The Way Things Were and Are

Well, here we are! The next little story! Yes, it is a continuation of 10, so I hope you read that one before you read this one. lol So happy reading and don't kill me for the ending. I'm just saying that now...*runs to hide*

REVIEW REPLIES:

Prism0467: I'm so glad you're happy to see this is alive and well again. :D It makes me feel good to know I have one dedicated reader. XD

tori: I haven't seen it, but my brothers have played a DBZ game where that happens. lol I laughed at it actually. XD No MPreg in this story. As for the donor...well, you'll find out. haha I don't post on ff.net because...well, I don't know. I do have an account. I'm just lazy I suppose. :P

Jess: Thank you so very much. :D I'm super pleased to hear this. ^_^ It makes me happy. I hope you'll enjoy this update!

jordash00: I'm glad you think the idea is refreshing. :D It was something that just came to me and I was like "Whoa! That works!". I'm really proud of the idea. *puffs out chest* lol Just kidding. Anyway, happy reading!

bluesake: Thanks! I hope you'll enjoy this update.

NarutoVixin: I'm glad you enjoy those points. Honestly, I can just leave them out of a story. They're far too involved if that makes sense. As for Naruto and Lee...well, just wait and see. haha

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TWTAS 11

Tapping his finger on his leg, Shikamaru poised a question. “So, if it’s a boy, what do you want to name him?”

Neji sighed and turned an exasperated stare towards his lover. “Shikamaru, we’ve already discussed that we weren’t going to choose names until we were sure that the child would even survive.”

The Nara rolled his eyes. “Neji there’s only a week and a half left before the baby is actually born. Do you really want to go in there without at least one name prepared? Even if the baby doesn’t survive, it ought to at least have a name.”

Mentally cringing, the white eyed nin had to admit that his lover had a point. Despite the fact that it wouldn’t be born normally, the baby was theirs. It was only right that it had a name. Of course, picking out a name got his hopes up and Neji wasn’t sure he wanted to face the possible disappointment that the child wouldn’t survive after he had gotten so excited. This was a first after all. No experiment like this had ever been performed before.

“Very well. Let’s choose some names,” Neji agreed. “Any ideas?”

“A few,” Shikamaru grinned. “Unlike you, I’ve been thinking about it.”

The Hyuuga snorted. “Then share them with me, Mr. Snooty.”

“I’ve thought about Izanagi,” the younger nin stated. “What do you think of that one?”

Neji grimaced. “I don’t think so.”

“What about Hiro then?”

“Better. I’ll consider that one.”

“Masao?”

The older nin shook his head. “No, I don’t like that name.”

Rolling his eyes, Shikamaru changed tactics. “Alright, let’s go to girls names then. What do you think about Kiyoko?”

Neji paused before smiling. “I do like that one. Very pretty, yet strong.”

“What about Tsukiko?”

“That’s a good one too,” the white eyed nin nodded. “Especially if she has eyes like my own.”

Shikamaru smiled. “Yes, that would fit nicely, wouldn’t it? What about Susumu?”

The Hyuuga nearly scowled. “You had such nice ones before. Where did that one come from?”

Laughing, the younger nin leaned over and let his head fall on his spouse’s. “I was just rattling off names. There’s only one name I’ve really thought about twice and it’s a boy’s name.”

“What is it?” Neji asked, moving his head more to accommodate his husband.

“Not telling,” Shikamaru smirked. “If the baby’s a girl, I’ll tell you then. If it’s a boy…well…you’ll just have to trust me.”

Frowning, the older nin elbowed the Nara’s stomach. “That’s not nice. Telling me you have a name and not sharing it with me. And why should I trust you to naming our child if it’s a boy?”

“Because I know it’s a name you’ll love,” the shadow wielder replied. “Just trust me, hm?”

The Hyuuga huffed. “Very well. But if it’s a terrible name, I’m going to make sure he gets a new one.”

The younger nin laughed. “If you don’t like it, I’ll let you top me for a month.”

Eyes widening, Neji smirked. “You have yourself a deal, Shika.”

