After the pain

Disclaimer: I do not own all the usual characters of Naruto, However Uta and Kashin are
mine, and even thought Obito and Mikoto’s names are from the original, the
characters portrayed here are MINE.


Well here is the chapter that has been like pulling teeth, I hope you all enjoy it and to get it up quicker I’m only answering one question today.

Just so everyone knows I love Shikamaru but in order for the sequel of this story to work he had to be dead, I am sorry that it upsets some people but I hope that the sequel will make up for it.


Also just to let everyone know that the voting for the awards for fan fic’s on narutofic(dot)org are in full swing ‘After the Pain’ is currently tied for first place in the angst category, but I refuse to vote for myself more then once.

There are a lot of other wonderful stories nominated so if you haven’t checked them out yet please do.

And now I hope you enjoy this chapter, it was a long time in coming

* * * * ** * * * *

Kashin is pronounced – Kay-shin


Chapter nineteen

“Are you really sure you want to do this?” Naruto asked. “You don’t have to you know.”

Temari gave the big blond a playful shove, it was the third time he had said those exact words.

“Like I already told you Naruto, I don’t mind helping you babysit.” She assured him as they neared the Uchiha compound. “Besides,’ she added before he found yet another way to protest. “I wouldn’t mind having a bit of a glimpse of what I’m in for in the near future, I’ve never really been around children, with the exception of when my brothers were little, and I was just a kid then so it doesn’t really count for much in the experience department.”

‘Not that we were ever really around each other.’ She added silently. ‘Especially with Gaara being kept under lock and key for the first six years of his life.’

Pushing her memories of the past aside the flaxen haired kunoichi tried to mentally prepare herself for her first ever round of babysitting since Naruto seemed to have decided not to try to talk her out of it any longer.
Although the exercise was difficult seeing as she didn’t have the foggiest idea of what to expect.

Naruto finally gave up and decided that she had a point about the experience part, but he wasn’t so sure that starting with three energetic Uchiha children was the best way to go about it.
But then he shrugged off his worries as the neared the front door of the main house.

‘It’s not like I’ll be leaving her alone with them.’ He reasoned. ‘And they are good kids.’

A few moments later found him knocking on the Uchiha’s door before pushing it open and walking in. This earned him a curious look from his companion.

“We don’t really stand on ceremony when they know I’m coming over.” He explained as he kicked off his shoes.

Temari shut the door behind her and then followed suit.

“Hey! Where is everybody?” Naruto called loudly.

Almost instantly the banging of excited footsteps could be heard overhead from the second floor.

Temari took a moment to take in her surroundings; she was a little taken aback by how cheerful the interior of the old house was. Even though the outside of the mansion was colorful, with the flowering vines covering the sides and the window boxes overflowing with a rainbow of blossoms she still had been expecting a more somber mood inside, as was the norm in most of the old clan houses that she had been in before.

But instead of being dark or even stark white this was very different.
The entryway walls were painted white, but the bottom half sported gold stenciling. An intricate design of vines with curling leaves and lotus blossoms that traveled about four feet up the wall.
Along the ceiling was a thin wallpaper boarder also in gold’s, but displaying suns
stars and crescent moons.

On the right of the door was a large wall length closet for hanging coats and equipment while the left sported an antique wooden bench with a side table and a mirror hanging above it, the mirror was in a carved wooden frame that matched the color of the rest of the furniture. The result was an elegant but comfortable feel.

Naruto headed further into the house, not bothering to wait for anyone to come and greet them. Temari trailed close behind him, they had barely walked into the living room type area when the big blond was ambushed by a small body which practically seemed to fall from the sky.

Temari felt she had nearly been given a heart attack, even as she wondered where the little girl had come from.

‘Was she clinging to the walls?’ She wondered when she came up even with them and saw no shelves or anything else that the child could have climbed up on.

Naruto meanwhile didn’t seem fazed it the slightest having simply caught his would be attacker in mid air.

“My Mikoto you are getting good at that.” He commented, giving a gentle tug on one of her curling pig tails.

The little Uchiha giggled as she wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face into his shirt. “I’m glad you’re here Uncle Naruto.” She told him as she snuggled close.

“Naruto is that you?” The voice of Uchiha Uta preceded her from the kitchen door way off to the left of the sitting room.

“Ya it’s me!” Naruto called back as he motioned for Temari to follow him in that direction.

They hadn’t gotten far when Uta appeared in the doorway, her raven hair falling softly around her shoulders and dressed in a simple house kimono which was tied just below her breasts to accommodate her large belly.

“What are you doing here Niisan?” She asked gently.

“I’m here to babysit, are you and Sasuke planning on staying in tonight?” Naruto inquired.

Her answer was drowned out by a loud screech as the youngest Uchiha came flying out of the kitchen, past his mother and straight towards the new arrivals where he promptly latched himself to Naruto’s leg and started to sniffle pitifully.

“Someone’s having a bad day I see.” Naruto commented as he crouched down to offer his shoulder to the toddler, who had to be pried off of his leg before he accepted the invitation.

Uta sighed heavily. “Yes it’s just been one of those days.” She confirmed as Naruto once again gained his feet, this time with a child in each arm.

Since her children were now under control Uta turned her attention to Temari. “Hello Temari-san, it’s good to see you again.” She greeted with a tired smile.

Temari bowed and returned the greeting, not the least bit put out for not being noticed sooner. The children she found, had a tendency to demand the immediate attention of all those around them.
Her attention was drawn back to Naruto who was making snuffling noises against the toddler’s neck in an effort to cheer him up.

“What do you think Kashin? Do you want to hang out with me tonight?” Naruto asked which earned him a little nod from the boy and a shriek from Mikoto.

“Sasuke’s not here Naruto; he’s on a mission right now, so we don’t really need you to babysit.” Uta informed him from her place in the kitchen door way. “I’m sorry, I thought you knew about that or I would have sent Obito to let you know about the change in plans.”

Naruto frowned slightly when Uta placed a hand on the small of her back and arched painfully. She looked exhausted; and there were the beginnings of dark smudges under her blue eyes.

“I wasn’t at the office for most of yesterday; I guess I forgot that I heard he was out on a job.” He bent over and gently set Kashin and Mikoto on their feet before moving towards their mother. “I’m glad I did come over though, you look dead on your feet girl.”

Uta tried to wave him away as he put a hand on her forehead to check her temperature.
“I’m fine Naruto-kun, I’m pregnant that means that I’m always tired.”

“Ya well this is you, and there is a difference between tired and exhausted.” He admonished. “Where’s Obito?” He asked before she could protest.

“Outside practicing with his new shuriken,” Mikoto replied folding her arms over her chest. “And he won’t let me try it.” She pouted.

Naruto chuckled. “That’s because it’s almost as big as you are Munchkin.” He informed her. “You will have lots of time to learn how to use those things, now will you go ask your brother to come in here please.”

Still pouting slightly the pigtailed girl bounced off to do as she was asked.

Temari wasn’t sure why it surprised her that her companion had so easily fallen into an almost mother hen type role with Uta and her children, after all he had been doing the same thing with her for the last week.

“Kashin,” The big blond called the toddler who was standing where he had been left and was looking a little dejected. “Will you come help me take your mommy into the kitchen?”

The three year old nodded and rushed forward to grasp one of his mother’s hands and started pulling her back through the kitchen door.

“I’m really sorry about the mess.” Uta murmured to Temari as Naruto beaconed for her to follow them.

The Sand-nin glanced around the living room as she moved through it; she decided that it did look as if a whirlwind had gone through the place. Throw pillows lay in a mishmash of color among various toys and well as a number of articles of small clothing strewn about every couch and the coffee table.

Strangely Temari found that the mess didn’t bother her, even though she herself had been going on a cleaning binge over the last couple days.
Instead the room felt comfortable, lived in and welcoming.
She noted that the coloring was different then that of the entryway.

The walls were a light cream paint with pine accents which were mirrored on the window frames and the coffee table. The material on the couches and arm chairs was a light sandy grey with blue and purple designed blankets draped over their backs. The throw pillows sported the same coloring while the rug had a grey/blue hue to it.
Sheer lace curtains in white and purple graced the window frames.

Temari found that she liked the mixture of color very much and decided to ask Uta who had designed it.
The question died on her lips however when she stepped through the kitchen doorway.

For a moment it felt like she had been blind sided by a rainbow.
It took her eyes a moment to adjust to the sheer brightness of the room.
Not from lights but from color.

The Sand kunoichi had no choice but to stop and stare about her in wonder.
Every color of the rainbow was represented in this room and in techni-color to boot.
No two cupboard doors were the same color, red blue yellow orange purple and green were all mixed together on a white background.

