Author's Note: Yet another SasuNaru. Like always, ～ってばよ (-ttebayo) is translated into more natural phrases like "you know", "all right", "okay", etc. Sasuke's insults of "dobe" and "usuratonkachi" are usually written as "moron/idiot" and "dummy/dumbarse" respectively.
I'm experimenting with my style a little, so this is like 2 stories in one. For the "early" half only, go to my Deviant submission (see user page). I'd like to hear people's opinion on it.
Disclaimer: I did not create, nor do I own Naruto, it belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and various Naruto distributors.
Time Game
Naruto left the ramen-shop satisfied. For the last few days, there was very little to do. He had even tried training endlessly to get his mind off being bored, but his efforts were in vain. Now that he had eaten his full, Naruto was not sure what to do with his time. He looked up to see Sasuke walking towards him, although oblivious to his presence. Having nothing better to do, Naruto decided to annoy him for a little while until something else came up.
"Oi, Sasuke!"
Sasuke slowly looked up, "What?"
"What do you mean 'what'? I just yelled at you is all," Naruto retorted, running over to him.
"Yeah, so? What do you want?"
"…Nothing really. I'm just gonna hang out with you."
Sasuke paused as he raised an eyebrow, "Why?"
"I'm bored, okay!"
"Whatever," Sasuke mumbled and began to walk away.
"Where are you going?"
"For a walk. I thought you said you were coming?"
"Oh! Wait up, hey!"
They headed towards the forest. Sasuke completely ignored all of Naruto's comments, which caused his team-mate to get irritated. Other than him, there was barely any noise.
"Why aren't you listening to me?"
"Because I don't feel like it, moron."
Naruto glared, "You're annoying, you know that?"
"If you're just here to get on my nerves, beat it."
"No!"
"Why not?"
"Because I don't want to, dah!" Naruto snapped, sticking his tongue at Sasuke.
"Fine, whatever."
With a sigh, Sasuke sat on the ground. Naruto sat down beside him, and said nothing more for the moment. However, he gradually grew impatient and looked darkly at Sasuke.
"What are we doing?"
"This is what I do," Sasuke replied coldly. "I go for walks; you eat ramen. It's the same thing. And this is what I do on my walks. I like quiet places."
Naruto narrowed his eyes, "You're weird, you know?"
"You wanted to come."
Naruto snorted and looked at the trees. There was a relaxing breeze coming from the north. Although it was a soothing place, the natural sounds were causing Naruto to become drowsy. He looked at Sasuke to see that his eyes were closed. Naruto wondered what he was thinking about, but decided not to disturb him. He yawned and Sasuke opened his eyes.
"Hnn?" Naruto questioned.
Sasuke's eyes darted down and to the side as he listened attentively. Naruto raised an eyebrow and turned away, but looked up when Sasuke sighed. Scratching his head, Naruto stared at the sky.
"I'm sleepy." When there was no response, Naruto looked at Sasuke, "Are you listening to me?"
"Sure I am," Sasuke sighed.
Naruto looked at him strangely when Sasuke put an arm around his shoulders. It was so unlike him. However, he was too tired to complain. There was a sound behind them. Naruto's ears twitched but Sasuke stopped him from looking. He pulled Naruto closer and whispered quietly.
They all peered out from behind the bushes. Following Sasuke had obviously worked out well. Clustering all together, the girls held each other, eagerly watching Sasuke and Naruto. It was exciting to see them together like that.
Naruto yawned again.
"Maybe you should take a nap," Sasuke sighed.
"Hmm? Yeah… maybe."
Sasuke pulled him closer and rested Naruto's head against his shoulder. All the girls leant forward. Naruto closed his eyes with a sigh.
"Why are you so tired? You've been like this for a few days," Sasuke explained.
"I'm bored. And I think I ate too much."
"You? Eat too much?" Sasuke laughed, "I didn't think that was possible. You moron."
"Hey!" Naruto sat up and pouted, "Shut up, okay!"
Sasuke looked at him in surprise, "Naruto?"
"You're always so mean to me," Naruto mumbled.
"I'm sorry," Sasuke frowned, turning Naruto's face to look at him, "I didn't mean it."
Naruto blushed slightly as he looked at him. Sasuke kept his hand against Naruto's face as he looked at him warmly. Suddenly, he looked surprised and pulled Naruto closer to him in order to remove his headband.
