Hello everyone! It's my first time writing a SasuNaru/NaruSasu fanfic. I got the sudden inspiration in school. It hit me with a great big WHAM! And my fingers typed faster than usual to produce this first chapter. Of course, I had my homework to complete as well but... Heh. Maybe that's why I typed a bit quicker too. Well, I'm really not sure whether there will be lemons in here (I know you're all out there, peverted people!) but we'll see. I never really had a touch for writing lemons to begin with. So anyways, instead of wasting your time any further, enjoy!
Dislcaimer: I don't own Naruto. I only own the characters I CREATE. Bless the power of our imaginations.
The Company
"Alright, I'm here everyone! Sing your praises, Uzumaki Naruto has entered the building! What shit have you got for me today, Manager?" The enthusiastic blonde of seventeen slapped both of his hands down onto the wooden oak table in front of him.
His manager let his eyes examine every part of the young adult's body. Naruto had a deep, flat chest to go with his lean yet muscled body. His limbs were long and flexible, crucial for the job Naruto was in. He was endowed with mop of naturally spiky blonde hair that was soft to the touch and with a beautiful deep golden tan on every inch of his body, both rarities in people. His had a sharp, angular face, a pointed nose and a nicely-curved chin. Three whisker-like scars adorned each side of his face on each cheek — six in total, making him look somewhat like a fox yet rugged all the same in his own way.
Last of all, those unrestrained, aquamarine eyes, an ever so fair blue, always glittering and sparkling with so many emotions. Eyes which were essential to Naruto's profession. They hung below blonde eyebrows, also part of his natural make-up.
Yes folks, Uzumaki Naruto is a model. One of the top male models, in fact.
"Don't give me that, you arrogant, full-of-yourself twit! Your inflated head is twice it's size now!" His manager bonked him on the head with a black clipboard.
And it just so happened that his manager was Umino Iruka.
"Ow, watch the face!" Naruto whined, massaging the spot where Iruka had mercilessly hit. "This face helped you earn all your money and fame, Iruka-sensei!"
"And this boy gave me so much trouble and wasted five years of this company's time!" Iruka roared, red in the face from anger.
"Alright, alright, you don't have to bring up that time…" Naruto avoided his gaze and pouted. "It wasn't my fault anyway! How did you expect a seven-year-old kid accept an offer to become a model? There's no such shit!"
Iruka sank back down onto his leather armchair and lightly rubbed his temples. The Ralph Lauren blouse and the Giorgio Armani pants he wore were lightly creased despite the impact. He straightened his tie and flipped through some documents on the table. This boy was going to be the end of him.
"Here's your next project. You're to fly to Japan for your next photo shoot."
"Japan? Really?" Naruto's eyes widened and glittered with excitement. "Let's go! Motherland of ramen, here I come!" The young adult started to rush out of Iruka's air-conditioned office only to have the back of his head meet with a plastic bottle. "Ow! What the hell? What was that for, Iruka-sensei?"
"Sit down!" Iruka ordered. "I haven't even briefed you about the job yet!"
Naruto sulked and sullenly sat down onto the guest sofa, muttering gibberish. Stretching his face into an unearthly grimace to show that he was trying to make it look as if he was listening but in truth he wasn't, he turned to Iruka. This was accompanied with the impatient shaking of his right leg, clothed in Calvin Klein.
"I don't like this any better than you do, brat." Iruka sighed, shuffling through more papers. "This particular project doesn't have any themes for you to follow but you are required to work with someone for the shoot. The photo shoot itself will last for about a month, it seems. If not more."
"Iruka-sensei, has the bastards of this company gone completely insane?" Naruto shot up from his seat. "What sort of freaking photo shoot lasts more than a month?" He flailed his arms
"Our company is paying the great photographer—," Iruka started.
"I don't give a damn about who's the photographer, Iruka-sensei. Just tell me why does it have to last a freaking month!" Naruto whined.
Iruka took a deep breath and slowly counted up to ten.
"Because you will be going for a modeling course with the person you're working with. And the course isn't going to be completed in three days."
"Why do I need to go for one? I'm great enough already, aren't I?" Naruto grinned at his manager, flashing brilliant white teeth.
"Naruto…" Iruka had a visible vein throbbing on his forehead.
"Alright, alright, I kid. What's so good about this modeling course anyway? And who am I working with? Some hot chic, I hope?" Naruto eyed Iruka's right hand warily, for it was the one which was always holding the evil black clipboard.
"You will be working with Uchiha Sasuke, your rival in the fashion industry, also another leading top male model."
