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September twenty third, the twentieth week,
"Sorry, Sasuke…" He stared in shock at the bloodied and battered man in front of him. Sasuke watched in shock as his brother raise his hand and tapped him on the forehead. "This is the last time."
"Itachi!" He cried out, raising his hands out to catch Itachi's falling body. The body never collapsed into his grasp and Sasuke stared at where his brother had been only seconds before. He looked around; it was a place he hardly recognized, a battlefield full of destroyed earth and rock. Itachi was lying in front of him, eyes open and unseeing, drying blood trails coming from his mouth.
"I…killed them, to protect you." The dying man had whispered. Itachi's lips kept moving, telling him everything but he couldn't hear him this time, already knew what he was saying.
"I know why you did it, Itachi. I know why you died fighting me." Sasuke dropped to his knees, tears clouding his vision as he sobbed. "Please, onii-san, don't leave me!" Someone was grabbing his arm, pulling his weakened body away from his brother and he jerked himself back. He wouldn't leave his brother's body like this, now that he knew what had really happened. The person grabbed him again forcefully, dragging him from Itachi's prone form. He fought back in his weakened state, felt the pain of his body protesting.
"Sasuke! I won't let you run away again!" Someone screamed at him. They turned him around as his head started swimming, vision going blurry. It was Naruto, his big, beautiful blue eyes glaring down at him in anger and for a second, he wondered what the idiot could be mad at him for. His vision darkened and his own cries faded but the tears remained, warm, strong arms were holding him up by his thighs, their hands clasped under his ass. Sasuke's body was pressed against someone else's, wind brushing against the side of his face that wasn't pressing into the person's shoulder. Sasuke was wearing a jacket; the front of it zipped up to his chin, bathing him in a scent that wasn't his. His hands were tied together in front of him in the scratchy material of a forehead protector, bouncing off the chest of the man who was carrying him.
"The Uchiha clan had been planning a coup," Sasuke had whispered into the ear closest to his face. "I was too young to know anything about it. My brother chose to help the Hokage, to try to keep peace but Danzo met with him, gave him an ultimatum." The strong arms holding him disappeared, replaced by someone's arm holding his middle.
"What was it?" Naruto asked. His voice was barely above a whisper right behind him. Sasuke had jerked in surprise, his wrists pulling at the chakra cuffs as he tried to move away. His legs hit the sleeping bag as he reached up with both his hands to find the opening as the arm around him tightened. "Relax, Sasuke. I just want to know what the ultimatum was; the one Danzo gave your brother?" He stilled, his fingers clenched around the edge of the sleeping bag. Sasuke felt the freezing cold temperatures of outside and remembered how the blonde had told the anbu team to fuck off after placing the chakra cuffs on him, Naruto had then pulled him from the campfire and shoved him into his sleeping bag. Naruto shifted behind him, pressing their lower legs together, pushing his face into the Uchiha's hair. Sasuke could feel the blonde's forearm moving upwards, warm fingers grazing over one of his arms to pull down on the connecting chain of the chakra cuffs.
"It was the entire clan," Sasuke remembered whispering. "The entire clan or me." To his surprise, the blonde moved away, no longer in a sleeping bag but on their bed in their home. Sasuke had his arms wrapped around his almost exaggeratedly large middle as he lifted his head to watch the blonde stand. He didn't remember this memory, didn't think he was this far along for his stomach to stick out so prominently and could have sworn that his blonde was still in Suna. Sasuke pulled himself up to lean against the headboard and watched with a small smile anyway. Naruto didn't turn to him as he walked around the bed to the door and Sasuke dropped his smile uncertainly. It wasn't even something the blonde did or the way he walked but Sasuke could tell something was wrong.
"Naruto?" He called out softly. Naruto stopped in the doorway with his back still turned and the uncertainty Sasuke was feeling morphed into outright doubt. "Naruto?" He tried again. This time, the blonde looked over his shoulder; his eyes were dead as he stared at Sasuke's face. Icy blue eyes glanced down to his heavily pregnant stomach and to his shock and horror, Naruto scowled before turning his back and walking away.
Sasuke jolted awake instantly, opening his eyes and staring at the empty space of the bed. He could feel the sweat on his forehead and back and sighed, pulling Naruto's pillow from between his legs. It was a dream; he tried to convince himself. That's all it was, a bad dream.
Rolling over, Sasuke dangled his feet off the bed and pushed himself up into a sitting position before standing. The floor was cold and he rushed into the bathroom, turning on the light to see himself in the mirror. He stepped onto the plush rug in front of the sink and stared at his reflection. His stomach was protruding but not as much as it had been in his dream, nowhere near as big. His nipples were still dark but the more important thing was the natural cleanser Sakura had given him had worked and his acne had cleared. Sasuke turned to his side and looked at himself critically, tracing the veiny lines with the tips of his fingers. He was obviously pregnant, stomach sticking out from the last pair of Naruto's boxers that were still intact. That would have to change; they were starting to feel a bit tight.
