Paradise Found Chapter 37: The End Draws Near, a naruto fanfic

A/N: Sorry this is so late coming...I've had a rough coupla weeks...NO INTERNET!! /cry. Also, i might not update for a few days even though I'm writing because a childhood friend of mine is back in the states for a two week leave before going back to Iraq. As always, enjoy the story and I own NOTHING!!

Chapter 37: The End Draws Near

Lotus knew the second someone unfamiliar to her was at the safe house. She knew it would be bad if anyone found her, so she hid herself away from sight…blended with her surroundings. She heard a quiet knock at the door, and then the door opening quietly. From her spot, Lotus noticed that there was the barrel of a gun poking into the door.

"Knock knock pretty lady." came a quiet voice. Lotus cocked her head and wondered what the man was all about. She watched as the man slowly pushed his way in and started looking around. She decided to find out why he was here and used the lightest touch she could to look into him mind. What she found disturbed her. This man was just like Madara, only stupider.

Angered, Lotus gave a wicked smile and made herself visible. She saw the perverted smile that appeared on the man's face and her gut twisted. She noticed he pointed the gun at her. She arched a brow as he came closer to her.

"Now now, pretty lady. We're going to have some fun." Lotus could feel his excitement and it made her sick. She decided to take her hatred for Madara out on this man. She allowed him to stalk closer to her, until the door swung shut behind him. That door closed the two of them off from the world, and only the pain filled screams of the unfortunate stalker were heard after it shut. There were no neighbors, so Lotus' small revenge was never disturbed.

"Easy there big guy. I'm not going to hurt you." Came a smooth voice from the shadows. Beady eyes glared at him from the half eaten corpse of the scientist. The man walked out of the shadows, smiling in a friendly manner. "My name is Suigetsu…I heard your name is Juugo. Are you enjoying that little snack?" Juugo growled, crouching lower over his meal.

"Mine." he growled menacingly. Suigetsu smiled and held up his hands.

"You can have him…I prefer mine cooked. Do you remember how you came to be here?" the beady eyes glared at him once more. He took that as a yes. Before he could say anything, Juugo finished eating and stared at him hungrily. Suigetsu sweat dropped.

"I can give you a chance at Madara…" Suigetsu noticed Juugo froze.

"How?" the monster growled. Suigetsu smiled again. Juugo's temper snapped and he rushed Suigetsu. With a yelp, the silver haired piranha-like man dissolved into water, slipping around the large cannibal. He reformed and found Juugo staring at him with wide eyes, little stars floating around his head. "Pwetty…" Suigetsu sweat dropped and watched the large cannibal sit on his backside.

"Watery man be Juugo's friend? He help Juugo kill fleshie-dara?" Juugo had one finger in his mouth, looking at Suigetsu. With a piranha-like smile, Suigetsu nodded and agreed.

"Yes…Suigetsu will help Juugo kill Madara." Suigetsu saw the sharp teeth of the cannibal as he smiled. Suigetsu smiled himself and laughed evilly. Madara would pay for using people in his awful experiments.

Ino smiled as she walked with the little girl to meet her twin. She seemed very eager. She would sometimes stop and sniff the air, much like an inquisitive dog, but she always started moving when Ino gave her hand a slight tug. Ino could feel Kiba's eyes on her and it made her blush lightly. Gin seemed oblivious, but Tenten and Neji were not. Tenten smiled at Ino when their eyes met and Neji smirked at his lover for the way she was acting.

Gin would, every so often, run back to Tenten. She would hide on the side away from Neji, looking at Neji warily. Neji would arch a brow and the little red eyed girl would run back to Ino, a light yip coming from her. It made Neji smirk more for the girl to act this way.

Ino took a deep breath as they reached their destination. She crouched by the little girl and smoothed her fingers through the child's hair. She spoke lightly to the child. "Tsume is in this room. But…there are lots of people you don't know in here as well. Do NOT bite anyone, do you understand? If you are scared, Akamaru, Kiba, or I will protect you, okay?" the girl nodded and looked back at Tenten, her gaze grazing Neji. She made an inquiring whimper and Ino looked back at the two. "I'm sure they will protect you as well." Ino smiled at the girl and stood. She was surprised when the girl held her arms up, wanting to be picked up. She smiled and picked the child up, while the girl curled her hand in Ino's long blonde hair and put on a brave face. Kiba smirked and opened the door.

