Well, looks like the last chapter hasn't changed any of my hypotheses as of yet. Hinata is still alive, Sakura is running to her, and Tenzou knows there are six tails and is rushing back to try and stop further power from escaping. WOOT! Hinata still has a chance!
Also, here's where the story earns it's mature rating. Lemon abounding from the start of this half. The gentle relationship they had before has matured along with them, and this kind of thing is no longer a source of much concern between them because of that and the fact that they are now married and trying for a baby as Hinata was ordered to do so by the council along with most other Kunoichi.
No rebound sex as was originally promised, though. That's not really as important as Tsuyomi is.
Ha ha, part-way through typing this up, I realised that last time I posted, I had Kakashi dead. Then I also remembered that in "Long Return" he is alive. So I will just have to remember to add an explanation in "Long Return" somewhere. Sorry about the mix-up!
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Naruto smelled the gentle scent of lilac oil in Hinata's hair. It was her favorite scent to use for the hot oil treatments she was even starting to get him to use now and then. He had to admit they felt wonderful, but he didn't really like going around smelling like lilacs unless it was because she was wearing lilac perfume and hugged him afterwards. Briefly he wondered if she added a bit of one of the hair oils to the candles to intensify the scent, or if she had just used it right before going into the bedroom and the scent permeated the air because she came in so quickly and shut the room up.
Either way, he smelled the lilacs which were always associated with her in his mind. More importantly, however, he could smell her right there in his arms as she kissed his lips slowly and lovingly, pressing her naked body to his and stroking his side with her short, yet sharp nails so lightly that goosebumps popped up everywhere they trailed.
His own hand came up to cup one of her breasts just as the kiss turned more hungry, stroking at her nipple lightly and pinching the bud. Honestly, he didn't enjoy the feel of having his nipples pinched that much, and he couldn't understand how doing the same to Hinata could make her moan so deliciously. Either way, he loved having the soft pillowy flesh rubbing against his chest, and he loved the smiles and moans even more. He made it a point to draw out a few good ones with his lips, teeth, and tongue every time they made love.
That didn't mean she always gave him the chance, though.
No, Hinata took charge once in a while, intent on hearing him moan more than herself at those times. Seeing him loose himself to the sensations, struggling not to loose all controle while she ran her nails or teeth along the underside of his cock, feeling his hands tighten around her thighs as he finally succumbed to being ridden ruthlessly, all of these things turned her on just as much as him exploring her body like a playground of sweet treats.
Tonight, it seemed, would be one of the nights Hinata took full controle, and Naruto didn't mind.
The change in dominance was slow in manifesting itself. At first, Naruto had her trapped up in his one arm, the other hand tugging at her nipple as his lips devoured hers. Yes, Hinata had started to make little noises in the back of her throat with each tug, but Naruto could tell they were purposefully held back, even as he let his whole hand open up to softly kneed her entire breast. Hinata loved the feel of his hands splayed out open on her skin, especially over her breasts or stomach, still more, she loved to do the same to him, to be reminded of his physical strength. He had used those muscles under her hands now to lift her up like a feather over and over again since they started sharing living space three years prior. He had never harmed her with those hands, but had always offered a warm place of safety within those arms and pressed against his chest. She loved knowing that those muscles which were trained and toned to kill were more likely to open up in love and kindness than anything else.
Naruto felt her press against his chest lightly as her leg came up over his hip. They stayed like that for a while, lips the only things left moving against one another until Hinata decided the time to strike had come. It was always her choice when things progressed in the bedroom between them, never his. He never wanted her to feel like she was expected to do anything for him, or that he would press forward on anything she didn't want. That had been the case from the very first time he had ever suggested they lay together like this. She had admitted her memories of a previous moment that had left her hurting both physically and emotionally. He wanted nothing to do with that.
Since the very first time that she had actually allowed him to have her, Hinata had yet to turn him away once they reached this point, a tangle of limbs and locked lips. He had no reason to fear being left unsatisfied.
Naruto didn't quite realise when it happened, but Hinata was straddling his waist now, he flat on his back and unable to resist the delicious feeling of her mouth lavishing attention just behind his earlobe where his jaw ended. That was his magical spot, the one place that all she had to do was suggest contact with and he got hard in his pants. Why such a point could ever be used against him like this, he couldn't understand, just as he couldn't understand her love of having her nipples pinched and sucked on. Still, his cock twitched as a deep, longing moan found its way out of his lips.
Hinata knew exactly what she was doing to her lover, her husband, her very reason for living...
