*I DON'T OWN NARUTO*


Sakura followed Shikamaru up a flight of stairs that led to his old hangout. She carried their drinks while Shikamaru carried their food. The weather was actually very beautiful, and the heat wasn't unbearable like it had been the day before. They finally made it to the top. A small bench and table under a small canopy greeted them.

"Wow I haven't been up here in years," said Sakura as she followed Shikamaru to the table.

"Yeah I don't get to come out here much myself anymore, my schedule is always packed."

"I know what you mean."

"You know I wouldn't have complained so much about things being troublesome had I known what awaited me in the future," muttered Shikamaru.

"I miss the simpler times too Shikamaru," said Sakura as she placed their drinks on the table.

"Yeah, anyhow I'm sorry I dragged you out here to eat. It's just that I really need to talk to you about a few things and I wanted to do it in private."

"So what's up?" Asked Sakura as she opened her breakfast bento.

Shikamaru watched the pink haired kunoichi as she wasted no time in eating her breakfast. He looked at his own food and let out a sigh.

"Well for starters I don't want you to get all worked up over, the last thing I need is you getting stressed."

"What's this all about?"

"Three trespassers tried to gain access to the village last night, but they were intercepted by Ino. She was able to take two down by herself, but the last one posed more of a problem for her. That asshole had the nerve to try and take advantage of her, but thanks to Naruto he didn't have the chance to do much but grope her. That's why Ino had Naruto's jacket, he gave it to her since there was nothing left of her top," said Shikamaru.

"Is she alright?"

"She was really shaken up this morning, which makes sense, she doesn't have adrenaline driving her anymore, but aside from a few bruises and scraps she's fine."

"What in the world did they want?"

"I don't know, but I do know that they were transporting a corpse, that, get this, came back to life."

"What?"

"Yeah I know right. Ino made it sound like it was something straight out of a nightmare."

"I can't believe all of this happened in one night."

"Well there's more."

"..."

"These three chose tonight because they were told that Naruto wouldn't be here."

"But if that's the case that would mean that we have a spy within the village. Oh my god Shikamaru, do you think that's true?"

"Anything is possible, but I personally don't think we're dealing with a professional spy."

"What do you mean?"

"Well since the war ended our trading negotiations with other villages has spread, so we're probably dealing with civilians from neighboring villages asking questions. That would explain how the intruders Ino ran into were given false information. No real spy collecting information would ruin something so important."

"So you're saying that people coming to Konoha to trade are spying on Naruto?"

"They aren't spying on him directly, they're probably just gossiping with Konoha's villagers, I mean Naruto is the hero of the village,and the world,so it makes sense that villagers would chat about him. Someone could easily pay these people for information, but the information gathered isn't very reliable."

"..."

"Then again it would be incredibly difficult hunting down all those civilians," said Shikamaru as he took a bite of his food. "I'm not sure if the person these guys are working for is an idiot, or a genius."

"If word of mouth is what we're dealing with then my pregnancy just goes and complicates things," sighed Sakura.

"Don't sweat it, you can keep it under wraps for a few months."

"That was the plan, but Kiba's mom told a few of her friends, who took it upon themselves to share the news with their friends, and it just kept going."

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah, long story short Naruto and I got into a whole other mess after the party. Which reminds me, I never thanked you for standing up for me last night."

"Don't mention it, but I'm sorry it even happened."

"I know, I'm afraid of what Naruto will do the next time he sees Kiba."

"It won't be pretty, but I know Kiba will survive."

"Well that's comforting."

"But accurate."

"So what should we do about all these new developments?"

"When you say we you're actually saying I, am I right?"

"..."

"Sakura all of this will get handled, you don't have to do anything."

"I don't like standing in the sidelines. It reminds me too much of my genin days."

"Its frustrating, I know, but with my smarts and Naruto's strength any threat we face doesn't stand a chance. We'll handle whatever this is, while you focus on that kiddo of yours."

"Thanks Shikamaru."

"It's my pleasure Sakura."


