The bird had just touched the ground when Sasuke jumped off it and landed in a feline manner. His red eyes were stuck to the paling girl in his arms. The bleeding had ceased. But she was too cold. Alive. But barely.

His hands were shaking. Was it from the icy wind and low temperature? It had to. He refused the slightest thought of even being capable of panicking.

He managed to look away from her face and stared right ahead. There was a small field in front of him. In it lay an even smaller house, smoke coming out of its chimney. There was a very faint light flickering in one of the windows. Probably a dying candle.

There was someone in there, but no one else around. The hut itself was not too far of the nearby village, but was isolated enough. It was the middle of the night. No one was around. He had to risk it.

Taking a step, he left the shadowy cover of the forest and stepped into the clearing. He quickened his pace. In the end he felt he was running but couldn't stop. Digging his heels in the snow, he stood before the wooden door. On the other side was only silence.

Raising the hand that was supporting Hinata by the feet he banged on it. The lack of response only made him more frantic. He knocked again, the loud sound piercing the quiet evening.

He could not wait any longer, she was freezing. And he was shaking madly, probably due to the cold as well. He refused blaming this to anything else. About to crash his heel at the door, he jumped a few feet back, his red eyes fixed on the target up front, ready to burn it with his dark blazing fire.

But he froze. On the other side of the now open door stood a woman, quite old. She reminded him of Nekobaa for a moment but he shook his head. He couldn't make such mental connections. This woman was a stranger, he could not trust her.

He stared at her, noticing her brown, determined gaze on him. She moved slowly, stepping aside.

"What are you staring at, boy! Come in before you both freeze!"

Sasuke blinked. This woman spoke his language. Very bad and with a thick, awful accent. Could she have anything to do with the Great Healer? He should not have come.

The woman rolled her eyes and stepped outside, squinting at the coldness that soaked through her galoshes. "I know who you are, boy," she called, taking one more step ahead. "And I don't care what mess you are in. Come in, let me see if I can save her."

His fingers were shaking. He felt his feet weak, as if he would fall on his knees. He was losing his grip on the girl. See if she can save her…

Straightening up, he blinked, activating his Mangekyo Sharingan. He watched as the woman took a step back, obviously startled by this. With a quick pace, the man walked ahead, passing by the lady, headed inside.

The dim light revealed a wide, spacious room with a few empty beds. A small table was placed on his left. There was a fireplace, a few cupboards and shelves, all full with interesting bottles and things he was sure a medic would use.

The sound of the closing door caught him completely off guard and he jumped, backing away from it. The woman stared at him, a tired expression on her face.

"You damn criminals. Always coming here with someone dying, not even minding to show some manners." She walked past him until she reached one of the beds. "Come on, boy, put her here."

After a moment of considering it, the Uchiha decided that he had no other choice. He obeyed, putting Hinata on the bed as carefully as he could. To his surprise, the woman stepped ahead pushing him with her hand out of her way. The man rubbed his chest, interested in the amount of strength she had for her ears.

"What happened?" she asked with her thick accent. She was talking slowly, struggling with the words.

"We were attacked."

"Of course you were attacked, boy! I am asking what happened to her. Where was she hit? I see the wound only on her head. Does she have any other injuries?"

He blinked. "She was struck in the back. A Lightning attack. It sent her crashing to a tree and-"

But he didn't finish. The woman almost gasped as her hands were both grabbed and held in the air, way above her head. The eyes in front of her had strange patterns in them, a combination of crimson red and onyx black. This was the boy from the posters, no doubt.

"Let me go, boy! I have yet to check-"

"What were you doing just now?" he interrupted, speaking through his grit teeth. The medic had tried touching Hinata's face in a strange manner.

"There is blood on her face, for god's sake! Let me check her before it is too late!"

The two exchanged angry looks for a moment. Then he did let her go and watched her rub her wrists, mumbling something in her foreign language.

Her bony fingers opened the Hyuuga's mouth and she looked inside. "Ah, she had bit her tongue. I was afraid she could have swallowed it."

Sasuke folded his hands on his chest and also leaned over the girl. He wanted to see everything that the woman was doing. "Her nose was bleeding."

"You already told me you were attacked."

"No, that's not it. She was having nosebleeds before that. And a headache I believe. Although this could have been because…" Because of overusing her Byakugan, he intended to say, but decided not to share so many details. "I think she was getting sick," he finished.