Ino walked in and noticed a few things right away: first, Naruto and Hinata were missing; second, Gaara looked angry; third, Lacey, Lee, Shino and Sai had three toddlers between the four of them; and lastly, Temari was holding a still sleeping Tsume like a mother lion guarding it's cub. Ino heard the whine coming from Gin and put the little girl down. The silver haired little girl ran over to her brother, shaking his shoulder. When he didn't stir immediately, the little girl started growling at Temari, who looked at the girl with narrowed eyes.

Ino cleared her throat and Gin looked up at her, indecision in those red eyes. Gin relented and just stared at her brother. She made more whining noises and whimpered a few time. She even barked twice, then resorted to growling. Gin pulled her brother's hair, making him yip in surprise. Temari reacted and popped the girl, making her yelp. Gin shot back over to Ino, tears in her eyes. Ino instantly became indignant. She glared at Temari, who glared back. But Temari lost when Tsume woke and caught sight of his whimpering sister.

He started struggling anew, kicking, growling, and barking. He managed to get loose and rushed to his sister. Gin ran at him and they collided in a mass of long legs and happy yips. Temari had tears in her eyes and Ino felt for the other blonde. She shook her head and walked over to the two siblings, sinking to her knees in a crouch. Tsume rolled and put his sister behind him, his hair standing up.

There was a growl and the boy looked at his sister, who crawled over to Ino, her head on Ino's leg. She whined and looked at her brother, who came over to Ino and sniffed her, much like Gin had in the beginning. Kiba walked over, Akamaru at his side, and put his hand in Ino's hair. It was a blatant claim that both the younger canines understood and that Lacey understood as well. Tsume bowed his head in submission and looked back at Temari, who looked like she wanted to reach out for the boy. He smiled at her and scampered back over to her, his head on her thigh.

He made a whining bark and watched as his sister slowly crept towards the two of them. Temari sat there, her eyes wide, not understanding what was going on. She heard the little girl growling, her teeth bared. Temari arched one brow, but did nothing else. She seemed to have passed the test, because the little girl gave an inquiring yip and crawled over to her and sniffed her, much like Tsume had with Ino.

The young girl nuzzled her, much like Akamaru would, and then pounced on her brother. They wrestled, making everyone laugh lightly. However, Ino cleared her throat and looked at Temari. There was a mutual understanding between the two. "Tsume needs a bath. I'm sure Akamaru wouldn't mind helping him, but Kiba is going to have to bathe him. He's too old for you to do it Temari." Temari looked down at Tsume, who looked unsure. Kiba sat down next to Akamaru and barked something. Tsume sat up straight, staring intently at Kiba, who made a series of yips, growls, and light barks.

Gin added a few things in, her eyes big as she 'talked' to her brother. The boy looked a little unsure until Gin touched her teeth. The boy's expression lit up and he crawled over to Kiba, his nose investigating. Gin pounced on her brother again, growling in what seemed to be a teasing manner. Kiba laughed and shook his head. He looked up to see people looking at him expectantly.

"She's telling him he stinks." everyone laughed, including Gaara. The tension seemed to leave the group for the first time. A whimper brought their attention to the little girls that Lacey and Lee were holding. They were waking up. The wolf twins perked and rushed over to the toddlers, little yips and growls making their interest known. Kiba growled in a commanding tone and both the twins rushed over to him, Gin lying in his lap and Tsume with his head on his sister's belly.

Kiba barked once and Gin nodded, crawling into Ino's lap. Tsume looked at his sister, then at Kiba, and then at Temari. Temari smiled encouragingly at him and the young boy whimpered. He crawled over to Temari and whined, much like Akamaru did when he was unsure. Temari lifted him into her lap and kissed his forehead.

"I will be here when you get back, little one." she hugged him and then put him on his feet. "Now scoot. You need a bath." she smiled, even though her stomach was churning. The child seemed to sense this and laid his shaggy head in her lap. She suppressed a sob and laughed, little tears pricking her eyes. "I'll be alright, Tsume. Go get clean…I can wait for you. Hurry up, little one." Tsume yipped and ran to Kiba, pulling on his arm. Kiba nodded and took the clothes from Eto before walking out, Akamaru right behind him.