Shikamaru held a grocery basket as Sakura walked the aisles of her favorite grocery store. He stayed close to her and watched people's reactions when she walked by. He was quick to make his presence known if someone focused on her for too long. Sakura seemed oblivious when it came to the extra attention she was getting. She was extra focused on the grocery list she had written. Shikamaru decided it was better this way. He was afraid that if she noticed all eyes on her she would worry even more about someone finding out about the baby. Sakura whisked by and dropped a few vegetables into the basket Shikamaru held.

"Carrots, snap peas, and potatoes, this is for Naruto's place right?" Asked Shikamaru sarcastically.

"Ha ha very funny," said Sakura as she playfully pushed Shikamaru. "I know this isn't his normal choice in food but he isn't doing the shopping. Besides he needs to be eating better anyway. Honestly if he's in such good shape while eating nothing but ramen imagine what he'll be like with a healthier diet."

"Fair enough, but be careful, you're bordering unknown territory. A rapid change in his diet could send a shock through his system."

Sakura rolled her eyes at Shikamaru, he could be so dramatic at times, but funny none the less. She and got back to her shopping list to mark off the item, it was thinly sliced beef, so she slowly made her way towards the meat section of the store. Once she arrived at her destination she took her time looking over several packages. She finally found her desired cut of meat, and for a great price too. Sakura turned around expecting Shikamaru to be close by, but he was nowhere in sight.

"Honestly, if you leave this guy alone for too long he wanders off. Oh well I'll just keep getting a few small things on my list. I'm bound to bump into him anyway, this store isn't that big."

Sakura walked down an aisle keeping an eye out for Shikamaru, but instead of finding him she found a pink haired women with a set of jade eyes like hers.

"Mom?"

"Sakura, I didn't expect to see you here," replied Hanako as she embraced her daughter.

"Well Naruto doesn't have any food at his place so I figured I do some shopping," said Sakura as she hugged her mother back.

"Oh is that so, does that mean he's here then with you?" Inquired Hanako as she looked around the store.

"No, he's at home sleeping. Team 7 was assigned to border patrol yesterday so he had a long night."

"I'm sure Tsunade-sama isn't allowing you to participate with Team 7 right?"

"Of course mother, Team 7 has found a replacement to fill in for me. Ino was chosen, so it's official, I'm not doing anymore missions, nor will I be helping at the hospital."

"Thank goodness, I knew you wouldn't be going on mission l, but I'm also relieved you won't be working at the hospital."

"I understand the job is stressful mom but it isn't that bad. Why are you relieved?"

"Haven't you noticed? There seems to be some kind of flu going around, everyone is getting sick."

"Oh, well I figured it wasn't something I should really be concerned with to tell you the truth mom."

"Well you're expecting now, and even the slightest little cold can become complicated with the pregnancy. Just keep that in mind and watch your health."

"Of course mom, I will."

Hanako was about to reply when she noticed a familiar face approaching them.

"Nara Shikamaru, I haven't seen you in ages you've gotten so tall," said Hanako as she looked Shikamaru over. "How's your mother doing?"

"Oh she's doing alright, she's ususlly helping Yamanaka-san with the flower shop, so that keeps her busy."

"Well that's good to hear. Are you doing some shopping for your mother then?"

"Actually I'm here with your daughter. I asked Sakura earlier this morning if she needed any help with anything today since Naruto is sleeping, and she took me up on my offer"

"That's very sweet of you Shikamaru. I appreciate you taking the time to help my daughter with her errands."

"Oh no thanks needed ma'am it's my pleasure," replied Shikamaru politely.

Hanako smiled and placed her hand on Shikamaru's shoulder.

"Oh Shikamaru you really are quite a catch, the Yamanaka family is going to be so lucky to gain such a sweet son in law."

"Uhh..th..thank you ma'am," said Shikamaru nervously.

"I have yet to speak to my own son in law," said Hanako as she eyed her daughter.

"Mother, Naruto hasn't even asked me to marry him yet," said Sakura as she tried to hush her mother. " Plus your relationship with him hasn't been established yet, but due to certain events I know that will change. I'll make a note to tell him that we all need to talk. Does that sound okay?"

