Hey there!
It's CRAZY to think I haven't updated this story in almost an entire school year.
I had a bit of writer's block after finishing the last chapter, and with high school hanging ominously over my head I didn't have much of a chance to get back into the Naruto groove.
For that, I apologize. Despite the fact that I haven't updated this story in a long time I was amazed and inspired at the amount of traffic this story still garnered, along with there still being lots of favorites and alerts being added.
I humbly bow to all of those who have followed this story thus far and ask that you forgive me for making you wait so long. I praise all of you who have sent me favorites and alerts and private messages, all of which have encouraged me to keep going, even if it took a long time.
I would like to point out that this is a FLASHBACK chapter! Because we can't have an anime without there being flashbacks! They're practically essential!
ANYWAYS! in this chapter the boys meet Sasuke for the second time, though certainly for much longer than the first time. If you read the end of chapter 19 you'll notice Kakashi mentioning that Iruka mentions that he's going to swing by the Uchiha place with the boys, thus at the very least introducing the boys to Sasuke. This takes place between chapter 18 & 19, shortly after Sonya is recovered (for the most part) from her wonderful bought of pneumonia.
Also, I reread my story and I noticed that there's like a few times where Gai was spelled Gui ... not really sure why that happened, considering the A and U button aren't that close to each other. The only thing I can think of is that it got spell checked to that, I guess for Graphic User Interface? That's the only thing I can think of o_O
ENJOY!
FLASHBACK!
Kakashi's PoV
"We're going the right way, right?" Sonya asked as she peered at the houses around her.
"For the last time, yes." I answered back sending a sidelong annoyed look at her. She childishly stuck her tongue out, before she coughed into her hand. She had just gotten over her pneumonia, though she was still coughing. If I could have she would've still been at home resting, but she threatened to throw potted plants at me so I agreed to let her walk the boys to the Uchiha compound.
"Where are we going Mommy?" Naruto asked as he walked hand-in-hand with Sonya. Gaara was on the other side of her, also holding her hand.
"Well, that nice man Itachi, the one who escorted me home awhile ago? He has a younger brother around your age! So I thought it would be nice to set up a playdate! He probably gets lonely in that big compound of his, and I heard from Iruka that you had already met him when he had to go by his house while he was babysitting you when I was sick. Besides, you need to play with someone else other than me and Kakashi." Sonya answered smiling.
"We play with Kitsune and Panda and Goaty! Don't they count?" Naruto protested loudly.
"And Iruka." Gaara added quietly.
Sonya's steps faltered for a bit and I saw her eye twitch. I chuckled lightly, wondering how she'd get out of that trap.
"Uhm, well yes, but you need to play with real people also. Other than Iruka. You need kids your own age. Our puppets are great and all, but uh, they probably need a break too." Sonya answered, glaring at me.
Understatement. Kitsune had gotten jam in his tail, Goaty's beard had been used as a painting brush by Naruto, and Panda ... well the Panda was fine, but that was because Gaara didn't let anyone near him, on penalty of the doom glare.
They hadn't had those puppets for very long but they were already being subject to torture in the Mikozumi household. It would be easy to place the blame on mostly just Naruto (considering Gaara hated anything messy) but Sonya was just as bad. She loved to fingerpaint, roll in the grass, make mudcakes, bake and ice on funny designs, and other equally messy activities that usually resulted in everyone getting a bath that night. If you weren't joining in on the fun, then Sonya would bring the fun to you, which was usually worse.
Shaking my head I continued walking. Sonya swung her hands back and forth and started loudly singing making Naruto laugh loudly as he jostled, while Gaara just looked mildly annoyed.
As we made our way into the Uchiha compound we stopped in front of the main household's sliding door. Sonya moved to stand next to me, the boys directly behind us. She squinted her eyes, probably trying to see if she could make any silhouettes out behind the door. Shrugging, she raised her hand up to knock.
Before she could rap her knuckles on the slide, it very suddenly opened, revealing a young girl. Sonya 'eep'd and took a step back, not really expecting the door to open.
"You're here for the playdate for Sasuke, correct?" The girl asked us smiling.
"Yes." I answered easily, interrupting Sonya.
