A/N: Hiya there! Mah, I'm so sorry that this update is a little late, but I was banned from computer almost all Christmas. (pouts) BUT, now I'm finally back! (grins)

Heh, first things first, of course. MAN, thank you so much for all those absolutely fantastic reviews – once again there were more of those than for the last chapter! THANK YOU! You seriously know how to keep an author going. (beams, and GLOMPS)

Awkay, because I've already kept you waiting, let's go! I REALLY hope this'll be a good ride. (gulps nervously)

TRACK 6 – The One Where It Got a Little Out of Control

At first Naruto simply stared at the sight unfolding before his very eyes – the surreal image of Sasuke holding a tiny child, her son. And suddenly it took the best of him; it was like a part of his brain had shut down. That's why he spun around and dashed out.

Sakura and Kiba both stared at him with wide eyes. "What?!" the brunet exclaimed in the end.

He winced at the loud voice, and glanced around nervously. Everyone in the café was staring at them. "Shut up, okay? I don't want the whole world to know!"

Kiba blinked thrice, clearly fighting to understand. "So… Sasuke's a girl?"

He nodded numbly, and shivered. That thought felt surreal to him, too.

"And… She's got a kid?" Sakura all but piped out.

He nodded again, feeling as messed up as he had several hours earlier. He was still far more worked up by this than he should've been, he discovered. So the world still wasn't making any sense.

"Uh-huh…", Kiba muttered, pretty much summing up what they were all thinking about.

Silence lingered for a very long moment as they all tried to absorb this new information. In the end Sakura recovered the fastest and looked at him. "What are you going to do?"

He shook his head, feeling extremely old and tired all of a sudden. "Honestly? I don't have a clue. I'm still waiting for someone to show up and tell me that this is some sort of a joke." He then winced. "Don't tell anyone about this, okay? Sasuke would hang me by my balls if you did." Just then he noticed that a customer was looking at him expectantly. He glanced towards his friends. "I'll talk to you later." With that he walked away.

-

Watching Naruto walk away, Kiba spoke. "So… You knew Sasuke was a girl?"

"Yeah, I kind of figured it out when seeing her in the girl's bathroom." The pinkette took a deep breath. "I just hope that Naruto won't screw this one up – I don't think either one of them could take it."

Silence fell upon them, apart from Kiba's loud chewing as the boy started eating a large muffin.

One Week Later

It was a slow process, but in the end Naruto found himself getting over the first shock. The hardest part, however, turned out to be getting to Sasuke for a proper talk – the Uchiha could be a pain to catch when h… eh, she – as he corrected himself – wanted to be. It seemed that he'd screwed up pretty royally when running away, and he wondered if he'd ever get a chance to fix this one.

That day, however, he got a tiny miracle.

He was just walking towards a classroom deep in thought when he heard someone singing.

He frowned, realizing that he'd never heard another voice like this before.

Curiosity taking the best of him once again, he walked up to the door and sneaked into the classroom to get a better look. What he found made him blink several times.

In the room was none other than Sasuke, who was singing softly, focused completely on the melody and the paper that lay on the desk before the raven. The Uchiha's eyes were more alive than anything he'd ever seen before. And he couldn't help breaking into a smile.

He was hesitant to interfere at first – after all, even he understood that this was something very private – but in the end he couldn't control himself. The music was softer than usual as he took his guitar and started to play. Sasuke shuddered when hearing the music, but didn't stop singing. Apparently this new tide had already taken a firm hold of them both.

It was very different from when they'd played together – this joined music held something much more private and intimate, because he was most likely the first person ever hearing Sasuke sing. Somehow this was also much better.

Sasuke's smooth, low voice blended well with their music, as though it'd been the one piece the song had been missing. Once again the rest of the world disappeared as they created one of their own, shifted into their private reality.

And then, in just a breath, it was over. He blinked twice when opening the eyes he hadn't realized closing.

Sasuke gave him a strange look. "What are you looking at?"

His mouth opened unintelligently for a couple of time before he managed to squeeze out at least a tiny hint of a voice. "I… didn't know you can sing."

Sasuke shrugged and started putting away the papers on the desk. "I don't do singing. No one was supposed to hear me."

He shrugged. "Well, you know me. I always stick my nose into stuff like this."

