The Color Red
Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews. I'm sorry that this story hasn't been updated in forever. I just kept getting sidetracked by my other ones. I do intend to finish this though. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter.
Chapter Notation: We're still dealing with the fallout from the kidnapping. So some parts of this chapter may be a bit uncomfortable to read, but there will be lots of snuggling time to make up for it. I do promise a happy ending though.
Chapter 21
A few days later, Gina was snuggling up into Sasuke. She was back in the Sand and after they were both looked at by a medic, they had quickly gone home. Sasuke had refused to let her out of his sight since. She sighs and kisses him.
"Sasuke, I'm fine. My pregnancy is perfectly normal." She whispers.
"I know, but that stress wasn't good for you or the baby. I should have known that something was wrong. I knew that something was off, but I didn't listen to my instincts. Because of that, our child might have hundreds of half-siblings. Half-siblings that might be sold into slavery or worse." Her husband whispers.
The Kazekage sighs as she looks into his guilt-ridden eyes. Sasuke blamed himself for what had happened, but it hadn't been his fault. It was the fault of those who had kidnapped him. Not her husband.
"It's not your fault. Besides, Naruto is going to take care of it. That's what he's good at. Saving the day. Isn't it?" She asks with a teasing smile.
"Yes, it is. What am I good at though?" Sasuke asks.
"Mmm well you're quite the skilled lover and excel when it comes to fathering children." Gina tells him as she leans over and kisses him.
Sasuke returns the kiss and the red head smiles. Maybe, everything would be alright. For now, she was just going to have to trust that Naruto knew what he was doing. One thing was for damn sure though. She didn't want Sasuke out there.
He was too enraged. Her husband was just as likely to tear apart the Five Nations looking for those men as to actually find them. Besides, she would much rather have him in her bed than running around chasing after Black Market Dealers.
"Well that's true. I just hope that the only child that I've managed to sire so far is ours." He whispers.
"I hope that too." Gina murmurs as she caresses the side of his face.
She loved Sasuke and she knew how important family was to him. If those orders were successfully delivered, she knew what would happen. Sasuke would want to take the children in as their own. To say the least, it was an unsettling thought.
Not that she would hold their method of "conception" against them. It was more that she was worried what that would mean for Sasuke. Every single time that he looked at them, he would be reminded of being kidnapped. She could only hope that he would love those children that were spawned out of greed as much as the child that they had created out of love.
"Mmm I love you. Whatever happens, I don't want you to forget that." The raven haired man tells her as he kisses his wife's forehead tenderly.
"I love you too." Gina replies with a smile as she snuggles further into him.
It would be too much like her own childhood. She had a Tailed Beast implanted into her without her consent. These theoretical children hadn't asked to be born or to be conceived with such vile intentions in mind. It wouldn't be there fault.
The Kazekage knew that it would be wrong for them to be treated differently than their half-sibling, but could they really do it? Could they treat the other children the same way as a child of their own blood. Her blood and Sasuke's?
"Get some sleep, Strawberry." Sasuke commands.
"Mmm alright. Goodnight, Vamp." The expectant mother says as she closes her eyes and slowly drifts off.
Meanwhile Naruto had formed what seemed like hundreds of clones and was going to every location on the list. There were just so many of them. He was so busy fanning out, that he didn't realize that someone was following him.
That someone was Sasuke. Well more specifically, it was an army of the Uchiha's Clones. He sent one clone after each Naruto. There was no way that he was going to leave any of this to chance.
"Give me the box!" Naruto shouts at one of the carriers.
Sasuke snorts. Really? That's what Naruto was going with? The idiot didn't really think that the man was going to hand him the box, did he?
This was probably a civilian. A civilian who wouldn't really understand the significance of what he was carrying. As angry was Sasuke was, he wasn't mindless.
There was no headband. Either this man was a civilian or he was pretending to be. Either way, that was fine. Sasuke Flickers over and delivers a kick to his stomach that sends him flying backwards. The force of him hitting the tree was enough to knock the man unconscious.
"Bastard, what are you doing here?!" Naruto demands.
"Relax, idiot. I'm a clone. You didn't really think that I was going to leave this all up to you, did you? It's my Clan's future that is on the line." The other man retorts.
"Gina is going to kill you, if she finds out." The blonde warns him.
That was probably true. He imagined that his wife would be furious, if she knew. Still that wasn't going to stop him. This was for the good of their family. In the long run, she'd probably thank him.
The red head would probably smack him around with her sand a few times before that though. Not that he minded. It wasn't like her was going to fight his beloved wife while she was pregnant. She could slap him around as much as she wanted.
"Good thing that she's not going to find out then. Is she?" Sasuke demands as he flashes his eyes at the Nine Tails.