"Yes of course, that'll work. You are right though, we don't really have a relationship, and while I can't go back and fix the past, I'm looking forward to the future. Just let me know when's a good time to stop by. Now I have my own errands to run, so I'll leave the two of you to finish yours. I love you Sakura, and take care of yourself Shikamaru, tell your mother I said hi."

Hanako gave her daughter a genuine warm smile and walked off. Seeing her mother's inviting expression made Sakura sincerely happy. Her relationship with her mother was always rocky, mostly because Hanako never accepted Sakura being a kunoichi, nor was she pleased with her daughter's relationship with Naruto, but last night had been a turning point for both mother and daughter.

The akward moment the three of them endured was probably one of the best things that could have happened to their mother daughter relationship. At the moment Sakura was mortified, but the universe does have a curious way upsetting things up. The embarrassing turn of events ended up being a blessing in disguise. Both mother and daughter were put on the spot and forced to bring it out deeply embedded feelings that they had not shared with one another. Now that the air was clear between them Sakura was genuinely happy, as was her mother.

She placed the package of meat into the basket Shikamaru held and the added weight brought him back to reality.

"Well that was lovely, wasn't it? I know Imo would just be thrilled if she knew you were talking about marriage."

"Don't you dare tell her your mother even mentioned the word."

"I'm not sure I can do, that that's a pretty tall order there mister."

"So now you got jokes?" Chucked Shikamaru.

"I have my moments," replied Sakura.


Shizune approached Tsunade's desk waiting for her to acknowledge her presence. After a short time Tsunade put down her reading material and looked up at Shizune.

"What have you brought for me now Shizune?"

There was a hint of dread in the Hokage's voice; she hated meaningless paperwork.

"Yes well I have information regarding the cadaver found by Team 7," squeaked Shizune as she placed the new paper work on the desk.

Tsunade mood changed for dread to interest.

"Well what is it?"

"Well we have an autopsy scheduled for tomorrow since our medical examiner's workload is a little full today. Just as you requested this will be a full autopsy with thorough toxicology tests."

"Excellent, anything else?"

"Yes, Inoichi and his team have come back from their previous mission. They're on their way to speak to you, and from there the interrogation of our current prisoners will begin."

"Good, maybe we can see if we're dealing with the same problem as the Kazekage. Is that all you have Shizune?"

"Oh no, there is one other thing Tsunade-sama. The hospital has been getting numerous cases of people coming down with flu like symptoms. I know it isn't anything to be concerned about, but perhaps we should look more into this and provide some antidotes," said Shizune.

"No you're right even you got sick earlier in the week. Go ahead and start coming up with an antidote, as soon as it's done start administering it to the sick," said Tsunade.

"Yes Tsunade-sama."

Shizune promptly turned around and left the office. Tsunade picked up her tea and took a sip from it. She looked around her littered desk and sighed.

"I hope we finally get some answers," muttered Tsunade.


The lack of warmth from Sakura's body stirred Naruto from his slumber. He yawned and rolled over to get a better look at his alarm clock, it was 1:15pm. Naruto groaned as he shoved his face deep within his pillow. He hated changing his sleeping habits, it was such a nuisance. After a few moments of complaining to himself Naruto dragged himself out of bed.

The first thing he noticed was that the mess he had left on the floor had been cleaned up. His clothes were now folded neatly on his dresser. He sluggishly stood up and made his way out into the living room, but there was no sight of Sakura anywhere.

Naruto then made his way to the kitchen and opened his fridge. He wasn't welcomed by a whole lot of nothing.

He sighed at the dismal sight before him and so hr closed. On doing so he noticed a note on his refrigerator door. He read the note, and his empty stomach growled in anticipation. He was so relieved that he'd have food in his cabinets and refrigerator soon.

Until then it was best to get ready for the day. He walked to his bedroom and put on his pants and plain black T-shirt. He returned to his living room and plopped himself down on his couch. He folded his arms behind his head and looked up at the ceiling. His eyes felt heavy, he was still sleepy, but he had so much on his decided to rest his eyes in an attempt to sort out his thoughts. He thought about his encounter with Tsunade earlier in the day, he still felt irritated by her shady behavior. Plus he was extremely worried at the thought of a spy in Konoha, he had to make sure Sakura was safe.

