Iteration

‘Iteration’ is part of the space saga that began with ‘In the cold of space you find the heat of suns’ and continues in ‘Tales in Tarrasade’. There is also a one-shot ‘Silver Leaf Tales: Tying the knot’.

Thanks to Small Fox for being my beta. For this story he has also been my muse, suggesting a number of the ideas that have evolved to create this arc.

Thank you to those readers who have written a review and particular thanks to SunaoTsuji, Dorkchic, YamanashiOchinashiIminashi, Midnight Essence, disembodiedvoiceofthedying, richon, v, angelj232000, TanuKyle, SidoneStarr, cynaga, sadie237, liby138, satterb and Prism0467 who reviewed after chapter 103 was posted.

Hearing from readers inspires me to continue this story.

Apologies if the characters have grown differently in their new environment.

This is posted in the Naruto/Sasuke section because it is part of a Naru/Sasu/Naru space saga. However, it does feature many other pairings (and a few threesomes). Apologies to those hoping for Sasuke/Naruto or Naruto/Sasuke action in every chapter.

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Chapter one hundred and four: Resolutions

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Kakashi and Ran peeled off once they reached the crew room while Sasuke, Kiba and the other children continued to the nursery. Kiba told the kits to change for bed while Sasuke stripped off Haru’s filthy clothes and dressed him in his pyjamas.

Hikaru blinked at him owlishly from the next bunk along.

“Papa?” he queried.

“Hush, Hi-chan. Go back to sleep,” Sasuke told him.

Hikaru studied Haru’s face, nodded and shut his eyes. Sasuke put Haru’s plushie close to his chest and tucked him in.

Kiba was moving Yuki back into his own bunk.


They both stayed until all the children were asleep. It did not take long; it was soon time for them to creep away.


Sasuke discovered he could not face the empty bed in the empty room. Instead he made his way to his office, only to be faced with the broken tablet on the damaged desk.

He went back to the nursery, sat in the rocking chair and watched his children sleeping.


Uchiha was a mess. It was as if the bombs were still exploding. Every day there was more damage; the cracks lengthened, deepened and widened.

He had to get a grip. Hunting Orochimaru and Deidara, retribution, was less important than holding his family together so that they had a chance to mend.

Somehow he had to become strong enough to support Naruto instead of it being the other way around.

He could do it. He had to.


He woke to the children trying to creep about so as not to wake him. He smiled at them before looking over to Haru, who was still fast asleep.

“Are you coming to breakfast, Papa?” Hoshi asked.

Sasuke shook his head. “I shall wait for Haru. He and I need to talk.

Kazuki peered at Haru. “You’ll have to wait a long time, Papa. You’ll be hungry.”

Sasuke hugged his son, stroking his ears and running a hand down his tail. “I will be fine, Kazu-chan, I shall wake him in a little while.”

Kazuki pushed against him. “You aren’t cross about last night?” he asked.

“No, I understand why you felt you had to find him and you kept your promise and stayed out of the voids,” Sasuke answered him.

“Haru stayed out of the voids. I followed,” Kazuki replied. He considered, his whiskers twitching like Naruto’s. “I would have followed his scent into the void.”

Sasuke appreciated the confession. “You were on a mission to find Haru,” he conceded. He looked over to Yoshimi and Yasushi. “I am less convinced that you two needed to be involved.”

Yasushi rubbed the back of his head and Yoshimi blushed. “We were back-up, Papa,” Ya-chan insisted.

Kazuki bristled slightly. “Not need back-up,” he complained.

“For Haru,” Yo-chan added.

“Haru has Ran and me,” Kazuki replied. “We’re a team. Haru does thinking, Ran does feeling and I do doing.”

Sasuke smiled at him. “That sounds like an awesome team to me,” he confirmed.


He waited a little after they had gone and woke Haru. At first it was like any other time but then Haru shrank away from him and Sasuke realised that he was remembering what had happened in the office.

It hurt to have one of his children recoil from him. Sasuke had to make it right.

“I am so sorry, Haru-chan,” he tried. “I lost my temper. I know I should not do that. I try very hard not to. I failed and I apologise.”

Haru blinked at him. “I do that too sometimes,” he confessed.

“Yes, but I am an adult and I am your father. Losing my temper with you was one of the worst things I have ever done,” Sasuke admitted.

“What was the worst?” Haru asked.

Sasuke had not expected that question. He considered. “I am not sure,” he said. Then he remembered what had happened with Naruto long ago. “When I first met your To-chan, I lost my temper with him and we fought. He almost got thrown off the ship.” Sasuke shuddered at the thought of what his life would have been without Naruto.