Even the wooden floor had been painted with thousands of flowers scattered across it, while the white walls that were not covered with shelves or cupboards were decorated with brilliantly colored butterflies and dragonflies that almost looked alive.

She didn’t know what to say, the sheer variety of color should have clashed terribly, but they didn’t.

A chuckle caught her attention and drug her back to reality.

“I’m sorry Temari-san, I should have warned you, I forgot that you have never been here before.” Uta was grinning from her spot at the kitchen table where Naruto had seated her. “I know that my kitchen can be a little over whelming at first.”

“You can say that again.” Temari murmured as she moved to seat herself across the table from the Uchiha matriarch.

Uta chuckled again, “What can I say, I love color and this was the only room in the house that I decided to allow myself the luxury of indulging one of my dreams. You should have seen the look on Sasuke’s face when he first saw it.”

Temari smiled at the thought of the serious Uchiha walking into this room without any warning of the changes that had taken place, she assumed that it had been a normal everyday kitchen before Uta had gotten a hold of it.
She glanced down the long oval table that sat eight and noted that each placemat and chair cushion were also different colors on the pine dinning room set.

“It just amazes me that none of the colors seem to clash with each other.” She remarked.

“Colors never do anything but get along perfectly around Uta.” Naruto informed her before Uta could say anything. “It’s a gift she has.” He announced, causing the pregnant woman to blush slightly at his words.
He then moved to clear the table of the few used dishes gracing its surface.

“You don’t have to do that Naruto.” Uta protested once she realized what he was doing.

“I’m going to pretend that you didn’t say that.” He informed her with a roll of his eyes. “Temari, will you make sure that she doesn’t move from that spot until I say so?”

Temari raised a questioning brow at him.

“You two just visit for now.” He supplied as he moved towards the sink with his arms loaded.

“As pushy as ever Niisan.” Uta shook her head at him.

“Ya well I had some good teachers.” He shot back with a grin. “Besides, it’s my duty to look out for you and the kids when Sasuke’s out of town.” He reminded her.

His remark caused the dark haired woman to snort indignantly.

Temari got the feeling that an argument was about to ensue so she tried to come up with someway to change the subject, but before she could think of anything she felt a light tug on her left sleeve.
Glancing down she saw little Kashin looking up at her, his blue eyes curious. She wondered suddenly where he had disappeared too after entering the kitchen.
She didn’t recall seeing him once she had walked through the door, even if she had been a little distracted by the room’s décor.

“Who you?” The toddler asked, his hand still attachéd to her sleeve.

“I’m Temari, what’s your name?” She replied, even though she already knew what it was.

It was the first time she had actually spoken to so young a child.

“Me Ka- seen!’ He told her with a grin, showing off tiny white teeth.

“Well Kashin,” She held out her right hand to him which he hesitantly grabbed after a moment. “It’s nice to meet you.” She told him, shaking his hand and causing his whole arm to move up and down as well.

With a delighted squeal he grabbed two of her fingers and vigorously shook her arm back, bringing a surprised but pleased smile to the kunoichi’s face before he let go and darted over to his mother, his previous bad mood apparently forgotten.

“Ma-m, her Mari!’ He exclaimed as he hopped with excitement.

“Yes that’s Temari-san; do you want to ask her if she would like some tea?”

Obediently the little boy turned and took several hopping steps back to Temari’s side.
“Mari, tea?” He asked in his adorable little voice.

“Yes please.” She replied, deciding she should keep her wording simple.

Kashin turned his head. “Yep!” He yelled back at his mother before surprising Temari by moving to climb onto her lap.

“Don’t even think about it.” Naruto’s voice brought the blond Sand-nin’s head up even as she tried to support the three year old who was trying to decided how to sit; he was the smallest child she remembered ever holding and was worried she might drop him.

Uta paused half way out of her chair at Naruto’s words. “Really Naruto, I can certainly make tea without straining myself you know.”

“That’s not the point and you know it.” He informed her as he snatched the kettle off of the stove and moved to the sink to fill it.

Shaking her head Uta settled back into her chair with a light groan.
A worried frown formed on the wind summoner’s brow as she watched the woman across from her grimace several times as she shifted in her chair in an effort to get comfortable.

“Are you all right Uchiha-san?” She asked worriedly.

Uta waved a dismissive hand. “Fine, fine, just a bit of back pain, that’s what happens when you start lugging a bunch of extra weight around on your front, it puts some strain on your back. It can also make getting comfortable a challenge.” She informed Temari cheerfully. “And please call me Uta; I don’t like to stand on ceremony in my house.”

Temari bowed her head in acknowledgement.
The sound of running feet prevented further conversation and only moments later Obito appeared through the kitchen door with his sister close behind.

“Uncle Naruto!” Was the only warning the big blond received before he had the boy practically tackle him around the waist, despite the fact that he was carrying a large folded wind shuriken in each hand.

“I saw you today, you went the longest yet!” The boy proclaimed in a somewhat muffled voice as Naruto returned the hug.

When he was finally allowed to step back from the embrace Obito held up his shuriken.
“I’m really glad you’re here Uncle Naruto, I’m having trouble with the ‘Demon shadow shuriken’ technique, and Dad’s not here right now. Can you help me out with it, please?”

Naruto reached down and ruffled Obito’s raven locks.
“No problem kido, but first I need you and your brother and sister to help me do a few things for your mom okay.”

Temari noticed that he didn’t make any comment on Obito’s remark about the match earlier that day as the boy nodded with a smile.
“Sure thing.”

“I get to help too right?” Mikoto asked, moving up beside her older brother.

“Of course.” Naruto assured the girl. “The first thing I need you two to do is make sure that all the dishes are stacked properly so that I can get started washing them. Obito, get a chair for your sister to stand on.”

Temari watched in amazement as both children immediately did as they were told.

“Oh hello Temari-san, I didn’t know you were here too.” Obito greeted as he approached the table to retrieve the requested chair.

“Hello Obito, it is good to see you again.” Temari replied as she readjusted Kashin who was threatening to slide off of her lap. “I was very impressed with your demonstration today.”

The boy blushed slightly. “Thank you Temari-san.” He replied before heading back to the counter pushing the chair ahead of him.

Temari turned back to Uta who was giving her a questioning look.

“At the training grounds today he used his Sharingan to catch a move of Naruto’s that even I didn’t see, and then he was kind enough to demonstrate it for those of us who had missed it.”

“Ah, so I take it that Naruto was training with Iruka today.” Uta guessed.

Temari nodded.

“Being gawked at again were you Niisan?” Uta teased as Naruto brought tea cups to the table, while as per his instructions the two oldest Uchiha children started to carefully stack dishes in the sink and on the counter beside it.

“It’s a public training ground; there are always lots of people around.” He muttered, clearly not wanting to talk about that particular subject. “And people are allowed to do what ever the want there.”


Uta laughed heartily but refrained from saying any more on the subject as Naruto went back for the whistling kettle.

Temari thought it might be a good time to ask a question. “I must admit that I was surprised to see the Sharingan in one so young, I was under the impression that it didn’t develop until after puberty. How long has Obito had his?”

Uta propped her elbows on the table and thoughtfully rested her chin on her hands.
“I believe it’s been about a year now, he was training with Neji and Sasuke at the time.” She turned to smile fondly at her oldest son. “And you were right, normally it doesn’t show up until around puberty and according to what family records we have, Obito is the youngest Uchiha to ever wield the Sharingan.”

Temari gave a low whistle even as she had to drag little Kashin back onto her lap as the boy made a grab for Naruto who had returned carrying their tea.

“That’s very impressive; his training must have started at an early age to achieve it so soon.” She remarked.

Uta thanked Naruto for the tea before replying.
“Not per say, although all the children have joined in on our early morning tai-jutsu workout from the time they could walk, training has only occurred as they have become interested. It is not something we push them to do.”

“Interesting, so you don’t have any idea why it developed so soon?”

Uta shook her head as she checked how the tea was steeping.
“Not really, there are a few theories, but there isn’t any way to prove any of them.”

Temari nodded her understanding.

“Dishes are done Uncle Naruto!” Mikoto announced as she took a flying leap off of her chair.

Temari wondered absently if the girl was extremely hyper or just liked to launch herself from high places.
“Good job guys.” Naruto praised. “Now why don’t we get the living room tidied up and then go make sure you rooms are clean too.”

“Awwww.” Two voices whined in unison, bringing a smile to both women’s faces at the tone.

“But that will take forever!” Mikoto pouted. “I don’t want too.”