The two merely continued to sit there and Neji’s mind drifted on the thoughts of the child being born. He mentally smiled. A child with Shikamaru. He hadn’t ever thought it would be possible. In fact, he had given up the idea of having children of his own the day his uncle had announced his engagement to the Nara. When his husband had brought up the offer of them having kids, Neji had been so shocked. Now he was extremely pleased and couldn’t wait for the child to be born.

Despite the rush to prepare himself, Neji had been asking Shikamaru’s mother for advice and instruction on how to care for a baby. His husband had been rather shocked on him choosing the Nara woman for an instructor, but never argued his choice. Neji would have asked his uncle what it was like to care for Hinata and Hanabi, but he wanted to keep this a secret and surprise them. Yes, they might not accept the child as easily, but the looks on their faces would be one he was looking forward to.

They had also prepared a room for their new little baby. Neji knew it would be a big disappointment if the child didn’t survive, but both of them had agreed that they would not let the baby be born without some place to call their own. Yoshino had given them all of Shikamaru’s old toys and knew that as soon as the baby was born, they’d be receiving other gifts from various other people. The Nara woman had been extremely cooperative on the idea of a surprise, but insisted that the two of them allow her to throw a baby shower once everyone knew.

Neji had eventually agreed.

Closing his eyes, Neji relaxed as he thought about the day after they had given Shikaku their combined sperm. It had been a very detailed explanation for what was going to happen and Neji found himself going over the more memorable parts of the conversation.

“I’m still confused on how our bodies being…together makes the experiment work,” Neji stated.

“Well, I could spit out a whole bunch of scientific mumbo jumbo, but I doubt you’d understand any of it,” Shikaku replied. “Not saying you’re stupid, but sometimes it even confuses me. Anyway, when you’re bodies melded together, like those brothers, your cells all combined into one being right?” He continued when a nod answered him. “The only difference between them and you two is that they were identical twins, basically sharing the same DNA structure.”

“But ours are different,” the Hyuuga stated.

“Right,” the elder Nara nodded. “That being said, your cells, through this technique we discovered, remained as they were, the only difference being that they existed in the same body. Is that confusing?”

“A little,” Neji admitted, “but I’m sure it’s more for that fact that the…idea is strange. Please continue.”

“With the two of you sharing one body, but having different cells, you essentially did what any man and woman did when making a child, though in this case your DNA was still your own. The sperm, which I won’t go into detail of how it was made, essentially was the same way, carrying cells, or DNA, of both of you. That’s what makes this process so very intriguing to the scientific world. I’m not one of the main scientists here, but I can enjoy their discoveries better then most.”

“So the sperm has both of our DNA in it,” Shikamaru said. “Yet it acts as if it only came from one of us?”

Shikaku nodded. “That’s why I was so diligent on the questions of your egg donor. The woman wouldn’t be a ninja in any way and therefore won’t have many, if any, dominate traits. Hair and eye color are the major things to look for and it isn’t hard to find a donor with hair similar to either of you. Skin color will most likely be similar to your own due to the fact that there are two dominate male traits in the sperm instead of the normal one.”

“Now this baby will be your own and will have traits from both family lines. It’ll be almost as if a Nara and Hyuuga male and female coupling took place. The scientists here are very precise on their donors and have chosen only those who have very submissive traits, the odd woman out so to speak. Very few, if any, of her traits will be present in the baby. The great thing about donors is that they rarely have the attachments to the children.”

The white eyed nin squirmed next to his lover before lifting his eyes to meet his father-in-law’s. “How…will the baby be born?”

Smiling, Shikaku motioned for the couple to follow him. Glancing at each other, Neji and Shikamaru followed, wandering further into the Nara labs. Holding his spouse’s hand, Neji leaned close to the younger nin, hoping to all things merciful that the baby wouldn’t be born in some extreme way. He had never liked the idea of a test tube baby. It seemed to be such a cold way to brought into the world. He was a ninja, but he wasn’t heartless.

“Neji, Shikamaru, I’d like to introduce to you the woman who will officially be giving birth to your baby.”