The girl bowed and then motioned for us to come into the house.
"Wait here while I retrieve Sasuke and his parents." the girl bowed again and quickly hurried off.
Sonya looked around and let out a low whistle of appreciation as she took in the size and grandeur of the place. Despite the fact that the compound was on practically at the edge of the village, it was still well kept.
"Nice place." She muttered.
Naruto started to wander around and Gaara slowly and silently followed after.
"Soo ... whatcha up to?" Sonya asked as she came to stand next to me, her arms swinging beside her.
"Standing. Next to you. In the Uchiha compund. Waiting." I answered in a monotone voice.
She pouted at me, putting her hands on her hips.
"You're no fun. At least act like you're excited." She begged, bumping her shoulder into mine.
"What do you expect me to say? I'm not doing anything." I retorted back.
"Then make something up! We're here, in a palace, waiting for the magical unicorns to come forth and invite us to icecream with glitter sprinkles!" She exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air.
Naruto and Gaara were amusing themselves by trying to balance on one foot, Naruto talking loudly and mostly falling over, while Gaara stood stock still perfectly balancing on one foot, before Naruto crashed into him, toppling them both over. Gaara angrily muttered something to his brother and Naruto just laughed back.
"I'm not here for your entertainment. Besides, who comes up with something as dumb as that?" I asked smirking, watching her expression change.
Her grin went to an open mouth, which went to an angry frown. She raised her finger and pointed it at me, her mouth opened and I assumed she was about to start her lecture on magical creatures. Reacting quickly, I stuck a hand out and poked her side.
Her face twisted and she made a squeak, her arms flying to cover her exposed middle. Grinning, I stepped over and made a few more jabs at her. She squalled and squeaked, stumbling backyards trying to get away. Finally finding her balance, she stood her ground and started to put her hands out, attacking my sides trying to tickle me. We both stood there jabbing and blocking, laughing at successful attempts and trying to out-wrestle the other.
A throat cleared behind us, and Sonya quickly flew around while I slowly spun on my heel to look at the noise.
Fugaku and his wife Mikoto stood in front of us, Fugaku with an unimpressed look while Mikoto smiled at us. Sasuke was slightly behind his mother, and Itachi stood off to the side of his family, giving me a small nod of greeting. Sonya blushed in embarrassment at being caught in a tickle fight and straightened her shirt before looking over to her boys and letting out a sharp whistle. Gaara and Naruto stopped wrestling each other and came to stand beside Sonya.
"Hello! My name is Sonya Mikozumi and these are my boys Naruto and Gaara." Sonya grinned widely as she did a small head bow.
"I am Fugaku and this is my wife Mikoto. Sasuke and Itachi are our sons." Fugaku nodded his head in acknowledgement toward Sonya.
Mikoto stepped forward and spoke up before anyone else. "Thank you for arranging a playdate with Sasuke. He doesn't play with anyone except his brother, so it will be a nice change to see some new faces." Mikoto smiled as she talked. Sasuke's face turned a bit red and he looked away. Naruto finally noticed the other boy and quickly ran forward, stopping in front of the other boy.
"Hey Sasuke! We came back! It's me Naruto and my brother Gaara!" Naruto declared loudly and held his hand out to the other boy. Sasuke looked at it, before hesitantly grabbing it with his own.
"I'm glad." He said with a small smile. Naruto grinned widely while Gaara gave a small nod.
"Itachi, show them into the back courtyard please. Let them run around for a bit." Fugaku ordered his son while he still stared at Sonya.
Nodding, Itachi walked away with the three boys following him. Naruto turned back to wave at us, and even Gaara twitched his fingers in a small goodbye. I gave them a wave while Sonya grinned and waved back, blowing a kiss with her other hand.
"So, why aren't your boys in the academy with Sasuke? Do they not plan on becoming shinobi? We didn't meet them the last time they were here, only Itachi and Sasuke saw them." Fugaku directed his question toward Sonya, a calculating look on his face.
"Oh, well with the moving and with Gaara recently coming to stay with us I didn't want them to enter into the academy without them being properly settled. I've been teaching them the basics at home and the Hokage has agreed to let them enter in a bit late. They should having their first day in a few weeks! It'll be good for the boys that they'll already know someone in their own age group at the academy." Sonya explained sheepishly, a hand rubbing her neck while she talked.
