Warning for some violence leading to injury.

Protective is an understatement. You are sitting down, reaching up and behind you, stroking Jiraiya's head in an attempt to keep him calm. He's feral at the moment. Crouched behind you in a defensive way, eyes wide and wild. He's breathing quickly. His lips pulled back into a snarl. His hair is prickly. His whole body is vibrating.

The reason for his aggression? A doctor is in the den. Jiraiya has become increasingly territorial. Over you. Over the enclosure. He can't stand it when doctors and enforcers enter the domain. The only reason this doctor is alive is because of two reasons. They're taking care of you. They're a woman. A different woman than the one you had dealt with before. She's been put in charge of you during your pregnancy.

It's not that Jiraiya is prejudice or anything. He's viciously murdered anyone who got too close to you for his comfort. He's only slightly more reasonable with women. The reasoning is mostly a chemical primal thing in his head. It was animal instinct. Other males are a much bigger threat to him and you. He won't let them live in his territory. Females walk a very fine line. One wrong move and he'll slash them with his claws.

"Are you feeling any better?" The doctor asked.

"I guess so." You murmur. "I'm still so tired."

"I see."

She pulled her hand back, seemingly satisfied with well... poking around. It's violating in so many ways, but she's gentle. Much more gentle than the last one, the one with the red hair and glasses. Her lack of bedside manners earned her a nasty slash on her arm from your protective mate.

This doctor is nice. Quite fair in skin. Shorter in stature and quite curvy. She had long honey blonde hair that she always had pulled into a pair of loose pigtails that were always laid behind her shoulders. Her eyes are quite interesting. Large doe like brown eyes that are behind black framed glasses. While innocent in shape and size, they aren't in tone. They're always guarded and careful. Especially with your hissing partner standing guard over you watching her like a hawk.

You don't know her name. She won't give you it. So you have started calling her after a different character in the old folktale that you got Jiraiya's name from. Tsunade, who was a princess in the story. The one Jiraiya had loved and fought for. While these circumstances are quite different, her demeanour is still quite princess like. She's poised and calm. She doesn't quite feel like she fits in here in this evil underground monster breeding program. She has far too much empathy.

"What are you doing?" Jiraiya asks sharply.

Tsunade is pulling out something from the duffel bag she brought with her. So far, they kinda get along. She's the first white coat to speak to him and explain things to him. She seems to be the only one who knows that he's smart enough to be reasoned with. He mistrusted what he didn't understand and she tries to teach him.

"I'm going to take her vitals." She replies. She shows off the plastic cuff attached to the hand pump. "This will see how she's doing without causing her any harm."

Jiraiya growls. He sinks down until his chin is rested on your shoulder. His eyes stay on the doctor. You stroke his head to keep him in this calmer state. He likes it and knows you do it for him. Alas you also know that for the best reading you should have both arms below your heart. You move your hand slowly down, caressing his cheek before letting your hand fall. He gave off that soft little toady chirp he does when he's worried about you. He nuzzles his cheek against yours. It's something he's been doing more often. He's leaned more into his animal side during your pregnancy. His more primal reactions have kept you safe so far.

You try to relax as Tsunade takes your readings. For both their sakes you must. If you so much as cringe, Jiraiya will rip out the good doctor's throat. It remains quiet among the group as the quick process goes on.

"You're heart rate and blood pressure are above normal." She said. "Along with your fatigue, I believe you're dehydrated."

You nod slowly. That makes sense. The only way you've been getting a steady supply of water is through Jiraiya using any type of natural vessel to carry it to you from lake to den. Nothing has really worked that well. He's doing his best. She opens her mouth but pauses. She takes a glance to your mate, who is still glowering at her. She exhaled a deep cleansing breath.

"I know it's only been four months, but you're child is growing at an exceptional rate. They're already the size of a full term baby and in place for you to give birth." Tsunade spoke in a careful way. As if she had practiced these words in her mind with a heavy conscience. "This is not a suitable environment for you to give birth. You should be moved-!"

"She does not leave!" Jiraiya snaps. The ground underneath his hands gain deep scars as he burrows his fingers into the dirt. "Mine!"

"She's not healthy." She remains firm. "If you don't let us do our job, she could die."

Jiraiya snarls. He doesn't believe her. His arms wrap around you. His hands rest on your middle. In a darker more sinister tone he repeated himself.

