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Author's Note: Hello, Loves, and Happy Late Holidays! I hope everyone enjoyed their time and the holidays and that everyone is doing well. I'm back with the second to the final chapter of Dreams! It has been a long time coming, and it is bittersweet. On the one hand, I'm excited to finally have this story finished. On the other hand, I'm sad to see my baby come to an end. But don't worry! This won't be the last of Badbutt94, trust and believe it! And remember, if you guys have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to message me at any time! Love y'all!
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Chapter 118: Kurama's Gift
Normal P.O.V.
Several more weeks passed, bringing a pregnant omega to about 35 weeks and 2 days. The snow melted into warm fall weather, making the activity around the Hidden Leaf busier than ever. Fortunately, it also brought the growth of Kawaki and the completion of the Uchiha-Uzumaki Compound. Since things quieted down, and fewer missions were handed out, Naruto received enough help to complete the compound in record time. Everyone was excited, and a grand ribbon-cutting ceremony was held. It was not long before everyone packed their things and moved into their new homes. Some of the couples such as Sakura, Lee, Kiba, Hinata, Shikamaru, and Temari moved in with each other while the others moved into the single-bedroom apartments that were built within the compound. Luckily, it did not take long for Naruto, Sasuke, Kawaki, and the other residents to get settled into their new homes. And now with his compound project completed, Naruto could focus on his next mission: fatherhood.
"Sasuke, I'm done with the twins' nursery! Come look at it!"
"I'm coming, I'm coming." The raven grunted as he waddled into the newly finished room. "Wow, colored me impressed,"
"See, I told you I could handle it," grinned a proud Naruto.
The room was divided down the center. One side had orange-painted walls with the Uzumaki clan symbol while the other side was painted navy blue and had the Uchiha clan fan. The cribs, rocking chair, and all the furniture were white, and the room was littered with stuffed animals, clothes, and gifts from their many aunts and uncles.
"I'm surprised you finished so early. That twins aren't due for a few more weeks,"
"You heard Granny Tsunade. It's common for twins to be born prematurely. I want to be ready for anything. By the way, where's Kawaki?"
"I put him down for his nap. I think I'm ready for one myself," yawned Sasuke.
Suddenly, they sensed someone at the door followed by a knock.
"I wonder who that could be?"
"Don't know. Maybe it's Sakura-chan and Ino coming by to micromanage me again," chuckled Naruto as he answered the door.
Sasuke followed behind as best as he could. A bad feeling washed over his senses, so he aired on the side of caution. At the door, an ANBU appeared and immediately knelt on the ground in front of them.
"Naruto Uzumaki, your presence was requested by Lord Hokage,"
"Kakashi-sensei wants me? I wonder why?"
"Don't know, but you shouldn't keep him waiting," Naruto was about to protest when Sasuke held up his hand with a smirk. "Kawaki and I will be fine on our own. Besides, you'll be right back. It's not like he's sending you on a mission or something. Just go and come right back,"
"If it pleases you, Mr. Uzumaki, I will stay behind and keep watch over your mate and child," The ANBU offered.
This further rosed Sasuke's suspicion, but he played along for the time being, "See, you have nothing to fear. Now go get going,"
"All right. If you say so," sighed Naruto before he kissed his mate and stepped onto the porch. However, before leaving, Naruto glared at the ANBU and poked his chest, "If anything happens to them, I'll kill you,"
And with that, Naruto disappeared from the compound, leaving Sasuke alone with Kawaki and the ANBU.
Once he knew that Naruto was gone, Sasuke glared at the mysterious ANBU with his arms crossed. "Who are you and what do you want?"
"I'm sorry?"
"You heard me. I know every ANBU that is currently employed by the Hokage, and you're not one of them. So out with it, what are you doing here and what do you want?"
"You're more perceptive than the reports led on, even in your current state. Well done," smirked the man. "You're right. I'm not an ANBU. Who I am is of little importance right now. I am merely here to escort you and your young ward back to Master,"
"Your Master? And who is this Master exactly?"
"You will find out soon enough. Now, will you come peacefully, or will I have to use force?"
"Hn. I'd like to see you try," said Sasuke as he activated his Sharingan.
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Naruto jogged up the stairs until he reached Kakashi's door.
"Knock, knock," said Naruto as he tapped his knuckles on the wooden threshold, gaining the attention of Shikamaru, Kakashi, and Tsunade.
"Naruto? What a surprise. Is everything ok?" smiled Kakashi.
"Uh, I dunno. That's why I'm here. Didn't you call me here?"
"No. I didn't. Who told you that?"
"An ANBU came to our door and said you summoned me,"
"I never sent anyone to get you. Where is this ANBU that came to your door?"
"I left him with~ FUCK! I left him with Sasuke and Kawaki! I need to get back to them before it's too late,"
"We better go with him, Shikamaru," said Tsunade.