Temari found herself curious as to whether Naruto would cave under the two pleading pairs of eyes aimed at him.

“Well then I guess we better hurry then.” The big blond commented thoughtfully. “Because if we take forever, Ichiraku will be closed for the night and we won’t be able to get any ramen.”

Kashin started bouncing in Temari’s lap.
“Ramen! Ramen!” He thrilled, his little hands waving in excitement.

His older siblings however didn’t appear to be nearly as excited.

“Can’t we get ramen FIRST?” Mikoto asked, giving Naruto huge puppy dog eyes.

Naruto shook his head, making the little girl fold her arms and stick out her lower lip.

“That’s bribery Uncle Naruto.” Obito informed him blandly.

Naruto chuckled at that as he crouched down so that he was closer to their height.

“I prefer to think of it as a reward for a job well done. But if you guys don’t want any that’s fine with me, we don’t have to go. But either way we are going to be getting this house clean for your mother, she’s tired and needs some help since your father isn’t here right now.”

Both children looked down at their feet and slowly nodded their agreement.

“Great! Let’s get started!” Naruto enthusiastically jumped to his feet, causing both women to chuckle at his antics.

Temari was sure she saw Mikoto roll her eyes.

“Living room first.” Naruto announced.

As the two children headed grudgingly towards the door he made a detour to the table where he held his hands out to Kashin.

“Hey big guy, are you going to come help me?”

“Oh-tay.” The toddler piped, lifting his arms to allow himself to be lifted into the air.

“We’re going to clean up the house okay.” Naruto told him as he settled the boy on his hip.

“Oh-tay.” Kashin agreed as the two exited the room, leaving the women alone.

The two remained silent until Uta poured the tea and set a cup in front of each of them.

“I don’t know what we would do without that man.” Uta commented quietly.

“I see that he is very good with the kids, does he do this often then?” Temari inquired.

Uta nodded and took a small sip of tea. “Since he seldom goes out on missions anymore he tends to look in on us whenever Sasuke is out of town. I feel guilty sometimes though, that we take up so much of his personal time.” The dark haired woman admitted.

“I don’t think that he minds, I’ve noticed that he really likes kids and Sasuke was his teammate for years, they have a lot of history together.” Temari commented before taking a careful sip of her own beverage.

“That’s an understatement.” Uta returned, referring to the men’s history together. “And he always has loved kids, for as long as I’ve known him. And we aren’t the only one’s he helps out when he can, Hinata often gets him to babysit and I’m sure that Sakura will as well once her daughter is old enough.”

“Well then, if he’s so willing to help you shouldn’t feel guilty about it.” Temari advised, although where the words had come from she wasn’t quite sure.

Uta sighed as she traced the rim of her tea cup with one fore finger.
“Yes, but that’s just it, he deserves a family of his own and I sometimes worry that with us taking up all of his time he will never get around to finding a good woman to settle down with.”

Temari was mortified to find herself blushing at her companions words. And she had no idea why, it wasn’t as if she had any interest in Naruto in that way.

“I’m sure that if that is what he wants he will find someone to be with, maybe he’s just not interested in that for himself right now.”
Temari found herself having to bite her tongue to keep from blurting out just why the big blond wasn’t interested in a relationship of his own.

She was rather horrified with herself, she had never been one for a lot of small talk, usually preferring to listen to those around her for information rather then offer any of her own. The fact that she felt the urge to speak before thinking was very strange for her.

Uta did not miss the tell tale blush that had dusted her companions cheeks as they spoke of Naruto’s personal life.
And being the happily married woman that she was, Uta was of the opinion that everyone deserved such happiness. Naruto was like an older brother to her, he had done more fore her and Sasuke then people knew and she wanted to see him happy, because she knew in her heart that he wasn’t.

He could fool most of the people who were close to him, but not Uta.
Her abilities allowed her to easily pick up on the feelings of others.

But she mused; maybe this woman from Sand would be the one to change that. The light bender knew better then to jump to conclusions when it came to matters of the heart. In cases such as this subtly was definitely the way to go.

“So what about you Temari, do you like children?”

The flaxen haired kunoichi smiled softly. “I admit I don’t have much experience with them, but I have always wanted to have a family of my own.” She replied not knowing she was giving the other woman exactly what she was hoping for.

“So what’s been holding you back?” Uta got the distinct impression that her guest was more then ready to settle down; her aura was practically screaming the message that she was available.

The Uchiha matriarch was sure that with the subconscious signals Temari was giving off that she must have a herd of men following her around.

The Sand kunoichi sighed, her eyes fixed on the plum blossom design on her teacup rather then on the woman across from her.

“I work 24/7 and never get a chance to go out; of course I’m not sure that it would make much of a difference if I did.”

Uta gave her a questioning look, prompting her to explain further.

“Men in Sana tend to give me a very wide berth, whether it’s because of my slightly unstable brothers or my own reputation is hard to say, but they never approach me.” Temari shrugged as if it didn’t bother her in the slightest, but it did.

And Uta spotted that instantly and she had to force herself not to rub her hands together and laugh gleefully. Sasuke had told her that Temari was staying in Naruto’s apartment while she was in town and the light bender was certain that the close proximity would help her in her match making quest.

Determined not to give away her plan she smiled brightly. “Well perhaps if you’re looking to settle down you will find someone of interest in Konoha while you’re here.” She suggested.

Uta became quite dismayed when she saw Temari’s aura noticeably dim, a sign of sorrow or at this level possibly even depression.
Her words only confirmed Uta’s suspicions even if they didn’t explain them.

“I don’t think I’m in a position to get involved with anyone right now.” Temari murmured, her eyes taking on a far away look. “I have a lot of work to catch up on when I get home, as well as a few other issues that I need to deal with on my own.”

Uta nodded even though she didn’t understand all the reasons. As much as she wanted to push for answers she didn’t feel that she was close enough to the Sand-nin to do that kind of prying, at least not yet. But if she had her way she would soon count Sabaku no Temari as one of her best friends, and then perhaps, if her plan worked she would one day call the desert woman sister.

* * * * *

Naruto was used to dealing with his best friends children and it didn’t take very long for him to have them all helping with the cleaning. Even little Kashin did what he could. The living room didn’t take very long at all and they were soon off to the second floor to take care of the bedrooms.

Once on the upper level the big blond put his favorite jutsu to work, creating three clones he sent them to work. One with each of the older children, mostly to make sure that they didn’t shove things under their beds while he kept Kashin himself and the third clone was sent to start laundry.

Now Uta was a good house keeper and Sasuke had only been gone for two days, so the mess really wasn’t as bad as it looked. In a little over half an hour he was finished in the toddler’s room and after checking on the progress of Obito and Mikoto’s rooms he headed back down stairs to check on the two women in the kitchen, Kashin went along riding piggy back down the stairs.

When he entered the kitchen he found the pair standing at the sink doing the dishes.
Uta was washing and giving directions to Temari as she dried the dishes and put them away.

“You’re almost as bad as Sasuke.” Naruto announced, interrupting their conversation about Obito and the academy.

Uta simply quirked a brow at him. “I’m not about to sit around while you do all the work Niisan, besides washing dishes is far from strenuous.”

“True.” Naruto conceded. “But that’s not the point and you know it.”

Putting Kashin down on the ground he told the three year old to go get a juice from the fridge before turning his attention back to the boy’s mother. Despite the fact that there were only a few pots left to clean he took her by the shoulders and steered her away from the sink.

“The whole point of this evening is that you get to have a break, and scrubbing dishes is not a break.” He informed her as he maneuvered her over to the table and pulled out a chair.

“Now Naruto, you really don’t need to….Nh.” Her words were cut off as she grimaced; her right hand moved to the small of her back while her left landed on the table top for balance.

“That better not be what I think it is.” Naruto growled as he hovered beside the bent over woman.

“Don’t be overly dramatic Niisan.” Uta chuckled through a wince. “It’s only a little back pain; I’m not due for another couple of months.”

“You’re sure?” Naruto was skeptical, the last time he had had a pregnant woman declare she was fine he had ended up practically delivering the baby on his own. The only blessing had been that it was Hinata and she had been able to coach him thought the whole thing.

“We are going to the hospital.” He announced which earned him a startled look from Temari who had come over to check on her new friend and a swat on the arm from Uta who gave him a disgusted look.

“Really Naruto, I’ve already given birth three times, I think I know the difference between back pain and a contraction.”

“Ya? Well I seem to remember Hinata saying something along those lines once.” Naruto retorted as he moved her hand and began massaging her lower back.

Uta sighed in relief as his big hands worked her sore muscles.
“That was different and you know it Niisan, she was three weeks over due and she only said it to keep you from panicking before the two of you got back to town.”

