A/N: Sorry about everything in this chapter, I didn't mean for it, honestly, it just happened and I was like … WTF! So this is what happened after… I am sure you will be upset with me a little after this one, please understand, I am just as upset with me as you are... I can't change it though cause it is all part of my pathetic plot that is trying to control me... I had to upload it now cause I couldn't wait to work on the new chapter.

Disclaimer: I own nothing, it is just this plot bunny that I kidnapped and am writing about in the Naruto universe that was created by Masashi Kishimoto. If you do not know who that is then I would ask where you have been the past few years. Without the work of Kishimoto-sensei those of us that get our plot bunny's from this wonderful universe would be bored.

Footfalls echo in the memory
Down the passage which we did not takeTowards the door we never opened
T.S. Eliot

All significant truths are private truths. As they become public they cease to become truths;
they become facts, or at best, part of the public character; or at worst, catchwords.
T. S. Eliot

Slowly Naruto opened his eyes, glancing around, he noticed he had fallen asleep on the couch. His head was pounding like he had too much to drink. Absently his hand went up to his temple and he rubbed it, over in the corner a baby whimpered.

His mind was in a fog, the last thing he clearly remembered was coming home from a mission that had brought him into Sasuke's path, somehow he had managed to get his friend to come back to the village.

Wondering who the baby belonged to, Naruto went over to it. Not knowing what to do, he looked around his cluttered living room wondering where the mother of the baby was. Idiot, he heard Sasuke's voice in his head, if no one was here when you got up, what makes you think someone will be here now?

Panic was starting to seep into him, he knew that the baby could not possibly be his, considering he had never been with anyone in that way.

Maybe the parent was in the bed room, he tried to calm himself down with this thought. Hesitantly he approached the door that led to his bed room, sure that he would find the parent, otherwise why would he give up his bed to sleep on the sofa? He just didn't want to barge in on a person un-announced, even if it was his bed that the person was sleeping in.

In this kind of situation, he didn't know if he should knock or just barge in. The infant was the one to decide for him, for as he was about to knock, the baby let out a wail that would wake the dead. The sound grated on his already raw nerves, throwing the door open, he looked into the room. Intent to lambaste anyone that was in there.

Horror filled him, it was empty, for some reason he felt that it should have been occupied, why else would he sleep on the couch?

He felt like pulling his hair in frustration, no way in hell would he have a baby. Sure he liked kids. Not babies, kids. He knew next to nothing about babies, kids he could deal with, play with them, tease them, train them. Babies though did nothing other than eat, sleep, cry and poop. What was he to do? His breathing increased, his thoughts were on the crying infant, he could feel his heart speed up like a locomotive that was heading up hill and now was free falling down hill. It was a fast ride…

His head started to feel light, as if it were a balloon that was over inflated. Soon it would burst. Before that would happen, he sat down on the made bed. He was too late though, and the world started to fade out of focus. Damn… he knew he was about to pass out, what self respecting shinobi passed out from a baby?

In the living room the baby continued to cry, drowning out all other sound. In fact a bomb could have gone off next to the blond shinobi, and all Naruto would probably hear is the baby crying. In abject misery, Naruto put his head in his hands, groaning.

When the infant went quiet, it took Naruto a moment to realize. At first he thought it was a figment of his imagination, then he thought he had went deaf, finally he realized that the house was silent, not completely silent, yet no more crying infant to darken the place in misery.

Walking into the room, Sai held the infant to his shoulder, soothing the baby that had tortured Naruto for nearly twenty minutes of pure hell.

"What the hell…" Naruto sighed in relief. "That baby is yours? About time you get it, I thought for sure I would go crazy."

Sai grinned at the blond, "Actually, the baby is yours."

Jaw dropping, Naruto fell back on the bed to stare up at the ceiling. Lets go to my happy place, Naruto mused to himself, nothing can get me in my happy place, no Sai, no worries and most importantly, NO BABY'S.

"Naruto-kun," Sai looked at him a little concerned, "Are you going to feed Loki?"

Sai is not here, Naruto chanted in his head, he is not trying to make me take the infant that had been crying, that was now shoving its fist into its mouth. Nope, no baby here… the infant was sucking on said fist as if it could garner nourishment from it. Narutos' heart was not melting, nope, he would remain strong in his belief that the baby was a figment of his imagination.

