This takes place after Everything in Between. Summer has passed and everyone is returning to school, moving into a house together, and Ino is nearing her due date. Will it be smooth sailing? Unlikely.

Cause and Effect

Chapter 1

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"No, I've got this bag. I think there's just one more, way in the back." Sasuke hefted two bags on his shoulders and pulled a suitcase away as well, rolling it up the walkway to their house, and gamely ignoring Kankurou and Kiba playing something that might have resembled field hockey if there was less cursing and tackling involved in it in the front lawn.

"Sasuke, you've got three…" Naruto rolled his eyes and ducked into the trunk, shoving aside the roadside kit as he caught glimpse of an orange satchel.

That's weird, this isn't mine, and Sasuke usually doesn't have anything that's not black or grey.

He hadn't remembered bringing it out to the car, but then, it had been very exciting, packing up their things and heading back to school. They'd used his place as a sort of summer storage, while they traveled around rather aimlessly, enjoying the sights and each other, and trying to make the most of their months of freedom before it was time to return to school. Sasuke had even conceded to visiting a few of their friends, since Naruto had been so insistent about it. It had probably the best summer Naruto had ever enjoyed, and though he didn't want it to end, he was happy to be back with his friends.

He hefted the bag, which was rather light in one hand and closed the empty trunk before checking to see if there were any other things they needed in the front of the car that needed to be brought in. He grabbed a bag of detritus in the front seat to throw away and then headed inside, smiling at his friends and waving at Hinata as she headed over to try and get Kiba off of Kankurou, although Naruto suspected the wrestling that their game had ended in was in good fun.

"Naruto!" Sakura rushed out, hugging him enthusiastically. "I just saw Sasuke, I knew you must be here as well. It's good to see you!"

"Hey!" he hugged her back as best he could with the satchel weighing down one hand. "I haven't seen Temari yet, do you know where our room is? We've just been piling stuff in the living room."

"Oh!" Sakura flushed. "Yeah, she told me where everyone goes, I can help you." She led him in and they proceeded to the living room, where Sasuke was looking surly, as was typical when he had to be around people that weren't Naruto. The blonde was sure he was happy to see his friends, he just…had a hard time showing his happiness in the standard fashion.

"Sakura knows where we go." Naruto explained, picking up another bag and looking around at the furnishings, impressed at how nice everything looked. "Did Temari buy all this stuff?" he suddenly wondered if they'd have a bed, then realized that was a rather stupid thing to worry about, since Temari would hardly spend tons of money on a house and living room furnishings and then have them all sleep on the floor, and even if she hadn't bought them a bed, he was starting to learn that Sasuke had no problem spending money, especially on him, and he seriously doubted Sasuke would want to sleep on the floor either.

"All the rooms are really nice!" Sakura explained as she helped them down the hall and up the stairs with their bags, beaming excitedly. "And Temari said that we're allowed to paint our walls if we want! And we have hardwood floors and she got us all beds and furniture and stuff!" She paused at the foot of the stairs, just after they passed what looked like a kitchen and dining room, and indicated a door they'd just passed. "Okay, so this is the bathroom. There's another one, but that's in the master bedroom, so you have to get past Ino and Shikamaru to get at it. And Neji and Gaara are in there," she pointed to the room right next to the bathroom, right at the foot of the stairs. "And across the hall are Shino and Tenten, but they're not here yet." Sakura explained. "Right now, I kinda miss the elevator." She laughed as they heaved their things up the stairs.

"Eh, it'd probably be broken anyway." Naruto shrugged. "So everyone else must be up here, right? Except Chouji and Kankurou?"

"Yep!" Sakura nodded sharply as they reached the top of the stairs. "Temari's right here, and I'm in this one with Sai, of course." She indicated the two doors at the top of the stairs, across the hall from each other. "And here's Kiba and Hinata's room, and that's you guys, down there." She pointed to the end of the hall. "You're right across from Ino and Shikamaru."

"I don't remember drawing the short straw." Sasuke frowned, and Naruto heaved a sigh.

"Don't worry, it's not like you're on red alert baby nursing watch or something, that's just your room." Sakura told him, rolling her eyes, not really offended by Sasuke's typical nature. "Did you guys need anything else?"