Both nins froze in their spots as a young woman, not much older then themselves, bowed politely to them. She wasn’t a gorgeous young lady, but she wasn’t unappealing either. She was more a plain Jane, the Hyuuga supposed. She was, as he guessed, the donor for their child and he felt somewhat uncomfortable standing before her as the father of her future child. It was awkward looking at the woman who would nurse his child for the first part of its life.

“How do you do?” she smiled. “I’m Ayako, the egg donor for you future baby.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Ayako,” Shikamaru nodded, having returned to his normal state of mind.

“Ayako is a civilian of Konoha,” Shikaku explained. “When she heard about the experiments the Nara labs wanted to try, she was eager to participate. She’s proven to be the best donor we could want for you kid. She’s got all submissive traits.”

“In more then one way,” Ayako giggled, flipping her dark brown hair over her shoulder.

“We appreciate your willingness, Miss Ayako,” Neji stated, “but I’m curious as to why you would willingly part with…the baby?”

“Please, simply call me Ayako,” the woman smiled. “As for why I’m doing this, there are…a couple reasons. The first being that I recently had a miscarriage and I’d…very much like to try again.”

“The miscarriage wasn’t her fault in any way,” Shikaku added. “She was in an accident that caused the baby to be killed. Fortunately, nothing was damaged inside of her and she’s more then ready to have another baby.”

“The second reason?” Neji asked, after having nodded to Shikaku’s explanation.

“I’m a lesbian,” Ayako replied. “As much as my partner and I want a child, we’re not willing to sleep with a random man to get one. She has very dominate traits and through the labs, we’ve come to an agreement. If I have this baby for you two, she’ll have a baby for us when they find a man who has traits almost identical to my own. They’ve already found a donor and she’s…already pregnant with our baby. Now all that’s left is for me to have yours.”

“So, are you two satisfied?” Shikaku asked, grinning.

The older nin nodded, but Shikamaru paused, looking the woman in the eye. “You really won’t mind parting with the baby?”

“Oh, I’m sure it’ll be a little hard, but with the fact that I’ll have a little baby with my partner, I’m sure I’ll manage,” Ayako smiled. “Besides, the baby will be going to a good home. I just know you two will be excellent parents. Perhaps our children could even play together. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go. They want to run some tests before…well, you know.”

The Hyuuga flushed slightly, but nodded, not wanting to think anymore on how they were going to impregnate the woman. “Thank you, Ayako.”

“We really appreciate this,” the younger nin nodded, smiling.

Ayako merely smiled. “It’s my pleasure.” With a wave, she was gone, following one of the scientists into another room.

“Any other questions?” Shikaku asked as they walked back to the front of the labs.

“Will our baby live with her when it’s born?” Neji asked. “I know it’ll need constant care, but…wouldn’t it be good for us to get the baby used to us?”

“As part the test, any spare time you two have will be spent with the child,” the older Nara explained. “At least, that’s what they’d like. They understand with you two being ninja’s that you’ll have missions and that you have a duty as the Hokage’s bodyguards. Once the child can be weaned from Ayako’s milk, the baby will be turned over to your hands. Ayako’s only part in taking care of the baby will be to nurse it. It will have to live with her until it can be weaned though.”

“How long will Ayako need to feed the baby?” Shikamaru asked.

“Six months, at the minimum,” Shikaku replied. “It took your mother a year before you were willing to shift to something else, kiddo. It all depends on the baby. More questions?”

After looking at each other, the couple shook their heads. “No, that covers everything for now.”

“Well, then I’m heading home to your mother. You two have a pleasant evening.”

Neji opened his eyes as the memory faded. Ayako had kept constant contact with them, letting them know of her daily activities and asking if there was anything they wanted to add to her routine. Neji had personally gone over the foods the woman was eating and earned a chuckle not only from his own spouse, but from Ayako’s partner, Sayuri. The Hyuuga became more relaxed as time went on, though he often wondered what nutrition his child was receiving.

“Shikamaru?”

“Yeah?”

