SURPRISE!

A oneshot :D. This started off as a thought and then on my day-off I just kept writing and writing and writing. Do note that I haven't edit this as much as normally(meaning this has been read over once). But that's because it's over 15000 words _. I will mostly likely go back and edit things though should they need editing.

Pairings: heavily implied onesided SasuNaru(on Sasuke's end), one tiny mention of onesided NaruSaku but its so small and minor it doesn't even matter(and it doesn't even last). Also a surprise pairing.

Extra warning: Mention of Mpreg :p. In my defense, its for the scary factor ONLY.

No there is NO graphic and/or sexy description of how it happens.

And no there is NO graphic description of the birth.

In fact there isn't even a birth. The guy is still pregnant at the end.

It is purely for the scary factor and to show that a character really has changed. If you find it sexy though that's cool too.

If you need an explanation, the best I can give is the guy preggers isn't a mammal, bird, reptile, amphibian, etc. Which means his biology is bizarre and does not fit the mold of any of the animal kingdoms(think alien).

Extra warning: Drop the 'f' bomb twice but the guy who uses it will be sorry he used it(that is not a threat though lol).

Last note: This is my first attempt at supernatural/horror and a few actiony scenes. Please let me know how I did!

Enjoy!

It was another tough day for the Uchihas. Sasuke Uchiha especially.

There wasn't a word that could describe how it felt to fight demons. But it was the Uchiha's sworn duty to protect the citizens of Konoha city from the menaces. Some were annoying, like the batch Sasuke just got rid of. Others were powerful, too powerful for one or two Uchiha to handle on their own.

Sasuke has yet to face a 'powerful' demon, mainly because at 15-years-old, he was only just now old enough to be out on the field to fight. But he hopes he will one day soon. He has to. There was one powerful demon, extraordinarily powerful, that Sasuke needed to fight. He needed to kill.

At that moment a black car pulled up to the sidewalk Sasuke was standing on. Judging by the model Sasuke immediately knew who it was. Grateful for not having to walk home, Sasuke walked over to the trunk and waited for the driver to pop it open. Once he did Sasuke put his bloody equipment, his sword and gun, into the trunk. There was no way he was taking his bloody clothes off so Itachi will just have to clean his seats again.

Walking back around to the passenger's side, Sasuke paused and took one last long look at demon corpses lying on the pavement. It was his fifth time handling a batch of those particular demons, gremlins. They were ugly little creatures. Only a foot tall with teeth too large for their mouths, pear-shaped heads that were dwarfed by their huge hump backs, short legs, and long, gangly, skinny arms with two huge claws at the end. It was their bumpy, rough yellow skin and their long tongues that made them annoying. Their eyes were tiny and completely green save for a black, slitted pupil, so they couldn't see well and had to rely on their two holes for noses to find their enemies. With their little legs they couldn't jump nor were they very fast as they walked like penguins but they made up for those disadvantages with their throwing and climbing skills. This made them travel in groups which was a plus to Sasuke as the more they killed the less there were around.

The group he just killed had more members than the ones he had fought before. They managed to give him a good lashing with their tongues and one too many abrasions with their skin but at least none of them touched him with their claws or teeth. He should be fine. Sasuke then heard the window in the car roll down. Turning around he saw his 21-year-old brother stick his head out.

"I hope you know by now that there are Uchiha who specialize in cleaning up the dead bodies. I've already called Obito and he's on his way right now," Itachi pointed out. Sasuke shook his head and got into the car.

"Yeah I know. I was just thinking how there was more of them than usual," Sasuke answered. His older brother nodded his head, cringing slightly at the blood Sasuke was getting in car. He started driving back to the Uchiha compound.

"The sky is red," he pointed out. Indeed as Sasuke looked up at the sky, it was all red. Not a speck of blue to be seen even though it was only 1 o'clock in the afternoon on what the weatherman predicted this morning was supposed to be a sunny, August day. But the sun was missing as well. Instead there were ominous white, or at the very most very light pink, clouds floating languidly across the sky.

"But the buildings of Konoha city are still standing tall," Sasuke answered and he hoped in each and every one of those buildings were the completely safe citizens. The sky turning red didn't happen often, but it did happen and by now Mayor Tsunade must've put in the necessary safety measures to keep everyone safe while the Uchiha went out and killed the incoming demonic cavalry.

"And everyone's safe so don't worry. Our other clansmen are patrolling every corner as we speak."

"Where are mom and dad?"

"Over by the south side of the city. They got a personal call."

"Oh…" Sasuke muttered. His eyes glazed over with remembrance. He used to visit the south inner city of Konoha all the time. Itachi had to have noticed his glum mood. He always did and then he would do what he could to distract him from the pain and anger.

"You've been improving a lot these past few weeks Sasuke," he smiled. "Just think it was exactly one month ago that you turned 15 and went out on your first hunt. Now you're fighting by yourself on a red sky day. One month and you no longer need guidance. You're a natural Sasuke. Father will be proud."

"You think so?" Sasuke asked. He was grateful for Itachi doing this. His father's approval may be second on his list of priorities, but when he could do nothing about the first, it always served as a welcome distraction. "I mean, you were on your own two weeks after you first started…"

"That was under special circumstances. You however, are proving your worth under normal circumstances. It took father a month and a half to be on his own."

"Seriously?"

"Yes! So be sure to tell him that when he gets back."

"Well can't we go and tell him that now?" Sasuke asked excitedly. He never believed he could surpass his father in anything. He had always focused his efforts on competing with Itachi. Fugaku's exploits were seemingly too far out of Sasuke's league. But Itachi shook his head.

"Sorry Sasuke. But mother and father have ordered us to stay in the compound unless we get a special call."

Sasuke slumped his shoulders in disappointment. The chances of a special call happening on a red sky day were small as by now everyone knew to stay inside while the Uchiha fought outside. But at least Itachi was ordered to stay behind too. At least Sasuke wouldn't feel like a little kid being forced to stay behind.

"Are you hurt?"

"Nothing serious," Sasuke shrugged.

"Well Auntie bought us a new batch of medical supplies today. You may fix your wounds up while you take a shower. Or do you need me to?"

"I can take care of myself Itachi," Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"Just making sure," the elder Uchiha brother laughed as he pulled up to the secret entrance to the compound. It was an entrance only the Uchiha knew about and it was the only way to get into the compound during a red sky day. All of the other openings were closed and locked.

As he and Itachi got out of his car and walked towards the Main Uchiha House, their house, Sasuke noted the emptiness of the grounds. He couldn't help but be a little worried. Red sky days were bad, but typically they weren't so bad that everyone had to leave. Before Sasuke joined the force, he used to see at least five or six other clansmen walking around on these days.

But there was no one out other than him and Itachi. He knew that underground there was a large bunker that held all of the Uchiha babies and children and Kagami Uchiha. Kagami was too old to go out and fight on the front lines, but he was trusted to protect and babysit the ones who were too young.

Sasuke liked Kagami. When was too little to join the force and had to sit in the bunker with all of the other children, it was listening to Kagami's stories of when he was on the field that stopped Sasuke from worrying about his mom, dad, and big brother and wishing he was out there with them. Maybe after he had showered and fixed himself up, he'd go down to the bunker and listen to Kagami's stories again.

Once Sasuke and Itachi made it inside of their house, Itachi left Sasuke and headed towards the kitchen. He said he would start making some food to rejuvenate them should they have to go out again. Sasuke was a little worried about that. His big brother in the kitchen was the only known danger inside the compound. But Itachi assured his little brother that the only appliance he would use was the microwave. Seeing as how Itachi had never set anything on fire with the microwave, Sasuke headed up the stairs towards his bathroom feeling better.

Getting undressed was a painful experience. The blood of the gremlins he killed made the signature blue uniform of the Uchiha stick to Sasuke's pale skin and peeling them off aggravated some of his wounds. But the shower and medical treatment afterwards made him feel better. Once he was nice and clean and patched up, he put his bloody uniform into the dirty laundry basket and headed into his room.

His room was not like a typical teenager's room. It was neat and tidy. The full-size bed was made, nothing but rugs were on the floors, and his closet had all of his clothes hung up neatly. Only his desk was a bit messy but that was because he was doing homework before the sky turned red and the demons attacked.

He walked to his dresser and pulled out a large blue t-shirt with the Uchiha symbol on it, blue boxers, and some yellow sweatpants. He picked casual attire as neither he nor Itachi may be called out again if they already have everyone else out there. So there was nothing else to do but lounge around. Sasuke wanted to go see Kagami, but since he was in his room he figured he should get his homework done first.

But as Sasuke sat his desk, pencil in hand, he did no writing. Instead he thought about where his parents were and looked at the many pictures on his desk.

There were many of them. Pictures dating from as far back as his fifth Halloween, where he was smiling at the camera dressed in the Uchiha uniform shouting, "I'm a policeman!" It was his mother's favorite picture and there had to be a copy for each room in the house. It was a much more innocent time back then. So innocent, that Sasuke was among the many who had no idea what his family really did. He believed their cover story of them being 'policemen' and had no idea that they policed the supernatural and not regular criminals.