"Um…yeah, where do we do laundry?" Naruto asked. He was pretty sure about two thirds of his clothes were dirty. "Do we have a washer and dryer somewhere?"

"Yep! In the basement." Sakura nodded brightly. "Right at the bottom of the stairs, can't miss them. There's a whole big den down there, it's really nice, actually. It's way colder down there, even with the air conditioning…ugh, I hate August. But yeah, Chouji and Kankurou have actual bedrooms down there, so it's not like you're going to wake them up or walk in on something horrible, so just whenever you need, go down."

"Okay, cool." Naruto thought he'd probably explore the house after this, he wanted to see all of the rooms, and say hello to all of his friends. "Other than Shino and Tenten, is there anyone else who isn't here yet?"

"Well, Sai's not here yet, and Ino's not actually here yet either." She explained. "She said her mom is getting really…well, really clingy, so she wants to keep her at home as long as possible."

"I can't wait to see her, I bet she's huge!" Naruto laughed and then pulled a face. "Would she punch me if I said that?"

"Maybe, I'd just keep a lid on the fat jokes, you know her sense of humor is unpredictable at the best of times." Sakura shrugged. "I was out at her place a month ago, and she was really showing, she's kinda self-conscious about it though, so probably no jokes."

"Got it, got it." Naruto nodded and followed Sakura into the room, looking around. It was very nice, but Temari had left the walls white, clearly assuming they would pick whatever colors they thought were best suited to them. There was a queen size bed, which would be welcome, since they'd spent a lot of the summer in large beds and he wasn't sure he could go back to struggling to fit on a twin mattress. There was also a large chest of drawers and a desk, though he doubted they would even use it, since they typically studied in bed, as well as a comfortably sized closet. They had a window that showed the street and across it, he could see some of the campus. "This is great. Sasuke, this is our room." He grinned dopily at the other man, as though they'd never had a room together before, but somehow…somehow this was different. "Do you like it?"

"I'll just…leave then." Sakura fled the room rather swiftly, seeing the way that Naruto and Sasuke were looking at each other.

"It's nice." He told Naruto, which was rather high praise from Sasuke. "That desk looks strong."

"You only think of one thing, I swear." Naruto flushed bright red. Okay, so maybe they would use the desk, but probably not for what Temari had intended. "Isn't this great, though?"

"It is." Sasuke gave the barest hint of a smile, showing that he actually had missed his friends, as Naruto had suspected. "Do you like that bag?" he asked, nodding at the orange satchel, and Naruto frowned at him in confusion.

"It's a little bit bright for you," he answered after a moment. "But yeah, I think it's pretty cool."

"Good, it's yours." Sasuke hefted a suitcase over and started to unpack.

"Oh…well, thanks!" Naruto thought the bag would make a nice book bag, and it was pretty stylish, he thought. He was pleased that Sasuke had thought of him. "You didn't have to—"

"You should look inside." Sasuke cut him off, separating clean and dirty clothes, and carrying an armful to the chest of drawers. Naruto quirked an eyebrow at him and set the other bags in his hands down, opening the front of the orange bag, wondering what Sasuke was up to.

"Hey, this isn't your laptop," he pulled out a computer inside, flipping it over.

"No, it's yours." Sasuke told him, at his shocked silence, the dark-haired man looked up. "I said I'd get you one, didn't I?"

"I thought…thought that was a joke." Naruto couldn't believe it. His very own computer? It looked so nice, too. "How am I supposed to pay you back for that?"

"It's a present, idiot, you don't pay back presents." Sasuke told him. "There's more stuff in there, by the way."

"Sasuke!" Naruto wasn't sure whether he felt guilty or happy. "This…this is too much! I can't just…"

"You can, and you will." Sasuke set down the clothes he was separating and climbed on the bed to sit next to him. "I'm not taking it back, so you'll just have to endure it."

"Sasuke…" Naruto smiled at him softly, "It's not even my birthday until October."

"This isn't a birthday present, it's just because you needed it present." Sasuke insisted, and Naruto realized he wouldn't really be able to fight him down. "There's more in there, you know."