The Hyuuga paused before continuing. “Do you…think we’ll make good parents?”

Blinking, the younger shinobi sat up and looked down at his lover. “Why are you asking that now?”

“I don’t…want to bring up the baby wrong,” Neji admitted softly, his eyes moving to stare at the floor. “I really didn’t have a role model after…my father died, so I feel like…”

“You’re going to fail in some areas of raising a kid?” Shikamaru finished, smiling when the Hyuuga merely nodded. “Neji, I’m sure you’ll be a great parent. We’ve got my parents watching over us and I’m sure that others will be more then willing to give us a hand when we need it.”

“I just don’t want to screw up,” the older nin stated softly.

“We won’t,” the Nara said, comforting his spouse. Pressing a gentle, yet loving kiss to the Hyuuga’s head, the younger nin pulled his lover closer to him. “We’ll be fantastic parents. Our kid will love you.”

Before Neji could argue or even begin a response, a knock at their door caught both of their attentions. Getting up from their couch, much to Shikamaru’s discontent, Neji made his way to the door, straightening his clothes as he went. He couldn’t even get out a proper greeting before their unexpected guest surprised them with some news.

“Ayako’s in labor!”

For a moment, both Shikamaru and Neji merely stared at Yoshino, who was panting from running from her house to theirs. She wasn’t a ninja, hadn’t ever been so the trek was far more time consuming for her. Once in clicked in their heads that Ayako was in labor with their child, Neji’s eyes widened and his body began to shake. The time was here! Their baby was going to be born soon! The Hyuuga was frozen to his spot.

“Give us a minute mom and then we’ll be ready to go,” Shikamaru stated, gently pulling on his spouse’s arm. “Make yourself comfortable, k?” With that said, he pulled Neji away from the door and up to their room.

“I-It’s too soon!” the older nin gasped once they were alone. “Th-The baby wasn’t due till next week! What went wrong? Is the baby going to be okay?”

“Neji, calm down.” Pulling the Hyuuga close, Shikamaru held on tight as he gave his frightened lover what comfort he could. “It’s not unheard of for a baby to come before the due date. I’m sure our child will be just fine. You’ll see. Do you need a minute to calm down? We’ll go when you’re ready.”

The white eyed nin merely stood there for a moment, breathing deeply through his nose and enjoying the comfort of his spouse. Shikamaru was as cool as ice about the situation. Why was he panicking? Slowly, his tension ebbed away and his face was buried in his husband’s clothes. Shikamaru continued to merely hold him, whispered words of encouragement and love. Everything would be just fine. Their baby would survive and they’d make a happy family together.

“Ready?” the younger nin asked quietly, running his fingers through Neji’s hair.

Merely nodding, the Hyuuga stepped away and took a deep breath. Shikamaru grabbed jackets for both of them, as they would be walking to the labs with his mother, and twined their fingers together once both were ready. Smiling the Nara led his husband down the stairs and to the front door, where Yoshino stood impatiently, tapping her foot. When she realized they were ready, she threw open the door and walked out, practically scowling in their direction.

“Well, what are you waiting for?” she asked. “Teleport us to the lab with that jutsu of yours.”

Shikamaru blinked. “We’re not walking?”

Yoshino barely restrained herself from rolling her eyes. “We don’t have time for that! You’re baby is being born, Shikamaru!”

Shrugging off their jackets, the couple stepped outside, unsure of how to go about this. Groaning in frustration, the Nara woman wrapped her arms around her son and grumbled for him to be quick. Blinking for only a second, Shikamaru did as he was told, making the seals and disappearing in a wave of smoke. Neji took a moment after him to lock their door, make sure all the lights were out, and then proceeded to use the jutsu himself, shaking with nervousness and excitement.

Once outside of the labs, the couple was practically dragged through by Yoshino, the woman muttering about how they should have been there the minute Ayako was in labor. Of course, she had been the one to tell them the woman was in that state, but they didn’t bring it to her attention. They had both learned long ago that you did not interrupt the Nara woman when she was ranting. As annoying as it could be, you simply didn’t do it.

