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Naruto-- teamwork chpt 5.2
still not complete because it decided to be longer than I thought it would be. Ah well. *sleepy*
Despite the aggressiveness, maybe even because of it, it would have felt good, maybe even good enough to let the damn fox get away with it, if he hadn't pushed his chest against Sasuke's to back him up against the tree. And then suddenly the black-haired boy couldn't breathe, and it wasn't in the flattering way.
"Stop," he hissed, biting his lip to fight the haze of pain invading him.
Kyuubi snorted and kept going, mouthing the curse seal on his neck hungrily.
"... stop... hurts..."
He couldn't control his legs anymore-- they folded under him as if his muscles had transformed into water. Only the fact that he was pinned to the tree by the demon's weight made him stay upright; he took a deep breath, refusing to let himself utter even one little gasp of pain.
The face in front of him was frowning, the expression shifting, and for a few seconds he couldn't say who was looking at him. Then the blond helped him to sit down on the grass, and when he looked up it was into blue eyes, with just a hint of purple strands mixed in.
"God, Sasuke, I'm sorry! I didn't notice him hurting you..."
"No... he just --leaned on my chest. Think I have cracked ribs," he added as he gasped for breath.
Naruto relaxed slowly, apparently relieved that he hadn't lost control as badly as he'd thought.
"You idiot! Why are you moving around in that case?"
"It's nothing," Sasuke snapped back. "I can deal with that; we have better things to do than playing nurse right now."
"Like what?"
"Like figuring out what we're going to do, moron," he hissed, and then made himself calm down. It wasn't worth it.
Naruto sighed and sat in the grass, facing him. "We can't do anything so long as Sakura-chan hasn't made her decision."
The blond seemed embarrassed, and he was going out of his way to look anywhere but at Sasuke. Uchiha frowned, leaning back against the tree carefully as he thought.
"Hey, idiot..."
As he had hoped, the casual insult provoked Naruto into glaring at him.
"Do you remember what happened?" Sasuke asked, staring deep into his eyes.
He saw a flicker of some dark, unhappy emotion -- fear? Regret? Guilt?
"... yeah. I remember."
Naruto didn't look away, didn't look down. Guilt indeed; and apology too, in the way the blond let him stare into his eyes so frankly.
"So you heard what he said about the child possibly being mine."
Naruto nodded, eyes flickering down before he made himself meet Sasuke's again, a painfully wide grin on his lips. "It's cool with me. So long as I get to be the godfather."
It was so false that it made Sasuke cringe inwardly, but Naruto so visibly wanted it to be true that he didn't feel like calling him on it.
"Do you know what he meant when he said that the child would be his, even if I was the one who fathered it?"
"Not a clue," answered the blond as he scratched his head quizzically. "But he felt pretty sure of it when he said it."
"He really, honestly believes that the child will be his regardless?"
"Uh huh."
"But in what sense? Biologically? Or just in spirit?"
Naruto blinked and scratched his head again. "He didn't say."
The black-haired teen scowled. That wasn't very helpful.
"Can you ask?"
"Uh... he's kind of sulking."
"Sulking?" Sasuke repeated, incredulous.
"yeah, uh, causehedidn'tgettonailyou."
They looked away at the same time, both pretending that neither was blushing.
"I'm sorry," Naruto finally mumbled, his hands uprooting handfuls of grass nervously.
"What for?"
"I didn't stop him sooner. I'm sorry. I mean-- some of the stuff he said!! He was really a jerk. And then he tried to... to..."
Sasuke shrugged. "I can take whatever he says. It's just words."
Naruto looked utterly miserable.
"Idiot. You didn't let him hurt me."
"...Shoulda stopped him sooner..."
Okay, he was firmly decided to wallow in misery. Time to take another route. "Why didn't you?" Sasuke asked neutrally.
The blond ninja's cheeks turned tomato-red in under two seconds.
"I -- uhh-- that is-- I wasn't really myself-- well, I was, but-- it felt like a dream, sorta, where you can do anything and it doesn't matter so long as--as-- as you feel like doing it," he added in a whisper.
"And you felt like jumping me."
It was interesting how may shades of red Naruto's cheeks could come up with.
"Uh. Yeah. I'm really sorry-- you probably won't trust me to control him anymore, now," Naruto added dejectedly.
Sasuke sighed wearily and took a deep breath. "Naruto... you idiotic, moronic dead-last. When Kyuubi is in control, you shed your inhibitions, but that doesn't make your sense of right and wrong disappear. You stopped, right? That's why," he spat, annoyed, "I trust your stupid, idiotic, moronic dead-last ass. And if you make me say it again, I swear they'll never find your body."
The smile on Naruto's face was a lot more sincere now.
"Right. So..."