Together, the three of them quickly left the Hokage Tower and returned home, hopefully in time to save Sasuke.
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Once they arrived, they first noticed that the door was blown onto the floor, and there was extensive damage done to the house. Worried about Sasuke and Kawaki, the trio raced inside and found that the inside was worse than the outside.
"Sasuke! Sasuke, are you ok?! Can you hear me?!" shouted Naruto.
When no one responded, Naruto activated his Sage Mode until he sensed his mate and child upstairs. Quickly, the blond raced upstairs, with Shikamaru and Tsunade in tow. As they approached the top of the stairs, blood painted the walls and the fake ANBU's body was laid on the floor. Suddenly the sounds of a crying infant came from inside the room. Carefully, they stepped over the corpse and slowly approached the master bedroom. Naruto reached for the handle but was stopped by Tsunade with a cautious look.
"Be careful. We don't know what kind of state he might be in. Enter with caution,"
Naruto nodded before he slowly opened the door. Inside the room, they could see Sasuke crouched in a corner with a pained look on his face and a crying Kawaki in his arms.
"Sasuke~"
The feline hissed at the sound of his name being called, but his hisses were weak with growls of pain.
"Naruto, this isn't good,"
"Shikamaru is right. He's under too much stress. That's good for the twins or Kawaki now. You must get him to calm down before he does any more damage," said Tsunade.
Naruto nodded as he crept towards Sasuke.
"Sasu, it's me, Naru. Can you hear me? I know you're in there," Sasuke hissed, causing Naruto to momentarily stop. Once it was safe, he continued.
"Sasuke, you've gotta calm down, babe. Think of the twins. Think of Kawaki,"
As he mentioned the baby's name, Sasuke pulled the crying infant closer to his swollen chest. Sasuke's Sharingan was still activated, and it looked as if he was not letting up anytime soon. With no options left, Naruto straightened his stance to his full height before he unleashed his alpha hormones and a glow growl throughout the room. This made everyone within the room yield to the main alpha. It didn't take long before Sasuke returned to his senses once he smelt Naruto's cinnamon and vanilla scent. Once he realized he was no longer in danger, Sasuke relaxed his body and deactivated his Sharingan.
"Naruto?" he groaned.
"I'm here, babe. I'm here," sighed Naruto as he pulled Sasuke and the now calm baby Kawaki into his arms.
"What happened? The last thing I remembered was fighting that fake ANBU,"
"We're not sure. As soon as Naruto arrived and told us about the guy, we immediately rushed back here. And from the looks of things, you did a number on him. Even in your condition, I'd say I was beyond impressed," said Shikamaru.
"Speaking of which, we need to get you to the hospital so that we can check on all three babies and yourself. The stress of that fight couldn't have been good on any of you,"
Sasuke opened his mouth to say something, but hissed in pain instead, "Something's not right,"
"What do you mean? Sasuke, what's wrong?"
"I think the twins are coming," he hissed again.
"What?! Are you sure?!" yelled Naruto.
"Outta my way, brat. Let me see," Tsunade said as she pushed the younger blond out of the way. She placed her hand on his stomach and focused her chakra. "He's going into early labor! We have to act now!"
"What do you need us to do?" a calm Shikamaru asked while Naruto panicked.
"Shikamaru, I need you to find some towels and a bucket full of warm water. Naruto, leave Kawaki here with us. I need you to teleport to the hospital and retrieve Sakura. All I need you to do is tell her that Sasuke is going into labor, and she'll take care of the rest,"
Just as Tsunade gave out her commands, Shikamaru left the room while Sasuke hissed and bit back screams of pain.
"I don't want to leave you guys," said Naruto.
"You don't have a choice. Between all of us, you're the only one who can teleport and get back here in enough time. Now go and take Kawaki with you so they can observe him at the hospital until I can get there," she glared.
"But~"
"Naruto, if you don't want me to do to you what I did to that fake ANBU, then I suggest you do what Tsunade says," Sasuke said before he let out another painful hiss. "Hurry!"
Naruto bit his lip before sighing in defeat. He leaned over and kissed Sasuke's forehead, "I'll be back," and then he was gone.
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Within seconds, Naruto and Kawaki teleported into Sakura's office where Karin and she were.
"Naruto? What have I told you about just randomly teleporting in here," she growled.
"Sakura-chan, we need your help~"
"What's going on?! What is Kawaki covered in blood?!" screamed Karin as she rushed towards them.
"There's no time to explain. Shikamaru and Granny Tsunade are at my house. Sasuke was attacked by a fake ANBU,"
"WHAT?!" both of the girls yelled.
"Don't worry, he killed the guy, but now he's going into labor, and things don't look well. Please, Sakura-chan, we need your help,"
After the initial shock, the pink-haired bunny's expression softened as she nodded.
