Chapter 17

The Heart of the Matter

"I swear are there any times when you are kidnapped that you are actually kidnapped?"

She smiled and laughed a little sheepishly at that, to the surprise and amusement of the other Jedi present.

"Ermm…sorry?" she squeaked out as she brought a finger up to her mouth in a very demure, girlish way.

"I mean, come on…" Naruto started, as he began to speak and move in a ridiculously exaggerated manner, "…will I ever be able to play the hero saving the damsel in distress?" as he stood in his gallant hero pose, giving a thumbs up, teeth glinting as he gave his dazzling "nice guy" smile.

'Thanks for that one, Bushier-Brow-Sensei…' he thought to himself, '…I never thought that would come in handy.'

Aayla appeared confused at this, "You already did, remember that whole talisman issue, with Vader and Celeste?"

"That's different; I was basically saving three people," Naruto countered mildly in what appeared to be complete disappointment before continuing his "heroic" tirade, "I mean, when do I get the chance to save you, by yourself, with nobody around, and then carry you off into the…" he paused as the word "sunset" almost came off his tongue, thinking back to Might Guy.

'Oh no…' he quickly thought to himself in near-panic, '…there's NO way I'm traumatizing her with that god-awful sunset on the cliffs that Bushy-Brow and Bushier-Brow-Sensei used to hug in!'

"The… sunrise?" Aayla offered in an attempt to help Naruto finish the line of thought he was expressing.

"Yeah-that's-it-the-sunrise-the-sunrise…" Naruto finished quickly, nodding goofily with a smile that was a bit too big to be believable.

Aayla raised an eyebrow at this before answering cautiously with an almost-nervous smile, "I suppose I'm…just lucky…" she finished with a nervous chuckle.

Naruto was about to respond, but he stopped as her overall expression and posture began to make themselves known to him. She seemed…lighter, somehow…as though she had been able to rid herself of all of the anguish and grief that had been crushing the warm and caring spirit that he associated with her. He had seen her smile before, but it never seemed to come very easily – as though joy was something that was very hard for her to feel. Now, however, she seemed to be smiling without any effort or reservation…and she was even being playful. It was as if…she was now the person that she was always meant to be. Naruto found it to be…enchanting! He narrowed his eyes as he studied her with a smirk.

"Something happened…" he said knowingly, trying to bait her in. She blinked before frowning in thoughtful confusion as she regarded his probing gaze.

"What do you mean?" she asked suspiciously, seeing that mischievous glint in his eye. Well, she wasn't taking the bait!

"There's something very different about you," Naruto replied as he relaxed and smiled, "Like the weight of the world has been lifted from your shoulders."

She blinked again, this time with an expression of confusion mixed with surprise, "Really?"

"Yeah, really," Naruto replied, his smile taking on a faraway quality as he looked into her eyes, "It's…actually…quite beautiful," his own voice taking on an airy quality as he seemed to forget the rest of existence.

She blushed at the way he complimented her, and blushed even deeper as she noticed how he was looking at her. Becoming self-conscious, she turned her head this way and that in an effort to collect herself.

'Blast it all, I took the bait!' she thought to herself in exasperation, not realising that the bait had fallen off the hook quite some time ago. Looking down and a bit away from Naruto, she said in a flustered fashion, "You…you shouldn't…say such…strange things, Naruto."

"Hmm?" asked Naruto, now himself confused, "Why is what I said strange?"

An exaggerated cough startled both of them. Turning to the sound that brought them out of their own little world, they saw Tholme with his hand to his mouth and a single raised eyebrow. Tholme then asked the question that was on his and the other two masters' minds, "Aayla, who is this?"

Aayla blinked a moment before the question registered in her mind; she hadn't introduced him to them yet! She looked to the older Jedi Master, and then at Vos and Saa, both looking on with amused curiosity. Feeling her cheeks flush even more, she began to sputter out, "Oh…err…where are my manners? Apologies, masters…" she said with a bow as she continued, "He's a very close friend…and the man to whom I owe my life."