"What?" Naruto asked quietly as Sasuke put his hand to his forehead.
"You have a temperature. What have you been doing?"
"Nothing."
"Naruto?"
Naruto looked at the ground. Sasuke frowned and pulled Naruto against him. He sighed.
"You idiot; you need to be more careful."
"I know…"
"You'll worry me otherwise."
Naruto looked up again. He and Sasuke looked at each other for a few moments. Slowly, Sasuke lowered him to the ground, putting a hand on either side of Naruto. He frowned.
"I'll just have to take care of you then."
"Sasuke?" Naruto blushed with a timid face.
When Sasuke kissed him, he was caught by surprise. The squealing girls did not notice Sasuke's immediate withdraw. He and Naruto looked at each other with irritated expression.
"That was a little too easy," Naruto mumbled quietly.
"Come on, let's go," Sasuke told him.
Naruto nodded. The two of them left as quickly as they could. They laughed once far enough away.
"That was kinda fun, you know," Naruto grinned. "Didn't know it'd work so well though."
"It gives me something to do," Sasuke admitted. "They're so easy to set off."
"Hey, hey! Let's try that again, hey?!"
Sasuke smirked, "Yeah, okay. At least until we get our next mission."
"By the way," Naruto mumbled darkly, "you didn't have to go that far and kiss me, you know."
"They wouldn't have been happy with anything less," Sasuke explained. "And it's not like it's anything new for you."
"Shut up, okay!" Naruto blushed and pouted, looking away as he crossed his arms.
He screamed as Kusanagi pierced his left shoulder. Full of adrenaline and rage, he reached up and used as much strength as his opponent. Progressively, the sword began to be forced out of his shoulder, blood from his hand rolling down the blade. Despites the pain, he focused his chakra and held up his left hand. The rasengan felt unstable against his palm, but it was enough. He forced it against his opponent, who jumped back, dragging the sword violently out of his shoulder. With a small cry, he collapsed to his knees, holding the wound as blood flowed. The wounds began to heal quickly, but the pain remained. He looked up, an anguished expression on his face. His old friend's face was vacant of emotions.
"Why?" he mumbled quietly before bowing his head.
Burning red chakra gradually began to rise and encase his body. Even though he resisted the power, it slowly overcame him.
"I have an idea."
"Hmm?"
"Now and again, those morons end up following me. So, seeing how neither of us has much to do, let's tease them."
"How do you mean?"
"You know you and your Oiroke-no-jutsu?"
"Yeah, what about it?"
"What do you use it for?"
"To tease the perverts."
"Exactly. See, girls tend to like…how should I put it, 'brotherly-companionship'."
"Huh?"
Sasuke sighed, "Think about it, moron."
After a moment, Naruto smirked, "Oh… that kind of companionship."
"…Are you normally this quick-minded?"
"Hey!" Naruto hissed.
"So, here's what we should do," Sasuke began.
Naruto thought back to their plan with a snicker. After the day before's success, he was ready to keep playing. Like Sasuke said, it was a lot like his usage of the Oiroke-no-jutsu, in that he was expecting the same result. Only this time, the prank was on the girls.
Furthermore, it was only with Sasuke. He had put up with a lot of embarrassing moments around him, so a trick like this did not faze him much. Also, the two of them knew each other reasonably well, so it was more convincing.
After a day of training, Naruto went to Ichiraku's ramen-shop for a snack from heading home for the day. He stared happily at the bowl that was placed in front of him. It looked delicious, as always.
"I'm sure it's not very good for you health to eat ramen all the time."
"WAH!"
Naruto almost fell off his seat. He had not noticed Sasuke sit down next to him. It took a few moments for Naruto to steady himself.
"What are you doing, trying to give me a heart-attack? Gees!" Naruto glared as he began to eat.
"Some shinobi you are. Or you just distracted by the food?"
"Shut up," Naruto growled with his mouth full. "I always eat here."
Sasuke sighed and rested his face against his fist; "I know. So, what are we going to do today?"
"You're the genius; you figure it out." Naruto's words were barely audible.
"I was thinking aloud, moron," Sasuke replied dryly.
His eyes flickered to look behind him. Ichiraku's attention had drawn him out the back of the shop. Sasuke smirked. He took Naruto's chopsticks off him and put a hand over his mouth.
