He kept his mind blank, tried not to think beyond the need to breathe and eat. All thoughts led back to his enlarged gut. His swollen ankles and feet. His aching back and ribs. His headache, his hunger, his bladder. But he said not a word to Kabuto, who pulled and dragged him all the way. This silence from his patient made the "doctor" fairly upset. If not for the growing life inside of him, Sasuke would have been beaten, would have been whipped and kicked and bruised every night until he understood what he was there for, why Kabuto kept him alive for. But his mound of a belly, rotund and already grown through three shirt sizes, reminded the man that any stress could be fatal to the already fatigued boy. Instead, he choose to keep the boy alive by feeding him, by massaging his tense muscles and pushing him to every new town and village. He did not tell him that they were being followed or that soon they would have to find a more permanent station of operation, though he could have come to some understanding about that by himself. After all, he was carrying twins in a body already unprepared for one child. Already only five and a half months along, he would soon need constant bed-rest to ensure the safety of the babies.

They were in a dug-out Kabuto had set up the night before. Unless someone got very close, the "hole" would look like just that, a hole covered by leaves and dirt. If they were able to avoid the various traps and alarms placed around the small camp, they would find that it was really a tarp propped up around a circular, twelve-foot deep hole accessible by a steep slope. It contained a raised cot upon which lay a thick comforter and pillow, a small gas stove, and a few canvas bags that held all of Kabuto's supplies. On the cot slept Sasuke, exhausted from their hike the night before. It was becoming difficult for him to sleep; his belly, constantly itching and heavy with the kicks and pushes of the two small bodies within, kept him in the most uncomfortable positions. He could feel them, the clones of Orochimaru, swim happily inside of him, could feel their kicks and grabs at his internal organs. He hated them and was sure they felt the same way if their abuse was any indication. He wanted only to sleep, to just doze off for a moments. They were the ones who kept him awake, who kept him in constant pain. He prayed to whatever god there was that they would die and never bother him again, would dream of them simply disappearing and waking up to his flat stomach. Yet when he would awake, there it was; his large, swollen gut. So now he lay awake with the blanket wrapped around him as tightly as possible. Kabuto wasn't there; he was trying to find food or something. Not that Sasuke particularly cared anymore. Let Naruto or anyone else find him, because at least then they-they babies-would be forced out of the place they now occupied. They weren't really babies; no, in his mind they were snakes. They were water snakes that swam around and around in his stomach, ate whatever dropped into his stomach and made pillows out of his liver and kidneys. No, he would not put up a fight if it meant escaping this.

He shut his eyes against the small amount of sunlight that made its way into the enclosure. He thought he could hear the sound of leaves being crunched, of human voices making loud noise. He gathered himself from the cot, mindful of the weight directly in front of him. Kabuto was never so loud, barely ever made a sound even when they were alone together. With some difficulty, he braced his back for pulling himself for the now almost impossible task of standing. He would be useless in a few weeks. The snakes, for that was what they were to him, wiggled wildly in protest to the sudden, uninvited movement. He ignored them, simply placing a hand to his middle more for balance than to comfort them. Yes, there was human noise, talking and the breaking if trigs and leaves. In his mind, he saw them combing the area, looking under every rock and log, behind every tree. With some satisfaction he saw Kabuto's plan fail. Anything would be worth that. With that in mind he crept slowly to the slope he had used to descend into the dug-out only days before. The sky was overcast, with the trees devouring any remainder of sunlight left to him by the clouds. The ninjas gave themselves away, for it was too silent. No bird song or squirrel chatter could be heard from the world above. He swallowed, began to rub his distended belly with both hands so as to calm them, as their swift, determined rolls and summer-saults made it impossible for him to think clearly.

Then he heard the first bomb go off, then another. There was a sharp yelp followed by a loud slam as one thing crushed another. He heard a louder, closer explosion which rattled the ground upon which he stood. Sasuke was then forced to wonder if the hole was stable. But he dared not move now, not when they were noisily-

Kabuto was dead. They were being so noisy because they weren't hiding from him, just taking care of his mess. Why did this make him so afraid? Did they know he was here? Did they know what he was now? He wanted to hide, but knew there was nowhere to go. Soon they would find the camp, the hole, him. He didn't want to think about what theywould to him now. Before, maybe it would've been a beating, a few broken bones and concussion. Maybe rape maybe not depending on who was in attendance. As many insults as they could remember from the academy. And then a mock trial and execution. But now what would they do to him when they found him? He clutched his stomach, felt them move under the surface and hated them. Maybe they would cut him open like a pig…So he waited, and waited and hoped that when they did find him, that they would cut him open, would kill him or kill them. Because he couldn't do that now, couldn't when he knew there was nothing else for him, for his clan.

