You guys are awesome, really! Thanks for the reviews :) Made my morning!
So if anyone has read my oneshot, the bar scene was sort of insipired by it--just in case anyone thinks its familiar. I think this one turned out much better.
Oh, and if you have any idea for oneshots, I'm taking ideas ;)
Enjoy!
Naruto hadn't slept in days. Sakura's words lived inside his head, surfacing any time his mind was not occupied. He begged the Hokage to send him on another mission as soon as possible. She merely raised an eyebrow at his request. "I'll see what I can do," was her response.
"Well, see what you can do, faster," he urged.
She sighed, leaning back in her intricately-backed chair. "And why the sudden rush for a mission?" she asked gravely, "don't you want to spend time with those closest to you after three months of being away?"
"I've seen my friends," he grumbled.
"What about Sakura?" she pressed.
"What about her?" he challenged. She remained silent, studying him. She suspected that something had happened between the two. It had not gone as planned, or so she figured. Most likely, it had been something Naruto said or did, as Sakura had been on edge lately. She merely nodded her acquiescence, though she had no intention of sending him away, not with an estimated twelve weeks until the baby's birth. He had turned on heel and quickly exited her office.
"That boy," she sighed, "is about to get a surprise of a lifetime."
"That boy," Jiraiya replied, as he walked into her office, "is technically a man."
Tsunade studied her lover. He was right. It had been over six years since Pein's invasion and supposed murder of Jiraiya. It had been over six years since Naruto had finally faced off with Sasuke—realizing he couldn't save his childhood friend from his obsession with revenge. Sasuke had been driven mad by his tortured thoughts, even once he realized Madara Uchiha had been using him. She met Jiraiya's steady gaze, "You're right. We are getting old."
"You are old, my love," he corrected.
"You are sleeping on the couch," she replied, a knowing smile spreading across her lips.
Kakashi found Naruto at the Ichiraku Ramen Bar, wallowing in self pity. Well, his wallowing was consuming eight bowls of ramen. But, that as Naruto.
"When are you going to give that stuff up?" Kakashi asked.
"Never," Naruto answered through a full mouth of noodles.
"Ahh, Sakura-chan, how are you?" the owner of the ramen bar cooed to the glowing woman. She smiled at him as he handed her two bags full of containers filled with her newest craving. "The usual tonight, I see?"
"Yes," she replied, pointing to her abdomen, "someone has been having a serious craving for ramen that I can't explain."
The owner glanced sideways at Naruto before nodding and smiling at his hungry customer. "Well, please enjoy, and call if you need anything!" He waved his goodbye as she turned to leave. Naruto hadn't been seated at his normal place at the bar, so it was no surprise that Sakura hadn't noticed he was there. Kakashi watched as the two pairs of eyes met as she made her way out of the ramen bar. She froze when she saw him, her hand immediately going to her stomach. She opened her mouth, as if to say something, before thinking better of it and swiftly exiting the premises. She had pushed the doors open with so much force that they came crashing back into the small restaurant, falling off their hinges.
The owner simply smiled, "New lives! Aren't the wondrous?"
Kakashi had seen the whole interaction. Naruto's eyes never left her as she entered and exited the building. He immediately went back to eating after she left.
"Are you two not speaking?" he asked Naruto. He noticed the dark rings under the blonde man's eyes.
"Hmph," he replied, reaching for another steaming bowl of ramen.
"That's unusual for you two, you were inseparable since you returned from training with Jiraiya. Maybe you should talk to her," he proposed.
"No, she's gone a bit wacky in the head. Besides, she has other things to worry about. Like babies." He mumbled grumpily . Kakashi knew he was masking his true feelings. "Oh, and I hear a congratulations is in order for you. I hear Kurenai is due soon!"
Kakashi blushed at Naruto's inferred message. He didn't know why they didn't just admit their relationship. The jonin felt guilty at times for his relationship with his late friend's lover. They had many conversations about it, and Kurenai felt that Asuma would be happy for the two. Then, there was the concrete evidence of their relationship: the unborn child that Kurenai carried. He was nervous about becoming a father—the loss of his own father was too painful and he feared that same fate for his unborn child. "Thanks," he blushed more crimson as he scratched his head at the awkwardness of the conversation.
"I'm happy for you two, I really am," Naruto confided.