“That was faster then I expected, Yoshino.” Shikaku smirked as he walked up to the group.

“Humph,” the woman snorted. “They would have gotten here sooner if you would have just used one of those ninja bird things.”

“Well, they’re here and that’s what matters,” the elder Nara stated. “Glad to see the two of you.”

“How is Ayako?” Shikamaru asked, squeezing Neji’s hand in order to help calm the Hyuuga.

“Very good,” Shikaku answered. “She’s been in labor for about an hour. Obviously, we’re not sure how long it’ll take. There are some chairs set up near the room. Sayuri is sitting over there as well.”

Nodding their thanks, the couple did just that, finding the blonde woman sitting in one of the seats with a baby in her arms. She smiled when she noticed them. “You two got here quickly.”

“We came as soon as we knew,” Shikamaru stated.

“Is that…your child?” Neji asked, inching closer.

Sayuri nodded. “Her name is Maiko.”

“How old is she?” the Nara asked, leaning forward to get a good look at the little girl. She was very cute. Dark brown hair with bright blue eyes, a trait she no doubt got from her mother. They were almost identical in color.

“Almost two months,” Sayuri replied. “I would have introduced you to her sooner, but you two suddenly got busy with your jobs. I’m sure Ayako would have wanted the same.”

They fell into a comfortable silence, though Neji was tempted to get up and pace in front of the chairs. How long was a woman in labor? He hadn’t ever bothered to ask when he was younger and even now it seemed like a stupid question. Shikamaru did what he could to ease his lover’s tension, switching between massages and light kisses, chuckling when they would make the long haired man blush. Sayuri would merely pretend not to see, giving her attention to the baby in her arms.

Three hours later, a doctor came out of the room they had used for delivery and smiled, nodding his head. Neji gave a large sigh of relief, one he was sure that everyone in the room had heard. Shikamaru held him close and nuzzled his temple, pressing soft kisses to his forehead as Sayuri asked on the condition of her lover. Ayako was doing better then what had been expected and was currently resting in another room. Once she was given permission to see her, Sayuri had left, nodding farewell to the nins.

Turning to the couple still sitting in the chairs, the doctor smiled. “I’m sure you’re anxious. Come with me and we’ll go see the baby, hm?”

Nodding, the two got to their feet and followed after him. Neji was clutching to his spouse’s hand, shaking in excitement and nervousness. Their baby was finally here! And on top of that, was alive! He had been so sure that something would go wrong and the child would have died during the delivery. The Nara merely pulled him close, knowing that Neji would probably end up with at least a few tears of joy running down his face by the end of the day.

Entering into a room that was as white as any hospital’s, the doctor directed the two of them to some chairs as if he knew Neji would need to sit. Not wasting any time, the white eyed nin did just that, sure that if he were to stand any longer, his legs would give out on him. Shikamaru merely stood by his side, squeezing and massaging his shoulders lightly, keeping the Hyuuga calm. Yet the excitement and nervousness in the room was practically palpable.

Instead of the doctor, Shikaku came out with a bundle in his arms, smiling. “Shikamaru, Neji, I’d like to introduce you to your baby boy.”

As the little body was placed in his arms, Neji could only stare at the child’s face. His baby! The baby both he and Shikamaru had worked on to make together! His voice was stuck in his throat as he held the precious life in his arms, unsure of what to say or do. Shifting the little boy to rest in one arm, he moved trembling fingers to touch a clean, tanned cheek and move up into the surprisingly bountiful head of dark brown hair. Finally able to believe that this was real, Neji’s face split into a large smile.

“He’s beautiful, Neji,” Shikamaru stated softly, moving his own hand to run through that incredible amount of hair. “He already has hair like you.”

Neji laughed breathily. “He’s yours too. And his hair could very well lighten as he gets older. His skin color is definitely yours. His nose as well.”

“Can’t wait to see his eyes,” the younger nin smirked. “There will be no mistake who he got them from once we see them.”

“I hate to interrupt such a touching moment, but the little boy needs a name,” Shikaku asked. “Have you two decided on one yet.”

