…
…
…
Author's Note:
Hello, lovies! I hope you enjoyed the last chapter! I also apologize because I thought I posted it earlier this week when I finished it, but I'm not sure what happened. Anyway, I guess that works out for you guys since you get two chapters in one. And I can't wait for you guys to post what you think about both those chapters! As you can tell, we're on chapter 112, whoa, and have finally reached another milestone within the story! I'd love to hear how excited everyone is when they find out what's happening with our own Sasuke.
Enjoy!
Warnings: Foul Language, surprise ending.
…
…
…
Chapter 112: Love Beats Fears
Normal P.O.V.
"Are you gentleman sure you have everything?" General Mifune asked as he stood outside the Teleportation Room with his guards, Naruto, and Sasuke.
"Yep! And thanks again for taking care of Sasuke. We really appreciate it."
"Yes. I don't think I would not be alive if it were not for your staff," Sasuke nodded.
Thanks to the efforts of Mifune's staff, Sasuke was awake and moving within a day or two. However, they wouldn't release him until they were for sure that he was out of the danger zone. Luckily, they didn't keep him longer than three days max. Afterwards, the couple was ready to return home, and get some much-needed rest.
"It was nothing. This was only a small repayment for what you both have done for us. I shall give a good report to Hokage Kakashi Hatake. And please, make sure to have your friend checked out by Lady Tsunade. I would feel terrible if anything happened to him had my staff missed anything,"
"Thank you." Both boys bowed.
"And, as promised, I will be sure to have a meeting with Kakashi-sensei and Shikamaru about sending more backup in case of anymore issues," Naruto smiled with his hands behind his head.
"We're off. Please let us know if you need our services in the future," Sasuke said before turning towards his mate. "Let's go, dobe. I'm tired,"
"You can go home and rest as soon as Granny Tsunade says it's ok first," Naruto said as they entered the room.
The old dragon quietly chuckled as he watched them disappear from their sights.
"What an interesting couple, those two."
…
…
…
"We're back!" Naruto announced as he bursts through Kakashi's office door.
Inside, Tsunade and Shikamaru stood around the Hokage desk while Kakashi remained in his seat. However, when Naruto and Sasuke entered the room, everyone turned their eyes towards them.
"Welcome back. How was your trip? It seems like things took longer than expected," Kakashi smiled as he leaned forward and laced his fingers together.
"Yeah, we ran into some minor issues, but nothing we couldn't handle, right Sasuke," The raven nodded.
"We have interrupted something important. Let us go Naruto, we can come back later."
"Nonsense. We were just merely passing the time until you two returned. Please join us, we have been looking forward to hearing what happened during your trip." Kakashi said, giving the couple his full attention as they gave their reports.
…
…
…
"Interesting. So, there were two shinobi with extraordinary powers. Although I have heard of some shinobis having similar powers to necromancing and ice, I have never heard of someone wielding those exact powers, especially without forming hand signs; very peculiar," Tsunade hummed in thought.
"Yes. That is quite the report, you two. None the less, good job. I am proud of both of you," The silver wolf smiled.
"Oh yeah, and I said I would talk to you guys about possibly sending back up to General Mifune. We don't know how many more of these people are out there, but we know that he's going to need more help than what he has. They're defenseless out there. Please Kakashi-sensei, I beg you to help him,"
"I don't know, Naruto. We're still recovering from Pain's attack and the effects of the war. I don't know if we'll have the men power to spread ourselves thin like that,"
"Please, Kakashi-sensei. I know that it might not be the best idea, but with Sasuke and me here, that should be more than enough manpower to protect the village while we send them some help," Naruto begged again, but this time on his knees.
"Get up, dobe. You're embarrassing me," Sasuke groaned as he smacked his face with his hand.
"Naruto, that is no way to behave as a future Hokage. You should be ashamed," Tsunade scolded.
"I know, but I want you guys to see how serious I am about this,"
"I think it's not a terrible idea," Shikamaru spoke for the first time in a while.