They fell silent, once again finding nothing to say. This time, though, they kept looking at each other.
"So. D'you still wanna shag?"
Sasuke blinked.
"I mean, not now-now, but later. Eventually. If we get a chance. I mean, would you rather it was a one-time thing, or -- err."
Sasuke blinked again and started coughing.
"...I just wanna know. No pressure."
Sasuke managed to find his composure again. "... Why not. Unless Sakura has a problem with it," he added as an afterthought. They still didn't know how it would all end after all-- maybe she wanted to shack up with one of them. He had a feeling she could be convinced to share if they presented it right, but that would be a delicate matter. Their relationship, the tangle of feelings they had for each other was so complicated. He liked her, wanted to keep her safe, but he wanted Naruto -- wanted his power and his passion -- more. She liked Naruto, but he had a feeling she had never thought of the blond as boyfriend material before. As for Naruto...
... well, Naruto was an equal opportunity pervert, it seemed.
".. well, of course," Naruto replied, scratching his hair. "But I don't see why she would. I mean, you're Sasuke. It's not like you're Shika or Neji," he added with a grimace.
The black-haired boy shrugged. "She's a girl. They're weird about that sometimes."
"Yeah, you'd think they never have urges," the blond grumbled. "Sometimes I think it would be easier to just go with boys -- I mean, they don't get all 'It's undying love or nothing!!!' -- but well, I'd miss the breasts thing," he added with a chuckle.
Sasuke rolled his eyes. Naruto gave him a long, considering look.
"Say, Sasuke... You wanna learn the Sexy no jutsu?"
"Fuck off and die," he shot back with a nasty glare. It only made Naruto grin wider.
"Bet you'd make a sexy girl. You wouldn't need to change much, the baby face's already-- HA!!! Missed!!"
Sasuke's kunai disappeared in the grass on the other side of the clearing. "Go fetch it," he growled, giving the laughing blond a stern look.
"Oi, I'm not your dog," Naruto protested, but he went anyway.
Sasuke watched him, rubbing his chest distractedly. Throwing that had hurt more than it should have. He had to be careful, but he always forgot.
"Who else would you do, if you could?" he asked casually, trying to pretend that he wasn't morbidly curious. "I mean, guys."
Naruto gave him the kunai back and sat cross-legged at his side, his face a picture of puzzled concentration.
"Hmm. I dunno. There's not a lot of boys our age, and I'm so not gonna ogle the teachers. And there's not a lot of boys pretty enough for me."
Sasuke elbowed Naruto for calling him pretty. "Huh. You're more difficult with the guys than with the girls."
"Yeah. Dunno why. So long as a girl is cute, I'll ogle, but most boys, I just don't think of it. Guess overall I'm more straight than not."
Huh. Sasuke didn't think much about who was cute or not either, but that was more a matter of concentrating on other things, like getting stronger. So, who could be considered cute amongst the guys his age... "... Neji?"
"What?! Hell no," Naruto replied with a laugh. "Sure, okay, he's pretty to look at, but my dick would freeze and fall off if it went within a meter of his ass. He's even more of an icy bitch than you are."
"Kiba?"
"Ack! He's my friend! I'm so not thinking about him like that. He's too... too... And he's straight! And Shika's the same! I'm not thinking about them that way."
"And I'm not your friend?" he shot back, stung.
Naruto blinked at him as if it was obvious. "It's different. You're Sasuke."
It really shouldn't have made sense enough to please him, but it did. "Enough babble," he decided, unwilling to keep questioning Naruto; it made him feel like a schoolgirl playing truth or dare with her crush. "We're going back to Sakura."
He refused Naruto's help, of course, and the blond pretended not to see him lean against the tree to get up. They made their way back to the tree, a lot more slowly than they'd left. A few times they walked past scavengers hungrily devouring Naruto's victims, but nothing attacked them. That was a relief; he really didn't feel like fighting.
Climbing the tree, with its slippery bark, was a challenge. He pretended not to notice when Naruto started cutting up slashes in the wood, just deep enough for him to grab with his toes or his fingers.
Sakura was dozing off when they arrived. She was curled up against the trunk, knees against her chest, burrowing in Naruto's orange pullover, and he couldn't say if she was searching for warmth or reassurance more. As he saw her, Sasuke remembered that he had forgotten to give her message to Naruto, and tapped his shoulder, leaning close to whisper in his ear.
"She wanted me to tell you that you're still her boy, regardless."
He watched as Naruto's expression softened and he knelt at her side, caressing her hair gently. "Oi, Sakura-chan," he whispered. "Are you cold?"
She blinked her eyes open and shivered, smothering a yawn. "Ah-- yes..."
Naruto bit his lip as he thought. "Sasuke, sit close to her, I'm gonna get more wood for the fire."
