Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

OMG, it's been four months! I'm so sorry I haven't gotten an update out earlier! Hopefully, this chapter makes up for the long interval :bows: please forgive me! :cries:

"Nyaaaa!" Seung opened his mouth to receive the spoonfull of tuna. Chomping down, he cooed in delight and his tail fluttered back and forth in happiness. He loved all the attention he got from his new family, especially from his papa.

Naruto smiled and continued to feed his cub the can of tuna. It'd been two days since he'd brought Seung home and everything was going pretty well. All except for Sasuke's silent treatment toward the child. The blond had fought with his Susu Oppa about that, but the panther was dead set on ignoring the cub for some reason.

"He's just like his dad," Kakashi stated off-handedly while skimming through a pet owner magazine.

"Papa," Seung licked his lips clean of the fish he was eating. "Can we go to the park?"

Naruto blinked. "The park?" he turned to Kakashi. "Is that ok?"

"I'd prefer it if you brought Sasuke along with you. If something were to happen I could trust him to protect the both of you... Speaking of Sasuke, where is he?" the silver-haired man looked around the kitchen and dining area, only seeing Lukki passed out at the dinner table with a plate of peach cobbler in front of him.

"Susu Oppa's in his room," Naruto helped. "He's been there since this morning. I don't know why, though..."

"Hmm, they're your kittens, so you'd think you'd be the one to go through the depression," Kakashi chuckled and closed his magazine. "Naruto-kun, why don't you take Seung outside in the yard while I go have a chat with Sasuke?"

Seung wiggled in his chair in excitement. He hadn't been outside since he'd been there due to the constant rain showers. "Outside! Outside!" he chanted childishly, holding his arms out for Naruto to pick him up. There was no doubt that he was a spoiled kitten.

Lifting the blond-haired mirror image of himself up into the air, Naruto smiled as brightly as the sun that day. Even though he was so small, his face held the maturity of a parent and Kakashi was almost positive that the cat was losing his baby fat...

Shaking his head, he pushed his pets forward. "Get going, while the sun's still out, hm?"

"I wanna see the flowers, Papa!" Seung sung, pointing out at the garden. As he and Naruto went out to enjoy the day, Kakashi tucked his hands in his dress pants' pockets and headed in the direction of Sasuke's bedroom, lightly rapping on the door.

When there was no answer, he almost rolled his eyes.

"Sasuke, quit acting like a jealous child. Once Seung is old enough, he'll be going into Yamato-san's care," the leopard's owner twisted the door knob only to find it locked. "So you don't have to worry about your precious cub giving all of his attention to him, instead of you."

The door opened quickly and swiftly, Sasuke's dark eyes glaring at him from under thick bangs. He was dressed in a pair of comfortable dress pants and a beige sweater, his collar hanging loosely around his neck. If Kakashi didn't know any better, he'd have to say his pet looked thoroughly... pissed.

"My, you look awful today," Kakashi raised one brow, the other eye hidden beneath his usual bandages.

"What is it that you want?" Sasuke hissed.

"You've been ignoring Naruto-kun for the past two days, as well as Seung. If I were to throw in my two cents, I'd have to say you were... jealous? It's quite normal for a male to become jealous when another male enters the household and is around his female, but Naruto is most definitely not a female. I'm curious as to what's running through your head, Sasuke."

Sasuke sighed and let his owner enter his room, quietly closing the door behind him.

"Kakashi, I don't know what's wrong with me. I... I'm developing these feelings for Naruto that shouldn't be there. I need to mate with Sakura and create a new line of Purebloods, but I..."

Kakashi smiled underneath his wrappings. "You want to have Naruto-kun as your mate?"

Sasuke growled and sat down on his bed, rubbing at his temples.

"He's my son and he's so small. Not only that, but I don't want anything to happen to him if the public found out."