She had positioned herself just over his stomach so that her breasts pushed into his pecks and she could reach that gentle spot behind Naruto's ear. Hinata also knew it would cause him frustrations the moment his dick hardened fully, since it wouldn't quite reach it's intended destination despite the fact that her legs were parted around his body. As long as she kept up her controle of his body with her mouth, he wouldn't be able to find the strength in his legs to buck up, either. The thought of just how easily the man so many feared could be taken down gave her great inner strength when around him that she had been caught many times smirking devilishly in public lately when thinking about it and forgetting her settings. One time, Sakura had even brought her in for a quick check up, thinking that Hinata had a fever instead of a mind full of dirty thoughts about Naruto and just how to seduce him that particular night.
Such situations were always embarrassing for her, but not tonight, not here where her actions were welcomed, sometimes even begged for without her prey even knowing the words were falling from his lips like a mantra. Here she didn't have to censor any thought, for here she could act out every whim, her audience becoming her rather willing target in the blink of an eye.
Hinata stroked Naruto's sides the same as she had earlier, knowing that now he wouldn't be tickled by the feeling any longer. His body trembled beneath hers along with a shuddering breath when her lips trailed down from behind his ear to suckle at his throat and under his chin, her body arching to achieve the position while keeping her opening just that scant distance from the tip of his penis.
"Ungh... Hinata-koi..." Naruto took his hands from her hair, placing one on her breast again, and the other on her hip, trying to pull her back down again. Hinata refused his little plea.
"Not yet, Naruto-koi," Hinata purred. "You know I've only just begun."
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
"Ignore it," Hinata said softly when Naruto reacted to the sharp taping on the front door. "If it's important, there are better ways of getting attention."
"Hai..." Naruto caressed Hinata's arms gently, only to then find his hands trapped above his head by one of hers, the other aggressively running sharp, short nails down his stomach, trailing the line between muscles, following soft, fine hairs to their goal at the base of his penis where slender fingers wrapped around his cock just tightly enough to hurt slightly.
Hinata knew Naruto liked things a bit rougher than she did, and she indulged him when she could with a tight, rough handjob like this. Her nails scraped the tender underside of his shaft as her hand drug up and down his length, her pearl eyes watching his ocean ones as they changed from surprise at being trapped to bliss at being stroked in just that certain manner he craved when they were together.
Carefully, she increased the speed.
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! knockknockknock!
Naruto growled at the second intrusion. A muffled feminine voice came with the tapping this time, demanding Naruto open the door because she knew he was home.
"Whoever the fuck that is is going to get an eyeful and a fistful for this," Naruto growled with irritation, gently pushing Hinata away for the moment to get to the bedroom door, throw on his boxers and sprint to the front door, jerk it open and demand, "WHAT?"
Sakura stood frozen on the other side of the door, hand raised to rap at the door once more, eyes wide and confused.
"I'm busy, Sakura-chan," Naruto grumbled. "It better be good."
"Oh..." Sakura looked anywhere but at Naruto now, seeing the nip marks on his throat and smelling the sweat on his body. She just knew he probably had a monster of a hard-on in his shorts, but she refused to let curiosity get the better of her and force her eyes downward. For as much as she knew the man trusted her with his life and his body, she had never trusted him not to be embarrassed about something like that.
"Well?" Naruto demanded, really not in the mood to see anyone besides Hinata at the moment.
"I just... I just wanted to tell you that... Our mission in two days isn't going to happen. Kakashi-sensei came back pretty beat up, and Yamato-san is in rough shape, too."
"And this couldn't wait for the morning because...?"
"They caught sight of Sasuke," Sakura said in a whisper. "He was running after someone else, though. They think he's turned against what's left of Akatsuki from the looks of things."
"We can talk about this tomorrow, Sakura-chan," Naruto laid a gentle hand on the woman's shoulder. "Hinata is waiting for me, and this really doesn't change much considering he's still not willing to talk to any of us."
"But that's the thing, Naruto!" Sakura's eyes fell back on his, pleading. "He tried to protect Kakashi-sensei from a couple attacks before taking off again! Circumstances are what must have kept him away, even Yamato-san agrees! They're sending you, Sai, and I out by midnight tonight to the last place he was seen!"
"Seriously?" Naruto asked, not believing it. There had been other times Sasuke had been spotted, but they had been forbidden to chase after him. Apparently this interpretation of Sasuke's battle in which Kakashi and Tenzou had come upon was enough to change matters that much.
"YES!" Sakura's smile nearly blinded him.