He just happened to be a bit cold as well, so he did. She gave him a shy glance and leaned against his shoulder, just barely. He rolled his eyes and slipped an arm around her to pull her close. He'd thought they were past all that flirtiness.
Blushing, she cuddled up, and he hid a wince as he arm encircled his waist. Ah well, she wasn't moving around; he got used to the slight pressure easily enough.
"Are you feeling better?" he asked quietly. When he turned toward her, his nose and lips ended up in her hair. She shivered. As unnerving as having such an effect on girls without even trying was, it was still rather flattering, he reflected. He rubbed her back, to warm her as much as to warm himself.
"Yes... Thank you. Calmer at least."
"I talked to Kyuubi," he announced, wanting to inform her quickly so they could discuss of other things when Naruto came back. "He just wants the child for the sake of having one." He didn't add anything, letting her draw her own conclusions. She had a quick mind; he hoped she was calm enough not to let her fear slow it down again because he didn't feel like going into the details.
Sakura stiffened, pulling back slightly, and stared at him. "You talked to..."
"Naruto chose to let him. He didn't have a problem taking control again."
Okay, that might not be entirely truthful, but strictly speaking it had been true-- when Naruto wanted to come back, he did. It was just that it had been hard making him want it. "He says -- he says it might be mine."
Sakura's hand rose to her mouth.
"Oh."
He waited, impassible expression hiding his nervousness. It was still Sakura's choice, but it was a lot harder to keep on being the calm, impartial one when there was so much at stake. He hadn't realized before how detached from the whole problem he felt, how out of the loop. Even despite all his talk of team bonds, it had still been 'not his problem'.
Well, not anymore, that was for sure.
"You told her?" Naruto asked as he put an armful of dry wood down and added some into the fire. "So, what do we do now?"
"First, you get your ass here," Sasuke ordered, nodding at Sakura's other side. "Then we review our options."
Naruto gave Sakura a glance, unsure, but after a small hesitation, she nodded. He sat down against the tree, his arm resting around her shoulders and his hand brushing the back of Sasuke's neck.
"So, uhm. Options," the blond prompted as he tried to find a comfortable position.
Sakura took a deep breath.
"First, worst case scenario: Kyuubi can possess my--the child, or it will be born a monster, or put my life in danger during the pregnancy."
Sasuke squeezed her waist gently, not knowing how to express his encouragements, then nudged Naruto's side with his fingers to get him to relax a little.
"If he can possess it, then I have to abort. It would put the whole village in danger. It's not a risk I want to take."
The boys nodded together, neither liking the solution but not having a better one to give.
"If the child is normal -- or normal enough-- then what?" Naruto asked softly.
"Then I guess... It would just be unfair for the child to get rid of it," Sakura admitted even more softly. "But what about what's fair to me?"
Sasuke decided not to reply that life wasn't fair. If Sakura thought she couldn't do it, then the child would be miserable, and all of them with it.
"You said you wanted to be a chuunin before you became a mother... There's an exam in two months. You won't start to show before the... fourth? Fifth? We can pass the exam before it becomes a hindrance. Then as chuunin, we get a better pay and some choice in the missions we take. We could stay posted at Konoha as guards for a few years. Then we won't be different from all the ninja who keep working with a family."
Sakura sighed.
"That could work, but... I would feel guilty to leave it behind -- what if something happens to us?"
"All three of us at the same time?" Naruto snorted. "It's always possible, I guess, but not that likely."
"Yes, but --"
"Old hag Tsunade would take care of the kid. And Iruka-sensei. And our friends -- your Ino. She wouldn't leave a child of yours alone, right? Just like you wouldn't abandon one of hers."
Sakura relaxed enough to smile. "Right. Ino-pig wouldn't dare abandon a child of mine. Ooh, I want to see her face when I tell her!"
"Tell her what?" Naruto blinked, puzzled.
"Ahh, nothing, girl stuff," Sakura replied, laughing. Sasuke had a feeling it had something to do with him. Sure, they had calmed down in the last years, but he still remembered their little wars and contests to impress him and beat the hell out of each other. It wasn't the moment to have an argument with her because he didn't like being thought of as a trophy, though.
"Ahh, but you only win points if you don't tell her I came with the package," Naruto replied with a chuckle.
Sakura blinked, for a second pausing in what Sasuke interpreted as wondering if she had or would hurt him, then smiled at the blond, teasing back gently. "That's only so long as she doesn't see you shirtless."
Sasuke snorted, but let them chuckle at each other for a few seconds. The situation caught up fast and they sobered up on their own.
"So... What other problems will we run across?"
"The Council," Sasuke replied.
"If Tsunade and Jiraiya say the kid's normal, the kid will be normal and they can shut the fuck up," Naruto growled, his nails leaving gouges in the bark.