He wasn't supposed to find out until he was 15. He wasn't supposed to join the force until he was 18. But the special circumstances that forced Itachi to join early stretched on to include Sasuke. Not that Sasuke minded too much. It may have been hard for him when he was 7-years-old and had to sit and wait at home, hoping and praying his family would come back from each encounter. But at the same time, he received training no other kid his age received.

Indeed not even his friends could learn what he learned. Sasuke looked at the other pictures. Pictures of him with a pink-haired girl(Sakura), a blond-haired girl(Ino), a white-eyed girl(Hinata), a brunette with her hair in buns(Tenten), a black-haired guy(Lee), three dark-haired brunettes(Neji, Kiba, and Shino), and two boys, one who's hair was styled in a ponytail, the other a big-boned guy with his signature bag of chips(Shikamaru and Choji).

He knew where they all were. Safe inside of their homes with their families. Whenever a demon showed up on a normal, blue sky day, Sasuke would send his friends warnings telling them to stay away from whatever area the demon was crawling around. On red sky days Sasuke always immediately sent out warnings to each of his friends' phones, telling them to get inside the nearest building and stay there until he said it was okay to come out. Today, Sasuke was relieved to hear they were all home. Their houses were the safest places for them. Their families, or in the case of the Haruno family just the brainy Sakura, went the extra mile and did some research of their own. Their defenses weren't on Uchiha level, but they were good.

There was one other person who appeared in a few of those photos but Sasuke didn't know if he could call him a 'friend'. He was a new guy in their group, with short black hair, incredibly pale skin, and a fake smile(Sai). Everyone jokes that he and Sai could be twins, but Sasuke didn't want to think so. He didn't like Sai. He didn't trust Sai. And no, despite Itachi's teasing it wasn't because Sai made fun of his package. There was just something about him that didn't fit right to Sasuke. It didn't help that whenever he sent Sai a warning message he never messaged back detailing his whereabouts despite Sasuke constantly telling him to. It just so happened that Sai manages to escape all demon attacks unscathed...

Perhaps if Sasuke had the humility he would admit it. Deep down he hated Sai because he was trying to make the Konoha 11 the Konoha 12 again. And that just wasn't possible. It wasn't without….

Sasuke looked up at the one picture. The one picture that was above all of the others. It had just two people in it.

There was him and then there was him.

He was only 12-years-old and he was 13. Had he known it would be the last picture they'd take together at that age he would've smiled. His mouth would've matched his eyes in showing how happy he really was to be there. Instead he was frowning as he usually did when he had to have his picture taken. His eyes were bright but you wouldn't know it just looking at his expression.

But he was smiling. His sunny-gold, blond hair sticking up in that usual, gravity-defying, spiky style of his. He had bangs, but you couldn't see them as he had that funny, little hachimachi tied around his forehead. Sasuke used to make fun of him for wearing it. It was completely black with an orange spiral in the center. He used to wear it everywhere no matter what the occasion and no matter what color clothes he was wearing. Sasuke never found out the importance of it. He hopes to one day soon. It sat in the top drawer of his night stand. One day soon he will have to give it back.

Just like how one day soon, he will see those blue eyes again. Those bright blue eyes in the picture were shining with joy as he spent time with his best friend. Sasuke had no idea of knowing at the time the picture was taken, that only 10 minutes later those eyes would be shining with pure terror.

That warm, laughing mouth, showing all of Naruto's white teeth and pink tongue. His breath always smelled like ramen, and Sasuke always joked that his mouth would taste like ramen too. But now the only ramen smell and taste Sasuke was exposed to, was from the many ramen cups in his cupboard. After that day, Sasuke and his friends refused to eat ramen in front of one another, not even the thought of it bringing Naruto back to them, as Naruto always followed the smell of ramen, made them eat it anywhere other than in the confines of their own home.

That day was a day that Sasuke wished he could go back to. There were so many things he wanted to change.

In the picture, Naruto had his arm slung around Sasuke's shoulders while little Sasuke had his arms crossed. It was only for a second, and it was only for the picture. But Sasuke got upset. He yelled and complained that he didn't want to be touched and called Naruto a faggot. Naruto closed his eyes and laughed it off and teased Sasuke a bit; reminding the Uchiha boy about his crush on Sakura. But Sasuke wondered if his words accidentally hurt his best friend. If he could go back to that day, he wouldn't have complained. He would've told Naruto it was okay to put his arm around him. He would've asked Naruto if he was allowed to put his arms around him and feel that warm, tan skin beneath his cool, pale hands before it happened.

If he could go back to that day, he wouldn't have brought Naruto to that secluded area. He would've stay within the public area of the park. Sasuke didn't know how much of a difference being around those people would've made seeing as how they were all killed in the end, including the photographer. But as long as it made some difference, Sasuke would've been happy.

Because now, his best friend was gone and it was all because Sasuke wanted to tell him and only him, the secret of what his family did.

It was supposed to be cool, something to gloat and brag about. Naruto loved the horror things. He had a huge collection of monster and demon movies and even though he loudly denounced reading as a boring activity Sasuke knew Naruto would sneak into any library each night and read up on monsters, fictional or not. When his godfather/guardian finally bought a computer for their home, Sasuke knew the first thing Naruto did was browse and bookmark every site he could find that dealt with the supernatural. He watched every monster or horror TV show, bought the merchandise, and dressed up as some sort of demonic entity every year for any occasion that required costumes.

Knowing all of this, Sasuke just wanted to see his reaction to knowing that demons and monsters were real.

But his mother and father told him to keep it a secret. So he had to take him away from listening ears! But that excuse wouldn't cut it. Not in Sasuke's mind.

It was 1pm. The sky was turning pink but Sasuke didn't notice. He was paying too much attention to Naruto's face as he told him the truth to pay attention. To avoid his parents' wrath and to stay a good boy, he was ONLY telling Naruto that demons were real and that he was training to fight them. The expression on Naruto's face wasn't one Sasuke could easily decipher, but he liked to believe it was 'awe'. By the time Sasuke noticed the sky was red, it was far too late to practice the cautionary tactics his parents taught him. He and Naruto heard the heart-wrenching screams of the other park goers.

At the time Sasuke was afraid, but he told himself those were screams of terror and that the people are rushing to safety as he and Naruto stood there in a safe and secluded spot. But he was dead wrong.

The body of a man with all of his limbs and head missing came flying through the trees and slammed right into Naruto's stomach knocking him on the floor. Sasuke didn't pay any attention to the fact that the body was sizzling with acid. Just Naruto's screams.

The blond roughly shoved the torso off of him and Sasuke could see acid burn through his orange jacket and the blood of the man's dead body coat his blue jeans. He could see Naruto was terrified as he kept his eyes glued to the torso and slowly backed away on his hands and feet, mumbling incoherent things under his breath.

What happened after that became the reason Sasuke would lay awake at night cursing himself for the next three years.

There were nine of them. Nine tails that came out of the trees and grabbed Naruto. The red fur should've made it obvious who it was but it wasn't until he appeared in front of him did Sasuke truly realize what he was dealing with.

It was the Kyuubi. A tailed beast.

Tailed beasts were different from the other demons. Tailed beasts were stronger, faster, more cunning and intelligent. They could talk and think for themselves. They didn't just kill, they tortured. They couldn't just kill. They could turn. Turn any normal, civilized human into a beast like them. All of the results of that power that Sasuke witnessed, were gurgling, deformed piles of flesh who had to be killed quickly just to end their pain.

There was only nine of them. They didn't come out much but when they did it was a full scale emergency. The damage was always devastating. They were the powerful demons that his family always needed to have the whole clan up against. And two of them, for the acid could only be done by the Rokubi, were here now.

Sasuke didn't say anything to the Kyuubi while his best friend struggled and cried within his hold. And the Kyuubi didn't say anything to him. The monster fox grinned.

And Sasuke ran.

He told himself so many times afterwards that he ran because he had to find his family. He needed to get help for Naruto that's why he ran! He was going to go back.

Really.

But Sasuke never did go back. He abandoned his best friend. He left him with that beast to be killed, tortured, or turned.

With three more years of wisdom under his hair Sasuke knew now that he ran not to find help, but because he was a coward. If they got Naruto, he would make sure they wouldn't get him. So he ran. He wanted to live another day. He didn't want to die. He was scared of the pain he would go through. He thought of his family and how he couldn't leave them.

He found an old alley way and hid behind some trashcans, trembling and crying while his cell phone rang and rang. His mother would later reprimand him for not answering the phone and letting her know he was alright. But what did punishment matter? The guilt and shame would for the next three years eat him up.

And it will continue to do so until Sasuke finally found the Kyuubi again and tore his head off with his own bare hands.