“Why would he have got thrown off?” Haru asked.

“Because I was Uchiha and he was a youngster who had grown up feral,” Sasuke replied.

“Like me and Ran,” Haru observed.

Sasuke smiled. “Like you and Ran. Kakashi-sensei and Iruka-sensei decided to keep Naruto on the ship, a bit like they have adopted Ran.”

“I forgive you, Papa,” Haru decided.

Sasuke hugged him and kissed the top of his head. “Thank you, Haru-chan.”

“Do you forgive me?” Haru asked as he sat back on his bunk.

Sasuke looked at the small, white face that was suddenly pinched with anxiety. “For what, Haru-chan?” he asked.

“For going to see In-san and En-san, for running away, for hacking the medical files, for being nasty to Hi-chan, for not stopping everyone from going down to the lower void and for Hi-chan almost falling off the ladder,” Haru listed.

Sasuke’s throat closed and he blinked back tears. He picked Haru up, carried him over to the rocking chair and sat down with him in his lap. Once settled he looked directly into Haru’s eyes.

“Those aren’t things you did to me, Haru-chan, so I did not realise you needed me to forgive you for them,” he explained.

Haru blinked at him. “I disappointed you.”

Sasuke hugged him. “I love you so much. I am very proud of you. If I was disappointed, it was only for a moment. Of course I forgive you. Now, who should you be saying sorry to?”

“Hi-chan,” Haru acknowledged immediately. He was silent for a few moments, obviously thinking. “Rin-san, for breaking into the medical records?”

“I think that would be a good idea, Haru-chan. Should we get you clean, dressed and fed before talking a bit more?”

Haru looked at him. “About what I found out?”

“About what you found out,” Sasuke confirmed.

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Haru’s mental image of the stranger inside Papa was beginning to fade. Papa had lost his temper, which Haru already knew was a bad thing.

He loved hearing about Papa and To-chan when they were young. Were they really like him and Ran?

Papa gave him a bath. Haru could wash himself but he wasn’t complaining.

“Why did you ask Shi-chan to be my genetic father?” he asked as Papa washed his hair.

Papa scrubbed a bit harder. “Your To-chan suggested it. Shika-san is his best friend. You know that.”

Haru dodged a bit to give Papa the hint that he was being a bit too rigorous. “But you wouldn’t have done it if you’d had Kotohime-san’s technique,” he suggested.

Papa stopped rubbing his scalp, which was a relief. “I don’t know. Naruto was pretty keen on the idea.” He smiled at Haru. “We love all of you. Each one of you is a precious gift. Other families are a bit boring, although I would never tell them that. They might think I was being rude.” He hefted the big jug. “Let’s get you rinsed off.”


Haru submitted to being dried with a towel but insisted on dressing himself. Then they picked up a basket of food from Choza and went to one of the small kitchens because that was empty so they could talk. Papa got out plates and Haru arranged the food on them while Papa made tea.

“Did you see anything else in the medical files?” Papa asked once they had settled onto two stools at the counter and started eating.

Haru looked up at him. Papa knew; Haru could tell.

“I looked at To-chan’s file,” he admitted and saw the pain deepen in his Papa’s eyes.

Papa sighed. “Haru, your To-chan would have died if Rin-san had not put him in the tank. The tank stopped that. He is much better. We hoped that Rin-san could mend him and make him exactly as he was before. It has not worked. If it continues not to work, we will have to think about other ways of compensating for the damage. He will be alive and with us, but he may not be as strong and as fast as he was before. His body will not work as well.”

Haru thought about it. “Will he be stuck on a stand like Iruka-san?” he asked.

Papa went a funny colour. “I hope not, Haru-chan. I hope he will be able to walk about. I really don’t know. I think I have been clinging to the hope Rin-san will be able to mend him after all.”

And Haru realised that Papa had not been lying to them, he had been lying to himself.

He thought about his To-chan not being able to run and jump and dance. It made him feel sick, so he guessed it made his Papa feel worse.

“We’ll love him anyway,” Haru insisted.

Papa managed a smile for him. “Yes, we will,” he agreed.


They decided they had eaten enough so they cleaned the dishes and put them away. They took the spare food back to Choza and thanked him for the nice breakfast. Then they walked down to the infirmary so that Haru could apologise to Rin-san.

Rin-san was cross. She lectured him about medical confidentiality. She told him that looking into people’s medical files was like stealing their secrets.

Haru had not understood that, so he apologised again.

Then she repeated the lecture with more detail.