Another young adult, smartly dressed, perfect clothes — not a wrinkle nor crease on the pieces of fabric — entered another office at the other side of New York. He sat with his usual stoic expression that has captured the hearts and eyes of not only many girls, women and sometimes men but many worldwide companies. He walked with a regal elegance, leading those who watched him to respect his existence even… but he did not care for that. He entered the modeling business with just one motive and one motive only.
"Well, Sasuke. There's another project on our hands." His manager watched the young adult's reaction with his one eye.
A slightly raised face, with an elegant arch of an eyebrow.
Not too bad a reaction. In the years Hatake Kakashi had worked with the stoic boy, these movements meant that he showed curiosity. Very interesting indeed.
Hatake Kakashi was no less dressed in the latest styles, branded clothes of course. Gucci, DKNY Jeans, True Religion… You name it, he has it. Being a manager of one of the world's top models, what can anyone expect? Kakashi's style was just as great as his clothes. Original and natural silver hair that spiked to one side with half of his face always underneath a dark blue cotton mask, specially tailored. The mask covered even his left eye and left only a quarter of his face exposed to the world.
Uchiha Sasuke was also quite a wonder to behold. With jet black, also naturally spiked hair that was also very silky on the hands, bangs that fell to either side of his face with the rest spiking outwards. It appeared to be the darkest of blues if exposed to bright lighting and it flowed in the wind, often drawing heavenly sighs or envious stares as he walked by.
Sasuke had a beautifully carved face, with curved, soft edges, an elegantly pointed chin and the perfect nose. Having pale skin came from his lineage as he was born into the great Uchiha family. His skin was something else, it was forever unblemished and the shade of pale it took was of pale moonlight, not a sickly white, that gave you the impression you were staring at a vampire. Long limbs matched a lean, muscular body — he had an equally great physique.
And those eyes… Onyx eyes that bore through anyone's soul with a piercing gaze from their owner. Emotion that was kept inside Sasuke reflected off his deep gaze clearly and when angry, Kakashi noted, those eyes glowed a dangerous red. People were have known to drop onto their knees from the infamous Uchiha glare. There was no question that Uchiha Sasuke too, was a prized possession of the fashion industry.
"You will be flying to Japan for a month-long modeling course with another model. You will undergo training and a few photo shoots for the big fashion magazines. You will be leaving next week. Good luck." Kakashi smiled from behind his mask. "Oh and the person you'll be working with? He's your rival in the modeling industry, top male model Uzumaki Naruto."
So both parties were to take the same plane to go to the same place. Events were definitely to ensue, but what of the results?
"Wha! Iruka-sensei, take a look at that! This is really some sweet ride!" Naruto bounced up and down in his seat, giving Iruka a major migraine.
"Would you stay still? You're a young adult not some hyperactive brat!" Iruka screamed at him. Their flight had just taken off, from New York to Japan.
"But you gotta admit this rocks! I've never been on first class before! Now, for food!" Naruto pressed the flight attendant button beside his seat and rubbed his hands excitedly.
Iruka resisted the urge to groan. He was the manager of a top model, and managers did not groan.
"You're supposed to remain expressionless and stun the camera. Not to go ballistic at the sight of ramen only, you know." Iruka reprimanded.
"Can I have a bowl of miso ramen, please? With some extra chashu on it. Thanks!" Naruto grinned at the female flight attendant who served him.
The female smiled right back at him and in a few minutes came back with a steaming bowl of what the model wanted. As Naruto dug into the food, Iruka noticed some red lipstick on Naruto's napkin. He unfolded it and saw that a number had been hastily scribbled on the napkin. Iruka's eye started to twitch once more.
"Werrgh? Howf that fur mwodelling?" Naruto spoke with noodles in his mouth, spraying broth all over Iruka's shield, which was Naruto's napkin in the first place.
Iruka folded the napkin and didn't reply. Looking out through the window, he smiled, he was really getting fond of the boy. It had been five long years of work with this boy. Naruto often acted like a child but showed an amazing sense of empathy and maturity at times. Iruka smiled fondly at Naruto who was wolfing down his second bowl of ramen. Having no family of his own due to his hectic job, he came to take Naruto as his own son.
"Hey, Iruka-sensei, it's a plasma TV!" Naruto shot up from his seat, disturbing the peace in the first class area of the plane again.
The bowl on his lap, thankfully empty but unfortunately oily landed smack onto Iruka's head, covering half his head.
"Ah! Uh… Iruka-sensei? Uh…" Naruto stammered, realizing his mistake.
He was an obnoxious brat after all.
"NARUTO! YOU SIT DOWN AT ONCE!" Iruka roared at him after handing the bowl to a flight attendant.