Naruto's scowling face flashed before his eyes and Sasuke's eyes darted down to his stomach, frowning. It was just a dream, he reminded himself, Naruto wanted the baby, wanted him. The idiot had promised to love him even when he was huge, would never make a face like that at him, like he was disgusted with him. Shaking his head, Sasuke turned and left the bathroom, turning off the light as he went. It took him a moment to find one of Naruto's jackets from within the depths of the closet, under all of his new clothes and his older clothes that didn't fit comfortably anymore. He held the orange cloth close to his face, inhaling the smell of his lover before pulling it over his shoulders and returning to his empty bed.
It was still warm when he climbed back in, lying on his side facing the bathroom. He stared at the shadowed doorway of the bathroom for a few minutes, unable to get back to sleep. His mind kept flashing back to his dream and he wondered, would the blonde really find his body appealing when he was this big, bigger even? Sasuke's eyes darted to the bedside table, the shadowed picture of him and Itachi together, when they were still children and innocent.
He reached out and picked up the picture frame from the stand, bringing it closer to see the outlines of the photograph, of his big brother smiling innocently up at the camera. Sasuke let his eyes drift over to his own toddler face, his hands holding tightly onto Itachi's bigger ones with a bright smile. It had to have been his mother behind the camera. Sasuke couldn't remember his father ever wanting to take a picture of him or his brother and he couldn't recall a single memory where he had been allowed to smile in his father's presence.
Sasuke stared at the picture for a few minutes, wondering what he and Itachi had been doing when their mother had decided to take the picture, maybe his older brother had been trying to teach him how to walk, he looked young enough. With a sigh, Sasuke set the picture frame back on the table and readjusted himself into a more comfortable position. When he finally gave up a few minutes later, Sasuke rolled onto his other side, facing the blonde's side of the bed and grabbed the discarded pillow to stick it back between his curled legs. "Can't believe this actually feels comfortable." Sasuke muttered to himself. He lifted his head to readjust his pillow, pulled Naruto's jacket closer and sighed, brushing fingers over his stomach in soft, repetitive motions until he fell asleep.
September twenty fourth, still the twentieth week,
"That's about twelve pounds of weight gain," Sakura did the mental calculations as she played with the scale. "And that's right on track." Sasuke stepped off of the scale, scowling at his friend as she scribbled his weight down. "Congratulations, you're technically halfway through your pregnancy." The Uchiha glared at his old teammate but the pink haired woman just kept smiling. They were in his bathroom, using a scale that Sakura had brought over.
"Hn. What groceries did you get?" He reached for his black t-shirt on the bathroom counter, pulling it on quickly. It took a great amount of effort not to look in the mirror until he had covered his prominent stomach. The look Naruto in his dream had given him was still sharp and clear in his mind and he didn't want to think about it anymore.
"Steak, some vegetables, raisins." Sakura told him without bothering to fight with him over a week of pregnancy. "Spinach like you asked. There's some chicken too but I put that in the freezer so it'll last longer."
"How much of my money are you spending on meat?" The Uchiha growled absentmindedly. He made a motion with his hand to get her to walk out of the bathroom and when she was out he dropped Naruto's boxers so he could put on some underwear and his favorite pair of pants.
"Don't worry, I got the meat on sale and you need the iron. If you want to make a big deal about it you can give me my rent money to use next time." Sakura called out from his bedroom. He knew he left Naruto's jacket on the bed that morning and was grateful she had decided not to comment on it. Denying that he missed the blonde would be impossible for him, not after three long weeks of this ongoing separation. Sasuke huffed at her as he pulled his pants on but when he moved to zip them he stopped and looked down. He tried to pull the clasp and button together but they didn't even touch, his growing stomach making it impossible. Sakura poked her head in and watched him in confusion when he tugged his pants down again, she couldn't help but giggle.
"Shut up, Sakura." The Uchiha told her. He kneeled down and leaned over awkwardly to pick up his pants, a hand on his protruding stomach. Sasuke didn't bother having the pinkette look away again; she had seen him in his underwear before as he stalked towards his closet.
"Why are you making such a big deal out of this? You're not as skinny as you used to be before your pregnancy and none of your old clothes are going to fit you. That's why we went and got you the maternity clothes." Sakura watched him, he could feel her eyes on him but that didn't stop him from dropping his pants at the floor of his closet and picked another pair to wear.
"These were my favorite." The Uchiha kicked at them with a scowl.
"And they will be your favorite after you give birth and start training again, you'll lose all the weight you're gaining." Sakura told him. Sasuke rolled his eyes as he pulled on a pair of sweatpants. They were comfortable and more than loose, he pulled on the drawstring until it wouldn't fall off his hips.
"Hn." He responded quietly. Sasuke glared at the pants on the floor and then turned away, lips pursed. Sakura set her hands on her hips, staring at the aforementioned pants on the floor.
"Do your exercises?" Sakura changed the subject abruptly. He looked over to her as he walked out of the bedroom; she was watching him with an open expression that was only slightly forced looking.
"Not today." Sasuke sighed quietly. He could hear his old teammate following him down the hallway. "Didn't have time after checking the different floor plans in the apartment complexes in the north block."
"Sasuke, they are meant to help since you can't do your normal physical training." The pinkette berated him. "And your body is much more important than how many rooms or bathrooms are in apartments." Sasuke rolled his eyes and kept walking, right into the kitchen. "I know you're getting ready to open up the compound for people to live in but you've got all the time in the world to do that. You can even make Naruto do it when he comes back with his clones."