"Damn teme..." Naruto chuckled a little. "Has to ruin everything, doesn't he?"
"Well, um..." Sakura became nervous again, very unlike her usual self. "You've still got three hours before we have to meet at the bridge... that should be enough time to take care of things, yes?"
The door was promptly slammed in Sakura's face. Naruto would celebrate tonight with Hinata for the next two hours, maybe even some more in the shower before pulling himself away to pack before leaving.
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One month. One whole month was wasted. Other than the very charred area in which both Sasuke and Kakashi had used fire and electricity to fight with, there were no signs of the Uchiha's presence that Naruto, Sakura, or Sai could pick up.
"Naruto-kun," Sai smirked over at the blond as they steadily made their way towards Konoha's entrance.
"Hm?" Naruto asked the dark haired man, jerked out of his thoughts sharply.
"Someone's running our way, and I believe they're coming just for you."
"Sai's right... Hey, it's Hinata!" Sakura waved happily at the woman coming to meet them.
Someone else was running behind her, and gaining ground fast... Neji by the looks of things. He was yelling at her to not exert herself so much, though why was a mystery to the three returning home. Hinata was barely jogging in their direction from the looks of things. Naruto, though, didn't care how fast she was coming to meet him, he sprinted to her to make it as soon as humanly possible.
"They...they can't do this to us, can they?" Hinata sobbed into Naruto's shoulder, clinging to him tightly.
"Hey, slow down," Naruto ran his fingers through her hair, the other hand rubbing her back soothingly. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"They want to kill the baby!" Hinata cried, balling up her fists against his chest.
"Whose baby?" Naruto asked, unsure of what she was talking about. The only person Hinata was close to and was currently pregnant that he could think of was Hanabi. "Your sister's baby?"
Hinata just began crying harder and shaking her head back and forth in the negative. "Our baby, Naruto. Word got back to my father the moment it was confirmed. Because Hanabi is due in six months, they want to force me to have an abortion! They think our baby is a threat to Hanabi's baby! They can't do this! They cant!"
Naruto stilled. That wasn't a lot of information to process, but both bits weighed very heavy on his mind and heart. Now he understood what hat Hinata shaking in his arms. She was pregnant, for at least a month now since that was how long it had been since they had been together last. Her father also wanted to stop her pregnancy for some strange fear that it would harm Hanabi's status or something like that.
"Please don't do that again, Hinata-sama," Neji caught up to them now, panting lightly. "If you get that worked up emotionally, then exert yourself physically, you could make your father's wish true without any medical help. Remember what Yashu-san said last week!"
"What did she say?" Naruto asked, holding Hinata close while he adressed Neji.
"Hyuuga develop differently in the first two months from most others," Neji explained. "Our chakra balance is more delicate, yet more prominent durring this time. We all know how our emotions can affect our use of chakra, even unconsciously. If Hinata unwillingly allows her emotions to produce a killing chakra, even if it does not fully form into a jutsu or other technique, it could kill the child more easily than if it did not possess Hyuuga blood."
"Oh, damn," Naruto's eyes squeezed shut, holding Hinata even tighter than before. "At least she's not mad right now."
"She was earlier," Neji replied lowly, then raised his head to acknowledge Sai and Sakura joining the three of them.
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ああああああああああああああああああ
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Birds chirped happily overhead, the chicks finally able to fully use their wings and giving them a grand workout to show off their newfound tallent. The few clouds in the sky did little to hinder the sun's light as it shined on the small clearing, giving the blue expanse more character than marring the golden ball of fire. Although the day was hot, a light breeze blew steadily enough to keep the pair there from getting too warm for finding comfort in snuggling up on their picknick blanket for an after-lunch nap. Three others were in the clearing-proper instead of under the shady trees like their companions. These three happily tossed a plastic lid from one of the containers of food devoured minutes earlier as if it were a Frisbee. With the difference in shape, things didn't work out quite that well, but it made for a good laugh and many-a-dog-pile.
Sakura shoved a lock of hair behind her ear as Tenten and Ino spread back out to their respective areas to see which way Sakura's throw would end up going this time. She didn't have time to toss the lid, however. Something had happened to her right where Naruto and Hinata had been laying and watching the three women play.
Naruto was up on his feet, dodging shurikin without anything of his own to return to the unseen attacker. Anything that would have hit Hinata, though, he managed to deflect with a kunai that he had caught in the air from the attacker. But it wasn't the kunai that truly had Sakura worried. It was the senbon mixed in with them. Those were much harder to deflect when they could barely be seen flying straight through the air at their target.