A slight chaos then exploded with Naruto getting chased around the plane with an infuriated Iruka running right after him, screaming blue murder. When they had finally settled down after three rounds of running in the plane, Iruka used several more pieces of rope to tie Naruto to his seat. His seatbelt, apparently, wasn't enough. But knowing Naruto, something was going to stir up again.
And he did. One and a half minutes later.
"Iruka-sensei! Can't you at least untie some of the rope?" Naruto whined, squirming in his seat.
"No." Iruka casually flipped through the latest edition of Vogue.
"But I need to take a leak, dammit!" Naruto fidgeted.
Iruka's eye twitched as he tried to pretend he didn't know the boy screaming next to him at the moment while secretly taking a pair of scissors and slicing off the bounds in one go. That's exactly what he did though. Praise the skills of the manager.
Naruto, on the other hand had rushed of to the W.C. feeling that nature's call was a bit too much for him to handle at the moment. When he came out of the washroom, however, he crashed right into another person, making both parties stagger away from the force of the blow.
"Hey asshole, watch it!" Naruto rubbed his shoulder, glaring at the raven.
"I could say the same." Sasuke glared back. "Since I wasn't the one running."
Naruto opened his mouth to argue then stopped. He took a good look at the guy in front of him. Pale skin, black hair and midnight-black eyes. Also looked to be about the same age as he was, at the prime of youth. But being a model, you get used to seeing dazzling people everyday. Naruto got up and sighed, offering a handshake.
"Sorry 'bout that." He scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "Just a bit pissed at my manager."
"Hn." Came the reply, as the owner of the voice made his way to the sink to wash his hands.
OK, his attitude sucked.
"Hey! What the—," Naruto recoiled, annoyed. "I know I was wrong and I already said sorry! Why'd you have to be such an ass about it?"
Sasuke slid his eyes across and glanced at the angry figure of Naruto. Both were the same height and it didn't make much difference if Naruto was bending down a little, holding his fists from anger. Sasuke closed his eyes and proceeded to take some paper towels.
"Hey, don't ignore me, you bastard!" Naruto cried, gritting his teeth.
"Stop shouting, you'll overwork that small brain of yours." Sasuke scoffed, walking away.
"Take that back, you moron!" Naruto aimed a punch at him.
Sasuke swiftly dodged the punch and glared at him. Naruto smirked and held up both of his fists, ready to attack.
"Let's see who's talking big now!" Naruto challenged.
"I don't waste my time on idiots." Sasuke started to walk away again.
"Teme!" Naruto's shout rang across the plane, proof that he had once stayed in Japan.
Sasuke paused just for a moment, then turned his head and said with a smirk, "Dobe."
Naruto's mouth fell open as he gaped at the Uchiha who was walking away with that ever-so-smug face. Naruto clenched his fists until his knuckles were white. To insult and be insulted back in your own mother-tongue. Oh, he was so pissed off! That guy so did not make a good first impression.
"Gah! I hate that freaking bastard!" Naruto punched the wall of the cubicle, frightening another person inside, in the midst of using it.
He sulked as he walked back to his seat next to Iruka, who was chatting on the phone with some fat-ass director. Ordering another few more bowls of ramen to satisfy his blood-thirsty thoughts, he downed them all in quick succession. Iruka, who had just gotten off the phone, stifled a gasp of surprise as he realized his entire view had been blocked by a mass of ramen bowls. To his right, Naruto belched, rather loudly if one may say so, and let out a sigh of pleasure.
"Ramen, ah, ramen… Truly the food of gods and a psychological relief." Naruto rubbed his stomach cheerfully, laid back and soon fell asleep.
Iruka cheered mentally as Naruto finally fell asleep, throwing down his copy of the Vogue. Good news? Peace and quiet at last! Bad news? Iruka checked his watch and groaned. Screw being a manager, there was still about ten more hours in this hell hole.
When the plane flight was finally over, dear Iruka, bless his soul was near having a nervous breakdown. Naruto walked alongside him in an upbeat rhythm, totally oblivious to the fact that he had lessened Iruka's lifespan by three years. Both went to catch a taxi to their destination.
"I haven't been here in ages!" Naruto cried, wowing at the many changes Japan had went through during his absence. "Iruka-sensei, look! There's a geisha!"
"Yes, Naruto." Iruka nodded impatiently.
"There's a dango café!"
"Yes, Naruto."
"There's a market!"
"Yes, Naruto."
"There's a dolphin singing jazz!"
"Yes, Naruto."