Naruto, in an effort to give Aayla a chance to collect herself, took over and stepped forward, "The names Naruto, Naruto Uzumaki," he introduced himself with a slight bow, "I've been Aayla's travelling companion for the last half year or so."

The younger human stepped forward, "So you're the one who's been taking care of Aayla during these hard months?"

Naruto nodded humbly. The female of the group stepped forward and bowed to him. Naruto noticed that the strands of what he thought were dreadlocked hair on her head were something else…something a little more solid, wood maybe?

"You have our sincere thanks. We are deeply indebted to you for the care you have shown our young sister," the woman said, in a sincere and calm voice that sounded very different from the firm tone that she had used upon seeing him for the first time.

"No thanks are necessary. It was my pleasure, believe me," Naruto responded as he raised his hand in a gesture of deference.

He then looked over to Aayla, who had seated herself in the only chair in the room, "So, I'm guessing that these people are friends of yours. Fellow Jedi?"

Aayla smiled and nodded, rising to her feet, "They're more than that…much more. Naruto, allow me to introduce my dear friends, Jedi Master Magus Tholme, Jedi Master Quinlan Vos, and Jedi Master T'ra Saa." Each of them bowed their head in greeting as the young Twi'lek introduced them.

"Tholme…Vos…" Naruto allowed the names to roll off his tongue as he tried to remember why they sounded familiar to him. As it hit him, he whipped his head around to look at Aayla.

"Your former teachers!" he exclaimed excitedly.

"Indeed," she confirmed as she nodded.

"No wonder you look so relieved," Naruto said with a smile. "You thought these guys were dead."

She couldn't keep herself from beaming with happiness.

"That's great," Naruto replied sincerely, "I'm glad to see you so happy, Aayla! I'm also glad that we've found more of your loved ones!"

'Loved ones…' Aayla thought in wonder. It was true; they were the people that she considered family. To call them loved ones would be an accurate way to describe them. She was brought out of her musings by a mild disturbance in the force. She, apparently, wasn't the only one who felt it, either. The other three masters also responded…and…Naruto as well? She noticed out of the corner of her eye that he turned his head in the same general direction that the other three masters had turned theirs.

"We should continue this conversation elsewhere," Saa spoke up, looking around with a frown. "I feel several presences skulking around."

"As do I. Bounty hunters?" Tholme asked, taking a gentle hold of her arm.

The female Master could only nod in response.

"Alright, we can continue this later," Quinlan nodded before turning to Aayla. "Can you walk?"

Aayla took a deep breath and tried to walk around the room, only for her strength to fail her after a few steps, causing her to fall to her knees. She scowled and grunted in frustration at her lack of control, but before she could try again she was lifted up as easily as one would lift a kitten. Naruto smirked as he carried her bridal style, "I got her."

Vos frowned for a moment before nodding his head, "Very well, can you keep up with us?"

"I'm no slouch," Naruto replied with a smile.

"Even so…" Quinlan continued, before Aayla cut him off.

"It's alright," she piped in. She wouldn't allow just any man to lift her in his arms like this, but Naruto wasn't a normal man to her. Their time living and fighting together had given her enough experience to be able to trust him with her life, and much more.

She continued, "He can keep up. He has abilities that are similar to our own."

"Similar abilities?" Vos frowned, before looking up at the blondes grin.

"We'll explain later…" he promised, "…after we get to safety."

Vos frowned for a moment before nodding his head, "Very well, but if you can't keep up then let us know."

"Will do," Naruto nodded.

They were off in a heartbeat, the Jedi hopping onto the windowsill of the busted open window before taking off in force propelled leaps, landing nicely on the rooftop where Naruto had taken off from before. T'ra Saa was first, then Tholme, then Vos and finally Naruto with Aayla in his arms. As he hopped up onto the windowsill, he stopped when he heard her speak.

"I hate being helpless," she muttered.

He looked down at her and smiled, "Don't you trust me?"

She gave him a wry look. "I trust you with my life, but I still don't like the feeling."

"You mean… after all that stuff I said to you about playing the hero and rescuing my damsel in distress…" Naruto gasped in mock-shock, followed by saying in mock-hurt, quivering his lower lip for added effect, his tone changed into one of mock-horror, "…YOU DON'T WANT ME TO BE YOUR HERO?"