"I see." Fugaku paused and thought for a moment, then finally continued. "You're welcome to stay with my wife and converse. I have business to attend to. Please excuse me." Fugaku bowed and then turned to leave.
Mikoto stepped to stand beside Sonya.
"I really must thank you again. Sasuke is an easy and loving child, but he doesn't socialize with his age very well."
"Oh no, it's really our pleasure. The boys don't get out very often so it's nice to see them play with someone else their age. If they cause any problems just let me know. Gaara shouldn't but Naruto can be quite energetic ..." Sonya rambled on with Mikoto about her sons, both of them laughing and nodding.
I stood watching, just enjoying looking at her while she smiled and laughed. The boys weren't the only ones who didn't get out very often. Sonya was as shunned by the common people as the boys were. But she seemed ok with that, and it even seemed like she was trying to draw the ire of the villagers towards her rather than her boys. She was still as aggressive as ever, and I often accompanied her while she was out shopping or doing anything else just to make sure no one bothered her, more for their own safety than anything else.
"So when did you and Kakashi get together? You must be well into your relationship if going by the way you act is anything." I was snapped out of my daydreaming when I heard Mikoto question Sonya. Sonya blushed and waved her hands in front of her.
"Oh, i-it's n-not like that! We're not t-together! He's just a really good friend of the family and he helps me out and stuff. He was the first person I met when I came to this village other than Naruto." Sonya tried to explain, but she was stuttering through her words. She turned her head and started to cough into her hand, probably because she was trying to talk too fast.
Walking up I draped my arms across her shoulders. "Don't worry Mikoto, I'll take good care of her." I smiled as convincingly as I could. Mikoto just smiled and nodded while Sonya's face turned beet red and she looked like she was going to kill me when we got out of the house.
"I see. My husband was the same way when I met him, though a bit more with the glares. You do that Kakashi. Well, I'm going to go and check on the boys, have a good day." Mikoto waved and then turned to leave. When she had walked out of sight I suddenly felt an elbow connecting with my ribs. Air woosh'd out of my mouth and I stumbled a few steps back. Sonya looked at me murderously, a fist raised threateningly.
"You're not allowed to embarrass me like that! What's she going to think! I'm not some tart! At least ask me out before you suddenly decide you want to pull a stunt like that!" She stomped out the house and into the courtyard before she stopped and had a coughing fit and I caught up with her.
Females were so confusing.
"Wait!" I put my hand on her shoulder and forced her to look at me. "I didn't mean to make you angry."
She hmph'd and crossed her arms, glaring at me. She opened her mouth to say something but I put a hand over it to stop her.
"Sonya, will you go on a date with me?"
Her eyes widened and shock was written across her face. A few seconds passed and I was seriously starting to regret opening my mouth before her face split into a grin and she squealed, launching herself into my arms.
"Yes!" She yelled loudly and spun both of us in circles, before she started violently coughing. I rubbed circles on her back, trying to calm her down.
"Don't die before our date!"
Females were so confusing ...
Sonya's PoV
I had dropped the boys off at around 2 in the afternoon and now that it was around 5:30, I'd figure it would be a good time to go and pick them up.
After asking me out for a date Kakashi needed to leave to go do something secretive I'm betting, so I had busied myself with baking strawberry cupcakes for Sasuke and his family. They even had pretty pink frosting and half of them were covered in sprinkles that were little white sugar balls.
Arriving at the sliding door I raised my hand to knock.
Yet again, it was suddenly opened, only this time by Itachi.
I squeaked and stumbled back (again) but managed to keep a grip on my box of cupcakes.
"Hello. I assume you've come to collect your sons?" Itachi asked, not at all phased by my surprised reation.
"Uhm, yes please." I answered. Itachi allowed me inside and motioned for me to follow him. We walked through the compound before we stepped outside into a smaller courtyard.
"They spent most of the day outside, though they did come in for about an hour to color." Itachi explained as we got closer to the kids. I smiled as I saw the three boys sitting in a circle, papers strewn everywhere and crayons rolling about. As I stepped closer Naruto lifted his head and spotted me. Smilimg, he quickly stood up, grabbed a paper, and ran to me.