It was the Kyuubi's fault anyway all of this was happening. The demons reached the city of Konoha due to a mysterious rip in the air that allowed them to come to this world from there world. Sasuke doesn't know how that rip came about, all he knows is it's been there for what feels like forever. Either way, the rip was small. So small that demons used to only visit in pairs and rarely did more than three demons show up. His family had it under control to the point that only they and the mayor and his(as the mayor was Old Sarutobi back then) group of advisers knew about them.

Whenever someone had an unfortunate encounter with a demon, their mind was erased. Any pictures, recordings, or videos were destroyed. It wasn't safe to have average citizens be aware of how much danger they were in. And it wasn't safe to have Uchiha children know what they would soon have to fight until they became old enough to train their bodies.

This all went out the window when Itachi turned 15 and the Kyuubi along with his eight other brethren attacked. It wasn't a long attack. But it was five seconds of pure and utter hell. The Uchiha and the local government tried hard to still keep it a secret and kept erasing the memories of everyone who wasn't an Uchiha. But after the attack that happened on that day when Sasuke was 13, the rip grew larger and larger so now demon attacks were a regular occurrence and it was finally decided it was better to teach the citizens how to be safe rather than have them believe they were always safe. That was also when the ages had to be bumped down.

Sasuke let out a huge sigh. He had returned later that day during the clean-up to see that the only thing left of Naruto was his hachimachi.

He took it and swore a vow of vengeance.

Even though he was partially to blame for abandoning Naruto, it was the Kyuubi who started the whole mess in the first place. Had he not shown up, Naruto would still be here today. 16-years-old, almost 17, smiling and laughing with the rest of their friends. Maybe he'd still be getting horrendous grades. Or maybe he would finally listen to Sasuke during their tutoring sessions and improve. Maybe he would still have to ride his skateboard everywhere. Or maybe he would get that 2010 Orange Victory Hammer motorcycle he's been saving up for. Maybe he would finally be with Sakura. Or maybe he would be with...someone who is very sorry for calling him a faggot.

Sasuke had no idea if Naruto was dead or turned or being tortured as he sat there. But he knew he just knew that he had to kill the Kyuubi at the very least. His guilt and shame and regret and longing may attack him in the wee hours of the morning after he has woken up from a nightmare, but his anger was what kept him from breaking down. If he could just kill the Kyuubi, even if he never finds out what happened to Naruto, then he would feel better. If he could avenge Naruto and make-up for his single moment of sheer cowardice, then maybe he could believe that the one person who could grab a hold of his heart so easily, who meant more to him than his family, could forgive him.

Wherever he was.

Sasuke was brought out of his pondering when his frantic older brother burst into his room.

"Sasuke! Get dressed now! Mother and Father have called for us! It's serious!"

Since Sasuke's uniform was in the dirty laundry he had to borrow a spare one Itachi owned. It was an old model of the Uchiha uniform and a little big on him but he could hardly care about that. Not when it took only a few minutes for him and Itachi to be back on the road, Itachi taking a huge dump on the speed limit and speeding towards their parents' destination.

Sasuke was scared; he will admit it. He was scared because Itachi was scared. Itachi was never scared. Never. Itachi also always obeyed the rules and here he was breaking several so that they could reach their parents. Their parents who had to call for him and Itachi. Just what was going on? What could possibly be happening to make Itachi so hysterical like this? Had Sasuke been younger, he would've started crying. But now, he could only allow himself to let out a few whimpers. Despite his competition with his older brother Sasuke never minded looking weak in front of him because Itachi always had a caring, comforting reaction in store.

Until now that is.

"THIS ISN'T THE TIME SASUKE! Mother and Father need us at our absolute best. Crying and hesitation should've been left at the compound!" He scolded. Sasuke reeled back in shock. Itachi never yelled at him either. Never. Not even when he and Naruto cut his hair and dyed it green as a prank. He had only laughed. He laughed even though his hair was his most precious thing. He...didn't get angry at Sasuke. He got annoyed at some things Sasuke did. He got frustrated when he couldn't do what he wanted because of Sasuke.

But he was never mad at his little brother. And he never yelled.

Sasuke faced the front and stayed silent, even though now he was more worried than ever.

Itachi never apologized.

When they finally reached their destination, the south side of the city of Konoha, Sasuke gulped. He knew it was coming but it was just so surreal to actually see it. In front of him was the very familiar apartment of his old best friend. Naruto's apartment.

He used to visit there all the time when Naruto was still here. But now the building stood completely empty. It was so eerie to look at. It used to be filled with such life despite being on the poor and rough side of the city. But a few months after Naruto was taken by the Kyuubi, his guardian Jiraiya was found hanging in their apartment room on the third floor. Since then, all of the other residents have moved out claiming the building was haunted by Jiraiya's ghost.

Sasuke visited once to see if the rumors were true. He never did see the man's actual ghost. But he did hear the man's voice, always weeping, always calling out for his lost godson. And Sasuke swore he heard the ghost once, just once, curse Sasuke himself for abandoning him. Sasuke also visited the actual apartment room once. He saw the swinging rope and the bloodstains from when Jiraiya simultaneously shot his throat and he left. He never went back there again. Until now that is.

"Get out of the car Sasuke! We gotta move!" Itachi yelled from behind. Sasuke jumped and quickly got out. He did not want him brother yelling at him again. Itachi had already prepared himself with his weapons and he fixed up Sasuke's weapons as well. They were still covered in blood from his earlier encounter but Sasuke didn't mention it. His sword slipped slightly in his hold but he quickly put it in his scabbard before Itachi noticed.

"See that fire over there?" Itachi asked pointing towards a building a few buildings away that was set ablaze. Sasuke nodded.

"That's where I'm going. I believe mother is over there fighting off an army. Father should be in the building right there," Itachi pointed at the apartment building Naruto used to live in. "I want you to go help him. Got it?"

Sasuke again nodded. He inwardly prepared himself for he knew the other clansmen were all elsewhere and it was up to him and Itachi to save their parents. They would make it through. After all the main family was a family of geniuses.

"Good," Itachi said turning around. "Be careful Sasuke. If you really find yourself in trouble, call me. I will be there no matter what."

"Yes big brother," Sasuke smiled a small grateful smile. It was great to hear Itachi not yelling anymore. It was also great to hear Itachi still cared about him and had his back. But he did hope that 'no matter what' didn't include abandoning their mother. Sasuke had once chosen his life before a person he cared about more than anything. May he go to Hell if Itachi does the same thing.

With one last nod of assurance, both Sasuke and Itachi separated.

The building was cold when Sasuke entered it. It immediately put him on guard for outside was so hot and humid. But in the apartment building, the air was freezing, so much so that Sasuke could see his breath.

He held his gun close and cautiously looked around. It was also dark. Incredibly so. It took a few seconds for Sasuke's eyesight to adjust to the darkness and see a faint outline of everything around him, but it wasn't quite enough. But to turn on the flashlight attached to his shoulder could alert any demon that could see in the dark to his presence. He used his ears. He heard nothing but the sound of his own breathing. He used his nose despite it not being any better than the average human's. There was nothing but the stale smell of an old building.

Sasuke had no choice but to pull out his radar. Thanks to the lit-up screen he could see no demon in his immediate vicinity. But that didn't mean he could celebrate yet. There were four floors in this building, Naruto's apartment room being on the very top floor. This radar was only telling him what was on the first floor. He could have it tell him how many demons were on the upper floors but he didn't want to risk any of the demons sensing the signal and finding him out before he reached them. Tekka Uchiha was already working on a way for Uchihas to be able to find demons without letting them know, but he was still a long ways off from reaching that goal.

So since he was on a safe floor, Sasuke turned on his light but it on its lowest setting. There were only three doors on this level. One leading to the central control room for the apartment building's heat, electricity, and plumbing, one leading to a closet, and the last leading to the landlord's room. Sasuke highly doubted his father was on this floor but it never hurt to check. Quietly of course as it WOULD hurt to call out for his father thereby putting them both at risk.

Sasuke checked the closet first. Predictably, there was nothing in there other than janitorial things. Although Sasuke did notice that the white walls had large, dark red-brown splatters on them. He didn't want to dwell on what they could be.

Next he had to check the central room. He crept a bit slower and stayed a bit quieter when he opened the door to that one. The central was bigger after all and there were many places for demons to lay traps or to hide themselves. As good as the Uchiha radar was, a particularly weak or particularly crafty demon may slip by it. The central room oddly enough had some light in the form of a small fire in the back of them room. But it wasn't any warmer in the room.

Other than the small fire there were the many machines and pipes and other accessories necessary to control everything. The only odd thing out, other than the fire, was the small lump in the middle of the room. Sasuke cautiously crept in and noticed that the lump was just a dead gremlin. Sasuke couldn't determine what killed it until he got closer and toed its stomach.