"Wanted to get it done, I have nothing else better to do since the Hokage reassigned the records room to someone else. I'm restricted to the compound again until she can get the elders to back off." Sasuke retorted. "Besides, I slept in instead." He turned around to see the shocked expression on his friend's face, her mouth hanging open.
"You, slept in?" Sakura asked in disbelief. Sasuke leaned against the counter and gave her an annoyed stare.
"Is that so hard to believe?" He asked her. Sakura stared back at him for a moment and the Uchiha smirked, realizing his friend would think he was seriously angry if he didn't.
"Before you were pregnant? I would have known you were lying." Sakura replied with a surprised smile. "Iruka should be back soon, I can cook dinner if you want to do your exercises." Sasuke raised his hand from the counter and shook his head.
"I said I would do it." He started to move around the kitchen, grabbing things he would need to cook with, debating about how he should prepare it.
"You puked yesterday when you smelled the food cooking." She peered inside the fridge, grabbing what Sasuke would need. "What if that happens again?"
"I'll be fine." The Uchiha muttered. His morning sickness had abated but now it seemed he only got nauseous whenever he got anywhere near cooking meat.
"Let me help at least, since I am here." Sakura responded coolly. Sasuke glared at her but the pink haired woman smiled back at him as she set the food out on the counter.
The Uchiha knew. If it had been the idiot sonographer or Sai, he didn't know and didn't care. What mattered was that the pregnant Uchiha brat hadn't been out of the compound since that day and that had stopped him from being able to complete his mission. Baku had been camped out on the rooftop across from the compound again for an entire week. There hadn't been an opening to take, not a single chance to slip inside the compound while the barrier was down without being seen. He hadn't left, his post this time, the refilled bottles scattered next to him on the rooftop along with empty wrappers. His clothes reeked, having sweat in the heat of the middle of the day and dried in the cooler nights.
The physical discomfort he had been through the past few weeks only fueled his desire to end this and so he had waited for someone to slip. Sakura Haruno was always on guard and Baku had watched her glare at him more than once as she was leaving. Iruka Umino was far more relaxed and therefore, an easier target for manipulation. When he realized the two weren't going to give him a chance to slip into the compound, Baku realized he was going to have to create an opening himself. The Haruno girl was too aware of him to fall for any of his tricks but the academy sensei was a different story entirely. Baku waited for Sakura to return from her job at the hospital before moving his plan into action. He stood up for the first time that day and jumped over a few rooftops, picking an empty alleyway to drop down into quietly.
Picking a part of the building that wouldn't suffer too much damage from an explosive tag, Baku pulled one out of his pouch and stuck it on the side of a building before jumping back up on the rooftop. An attached wire, painted black, came with him so when he pulled it the tag would explode. Returning to his well lived in nest; Baku settled back down and waited for his prey to appear, ninja wire in hand. Umino-sensei appeared about ten minutes later, whistling while he walked towards the locked down compound. He had to wait for exactly the right moment, too soon and he would miss his chance and too late the teacher might remember to put the barrier back up before going to see what the commotion was. Baku watched the brown haired male set his hand on the seal of the barrier to unlock it and started to push the gate open.
That was his moment. Baku pulled on the ninja wire, triggering a flame to set the tag off and seconds later it went off. An explosion burst from the alleyway, blowing dust out into the street for an added effect. Baku watched Iruka's head jerk at he sound of the explosion, the man's jaw probably dropping as the few people on the road started to scream and panic. Just as he predicted, Umino ran towards the rising smoke cloud to help in any way he could, leaving the gate to the compound unguarded. He waited until the teacher was already in the dust cloud before jumping down to the street, keeping a wary eye out for anyone who was looking in his direction. All eyes were directed towards the shop that had lost a small part of their wall and the women who were complaining about inhaling dust.
Baku smirked as he walked up to the gates of the compound and slipped right in, mindful of what was on the other side of the gates. He didn't have to worry; the street in front of him was empty, devoid of any life. For a second, Baku was at a loss of what to do and looked around. The plan had changed, he had accomplished getting past the barrier, now he had to find the Uchiha brat so he could kill him. He moved to the nearest building and jumped atop it and he would wait for the teacher to come lead him to his target.
"Not all of us need to go to the Hokage for debrief." Kakashi called out as they entered Konoha territory. The relief washed over the blonde, they were almost home after weeks of being in Suna. They were all tired, exhausted and ready to collapse but they were finally going to be done with this mission.
"Really?" Apricot blurted out, the hopefulness in her voice apparent. Naruto glanced over to the white haired man with a smile in the orange light of the lowering sun.
"Don't think you're getting out of meeting with her." Kakashi answered disinterestedly. Yamato scoffed under his breath and Naruto glanced back at him.
"Does that mean you and Naruto get to go home early while I deal with Apricot again?" Yamato asked sarcastically. Kakashi dropped back, letting Naruto take the lead.
"No, you'll go with Naruto to the compound while I'll take Apricot to the Hokage." Kakashi answered. This time it was Naruto who tripped, slipping on the bark of a tree limb. He scrambled back up as the other three of his team jumped ahead of him.
