mixing the paste with his fingers.

"This is a part of the mating ritual. It's a type of paint. I'm going to be drawing various markings on your body now." To make a point of it, Sasuke dragged his finger down the center of Naruto's forehead, to the left side of his nose, and circled the line around his eye. Naruto bit his lip, sceptical in a sense.

"I still...don't understand...how you plan about doing this? I'm...a guy...damn it. I can't get...pregnant." Sasuke nuzzled his ear again. He had managed to draw a series of swirling markings around his chest, neck, back, stomach, and thighs. He was drawing the last few lines that kissed his heels when Naruto had said this. He looked at Naruto, eyes full of pity.

"You don't get it do you?" He said.

"Get what?"

"It's by the nine-tail's power that you are as strong as you are. It is also by it's power that you are completely compromised, and have fallen to my capture. And since the nine-tail's has given in to it's animalistic mating instincts, wouldn't it be by it's power that the jinchuuriki would change to fit its needs. And that one need, is an offspring Naruto. I'm going to give you a little sex ed. you won't ever forget. And it starts with a special place on your body..." Sasuke's right hand found solace in Naruto's manhood-continuing where it had previously left off- while his other hand slipped in between Naruto's butt cheeks. Naruto was too distracted by the first hand to notice the second, but when a finger began to tease his "special place" he jerked abruptly. Twisting his neck back, he whined at Sasuke. Sasuke's answer was teasing the tight ring of muscle. Naruto felt a tremor go through. There, he thought, right there is where I want it. Naruto didn't know what this "it" was, but he just knew that that place Sasuke was touching him was where he felt all his want and need pour into. He wanted something badly, and it had something to do with that little hole. He felt sudden discomfort when that finger pushed inside.

"What the fu-" he started.

"Sh. It'll feel good in a moment." Sasuke pushed in and out slowly, letting the muscle adjust to the invasion. Naruto's discomfort gave way to a new feeling. He couldn't place it, but he felt like something weird was about to happen.

"Sasuke, this is... what does this have anything to do with-" He was cut off when a second finger penetrated him. He groaned out the discomfort, gripping the blanket beneath him. Naruto huffed out breath after breath until the pain subsided. Naruto was getting more and more confused. He turned his head back and gave Sasuke an exasperated look. Sasuke was staring back at him fully. His black eyes seemed to quiver with the openness in which he looked at Naruto. It was the first time that he had ever really looked at Naruto like that. There was no condescendence, no sarcasm, no envy, no anger or hurt. Sasuke looked at Naruto as a person. A person he might actually care about.

"S-sasuke...I'm scared." Naruto's voice shook. He was scared. He was scared of what was happening to him, to Sasuke, to their relationship. He knew that if he let this continue, he's crossing a line that he will never be able to cross again. This, what they were going to do-whatever it was-would change them forever. They could...they could never be friends again. This thought hit Naruto like a brick. His eyes began to tear up. He felt sick, he didn't want to do this anymore. Sasuke watched Naruto's silent cries and wiped away the tears. He knew exactly what Naruto was thinking. Hell, he knew it and felt it too. But Sasuke had realized something when he had captured Naruto earlier that day.

"Naruto...It took me a long time to realize something. I have spent my entire life doing what others want me to. I have never sought out something for myself, even this revenge that I had been so focused on was never actually for myself. It was always for someone else. For the first time in my life, I have something in my arms that I want. And what I want...is you." Naruto was speechless, he didn't know what to say. Here he was, naked and vulnerable and so damn horny in front of the only person he had ever considered his true best friend. Now that same person who had tried to destroy everything Naruto had ever cared about was sitting in front of him, asking him to give up the last bit of innocence he had left. And Naruto was actually considering giving it to him. It was the biggest decision of his life. Naruto bit his lip, he blushed, clenched and unclenched his hands, until finally he answered him.

"Okay...I'm ready." Sasuke smiled in relief, and pulled Naruto to him again. He kissed him fully on the mouth. First it was little nibbles and pecks, then it escalated into hard presses and lip-smacking, and when their tongues intertwined, their bodies mingled together. Soon they were rubbing together, as harsh and as fast as they could. Sasuke focused his attention to Naruto's back, and let the blond turn around. He positioned himself doggy style, opening his legs to be fully exposed. Sasuke took his time preparing him, enjoying the sensations he felt, and the mewls and cries from the Uzumaki. When Sasuke finally entered him, he sighed. His arousal grew with every thrust, every grunt and groan. They took to the motions like pros, and were slowly drowning each other in their lust. Naruto would cry "more" and "please" and Sasuke would groan "Naruto" and "yes". Their motions became frantic, hard, and lewd. The thrusts came faster and faster, the cries louder and louder. Naruto scraped his fingers down Sasuke's back, and desperately clung to his sanity. Sasuke could no longer hear, or see Naruto. He only felt him. He felt him all the way to his climax. And when it claimed him, he could only float back down to reality. Naruto gasped for breath, and whined when Sasuke removed himself from him. Sasuke stared into those beautiful violet eyes, and kissed him more passionately than any women he had before. Naruto reciprocated the kiss, maybe even encouraged it to go further. And again they were at it. Again and again they took each other, drowned in their own desire. Naruto lost count of how many times they fucked, how many times he came, how many times he gave in to the pleasure. And before he knew it, he was asleep in the bastards arms, content as could be.


It was morning when Naruto had awaken. He lifted his head groggily, wiping away the crust from his eyes. He was at a loss to why he was there. He stared around in confusion till the events from yesterday seized his mind like a raging bull. Everything they did, everything he said came flooding back, and each memory had him cringing in embarrassment. He didn't know if he could face Sasuke again. Speaking of which, where is the bastard? Naruto looked around, but beside for the pile of his clothes in the corner and the mat and blanket he was laying in, it was as if Sasuke was never here. Then Naruto began to think that he really wasn't here. That in his sick twisted mind he had made the entire night up. God I need to get laid. He sighed at the pathetic situation he was in, and began to sit up. A sharp pain shot up his backside to his lower back.

"Nope. No, he was here alright." Naruto growled at the discomfort, but gently pushed himself up.

"Okay first things first. Let's clean myself off before the others find me." Naruto's strength was fully returned; it was as if the weirdness from the last two weeks never happened. He had very well-regulated chakra flow and control. In fact, Naruto would even say it was better than before. He scaled down the mountain side, and limped to the river not that far off. The walk did him well, and the soak felt refreshing to his aching back and legs. He felt the water slither and slide over his flesh. Naruto shuddered in utter ecstasy. Washing away the essence of last night, Naruto sunk himself deeper into the icy pool. Flashes of last night bombarded his conscience with a fury. Hot, wet lips tingling down his neck, feather-like touches criss-crossing his abdomen, hard flesh penetrating him in fast, powerful...

Damn it, thought Naruto, stop it! Stop remembering. Forget it, Sasuke's gone, my virginity is gone (inward sigh) and I have nothing left but some stupid myth the bastard was spouting yesterday. Upon remembering what the Uchiha said, he felt a shudder pass through him, and held held his stomach. He couldn't imagine a new life sprouting inside him, much less imagine it coming out. Suddenly, the water felt way too warm for Naruto's liking. He swam back to the top before his lungs subsequently gave out. He swam to the shore, threw on his clothes, and ran stiffly through the woods, scanning the trees for any sign of chakra. Naruto slowed down as he approached a large wall of some sort. It was made of chakra, and practically reeked of Sasuke's scent. Examining the mass, Naruto realized that this wasn't simply a wall of chakra, it extended around a small perimeter of the mountain Naruto and Sasuke lodged in. Functioning much like a dome, it kept traces of chakra inside,while a jutsu masked the chakra essence from the outside. That explains why they didn't find us up there, Naruto thought. Naruto reached out a tentative hand to the dome, and when his fingers made contact, the wall immediately dispersed, like it was never there. Baffled, but still relieved that he had a way out, Naruto passed without a second glance. He scanned the area again for traces of chakra. Off, about three kilometers out was a very faint mass.

Setting off in that direction, Naruto made contact with it in only a few minutes. As luck would have it, the chakra mass was Sakura's. She about killed Naruto when she caught sight of him a mile out, and cried with relief upon embracing him. Kakashi and Sai soon appeared and questioned Naruto at length about his situation the night before, where he was, was he fine, how had he escaped, what had Sasuke wanted from him, was he still in pursuit, how long had he left, etc. Naruto dodged as many questions as he could. He couldn't very well explain why Sasuke wanted him without revealing what he had done to him. He would die of shame if he ever did. No, Naruto resolved to simply be vague and unaware. He gave them a half-ass answer about only fading images and such of Sasuke, and saying at one point he took some of his blood. This satisfied them for now, but Naruto knew he would have to explain himself to Baa-chan, and that wouldn't go over very well.

They set out for Konoha immediately, and the closer they got, the more Naruto's anxiety increased. When the walls were in sight, he was panicking, and as he walked through the door, he walked right into a nightmare. If what Sasuke had said was true, then it was only a matter of time before people noticed. How long was it till you started showing? When did the symptoms hit you? Was it as painful as it looked? Would it affect his training? Naruto didn't know if he should just get it over with now, or wait until people noticed. Baa-chan would give him hell if he waited, so Naruto resolved himself to just tell her as soon as possible. Hell, she might have a way to stop it, or reverse it. They decided that Sai would write up and turn in the report, much to Naruto's relief. When he turned to take his leave however, Sakura stopped him.