Naruto had the good sense to gulp. They were both relatively equal in power and Sasuke had one advantage over his friend. He wouldn't hesitate to put his all into a fight. Naruto would always pull back at the last minute.
That was why he was the hero and Sasuke wasn't. He had done so many horrible things, but this wasn't going to be one of them. Leaving the future of his Clan in the hands of someone else, that wasn't something that he was capable of doing.
"Fine. I'm not going to tell her. If she finds out though, I'm gonna tell her the truth. That this was your idea. You're the only clone, right?" The blue eyed ninja asks nervously.
Not even Naruto. Naruto was his best friend in the world. Well other than Gina, but he just couldn't do it. Sasuke had to do this. He had to make sure that those bastards didn't get the last laugh.
"Loser, do you think that I'm an idiot? Of course, I'm not the only one." Sasuke informs him with a smirk.
"You just have do things the hard way, don't you?" Naruto asks with a sigh . "Look whose talking!" Sasuke growls at him.
Back in the Leaf Village, Tsunade sighs and pours herself another drink. She couldn't believe this. The Messenger Hawk had just arrived with a scroll for her, earlier that day.
It was written in a very special code. One that had taken hours to decipher, but it had been difficult to crack for a good reason. What she read inside that scroll was positively ghastly.
Dear Granny Tsunade,
It's going to take me awhile to get back from the Leaf. Gina and I managed to save Sasuke from his kidnappers. Unfortunately, the kidnappers were planning on selling the bastard's…genetic material to the highest bidder and had already sent out the orders.
So now, I have to track down the shipments. It's probably going to take awhile. Don't worry though. These are just really sick thugs. I'm more than a match for them.
Sasuke is back in the Sand and with Gina. I'm hoping that he's not going to do anything stupid. She is pregnant. So that might be enough to keep him from going off on a murderous rampage.
Anyway, wish me luck…Naruto.
"You've got to be kidding me. Can nothing ever be simple around here?" She mutters as she sips her drink.
"No. It can't. I told you that it was a bad match. The poor girl fell for a pretty face and look what almost happened!" Onoki says.
He was visiting the Leaf Village to discuss trade. To say the least, the Stone Kage was still not supportive of Gina's relationship with Sasuke. Not that it particularly mattered.
They were already married and had a child on the way. What the old man thought he was going to get out of continuing to complain about it, Tsunade didn't know. While she certainly wished that the red head had chosen someone with a less checkered past, the busty blonde knew that her thoughts on the matter were irrelevant. Gina had made her decision and that was that.
"Onoki, if you aren't going to stop complaining about Gina's personal life, then I'm going to have to ask you to leave. It's most unbecoming to gossip about another Kage like that behind their back and I will not tolerate it." The other ninja warns him.
"You're right. Forgive me, Lady Tsunade. It's just that I'm worried about her. I only want what is best for Gina." He says as he lowers his eyes as if in contrition.
Tsunade knew better than to buy it though. The man just didn't want a fight. Which was just fine with her. She had better thing to do than to pick a fight over an issue that had already been resolved months ago.
Gina and Sasuke were in love. It was perhaps the most unexpected match that she had ever seen and yet, the most expected match at the same time. They were just both so similar, even if their pasts were somewhat polar opposites of each other.
"There's nothing to forgive. Now, we just have to hope that Naruto can prevent a tragedy from occurring." She whispers.
Sasuke had started off as a Prodigy. He had been adored by almost everyone because of his skills, his bloodline, and his tragic past as a young child. Gina had been hated and feared by everyone because of the demon. Later on though, it was Sasuke who became the "villain" and Gina who became the "hero" in people's minds.
Despite the fact that their paths had started off so differently, somehow they had managed to converge. As much as she wished that Gina had chosen someone else, the Hokage couldn't deny that they obviously loved each other. She wasn't going to stand in the way of love, even if it wasn't a logical love in her mind. (Not that love was ever logical to begin with, but she digressed).
Elsewhere, one of Sasuke's clones Lion Barrages one of the deliverers. He knew that he probably should hold back more. There was a chance that the people delivering the packages had no idea what was inside them.
"Bastard! Take it easy! These people aren't Madara!" Naruto's clone shouts at him.
Oh he knew that. These people were potentially carrying the future of his Clan though. He wasn't going to allow his kidnappers to win. Not even after they were dead.
Any children in his Clan should be conceived out of love. Not out of deception and greed. That was why they had to stop each and every package. Sasuke didn't care how long it took to do so. They were going to do it!
"I know that. I'm just not taking any chances!" Sasuke yells at him as he makes sure to destroy, yet another box.
