CHAPTER 10

The plans renovation has been going well, he never really wanted to change a lot about his old home. Renovation for him was basically new paint, cleaning, mowed lawn, electricity, water etc. He wasn't planning on demolishing the whole thing and starting from scratch.

He took his time to listen to what Hinata would want to add to their future home, and she shyly said that she only wanted a little space for a tiny garden and he silently admired the woman for being such a simple person. He'll give her all the land she needs if that meant that she will be happy, he and his brother owed it to her.

A rather loud knock on the door made him stood from his current position and open the door for the loudmouth or his so called closest friend.

"Wharap! Sasuke! Guess what, Baa-chan and Kakashi sensei has granted you freedom!"

The old hag told him he won't be able to go outside the village after three months since he came back, but it's been seven months already. It's about time.

"Naruto, you've been here so many times, fucking take off your sandals."

Naruto stopped striding inside the apartment, and tiptoed outside to remove his footwear, he wore the brightest of a hoodie, his eyes gone as he smiled to his ears as he apologized and sat across him.

He followed soon and sat, folding all the mess on the table. He nodded.

"Aaand... we're going on a mission tomorrow morning! Outside Konoha!" He announced like he's some kind of a Hokage already. He rolled his eyes. This idiot. As if i never had enough time outside the village.

His voice almost making his ears bleed but it was fine. After the death of his master Jiraiya, he and Naruto has somehow rekindled their bond.

Well missions outside the village also means higher chances of getting assigned to higher ranking missions, missions that will get him payed better. Seeing as he can't have his hands on the fortune the Uchiha left since he's not yet eighteen. tch. He was lucky Hinata wasn't demanding.

Light footsteps registered in his ears, and kami only knows how Hinata manages to walk that way even with her current weight, somehow the thought that maybe it was how she was trained when she was a kid and an heiress in the Hyuuga compound made him feel unsettled."Konbanwa Naruto-kun!" She greeted the blond.

Naruto quickly stood, and it was only then that he noticed the package he was carrying. "Oh damn Hinata! Look at you! I want to squish you!" She blushed. "I brought you some ramen!"

Hinata smiled genuinely and accepted the food. "Thank you Naruto, do you want to eat some?"

He shyly scratched the back of his head but smiled anyway. "Of course!"

She giggled and turned to the kitchen. "I'll be right back."

Naruto craned his head following Hinata's movement. "Thank you Hinata-chan!"

He sighed. "Dobe, we already had dinner. What rank is it?"

He plopped again and smiled proudly. "S-rank asshole! That's why they want us team seven to handle it."

Sasuke held the bridge if his nose. "Remind me who team seven is."

Naruto blanched. "The hell?"

He cleared his throat and started blabbering. "Well since Kakashi sensei is the Hokage now, Captain Yamato will lead us and then there's Sai, and me and you and Sakura."

Gods, he'd rather go on a mission with Lee.

He seriously thought that a vein popped in his head when he heard Sakura's name but he realized it was the sound of a glass breaking after hitting the floor. Without any thought, he was there in the kitchen in a flash.

"Oh!" Hinata gasped and held her round belly.

He knew what he was feeling, a very familiar fear crept behind him at the sight of Hinata clutching herself and the mess around her. "What's wrong?" He was afraid that she burned herself from the ramen but he could see that only shards of broken glass was scattered around swollen her feet. The hot ramen was left untouched on its container.

When she didn't answer his question, he quickly picked her up and sat her down at the couch. He almost forgot that she was wearing a bloody red dress today, for a moment there he thought that she was bleeding all over. "Wait Sasuke!" She gasped in protest but he was having none of it. Is she having contractions?

Naruto all but knelt in front of Hinata, his face pale and panicking. "Naruto get out!" Sasuke growled, he almost forgot that Naruto was there.

"Nani? Teme!" He screamed his protest.

"Out!" Sasuke snapped, his body shaking from adrenaline. If it wasn't for his stupid ramen this wouldn't have happened.

Naruto jumped out of the balcony cursing in the midnight air. "Kuso!"

Soft hands held his shirt and pulled him down to his knees. "What?"