"Naruto-kun," Sai gave him his disarming grin, "you do need to hold him while I fix his bottle for you to feed him. I already changed his diaper."

His resolve crumbled as Naruto looked at the infant. "Fine," he sat up once more and held out his arms, he still didn't know how he had a baby. Sai put the infant into the blonds' open arms.

Once he was alone with the baby, Naruto wondered just what Sai had meant when he had said Loki was his. His friend must have gone insane, that was it, yeah, no way in hell would he have a kid. Where would he find a girl that would let him have a kid without the pre requisite of sex? Last he checked he didn't have anyone in mind, and he was a virgin.

"Sai," Naruto yelled out of the room at his team mate, "What the hell happened last night?"

Sai returned with a bottle a few moments later, he handed the bottle to Naruto before he replied to the question. "I don't really know, you will have to talk to Tsunade-sama."

"I am not asking granny Tsunade," Naruto watched the baby drink greedily on the bottle, "I am asking you."

Sai looked out the door into the living room as he sat down on the bed next to Naruto, a little too close for comfort in Naruto's opinion. "I think it would be best if the Hokage told you." Sai looked a little upset over something. He would not look directly at Naruto.

Naruto glanced out the door as well, wondering what it could be that had caused his team mate to be so moody, "Sai, I know that something is bothering you."

"Naruto-kun," Sai softly said, "I- I… I just want to say I am sorry. None of this was my idea, Neji is still pissed about it all, he was suppose to be here too, I guess he wants nothing to do with this though."

Confused, Naruto looked at the raven headed youth sitting next to him. Sai seemed to be deep in thought about something, Naruto wanted to know what he had meant. And what the hell did Neji have to do with all of it?

"What exactly are you talking about?" Naruto pressed.

"Forget I said anything." Sai focused his gaze on Naruto and he grinned as if he had never made that remark that was more than a little cryptic.

Naruto knew that Sai would be hard to get any kind of information from, so he decided to just unravel what the problem was alone. It would take some time, yet he knew that he could do it. Maybe he should ask Shikamaru to help him. The lazy shinobi owed him one after all. He was the one that had made it possible for him to be with Temari, so it was time to call in his debt.

Without thought, he pulled the bottle away and as if second nature, he raised the infant to his shoulder, rubbing the babes back.

Sai smiled at him, "You look good with the baby."

Blushing slightly, Naruto looked away, he felt like he should say something in his defense, yet he knew that there was nothing he could say that would explain how he felt.

"Tell me something Naruto-kun," Sai was serious, "Why don't you like anyone from the village other than Sakura?"

"I like red heads…" Naruto felt a blush, "Sakura is the closest to a red head here."

"So you only like red heads?"

Once more Naruto put the bottle to Loki's mouth so that the baby could fill up on milk. He didn't know why Sai had asked these questions, he didn't like it either. "I guess so."

"Would you consider a certain red headed boy cute?"

Taken back by this question, Naruto saw in his mind the image of Gaara, he hadn't thought of the Kazekage in a long time, it made him slightly nervous in fact, he didn't know why exactly, yet the mere thought of having a relationship with Gaara did not bother him. In fact just the opposite, once Sai mentioned it, it seemed to be the right thing. "Maybe… It all depends on who it is."

Sai nodded his head solemnly. "What about if someone told you that a certain someone had erased all your memories of the past six months? Would you believe me."

Were his ears deceiving him? Who in the hell would pull a prank like that, other than some twisted demented author bent on ruling the world?

"I am asking because you need to know the date." Sai said as he stood up. When the other shinobi said what the date was, Naruto almost didn't believe him.

"Who the hell would do this to me?" Naruto asked, anger starting to take over him. The baby in his arms felt the tension in him and spit out the bottle, his eyes fixed nervously onto the man who was holding him.

"You need to remember Naruto-kun." Sai sadly said, "If you don't remember, you will lose him."

"Damn…" Naruto put the baby on the bed and got up, he was face to face with Sai now, "Who are you talking about?"

Sai shook his head and replied, "If you don't remember, I will not be the one to tell you. Its something you need to remember, otherwise you wont."

"Watch the baby for me." Naruto told the other shinobi. "I need to go see Granny Tsunade."

