Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Once again, sorry for the long wait. Still haven't been feeling too good; have a cold. But I want you to know that I'm gonna try my hardest to give you a new update once every two days... until I leave to go to Georgia next Friday.

Oh! And my birthday's on Wednesday! I'll be 16:Hearts: I wanna drive... but my grandma's all "You need a job to pay for insurance"... damn ass won't pay it for me! and then I CAN'T get a job because my frickin' grandpa won't let me! How am I supposed to pay for college?.! What's wrong with my god damn family?.! I probably won't even get a nice birthday present... :Sigh:

Sasuke hissed at the black tiger who continued to rub against his cub as Naruto tried to fill up the bath tub in the large downstairs bathroom. But no matter how many times he warned Sai, the pet wouldn't back off, continuously purring and saying filthy things to the golden cat. Sasuke had seen enough of it and was about to slit the other male's throat, but Yamato placed a hand on his shoulder from behind.

"Sai means no harm. He's not very social, so when he sees someone he likes... he tends to become overly friendly. You understand, don't you?" Yamato walked ahead of Sasuke and told Sai to leave, so he could get to work on Naruto. The bag he had tossed over his shoulder was dropped to the floor, carefully.

Sai nodded and gave Naruto another sensual smirk before slithering past Sasuke like a watchful snake, his pitch black eyes blending in with his dark bangs. He noticed the scowl the other pet gave him, but he just laughed fakely and continued on his way to the living room, plopping down on the sofa with a grace equivalent to Itachi's.

Inside of the bathroom, Naruto was stripping himself of his clothes, whining cutely when the zipper of his light coat got tangle in his messy hair. Yamato chuckled and helped him, managing to only pull out a few strands of bright hair. He then took the top and folded it neatly, handing it over to Sasuke (who still stood in the doorway).

Naruto unfastened his pants and slipped them off, along with his forest green boxers. With a grin, he hopped into the tub, proving the saying that cats didn't like water wrong. He got into a confortable position and began swishing his tail around in the tub, pretending the furry apendage was an andaconda, just like the one in the movie he saw with Sasuke a few nights before.

Yamato folded the other articles of clothing and handed them to Sasuke, as well. "Please take those to the washroom," he nodded his head to the pet.

Sasuke gave him a small "alright" before saying, "How long will this take? We need to sign him up for the Showcase before nine."

"Hm, not too long. An hour at the most. I'll just need to clean and groom him, then put him in one of the new wardrobes I chose for him. Best to leave a good first impression with the judges when signing him up, eh? The judges are always wandering around the main corridor when pets are being entered," the man pulled a few special bottles from his bag and placed them on the ledge of the round tub.

The raven nodded and left, muttering a "be good for Yamato-san" to Naruto before departing.

"Bye bye!" he waved to his father's retreating figure and smiled widely, eyeing the little bottles Yamato had set out. He picked one up and sniffed it, his tail fluttering behind him in delight. The scent was strong, but very pleasant. "Yamato-san, what's this?"

"My own concoction," the other answered with a kind smile. "Crushed rose petals, grinded cocao nuts, and fresh honey. Smells good, doesn't it?"

"It does!" Naruto chirped and placed the bottle back on the ledge, quickly moving his body in the shallow water and reaching up to grab the soft washrag that sat atop the shampoo bottles. He was about to pur some of Yamato's body wash onto the rag, but the man stopped him.

"I'll do it."

"But I can do it myself--"

"I know that," Yamato laughed. "But there are certain techniques you must use to make sure the scent sticks to your skin. Who's the expert here?" he asked with a teasing tone. The pout on Naruto's face gave him his answer.

"You're treating me like a baby, Yamato-san!" he huffed loudly and batted alluring lashes. "I'm fourteen!"

The older male sighed and patted the cat on the head. "That may be true, Naruto-kun, but your body is small. I have to take extra care of you or else something might happen."

"Might... happen?" Naruto blinked owlishly. "Like what?"

"I'm sure you're aware of your condition?"

The young pet nodded slowly, but then shook his head rapidly. "I only know about my heart," he placed a sopping wet hand on his chest, droplets of water running down the smooth flesh. "Baa-chan said a lot of other things, but I didn't know what she was talking about. She used a lot of big words."

"Neither Kakashi or Sasuke told you what she meant?" when he saw Naruto frown and shake his head softly, he continued. "Have you wondered why you're still so small for your age? You should've grown to Sasuke or Itachi's size by now."

Naruto bit his bottom lip and nodded.

"Well, your growth was stunted the day you were almost killed by Kimimaro. I'm not going to go into great detail, but know that you will not grow to your father's size. You'll age mentally, but your body will remain the same."

Blue eyes widened, black pupils becoming smaller in the vast expanse of cerulean. His slightly damp ears flattened against his messy hair and he let out a sound close to a whimper. "I'm not... going to grow?"

"I'm sorry, but no. Don't think of it as a bad thing, though," Yamato gave him a reassuring smile. "That fact will help you with the results at the Showcase. The people are now looking for family pets. Small pets who will do great with children."

Naruto suddenly smiled, his ears perking back up. "So... me being small will make people like me more?"

"Exactly. And that coupled with your magnetic personality... I think you have a very good chance of winning. The only thing you'll have to worry about is you being an Impure. If the judges or anyone else finds out you'll be killed."