Its skin split open from its stomach to its side and burnt ash poured out. Whatever the gremlin fought, it managed to burn all of its insides without even scratching the outside. Sasuke shuddered at the thought before moving on. He checked every nook and cranny and behind every moveable thing there was in the room. Other than some dead rats and mice and more dark, large, red-brown splatters, Sasuke found nothing of note.

So now it was time to check the landlord's room. Sasuke grew anxious as he walked up to the green door. After everybody moved out the landlord, an old construction worker named Iji, stubbornly refused to leave with them. He was injured in an accident 40 years ago and since then had taken this apartment building for himself. Iji scared Sasuke when he was a kid. He was a large, burly man who was ALWAYS dressed in a white wife beater, green boxers, and some white socks. Always. With big eyes under heavy set eyebrows always in a glare, an unshaved stubble on a wide chin and fat cheeks, and arms with forests on them, he was as intimidating as they come. His personality matched his appearance being gruff and rough. He didn't like kids and he hated Naruto for reasons Sasuke never found out. Sasuke always tried to avoid him whenever possible.

But now he couldn't avoid him. He was never seen leaving his room after the apartment was abandoned. The one time Sasuke visited he remembered hearing Iji snoring in his room and wondering if a bear had somehow got in. Hopefully, he'll forgive Sasuke for trespassing. He had to, for his father was here and surely Fugaku let Iji know that there were demons in the building, if the guy didn't know already.

That thought made Sasuke pause. How did demons get in the building? Every building in Konoha was fitted with special defenses that stopped demons from getting in. The only way for them to do so was if there was an opening. But that couldn't be because the city was also fitted with an automatic closing and locking system. When a button in the mayor's office is pressed, every door and window is automatically closed and locked and can only be opened when another human opens it from the inside. So how did demons get in?

Sasuke shook his head. He couldn't focus on that right now. His father needed him and he wasn't helping by wasting time asking himself questions. Sasuke reached the door and quietly opened it. And he was met with the most horrible smell he had ever encountered.

He took several steps back, nearly tripping on the pant leg, and gagged. That smell! It was a rancid combination of cooked meat, rotting meat, a men's bathroom in a run-down gas station, and-and who knows what else! Sasuke quickly put his mask on, devised by his teacher Kakashi Hatake, to combat any demon who could release poison in the air. It also worked against horrible smells. Once inside he noticed the broken furniture, the holes in the walls, and the large, dark red-brown stains all over. The only thing left intact was an old, white telephone laying in the middle of the room. The phone was off the hook but Sasuke heard no dial tone. It was then that Sasuke made his first sound.

"Iji?" He whispered quietly. No response. Sasuke hoped that Iji was just too scared to speak and was simply cowering behind something. But that theory was dead wrong. Sasuke found out when he went into the bathroom.

'Iji' or what was left of him was on the toilet. His huge thighs were cooked. They were literally as brown as a well-done hamburger and they were clearly the source of the cooked meat smell. His legs however were completely black and his feet were smaller than they should've been. Sasuke wondered if the small piles of ash beneath his feet were what remained of his toes.

His fat arms were split open giving Sasuke a biology review of what lied inside of the human arm. White bone. Red muscle. G-G-Green tendons and purple-Sasuke looked away.

The rest of Iji was pure rotting flesh. Half of his face was gone. His remaining eye ball was hanging out of its socket. His teeth were grinning. His chest and stomach were-Sasuke had to get out of there.

Once outside, Sasuke breathed heavily for a few minutes. He had never seen anything like that. He-the turned ones come close but even they were just piles of unrecognizable flesh, teeth, and bones. What they did to Iji was barbaric. Sasuke nearly called Itachi then and there. But he was so busy dry heaving he couldn't force his hand to grab his phone. Once he finally got a hold of him he took a deep breath and rationalized in his mind the cons of calling Itachi.

Leaving his mother alone. In time it would take for Itachi to get here, Fugaku could get into even more trouble. Sasuke was a big boy now.

He couldn't call Itachi. He also couldn't think of a reason to go back an investigate the rest of Iji's room. The appearance of Iji was going to be stuck in his head for a long time now. Sasuke didn't need to see anymore.

As he headed for the staircase he tried thinking of ways the sight could've been worse to calm him down. There could've been cockroaches or spiders crawling all over the body. There could've been rats chewing on it. Those thoughts kept him from dwelling on the fact that Iji's kill was fresh and whatever did that to him was with his father.

Once Sasuke reached the stairs he had to pause as he could've sworn he heard a noise. It sounded like...sobbing.

"I'm so sorry Minato. I'm so sorry Kushina."

Sasuke ran up the stairs.

Luckily the old staircase didn't creak under Sasuke's feet. But that hardly matter for in his haste he left his light on and so now if there are demons on this floor they surely know he's there.

Sasuke took out his radar to make sure and sure enough, there were two demons on the other end on the hallway, one in one room the other in the room right across the hallway. The dots on the screen were moving. One demon was moving right in front of the door but did not open it. Clearly it wanted to ambush Sasuke. The other demon was moving as far away from the door as it could. Either it was scared of Sasuke or it similarly wanted to do an ambush but in a different way.

It was comforting to know this so he could plan ahead, but he first needed to make sure the other rooms were unoccupied. There were only 6 rooms on each floor except the fourth floor, Naruto's floor, where there was only two. Though again, Sasuke doubted his father would be on this floor. The first three doors were of course barred and locked, but the fourth was missing the doorknob.

Sasuke was incredibly anxious when he walked up to this room. Iji was supposed to be the only human in here other than his father and himself. But on red sky days anyone can run inside any building because inside is where you are supposed to be the most safe. If Sasuke witnessed again what he witnessed on the first floor he was going to throw up, call Itachi, and throw up some more.

His hand shook as he reached out to grab the hole where the knob was supposed to be. His mask was lowered so he could smell ahead of time if there was a dead body in there. The temperature was still very low so he saw his each and every breath. And it was still silent except for the sound of his own breathing.

Sasuke opened the door just the slightest crack.

And smelled nothing.

Almost instinctively he let out a loud sigh of relief, but when he opened the door wider he was tense again as he looked inside and saw...nothing.

There was nothing inside. Nothing that he could see anyway. It was pitch black. He couldn't see a floor or a ceiling or abandoned furniture or anything. Sasuke turned the flashlight on his shoulder to the highest setting. The light couldn't penetrate the darkness. It was still pitch black only now it looked like his light was shining on something but Sasuke couldn't see what.

He briefly wondered if someone had put up a black sheet or something behind the door before they left but when he reached his hand out to touch it and see he touched nothing. It was strange. He could see his hand was in the room, but he couldn't see what was around it. He softly called out.

"Father?"

No response. But he could feel that the room was suddenly very, very, very hot. And then something brushed past the tips of his fingers.

Sasuke pulled his hand away and slammed the door shut. He didn't want to know. He didn't want to know.

Moving away from that door he headed to the last two doors on this floor, the ones with the demons. He pulled his mask up, as the radar doesn't specify which type of demons were around and an Uchiha could never be too careful. Sasuke went to the room with the demon right behind the door after checking to make sure it was still behind the door.

He allowed himself to smirk confidently. Obviously that demon was too stupid to realize that the doors opened inwardly. Sure enough, Sasuke kicked the door open and heard the satisfying squeal of the demon being knocked back. He wasted no time in cocking and aiming his gun. The demon laid stunned on the floor and before it could recover Sasuke put a bullet through its head.

Now that particular demon wasn't a gremlin. It was an odd jellyfish-like monster that couldn't remember the name of. It was bigger than a gremlin being two feet tall, but it was just as hideous to look at. It was all blue, except for the purple liquid inside of its see-through head, with one huge head and tentacles. It had two small, black eyes but its sight was significantly better than a gremlin's. They were stronger than gremlins as well. Their tentacles were incredibly strong which meant they could move fast out of and in water. You never wanted one to hit you with its tentacle for at the end were barbed spikes and once they hooked onto you, they could inject a deadly poison. A deadly poison that affects humans on direct contact. Which means that all those suckers need to do is hook onto your clothes and release their poison in them. Where do they get the poison? Their heads. Their heads were like big water balloons only instead of water, it was purple, toxic liquid. Their heads were also their weak points since the skin was as thin and breakable as water balloons. And since popping their heads was the only way to kill them, Sasuke learned fast that you had to shoot them at a distance. For just like a water balloon, once the head breaks what's inside gets splashed out.

That's why it got so close to the door. Because it knew Sasuke couldn't kill it while it was so close and risk getting its poison on him. Sasuke was careful not to step in the poison on the carpet as he finished checking the rest of the apartment. He couldn't see why that demon was in this particular room but decided not to think about it. He could never understand how demons think anyway.

Now for the other one. A bit more confident after killing that last demon, Sasuke charged into the last room on the second floor. The demon screeched loudly at his presence causing Sasuke to quickly pull on his earmuffs before he went deaf. The screech told him it was a snird; a snake-bird hybrid. That wasn't really its name but Sasuke to this day can't pronounce its real name, so he calls it a snird in his mind. It was in the bedroom curled around the ceiling fan.

