A/N - Because I feel bad that I hadn't updated for a month, I am releasing this chapter EARLY for you guys to enjoy! Please remember to comment and vote but most of all, enjoy ❤️

Chapter 9: An Unexpected Survivor

"So when that weird explosion occurred, that was one of the Akatsuki members dying?" Nia was laying on a futon under the sheets next to Naruto as she had her arm under a pillow to support her head more.

Naruto nodded his head. He was laying on his left side facing the girl with his left elbow bent at a certain angle while his palm held his head up.

"It was wild, ya know? We're sure it was Sasuke who wiped out that Deidara guy. So not only has he killed Itachi and Orochimaru, but also that guy. Oh, and we were informed of one other person he managed to get rid of too."

"Who?"

"Remember that Hanshin guy — or, I mean, Fuyuka? Whatever the hell their name was. The one that had us trapped in that genjutsu right before we had brought you to the Leaf and later on tried to kill us in that ice castle?"

Nia gasped. "What? Are you serious? Sasuke killed her? How do you know?"

"Remember Orochimaru's lackey I told you about: Kabuto? It was that guy who told us."

"Wow... I mean, at least that girl isn't terrorizing people with those genjutsus. That was a really rough experience. I thought I was going to die cause it felt so real."

"Oh yeah... that was crazy. In mine, Sasuke killed everybody then that's when the Nine-Tail's stepped in if I'm remembering correctly."

"That was really weird that you were able to get into my own personal torture... I couldn't believe what the heck was happening..."

Naruto responded, "I was able to free Kakashi from his too, I think. It's strange... I was only able to rescue you two."

"Maybe it's because of this?" Nia showed her hand to him that had kanji engraved into it. "Because he and I are guardians, somehow that must've forged a link between you and us two."

"I wouldn't be surprised if that were the case," The blonde then noticed something missing. "Hey, your wounds healed. Last time I saw you, you were wearing bandages around your hand and eye. I forgot all about that — I'm glad you're alright, sweetie."

"Thanks," The girl smiled as she then felt the young man running his finger down her face. "Is... there something wrong?"

Nia waited for an answer as Naruto just kept caressing her cheek.

"Naruto," She called.

"Oh uh, my bad... I was just thinking about how you've been dying to go on a date, right?"

Nia gasped and quickly nodded. "Yes! Yes! Yes! I really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, rea-"

"Damn, I get it already," The blonde chuckled. "Yeah, we haven't really been able to do that lately. I can tell it really bothers you that we haven't as often done so."

"Yeah... I love dates. It makes me feel amazing, excited, and alive. I really wanna go on one again, Naruto. Please?"

Though he was flatted to observe how enthusiastic she was, it also made him feel down at the same time.

"Sorry, Nia..." He apologized as this only confused the girl.

"I don't get it... You don't... wanna go on a date?"

"It's not that, it's just... I feel like it's bad that you're so excited for it almost like you've just been asked out for the first time. I haven't been doing my job good... I'm sorry I haven't been taking you out as much. You must really be annoyed with me..."

"No... I'm not annoyed," Nia shared her feelings. "I know we've both been super busy with other things to really be doing that sort of thing. Besides, I'm always excited to spend any sort of time with you. Like right now, I'm super happy to just look at your face. By the way, that beaver hat-looking thing you're wearing right now is soooo cuuuute!"

"Hm?" Naruto grabbed onto the sleepwear. "This thing?"

"Yes! You're sooo adorable! I can't stand it!"

"I had this thing since I was a kid... these pajamas too except I just got a bigger size for it since I've grown taller obviously."

"Well, you're just adorbs!"

"Adorbs?" The genin laughed. "What the hell is with you and the way you speak? It's so odd."

"Sorry... I'm strange, I know."

"No... it's cute."

"Hm?"

"You're cute when you get this way... even if you get a bit too eccentric and weird."

"Naruto..." Nia reddened drastically before pulling the sheets over her head and hiding her face from him.

"What? I'm just giving my opinion of you..." He grasped the blanket and tried to pull it down. "And quit hiding from me already... I wanna see you."

"I can't stop blushing; I think I'm gonna die."

"Geez... you're shy no matter what..."

Hearing this, Nia lowered the blanket to just beneath her eyes.

"Who you calling shy, Mister Whiskers?" She joked.

"Oh come on, first Whisker Cheeks and now Mister Whiskers?" Naruto chuckled then pinched her cheek. "Want me to call you Curly Brow again?"

"No, but you can stop pulling on my cheeks, honey..." Nia retaliated by pinching his nose.

"You let go of my nose first, ya know?"

"No," She refused.

Without warning, seeing as she had her guard down within seconds, Naruto took his hand and playfully muffed the girl before cowering away and rolling over to lay on his right.

"Boy, quit playing with me," Nia dug her feet under his shirt and rested it on his lower back.