Sakura shook her head. "I guess... if they can prove it, then the Council will have to leave us alone... But Naruto, they think your seal is failing and no one understands how it works, so we'll still be under suspicion. And they can try to..."
"Pressure you into aborting anyway?" Sasuke replied quietly.
"Yes..."
"Not if they think the child is an Uchiha."
Sakura and Naruto blinked at him.
"You know how enamored they all are with the idea of seeing my clan reborn," Sasuke commented coldly, burying his own burning desire to be once again surrounded with people of his blood. "And some of the heads of clans owed my father favors. They think I don't remember because I've never called onto them yet. But it could help change the odds a little."
"You think it would really help?"
A vicious smirk blossomed on his lips as he thought of the political ramifications. "Hell yes it would. Especially since most of them are from the ancient noble clans like the Hyuuga or the Kagami, and happen to be cousins of the Uchiha at some degree; they see the Uchiha heir a lot more than they see the dubious allegiance from the whole Orochimaru debacle. And for those who are still wary of me because of that, I can argue that starting to rebuild my clan would tie me to Konoha more strongly than anything else ever would."
Naruto grimaced. "You take care of that side of things then. Should we swear that I didn't get to have sex with Sakura at all?"
"They would know we're lying," Sakura berated him. They had been taught at the Academy that many ninja learned to interpret the unconscious clues people gave when lying; it was useless to even try. "They have ways of knowing. But we can always present the truth in a favorable way."
"Wait, like... I took you first, but Sasuke did you three times and me only two?"
Sakura rapped her knuckles on Naruto's head sharply, blushing.
"Ow!"
"Then they would argue that demon seed is more potent and once was probably enough," Sasuke commented in a bored tone, trying not to smile at Naruto's childishly dismayed expression.
"Right. Fuckers. But they have no way of knowing before the kid's born, and I bet they wouldn't want to risk an Uchiha kid unless they REALLY have to, so if old hag Tsunade says Kyuubi's not moving anytime soon, they should back off. Any other problems?"
"The villagers..." Sakura sighed, tugging on a lock of her pink hair nervously. "My reputation is probably already shot to hell -- they won't care if I get cleared, so long as they can gossip about how I jumped in bed with the Kyuubi's vessel."
"But you can always argue it wasn't your fault, I jumped you--"
"I WILL NOT PRETEND THAT YOU RAPED ME JUST TO SAVE MY REPUTATION!!!" Sakura screamed at him, green eyes burning with fury. She pulled away from them, turned so she was on her knees facing Naruto, fists clenched. "Maybe you started it, and maybe your freaky fox pheromones helped us to relax into it, but I wanted to be there. I LOVED being there. I felt safe and sexy and loved and wanted and I am not going to sully that memory just because telling the truth might make some stupid old hags who haven't gotten any in forever and don't even know me titter about my sexual life!"
Sasuke let himself smile. "That's the spirit."
She was deflating already, a frown on her face indicating that she was imagining all the whispers and shunning she would have to endure, but he touched her shoulder and Naruto did the same, and she relaxed a little.
"Right. They don't matter."
Despite the aggressiveness, maybe even because of it, it would have felt good, maybe even good enough to let the damn fox get away with it, if he hadn't pushed his chest against Sasuke's to back him up against the tree. And then suddenly the black-haired boy couldn't breathe, and it wasn't in the flattering way.
"Stop," he hissed, biting his lip to fight the haze of pain invading him.
Kyuubi snorted and kept going, mouthing the curse seal on his neck hungrily.
"... stop... hurts..."
He couldn't control his legs anymore-- they folded under him as if his muscles had transformed into water. Only the fact that he was pinned to the tree by the demon's weight made him stay upright; he took a deep breath, refusing to let himself utter even one little gasp of pain.
The face in front of him was frowning, the expression shifting, and for a few seconds he couldn't say who was looking at him. Then the blond helped him to sit down on the grass, and when he looked up it was into blue eyes, with just a hint of purple strands mixed in.
"God, Sasuke, I'm sorry! I didn't notice him hurting you..."
"No... he just --leaned on my chest. Think I have cracked ribs," he added as he gasped for breath.
Naruto relaxed slowly, apparently relieved that he hadn't lost control as badly as he'd thought.
"You idiot! Why are you moving around in that case?"
"It's nothing," Sasuke snapped back. "I can deal with that; we have better things to do than playing nurse right now."
"Like what?"
"Like figuring out what we're going to do, moron," he hissed, and then made himself calm down. It wasn't worth it.
Naruto sighed and sat in the grass, facing him. "We can't do anything so long as Sakura-chan hasn't made her decision."