"Hey Naruto, you wanna come out with me for Ramen at Ichiraku's? I'll treat you. I figure because of all the craziness that happened, you're probably in desperate need of some noodles." Sakura asked, eyes completely innocent. Naruto inwardly sighed. He would need to get rid of her and Kakashi if he was ever going to get to Baa-chan.

"Uhh, no thanks Sakura. I'm not in the mood for Ichiraku's. I actually have an errand to run, so I'll just take my leave yeah?" When Sakura just stared at him incredulously, Naruto became worried. Kakashi placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Naruto, you heard her right? Free ramen? You never pass up Ichiraku's! Even in the hospital a couple years ago you would sneak out to buy a bowl." Kakashi pressed earnestly.

"Naruto, are you sure you're okay? Is there something you're not telling us?" Sakura was bordering on frantic. Naruto had to diffuse the situation and fast.

"Trust me I'm fine! I just need to pay a little visit to Tsunade Baa-chan and go get some rest is all."

"Oh," sigh Kakashi, "we'll go with you then. We'll need to inform her of the Sasuke situation anyway." Naruto was panicking now. He didn't want to tell Baa-chan when they were present, but no matter what he said, they wouldn't leave. They insisted on seeing him to Tsunade, and with each plea they would become more suspicious. So, Naruto sucked it up, and tried to hold onto his remaining pride-he was about to lose it all very soon. Since this is an unplanned visit, they would have to request an immediate meeting with her. Naruto felt like it was happening all too fast, them reaching the building, Kakashi talking with Shizune, being escorted to Tsunade's office, seeing her piercing eyes land on him. His heart quickened, blood rushed to his ears. He was here, he would have to tell them. It was now or never. Kakashi and Tsunade were already engrossed in a deep discussion when her eyes fell on Naruto. They looked accusing.

"Is it true then? Sasuke captured you and took you to an isolated mountain top, and extracted samples from you of some sort, and left without even a slight trace of himself?" Naruto could barely answer. His tongue felt thick, sticky, and heavy in his mouth. His breaths felt short and choked. He was feeling lightheaded. In a voice barely audible he whispered a small "Not exactly." Tsunade drew back, her bafflement turning to Kakashi.

"So Sasuke didn't kidnap you and Kakashi here is lying."

"No!" Naruto shouted abruptly. Everyone turned to look at him, shocked at his outburst. He had already started now without thinking. It was too late to back out now.

"No," he continued, "Kakashi, Sakura, and Sai only now the partial truth and small lie I told them. Sasuke, he, I was captured by him and brought to a mountainside. I was hidden in a cave, surrounded by a barrier about three kilometers out that masked my chakra from detection. He didn't bring me there for blood samples. He didn't bring me there to take something from me." Unless you count my virginity, then he sure as hell took that, Naruto thought. They were all staring at him, Shizune with shock and confusion, Kakashi with blank eyes and a sense of foreboding, Sakura with barely concealed betrayal and distress, and Tsunade with a penetrating look that nearly had him wetting himself.

"Sasuke he... he... I... I didn't...ugh. Sasukebroughtmetothemountainbecausehehadheardaboutthismatingseasonthingwithjinchuuriki'sthatoccurseveryfivehundredyearsanditmakesalljinchuuriki'sbecomefertileandbearchildrenandheknewthatthechildproducedwouldbelikethestrongestpersonintheworldandhecouldharvestit'schakraanduseitsoherapedmetogetmepregnantandnowIhavenoideaifwhathesaidistrueand-"

"Wait," Tsunade said, holding up a hand to stop him before he ran on, "I didn't get any of that Naruto. Slow down. What did Sasuke do to you." They all looked expectantly at him, but Naruto felt so exhausted he could barely utter another word. Once again he resigned with himself that this was the end. He had nothing else to save face. Once again, he began his explanation.

"Sasuke...found something. In a grave, or a tomb of some sort from Hagoromo, about his research on the ten-tails. He found that when they separated and took over in a host, there was one trait that they didn't cast off, and retained to the point of affecting the jinchuuriki's body. Just like a fox, I and the rest of the jinchuuriki's experience...mating seasons. (Eyebrow raises and gasps alike) That's why my body has been behaving strangely these past few weeks. My body was...adjusting so to speak. It just happened that Sasuke knew about all of this, and timed it that he would reach me on the last day of the season to..." Naruto didn't know why he stop. They probably still hadn't caught his drift yet, but his next few words would seal the deal.

"Spit it out Naruto!" Sakura cried. She didn't want to believe it. She had to hear it straight from his mouth. She watched Naruto stride to a small chair in the far corner of the room, and hang his head in his hands.

"Sasuke had the intention to use me to produce an offspring that was powerful enough to harvest the chakra and use it for whatever. Such things were only possible due to the nine-tails being in heat, and making me along with it. Some way or another it changed my body so that I can bear children, and all Sasuke had to do was impregnate me. And he did. I...am now..or might possibly be carrying his child." There, he said it. He told them and now he couldn't even bare to look at them. He didn't want to see the way they looked at him, the shame had his face blushing bright pink. There was a long pause of silence before Sakura broke the silence.

"So Sasuke...he...you and him?" She muttered something but it wasn't audible, as a large crack of lightning startled everyone. The storm had blown in so quickly no one noticed till the thunder had literally jared them. It was Tsunade who spoke next.

"You mean to tell me, that Sasuke not only kidnapped you, he raped you, and supposedly impregnated you during your mission, and left you without a trace in the middle of the woods. How do you know what he was saying was all a lie, or even used ninjutsu to make you think whatever happened to you happened, and really took something entirely different from you?"

"That's why I came to tell you. I want to know if what Sasuke told me was a lie. No, I need to know if what happened really happened, if he wasn't just using me for some other purpose." Naruto finally bothered to look at Tsunade. She neither looked upset nor shocked. In fact, she looked merely resigned, like she knew this was what he was going to say. She motioned him to come to her, and told him to remove his jacket. Tentatively, she placed a glowing hand in his stomach, right where the markings were. Those few moments were the longest in Naruto's life. When Tsunade finally pulled her hand away, she looked directly into his eyes.

"I feel no life force inside of you Naruto," Naruto visibly sagged with relief, "but that doesn't mean anything. In normal pregnancies, it takes at least a week to two and a half weeks before it is a confirmed pregnancy. Come back in a week, and I will look again. For now however, you are not pregnant. But Naruto," Naruto had turned away to leave, but stopped and turned back to her, "If Sasuke really did what you said, then that means he will need to come back to check on you, and we will be waiting for him. I promise we will pay the bastard back for what he did to you."

And with that, Tsunade dismissed the group for now, and requested to have a private conversation with Shizune. Upon leaving the room, no one said anything for a while. While they had been walking down, Kakashi pulled Naruto aside into a private office without Sakura seeing. They were alone now, and Naruto could only cringe as what was to come from his sensei's mouth. At first, he did not speak, just looked at him with hard eyes. It felt like an eternity before he uttered those painful words.

"How could you not tell me Naruto?" The accusatory tone made him flinch. "How could you possibly think that it was okay not to tell me? Were you ever even considering telling me?"

"I..I just...I couldn't. If I could have helped it, I wouldn't have told anyone. I was voting on it being all a lie and Sasuke just r-" But did he really? Thought Naruto, In the end, it wasn't really rape, because I gave myself to him. In horror, Naruto realized what he had done with Sasuke, realized that he had made a much bigger mistake that night than he could have predicted.

"Naruto." Kakashi pushed.

"He didn't rape me..." Naruto muttered.

"What?"

"He didn't rape me Kakashi. I...I gave myself to him. The nine tails changed me, I knew that. It made me want things I would have never wanted before, feel things I wouldn't normally feel. Despite this...it was still me who told him yes. I let him do that Kakashi. God, what's wrong with me?" Naruto collapsed to the floor, crouching over and clutching his abdomen. It was screaming at him in sudden pain, and throbbing headache plagued him. He felt sick. He was going to throw up.

"Naruto, you must be overreacting. You said it yourself that the nine tails was making feel more disposed to sexual interaction than usual. You were just needy, and Sasuke happened to be there. You resisted him, but your desire overpowered you and you may have let him handle you. Regardless of that, Sasuke over-stepped a boundary that far exceeds unforgivable. It's okay to feel scared Naruto. These kinds of things, although awkward and displaced, are simply platonic. You're letting your deep affection for Sasuke take responsibility for something that was out of your control. Sasuke used you Naruto. There is no reason why you would have let him if you were in your rational mind. Trust me on this Naruto." Naruto looked up wearily. Like he didn't really trust his words, but needed some kind of conviction.

"Really?"

"Really Naruto. Good friendship is confused for something more all the time."

"Oh." Naruto felt a little calmer, but more exhausted than in his entire life. He told Kakashi that he was taking his leave. Once Naruto was out of earshot, Sakura came out from behind the far wall and approached Kakashi. They nodded to each other.

"How much did you hear?" He asked.

"About two-thirds. Naruto may be too emotionally distraught to realize bullshit when he hears it, but I know you well enough to recognize when you spout it. That, my friend, was probably the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. Both you and I know Naruto is too genuine a person to have sex with someone he didn't want to." She replied. Kakashi sighed with resignation. When had she become so cynical? He thought.