His heart skipped a quick beat when he actually heard their words. They were being awfully loud even if Kabuto was dead. They were discussing the traps. He thought he heard his name being called, didn't move. They could find him. He heard a smaller explosion and figured they were trying to force him out. Let them be surprised at what they found. Well, at least he would have that.

They did find him. It was much quieter than he thought it would be. First it was two chuunins no older than he himself. He said nothing to them, waited for them to get their commander, who asked him if he was Sasuke Uchiha. He told that he was, held up his hands and told him that he would come carefully. The commander nodded and called to someone out of his field of vision. It was Kakashi who came, who looked him over with pity, curiosity and disgust.

Sasuke was to be kept in Kakashi's tent, as par Kakashi's own orders. It was much warmer, much nicer than Kabuto's hole. A medic, to his own credit hiding whatever nervousness he might have had, examined his large belly, while he told them, his voice monotone and flat, what had been done to his body.

"How far along do you think you are?"

"Five months."

"And he said you were carrying twins?"

"Yes."

The medic brought a stethoscope and listened in, his face betraying nothing more than mild surprise when he finally found the small heart beats. Kakashi said nothing during the examination, just kept his eyes on his former student.

"There they are," he motioned for Kakashi to come forward and listen, only for his offer to be declined with a wave of the hand. The medic wrapped the tool around his neck. "I don't think he's lying, sir. When we get back to the village we'll have to run some tests, but based upon this examination alone I'd say he is in fact twenty-three weeks with twins."

Kakashi nodded, his face forever calm and hidden. "How do you feel, Sasuke?" His voice betrayed worry, fear. But it wasn't all for Sasuke's sake. He was pregnant.

"Fine," he lied. His head was killing him but he did not dare let them know that. What did they expect him to feel?

Kakashi nodded. "Could he…?" he asked the medic.

He shrugged, "I wouldn't give him too much. Genjutsu is out of the question if you want him alive. But a mild sedative should keep him relaxed."

"Do it."

The medic produced a syringe from his coat and quickly injected the boy with the sedative. "You should start to feel sleepy in a few minutes. Don't try and fight it," Kakashi told him. He and the medic helped him back into his clothes. Sasuke did not fight them, just as he had not fought Kabuto. "You'll stay in my tent tonight and tomorrow we'll begin back to the Village. It should take four days. Will you be ok?" He did looked very concerned. It dawned upon Sasuke that he probably looked like a wreck. His hair was probably a mess, he knew he had lost weight everywhere besides his stomach. What, he wondered, did he look like to Kakashi? Probably not a hardened criminal, but more like very sick invalid.

"I feel fine."

Kakashi watched as Sasuke fidgeted in his sleep, his body shifting in search for that perfect, painless spot. He couldn't help but feel thankful that he was asleep.

"How is he really?"

The medic shook his head, rubbed his neck, "Well, he's pregnant, sir-"

"Yeah, but-?"

"He's underweight, sleep deprived, and it can't be easy for him to walk around. If it wasn't for his obvious exhaustion and psychological damage-you do want him alive, right?-I would say we just cut him open here."

"Maybe we should," he took another look at the almost peaceful looking boy, "The, um, the…the babies wouldn't survive, would they?"

"That wasn't what I was thinking. You want to build trust with him? What would you do with someone you did not who trust who just cuts you up in the middle of nowhere? He's in no mental state for that."

"So we should just wait?" The boy let out a moan, shifted a little. Kakashi bent down, caressed his head and cheek.

"Yes, until we get to the village where we can treat him better. We just don't know what to expect from this. I-I don't even know how this could happen."

Kakashi nodded, "He's probably in denial…"

"Of course he is. He sounded so out of it, Kakashi. He wanted us to find him."

"And why wouldn't he?" It had dawned on Kakashi that Sasuke might be suicidal. Of course, this thought was nothing new to him, but the fact disturbed him none the less. Would they still execute him like this?

Sasuke's groaning became worse. He rubbed his belly tenderly, formless words hissing from his lips. Kakashi took his hand and held it in his while the medic gave him another, smaller dose of the sedative. It was enough to calm Sasuke back into sleep, though his free hand still rested on the large, round mound that was his stomach. Kakashi, out of curiosity, couldn't help but place his own free hand beside Sasuke's. He drew it back, as quickly as he would throw a kunai, when he felt something beneath the flesh move. And it was real for him.