The blond seemed embarrassed, and he was going out of his way to look anywhere but at Sasuke. Uchiha frowned, leaning back against the tree carefully as he thought.
"Hey, idiot..."
As he had hoped, the casual insult provoked Naruto into glaring at him.
"Do you remember what happened?" Sasuke asked, staring deep into his eyes.
He saw a flicker of some dark, unhappy emotion -- fear? Regret? Guilt?
"... yeah. I remember."
Naruto didn't look away, didn't look down. Guilt indeed; and apology too, in the way the blond let him stare into his eyes so frankly.
"So you heard what he said about the child possibly being mine."
Naruto nodded, eyes flickering down before he made himself meet Sasuke's again, a painfully wide grin on his lips. "It's cool with me. So long as I get to be the godfather."
It was so false that it made Sasuke cringe inwardly, but Naruto so visibly wanted it to be true that he didn't feel like calling him on it.
"Do you know what he meant when he said that the child would be his, even if I was the one who fathered it?"
"Not a clue," answered the blond as he scratched his head quizzically. "But he felt pretty sure of it when he said it."
"He really, honestly believes that the child will be his regardless?"
"Uh huh."
"But in what sense? Biologically? Or just in spirit?"
Naruto blinked and scratched his head again. "He didn't say."
The black-haired teen scowled. That wasn't very helpful.
"Can you ask?"
"Uh... he's kind of sulking."
"Sulking?" Sasuke repeated, incredulous.
"yeah, uh, causehedidn'tgettonailyou."
They looked away at the same time, both pretending that neither was blushing.
"I'm sorry," Naruto finally mumbled, his hands uprooting handfuls of grass nervously.
"What for?"
"I didn't stop him sooner. I'm sorry. I mean-- some of the stuff he said!! He was really a jerk. And then he tried to... to..."
Sasuke shrugged. "I can take whatever he says. It's just words."
Naruto looked utterly miserable.
"Idiot. You didn't let him hurt me."
"...Shoulda stopped him sooner..."
Okay, he was firmly decided to wallow in misery. Time to take another route. "Why didn't you?" Sasuke asked neutrally.
The blond ninja's cheeks turned tomato-red in under two seconds.
"I -- uhh-- that is-- I wasn't really myself-- well, I was, but-- it felt like a dream, sorta, where you can do anything and it doesn't matter so long as--as-- as you feel like doing it," he added in a whisper.
"And you felt like jumping me."
It was interesting how may shades of red Naruto's cheeks could come up with.
"Uh. Yeah. I'm really sorry-- you probably won't trust me to control him anymore, now," Naruto added dejectedly.
Sasuke sighed wearily and took a deep breath. "Naruto... you idiotic, moronic dead-last. When Kyuubi is in control, you shed your inhibitions, but that doesn't make your sense of right and wrong disappear. You stopped, right? That's why," he spat, annoyed, "I trust your stupid, idiotic, moronic dead-last ass. And if you make me say it again, I swear they'll never find your body."
The smile on Naruto's face was a lot more sincere now.
"Right. So..."
They fell silent, once again finding nothing to say. This time, though, they kept looking at each other.
"So. D'you still wanna shag?"
Sasuke blinked.
"I mean, not now-now, but later. Eventually. If we get a chance. I mean, would you rather it was a one-time thing, or -- err."
Sasuke blinked again and started coughing.
"...I just wanna know. No pressure."
Sasuke managed to find his composure again. "... Why not. Unless Sakura has a problem with it," he added as an afterthought. They still didn't know how it would all end after all-- maybe she wanted to shack up with one of them. He had a feeling she could be convinced to share if they presented it right, but that would be a delicate matter. Their relationship, the tangle of feelings they had for each other was so complicated. He liked her, wanted to keep her safe, but he wanted Naruto -- wanted his power and his passion -- more. She liked Naruto, but he had a feeling she had never thought of the blond as boyfriend material before. As for Naruto...
... well, Naruto was an equal opportunity pervert, it seemed.
".. well, of course," Naruto replied, scratching his hair. "But I don't see why she would. I mean, you're Sasuke. It's not like you're Shika or Neji," he added with a grimace.
The black-haired boy shrugged. "She's a girl. They're weird about that sometimes."
"Yeah, you'd think they never have urges," the blond grumbled. "Sometimes I think it would be easier to just go with boys -- I mean, they don't get all 'It's undying love or nothing!!!' -- but well, I'd miss the breasts thing," he added with a chuckle.
Sasuke rolled his eyes. Naruto gave him a long, considering look.
"Say, Sasuke... You wanna learn the Sexy no jutsu?"
"Fuck off and die," he shot back with a nasty glare. It only made Naruto grin wider.
"Bet you'd make a sexy girl. You wouldn't need to change much, the baby face's already-- HA!!! Missed!!"