"Excuse me for entertaining the idea that maybe Naruto was forced into this. The alternative is a much worse situation than the original. So condemn me for being a bit naive."

"Now that Naruto had a pregnancy scare-God that sounds so wrong-we will all be on watch in case Sasuke does come back to finish whatever he started. I have a feeling that we aren't necessarily through with him yet." Sakura sighed. Kakashi nodded with a grim expression hidden beneath his mask.

Baa-chan said I'm not pregnant, but Sasuke said that he waited until the very last night to do it. If I'm not pregnant, then that must mean Sasuke failed, right? Even as Naruto thought this, he knew he was wrong. Sasuke never makes mistakes like that, especially if he needed this...whatever it was, to work. And he was rather thorough with...

"Argh!" Naruto cried, fisting his fingers through his hair. He wanted to forget it, forget everything that happened. He regretted it; the rashness, the neediness. It's just like what Kakashi said, he confused his friendship for something more in the heat of the moment. He doesn't have feelings towards Sasuke. But if that was the case, then why haven't the lingering touches from the night before faded away?


~Two weeks later~

The Anbu black ops had scoured the mountain looking for the secret cave that would lead to the first hokage's burial chamber. Tsunade had been passed down the location of the cave upon her instatement as the fifth hokage, but had refrained from pursuing the information it holds under the pretext that the idiots trusted with protecting it would do their damn jobs. Now that this rather shocking discovery of Naruto's rape and pregnancy-because she had in fact confirmed it a week ago to the mirrored shock of both herself and her trusted assistants-had made apparent her laziness in her occupation, she needed to take a look at the contents of the cave immediately. Of course, the Anbu who had been entrusted with sealing the chamber and guarding it had all been found dead several miles from the cave. So Tsunade had to send a new group of Anbu to find the cave and give an estimate as to just how many documents had probably been stolen. Tsunade was limited in her experience with the Uchiha; she couldn't tell if he was the type to take what he needs because he isn't afraid of the repercussions, or the type to leave things as they were because he can't bother to deal with the repercussions.

She wasn't in to the mind games of it, and it required much more brain power than she had to give. Right now, she had to plan for the stages of pregnancy Naruto would be going through and trying to walk him through the bodily changes he would be experiencing very soon. She had only just recently come to terms with the fact that in nine to twelve months, he would be giving birth to a young child. This alone was enough to scare her, and her own fears must have been subpar to what Naruto was feeling. He had been given time off to cope and to prepare for the child. Tsunade had only overseen a few things into preparing Naruto to become a mother-or would it be father in his case? Tsunade shook her head out. It was hard enough trying to figure out how a sixteen year old boy would be giving birth, she didn't have the mental ability to figure out the politically correct term for it too. She did however rework the space in Naruto's apartment to accommodate a young child, and promised to pay for all the child's living and medical expenses up until the child turned sixteen. Later in the week, she would be sending Shizune over to begin the gathering process of the baby's furniture and supplies, as well as starting naruto's mothering sessions. Now that would be a real riot. Tsunade smirked just thinking about Naruto learning how to change diapers, clean up body excretions, and decide if he wanted to give breastfeeding a try. Thinking of the Uzumaki's expression as he learned that yes, his body can lactate when necessary had Tsunade cracking up. Her thoughts did turn bittersweet upon remembering that all this was happening to Naruto. In a sense, he was all alone. There wasn't anyone who could understand what he was going through. He may have been pregnant like most women, but they didn't know if the process would work the same in a man. Would he experience morning sickness too? Would he have mood swings? Would he gain the weight fast or slowly? Would his body be able to withstand carrying a baby for as long as needed? All these questions and more buzzed through Tsunade's head as she wondered how he would hold up. Sure he was the strongest person she knew, but this might be Naruto's biggest challenge yet.

"Hokage-sama. It's time for the meeting." Her assistant called from the hallway. Tsunade nodded as she got her things in order. She would need to pay a visit to Naruto again sometime this week.


Naruto at the time was sitting in his bedroom marvelling at the sheer cleanliness of it. He hadn't seen his carpet this white in months. Whatever product Sakura had given him worked wonders on the stains. They were practically nonexistent. To top it all off, Sakura had given him this special soap that smelled like sugar and every now and then Naruto found himself rubbing his cheek into the carpet and taking a deep breath. If Naruto was the one being born, he'd spend his life glued to the carpet-at least when it was clean like this. Sakura had informed Naruto that once he became a parent, he would have to change his entire life-style. He couldn't be a slob, couldn't eat ichiraku all the time, couldn't be irresponsible, couldn't go out to train whenever he felt like it, couldn't keep all his weaponry in a place the child could get to. It was a lot to take in, and Naruto was nervous. He was nervous because he was afraid. He was afraid to fail. Any other time he'd walk into the situation with full confidence. Not this time. Naruto was deathly scared that he would screw up with this child. He wasn't ready. He wasn't even close to ready, and yet, every time he'd rub his belly and be reminded that a warm energy was there. This time he knew it wasn't kyuubi. It was another life incubating inside him. Naruto found himself touching his stomach more and more. At night, he would rub it and revel in the soothing effect it had. He found himself waking up with his hand firmly pressed to his flesh. In times of stress or anxiety he would unconsciously hold onto his abdomen, or curl up in a little ball.

He sometimes talked to the unborn being, asking for their opinions and feelings, even going as far as telling them his own insecurities and emotions. Naruto quite liked having someone to talk to, even if the other end couldn't respond. All in all, he hadn't dwelled on the fact that he was pregnant. It was kind of like an out of world feeling. Every time they talked about the baby, Naruto got this sense that they were talking about someone else. It was kind of like something that was going to happen, not something that's already happened. Naruto hadn't shown yet, but Sakura had informed him that it would happen soon. Most women start showing in the first trimester, and depending on how the baby progressed in growth really depended on Kurama. He was the one responsible for the pregnancy to begin with. Naruto had tried talking to him about it, but Kurama was just as unsure as Naruto. While Kurama had undergone the mating season before, his jinchuuriki had never actually mated during that time. This was his first experience with it. The only thing he could explain to Naruto, was that the whole impregnation had happened much in the same way as someone who had spent a night with another in a drunken and confused state. He didn't remember specifics, but hazes of memory. A lot of his chakra had centered into Naruto's abdomen and flown through his reproductive system. That he could remember distinctly. Other than it being really hot and misty inside his own subconscious, Kurama had not recovered any other memories from that night. Naruto didn't press him further, but did however ask if Kurama could tell if it was a boy or a girl. Kurama had asked him if he wanted to know to prepare the right clothing, or if he just wanted to know out of curiosity. Naruto had genuinely wanted to know out of conventional reasons. It wasn't just about clothes, but toys, bedroom accessories, types of food, and the like. When Kurama had told him he would have a girl, Naruto was surprised, but kind of excited.

"A little mini-me." Naruto said to himself. Well, more like a mini Sasuke and Naruto combined.

"I wonder if she will have Sharingan like her father, or if she will have my blond hair?" Naruto mused as he prepared himself some dinner.

"Maybe she won't have all that power Sasuke was talking about. Maybe Hagoromo was wrong in his studies or it changes over time. Maybe she will be born without any chakra at all." Even as Naruto muttered this to himself, he knew how wrong he was. The fact that the pregnancy even happened meant that whatever Hagoromo had found was true. Once this child was born, she would be invincible just like Sasuke had said. And she would be valuable. Naruto found himself fearing the situation that his child would be born into. A poor girl, sweet and innocent of the ways of the world would become the target of everyone. People would either despise her, or desire her. Naruto would have to spend his every waking moment making sure no one tries to kidnap her, harm her, or ridicule her. This poor child would never be normal. She would have to learn to be distrustful. She would have to learn to be cold and calculating, just like her father. Naruto knew better though. She would be warm-hearted and welcoming like him, ready to believe in the goodness of people. She would be Naruto's sun, and Sasuke's moon. Naruto stared at the moon as he sat down to eat. The steam from the stew rose into Naruto's eyes. It looked as if the moon's surface was smoking. Blowing onto the spoonful, Naruto wished that maybe, just maybe the baby wouldn't be born. Then Naruto wouldn't have to become a failure of a father, and the poor child won't have to witness the evils of the world.


~3 months later~

Naruto breathed heavily into the scented candle. In his nose and out his mouth went the air, and for a second he thought it had finally stopped. He was wrong.

"Hughhhh." Naruto vomited into the toilet bowl again. He had heard the horror stories about morning sickness, but nothing compared to actually experiencing it. He threw up in the morning every two to three days. He had pleaded with Tsunade that something was wrong with his body, but she had assured him time and time again that he was fine. It was perfectly normal. Naruto didn't think so though. This baby would be the end of him. He had put on about six pounds since the third week of his first trimester. At first he was embarrassed about it, but then he stopped caring when the cravings hit him. His tastes started out normal. He craved chocolate, beef, beets, oranges, and fish. Then his tastes turned bizarre, to onions with honey on them, uncooked noodles in ramen, vinegar, and barbecued rabbit. He had barbecued rabbit feet, legs, breast, arms, even the ears. He couldn't get enough of it.