Temari sighed and Ino could see the sadness in her face. Ino nudged Gin, who looked at Temari warily. She then crawled over to Temari, who smiled at her and patted her head. "Hello little one. Your brother is very sweet. You are lucky to have him. Take care of him, little one, because he needs you." Gaara froze…so that was what this was about. She still felt guilty about what happened to him. He walked over to his sister, much to Gin's irritation. She started growling at him, the hair on her back standing up.

Ino rushed to the girl and picked her up. The blonde looked up at him and smiled nervously. "S-sorry, Gaara-sama. I-I promise, she w-won't do that again…" Gaara held up a hand and stopped her.

"It's alright Ino. She can sense Shukaku. She is right to be wary. She has become attached to Temari because of Tsume's attachment to my sister. Instincts often keep one alive when everything else fails. I will not begrudge her that." Gaara leaned down and looked Gin in the eyes. The little girl stopped growling, her hair settling back to it's original position. She surprised everyone and butted heads with Gaara, who smiled at her.

"We have an understand then, little wolf?" he asked quietly. The girl yipped and wiggled out of Ino's arms, crawling into Temari's lap and sighing in content. Gin fell asleep in Temari's lap, waiting for her brother.

Deidara, Sasori, Kisame, and Itachi were outside the barrier. All four of them stared, not sure what to do. Suddenly, a man with blonde hair and blue eyes appeared. He seemed extremely friendly. "You guys must be the ones Sakura-chan told me and Hinata-chan about. Follow me…she wants to talk to you." the four looked at one another and then at the blonde youth that was walking closer to the barrier than they had previously been able to.

The four shrugged and followed. They were surprised when they were able to pass through the barrier with no problems. Naruto smiled broadly and chuckled. "This way." the young man ran for the side of the house. They followed and found themselves in a beautiful garden. They all gasped and looked around. The youth looked at them and held out his hand. "My name's Naruto. I'm one of Sakura-chan's new operatives. Sakura-chan told me that you guys will be working for her from now on. That's cool. She's really nice and she can teach you a lot about yourselves if you let her." all four looked at him and Naruto just shrugged, dropping his hand. He opened a door and the four walked in. It was a small hallway. Naruto shut the door and it seemed to disappear. Naruto didn't seem to notice, so the other four ignored it. They went up a flight of stairs and down another hallway. Naruto stopped outside a door.

"This is it. Sakura-chan is inside. I can't go with you. See ya!" he smiled again and rushed off, waving. Deidara smiled and waved goodbye, earning a growl from Sasori. Deidara gave his lover an impish grin.

"What's the matter, Danna? Jealous of that kid?" Sasori walked over to him, his eyes cool. Deidara's breathing hitched as his lover pressed against him ever so lightly.

"Why would I be? The kid is obviously not interested in what's mine. He's overly friendly from the looks." Deidara glared, his lip poking out in a pout. Sasori growled again and whispered in the blonde's ear, making him blush. Deidara held up his hands. "Ne, ne…don't be like that Sasori-danna…" their conversation was interrupted when the doors before them opened on their own. The four men looked in to see Sakura sitting in a rocking chair, a child sleeping in her arms.

They took in her long, silvery pink hair that curled around her. She had on a soft, three quarter length sleeve black shirt and tight camouflage pants. She was barefoot, much to their surprise. It was not often she was seen without her bulky black combat boots. Her beautiful emerald eyes were framed by thick black lashes. She didn't have any makeup on.

Itachi walked in, followed by his lover and two companions. "You have need of us, Sakura-sama?" he asked as he bowed to her. He noticed the child lying on her chest, his small hand curled into her hair. All four blushed lightly, as it seemed this was an intimate moment between a mother and her child. Sakura chuckled lightly and motioned them to sit.

"Thank you for coming at such short notice. I have need of your services. As you may have heard around Gokuraku, I made a recent raid on The Center. I retrieved seven toddlers, including this one, between the ages of two and five. I have appointed some of my operatives to take care of them." the four nodded, the faces grim. They remembered hearing that a new batch of kids had been taken to Astair.