This almost coaxed a smile out of Sasuke – he could sense it so clearly that it made him feel warm all over.

And just then, of course, an interruption had to appear. Schoolbell rang, and other students appeared into the room. He barely noticed them.

Because for the first time he wanted to learn to know Sasuke better. And he didn't have a clue why or how.

Six Days Later

Being called to the principal's office wasn't a new experience for Naruto. That's why he was more bored and irritated than anything else as he sat waiting outside Tsunade's door.

He woke up from his thoughts when hearing steps, and turned his gaze. He blinked twice when finding Sasuke. "What are you doing here?" he blurted out.

Sasuke's expression was gloomy as the raven slumped to the chair beside his. "What the heck do you think? Tsunade called me over." The Uchiha's eyes narrowed a little. "Now shut up, will you? I've got a headache."

It was around then he realized how tired Sasuke looked; the raven was even paler than usual, and there were dark circles around both of the teen's eyes. It looked like the other hadn't slept in a decade.

He frowned, observing the raven with his gaze. "Are you okay?"

Sasuke made a rather irritated sound, but for once the emotion wasn't directed towards him. "Yuki's got a damn stomach flue. I was up most of the night."

He didn't know why those words made him feel… weird all over. "Oh." Then, feeling that he needed to say more, he added. "I hope he gets better soon."

Sasuke's tired eyes softened just a little bit. "Hn."

All of a sudden he felt this strange, almost uncontrollable urge to take Sasuke's hand, even if for just a moment. The feeling was so unexpected that he shuddered a little.

He had no control over his own reactions anymore. And it irritated him beyond all belief.

"Ah, you two are both here. Good." Tsunade's voice startled him so that he jumped. The woman motioned them to come to her office. "Come in, will you? I don't have all day."

Far from happy to do so they obeyed, and sat down to the chairs she'd put there for them like two prisoners preparing for an execution.

Tsunade sat down as well, and let the silence stretch before speaking. "So… I've been thinking about what to do with you two, especially after Asuma told me that you fought again during his class. And I've come to a solution." Her eyes gleamed dangerously. "Naruto, your grades are less than desirable – I'm sure we both know that. And that's why I've decided that as from now, Sasuke will be your tutor."

They both gawked at her for several moments. "What?!" he cried out in the end.

Tsunade gave him a dry look. "You heard me perfectly." She leaned forward, like some animal prepared for an an attack. "Now listen to me. You two will work together. And if there are any – I mean any – complications, I will come up with something much harsher. Understood?"

He felt like a dead man walking as he nodded, got up slowly – not trusting his legs – and walked out of the room.

He never noticed that Sasuke stayed behind, because Tsunade wanted to talk to the Uchiha.

Several Weeks Later

Weeks flashed by, even months changed. And the more time Naruto spent with Sasuke – more or less out of their own free will – the more tiny details he learned.

Sasuke seemed to have this weird fixation towards tomatoes; heck, the Uchiha seemed to be addicted to those things. Animals also appeared to have a special spot in the raven's heart – it shocked him at first to see that the other teen could be so… incredibly kind towards other living beings. It also appeared that Sasuke could speak altogether five foreign languages. This became revealed by all the long, heart-filled and colorful insults the Uchiha hissed at him. He also learned the hard way that Sasuke was not a morning person – forgetting this got him all but beaten up far more times than he cared to count.

But all in all, they were doing much better than he'd dared to expect – he could almost say that they were performing tiny miracles. Because his grades were getting better, little by little. And as for Sasuke's company… He couldn't understand why he enjoyed it so much. He was definitely a mashochist.

That late afternoon was surprisingly quiet and calm as they sat in Jiraiya's café and tried to hammer some math into his thick skull.

At some point Sasuke's face turned something close to disbelieving. "Honestly, you moron…! This isn't that hard!"

He all but glared at the raven. "Meh, maybe not for your super brain!" He shrugged and folded his arms, even lifted his chin a little. "So okay. Maybe I'm not mathematically intelligent."

Sasuke rolled eyes and muttered something he didn't even want to hear or understand.