Naruto glanced at his manager and pouted, "You're no fun…"
"I know. Sit down."
Naruto sighed and complied, muttering to himself once more.
"We're going to meet up with the photographer first before we check-in."
"OK!" Naruto got hyped up again, eager to do his work. "I'll bet they'll all worship me! Who wouldn't?"
The taxi dropped them off at the corner of the street. Following the address written on a card, Iruka led Naruto through a few streets, some back alleys and a few streets again. They finally arrived at a little snippet of an old wooden door, which didn't seem to be a studio at all.
"Iruka-sensei, are we at the wrong place?" Naruto turned and frowned at his manager.
"This is what matches the printed address here." Iruka started calling the number on the card. After several rings, he ended the call, "No one answered. Strange."
Just then, out of the corner of one eye, Naruto spotted a raven-haired boy coming from the opposite direction with a silver-haired man who was holding an orange-colored book. In a flash, he blinked his eyes twice and recognized the raven. It was that bastard from the plane!
"Hey, you! Teme!" Naruto shook his fist angrily at the raven. "You asshole! So you dare show up again, huh?"
The raven, who had been walking with his eyes closed opened one and said one word, that spoke volumes, "Dobe."
"Why I outta…!" Naruto rolled up his sleeve and was about to throw a punch when Iruka held his shoulder back, making the blonde look at his manager.
"Enough!" Iruka thundered. "My apologies, Hatake. This boy here just can't control his actions properly." He bowed deeply to the other older man.
"Figures." Sasuke muttered, uninterested.
"What did you say, you bastard?" Naruto glared at Sasuke.
"Well, we're off to a great start, aren't we?" Kakashi smiled through his mask. "Please, just call me Kakashi."
"You two have met before?" Iruka turned to Naruto.
"Yeah, on the plane." Naruto sulked. "And he was being a complete jerk the whole time!"
"You ran into me."
"Yeah! But then I apologized! Now, I really wish I hadn't! You're just some icicle who's got an attitude problem and looks like a ghost of a woman with that skin!"
"Loud, obnoxious, and short."
"Short? I'm a friggin' 175 centimeters! I'm taller than you, asshole!"
"Naruto!" Iruka thundered yet again, killing off whatever words the blonde model was about to say.
Said blonde crossed his arms, huffed and looked away. Sasuke glared into the opposite direction. Kakashi chuckled amiably. Iruka shook his head at Naruto's behaviour and finally decided to knock the door. The door opened and revealed a rather pretty young woman with long yellow ochre hair falling to her waist. She wore steel-rimmed glasses that didn't lessen the intensity of her eyes. She stared at them, as if waiting for them to speak.
An awkward silence followed and lasted five minutes with her merely waiting for one of them to explain their purpose of coming. It looked like she was examining each one of them, as she moved her gaze from Naruto, to Sasuke, then to Kakashi and finally back to Iruka.
So Iruka cleared his throat to break it, "Excuse me, I—,"
BAM!
And the door got slammed on him.
"Pffft… BWAHAHAHAHA!" Naruto burst out laughing, rolling on the street. "I-Iruka-sensei! HAHAHA! You got- haha… a door slammed at your face… HAHAHAHA!"
Iruka's eyes twitched yet again as his stilled his urge to strangle Naruto. Just as he was about to knock on the door again, it opened. Another young woman, quite the opposite of the first one got pushed out. She had shoulder-length dark brown hair with matching orbs to go with it. A simple jeans and T-shirt were her clothes and her hair in a happy mess. But she wasn't looking at Iruka. Her back was turned on them, face in an angry frown.
"What the hell d'you do that for, Fumiko?" She shouted.
Some garble screamed back at her. Amazingly, she could make sense of it.
"I didn't say that! Were people even coming today?" The woman screamed right back at her.
More garble.
"You never told me about a freakin' appointment at," She checked her watch, "eleven thirty!"
Even more garble, followed by some cursing.
"Bitch!" The woman screamed then turned to her blinking audience.
Iruka had half his hand up as if intending to say something, then stopped. He was at a lost of words. No, this really couldn't be the place they were looking for at all.
"Yeah? Are you two…" the woman surveyed them carefully. "The models that I have to work with for the next one month?"
Apparently, his worst fears were right.
"Yes!" Iruka gained his voice back. "Fuyuki Tomoko-san, right?"
"Drop the formalities, just call me Tomoko." She ordered.
"Alright, Tomoko. Shall we go in and discuss what needs to be done?" Iruka suggested.
"Are you a manager?" She asked dubiously.
"Why yes, I am."
"Is that silver-haired dude a manager as well?" Tomoko asked.
