Naruto knows that it's better for Sasuke and Sakura that he leaves. He knows that their happiness is most important thing and that the only way to grant that to them is to leave and let them marry and not interfere, so a very pregnant-with-Uchiha's-baby Naruto (I'm extremely surprised I'm doign an M-preg, cause I hate them, but w/e haha) escapes the village to a house in the mountains miles and miles away from Konoha. This is what happens!

Hey guys. Just trying out a new writing technique with a little idea I've been thinking about for months. :) Lol, it's pretty rushed and kinda sucky but just up for experimental reasons. ; Feedback is alllllllways appreciated and answered, so tellll me what you think!!

Disclaimer: I ain't got jackk. I wish I did, but I don't and I prolly won't ever, lol.

Warnings: Some bad language, not as bad as my other stories (no F-bomb! haha), but it's there. And yaoi, that means the boys like the penis. Get over it. Cause I warned you. :)

I hope you guys enjoy it!

--

"Tsunade, I have to leave. There's no other option." Naruto stated, facial expression bland and controlled, voice tight, as Tsunade sat in front of him, pleading with him.

"Naruto, that's crazy. You can't just leave the village for their benefit! What about yourself? You deserve to be happy, too, damnit!" It was obvious that she was frustrated and that she'd been pitching her side of the argument for a while now, getting desperate at his never-wavering opinion.

"Listen, Tsunade, they are more important than I could ever be. All I want is their happiness. It's better off for not only them, but for the village in its entirety. Everyone will feel much more safe and at ease with the town demon gone. It's better all around." Naruto's face never left it's placid state, not letting a hint of emotion seep through to his voice.

"Naruto, do you not realize how angry he'll be when he finds out? That you're carrying his child!? I can't believe you would leave anyway. You know damn well he'd take you as you are." Tsunade tried futiley to make him see the logic that he was being blind to.

"Sasuke would be innevitably miserable with me as a partner, Tsunade. The village would never let him live down the shame if they knew who he was with. He would merely be with me in guilt, besides, if he were to stay with me at all. And I wouldn't blame him a lick if he didn't. The whole relationship was a mere stress reliever for Sasuke. He's marrying Sakura tomorrow, Baa-chan. I couldn't crush him, or Sakura for that matter, with this news. Not so close to the wedding." Naruto's calm demeanor was eerie to Tsunade and a shiver was sent down her back.

"Naruto.. please," she begged as she became more and more desperate," You can't do this. You simply can't! Just tell Sasuke you're carrying his son, tell him today, now, and he would call everything off and be with you. And not out of guilt. You know this, Naruto. Please, you idiot, don't do this!"

Naruto merely shook his head and rose from his seat.

"I can't do that, Tsunade. I've already made up my mind. I won't be informing you on where I'll be and I doubt I'll be seeing you again, so I do hope you find your own happiness in this life. Goodbye, Baa-chan." Naruto's voice was brisk as he strided to the door and through it, leaving a stunned Tsunade in his wake.

Impossible, she thought as she stared at the spot he'd been in. The brat's.. gone..

Tsunade's face was grim as she slowly eased herself down in her chair. She didn't doubt that she would, in fact, see Naruto again in her lifetime but she doubted it would be any time soon. Not in the next five years, she guessed, at the earliest.

She sighed and reached under her desk to pull out a bottle of brandy. As she poured herself a shot, she wondered how in the hell she would tell the Uchiha, and how it would not break his heart.

--

"He what!?" An angry Sasuke, dazzling in a tuxedo and slicked back, onyx hair, stood in Tsunade's office the next morning, an hour before the scheduled wedding.

"He left. He said goodbye, wished you happiness, and took his leave. He said he wouldn't be informing us where he would go and that he wouldn't see us again in this life, so that we all should go about things like normal and to forget he ever existed." Tsunade let out a sigh after explaining Naruto's earliest words to Sasuke. The first words he'd said as he walked into her office the prior evening.

Sasuke scoffed, infuriated, at the words.

"It is not possible that Naruto Uzumaki would leave this village. That's my job, not his. There's no way he would leave us without telling us where he was going. Why is he gone, Tsunade, and where?" Sasuke demanded, slamming a fist down on her desk. Tsunade frowned in response, but replied.

"Listen, Uchiha, I have no clue where he went, but I do know why and I also know that I was forbidden to tell you."