"Oh yeah? Please, enlighten us with your thoughts,"
"Lord Hokage, Naruto does make a few good points. If the report from the two teams is true, then the people of the Land of Iron could be in serious trouble. I also agree with the statement that, thanks to their new powers, that Naruto and Sasuke are more than enough to protect the village from almost any threat. But I also understand your point that we still shouldn't spread ourselves too thin. So, why don't we find a happy medium,"
"What are you proposing, Shikamaru?" Tsunade asked with her arms crossed over her enormous chest.
"Since the Land of Iron is neutral territory, why don't we pull shinobi from each of the five nations? You know how General Mifune is, if we were to send our own people and continue to offer aid, then the other nations will suspect us of gaining favoritism. This could potentially undo everything we did during the Fourth Shinobi World War and undo the peace we created. But, if we were let the other nations know, then they could offer their help as well. That way we can keep a safe amount pf shinobi within our village without spreading ourselves thin, and we continue to leave the Land of Iron within neutral ground,"
"That's genius, Shikamaru! Can we do that, Kakashi-sensei?! Please?!"
Said older wolf hummed to himself as he thought about the proposal, "I think it's a good idea. Why don't you contact General Mifune and let him know of our plan. I shall contact the other nations to let them in on the plan as well," He smiled as his tail wagged and he clapped his hands.
"Great! Thank you so much, Kakashi-sensei and Shikamaru! I owe you guys one!"
"Yes, I believe that this will be good for us all. Now, if there's nothing else, I'd like to go home, Naruto. I'm tired," Sasuke said as he turned to leave the room until he was caught by the back of his cloak.
"Oh no you don't. You promised me that when we returned, you'd let Granny Tsunade and Sakura-chan check you out. You still haven't fully recovered from that nasty food poisoning before the mission, on top of almost dying from severe hypothermia," Sasuke yanked himself free and turned to protest but stopped when he saw the serious expression on his alpha's face. "Don't even try to argue with me, Sasuke. I'm sorry, but I'm standing firm on this. You're going with Granny to get checked out. And when she says it's ok, I'll come and get you from the hospital. Now give me your packing scrolls,"
The raven tsked as he followed his mate's commands, ignoring the slight smile on Naruto's lips. Everyone else in the room proudly smiled as they watched the interaction. It's slowly becoming known that Naruto and Sasuke are mates, along with the running joke that the raven whipped the blond fox despite his alpha status. However, it was a nice change whenever they saw the blond live up to his powerful alpha status.
Tsunade was the first to move as she pushed off her old desk and walked towards them, "You heard the man, let's get you to the hospital and looked over. If everything goes well, you'll be home in no time, kitty cat." She smiled when she heard him grumble as he left the room. She was started to follow him but stopped and turned towards her other grandson; her smile never leaving her face, "Good job, kid. I'm proud of you,"
The blond nodded a "thanks" as he scratched the back of his head and smiled while they left the room.
…
…
…
Back at the hospital, Sasuke sat on the examination table as Tsunade and Sakura checked him over and made notes in his chart. The longer he was there, the women could tell that he was frustrated. Despite knowing the consequences, they couldn't help messing with the young Uchiha omega. Luckily, they only had one more test to run.
The final test, which he took about five minutes ago, was a pee test. Sasuke gave them weird expressions when they asked him to pee in a cup and give it to them for testing. At first, he refused, but after a few minutes of convincing, they finally got the fisty feline to take the cup in the bathroom to relieve himself. Afterwards, he begrudgingly shoved the cup into his former teammate's hands with a mild glare. It only fueled his frustration when she teased him about his glare being ineffective before she disappeared into the bathroom with the cup. Although he thought it was strange, Sasuke just shrugged it off and hopped back onto the table. But now, more than enough time has passed, and the raven would like nothing more than to finally go home and lay down.