Aayla face-faulted at this, raising her hands and shaking them back and forth, "no, no, no, no, that's not what I meant…"

Naruto chuckled, letting her know that he wasn't being serious. She scowled at him, having taken the bait once more.

"Don't worry," he replied as he stopped laughing and leaned down to her ear, "I'm not going to let anyone hurt you, no matter what."

Aayla blushed at his words, her breath catching in her throat and her heart suddenly beating faster. He had such conviction when he spoke of protecting her from harm. She started to respond almost unconsciously, "Naruto, I wooooooooowww!"

As she began, he pumped chakra into his legs and jumped the long breech between buildings with next to no effort, landing in a crouch on the other rooftop. The suddenness of the jump left Aayla a little disorientated. The three Jedi looked back at the two with gazes which were a mixture of surprise and suspicion.

Naruto looked up with a smile, "I said that I could keep up with you couldn't I?"

After a few moments of uncomfortable silence, Vos spoke in an ominous tone, "We'll need to talk, later".

"O…K. I understand," Naruto replied, "I will answer as honestly as I can, within reason of course…"

"We are wasting time," Tholme interrupted urgently.

"Indeed," T'ra Saa agreed as her eyes remained closed, brow furrowed as she concentrated. "The hunters will be on our trail."

"Then let's move," Naruto nodded his head, "Lead the way."

The Jedi nodded before taking off, rushing across the rooftops in force propelled runs and leaps. Naruto followed with Aayla, running and jumping from rooftop to rooftop with chakra propelled speed, easily keeping up with the three Jedi masters just a little ahead of him.

"Naruto," Aayla managed, looking up at him, "What about the others?"

"Oh…right," the blond replied, almost faltering in his step but managing not to through sheer experience on the move, "I need to get in touch with them and let them know you're safe. I'll do that once we're able to stop."

The united sigh of relief echoed across the small office that the Uhumele's crew was cooped up in. Dass was in the centre of the huddle, miniature hologram receiver activated on his wrist showing the twenty-centimetre-tall, amber-hued form of Naruto Uzumaki. Schurk, Crys, Ratty and Ko were peering over his left shoulder while Mezgraf and Celeste, Bomo and Resa were looking on from his right. He had to sit down to allow some of the more diminutive in stature to get a look.

Naruto smirked as he looked at the scene, "Feeling cramped, Dass?"

"Well now that you mention it-" the Jedi master began before being interrupted by a squeal of joy which almost popped his eardrum. Resa was hugging her father as tightly as her tiny form would allow, smiling and laughing in obvious relief and joy.

"Auntie's alright, Auntie's alright," she recited over and over, unaware that everyone in the room were checking their ears to make sure they hadn't been popped; some were smiling, though.

Naruto grinned before his features morphed into a teasing tone. "When did Aayla become 'Auntie'?"

"She's been calling Crys that too, and she started calling Celeste that yesterday," Bomo informed him with a shrug, "Don't think much about it."

"So let me get this straight," Ko cut in after a moment. "She was kidnapped by a bounty hunter, only for him to be ambushed by her former Master?"

"Pretty much," Naruto shrugged.

"And the first time we met when she had been supposedly kidnapped by that child eating psychopath she had already freed herself by the time you arrived?" he continued on, sending an apologetic look to Bomo and Resa, knowing the bad memories that particular incident brought up.

"Yup," Naruto shrugged once more.

There was a moment of silence before the Blood Carver sighed, "That's girls luck must be incredible."

"That's what I said," Naruto agreed with vigorous nodding, "I mean every time she gets kidnapped she either frees herself or has some brilliant lucky escape or rescuer whichisn't me…" a few of those listening caught the disappointment in his voice, knowing that Naruto had a bit of a hero complex,"She must have done a lot of good before I met her because this could only be her karma."

"What is karma?" Bomo asked, ideally opening up a new topic of conversation. The two other adult females of the group didn't seem to like the idea of being termed damsels in distress. Naruto appeared oblivious to their silent fuming.