"On whose grounds?"

"On Naruto's grounds." Her voice was stern and Sasuke hesitated before continuing the interrogation.

"Listen, hag, this is unacceptable. He's not just going to sneak off like that and not expect me to follow him. There's no way. Now. Why. Did. He. Leave." Sasuke ground the question out through gritted teeth, trying to keep a hold on his boiling anger.

Tsunade shook her head and looked down. When she started talking again, her words were softer.

"I can't tell you, Sasuke. I myself told him that it was in best interest if you knew, but he thought otherwise. It's his business and his alone if you know, and I'm just not at liberty to say. I'm sorry, Sasuke." She shook her head again and her eyes shifted to the window, a now cloudy look in her eyes.

"He's.. he's really gone then.." Sasuke's voice was almost choked as he forced out these words. A mere nod was his response, in his general direction.

"Fine. I'm left with no other choice. I'm going to find him and I'm going to get the truth straight from his lips." His mind was made up, that much was obvious, and Tsunade sighed at his foolish determination.

"Sasuke, it's your wedding day. And even if you were to go searching for him, do you know how hard he'd have made it? You know Naruto and his resilience." Tsunade reminded him, trying not to let him do anything hasty.

"Sakura. Can. Wait. Besides, I can't very well have a wedding without a best man, can I? I'm going to find him, Tsunade, and you can't stop me. Nothing will. He searched and searched for me, though it was hard, and he brought me back. The very least I can do is return the favor." Sasuke informed her of his intentions before standing abruptly, sending his chair lurching backwards, and stalking off.

Once again, Tsunade refused to call after the teenage boy walking away from her office. It was useless, she knew that more than anything. Let them have their way. She could only hope things would turn out right.

-- Ten months later --

Naruto trotted up to a large house's door cradling a bundle of what appeared to be blanket. He stomped his feet, shaking off the snow, before entering the warm shelter. Upon entrance, he hung up his coat, scarf and boggin on the rack by the door before kicking off his shoes, minding the bundle in his arms all the while.

As the bundle he cradled shifted quietly, his actions stilled. He murmered quick, soothing words to calm the child in his arms and once he was quiet in his arms, he continued his movements, walking the baby back to the bedroom and laying the child in his cradle a few feet from his own bed.

"Sleep well, Naziko," he whispered, closing the door silently behind him and picking up the monitor that sat on the floor outside the bedroom door.

Naruto moved on agile feet to the kitchen, running water into a kettle to prepare some tea. Placing it on the stove, he stretched and moved once again to another room.

He was on the couch in the living room, quite near the blazing fire, to relax his muscles in seconds. The slight crackle of the flames licking the wood and the calm breathing of his baby boy reaching his ears from the monitor on the coffee table in front of him was slowly lulling him to sleep.

He lay there, dozing, for about twenty minutes before jolting into awareness.

Shooting up into a sitting position, Naruto looked around wildly before stopping. He listened quietly for the noise that had urged him awake. It didn't sound again. Everything was as it should be, in its rightful position, as it had been before he'd drifted off. He listened for another long moment before the noise sounded again.

It took him a minute to realize what it was, but soon something clicked in his mind and he recognized the rapping as knocking at his door. He let out a small "oh" of surprise before hopping to his feet and moving swiftly to his front door.

It had been months since any travelers had come by asking him to lend some generosity. He was always quick to welcome someone in, to feed them and bathe them and send them off rejuvenated for their jorneys.

His hand hesitated over the door knob for a moment before the rapping started again and he moved to open the door, quickly this time.

The sight that met his eyes was a shocking one.

There in his doorway after a long ten months, stood Sasuke Uchiha with a very tense expression on his face. For a long moment, Naruto stood completely still in wonder. He wasn't sure if this was real or if he'd somehow dreamed it up, as he often did in his loneliness. Eventually, Naruto gathered his bearings and was able to speak.

"Um.. Sasuke?" His words were timid and unsure, reflecting his apprehensive thoughts.

In return to his murmered words, the Uchiha let out a sigh of relief.

"Found ya, Dob'," he slurred, small smile in place and eyes already lidding. Without warning, Sasuke fell forward, welcoming darkness, where he was caught in Naruto's strong arms.