Because of that Sasuke couldn't tell how large it was. But he could see its signature green, snake body and its larger-than-average mouth wide open, hissing and screeching. Its large black wings were spread out in a threatening manner. When Sasuke aimed his gun the snird flew at him. Sasuke anticipated the attack and quickly stepped to the side, turning so that his back was against the wall and he was facing where the demon went. The snird's body was four feet long and its mouth was as large and wide as Sasuke's torso. Perfect. The bigger they are the easier they are to hit.

The snird quickly turned around and struck at Sasuke again, aiming to clamp its mouth around Sasuke's head. Sasuke fired a bullet at its wings but it bounced off of the snird's tough feathers. He quickly ducked and rolled out of the way causing the snird to crash into the wall. Hurriedly, Sasuke stood up and grabbed the bulb part of the wriggling snird's tail and squeezed hard, stunning the beast momentarily. He then aimed his gun once more and shot at another of the snird's weak points; the base of its wing. It screeched in pain and its tail whiplashed giving Sasuke a hell of a bruise on his arm he's sure. But he was tougher than that.

He let go and took several steps back. Putting his gun away he put his hand on his scabbard and waited. The snird pulled its head out of the wall. Unfortunately Sasuke's bullet didn't take its wing off but no doubt it would be slower. Sure enough, it flew at Sasuke with half the speed. Using the superior reflexes and speed he gained in training Sasuke whipped out his sword and hurried towards the stunned demon. He held the sword sideways and put it up to the snird's mouth. Then he ran and didn't stop until he reached the end of the snird's tail.

He sliced it cleanly in half, but he wasn't done. The two halves of the snird weren't making in noises but they were flopping around frantically. Sasuke quickly ran up to the top half and brought his sword down twice and hard. He chopped off the two black wings. The halves shuddered once before moving no more.

Snirds were difficult to fight. They were extremely quick in air, and their large and flexible mouths made them very intimidating opponents. Like a bird's beak, their mouths had no teeth, but they could easily swallow you whole, or pieces of you depending on the size of the snird, and their saliva was similar to a human's stomach acid only a lot slower working. Their jaw bones were incredibly strong so once they clamped down you couldn't pry them off. Their scales and feathers weren't the toughest. There was Uchiha equipment that could penetrate it, but Sasuke didn't carry any of that equipment on him. They lacked eyes and noses so they could only find opponents through echolocation or by feeling vibrations in whatever they were laying on. One of their weak points were the bulb on their tails which could stun them for two seconds if squeezed. But it wouldn't kill them. In order to do that you needed to separate their wings from their bodies for it was only at the very base of the their wings that the flesh was soft.

If they had been in a much bigger and much more open space or had the snird been smaller, they would've been fighting for a lot longer and Sasuke would've walked away with a lot more than a bruise.

But the battle was over and he needed to go back and find his father. He did a quick scour of the room to see if there was anything else suspicious. Only thing he found was the half-eaten carcass of a rat. Well at least he knew why the snird was in this room.

On to the third floor now. The first step creaked under Sasuke's foot but he didn't care. The screeching of the snird had to alert any other demon in the building to his presence so being quiet wouldn't help him. However being prepared would he thought holding his reloaded gun close. The second step also creaked under his feet. But on the third step, the sound wasn't a an eerie creak, but a man's wailing.

"It's too late! It's too late!"

Sasuke tried to ignore it as he headed even further up the stairs.

He was half-way up when he pulled out his radar once more. He was surprised to see only two dots. One in the hallway and one in the middle apartment on the left side. The dot in the hallway was pretty big and stationary but Sasuke couldn't quite tell if his eyes were playing tricks or if the other dot was actually moving. It inched to the side a little before inching back into place. Then it looked like it inched to the other side. But sometimes it looked like it was inching in two directions at once! And some parts of it flashed a little.

Was his radar broken?

Well it didn't matter if it was. As long as it showed him the amount of demons there were he didn't care. Putting the radar back and holding his gun close, Sasuke crept up the rest of the stairs. The radar said the demon was right now with him. Perhaps in the exact middle of the hallway. But it was incredibly dark on this hallway, even his flashlight on its brightest setting did little good. Sasuke shook his head and reminded himself to tell Itachi to throw this old suit out; or at least the flashlight. This floor also felt colder than the others.

Sasuke shivered a little in the temperature and tried his hardest to keep his teeth from chattering. Even though his cover was blown at this point, he still needed to be able to hear where the demon is or where it would be coming. Some demons were silent killers, but most tended to make some noise. This demon could be on the walls, the floor, or the ceiling.

Sasuke silently and slowly walked down the corridor. It was eerie to observe this floor. While the second floor and the first floor were better well-kept, the second floor because it had the only vending machine, this floor was completely desolate. This floor literally has not had a single human on it for three whole years.

The doors once a vibrant, forest green were now a drab olive color and most of the paint have all but peeled off. They were boarded up with wood that gone rotten in the three years they were never replaced. Had there not been rusty chains also keeping the doors locked, any kind of stray could've made their way in by now. The brass numbers and doorknobs, once bright gold, were muddy brown and some of the numbers were missing. The kind lady who made Sasuke's favorite chocolate chip cookies, who sadly passed away in her room a few days after Jiraiya's body was found, used to live in 301. Now it was _01.

The walls were once a beautiful beige color. Now they were pale grey with age with a few black spots here and there and spider web cracks all along them. The lights, never mind the fact that Iji-the electricity to the top two floors had to have been cut off for a while, were of course off. But one of the lights Sasuke was passing by had its glass encasement broken. However the light bulb couldn't be seen due to all of the spider webs wrapped around it.

The floors were stable, but grey and the rug that ran along it had an incredibly pale green-grey look replacing the once gorgeous floral design. There was a gardener who also lived on this floor. As far as Sasuke knew he was still alive, but the roses he left behind in a potted vase by his door were not.

It was so old on this floor. So old and...Dead.

...

Except for whatever was tickling his neck.

Click. Click. Clickclickclickclickclick

Sasuke dove forward just in time to avoid what could've been a fatal blow. He expertly summersaulted into a kneeling position and quickly turned around and aimed his gun. Four, beady blue eyes stared at him but he couldn't see what they were attached too. He ripped the flashlight off of his shoulder and held it out so he could see. Sasuke gritted his teeth.

It was an arachnophobe's worst nightmare. Sasuke liked to ask himself what horrible deity would even create a beast like an s'pion. Once again s'pion wasn't its real name, but the name Sasuke called it. Eight, black, four-feet long, gangly legs clung to the ten-feet wide ceiling, The body looked like a large, black widow except for the head. It was football-shaped with four eyes and an overbite in the shape of a crocodile's snout. Said overbite contained two large fangs and between them four, smaller sharp-teeth.

Sasuke wasn't afraid. Spiders never scared him and this one was actually safer than most normal spiders. Despite the mark of the black widow on it, it had no deadly poison to speak of. Only the cunning to trick any human who would recognize the almost universal symbol. It also made that clicking noise whenever it opened its mouth making it easy to know if ones there ahead of time.

However. They were not to be underestimated. At all.

Click. Click. Clickclickclickclickclick.

Sasuke quickly fired a bullet into its open pink mouth, cursing when it made no effect. The s'pion just snapped its mouth closed with a loud 'CLACK' and then immediately sped towards Sasuke. Sasuke backed up in response. Despite its massive and intimidating mouth it was behind the s'pion where you were at the greatest risk. Aiming his gun once more he shot at its black widow mark.

The only made it pause for a bit before it continued its trek, this time moving even faster with a vigor. Sasuke backed up until he couldn't anymore and then quickly tried to plan his way out of this. S'pion's weren't like the other demons he was aware of. They had no obvious weak points. Sasuke has only faced two others in his life and both times he didn't see the killing blow. When the s'pion was right in front of him, it blinked those wide blue eyes once. Then...

Click. Click. Clickclickclickclickclick

Sasuke just barely managed to slip under the s'pion's wide open jaw before it slammed down on where his head and shoulders used to be. The fangs managed to graze his back leaving cuts, but couldn't stop to think about the pain. He quickly slipped his gun away and whipped out his sword. Turning around he stabbed it upwards into the s'pion's head before quickly pulling it out.

It didn't make a sound at it shook its head, but Sasuke wanted to groan in disgust as its green blood dripped down his favorite weapon. But once again, there was no time. The s'pion started backing up and Sasuke had to back up with it. There was no way it could hurt Sasuke while he was right under it. As long as he stayed in that position, he could be given enough time to-

But he wasn't given enough time.

His black eyes widened in fear as the monstrous spider suddenly dropped from the ceiling. Sasuke felt like a bus fell on him. His scream of pain was muffled by the old carpet as his body was forced to carry more weight than it should've. His eyes were already squeezed tight but the green blood from the s'pion's head poured down the sides of Sasuke's head and got into them. He was in pain, uncomfortable, and he couldn't see.