One glance over to the other girls and Sakura understood the plan. Ino and Tenten would circle around while Sakura was to get Hinata out of the way and then protect her from a safer distance. Hinata wouldn't be happy about having to sit this one out when there was nothing medically or physically wrong with her, but that baby had to be protected at all costs. It was bad enough it's own grandfather was still trying to push the right buttons politically to get the baby killed, Hinata didn't need a direct attack to do the job.
"Why the hell won't you give up?" Naruto demanded as soon as he saw that Sakura had come to his aid, then darted into the direction of the attacker.
Feminine laughter greeted his ears. "Sasuke-kun lied about your strength. You're a bit better than he described!"
"Idiot," Naruto laughed to himself at the woman's stupidity. He turned at the projected location of the woman and saw a streak of red hair fly passed one tree and up into the next. Blond and brunet followed, but those two he knew to be allies without a doubt.
"Naruto, get back over here!" he heard Sakura yell from a ways behind him. "I can't hold him back alone, damn it!"
"Shit!" Naruto turned on heel and ran back to Sakura and Hinata, seeing a white haired man coming at Sakura with a large sword not all that different from the one he briefly recalled Zabuza of Mist using about eight or nine years ago. All Sakura had at her disposal to defend with, however, was the plastic lid she'd been playing around with earlier. That certainly wouldn't hold up against that sword, and Sakura had been forbidden to break up any more ground in the area just in case it drew even more unfriendly attention their way. Naruto bent and picked up as many projectiles as he could carry on the way, tossing several in Sakura's direction handle first for her to catch. The rest he shot straight at the man with the sword to distract him.
"Karin, I can't hold both of them off, damn it!" the swordsman hollered to the woman currently evading both Tenten and Ino.
The redhead in the trees blinked out of existence just as Ino had a clear shot with her body replacement technique and Tenten drew out a few throwing knives. The clone was gone. Where then, exactly, was the real one that had created then switched places with said clone? Which one was she after, Naruto or Hinata?
In the end, it didn't matter much, though. The swordsman had both Sakura and Naruto caught up in battle. Even though Ino and Tenten both caught sight of the redhead sliding up behind Hinata and pinning her to the ground, neither of them were fast enough to make it in time as the redhead snapped Hinata's neck before yelling at the swordsman to get the hell out of there... that the job was finished.
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ああああああああああああああああああ
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"We've sent three teams in pursuit with Ino and Tenten to make correct identifications," Yashu spoke to Naruto, but he acted as if she wasn't even there.
His eyes were fixed on the door to the room where Sakura and Hinata had been for hours, allowing no one besides Tsunade and Yashu inside.
"There is one thing Hinata had requested the last time I was in the room, Naruto-san," Yashu tried again.
"Yes?" Naruto looked up, wanting--needing to know.
"If we cannot stop it..."
"It's too late," Tsunade exited the closed off room, head hung. "Sakura had already done it."
"Done what?" Naruto demanded, rising to his feet quickly.
"I'm sorry, Naruto," Tsunade replied softly, not bothering to show any false anger at the young man. "Hinata is gone. She was jarred too much."
Naruto fell to his knees, jaw slack and eyes wide. "No. No, she has to be alright..."
"Her body's respiration and heartbeat are being sustained for now, though," Tsunade continued. "There isn't much time and we need your decision on what to do with the child. Sakura is offering to take it if you want."
"Take?" Naruto looked up at her, bewildered.
"Transfer it from Hinata's womb into her own," Tsunade replied. "It's risky, but there is a possibility that it can survive if she does so."
"But Hinata--"
"Is dead, Naruto, and we don't have much time left to save your child if you don't tell us yes very soon!" Tsunade replied a bit more heatedly.
"Hinata..." Naruto looked back at the floor again, unable to process that the very woman responsible for his ability to keep going three years prior was gone from his life forever.
"Naruto, please!" Yashu started in now. "I was going to tell you that it was what Hinata had requested if it were possible. She wanted you to give Sakura-san permission!"
He was still again for several seconds before slowly nodding. "Save the baby."
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Sakura let out a string of curses as the child inside of her decided that eleven at night was a good time to start kicking her organs all at once. It was one thing to have the boy's hand push against her skin, or even his sharp little nails do the same as he tried to reach outside of his cradle of flesh and blood, but this was pure torture. Every day now he had been squirming at the most inopportune moments, even causing her to toss up lunch all over Ino the day before when he kicked her stomach repeatedly. Needless to say it wasn't a sight Inoichi could stomach himself. The man had to excuse himself from the room lest he too loose his lunch right there at the table. For a man who had been an active shinobi for over thirty years, he sure had a weak stomach, Sakura thought.