"Yes, he is." Iruka glanced at Kakashi before turning his attention back to the young woman.
"Alright! Case settled." Tomoko clapped her hands. "Managers, you do not come back until I tell you to. Your models will be in my care for one month while you two go off and enjoy your honeymoon, OK?"
"W-wait… We're… He and I aren't really a…" Iruka stammered, blushing faintly.
"Yeah, sure. See ya." Tomoko brushed him off and proceeded to grab both Naruto and Sasuke by the arm. She dragged them both into the titchy corridor before they even had time to protest.
"But…!" Iruka started.
BAM!
And the door was slammed on him again.
"So…" Kakashi chuckled. "Where should we go for our honeymoon?"
"Y-you shut up!" Iruka glared back at him and in one quick move, revealed a white iPhone. Probably to dial the big boss of his company.
Kakashi stopped Iruka's hand from dialing, "You don't need to. I think they are perfectly safe."
"Think?" Iruka shouted. "I'm not risking anything!"
"Relax. My boss told me that Fuyuki Tomoko is a bit eccentric but every bit as good in her job and even more. They'll be fine."
"But…" Iruka clenched his phone a little tighter. "I need a drink." He sighed and slipped his phone back into the pocket of his pants.
"I'll buy you one." Kakashi smiled.
"No thanks."
Tomoko had released her iron grip on the two models and led them through a spiral stairway up. It was creaky and dusty, with bits of it being corroded away by rust, much to Sasuke's distaste. But when they reached the top floor, they were greeted with one heck of a sight. The little passageway opened up to a huge professional studio. Half of the area was taken up by make-up counters, big spotlights with cameras dangling everywhere. Wigs of all shapes and sizes were strewn across the hairdresser's table and a few computers worth several thousand sat on top of a glass designer table, which was finished with silver stainless steel legs.
The other half was filled with many scenes and props, with a wide empty space for any sort of photo shoot. A black leather couch was placed next to it, with a marble coffee table. The floor was as big as a whole office floor, yet every bit of space was strategically utilized. So even though the place was bursting with material, it still looked as spacious as ever. The walls were a pristine white with some splashes of light colors such as baby blue and pale yellow all over the place.
Naruto, who had just entered the place was gaping for the second time in a day. It was a dream studio to work in. Sasuke eyed the entire set-up of the place with his hands in the pockets of his jeans. Both young adults were equally awed, even if they did have completely different reactions.
"Well, you two should take a seat." Tomoko beckoned to the black sofa at the far end. "My assistant will come with some documents to take care of and we'll start our work after lunch."
"After lunch?" Naruto echoed.
"Yeah, my crew is out for lunch. But they'll be back at two p.m. sharp."
"Your crew?" Sasuke raised his eyebrow.
"Yeah! My team! Why?" Tomoko asked, holding a hand to her chin.
"Wait, hold-up! Who's the photographer?" Naruto looked around, frantically searching for that one person. "I wanna meet 'im!"
"I'm right here, Uzumaki." Tomoko answered.
"Heh?" Naruto paused and slowly turned to look at her.
"Yeah, I'm Fuyuki Tomoko."
"Hmph." Sasuke scoffed and went to sit on the sofa, satisfied with the info he just got.
"The Fuyuki Tomoko?" Naruto asked. "By the way… who's Fuyuki Tomoko?"
"Your ears really aren't connected to your brain." Sasuke rolled his eyes.
"Bastard, I'll kill you!" Naruto rushed towards Sasuke.
"Just…" Tomoko grabbed his collar and jerked Naruto back, "A moment. Did you get your briefing?"
"Uh… No?" Naruto hesitated.
"OK, I'm the photographer so I'm briefing you later. Take a seat." Tomoko grinned.
"Oh, no way. I am not sitting next to that asshole there." Naruto backed away, face twisting from disgust.
"Suit yourself." Tomoko shrugged. "Fumiko! Do you have the papers ready?" She roared.
"Yes! I'm coming so be a bit more patient, woman!" The girl whom they first saw came stomping back with two files.
"Ah, good, good. I love you, Fumiko." Tomoko draped her arms over her assistant.
"Do your work." Fumiko grumbled, shoving the file into Tomoko's body.
"Oof! Alright, alright! Geez, touchy!" Tomoko huffed.
Then, both girls laughed. Seating herself on the sofa, she called Naruto over who was staring up at the amount of cameras in the studio. Handing each of them a form, Fumiko then gave both of them fountain pens to fill them up.
"OK, this is all personal detail and blah, blah, blah. All of that usual crap." Tomoko flipped through some more forms. "So, how long have both of you been modeling?"