"Moron; pay more attention," Sasuke hissed, but then tilted Naruto's face up as he spoke normally, "Here."
He offered Naruto the food. Naruto instantly understood and opened his mouth. He did not really mind; after all, he was being fed. Sasuke realised that this probably meant he would have to pay for the food, but he would have Naruto make it up to him later.
The girls were not doing a good job at watching them quietly. Sasuke and Naruto did their best to stay in character. Luckily, Ichiraku was gone long enough for them to finish the act.
When Naruto was finished, Sasuke took a napkin and wiped Naruto's face, "Sit still for a sec. You have food all over you face."
Naruto squirmed and said with a childish expression, "Can we go now?"
"Sure," chuckled Sasuke, leaning his forehead against Naruto's, who blushed.
Sasuke left the money on the counter as Ichiraku returned, "Come again, boys!"
The two of them walked down the street. Naruto was beaming at the fact that Sasuke had paid for his food. Once out of the girls' watchful gaze, Sasuke put a heavy hand on Naruto's shoulder.
"You owe me now."
"What? Why?"
"I'm not going to buy all your food, you know."
"Awh! Why not?"
Sasuke gave Naruto a dark look that he could not argue with as they stopped, "This is the last time. Otherwise, you pay me back."
Naruto pouted, but did not argue.
"It's either that, or you pay me half."
"That sounds good!"
"Which means I get half."
"…That doesn't sound so good."
"You're choice," Sasuke shrugged, continuing down the street.
"Why would you want half, anyway?" Naruto frowned, racing after him.
"Because, chances are those girls will be following us more often now."
"Oh, right…"
Sasuke sighed as he put an arm around Naruto's shoulders. They both stopped and Naruto crossed their arms. With irritated expressions, the two looked at each other.
"They're following us again, aren't they?" Naruto mumbled.
"Yep."
"So, what's the plan?"
His opponent's attack hit the rock behind him as he jumped gracefully aside. He was surprised when something wrapped around his leg and forced him to the ground. The snake tightened its grip. Swiping at it, he finally grabbed hold of the serpent and dug his claw-like hands into it, cutting through its leather skin. He looked up, panting slightly.
"You won't get away, Naruto," his opponent smirked.
Naruto snickered, "Don't worry; I can't loose to you."
His opponent smirked, "We'll see."
They charged at each other.
Sasuke sighed and thrust Naruto against the wall. Naruto for a moment forgot that they were supposed to be acting and moved to push him away. Sasuke caught his hand and forced it against his side. This action reminded Naruto what was going on.
The girls were all hiding around the corner and watching them. Sasuke leaned his forehead against Naruto's again, which caused his team-mate to blush. His arm was against the wall behind Naruto, his body quite close to his friend's. Naruto raised an eyebrow as he looked up at Sasuke, his heart pounding heavily.
"What do you think you're doing, hey?" Naruto hissed.
Sasuke raised a cocky eyebrow, "You're not nervous, are you, Naruto?"
"How can you say it like that when you're so close to me, huh?" Naruto growled angrily.
Naruto pushed further against the wall when Sasuke leaned forward, "Calm down, would you?"
At that moment, the girls started squealing. The sight of them so close together seemed to end their restraint. Sasuke smirked and started to walk down the street. Naruto glared and hurried to catch up.
"That was all I was going to do anyway, moron."
"You could have told me that before, you know!" Naruto mumbled.
"Oh, stop whining, you baby. You wanted to do this too."
"How come you always lead though?" Naruto snapped.
Sasuke laughed, "As if I'd ever let you do it. Put up with it."
Naruto pouted, "Why should I?!"
"You can't even beat me, Naruto," Sasuke sneered, "and you want to lead? That's not going to happen."
"I didn't say that," Naruto mumbled, colour rising in his cheeks.
"Hmm?"
"Nothing. You're just a jerk, you know."
Sasuke raised an eyebrow, "You keep telling yourself that, but it's not going to change anything."
Naruto poked his tongue at Sasuke before putting his hands behind his head, frustrated. He knew that Sasuke was not really listening to him. The two parted at the end of the street to go home.
"Hey, Naruto!"
"What?" Naruto mumbled as he turned around.
"Come on."
"Huh?"
"I'll cook you dinner, how's that?" Sasuke called back.
Naruto's face lit up as he raced over, "Okay! Sure! What are we having?!"