"Are we done yet? I'm tired,"
"Aw, is the fisty kitty sleepy? Don't worry, brat, we're almost done. I'm just waiting on the results from your final test. Sakura, how's it coming?"
"The results are in, and their positive, milady!" Sakura brightly smiled as she hopped towards them with a stick in her hand.
"What's positive?! Do I have disease?! Was I poisoned?! It was from that takeout Naruto brought home that night, wasn't it? I knew I shouldn't have eaten that shit,"
"Sasuke, calm down and stop panicking. You're not poisoned or anything like that. Quite the opposite. Congratulations, ya brat. You're pregnant,"
The room was silent except for the two women's deafening excitement and bright smiles, Sasuke's twitching eye. It didn't help that Sakura stood in front of him with her hands against her mouth as she tried to hold her excitement. Or Tsunade's all-knowing smirk. Both only added to his stress as Sasuke's eye continued to twitch.
"I'm what?!" He finally screamed into the void.
"You're pregnant, Sasuke. Congratulations. Now we're not sure how far yet, but that's an easy fix by you answering some questions for us~"
"Hold the fuck up because I'm going to need time to think of the different ways, I plan on killing both of you and castrating Naruto." He sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "How can I be pregnant?"
"Well, when an alpha and an omega love each other, especially during the omega's heat, then the alpha~"
"No, shut up, not that, bitch. I'm talking about me specifically."
"I'll chalk that up to you being shocked about the news, so you'll get that one time. But I knew what you meant. Sasuke, I told you that once you stopped taking those blockers that you're heat cycles will return. In fact, we were both shocked that they came so early considering how long you were on them. I also already told you that it is a real possibility that you might get pregnant right away, so be careful around Naruto. You knew this already; I thought you said you were prepared for all of this. You said you were," she said with a raised eyebrow.
"You knew better than to believe me," he sighed as he hopped off the table and walked around the room while rubbing his face. "Ugh, this can't be happening. This cannot be happening, not to me."
"Sasuke-kun, I thought you would be happy? You and I both know that Naruto has always wanted kids. I mean, there's a lot of rumors that you two tend to go at it… quite often," she whispered as she blushed. "Did you two not talk about having children?"
"No, we did. In fact, too often, if I'm being honest. It's just… I was never actually prepared to have it happen. Being pregnant doesn't bring out the best memories for me," He whispered the last part as he hugged himself and looked off to the side.
"Memories? Sasuke-kun, were you pregnant before?" Sakura gently asked.
"Sakura, that's insensitive to ask him right now. Can't you see he's struggling with processing his situation," Tsunade scolded.
"I'm so sorry, milady and Sasuke-kun. I didn't mean to upset you. Please forgive me," she bowed in shame.
The raven just sighed as he turned to face them without releasing his hold around his body. "It's alright. But I thought you knew? Don't you study my chart like it's one of your medical scrolls?"
"She doesn't have access to your file before you left the village. I sealed it away for only certain people to see. So, when you told me about your first pregnancy, I put it at the end of your old file before sealing it away. She is not aware of your earlier situation, unless you want to tell her,"
"Oh Sasuke-kun, you do not, by any means, have to say a word to me. I do not need to know if Lady Tsunade knows," she defensively said with he hands raised.
"No, it's alright. You need to know, especially if you're going to treat me during this pregnancy," he sighed before he leaned against the examination table. "Before I left the village, I was pregnant with Naruto and my first child, but I didn't know at the time. In fact, I didn't find out until after I arrived at Orochimaru's. He's the one that told me after he examined my wounds from my battle with Naruto,"
Sakura gasped, "So that night I tried to stop you from leaving… you were pregnant, and you were actually an omega this whole time?" He nodded. "I knew your scent was different, but I thought it was just from the night air,"
"What do you mean? You thought my scent was different?" He asked in shock.