"Mommy! Look at what I drew you." Naruto proudly exclaimed as he thrust his picture in front of my face. I crouched down and put an arm around him, my other hand coming up to grab his paper. In front of me was a messy scrawl of colors, and I could vaguely make out stick figures. One had spiky yellow hair (Naruto), another had messy red hair (Gaara), a figure had grey spiky hair(Kakashi) who stood next to a figure who had long yellow hair (Me), and finally there was one that had black spiky hair (Sasuke). The three smallest were next to each other with smiles drawn on their faces, while the other two stood next to each other also with smiles drawn on their faces. There was green spikes on the ground (grass) and even a few flowers and a blue sky and sun in the background. It was messy, but it was my son's, so it was beautiful.
Gaara came silently to my other side and I smiled as I saw he had drawn a picture too. His was actually pretty good for a 6 yr old, with straight lines and the stick figures even had clothes and noses. His was similar to Naruto's except everyone was holding hands in the picture. I smiled and wrapped my other hand around Gaara, hugging both my boys close.
"Oh, they're both so beautiful! Thank you sooo much! They're so pretty, I'll put them on the fridge when we get home." I gave them both pecks on the cheek and another hug before I lifted my head to look at Sasuke. He also had a picture but was standing nervously off to the side. Smiling, I raised a hand and beckoned him over.
"You drew something too Sasuke? Why don't you come here and show me?" I smiled as I tried to convince the other boy to show me his picture too.
He looked at me hesitantly, but finally walked up and handed me the picture. In his picture there were just three figures. One had bright yellow hair, the other had red hair, and there was one with black hair. His was just of the three boys together, playing in a courtyard with a ball. I grinned, happy to know they had all gotten along so well together.
"That's wonderful Sasuke. You're all very good artists!" I leaned forward and grabbed all three boys into a group hug, and then picked them up and spun in a circle. All three cried out and laughed but before they could start wiggling and have me drop them I decided to set them back down.
The next thirty minutes were spent sitting down and listening to the boys recount their adventures. Naruto and Sasuke stood in front of me practically reenacting everything while Gaara sat in my lap and quietly added comments. I laughed and nodded along, but it was starting to get late and I knew the boys were probably stinky and exhausted from all their playing.
"Well, I'm going to head home with my boys. Thanks for arranging the playdate Itachi." Itachi nodded at me from the side. He had mostly stayed silent off to the side, only responding when Sasuke asked him a question.
Naruto pouted but Gaara nodded his head and moved to stand next to Sasuke, Naruto following after. The boys hugged each other goodbye and made promises to meet again and that the next time they would have even grander adventures. I crouched down next to Sasuke and hugged him also.
"I'll see you next time kiddo. I'm glad you and my boys had a great time, I'll see if we can't get together again soon alright? Here, take this box and bring it to your parents." I handed him my box of cupcakes and smiled as he looked at it suspiciously.
"What is it?" He asked as he moved the box around and looked at it from different angles, trying to figure out what was in it.
"Well, it's a surprise but I'll let you in on the secret. My famous pink strawberry cupcakes." I leaned in and whispered my 'secret' to him, grinning as his eyes widened and an excited smile spread across his face. I patted him on the back and stood up.
"Thanks Miss Sonya! Bye Naruto! Bye Gaara!" Sasuke shouted and waved to us with his free hand as we left the compound, his other arm wrapped tightly around the pastry box.
"So, y'all had a good time, eh?" I asked as I walked home hand-in-hand with my boys.
"YES! It was so much fun! Sasuke's house is so big! We played tag and hide and go seek and we pretended that we were ninjas and then we ..." Naruto blabbed excitedly about his day and I smiled as I listened to his adventures for the second time. I was sure I was probably going to hear his tales at least another five times before the weekend was over.
It was nice that Naruto got along with Sasuke, but given the chance Naruto gets along well with most people. It was especially nice that Gaara seemed to have a good time also. Despite him only being here for a few months with me he'd already opened up a little more. Both my boys were doing better, and I was so thankful. From the way things were looking, things could only get better.