"Have you," Kakashi was unsure as to how to broach the subject, "have you spoken to Sakura about her pregnancy?"
"Yeah. It ended in her yelling at me after I asked who the father was," he admitted.
Kakashi groaned, so that was it! "You are an idiot," he murmured. It was a typical knucklehead question that only Naruto could ask. At the most inappropriate time, no less.
"Huh?"
"Nothing," Kakashi answered. So Naruto didn't know. He had to suspect it, surely. "Who do you think the father is?"
Naruto pushed his bowl of ramen away from him, his appetite suddenly diminished. "I…uh, er…well…"
"Do you think it's you?" Kakashi pressed. He watched Naruto crack his knuckles nervously.
"I had thought that maybe, just maybe…" he trailed off, his voice barely a whisper.
"Naruto, is there a possibility that you may be the father of this child?" Kakashi asked pointedly.
"Yes," he nodded, his mouth turning into an unfamiliar frown. "I thought that it might be possible. That she could be carrying my baby. Our baby."
"And if she were, how does that make you feel?" he continued.
"Is this a therapy session?" Naruto asked, anger edging its way into his voice.
"If that's what you want, then it can be. I'm getting to a point, so just bear with me," Kakashi said defensively.
"How does it make me feel? I don't know. I haven't really had time to think about it. Do I want a family? Of course, I think it would be the greatest feeling in the world," Naruto said thoughtfully. A slight crooked smile made an appearance.
Kakashi nodded. "How do you feel about Sakura?" Naruto's turned his face away from Kakashi. The silver haired jonin sighed, "I can see it, Naruto. I could see it since you were children. You only agreed to bring Sasuke back to make her happy. You love her. Don't you?" It wasn't so much of a question as it was a statement.
Naruto slammed his fist on the table, flipping the half-eaten bowl or ramen. He wasn't angry at Kakashi, he was angry at himself for not telling Sakura his feelings. "Yes," he whispered, his eyes closed. "She's all I ever think about. And ever since that night after we returned from the gold mines....I thought she only spent the night with me because she was drunk. Not because she returned my feelings or even knew how I felt. She just told me to 'forget it' and have everything go back to normal." He paused, looking past Kakashi toward the door. "But I couldn't forget about it." He didn't know why he was spilling his guts to Kakashi, maybe it was because he was so damned tired.
"Well, did you ever think that perhaps a certain young, single woman could be exhausted and over-hormonal? And that may not make her the most rational when a certain young man asks silly and inappropriate questions that he already knows the answer to?" He sat back in his chair, his arms crossed across his chest. He was becoming impatient with Naruto's inability to see what was so obvious to everyone else.
Minutes passed, and Kakashi swore he could hear the wheels turning in Naruto's head. Suddenly, his face lit up, as if he had just had a revelation. Bingo! Kakashi thought. "Do you mean…that she's having someone else's baby, but does love me?" Naruto asked.
What the--? Kakashi answered Naruto's question with an open palmed slap to the back of his head.
"Ow, Kakashi-sensei! What was that for? That hurt!" he was rubbing his already sore head. It throbbed from where Kakashi had smacked it.
"Sometimes I wonder how you make it from day to day! Seriously, Naruto! Could you be any more thick-headed?" Kakashi asked.
"What the hell does that mean? I'm not thick-headed---OW!" Another smack.
"Do you really think it's NOT your child Sakura is carrying," Kakashi hissed. It was rare that he let his frustration show, and right now, Naruto was testing his nerves.
"Are you saying—" he ducked under what would have potentially been a third connection between Kakashi's hand and Naruto's head. "Relax! I'm just joking with you! You really shouldn't hit the future Hokage. It could be bad for you, you know!" Naruto was rubbing the sore lump on his head.
"At this rate, you will never become Hokage. Common sense is a pre-requisite," Kakashi smirked behind his mask.
"You really think I'm gonna be a father?" Naruto asked, almost dreamily.
The older man sighed. "I know that you'll be a father. Kurenai and Sakura had talked quite a bit while we were gone, you know. So, I have it on good authority. Not the details, just the facts," he promised his former student.
Naruto suddenly grinned his old, familiar smile. "You and I are both going to be fathers at the same exact time. Except you are way older than me." Kakashi thought Naruto dragged the "a" out for far too long. He raised his arm, pretending to take another shot at Naruto.