It was also right about that time his mood swings started spiraling out of control. He was walking through the market to buy some seeds one time, and had asked the lady for the red seeds. She went and reached for the green ones, and Naruto became so angry, he flipped the whole stand. Everyone stopped and looked at him like he was insane. Perhaps he was, babies were capable of that kind of thing. He apologized profusely to the old woman and helped set back up her stand. He was teary eyed as he took the red seeds, and proceeded to run his way home to cry. Speaking of crying, he cried at absolutely inappropriate times. One time Kakashi was talking to him about the mission he had just returned from, and out of no where, Naruto felt a sadness hit him. He felt the tears trickle down his face and Kakashi's one eye bulged from his socket. Naruto went from a composed young man to a blubbering wimp in a matter of seconds. Kakashi was beside himself with confusion. He didn't know what to do to make him stop, just patted his head awkwardly. The fellow shinobi who didn't know Naruto's current condition looked to the crying ninja with concern. As soon as the monsoon had started, it trickled out into a sniffle, and ended soon after. Naruto rubbed the snot from his face, and stared blankly into Kakashi's eye. Needless to say, Naruto couldn't tell who was more freaked out.

Now of course, he had more pressing things to worry about. Like cleaning up the toilet bowl after he had finished painting it with his stomach contents. Naruto breathed heavily after another stomach contraction sent him over the edge of the toilet rim. He hated vomiting worse than any other type of pain. It made his abdomen sore, burned his throat, and left him heaving for air. He gulped oxygen hoping that that would be the last time. Naruto placed his head against the cool toilet rim. The cold porcelain felt great against his feverish skin.

"Maybe I shouldn't go out today? Maybe I should just stay home. It's okay right?" Just as Naruto contemplated not going on the shopping trip with Sakura, he heard the telephone ring from down the hall. He groaned as he pushed himself up off the floor to answer it. He only recently installed the stupid thing. He hadn't had a need for a phone until Sakura insisted that he would be in some emergency rendering him unable to do anything but call her for help. Of course he would need her help, but he would rather just go to her than waste time dialing a machine and waiting for her to pick up on the other end. The machinery was still really new and Naruto wasn't sure if it still really worked completely. Sometimes, it randomly screeched on the phone and there was a lot of static on his end.

"Hello?" Naruto moaned into the receiver. Sakura's voice answered him sounding gravely.

"Are you okay Naruto? Are we still on for today?" Naruto rubbed his head soothingly.

"Yeah...yeah. Let's just get it over with so I can come home and stuff my face." Just as Naruto said this, his stomach growled. Not for barf, but for food. His nausea was wearing off, being replaced with a need to eat something green and leafy.

"That sounds great Naruto. I'm bringing Ino, Hinata, and Ten-Ten with us. I figured we could split up the jobs between us. I'll be there in a few minutes." Naruto inwardly groaned.

"Okay, see you then." Naruto hung up the phone and leaned against the wall. Rubbing his eyes, Naruto contemplated everything he would need to get for today. He had spent the last month and a half completely reorganizing his apartment to accommodate a small child. He replaced both his small dressers for one big dresser that lined the entire wall. Then he moved all of his clothes from his closet into that dresser, and turned his closet into a storage space for his baby's items. Sakura showed him how to label different bins for different items and organize the space into a pattern. As of right now, the bins inside just sat empty. Today would be the day that they would be filling those bins with clothes, toys, accessories, bathroom essentials, medicine, and diapers, lots and lots of diapers. Naruto had also taken the time to exchange his full size bed for a more narrower one, and pushed it against a corner in the room. He also set up his new changing table, crib, foam mat, and a safety gate. Naruto had to move all of his weapons into a crate on top of the dresser so that the baby couldn't reach it. He also had to get rid of the stand for his TV and move the TV to the kitchen. There, he did some major remodeling to make everything baby proof. He had to add three more cabinets to the walls, put baby latches on all the low drawers, and place all glassware in a separate cabinet. Naruto added baby eating utensils to his own store of silverware. He now had baby bowls, spoons, plates, bottles, bibs, and cups. All of these were stored in the same cabinet-after some major reorganising of the other cabinets by Sakura. Naruto also ended up doing the same thing for the bathroom. He added a small cabinet over the toilet for towels and washcloths, and cleared out one level in his hallway closet to be just baby toiletries. He was going to buy those, and other items he still needed today with Sakura-and apparently Ino, Hinata, and Ten-Ten. Naruto currently had to buy a baby carrier, stroller, high-chair, blankets, bedding, and baby safe cleaning supplies in addition to all the other things he listed before.

Needless to say, it would be a long day. Having previous experience shopping with women before-Sakura counted as more than one-he knew that it wouldn't be a grab-and-go like he previously hoped. It would be a constant, "which color do you like better?", "Is this too flowery?", "I wonder if this is too big?", "That's not too much right?". Naruto would be ready to throttle someone before the day was up. Just then, Naruto heard the doorbell ring. So the torture begins.


"Nine hours." Naruto muttered to himself.

"I spent nine fucking hours of the day buying all of this crap. How is that even possible?" Naruto groaned and moved all of his shopping bags to the dining room table. He would deal with putting things away later. He just wanted to crawl into bed and sleep for another ten hours. His back and feet were sore from the walking all day. He still needed to shower, but the blankets looked too comforting. Naruto stumbled to the bed and fell onto his back. He stared out the window into the night. Knowing he would probably sweat profusely in his sleep, he opened up the window and let the air in. Naruto breathed deeply and sighed. Maybe it was all the hormones, but he had gotten rather wistful lately. He imagined that he was still in that cave, in those arms, and it hadn't been for power. That Sasuke hadn't just used him. That all those lingering touches and kisses actually meant something to him. Naruto knew he was wrong, but he couldn't help wishing the situation was different. He didn't want this girl growing up in the current condition he was in. Sasuke would come for her eventually, but Naruto would be damned if he let him. With a determined smirk, Naruto stripped down to the nude, and crawled into bed. With a contented sigh, Naruto drifted into a peaceful sleep.

Not long after he was sound asleep, a raven slipped into his apartment. Sasuke watched the blond with fondness, and stroked his soft blond hair. His hands drifted briefly to the man's lips, then found themselves ghosting his belly. Sasuke caressed the concealed stomach. He imagined what the child would look like. Would it have his eyes? Would it have Naruto's hair? Was it a boy or a girl? Would it be stupidly stubborn like it's one father, or detached and prideful like it's other? Would it benefit from growing up with Naruto for a few years, or should Sasuke just steal her away upon birth? So many questions, and so little time. Sasuke had about six more months to decide how he was going to go about doing this-if he can even go through with it. With one last lingering kiss against Naruto's forehead, Sasuke vanished into the night.


~Two months later~

"Hold up..I'm coming just,..." Naruto leaned over in an attempt to get some air in his system. Konohamaru and his little brat friends taunted him down the road. They mimicked zombies dragging along on the dirt. Moegi stuck her tongue out at Konohamaru and turned her concerned eyes back to Naruto.

"Do you want me to carry those mister?" She asked. It was music to Naruto's ears, but he waved her off. His pride wouldn't let a genin carry the food for him. He only had three more blocks to go anyway. Naruto smiled sweetly to her, and turned to flick off Konohamaru. He laughed of course, very pleased with himself. After taking a deep breath, Naruto pushed himself up and trudged along. Baa-chan was throwing a 110th birthday party for one of the vague leaf elders on the council. She had sent Naruto out to go buy last minute desserts since he was the only one not running around the room in a frenzy to make last minute adjustments. Naruto had vouched to sit in a corner and wait for the party to start, especially when he had been rather breathless lately. Or maybe that was just because he gained another fourteen pounds in the last couple months and the only exercise he received was walking to and from places. Now that the baby had started moving inside him, he experienced abdominal pains. Thankfully the vomiting had ended completely, along with his crazy emotions. There was a new emotion that had given Naruto some trouble. It seems his libido has started up with a vengeance, and all the raging testosterone had gone straight to his nether regions. He could be anywhere when a flare-up would happen. The worst time had been when he was at the market and was reaching for some tomatoes. As soon as his hand gripped the vines, little Naruto came out to play. Naruto protectively covered it up with his bags. but the walk home had been excruciating. Needless to say, he had started wearing much baggier pants as of late and long shirts.

"Are you going to take eighty more years to get down the steps? Just cause you're pregnant doesn't mean you're old!" Konohamaru shouted from down the flight of steps leading into the park. Naruto could see that guests were already arriving and socializing amongst each other. Naruto found the closest server, and handed her the cakes. Then he turned to Konohamaru. Before he could react, Naruto smiled and snatched him into an armhold.

"You think you can get cheeky just because I'm carrying someone else? I'll show you who to-" Naruto flipped Konohamaru upside down and dangled him by his ankles. He then proceeded to swing him from side-to-side. In a matter of seconds, Konohamaru was k-o'd.

"Naruto!" Tsunade shouted from the picnic table. Naruto eeped and gingerly put down the child.

"Hehehe...You see Baa-chan, what had happened was-" Naruto narrowly avoided an orange thrown at his face.

"Naruto, you are too old and too pregnant for behavior like that. Go sit down somewhere before you hurt yourself." Naruto grumbled but did as his Baa-chan had asked.