"I'm kinda afraid you bought me my own island or something." Naruto teased him, and Sasuke snorted slightly.

"That would never fit in this bag." He reached in and pulled out a box.

"You got me a freaking iPhone?" Naruto squawked. "I don't…I don't need that, for sure! Those things are expensive!"

"Well, I thought you could use it, you could listen to music while you work and everything." Sasuke explained. "And put your pictures on it or whatever. Plus, your phone is clunky and ugly, I can't let you be seen with me with something from 1986."

"My phone is only four years old, and it works fine." Naruto flushed hotly. "When did you even buy this?"

"I like to sneak out at night and horde presents for you." Sasuke told him, and his tone was so flat, it was hard to tell whether he was joking or not. "I ran out of space, so I had to give some to you. There's something else, too."

"Sasuke…" Naruto reached into the bag himself this time and pulled out another box. "Ohmygod! Ohmygod! I wanted this one! How did you know I wanted this one!" he clutched the digital camera to his chest as though afraid it would be taken away.

"My first hint was when you nearly started licking it while we were in a store." Sasuke answered, leaning over and kissing his cheek. "Happy?"

"I feel kinda guilty." Naruto admitted, still clutching the camera. "I mean…do I really deserve all this stuff?"

"You deserve a lot more." Sasuke assured him. "Besides, I wanted to get them for you. I want you to have everything you want. You had to live a hard life, but I want to make sure you never have to go without something again."

"Well, I don't think I was really sitting there in the orphanage all 'oh man, if I had an iPhone, I wouldn't even care about my lack of family and friends,' but I get what you're saying…and it's really…thanks a lot, Sasuke." Naruto kissed him. "I still feel like I owe you or something."

"Hmm…" Sasuke frowned, as though considering a serious problem. "As payback…why don't we find out how strong the desk is?"

Sasuke always knew how to make him feel better.

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"I promised to pay him to landscape the yard, and I could have done a better job with a pair of scissors and a spastic six-year old with a handful of bulbs." Temari was scowling as she spoke into a blue tooth headset, her arms full of groceries, and Shikamaru behind her, also unloading bags from her car. "I'll tell you what, how about I pay him half, and we'll say that I'm paying him to never set foot on my property again, lest I be forced to landscape his face with a chainsaw?"

"Hi Shikamaru! You guys could have borrowed my van for grocery shopping if you asked!" Hinata ran up to help them, having given up on Kiba and Kankurou's version of field hockey, although as soon as they saw Temari coming, both boys froze and attempted to look extremely innocent.

"Great, I'll write a check." She turned to the two men in the lawn and scowled. "Boys! Help bring in the groceries, and so help me, if there is one trampled begonia, I will make you trim the entire lawn with nail clippers!"

"Man, I love living in your sister's house of pain." Kiba grumbled as they headed to the car. "She like seriously needs to get laid."

"I know." Kankurou agreed. "I'll pay you fifty bucks to do it."

"I wish I could say you were joking." Kiba shook his head sadly. "You are really twisted, Kankurou, you know that?"

"Hey, I'm just looking out for everyone's best interests." Kankurou shrugged. "You'll be living almost right across from her, you could just sneak over every once and a while, make our lives all easier."

"What would make our lives easier?" Hinata asked as they reached the kitchen, and Kiba shook his head.

"If Kankurou kept his mouth shut." He told his girlfriend, kissing her forehead.

"Groceries!" Sakura entered the kitchen, "Are there more out there? Hey, by the way, Naruto and Sasuke are here!"

"Good, I'm sure they're breaking their bed in now." Temari rolled her eyes before indicating the bags. "No more groceries, but if you could help put the food away, that'd be great." Temari smiled at the pink-haired girl, who she had come to find very helpful over the past week. "I was thinking for dinner we could make tacos."

"That sounds good!" Sakura helped unload the groceries as Kankurou disappeared, and Kiba realized that there was very little opportunity for him to run off, since his girlfriend was there and would probably be annoyed if he left the work to her. Shikamaru had disappeared before he even reached the kitchen. "I'm so excited for everyone to be here already."

"When is Sai supposed to get here?" Hinata asked, and Sakura flushed brightly.