Sasuke was panicking. He wriggled and squirmed and shouted not caring if the green blood also got into his mouth. He frantically grabbed at his dropped sword but the blood kept making it slip away from him. The s'pion was frantically moving too. He could hear its eight legs kicking the walls trying to right itself. He wanted this thing off of him! He needed this thing off of him before he was crushed because everything HURTS!

After what felt like an eternity, the weight finally moved. But the battle wasn't over yet. Sasuke could scarcely catch his breath before his eyes started stinging. He yelped in pain and rubbed at them as much as he could to soothe the pain away. But they wouldn't stop burning! It was the blood! The green blood that was hurting his eyes! Sasuke didn't want to go blind so he rubbed almost hysterically, eventually pulling his shirt up and rubbing his eyes with that.

He didn't focus on what the s'pion was doing. He couldn't. So when his eyes felt semi-right again and he looked up, he saw the blurry form of the s'pion's butt. But it was only when the blurriness cleared away that he realized what was happening. He paled considerably as he looked straight at the s'pion's butthole.

"NO!" He shouted trying to roll out of the way. But he slipped on his too large pant leg. The s'pion shot a large amount of rough spider silk that wrapped around Sasuke's body. It was shot at such a force, that Sasuke went flying and slammed into an apartment door making it burst open. He hissed loudly in pain as the rough silk tightened around everything but his shoulders and head in the form of a cocoon. It made his already aching body even more pained.

He tried to concentrated on anything but the pain, but the only other thing he could concentrate on was the sight in front of him which was worse. Sasuke let out quick pants of fear as he saw the monster spider slowly turn around and face him. Its blue eyes penetrated Sasuke's black ones; reminding him of the blue eyes he so desperately wanted to see again. Then Sasuke saw it slowly crawl towards him, as if it was biding its time. Taunting Sasuke with the fact that at any second now, it could run up and eat him.

Was this how it was going to end for him? It couldn't be. It couldn't! Itachi said he was a genius! He said their father would be proud of him for being alone! How will their father be proud now? How could one little rookie mistake, one little miscalculation take away all of the years, the blood, sweat, and tears, Sasuke put into this life?

It couldn't!

His revenge. Naruto! He needs to save his father!

It couldn't.

Naruto was still out there! And so was Kyuubi! He needed to kill him and father!

It couldn't!

FATHER!

But it could.

Because as Sasuke frantically tried to worm away powered solely by adrenaline and fear, he realized the door he slammed open was _ _ 4. The middle, left door.

He was now exposed to the other demon as well.

He felt like throwing up or passing out.

Click. Click. Clickclick-

The demon behind him abruptly stopped. Sasuke wondered why before he heard it too.

The sound of a bunch of wings fluttering. It was coming from the bedroom, but it was steadily getting closer. Sasuke shook to the sound. Now he knew his radar wasn't broken. It was telling him that there was more than one demon in this room. The monster spider had more than one friend to help it kill him.

And there was nothing Sasuke could do.

Except squeeze his eyes shut when the door burst open and hundreds of little, light brown and light dots came flying out. Underneath the sound of many tiny wings beating, Sasuke heard the roar of the s'pion. He squinted his eyes open before they widened in sheer horror at the sight of the tiny demons cutting into the s'pion. It fought frantically. Its eight legs flailing wildly, its mouth opening and closing over and over, its butt shooting out web after useless web.

But it wasn't long before it was just a green pile of goo, mixed with a few remaining pieces of skin and teeth.

Sasuke then knew what he was dealing with. Leepos, which was their actual name. They was a bunch of tiny little blue balls with thin, brown, incredibly sharp wings. They stayed in large groups but they weren't that particularly strong. They were like flies, two large fly swatters or one large one with a flat surface was all you needed to defeat them. But you had to be fast or wearing clothes with a special defense.

A special defense that was only added to the newer model of the Uchiha uniform.

Once they were sure they were done with the s'pion, the leepos immediately turned on him. They tore through the spider silk like it was nothing and began their attack on Sasuke. This time he wouldn't make the same mistake. He wouldn't assume he knew all about these demons because unlike the s'pion Sasuke had never encountered these demons and he only knew what he knew from other Uchihas who have. He may not have heard all there is to know.

Like his former demon opponent Sasuke slapped and kicked at the little things to keep them away. But unlike his former opponent Sasuke quickly rolled to his feet and ran. Naturally the leepos followed him, scratching at all they could. In his haste Sasuke didn't realize he was heading towards the fourth floor instead of the second floor, but once he reached the stairs underneath the sound of hundreds of little beating wings, Sasuke could've sworn he heard the frantic cries of a man.

"I heard his voice! I wanted to see him again! My little godson. That fat fuck should've left with everyone else! IT WAS HIS FAULT!"

Sasuke didn't stop running.

Once he reached the landing of the fourth floor everything stopped.

Sasuke still held his arms over his head and face, but nothing was poking at him anymore. He breathed heavily for a few seconds before finally lowering his arms and accessing the damage.

His legs and head hurt a little but his back felt like Itachi took his razor and ran it along it 20 times without putting shaving cream on it first. His arms and hands felt worse; like they were put through a lawn mower. His stomach and chest ached but because he ran hunched over everything in the front was pretty much okay.

Sasuke took a deep breath.

He left his sword behind. And his gun must've fallen out of its holster sometime during the scuffle. He had no idea where his flashlight went and his radar was also missing in action. His earmuffs slipped off of his head, and his mask was torn by the leepos. He had nothing but his own, aching body to fight against whatever demons were on this floor.

The fourth floor. Naruto's floor. His and Jiraiya's apartment took up the whole left side. Sasuke never did find out who lived in the right. But he was here again. The memories walking down this stretch of hallway almost took over Sasuke's thoughts and made him forget his original mission. But he managed to force himself off of memory lane. His father had to be on this floor he just knew it.

He had to be on this...incredibly hot floor.

Indeed in stark contrast to the past three floors, the fourth floor was incredibly hot. As if Sasuke didn't have enough incentive to fall asleep right then and there. But to collapse now when he had gotten this far would be something he'd regret later. He needed to find his father. Completely past giving a damn, Sasuke limped and called out for his missing dad.

"Dad! DAD! Where are you? It's me Sas-" he fell into a coughing fit. "-ke," he finished weakly. "Daaaaad-huh?"

Sasuke paused as he noticed something. Out there one the balcony was a shadowy figure. He would think it could be another demon but this figure looked very...human-like. It couldn't possibly be his father. The figure wasn't shaped like him at all. But he had never seen or heard of a demon looking like a human.

Kitsunes have those damning illusions. But kitsunes were also high alert demons so if there was one around, then Yashiro, the Uchiha's resident demon identifier specialist, would've told everyone when they first went out. S'pions were the only other species of demons that could lure people in with their haunting, innocent-looking blue eyes; and then make them freeze where they stand when they notice the large black widow mark. And melodies could only lure people in with their voices.

So on the balcony had to be a real, deal human. But who would be up here? In this abandoned building? Who could make it past those demons on the previous floors? Did they have medical supplies? As a policeman, even if it was of the supernatural, it was Sasuke's duty to go and see. For humans couldn't be against humans in this battle. Every human on a red sky day was a friend. And on the off chance Sasuke's eyes were still reeling and he was simply just seeing things? Well, that was okay too. So Sasuke limped and limped until he finally reached the balcony.

And there he was.

His back was facing Sasuke. But even with the red sky and the large flames burning from the building a few houses down creating a lighting effect that made things look more red-orange than they were, Sasuke could easily recognized that blond hair in its signature, spiky style. It had gotten a bit longer it seemed. There didn't seem to be anything tied around his head which surprised Sasuke.

He was wearing what looked to be an orange jacket with a red spiral on the back, black pants and no shoes. He was sitting on the edge of the balcony railing looking out at the city. His hands, attached to longer arms were gripping the railing to keep his balance. His feet, attached to longer legs, were kicking idly; it made him look almost child-like.

He was 16-year-old now. And he was still alive. He had the body of a 16-year-old Naruto. But did he have the face? He stopped kicking his feet and Sasuke saw his shoulders rise and fall in a sigh. Then, he spoke.

"What's taking him so long? We're getting hungry here."

His voice sounded like a 16-year-old Naruto's voice as well. Scratchy, just like his 13-year-old voice, but deeper; more mature.

Oh God it was him.

It really was him. After three years of telling himself that seeing Naruto wasn't going to happen until he killed the Kyuubi, Sasuke found Naruto. Naruto. His Naruto. His best friend. His precious Naruto. He was right there in front of him. Sasuke finally found...

"Naruto..." He called out softly. He almost wished he hadn't. As if making sound would make the Naruto in front of him go away. He wanted to admire Naruto basking in the glow of the fire and the red sky longer. Just a little bit longer.

But Naruto actually responded. He slowly turned his head, almost elegantly, and gazed at Sasuke. Sasuke nearly forgot how to breathe.