These people were sick. There had to be hundreds of these boxes. It looked like his kidnappers had been busy wooing perspective clients for awhile. This wasn't the type of operation that had been thrown together over night.
It made him furious. He could feel the old white hot fury flare to life again. The poisonous feeling of hatred and desire for revenge. Maybe, he shouldn't just stop with the deliverers.
"Sasuke, I know what you're thinking. Don't. Just don't. You don't want to go there." Naruto warns him.
"They were going to buy my children, Naruto! They need to be punished!" Sasuke growls.
"Yes, they do. We'll put them in jail. I promise. Going on a killing spree is not going to help you. You have a chance to start over Sasuke. You have Gina and your son or daughter to think about. You can't afford to lose it." Naruto reminds him.
Sasuke sighs and nods. He knew that was true. Gina probably wouldn't forgive him, if he went around murdering the buyers. As much as he was loathed to admit it, killing them just wasn't practical.
These people were all wealthy. They would be making a lot of political, economic, and maybe even military enemies…if he killed them. Damn it.
"I know. Let's just get this over with." He mutters.
Back in the Sand, Gina slowly opens her eyes and sees that Sasuke was staring at the wall rather intently. Too intently for it to be normal. Something was going on.
"Sasuke, tell me that you didn't." She whispers.
"Tell you that I didn't what?" He replies as he turns his attention towards his wife.
"Tell me that you didn't send clones after Naruto to "help" him." The red head says with a sigh.
Her husband had the decency to look guilty, but that didn't change their current situation. Wonderful. Her husband was following Naruto as he was stopping the deliveries.
"If you destroy the Five Nations in a homicidal rage, you'll be sleeping on the couch for the rest of your life." She warns him.
Sasuke gulps at that threat and that made the expectant mother feel better. Threatening to kill Sasuke was pointless. Threatening him with the couch was far more effective. At the end of the day, the Uchiha man was a sensual creature.
It was a bit surprising, really. The ninja had spent most of his life trying to cut any bonds that he had, but he craved physical affection. So did she for that matter. Far more than she ever really cared to admit, but her husband continued to survive her in that particular aspect of their marriage. Clan Restoration was not going to be a difficult task considering how much he loved being with her.
"There's no need to go that far. I just had to be sure. I wanted to protect our family. That's all." He says quickly.
"I know that you did and I love you for it. I love how much you want to protect our family and prevent something horrible from happening, but I really wish that you would have trusted Naruto to handle this." She whispers as she kisses him.
She should be angry with him and on some level, the red head was. Despite that, Gina just couldn't stay mad at him. She loved him too much. She was far too addicted to his touch to stay cross with him and the bastard knew that too!
"I love you. I just want to make sure that those cowards don't cause our family any unnecessary pain. You feeling okay?" He asks as his eyes drift to her stomach.
"Mmm. I imagine you're going to ask me that at least a thousand times a day until the baby is born, but yes. I'm okay. As long as I have you, I'm okay." She says as she rests her head on his shoulder.
That made Sasuke and his Clones smile. Back on the "battlefield," his clones and all the Naruto's were chasing down more and m ore deliverers. Sasuke could scarcely keep track of all of them.
Some just dropped what they were carrying and ran when they saw the two famous (or infamous in Sauske's case) ninjas. Others didn't see them coming until it was too late. Some didn't recognize them and tried to fight.
"Chidori!" One of Sasuke's clones says as he fires off his trademark attack at a man who had been stupid enough to fight him.
Obviously, he didn't know who he was dealing with. That didn't matter though. He was hardly the first and nor was a powerful enough ninja to pose a real threat to the ninja.
"AHHHH!" The man screams in agony as he falls to the ground and Sasuke smashes the box.
He wasn't the only one though. The Narutos and Sasukes spent the better par of the day tracking down deliverers. It was a burr of punches, kicks, chasing, Chidoris, Rasengans, fireballs, wind attacks, and others. One deliverer was indistinguishable from the next after awhile.
By the end of the day though, Sasuke's clones were exhausted and disappeared with a loud poof as Naruto heads back to the Leaf. It was over. Well almost over. They still had to deal with the buyers.
One week later, Gina was standing in the Sand's Village Square with her husband at her side. Today was a big day. It was a day to ensure that no one else would ever attempt what those black market dealers had done.
"Thank you, all for coming here on such short notice. My husband and I have an important announcement to make." Gina begins.
There were murmurs of acknowledgement. So far, only a few people knew about Sasuke's kidnapping. Much less what had almost happened with the Uchiha Bloodline.
"Not long ago, I was tricked and kidnapped. Two ninjas attempted to extra genetic samples from me and they did succeed. It seems that they were going to sell the samples off to the highest bidders. They had a long list of clients who wanted Uchiha children. Most of whom, wanted them for rather unsavory reasons." Sasuke continues.