XoXoXoXo

Gaara was having a pleasant dream, in it he was with Naruto. They were walking along a dusty road talking about their dreams, it was when they were kids. It had never happened in the past, yet the dream was so familiar that when the young Kazekage woke up, a pang of loneliness washed over him. It had been this way ever since his return from Konoha last week. Every night he was haunted with dreams of the blond sage. It made him think of the days when he was younger, pinning away for a unrequited love.

He had fallen hard for the blond when they had battled when they were young. He had thought of nothing other than him till the day when Naruto had chosen Sasuke over him after the ordeal that he had went through with the Akatsuki. He had nearly begged the blond to stay in Suna longer with him, yet Naruto had decided to leave. Later Gaara found out that he had left to go find Sasuke, in those days it had been all the blond seemed to think about, so to the young Kazekage, he had been slightly upset.

Later in the day, he was sitting at his desk thinking about the past, remembering how Naruto had brought him back to life with the help of Chiyo. At the time, Gaara had been the happiest he had ever been, and it had confirmed his growing feelings for the blond shinobi.

A timid knock interrupted his thoughts, followed by someone literally throwing the door open. In the threshold stood Temari, directly behind her and in a rage was the only one that Gaara had ever needed or wanted in his life. The one that had been the driving force behind his pursuit to being Kazekage, without that one influence in his life, no one would have ever given him the time of day.

Naruto strode purposefully into the room, nearly pushing Temari in his haste. He got to the desk in three well muscled strides. Placing both hands on the surface of the desk, Naruto got within a inch of the Kazekage's face and growled, "You will remember me."

Widening his green eyes, Gaara looked at the handsome man. Blond spiky hair, blue eyes, lips that Gaara had fantasized over many times over, it seemed that his eyes were glued to those lips, and when Naruto absently ran his tongue over the bottom lip, Gaara suppressed the moan that was building up within him. He wanted this man. He wanted him so much that just the thought of it drove him to distraction, why is it that fate was so cruel? "I do remember you." Gaara barely managed to say.

Naruto needed no more before he claimed the Kazekage's mouth in a near brutal kiss that if Gaara had been standing, would have resulted in his knees turning to jell-o. Gaara swam in the feel of Naruto's lips pressing against his, and when Naruto slid his tongue out over Gaara's, the red head parted his lips and as Naruto used his tongue to caress Gaara's, a shiver went up the Kazekage's back.

A low moan escaped from deep within Gaara's throat, it was low and animalistic. Awakening a primal animal like instinct that made Gaara wrap his arms around the blond and pull him in closer.

Temari, that shrew, she cleared her throat just then and said, "Gaara, we need to talk."

Naruto turned around and glared at her, "You should be thankful that you are Gaara's sister and one of my best friends girlfriend, otherwise I would make you regret ever thinking a memory technique would keep me away."

Gaara was in a daze, he didn't fully hear what Naruto had said, all he was thinking of was that he was the happiest he could ever be, truly if he were to die right now, he could die happy. His mind was replaying the kiss, every detail, every feeling, it was as if he had a instant replay switch in his brain.

It was then that he realized he had to be dreaming. No other excuse could be seen, cause no way in hell would Naruto kiss him. Naruto did not like him the same way that he liked Naruto. What was it, yeah it was called delusional when his fantasy seemed real. Maybe he needed to see someone about it, standing up, he walked out of the office as if he were the only one around.

Even when Naruto followed him, Gaara continued on, as if alone.

"Gaara wait up."

"This is some big practical joke right?" Gaara dreamily asked.

"That was what I thought at first too." Naruto said, "Even when Neji confirmed it, I didn't know what to do, why the hell would Granny Tsunade and your sister use memory techniques to make us forget each other."

Gaara stopped dead in his tracks, "What do you mean?" his voice was deathly quiet.

Naruto nearly ran into the red head, "She didn't tell you? Even though you remember, she didn't say a word to you."

"Naruto," Gaara glanced at the man that he wanted so bad, yet he didn't want this confusion, "What did the Hokage do that has you upset?"

Naruto realized then, "You don't remember me do you?" His voice was soft from the hurt. Naruto had been optimistic, even when Neji and Sai told him that Gaara would probably not remember, he had refused to believe that the love they had could be erased so easily. He had faith in Gaara. Now he didn't know what to do. "Oh my… I am so sorry Gaara-sama." Turning on his heel, Naruto rushed out of the hall before Gaara could put his hand out to halt him.