--

When Sasuke woke up, the first thing he realized was that he had no clue where the hell he was. He moved to sit up but quickly laid back down upon discovering the dizziness that overwhelmed him.

Giving it another try, he moved to sit in a slower fashion, this time keeping the rush at bay.

He looked around him in bewilderment at the warm reds and browns of the room, at the roaring fire in the fire place feet away, the low lighting, the thick quilt placed over his no longer freezing body. He tried to gather his thoughts but they wouldn't quite cooperate.

All right, Sasuke, think. What was the last thing you remeber?

But that didn't help either, because all he could remember was trekking up the mountain and coming across the house and knocking, knowing he needed to get out of the cold before the hypothermia caught. He remembered that it took forever for an answer at the door and he was starting to doubt that there would even be an answer.. when.. Naruto..

"Naruto?" Sasuke asked aloud, still looking around.

Upon hearing his name, he entered the warm room with a look of deep concern on his face.

"Oh, Sasuke, you're awake. How are you feeling? Here, have some tea. We need to keep you nice and warm. What were you doing out there in this cold on this dumb mountain anyway?" Azure eyes shone with worry as he ranted, rather mother henish. It reminded Sasuke of Iruka momentarily.

Sasuke, still confused, answered with a non-intelligible, "Huh?" Naruto looked up at him, in the midst of pouring his tea, and smiled a small smile.

"How are you feeling?" Naruto asked a bit slower, giving him time to let it register. Sasuke would've scowled at the almost mocking gesture, but let it slide at seeing the caring expression on his missing friend's face and being handed a cup of warm tea.

"I'm.. fine. But a better question would be, where the hell do you think you've been?" Sasuke set the cup down gently on the table before meeting Naruto's eyes once more. A frown now kept the young boy's lips occupied.

"I'm here for the good of everyone. You, however, shouldn't be here. You should be in Konoha, married to Sakura, forgetting I existed." Naruto's frown deepened.

"Dobe, that's crazy talk. You know damn well I can't do that. Now get your stuff because, now that I've found you, I'm taking you back to Konoha," Sasuke stated in a no questions tone. Naruto sighed.

"I'm sorry, but I can't do that Sasuke. Now, I can let you stay here until you're well enough to travel again but then you'll have to leave. And I'll have to relocate, damnit, and you'll have to forget about me." Naruto's face was almost a scowl now.

"Now listen here, dumbass, I didn't travel thousands of miles in the past ten months searching endlessly for you in rain and sleet and snow and shit to just turn back because you said I have to." Sasuke's stubborness burned in his eyes and Naruto saw that there would be a problem.

"Sasuke, I can't go back. Trust me, it is better this way. The villagers are happy that the demon is gone, the gang doesn't have to be bothered and annoyed by me any longer, you don't have to put up with me or pretend to like my anymore, and Sakura can finally have you. It's perfect for everyone, see?" Naruto's voice was still quiet and mislead, frustrating Sasuke to no ends.

"Naruto, you're wrong," he stated, shaking his head, "It's not right, for anybody. No one is bothered or annoyed by you, the villagers are afraid because you aren't there to protect them anymore, and I'm definitely not pretending to like you. That's.. not how things are at all. Is that why you left? Because you thought all that?" Sasuke's confusion seeped through his voice.

"That's not all of it, but a lot of it. The reasons I have are good ones, Sasuke. Now, if you're rested enough, I'd like it if you'd kindly-" But Naruto was cut off.

"I'm not leaving without you!" Sasuke shouted, stopping Naruto's words in their tracks.

"Shh!" Naruto shot up, trying to silence Sasuke's shouts but it was too late. A faint crying sound was heard from the back of the house and Naruto sighed in misery. The cat was out of the bag.

"Thanks a hell of a lot. You woke him up." Naruto sighed angrily and stomped off to the back of the house, leaving Sasuke sitting on the couch.

Woke.. who up? Sasuke wondered to himself as he waited for Naruto to return. When he did, his breath caught in his throat.

Naruto reentered the living room moments later, holding another tiny being to his body, bouncing him and soothing him to quiet his cries.

"Shh, it's okay baby. Nothing's wrong darling. I'm sorry the mean man woke you up from your nap. Shh." Naruto kissed the child's head and rocked him a few more minutes before he fell back into a deep slumber. Naruto smiled quickly before sitting in the chair across from the chair so he could hold his son easier.