She nodded, "The whole time we talked, I thought I smelt something different about you, but I wasn't sure. At the time, I couldn't, wouldn't, believe that your scent and status was any different than what I knew to be true. But, since our conversation didn't last long, and you ended up knocking me out, I forgot about it. Everyone already thought it was bizarre that you weren't an alpha like most of the other Uchiha males, so I dismissed it from my mind. I didn't care though, because to me, you were just Sasuke-kun: my teammate, friend, and then crush. Wow, who knew that smell was because you were pregnant,"
"But that doesn't make any sense. How did you know that my scent changed when neither Naruto nor I noticed?"
"It's quite common. Because omegas' senses are dull to themselves, it is natural for them to not smell themselves. Your scents are more for the alphas to smell, just like their smells are more for betas and omegas to notice. Neither class is meant to notice their own natural scent," Tsunade explained.
"And as for why Naruto didn't notice, well… it's Naruto. Let's be honest here," she giggled.
"Fair enough," he chuckled. "Anyway, after Orochimaru told me that I was 8 weeks and 3 days when I found out. That was also the day I found out that I was an omega and not a beta. It tore me up inside; not just because I found out that I was even more of a disappointment to my clan by being a young pregnant omega. The only saving grace was that Naruto had already marked me before I left. But the most traumatic part of it all was that I had to make the worst decision of my life: to either keep our child, give birth, and allow Orochimaru to take it from me, or terminate the pregnancy myself. I don't I have to tell you what I decided," he sighed as his body relaxed.
"That's awful, Sasuke-kun. I'm sorry that happened to you," Sakura said as she bowed her head and tried to hold back her tears.
"Well, kid, it's your body, so the decision falls on you. What are you going to do? Are you going to keep it, or terminate it? Whatever you decide, your secret will not leave this room," Tsunade said as she stood tall with her shoulders squared, chest out, legs straightened, and her spine lengthened.
Sakura on the other hand was slouched over as she clutched her hands to her chest, tears in the corner of her eyes, and a lump in her throat.
The room was silent and heavy with dread and confliction. Sasuke's mind ran a mile a minute as he thought about what to do. Although Naruto and him had this very same conversation several times over, it was still too much to handle.
Finally, Sasuke sighed and turned to look at the women as he leaned further into the examination table, "I'm not sure right now. Don't get me wrong, I know that Naruto would want me to keep it. And, deep down inside of me, I still want to restore some of my clan's legacy. However, the other part of me doesn't want to put my children through my clan's curse; the very same curse that caused their extinction. I just... wish I could see the future with these damned eyes. Maybe if I knew what the future held, then my decision would be easier,"
"Well... I think you're being selfish, Sasuke-kun..."
"Excuse me?" he glared.
"You heard me," she replied as she tried to steel her nerve against her former teammate. "I don't think you're being fair, to your unborn child, to Naruto, and mostly to yourself. Sasuke-kun, I may have never been pregnant before, nor will I even begin to say that I truly understand what you're going through. But one thing I do understand is that you are loved and that you can be very reckless most times. In fact, I would argue that you're more reckless than Naruto,"
"How dare you! You're right, you don't know shit about me, Sakura, and you never will! Who are you to judge me on my decisions?!" he roared.
"Your friend! The same friend that went through hell and back alongside your mate when you left our home. The same friend who thought so highly of you when everyone else degraded and called you a monster. I'm also the same friend who comforted your mate in your absence. And I'm also the same friend who, despite our past and face rejection from you, is still standing next to you with enough admiration and love to call you out when you're acting like an ass!" she screamed back before pinching the bridge of her nose and took a few deep breaths.
"I know that what you're dealing with is beyond imaginable, but you must remember something; you're not alone this time. We're older now and we know better. We're living in a world of peace now; we're as free as we're ever going to be in our lives. Despite what anyone says, you were blessed with the gift to bring life into this tragic world. And you want to believe, or admit it, you're also blessed with friends who care about you, and a strong mate who loves you enough to die for you. I don't know about you, but I know too many people who would die for what you have. However, I know that none of those things negate what you're feeling. But I beg you, Sasuke-kun, please talk to Naruto before doing anything brash. Like you, Naruto wants a family since he's never had one. But most importantly, he wants one with the person he marked: his lover, his best friend. That's you, ya big idiot. In the end it is your decision, but please think about it before both of you get hurt again. I hate it when my boys are hurting," she smiled as the tears finally fell from her eyes.
