Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Sorry it took so long, but I've been talking with this guy ... :sweatdrop:
Tsunade stepped around the corner with a clipboard tucked under her arm, her hazel eyes falling on the two males watching the kittens sleep in the pet nursery. She smiled and approached them, pulling out a set of keys from her coat pocket and pushing a golden key into the door knob that led into the room.
Naruto looked over at her and his ears perked up, twitching in excitement. Was she letting him and Sasuke in to see their cubs?
"You two didn't waste any time in coming here," the doctor chuckled. She then turned her attention fully to Naruto, pushing the door open with a resounding 'click'. "I was able to spend a little extra time on your kittens last night and managed to have them created as Purebloods. It took a while, but I removed all of the genes and such that weren't linked to a Clouded Leopard."
The blond blinked his ocean blue eyes. "They're Purebloods?"
Sasuke stared at the doctor, curious. He'd never heard of that being done before. He hadn't even known it was possible, but Tsunade wasn't really an ordinary doctor, so he could expect a medical feat like that from her.
"Well, all but one," she let them enter the room and she asked one of her pupils to open the cage that held Naruto's kittens, the small girl doing as she was told and pulling back the metal bars. "This one here," she pointed to the one on the right, black spots going from his snout, over the top of his head, across his back, and to the base of his tail, "I wasn't able to change his genes before it was time for them to go in the growth incubator. He's an Impure, so I'm not sure if we'll be able to sell him to an owner. Because once that person finds out, then this little one will most likely be put to sleep right away."
Naruto leaned forward on Sasuke's shoulders and watched the cubs breathe deeply in their sleep, their tiny paws twitching as they dreamed. He looked at the one that was supposedly an Impure and pouted, his brows knitting together.
"I don't want to give them to owners..." he whispered.
Tsunade looked a tad bit shocked. "The only reason they were made were so that they could be sold to families. You can't keep them."
"C-can I at least keep the one that's like me?" he reached in and stroked the soft, yet damp fur of the Impure, earning him a sudden yawn from the little creature.
"Hmm, you'd have to ask Kakashi," Tsunade commented.
Sasuke hoisted Naruto up and put him back down on the tiled ground, the face of his little boy already turned his way. Those bright eyes were so full of determination and he sighed inwardly, not wanting to be the one to talk to Kakashi about keeping another pet. The scarecrow did, after all, depend on selling his pets' cubs for income and such.
"Susu Oppa... I want to keep him. What if someone finds out what he is...?"
The leopard ran a hand through his silky, black tresses. "That would pose a problem, considering the owner would assume you were an Impure, too," he sighed aloud. "I suppose I could talk to Kakashi about it."
Naruto hugged him, wrapping his arms around his hips and snuggling his face into the raven's toned stomach. He smiled happily and his tail fluttered around in utter abandon and joy. "Thank you!"
xXxXx
Naruto was crouched down in the middle of the play room that was near the back of the hospital, created especially for people to play with the newborn pets they planned to buy. It was a pretty big room, the walls padded with soft pillow-like fabric that would keep the pets safe from any harm. There were chew toys and random interesting items flung about on the floor, being tossed around as three kittens ran around, playing with each other.
Smiling brightly, Naruto watched the two girls tackle their brother, biting at his ears like they were treats. The boy mewled and flung himself away, ripping around the room, his dark blue eyes full of excitement. One of the girls, a light gold with white paws and brown patches on her back, didn't bother chasing after the runt and trotted over to Naruto, rubbing against him and purring. She knew he was her papa.
Laughing cheerfully, the blond petted her and scratched behind her ears, still elated with the fact that these three kittens were his. He was surprised that they were so big after just a day, but Tsunade had explained to him only ten minutes ago that she had put a chemical in their system that had enhanced their rate of growth so that they would age a month. It was better to have them at a decent age when being bought.
"I wish I could give you names," Naruto whispered and scratched behind the ears of the little girl, her tail spotted, stripes running up her legs. Her nose was pink, unlike her other siblings. "But I don't have the right to..." he puffed his cheeks out, knitting his brows together. He wanted to keep the kittens, wanted to take care of them, but he knew he couldn't. He had a chance with keeping the little boy... so he guessed that was good enough. Better one than none.
Speaking of the little runt, he scurried to his father and leaped at him, knocking him on his behind. He was feisty and energetic, just like Naruto, his eyes sparkling. The design on his fur was so unique.
Lifting up the tiniest of the three, Naruto nuzzled his cheek against his small, furry one. He was starting to really fall for the cubs and he desperately wanted to keep them with him. It'd be a burden to Kakashi, though, he knew that...
"Naruto-kun?" Shizune peaked into the room and smiled to him. "I need to take the cubs to Tsunade-sama's office so that their ears can be tagged," he lifted up one of the females and cradled her in her arms, despite the little one squirming. "Unfortunately, we've come to the decision that the male can't be sold... so if Hatake-san can't take care of him, then we'll have to put him to sleep..."