"Sasuke, I raised you as far more than just my pet," Kakashi started. "I taught you morals and human behaviors, and I always told both you and Itachi that you needn't go by society's standards. You may not be the same as me or Lukki, but you aren't just an animal either. You choose for yourself what you want, what you need to do. If you would prefer to be with Naruto-kun thank with Sakura, then that can be arranged. I only hope you know what kind of wrath you'll bring upon yourself when she's told."

Sasuke smirked.

"I would hate to hurt her feelings, but this is how I truly feel. I don't want to be unhappy with her."

"I understand," Kakashi nodded and crossed his arms, leaning against the wall. "Just tell me... when did these feelings come about?"

The leopard threw his owner an expression of wonder, as if he didn't even know the answer himself. "I'm not sure..."

Kakashi chuckled. "Just don't do anything stupid. Treat him well and keep him safe. I would be devastated if our little Naruto-kun were to be hurt in any way," his one revealed eye danced in amusement. "Just remember that Seung comes with the deal of having him as your mate. You can't keep ignoring him."

Sasuke scoffed. "I know."

"You just don't like Naruto-kun attention being focused on him, is that it? Like I said, I talked with Yamato-san and Seung will be given to him once he comes of age. You'll only need to be around him for a few more weeks until he leaves. Now, Naruto-kun and Seung are outside, and I'm sure they'd love for you to join them. Why don't you spend the rest of the afternoon with them?"

Nodding, the handsome leopard stood and brushed himself off, running his fingers through his dark hair. "You have no problem with me taking Naruto as my mate?"

"Not at all. I expect you to follow your heart, as cheesy and cliche as it sounds. Now get going," Kakashi waved his hand. "Dinner will be ready in two hours, so be in by then."

"Hai," Sasuke nodded his head and exited the bedroom, being eyed by a very alert Kyuubi who was lying on the kitchen couch in his animal form. He let out a sound of approval toward the leopard and Sasuke smirked, watching as Itachi came strolling down the hallway.

The albino stopped mid-stroll and stared at his little brother.

"Your scent is mildly fruity this afternoon, Otouto," he teased, causing his brother to scowl at him. "You always give off this aroma when you're in a fairly chipper mood. I'm guessing it has to do with Naruto-kun?"

Sasuke let loose the faintest of fanged grins before he masked his face again. But Itachi saw the slip up and his dark eyes narrowed.

"Well, this is unexpected. I thought you would know better than to take him as your mate."

"Don't start on me, Aniki," the youngest of the two growled. "You're a hypocrite. You're judging me for what I'm doing, when your lover is a fox. Your cubs are obviously not going to be Purebloods."

Itachi glared daggers at him.

"I have to stay with him, I have no choice in the matter. I'm paying for my mistakes."

"Bullshit, Itachi. You can't tell me you don't love him!" he knew Kyuubi was listening, but he didn't quiet himself. "I've seen the way you look at him, the way your body relaxes when you're beside him. Us pets were made for multiple breeding, but we still have the instincts of humans. We still have the basic instinct to mate with only one other. You're clearly showing signs of that."

Itachi remained silent as his brother continued on.

"Don't let your pride get in the way of your... human feelings, Aniki," the word 'human' rolled off of his tongue in an odd manner. Never before had he referred to himself as a human... "I made that mistake... but I'm correcting myself now. You should do the same. Before you know it..."

He remembered Naruto's lifeless body lying on the operating table in Kimimaro's office. He could still picture the pale face of his cub, the way his mouth was slack, the veins jutting out from his skin...

"...He'll be gone..." a realization came to him. He'd always loved Naruto, ever since he'd seen him alone at that Showcase... "Then you'll regret never acting, never showing him how you really feel..." he sighed and stepped back. "I have to go. Forgive me for talking out of place..."

Turning on his heel, he left the hallway and went into the kitchen.