Sasuke's kunai disappeared in the grass on the other side of the clearing. "Go fetch it," he growled, giving the laughing blond a stern look.
"Oi, I'm not your dog," Naruto protested, but he went anyway.
Sasuke watched him, rubbing his chest distractedly. Throwing that had hurt more than it should have. He had to be careful, but he always forgot.
"Who else would you do, if you could?" he asked casually, trying to pretend that he wasn't morbidly curious. "I mean, guys."
Naruto gave him the kunai back and sat cross-legged at his side, his face a picture of puzzled concentration.
"Hmm. I dunno. There's not a lot of boys our age, and I'm so not gonna ogle the teachers. And there's not a lot of boys pretty enough for me."
Sasuke elbowed Naruto for calling him pretty. "Huh. You're more difficult with the guys than with the girls."
"Yeah. Dunno why. So long as a girl is cute, I'll ogle, but most boys, I just don't think of it. Guess overall I'm more straight than not."
Huh. Sasuke didn't think much about who was cute or not either, but that was more a matter of concentrating on other things, like getting stronger. So, who could be considered cute amongst the guys his age... "... Neji?"
"What?! Hell no," Naruto replied with a laugh. "Sure, okay, he's pretty to look at, but my dick would freeze and fall off if it went within a meter of his ass. He's even more of an icy bitch than you are."
"Kiba?"
"Ack! He's my friend! I'm so not thinking about him like that. He's too... too... And he's straight! And Shika's the same! I'm not thinking about them that way."
"And I'm not your friend?" he shot back, stung.
Naruto blinked at him as if it was obvious. "It's different. You're Sasuke."
It really shouldn't have made sense enough to please him, but it did. "Enough babble," he decided, unwilling to keep questioning Naruto; it made him feel like a schoolgirl playing truth or dare with her crush. "We're going back to Sakura."
He refused Naruto's help, of course, and the blond pretended not to see him lean against the tree to get up. They made their way back to the tree, a lot more slowly than they'd left. A few times they walked past scavengers hungrily devouring Naruto's victims, but nothing attacked them. That was a relief; he really didn't feel like fighting.
Climbing the tree, with its slippery bark, was a challenge. He pretended not to notice when Naruto started cutting up slashes in the wood, just deep enough for him to grab with his toes or his fingers.
Sakura was dozing off when they arrived. She was curled up against the trunk, knees against her chest, burrowing in Naruto's orange pullover, and he couldn't say if she was searching for warmth or reassurance more. As he saw her, Sasuke remembered that he had forgotten to give her message to Naruto, and tapped his shoulder, leaning close to whisper in his ear.
"She wanted me to tell you that you're still her boy, regardless."
He watched as Naruto's expression softened and he knelt at her side, caressing her hair gently. "Oi, Sakura-chan," he whispered. "Are you cold?"
She blinked her eyes open and shivered, smothering a yawn. "Ah-- yes..."
Naruto bit his lip as he thought. "Sasuke, sit close to her, I'm gonna get more wood for the fire."
He just happened to be a bit cold as well, so he did. She gave him a shy glance and leaned against his shoulder, just barely. He rolled his eyes and slipped an arm around her to pull her close. He'd thought they were past all that flirtiness.
Blushing, she cuddled up, and he hid a wince as he arm encircled his waist. Ah well, she wasn't moving around; he got used to the slight pressure easily enough.
"Are you feeling better?" he asked quietly. When he turned toward her, his nose and lips ended up in her hair. She shivered. As unnerving as having such an effect on girls without even trying was, it was still rather flattering, he reflected. He rubbed her back, to warm her as much as to warm himself.
"Yes... Thank you. Calmer at least."
"I talked to Kyuubi," he announced, wanting to inform her quickly so they could discuss of other things when Naruto came back. "He just wants the child for the sake of having one." He didn't add anything, letting her draw her own conclusions. She had a quick mind; he hoped she was calm enough not to let her fear slow it down again because he didn't feel like going into the details.
Sakura stiffened, pulling back slightly, and stared at him. "You talked to..."
"Naruto chose to let him. He didn't have a problem taking control again."
Okay, that might not be entirely truthful, but strictly speaking it had been true-- when Naruto wanted to come back, he did. It was just that it had been hard making him want it. "He says -- he says it might be mine."
Sakura's hand rose to her mouth.
"Oh."
He waited, impassible expression hiding his nervousness. It was still Sakura's choice, but it was a lot harder to keep on being the calm, impartial one when there was so much at stake. He hadn't realized before how detached from the whole problem he felt, how out of the loop. Even despite all his talk of team bonds, it had still been 'not his problem'.
Well, not anymore, that was for sure.
"You told her?" Naruto asked as he put an armful of dry wood down and added some into the fire. "So, what do we do now?"