"Guah!" The blonde jumped and scurried further away from the kunoichi, standing up as he placed his hands on the area she touched. "What the hell? Why are your feet so damn cold?"

Giggling as she stood to her feet also, Nia responded, "That's what you get for muffing me."

With that, she lightly kicked his leg while Naruto quickly poked her side as Nia couldn't stop herself from laughing due to that being a sensitive spot for her.

"Kya! No!" She pranced around the room trying to evade getting tickled.

"Say you're sorry!"

"Noooo! Never!" The girl reached below for a pillow, then got behind a couch as it became sort of a ring-around-the-rosy type of situation.

Being as they were opposite of one another, multiple times they would side step each other until finally, Nia threw her pillow at Naruto's face and finding her opportunity, ran around the couch just as the boy jumped over it then realized she was no longer there once the pillow fell to the floor and no longer obstructed his vision.

"Ahhh, got 'em!" The kunoichi started laughing again before suddenly being caught off guard with some coughing. "Ack! Ack!"

"Oh man, you alright, Nia?" Naruto hopped over to her.

"I'm sor- Ack! Sorry... I'll be just- Ack! F-Fine... Please don't worry about me- Ack! Ack!"

"Here, you need to get some rest now. No more playing around, all right?" The genin guided her to lay back in bed, got in the sheets also, then pulled it over the both of them. "Hopefully, you'll feel a lot better in the morning, baby."

"You sure... you wanna sleep near me tonight?" Nia was worried for his health. "I'll be a bit lonely, but I'd really like for you to sleep in another room so you don't get sick, Naruto. Please?"

"No, if I get sick then I get sick. I'm not gonna leave you here without anyone to watch over you and you just said you'd feel lonely, so I'm staying. I won't let you feel lonely tonight, all right?"

Blushing and feeling butterflies in her stomach from being told that, Nia smiled to herself as she felt immensely relieved that the blonde was will to still nap next to her yet was still very much afraid that he'd catch her cold by doing so.

"You're stubborn," She whispered. "But... thanks for sticking with me and... I'm sorry for the trouble I'm causing right now. Please forgive me?"

"Stop apologizing already, Nia." The young man sighed. "I swear you keep saying sorry for every little thing, ya know? You don't have to do that, sweetie."

"I'm sorry," The girl once more said before gasping and taking back what she spoke. "Oh crap, you just told me not to say that! I'm super sor- Kya! I'm sorry!"

Naruto sweatdropped. "Man, you're hopeless..."

"I know... I'm sorry."

The young man shook his head then laid flat on his back with one arm supporting the back of his head and the other gently hugging Nia to his side.

'Haaah...' The girl was in a daze. 'He's keeping me close to him again. I feel so giddy and happy right now...'

"I just... can't get this whole thing outta my head, ya know?" The blonde carried an anxious expression. "I always thought... that maybe if he were to successfully exact his revenge... he'd probably return to the Leaf, yet... that's not... what happened."

Nia didn't say anything as she just listened.

Naruto frowned. "He's always been someone to allow revenge to cloud his mind. He's always been absolutely obsessed with it! No one was able to stop him from letting it consume him — not me, not Kakashi-sensei, not even Sakura. For the last few years I've tried bringing him back; doing absolutely everything I could to get him to return. Each time I've encountered him though since our battle the first time he left the village, he's always been able to slip right pass all of us..."

"I can see why you're so frustrated..." Nia responded before coughing again. "Excuse me."

"You sure you're okay, Nia?"

"Yes," She answered. "You can continue letting your feelings out now.

"Nah, that's fine," He flipped to his left side, once more facing the kunoichi and bending his left elbow on the futon so that he could rest his head atop his palm. "You really need some sleep. Rest, okay?"

"But... are you sure? You look stressed. We can still talk, honey..." Nia caressed his upper body.

When she did, he gasped — startling her.

"Naruto, why'd you make that sound like that?"

"You're touching me, ya know!" He sounded ecstatic.

"Yes? And?"

"Well, you only touch my chest like that when... you want me to do you, Nia!"

"Whaaat? Hold on," The girl was caught off guard by his answer. "I was just... I..."

Naruto lowered his hand to her hip and rubbed down on it.

"Narutooo," Nia's cheeks became a rosy red as she gently pressed her hands against his chest as a means to keep some distance from him.

"What's wrong?" He slid his hand under her nightgown and was now caressing her thigh. "If you don't like it, then pull my hand away."

"But I..."

"I should've known," He chuckled as he continued what he was doing. "You've been flirting way more than usual once we were alone and separated from everyone, ya know? It's been a two or three days since we've done it, right?"

"N-No... that's not it... it's just... it's just- Mmph~" She tensed when she felt the young man lightly rubbing her panties, "N-Naruto wait~ We can't... I-I'm sick, remem- Ah~ remember?"