Naruto had to grudgingly admit that she was right, but he still didn’t want to take any chances.

“I had a check up just the other day and everything is on schedule, so quit worrying.” Uta assured him, as if sensing his thoughts.

“Fine, you win for now. But you are going to lay down and get some rest.” Naruto informed the stubborn woman as he shifted his stance and swept her up into his arms bridle style before heading for the living room. He was glad when Uta didn’t protest his actions.

Slightly worried Temari trailed close behind with Kashin who had abandoned his cup of juice and latched onto her right hand as soon as he saw Naruto pick up his mother.
The Sand kunoichi had to wonder at the familiar way her host was handling his best friend’s wife.
It didn’t seem right to her, she knew married couples who weren’t as open with touching as Naruto and Uta seemed to be.

“Temari, don’t worry about the rest of the dishes, I will finish them tomorrow.” Uta’s voice distracted Temari from her newest line of bizarre thoughts, looking up she saw the dark haired woman peering over Naruto’s shoulder while the big man carried her towards one of the large couches in the living room.

“No you won’t.” Naruto informed her before Temari could reply.

As the shinobi gently lowered the very pregnant Uta onto the soft couch Kashin drug Temari closer as he peered at his mother, a frown on his little face.
“Mommy, you sick?” He asked, his miniature hand tightening in Temari’s grip.

“I’m fine sweetheart.” Uta held out her arms for a hug as soon as Naruto had moved away from her slightly. “Mommy is just tired and needs a rest, so Uncle Naruto gave me a ride.” She reassured the boy.

“Oh-tay.’ Kashin replied, still holding Temari’s hand even as he snuggled into his mothers embrace.

The Sand kunoichi tried to gently remove her hand from the toddlers grip but the little boy only held on tighter.
Uta saw her predicament and gave her an apologetic smile.

“Sorry, he gets clingy when he’s worried and once he latches on it’s hard to get him to let go.”

“I see.” Temari was touched by the boy’s behavior; he obviously loved his mother very much. Deciding not to fight his hold for fear of upsetting him she moved to kneel down beside him while Naruto moved around the room to gather several large pillows that he then used to prop up behind Uta and made sure she was comfortable.

Temari watched him navigate the room with a practiced ease that spoke of his familiarity with the building. As he moved over to lift the window seat and pulled out a colorful quilt as well as several more pillows she felt a strange twinge, one that she refused to acknowledge as envy as the thought came to her.

‘I’m not going to have anyone to care for me like this when I’m that far along.’

Feeling herself getting a little depressed over the issue again she pushed both the thought and the feeling away. Something so miniscule was hardly worth getting upset over.

Uta felt the shift in the other woman’s mood and wondered at the cause, giving her youngest child a kiss on the head she glanced at Temari through her lashes.
The light user immediately noticed that Temari’s gaze was directed towards Naruto as the sunny blond returned to the couch with an arm load of bedding.

When he sat down on the foot of the couch and lifted her legs so he could place a pillow under her knees before settling her feet in his lap and began massaging the sore appendages, Uta swore she could have almost heard word for word what was going through the Sand-nin’s mind from the intensity of the emotions she was giving off.

The Uchiha had to hide a smile and when Naruto commented on her slightly swollen ankles she only shrugged in response.

Although the feelings she was reading in the other woman were not that of jealousy of any other negative emotion close to it, there was a distinct feel of possessiveness with a hint of sadness thrown in.

The black haired woman did allow her lips to curl up then, as she became certain that Temari was more then likely unaware of the true nature of her feelings, as they had disappeared rather quickly.

‘Perhaps getting these two together will not be nearly as difficult as I first thought.’ She mused as she glanced at Naruto who was concentrating too much on giving her a foot rub to notice the way his house guest was looking at him.

“Are you okay Mom?’ Obito’s voice, coming from the direction of the stairs interrupted his mothers planning.

“I’m fine dear; your Uncle is just over reacting again.” She assured her eldest as he approached the sofa with his sister at his heels.

“I am NOT over reacting.” Naruto protested quietly. “I’m being cautious.”

Temari found herself almost wanting to smile as she wondered at the reason for the big blonde’s over protectiveness, despite Uta’s assurances that she was fine. However her earlier questions about their obvious familiarity kept her lips in a straight line.

“You’re pregnant Uta, that means there is no such thing as over reacting when it comes to your health.” Naruto informed his friend’s wife as he moved to massage her other foot.

Temari’s head snapped up as his words suddenly made sense of his actions.
The Sand–nin wondered why she hadn’t thought of it sooner.

‘Jewel disappeared while with child, and ultimately it resulted in the death of her and their son.’ Temari was sure she saw a flash of something more then worry momentarily enter his blue eyes, causing them to darken for a mere instant. ‘Does a part of him fear that something could happen to Uta?’ She wondered.

She mulled over her own thoughts several times but still wasn’t certain she was entirely correct. As Naruto sent the two oldest children into the kitchen to finish the dishes she decided that she would have to wait and see if she could get a chance to question him about her theory.

“Naruto, you really should hire your self out as an expert foot masseuse.” Uta remarked, drawing the attention of both her guests. “You would seriously make a fortune.” She informed him as she released her hold o Kashin, who in typical three year old fashion had grown tired of cuddling and abandoned the adults in favor of seeing what his siblings where up to.

“But if I did that. It would mean that I would be too busy to make house calls.” Naruto teased glad that Uta had found a lighter subject to talk about.

Uta chuckled as she leaned back into the pillows behind her.
“Well in that case I changed my mind.” She said with a smile.

Temari moved off of the floor to one of the other couches since Kashin had left her sitting on the floor.

“Are you taking the kids out Naruto?” Uta asked as the shinobi stood, having finished rubbing her feet and was now spreading a light quilt over her.

“Ya, we’ll go out to eat so that you can have some peace and quiet.’

“In that case, Kashin will need a new shirt, his has pudding on the front.”

“No problem.” Naruto assured her as he finished tucking the blanket around her feet before straightening and heading towards the kitchen.

“That man is a God send; I don’t know what I would do without him.” Uta sighed as she snuggled down into the pillows Naruto had arranged for her.

“So you’ve said.” Temari remarked rather dryly.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better big brother if he was my own flesh and blood.” The dark haired woman stated. “He really is wonderful.”

Temari could only stare at the other woman as she tried to absorb the meaning of her words.
‘Brother?’
She hadn’t thought of the two having that kind of a relationship considering how they acted towards each other. Her and her brothers had never come even close to interacting like that.

Not realizing it the Sand-nin sighed out loud. Not that her family had ever done much together except missions, and she was well aware of the fact that they were far from a normal family, even when one didn’t count what had happened to Gaara.

Temari was upset with herself, she had no right to be critical or judge other peoples relationships, having never been apart of anything like that with anyone, even her own father or brothers who she merely co-existed with.
She had no right think the worst of them as she could not presume to be any kind of expert on the issue.

Uta tried not to become alarmed as Temari’s aura changed yet again. The light bending female had not seen anyone’s moods change so much or so often in so short a space of time since Ino had first been grieving the loss of Nara Shikamaru.

She could tell that her blond companion was now upset about something, but she wasn’t sure what it could be or if she should take the chance in asking.
A smile almost touched her lips at the thought; her husband always told her that she was and incurable meddler, so why change now?

“Are you feeling alright Temari? You seem a little off.”

The woman from Sand started as if she had forgotten where she was.

“I’m sorry Uta, I’m afraid that I’m not quite myself lately, I didn’t mean to zone out on you.” Temari could have bitten off her tongue as she found herself blurting out the first thing that came to mind.

Even if it was the truth, she didn’t need to be blabbing everything to someone she had really just meet.

“Anything I can help with? I’m very good at listening if you want to talk about something.” The Uchiha offered.

Temari gave her a grateful smile. “Thank you for the offer, but I’ve just been a little off lately, I had some bad injuries on my last outing and my body still seems to be having trouble getting back to normal.”

“Oh I see; I know what that’s like. I always have a bit of trouble at the beginning of a pregnancy and then right after when my body is going through all the changes. Hormones can be a real bitch sometimes.” She chuckled at the last part of her statement.

When Temari didn’t respond she took a closer look at the blond sitting across form her, was Temari blushing?

Before Uta could call her on it they were both distracted by Naruto who came back through the living room carrying Kashin upside down on his way to the stairs, the little boy was giggling hysterically as he kicked his feet in the air.

“Naruto, don’t do that too much please, he’s hyper enough without all of his blood rushing to his head.” Uta called lightly.