For a woman who was having some sort of pain her face was calm and there was a certain delight in her eyes. He checked her feet, looking for any wound from the shattered plate. "Your hand.." She demanded and she reached for his hand and pressed it firmly to her belly.

And there he felt it, something moved. His breath hitched and he didn't know what to do. His mouth agape. His heart thundering inside his chest.

"Is that..?"

She nodded a little enthusiastically as this was also the first time that it happened. He sat beside her unsure of the next movements he was about to do.

He leaned down and pressed his ear to her belly, his eyes never leaving hers. His lungs was filled with her scent of flowers and meadows, and there inside her was a life taking its shape. The dreg of his older brother, a proof that he existed and that he loved. Itachi didn't only killed and taken lives, he also made them and only him and Hinata knew. "Thank you.." He whispered.

It was only two words, but it meant so much.

He thanked her for giving his brother a chance, for giving an Uchiha a chance. For loving this child and keeping it, for protecting his brother's name even when everyone including her father asked her who was the father. He thanked her for honoring his clan, for planting those flowers for Shisui, for praying for his parents. He thanked her for slapping him and for cooking him healthy breakfast. He thanked her for trusting him to cut her nails, to wash her clothes even if he ruined them when he mixed the colored ones to the white ones, to sleep beside her. He thanked her for her warmth and presence, for giving him the chance to finally not be the last Uchiha.

He didn't noticed that he had been crying until he felt that her dress was wet, his tears flowed even without the sounds of sobbing. She stayed still, not minding him, Uchiha Sasuke ruining her dress.

"Hinata.." There was sadness in his voice, the wet trail of tears visible as he prepared himself at the possibility of being rejected. He would never admit it but he was afraid.

"..Just tonight.." There was begging in his voice, the raking of his body vibrated through her and into the child inside her. Maybe he was talking to Hinata or maybe he was talking to his brother's child or maybe he really was talking to himself.

"..pretend i'm not who i am."

Pretend i am not me.

Pretend that he wasn't a killer, that he wasn't a lost cause. That he didn't used to be a missing nin. That he wasn't an asshole, that he wasn't alone and angry at the world. That he wasn't weak and jealous.

She sadly smiled down at him. Okay. And his hands slowly crept to the curve of her lower back, a futile attempt to hug her with his ear still pressed to her warm belly and his neck resting on her thighs. He closed his eyes and allowed himself to be drifted away, his heart overflowed and the waves that he could hear inside her belly was his lullaby.

Just tonight, he begged her to pretend that he wasn't Uchiha Sasuke.

—

"Naruto! Why did you drag me here?!" Tsunade looked livid. Naruto was sure that she was losing her game when he picked her up telling her that Hinata was in pain and that Sasuke was mad. Her ears were red as she recalled all the money she lost while they jumped through the roofs. He thought of Sakura first but decided against it, remembering how their first interaction ended.

"I told you i-i think Hinata-chan is going to pop any time now!" He screeched.

Sasuke was being a stupid bastard. He didn't have to kick him out, he could've helped him carry Hinata to the Konoha hospital. But for some reason they weren't there. He perspired at the thought of Hinata giving birth at home.

Tsunade smacked him on the back of his head growling like some kind of a man and not a woman at all. He felt dizzy. "Naruto she is not due by more than a month!"

"O-Or maybe she was hurt, i dunno!" He weakly countered. He didn't know much about pregnancy and stuff but the look on Sasuke's face got him worried.

Finally they made it. He landed on the giant Mahogany tree, and there was a good view of them inside through the balcony.

Damn it teme!

Naruto could see that Hinata still sat on the couch where he last saw her, but what made him shut his mouth was the look on Sasuke's face, he could only see the side of his face but he could see it. For the first time in long time, Sasuke had a genuine smile plastered on his mouth. It almost felt wrong to disturb them, they looked so peaceful. He couldn't help but smile himself at the scene in front of him. He felt like crying for his best friend.

You're.. you're really happy teme..

Finally..

Now. He was thinking of the only thing that would help him keep his damn head on his shoulders. He turned to Tsunade and scratched the back of his neck. She looked like she aged from just the rage she was feeling.

