Author's Note- Hey, everyone! Sorry it's been so long! I have a new chapter for you! Hope you like it. R & R!

Author's Note #2-I forgot to mention that I'm using an OC created by my friend soulful_ginger. He is Naruto's brother, Kouhei Uzumaki. I hope I keep him in character. Thanks to soulful_ginger for letting me borrow one of his characters.

Disclaimer: I only own my characters and my plot.

Chapter 12

We had found a clearing to make camp in for the night. After setting up, we sat around the fire and discussed the mission.

"What could be causing these people to disappear?" Sakura asked.

"I'm guessing kidnappers," Naruto said. Sakura rolled her eyes.

"Maybe they're bandits or rouge ninja," Yumi said quietly. I looked at her and she was pale as a sheet.

"Yumi, are you okay?" I asked worriedly. She barely nodded before she stood up and rushed to the edge of the trees to throw up. I went and knelt beside her for the second time that day. When she stopped, she looked up at me with tears in her eyes.

"I'm sorry, Shika," she said quietly.

"There's nothing for you to be sorry about. Would you like me to take you back to the village?" I replied. She slowly shook her head.

"I'm going to complete this mission. I bet I'll feel better tomorrow," she said with a weak smile.

"Well, until then, why don't you rest?"

"Okay." I stood up and picked her up gently. She wrapped her arms around my neck and I carried her to our tent. Once she was comfortable, I kissed her forehead and went back out to join the others.

"Yumi's not feeling well?" Tenten asked. I shook my head.

"She's been sick since this morning. But she refused to stay home," I answered. She nodded knowingly as we continued to talk about the mission.

We were getting ready to leave the next morning when I noticed Yumi was paler than the day before.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Tenten questioned her. Hinata stood beside her with a worried look on her face. Yumi nodded with a smile.

"I'll be fine. I'm not even nauseous today," she said, sounding a bit more like her normal self. We finished packing up and then took off running. I made sure that I stayed close to Yumi so I could be ready in case anything happened. We were a few miles away from our destination when I noticed Yumi getting paler. I gently took her hand and gave her a worried look.

"Yumi, are you okay?" I asked quietly.

"Sure, I'm fi-…" Her eyes rolled back in her head and I caught her as she fell.

"Sakura!" I yelled. I saw the pinkette stop and run back to us.

"What happened, Shikamaru?" she asked.

"We were running and she passed out. Is she okay?" I said, sounding a lot calmer than I felt.

"Her vital signs are weaker than they should be. She needs to get to the hospital in Suna. I can't do anything here," she explained quickly. I nodded as I picked Yumi up and started running towards Suna.

I paced around the hospital room as I waited for Yumi's test results to come back. She still hadn't woken up and I was on the verge of panic when the doctor walked in. He had a big smile on his face.

"I have some great news, Nara-san! Your wife is just fine. In fact, you're going to be a father!" he said brightly. I sat down in the chair beside the bed. "She just overworked herself so she fainted. She should wake up soon. Congratulations!" He bowed and left.

'Oh, Kami. I'm going to be a dad,' I thought. I heard a soft groan and I looked up into Yumi's pretty gray eyes.

"Hi, Shika," she said with a smile. I smiled back.

"Hi. How are you feeling?"

"Kind of tired. Where are we?"

"The hospital in Suna. You passed out on our way," I explained. She frowned.

"I'm sorry I've caused everyone so much trouble," she replied. I took her hand and threaded our fingers together.

"Actually, the doctor gave me some good news. We're…going to be parents," I told her. Her hand tightened around mine and tears came to her eyes.

"Really?" she whispered. I nodded. The tears flowed as she smiled brightly. "I can't believe it. A baby…wow." I moved so I sat next to her on the bed. I pulled her into my arms and we held each other tightly. I pulled her chin up so I could press my lips to hers passionately.

"Kami, I love you," I told her. She smiled.