"What?" The blonde heard Apricot ask. Naruto pushed himself harder off of the branch to catch up with them and looked to Kakashi in confusion.
"I'm the leader of the team and she's the reason why we went to Suna. We don't need you two to be there." Kakashi answered straight-faced. "Besides, it's your turn to babysit Naruto and the whining about his gut feeling." Naruto scoffed this time, rolling his eyes. Apricot looked over to him with a grin and the blonde frowned at her before sticking his tongue out.
"Think you can recreate Naruto's brilliant explanation?" Yamato asked sarcastically. Naruto could see the tired smile of relief on the brunet's face and sighed under his breath. Apricot tried to hide her laugh by coughing but it hardly worked and she nearly tripped again, not watching where she was going.
"Pretty sure I can improve on it." Kakashi spoke up over the redhead's yelp. Kyoko quickly caught up with them again, panting from the exertion and Yamato jerked his neck to the side to crack it.
"Hey! It wasn't that bad." Naruto cried out. "I drew a picture and everything!" Yamato looked over to Kakashi who glanced back, a knowing look in his visible eye. The blonde bit back a response, glaring at the two older men, listening as Apricot's breathing grew labored in her attempt to keep up with them.
"Can we take another break? We've, been going, like this, for hours." Apricot complained breathlessly. Yamato gave her a hard glare before jumping ahead of the other three of his team.
"Why?" The brown haired man called back. "We're already home." Naruto grinned as the front gate came into view behind the giant trees. When the tree line ended, they jumped down to the ground and waited for the ninja on guard duty to notice them and open the door. Apricot immediately collapsed onto her knees, reaching behind her to take her shoes off and leaning forward until she dropped down to the ground face first. Naruto rolled his eyes, readjusted his pack to roll his shoulders back and stretch. Kakashi lifted one of his legs for half a second before dropping it and lifting up his other leg. It took a few minutes before the giant gate opened and they walked through, Apricot struggling to get to her feet to follow them.
"Naruto!" The blonde turned his head at the sound of his name. Kiba stepped out from behind the guardhouse and waved to the group, Akamaru lifting his head from the ground next to the guardhouse in interest. "You're finally back." Naruto smiled brightly and met with the dog lover halfway to hug him. Akamaru bounded over to them and circled his owner and the blonde, sniffing before jumping up on them.
"It's good to be back, Kiba, Akamaru." The blonde smiled and pulled away from the hug to look over to his team as the overgrown dog licked his face.
"We're going." Kakashi told them. He grabbed Kyoko by the arm and tugged her away from Yamato. Naruto waved to them and turned back to Kiba who was watching the redhead girl with curious interest.
"So that's her? The girl with Kyuubi's chakra?" The dog lover asked. He looked back to the blonde and grinned as Yamato stepped up to the two. Naruto shrugged his shoulders and stuffed his hands in his pockets while diverting his eyes as Akamaru tilted his head in bewilderment.
"Yes, she is." The older man answered shortly. Kiba nodded his head in understanding but when he opened his mouth to ask another question, the older brunet male shook his head. Naruto raised his hand to rub the back of his neck and grinned apologetically as the dog lover shrugged his shoulders.
"What's been going on while I've been in Suna?" Naruto asked with a grin. Kiba's eyes immediately widened, the blonde leaned in and lowered his voice. "Any juicy gossip you want to share?"
"Just as a heads up," The dog lover started. He glanced back to the guardhouse where the other chuunin on duty was, leaning back in his chair with his head pressed against the back of the guardhouse, asleep. "There have been some crazy rumors going around about Sakura and Sasuke." Kiba gave the blonde a sympathetic look and Naruto's stomach dropped.
"Like what?" Naruto asked with a confused frown. Kiba glanced over to Yamato who had raised his eyebrows in disbelief. Naruto elbowed the older man with a pointed look. "What rumors?" The dog lover looked away in embarrassment before daring to meet the blonde's eyes.
"There's a rumor out there that Sakura's pregnant, she and Sasuke went to a maternity shop but Ino told me when she asked Sakura about it, she said that Sasuke's the one that's pregnant." Kiba shook his head and chuckled nervously. "Weird, right?" The dog lover watched the blonde's eyes widen and face redden in surprise.
"Um, actually." The blonde raised his hand to scratch the back of his head nervously. "It's complicated." Kiba frowned and took a step back as he stared at Naruto hard for a few seconds.
"Wait, you mean Sakura wasn't just messing with her?" Kiba blinked rapidly as the blonde grinned sheepishly. "He was pregnant when I went with you guys into the Uchiha compound!" The dog lover pointed to Naruto accusingly and Akamaru barked, his giant white tail wagging. A sound came from the guardhouse and they all turned their heads to see the other chuunin awake and sitting up, looking at them in sleepy confusion. "It wasn't because Sakura was working in the maternity ward and the smell wore off on him." Kiba whispered angrily. Yamato shifted his position, standing in between the chuunin in the guardhouse and Naruto and when both of the younger men looked to him the older man pointed to his lips, mouthing 'lip reader'.