"I also sent several kids to Astair. They were older than the kids my operatives took in. Several are…very unique." Sakura then looked at Kisame, who cursed under his breath. He shook his head and sighed. Sakura smiled and leaned up. The child stirred slightly, but Sakura shushed him. She laid him on the bed and covered him up. He settled down after a few minutes and continued to sleep.

Sakura walked over to them, her eyes shining. She first went to Itachi, who regarded her warily. She smiled and held up her hands. "I can heal your eyes completely, but you must have faith. I can also repair the damage your father did to you, but I can only do so with your consent." Itachi stared at her.

"Why would you help us? We have done…horrible things…" Itachi turned away from her, sadness in his mind and heart. Sakura put her hand on his shoulder and he gasped. He could see images flashing before his eyes. This foreign to him…from another world.

"I know the pain of losing everything you loved. Your father is a monster, Itachi, not you. What he did to you…to your family…it's unforgivable. Your father has bred the same evil in your younger brother. Sasuke preys on young women…much like your father did at his age. Madara faked his own death and has observed from the shadows what has become of Sasuke. Two of the girls in my care were his victims. He also wishes to do the same to me." Itachi looked so heart broke. Kisame hugged the younger man to him, whispering things to him.

Sakura looked up at Kisame and smiled. "You are very special, Kisame…and not because of how you look. There is a rare kindness in you…a strength that Itachi will need. I wish I could give you what you want and make you look human, but…it was not experiments that turned you this way. Unlike most people, your kekkei genkai manifests itself physically. Trying to change you will eventually kill you." Kisame looked down at her, shocked. He looked at himself, his blue skin and the markings he had.

"This…my what did this?" he sounded slightly afraid, but Sakura smiled.

"Your kekkei genkai. Like Itachi's Sharingan, your kekkei genkai has manifested itself physically. You are a water based transmogrifier-a shape shifter." Kisame looked like a deer in the head lights. Sakura shook her head and smiled at him.

"I have to introduce you to Drake and Talon. Much like you, they are too much like their animal counterparts to live in normal society. Tig, Diamond, and Cami are still too young to be showing much of their animal others, but with Tig being part Siberian tiger, she wont be able to hide for long. Diamond's skin is starting to show the faint patterns of her reptilian counterpart and Cami…she's climbing the walls from stress…literally." Kisame was relieved to find there were others like him…he wasn't alone.

"What animals are Drake and Talon, un?" Deidara was curious now. He'd never seen anyone else like their blue skinned shark companion. Sakura looked sad as she looked at Kisame.

"Talon is a raptor…a bird of prey. He's a mixture of several actually. Drake…we aren't sure what he is. At first we thought he was a bird class, but his wings…they are unusual for a bird class. Also, his horns make him seem almost draconic. However, we have never come across anyone manifesting a dragon or even if dragons even existed in this time for space. The only explanation for his possible acquisition of draconic properties would be if Madara had used pieces from my world to trigger Drake's change. In that case…Drake's kekkei genkai is unnatural…and potentially lethal." Sakura looked sad. Deidara gasped and turned to Sasori, who allowed him to bury his face in the red head's shoulder.

Kisame winced…that wasn't good. Sakura smiled sadly and looked at Itachi. She held her hands up, hovering on either side of his face. "Do you wish me to restore what Madara stole from you?" she asked quietly, looking into his black eyes. Itachi looked at Kisame, who smiled at him. Itachi took his hand and squeezed. Itachi looked at Sakura and nodded.

"Please…I…I would like to be whole again…" he whispered. Sakura smiled and gently touched either side of Itachi's face. Something went through Itachi. It felt like a spring breeze, cool and refreshing. Kisame watched as Sakura worked her magic on his lover. Itachi's color became better, he wasn't so pale. It seemed that life had returned to the young man.

Sakura removed her hands and smiled at them. She swayed slightly, but sat in her chair quickly. She looked at them and smiled. "As I stated before, I am in need of your services. It has come to my attention that Astair has more kids than she can accommodate and care for. There are several older kids there who don't need as much care. I want you to take the males between seventeen and nineteen and start training them. I will send Hidan to assist you, but he has a small child to care for now." She noticed the surprised looks from Sasori and Deidara, but the grimaces from Kisame and Itachi. She chuckled.

"I take it you met the little one attached to Hidan?" Kisame grunted in affirmation while Itachi shook his head, sighing.