"Mine."

Tsunade scowls at him. She turned her guarded dark eyes to you.

"Do you agree with this?"

You nod. You raise your hand to pet Jiraiya again. His intense vibrations calm slightly. His quickened breathing slows with your soft touch.

"Yes. I don't want to be parted from my mate."

She sighs. It's clear she does not agree with your choice.

"Come up with a solution, white coat." Jiraiya said. "If you are as smart as you say you are, you can do it."

It was more threatening than encouraging. The doctor merely nods. She packs up and leaves. Jiraiya leaves your side to peer out of the opening of the den. He always does that. He's making sure she doesn't linger. Satisfied that she's gone, he returns to your side.

A switch is flipped. With no threats around, Jiraiya is a cuddly sweetheart. He's practically purring beside you. His head rested on your shoulder as he's nestled up to your side. His hand affectionately rubbing your middle. You rest your head against his. He's content.

This is just how the days go now. Your cuddly monster by your side ready to fulfill any of your requests. He patrols the cage often, always on the prowl for threats. When he returns he often does with food or supplies. What supplies? Well...

It's hardly treasure. For a while you had no idea what Jiraiya was doing. He was coming in from his adventures with mouthfuls of sticks and leaves. He made mud and was using it as a clay of sorts, shaping something in the corner of the den. It was oval... sorta. It was kinda like a mud basket. He used the sticks by tearing them into strips and braiding them into a simple basket weave. Once satisfied with his mat he laid a thick layer of of grass down in the mud bowl before putting his creation down. He was doing it with a strange amount of confidence and knowledge.

"What are you doing?" You finally gave in and asked.

"Nest." Was the simple answer you got.

Oh. You look at the finished nest with a fond smile. It was basically the stand in for a crib. It's rather cute. It has the most peculiar finish to it. Palm leaves are laid down to incase all of the different layers so it's a smooth surface. There's strands of Jiraiya's bright white hair poking out of the leaves. He kept adding to it. After grooming himself by combing his hair with his hands, whatever shed and fallout he gathered he stuck in the nest.

He's not entirely sure why he does it. He just feels like he must. Perhaps it's a scent thing? So his newborn adjusts and knows their father's smell quickly. Or maybe it's because of the heat? Jiraiya has thick hair. It can retain heat quite well. Maybe it's simply decorative. Much like how a bird will tuck wrappers and pen caps into their nests simply because it's pretty. Whatever the case, it turned out to be a pretty good crib... nest. Whatever it is. It'll be good for the baby. He has it in a place where it'll be easy to guard them. To watch over them.

Jiraiya is dozing. His bouts of anger tend to tire him out. His head is bobbing every few seconds as his eyes flutter open and close. You do what you tend to do when he's dozing. He resisted it since he was determined to stay awake. You are angled to face him. You reach your hand up, finger pointed. It meets his nose and you stroke it. Kinda like how people stroke a puppy's nose bridge to help them sleep. It works the same with Jiraiya. But he didn't like it as much.

You don't really mind his nose. It's cute. The ridges and bumps aren't gross or anything. He whines and cringes his nose as you tease him. You shush him and encourage him to give in to the dozing. He chirps a sleepy note before his head landed heavily on your shoulder. It's good that he's sleeping. He's been so worked up and territorial he's been up late. You could use a nap yourself. You're close to giving birth to a monster baby after all. You're going to have to conserve your strength.

Just as you relax and enter that spacey twilight of just falling asleep, your toasty pillow suddenly got up. Jiraiya started to growl again. In the span of a second he's away from you and perched in the entrance of the den. When you look beyond his fluffy head, you see your doctor again.

"I've come up with a solution." Tsunade announced. She meets the gaze of Jiraiya evenly. "This will increase her chances of survival without having to move her from your... home."

He hisses and backs away, allowing her to step inside. He returned to your side, standing guard over you like he had before. The doctor entered the den again. She kneels down beside you and began to sift through her bag. She pulled out two metal poles. Despite how odd it looks she assembled it. She does so casually, as if it was some totally normal thing to do. Once all together it becomes quite clear what it is.

It's a mini hanger. When she pulled out a clear bag, it all made sense. She's basically made a tiny den sized IV set. The pole is meant to hang the bag full of solution like it would in a hospital but on a smaller scale. She sets the bag up then pulls out the kit needed to hook you up to it.