"I know, I'll be really careful!" the blond chirped loudly, his voice bouncing off the tiled walls. He sat back and the tub water sloshed around his waist. "And Yamato-san... what about the other stuff Baa-chan talked about?"

Yamato rubbed his jaw in thought. "Now this might deal great damage to your Showcase results... but you won't be able to impregnate a female. If you're one of the top pets, you'll have to mate with a female and produce kittens so you can start a new line of Purebloods. But since you can't do that... I suppose scientists could just clone you and have the clone produce the kittens..."

Naruto wasn't too bothered by the new knowledge. He knew he wasn't going to mate with just some random remale cat. He only wanted to mate with his Susu Uppa... He blushed as he thought of Sasuke holding him, kissing his neck like the romantic people on television did. He'd sit and watch T.V. for hours, just watching the romance movies, wishing that he could have that type of relationship with his father.

"And then there's just one more major issue you'll have to get used to. Messages to your brain will become slower as your mental age progresses, so expect a few seizures every now and then. You might also just black out for no reason. If you become light-headed, call for help immediately, alright?"

With another deep nod, Naruto smiled. "It won't be so bad, right? The only bad thing is my heart."

Yamato chuckled. "You're so positive. I wish Sai was more like you, and not his usual lazy self."

Naruto giggled.

xXxXx

Sasuke sat on the other side of the couch, his legs crossed, gaze on the television. He tried to ignore the tiger beside him, but it was becoming a very difficult task, since Sai was humming a gay little tune while thrumming his long nails against the soft arm of the couch. Sasuke knew it wasn't intentional, but dammit, how he wanted it to be. Just so he could have a reason to slam his fist into Sai's face.

Sai seemed to notice the leopard's anger (how couldn't he? The raven was practically oozing an aura of annoyance and irritation) and turned, tossing the other pet a simple smile. "Is something the matter, Sasuke-san?" his voice was so sweet it was sickening.

"No," Sasuke snarled, keeping his eyes on the T.V.

"You're going to burn a hole into the television if you keep glaring at it," Sai joked. "Tell me, are you worried that Naruto-san is going to be found out?"

Sasuke sent him a glare as dark as death.

"Don't worry about him. He looks as beautiful as a Pureblood," a sly smile slid across the black tiger's face. "No one will find out unless you or Kakashi tells them. Or unless... I tell them?" his smile widened.

Turning sharply, the raven bared his fangs, the white canines glistening with saliva. He'd waste no time in ripping out Sai's larynx with his fangs if the other pet even dared to threaten Naruto.

"Don't worry, I won't tell.. I wouldn't dream of getting little Naruto-san into trouble," Sai said unconvincingly. "But I have to ask, what would become of you if the public found out that you'd taken in an Impure? Why, you'd be stripped of your title as favorable pet, right?"

Letting his eyes melt into red, Sasuke let out a feral growl, his last warning to the tiger. If Sai were to say one more thing to upset him, then there would be bloodshed. "I care more about his safety than my title," his voice was smooth and dark.

Sai kept his false smile. "Is that so? I find your feelings for him to be quite strong. Much stronger than that of a protective father," he leaned forward. "Could it be that you've fallen for the boy? He's beautiful, cute, and his personality just drags you in, hm? It would be so easy to fall for him."

Sasuke calmed himself and settled with just glaring, his crimson eyes fading back into obsidian. "I have a mate who will produce healthy cubs," he stated, even though he wasn't fond of Sakura. He could tolerate her, but would never love her. "And Naruto will find his own mate," he told himself, but he already knew the young cat couldn't get a female pregnant.

"But you want him as your mate," Sai crooned.

"I do not," the raven growled.

Yamato cut off the conversation with his entrance into the living room, his long legs blocking the T.V. screen. He gave them a brief smile while wiping his wet hands on a cinnamon colored wash towel. He glanced back and forth between Sasuke and Sai, shaking his head a bit.

"Please don't start a fight, Sai, I would prefer it if you didn't make it a habit."

"Sasuke-san started it," the tiger said teasingly before sliding back to his side of the couch, looking around Yamato's calves to see the low television.

The pet owner sighed and turned to Sasuke, "I'm done grooming and dressing him now, if you'd like to see," he then chuckled for no reason. "I must say, the outfit he chose is quite... interesting."

Standing up and straightening his shirt, Sasuke walked into the bathroom, pushing open the half-closed door with a soft shove. He looked in and blinked slowly, his lips twitching upwards into a small smile, than soon morphed into an amused smirk.

Naruto stood there in a sun dress, the white article of clothing fitting him and showing his feminine curves and pretty legs. On the dress were little blossom designs that differed between the colors of orange, red, yellow, and pink. His golden hair was trimmed so the bangs were thinner and hanging over his bright eyes, the farthest locks curving inward at his temples, caressing his cheeks. He looked so cute standing there, carefoot and grinning toothily.

"I wanted to look pretty for Susu Oppa!" the boy hurried to his father and smiled. "Do I look nice? Yamato-san said I was beautiful," even though he knew what sex and hormones were... it seemed he still had no clue about gender identity.

Sasuke chuckled, and picked his boy up, groaning a bit at how heavy Naruto was. He was somewhat glad the cat wouldn't grow anymore. Pressing his forehead against Naruto's, he smiled. "You're gorgeous," he whispered. "But after we sign you up for the Showcase, I'll have to talk to you about what boys do and do not wear, alright?"

Naruto giggled and nuzzled against the leopard. "Ok!"

Short but... cute? XD