"That woman of his can be violent over that child. I thought she'd take his head off when he almost cursed in front of her. Not to mention she was beating on me for waking the kid up." Kisame rubbed his chest in remembrance. Sakura chuckled.

"So…my hunch was right…Hidan likes her." four different colored eyebrows arched at her. She chuckled again, but then looked at them with sober eyes. "I won't have you harassing him. He has a hard time with relationships and attachments without you guys hassling him." all four nodded, not wanting to piss their new boss off.

Sakura sighed and motioned them closer to her. "Every person that lives in Gokuraku has a barrier in the minds set up by myself. You guys will be getting yours today. I will come to Gokuraku in three days to put the barriers in every new person in the village. I also have to bring the bi-weekly supplies for Astair." the four men nodded and crouched in front of her so that she would not need to get up. She smiled and touched their heads, one by one. When she was done, her eyes were drooping. They looked at her, concerned, but she just chuckled.

"I have not slept in several days and I have used much of my energy. Go…you know your mission. Take care of those boys, train them like you would train your own sons. Give them the role models they so desperately need." she said in a sleepy tone. They looked at her and nodded. They bowed, thanked her, and then disappeared. Tired beyond words, Sakura climbed into her bed and sighed when the little red headed boy snuggled up to her. She fell asleep instantly, not realizing that Gaara was on his way to their room.

Madara glared as Suigetsu managed to convince Juugo to return to his cell. The water shaper was up to something…Madara could feel it. He glared at the mess Juugo had made. There were half eaten and maimed corpses all through the lab. Blood was smeared on the walls where the other scientists had tried to get away from the cannibal…unsuccessfully.

Madara sighed, his irritation turning to weariness. He'd lost all but four of his researchers, his equipment was destroyed, his test subjects were gone, Leon was dead…he sniffed at this. He wasn't sad the bug eyed freak was dead, but tracking people with kekkei genkais would be harder without the little freak. He returned to assessing the damage.

His secret weapon, Obito's baby, was gone. This was, by far, his greatest loss thus far. That baby had been his nest egg. Every modification he had failed to produce in his own offspring had been achieved in that baby. He was sure that where ever it was, all his hard work had gone to waste.

All their funds had been wiped out…his accountant had called and informed him that an untraceable transfer had been made and that there was no way to get the money back because their activities weren't exactly legal. He had wandered through his lab and noticed that the practice arena was destroyed as well. All in all…his day really sucked. The only good thing about it was that Lotus was not here for Sakura to attack. He smirked…the Haruno would pay dearly for her actions. He would use Lotus to slowly kill the Haruno…piece by piece.

Shino watched his young lover as the child slept in the rolling bed with him. The dark haired artist looked awestruck. The little child, around three, was curled up against him, his little head on Sai's shoulder. Shino could feel Sai's happiness, but also his insecurity and doubt. Shino put his hand on his lover's head, stroking his hair. Sai looked up at him, worry in his eyes.

"We will be fine, Kochou." Shino said encouragingly. Sai smiled and hugged the little boy, who sighed and snuggled up to Sai again. Shino watched as his lover fell asleep once more. He looked up to see Raidu looking at the little boy. There was sadness in the older brother's face. Before Shino could inquire, Raidu began speaking.

"Sai was ten when The Center caught us. They used him as leverage against me. I did everything they wanted to ensure they left him alone. I never told them he was my brother…that little boy…he looks just like Sai did when mom died…small, frail, and terrified." Raidu sighed and looked up, his hands behind his head. He looked Shino in the eyes. "Hoody…you love my brother…right?" Shino blushed, but nodded nonetheless. Raidu smiled and looked at his brother again. "Good…protect him where I couldn't." Shino watched as Raidu walked out of the room. He could feel the sadness radiating from his lover's older brother.

He shook his head and looked back down at Sai, who was blissfully unaware of his brother's inner struggle.

Raidu walked down the halls, wishing that he could have protect his brother better. He thanked the heavens that Sakura had found him and saved him, otherwise things would be a lot harder for Raidu. He sighed and walked into a room, shutting the door. He needed to be alone for a while. He laid back on the bed and thought about the last time he'd tried sleeping. He'd managed to spend time with Lotus in the world between sleep and wake. It had made him happy.