"What are you doing?" Jiraiya asks.

"I need to put this in her arm."

"You're going to hurt her?"

"It's not hurting. It's helping."

He huffs. You pat his head. He's upset. You offer up your arm yet again. You had to keep a good grip on Jiraiya with your other arm, keeping him still as he gets stressed and angry at seeing the medical equipment. He didn't like needles. Not surprising since each time he's seen one it's because it was shot at him and filled with a nasty fluid that forced him into sleep.

"I'm okay. This will help me." You coo at him. You turn your head and press a kiss to his cheek. "This will help our baby."

Words like that comfort him. He calms down. Luckily for Tsunade's sake she finds and successfully placed the needle into your vein. If it had blown you can only imagine how your mate would react. She goes about the normal process, hooking you up to the IV with a thin tube and pushing the slider on it to open the ways and allowing the fluid to enter your body.

"Thank you, doctor." You say softly.

"Don't mention it." She dismisses it with a smile. She went back to her bag. "I brought you a few other things too."

To your surprise and delight, she began with a blanket. As freeing as it is to live mostly in the nude, you miss the comforts of modern life. It's soft and gentle on your skin. You pull it up to your breasts and relish in the coziness.

But that's not all. She spoils you further with a pillow. You take it gladly and set it behind you to bolster your aching lower back. When you rest against it, there's a soft crinkle and you can feel a lump. When you reach under the cover you come across the familiar feel and shape of a candy bar. You look at her in wonder but she simply smiles and moves on.

"I also brought this." Tsunade continued. She pulled out a small device, no bigger than a pager. It's got a single button on it. "If you think you're going into labour or have any other emergencies, press this button to call me."

"Thank you. I really appreciate this." You say. You take the device from her and keep it firm in your hand.

"You're welcome. I'm sorry it took so long to get you some real support. I hope this puts some of your worries at ease."

You nod. It does. This is why she doesn't seem to fit here. She's too nice. She even snuck you some contraband. She does care.

Jiraiya is quiet as he watches this exchange. He looks over the gifts. You look much better all ready. Much more comfortable too. He looks over to the human who had done this. It probably wasn't easy to convince who ever works above her to allow her to do these things. They were stingy when you got sick last month, only barely coughing up a supplement for you to take when he started to throw a fit and refused to let the last doctor out of the cage until they did something. They probably wouldn't like you having human things like these fabrics.

"Thank you, white coat." He said, although he was somewhat begrudged to show any of these people his gratitude.

"It was my pleasure... Jiraiya."

He frowns. It still felt wrong for the enemy to call him by the name you gave him. He doesn't follow her when she leaves this time. He simply relaxes. Once the heavy door shut and the sound of it echoed around the cage, he really relaxed.

You pull out the candy bar. It's a simple chocolate bar. No filling of any kind, just a block of processed chocolate. To you it looks heavenly. A minor simple thing like this is so rare. Your diet has consisted of fish and the occasional pig. It was all to whatever the scientists wished to provide. While your child has been okay with the food, especially if it was bloody, it is nice to indulge in something more artificial. You take a bite off of the bar and relish in the wonderful taste.

"What is that?" Jiraiya asks.

"Candy." You explain simply. You held it out. "Would you like to try?"

"Candy?" He repeated in curiosity.

He took a hesitant sniff. He furrows his brow as the scent was very unfamiliar. He sunk his front teeth in it. Only to retract with a frown. He tried again, tilting his head and using his back teeth to munch down on the chocolate. He gets a small bite off of the bar. You watch carefully as your mate munches on it curiously.

Slowly Jiraiya's expression changes. A large frown grows on his face. His nose crinkles in disgust. A smile grows on your face as he clearly hates it. You giggle as he smacks his lips and scrapes his tongue against his top teeth.

"That's not very tasty." He vocalizes his clear dislike. "You enjoy that?"

"I think it's pretty good."

A small frown stays on his face as he watches you eat the candy with a clear enjoyment. Jiraiya huffs before laying down. He curled up with his head on your lap. The fabric covering your legs is comfortable. He likes laying here the best. From there you always reach down and pet him. He lets out a deep sigh as you do exactly that. His eyes fall close. Fairly soon you try to sleep again as well. There's not much you can do. You're big and your baby sucks a lot of strength from you just by simply growing inside you.