"The idea of karma is that if you do something good, good things will happen to you, and if you do something bad, well…bad things happen to you." Naruto explained as he folded his arms and nodded to himself. "I think that's the easy version of it."

"That's a very simplified way of looking at things," Dass muttered.

"I like simple," Naruto replied lightly, sighing into the air. "It's my blanket of comfort in a world of insanity."

"We're getting off topic here," Celeste said, sighing in annoyance.

"She's right," Crys added before giving Naruto a look, "Where are you all know?"

"We're in a safe house, not sure where yet, but we'll let you know." The blond replied, before looking over to his right for a moment, as if listening to someone just out of the holograms hearing distance, nodding his head he turned back to them with a sheepish gesture. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to hang up. We'll be in touch in a day or so. Until then, sit back, relax, and let those Rangers do their job."

"He sounds like the Captain now," Bomo sighed.

"He really does," Schurk agreed.

"You were lucky you weren't hurt, you know," T'ra Saa scolded in a motherly way.

Aayla gave T'ra Saa an apologetic look as the Jedi Master concentrated; hand on the younger woman's forehead as she worked to remove what little remained of the stun bolt. By the time she was finished, all feeling of weariness and numbness had vanished and Aayla stood up, testing out her legs one at a time before walking to the other side of the small room and back.

"Feel better?" the Neti Jedi Master asked.

Aayla turned, smile in place as she nodded her head. "Thank you Master. I feel much better."

"Good to hear, child," the older woman smiled in response as she sat down on a chair and motioned her to take the other one across from her. Aayla strode across the space between them, pulled out the rickety old chair and sat down.

"Where are the others?"

"Quin is checking up on Khaleen, and Tholme is having a chat with your companion." T'ra answered as she leaned her arms on the table. She saw Aayla's inquisitive look at the mention of her former Master's lover. Only a select few within the Jedi Order knew about Quinlan and Khaleen, and of those few, only the three Jedi now present knew she was with child.

"Mother and child are both healthy and doing fine," T'ra Saa continued, "They named the boy Korto, and he is growing up very fast. I think he plans on bringing them here."

"That's wonderful to hear," Aayla smiled, happy to hear that the birth had passed without incident.

"I'm guessing Khaleen will want to see you with her own eyes." T'ra Saa continued as she leaned back into the chair. "Plus Quinlan will want his boy to meet his godmother."

The title surprised her a little. Quinlan had asked her if she wanted to be his godmother but she asked if she could have time to think about it. With her supposed death she guessed he had chosen someone else, maybe the woman across from her, to be Korto's godmother. She scratched the back of her head, smiling a little in embarrassment, "I'm not sure I'm worthy of such an honour."

T'ra Saa sighed before fixing Aayla with a calculating look, a look which cracked within a second of her putting it on. She was so happy to see the young woman alive and mostly healthy that she was incapable of giving her even an annoyed look, "Maybe you'll change your mind when you see him."

"Maybe," Aayla allowed, bowing her head slightly.

"So tell me about your friend," Saa said, quickly switching topics.

"Naruto?"

"Mm-hmm," she intoned, placing her chin on her palm as she relaxed and listened with a knowing smile.

"We've been travelling together for the last six months," she began, thinking for a moment before nodding her head, "He's from a force-sensitive order called the Shinobi, and is what they call a Jōnin. A rank which would roughly be equivalent to a Jedi Master, I think. He's strong, and if it wasn't for him I would probably be dead by now."

"He's a friend?" she asked.

Aayla smiled softly, "Yes, a very dear friend."

The older woman's smile grew a little, before becoming serious. "Are you sure he isn't a spy or a Dark Acolyte?"

"Oh, I'm sure," she replied with absolute conviction, and at the Master questioning look she verified. "He isn't working for the Sith. I trust him as much as I trust the three of you."

"Do you, really?" Saa asked, in surprise, before posing another question, "But how do you know he's not an enemy?"

"He defeated Darth Vader," she answered, "Plus, he has had plenty of time and many chances to either kill me or turn me in, neither of which he has done."