"No, it wasn't." The blonde relented softly when he looked back to his friend. "We couldn't tell you, Sakura didn't know about it at the time either." Kiba frowned at the blonde, raising his hand to scratch behind Akamaru's ear. "Did Sakura really tell Ino that Sasuke was pregnant?" Naruto asked desperately. Ino was a gossip and Sakura knew that as much as everyone else in the village, why would Sakura tell her?
"You seriously knocked up Sasuke?" Kiba asked while nodding. The dog lover looked back to Naruto curiously, his anger almost completely gone. Naruto opened his mouth to respond and then not knowing what to say closed it again, staring at Kiba nervously. "Man, didn't think you'd have the balls to take the stick out of his ass." Kiba broke out into a devilish grin as the blonde's jaw dropped again.
Yamato's shoulders started shaking as he silently laughed at the conversation and the blonde frowned at him before pushing him away with a scowl. "Shut it, Yamato." Naruto glared at the older man before turning his attention back to his still smirking friend. "That's not funny." Kiba scoffed at him.
"It was until you got the asshole pregnant." The younger brunet rolled his eyes and set his hand on Akamaru's head with an exaggerated sigh.
"Hey!" Naruto snapped. "Only I get to call him asshole." He pointed his thumb at himself and then grinned when Kiba snorted.
"Right." Kiba rolled his eyes and leaned completely against Akamaru who didn't even budge. "Do you miss the sex?" Yamato shifted, looking between both Kiba and Naruto, bewildered.
"Who says we stopped having sex?" Naruto responded quickly. The dog lover's eyebrows shot up and Naruto found himself smiling smugly.
"Right, what's it like to have sex with a pregnant man?" Kiba shot back. Naruto eyed his friend skeptically, wondering if he really wanted to know what it was like or if he was just fishing for gossip.
"Are you two done?" Yamato interrupted. "I'd like to go home." Naruto glanced over to the older brunet, seeing the bags under his eyes and deadpanned expression.
"Yeah, I'll catch up with you later. Gonna go get some?" Kiba winked at the blonde with a grin. Naruto shrugged his shoulders and stepped back to let Yamato walk past him. The older male shook his head as he started down the street. Naruto started after him, walking backwards to say goodbye to his friend. "In the shower?" Kiba called out.
"You know it." The blonde winked back. Akamaru barked when the on duty chuunin turned around and headed back to the guardhouse. Naruto sighed and pivoted so that he wasn't walking backwards anymore and then started to jog to catch up with Yamato.
"Do you think she accidentally let it slip?" Yamato asked softly under his breath when the blonde caught up to him. He watched the older brunet shift his pack on his back and nod to a civilian they passed.
"No, not accidentally." Naruto murmured back. "What I don't understand is why Sasuke would let her tell Ino. The whole village will know about his pregnancy before the end of the month." It was growing dark, the sun was setting and both shops and houses were turning on their lights. Very few villagers were out on the streets; a lull in the day when most people went home but more than a few gave Naruto careful looks and blatant stares. "If they don't already."
"Maybe something happened while we were gone?" The older man looked to his younger teammate and shrugged his shoulders. "That could be your gut feeling and why they decided to tell the village gossip about the pregnancy." Naruto frowned as he watched the shadows fall across the man's face, giving the bags under his eyes a gaunt look.
"I really hope not." The blonde glanced over his shoulder when he felt someone staring at him, it turned out to be a man who shifted his gaze awkwardly when Naruto looked to him. A sound in the distance caught Naruto's attention and he jerked his head in the direction of it. "Did you hear that?" Yamato watched him in confusion and then tilted his head when they heard it again.
"That sounded like someone accidentally set off a smoke bomb." Yamato answered. The blonde picked up his pace, Yamato following closely behind. "Naruto?" Anxiety bubbled up in his chest before spreading down to his gut and the blonde didn't bother vocalizing an answer as he started to jog. He rounded the corner onto the familiar street that led to the compound and skidded to an abrupt stop. Yamato nearly ran into him when he rounded the corner and huffed loudly at the blonde as he stepped around him.
"The barrier's down," Naruto whispered in shock. The uneasiness in his stomach curdled and he clenched his fists as anger replaced the anxiety. Out of the blonde's peripheral vision he could see Yamato look to him and then down the street at the entrance to the Uchiha compound. "And the gate is open." In the dying light, Naruto could see one of the wooden gate doors was ajar and wisps of black smoke were spilling out onto the street, just inches off the ground. "The explosions came from inside the compound!" Naruto started to move forward again, adrenaline started to flood his system, his long strides morphing into a dead run for the gates.
He'd been doing fine with the smell of cooking vegetables until Sakura had started to cook the steak. As soon as the smell hit his nose, his stomach dropped. The dry heaving came on fast and Sasuke raised his hand to his mouth as he retched. When bile started to rise in his throat, the Uchiha ran from the kitchen, headed for the nearest bathroom. "Told you it would happen again!" Sakura yelled after him. Sasuke didn't have a response, his body heaving up the contents of his stomach into the toilet of the hallway bathroom. The nausea remained even after he stopped gagging and he went through his post-vomit ritual of flushing the toilet and washing his mouth to get rid of the taste of bile.
"Go take a walk outside, away from the smell." She ordered when he entered the kitchen again. "I can handle the rest of dinner." The dark haired male wanted to object but when his stomach flipped queasily, he reconsidered.