"Too pregnant to mess with a brat, but not too pregnant to walk a mile for some damn cakes. Okay!" Kakashi saw Naruto by himself and decided to say hi.

"I see you're very active today. How far along are you?" Kakashi asked.

"It was not by choice, I'm sure. I'm in my second trimester as Sakura calls it. I'm nearly six months in. Should be another week or so."

"Have you gone in to determine the gender?"

"Don't have to. Kuruma could tell early on. I'm having a girl." Kakashi gestured to the group of kids playing in the creek.

"And do you think you can handle having one of those running around your apartment? I still couldn't believe my ears when Sakura told me you were going to raise her on your own. There's plenty of people who'd be willing to take her in Naruto." Naruto sighed. Here they go again with this crap.

"...I understand your concern Kakashi, but this is different from one of my goals as a shinobi. I can't afford to mess up. I have to do this. I know what it's like to be raised by people not of your own blood. Until I'm dead in the ground, there will be no way I'm going to let her grow up the way I did. She has a father Kakashi. She deserves the right to be raised by him." Kakashi sighed.

"There's no way of talking you out of this is there?" Naruto shook his head. Kakashi sighed.

"Just remember Naruto, you're not alone in this. You have people you can rely on. It doesn't have to be you two against the world." Kakashi patted his head and stood up.

"Let's get some food Naruto, before all those vultures beat us to it." Naruto stood and walked with him to the picnic table. It already is us against the world, Naruto thought.


Sakura and Naruto sat folding the newly washed and dried baby clothes. They smelled airy with a hint of pine. Sakura buried her face into a sunflower onesie at the bottom of the pile.

"Can you imagine this mixed with the new baby smell? Heavenly!" Sakura cried as she threw the clothing into the air. Naruto laughed and snatched it from the air.

"I'm so glad that smells are what you're concerned about right now. Unfortunately, if you keep throwing the clothes into the air, we won't be done folding till nighttime. I still have to make dinner." Sakura grabbed a pair of socks and went to balling them.

"Nonsense. I'm making dinner. You need a break. I can't believe Tsunade had you walk all the way to that shop. You're nearly six months pregnant! What was she thinking?" Sakura started putting their folded clothes into the bin labeled "winter clothes".

"She probably thought I was bored or something. Or maybe she was still holding that grudge from when I spray painted her office." Sakura swatted him behind the head.

"You wonder why so many of the elders don't like you. Do you want curry rice, or miso? I bought some daifukus on our way home, so we can snack on that till it's ready." Naruto finished the pile, and placed the clothes into the bin. He answered as he was sliding it into the closet.

"I think miso. Tofu sounds really good right about now. Toss me a daifuku would ya?" Sakura grabbed an entire grocery bag full of them and tossed them to him. Naruto grabbed the bag, and stared at them in shock. He walked slowly into the kitchen and held them disbelievingly.

"How many of these do you plan on eating?" He asked incredulously.

"You don't have to eat them all. I can polish off the rest." Sakura pointed her knife to the cupboard.

"Can you grab the miso broth from there for me. I'm chopping the onion right now and it's a bitch." Sakura wiped the tears from her eyes with her shoulder.

"How can you eat all of that and still have room for dinner?" Naruto handed her the broth.

"I am a bottomless pit."

"That seems to be the stigma for all women." Naruto muttered as he started washing the dishes she used to make the food. In this situation, you would have thought they were married and Sakura was the one having the baby, not Naruto. Naruto leaned against the sink and sighed. Sakura touched his shoulder with concern. Naruto smiled wistfully and grabbed her hand. He squeezed it, then let go.

"I'm fine...just tired. And I miss training. I feel like my body's become weak. And I can't afford to weaken, not with…" Naruto couldn't even say his name out loud anymore. When was Sasuke going to come? When was he going to take his, no, their child away? Naruto grabbed a bowl of miso and sat at his table. He was joined by Sakura with a daifuku in her mouth.

"It's going to get a lot harder Naruto. You have to spend the next few years taking care of her, by then she should be old enough for the care center in town. But till she's old enough for that, it's going to be crying, diapers, and lots of cleaning. Lots and lots and lots…" Sakura thought she saw a wisp of black hair and pale skin. She jumped from the table and ran to the balcony door and flung it open. She gasped and cried out. Naruto dropped his bowl onto the table and ran after Sakura.

"Sakura! Sakura! Sakura! Are you Okay? What...Sai?" Naruto was dumbstruck. Sakura hadn't been screaming out in pain. She was jumping for joy and clung onto Sai's neck with fervor.

"I thought you were coming back next week! You're home early. Come come, I was just making dinner. We have a lot to talk about." Sai gave a small pleading look Naruto, but then had his eye caught on the bulge in Naruto's belly. Sai did a double take as he was pulled along by Sakura.

"Uhm...Did you gain weight the last time I saw you?" Sai asked. Naruto resumed his position on the table and finished eating his half-spilled miso.

"Well. The last time we were together was the mission with the prime minister right?"

"Yes. And then I was immediately shipped off as a backup for another three month long mission. One of the ninja that was supposed to be going came down with a nasty respiratory virus. I was politely forced to take his place. Then when I returned from that mission, I had three days of rest before heading down with the ambassador to the Land of Iron. Sorry if I wasn't up for a visit as I was quite tired. " Sakura shook her head.

"That's sad. You'd think they'd pick any other black-ops. No, they pick the one that just returned from a week-long mission and had a big diplomatic assignment coming up in a few months."

"I didn't appreciate it either Sakura, but I was the most convenient one to send. I don't choose the missions, I just do them. In the end, both were successful. That's why I came back early...and it seems to some new developments. I know you're not one to let yourself go like this, but the only other possibility for that bump is a much more frightening situation. Please tell me you drank too much sake and washed it down with animal grease." Naruto shook his head.

"No. I'm actually pregnant." Sai looked to Sakura for confirmation, and when he received her justification, Sai held his head in his hands.

"Based on how far along you are, I'm assuming the third trimester?"

"Close, but no. Two more weeks and I will be. That's when all the fun stuff starts." Naruto smirked and set down his now empty bowl. Sakura passed a fresh bowl of miso to Sai. He stirred the contents around before bringing a spoonful into his mouth.

"Do I want to know who and how?" Sai asked. Naruto and Sakura exchanged looks.

"Well," Sakura started, "he's not exactly one of your more esteemed colleges. It would probably anger you more knowing who the father is."

"He's going to find out eventually Sakura. There's no use beating around the bush. The who is Sasuke. The how is a bit complicated and has primarily to do with the nine tails." Sai pushed some tofu out from in between his teeth as he thought over this piece of information.

"That would mean the conception had occurred over that mission when he kidnapped you. That explains a little as to why he was so vehement on capturing you. It was consensual right?" Naruto's blank expression gave him his answer. Sai set down his half eaten bowl of miso and stood up. When he started walking to the balcony door, Sakura became worried and trailed after him.

"Sai... what are you doing?" Sai climbed up onto the ledge as if he made to jump.

"I'm going to find the sick bastard and cut off his genitalia." Sakura grabbed his arm and yanked him back on the floor.

"Are you insane! You have no idea where he is, no way of finding him, and would probably lose before you even have the chance." Sai glared up at her.

"Sakura, that sick little fuck-" Sakura covered his mouth to hush him.

"Look. I know how angry you are. Naruto's my best friend too. I was ready to raise all kinds of hell when I first found out, but there's nothing we can do about it now. Naruto's already been compromised. This is just the battle, we still have a war to win. Sasuke wanted the baby for a reason. That means that he'll be coming back for her. Then you can raise arms against him because trust me, you'll have half of konoha with you."

"It's touching hearing you're in-depth battle plans in regard to the father of my child. However, I encourage you to remember that I am still here and dinner is getting cold. Could we move this little negotiation to the kitchen please?" Naruto turned and went back before they could respond. They followed silently, and their "dinner" was finished in the same way. Sakura set her bowl in the sink, and stood there in thought. Naruto turned to her expectantly, already waiting for her onslaught of questions. He was surprised when she asked him something completely unexpected.

"Do you want to have this baby Naruto?" Even Sai did a double-take from the question.

"Uh...is this supposed to be a joke?" Naruto half-heartedly laughed while he set down his daifuku. Sakura shook her head.

"It's just that, you know, no one's ever really stopped to ask how you feel about all of this. There are ways you know to..."

"Sakura no! Don't talk like that, this is...no. To answer your question Sakura, I don't want this baby. But just because I don't want this baby doesn't mean I won't have her. She's changed me in so many different ways! I mean, look around! My whole apartment is actually clean for once!" Sai and Sakura both exchanged relieved smiles.

"Yes, and it's impressive how you've kept it this long." Sai mused.

"I've been keeping it consistently clean...Look Sakura, this child is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I can't let a little cold feet ruin someone else's life. This baby, she needs me. I haven't felt needed in a very long time. I like it." Naruto smiled serenely down at his bulging belly and rubbed the warm skin. Sakura bit her lip.

"Are you sure Naruto? Because there are ways..." Naruto shook his head.

"Thank-you for being considerate of my feelings, but I'm sure. I'm glad that you guys are my closest friends. I wouldn't probably share these feelings with anyone else." Sakura started tearing up over her miso and set down her bowl shakily. Sai rose from his spot, and together, the three of them shared a big hug. It was the warmest hug Naruto had received in all his life.