Scents fill the air. Strange and unfortunately familiar scents. Jiraiya sits up and scans the entrance of den. There's feet coming closer. Small quiet keens and cries clue him in to what's happening. He turns back to you. You're uncomfortable, holding your middle tightly like you have a tummy ache. You're gripping that little button the doctor gave you. Sweat and fear is radiating off of you.

"I'm sorry! I tried to wake you." You say. "I think I'm having the baby!"

His heartbeat picks up with a mix of emotions. He's excited but there's also fear and worry. He perched next to you, chirping and nuzzling his cheek against yours. He hates seeing you in pain. It's a necessary thing for childbirth but it still infuriated him that he can't banish it away.

"Come out slowly, creature!" A man yells.

Every hair on his body stands on end. Jiraiya growls as these morons are back again. They're in his territory looking to pick a fight. They must die. The barrel of a rifle pokes into the den.

"I won't repeat myself again!"

He hisses. They won't get a shot off in here. It could hit you and that's unacceptable. He tenses up all his muscles and pounces.

"Be careful!" You yell as he enters the fray.

They've upgraded their gear. They had to. Jiraiya was making quick work of the previous enforcers. Their equipment did little to resist his claws and teeth. Now they have thick tough padding like hide and masks that shield their face. He lands and pins down the enforcer that was pointing his gun in the den.

They still seem to undermine his intelligence. There's an obvious weak spot in their armour. He crouches down and sinks his teeth into the thin material that covers their neck. Blood fills his mouth and spills over the soil. He turns his attention to the next one.

There's nine left.

"Go away! Get out of my territory!" He screams at them.

They only raise their guns into position, all of them pointed at him. As his eyes scan wildly around them, aiming for whoever got closest until he noticed something. His eyes snap back to one of the people. It's that doctor. The one that had taken care of you.

He knew it.

None of them can be trusted!

He moved to launch himself at her next. She lied. She took advantage of what little trust he gave her!

A shot rang out. The sound of it echoed around the enclosure and rang off of the metal walls. Jiraiya hit the ground, gasping for air. He clutches at his chest. Blood is pouring out of his wound.

They've moved up to bullets. Real bullets. Not the mosquitoes that bite him and make him sleepy. Or the lighter not so deadly projectiles they shot at him before. But little round things that feel like a thousand bee stings. There's a flush of heat and more agonizing pain as he body tries to recover. He knows his wounds heal fast. But it hurts every time.

Steam is rising from the wound as his peculiar ability to heal quickly is working hard to shut it. It was a strong gun that fired the round. It tore clean through his body from front to back. What's worse is that they're laughing. They're cheering the one that had shot him. They pay him no mind as he wheezes and coughs up blood. They even seem to enjoy hearing him struggle.

"Jiraiya?" Your distant voice called out to him.

You need him. Your voice is laced with pain. He needs to get to you. He forced his now very heavy feeling limbs to turn him back around. He sneers to see these nasty humans closing in on the den, walking past him like he's not a threat.

"Go away!" Jiraiya growls at them again. His voice is much more raspy and wheezing. "That's mine! Mine!"

He reaches his hand out and clamps it around the closest ankle. He looks up to see the white coat he never should have trusted. She's looking down at him with guilt and sorrow.

"I'm sorry. This wasn't my decision." She whispers. "I'll do my best to take care of her."

"Don't touch her! Tell them to leave!"

She doesn't say anything more. Two more shots rang out. It's followed by horrible pain to his body. The bullets ripped through his shoulder then his hip. The air is stolen from him as well as his strength. He has no choice but to let go.

Jiraiya collapsed face first into the dirt. The blood loss and energy it takes to repair his wounds have taken away all his strength. His vision dances with darkness and spots. Still so he tries, whining incoherently as he tried to claw his way back to the den. Your fearful voice is calling for him.

Darkness closed in. He lost the battle to stay awake. His eyes suddenly held the weight of boulders. Reluctantly they shut as he lost consciousness...

..

The sounds of crying hit his senses first. Next came a mix of smell. The old scents of the intruders. You still smell like fear. And blood. His blood. Your blood. It's enough to rouse Jiraiya up.