Itachi remained motionless, his eyes only moving to land on Kyuubi's animal form on the sofa. His red eyes gleamed at him, full of curiousity, wonder, and a hint of... pain. Surely the fox didn't... love him. They had agreed on only staying with each other until the cubs were born, no strings attached, nothing. But even he could feel it, feel the shifts in their relationship. It was so strange, so bothersome, so... human.

Walking over to the gorgeous fox, he sat down next to him and reached a frail hand out to pet dark red fur. He watched Kyuubi slowly relax and close his eyes, burying his head against one of the couch cushions.

"Never had I thought of myself as human," Itachi muttered softly. "But lately, I have been feeling a lot of human emotions... Kyuubi, have you felt them too?"

Kyuubi was asleep, though, his breathing deep and silent.

Itachi's lips twitched.

"And just maybe... I want to continue to feel like a human. I want to continue to feel this..." he continued to pet Kyuubi's fur coat. "I want to keep these feelings..."

xXxXx

Seung continued to run around and chase after butterflies, having caught not a single one yet. Just like his father, he was determined and wouldn't give up until he at least had one of the insects in his hands. Leaping high into the air, he missed one by an inch and ended up tumbling back into the sandbox that Kakashi had got the day before for him.

He puffed his cheeks out, but blinked large eyes as he saw Sasuke, upside-down, in his vision. "Sofu?(1)"

"Susu Oppa!" Naruto chirped as his saw his father from his spot by a flower bed. "Did you come out to play with us?"

Sasuke smiled fondly, lifting Seung up into his arms. "Something like that..." he held the kitten up high and watched him as he giggled and squirmed. He looked so much like Naruto had when he was smaller... "I'm sorry I haven't paid much attention to you, cub."

"My name's Seung," the cub pouted in a very Naruto-like manner. "Sofu," he grinned.

Sasuke's brow twitched. "I'm not quite that old yet."

"But you're Papa's papa, so you're my sofu!" Seung stated matter-of-factly.

Chuckling, the leopard put Seung down and watched him run off to continue his attempt at catching a butterfly. Glancing over at Naruto, he walked in his direction and sat down in the grass, plopping a hand on the boy's head.

Naruto laughed and grinned. "I've missed you! What've you been doing in your room all that time?"

"A really large puzzle," Sasuke lied with a smirk.

"Liar!" Naruto snickered. "You hate puzzles!"

"Ah, that's true."

They remained there in silence for the next few minutes while Seung continued to play, just enjoying the sunshine and nature. It wasn't every day they got to enjoy each other's company like this and they were going to soak it up for all it was worth.

"The next Showcase... it's in a month, right?" Naruto suddenly asked. "Do you think Seung will be old enough to enter the junior division?"

Sasuke kept his gaze on the passing clouds as he answered.

"He'll be old enough, but... I don't think he'll be with us then."

Naruto's eyes widened. "What?"

"Kakashi signed an agreement with Yamato-san, stating that once Seung becomes old enough, he'll be given to him. I know you're upset, but Kakashi can't care for all of us," Sasuke rubbed his son's shoulder in a comforting manner. "But you'll be able to see him every now and then, so don't be sad."

The blond couldn't hold back his pout and whiny whimper. "I want to keep him..."

"I know you do, but it's for the best. He'll be in a much bigger home, with a lot of other cubs like him. I'm sure Sai will take good care of him too," he almost didn't say the last part, but he knew how much Naruto was fond of him.

Naruto's ears perked up and he smiled. "Yeah, Sai'll take good care of him!"

Sasuke smiled and tugged his cub against him, messing up his hair in an affectionate manner. Oh, how he adored the boy.

xXxXx

Naruto yawned as he fell back on his and Sasuke's large bed, having already put Seung to bed in Kakashi's room, where the owner preferred him to be. He didn't want any kittens getting up in the middle of the night to raid the fridge again. Rolling over, the young cat cuddled into the blankets and purred contently.

"You seem tired," Sasuke commented while taking off his shirt and pants, leaving himself in a pair of silky blue boxers. It was hot out these days and he refused to sleep in his thick winter pajamas.