"First, you get your ass here," Sasuke ordered, nodding at Sakura's other side. "Then we review our options."
Naruto gave Sakura a glance, unsure, but after a small hesitation, she nodded. He sat down against the tree, his arm resting around her shoulders and his hand brushing the back of Sasuke's neck.
"So, uhm. Options," the blond prompted as he tried to find a comfortable position.
Sakura took a deep breath.
"First, worst case scenario: Kyuubi can possess my--the child, or it will be born a monster, or put my life in danger during the pregnancy."
Sasuke squeezed her waist gently, not knowing how to express his encouragements, then nudged Naruto's side with his fingers to get him to relax a little.
"If he can possess it, then I have to abort. It would put the whole village in danger. It's not a risk I want to take."
The boys nodded together, neither liking the solution but not having a better one to give.
"If the child is normal -- or normal enough-- then what?" Naruto asked softly.
"Then I guess... It would just be unfair for the child to get rid of it," Sakura admitted even more softly. "But what about what's fair to me?"
Sasuke decided not to reply that life wasn't fair. If Sakura thought she couldn't do it, then the child would be miserable, and all of them with it.
"You said you wanted to be a chuunin before you became a mother... There's an exam in two months. You won't start to show before the... fourth? Fifth? We can pass the exam before it becomes a hindrance. Then as chuunin, we get a better pay and some choice in the missions we take. We could stay posted at Konoha as guards for a few years. Then we won't be different from all the ninja who keep working with a family."
Sakura sighed.
"That could work, but... I would feel guilty to leave it behind -- what if something happens to us?"
"All three of us at the same time?" Naruto snorted. "It's always possible, I guess, but not that likely."
"Yes, but --"
"Old hag Tsunade would take care of the kid. And Iruka-sensei. And our friends -- your Ino. She wouldn't leave a child of yours alone, right? Just like you wouldn't abandon one of hers."
Sakura relaxed enough to smile. "Right. Ino-pig wouldn't dare abandon a child of mine. Ooh, I want to see her face when I tell her!"
"Tell her what?" Naruto blinked, puzzled.
"Ahh, nothing, girl stuff," Sakura replied, laughing. Sasuke had a feeling it had something to do with him. Sure, they had calmed down in the last years, but he still remembered their little wars and contests to impress him and beat the hell out of each other. It wasn't the moment to have an argument with her because he didn't like being thought of as a trophy, though.
"Ahh, but you only win points if you don't tell her I came with the package," Naruto replied with a chuckle.
Sakura blinked, for a second pausing in what Sasuke interpreted as wondering if she had or would hurt him, then smiled at the blond, teasing back gently. "That's only so long as she doesn't see you shirtless."
Sasuke snorted, but let them chuckle at each other for a few seconds. The situation caught up fast and they sobered up on their own.
"So... What other problems will we run across?"
"The Council," Sasuke replied.
"If Tsunade and Jiraiya say the kid's normal, the kid will be normal and they can shut the fuck up," Naruto growled, his nails leaving gouges in the bark.
Sakura shook her head. "I guess... if they can prove it, then the Council will have to leave us alone... But Naruto, they think your seal is failing and no one understands how it works, so we'll still be under suspicion. And they can try to..."
"Pressure you into aborting anyway?" Sasuke replied quietly.
"Yes..."
"Not if they think the child is an Uchiha."
Sakura and Naruto blinked at him.
"You know how enamored they all are with the idea of seeing my clan reborn," Sasuke commented coldly, burying his own burning desire to be once again surrounded with people of his blood. "And some of the heads of clans owed my father favors. They think I don't remember because I've never called onto them yet. But it could help change the odds a little."
"You think it would really help?"
A vicious smirk blossomed on his lips as he thought of the political ramifications. "Hell yes it would. Especially since most of them are from the ancient noble clans like the Hyuuga or the Kagami, and happen to be cousins of the Uchiha at some degree; they see the Uchiha heir a lot more than they see the dubious allegiance from the whole Orochimaru debacle. And for those who are still wary of me because of that, I can argue that starting to rebuild my clan would tie me to Konoha more strongly than anything else ever would."
Naruto grimaced. "You take care of that side of things then. Should we swear that I didn't get to have sex with Sakura at all?"
"They would know we're lying," Sakura berated him. They had been taught at the Academy that many ninja learned to interpret the unconscious clues people gave when lying; it was useless to even try. "They have ways of knowing. But we can always present the truth in a favorable way."
"Wait, like... I took you first, but Sasuke did you three times and me only two?"
Sakura rapped her knuckles on Naruto's head sharply, blushing.
"Ow!"
"Then they would argue that demon seed is more potent and once was probably enough," Sasuke commented in a bored tone, trying not to smile at Naruto's childishly dismayed expression.