"He said he should get here this afternoon, so…I guess any time!" she giggled, unable to stop herself. "But I'm a little nervous, I think his mom is driving him, and I'm a little afraid to meet her."

"Is this the woman who thinks like everything is a sin?" Temari asked, looking a little wary herself. "Does she…does she know you two are sharing a room?"

"Oh…I didn't even think about that." Sakura paled, a bag of flour in her hands, her knuckles becoming white as her fingers tightened their grip on it. "Great…maybe I should hide all my stuff? Or…or have him drop his stuff in the living room…I just…I'm afraid if she knows, she'll like, kidnap him and send him to a convent."

"He's a guy, Sakura; they don't send guys to convents." Temari pointed out.

"It's true," Hinata added helpfully, resting as the last of the groceries were put away and Kiba industriously folded up bags. "My uncle was thinking of sending Neji somewhere he would not give in to such moral lassitude during our time in high school, but it became very difficult, and he did not want to send him to a monastery, since he still wanted Neji to finish his education, and he decided that he would allow Neji to simply live as he pleased. Also, he was afraid that Neji would just sleep with all the monks."

"Where are Neji and Gaara, by the way?" Sakura frowned. "I haven't seen them, and their room was quiet when I went past."

"They can't keep it up all day, can they?" Kiba shrugged. "Probably sleeping."

"When is Ino getting here?" Hinata asked. "I am very excited to see her."

"She should be here tonight, as well." Sakura answered. "We should have a baby shower for her some time next month, since she's due at the end of October."

"Oh yes, we will." Temari nodded sharply. "I've already planned it all out. I have a list for you to pick your presents for her from. I picked out what some people are getting her already, like Shino and Sasuke and Neji, cause I think the rich people should buy her nicer things, and I can hardly ask someone on financial aid to buy her a three thousand dollar crib or something like that."

"Shino's rich?" Sakura was surprised. "Really?"

"You think those bugs are cheap?" Temari snorted. "His parents own a huge pharmacology conglomerate. Didn't you ever ask him about his family?"

"No…not really." Sakura admitted, feeling a bit guilty for never speaking as much with Shino as she did with some of her other friends. Of course, it wasn't like a room full of poisonous insects was exactly inviting. "I guess…I didn't really think about it."

"It's not a big deal." Hinata assured her. "He does not seem to get along with them very well, after all, and I do not think he has any interest in continuing the family business."

"Just like you, eh?" Temari raised her eyebrow slyly at Hinata. "Have you talked to your father yet?"

"It is not…easy." Hinata flushed. "I have to think carefully of how to tell him."

"I don't understand why it's such a big deal." Kiba frowned. "He should just let you do what you want."

"Kiba, it's her father, and I'm sure he really wants her to take things over some day." Sakura explained. "I'm sure it isn't easy just going against his wishes."

"Ironically, my father is dead, so I don't have to worry about that." Temari sighed, "But I actually do plan to take over once I get my MBA."

"Well, bossing around an entire corporation, isn't that your dream?" Kiba asked. "I mean, it just seems—"

"Are we having dinner yet?" Chouji's voice reached the kitchen a moment before he trudged in, looking extremely pathetic, Shikamaru lingering behind him so that he could hear if there was food to eat, but not be pulled into preparing it if it wasn't ready yet.

"It's 2:30, Chouji." Temari rolled her eyes. "Have a snack or something. We aren't having dinner in the middle of the afternoon."

"Hey!" Tenten burst into the kitchen, cheeks red and face slightly sweaty. "Hey, did something really big just fly through here?"

"Oh…I knew it! I knew you couldn't be trusted to keep those things under control! Is it poisonous?" Temari tried to sound annoyed, but there was a tremor of fear in her voice.

"No! It's just his African mantis! It's just big, it won't hurt you unless you're snack-sized." She held her fingers close together to indicate the size of a suitable snack. "It's just, we had the door open and we were putting some food in and she flew off! We have to find her! She needs to go back where she can be safe before she molts or she could die!"

"That would be tragic." Temari sighed heavily. "Where's Shino?"

"He's looking upstairs." Tenten responded.