His arms shake as he forced himself up. Blood is pooled on the ground around him and coating his front. The sight of his nest is the only thing that's motivating him to go on. He must see you. As he gets closer another scent becomes clear. It's... sweet. Like honey. But it's mixed with something else. It's hard to say what. It's almost like a... clean smell. Like water and cotton. Whatever it is it makes his mouth water.

"Jiraiya?" You call his name when he tumbled into the den. "Y-You're all bloody."

He doesn't say anything. He crawls over to you and collapses into your arms. You hold onto him, crying your eyes out. He tries to focus on breathing. You are very comfortable. But something feels wrong.

"Why cry?..." He mutters.

You don't reply. You cling to him tighter, the volume of your crying grows louder. He nuzzled his cheek against yours. He hates this sound. Your unrestrained sobbing is a terrible thing to listen to. His mate shouldn't be sad. It's something he must fix.

"Why sad? Why sad?" He insists.

"T... Th-They took her. I couldn't s-stop them." You stammer between sobs.

"Took who?"

"Our baby!"

A new surge of emotions coursed through him. In the span of a second Jiraiya went through a wild range. Sorrow. Fear. Worry. Rage. So much rage. His blood is boiling.

How dare they! No one touches his things! Not his mate! Not his baby!

Jiraiya left your embrace. He paused. You're still sobbing uncontrollably. He returned to your side for a few moments more. Leaving you feels wrong when you are like this but he can't allow these people to keep his baby. He nuzzled your cheek again with his.

"I go get her." He promises.

"Be careful..."

He slips out of your grasp again. He left. He broke out into a run towards the window that resides in the enclosure. It's the only weak spot in the cage. It connects this domain with the domain of his captors. He ran full speed.

Thunk!

Pain blooms in Jiraiya's shoulder and side. He collided with the window and bounced right off of it. Striking it with his hand only rattled the material. He hisses. Stupid human inventions!

It won't stop him. He'll break it one way or another. He scratched at it with his nails. It left scars deep into the material. He kept scratching at it, focusing at one point in hopes to weaken it.

"Mine!... Mine..." He whispers angrily.

He didn't even get to meet his child. How dare they take her! He has a daughter and he must meet her. The material was wearing down. He's clawing through it at a rapid rate. Small flakes of the strange material is falling like snow as he shreds it apart.

Eventually Jiraiya could stab his fingers through it. He grabbed the hole he managed to create and pulled. It gave way with his strength. It came off the wall in two pieces with a deep toned pops. The wall groaned as the bolts got wrenched from their spot as the window fell to his strength.

It was exhausting. Even if he's tired to the point of collapse he won't give up. They won't get away with this! For the first time he breached the barrier that separated him from the people that imprisoned him. That nasty smell is flooding his nose. It's too clean. It was the opposite of what he's used to. No dirt or leaves. The floor is cold, smooth, and slick under his feet. The sensation is making his skin crawl.

That smell he smelt before was faint among that metallic sterile stuff that's perfuming this place. That mouthwatering scent mixed with that honey sweetness. He crawled off of the panels holding switches and other strange gizmos he didn't understand. There's a door way that leads to a hall. He uses his nose to guide him. As it gets stronger it puts him at ease. Although he's not exactly sure why it does. He's never smelt anything like it but it's familiar somehow.

Jiraiya rounds the corner of the hall and finds another door. When he entered it, it revealed that it was source of the smell. Among it is a plethora of others, all of them sweet in someway. In the room was what looked like a small army of strange nests. They are square and made of the same clear material as the window. A quiet few person chorus is filling the room with coos and cries. It reminds him of when the toads would sing at sunset in the spring. The first creature that hit his eyes filled him with rage.

"You!" He snarled.

That doctor. Tsunade as you call her. She's peering over at something in one of the square nests. Her head snapped towards him. She took a step back when he approached.

"I didn't have any part of their decisions! I was simply told to take care of your mate." She said with her hands up in surrender.

"Where's my baby?"

She pointed to a nest on the other side of the room. He approached slowly. That intoxicating strange sweet smell is very strong. It all makes sense now. That smell was his baby. He peered into the much too artificial nest to look at her.

She's cute. Small. Very small. How is she so small when you were so big? Her skin is pale like his. Thin tiny red markings are on her arms and cheeks. She too has gills and toad looking eyes. Her face reminds him of you. Without a doubt she'll be just as pretty.

A shot rang out.