Naruto didn’t answer but by the time the big shinobi started up the stairs the child had been flipped around and draped over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes instead, which only had the toddler laughing harder.


Once Uta focused back on her other guest she realized that the moment had been lost to inquire tactfully as to why Temari had been blushing only moments ago.

‘Perhaps it was how I spoke of my pregnancies, not all women find that a comfortable topic.’ She mused as she watched Temari pull her legs up underneath her on her seat.

‘Or maybe…..’ Uta took a closer look at the other woman as a second possibility came to mind. ‘Could she be pregnant? It certainly would explain some of her mood swings.’ Uta wisely decided not to purse that subject any further at that moment in time. She would do what she did best and simply watch her new friend closely for a time before coming to a final verdict and had gathered enough information to question the Sand kunoichi.

* * * * * * * * *

“Are you sure your okay Temari, he’s not too heavy?” Naruto asked as he glanced over at the woman walking on his right.

It was after nine o’clock and they were taking the kids back to the Uchiha compound.
Kashin had practically clung to the wind user the entire evening and was now fighting off sleep as Temari carried him.

“I’m fine, he’s not really that heavy, and besides you already have your hands full.” She reminded him as she nodded at Mikoto who was sound asleep with her head resting on Naruto’s shoulder.

The pair were walking fairly slowly so that they did not out pace Obito who walked between them. The eight year old had insisted that he wasn’t tired and that he could walk all the way home, but both adults saw the yawns he was trying to hide.

“Are you going to make it buddy?” Naruto asked quietly when the boy slowed even more.

“Yes I aaaaauuummm.” A yawn caught the young Uchiha mid sentence.

“Do you want a ride?” Naruto inquired as he reached over and ruffled the boy’s dark hair.

“I guess.’ The youngster finally conceded.

Temari raised an eyebrow as her eyes danced with silent laughter, only five minutes before he had adamantly refused any assistance.

Shifting Mikoto all the way over to his left side Naruto crouched down and picked up Obito with his right arm. The eldest Uchiha seemed to finally give up the fight to stay awake as he wrapped his arms around his uncle’s neck and rested his head on his shoulder as Naruto straightened back up.

Temari and Naruto shared an amused grin as they headed off again, this time at a much quicker pace. It didn’t take long for them to reach their destination but by that time all three children were fast asleep.

Temari opened the door to let them into the Uchiha residence. The two jonin quietly kicked off their foot wear after she closed the door with a gentle click.
Naruto had found Sasuke’s extra set of communicators before they had left and had given one to Uta in case she needed anything.
The radio had been silent all evening so the two blonde’s were operating on the assumption that she was also asleep. Tip toeing through the living room they found their theory to be correct as Uta still lay curled up on the couch.

Without a word Naruto headed up the stairs with Temari close behind. On the upper landing He nodded towards the first door they came too.

“That’s Kashin’s room.” He whispered so as not to disturb the children in his arms.

Temari just nodded in reply and headed for the opening.

“I’m going to need a hand with these two so just pull back the covers before you lay him down and we can tuck him in after.” He told her as she passed him.

Mouthing a silent ‘okay’ Temari slipped into the bedroom and made her way over to the bed with only the light from the hall to show her the way.
Even though her arms were starting to get tired she really didn’t want to put the little boy down, he smelled so good with his little head tucked under her chin and the warmth of his small body was oddly comforting.

Somehow she managed to pull back the blankets and lay him down without waking him. Before she thought better of it she placed a light kiss on his forehead, she just couldn’t help herself it seemed automatic and the right thing to do.

She quickly left the toddlers room before she could start to question herself and easily found Naruto a few doors down waiting for her.

“Go ahead and turn on the light Temari, it wont bother them.” He whispered as she opened the door for him.

She did as he asked and preceded him to the bed which was obviously Mikoto’s.
Dolls sat on a little bench beside the bed and a large pink plush frog sat on the bed. Temari stifled a chuckle as she moved the stuffy to pull down the bed covers, the toy had to be a present from Naruto.
Everyone knew about his preoccupation with the creatures he summoned.
She did find it interesting though that the frog was the only thing in the room that was pink, the majority of the rooms color scheme seemed to be burgundy and cream which surprised Temari. She just assumed that the bubbly little girl would have everything in pink, after all wasn’t that what most little girls liked?

Shaking her head at her own silly thoughts she turned to take Mikoto from Naruto.

“She can sleep in her clothes if you want to just take off her shoes and socks.” He told her as he relinquished his hold on the girl.

Temari barely had the five year old in her arms when Mikoto woke up.

“I don like sleep’n in clothes.” She mumbled, causing Temari’s brows to go up in surprise and Naruto to chuckle softly.

“She means she wants her pajamas, they are under her pillow.” He clarified as he turned back towards the door with his last charge still asleep on his shoulder. “Do you mind helping her while I take care of this guy?”


He paused at the door to look back for her answer.

“No problem, go ahead.” She called softly as she set her burden down on the bed.

Even though it turned out that Mikoto was only half awake, her eye lids drooping the whole time Temari helped her change, the switch over was managed quite quickly. And by the time Naruto came back to check on them Mikoto was crawling under her covers.

Once she was snuggly tucked in and clutching her frog close Naruto leaned down to give her a hug and a kiss on the forehead.

“Uncle Nato……” Her voice slightly slurred by sleep, Mikoto asked. “When’s Daddy comin home?”

“I’m not sure Munchkin he shouldn’t be gone to long though.”

“Okay, he has ta finish my story.” Mikoto declared through a yawn while she lifted an arm to Temari indicating she wanted a hug from her as well.

The blond kunoichi readily obliged the child and also received a kiss for her trouble. She was very touched by the easy acceptance all of the children had given her.

“Good night Mikoto.” Naruto whispered as he wrapped an arm around Temari’s waist and lead her towards the door.

There was no reply from the little girl as he flicked off the light and ushered Temari out into the hall.

“She is so adorable.” Temari whispered as they headed back towards Kashin’s room.

Naruto chuckled quietly. “Just don’t tell her that, she thinks of herself as a tom boy and doesn’t like to be called cute or anything close to it.”

“She’d only five!” Temari exclaimed, momentarily forgetting to speak in a hushed voice.

Naruto shrugged. “That’s just the way she is, she’s a Daddies girl that wants to do everything he and Obito do.”

Before Temari could comment further the communicator at Naruto’s hip buzzed.

“What’s up Uta?” He asked after removing the radio from his belt.

“Tell me that that’s you upstairs so that I don’t have to get up and kill somebody.” Came the voice from the other end of the line.

Both Naruto and Temari grinned at the pregnant woman’s choice of words.

“Yes it’s us; we’re just tucking the kids into bed.” Naruto replied through the hand piece.

“Good because I don’t really want to move right now.” Uta informed him.

“Why don’t you go see if she needs anything while I tuck in Kashin.” Temari suggested with a light giggle.

“You’re sure?”

She nodded. “He’s sound asleep, I’m sure I can handle it on my own.” She assured him.

Naruto smiled and gave her waist a light squeeze before heading down the stairs.

Temari quietly reentered Kashin’s room and carefully removed his shoes and socks as well as his shorts, as she knew that the pockets contained a number of rocks and other things he had insisted on picking up in the training grounds when Naruto was playing with his older siblings.

After covering him up she smoothed back his hair before leaving the room and heading down stairs.
She met Naruto part way down as he was headed back up with Uta in his arms.

“Thank you for all your help Temari.” Uta said with a smile.

“It was my pleasure.” Temari assured her.

“Well I hope you can come visit again before you head home.” Uta told her as Naruto continued past.

The big shinobi chuckled. “Say good night Uta, its bed time for you too.”

“Good night Uta.” The Uchiha echoed while making a face over his shoulder which had Temari having to stifle a laugh.

As she continued down to the living room the woman from Sand came to the conclusion that she had just had one of the best days of her life, it had been fun, enlightening and a little bit humbling. She had never realized before today just how quickly she tended to jump to conclusions, while it was a trait that she found useful when dealing with enemy ninja it had no place in personal interactions.

It hadn’t taken very long in the children’s presence to realize that her odd suspicions about how close Naruto and Uta seemed to be were in fact just that, odd.
Naruto was family, a surrogate uncle since neither Sasuke nor Uta had any living relatives.

How she had managed to forget that Naruto cared for everyone around him including herself was something she still hadn’t figured out.
And she wasn’t going to either, she was dropping that thought pattern all together and was going to focus instead on herself.