T'ra Saa nodded, sighing in relief, "You know I'm only asking this because I care for you."

Aayla nodded, "Yes Master, and thank you for caring."

The Neti looked at Aayla closely, with a gaze so intense that the younger woman couldn't help but fidget, after a few tense moments a small smirk graced the older woman's lips, which slowly turned into a knowing smile. The younger woman waited for a moment before breaking the silence, giving her old friend a piercing look.

"What?" Aayla asked, desperately needing to break a silence that she was finding very uncomfortable.

"You like him," She smiled serenely.

Aayla frowned thoughtfully, "Of course I like him."

"No, no dear. You misunderstand," T'ra Saa waved her hand dismissively; eyes closed and face as calm as a mother, "I mean you really…really…like…him," making a point of pausing between each word.

Her frown remained for a few moments, before realisation on what the other Jedi was implying dawned on her. Her cheeks darkened and her eyes widened, not in denial but seemingly in embarrassment and shock, "Well... I um... I-"

The Master's smile grew as she said knowingly, "I knew it the moment you started talking about him."

"I'm not that transparent," she whispered, more to herself than to the smiling woman across from her. She glowered at T'ra Saa for a moment, covering her face with her hands. "Yes, He's strong, kind, compassionate, knows right from wrong-"

"Handsome," the Neti ventured teasingly.

Aayla half glared at her for a moment, before sighing heavily and relenting. She replied in a small voice, shy and timid and not like the Aayla she remembered at all. "Yes, handsome."

"Ah," the Master hummed thoughtfully.

"What am I going to do, Master?" Aayla asked, pleadingly.

"What do you feel when you are with him?" she asked, forcing her smile down.

"When I'm with him?" She asked.

"Yes dear, when you are with him."

"I feel…" Aayla took a moment to collect her thoughts so that she could properly express feelings that were very new to her, "…happy and…carefree," she replied, sighing as she smiled wistfully, "His mere presence makes all of my worries and troubles seem meaningless. His hair is as radiant as any sun, his eyes are deeper than the deepest ocean on Mon Calamari."

Aayla started looking off into space, almost forgetting that she was actually talking to T'ra Saa, "His voice is like comforting and soft music to my ears. His laughter is so wonderfully soothing. His smile…oh, his smile…it makes my heart flutter and my head feel…dizzy. When I'm with him…every sensation and experience is just…so much richer; it's like colours are brighter and more vibrant, sounds are more…varied and melodic; even my food seems to taste that much better when I'm eating it with him. He makes me feel... makes me feel..."

"Like your floating on air?" T'ra Saa asked in a manner that was as wistful as Aayla's own, her smile having only gotten wider.

"Yes…" she breathed, before putting a hand to her chest, looking down at her lap as her wistful smile became a saddened and pain-filled frown, "…but recently…I feel something painful, like tightness in my chest. Sometimes it hurts."

She was silent for a moment, not interrupting the younger woman, waiting for her to continue. She didn't have to wait long. As Aayla looked up to meet the Neti's gaze, tears began to fall from her eyes, "I think I'm falling in love with him."

T'ra Saa hadn't lost her smile at this admission. She simply reached her hand out, placing it over Aayla's own and gently squeezing it as she responded, "I think you already have, dear."

"What am I going to do?" she asked pleadingly, desperately looking to the older woman for an answer that made any kind of sense to her, "We're Jedi; we're not supposed to feel like this."

T'ra Saa shook her head, stood up, walked around the table that separated them and taking the younger woman's hands in her own gently pulled her to her feet, placing her forehead against Aayla's and closing her eyes. She immersed herself in the force, and allowed the current to flow through the two of them, her own energy probing the younger woman's torrent of doubt and the split in the road which lay before her from the choices of love or duty.

T'ra Saa was considered one of the oldest and wisest of the Jedi Order. She had trained many outstanding Jedi during her life, one of her greatest pupils being the former second chair of the Jedi High Council, Mace Windu. She had mastered many elements of the force during her long life, one of which was the art of precognition, to be able to glimpse into the future and see bits and pieces of a potential life. The ability was not one of her strongest, but if the recipient was willing then it was possible.