"I love you, too," she replied. At that moment, I saw a flash of red and yellow fly past the door. I immediately recognized the speeding forms. I got up and poked my head out the door.

"Kouhei, Naruto, we're in here," I called out. A split second later, the Uzumaki brothers were back in front of me.

"Heya, Shikamaru!" Kouhei said. "Long time, no see!" I noticed that Kouhei's left eye was different. The white of it was now a royal purple and instead of an iris and pupil, there was the kanji for legend.

"So how's Yumi?" Naruto asked.

"I'm fine, Naruto," Yumi laughed. The guys walked over to her bed.

"How's my sister from another mister?" Kouhei asked with a smile. She smiled back.

"Good. Guess what?" she said as he playfully tugged on her ponytail.

"Huh?"

"Shika and I are going to have a baby!"

"Whoa! Awesome!" Both Uzumakis exclaimed. Suddenly, Kouhei pulled out one of the two swords he kept strapped to his hip. He held the sword above Yumi, mere centimeters from where my unborn child was forming.

"What are you doing?" Yumi, Naruto, and I yelled. Kouhei stopped swirling the sword in a spiral motion.

"Damn, I've been away too long if my friends think that I'd hurt any of them. I'm making a Blessing Seal. So your baby will be healthy. Kami, maybe I shouldn't take on so many missions…" he explained. Naruto patted him on the back. "You guys need to chill."

"We're sorry, Bro. It's just that your sword is really close," Naruto replied. Kouhei rolled his eyes.

"Just shut up so I can finish," he said. He put away his sword and made some hand signs. He then gently laid his palm on her stomach. Her eyes slid shut and she let out a content sigh. When her eyes opened, she smiled at me and then turned to Kouhei.

"Thanks, Kouhei," she said. He smiled back.

"Not a problem. So what's the deal here? Granny said I was coming to help out with this mission."

"There's a small village outside of this one where people are disappearing. Even shinobi are coming up missing. So Gaara has asked for aid from the Leaf. As soon as Yumi gets released, we're heading there," I explained. There was a knock at the door and a nurse came into the room.

"I have the release paperwork," she said with a smile. Yumi got up and signed the papers and the four of us left.

We arrived at the inn we would be staying at to find the rest of the team waiting. Tenten, Hinata, and Sakura immediately ran to Yumi. They started doing that giggly, whispery thing that girls do. I rolled my eyes and then cringed when Tenten and Sakura squealed loudly. All three enveloped Yumi in a huge hug and she laughed. Naruto, Kouhei, and I walked over to where Neji was sitting.

"Do girls really have to do that?" Kouhei asked as he uncovered his ears. Neji rolled his eyes.

"Great. Another Uzumaki to annoy me," the Hyuga said.
"Why you…!" Kouhei growled as he reached for a sword. His brother put a calming hand on his shoulder.

"Chill, Bro. He won't do much. I'm dating his cousin!" Naruto told him with a big grin. The redhead's eyes went wide.

"No way!"

"Yes way! Ever since I got back from training with Pervy Sage. Although, I did sorta take on a mission before going back." The brothers soon got wrapped up in catching up with each other. I took a seat next to Neji and then leaned forward, elbows on my knees, eyes closed, and hands making a rectangle as I began to think. My brow furrowed as I tried to work out a plan. I stayed deep in thought until Neji and Kouhei started to fight.

"Damn, Tenten's turned into a real babe," the redhead told his brother. I opened my eyes and saw Neji gripping the collar of Kouhei's armor. Their faces were inches apart.

"Stay away from Tenten, you red-haired fiend!" Neji growled. Kouhei held his hands up in surrender.

"Chill out, Huyga. I'm not gonna mess with your girl. In case you've forgotten, I've got Anko waiting for me back home. Ah, my snake beauty, I can hardly wait until I'm back and then we can do all the naughty things I want," he said dreamily. I rolled my eyes as he started to drool.

"Um, are you the shinobi from Konoha?" a quiet voice asked. I stood up and walked over to the young girl.