As she waited for Naruto she folded the quilt Uta had been using and stacked it neatly along with the pillows on one end of the couch while she reflected on how much she had learned about dealing with children in that short evening with the Uchiha clan as well as how much she still had to learn. Being the strategist that she was Temari started a mental list of what she knew she needed to know and of possible sources of information, if the evening had accomplished anything it had caused her to truly be looking forward to her unorthodox pregnancy and in fact she found herself almost excited over what was to come, despite the fact that she knew she would be going though it and in turn raising the child pretty much on her own.

In what seemed like no time at all Naruto returned and after a quick sweep to make sure that all the doors and windows were locked he ushered Temari towards the main entrance turning lights out as they went.

“You forgot the kitchen.” Temari pointed out as they were headed for the entry.

“Uta told me to leave it on under pain of death.” He informed her.

The kunoichi couldn’t help but chuckle. “Pain of death?”

“Ya she said something about night time cravings being a top priority right now.” Naruto replied.

“Cravings?” Temari asked as she slipped her feet into her sandals.

Naruto followed suit and opened the door for her then locked it before pulling it closed behind them.

“From what I’ve heard all pregnant women get cravings of one sort or another. Some are apparently really weird.” He explained once they were headed down the walk.

“Interesting, I didn’t know that.” Temari murmured thoughtfully.

Naruto chuckled suddenly. At her questioning look he said.
“According to Lee, Sakura developed a taste for green tea ice cream with jalapeno peppers and Soya sauce.”

Temari shuddered. “That is the most disgusting thing that I have ever heard.” She stated.

Naruto just chuckled again. “Ya I can agree with that.”

A companionable silence fell between them after that as they continued on their way. Temari found herself looking up at the moon hanging brightly in the sky; she hadn’t realized that it was nearly full until then. She smiled as she thought about how it would look from her bedroom window back in Sana.
The sand dunes always seemed endless when bathed with the light from the full moon, as if her village was the only civilization on earth.

Here in Konoha was very different, but she still loved the effect as they walked through the shadows cast by the large trees.

Temari had always loved the full moon, even when she was young and everyone hid for fear of Gaara going on a killing spree thanks to Shukaku, not that there was a danger of that happening any more. Even though she knew her youngest brother still had problems, she knew that controlling the demon inside of him was no longer one of them.

The flaxen haired beauty suddenly found it interesting how often her thoughts turned to her brothers now that she was apart from them. But she knew that they would have heard of her whereabouts by now and would probably soon be arriving to retrieve her, which for once did not bother her. There was no way in hell she was going to be traveling alone any time soon.

They were walking through part of the deserted shopping distract when her thoughts were interrupted by a window display she spotted out of the corner of her eye.

Naruto stopped when Temari suddenly veered away from him as they strolled down the empty street. Turning he saw that some kind of window display had caught her attention.

Stuffing his hands into his pockets he wandered over to see what she was looking at.
He wasn’t sure why it startled him to see the assortment of baby supplies behind the glass pane but it did.

A poke in the ribs had his attention turning to the woman beside him.

“Naruto, look at those tiny kimonos aren’t they adorable?” Her eyes seemed to sparkle as she looked over the miniature articles of clothing.

His grunted yes caught Temari’s attention and she looked up at him in time to see the pained look in his eyes before he was able to hide it.

“I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to drudge up old memories.”

Naruto sighed heavily, felling bad for getting caught and ruining her good mood. “That’s okay, its not you fault.” He told her quietly.

“How do you do it?” She asked before she could loose her nerve.

“Do what?”

“Do what you do, be around kids all the time babysitting and such.” Temari clarified.

Naruto’s shoulders sagged slightly. “It’s not always easy. Obito was never to bad to be around because he was born before, I mainly have trouble during the first few months, maybe its because I was never able to see him, but once the kids are older its not so hard.”

“Even the ones who are about the same age?” She wasn’t sure why she continued to ask questions but they just seemed to be coming out on their own.

“I don’t think about it much with other kids, I’m just glad that both Mikoto and Shani were girls, I don’t know if I could have handled if otherwise. He would have been born right between them.” He informed her.

Before she thought better of it Temari stepped closer and hugged him.

“I’m sorry.”

“For what?” Naruto was a little confused by both her actions and her words.

“Because of me you’ve been reminded of so much pain of your own. And I’m right under your nose so it must be like having it rubbed in your face every time you turn around.” She hung her head as she pulled away from him. “I’m sorry, maybe I should go back to the hotel, I know how painful it must be for you.”

Temari felt horrible, she didn’t know why it hadn’t occurred to her earlier, here she was, now happily planning for the coming child and carrying on in front of him when it was obvious that the loss of his son was still very painful to him.
What a lousy way to pay him back for everything he had done for her.

Naruto was rendered momentarily speechless by her apology; no one had ever said anything like that to him before. Of course he amended, that was partly due to the fact that no one else knew his secret. But still….. her words touched him, and he felt his heart shift in his chest. Never in a million years would her have ever thought of Temari as so sensitive and understanding.

He knew she was a nice person, but she had always had such a tough exterior and had a tendency to tell people to suck it up and bear it.
He quickly played her words over in his head and realized that he didn’t want her to move out, not just yet. Having someone close, that he could talk to if he so chose was too precious a gift for him to give up before he had too.

Reaching out he gently brushed her bangs out of her eyes before placing a finger under her chin to get her to look up at him.

“You don’t have to apologize Temari; it’s not your fault. I think all of the stuff bottled up inside of me would have eventually come out anyway, it just happened that you were the one here when it became too much to hold in anymore.” He gave her a firm look. “Besides, it’s not like you’re the first woman close to me who has gotten pregnant. In the last five years or so since Jewel disappeared it seemed like everyone has been having babies, I even had to help deliver Hinata’s son.” He shook his head then at the memory. “I think that the Fate’s just hate me, or at the very least They find it entertaining to mess with my life.”

Temari searched his eyes carefully to be sure he meant what he said and wasn’t just saying it for her benefit before she spoke again.

“Are you sure Naruto? I don’t want to make this any harder for you.” She told him.

He managed a small smile then. “To tell you the truth, I think it’s the other way around.”

She gave him a questioning look.

“You made me talk about it, something I probably should have done sooner, just like you said. And you know what?”

He paused while he stepped closer to her and wrapped his arms around her waist.
Temari tilted her head back to maintain eye contact while he tried to find the right words.

“It’s a little strange but…. I don’t think it hurts as much.” He said simply.

Temari smiled as he took a deep breath and let it out slowly, she sensed that some of his self inflicted burden had been lifted. Naruto returned the smile as he pulled her even closer and rested his forehead against hers.

“Thank you Temari.” He whispered softly.

“Consider us even then.” She replied, not knowing what else to say as her own arms lifted to wrap around his neck.

They stood silently supporting each other for a time, until Temari giggled slightly.

“What?” Naruto asked, not bothering to move away from her.

“We make quite the pair don’t we?” She asked with a grin.

“Ya I guess we do.” He replied as he straightened. “Shall we head home then?” You must be tired after such a long day.”

Temari reluctantly released his neck. “Not really, for some reason I’m not tired at all, although it might be because of the nap I had in the training grounds.”

Naruto chuckled at her confession. “Cheater.”

He didn’t fully release her as they started walking again, but kept his arm around her waist. Snuggling closer to his side Temari wrapped an arm around him as well and they continued on in silence.

* * * * * * * *

“Well well well, isn’t that just interesting.” He smirked behind his face mask as he stroked his jaw thoughtfully.

Not wanting to be spotted by the couple down below him on the street Kakashi stayed crouched on his roof top perch, deep in the shadows of a large chimney. He found the appearance of Naruto and Temari both interesting and a welcome distraction.

The copy-nin was not in a very good mood, he had spent most of the day trying to find the source of the power surge he had felt earlier. He had managed to find out how many ninja’s from other countries were in Konoha and managed to cross paths with almost all of them, but he was no closer to finding the one he was looking for.

He was starting to suspect that he was faced with one of two scenarios, neither of which were very reassuring.
One; the person he had felt was not a ninja, which was more then possible and which meant that he was left completely in the dark as it was next to impossible for him to keep track of all the merchants and other civilian visitors Konoha received on a daily basis all on his own.

Scenario two wasn’t much better in his opinion in fact he was still trying to decide which was worse one or two, he was leaning towards two as it meant that whoever it was, had such complete control over this power that they were able to keep it hidden from him, even when he was close by.
The thought of someone with that much control over such a formidable and generally unstable power made him shudder. It meant that he would not be able to sense them coming when they finally tracked him down.

He wondered briefly if he should alert anyone to the situation, but quickly discarded the idea, Konoha was not at risk.
It was only after him and once he was dead it would have no more cause to lash out.