It was around then he realized that aside teaching him, there was something else Sasuke was focusing on – there was a piece of paper before the raven, and the Uchiha seemed to be scetching something. Leaning forward to catch a glimpse, he blinked. Sasuke was creating a very, very beautiful drawing that represented a hawk.

So Sasuke was a good artist, too?

Seeing what he was doing, Sasuke gave him a loudly speaking look. "What? Yuki likes these."

He blinked twice. "You're… a weird thing."

He could've sworn that almost earned him a smile, although Sasuke rolled eyes once again.

Just then he sensed that they weren't alone anymore. Looking to side, he found himself blushing for some reason when discovering that Jiraiya was watching them with a strange expression.

Also noticing that they had audience, Sasuke quickly gathered together her belongings and all but jumped up. "I've gotta go – I should be working in a few hours, and I want to see Yuki before that."

He frowned, feeling something close to jealous all of a sudden. "It's that job, right?"

Sasuke gave him a threatening look. "Not another word, idiot", the raven all but hissed, then turned rather sharply. "See you tomorrow." With that the Uchiha was gone.

Jiraiya's voice caught him off guard. "You know… For a while you two looked so much like your parents that it gave me chills."

His eyes narrowed a little despite himself, and his fists balled. "Don't talk about them, okay? Please."

"No." Jiraiya's voice was so firm – almost harsh – that he just had to look at the man. The other looked back with eyes he'd never seen before. "I'm done watching you hurt every single time someone mentions your parents. And your father was like a son to me. I don't want to hear you talk about him like that – I think it's time you hear the full story."

He frowned. "What full story?"

Jiraiya took a deep breath and folded his arms. The man refused to meet his gaze. "Your mother died at childbirth, I'm sure you know that much. Damn it, you have no idea how much she would've wanted to see you. And your father… was a police officer. One day, some jackass decided that it was a good idea to rob a grocery story. Your father was sent there. I was also there." The man gulped thickly; whatever was to come was obviously hard to process. "He… got shot. He died into my arms." The man closed his eyes. "Before his death… he only talked about you. He was so very worried about you – his thoughts were with you until his final breath." The man looked at him sternly. "He loved you, with every fibre of his being. So it kills me that you've decided to hate him."

He didn't know what to say – if there even were words for such a situation. And in the end he chose to flee. "I've… gotta go. Shikamaru's birthday party's about to start." With that he speeded away.

As soon as he made it to the street, he all but bumped into Kiba, who'd just been entering. Just a single look at his expression told the brunet enough. "Okay, you're obviously in a need of some distraction." The boy gestured him to follow. "C'mon, the party's about to start already. So let's go."

He took a deep breath. "No offence, but I'd rather go home."

Kiba obviously wasn't taking no for an answer. "Hell no you are going there to mope around. Besides, I heard Shikamaru's got a wicked recipe for punch."

To him, that was enough of encouragement. At the moment alcohol didn't sound like such a bad idea. Besides, Shikamaru lived in a dorm – the parties around there were always wild. If that wouldn't give him the chance to sort out his head, nothing would.

And he was right. As the night went on, Naruto realized that the punch was working its magic. At some point he was so lightheaded that he could barely stand.

And just then he realized that Sai was stood only a small distance away.

Kiba beat him to reacting, alcohol sharpening the brunet's usually bubbling temper. "Who the hell invited you, anyway?"

Most would've been insulted, but Sai's expression didn't change. "I heard this noise all the way to my dorm room." The boy then looked towards him and frowned. "Are you drunk?"

He folded his arms haughtily. "So what if I am?"

Sai seemed to supress a sigh before walking up to him and taking his hand. "Come on, Naruto. I'm taking you home."

He tried to move away with a glare, but instead stumbled, falling forward. Sai obviously misunderstood his gesture, because in a moment the boy leaned for a kiss.

He was confused, there was a mess of emotions inside his head and above all else, he was gloriously drunk. And that's why he was an idiot enough to kiss back, for just a moment.

It took far longer than it should've before his brain caught up with his actions. When that happened, he turned into a statue, his lips forming a very unintelligent 'o' and his eyes widening to the size of dinner plates.

Clearly noticing his lack of response, Sai pulled back and gave him a somewhat confused look. "Naruto? What's wrong?"