He laid back and wondered what Lotus had meant when she had said she was 'incomplete'. Since he had met her, he had researched everything he could, even hacking into the Center's mainframe computer to learn more. However, there was one aspect to her 'design' that was labeled 'Top Secret' and he couldn't hack into it. He wanted to know what it was that made her feel incomplete. She had a soul, that he'd learned from stumbling in on her conversation with Sakura. He closed his eyes, seeking her. He wanted to know why she stayed when it was obvious she didn't have to.

He waited for her, in the dream world. When she came, she looked upset. He ran to her and looked her over, asking her what was wrong. She had told him about her encounter and he cursed. She smiled up at him and put her hand on his cheek, calming him. He took her hand in his and kissed her palm.

"Lotus…why are you still there…why do you stay at the Center? There isn't a need for you to any longer. Why won't you come stay with me?" he asked, his eyes sad. She looked away, a pained look in her eyes.

"Raidu…I'm incomplete. I can't be what you want me to be unless I become complete. In order to do that, I have to crack the files on old man Yamato's hard drive. The files you access from the Center's main computer don't hold the files I'm trying to crack…only his personal computer that's in Madara's office." Raidu still didn't understand. He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her. Lotus gasped and he deepened the kiss. She moaned and kissed him back.

When they broke apart, Raidu looked at her. "Lotus…I don't care what you think isn't complete about you…I love you no matter what. It's killing me to be apart from you…" he put her hand on his chest, over his heart. Lotus' own heart flipped as she felt the beat of his heart. "My heart aches without you Lotus…" he whispered. Lotus kissed him lightly and put her forehead to his.

"Soon…I'm almost done, Raidu. I've almost cracked it…when I find out what I need to know…there won't be anything that can separate us…" she whispered. She looked at him with sad eyes and kissed him again. "I must go. The sooner I return to hacking Yamato's computer, the sooner I can fix what they did to me." she whispered. Raidu reached for her, but she faded. Raidu jerked up in his bed, staring around wildly for her. He let out a heart wrenching cry and curled in on himself, clutching his chest.

"Lotus…why are you so interested in Yamato's research? Is this about you, or maybe-" the young scientist didn't get to finish as Lotus turned her emotionless eyes on him. Those silver eyes with absolutely no emotion in them were rather unnerving. The scientist gulped.

"If there is a weakness in my physical form, there is sure to be someone to exploit that. I want to know, so that I can condition the weakness out." the scientist nodded and shut the door behind him. With a flick of her wrist, the door was locked, preventing any intrusion. She went about hacking the information, decoding portions she had re-encrypted just in case someone wanted to go in behind her and observe her work.

She stared at the screen as she typed in rapid codes that were decoding the information Yamato had not entrusted to Madara…and rightly so. After Lotus' creation, Madara had killed Yamato to ensure that Yamato could never turn the construct against him. Lotus came across a file she had never seen before. It was labeled 'Project Crystal'. She opened it and read it. Her stomach turned.

Seems Madara had tried once before, with a small piece of Sakura's home world. Madara had used gene splicing to create an embryo, which he had implanted with pieces of the dreamstone, which Lotus herself was created from, and also a fragment of Sakura's home planet. Her 'birth' had been gory and ugly, killing the mother slowly and painfully. When the child was born, she had exhibited no special talents at all. Madara was going to kill her until Minotsu had taken her as his own child, claiming it a waste to talent to just outright kill the child. He had told them that, since he wanted a child, he would take the girl as his own.

Lotus closed out the files and went on decoding. Her eyes widened slightly when she came across a file she had not been expecting to find…a design to activate Lotus' reproductive capabilities. Lotus read through the file, memorized the data, and then destroyed it. She could not afford for Madara to ever learn that she COULD produce offspring…IF the capabilities were activated. Lotus smiled on the inside…that was one thing down. Only one more thing to find and then she could get out and be with Raidu.

Gaara made his way out of the crowded room and to his mate's room. He sensed her weariness and sighed. He was tired as well. He walked in and found her sleeping, the child in her arms. He smiled and took off his tight black shirt. He removed his shoes and socks and climbed into the bed behind her. She made a noise and he chuckled. He was asleep minutes after he laid down.