"She's strong you know," whispered the Kyuubi.

"Who Sakura-chan?" Yawned Naruto as he slowly opened his eyes and looked up at the ceiling before him.

"Of course Sakura, who else would I possibly be talking about," growled the Kyuubi.

Naruto rolled his eyes at the Kyuubi's remark, but he remained silent.

"I've never had a human confront me the way she did when I wasn't healing you, she's such an aggressive female."

"Yeah well Sakura-chan isn't your typical woman," replied Naruto with a smirk on his face.

"No she's not, and that's why I'm even more pleased that we managed to claim her as ours."

"I know, I totally agree with, but we have bigger things to think about."

"..."

"You've seen what's been going on, it's very unsettling. First we get hit with those three shinobi, then there's a reanimated corpse, and to top it off Baa-chan is hiding something."

"I'm so disappointed in you Naruto, are you really that slow?" Chuckled the Kyuubi.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean? If you know something then spit it out, I've had enough of being in the dark!" Snapped Naruto.

"You know nothing of darkness boy, but fine, I'll share with you what I have gathered."

"..."

"For starters those three shinobi reek of Kumogakure."

"Kumogakure?"

"Yes, try as I might I can't forget their stench."

"When have you ever been near Kumogakure?"

"They tried many times to capture my last host so they could possess the eight and nine tails bijuu."

"Your last host, you mean my mother?"

"Yes, Kushina was a special kunoichi, not only was she a jinchuriki, but she possessed the Uzumaki clan's unique chakra. She was a highly desired prize to most villages, but Kumogakure was the most determined to claim her as theirs."

"Wait a minute I bet that's the team the Raikage lost."

"Or so he says," snarled the Kyuubi.

"So you think he sent them here on purpose and lied about them disappearing?"

"Yes that's exactly what I think Naruto. Their purpose was to drop off that corpse. I'm not sure why but I know you noticed its unique scent."

"Unique? It was utterly disgusting. I've never smelt anything like that before."

"It's the smell of sickness Naruto, that corpse was invested with disease."

"Disease? Now I'm really confused, none of this makes any sense," said Naruto as he ruffled his hair with both hands.

"I agree that none of these things make any sense bow, but that's all I know," yawned the Kyuubi.

"I wonder if this is what Baa-chan was hiding from me."

" I could care less, but I personally liked the verbal bashing you gave her. I think that Senju brat deserved it. She's such an intolerable women, just like her grandmother was."

"Well at least you got some entertainment out of that little dispute we had, but that's not what's important, what is important is figuring out where to go from here."

"It should be obvious who can help us help you out," sighed the Kyuubi.

"Who?" Asked Naruto.

"Nara."

Naruto's eyes widen at the sound of his best friend's name, how could he forget about Shikamaru?

"You're absolutely right! I have no idea why I didn't think of him sooner. Thanks Kyuubi, you saved me a lot of time by stating the obvious."

"I agreed that I would do everything in my power to keep Sakura safe. I'm merely keeping my word Naruto, don't read into this too much."

"Sure whatever you say," chuckled Naruto.

Naruto felt the Kyuubi stiffen in agitation, he knew how much it hated friendliness, thanks, or praise. He had to admit he thought it was hilarious, and every now and then he liked to see the demon squirm when he was nice to him. Suddenly Naruto felt Sakura and Shikamaru approaching his apartment.

"Now's your chance Naruto, listen to what Nara has to say, our mate and pup's safety is at stake," said the Kyuubi as its voice faded into Naruto's subconscious.

Naruto merely nodded his head without answering. He got up from his couch and stretched. He made his way to the door and opened it to find Sakura holding her night bag in one hand, and her set of keys to his apartment in the other. She let out a small gasp and as soon as she looked at Naruto.

"You know I hate it when you do that Naruto. Why can't you open the door before I'm about to use my keys, it freaks me out every time," complained Sakura.

"Awe I'm sorry Sakura-chan. Its hard for me to remember that it bothers you, honestly."

"I'll try and make a mental note though that I need to have mercy on you from now on," teased Naruto.