Finally she stopped and started talking to Papa so Haru went to find Shi-chan. He asked Dan-san, who told him that Shi-chan was much better and had woken up. He had never been in a tank. Rin-san had put him into a deep sleep because he was too tired to sleep normally.

Haru was glad he was better. He decided to visit To-chan. He leaned his forehead on the tank and wished him better. Then he went to find Papa because Moegi-san was scowling at him.


Papa and Rin-san were talking about Haku-san. Haku-san had been taken out of the tank and was in a recovery room.

Haru tried to decide if Haku-san being awake was a good thing or a bad thing. Haku-san was scary. Sometimes Haru thought that Haku-san had inside-eyes like Ran, only they were inside-eyes that saw when children were even thinking about being naughty.

On balance, Haru decided it was good because he would run the household for Iruka-san and Neji-san would have more time for Shi-chan and Sumiko.

Sumiko; he had managed to forget her for a while, which had been nice.


Then Papa took him to the playroom. Ran wasn’t there but Haru was sure he would arrive sometime during the morning. Hikaru was building a house using his bricks. Papa admired it before giving Haru an encouraging look and moving on.


Haru sat down next to Hikaru and took a deep breath.

“I am sorry for what I said yesterday. I was trying to get you to hit me so you would get into trouble,” Haru explained.

Hi-chan did not take his eyes off his blocks. “I was being mean too,” he conceded. “What does random mean?”

Haru remembered using the word. “It’s like you picking any brick rather than the right brick. Any brick would be a random brick.”

Hikaru did not say anything so Haru decided he understood.

“Your chromosomes weren’t random,” Haru added. “Papa picked the best chromosomes, like you are picking the best bricks.”

“Whose were they?” Hikaru asked.

Haru thought about lying and saying he did not know, but that didn’t seem fair. “Most of them are Uchiha chromosomes. Over half are in Papa. Some are in other Uchihas but not Papa, like Papa’s parents.”

Hikaru considered and then nodded. “Like dark red bricks,” he said. Most of Hikaru’s house was made from dark red bricks. “What about the others?”

“One fifth of them are in Kakashi-san,” Haru told him. “That’s almost all the others.”

Hikaru looked at him in surprise. “Kakashi-san?”

Haru nodded.

“Why do you know about Shika-san when I don’t know about Kakashi-san?” Hi-chan asked.

Haru shrugged. “I don’t know. One half is lots more than one fifth.” He picked out five dark red bricks and five yellow bricks. “That’s me,” he said. Then he counted out eight dark red bricks and two black bricks. “That’s you.”

“What about Hoshi?” Hikaru asked.

“All dark red,” Haru told him. “All Uchiha. Papa and To-chan love us all,” he added. “They don’t mind where the chromosomes come from.”

Hikaru looked towards Ryuu and nodded. “I know that,” he agreed. Then he looked at Haru with a glint in his eye. “How many do you share with Sumiko?”

Haru scowled at him. “One-sixth,” he admitted.

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Haku brushed his hair and frowned at Itachi’s image in the inadequately small mirror.

At least there was a mirror. Itachi had brought it to the recovery room and propped it up on the counter.

Haku was annoyed. He had left very detailed instructions about what should happen if he were tanked. They included not allowing any of his loved ones close until after he had showered, dried his hair and dressed.

It was true that he had not thought about who would bring his brushes and his clothes. He conceded that it would be difficult to persuade Itachi to leave again. His gaze went to the elegant and beautiful travelling case into which Itachi had packed his things; it was, he had to confess, a very suitable peace offering.


Rin had left him the three lists he had requested. He knew who was dead, who was incapacitated and who was still podded. Naruto was still tanked. Iruka was immobile in supergens. Mai, Shou, Naomi and the triplets were still podded.


He sighed. He could not give Itachi the silent treatment forever.

“I am still cross with you,” he warned.

Itachi gave a very tiny nod of acknowledgement.

“What else should I know?” he asked.

Itachi considered. “Tatsuji is temporary housekeeper. It has helped. Gai is very sad and lonely. Shikamaru and Neji thought that they could cope with Sumiko but they can’t. Shikamaru’s been in the infirmary with exhaustion. Kiba was tanked for three-quarters of a div but Sasuke insisted on unpodding the big litter.”

Haku considered. “Have the children been good?” he asked.

“They have tried but they are children,” Itachi answered. “Yuki has been having nightmares. Haru’s caused the most trouble.”

Haku stroked his brush through his hair. He had dried it with the blowers. It was never at its best when he did that. Or maybe it was being in the tank.