Shaking his head the silver haired shinobi finally accepted what he had been refusing to acknowledge all day long.

He was going to die.

No amount of skills or techniques could prevent that from happening, all his years of training and fighting would mean nothing in the face of this person, whose single touch could wipe him off the face of the earth.

With a heavy sigh he took a closer look at the couple that was now heading down the street in the direction of Naruto’s apartment. The two blonde’s looked very good together he decided. And he hoped that Tsunade and Iruka were right and maybe, just maybe Naruto had finally found someone to be with.
He had known for years that his former pupil was more then lonely, he always had been that. Not just that, something had been missing from the cheery blond but it was just so hard to tell with him because he had become so good at hiding it.

He was also glad that he had been able to immediately scratch Temari off of his list of suspects as he had been near her before when she used her chakra and he knew that she was not in possession of the of the ‘white power’ even if it had laid dormant inside of her he should have felt it.

“Thank God for small blessings.” He muttered as he finally straightened and headed in the opposite direction of the couple.

He didn’t want to try to imagine what it would do to his former students if someone they knew and called a friend were to take him out, even if it wasn’t intentionally. They wouldn’t understand it, not many people knew about the volatile power known as White Chakra, it was almost impossible to control and was never meant to be used as a weapon thus the sin of the Hatake clan. That was his legacy tainted power, and if pure white chakra came in contact with the tainted it would automatically purify it and there was nothing anyone, even the wielder could do to stop it.

Kakashi shuddered at the thought of what awaited him and it took every bit of his training to keep him from panicking. Something he had never done even as a genin.

“So what are you going to do Hatake? There’s no point in running around like a chicken with its head cut off, what’s coming will come.” He spoke aloud hoping that just maybe it would help calm him down.

It did help somewhat, but he knew he still had to do something to distract himself or he would go nuts waiting for it to come. The word ‘distraction’ got him thinking about Tsunade and he wondered if she was still pissed at him. He had it from a very reliable source that she had been livid after he left her office two days ago.

A smirk slowly formed on his face at the thought, she was so much fun to piss off and he decided that since the end of his existence was already in sight there was no harm on flirting with a different kind of danger. A man couldn’t ask for a better way to distract himself. Even though he was pretty sure that the female Hokage was still mad enough to kill him at least it wouldn’t be as painful as being purified, he hoped.

It was Saturday night so the copy-nin knew exactly where to find Konoha’s fearless leader. With a quick hand sign he teleported across town to the roof of Tsunade’s favorite drinking establishment, which also happened to have a couple tables reserved for poker games.

Dropping down to the street Kakashi took a deep slow breath before heading into the bar known as the ‘Hell hole’ why it had earned such a nickname was hard to say, it was not in the basement and didn’t have the reputation for tolerating rowdy customers unlike other establishments that were close by. It was more then likely that the nickname had been derived from the fact that every surface inside the place was black. No color, with the exception of the lights was visible anywhere. No music played, it was a quiet place, dark and quiet.

Kakashi quickly spotted Tsunade at a table for two with a bottle of sake sitting in front of her. Stopping at the bar the Copycat bought a bottle of his own but then changed his mind, deciding that sake wasn’t nearly strong enough for him at that moment in time and asked for straight vodka instead.

He may have accepted that death was closing in on him but that didn’t mean that he had to accept it gracefully. After paying for it he took it and his cup over to where the blond Hokage sat glaring at her cup.

“Mind if I join you Hokage-Sama?” He asked with a forced cheerfulness while he took a seat without waiting for her reply.

Her chocolate eyes transferred their glare from her drinking saucer to him almost instantly.

“Hell yes I mind!” Her voice wasn’t quite a shout but it was close.

Kakashi’s one visible brow disappeared under his headband at her sharp tone.

“I’m trying to relax here Hatake, and I DON’T need you around to spoil it!” She slammed her fist down on the table to emphasize her point.

“Have a bad day did you?” He asked casually as he poured several fingers of vodka into his glass.

“It’s none of you business.” Tsunade growled her glare still firmly in place.

“Sounds like my day then.” Kakashi remarked as he jerked down his mask and downed his drink in one gulp. His eye nearly started to water as the strong drink burned its way down to his stomach.

Normally Kakashi kept his face covered at all times, even when he was partying, which wasn’t often but still, if it wasn’t his mask a jutsu usually obscured his face but not tonight. He didn’t bother pulling the cloth back up as he planned on downing a lot more alcohol before he went anywhere and the bar wasn’t very busy. And hell, if he was going to die what did he care if people saw his face.

“I thought I told you to leave.” Tsunade huffed as she tried to maintain her glare, which wasn’t easy considering the fact that she was now forced to look at the silver haired man’s face if she wanted to continue. And that was practically impossible; one just couldn’t glare at perfection.
In an effort to ignore him she emptied her sake cup then immediately refilled it.

“I just thought I would stop by to tell you about something that might interest you.” Kakashi informed her as she downed her second cup.

“And what is that?” She asked, still focused on her bottle.

“You were right.” He stated simply, refilling his own glass.

Tsunade did look at him then.

“I was right about what?” She asked as she wondered what on earth the man was talking about.

“Naruto and Temari.” Kakashi stated simply taking a slow sip of his drink this time around. “You may have been right about them being good together.” He clarified when she glanced up at him with a questioning look.

“Really? How do you know?” She demanded, leaning forward in anticipation of his answer.

“I just saw them on the way here, I’m not sure what they were talking about but they were standing wrapped in each others arms in the middle of the street.”

Tsunade gave a whoop and downed another helping of sake.
“YES!” She crowed, her eyes sparkling with glee. “And about bloody time too!” She exclaimed which was followed by another cup being downed.

Kakashi sat back in his chair and watched in fascination as the woman in front of him downed three additional helpings of sake in between congratulating herself for picking the perfect woman for Naruto.

Because he really didn’t want to go somewhere to drink alone the copy-nin decided to interrupt the celebrating woman by asking a question that had been his main concern before the energy surge had taken his full attention.

“So what do you think will happen with this whole Kyubi thing?” He asked.

Tsunade paused mid way through pouring another drink.
“What Kyubi thing?” she asked skeptically.

“Well Iruka told me that he talked to Naruto after he flew off the handle the other day and apparently he sealed the Kyubi away.”

Tsunade blinked several times.
“I’m sorry; did you just say that he sealed the Kyubi?” She asked carefully setting her bottle down on the table as she focused all her attention on the man across from her.

He nodded and found himself wondering how the hell she was still talking normally after slamming back seven helpings of sake in less then five minutes.

“How could he do that? Why would he do that?” Tsunade demanded, pulling the scarecrows attention back to the discussion at hand.

“I don’t have the answer to either question; all I know is that it appears to be true, when we were sparing earlier that day there was no sign of the Kitsune’s chakra and later that day he actually blacked out from chakra depletion.”

Tsunade stared at the jonin across from her as if he had suddenly sprouted two heads.
“Naruto……. ran out of chakra?”

He simply nodded and took another sip of his vodka.

“That’s such an oxymoron.” Tsunade muttered as she tried to puzzle through this new information. “Naruto without Kyubi or its powers, that’s hard to imagine.” She mussed almost to herself.

“Did he say why he did it?” She asked suddenly.

“Not that Iruka mentioned.” Kakashi informed her.

Tsunade picked up her sake saucer as she thoughtfully leaned back in her chair. This was a very surprising turn of events, one that she never would have seen coming.

“Well the boy obviously had a good reason to put a seal on the fox.” She rationalized. “And if he can put one up there shouldn’t be any problem for him to reverse the process if he needs too. But in any case I will give him a good talking to on Monday and see what he has to say for himself.” She concluded with a firm nod then once again drained her glass.

The two sat in silence for several minutes while Tsunade tried to come up with a reason for Naruto’s strange actions and Kakashi wondered how long it would take the woman to start feeling the alcohol she had consumed in such short order.
He had never actually seen the Hokage drink before although he had heard that she could out drink most people and he was curious as to just how much she could handle.

He watched, quietly sipping his own beverage as she drained the last of her bottle and signaled the bartender for another. The establishment wasn’t all that busy despite it being Saturday night but even so Tsunade’s new bottle of sake was there almost instantly. The Copycat had to wonder if it was because of her title or because she was such a good customer.

The big chested blond immediately downed two helpings from the new bottle and he noticed as she refilled her glass yet again that her movements were a little slower and more precise then before; obviously she was starting to feel something.

“Didn’t I tell you to get lost a while ago?” She asked as if suddenly remembering his presence.

“I was kind of hoping you had forgotten about that.” Kakashi confessed as she downed…. Was it the twelfth helping of sake?