"Oh please," replied Sakura as she jabbed Naruto playfully in his ribcage.

She passed her boyfriend and made her way to his bedroom.

"Just leave everything in the kitchen Shikamaru, I'll put everything away."

Naruto moved to the side to let Shikamaru come in. He had his hands full from his day of shopping with Sakura. Naruto helped him with a few bags and led the way to his kitchen.

"Wow looks like someone had a wonderful day of shopping," chuckled Naruto.

"Yeah you owe me one," replied Shikamaru.

They placed all the groceries bags on Naruto's kitchen table and walked back to the living room. Sakura returned and smiled when Naruto met her gaze. She walked up to him and kissed him softly on the lips.

"You sure you don't need any help Sakura-chan?"

"No it's alright Naruto, I'll take care of things."

She turned towards Shikamaru and gave him a warm smile.

"I want to thank you again Shikamaru for helping me out today. I managed to get more errands done with your help."

"It was nothing Sakura, like I said earlier the pleasure was all mine," replied Shikamaru.

Sakura smiled once more and made her way to the kitchen, leaving both men alone.

"We need to talk," whispered Naruto.

"Agreed," answered Shikamaru.

They both slowly made their way outside Naruto's apartment. The summer air was warm, and a light breeze blew softly by. Naruto closed the door behind him as he walked outside. He felt the warm pavement under his bare feet and he quickly followed Shikamaru over to the staircase where he sat down. For a few moments the two best friends looked down on the village as people went about their days. Each one of those individuals knew nothing of the possible threat that hung over them.

"I heard about last night, I wanted to say thanks for saving Ino," whispered Shikamaru.

"It was nothing Shikamaru, she's my friend too, I'd never let her get hurt, besides now we're even," replied

Shikamaru looked puzzled by Naruto's remark.

"How are we even?"

"Last night, you helped Sakura-chan, and you have Kiba a black eye."

"Yeah. well I couldn't let Kiba act out in pure stupidity, he had it coming."

Naruto patted Shikamaru on the back and gave him a huge grin.

"That's so out of character for you, but I'm glad you did it, thanks Shikamaru."

"Well just like Ino is your friend Sakura is mine as well," replied Shikamaru.

"See we're even right?"

"Heh,I guess so."

The two young men sat in silence, both of them were unsure of what to say next. After a few moments of silence Naruto spoke.

"I know you have more information up your sleeve from last night Shikamaru. So come on, what do you know?"

Shikamaru smirked at Naruto's blunt statement. He let out a low sigh as he continued to watch the unsuspecting villagers.

"You're right, I do have other news, so listen closely. Ino told me something last night that she didn't think of telling you or Tsunade-sama. The only reason why she told me is because I kept asking her questions about her attackers."

"Well what is it?"

"All three of those shinobi were high ranking, at least jonin, yet none of them used any jutsu's or genjutsus on her. All they had over Ino was raw power and speed. Now that in itself is a little odd, but what makes it an important piece of information is what I picked up from our mission in Suna."

"Suna, you mean our recon mission?"

"Exactly, our mission was to help the Kazekage and his villages problem with rogue shinobi right?"

"Yeah."

"Well there's something else they weren't sharing with us. Two weeks before we arrived Suna was attacked by a team of shinobi from Kumogakure. None of them used any jutsu's of any kind, all they had was speed and strength, do you see where I'm going with this?"

"Those three we encounter last night were from Kumogakure too," said Naruto.

"Yeah that's what I'm thinking," replied Shikamaru.

"No they really are. The Kyuubi confirmed it by their scent. All three of them are indeed from Kumogakure. I personally think they're the team the Raikage reported missing."

"Well then this makes things much more interesting."

"Where'd you dig this up anyway? I don't remember hearing that information on the mission," said Naruto.

"It was on our last day in Suna, remember that mini party we had? Well Temari had a little too much to drink and in an attempt to get closer to me she started leaking information. At first it didn't seem like it was important but I did inform Tsunade-sama about it. Now that everything is happening I'm glad I listened to that troublesome women," muttered Shikamaru.