"Seven years of experience, babe!" Naruto flexed his left bicep, only to be whacked with the thick, plastic file Tomoko was carrying.
"Sit down." Tomoko got up and pointed to the seat next to the Uchiha.
"Anywhere but there…" Naruto started.
"Sit. Down." Tomoko emphasized, jabbing the sofa with her thick, plastic file.
"OK, OK, OK. I'm sitting." Naruto held both of his hands up, signaling defeat.
"You, Uchiha?" Tomoko turned to the raven.
"Seven years." He answered.
"OK. And why have both of your companies sent you here, at the same time, for the same course?" Tomoko questioned. "Ah, wait a minute…" She held her head, trying to recall something, "Oh right, your companies are rivals, therefore one wants to beat the other and hence resorted to the same desperate measure. Interesting…"
She then looked at the forms they had filled in, "Both of you are seventeen? That's the same age as me and my assistant! Great! Not so much of an age difference!"
"You're a professional photographer at seventeen?" Naruto exclaimed, jumping out of his seat.
"Yes, and you're America's top male model. Same situation." Tomoko grinned. "Whew… Lucky. I thought I had to deal with another few arrogant bastards and angry bitches that thought they knew everything just cause they were older than me."
"He's the arrogant bastard!" Naruto pointed to Sasuke.
"It's a collaboration photo shoot I'm aiming for actually." The young photographer continued to explain, ignoring Naruto's remark. "I don't why two big companies suddenly decided to fund this thing together and get you two to go through the course." Tomoko shifted through more papers. "The duration will be for about a month but give and take, will you? I decide how long the courses are actually. So, Fumiko?" Tomoko called.
"Sign here, please." Fumiko appeared with a contract.
"OK! Here we go!" Naruto snatched the contract and signed it, passing it back to Fumiko.
Fumiko blinked at the blonde and handed the same contract to Sasuke who signed it as well after skimming through it. Just then, the door was flung open until the hinges of the wooden door gave way and the wooden door fell onto the floor with a splintering crash. All heads turned to look at who entered.
There, a woman in her early twenties stood, tall and proud. She wore big silver bangles as earrings and had several of her fingers covered in exotic rings both gold and silver. She walked in four-inch, knee-high boots that made her taller than her tall enough stature already. Red, full lips moved as they chewed on dango, a famous Japanese treat. Her dark purple hair was tied up in a messy ponytail while her pale yellow orbs scrutinized the two newcomers. She looked like a punk with her Goth get-up, which consisted of a fishnet shirt, a black leather miniskirt and a spiked choker.
"So? Are these little squirts our new toys?" She sighed. "Such boring fuckers. Sad."
"Hey!" Naruto blinked rapidly three times before standing up to argue.
"Shut up, brat." The woman sneered, taking another dango of the wooden splinter she was holding. This action, instead of making her look ugly, emphasized on her dark shaded make-up that brought her eyes and lips out beautifully.
"Really, Anko, do you plan on breaking a door every month? I know we're not exactly short on funds but still…" Tomoko shook her head, smiling.
"You… Shut up now." Anko sauntered away to a corner where all the backdrops were.
"Mitarashi Anko. She's twenty-three years old and she's my props manager. She decides where what goes and what background to use."
"Why the fuck are you calling me, bitch?" Anko shouted from her corner.
"Nothing at all, just introducing you, whore." Tomoko shot back.
"Slut."
"Twit."
"Shut up!" Anko roared.
Tomoko laughed back at her.
"What… on earth is going on?" Naruto twitched, watching the scene.
He was beginning to question the sanity of the people surrounding him, the bastard excluded. Little did Naruto know that a lot of people are questioning his own sanity, the bastard included. Funny, how the world works in many ways. Suddenly, a stifled gasp came from the doorway, the same doorway that Anko just came through. Both Sasuke and Naruto turned, in time to see two women enter the studio.
One was very, very, very, gifted in the bust area — considering the fact that the appendages nearly burst out of her grey business suit. She had light blonde hair tied in two loose ponytails that fell just at her waist, unlike the deep golden color of Naruto's hair. Wearing matching colored pants, her emerald-green eyes peered at them, while the small blue diamond stuck on her forehead glinted from the strong lighting in the room.
The other, strangely enough carried a small piglet that wore a Chinese samfu blouse and rosary beads around it's neck. She wore the same suit as the first woman, only replacing the pants with a grey leather skirt. Her messy bob was perfectly styled, giving her an unique feminine look of her own. Her orbs were dark brown, giving the final touches to her already gorgeous look. Both women looked like they were in their late twenties.