"You will be forced to choose," she said simply, eyes remaining closed, ignoring the young woman's sudden stiffening, "If you choose duty over love, he will continue to follow you. The two of you will fight together, and become the closest of comrades and allies. Your adventures will be many and the perils you face great, but through it all, he will stay with you, he will fight for you and, if necessary, he will die for you."

Aayla's eyes widened in horror, "Die for me?"

"It is just one of many paths, and nothing is decided," T'ra Saa soothed, "If you choose love over duty, the two of you will face many trials, joy and sorrow, love and loss, tests which will bring you both to your absolute limit, but if the strength of your bonds holds out, if you continue on with no fear, then the two of you will heal each other's wounds."

Aayla sighed heavily as the two of them parted, the strength of the much older woman leaving her. Her eyes fluttered open to be met with the dark orbs of T'ra Saa, searching through hers.

"So I will have to choose?" asked Aayla with great trepidation.

The Jedi Master nodded, "Yes."

"But what about the code? I've been raised by the Jedi Code. It's…a part of me," she muttered, still feeling unsure; no…unsure was not the word. She was scared, frightened…terrified even…by these new emotions she had rarely felt before, and never so strongly. For so long her refuge had been in the Temple with her fellow Jedi around her. That had been stripped away, and now she was feeling things she might not have felt otherwise.

Jedi Master T'ra Saa had never been a great follower of the Jedi Code. Among her fellow Masters she was seen with respect and revered for her wisdom, but she was also known to be rebellious, as was shown through her relationship with Tholme. Her lover was as much a maverick as she was, both willing to bend, or even break, a millennia old set of rules and tradition. Quinlan Vos, Tholme's apprentice, had inherited that rebellious nature and distaste for the rules, but Aayla, who had apprenticed under them both, did not follow that trait.

She had broken the cycle, choosing to follow the code instead of breaking it. Now, though, the Jedi Master saw flickers of doubt, surfaced by her foundations crumbling around her. She once again took the young woman's hands in her own, looked down at her. Aayla was pretty tall, but T'ra Saa was a full head taller.

"Love is not something to be thrown away, child," she said firmly, "but the decision to love another is not a decision that you can be forced to make. I will not make you, neither will Quinlan or Tholme. The decision is yours, and yours, alone. We can do little more than advise."

She heard a sigh, and both looked up to see Quinlan Vos leaning against the door frame on the other side of the room. His eyes were focused entirely on her, but before Aayla could say a word he had pushed himself away from the frame and began stalking towards her. He looked dead serious and not in the mood to dawdle.

He was in front of Aayla, hand reached out to press the back of her head. The foreheads of both Master and Apprentice met, the searing eyes of Quinlan Vos meeting the surprised ones of his former pupil. Finally he closed his eyes, breaking eye contact, and sighed heavily before opening them again and flashing a fatherly smile.

"What am I going to do with you?"

"Master?"

"I thought I taught you better than that," he scolded lightly, taking her right hand and pressing it against her chest. "I taught you to think with your heart as well as your head. You're so desperately clinging to the guidelines of the Order that you're ignoring what this organ here is screaming at you."

Tears once again threatened to break free from her eyes, but she shook her head violently, feeling her heart thump a pounding, harrowing beat which echoed through her ears. "Master, I-"

"Aayla," he cut her off, and she looked up, tears flying by the suddenness of the motion. His eyes were soft and fatherly, and his smile was warm. "What do you feel for him?"

"I... I," the words wouldn't come. She wanted to say that he was just her friend, but her voice refused to work. The young woman was so surprised by what she said instead, timidly and quietly, a faint whisper, like she was saying something she wouldn't dare say, "I love him."

Vos smiled knowingly as he asked, "Err…what was that? Couldn't quite hear you."

Her eyes widened, and then it hit her. When she said those three words the tightness in her chest dissipated, the worries she had, once so overwhelming, now seemed to trivial. She repeated the words, still meekly, but with more strength, "I love him."

"Still couldn't hear you…" Vos teased.

"I love him," she said a little louder.