"I know look at you, you're so irresistible that kunoichi give out valuable intelligence just to get near you," teased Naruto.

"Yeah well it's a good thing it happened."

"So then what happened to them? Obviously they were captured if Temari was telling you."

"The only other information she shared was that each one of those shinobi's minds were erased. That explains why they weren't using any special attacks. Suna's interrogating team was able to reverse the technique. Upon doing so they learned that the their last memories was of them leaving Kumogakure. They don't remember who could have possibly captured them and used them to do their dirty work," said Shikamaru.

"Their minds were erased, so they had no idea what they were doing?"

"Basically, but I don't know the details on the technique that was used. It was more of a blocking, or mind control technique, since they still remembered who they were when the technique was released."

"So did Temari say anything about the shinobi that attacked Suna having a corpse in their possession?"

"No, it looks like were the only ones left with a corpse."

"Well I learned that the body that Ino and I discovered was riddled with disease."

"Where'd you find that out?"

"Well I knew there was something off about its scent. The Kyuubi explained that what I smelled was disease. That corpse reeked to high hell Shikamaru, I've never smelt anything that pungent before."

"Disease you say? You know people all over the villagers are getting sick, I wonder if these two things are connected."

"The enemy wants to attack us with the common cold? I don't believe that, this has to be just a coincidence."

"Don't be so sure Naruto, anything is possible. Also we can't forget about Konoha being infiltrated by spies."

"Spies, what now we have more than one?" Asked Naruto.

"It would seem so, I'm thinking it isn't our main concern at the moment."

"Why aren't you concerned about this Shikamaru? I don't want people I don't know asking questions about me," complained Naruto.

"I was telling Sakura that our potential spies are probably just visitors from other villages. They're asking Konoha's residents questions about you and your missions. Which should be no surprise since you're considered a hero to the entire shinobi world. The part that doesn't make sense is why someone would have normal civilians spy on you. It's obvious that once these individuals gather what they feel is valuable information they share it with their employer," said Shikamaru.

"So this isn't really spying it's more like gossiping? That is a shitty way to gather intelligence on someone," said Naruto.

"I'm not sure whether to see the enemy as a threat or as a nobody. Then again what kind of nobody would be able to catch the Raikage's shinobi right under his nose," muttered Shikamaru.

"Yeah you got that right, so you told Sakura-chan all of this?"

"Yes, but only certain things, she knows about the attack on Ino and our possible spies but that's it," said Shikamaru.

"Good I don't want her to worry too much."

"No worries Naruto, Sakura should be fine. I made sure to put her mind at ease."

"Thanks."

"No problem. Anyhow I wasn't counting on the Kyuubi helping out so there's a good amount of information that needs to be brought to Tsunade-sama's attention. It's just my luck to have to do this on my day off," muttered Shikamaru. "You want to come along?"

"No Baa-chan and I had it out this morning. I'd rather not see her."

"That's right how could I forget. Ino told me you went and accused her of lying to you guys."

Yeah…"

"So do you think what we've gathered is what she was hiding from you?"

"I want to say yes Shikamaru, but I know deep down that the answer is no," said Naruto solemnly.

Shikamaru slowly shook his head from side to side, he knew he couldn't sugar coat things for him any longer.

"You know what Tsunade-sama is hiding deep down Naruto, stop lying to yourself," said Shikamaru.

Naruto turned his head sharply at his best friend; his facial expression changed from surprised to frustration.

"Lying, what makes you think I'm lying to myself?! I may be able to read people but how should I know what she's hiding."

"You're lying to yourself because you're afraid of the truth Naruto. Even I know what this is all about. Stop thinking that he doesn't exists! Part of you still wants to see the good in him, but let's face it that part of him died long ago," snapped Shikamaru.

Naruto's face contorted in anger; he softly felt a growl build up in his throat.

"What makes you think this has to do with him!? You're just jumping to conclusions Shikamaru!"

Shikamaru drew closer to Naruto, unafraid of his friend's anger.

"I never jump to conclusions Naruto, you should know that."

"..."