"I guess we just won't be kissing or anything then," He sat up and laid his back against the wall while he sat Nia up also and gently rested her back against his chest, "How do you feel right now? Does it feel good?"

"I... I feel embarrassed," She covered her hands over her face as the blonde applied more pressure. "Ahhh~ okay, okay, I admit it, it feels good! It feels really good! Haah~"

"So then you wanna do it, sweetie?"

"O-Only if you'll be gentle with me... if you start getting really rough, I will stop halfway and be upset, honey."

"All right... I'll be gentle," He agreed. "I'm just happy you'll spread your legs for me more easily this time. Finally!"

"D-Does it really make you that happy t-to do this... with me?" Nia looked over her shoulder as she continued to stay red in the face.

"I like you... so yeah, of course I'm excited. What about you?"

"M-Me too... I'm very happy... and really excited also when we do this. I feel good... but Naruto... d-do you have... the condoms on you?"

"What? You don't have any on you?"

"Of course not," The girl shook her head. "You're the one who's always carrying them around. Haah... if I don't have one and you don't have one, then... how are we supposed to do this, Naruto?"

"Just go... without one?" He suggested as if it were a no-brainer.

"I'm serious..."

"I'm serious too, Nia. I'll just pull out."

"You say that but then you don't," Nia replied. "Naruto, this is serious... we can't keep doing this without protection. I can really get pregnant if we're not careful."

"It'll be fine, Nia. I really will just pull out this time, I swear. Besides, I already said that if you were to get all pregnant, I'd take responsibility. It's not like I'd abandon you, ya know?"

"Yeah, but..."

"If you don't wanna do it, then fine, we don't have to, all right?"

"I'm... sorry. I really wanted to be held tonight," The kunoichi whimpered as she faced the genin and rested her hand on his arm. "I hope you're not mad or anything..."

"It's whatever, I guess," Naruto laid back down. "Try to get some sleep then."

Nia lowered her eyes in disappointment.

'I really, really wanted to be held...' She thought as she gazed at the blonde trying to fall asleep. 'What am I gonna do? My desire is really high today... I wanna be kissed, have my hand held, and feel amazing, but... I could get pregnant. I could end up-'

"Nia, you gonna snuggle here with me or what?" Naruto snapped her out of her thoughts.

Nia just averted her eyes as she responded, "Erm... I um... sex... is fine with me... as long as it is with you... Naruto."

"What?" He sat up and started to redden.

"Please don't make me say this again," She mumbled as she was too timid to look him in the eye. "T-This... is embarrassing, but... I... really want... to have... sex with you... r-right now even if... there's no condom. I want to make love tonight!"

"What?! Are you sure?!" The ninja grabbed her upper arms. "I just said it's fine if you don't want to! I'm not gonna force you or anything."

"I... want to do it."

"Nia," Naruto cupped her cheek. "Don't let yourself do this if you're not-"

"I said I'm willing to do this, Naruto!"

"Err, well... if you're willing to take the risk then... me too, ya know?" He consented also before leaning in and inching his lips toward Nia's.

However, before he could, the door to their room was slammed open.

"YOU GUYS!" Kiba made the two flinch dramatically. "Kakashi-sensei ordered for a meeting right away! Get out of your pajamas and grab your travel coats also!"

"Wait, what's going on, Kiba?!" Naruto quickly did as told and ran out of the room, leaving Nia completely behind.

Groaning in absolute irritation as she slipped out of her nightgown and into her gear, the girl then packed her bags and followed the two boys into the hallway until they entered into another room where the rest of the group was.

'Ugh! This better be something important or I'm gonna flip!' She took a seat next to Hinata who suddenly gave the girl a stare so intense, it sent shivers down her spine. 'What the hell is going on? She really just gave me a dirty look just now...'

"Sorry to wake everyone from your sleep, but I got some urgent news pertaining to the Akatsuki. It seems they're on the move again..." Kakashi announced.

'Oh boy...' Nia already knew what was coming.

"WHAT?! ALREADY?!" Naruto made a scene. "They just lost two members in a short amount of time and these guys are already back at it? Especially after Sasuke managed to kill someone as strong as Itachi?"

"They're very ambitious, I'll give them that." Yamato crossed his arms as Sakura spoke next.

"So if you know they're on the move again, does that mean you know exactly where they're headed, Sensei?"

Kakashi shook his head. "Not necessarily... but we've been ordered to head back to the village immediately. There will be no sleeping until we get there."

"Man, what a bummer," Kiba yawned then rubbed his dog's back. "Just when I was having a good dream too..."

"Um... has the rain lighten up by any chance?" Nia asked just as Hinata once more gave her a very annoyed glare, causing the girl to feel uncomfortable.

"I'd also like to know that too," Shino shared.