There were gasps and cries out outrage. By this point, Sasuke was now largely considered a member of the Sand Village. It was hard to look at him with the same fear and suspicion that they used to when he was married to their beloved Kazekage, after all. So it was unsettling to think of someone doing such a thing to Sasuke and his children.
"That's vile!" Someone from the crowd shouts.
"Yes, it is. That's why we have tracked down all the potential buyers and they will be put on trial. Depending on the laws of their respective Nations and Villages, they'll be put to death or imprisoned. That's of course, if they're found guilty. As their names are on a list, I highly doubt that they'll be found innocent. We do respect the rule of law though. That's important. Without laws, our world would fall into chaos." Gina says.
That was true. There had to be at least some rules. Though that was a lesson that her husband was still learning.
"Indeed. I have confidence that these scum will be brought to justice. Let this be a lesson to anyone who comes near our family again, that you will be punished. You won't get away with this. Breeding children for slaves, child soldiers, or parts will be punished to the fullest extent of the law! That will be the case no matter whose child it is, but especially for Uchihas." Sasuke says.
Gina wanted to argue with him. A child was a child. Their bloodline was irrelevant in this case. Deep down, she knew that her lover knew that. Unfortunately, she could see the truth reflected in his eyes. Sasuke wouldn't listen to her right now.
He was angry. Her husband was angry and afraid about what had almost happened or still might happen to their family. The Uchiha Patriarch simply wasn't thinking straight. He would need some time to get over this and she was going to respect that.
"Of course!" Someone from the crowd shouts.
Well that was all it took. Soon enough, similar calls were made. Gina couldn't help, but smile in response at the display of support and loyalty.
"They're good people." Sasuke whispers to her.
"Yes, they are. So are you. You just need to remember who you are now. You're my husband, the man I love, and you're going to be a father. You can't let your temper get the better of you anymore. I promise that they will pay for what they did. They will pay for what they tried to do. You just have to be patient." She whispers into his ears as the cheers continue to ring throughout the village square.
Sasuke simply nods at that. Gina doubted that he really knew what to say to her declaration. It didn't matter though.
She could see that he had heard her. Sasuke would listen to her. Well most of the time. The red head doubted that he would listen to her at the moment about a child being a child, but they would get there.
"Let's go home. Our work is done here for the moment and you need your rest." He murmurs as he caresses her cheek tenderly.
"Sasuke, I'm pregnant. I'm not sick. I don't need to rest. I'm fine." The Kazekage protests half-heartedly.
Gina knew that it was a losing battle though. Sasuke had always been protective of her since they got together, but he had become even more so after she became pregnant. The young Kage supposed that she might as well get used to it.
Sasuke was likely going to act this way until she had their baby. Not only that, but he would probably do the same for all of her pregnancies. She supposed that it was only natural though. He had lost one family. So he wanted to protect his second one.
"Well there's no reason to overdo it, anyway." He says as he scoops her up Bridal Style and Flickers them off.
Gina couldn't help, but roll her eyes at this move. Unbelievable. Did Sasuke want to set their villagers' tongues wagging or something?
One didn't just teleport a Kage off while carrying them Bridal Style! Oh boy. He had definitely given the children something to write about for their school paper tomorrow. Gina doubted that they would ever hear the end of it.
"You're impossible." She grumbles.
"Impossibly in love with you and you're beautiful. Beautiful and stubborn. Get some rest." He tells her as he gently sets her on the bed and soon lays down beside her.
Impossible. That's what it was. It was impossible to stay mad at him, she muses once again. This was especially so when he had to go and say things like that!
"Smooth." She concedes with a sigh as she curls up next to him.
"Thank you. I do try." He tells her as he wraps the blankets around them.
She always liked sleeping next to her husband with the covers wrapped around them. It was nice an cozy. Gina felt safe and cherished in moments like this.
"You succeed. Just don't let that go to your head." She mutters.
"Mmm. Too late for that. I have a beautiful red head and a Kage for my wife. Kinda hard not to get a big ego, considering those things." He retorts smugly.
"You're lucky that I love you. If I didn't, I'd Sand Coffin you for being such a cocky bastard." She murmurs.
"Yes, I know that I'm very lucky you love me. Eh. You know that I was a cocky bastard when you married me. So yeah. You kinda have to deal with it." He states arrogantly.
She rolls her eyes playfully in response to that retort. Sadly, she couldn't really argue with that. It was true.
"Whatever. Goodnight, vamp." She tells him as she closes her eyes and dozes off.
"Goodnight, Strawberry." He teases her and with that, Sasuke shuts his eyes and soon joins his wife in the Land of Dreams.