Ah, there were many things he wanted to say – should've said. Good and sensible stuff, like 'We're over, remember?', 'I don't want you kissing me' or even 'Get away from me!'. But as it was, no words came out. Instead he found himself throwing up rather loudly.

"Oh, great…!" someone groaned in the background.

With that he took off, as fast as he could in his current condition.

In all, utter honesty Naruto didn't have the slightest clue what happened after that. Because the next thing he at least somewhat realized, was that it was several hours later and he was stood by the backdoor of the Snake's Den. And he was so drunk that he could barely stand.

He must've been standing there for quite some time, because by the time Sasuke emerged he was shivering from cold.

Sasuke gave him a far from impressed look when seeing the condition he was in. "You've gotta be kidding me." The raven's eyes then sharpened. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

He shrugged and laughed. "I have no idea." His tongue felt too thick, and his speech didn't come out right. But at the moment he didn't mind. He stepped – or well, swayed – closer to the other. "I just… I guess my feet took me here. Funny, huh?"

Sasuke didn't look amused. In his current condition he wondered why. "Hilarious." The raven then took a stone-hard, uncompromising hold on him to steady him. "Come on, moron. We've gotta get you away from here before I lose my job, or you freeze to death."

Whether it was because of alcohol or something else entirely, he came to a conclusion that Sasuke's touch felt… very good, actually. The Uchiha was softer than he'd expected. He smiled with drunken bliss, leaning closer. "You're warm."

Sasuke shoved him further with a firm elbow. "And you stink. So back off."

Their journey continued in silence, mostly because he discovered that he had to process each step very carefully. He also swayed, a lot. It looked like gravity itself was against him. And then his balance slipped so badly that he slumped against Sasuke.

He cast a look of accusation towards his legs. "Stupid things."

Sasuke emitted a loud sound of irritation. "You fucking moron…" The raven then sighed, starting to drag him forward. "Do not fall down on me, understood? I'm taking you to my place – it's only a couple of blocks away."

Due to some drunken twist of mind, he found himself pleased by this announcement. "You're taking me home?" he all but chirped in a voice that was not his. "Cool!"

Sasuke seemed far from as excited.

He had absolutely no idea how long they'd been struggling forward until his alcohol invaded head realized that they'd reached one of the city's fanciest blocks, where huge houses towered as though competing which one of them was the biggest. And they were stood before a huge, very expensive looking white house.

He blinked slowly once, twice. "Wow…!"

Sasuke's eyes, if possible, darkened still as the raven pulled him to motion, so roughly that he almost fell. "Enough with the gawking. Let's go inside before any of the neighbors sees you." They walked on for a moment before the Uchiha continued. "Oh yeah, and Naruto? If you wake up Yuki or Madara, you're dead."

He gave a goofy smile. "I'll be as quiet as a mouse. Honest!"

Sasuke growled lightly. "Then shut the fuck up already."

He chose to obey, just this once.

He allowed Sasuke to lead him to the house's backdoor, then watched with drunken fascination how the raven typed in a code to the alarm system. The light on it turned from red to green, and Sasuke opened the door. To his unexpected disappointment it was so dark that he couldn't really see a thing, but Sasuke knew the way almost scarily well. And all of a sudden they stopped before a door the Uchiha pushed open.

As it turned out when the lights were switched on, Sasuke's room… was exactly like he'd expected. Neat and strictly organized, tons of books, pale or dark colors of which the dominant one was blue… Plain and professional. And there enthroning it all was Sasuke's violin.

He found himself grinning like an idiot. "Just like I thought", he declared.

Sasuke made a gruff sound, almost making him fall down when releasing the hold that'd been steadying him upright. "You, go to bed and sober up. I've gotta go and check up on Yuki."

It appeared his body wasn't pleased with that plan, because he soon found himself taking a tight hold of the Uchiha's waistline. He was much too aware of the fact that he could barely stand, but that didn't shudder his determination.

Sasuke's expression wasn't even close to a happy one. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?" the raven snarled lowly.

His hands sneaked downwards, betraying his intentions long before words. "This… is nice", he muttered, knowing that his lips were ghosting only millimetres from Sasuke's. "Touching you… feels nice."

Sasuke's left eyebrow twitched dangerously. "Get off. Right now."