"Karin, please take Kawaki and check him over until we return. You'll be in charge while Lady Tsunade and I are gone. Naruto, I need you to summon at least three shadow clones to retrieve Ino and Hinata for extra support. Ino should be in her office in the Interrogation Building while Hinata should be out with Kiba. You can fill them in on the way. I want your third shadow clone to go to Lord Kakashi's office. You'll fill him in on what's going on and grab some ANBU while you're there. I want around-the-clock security,"
"No ANBU. After Sasuke's attack, I'm not sure whom to trust,"
"Fine, then request Kiba, Lee, and Neji for security. They can create a team of their own to provide security. Wait here while I grab my tools. Afterward, we can go," commanded Sakura before she left the room.
Karin reached for Kawaki but was stopped when Naruto became defensive and pulled away.
"You can trust me, Naruto. I promise that I'll protect him with my life,"
After a few moments, Naruto sighed again and handed his son over to her. The now-awake baby, smiled and grabbed his father's hand and smiled. Naruto smiled at this before he kissed Kawaki's head and placed a trusting hand on Karin's shoulder.
"I trust you,"
"You better. And you better bring Sasuke-kun and those babies here safely, or you'll have the entire village to deal with," she smiled before leaving the room with Kawaki safely tucked into her arms.
It didn't take long for Sakura to return with her tools. "Did you summon your shadow clones?"
"Oh sorry, I forgot. Hold on,"
Naruto did as he was told and summoned three shadow clones. With Sakura's commands, they exited the hospital.
"You ready?" Sakura asked. When Naruto didn't answer her, the pink-haired bunny could tell that his mind was a million miles away. She offered a comforting hand, effectively snapping the blond fox out of his trance. "We don't have any more time to waste. Don't worry. I promise we're going to do everything we can to save them,"
Blue orbs looked in seafoam green before he covered her hand with his. With a quiet nod, he teleported them out of her office and back to where Sasuke, Tsunade, and Shikamaru waited for them.
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Once they arrived, a quiet Naruto led her up the stairs and towards their room.
"Man, Sasuke-kun really did a number on this place," she said as she looked around until she saw the dead man's corpse. She chose not to say anything as she stepped over the body and followed Naruto into their room.
"Sasuke-kun, Lady Tsunade,"
"Oh, good you guys made it back. Sakura, I need you to administer the epidural now," commanded Tsunade.
"Right! Naruto, I need you and Shikamaru to lift Sasuke-kun into either a sitting or kneeling position,"
The two nodded as they did as they were told. Although it was hard to move the very pregnant omega into the position, especially as he finally let out screams of pain. But they managed to get him into a kneeling position.
"All right, Sasuke-kun, I'm going to administer the epidural into your lower back, more specifically your lumbar spine. This will help with the cesarean section, or c-section we have to perform on you. You may feel some pressure when I do the injection, but that is normal. It usually takes about twenty to thirty minutes for the epidural to take effect. Just remember to breathe through it. Lady Tsunade and I will be here and will walk you through everything so just remain as calm as you can,"
"Hurry!" Hollard Sasuke as he tried to hold himself up.
Sakura got out the supplies, filled the syringe, and wiped a small area on his lower back. Once it was clean, she administered the drug. Sasuke hissed in pain as the drug entered his body.
"Breathe, Sasuke-kun. You need to breathe," commanded Sakura.
"I'm trying," grunted the feline.
Finally, after what felt like forever, Sakura pulled out the syringe and massaged the area.
"Very good, Sakura. All right, you two, while we wait for the drug to take effect, I need Shikamaru to place the towels around him while Naruto gets him undressed. Sakura and I will set everything up. We need to get these babies out as soon as possible without harming them,"
Everyone nodded as they worked quickly. Before they knew it, Sasuke was laying on a nest of towels, naked as the day he arrived in this world and numb from the waist down.
"All right, looks like the drug is in effect. I'm going to make the incision now. Be ready Sakura. You two, stay back while we work," said Tsunade as they went to work.
Shikamaru had to do his best to help the worried alpha back as they worked on his mate and soon-to-be-born twins. Tsunade took a deep breath and cut through Sasuke's abdomen with her scalpel. With quick and skilled fingers, Tsunade worked through the various layers of fat to get to the twins. Sakura remained by her side, vigilant as ever as she assisted her sensei. Naruto tried his best to see what was going on, but the two women blocked most of the view. All the blond knew was that his mate was being torn open and that his twins were in possible danger while all he could do is watch from afar. Feeling defeated, Naruto collapsed onto the floor and dropped his head between his knees.
Sensing his friend's despair, Shikamaru sat beside him and offered a comforting hand and smile.
"Don't worry, Naruto. Your family is in great hands. We have the most skilled medical kunoichi here. I know things are going to be all right,"
Red, puffy blue eyes met deep brown and offered a small smile from full, tan lips.