~Two months later~

"It's perfect isn't it? Let's hope she's got Sasuke's composure and quietness, otherwise she'll be a nightmare to deal with." Kakashi mused as he held up a toy doll. The room for Naruto's daughter had been finally complete with everything he would need. Granted, a lot of trinkets and larger items were being stored in the renovated closet, but the room still looked packet. It was an orderly dysfunctional, which suited the Uzumaki well.

"I don't care what kind of personality she has as long as she's not a smartallic like me." Naruto rebuttled.

"Please, you won't have to worry about words for quite a while. It's the screaming you should really be concerned about. You're not going to be sleeping for the next year so just be ready." Sakura added as she fussed with a picture frame hanging from the wall. It was a couple weeks before Naruto's "supposed" due date and Kakashi wanted to take the gang out for ramen at Ichiraku's. Naruto hadn't had the fast food in months, he was long overdue for some brothy goodness. Naruto grabbed his jacket before locking the apartment up for good. Little did he know that a raven had been watching him the entire time and left one window unlatched. The raven watched his little kitsune all the way to Ichiraku's. He looked like a sunny spot in the middle of a storm. The raven smiled wistfully when that smile on his fox's face lit up in front of the lanterns. The raven imagined that Ichiraku's famous chef would prepare a beef bowl on the house just for him. He let his gaze linger on Naruto just a little bit longer before the raven decided to turn in.

Slipping through the window, Sasuke noticed that there had been an increase in items in the room. It was almost cramped with baby items. The next thing Sasuke noticed was the order. Everything was clean and in it's proper place. Eight months ago, you would have never thought this would be Naruto's room. The next thing Sasuke noticed was the warmth of the covers. It was as if Naruto had just awoken from them. Sasuke knelt down and breathed into the bed sheets. They smelled like rain and air. Sasuke rubbed the covers lovingly and sighed. A few more weeks and it would be time. Would he welcome him into his bed? Would he sleep as peacefully if he knew he was here? What about her? Where would she fit into all of this? Sasuke agonized over these questioned as he had been for months. Unconsciously, Sasuke had crawled up into the bed and curled up under the covers. Rather than depressing, it was comforting-as if he was snuggling up next to Naruto. The idea brought peace to his restless nature and Sasuke was sleeping soundly before he knew it.

Naruto had returned all too early for the Uchiha's liking. He had awaken as soon as he felt the presences coming up the stairs outside. He leaped from the bed and crawled out onto the balcony just as the turn of Naruto's key unlocked the door. He laughed and bid farewell to his companions. Naruto set down his jacket and walked into his bedroom. He immediately felt an odd presence. Walking slowly to his bed, he sat down and felt the sheets. They were warm.

"Am I imagining things?" Naruto whispered to himself. He brought the sheets up to his face and sniffed deeply. He caught a hint of musk and an earthy scent. Naruto bit his lip in anticipation.

"No, he couldn't be..." Naruto hesitantly looked up to the balcony, and there he was. He was still as handsome as he had always been, nature had only seemed to kiss his features since they had last met. Sasuke racked on the glass. Naruto stood up slowly and opened the doors. Sasuke did not move from his position.

"May I come in?" Sasuke whispered. Naruto's lower lip quivered. He wasn't demanding, he was asking. How devilish? Naruto fought an internal war within himself over letting him in or shutting him out for good. After a minute or two of debating, he knew he couldn't deny his feelings any longer. He pulled the doors open and waited to be embraced. Sasuke placed one finger on Naruto's chest and pushed him back into the room. Naruto breathed heavily and bit his lip insistently. Sasuke only stared deeply at him and let his little fox suffer in anticipation. The air was alight with desire and shrouded in darkness. When Naruto sucked in his lower lip for the seventh time, Sasuke pinched the flesh between his fingers. Naruto's eyes widened in fear.

"Don't do that..." Sasuke muttered. Naruto left his lower lip alone, finding his voice.

"What are you doing here Sasuke?" Sasuke looked past him to the kitchen.

"How is she?" Naruto stared at him in confusion.

"Sakura?" He asked. Sasuke looked at him with his trademark dissatisfied expression. He pressed his hand onto Naruto's large stomach.

"Her." He whispered. Naruto swallowed a heady moan that tried to escape when Sasuke touched his tummy. He hadn't been touched in so long.

"She's...fine. You need to leave." Naruto pushed away his caress and walked over to the door. He hurriedly unlocked the door and beckoned him to it while looking at the floor. He felt Sasuke's presence as he made his way to the door. He didn't walk out, just stood in front of the door. Naruto tried to ignore it, but the pull was too great. Naruto looked up, and Sasuke's black eyes were devouring him. Naruto's lower lip tried to quiver, but he restrained his facial tic. Did Sasuke know what he was doing to him right now?

"Naruto...do I really have to go?" Sasuke whispered as a hand lifted to caress his cheek. Naruto leaned into that hand like it was his only support and sighed. Yes, he knew exactly what he was doing.

"...Please go?" Naruto begged. He didn't have it in him to make him leave. He would have to go of his own accord. Sasuke slowly reached for the door and shut it. When the door clicked, Sasuke locked ever lock slowly, meticulously. Naruto gulped and crossed his arms over his chest. Sasuke turned to him and leaned against the frame with one hand pressed against the wall above Naruto's head. Naruto turned his head away from Sasuke's stare, but he gripped his chin and forced him to look at him. Naruto's eyes begged to be released. Sasuke's eyes said otherwise. Leaning down, Sasuke nestled his lips against Naruto's. It was tentative at first, but the kiss solidified, then exploded all at once. They were embraced in a passionate lip-lock with both sides fighting for dominance. Naruto wrapped his hands around the Uchiha's head and smashed their faces together. Naruto rubbed his tongue along the inside of Sasuke's mouth, lacing with his tongue in a slimy push-and-pull. Sasuke fought back with as much vigor, pushing his own tongue against the roof of Naruto's mouth. The action rewarded him a hearty whine and a forceful grip on his hair.

"Sasuke...mph...bed!" Naruto cried. He couldn't stand any longer. His legs wobbled from the kiss and he started sliding to the floor. Sasuke grabbed him by his legs and picked him up. Carrying him to the bed and tossing him back-first onto the top, Sasuke crawled over top of him. He licked his lips as he started taking off his clothes. He wore a simple black shirt with baggy black slacks, and dark blue gladiator sandals. Sasuke mounted him with the grace of a black leopard about to eat it's prey. Naruto felt the tightening of his groin as another deep moan escaped his mouth. Sasuke chuckled darkly.

"It's been awhile hasn't it?" He whispered as he removed Naruto's pants. Naruto heaved air as his body started to vibrate with desire.

"...too long, uh!" Naruto cried out as Sasuke's mouth enveloped one of his nipples through his tank top. They were already sensitive from the baby, but Sasuke's ministrations made them even more tender. Naruto's back lifted up as Sasuke's mouth pulled away from the swollen nub. A line of saliva trailed from Sasuke's lip to the softened nipple. Naruto's penis twitched under his boxers. Sasuke let his hands rome under Naruto's shirt, the feel of his soft skin sending shivers all through the Uchiha's body.

"Sasuke, please!" Naruto begged, reaching out to grab Sasuke's waist band. Sasuke swatted the hand away.

"No, I will make love to you slowly. I will let you revel in the sensations, let them fill you up till your stretching at the seams, and when you can't take anymore, I will shatter you into a million pieces..." Sasuke had removed Naruto's boxers, and began stroking the beautiful pink flesh with the urgency of a snail. Naruto moaned in pleasure and writhed under that hand.

"...and then I will pick back up those pieces, put you back together, and shatter you..." Sasuke punctuated each syllable with fast strokes. Naruto gripped the covers fiercely, blubbering like a little kid. All the blood he had in his body had fled to his groin and pulsed there in that one vein under his penis. He felt every twitch, and Naruto was afraid that it really would burst.

"again..." One hard stroke plus a needy scream from Naruto.

"Ah!" Naruto cried out.

"and again..." Two hard strokes and a breathy moan from Naruto.

"Ah!" Naruto whimpered.

"and again..." Three hard strokes and a silent screech that had him shaking in his bed. Vibrations could be seen in his abdomen and legs as the orgasm claimed his body and erupted from his angry, swollen head.

"AH!" Naruto pleaded as ribbons of semen sprinkled the air and littered his chest. A few splotches had hit his face and dripped down his cheek. Sasuke leaned up and licked the sticky substance from his face, moaning over the taste.

"And you will beg me for it every time. Nah, Na-ru-chan?" Sasuke whispered into his ear and licked the shell of his ear. Naruto was still coming down from his high and could barely registered what he was saying. He only mumbled an agreement and tried to bring his breathing in order.

"Naruto, we're not done yet." Naruto bit his lip again and touched the corner of Sasuke's chin. Sasuke chuckled.

"I told you not to bite that lip Naruto. I think you need some punishment."

"Yes, please...punish me Sasuke..." Naruto breathed. Sasuke's heart nearly burst from his chest as he devoured Naruto's other nipple.

"Ah! Ah! Ah! Sasuke..slow...down...I can't take this! AH!" Naruto convulsed under that mouth, all kinds of delicious sensations festering in his groin. He felt an innate desire to buck his hips and grind against anything.

