Not you, too!

36a: The answers to the cliffhanger – What is going on with the baby?

“Oh, no. This is bad, Naruto. Sasuke, we have a little problem.” She said as she turned to the worried looking Uchiha.
“What is it?” Sasuke said turning to the screen and glaring it to death.
“There is another baby. It looks like it is only a month along. Apparently both times have been successful. But when the first delivers, it may bring the second one on prematurely. It is very dangerous for a child to be born that soon.” Tsunade explained. “We may have to take the second child, so that it will not take nourishment from the older one.” she said, and the Uchiha jumped away as if slapped.
“NO!” he said.
“Sasuke, this is very dangerous. I really think we should consider it. You can have other children, especially with the Jutsu and think about this child. You want it to be healthy, don’t you?” she explained.
Naruto listened to the two as he watched the moving display and noted the tiny baby was moving quickly and shifting around.
“Hey! You two are making my baby upset. Just quit it. Look at that.” He said pointing to the screen.
“It is almost like it is aware of what we are saying. You are not taking that child. It is my decision, Hokage-sama. I will do what I have to, but that baby stays right where it is.” Sasuke insisted.
Tsunade growled at the young mother-to-be, but said no more.

The walk home was quiet and Naruto knew that once they reached the house, Sasuke would want to know some things. He took hold of her arm and pulled her into a door.
“What are you doing, Naruto?” she said, barely keeping her footing.
The door was to a small café and when they had found a table and the waitress had brought them water and taken their order, Naruto spoke.
“You want to ask me something. I thought we should get it over with before we go home. So ask,” he said.
“Okay. How? How did I keep the baby if you dispelled the jutsu? How did I end up with another by reactivating it?” Sasuke said, running a painted fingernail around the lip of the water glass.
“I didn’t dispel the Jutsu. Not really. Kyuubi thought that it was too soon for Tsunade to detect the baby and so suggested a way to dispel the main effect but keep the actual womb intact. That is what I did. Now, when you reactivated it and were so insistent on trying again so often, well . . . . your body didn’t understand. And that is that.”
“I see. So, we had the first and then I only became male, outwardly?” Naruto nodded.
The reason that Sasuke was considered a genius is because he had a quick grasp of details.
“What about Itachi??” he asked. Naruto looked away and the Uchiha narrowed his eyes. “Naruto,” he said, “what did you do?”
“Itachi is just as you were, until you reactivated the Jutsu. He won’t be in any danger.” He admitted.
“Unless?” Sasuke goaded.
“Unless he decides to do my jutsu again. But really, do you think your brother wants to be a girl?”
“What will happen if he does?” Sasuke asked.
“His body is going to follow the cycles of the female only within the womb. If he does the jutsu, he will be affected by whatever phase of those cycles his body is in at the time.”
“You mean he could suddenly find himself . . . . . ?” the thought was too terrible to voice. “Come on, we have to go tell him.” Sasuke said, rising from the seat and heading for the door. Naruto followed slowly, wondering if his brother-in-law was going to kill him, now.


The ANBU captain found herself with a big problem.
She stood in the office of the Hokage and waited for the woman to respond to her announcement.
Tsunade glared at her as she leaned her chin on her laced fingers. It was not like she could deny such a request, but this girl was one of her most trusted operatives.
“I will contact the Kazekage. I think our alliance is about to become very intimate. Go pack, you will be gone for a very long time I think.” The Hokage said, waving the girl away.
Uzuki Yuugao smiled at the woman as she turned for the door. Beyond that Kankurou waited and she was never so happy to be the bearer of news.
“Well?” he asked.
“She said, I can go. Now, what will your brother say?” Yuugao asked.
“He will say, it’s about time, Aniki. Don’t worry about Gaara. Let’s get your stuff and get going. I want you home with me and in my bed by three days from now. I love you, you know?” he asked.
The purple haired ex-ANBU wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him close.
“Of course you do. And you better never forget it. I love you, my puppet man.”
“I am so glad that the Hokage sent you to collect that missing nin from our village. I think we should name our first child after her.” He said as they headed down the halls.
As they passed, a man stared out of an office and watched them go.
He shook his head and returned to his desk to finish his day’s work, before going home, alone again.