When he looked up, he could see the bewildered expression on his ex-team mate's face.

"W-who is that?" Sasuke fumbled the words and his eyes widened.

"This.. is Naziko.." Naruto trailed off.

"He's.. yours?" Sasuke stalled. Naruto only nodded.

"And he's why you left?" Sasuke was beginning to see a clearer picture. If only he knew the half of it. Naruto nodded once more, afraid to take his eyes off his baby's face.

"Well.. well you can come back then, right? I don't know why you would leave just because you had a child. I mean, whoever's it is will deal with it when we get there. They won't neglect their responsibilities as a parent. I'm totally here for you on this, Naruto. Why would you leave?" Sasuke's voice softened with his last two sentences.

Naruto shook his head and sighed.

"You don't.. you don't understand Sasuke. The father.. he would be humiliated if I came back to town and made him claim this child as his. The whole village would accuse him of having a 'demon' child. He'd die in shame. I'd rather not push that on the father. Naziko and I are perfectly fine here. We're making it all right. I can't leave."

"Naruto, you must be insane." Sasuke's voice was hard. "No one in their right mind would ever be ashamed of having you or that beautiful child to themselves. If anything, everyone else would be jealous." His words were convincing but Naruto shook his head. His next words were laced in a desperate tone.

"You still don't understand, Sasuke. I can't. The father.. he's supposed to get married and have kids with that woman and not have to put up with a demon best friend to release his stress through on the weekends and a child he'd never want. Don't you get it?"

A tear leaked out of Naruto's eye and slowly slid to his chin. Sasuke wanted nothing more than to reach forward and wipe it away but he stayed stuck on his friend/lover's words.

"So.. it's Kiba's baby? He doesn't want it?" Sasuke was truly confused and a twinge jealous. When did that happen?

"No, bastard. It's not Kiba's baby. I said my best friend, didn't I?" Naruto's voice was almost angry.

"That's not your best friend?" Sasuke was still lost.

"No, idiot, you are." Naruto huffed, face filling with regret when the words slipped out.

Sasuke froze, his face suddenly rigid.

"That's.. that's my.." But he couldn't finish the sentence. Naruto nodded a morbid nod.

There was a long silence, in which Naruto stared at the ground and Sasuke stared nonbelieving at his love and son.

The next time Naruto looked up to meet Sasuke's eyes, a huge smile was spread across Sasuke's face.

"I'm a father.. Naruto, I have a son!" His exclaim was as loud and gleeful as it could be without waking the child in Naruto's hands.

"Sasuke, you don't have to pretend to be excited. I didn't want you to find out. I knew you'd stay with me in guilt of getting me pregnant if you knew I had conceived a child, so I didn't want to hold you back. You can leave, you don't have to fake anything. I know how you truly feel."

"What.. dobe, what are you talking about?"

"I know that you don't like me. Not really. Not anymore than friends. I understand. It's impossible for you to. Our relationship was just a stress reliever for you, I can grasp that. Just to shake the steam off after a mission. You don't have to get my hopes up or pretend for my benefit. I guess you could consider it a get out of jail free card. You're welcome to leave."

Naruto made to stand up and walk to his bedroom, giving Sasuke the privacy he'd need before leaving, but Sasuke was there in front of him to cut him off.

"Naruto.." Sasuke's face was serene as he looked down at him, his eyes caring as he studied his child.

"Sasuke, I just said--"

"I heard you, Naruto. But.. well, simply put, you're all wrong. You were never a 'stress reliever'. You were the only thing that got me through the day, any day. I'm not pretending or trying to get your hopes up. I wouldn't sleep with someone I didn't love and trust, Naruto. I don't want to leave you, ever. I always want to be with you. I definitely don't want to be with Sakura. That was all a show because I thought you didn't want to be in the relationship anymore. You were acting so cold.. But Naruto, we have a child. We have a son. How could I ever leave you?" Sasuke's eyes were bright and loving as he explained to him how he truly felt. Naruto bit his lip.

"That's exactly what I was afraid of," he whispered, looking down. Sasuke frowned. He reached a hand forward, lifting Naruto's chin to look at him.

"Naruto, dobe, we were together for a year. We spent every day together, every minute. When did I ever make you think it was just to relieve stress?" he wondered aloud, trying to see what would make Naruto think the way he was currently thinking.