"Sasuke! Friction...I need...uhn!" Naruto pleaded with Sasuke to satisfy his lust. Sasuke took his sweet time at licking every inch of skin in sight. His neck, his shoulder bones, trailing down his collar bone, pausing at his nipples and giving them a fresh suckling, moving down his large abdomen and teasing his belly button. Sasuke wriggled his tongue in the opening, slobbering every crevice-both to his delight and Naruto's sexual torture. Sasuke nipped and licked at the pelvic skin, never touching the two parts Naruto wanted fondled the most. When he did meet the angry head, he breathed on the tip and watched it grow darker in color. Beads of pre-cum dripped from it's opening in fast spurts. Sasuke gripped the base, and licked the head. Naruto was swimming in his own passion, only seeing Sasuke through the sensations his body endured. When Sasuke's mouth enveloped Naruto's already-hard member, Naruto moaned his deepest, heartiest moan. Sasuke's sinful lips sucked on the skin while his tongue swirled over the slit. Sasuke pulled the penis even deeper into his mouth as he added harsh twists to the base. Naruto mewled in ecstasy, digging his fingers into Sasuke's hair. Sasuke took a deep breath through his nose before sucking the entire member into his mouth. Naruto's toes curled as Sasuke swallowed over his penis and created almost painful waves of contraction. Naruto was at his limit, his balls were swelling to the size of baseballs.

"Sasuke...no more... I'm, ugh, I'm, ah...cumming!" Naruto groaned, but the release he was expecting never came. Although the muscle contractions pulsed inside him as his orgasm came, the expelling of bodily fluid that truly signiled his post-coidal euphoria failed to do just that...expel. Naruto whined and writhed under Sasuke as he peered down to his still hard cock. Sasuke had a death grip on the base of it and the top of his balls. Sasuke looked up at him teary eyed.

"Wh-why?" Naruto whimpered. Sasuke kissed away his tears.

"I'm going to make you explode." was his only answer as Sasuke pulled up off of him. Naruto pushed himself up and stared at his partner. Sasuke stood up, removed his pants, and started rummaging through Naruto's nightstand. When he found what he was looking for, he peered at Naruto with barely concealed desire. He held up the fruits of his labor in both hands. Naruto gulped. In his hands were condoms and lubricant.

"Naruto, lay back down." Sasuke commanded in this sexy voice that had Naruto swooning. Naruto leaned back and spread his legs out a little bit. Sasuke knelt on one knee in between his legs and lubricated his fingers. He stared into Naruto's eyes as he did so, liking the almost feral look in his eyes.

"Naruto..." Sasuke whispered as he lined the tight ring of muscle with lube. Naruto whimpered out his name.

"S-Sasuke...uhn!" Naruto groaned as one digit penetrated him. The smooth finger pushed in past the muscle, pulled out tantalizingly slow, then pushed in again, going a little deeper. Naruto felt the one finger like it was filling him. Sasuke sped up his pace a bit and harshly twisted the finger inside of Naruto. His reaction was instantaneous.

"Sasuke!" Naruto yelled. Sasuke slid his second finger in, pushing that ring of muscle open further and loving the way that the anal walls seemed to squeeze them together. Naruto's ass was practically sucking the two fingers in, and Sasuke resisted the pull with skill. He let the walls suck in his fingers, then he'd pull them out hard, spreading them out as he got closer to the opening. Then he would draw them together as he let the muscle pull them back in. Naruto had been mewling through this entire process, pushing his lower half against those fingers.

"Sasuke, more!" Naruto begged through heady swollen lips. Sasuke obliged by adding a third finger. The digit slid in through the soft flesh with ease. Naruto was stretched to the limit as Sasuke pushed the three fingers in all the way to the knuckle. The anal walls clenched as if surprised and twitched over the invading fingers. Naruto huffed air as if he was choking and ground his ass against Sasuke's fingers with more fervor than before. Sasuke began exploring inside the anal canal, searching for that one special spot...

"AH!" Naruto screamed out. Sasuke smirked. He found it. Sasuke made sure to make himself commit that spot to memory as he teased around it with the tip of his fingers. Naruto became impatient very quickly with the teasing fingers.

"Sasuke...fuck me..." Naruto demanded. Sasuke gave his own hardened member two quick pumps before slipping on the condom, and aligning his tip with Naruto's opening. As he was about to push in, he hesitated and looked at Naruto's erotic expression. Thinking a change of position was needed, Sasuke sat back against the frame of the bed. Naruto opened his eyes and cried out in sexual frustration. Sasuke didn't give him a chance to prepare as he yanked his legs to him and lifted Naruto to his knees. Sasuke positioned himself directly under his opening and waited for Naruto to descend. Naruto sputtered in whimpers as he didn't know what to do but just wanted to be fucked. Sasuke gave him a look of patience and understanding as he grasped both of Naruto's hands to steady him. Naruto bit his lip and steadied himself over Sasuke's penis. Taking a deep breath, Naruto plunged down over the hardened flesh. His ring of muscle stretched and quivered from the sudden penetration. His anal canal stretched fully as the head advanced deeper and deeper into his ass. The inner muscle twitched and convulsed in waves as Naruto adjusted to the feeling of being filled. When he felt like his skin wouldn't tear from the movement, Naruto pulled up from the hard member. He took a deep breath and let gravity take him. He slammed back down till he made skin to skin contact in a hard slap. His anus stretched over the sheath inside him and squeezed. Sasuke grunted from the amazing sensation.

"Yes! Sasuke...ah...more..." Naruto established a rhythm. He pulled up and slammed back down on Sasuke until he felt that familiar coil inside him. Bracing himself using Sasuke's upper arms, Naruto added grinding to the thrusting motions. He grinded his hips and ass against Sasuke, He rolled over his penis and let the sweet juices inside him slick up the ride. Naruto turned the ride into a desperate attack as his movements became faster and more jerky. He began erratically sucking Sasuke into his body and rolling over his penis with vigor. The rhythmic slapping sound became spastic smacks of skin against skin. Sasuke pushed, grinded, and smashed his pelvic region with just as much vigor and passion as Naruto. Sasuke punctuated each blast of movement with hitting Naruto's prostate. Naruto was losing all sense of reality as he was being driven insane from within. Every time Sasuke's tip slammed against his prostate, it sent explosions of pleasure and pressure into his own penis. His balls bounced and slapped in rhythm to his thrusts. Both Naruto and Sasuke were so close. Sasuke began stroking Naruto in time with his thrusts.

"Fuck..Sasuke...Sasu...Sas..." Naruto's body convulsed.

"Naruto...fuck...Naruto...yes..." Sasuke pumped Naruto harder and harder as he increased his pace.

"Sasuke!...Sasuke! Ah! Ah! Ah!" Naruto's head spinned as he slammed his ass as hard and as fast as he could against Sasuke.

"Close...Naruto...ah...fuck..." Their motions became blindingly fast and erratic.

"Oh Sasuke...faster...faster...close!...Ah!...AH! AH!" Naruto was screaming but still no release.

"Close!...So fucking close!...Ah!...Naruto!...Naruto! Naruto! Fuck! Naruto!" Sasuke was about to explode from the inside out.

"AH! AH! AH!...I...CAN'T...SASUKE!" Naruto came screaming Sasuke's name. That scream was all Sasuke needed for his own release to claim him. A wall of white blinded Sasuke as his hot semen spurted from his tip, filled Naruto's inside, and overflowed out of the muscle that sheathed his flaccid cock. Sasuke felt every twitch of his member as the spurts of semen erupted from his tip and wrapped against the walls of Naruto's anal canal. Naruto's eyes rolled in the back of his head when his orgasm hit him and literally made his penis explode. White hot semen shot from his slit and sprayed all over their bodies. The semen had built up from his previous dry-cum and splattered everywhere. White covered both of their torsos, the bed sheets, even a little bit of the floor. Naruto shuddered as the last few spurts oozed from his tip and slipped down the side. When all of it had been expelled, Naruto fell over to the side in post-coidal bliss. Sasuke too felt euphoria claim him and he breathed deeply. When they both could muster up the brain power, they exchanged glances. Sasuke was the first to be able to speak.

"That was..." he started.

"Fucking fantastic?" Naruto offered.

"Necessary." Sasuke answered. Naruto chuckled to himself.

"Intense was what that was. I don't think I can handle that position more than once a session." Sasuke chuckled.

"I think we both are worn out. Let's call it a night." Sasuke pulled Naruto up into his lap, wiped off the excess cum, and snuggled under the covers. Together, they fell into a deep, restful sleep.


Naruto awoke to an empty bed, and a depressingly empty heart. He should have known better. Why would he let himself get attached? All Sasuke had probably come to do was check to make sure the baby was growing properly and as a reward, he treated Naruto to that. One thing was for sure, Sasuke had done his job well, because Naruto didn't think he'd be able to walk. Yanking off the covers, Naruto peaked down at his body. It was carnage. He had dried semen all over his chest like splatter paint. Bite marks and hickeys littered his torso. Naruto backside burned when he moved, and his legs felt wobbly as he turned to a sitting position.

"Alright Naruto. One step at a time." Naruto gently eased himself off the bed. He was standing for exactly two seconds. His legs bent and he fell down on his ass.