The blond stiffened and flashes of what had happened to him seemed to swim in front of his very eyes. His lips tightened and in that one moment he looked so much older than his physical body could allow. He stood and held his other two kittens to his chest, the both of them mewling and tapping each other's paws together in some sort of swatting game.
"Baa-chan wouldn't put him to sleep..." he murmured and hugged his children tighter to him as he followed Shizune out. He knew that the well-endowed doctor would never do such a thing...
Arriving at the spacious room that was a few flights up, Naruto saw Sasuke standing next to Tsunade, speaking with her about something too quiet for his sensitive ears to pick up. He felt the small tag that was attached to his ear flutter across his head and he was reminded of the fact that he was an Impure, yet he still had a tag...
I don't even remember what those guys looked like who tagged me... or why they even did it in the first place...
Sasuke turned when he heard the two enter and took the little boy from Naruto's arms (Tsunade doing the same with the girls), running his slender fingers over velvet ears. He smiled to himself and glanced down into the blond's hopeful eyes. He knew what Shizune had told him, but it wasdn't going to happen.
"I got in contact with Kakashi," he told the boy. "He said that you may keep the cub, just as long as you take care of him."
Naruto's whole posture changed. His ears perked up, his lips lifted, his tail futtered around enthusiastically, his eyes widened and sparkled, and he thrust his arms out to take the small creature back. Sasuke gave the boy back and naruto hugged him tightly, earning him a muffled mewl in response.
Tsunade smiled and slowly lowered the girls onto the table, pulling out of her coat what looked like a whole puncher. She rubbed some creamy oil on each one of their left ears and pressed the device onto the first girl's, the cat howling in pain for a few seconds. Tsunade did the same with the other, but she didn't howl, only growled.
"Wouldn't it be safe to tag his ear, as well?" Sasuke asked. "So that no one will be suspicious?"
Tsunade nodded. "That would be a good idea. Shizune, take the females back to their cages so that they can rest. The families that bought them will be coming by in the evening."
The black-haired assistant nodded and lifted the females up. "Naruto-kun, would you like to say good-bye to them? They'll be taken away tonight."
Naruto quicky scurried to Shizune after the doctor had taken the boy, and reached his hands out to pet his cubs softly. They purred and pressed their faces against his warm palms, not wanting to be taken away. He looked at them sadly and pouted, retracting his hands. A longer good-bye would probably get him too attached for his own good...
"You'll probably see them again in a future Showcase," Shizune assured him. "They're beautiful animals, after all."
"I guess..." Naruto's cheeks puffed out and he looked like he was on the verge of crying, but a large hand plopping down on the top of his head made the air rush out of his cheeks. Looking up, he saw Sasuke's handsome face. He blushed lightly, feeling suddenly embarrassed about acting so childishly...
Susu Oppa was able to let his cubs go so easily... I should be able to do the same, too.
"Here, all done," Tsunade ran her long nails over the cub's back and scratched near the tail in an affectionate manner. "Milk is bad for him, so make sure you only give him water until two weeks have passed. Ahh, and have you been eating anything with my special ingredients yet, Naruto?" she said, referring to the list of foods that would help him grow and get stronger.
Naruto nodded and took his cub, smiling brightly.
"Naruto, what do you want to name him?" Sasuke brought up, not wanting the pet to go nameless.
Blue eyes flickered down to the squiggling bundle and he grinned.
"How about... Seung?"
xXxXx
Itachi glared at the new member of the household as he was carried inside within Naruto's thin arms. Seung was too small, in his opinion, a runt. Sure, he had seen Naruto succeed when he was positive he wouldn't amount to anything, but the cub was smaller than Naruto had been, his blood also impure.
"If you keep collecting pets, this place'll become a zoo," Lukki muttered beside Kakashi, brightly smiling despite what he'd said. He practically flung himself at Naruto and began giving all of his attention to the kitten, laughing when he gnawed and nipped at his pointer finger. "Aww, he's so cute! Naruto, you sure know how to make some damn good babies!" he teased.
The littlest blond flushed in embarrassment and smiled nervously.
"Ignore him," Sasuke spoke from beside him, hands tucked in his pockets. He idly wondered if Naruto's attention would now be more focused on the animal than on himself? It was selfish to want the boy's attention all to himself, but he was a selfish creature.
"I-I need to get him some water and then I'm going to nap with him," Naruto told them and headed toward the kitchen, humming happily.
Itachi and Kyuubi turned to Sasuke, smirking knowingly.
The raven glared and scowled at them. "What?" he snarled.
"Jealous?" Kyuubi asked with his chocolate-like voice. "I can tell by the glint in your eyes that you are."
"Yes, Otouto, afraid that you'll be ditched for something so... impure and inferior? You feel as if it doesn't deserve Naruto-kun's attention? After all, it is just a weak little cub," Itachi drawled venomously.
Sasuke growled at them and went into the kitchen to help Naruto.
He was not jealous, not at all.
Yeah, short, but better than nothing at all.