"I don't think T'ra Saa could hear you…" Vos teased further.

"I love him," Aayla said again, louder still, but…

"Oh, for the Force's sake woman, tell the entire galaxy the truth you've only told us! DO IT NOW!" Vos ordered with such conviction and command that Aayla obeyed before she even thought about it.

"I love Naruto Uzumaki!" she cried out those words without shame or hesitation, unable to keep them bottled up any longer. She couldn't help but laugh and cry at the same time now that it was out, and she could no longer lie to herself about her feelings.

"There, see? Was that so hard?" Quinlan asked as he smiled, and then stepped to the side. A shadow had fallen across the room, blocking the light from the corridor beyond. Aayla looked at the figure blocking the light, and her eyes widened in shock at the man she saw watching her, mouth slightly agape and eyes wide from a very real and sudden surprise.

Naruto stood in the doorway.

Vos placed a hand on the arm of T'ra Saa, leading her from the room and allowing the two of them some privacy. The older woman was giving him a harrowing look, but she did not resist. Naruto, still surprised, was just able to register their presence and step out of the way. Both Masters left the room, leaving them alone.

"Naruto," she whispered his name, taking a step back, horrified, embarrassed, frightened, overwhelmed, and feeling a slew of other emotions that she would never have any hope of identifying, "I..."

He was already walking, and by the time she had uttered the second word he was standing over her, looking down at her with a gaze she had never seen in his eyes before. His arms slowly wrapped around her waist, pulling her slowly to him. She did not resist, too shocked and numb by all of the events occurring in the last few minutes to put up even a weak resistance.

Aayla could do nothing but stand there, glassy eyed, as he leaned down, his mouth sealed over hers for a kiss. She went rigid for a moment, but it was just a moment before the sensation of the contact swept over her, like electricity had suddenly coursed across her skin and through her veins. She leaned back, closed her eyes and relished in the feeling.

Naruto closed his eyes, his body moving on autopilot as he kissed the woman who at one point he had thought of pushing away, but now, seeing her like this and hearing her heartfelt words he couldn't control himself. He was willing to tempt fate one last time. If it meant being with this woman, he didn't care if some malicious god decided to strike him down the moment their lips parted.

Ironically remembering how Grandma Tsunade took that one last chance and gambled on him, Naruto Uzumaki now found himself standing in her shoes, willing to take one last chance…and bet it all on the love that he had developed for this amazing angelic creature in his arms; Aayla Secura…his most precious person, more precious than Grandma Tsunade, more precious than Sakura. Dare he say it…even more precious than his beloved Hinata.

He actually found even greater irony in this situation: as a child, how many people had regarded him as a demon or a monster? As an adult, how many people began to regard him as some sort of god, putting the responsibility of saving them all squarely on his shoulders? In either case, "human" was a label that nobody ever seemed to give him. How ironic, then, that the greatest love of his life was a woman that wasn't human at all? Yes…he was willing to tempt fate one last time, or maybe it would be more accurate to say that he was willing to accept the plate that fate was handing to him…

Author Note 1: Naruto and Star Wars are the property of Masashi Kishimoto and Lucas Arts respectively, and I make no profit for writing and uploading this story.

Author Note 2: So I finished this chapter a little later than I did the last few updates, that's the reason why it's been uploaded a little later than the current standard time. Big thanks to ncpfan for reading it through and sending it back so quickly that it took me two days to notice. We've gotten a little routine going now, I do the template and the main story, send it to him who beta-reads it as well as adding in a few additional things to make it more epic, sends it back to me who re-reads it and makes a few additional changes, if needed, then it is uploaded.

Author Note 3: I was actually planning on the confession to come later, but half way through this chapter I made a decision to just go ahead and do it, all of the necessities were in place, and it just seemed right. On a different note we are nearing the threshold, all we need is another 59 reviews to immortalise this story into the 0.2 percent of epic stories in Naruto that make it over 1,000. I'm speechless, thank you to everyone who has read, and reviewed this story, coming to a total of 109 C2's, 1525 favs, and 1505 alerts.

I am speechless, and humbled, very humbled.

Seriously

Thank you