"Settle down, you," Sakura grumbled, rubbing her swollen belly on the lower portion where the baby's head would be by now. She hoped it would be enough to calm the child, but it didn't always work. Sometimes she actually needed to pull out a cd player and some headphones to lull the child to sleep with instrumentals or nature sounds like birds chirping or a rainstorm.
Tonight wasn't one of those nights, thankfully. With the reassuring voice of the woman the child resided in, the boy settled down as instructed.
"You're a little powerhouse just like your father, baby boy," Sakura couldn't help but smile a bit. "Your mother would have been proud."
Sakura drifted off to sleep some minutes later. However, only four hours passed before she woke up again.
Something was off. She couldn't really put her finger on it, though. Anxiety seemed to simmer just underneath the confusion she felt, driving her to stand up and look around the room, pushing her to check the baby's room to make sure everything was in order, her emergency bag by the front door, even double checking that the milk was in the door of the fridge rather than on one of the main shelves like Naruto liked to leave it now and then durring one of his daily visits to check in on her. Everything seemed to be in order, but she just couldn't shake the feeling that something was about to happen very soon and she would have to be awake and fully alert while it came about. The child wasn't moving much any longer, but she could tell he was physically just fine with a quick check.
Perhaps something was wrong with Naruto? The boy within her seemed to have a very strong connection to him despite not even seeing Naruto's face yet. If the boy was upset enough to affect Sakura's moods, that usually meant something was up with Naruto. Settled on that possibility by 3:34 am, Sakura picked up the phone and hit the speed dial for the blond's house.
"Mmh? Wha'z go'n on?" Naruto's groggy voice said on the other end.
"Are you alright, Naruto?" Sakura asked, concerned more that her theory had been busted right off the bat.
"Me? I'm alright. What's wrong, Sakura?" Naruto asked, more alert now that he recognised the voice.
"Your son's very anxious about something, and I can't figure out what it could be," Sakura answered honestly. "I thought he was picking up on you again."
"No, nothing on my end," she could almost hear Naruto shaking his head.
"Damn!" Sakura cursed into the phone then, another sharp pain in her abdomen.
"He's squirming around again, huh?" Naruto correctly guessed.
"He was earlier," Sakura panted, "but this was different. Oh, no.... Naruto get over here. My water just broke!"
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It had been imperative to keep the truth of Sakura's pregnancy secret from the moment the child was taken from Hinata's body nearly ten months prior to this day. Only the three medics and Naruto truly knew about it. Sakura even had to lie to her other friends and the rest of the team, claiming that she had gotten pregnant while out of Konoha on a solitary mission and had taken the opportunity to try again with someone else. Had word spread of the truth, though, there would be a lot more hell to go through with the Hyuuga leader and council.
Now, though, holding his son gently and carefully as Yashu had instructed, he knew time was limited to the amount it took for a Hyuuga to see the baby and report back to Hiashi. Of all of Hinata's large family, only Neji was invited the morning Sakura went into labor. They both felt he should know, especially since he wouldn't rat them out. Still, he wouldn't have to, someone else would certainly do it for him soon enough, Naruto thought.
Bright blond hair crowned the boy's head in a fuzzy mass, a strong jaw, delicate nose, and unique pair of eyes made up his face. Yes, his eyes were blue, but they were also a very, very pale blue, to the point that the blue only showed up as long as the light hit them a certain way. Rather than the slightly grey tint most Hyuuga tended to have when any color at all was shown, the boy had his father's blue tint, proving even more that the father was certainly NOT a Hyuuga like it's biological mother.
"You were strong to survive before," Naruto told his son, even though the baby couldn't understand the words yet, "but you're going to have to be so much stronger now that you've come out into the world's eyes..."
The boy's eyes closed slowly as he fell back asleep, finally understanding that he was safe here in this man's arms. Naruto took a shaky breath and sat back down in the chair by Sakura's exhausted form. He was at a total loss once more. Yes, Sakura had promised to fill in as a mother for the boy. Yes, he had many friends that would help keep the child from Hiashi's grasp. No, he didn't know how to do this when every time he looked at the blond boy he would see Hinata's nose, mouth, and eyes staring back at him.
"Be strong like your mother...Uzumaki Tsuyomi. Do you hear me? Make her proud of you, Tsuyomi."