:::The birth of a child, three months before it is due, is very dangerous. My third daughter was originally a twin and when I lost the other baby at three months, I nearly lost them both. She was born at twenty-six weeks and was only 2lbs. 7ozs. I spent three very scary months waiting for her to come home from the hospital. I hope that they don’t have to go through that.


36b: Of Puppies and Swarms – Shino and Hana

The tiny insects swarmed around, buzzing loudly and moving in erratic ways. Their movements seemed to indicate distress and the sound grew in intensity as a small puppy came closer.
The little gray dog stopped, sat and raised it’s head in the air, howling piteously. The swarm quieted and gathered close once more, shifting in an up and down motion that looked nearly like a nod, if the gathering of tiny bodies had been connected in one.
The puppy began to move again and when it got close enough it jumped up into the small crib and curled up next to the sleeping child in it.
The swarm separated into two before settling closer and slowly disappearing into the tiny child’s sleeper.
The room was now silent.

One room away, Hana rolled over and into the warm space on the bed.
Shino felt her shift and pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her.
“Mmm,” she purred into his neck as the scent of him filled her nose.
Shino smiled as his arms held her close to him, her fingers traced his ribs and her eyelashes fluttered against his cheek, tickling him.
She shifted her head and he felt the soft touch of her lips against his cheek.
“Tell me how much you love me,” she whispered across his ear.
Shino’s eyes rolled closed as he breathed out slowly.
“You are my life. You are the only one that I will ever love, and I love you more than my own life. I would give up everything for you.” He said, the words coming on their own as he felt her body shift along his exposed skin.
“Mmm, that’s why I had to be with you. So you would never give life up. I want you to be alive for a good long time, My Shino. A very long time.” And her hands moved again, pulling him close as she held him tightly.
“And how long will I live if you squeeze me so tight that I can’t breathe?” he asked and she laughed as she loosened her grip slightly.
“At least you could die happy. In my arms. So, tell me. What does my little freeloading informant have to say this morning?” she asked as she looked up into his eyes and smiled wickedly.
“Freeloading? Now that is harsh. You know that I leave a little spy on many of my friends to keep track of them. That is the Aburame way. But, if you must know, I have been informed that you are well and healthy. In fact . . . . .” he began as the tiny bug began his daily report.
“What?” Hana said sitting up slightly. “What did it say?”
“Well, remember that insects have different priorities than we do. This one seems to think that mine are to propagate. It tells me that should we wish to begin a new child you are in the perfect stage of your cycle.”
“I am. And what are your feelings, My Shino? Do you want another child so soon after Shippo was born. Was it fun to watch me moving about in that ungainly way, wearing mismatched sandals and clothes that fit horribly? Do you want to see me that way again?” she teased, as his mind replayed the time of their child’s gestation.
“You? Ungainly? Hardly. You were still the picture of grace to the very last day, and no one could claim otherwise. You never gained a great deal and I don’t recall your sandals ever being mismatched. You were stunning and beautiful. And our son is the most perfect child I have ever seen. I would go through whatever it took to see a replication of those events. But, I leave that decision to you, My Love. It is you who would have to go through the pain and discomfort.” He said watching to see if her face showed her thoughts.
Hana looked deeply into the eyes that she alone was allowed free access. Shino would never lie to her and she could see the desire in those orbs. Her smile grew slowly and she saw it reflected in his. They both knew. They both agreed and when he pulled her close, there was no hesitation in his hand or lips.
They would not back out of something they both wanted, so much.

:::This and the ninth chapter in As The Leaf Turns came about from a particularly bad day at work. My pain, your gain??? I write during lunch to take my mind off how stupid some people are and how poorly my workplace is run.
So, when it is a victim of an especially bad job of management, I tend to go off the deep end and I needed a new set of victims. Sorry that this strayed so far from the point of the fic.
I think that my original forty chapters is going to be far exceeded if I keep adding things, like the whole Gai/Itachi issue, and now random POV’s from other pairings. Sorry.

Next chapter is In the Soup – A Gai/Itachi story
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