Today was a special day because it was Kenji's first birthday. They were having a party later in the day, but Sai had popped around early to add Tenten's twins, Kimi and Iwao, to the nursery wall. Soon he'd be adding his own child too, as well as Kakashi and Ayame's child, and Iruka and Kurenai's.
"And who will we see today?" Naruto asked Kenji, holding his son on his hip so they could admire the mural together. "Aunty Sakura," he pointed out. "Aunty Tenten, Kakashi sensei…"
"Ka Ka!"
"That's right," he praised. "And who's that?" he said, pointing to Neji's picture.
"Da Da!"
"Who said my name?" Neji asked, stepping into the nursery. Kenji's face lit up and he stretched his baby hands out.
"Da Da!"
Naruto handed their son over to Neji, who held Kenji up playfully.
"Who's the birthday boy?"
Kenji giggled with delight as Neji bounced him up and down, which put a huge smile on Naruto's own face. He loved watching them together. They have such a special bond, they understand each other so well.
xxx
For the party, they'd invited everyone for lunch at the park. Everyone was bringing some food to make it easy, and while it was a celebration for Kenji, it was great to catch up with everyone, so many of their friends were starting families of their own too.
Yamato, Shizune and Tsunade were among the first guests to arrive. Yamato conjured a beautiful playpen for Kenji, which Tenten added her twins to when they arrived. Kimi and Iwao were a couple of months younger than Kenji, but the three of them were starting to bond, especially Kenji and Kimi who were both exceptionally confident and outgoing children. Neji watched the pair with a smile. I wonder where they get that from…
Sai and Ino arrived, Ino's belly growing round, but not as big as Kurenai's, who was due any day now.
With the expected births, the village population was about to grow again, and Neji knew that was because of Naruto. By pursuing his dream and creating a family, he had inspired those around him to take the next steps in their own lives.
Most of their friends had made it, Sakura, Shikamaru, Temari, Choji, Kiba, Hanabi, Shino and Konohamaru were all here. From the original twelve of them that took the chunin exams together, Lee and Hinata hadn't been able to make it today because they were on duty, and course Sasuke was missing.
Kakashi and Ayame arrived last, but that was fair enough, they had a newborn daughter to bring with them, and Neji knew how much work babies could be. Mika was a beautiful baby with pale gold hair and long eyelashes. It was already obvious she was going to be a heartbreaker.
For a few hours they all chatted and shared food, it was wonderful, a perfect reward for the hard-won peace they'd all fought for.
Neji and Naruto stood with Kakashi and Ayame, watching the children play. Ayame cradled her tiny daughter, glowing with pride. She was the only civilian in their circle of friends, but she had always fit in because she was friendly and kind. Plus, she could keep Kakashi in line, so that meant she was strong in her own way too.
"Ka Ka…" Kenji said, reaching up for his jiji.
Kakashi picked the toddler up and before they knew it, Kenji had grabbed Kakashi's mask and pulled it down, revealing his face before anyone had time to react. The group went silent, everyone dumbstruck, all except for Kenji, who had his baby hands pressed to Kakashi's cheek and mouth, exploring this new thing he'd found. "Ka Ka…" he cooed happily, oblivious to the stunned silence around him. Neji recovered first.
"Kakashi, I'm so sorry."
"It's alright," Kakashi said, making funny shapes with his lips much to Kenji's delight. "It's probably time I got over it anyway."
"Kakashi sensei…" Naruto gaped. "You mean this whole time… This whole time your face was completely normal under there!"
"I never said it wasn't," Kakashi shrugged.
Kenji turned to look at his papa curiously, sensing that something unusual had happened. Naruto was flabbergasted.
"It's not my day," Kakashi reminded. "It's Kenji's. We should be looking at him. Right, Kenji?"
"Ka Ka," Kenji agreed, poking at the mole on Kakashi's chin.
Because there was never a dull moment, the tension was broken by a gasp of surprise. It was Kurenai. She touched her belly.
"My water just broke…"
Sakura went to her immediately and suggested they get to the hospital.
Iruka looked between his partner and stepdaughter, on the verge of panic. Of course the impending birth of his child was nerve-wracking as well as exciting.
Naruto scooped Mirai up.
"It's okay, Iruka sensei. Go. We've got her."
Iruka nodded his thanks and quickly went with Kurenai and Sakura.
Shikamaru came over and offered to take Mirai, Naruto handed her over because after her mother and stepfather, she knew Shikamaru best.
"You're about to get a little brother or sister," Shikamaru said to the girl, who didn't seem too fussed either way about the arrival of a sibling. Neji thought it must be nice though, to not have to grow up alone.
"Looks like you'll have to share your birthday next year, Kenji," Kakashi observed. Neji liked that idea. Sharing our lives with all these people is what makes us strong. The tighter these bonds remain, the better.