Sasuke was shocked as he listened to the brave bunny in front of him. On the battlefield, Sasuke recognized how much Sakura grew, but in that moment, he felt a sense of pride at being her friend. With a heavy sigh, and a lighter heart, Sasuke left his arms rest at his sides and stood tall.
"I'll do my best. That's all I can promise you,"
Suddenly, the wind was knocked out of him when Sakura ran towards him and hugged his torso. Thanks to his quick reflexes, Sasuke steadied them before they fell to the ground and knocked over the examination table. Sakura added to his shock when she buried her head in his shoulder and whispered a small, "Thank you,"
He was frightened, Sasuke wasn't a hugger nor a person for physical contact, unless it was with Naruto. However, he allowed his instincts to take over and hugged her back. Tsunade relaxed her stature as she folded her and stuck her hip out with a smile as she watched her student and grandson hug it out in the examination room.
"They grow up so fast,"
…
…
…
After a little while longer, and few more discussions about his pregnancy, Sasuke finally left the hospital and headed home. However, as he got closer to his shared apartment with Naruto, the raven decided to take the longer route home. He walked through the busy village, lost in his thoughts. The sun was still up, but he knew it would set within the next hour or so, hence the reason he took his time. If he knew his mate, he was already in a state of panic over him. But Sasuke needed this time.
He needed to think things through before he dealt with his mate. Unfortunately for him, he was mated to a man who didn't understand personal boundaries or space. About fifteen minutes ago, he felt the presence of his mate above him. Not wanting to give himself away, Sasuke sensed Naruto hidden low on a nearby rooftop. It was a game they often played when they were apart. Both were too curious for their own good, so they would follow each other's scent and follow their partner until the other noticed. Sasuke, despite not in the mood to play, decided he could use the distraction.
The raven continued his walk and ignored his curious mate. Although he had to congratulate the blond fox. Usually, he always gave himself away with his chakra signature. It seems those extra lessons with Jiraiya, Kurama, and Kakashi paid off. The game continued for about an hour, closer to sunset but Sasuke wasn't done yet. He thought it would be fun to sneak back home to tease his mate about following him, but something else came to mind so he continued.
Finally, after a few more moments, the raven found himself at the bridge where a mini stream runs through the village: the same stream where the couple shared their favorite memories. While waiting for his mate to finally come out of hiding, Sasuke sat down on the edge of the bridge with his legs crossed in front of him. It didn't take long before soft footsteps were heard from behind him before finally stopping beside him.
"Hn. Took you long enough, dobe," Sasuke chuckled without looking up.
"Tsk. Figures you already found me out, teme," the blond tsked as he shoved his hands into his pockets.
"Don't get discouraged. You're doing better at hiding your chakra signature. But next time, try not following so close,"
"And you're an asshole for leading me around the village for an hour instead of just coming home,"
"Well, it wouldn't be any fun if I didn't make it interesting," Sasuke smirked. "How long have you been trailing me anyway?"
"When you went to hospital. After I "left" the Hokage tower, I never went home. I hid close by and waited for Granny to check you out. I wanted to make sure that you went. But then curiosity got the best of me. Man, you were in there for a long time. I started to get worried. Everything ok, babe?"
Sasuke didn't answer right away, causing Naruto's anxiety to spike. Luckily, he didn't stay silent much longer. "Everything... is fine. Well, as fine as it can be,"
"What does that mean? What did they say about your illnesses? Are you finally feeling better?"