He pouted and frowned. "Why?" Good lord, his voice was so annoying…! And what the hell were his hands doing?!

Sasuke gave him a rather fiery look, forcefully pushing his prying hands away. "For one, idiot, you're gay."

His grin revealed some teeth as he leaned closer. "Maybe I'm not as gay as you think", he pointed out in a very drunken tone.

Sasuke rolled eyes. "I'm not going to do anything with you when you're in that condition."

He shrugged. "You're not sober, either." Even in his current condition, he could identify the stench of alcohol coming from the Uchiha. "So… Doesn't that make us even?" His hands gained a life of their own once more, and he could actually feel how his cheeks flushed for severa lreasons. He leaned, or perhaps swayed, closer, his lips finding the raven's pink-tinged cheek. "And don't even try telling me you don't want this."

He wasn't entirely sure what happened. Because in a flash he wasn't standing anymore – he found himself from Sasuke's bed, with the raven all but sitting on top of him. Their gazes met, fierce and filled with challenge.

His body working before his mind could quite catch on he took a hold of Sasuke's shirt, only to get a look that convinced him to control himself.

If he wanted to play this game, he'd need to follow the lead.

Alcohol clouding his mind, he watched how Sasuke pulled off her shirt, then moved on to his pants. And he felt something inside him spin completely out of control as he gasped when Sasuke's hand brushed something very, very private.

He remembered clearly feeling Sasuke's lips against his, even recalled himself noting that they tasted different from that stupid accidental kiss they'd had. And better than anything he remembered how incredibly warm the Uchiha was against his shivering body – almost like the raven had been on fire. Something spun inside him as the two of them pracitcally melted into each other.

And then it became dark in his memories.

The next time Naruto started to regain consciousness, he groaned loudly as a crushing headache swam in. It felt like someone had been banging his head with a sledgehammer. There was also a taste in his mouth that suggested something had crawled in and died there.

He groaned against his hand, rubbing his face forcefully.

Great… I'm never going to drink again.

It was around then he shifted, and felt a bang he couldn't identify when noticing that the other side of the bed was empty. It wasn't like he would've remembered much about the night before, but it would've been nice to sort things out. Because at the moment he felt like a total, utter moron.

It took a long while before he managed to get out of the bed, and much longer to get dressed. He didn't know how long he'd been wandering around the house until he finally found the kitchen. Making a sound of gratitude, he took himself a glass of water.

And then he noticed that he wasn't alone in the room. For sitting by the table was none other than Madara Uchiha, who was glaring at him.

Oh crap…

He gave a shaky, hangoverish grin. "G'morning", he just managed, then added just in case. "Sir."

Madara gave him a look that was far from impressed. "So you're the one who made all that noise last night", the older man stated dryly.

He could actually feel how his face went all red. Fantastic – the situation just got from uncomfortable to a total disaster. "Eh… Yeah", he muttered, not knowing what else to say. He would've wanted to sit, but didn't dare to when seeing the man's expression.

It took a long, chilling moment before Madara spoke. "Sit."

He had no intention of disobeying, although he was shivering from terror and hangover.

Madara's eyes were pure ice. "My brother was a mess as long as he lived – in the end he got himself, his wife and almost Sasuke as well killed because he was too much of an idiot to realize that he was too drunk to drive. Since then I've been fighting to keep Sasuke from taking that road." The man's eyes narrowed, which made him look even more threatening. "She was already knocked up. I'm not letting a brat like you destroy her life with this childish fooling around, do you understand? I want you to leave Sasuke alone."

He felt like suffocating for some reason, enough so to strike him speechless although he wanted to scream at the top of his voice. His eyes also stung. "Sasuke gets to make up her own mind", he managed to wheeze in the end.

Madara shrugged, appearing extremely irritated. "I'm sure Sasuke agrees with me – go ahead and ask if you don't believe me. She's in Yuki's room. You've got ten minutes."

It was surprisingly easy to find Yyki's room, although his feet weighed a ton. He just had to blink at what he found, because the sight was so unbelievable – even more surreal than seeing Sasuke with those kids in the hospital.

There was a look he'd never seen before on anyone as the raven watched over while Yuki played, with the child sitting as close to the Uchiha as possible. Sometimes Yuki turned to look at Sasuke and emitted demanding sounds – even words – and the raven always knew exactly what the child wanted. Those two were clearly a unit, a rather strange one in their lack of proper words but one nonetheless.