"Okay, Chouji, Shikamaru, close off the basement and search down there with Kankurou, if you can track him down. Kiba, help Tenten look for Shino's bug. I'll see if I can get Gaara and Neji to help out as well." Temari disappeared, and Sakura licked her lips.

"I…I can help." She volunteered. "Does…does it bite…or anything?"

"No, she's a big softy." Tenten assured her. "You could go up and help Shino look."

"I will help Shino, as well." Hinata volunteered, going upstairs with Sakura..

"Where do you think it's at?" Kiba looked around, a little wary. Exactly how big was this thing going to be?

"Let's just look everywhere. And be careful where you walk!" Tenten warned. Kiba nodded, following her into the dining room, where she was peering closely at every likely perch. Kiba looked around, staring carefully at the ground before he stepped on it, afraid of what might happen if he stepped on one of Shino's precious insects.

"I can't find those two! They're not in their room!" Temari stormed in, not seeming at all concerned with stepping on escapee insects. Just then the doorbell rang, and she threw up her hands, turning to go answer it. Tenten jumped after her, but the door was already open, and Sai and a woman who was apparently his mother were entering the house.

"Close the door! She'll get out!" Tenten slammed the door shut behind the new arrivals, and Sai smiled brightly at her.

"Hello, Tenten, it is good to see you!" he told her. "This is my mother. She wanted to see the house."

"Sorry! Shino's…ah, his pet got out." Temari ushered the woman toward the living room. "Why don't you sit down a moment while we try to track down…um…"

"Shirley." Tenten could see what was going on, after all, they'd heard a bit about Sai's mother from Sakura, and even Shino's parents didn't like Shino's pets. "She's his—" she froze, her eyes lighting up as she saw something very familiar and green perched peacefully on the mantel. "Um, actually, Temari, why don't you show Sai and his mother Sai's room?"

"I would like to see that." The woman appeared to be looking down her nose at all of them, even though she was about their height. She had dark hair and sharp features, and if they hadn't known that he was adopted, they might have thought there was family resemblance there, but as it was, she just looked rather scary, though it might have been from the stories Sakura told, and the things Sai had accidentally let slip around them. "Are all of these girls living here as well, Sai?"

"Yes, mother!" Sai, of course, was not a big one for subtlety or for understanding when it was better maybe not to tell the whole truth.

"One must wonder what sort of young women these are, living unprotected with young men, where anything could happen, and what sort of parents would allow such a thing." Sai's mother pursed her lips and headed for the hallway. "Most interesting. Yes, I would like to see your room, Sai, to be sure it is suitable, but first, if I could make use of the lavatory? I need to powder my nose."

"Of…of course!" Temari was so startled by the speech, she didn't even hit Kiba, who had started sniggering uncontrollably halfway through it all and stumbled helplessly out of the room.

"Dear me, is that young man quite all right?" Sai's mother asked as they moved out into the hallway, leaving Tenten to recapture Shirley. Kiba was in the dining room, bent over in laughter. "Sai, I do not know about this…that young man, could he be under the influence…of alcohol?" she made such a dramatic look at that moment, Temari almost started laughing herself, but maintained the composure years of being around just this sort of person in private school had instilled in her.

"No, ma'am, I assure you, I do not allow such behavior in my house. Kiba is a very good boy, he is just suffering from high spirited excitement, seeing his friends again." She assured the woman in her Polite Model Student voice. "And he is ever so eager for classes to start again, I fear he has an excess of energy. I think maybe we shall have him do some yard work later, as a way to let off that energy and build character."

"Hmm, very good." The woman was taken off guard, and Temari felt rather pleased with herself. "So you are the one who runs this den? How can I be sure my son will be safe in such a place with no adult chaperone?"

"You will find that we are all of us legal adults," Temari assured her with a sweet smile. "And thus capable of chaperoning ourselves rather well. The washroom," she indicated the door, and the woman gave her a tight-lipped look before turning to open the door.

"It's locked." She blushed, as though finding the door locked was probably the most exciting thing she'd done in years. Temari was rather sure it was.