"Was she having a fever? Was she eating properly?" The woman had removed the cloak from the girl and was unbuttoning her black jacket. Seeing that he did not intend of answering she shook her head in disapproval. "You should know these things, boy."

"Stop calling me a boy. And I know them. She did not have a fever, at least that I am aware of. Maybe she was a bit warmer than usual this morning-"

"And is she eating well? What have you been feeding her?"

He answered with a death glare and the woman returned her attention to the girl. She was in a very bad condition. She had lost a lot of blood and was feverish. Something was not right.

"Go sit over there. I need to take her shirt off and see if there is any internal damage."

The boy stared at her with those same awful eyes but did not move, his expression blank. "I am not going anywhere," he explained, his voice low and frighteningly serious.

"For god's sake, boy! I am not going to let you see her like that! Have some manners."

"I don't have to."

She looked at him then realized what he had meant. They were lovers. There was no need to worry for the girl's dignity.

"Ah, fine. But don't be in my way."

Removing her shirt, the woman checked the girl all over, not finding any damage on her torso. She let the boy turn the wounded one on her side and stared at her back. There was a burn mark just between her shoulder-blades, but the wound was skin-deep. Nothing internal. She touched her skin here and there, feeling that her muscles and organs were intact. But the energy that flowed inside her was severely disrupted.

Hurrying to the corner of the room, the woman poured steaming water in a large bowl and placed a few dried herbs in it, watching as the liquid turned dark. Returning to the girl she soaked a small towel and placed it on the wound on her head.

"This will close the wound and clear it from any bacteria or infection. Hand me this chair, boy. I need to meditate."

Sasuke did kick the small stool her way but was in front of her before the woman could lean in and sit. Her wrists were in his grip again.

She had reached in and taken a medallion from her woolen shirt. A yellow, transparent jewel hung on the golden chain. He watched it with both disgust and anger.

"This is-"

"I know what it is," he interrupted. "Don't dare use it on her."

"I will not use it on her, I will use it on myself, for god's sake! I am old. I store my power here. If you know what this is you should know how it works."

He blinked, still staring at the yellow stone.

"Come on already," the woman called, trying to break away from his painful grip. And to her surprise he did let her go. He walked to the wall and leaned on it with his back, his arms folded on his chest. He stared at the unconscious girl, laying on her side her. He could see her face perfectly that way.

"I will meditate now," the old woman explained, looking at the boy. He barely managed to take his eyes off the wounded girl and shift them to her. "Do not interrupt me. I will try restoring her balance and energy. Hopefully I will manage to heal her fracture as well. I am too old, it may not work."

With these words, the woman leaned on the bed with her elbows, letting her chin rest on her chest. With one hand she was clutching the medallion, the other she placed on the Hyuuga's head gently. Closing her eyes, she fell silent.

Sasuke stood there, watching this, thinking that he was completely insane to trust this woman. Completely insane to be in such situation in the first place. He really should not have involved the girl in his schemes. Nothing good could come from being around him.

Clenching his jaw, he watched the woman move her lips. The medic was chanting something. With his Sharingan he followed the words, but could understand only a few. Blood. Spirit. Energy. Help.

He looked away. His hands were shaking again, his feet felt weak once more and he wasn't even cold! Hissing, he let his legs give in and slid on the wall, sitting on the floor. He placed his folded hands on top of his knees and dug his head in the darkness of his chest. He had to calm down. He had to. It was completely out of the question for him to feel like that. He had to stay focused. But found no strength to even stand up.

In the end he simply decided to stay on the floor and concentrate on breathing evenly. Was he getting sick as well? Such sensations were not usual to him. He stood there for what appeared like hours. Listening at the whispers that came from the woman's direction. He remembered the blue-stoned medallion he had in his pocket. Taking it out, he felt it buzzing with energy. At first it was strange, then he figured it out. Whatever was inside it was reacting to the chanting. He put it back and stood up.

Hinata's face looked better. There was a faint flush on her cheeks and her eyebrows were no longer knotted in pain. She appeared peaceful. Slowly he raised his hand and touched her forehead with his fingertips. Her fever was going away.

With a loud exhale the old woman rose up, carefully putting the jewel back under her shirt. Her slim and tiny hands moved to the girl in front of her. She removed the towel from the back of her scull to see that the wound had closed. Only a thin, faint line underneath her beautiful dark hair indicated that there had ever been a cut there. The mark on her back was completely gone.