"It just.. it never made any sense why you would want to be with me. Look at you. You're perfect. You're great at everything, never failed at anything, ever. You're gorgeous and strong and corageous and.. what am I? Nothing but an idiot, a nuisance, annoying and always wrong, always dumb, always failing. Nothing but a demon, a burden to everyone in my path.." Naruto spoke quietly, voice filled with sadness. Sasuke could see in his eyes that he believed every word he spoke.

"Naruto.. baby, no.. You're not right at all," Sasuke sounded apalled as he continued,"You're the perfect one. Don't you see that? I've never had someone make my life so wonderful. Every minute I've ever been with you, you've made me happy. You're beautiful and carefree, lighthearted, generous.. And there's no way I'm the brave one. You were the one that laughed in the face of all the dangers we've ever taken on, never giving up on your goal, and bringing me back. You fight through everything with a smile on your face and no matter how much you're hurt, you laugh it off. You carry everything on your back and.. you amaze me. And, on top of it all, you have given me a beautiful baby boy. It wouldn't make sense to not want to be with you." Sasuke's words were so sincere that there was no room anywhere in Naruto's mind to doubt them. Sasuke placed a hand lightly on his son's head, smiling down at him.

"Sasuke.." Naruto whispered.

Sasuke looked up and smiled a beautiful smile.

"I love you, Naruto." Sasuke's voice was barely heard, but when it set in, those four words brought tears to Naruto's eyes.

Sasuke leaned down to press his lips gently to Naruto's, watching as he gave in and his eyes closed. Sasuke wrapped one arm around Naruto, pulling him closer, and another swooped under Naziko to keep him secure in their arms.

It was ecstasy to the two lovers who had gone so long without each other's touch. As Sasuke's mouth moved against his, Naruto let out a small moan. It was music to Sasuke's ears, a melody he hadn't heard in a very long time, and he smiled against the other's lips.

When they pulled apart, reluctantly so, both parties' breathing was labored. In an airy voice, Naruto murmered words he'd been thinking for over a year, dying to say for that long.

"Sasuke.. I love you." A tear slid down his cheek and Sasuke kissed it. He then nodded and pulled Naruto and his son against him, Naruto burying his face in the crook of Sasuke's neck.

Looking down at the head of golden hair, Sasuke could feel his own tears pushing against the back of his eyes but he quickly shook them off. He was so happy, he wanted to.. cry? It had been a very long time since he'd been happy enough to feel anything at all. About ten months actually. He laid his head down on the one pressed against him and heaved a relieved sigh. He had found his dobe, finally. He had found everything he'd ever needed.

"Naruto?" Sasuke's words were very quiet and barely heard.

"Hm?" Naruto returned.

"What's his name? His full name?" Sasuke asked out of curiosity. When Naruto looked up, he smiled.

"Naziko Sasuke Uchiha." Naruto's eyes glittered in the half-lit hallway.

"You.. named him after me?" Sasuke asked, voicing his thoughts.

"Of course. So I'd have at least something to remember you by as your lived your life." Naruto looked down, ashamed that he'd left and needed that closure.

"Naruto.. you'll have something much better than a name. You'll have me. Well.. if you'll take me." Sasuke smiled sheepishly, letting Naruto choose.

Naruto smiled and reached one finger up to tap his nose.

"There's nothing I want more in this entire world than to spend the rest of my life with you." Naruto said, emotions raw in his eyes.

"Good. I can definitely give you forever."

"That's all I need."

And Sasuke leaned in to give two more kisses.. to the forehead of his beautiful baby boy, and the lips of beautiful boy who gave him the beautiful baby. He'd never known love like that. At that moment, he wasn't worried about technicalities. They'd work themselves out. Right now, all he was worried about was leading his lover down the hall to put their son down and move to their own bed.

As they cuddled under the covers, Naruto curled into Sasuke, Sasuke's arm wrapped tightly around him, all three gave sighs. Everything was right. Finally.

Sasuke gave the back of Naruto's neck a light kiss before falling asleep. He'd never been so warm. Inside and out.

-- The end! --

Well guys, that's all I got. I don't really know how that came out, it probably could've been better, but tell me what you thought anyway. Go criticism! Haha, anyway, hope you enjoy it. Check out my other stories. I love all of y'all! :)

Love Always! ;)

Maci