"He's always been a threat to us ever since the day he betrayed us. He didn't help Madera in the war, nor did he side with own his village, instead he left to fulfill his own selfish ambitions! He's alive out there somewhere and I can guarantee you that Tsunade-sama is thinking the same thing! That's why you were left here and not sent out to help with the rest of the search parties. We need you here in the village in case of an attack!" Yelled Shikamaru.

"Just stop already!" Growled Naruto as he grabbed the cuff of Shikamaru's shirt.

"Not until you admit that he can be behind all of this. Don't you think it's odd the Raikage lied to Tsunade-sama about his missing party? You know how much he personally hates him. He probably knows he's behind all of this. If the Raikage were to tell Tsunade-sama the truth it would be our responsibility to take care of him once and for all. The Raikage's always thought we're weak when it comes to taking him out. I bet the Raikage is taking things into his own hands."

Naruto felt frustrated and upset, but Shikamaru had a point. He slowly let his friend go. He felt Shikamaru's hand on his left shoulder, and he turned around to meet his friends gaze.

"I'm sorry for coming off as an ass, but we need to look at every possibility, especially with Sakura's condition."

"Listen to Nara you fool," growled the Kyuubi.

Naruto shook his head in an attempt to rid himself of the Kyuubi's bellowing voice.

"You're right, sorry if I got all defensive, I just don't like talking about him."

"All I'm asking is that you take this into consideration, it's just a possibility."

"You didn't tell Sakura-chan about this, did you?"

"No of course not, I'd never tell her something that would upset her in her current condition."

"Thanks, she can't know about."

"Alright, now look I'm talking to Tsunade-sama about all of this. You keep your distance from her and just continue to report after border patrol. We can't have her catching wind of our assumptions okay? If I think of anything else you'll be the first to know Naruto," said Shikamaru as rose from his seat.

"Thanks Shikamaru I'll do the same," replied Naruto.

He watched Shikamaru until he could no longer see him. He stayed alone of the top of the stairs contemplating everything in his mind. He heard his front door close a Sakura quietly made her way towards him. Without saying a word she slowly sat herself down next to him.

"I heard you guys arguing, is everything okay?"

"Oh we weren't arguing Sakura-chan we just had a verbal disagreement," replied Naruto with a sheepish grin.

"That's the same thing you goof, but I'm being serious, is everything okay?"

Naruto looked at his girlfriend's concerned face, her vivid jade eyes were fixed on his every move.

"Of course everything is alright Sakura-chan, there's no need for you to worry."

"Shikamaru told me everything Naruto. I'm worried about the baby's safety."

Naruto turned around and lightly grabbed Sakura by the shoulders.

"Now you listen to me Sakura-chan I would never allow anyone to hurt you or the baby. Rest assured the both of you are safe."

Sakura let out a low sigh as she smiled at Naruto. She leaned in towards him and placed her lips gently onto his. Naruto's body relaxed as her soft lips pressed up against his. He pulled her close and deepened their kiss. Sakura ran her fingers sensually through his hair, kissing him always made everything better. She slowly pulled away and looked into his cerulean blue eyes, they seemed troubled, but before Sakura could say anything Naruto spoke.

"Why don't you go back inside, it's much cooler in there."

"Okay, but what about you?"

"I'm going to stay out here a bit longer, but I'll be inside soon," said Naruto as he gently kissed Sakura's forehead. "I love you Sakura-chan."

"I love you too Naruto," said Sakura as she reluctantly stood up and made her way back inside. She paused at the entrance of the apartment and watched Naruto as he sat silently on the floor.

I wanted to talk to him about the conversation I had with my mother earlier, but it looks like I'm going to have to wait. Thought Sakura.

The last thing she wanted to do was stress Naruto out even more. She'd set up a date to talk to her mother later on in the week and she'd tell Naruto in a few days. Sakura went inside and closed the door behind her. Naruto heard the door close and he let out a loud sigh of relief. He hated lying to Sakura, but it had to be done. He hung his head low as he remembered what Shikamaru had told him. The thought of his friend's assumption being true made Naruto's blood boil, he ran both his hands through his hair out of frustration. Naruto clenched his teeth and softly spoke.

"Sasuke…"