Jiraiya collapsed to his knees as new pain pierced his lower back. He turned around best he could to see who had done it. He snarled at the sight of the man he hates the most.

"My my." Orochimaru hummed thoughtfully from his position by the door. He's holding a handgun. "You are a curious creature."

Jiraiya doesn't reply. He's too mad to speak words. Orochimaru approached slowly, observing him. If he could move he would tear this cruel man's throat out. In a perfect world he'd bring you this snake's wretched head before taking you and baby away.

"You're the second creature who cared when we took away their young. Tell me, why do you care?"

"My baby!" He hisses.

"Is it a territorial thing? Or do you wish to raise your child?"

Jiraiya remains quiet for a moment. The pain began to fade as his body heals rapidly but it takes a toll on his fight and energy. He stares at this odd dangerous person so casually pointing a gun at him. In some ways... he's getting tired of this fight.

"She's my baby. I want to protect her and raise her so she grows up..." He trails off as he thinks of the word. "Right with me guiding her."

"I see." Orochimaru responded with a smile. "Fascinating. You are more human than monster aren't you?"

"..." He remains quiet as the man observed him. A large grin grows on the madman's face.

"You have been a wonderful subject. If you cooperate, your life will be much easier."

He simply nods in reply. A wave of exhaustion is trying to take over and root him to his place. His eyes shut slowly.

"How are your wounds? I see you're healing fast."

"I'm fine." Jiraiya kept his reply short. He fought the tiredness and glared at the corrupt human standing before him.

It brought back a bad memory. He didn't remember it that much. After that first time he broke the window he was shot with another tranquilizer. You filled him in later that they injected something in him and now his body has been recovering wounds quickly. They shot him with other things before. Today was the first day they've used such strong rounds.

"Take your child and return to your cage."

Jiraiya doesn't reply. He casts a mistrustful look to both of them. He stood up slowly and picked up his daughter. The little thing hardly stirred. Her little mouth opened in a yawn but other than that she's blissfully unaware of all the things around her. Her eyes are focused on him and staring curiously. Such a precious quality must be protected.

What about you? You had told him that things like childbirth can be complicated. He was tired and distracted by your crying to take a careful look at you. Plus this the news of the little one being taken away he was too full of anger to register your health.

"My mate... she..." He wondered aloud as he casted a look to the doctor.

"She's doing fine. She gave birth with hardly any assistance. All she needs is rest."

He nods. He walked past the snake, glaring at him the whole time. If not for the weapon and the baby he would strike. Instead he focused on his newborn. She's still sleepy. She's not really doing much. A grim thought comes to mind and he stops.

"Did you do anything to my child?"

"Just a few shots for her immune system." Tsunade informed. She flinched when he turned around and glared at her like she had just admitted to a terrible crime. Even so she remains calm. "It will make sure she won't get sick. It is a benefit."

"Nothing else?"

"Nothing else." She confirmed but her gaze flashed over to Orochimaru with a critical quality to it. Perhaps the man had requested her to bring more harm to the baby.

Jiraiya accepted her words. He shot another deadly glare to his captor before walking back the way he came. The blank walls and emptiness to them are far from comfortable. His baby doesn't belong in such an environment. There's a door in the hall he flew past before that he did not see. He stopped and stared.

There's a window and set up similar to his cage. In the frame of the window he sees a small boy staring back at him. A young round face just barely peeking over the metal into the window. This boy isn't human either. Wild unkempt blond hair. Blue coloured cat like eyes. Claws and teeth like a feline beast. His head tilts curiously when he stared at Jiraiya. A big grin follows, showing off more of those sharp teeth.

A moment later a blond haired man in ragged clothing approached, saying something to the boy and ushering him away from the window. Whatever words they are saying is muffled and unintelligible. The sounds are dampened. He too took notice of the loose monster on the other side staring at them. After a moment of tense stillness, the man waved. He was friendly. His smile grew and he pointed to the baby. He did a thumbs up, congratulating the observing creature.

So you and Jiraiya aren't the only prisoners here. Another person joined the frame. This time a woman with long red hair. She has the same demonic like qualities as the boy. Only she has fox like ears and several tails emerging from her lower back in a fan like formation, almost like a peacock. They are quite pretty. When they sway it looks like flickering fire.