"Well, I can't say that I'm feeling better, but we finally have an answer for what's wrong with me,"
"What is it? Were you poisoned?! Was it from the takeout I got us?! I knew that I shouldn't have bought take out! Sasuke, I'm so sorry! I was just feeling lazy and didn't want to cook! I didn't think that someone would try and poison you! I promise that from now on, I'll start cooking more. We'll have to negotiate ramen, but I'll cut back to keep you safe~"
"Naruto," Sasuke called out, gaining his frantic mate's attention. "It's not food poisoning, although I would happily say it is if you're serious about cutting back," he chuckled again.
"That's not funny, and you know it. Just tell me what it is," the blond fox sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
However, when his mate didn't say anything, Naruto turned to look down at the smiling raven feline. Suddenly, Sasuke's hand shot out from under his cloak and landed on his stomach. The confused blond stood there and thought for a moment before a thought dawned on him. Once the realization hit him, Naruto's eyes widen as he flexed his fingers subconsciously.
"Are you serious, Sasuke? Please tell me that your serious," The raven only nodded before he heard his mate jump and cheer in joy. "I'm going to be a father! Yes! Finally! Thank you, gods!" Sasuke watched as his mate leaped and flipped in happiness. Despite his earlier fears, this moment made the young Uchiha realized how right Sakura was. However, the moment was short lived when the blond suddenly stopped and crouched beside him in worry. "How did you take the news? Are you excited? Are you upset with me?"
Sasuke shook his head before answering, "I'm not mad at you. If anything, I'm madder at myself,"
"Why is that?"
"Because I'm an idiot, and it took for Sakura to yell at me for me to understand my own stupidity," he chuckled.
"Wait what? Sakura-chan yelled at you?! Now that's something that I'd never thought would happen," Naruto chuckled. "But wait, why did she yell at you?"
"To put it simply, I was being as reckless and as much as an idiot as she accused me of. When Lady Tsunade and Sakura told me the news, I closed myself off and felt conflicted. On the one hand I'm happy because it's ours. But on the other hand, I'm scared to birth our child into our world's and my clan's curse,"
"Sasuke, you know I would do anything to protect both you and our child from anything in this world until I die, right?"
"I do," he sighed. "But it doesn't save me from my own insecurities or fears. And, if it's all the same to you, I'd rather not ruin this moment with them,"
"Fair point. But can I ask one thing?"
"If you're going to ask if I want to keep it~"
"I want an honest answer, not one because you know that I want it. Like I told you before, if this is something you don't want, then I'm fine with it,"
For a moment, onyx eyes looked towards the sunset as he took a deep breathe, "To be honest, I'm scared... for a lot of different reasons... But, if I'm also being honest, knowing that you're going to be with me every step of the way makes things easier. So, to answer your question, yes... I want it,"
A bright smile spread across Naruto's face as he pulled Sasuke into him and passionately kissed his thin lips. Through the kiss, Sasuke felt more of his insecurities and fears disappear. Unfortunately, Naruto always pulled away too soon for the raven. But the blond made up for it when he pulled Sasuke into his chest and held him close.
"I love you. I always have, and I always will,"
"I love you too," the raven said as he nuzzled himself further into his alpha's scent.
"So, when do we know what we're having?"
"That's not for another few months, dobe."
"So how far along are you now?"
"We're not sure yet. But they think that I'm early; about four to five weeks. If I decided to keep it, they want me to make an appointment in a few weeks for my first ultrasound. That's when the baby will be measured, and they'll do a bunch of prenatal testing. You're more than welcome to come with me,"
"Hell yeah! Like hell imma miss any appointment for my kid! Just let me know when and where and I'm there, babe! Oh man... I can't believe it. We're going to be parents, Sasuke," Naruto said, trying to hold back his tears.
The feelings were too much for Sasuke as he tried to hold back his own tears. Sasuke never realized that this much love could come from more than one person. It was also in that moment that Sasuke made a mental note to thank Sakura the next time they saw each other.
…
…
…
To Be Continued...