"Just a second!" Temari felt her own face suffuse with blood as she recognized the voice, and sighed sadly as a moment later, Neji and Gaara stumbled out of the bathroom, their hair wet and their faces flushed. It was obvious they'd been taking a bath together, from the sound of the bath draining, to the water dripping down Neji's bare chest. Gaara was wearing a robe, Neji a towel, and both of them looked completely unashamed. "Go ahead." He brushed past Sai's completely flabbergasted mother, Gaara right behind him, headed for their bedroom.

"Mother! That is Gaara, and the one with no shirt is Neji!" Sai told her excitedly. "They are my friends. This is my mother!"

"Hello." Gaara gave a brief wave before Neji pulled him into the room by the quickly loosening tie of his robe. Sai's mother looked ready to faint, and Temari wished she could even think of a way of making what she had seen seem any less incriminating.

"What is that!?" she seemed shocked into speech again when Tenten strolled into the room, Shirley perched happily on her shoulder. At the shrieking sound of Sai's mother, the mantis took flight again, and Tenten shook her head in annoyance before chasing after her.

"Way to go, lady!" she called out as she ran past. Temari pursed her lips, taking in the woman, who appeared ready to hyperventilate.

"Mother, that was a praying mantis. Shino has many strange and interesting pets." Sai explained.

"I think maybe it's time for your mother to sit down." Temari took the woman by the arm, and she was so shocked that she let herself be ushered back toward the living room by the blonde girl.

"Sai!" Sakura came running down the stairs, apparently having heard some of the commotion and coming down to investigate. "You're here!" she ran over to greet him, but stopped short when she saw the woman sitting down behind him, looking quite overwhelmed and unhappy. "Is…is this?"

"Sakura, this is wonderful!" Sai seemed not to think anything at all was wrong. "Mother, this is the person I most wanted for you to meet. This is my girlfriend Sakura! Sakura, this is my mother who raised me."

"I'm…pleased to meet you." Sakura stepped forward, holding out a hand that was shaking, looking utterly terrified.

"You…you live here, too?" Sai's mother regained a bit of herself at being presented with this idea. "In the same house as my son?"

"We will be living in the same room, mother." Sai explained, and she seemed to puff up like a frog sucking in a great amount of air, her face reddening, and she found the strength to stand up, glaring daggers at Sakura.

"Harlot!" she accused. "Sharing a room with a man you are not married to! For shame! Sai, we must leave here at once, this place…I have seen enough! Sex and drugs and monsters, and I believe if I am not mistaken, those boys before might have been…been…sodomites, and I just will not have you in here, being defiled and ruined by these so-called friends of yours! You will come home with me at once! I knew it was dangerous, sending you to school where anything at all could happen!"

"Mother!" Sai had gone very still, his fists clenched, and two spots of red on his cheeks showing his anger. "Do not ever speak ill of Sakura! I love her, and I will not have you call her names. These are my friends, and if you do not approve of them, it does make me sad, but I will live with them in any case. I am an adult. And you…you are not always right! I can make my own choices. I have been having lots of sex with Sakura, even though you say it is a sin and that my penis will fall off, but it is still there, and it is very good times for me, so I will continue to do that! And it is true that there is sometimes alcohol, but it is never really out of control, and these people will not harm me, and if Neji and Gaara are in love I do not think that is a sin either, because they are very happy, and they are not the only gay people here, so it would be unfair to say they were all wrong. And Shino's pets are strange, but he would be very offended to hear you call them monsters!" he finished, and Temari let out a sigh, not even knowing what to say to such a disjointed argument, and wondering if his mother would have any response, either.

She looked shocked, completely disbelieving of this Sai, standing before her, defying her, telling her all these things, declaring his love for Sakura, defending his friends, and refusing to do as she said. It was impossible.

That's when there was a knock on the door.

No one answered, the tension of the scene was too high for Sakura or Temari to step away, Kiba had completely disappeared again, and Sai and his mother were looking at each other, one determined, the other shocked.

"Geez, won't anyone open the door for a poor old pregnant lady?" Ino complained as she came in, hefting a suitcase. "Hey, guys, didn't you hear me knocking? Can you help me with my stuff?" She looked much as she always had, but her cheeks were much pinker, and she had a very pronounced stomach that could really only mean one thing.

That was when Sai's mother finally fainted.

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To be Continued…