"Fine." Sasuke sullenly replied. He left the kitchen quickly, pulling on his shoes in the entrance way and stepping outside with a long inhale of fresh, cool air. It wasn't cold enough for a jacket yet but summer was slowly coming to an end. The days were slowly growing shorter, the sun already on the far edge of the sky, ready to set. He tried to shove his hands into his pockets but found that the pair of sweats he had put on didn't have any. Sasuke crossed his arms over his chest and stepped off the front porch, thinking he'd go to the front gate and walk back with Iruka and see how living with one of his old students was working out. See if he could make the dark skinned man blush. His steps sounded too loud in the silence and he walked faster. Three weeks of spending most of his time alone in the compound still made him weary. Sasuke had tried to keep busy during the day with doing work around the compound, reading baby books and whatever he could to keep himself from being idle. At night it was harder, after the nightly dinners with Iruka and Sakura, he still went to bed alone.
It was scary, realizing that he only felt comfortable in the empty compound when Naruto was with him. Sasuke lowered his hand to his stomach, thinking about how it wouldn't just be him and Naruto anymore. They would have their son or daughter and the compound would be open for people to move into, shops to open. What they needed now was for the elders to leave him and Naruto alone. He turned onto the street that led to the gate of the compound and glanced at each house as he walked past them. Eventually, people would move into all of these houses and it wouldn't be quite as eerie. Sasuke turned his attention to the gate and stopped walking, seeing that the gate was open. A chill ran down his spine and he raised his eyes to scan the rooftops for any sign of the man that followed him. It didn't feel as if someone was watching him and he carefully started moving forward again, training his eyes on the rooftop.
"Oh, Sasuke!" Iruka's voice surprised the dark haired male and he jerked his head to the front gate again, now only a few yards away. The dark haired man stepped past the gate while dusting his jacket off of soot and rubble. "Someone set off an explosive tag down the street." Sasuke felt another cold shiver travel down his spine. "I'd blame Naruto for it but he's still in Suna, luckily no one was hurt."
"Iruka, did you leave the gate open?" Sasuke asked. Goosebumps rose on the Uchiha's arms as he felt someone's unwanted gaze settled on him.
"I," The teacher frowned and paused in setting his hand against the seal, glancing behind his shoulder before looking back to the Uchiha. "For three minutes, maybe f-" Iruka stopped when a kunai landed into the ground between them, right in front of the teacher with an explosive tag attached to it. For half a second, both men froze before moving into action. The brunet man started to step to the side, hands on the gate door and Sasuke backed up as the end of the tag burst into flame. Sasuke knew he was out of the blast range but Iruka was stuck between the tag and the compound wall.
"Iruka!" Sasuke called out right before the tag exploded. The sound was almost deafening as the displaced air rushed past the Uchiha as he raised his arm to protect his face from the small bits of flying debris. A cloud of smoke and dust rose, blocking Iruka from Sasuke's view, probably blown back into the wall by the blast. He had to move quickly, the spy had gotten into the compound and was attacking them from above on one of the rooftops. Rushing into the smoke, Sasuke heard the whizzing of another kunai where he had been seconds before. Another blast of an explosive tag behind him proved him right, the flash of heat and gust of air hit his back as he moved closer to where the first kunai had landed. Iruka had most likely been caught in the first blast and could be hurt or unconscious and that made Sasuke nervous. On top of that, he couldn't see anything past three feet in front of him, couldn't move with any agility being five months pregnant and there was someone who wanted to kill him.
"Iruka!" The Uchiha hissed as loudly as he dared. He moved in the direction where he had last seen the teacher and lowered his arm to his stomach protectively. When the attacker would come after him in this cloud, he'd go for his unborn baby. The smoke cloud was starting to clear and Sasuke was running out of time, he turned his attention to the ground, listening to any sounds that could forewarn another attack. The first kunai that had been thrown was still planted in the ground and he pulled it out by the handle, feeling the still hot metal burn against his palm. Sasuke saw something reflecting light out of his peripheral vision and raised his weapon, deflecting the other kunai automatically as he looked for another tag. There wasn't one attached to the pommel of the kunai and the Uchiha turned his body to make himself a smaller target. He had to wonder why his attacker would come with only three explosive tags prepared, one for the distraction and two for the kunai he had already thrown.
Another kunai pierced through the fading smoke cloud, missing him completely and landing a few feet next to him. His attacker was just shooting into the cloud, not daring to come closer until the smoke had cleared. There wasn't a tag tied to the pommel and Sasuke made the decision to reach for it. He wasn't used to his body's new center of gravity and stumbled onto his knees as he tried to bend over. Several shuriken sliced through the smoke as he reached for the discarded kunai and only two of them came close to hitting him. Whoever his attacker was, they were out of practice. Sasuke picked up the second kunai and got to his feet again, the smoke finally clearing enough for him to see the buildings he was facing. The Uchiha could see his attacker on the roof, face covered by an anbu mask and body hidden under a cloak. He deflected a kunai with ease that was aimed at his head and watched his attacker jump from the roof to the street.