His face...it was still Naruto. Still beautiful, bright blue eyes. Still golden tan skin. Still six whisker-like marks, three on each cheek. Still plump, pink lips. The only noticeable change was that he had matured. Most of the baby fat that had clung to his cheeks when he was 13 has now gone away.

When his blue gaze met his black one, he smiled that same brilliant smile.

"Sasuke? Is that you?"

How...indescribable it felt to hear his voice say his name again; the first time in three years. Sasuke said the only thing he could think to the person he has been missing from his life all this time.

"Hn." If possible, Naruto's smile grew even bigger.

"Wow I can't believe it! It IS you! Wow three years. You haven't changed a bit I see. Still chicken-butt hair-style," Naruto teased. Sasuke allowed a small blush to appear on his face while he fingered his hair. He couldn't believe he had found Naruto again. The blond was here! Teasing him! Just like how he used to when they were children. Sasuke didn't know if this was a dream and he was about to wake up soon or if it actually was real. But either way he didn't want this moment to end. It couldn't.

Well, except for one thing. Naruto frowned.

"You're hurt," he pointed out. Sasuke will admit that his physical state was the only thing ruining the magic of the moment. Naruto then pointed at a small bowl of water by the doorway to the balcony.

"Drink some of that water. It should make you feel better."

Sasuke did what he was told without question. Of course he trusted Naruto. And his trust paid off as even though he knew most of his wounds were most likely still there, he didn't feel any pain or exhaustion anymore. This water was mystical and healing Sasuke. Just like Naruto's presence.

When he set the bowl down he turned to face the blond. He didn't know why Naruto was still sitting there kicking his legs instead of coming up to hug him, but Sasuke couldn't worry about that because Naruto was smiling at him again. But there was one other thing. That jacket, he noticed, was large and bulky which worried Sasuke since it was so hot up here.

"Don't worry. I'm not hot at all. This jacket just protects me from the air," Naruto reassured him. "So what are you doing here? I knew your family had to be out but I didn't think I'd actually see you."

It took Sasuke a few seconds to compose himself. He wanted to breakdown or run up to Naruto and squeeze the ever-loving life out of him. He wanted so badly to express how happy he was to have Naruto back in his life. But despite what Naruto said about not being hot, the air out on the balcony was too hot for Sasuke. His uniform couldn't even protect him against the weather! He could only communicate comfortably from inside and that is where he will wait until Naruto comes to him.

"The ages have been bumped down. I'm on the force now."

"Seriously? Congrats Sasuke! I remember when you told me about it you looked so happy! Dream finally came true huh? You're an adult Uchiha now!"

Sasuke gulped and nodded. "Yeah," he mumbled. Now that the initial excitement at seeing his old friend had died down, Sasuke felt anxious. Hearing Naruto talk to him so casually was so odd seeing as how there was something between them that needed to be resolved. He needed to confront Naruto on what happened the last time they met. That day three years ago when Sasuke left him behind to save his own skin. Sasuke needed to apologize, needed to let Naruto know that he had regretted that decision every day of his life, needed to tell Naruto that he'd do ANYTHING to make up for it!

But that didn't come out of his mouth. He was too cowardly once more. Sasuke avoided the subject with a bit of small talk.

"What are you doing here?" He asked a bit awkwardly. Naruto turned away from Sasuke and looked back at the city.

"Eh. Just grabbing some things. I also really wanted to visit because I haven't been here in so long," Naruto looked down and his voice lowered, "I see Jiraiya's gone..."

Sasuke winced. "Yeah he...died a few months after you..."

"I see. May he find peace soon."

The two boys were now silent. Sasuke was still struggling with how to apologize or maybe with how to avoid the subject once more. He had no idea what Naruto was thinking as he sat there, still kicking his legs. Sasuke could've sworn he was humming a haunting little tune but when he strained his ears to listen better he could only hear the roar of the fire. Finally a solution came to him.

"I-I have your hachimachi Naruto," Sasuke finally said. Naruto's eyes widened in surprise and he whipped his head around to face Sasuke.

"You do?"

"Yeah," Sasuke nodded. "I went back the day you-on that day and I grabbed it. Kept it with me ever since."

"Oh wow haha what a relief! I thought it was destroyed or something! Thank you Sasuke! Where is it?" Naruto asked excitedly looking around for his lost memento. Sasuke checked his pockets before remembering that he left it at his home. He cringed before answering.

"I-I forgot to bring it. I'm sorry," he apologized. Sasuke felt his heart twinge when he saw Naruto's eyes darkened the slightest bit before he closed them.

"Oh. Well it's okay. Just give it to me next time! I made him make me another one so I at least have that."

"Wait. 'He' made you another one?"

"Well yeah I begged him too. He's great with his hands you know and only he could be so particular as to get it looking juuuuust right. And I guess I didn't trust anyone else with the task," Naruto turned back around.

It was now that Sasuke seriously realized that if Naruto was sitting right in front of him, alive and well, that meant he had been somewhere the whole time. A million questions ran through his mind. Where has he been? He had to have been in the demons' realm because if he was in their world he would've come to Sasuke by now. What had he been doing? Who has he met? Who is-

"Ah. I bet you're wondering who 'he' is huh? Well Sasuke that is a story for another time."

Sasuke didn't want to know later. He wanted to know now what Naruto's life has been like so far. He really, desperately wanted to know! But then he paused to think and realized Naruto had said 'another time'. Meaning they will be in each other's presence again. Meaning Sasuke will see Naruto again.

He could...hold his tongue for now. As long as Naruto promised to be with him again. For now though, Sasuke took a deep breath, it was now or never. Time to confront this.

"Do you know why I kept your hachimachi?"

"To give it back to me someday?"

"Well, that but there was another reason. I kept it as a reminder and a motivator. A reminder of you and a motivation to keep fighting. Naruto I swear not a day went by when I didn't think of you. I-I don't know if it was the guilt or what but I kept reliving that day over and over. I regret the decision I made Naruto. I really, really did! And it sucked because I woke up each day never knowing if I would ever get the chance to let you know I was sorry for it. To somehow make up for what I did to you in this lifetime. I'm sorry Naruto! I'm so sorry for leaving you!" Sasuke was shaking with nervousness and anticipation by the end of his speech. It didn't even express an ounce of how truly sorry he was, but it was enough. It was enough that he apologized and that Naruto knew he regretted his decision.

And it was enough because now he had all the time in the world now to make up for it.

"It's okay Sasuke," Naruto smiled. "I forgive you."

"R-Really? You really forgive me? This isn't one of your pranks is it?" Sasuke asked. Naruto let out a loud, tingly laugh.

"No of course not! My pranking days are far from over, but this isn't the kind pranks I pull Sasuke. Besides I forgave you for it a long time ago."

"Seriously?"

"Well yeah. I mean it hurt a little at first. You left me without knowing if I would be okay or not. I was mad that you put your life over our friendship you know? When I saw you run I though you would come back," Naruto said looking up. Sasuke cringed and looked down. He knew it was a selfish decision to choose his life over Naruto's and over their relationship. And he wasn't about to excuse himself.

"I know. It was foolish of me."

"But not unreasonable."

"Huh?"

Naruto grinned. "You were 12 Sasuke what else could I expect? You had a life to live with a nice family that loved you. How could I expect you to give all that up for me? At that age?"

"But you had a life to live too!"

"Okay, NOW it feels like you're asking me to hate you," Naruto chuckled and Sasuke was embarrassed because he kind of WAS hoping Naruto would be a little angry at him for what he did. It would make all of those torturous moments actually be worth something.

"I've been living well as you can see. Not dead. Not scarred. Not a gurgling, deformed pile of flesh. I'm fine Sasuke. I've lived out a very nice life these past three years. So let's just say I forgive you and leave it at that. Kay?"

Although it would mean he wasted three years of his life feeling guilty for something he didn't have to feel guilty over, Sasuke agreed to let it go. And once he did, it was like a huge weight had lifted off of his shoulders. He could breathe easier now, sleep lighter, and smile more.

"Hey you never answered my first question. What are you doing here?"

"I'm looking for my dad. Have you seen him?"

"Oh your dad?" Naruto repeated. "Yeah I saw him. He's-"

But Naruto was interrupted by another, much more sinister-sounding voice that came from right behind Sasuke.

"My oh my. I smell a fourth Uchiha's blood. Will it taste as good as the first three?"

First three?

"M-Mom? F-F-Father? I-I-I-Itachi!" Sasuke shook. Naruto cast him a sympathetic glance before glaring at whatever was behind him.

"Don't mess with him like that Kurama!"

"Who says I'm messing around? You smell the blood too don't you?"

Naruto didn't say anything. Sasuke felt his stress levels rising. Who was the demon behind him? Why wasn't it attacking? What was it talking about in regards to his family? Why wasn't Naruto afraid? Why was Naruto talking to it he knew it? How did Naruto know its name? Where were the answers to his questions?