"Yes, we are." She held out five keys.

"These are the keys to the rooms where you will be staying. Please enjoy your stay and if you need anything, don't hesitate to call." The girl bowed and left quickly. I passed the keys out when everyone finally got quiet.

"All right. Everyone go to your rooms and settle in. Meet back down here in fifteen minutes. We're going to do a quick patrol and then rest up for tonight. Most of the people are being taken at night. We'll patrol tonight and wait to see if we come across someone in trouble," I explained. Everyone nodded and we went to our respective rooms.

Yumi and I were in our room, getting ready for patrol. I was standing at the window, lost in thought, when I felt Yumi's arms weave around my waist from behind. She rested her cheek between my shoulder blades.

"I can't believe it, Shika. We're going to have a baby," she said quietly. I turned in her arms and she smiled up at me. I smiled back and leaned down to kiss her. She nipped at my lip and soon my lips were traveling across her jaw and down to her throat. I found her pulse point and lightly scraped my teeth over it, causing her to moan. Her body started to tremble. I slid my hands up under the back of her shirt.

"Wait," she gasped.

"Why?" I managed to growl out.

"Mi…ah…mission," she said breathily. I pulled away with a slight scowl. "Maybe later," she told me with a cute smile. We headed back downstairs to rejoin the others.

"Geez, took you long enough. Were you guys 'getting busy'?" Kouhei asked. Both of us blushed.

"T-that's none of your business," Yumi stuttered.

"All right, let's move out. We're going to do a quick patrol around the village. Then, we'll meet back here. Understood?" I said. Everyone nodded and left.

The patrol went well. No one found anything unusual. When everyone returned, I noticed that Yumi looked pale. I walked up to her and pulled her into my arms.

"Are you feeling okay?" I asked. She nodded.

"I'm just a little tired," she replied.

"Let's go upstairs so you can rest." She nodded again. When we got to the room, I made her sit on the bed while I took off her vest, shoes, and weapons pouch. She laid down and curled into the ball, her hands resting lightly on her stomach. She was asleep in moment. After I'd taken of my shoes and equipment, I laid down beside her, pressing a kiss to her forehead and entwining my fingers through hers over our unborn child.

When I woke up, the setting sun was shining through the window and there was the pleasant sensation of warm lips caressing my throat. I opened my eyes to find Yumi sitting on my hips. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her down so we were lying chest to chest.

"Hey, sleepyhead," she said with a sweet smile.

"Hey." I leaned up and kissed her deeply. Her hands slowly traveled down my body until they reached the hem of my shirt and slipped underneath. Her fingers, once clumsy and hurried, moved over my torso with practiced ease. She kissed me again, more passion clearly evident. It wasn't long before I felt my shirt being pulled up over my head. Her warm lips then moved across my cheek, down my throat, to my chest where she peppered kisses everywhere. I unzipped her shirt and tossed it to the floor, leaving her in a tight camisole. I ran my hands over her back and stomach, slowly pushing up the camisole and revealing even more beautiful, creamy skin. And then there was a knock on the door. Yumi rolled off of me with a shocked squeak and it the floor with a soft 'thud'.

"Yo! Shikamaru! Yumi! Let's go!" Kouhei yelled through the door. I got up and angrily jerked it open. Kouhei took a step back after seeing my face.

"Oh, Kami!" Yumi jumped up from the floor and rushed to the bathroom with her hand over her mouth.

"I'll be ready in a minute." I went to the bathroom and found Yumi with her head over the toilet. I knelt next to her and started to rub her back.

"Thanks, Shika," she said when she finished.

"Maybe you should stay here and rest."

"No. I'm a ninja and I'm here to complete a mission."

"You're also pregnant and you need to rest."

"But, Shika-"

"No. You're my wife and the mother of my child and I don't want anything to happen to you or the baby. Just please stay here and rest," I asked. She examined my face for a moment and sighed, defeated.

"Fine. I'll stay."