Naruto slid along the ground, his claws tearing at the rocks beneath him. Although he was panting, the Kyuubi no Kitsune's influence over him allowed him to continue fighting. Its rage was erupting within him. He closed his eyes, preventing it from gaining control.
'There's no way in hell I'll let you hurt Sasuke,' he told it angrily.
'And you would let him kill you?'
'I'm not going to let that happen. But if anyone's going to beat some sense into him, it's me! I don't need you, okay! You hear me, you stupid fox!'
Naruto opened his eyes and quickly moved to dodge Sasuke's attack. Although he had avoided Kusanagi, he was struck by Sasuke's spreading Chidori. Naruto struck the stone wall and collapsed in a heap. He picked himself up and glared at Sasuke, who turned to look at him.
"I don't need you," he meekly uttered.
However, he doubted his own ability. Over the years, Sasuke's power had grown at such a massive rate, Naruto was not sure that he could defeat him. The one thing he knew was that he needed to bring Sasuke back with him. If he could not do that, he would surely…
Over the next few days, the boys continued with their pranks. A majority of the girls in the village seemed to now be following them. Every now and then, they would return to either Sasuke's or Naruto's home to discuss their new strategies.
Naruto sighed. It was nice to have some peace and quiet after a day of being stalked by the horde of girls. He and Sasuke had not said anything after leaving the ramen-shop. Naruto looked over at Sasuke.
"This is getting kinda boring."
"I'm starting to run out of ideas," Sasuke admitted. "And we're not really going anywhere. I'm surprised they're not bored with us yet too."
"Hmm? What do you mean?"
"It's kinda just the same thing, over and over. You'd think that some of those girls would pick up on the lack of progress."
Naruto laughed, "You think? They don't really seem to care about that, anyway! Why are you getting so worked up? It's just a game, you know."
Naruto was caught by surprise as Sasuke grabbed his wrist. He was spun around and pushed against the wall. Naruto frowned as he looked at Sasuke. His team-mate had a very serious expression on his face.
"You couldn't tell?"
"Couldn't tell what? Sasuke?"
"I would have thought even a moron like you would get it."
"Get what? Sasuke let go of me," Naruto squirmed.
"It's not just a game to me!" Sasuke shouted as he bowed his head. "I've been serious this whole time, you dummy."
"Sasuke?"
Naruto's eyes went wide as Sasuke kissed him. It was not like the times before. Sasuke pushed himself against Naruto, not allowing him the chance to escape. Naruto grab his shirt and attempted to push him off of him, but failed to do so. Instead, he found himself wanting to pull him closer.
All of Sasuke's emotions were poured into that one kiss. He feared that once he let go of Naruto that that would be the end. Too long had he waited. All those times they had argued, during the academy, and as a team, all of it was the mask he had hidden behind. The mask that was what hid who he was from everyone, disallowing anyone to see how scared he truly was, how much pain he truly suffered. Only Naruto. Naruto was the only one who had ever been able to pull that mask away. In exchange, Sasuke wanted to share just how strongly he felt for him.
Naruto was confused by himself. Something inside of him seemed to squirm. He suddenly did not want to let go of Sasuke. After all that they had been through, was this all that he really wanted? Not to be recognised as Sasuke's equal, but to be one made him happy. To be the one that loved him, and in turn was loved. Was that what Naruto had been striving for all along?
When Sasuke moved away, Naruto's grip tightened. Sasuke frowned and looked at him. Although he did not understand why, Naruto could feel tears welling in his eyes. Why did he feel like Sasuke would leave him? Sasuke smiled softly and kissed his forehead before pulling him into and embrace. After pausing a moment, Naruto wrapped his arms around Sasuke, digging his face into his chest. Sasuke smiled and pat his head.
"I never would have thought you two would do something like that in the middle of the street. Then again, I didn't expect something like that out of you in the first place."
A chill ran up Naruto's spine and he was scared to turn around. To save himself from the embarrassment, he just stared at Sasuke. So long as he did not turn around, he would not have to deal with that issue. Luckily, Sasuke was the one who dealt with it.
He glared, "Do you really think we're that stupid?"
"Naruto might be, but I expected more from you, Sasuke," Kakashi explained with a sly smile.
"Hey!" Naruto snapped, turning around instantly. "I'm not stupid, Sensei! And anyway, it's not like that!"
"Ho? Then what?"