Naruto ordered a round of sake for the two men. "To fatherhood," Naruto said, before drinking the alcoholic liquid.
"And to healthy children," Kakashi added, his eye crinkling behind his mask. Naruto could have sworn that he saw tears forming in Kakashi's eye. The two sat in silence for a few moments.
Naruto was the first to break the comfortable silence. "I'm scared to become a father, Kakashi," he whispered.
"So am I," Kakashi agreed, "So am I."
Jiraiya, Kiba, Shino and Shikamaru had joined the two men at the ramen bar. More rounds of sake were followed by more congratulations.
"You know…I'm actually afraid of Kurenai," Kakashi slurred. "She truly scares me when she's pregnant."
Kiba was rolling with laughter at Kakashi's speech about his and Shino's former team leader. "I think she could take you, Kakashi, really."
"I bet she could," was his reply.
"Oh shit! There she is now!" Kiba pointed over Kakashi's shoulder. "She's coming this way, and she looks pissed!" he widened his eyes pretending to be afraid.
"Does she see me?" Kakashi squeaked, hunching his shoulders.
"I can't be sure, but man does she look mad," he said with mocked seriousness.
Kakashi climbed under the table, "Tell her I went to the restroom," he mumbled. "She's gonna kill me," he yelped. They heard a bang from under the table. Kiba was howling at how easily a drunken Kakashi could be tricked. "It…was…just…too easy!" he roared, knocking his drink all over the table.
Shino leaned to look under the table, finding the source of the noise. "I do not think Kakashi will be drinking any more tonight. Why? Because he is unconscious."
"Bummer." Naruto said, lifting his glass before downing it. He wiped his mouth with his sleeve. "He's much more fun after a few drinks."
Kiba wiped the tears from his eyes. "Woo, that was fucking great!"
Jiraiya was watching the entire scene contently. He was getting too old to be drinking like these young shinobi, he thought as he sipped his tea.
"Jiraiya, what are Tsunade's breasts like?" Kiba made hand gestures approximating the size of the Hokage's breasts.
"Hmm…you wish you knew," he replied calmly.
"That's what I'm asking you! You've obviously seen them," Kiba retorted like a smartass.
"And you obviously have not seen any," Jiraiya found he was slightly irritated at how the young man was talking about his lover. Sure he had talked about her like that from the time he met her. But that was different.
Kiba's face darkened, as he fell into a depression. He quietly sipped his beverage. Shino looked at Kiba through his dark glasses that he was never without. "Kiba, I think he has a point."
"Shut it, Shino," he snapped at his former teammate. "Why? Because I'll fucking kill you," he mocked Shino's manner of speaking.
"I'd be afraid of your threat, but I know your weaknesses. How? Because I am much better at observing than you are," Shino calmly replied.
Kiba responded by throwing a cup at Shino's head. Shino swiftly moved his head as the clay drinking instrument crashed against the wall, shattering into a few larger pieces. "Point in hand. I was prepared for your reaction." It looked as if Shino's mouth had momentarily twitched into the closest thing to a smile anyone had ever seen cross his face.
"Quit it you two," Shikamaru growled. "You are both too troublesome, I don't know why I hang out with you."
"Because," Shino replied, "you wish to avoid Ino's flirtatious demeanor." The bug ninja took a long drink, his face not showing any emotion as he continued, "And purely because we are awesome."
Both Naruto and Kiba guffawed at Shino's rare and momentous humor. Kiba had forgotten his previous hostility, high-fiving his on-again friend. The fact that Shino knew how to hive-five back was a suprise to Naruto.
"Thanks for coming out, you guys," Naruto said, seriously.
"Hmph," was Shikamaru's reply. Shino nodded. Kakashi snored.
"Hell, you're gonna be a dad, Naruto!" he nodded his head in respect, "that's big."
Naruto thought about Kiba's rare pearl of wisdom. He was right, it was big. And he should be sharing that with Sakura. She was doing all of this alone, and he was acting like an idiot.
"Hey Naruto," Kiba grinned mischeviously, "how hot is Sakura without clothes on?"
This time, it was Naruto who chucked something. It was a glass pitcher that held their beverage. He didn't miss his target.
Great, thought Jiraiya, now I have to figure out how to get two unconscious men home.