She was more guarded and cautious at seeing another cryptid. She bared her sharp teeth and pulled the two others closer. The man seemed to be trying to reason with her, speaking with a calm smile as he petted her head. Their voices are too muffled. There's no way to understand what they are saying. Yet it's a reaction Jiraiya knows well. You do the exact same thing. You pet him and calm him down like how this man is doing to his mate.

"Move along."

Jiraiya nearly jumped out of his skin at the voice. A armed guard rounded the corner and pointed a rifle at him. He was so focused on the other people that he hadn't heard the human's approach. He snarled at them and did just that. But the curious sight he witnessed stayed in his mind. He looked over his shoulder one last time to see the man of the group give an apologetic smile and a wave.

It's strange to think that he's not the only abnormal thing in the world. You have told him that the world is big, perhaps so big that lots of strange creatures walk about. It's unfortunate and sad that there's another family being forced to live his family. They've probably been living in captivity for longer based on the age of their child. Maybe he can meet them one day. Maybe even plan something with them.

He crawled back through the hole he created and was greeted by the smell and warmth of nature. He returned to the den. You are still all curled up in sorrow. The blanket you were given is still covering you. You have a section of it pulled up and covering your face as you cry. You peer out from under your cover to look at Jiraiya.

"Are you okay? I heard another shot." You ask in a quiet voice.

"I'll be fine."

He kneeled down in front of you and that is when you took notice of what was in his arms. You gasp. You scoop the baby out of his arms into yours. A new wave of tears fall from your eyes.

"You got her back! Thank goodness!" You exclaim. You look her over and sigh with relief. "Not a scratch on her."

You look back up to Jiraiya with a smile. He returns it. You look him over again much more carefully. He's got scars now. Old blood was flaking off of his skin and revealing freshly formed scar tissue. You heard all the shots ring out when you were in labour. Which was followed by Jiraiya's gasps and wheezes of pain. He already had some speedy healing abilities but whatever they injected him with elevated that ability. Those cruel cruel people actually shot him with real ammunition.

For a while you weren't sure why they experimented on him. Making his ability to heal faster seemed like a foolish idea. You watched him walk off bean sacks been shot at him with enough velocity to break ribs. They shot pellet guns and other non lethal projectiles at him in hopes to see his recovery time. To know that they used real bullets on him today is unsettling. He recovered just fine other than the fact that he looks exhausted now.

Maybe they did it to keep him in line? While he cannot die by gunshot it does take its toll on his energy. He pushed himself today. For you and for the little one. You cradle the baby against your chest and release a hand in order to pet Jiraiya's head. His tired expression changed slightly. He blinks at you with eyes that shone with a peculiar familiarity, as if he just remembered something important.

"I don't know how to thank you." You say softly. "You saved our baby."

"I'd do anything for you."

Jiraiya is a real sweetheart. You smile at him and tell him that you love him. He looks like he could cry. He must be tired. He shook it off and steeled himself to that expression he had on before.

"I have something to tell you." He said.

As important as this information looks, you are more concerned for his wellbeing.

"We can talk about it later."

"But-!"

"Later, Jiraiya. It can wait."

He huffs. You beckon him to lay down beside you. He's had a long day. He sighs and does as you say. He curls up beside you and you sink down to lay beside him. You set your daughter in between you and him. He smiles as he looks her over. He tugs on the edge of the blanket so that it covers her.

"She should be in her nest." He murmured.

"Later. She's perfectly fine right here for now." You assure him as you play with his hair. "Take a nap. I know you're tired. We'll get her properly settled in once you wake up."

"What if I squish her in my sleep?"

"You won't. I'll watch over you."

He scoots closer so that you and him are the toasty nest for your daughter to be comfortable in. She's adorable. She looks so much like her father. It will be interesting to see her grow up. She cooing and shifting to the best of her ability before settling again to sleep.

You too are sore and tired, but you fight it off. For once you must watch over and protect your family. Jiraiya usually does that. He has spent too many nights not sleeping in order to watch over you. You kiss each of their foreheads.

"Rest well, my loves." You whisper.

You swear they both smile. You hold your family close, praying you won't ever be parted from them again. Hopefully they dream good dreams. Of a place free of walls and with lots of fish to eat. Maybe one day your child can see it for real. For now it is a dream.

It wasn't a long nap and it was fitful for your beloved. The new baby was soon relocated to her lovingly made nest. From there Jiraiya would stare at her. Eyes acute and curious to her every move. Even if all the baby does is nap, crap, eat, and cry.