"Right. Fuckers. But they have no way of knowing before the kid's born, and I bet they wouldn't want to risk an Uchiha kid unless they REALLY have to, so if old hag Tsunade says Kyuubi's not moving anytime soon, they should back off. Any other problems?"
"The villagers..." Sakura sighed, tugging on a lock of her pink hair nervously. "My reputation is probably already shot to hell -- they won't care if I get cleared, so long as they can gossip about how I jumped in bed with the Kyuubi's vessel."
"But you can always argue it wasn't your fault, I jumped you--"
"I WILL NOT PRETEND THAT YOU RAPED ME JUST TO SAVE MY REPUTATION!!!" Sakura screamed at him, green eyes burning with fury. She pulled away from them, turned so she was on her knees facing Naruto, fists clenched. "Maybe you started it, and maybe your freaky fox pheromones helped us to relax into it, but I wanted to be there. I LOVED being there. I felt safe and sexy and loved and wanted and I am not going to sully that memory just because telling the truth might make some stupid old hags who haven't gotten any in forever and don't even know me titter about my sexual life!"
Sasuke let himself smile. "That's the spirit."
She was deflating already, a frown on her face indicating that she was imagining all the whispers and shunning she would have to endure, but he touched her shoulder and Naruto did the same, and she relaxed a little.
"Right. They don't matter."
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They are coming together in such beautiful ways that it makes me want to weep with joy (and see some smut). Like Sakura's little speech or Sasuke enjoying his effect on Sakura, they are setting the foundation for the relationship of their lives. This baby means so much for both of the boys, they desparately want a family and this child could be it.
Though, the implications of Kyuubi saying it does not matter who fathered the child, let's me believe that old fox has a trick up his sleeve. Am I on the right track?
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*faints on how great this story is*
*GLOMPS* THIS IS SO WONDERFUL!!! ^_^
this story always make my day happier, and i had a bad day, but after reading this i am happy. see ^_^
u nail on how i think team 7 feelings are for each other. u r such a great author. i want more now. so can't wait to see the rest of it.
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Thanks so much.
...
...>_>
<_< Are you sure Naruto just isn't sleeping with Shikamaru because he knows Shika's a seme?
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I'm ... curious too. because sasuke isn't talking to me right now. Little bitch.
XD Naru isn't sleeping with Shika because Temari and Ino would gang up just to murder him. (omg i need a shika/ino/temari scene eventually... maybe in one of the sequels or something. *snickers gleefuly*)
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hmm, maybe it was the other jo... 9___9;; uh, so yeah, official announcement, i seem to have spawned an arc.
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Because if we are I can die a happy happy person.
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omg. That's going to be entertaining. *puts ino and temari in the same room and watches the explosions and bitching contests*
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If you can pull it off then,.....
OMG, poor Shikamaru, his life is going to hell in a handbasket.
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outer Shikamaru: Too many women... so bothersome...
inner pimpdaddy!shika: w00t!! *struts*
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*glomps Askerian and ends up head over heels in the Swiss chocolate and whipped cream left by cabana!GWboys*
I love you.
*huggles like a demented Care Bear than orders speedo!Kiba and towelboy!Shikamaru to clean Askerian off while she sights and chases and thong!Iruka into the whirlpool room*
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()
You are welcome but I have iruka allllll to /myself/.
God, I love water and dolphins.
*drags Iruka back to the hotsprings for some playtime*
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But YAY! *pounces on you* ARC!!!!!!!!!
Which oddly enough is the name of the company me maja works for.
Heh.
Yes, anyway, BEAUTIFUL! *tease/prods* MORE!
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*petpetsooths*
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And to think I was waiting around for naruto_ot3 to be updated when I could have just come here. Silly me.
I love Sasuke...and Naruto...luckily I believe in threesomes and don't have to choose between them...
Excuse me while I stalk you for updates.
(By the way, I'm in love with your icon. I looked through your LJ but couldn't find the whole pic...*wonders if you picked up on that subtle hint*)
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ee! ^__^ which icon? the hand on stomach one or the sakura going squee one? both ca be found in my gallery here
http://askerian.deviantart.com/ but i'm too lazy to hunt them down myself XD
*cuddlepets* thanks for the comment ^^
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I was referring to the hands on seal one, and am ever so pleased to discover your deviantart account. Thanks ^_^.
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ohh!!! if you like the hands on seal pic, then i bet you'll like the hentai comiccy sequelness XD
http://www.sheezyart.com/view/32096/
http://www.sheezyart.com/view/32098/
http://www.sheezyart.com/view/48886/
http://www.sheezyart.com/view/48904/
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Ta.
p.s. am liking first pic best. *loves sasunaru even more*