"Actually, yes... it has." Yamato answered for the two. "It might still be murky, but overall it should be safe to travel, though we will be walking through a lot of it due to it being a bit too dangerous to run in a foggy environment."

"So then... is everyone ready to head back?" The copy-cat ninja stood up and gave everyone a thumbs up.

"Yes, Kakashi-sensei," The young adults all replied as they threw on their travel coats and headed out.

And so, hours went by as the group made their way back into the Hidden Leaf. However, as they were making their way to the front gates by the time it was morning, it appeared that someone had been waiting for them all — someone very important and unexpected.

"Nia, you doing alright?" Naruto checked up on the girl as her cold seemed to have gotten worse.

It was so bad by this time that she had completely lost her voice and was forced to communicate with gestures.

Nia shook her head to the genin's question. She pressed against her throat then made another gesture to him to signal that it was hurting.

"Sakura, you can't do anything to help her?!" He panicked. "She can't even speak anymore for crying out loud!"

"Naruto, I already told you. I looked at her throat and it's clear she has strep throat. When we get to the hospital, we'll provide her with better treatment, all right? She'll be just fine."

"But-"

"Oh my! It couldn't be! Yes, it really is!" A voice drew everyone's attention to a well-dressed man running directly in their direction from the inside of the village with his arms spread wide. "I've finally found you, my Queen! MISS NIA!"

"GUAH!" Naruto took immediate action once he identified the young man, jumped in front of Nia then kicked the green-eyed boy right on his face, causing him to collapse onto his back, grabbing onto his face as he rolled around the dirt back and forth. "YOU STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM HER DAMMIT!"

Yamato, Hinata, and Shino all gasped in amazement once they realized who the young lad was.

"Yamato, you've met this kid before?" Kakashi had observed his comrade's expression to make the assumption he knew the boy.

"Y-Yeah... He was the prince from the Hidden Steam... but..."

"We were told he was killed by one of the Akatsuki," Shino finished as the gentleman got himself together and bowed.

"I am whom they call Akihiko, my peasants. I am the son of the late feudal lord, Akihiro, and I have traveled all this way to issue an order of my queen who was stolen from me by that awfully incompetent boy standing right there before you," He then pointed at Naruto. "I wish to take her back and wed her in front of my people back at home. This is not a request, but an order, my lesser subordinates."

"Wow... you're really... a prince?" Sakura slightly blushed as she was also attracted to the man's appearance.

"I don't give a rats ass if he's the king of the world!" Naruto growled as he made sure to keep Nia behind him. "Look! I don't know how the hell you're still alive after we were informed you had been killed, but let's make something clear pal: you will never, and I mean NEVER... get Nia to marry you and have your horde of babies! Over my dead body, Aki-trash."

"I DEMAND you hand her over or I will force you to surrender her to-"

"Oh yeah?! And how are you gonna do that?! You can't even defend yourself let alone protect her! Oh, and last time I remember... YOU TRIED TO KILL ME!"

"I tell you the truth when I say it was not I who poisoned you! You were fooled into thinking it was me by a woman!" Akihiko defended himself as Nia had to hold Naruto back from trying to brawl with him.

"What the hell are you talking about?! You know damn well it was you! You even tried to hurt Nia when I was suffering from the effects of it and-"

"THAT WAS NOT ME I TELL YOU!" He raised his voice. "It was not I who poisoned you then lured Miss Nia into a room separate from you all! You see... I was brutally beaten down and kidnapped sometime after Nia had shared her troubling story with me during nighttime. There... was a woman who took on my appearance to deceive you all so she could poison you easily! She said it was all an attempt to murder Miss Nia."

"That doesn't make sense," Yamato stepped back into the conversation and pointed at the blonde. "Naruto was the one who was in imminent danger, not Nia. Though she was the one to give her life to save him, Naruto was the one originally-"

"No, it was all part of a ruse to rid of Miss Nia. This woman... I can't remember her name, but... she said that she had the power to read the minds of others and determine what is in their hearts and what sorts decisions they'd most likely make in any given situation. This woman... she knew that if she were to make you ill the way you were, Miss Nia would ultimately sacrifice herself to help you. It was all a plan to rid of her."

Hearing this, Nia tugged on the genin's shirt as she seemed to put the puzzles together on who this person was that Akihiko was speaking of. However, because she couldn't talk nor make any gestures relating to the attacker, no one was able to understand her.

"Someone who's able to read minds?" Sakura was trying to figure things out herself.

Surveying the area while everyone discussed whom this person might've been, Nia spotted a stick and grabbed it — immediately finding a spot to write the name of the person down whom had struck the prince.

———

A/N - Yep that's the end of that! Thanks for reading everyone! Hope you enjoyed! Please comment and vote and have a great night ❤️

QOTD:

1. Fave Part?

2. Fave Line?

3. What do you guys think of the beef between Naruto and our returning Akihiko? 😂