"I was chasing after Seung alllll day," Naruto whined. "He's so quick, I can't keep up with him! Was I like that when I first got here? I don't even remember."

Sasuke smiled. "You were quite the ball of energy. I couldn't put you down for two seconds without you running off through the house."

Naruto laughed. "What were you like as a kitten, Susu Oppa?"

"...I don't like to think about those times," he tried not to growl. "When I do, I question myself..."

"Oh... Well, I hope you'll tell me about it someday," Naruto didn't want to pry, no matter how curious he was. "I don't like it when you keep secrets from me."

Inhaling deeply, Sasuke got rid of the slight nostalgia he'd felt with Naruto's question and laid down in bed. Turning off the lamp light, he turned toward the clouded leopard and stared at his outline in the dark.

"Susu Oppa...?"

"Hm?"

"I love you."

Sasuke's arms moved on their own accord and pulled the frame of the smaller male against him, pressing a soft face against his neck. There was a muffled gasp of surprise and he chuckled deeply. Pressing his hand into golden locks, he played with the soft strands.

"I've been thinking..." Sasuke began, "about what I was doing with myself these past few months. I was so concerned with creating Pureblood cubs with Sakura that I didn't even take time to really roll over my own desires in my head, my own wants, my own needs... I was so caught up in my role as a pet that I didn't stop to think with my own mind, use my human thoughts."

"Human... thoughts?" Naruto was blushing at the close contact with the older feline.

"When Kakashi took me and Itachi in, he treated us like we were human children, with the few exceptions of our needs as pets. He taught us to think like people, not animals. I just never realized where the line between human and animal thoughts was..." Sasuke rubbed Naruto's back. "I found that line today... and I realized I was teetering on the edge of it. I want to follow what my human side wants..."

"Susu Oppa... what're you talking about?" Naruto squirmed against his father figure, confused with what Sasuke was talking about.

"You'll figure it out once you're older," the leopard smiled kindly. "You'll have to choose between your human and animal side at some point in your life. But just know now that I'm going to stay with what I've chosen..."

Naruto pulled back lightly and looked up in the dark at Sasuke, not being able to see as well in the dark as when he was a cat. "What have you chosen...?"

"Naruto..." Sasuke reached up and cupped the boy's cheek, leaning down to press his forehead against the blond's. "Do you still love me?"

Naruto flushed hotly and nodded, his bangs obscuring his eyes and tickling his nose.

Sasuke leaned in closer and brushed his lips against light pink ones.

"I love you, too, Naruto."

Blue eyes widened as far as they could go, tears suddenly springing to life. There was the feeling in those words that Naruto could hear in his own when he said them to the older cat... Was this all real? Were his feelings really being returned?

"S-Susu Oppa..." his voice trembled and his eyes slipped shut as lips pressed against his, sending a jolt of pleasurable electricity down his spine. His heart was pounding in his chest, but he didn't care. If he was going to die, he wanted to die in the arms that were securely wrapped around him. He let himself be engulfed by the sensation, so much so that he didn't even realize when those lips pulled away from his until his chin was lifted up.

Eyes slowly opening, he realized he'd been crying and he blushed in embarrassment, wiping at his damp cheeks and lashes.

"I've chosen you over Sakura, over more cubs, over everything else..." Sasuke whispered and held his cub's hands in his, rubbing his thumbs over soft palms. "I've chosen you to be my mate."

"M-m-mate," Naruto uttered the word as if it were sacred. Then a full-fledge smile bloomed on his face, bright enough for Sasuke to see in the dark.

"What do you say?"

"I accept!" Naruto giggled and hugged Sasuke tightly, not knowing how his life could get any better than it was at that moment.

(1) Sofu means grandfather in Japanese.

I hope you liked this chapter! It had SasuNaru fluffiness and the right amount of... drama-ishness? XD Please leave reviews!