"Holy fuck!" Naruto saw, catching sight of the enormous breasts in the first woman's shirt.
He swiftly dodged the punch aimed at him. He might as well given himself a pat on the back for saving his own life, for that punch cracked the very cement ground he stood on. And the floor was even coated with tiles of expensive marble! The blonde bangs framing the woman's pretty face did not dim her anger that radiated through the room.
"Quit your staring, brat!" The woman snarled.
"Tsunade-sama, you've made another hole on the floor again!" The other woman rushed over and crossed her arms at her companion.
Again? Naruto thought, sweat forming just on top of his brow.
"Uchiha, Uzumaki, I would like you to meet Senju Tsunade and Shizune, her assistant. Shizune's been Tsunade's assistant since ten years ago. Tsunade is about fifty? And I think Shizune about twenty-eight." Tomoko smiled, gesturing at them. "They're my beloved make-up artists!" She exclaimed. "Oh, and the pig's name is Tonton."
Said pig squealed hello.
"You look like a hot chick, but in truth you're actually an old granny?" Naruto pointed an accusing finger at Tsunade.
Very bad move.
Naruto yelped as Tsunade gave a mighty roar and launched a solid kick with those very pointy high heels. Her aiming was superb but Naruto just got lucky when Tomoko's shout resounded through the room. The pointed heel stopped ten centimeters away from Naruto's forehead and stayed there, threatening the poor boy. It showed that Tsunade had immense flexibility to be able to keep that spilt while standing, despite her age.
"Now, now. You can kill him after the course, Tsunade." Fumiko tapped her pen on the clipboard she was holding and giggled.
"What?" Tsunade exclaimed, making Naruto recoil backwards because the tip of her high heel in the air moved. "This brat's gonna be here for a freaking month! Damn it!" She stomped away. "Fumiko! Where the hell is the sake? I need a drink!"
"It's on the top right shelf, Tsunade-sama!" Shizune dropped Tonton and rushed after her master before she broke anymore things.
"Really, you come in and my studio gets wrecked twice!" Tomoko glared at Naruto.
"Ahahaha…" Naruto scratched the back of his head nervously once more. This studio was cool, albeit a bit crazy.
"Oh my…" Came another quieter and softer gasp from the doorway. Again. Heads turned to look. Again.
"Might I ask what happened to the door, Tomoko?" A different, particularly deep voice demanded an answer, as two new people entered the studio.
The person who spoke had straight, silky deep chocolate hair right down to the toes, ends kept together with a small black band. The person wore a spotless white cotton T-shirt beneath a creamy white cashmere sweater. The outfit was completed with sharp cobalt blue jeans, that clung to every perfect curve. The face was sharp and angled, like most of the people in the fashion industry.
"Anko broke it." Tomoko grinned at them.
"Alright, alright already! I'll fucking pay! There, happy?" Anko slammed her paintbrush down.
"You had better, as this was the fifth you broke down." He crossed his arms, eyebrows knitting together in annoyance.
The girl beside him giggled softly, watching the stare down between Anko and the new person who just walked in.
Having waist-long jet black hair, unlike the person she walked in with, she also wore very comfy and loose clothes. A loose jeans with a loose cotton overcoat that stopped just below her belly. Wearing carefree flip-flops, she looked like a normal person. If it weren't for the designer tags marking the fabric. Both people had the same dazzling pale lavender eyes, with each gaze as deep as the ocean.
But there was a difference. The girl had a softer, more comforting orbs while the man's were cold and hard, clearly reflecting the spotlights.
"These are the Hyuugas." Tomoko danced over to them. "They are my ever-so-helpful costume designers and clothes managers. Some of the very best clothes by big branded names were actually created by them, then accepted by big companies that reproduced them for sale. They're cousins, by the way. Hinata and Neji are both seventeen too."
"Hyuuga Neji." The man sighed, speaking with closed eyes. "These are the models for the course?" He turned to Tomoko.
"Yep!"
"Hmph." He scoffed and walked away, with an air that made you think he owned the world.
"Um, please don't mind Neji-nii-san. He's usually like that." A very soft voice broke the cold atmosphere. "I'm Hyuuga Hinata. P-pleased to meet you." Hinata introduced herself, blushing like a ripe tomato. She hated ice-breaking sessions.
"Hinaaaaaaaataaaa…" A voice growled warningly, making the already nervous girl snap around with a small 'eep'. "What did I tell you not to do…?" Tomoko growled out, smacking a stack of rolled up art blocks against her open palm.