"I was only looking for supplies for our new den Naruto. I told them so. But humans seem to lack the capability to listen. No harm would've been done had they just let me on my way."

"Kurama no one here has any reason to trust you like I do so just cut the bullshit okay?"

An annoyed scoff of resignation behind him and Sasuke had to speak up..

"WHERE ARE MY MOM AND MY DAD AND ITACHI? WHERE IS MY FAMILY? WHERE ARE THEY!"

Naruto's still blue eyes met Sasuke's black ones.

"Um..."

"Naruto...Naruto where are they? Come on Naruto. You need to come back with me. You and me and-and my family, we can all be together. You can stay with us; in my room. My parents, they-they won't mind. My mom and Itachi already know. They know how I feel. My father may be a little hard to convince but in the end, he-he wants me to be happy too. So come on Naruto. You have to come back with me Naruto. Come back with me and help me find my family!"

"Sasuke..." Naruto trailed off and there was a loud threatening snarl coming from behind him. Sasuke paid it no mind, not when Naruto gave this 'Kurama' person a warning look.

"I can't go back."

"Yes you can. You're not a freak. You're not evil you're not changed! You can come back with me and live in normalcy. Away from the monsters that held you captive for so long."

A snicker from behind. Naruto bit his lip and looked incredibly guilty.

"I can't. I-"

"What about our friends! What about us? What about my family? You'd love it here! I'll-I'll teach you how to fight! How to kill demons! We can be together killing demons! Just the two of us. You and me Naruto."

Naruto took a second to respond. The tension was high with Kurama's snickering in the background.

"I have new friends now Sasuke. Their names are...heh, there's a lot of difficult names for me to teach you. Maybe you won't care but, I like them. I like them a lot and I also like my life with the demons. I do Sasuke."

Sasuke couldn't believe what he was hearing. There was no way Naruto liked living with them. He couldn't like the beasts, the monsters, the devils.

"Not all of them are bad once they like you. They can be violent for petty reasons, especially a certain someone," Naruto grinned teasingly.

"He touched me earlier Naruto. I didn't kill him then!"

"But what about us?"

"I still like you guys I really do Sasuke!" Naruto exclaimed. But he didn't move from his spot. "You all were my very first friends and I'll never forget that or the times we shared! I even want to visit you guys but..."

But?

"But it was so risky back then, when I didn't know anything and was still trying to settle down. It was a whole new world Sasuke. I world I had spent much time learning about, so much time dreaming about, reading about, watching about! But when I got there I found out that so much of what I learned was...wrong. So I needed time to adjust. I was going to live there now and I needed to find my place. To understand what I'd be doing for the rest of my life. It took me three years Sasuke. Three years to finally understand the basics. And there's still so much that I don't know."

"Worry not. I will always be here to teach it all to you."

Naruto smiled in a loving fashion to the demon behind Sasuke. "Yeah..."

Sasuke didn't like that smile being directed at a demon. Demons are NEVER meant to be loved! They stole his best friend they need to ROT in Hell and Sasuke will spend his every waking breath making sure each and every one of them goes there!

"And now," Naruto continued grabbing Sasuke's attention. "Now there is something else that will keep me there. Something permanent that the other humans will never accept. I'm not even sure if you'll accept it Sasuke."

"I'll accept EVERY part of you Naruto! No matter what! I'll accept your bad grades, your mischief, your personality, your body, your soul, your-your bisexuality! I'll accept it all! You won't ever feel alone if you're with me so please! Naruto!"

Naruto stared at Sasuke in shock, as if he never expected those words to come out of his mouth. Sasuke understood, because he couldn't believe it as well. His feelings for Naruto he knew ran deeper than anything he had ever felt before. But he had no idea he felt this way. He must've buried it deep, to make sure that the anguish of leaving his friend behind didn't hit him harder. Didn't overwhelm him as it would've had he acknowledge these feeling beforehand.

"I accept every part of you too Sasuke," Naruto said softly. "Even your survival instinct," he grinned as if he was making joke but Sasuke didn't believe it was funny. Naruto frowned.

"I told you I forgive you for it. In fact, it was a good thing you did it. Everything turned out better because you-"

"What about your parents? What would they think?" Sasuke cut in.

"My parents are dead Sasuke. They've had no control over my actions thus far and that won't change now."

"What about Jiraiya? Think about what he would want!" Sasuke screamed. That made Naruto pause for a few seconds.

"That Jiraiya-guy is still hanging around isn't he? Why don't you go an ask him Naruto?"

"Shut up Kurama. Sasuke Jiraiya doesn't even like you," Naruto pointed out. Sasuke's reddened a bit in embarrassment. That's right he'd forgotten that the ghost blamed him for Naruto being taken away. And how even before the whole accident Jiraiya never thought much about the arrogant kid who reminded him all too much of another friend he had long ago.

"He definitely doesn't like me anymore than he likes this kid though Naruto. I bet he's thinking right now that you suuuuure know how to pick 'em!"

"Be quiet Kurama," Naruto chuckled a little but then frowned at Sasuke. "Jiraiya would want me to be happy. Don't get me wrong Sasuke. I was happy with you guys I really was! But I'm also happy with them and with him," Naruto looked at Kurama behind the stunned Sasuke. "I'll find a way to safely visit you guys, without causing any more trouble like this. I'll do it Sasuke I will! But it will need time because-"

Sasuke wasn't listening. All he could focus on was the fact that Naruto didn't want to come back with him. That was insane. Crazy! They changed him somehow. They poisoned his mind those DEMONS! HIS BEST FRIEND! He was...no. No he was not gone. He was kidnapped against his will and developed some sort of Stockholm syndrome or something. Sasuke just needed to cure it. Yes that's what he needs to do. Cure it. He'll take Naruto back, even if it's against his will. And he'll cure him. Even if it takes three years for Naruto to regain the love he once held for his home, Sasuke will do it.

"You're coming home with me Naruto."

"What? Sasuke no I-"

"You're coming. I'm going to take you back to the compound and once you get that ridiculous notion out of your head we'll find my family."

"Did you not hear what I just said?" Naruto glared. "I'm trying to compromise here and-"

Naruto cut himself off when Sasuke took a step forward.

"Stay away from me Sasuke. Don't touch me. I'm not in a state where I can be touched."

Sasuke paid no heed to his warning and took another step forward.

"Your antics were amusing at first Uchiha but heed my warning, take another step and you will suffer."

The voice sounded threatening. But Sasuke's mind wasn't in a state to be afraid. His 'survival instinct' was ignored summarily. He just wanted Naruto. He took another step.

"Sasuke you're too close! Back away!" Naruto shouted leaning away and wrapping an arm tightly around his stomach.

"He's not listening to you. And he has causing you stress which as you know is not good. Allow me to..."

Naruto looked at Sasuke pityingly before sighing, "okay."

Then Naruto finally moved. He stood up on the railing, turned around and stepped down. Sasuke broke out of his trance.

Naruto's blue slitted eyes, his golden fox ears, his claws, his tail swooshing from side to side, his heavily pregnant stomach were all exposed. Naruto was turned. He was a demon now. He couldn't...

Naruto grinned widely, showing off his gleaming white, fangs.

"Surprise! Who would've thought I would fall prey to teen pregnancy huh? But my mate has a way with words and his hands."

Sasuke heard a dark chuckle from behind him. Naruto frowned.

"I'm sorry Sasuke but I can't go back. I have a family to think about now. And there's no way any human would accept what I've become. My place is in the demon world now with my new friends and my mate. I will...still try to visit, if anyone still wants to see me but for now...we have to part. It's too dangerous and stressful here for my baby and I WARNED you to step away."

Sasuke heard excited panting behind him.

"Kurama? Make sure he feels no pain. He was my best friend after all."

At that moment Sasuke finally noticed the small mirror hanging off of the roof. And in it he saw what was behind him. A half-naked, red-haired man crouching down. His blood-red eyes bore into Sasuke's black ones. Nine tails fanned behind him. He grinned the monster fox grin.

And he sprung.

surprise pairing: KyuuNaru(though it is used darkly here lol).

Did Sasuke survive?

What happened to his family?

Did Jiraiya ever find peace?

What was Sai doing this entire time?

I leave the answers to these questions to your imaginations readers!...Or at least, I was SUPPOSED to. I swear when I thought of this the ONLY other thing I was thinking of doing for it was a companion piece in Naruto's POV. But as soon as I thought 'I am NOT doing a sequel to this!' my brain thought up the first scene for a sequel :P.

I don't know if I'll ever get to the sequel. However the Naruto's POV is likely. Either they both of them have a 99.9% of being oneshots and coming as 'surprises' as well.

For readers of my other stories I hope you enjoyed this! Heads up that oneshot surprises will now be an ongoing thing. Meaning that there will be times I write/work on a story and upload it without letting you know ;3. Sorry for the delay of TINL's chapter 9 it should be up tomorrow.

Please let me know what you think!