"Ah... hehe false alarm! Maybe we should just drink, let's go Baa-chan! M-My treat!" He jumped so fast going to the direction of the nearest pub afraid that she would punch him if he was too slow.

"Naruto! You're not old enough to drink!"

Ero sennin, watch over me! Don't let her kill me!

—

She didn't know how but when the warmth of the sun hit her face she was already in bed. For months they have been sleeping on the same bed. Afraid that again, some Hyuuga Anbu would try and catch them off-guard. In all of those months, Sasuke never touched her willingly. He might've seeked her warmth when they were asleep or maybe it was her that moved but Sasuke never ever touched her when he was awake.

Today was a different day, he was asleep beside her. Maybe it was because last night was a different night. His arm cradled her stomach, his face too close and his breath mingled along with hers when she turned to look at him. He looked so much like him.

Hinata recalled falling asleep with Itachi months ago and waking up alone in Konoha. With Sasuke it was different, because there was no doubt that he'll be there when she wakes up, the only time that she woke up alone was when he bought freshly baked chocolate breads she craved, but still he came back.

Looking at him now, she saw how young he was and also how old. There were lines in his forehead but there was no smile lines in his mouth. It only made sense because she knew he never really had a reason to smile or laugh. She wondered how he laughed, how would it sound if it escaped those lips. Will his eyes wrinkle from laughter? Will he be able to grow old unlike his brother? Her hand absentmindedly reached for his face, touching his temple.

Just one touch and he was awake.

His dark eyes fluttered open, and she could see his face was a little swollen from crying. "Sasuke?"

He pushed himself off and up, stretching like a cat. His eyes focused in their crumpled blanket. "I have a mission today, I'll take you to the Hyuuga compound."

"No, I want to stay here." She was going to continue knitting baby clothes today, and the warm sun was inviting her to start already.

"Are you sure?" He took off his shirt and headed for the bathroom.

"Ano.. Hai." He nodded and accepted her decision. When she heard the door close, she stretched and went to the kitchen where the mess of shards greeted her. She didn't think twice and cleaned the floor. Starting her morning ritual, she prepared tea and the much needed breakfast for her and Sasuke. She also prepared him two bentos for him to take with to his mission.

He ate soundly after taking a shower and sighed to his hot tea, the smell of it all made her insides knot painfully. What if he doesn't come back?

Once he was full, he sat on the porch and started sharpening his katana. The glint of it told her that it wasn't a normal weapon.

"Are you comfortable with snakes now?" He asked not lifting his head and continued cleaning the blade.

She recalled all the times she was able to see his summons, most of them were fairly small and not bigger than her thighs, but stories from Kiba and Shino about the day Orochimaru laid waste on Konoha during their Chuunin exam made her sweat a little. Kiba said that the snakes that the sannin summoned were bigger than the Hokage tower, and considering that Sasuke was his student, it made her think that there was a high chance of him summoning the same thing. "H-Hai. Ano, as long as it's not so big."

He nodded, a light tug on his lips told her he found her request amusing. "I will leave one behind, I'll tell Shino and Kiba to keep you company. Is that alright?"

She nodded, and saw the familiar handsigns for the summoning jutsu. And poofed was a purple snake the size of her arm, she zoned out after that. She didn't hear what words went out of Sasuke's mouth or what orders did he give the snake. But when she saw him walking out the door, she almost ran thinking he'll forget about the bentos she prepared. He grasped the clothed boxed and nodded. The last thing she saw was his back fading away.

Why pretend Sasuke? Isn't the man who wept last night who you really are?

—

Author's note: Chapter is dedicated to Usagi-chan8, futaba Mikami, Katia Montoya1, skioeoizx, justmarly, Hobo ghost, Missgaga20, Splaaash-attack, seman99i, noodlekins and fuyuuki756! You guys are the best!

Don't be shy, tell me what you want to see, situations, characters, or if I'm missing something etc. Or you can just tell me what you liked about the whole thing. I would really appreciate it!

Ps. I have 2 Hinata fics otw, one is MadaHina, the other is another Sasuhina. I just don't know which one I'll be focusing first after Echo.. So which one would you guys prefer? (''-'')