"Damn it..." Naruto muttered as he rubbed his lower back. He gave himself a few minutes of break before moving on. Naruto crawled all the way to his bathroom and ran the water. He would be taking a bath for now. When the water filled up to his liking, Naruto slid into the hot water and sighed. It was almost surreal. Sasuke had been here. Sasuke had been in his house, his room, his bed, his...

"If it hadn't been for this stupid pain in my ass, I'd have thought he'd never been here to begin with." Naruto held the dirty water in his palm and let the water fall through his fingers. The warm water was actually comforting despite it's no longer clear color. Naruto felt at that moment like he could stay like this forever. Maybe staying pregnant forever was a possibility? Could Kurama do it? It would solve the whole Sasuke problem for sure. He'd always have to come back to check on the baby, maybe they could even reconnect like they did last night. They'd develop a habit of meeting up. The baby could become a...bartering tool. Naruto swatted the surface of the water with his hand and growled at himself. How could he be so selfish as to use a poor precious childlike indispensable money? Naruto would not be cruel or heartless. He would deliver this baby into the world, and he would deal with the repercussions of it.

"You've spent enough time in the bath Naruto. It's time to move on with life." Because if he was being truly honest with himself, life was not going to wait for him to catch up.


"Oh...Oh no!" Naruto's stomach cramped and he fell down. The other shoppers in the market looked at him in concern. Naruto gripped the dirt and breathed heavily. It was time. The baby was coming.

"Ku-kurama..." Naruto's eyes watered as he begged the fox demon to help him. What he had mistaken as light stomach cramps earlier in the morning he now recognized as faux contractions. Now, how he was having contractions when there was no opening to spread, Naruto didn't know. But now his stomach muscles were convulsing together in waves of pain that only seemed to grow in intensity. A small crowd had formed around him as they all stared at him worriedly. Naruto reached his hand into the air as if to grab something.

"Saku...ra...help!" Sakura had just left to grab some cucumbers. Naruto hoped that the crowd would catch her attention and she would realise that her best friend was preparing for labor. Naruto rolled from his back to his side and clutched his belly in pain. He still didn't understand why his stomach felt like it was going to be ripped in two.

"...hurts...hurts..." Naruto cried. His eyes watered over as the pain increased a little bit. He reached out for a tanned ankle that was not too far away, and realized it was Iruka Sensei. He had on a terrified look. It was the one time Naruto had ever seen him this fearful.

"Dear God! Naruto!" Iruka cried as he helped Naruto up. He yelled to the crowd to make a path for them and Sakura finally appeared.

"I'm so sorry, I saw the crowd from far off and had to run across the road. How is he doing?" Sakura took up Naruto's other side to help him along.

"AH!" Naruto yelled.

"He's hurting that's for sure. When did his contractions first start?" Iruka answered.

"He complained about stomach cramps in the morning, but he said they were just because he was hungry! I mean, we're not expecting for a whole nother week!" Naruto cried out in pain as the contractions became longer and more intense. Iruka cursed and lifted Naruto into his arms. They didn't have the time to walk to the hospital. They needed to get there asap.

"I'm just going to transport him myself Sakura. You go get Tsunade. We don't have time for this." Sakura nodded fearfully. Iruka nelt down, made the hands signs, and they disappeared in a puff of smoke. As soon as Naruto was at the hospital, he was rushed off on a gurney to a surgery room. He was given an IV and some pain medication. In no time, they filtered in some anesthesia to his IV and Naruto was asleep. When he awoke, he had a large cross of stitches over his stomach, but he was fine for the most part. He was alone in the hospital room, but the window was open and sunlight filtered in through the window. It was closer to evening. Naruto must have been under for hours. He chafed his fingers on the bed sheet over him and stared around nervously. Where was his baby? As if to answer his question, Sakura walked in with Kakashi in toe, and a small swaddle of blanket in her arms. Naruto stared at that clump of fabric till Sakura was standing right next to him. She was grinning from ear to ear.

"My..." Naruto started. He was at a loss for words. Sakura pulled the top of the blanket back and revealed a pink face. She had thin brown hair on her head that spiked in every direction, and the most beautiful violet eyes Naruto had ever seen. Her cheeks were pudgy, and she had two fat lips that were bright pink. She had come out surprisingly pale for Naruto's taste, but then again, his tanness had been acquired through hours spent in the sun. Naruto reached out tentatively to hold his child. The baby rousted from her sleep and began to cry as soon as she was placed in foreign arms. Naruto started laughing and tearing up as the baby cried in his arms.

"Haha! The baby hates me!" Naruto laughed. Everyone joined in on the merriment. The sudden bout of laughter calmed the child enough to ignore her discomfort and even made her smile a toothless grin. Naruto grinned right back at her and kissed her forehead. The baby giggled and made slurping sounds with her mouth. Naruto looked up slyly at Sakura, who only grinned back.

"She's got that same idiotic optimism and easy satisfaction that you do Naruto." Sakura smiled. Naruto nodded his head and bit his lip.

"Yeah. She's going to be hilarious. Yes sweetie, you just go right on to sleep okay. Daddy loves you very much." Naruto kissed the baby of her forehead and rested her against his chest.

"What do you plan on naming her?" Kakashi whispered. Naruto turned her name over and over in his head. He had decided that he would do any name thinking until the day of her birth, and now that it was the day of reckoning, he was faced with a decision. Naruto pursed his lips.

"Nikkori...Uzumaki Nikkori." Sakura and Kakashi smiled knowingly.

"I think it's perfect. However, I will inform you that she won't be grinning very long when we have to move her again. She seems to hate being moved around a lot." Kakashi mused. Naruto gently lifted her into Sakura open arms. The baby stirred slightly but stayed silent for the most part.

"She'll make a terrible ninja then." Naruto added. Sakura gave Naruto a kiss on the forehead before taking her leave with the baby. Kakashi stayed by his side and talked to him for a while.

"How long was I out?" Naruto asked.

"About four or five hours." Kakashi answered.

"Was the process hard?"

"Tsunade said it was really weird. They were going to perform a normal cesarean procedure, but they ended up having to wait another hour or so." Naruto cocked his head in confusion.

"Why? Wasn't the baby ready?" Kakashi shook his head.

"That's the thing. They said this thin membranous sac-like a thinner uterus-had enclosed the baby, but there were still blood vessels coursing through it. Tsunade said they couldn't determine where they went, so they couldn't remove them for fear of destroying a blood supply to the baby. As they were keeping watch though, they noticed movement of the membrane. You know those contraction you were having?" Naruto nodded.

"Yeah. Did that have something to do with the membrane?"

"Yes. Those contractions were actually parts of the membrane retracting from the baby. Each contraction was like the abdominal muscles pulling the membrane away from the baby's skin. Eventually, all those vessels that they were worried eventually detached and they could remove the baby safely. It was the weirdest thing." Naruto scratched his head in contemplation.

"So that membrane functioned as my placenta?" Kakashi nodded.

"In a way, yes. Tsunade cut it out to keep because she didn't know how it was supposed to function in your body once it was dead tissue. So if you want to see it..." Naruto put up his hands in surrender.

"Please no. I've had enough fun for one day." Kakashi patted his hand.

"Then I'll be taking my leave. Get some rest Naruto." Naruto nodded to him as he left. After a beat, Naruto turned his attention to the window sill and breathed a deep breath.

"You can come out now." Sasuke appeared on the ledge, then slid himself down onto the floor. He looked even more wild than before, with baggy pants, worn leather sandals, and an open "v" white shirt. His hair hung in loose spiky stalks. He looked beautiful in that moment.

"She was breath-taking." Sasuke mused as he stared at the door Kakashi just left in.

"She was your daughter." Naruto deadpanned. Sasuke turned his attention back to Naruto and sat next to him on his bed. They stared at each other for a minute, both trying to gather their thoughts.

"I know." Sasuke finally responded.

"You can't have her Sasuke. I won't let you." Naruto said. He didn't carry any malice or anger in his voice, just resolution. Sasuke grabbed his hand and looked it over.

"I know." He peered up at Naruto through his lashes. Naruto looked tired.

"Then why are you here?" Naruto asked. His eyes quivered with seriousness. Sasuke mirrored that same honest look.

"Because I want to be." Naruto tried his best to hold the tears that wanted to spring from his eyes.

"It doesn't matter how much you want to be, because you won't be here very long. You're going to abandon us aren't you..." Sasuke sighed, holding Naruto's cheek and wiping away the tears spilling over his lids.

"I wish things were different. I wish...I was someone else. Someone who could honorably stand by your side, who could hold his own daughter in his arms and proudly call himself her father, who could live simply and happily without worry. But this isn't a fairytale. Either I get my perfect ending or you do. We can't have both."

"What do you mean by that!" Naruto asked angrily. Sasuke kissed his forehead and stood up. He started walking to the door without answering Naruto's question. Naruto blinked away his angry tears and tried to compose himself.

"So that's it huh? You're just going to leave?" Sasuke turned back from the open window and smiled at him.

"I love you Naruto." Naruto eyes bulged open. Till death, he would continue to believe it.

"I love you too Sasuke." Naruto answered with his own bittersweet smile.

"Tell Nikkori I love her too." Naruto nodded.

"I will, but you're always welcome to tell her yourself." Sasuke chuckled and turned away from him. Naruto waved goodbye as Sasuke leaped from the window and disappeared for the last time.