His heart swelled and warmed up at that sight.

And then Sasuke lifted her gaze to meet his eyes. The look was a long and lingering one, almost evaluating. Something darkened in those onyx pools.

He wasn't a total moron – he sensed threat and danger in the air. But he tried to smile nonetheless to ease the tension. "Eh, 'morning."

"I thought you'd already left." Sasuke's tone couldn't be read.

He frowned. What kind of a guy did Sasuke think he was?! "Why would I have done that after last night? We need to talk to talk."

Sasuke's eyes darkened still as the raven got up and walked up to him, folded arms to create a wall between them. "There's nothing to be talked about, Naruto. We made a mistake – it's no big deal, and there's nothing I'm expecting of you. So go."

His frown deepened still as confusion swirled inside him. Keeping his tone quiet so that Yuki wouldn't hear was a hard task. "I'm not some jackass who ditches a girl after sleeping with her! I want to know where we're headed."

"We're not 'going' anywhere. I don't have room for you in my life, do you understand?" the raven hissed, something he'd never seen before building up in those onyx pools. "And you're fifteen, for crying out loud! Do honestly want to take something like this to your shoulders?!"

He arched and eyebrow and folded his arms, like an upset child. "That's my decision to make, right?"

Sasuke's eyes flashed dangerously before the raven turned to Yuki, who appeared confused by their conversation. "I'll be back very soon, alright?" With that the raven got up and soon he was all but pushed out of the room. Sasuke left the door slightly open to be able to keep an eye on her son.

He took a deep breath. "Sasuke, I…"

Sasuke didn't give him the chance to finish. "Just tell me one thing. What do you remember about last night?"

He frowned. What was that question all about? "I…" He then swallowed thickly. "Well, you… took me here. We got…" His cheeks heated up. "… got carried away." And… that was all. Plus, of course, he still remembered Sasuke's taste in his mouth, but he didn't feel like voicing that bit.

Sasuke didn't appear impressed, or surprised. "That's what I thought." The raven's eyes flashed. "I gave you the chance to leave. You should've taken it."

He frowned, feeling more frustrated than ever in his life. "That's unfair – you're not even giving me a chance to sort out my head!" And at that moment, he most likely made his biggest mistake during the conversation. "I… I enjoyed last night, okay? That much I know."

Sasuke's eyes were cold and hard as they looked deep into his. "If you want a playmate, fuck off and find someone else. Because I'm done having my life messed up and turned upside down – my life and my son's."

His throat contricted painfully. "Sasuke…!"

"Leave!" That was no request.

Just one look into Sasuke's eyes revealed that he really didn't have a choice if he wanted to maintain his life and full health. Extremely reluctant to do so, he took a couple of steps away. He peered over his shoulder to see Sasuke walk back into the room.

And at that moment he felt frustrated and confused once more, even scared.

Because as the room's door closed, he realized that he might – just might – be falling in love with Sasuke Uchiha.

-

As soon as Naruto was out of the house, Sasuke closed her eyes and took a deep breath, fighting to control the turmoil inside.

She shivered a little when hearing steps. "Was that him?" Madara asked in a voice that was easy enough to read.

Sasuke nodded, not bothering with words. Her throat felt unnaturally tight.

"Clean yourself up – you look like hell. Then come downstairs. We need to talk." With that Madara left.

Sasuke barely heard the man, because her thoughts were elsewhere.

She didn't give a damn about Naruto – she couldn't. So why the hell did she feel like there was something broken inside her?

TBC, no?

A/N: Ah, those two are so good at making a mess out of themselves AND each other…! (groans loudly)

So… Was that any good, at all? PLEASE, leave a note to let me know – it'd seriously mean the world to me! (gives absolutely irresistible puppy's eyes) Pretty pwease…?

IN THE NEXT ONE: As Naruto's head starts to clear out, he realizes that there's something he needs to do. In the meantime Sasuke's life approaches another spin… Itachi Uchiha returns.

ONLY FOUR MORE TO GO!

Until next time, folks! I really hope ya'll all stick around for that one.

Peace out!