"You are very noisy." He said to her very plainly. "For something so small you are very loud."

"Babies are like that." You said plainly back. You ruffled his hair and comforted the newborn whenever she whined. "She won't be so loud once she gets bigger."

Naming her was quite the challenge. Jiraiya was unsure of the process. You gave him his name after all. His kind don't give names to their young. But calling your baby by no name is too odd. He did agree when you explained it to him.

"I guess it would be nice to call her something." He said. He then tilted his head curiously. "Does the Jiraiya in the story have children? Maybe we could name her after them."

"Ah... no. In that story, Jiraiya unfortunately he um..." You trail off. It's hard to look your beloved monster in the eyes and tell him his namesake died in a tragic way. "He never had a family in his story. It's okay. We can find something to name her."

It took some brainstorming, but eventually you did remember a small detail. The old transition of Jiraiya's name is quite the mouthful. One of those names is Ogata. While traditionally a last name, it is also a name with a wonderful meaning. A new beginning. What's more new of a beginning than a new life? Jiraiya quite liked your suggestion.

And thus little Ogata had a name. Between staring at her curiosity and watching you breastfeed her with a weird fascination, Jiraiya filled you in on his juicy story. It is quite sad to know other families with peculiar partners are stuck in this cold isolated place. With children that don't know the real light of day or a fresh breeze.

"We'll meet them one day. I promise." Jiraiya said with a confident nod.

You petted his head, encouraging his positive thoughts. Maybe one day you can. Having another person who understands these specific circumstances would be nice. There's no one you can talk about it to. Jiraiya hasn't seen or experienced a world like you have. Ogata is a good listener but you are sure she doesn't understand a word of it. Maybe when your baby is older she can interact and form a friendship with the little boy Jiraiya saw. Having her grow up alone with no company other than her parents would do her no good.

For now she must grow. She's doing so quickly. Most the time it's hard to keep up with or believe. In a few short months, she has grown and advanced quicker than a normal child. It's not long until she figured out crawling, which led to an overprotective Jiraiya following her. He hasn't let her out of the den yet even so he tails her on his hands and knees in the small place. He's learned to play with her too. He crouches down so that his head is at her level. Ogata would smile at him and crawl over to him. He'd bare his teeth at her in a playful growl. When she started to mimic it he was quite proud. Seeing them play together makes you wish you had your camera. It's very cute.

Jiraiya leaves the den more often now. Although you aren't sure why. He'd return looking tired and frustrated. You aren't sure what he is doing. He doesn't bring home food or water on these trips. Most times he tends to simply whine and collapse into your embrace. Or he'll pull Ogata into his arms, wanting to cuddle with her. She didn't often complain about it. For a while you weren't sure what he was up to until he finally gave in and told you.

"I'm... cooperating." Jiraiya admitted quietly. He rested his head on your shoulder and made that adorable sounding little chirp. It always expressed his exhaustion and want for your attention. "I'm doing what they want."

"Oh... Jiraiya are they hurting you?"

"No... not really. I'm okay." He replied, sounding more sleepy by the second. He brushed your hair back before paying attention to Ogata, who was in your arms for a feed. He petted at her cheek with a gentle finger. "I'd do anything to keep you both safe."

You give him a kiss to the top of his head. His words mean a lot. You know that he would do anything. He's proved that time and time again. Hopefully whatever things they are making him do aren't causing permanent damage.

"Don't push yourself. I don't want you to be hurt simply for our sakes." You say gently while petting his head. "I love you. We both do."

"I love you too."

Jiraiya nuzzles his face against your neck and exhales a loud sigh. He is being careful. The limits he set are clear. If they are crossed he hasn't hesitated to lash out. He's carved a few scientists out a new scar or two for trying to push it. He does it all for you. He always will do it all for you. For little Ogata too. While it hurts now, it's for a good cause. Whenever he looks over you and the child you brought into his life he can't help but be inspired to do everything he can to protect what he holds dearest.

One day... he'll break you and Ogata out. He'll break them all out. All of the creatures locked in this accursed place will be freed. That woman he saw... she can help. He has a strong feeling she is as smart as she is beautiful. With her maybe... maybe...

Things will change. Everyone will be free. That is something he knows he can make happen.