She fiddled around until she managed to finally put the shirt back on the girl. Then the blouse, then the jacket. It was important that she staid warm now.

The black-haired boy was staring at the medic with eagerness. Yet, he was seemingly trying to be as calm as possible. As much as he was succeeding, she could see the worry in his strange eyes.

"She will be fine," the woman explained, her voice faint. Such sessions always made her very tired. "Provided that you take care of her properly."

Sasuke didn't answer. He walked to the bed and placed his palm on Hinata's face. It seemed like she had recognized his touch as her expression showed comfort.

The man took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. The strength had suddenly returned to him, his hands steady, his feet strong. He turned to the old lady with the most serious look she had ever seen in her long life.

"What was wrong with her?"

"She was in a very bad condition, but the head trauma was her least problem. Those headaches had messed her orientation and energy circulation."

"Do you mean the chakra-flow?"

The woman smiled a witty smile. "Probably. I am not too good with that strange language of yours."

"How do you know it anyway?"

"Ah," she noted, then laughed. "Long ago when I was still young I met someone from your lands, running and hiding, just like you. We spent some good time together."

The smile on her lips was warm. Those were good memories.

"Did you teach this someone the methods of healing?"

She blinked, then laughed again. "Ah, so you have met the Great Healer? Poor you. The pesky old bastard. Tell him Amara sends her greetings if you happen to see him."

"Surely," the man noted with a cold tone and returned his eyes to the Hyuuga. She was lying calmly on her back, clothed and seemingly better. "So when will she wake up?"

The woman gave him a scolding look. "Don't be in such haste, boy! The girl went through a lot of pain, she needs to rest. Besides, you are quite lucky. If you had been only a few minutes late, this would have turned into a miscarriage."

Fiddling with a clean towel, the medic started cleaning the blood off the girl, watching as the boy stiffened, then froze completely. His eyes had gone crimson. His gaze was moving rapidly, finally fixing on the girl's stomach. Amara had cleaned all stains of blood when he finally turned his face to stare at her.

"You didn't know?" she asked.

"No." His voice was faint, almost a whisper.

"She probably didn't know either. It is still too early to notice it easily. Did you manage to see it with your eyes?"

"Yes."

The medic watched him for some time then frowned. This girl was too beautiful. If the boy decided he did not want the child… Poor girl.

"What will you do now?"

Slowly, he turned his eyes to her again. They were completely black now. He seemed strangely calm, his expression still completely blank.

"I cannot tell you this."

"Why?"

"Because I will not trust you with our future whereabouts."

"What whereabouts?" The woman laughed, meeting his angry expression. "You have nowhere to go, I am sure. Besides, I was not asking about where you would hide. I was asking what you will do."

Sasuke stared at her, realizing what he meant. Smirking, he looked away. He did not answer, just looked outside the small window on his right. But it was clear to the woman that he had changed completely. He was not the frantic maniac who had entered her house a few hours ago.

He was a boy, no, a young man, who was happy that his lover and child were both safe, no matter how his strange persona revealed his emotions.

"When will she wake up?" he asked again, still looking away, his face curled in that strange expression similar to a smile.

"In a few hours probably. Now put this on your shoulder. Don't give me this look, I see the blood. Just put this on before the wound gets infected. I have no strength to save a third life tonight."

The Uchiha blinked, but took the towel wet with the potion she had made for Hinata and put it underneath his shirt. He had completely forgotten of the wound he had received by that damn iron arrow. His eyes traced the old woman as she went to one of the free beds and lay on it. She gave him one more look.

"My old bones ache, I need some rest. Be a dear and keep an eye on her. If something worries you, wake me up instead of trying something stupid." She turned her back to him.

Sasuke took the small wooden chair and sat next to Hinata, resting his head on the edge of her bed. Looking through the window he started recalling everything. The dizziness in her, the pain. The nosebleeds. These were not normal symptoms for a pregnancy. But then it hit him.

She had become much better after he had shared his chakra with her earlier in the day. And that was exactly what was causing her problems. His chakra. The child must bear it as well.

Byakugan and Sharingan users had extremely powerful abilities. Their chakras were quite alike, but too different at the same time. And Hinata's energy was simply struggling to cope with his power inside of her. Her body was just not used to it.

She was fine now. But would this not return at a point? He had to discuss it with the medic. But not now. The old lady deserved her rest. He knew well enough how much effort it took to cooperate with the spirit in the medallions, not to talk about working with it.