Shikamaru smiled. “Neji trusts me with the name. We’ll list him as a Nara too so the Hyuuga’s can’t possibly try to put a seal on his forehead. I won’t have that.”

“Neither will I,” the white eyed nin said firmly, taking his eyes off the baby in his arms for the first time since he had entered the room. “No child of mine will go through that.”

Smiling, Shikaku nodded. “We were hoping you two would say that. Come with me kiddo and we’ll give my grandson a name.” Placing a hand on his son’s shoulder, the pair walked out of the room, leaving Yoshino and Neji alone.

The Nara woman looked unsure as to what to do, so Neji smiled warmly at her. “Would you like to hold your grandson?”

Laughing nervously, the woman wandered over. “It’s strange to hear you say that, Neji. Though you have effectively quelled my fears of being rejected. I can’t believe I even have a grandchild. I wasn’t ever expecting one.”

“Neither were we,” the Hyuuga stated softly. Standing up as Yoshino sat down, Neji carefully placed his son in her arms. He couldn’t help but smile broadly at that thought. His son.

Grinning, Yoshino poked the baby’s nose gently. “Definitely my son’s nose. No question there. I can only hope he won’t be as lazy as my troublesome little boy. He’ll be smart though. Especially with you two for parents. Oh, aren’t you just adorable? You’re going to grow up to be so big and strong, just like your daddies!”

The white eyed nin merely continued to watch as Yoshino continued to coo and coddle his baby, arms already itching to hold the child again. When the baby began to fuss, Yoshino ordered Neji to sit again and place the boy in his arms. Giving him some quick instruction on how to calm a fussy baby, Neji was surprised at how quickly the boy settled in his arms. He would have expected the child to be crying out for some milk, not a parent.

“Babies are special that way,” Yoshino grinned. “They seem to know who their parents are.”

Before Neji could respond to her remark, Shikamaru and Shikaku returned, the elder holding a piece of paper in his hands. The Hyuuga instantly recognized it as the birth certificate for the little boy in his arms. Still rocking slightly, the white eyed nin got to his feet walking over to his husband with a curious look in his eyes. Shikamaru merely smiled before extending his arms, taking the baby from his arms, smiling now that he was holding him at last.

“Would you like to see my son’s choice of name, Neji?” Shikaku asked, the natural teasing tone of his voice replaced with a more somber one.

“If only to make sure it isn’t horrendous,” the Hyuuga snorted, walking over and grabbing the certificate. His teasing smile faded as he read the name, his eyes glued to the artful way it was written. He couldn’t even begin to think of what he should say, any words he might have had stuck in his throat as the realization hit him. Blinking, he glanced at Shikamaru before staring back at the paper, unsure of how he was supposed to react.

Before he could really stop himself, tears crawled to Neji’s eyes and he placed a pale hand over his mouth. Smiling as he handed the boy to his parents, Shikamaru slowly made his way over to his lover, gently removing the certificate from his hands and placing it on a nearby table. Neji couldn’t stop himself from burying himself into the Nara’s arms, eyes squeezed tight as he held the younger nin to him, biting his lip to keep himself from crying.

“I’ll take it you like the name,” Shikamaru smiled. All he got for a reply was a sobbing laugh and a nod of the head. Pressing a soft, loving kiss to Neji’s head, the Nara slowly brought the tearful Hyuuga back over to where their son was, holding Neji close to him. It was, no doubt, one of the happiest days of their lives and even when the doctor came to take the child away couldn’t dampen their spirits. Even then, the white eyed nin would burst into tears of joy at random times.

Grinning to herself, Yoshino interrupted their moment. “Well, now I can finally send out those baby shower invitations. I hope the two of you are ready for it because I’m not letting you get away without one.”

Merely laughing, the couple agreed to the woman’s party. Nothing could destroy their excellent mood.
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Well, there you go. The baby has been born and it has a name. :D What's the name you ask? Well, you're just going to have to wait and see, won't you? kukuku Though I'm sure many of you will be able to guess it... ^_^; lol Please let me know your thoughts!