“And why is that?” She asked.

THIRTEEN.

“Wouldn’t any man prefer to share a drink with a lovely companion rather then alone?” He replied with a slight smirk.

FOURTEEN

Tsunade’s eyes narrowed as she rested her elbows on the table and leaned forward.
“Are you flirting with me Hatake Kakashi?” She demanded.

FIFTEEN

Kakashi fought to keep a grin from forming on his lips; she was obviously starting to feel something.

“And if I am, is that a problem?”

SIXTEEN

“Hell yes it’s a problem!” She declared.

SEVENTEEN.

Kakashi leaned forward as well, mirroring her position and bringing their faces to within six inches of each other.
“And why is that?” He asked his voice low and teasing.

EIGHTEEN

Tsunade retreated, sitting back in her chair again, only this time she took her bottle and cup with her.
“You’re not allowed.” She informed him with a slight frown.

Kakashi couldn’t hold back his smirk than.

NINETEEN

He was sure he had heard her slur those last words, just a little bit.

“I’m not allowed to flirt?” He was really starting to enjoy this conversation, even if it was a weird topic and one he never would have picked for the Hokage to bring up. He was beginning to suspect that Tsunade was feeling her sake WAY more then she appeared to be.

TWENTY

“No your NOT!” She exclaimed, slapping a hand down on the table for emphasis.

Kakashi raised a brow but remained where he was.
“And why is that?”

TWENTY-ONE

TWENTY -TWO

“Because you’re taken.” She stated sullenly as she signaled for another bottle, which again arrived as quick as lightning.

‘Okay, now this is much more fun then pushing her buttons at the office.’ The silver haired man chuckled to himself. ‘I wonder what brought on this line of thinking.’ Cocking his head to the side as he watched her empty her bottle into the saucer then top it up with the third he tried to keep the humor out of his voice.

“I’m taken am I?” He questioned.

TWENTY-THREE

She nodded.

TWENTY-FOUR

Now grinning broadly he leaned closer before asking.
“Are you staking a claim Hokage-Sama?”

Twenty-five ended up being spit in multiple directions as Tsunade choked on the liquid.
Having to wipe sake off of his face didn’t dampen his spirits in the slightest and he couldn’t keep from grinning as she coughed several times to clear her lungs.

The usually serious jonin was having far too much fun at this point and at the rate she was drinking he wondered just how much of this conversation she would remember in the morning.

The blond Sannin finally regained control of her coughing but to the man across from her it seemed like she was now staring to sway slightly in her seat.

Wiping at her watering eyes Tsunade took several unhindered breathes before she fixed the man across from her with a hard glare.
“I’m not a poacher!” She declared. “I have never been, will never be a poacher. Do I look like a poacher to YOU?” she demanded, her cup and bottle hit the table with a hard thud as she once again leaned forward over the table.

Kakashi was a little puzzled by her choice of words, what was she talking about?

“I will have you know Hatake Kakashi that I have never poached in my life.” She repeated. Obviously forgetting that she had already said that. “Even if you do look good enough to eat.” She muttered pouring another glass.

Kakashi grinned, now if that wasn’t an ego booster he didn’t know what was, she thought he looked good enough to eat did she?

The puzzled copy-nin’s thoughts were interrupted when she sprung an unexpected question on him.

“Are you Bi?” She demanded before carefully drinking the number twenty-five replacement.

Kakashi couldn’t help but laugh at that question even though the look on her face told him she was serious.

“That depends.” He told her with a wink. “On just what kind of an offer I get.”

* * * * * * * * * * **

Kankuro growled as he woke up to the sound of someone pounding on the front door of the house he shared with his siblings.
Rolling off of the couch where he had finally fallen asleep after going over several dozen supply order forms from various departments he raised his arms over his head and stretched to straighten out some of the kinks in his body before heading for the door.

“Yah, yah I’m coming.” He grumbled.

He swung open the door to see one of the night guards standing at the threshold.

“Forgive me for interrupting you Kankuro-Sama, but a messenger has arrived from Konoha with an important letter from the Hokage.” The man informed him.

“Fine I’ll be right there.” Kankuro informed him and waved a hand to dismiss him before closing the door again.

“Why does all this kind of stuff only happen after midnight?” He muttered to himself as he went to retrieve his coat and slip on his sandals before grabbing his ever present puppet and teleported to the Kazkage’s office building.

Upon entering Gaara’s office the leaf ninja immediately got up from the chair he had been sitting in and bowed deeply.
“Forgive the late hour Sir, but I was delayed for several days by a sand storm and I did not think I should wait until morning as the Hokage said this message was very important.” He apologized.

“Did the guards inform you that the Kazkage is not here at the moment?” Kankuro asked as he accepted the scroll the man held out to him.

“Yes Sir they did.” Came the simple reply.

Nodding the puppet master cracked the seal on the scroll and leaned his hip against the desk as he opened the scroll, quickly scanning the neat writing he found himself releasing a relieved sign, his sister had been found and was safe.

“Thank God.” He muttered quietly.

After rereading the letter more carefully he rolled it back up and set it on Gaara’s desk before turning his attention to the messenger.

“I am sure you are tired and would like something to eat, I will have someone take you somewhere for the night, tomorrow I will send word to the Kazkage and when he returns we will see if he has a return message or if he will simply go to Konoha himself.”

He didn’t bother to fill in any other details to the leaf-nin it was really none of his business.

“Of course Sir.”

Going out of the office Kankuro spoke to the guard who stood there and gave instructions for the messenger to be given food and lodgings as well as to inform all the watch men that Temari had been found and to relay that information to Gaara if he was to return before morning.

Once the puppet master was alone in the office he moved over to the window to look out on the moon lit desert.

“Its time for you to come home Gaara, our sister is safe and with friends.” He said to the night, hoping that somehow his younger brother had heard him and would come home, his extended absence was starting to worry the older sibling.

* * * * * * * * * *

Moon light bathed the land in its soft silver light, causing some of the sand dunes to almost shimmer in its light while at the same time casting long shadows over the barren landscape.

All was silent, even the night creatures of the desert seemed to be staying within their burrows instead of venturing forth into the unnatural stillness.

Sound-West of the Sand village a single dune seemed to sink into the ground before the hollow that it formed slowly started to move, at first shifting erratically and then becoming a whirlpool of churning earth, and then finally it appeared to be boiling as bubbles of sand rose to the surface and exploded with a soft hiss and spray of granules that scattered in all directions.

The moon bore silent witness to the form that slowly emerged from the churning depths, like a stone statue being unearthed it rose up until it was completely removed from the hole in which it had emerged and then like a shell breaking its surface began cracking and flaking away until all that was left was the figure of a red haired young man standing with his head bowed as the last of his sand armor fell to the ground with a nearly silent hiss.

Slowly the ground around his feet solidified and returned to the still desert floor it had been before his appearance.

“How the nearly full moon makes my blood sing.” His voice rasped out in the silence as he slowly straightened and looked up at the sky over head.

In shadows caused by the moon light his eyes glowed golden instead of their usual aquamarine color. If anyone had witnessed this sight they very well might have dismissed the sight as a trick of the eye but in fact the being standing in the desert was not the man known as Sabaku no Gaara or rather it was not him in control of his body.

Shukaku had awoke first, his power regenerating long before that of his host and the demon knew that the human body needed nourishment to heal properly and so he emerged from their den, intent on finding food and water, even he couldn’t keep his hosts body going on just chakra alone for an extended length of time.

After allowing a few moments to breathe deeply of the cool night air and gazing at the large moon hanging in the clear sky the Tanuki focused on his surroundings.

He knew that if he returned to the village in this state that Gaara would be very unhappy with him when he woke up and besides, they had possibly found a clue to finding his hosts sister and so the demon turned south and summoned a wave of sand which he rode to the edge of the Wind countries desert.

Once out of the desert and inside the forest he dispelled the sand he rode on and sniffed the air for prey. His host was still sound asleep and wouldn’t be retaking control any time soon. The demon grinned, his white teeth flashing in the moonlight; he had a craving for blood and had every intention on fulfilling that need.

* * * * * * *

And so there we have chapter nineteen, the end of the day in the story and an appearance from Gaara as well as update on the messenger.

I hope everyone enjoyed it, I am going to try to work on my other two stories for a bit so I’m not sure how long it will be before the next chapter is up on this one I am insanely busy right now.

Legilmyth

P.S. CHECK OUT THE NARUTO FANFICTION AWARDS ON NARUTOFIC (DOT) ORG TO CHECK OUT HOW THIS STORY AND OTHERS ARE DOING IN THE POLES.