"Why haven't you used any ninjutsu?" Sasuke growled at him. He raised both of the kunai, one near his stomach and the other at chest level. The attacker pulled another kunai out of his cloak, no explosive tag that the Uchiha could see. His attacker had decided to use the explosive tags instead of a jutsu that would have killed him for a reason. It had to be something personal to warrant an up close kill.
"When Itachi killed your clan, he didn't use ninjutsu." His attacker told him. The voice was deep and gruff, obviously a male and older than he would have thought. What the man said struck a nerve with Sasuke as his mind raced, the attacker was trying to kill him the way his brother had killed his clan which more than likely meant he had been sent by the elders.
"He had his kekkei genkai." Sasuke called out, his tone even. He was trying to get under his attackers skin, make him angry enough to make a mistake. Sasuke watched the man throw the kunai and ricocheted it off his own it with ease but he knew it would only be a few more seconds before the man charged him. His automatic reaction was to activate his Sharingan but that was the problem. It was dangerous for the baby if he used that much of chakra this far in his pregnancy but if he didn't use it, he'd be dead anyway.
"I don't need a bloodline limit to kill you." The older man retorted. Sasuke's attacker pulled a tantō sword out from under his cloak; the double-edged short blade was nine inches of steel and glinted in the dying light. The pregnant male repositioned his arm over his stomach, flexing the grip on his kunai when he realized which part of his body the man was going to target. His kunai was a poor defense against a weapon designed for stabbing and as his attacker darted towards him, he knew he had to make a decision. Sasuke watched the man lowering his blade, quickly taking aim for his unborn baby and moved in response. He barely moved into his position before the man was in front of him, short sword poised for his abdomen. The Uchiha thrust his forearm between the tip of the weapon and his body as he swung his other arm at his attacker's head to break the painted porcelain mask. As his attackers blade pierced the skin of his forearm, he activated his sharingan, ready to attack and watched the blade of his kunai miss its target.
To Sasuke's surprise, the tantō blade sliced down his arm, from the middle of his forearm to his wrist instead of digging down into the bone. The Uchiha watched as his attacker became a blur of black and orange as two bodies tumbled away from him and to the ground. Immediately deactivating his bloodline limit, Sasuke dropped one of his kunai to put pressure on his wound and stem the bleeding. He made sure the two rolling figures were still moving away from him before he glanced down to check the severity of his wound. It was long but shallow and artificial and didn't feel as if an artery had been opened.
There was a sound by the gate and Sasuke turned his head, Yamato was pulling Iruka up, blood running down the dark skinned male's dazed face. Sasuke could see the brunet checking Iruka as he pulled off the teacher's forehead protector to examine the bleeding wound. Yamato was here, the Uchiha realized as he looked at the concerned male. Naruto's team was back from Suna. When the Uchiha looked back to the two shadows forms, one of the figures had thrown the other farther down the street and was turning to look at him. Sasuke's gaze met Naruto's bright blue eyes, the uncontrolled rage impossible to miss as the blonde looked him over. The masked attacker finally seemed to recover enough for another assault, rushing at his new opponent's back with the tantō blade still in his hand. The surprised relief that had spread through his chest disappeared and he stepped forward, opening his mouth to warn the stupid idiot.
His worry didn't seem to be necessary as the blonde turned around and slammed his fist into the porcelain mask, smashing it into pieces. The cloaked man crashed onto the ground again and Naruto went after him, growling loud enough for the Uchiha to hear. Sasuke watched the blonde lean down, reaching out to grab the attacker's shirt and instead caught the man's wrist instead. The Uchiha looked back to the two older men as he stalked towards the blonde, Yamato had pulled off his pack as he held the teacher up against the compound wall and was trying to stop the bleeding.
"Eaaugh!" Sasuke heard the attacker scream as he looked back to watch Naruto twist the man's arm into an unnatural position. The short sword fell from the attacker's grasp and the cloaked man struggled as the blonde pulled him up by his now broken arm.
"Naruto." Sasuke called out. The blonde didn't seem to hear him as he yanked the attacker to the nearest building, shoving him against the wall with more force than Sasuke thought necessary. Sasuke moved closer to the two men but when Naruto pulled his fist back the dark haired male darted forward as fast as his body would allow. "Naruto!" He shouted. The blonde's fist twitched instead of hitting the man and his eyes remained trained on the stranger's face. Sasuke finally got close enough to see his attacker's face and stopped short. The man was old, sixty or seventy and it showed in the wrinkled and sagging skin of his face. Under his cloak was an aged anbu uniform that looked old and worn, it also seemed the barely conscious man's nose had broken and blood was dripping down his face.
"He hurt you." Naruto snarled. Sasuke saw the blonde's hand twitch again and reached out, catching the tan fist before he could hit the older man. Naruto jerked his head toward the Uchiha, scowling at him. "He tried to kill you and our baby and he's still breathing." Sasuke glared at his blonde and pulled his hand down forcefully.
"I am fine." Sasuke told him in a harsh tone. Naruto looked back to the bloodied man in his grasp, glaring at him. "Sakura's here, she can take care of Iruka and heal my wound in a matter of seconds. Dobe, you need to take him to the Hokage." The Uchiha emphasized Naruto's nickname, trying to get the blonde to calm down.