"Not to stammer! Ah, I'll be working on the clothes now. Neji-nii-san wants me to help prepare the equipment for taking measurements." Hinata backed away and flew to the other side of the studio, her slippers slapping against the marble floor.
Tomoko gave an exasperated sigh, "That girl…" She shook her head helplessly.
"But she's grown much stronger under our care." Fumiko smiled at her so-called boss.
"True enough."
Naruto could've almost sighed with comical relief. Finally, he seemed to be thinking. Some people who were at least normal. However, just when he finished that thought, a few very sharp needles narrowly missed his arms and landed on Anko's workplace, sticking half an inch into the wood. Anko retaliated by throwing a few fountain pens at the source. The fabric counter, manned by the Hyuugas'. Naruto saw that Neji was the one who so cold-heartedly threw those needles, since Hinata was busy cutting fabric.
"Apparently, Neji is also a master acupuncturist… I think." Tomoko blinked skeptically at the proud Hyuuga before turning back to the two new models and smiling warmly.
No reaction was to be seen from the stoic Uchiha but Naruto visibly took an extra large gulp. So much for being normal. That guy was a bloody sadist!
"A sadist is better than a bloody prick who looks like a woman at any rate." Naruto muttered to himself, throwing a side-glance to Sasuke.
"Hn. Shows the depth of your idiocy." Came the curt reply.
"What'cha say, you cocky bastard?" Naruto shouted at him, fist ready due to pure habit.
"Sai! Shikamaru! You're here at last!" Tomoko's happy cry interrupted their so-called conversation.
Both saw two men being pulled by Tomoko over to their 'battlefield' from the corners of their eyes.
"Now, now. Let's kill each other outside. My studio's not that cheap to build." Tomoko waved a finger at them.
Naruto scoffed and instead focused on the rest of the crew that had just arrived. One had hair tied up in a straight, spiky ponytail that defied gravity and looked like a pineapple. He had ear piercings which were home to two small grey stud earrings. He wore a dark blue long-sleeved shirt that was loose with the collar unbuttoned and the sleeves rolled up giving a rather sleek yet casual look. He had low-waist, torn jeans on without a tie. Black eyes with an equally carefree and disinterested look helped him see the world.
The other looked like a copy of Sasuke, save the hair which was slightly shorter. He had messy bangs falling over his black orbs and around his smooth oval face. With another shade of opaque and even lighter white-colored skin, he also acquired that vampire look. Wearing a white T-shirt and black jeans, it gave him his own unique style. What was funny though, was that he had on an emotionless smile plastered onto his face as he was facing the two new models.
"This is Nara Shikamaru and Sai. They're our effects masters, using all of those computers and shit over at the glass table. They also design stages with Anko and help with the lighting. Sai sometimes sketches a few poses that the model should strike and discuss the outlook with Shikamaru. Shikamaru chooses the music with all of our opinions put in. Shika is seventeen and Sai is eighteen, people." Tomoko explained. "That's it. This my wonderful crew with the greatest geniuses in the fashion industry that has ever lived!" She whooped, getting weird looks from her team.
"Troublesome…" Shikamaru sighed and proceeded to his desk, leaned back on his black Hermon Miller Aeron Chair to catch a few more winks.
"Uh… right. Hey, Sai! Glad to be working with ya!" Naruto gave him a thumbs up.
"Hello, dickless." Sai answered Naruto greeting pleseantly.
"The hell? What the fuck's wrong with you, asshole?" Naruto grabbed Sai's collar.
"Just because you don't have one, don't blame it on me." Sai kept that annoying little smile there.
"You bastard…!" Naruto raised his fist.
"Uzumaki, you do not punch my artist!" Tomoko bellowed at him.
"Stupid bastard look-alike." Naruto let go of Sai's crumpled shirt.
"Well, we look forward to working with you for the next one month!" Tomoko grinned. A feral one at that.
"Yeah…" Naruto hesitantly replied while Sasuke merely nodded. Uchihas' were never meant to be talking sort of people anyways.
I have to deal with two crazy best friends, a weird girl that always goes red and her sadistic cousin, a crazy ol' grandma, her assistant with a pork chop meal, a freaky goth dango-eater, a lazy bugger, an asshole that looks like the bastard, and the freaking bastard himself! Naruto eyed the people around him suspiciously and let out a weak sigh. God hates me…
Well, that's it for now. I'm sorry if the characters look as if they've been randomly picked and stuffed into a giant salad mixing bowl. But I really do like the balance of all of them together. Other characters will definately appear, as who or what I won't tell you yet. Plus, in this story there's no definite NaruSasu or SasuNaru. It will depend on the situation.
Ja.