For once he decided to make allowances for Haru. He had been close to Shikaku. If Shikamaru was struggling it would affect him.

All the children would be missing Naruto; he was their sun.


Thinking of Naruto and Sasuke’s children reminded Haku of his own. One advantage of tanks and pods was that he had not missed them and they would not have missed him. For Itachi and Kisame it had been very different; they had been deprived of the children’s company for over forty days.

Even so, Haku did not wish to wake the children immediately. “We may not unpod Mai and Shou just yet,” he suggested, studying Itachi’s image through his eyelashes. “I would like a few days to find my feet.”

There were the tiny changes to Itachi’s expression that indicated that he was anxious. “Do you think we should have unpodded them?” he asked.

Haku imagined Kisame and Itachi with the children. He was certain that they would have done an excellent job. “I think you were considering their welfare,” he replied.

“They would have missed you greatly,” Itachi agreed.


Kisame ruffled his hair and rumpled his kimono. Haku did not even pretend to mind. Itachi watched, gifting them with a rare smile.

“I would like to walk about the household,” Haku told them as he straightened his clothes. “Alone.”

“We both have things to do,” Kisame agreed. “We could meet up here before the midmeal.”

Haku thought that very appropriate. The sooner they returned to their usual routine the better.


Neji and Tatsuji had tried to maintain standards in the closet. Haku could spot when Neji had handed responsibility to Tatsuji from the discontinuities in the piles of folded underwear.

He would tolerate the imperfections. He would tell Tatsuji he had been doing a wonderful job. They would fold clothes together; Tatsuji would like that. Perhaps, when he felt the time was right, they would discuss how to achieve the pristine finish Haku valued.


He then visited with Iruka. Iruka was, as always, displaying impressive resilience. He gave Haku a number of hints about matters he was unable to discuss in detail. Naruto’s recovery was faltering. Sasuke was struggling more that he would admit. Shikamaru was not the only one at the edge; Neji was little better.

Kakashi had stepped up and Ran was proving to be a joy rather than a worry.

Iruka did more than hint about Sumiko. Haku moved visiting the playroom to second on his list.

Finding Neji was first.


Neji was in Iruka’s office. Haku made tea.

“I shall take over the household as soon as I have ironed out a few minor issues,” Haku told him as he placed the tray on the low table between them. “Please remind Sasuke-sama he will need to invite me to do so.”

Neji nodded. “I shall do that. It would be very much appreciated,” he confessed.

“I understand that Sumiko-chan is being difficult,” Haku added.

Neji began making excuses for Sumiko’s poor conduct. It was interesting. It would appear that Neji’s training had not included analysing the behaviour of unusually clever small girls.

Thinking back, he had always said that he struggled to read Shikamaru.

“She will need to behave,” Haku stated. “Or your lives will be intolerable.”

Neji slumped. Haku was shocked. Neji did not slump.

“They already are,” he admitted. He glanced at the chronometer. “Shika always goes to the playroom about now.”

Haku did not ask why. Neji was suggesting that he observe and he would do so.


He could hear Sumiko as he entered. The screaming was coming from the day nursery. Haku was astonished that Kiba was not interfering.

Then Kiba was beside him. Haku managed not to jump. Kiba had to be unsettled; usually he was careful to move like a purebred.

“It is good to see you, Haku-san,” he acknowledged but his eyes were fixed on the day nursery doorway.

“Kiba-san,” Haku replied and waited. The horrendous noise continued.

“As soon as I go in there she tells Shika-san to leave and then behaves beautifully,” Kiba told him. “Each time I do it Shika-san feels worse.”

Haku sniffed.

“Hate you!” Sumiko screamed. “Not Pa. Not Pa. Hate you!” There was the sound of small fists hitting.

That was utterly unacceptable. Haku swept into the day nursery, plucked Sumiko from Shikamaru’s arms, carried her across the playroom and dumped her in the punishment corner.

She looked at him in astonishment. He held up a finger.

“No,” he ordered and turned away.


Haru was looking at him from a corner. All the children were looking at him but it was Haru who commanded Haku’s attention; Shikamaru’s intensity in Naruto-blue eyes in Sasuke’s face. Haku moved in that direction; closer but not too close. He did not want to spook Ran.

To his surprise Haru also moved to close the gap; Haru was usually careful to avoid him.

Haru gave a small, Sasuke-esque bow. “Thank you, Haku-san.”

Haku inclined his head slightly in return. “You are welcome, Haru-chan.”

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Tales in Tarrasade Tale 16, ‘Princess’, is set during and after this chapter.

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