"Thank you," nodded Naruto.
"I can feel the first one. I'm going to start pulling, Sakura. Get ready,"
"Right!"
Tsunade shoved her hands inside Sasuke's abdomen, found the first baby, and cupped its head before she gently pulled. It didn't take long before the sound of an infant crying echoed throughout the room, gaining everyone's attention. Tsunade carefully pulled the baby out of the large incision with its umbilical cord. The new unidentifiable scent filled the room. Naruto closed his eyes as he deeply inhaled before a large smile appeared on his face.
"It's a girl! You have a daughter, you two!" Sakura cried.
"A daughter? I have a daughter?! Did you hear that, Sasuke?! We have a daughter!" he cheered as he grabbed his hair.
"Here comes the second one, but… something doesn't feel right… Be ready for anything, Sakura," commanded Tsunade.
"Right?!"
Sakura cut the umbilical cord and cleaned off the baby girl before wrapping the baby up and putting it on a nest of blankets while Tsunade pulled out the second baby.
"He's not breathing!" yelled Tsunade. "I'm going to perform CPR!"
Everyone watched in panic as the Slug Queen work on the infant. Just as they thought that they only had that to deal with, Sasuke began to fade.
"Lady Tsunade, Sasuke-kun isn't doing well. I can't stabilize him!"
"Don't give up! I'm not losing them!" shouted Tsunade.
Again, the feeling of defeat and panic overcame Naruto as he watched his mate and son fade away from him.
"Naruto, you must calm down,"
"Kurama?"
"Yeah, it's me, kit. I need you to calm down,"
"How do you expect me to calm down?! I could lose one of my kids and Sasuke! So forgive me if I can't be calm right now," he growled.
"I understand your frustration and perspective. That's why I came to help you. I'm going to offer you my demonic healing properties again, the same as during the war. Use me to save them,"
"What will it cost me?"
"Nothing. It'll cost me a part of myself,"
"I don't understand,"
"By using some of my healing properties, I will be merging parts of myself into their chakra channels and souls to keep them stable and strong. I'll lend you some of my power. Touch Sasuke and the twin's heads, and I'll do the rest,"
"Even the healthy one?"
"Usually, when one twin is affected by an illness, it's a possibility that the other might be affected too. Better safe than sorry. Hurry, we don't have much time. You need to act, now!"
Naruto nodded as he closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he could feel Kurama's power flow through his entire body.
"Let me through. I need to save my family," said Naruto as he crouched at the center of everyone. A weakened Sasuke tried to speak as he reached for Naruto. The blond reached out and grabbed his mate's hand and kissed it. "Leave everything to me. I'll save all of you,"
Doing as he was told; Naruto placed his hands on Sasuke and his son's foreheads while he used a tail to wrap around his daughter. With a deep breath and great force, the blond released his new power onto them until it absorbed into their chakra channels and souls. As the power was absorbed into them, the three of them were surrounded by a soft yellow-orange glow until it faded. Once the light faded, Tsunade and Sakura rushed in to check on their patients. After a quick look over, both gave soft smiles.
"Good job, brat. You did it," Tsunade said as she clapped a hand on his shoulder.
"Yeah, they're finally stable. Would you like to hold your son and daughter while we stitch up Sasuke-kun?"
Bright, white teeth showed as a face-splitting grin appeared on his face. He nodded and held out his arms as he was handed the twins, both carbon copies of his mate and himself. The girl looked just like him with thick blond hair, two whisker marks on each cheek, slightly tanned skin, and black feline appendages. The boy had smooth midnight-black hair, two whisker marks on each cheek, pale skin, and orange fox appendages. Although their eyes were not opened yet, Naruto could tell that they were going to have their eye color as well.
"They're perfect," he whispered as he leaned in and sniffed them, imprinting himself on them at the same time.
"Yes, they are. You two did a fine job," Shikamaru smiled as he leaned over to see them.
"And that should do it. All right Sasuke, you should be good to go until we can observe you and the twins at the hospital," Tsunade smiled as she packed away her tools.
"Allow us to take the babies. We need your help with Sasuke-kun,"
Naruto nodded as he handed the girl to Sakura and the boy to Tsunade before helping Shikamaru sit up his mate.
"You did it, babe. I'm so proud of you,"
All Sasuke could do was nod and lean back into Naruto's chest.
"He's gonna be out of it for a little while. Do you think you can carry him to the hospital? We can't risk teleporting them. Shikamaru, please grab my bag,"
"No problem, Granny. I'll take care of him while you two deal with the twins,"
The four of them gathered their stuff and some cloaks to protect Sasuke and the twins from the outside crowd before they headed out of the house.
But before they left, Sakura took one last look and gave an apologetic look at their house. "Don't worry, I see to it that your place is ready for them to come back home,"
"Ha. Thank you, Sakura-chan,"
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To Be Continued…