"Sasu?"

His head shot up, eyes crimson. He rose, staring at the white eyes that had a faint blue color now I the evening light. The girl slowly rose up as well, supporting herself on her elbows and stared at him. He looked tired. Dark circles rested below his eyes, he was pale, his hair exceptionally messy. With a slow motion she touched his cheek, feeling his cool skin.

"Where are we?" she asked, but before she could look around he was already holding her in his arms. She froze for a moment, then eased up, enjoying the feeling of his touch, his scent. She tried to recall the last thing she remembered. The fight!

She tried to speak, but he leaned in, kissing her. And still, there was something strange in the way he touched her. He wasn't using his usual strength, his usual roughness was really faint. His shoulder…

"Are you okay? You are woonded. What is happening?"

He looked at her, a faint smirk curling his gorgeous lips. She felt a blush overwhelm her face, warming her cheeks. She wanted to kiss him some more.

"I am fine, calm down." He explained. The two exchanged looks for a long moment.

"Then what is going on?" She sat up and he joined her on the bed.

Taking her in his arms, her face was soon buried in his chest, and still she could see an old woman sleeping on one of the beds in the room. This probably explained the whispering.

"You will be fine," the man explained in a murmur.

His strange behavior was confusing her. "Sasuke, what is going on?"

His black eyes moved to her white ones. Yin and Yang, he thought for a moment. They were the perfect match. And he loved it.

"Sasu," she started again, cupping his face with her hand. Oh how he loved this little nickname she used for him.

"You are pregnant."

Her white eyes blinked. Then blinked again. She parted her lips. "W-what?"

"You are pregnant," he repeated. "We will have a child."

His voice was low, calm, even cold. But the smirk on his lips was giving him away. She could not remember the last time she had seen him like this.

Then it hit her. She was pregnant? She was pregnant. She was pregnant! Clutching her stomach with her hands, she activated her Byakugan and stared at her tummy. It took her minutes to notice a slight disturbance in her chakra flow. No, it wasn't disturbance. It was just… A small, little dot with a different chakra pattern. With Sasuke's chakra.

She raised her eyes, feeling tears wet her cheeks, warming her skin. She dug her head in his chest again. She was happy. And she was happy that he was happy as well. Hinata knew that things had yet to become more complicated. But they would figure out a way.

"When the time comes I will be here," the old woman explained.

It was sunrise and they were leaving her little hut. Hinata thanked the medic and bowed to her, which seemed a strange custom for the old lady. They did not bow in these lands. Sasuke only nodded. He watched as the woman smiled to them. And he had intended to kill her. But she was a simple healer. One of those that healed people out of goodness.

He turned to her. "Look, I don't have money to repay you."

"My boy, don't be ridiculous. You know I am not interested in money, I do this because-"

But her brown eyes shimmered with excitement. The Uchiha held the golden chain with the blue stone before her, the one that he had kept in his pocket.

"Take it, I don't want it. It will be in more use to you."

He left it in her palm, hurrying to summon the hawk, helping Hinata up. Climbing up as well, he stared at the woman once more before heading to the morning sky.

What a lovely couple, the woman thought. And this medallion – it would help her health drastically. God bless the boy.

Blue eyes followed the giant bird, watching it rise in the sky, going higher and eventually hiding out of sight.

For a moment he had been ready to burst in the small house and do something to save her. But he could not interfere. And he didn't need to anyway. Sasuke, as mad as he was, knew exactly what he was doing, as usual.

He had just wanted to make sure they were fine. And they were. Yokatta!

Smiling, Uzumaki Naruto headed back to the Shinobi world. He had a meeting with the Tsuchikage to attend to.

Note:

Finally I managed to write this! I am so glad with how it turned out. And to clarify again, this is not the actual Sequel to "The Madness of an Enchanting Obsession". This is the Prequel to the Sequel. There won't be further chapters to follow of this story. When I continue with the Sequel it will be a separate story. And this should happen soon enough. Please be patient with me, I have one month to finish my thesis that will determine my education.

Anyway, pleeeeeeeeeeease do tell me what you think of this. I really hope you enjoyed it.

A very, VERY Special thank you to Dragonindigo, for being a lovely and passionate helper, translator, friend and awesome person! I owe you a lot, girl!

P.S. When I start the actual Sequel, I will update this story here, so whoever will follow only this can know, for your convenience.

See you soon!