"Why should I?" The blonde growled. Sasuke watched as the attacker tried to hit Naruto with his good arm but his reach was short. Naruto tugged the man by his cloak closer before slamming him back against the building. The older man grunted in pain before coughing, blood spattering over his arm and chest and Sasuke couldn't be sure if the man's ribs were fractured or broken.
"Because she didn't send him to watch me." Sasuke retorted sharply. "The elders did." Naruto looked back to him quickly with a frown and Sasuke dropped his hand down to his wounded arm again to check it again. The blood flow had slowed considerably, his arm now a sticky mess and he looked over his shoulder to Yamato and Iruka again. The brunet had Iruka's arm over his shoulder and his own hand on the disoriented man's waist, carrying the teacher away from the gates of the compound.
"Is Sakura here?" Yamato called out. The unmasked man coughed, spraying Naruto with blood again while the Uchiha nodded. Naruto's angry expression cracked and he looked behind him to see the two brunets limping away.
"At the house." Sasuke told him as they passed. He turned back to Naruto, raising his wounded hand to grab the blonde's arm. "Take him to the Hokage, alive." The Uchiha commanded. Naruto glanced back to Sasuke, looking more troubled than angry now.
"Fine." The blonde relented. He reached up to older man's head and slammed it into the wall of the building, knocking the attacker unconscious and let the body drop on the ground. Sasuke blinked in surprise when the blonde turned and hugged him tightly, his hands wrapping around his lower back and neck. "I was so worried, I thought that I was too late, that he'd killed you." Naruto whispered into his ear. His mouth dropped in surprise as his face started to heat up in embarrassment and Naruto's scowling face from his dream flashed in his mind.
"He obviously didn't, Usuratonkachi." The Uchiha muttered. He reached up to the blonde's chest and pushed him away, avoiding Naruto's gaze as he tried to get rid of the image. "Go already." Naruto reached down and picked the unconscious man up and tossed him over his shoulder. Sasuke nodded in the blonde's direction as he stepped back, he waited until Naruto was walking towards the compound gates before walking as quickly as he could to catch up with Yamato and Iruka.
"Sakura!" The Uchiha called out as he caught up with the two older males and immediately moved to help carry Iruka, lifting the man's arm over his shoulder to help carry the weight. Yamato looked over to him gratefully as they slowly walked up the porch steps and they both heard Iruka groan as his head rolled onto Yamato's shoulder.
"Kakashi is going to kill me for this." Yamato murmured as he tilted his head back to watch the teacher blink at him slowly. Sasuke didn't get a chance to respond as Sakura burst through the front door, eyes widening as she took in their appearance.
"What happened?" The pink haired ninja cried out. She held the door open as Yamato and Sasuke maneuvered the teacher inside. "Set Iruka on the couch. Let me grab my med kit." Sakura commanded as she followed them in and ran past the two of them into the kitchen.
"The elder's spy set up a distraction outside the compound and snuck in. Iruka got caught in the blast of an explosive tag." Sasuke started as they dragged the teacher over to the couch.
"He has a head wound but I think his jacket protected him from most of the blast." Yamato finished as they set Iruka down on the couch, Sasuke shifted uncomfortably as he tried to lean without falling over. Iruka groaned softly as Yamato maneuvered him to lie down on the couch, propping a pillow up under his head.
"Okay Yamato, take his jacket and shirt off while I heal Sasuke's wound." Sakura rushed back into the room with a med kit, she set the kit down on the coffee table and grabbed the Uchiha's wrist to examine his wound. Sasuke winced as pain radiated from his arm, he hadn't felt it before with the adrenaline in his veins but now it really hurt. "It's not as deep as it looks, how'd you get this?"
"He had a short sword, was trying to stab me but Naruto bulldozed into him, the blade sliced down my arm instead. Naruto is taking the attacker to the Hokage now." Sasuke explained as Sakura's hand started to glow green. The sensation of his skin being pulled together made the muscles in his hand spasm. To distract himself from the pain, the Uchiha looked over to the other two males, Yamato had pulled off Iruka's jacket and was carefully trying to pull off his long-sleeved shirt without jostling the teacher too much.
"Did you know you have fifty percent more blood in your body than you normally would?" Sakura spoke distractedly as she focused on her work. "You're lucky none of your arteries were nicked, do you feel dizzy or have blurred vision?" Sasuke shook his head in response, it was only a flesh wound. "I've got a salve for any scar tissue this might leave." The Uchiha grunted softly as his fingers continued to twitch as she moved her glowing hand down his arm. When the green glow around her hand faded, Sasuke pulled his arm away and jerked his head towards the other men in the room.
"I'll get the salve from you later. Make sure Iruka's okay." Sasuke told her as he turned and headed for the door again. The pink haired woman moved towards the couch and then stopped.
"Where are you going?" Sakura asked. The dark haired male paused in the he stopped in the doorway to look back. Yamato was kneeling by Iruka's head, the teacher's chest bare and staring back at him with a glazed stare.
"After Naruto." The Uchiha frowned as he remembered stopping the blonde from hitting the elder spy. "He hasn't been this angry since the isolation incident." He headed for the door again, lowering a hand to his stomach as he quickly walked out the door.