Chapter 48

"Sakura, you need to tell him," Kakashi said while we stood by the van, waiting for the others to return from the rest stop so we could get back on the road.

It's been two and a half days since we left Konoha, and my condition wasn't improving, that's for sure. I kept my gaze on the ground, not responding because he already knew what I'd say. Until I have absolutely no time or choice left, I'm not doing it.

It feels as though I'm delusional, trying to convince myself that all these symptoms are merely from whatever ailment's turning my skin colors and sapping my energy, but yesterday, it kind of sank in.

Who am I trying to kid?

I'm absolutely, positively pregnant.

It occurred to me yesterday because I officially became a week late for my monthly cycle. Once in a while, it'd fluctuate by a day or two, but never seven entire days.

Rather than break into sobs and have a panic attack, I'd sat there in the back seat of the van with a blank face and mind. Acceptance brought some clarity I never expected. Now that I know what's going on with me, the "unknown" pile has become slightly smaller, offering a strange type of comfort.

"Your turn, Saku!" Izumi approached with a broad, friendly grin.

The young woman has proven to be a moral booster on this trip, not just for me but for others. If the mood became too heavy, she'd expertly start a conversation on some random topic to distract everyone. It hasn't failed once.

I think Temari was correct when she said she believes Itachi's begun to fall for Izumi. The smile he gets when she's speaking directly to him is one I've never seen, almost entirely carefree.

Closing the bathroom door behind me, I turned to cross the room, only to freeze when I caught a glimpse of my reflection.

No. No. No! This can't be happening. Not yet.

It was subtle, but it was there, the first hint of a baby bump under my dress. It took two days for my body to go from underweight to this. What will it look like when we arrive in Iwa in two more days?

Sasuke must find out before then, or Kakashi will tell him in my stead. That was the agreement we'd come to. How can I do it, though? We haven't been alone for more than an hour since leaving Konoha. Sure, Madara would be the next person I tell, but my fiance deserves to find out alone.

After emptying my bladder, I washed my hands and gritted my teeth. I just have to do it. I'll give myself a deadline. Tomorrow before dark, Sasuke Uchiha will know that he's a father. If I wait any longer, it'd just be disrespectful.

So, we got back on the road. At some point in the middle of that same night, I woke up in a panic because alarms were going off inside me like sirens. Sasuke turned in the front seat to meet my eye, likely having heard my heavier breathing.

Realizing it was just like when we were traveling to Sunagakure and had been attacked, I blurted out, "W-We're in danger! Get off the-!" It was too late.

A loud thump, akin to driving over something significant, sounded, and then the vehicle was flipping. Once. Twice. Three times. Then, it came to a bloody, shattered-glass-filled stop. I lay stunned, staring at the smashed front windshield from where I'd landed on the van's ceiling. It had stopped upside down.

"Sakura! Sakura, are you alright?" Kakashi's face came into view, snapping me out of my daze.

I grabbed his outreached hand, and he pulled me out of the destroyed vehicle as gently as possible. Other than some mild bodily discomfort and minor cuts, I at least didn't feel seriously injured. Once on my feet, I saw Madara accept Sasuke's offered hand and stand up, both with eyes ablaze and searching the vicinity for what'd caused the crash.

"Is everyone alright?" Itachi asked, blood dirtying a large portion of his shirt. The wound had already healed, though.

Kakashi grabbed my shoulders, looking me over with wide, attentive eyes, "Did you hit anything? Are you hurt, Sakura? Answer me."

Sasuke's arm came around my waist, and Kakashi stepped back with a look of realization. I knew why he acted that way, but no one else did, so it seemed out of character.

The prince said, "We need to get away from the road. Whoever did this isn't going to just leave."

He knelt, gesturing wordlessly for me to get onto his back so I wouldn't slow them down in my weakened state. Frowning, I obeyed, and then the five of us moved through a barren forest. There were no leaves, and almost everything was dead. The air was dry and hot.

With my arms wrapped around Sasuke's shoulders, I buried my face into his shoulder. The alarms were no longer going off.

Was it Amegakure that attacked us? If so, why didn't they follow up after successfully flipping the van? What if they're chasing us, and my senses aren't as stable because of my condition? There are too many questions and not enough answers!

An hour passed with no changes, and then we stopped because we'd come upon a large cave to rest in. I weakly leaned against the wall of the natural shelter and tried to gauge my body's condition. Maybe it was shock from being in a car wreck, but I felt next to nothing, just the sting of the tiny cuts the shattered glass had caused. They weren't healing, but Kakashi had warned us that was likely to happen before we even left the castle.

Things were utterly silent for a few minutes before I realized Sasuke and Madara were both giving Kakashi warning looks to back off, and the white-haired vampire was staring at me with the same concerned expression from earlier.

I mouthed, "Stop it," to him, but his eyes just narrowed.

"Maybe it's just because I'm not as familiar with you all as you are with each other, but does it feel super tense and awkward, or is it just me?" Itachi nodded, gently grabbing her hand and guiding her to the cave's far end so they'd be out of the way when things inevitably hit the fan.

"As the one most likely to keep a cool head, allow me to ask: Why are you so interested in our fledgling, Kakashi?" Madara asked, staring dangerously down his nose at the man with crossed arms.

Again, the vampire in question's eyes remained locked on mine.

The two Uchiha royals seemed to pick up on the fact that I knew the reason and turned to look at me.

This can't be happening. I know the timer is almost out on my self-imposed deadline, but this definitely wasn't how I planned to tell anyone, much less Sasuke.

My eyes narrowed into a glare on Kakashi, anger fueling them to turn red. Against what I expected him to say, he calmly spoke, "Release that glare and save your energy. You're going to need it."

"Sakura, what are you not telling us?" Sasuke asked.

The rage disappeared when I turned my gaze onto him. I don't have a choice. We're doing this now.

Giving up, I straightened my posture, "Can we go for a walk? I need to talk to you alone."

The prince shared a glance with Madara, then Kakashi, and then returned his gaze to me with a nod and an outreached hand. Our fingers interlaced, and we walked in complete silence for around ten minutes so we'd be completely out of earshot of the others.

That's when the Uchiha man said, "Tell me." I looked over to see he was staring with a serious face. He picked up on my unease, "Something's been bothering you for days. Tell me what it is, Sakura. Now's not the time to hide things, especially from me."

Tearing up, I shook my head, voice wavering as I turned my eyes down, "I know."

Sasuke stopped walking, grabbing my other hand so I'd be forced to face him. His voice was softer, "Is it because of how I proposed? I'm sorry. I know you-" "It's not that," I cut him off.

Here goes….

Lifting my gaze to meet his, I burst into tears, the confession leaving my lips in a terrified voice that didn't even sound like mine, "I-I'm pregnant, Sasuke."

The hands holding mine tensed, the man's entire being turning to stone. Before I could say anything else, and before he could snap out of it, we both sensed something quickly approaching.

Sasuke's eyes lit bright red, and he picked me up before breaking into a run in the direction of the cave where we left the others. Looking over his shoulder, I gasped when I saw a dozen vines shooting toward us at the same speed we were moving. If the prince slowed, we'd be impaled or at least captured.

Suddenly, he turned to the right and sprinted in that direction instead.

"Don't run, Coward! Fight me like a man!"

It was Kisame's voice that rang through the dead trees. At least two Amegakure vampires were chasing us. Assuming Yahiko would stay with Konan just because she's pregnant would be stupid. There's no telling what they'll do.

My eyes widened when I saw Kisame's form swiftly approaching us. Glancing at Sasuke's shoulder, I realized he couldn't move any faster while carrying me, but he'd sooner die than put me down. I lifted my gaze to Kisame's face again.

If I don't do something, we will both be caught.

Holding handfuls of Sasuke's shirt, I forced my eyes ablaze, wincing when I began destroying the bases of trees as we passed them so they'd fall in the Ame vampire's path.

"Sakura, stop!"

The increasingly familiar fire shot through my torso, heat filling me to the brink, and I cried out, having no choice but to deactivate everything because I couldn't keep it up any longer. I don't know what happened directly after that, but Sasuke knelt before me when I woke up. My entire body hurt, likely from the wreck since the shock had passed.

"Can you sit up on your own?"

I nodded, wincing as I did as requested.

The prince pushed my hair from my face, searching it before looking over my arms.

All I could do was stare because he hadn't said a word about my pregnancy. I watched as his dark eyes inspected my skin, long fingers gentle despite how dangerous I know they can be. What is he thinking about? What is he feeling? Usually, I can tell, but right now, I'm too frazzled to think straight.

Tears welled up, and my breath hitched as I tried to stop them.

Sasuke's gaze darted up to lock onto mine, his gorgeous face stoic and guarded. I expected him to yell at me for keeping it from him for so long or give me the silent treatment as I have him for the past week.

No. Sasuke's brow furrowed, emotion suddenly bleeding into his dark eyes. He's just as scared as me.

My tears overflowed when he ran a hand into my hair and leaned forward to press his forehead to mine, his eyes closing. He wasn't quick enough to hide that they were watering, though.

"Sasuke, I'm so sorry. I-" "Don't."

He kissed me before pulling away to look over me again, "Did Tsunade's child survive?" I was stunned. The prince had put the dots together without me even having to explain.

Tears fell slowly down my cheeks as I shook my head and wiped at them with trembling fingers, "It was twins, and no. Neither survived. K-Kakashi believes it's also twins for us."

This time, I expected Sasuke to react a little since it wasn't just one baby but two.

Instead, he focused his glare on my midsection, "Will you have her fix this once she's rescued?" It wasn't a demand. I've spent the last couple of days agonizing over how I'd respond to my fiance when he inevitably tried to force a termination of the pregnancy.

"I won't do that."

Sasuke nodded with an expression that said he'd already known where I stood before asking. There was a long pause before he asked much more softly, "How long until…?"

I pulled my knees up to my chest and wrapped my arms around them, burying my face there, "I think I'm around a month along…maybe. I don't know. Kakashi said Tsunade almost made it to term."

"Does anyone else know?"

"Just Kakashi and Ino."

"Ino?" The man's brow arched as he became upset that she found out before him.

Lifting my head, I shook it and said, "She heard Kakashi's thoughts. There's no hiding anything when she's around."

A long silence followed, the prince searching my face with a frown before finally speaking in a much quieter voice than before, "You're not allowed to die."

My lips came into a flat line as I wiped at my tears and nodded, feeling lower than low. If I don't survive this, he'll be completely destroyed.