"Haven't you been paying attention?" Sasuke replied darkly, working off Naruto's words. "We're practising."
"Practising?"
"We've been pulling pranks on all the girls!" Naruto continued, understanding what Sasuke as leading onto.
"I would have thought you'd pick that much up, Sensei," Sasuke added dryly. "I guess we were right, Naruto. He's still an idiot. Let's go."
"Oh, hold on. Don't go calling your teacher an idiot," Kakashi frowned.
"Night, Sensei," Naruto called as he followed Sasuke home.
Kakashi chuckled as he crossed his arms with a smile.
Naruto was panting. Now that the Kyuubi no Kitsune's power had been suppressed, he felt severely drained and fatigued. Moreover, Sasuke was much faster than he was. Naruto was unsure of how much longer he could continue to fight at the pace they were. He breathed a heavy, shaky sigh and looked back up. Seeing that Sasuke was gone, Naruto quickly turned; however, he was too slow. He winced as he was forced into the rocky ground. His body was so weak he could barely move.
"Don't tell me that's all you've got, Naruto."
"I've got plenty more!" Naruto snapped, although knew he was bluffing.
Sasuke snorted, forcing Naruto's face further into the stone as he used his own body-weight to hold him down, "I'd like to see that then."
Naruto clenched his teeth. No matter what, he would not depend on the Kyuubi no Kitsune in this battle. He could hear the movement of Kusanagi over his head. Naruto closed his eyes. He did not want to think that he had failed. If he did not return with Sasuke, he could think of no other reason for his existence.
"I really expected more of you, Naruto," Sasuke breathed coldly as the blade fell.
"Sasuke, what are you doing?" Naruto asked meekly.
He was pushed against the wall outside the ramen-shop. The sly expression on Sasuke's face worried him. Their faces were only inches away from each other and Naruto could feel Sasuke's body against his own. Naruto was blushing as he was looking directly at Sasuke.
Naruto turned his head slightly away, "Everyone's looking, you know."
"So, let them watch."
All the girls started squealing. They were standing in the street, surrounding them. As there were now so many girls following them, it had become difficult for them all to hide. Therefore, they had neglected their secrecy in stalking the boys.
Sasuke tilted Naruto face to look up at him. His body was now fully against him. Naruto felt nervous. Sasuke leaned forward and passionately kissed him, despites the shrieking cries of the fans. Naruto knew it was coming, although the sound was deafening. He reached up and held onto Sasuke's shirt, enjoying the moment to openly express their feelings. When they parted, it was obvious that the girls had not noticed. The boys looked at each other.
"I'm bored now. Let's leave the next bit for another time, okay?" Naruto mumbled.
"Yeah. Let's go," Sasuke sighed. "And anyway, I think we need to have a bath."
"Huh?" Naruto frowned, pretending not to notice Sasuke's arm around his shoulders.
"What's that face for? We've had baths together before."
Fresh screams issued forth from those who overheard their words. Sasuke and Naruto looked at each other with satisfied looks. Everything turned out perfectly.
"Okay, I guess that's it for the day," Naruto stretched.
"Are you two done?"
Kakashi was sitting on the roof above them, reading his book, eyeing them cautiously. The girls behind them were still squealing and some seemed to have fainted. Sasuke and Naruto exchanged looks and sighed.
"We're heading home; the damage is done," Sasuke replied.
"Don't you think it is cruel tormenting innocent girls like that?" Kakashi asked, now reading his book.
"If they're so innocent, why are they watching us?" Naruto questioned loudly.
"Good point."
"Come on," Sasuke sighed.
"So, what's for lunch?" Naruto asked.
Sasuke's eyes twitched to him, "What are you talking about? I said we're having a bath. I was serious about that too, you know."
"What!? Wait! I'm not ready for anything like that!"
"It's just a bath, dumbarse," Sasuke replied dryly.
"It's not going to be 'just a bath' with you though, is it?" Naruto's response was filled with fear.
"Don't worry; I'll take good care of you."
Sasuke's words did not reassure Naruto; "You're a pervert, you know that…"
"Bath time then," Sasuke repeated, ignoring Naruto's protest.
"Sensei! Help!"
"Bye, you two," Kakashi chuckled as he turned another page.
Author Note II: Seeing how 'sensei' is still used in the english version, I decided to keep that as it is.
Kyuubi no Kitsune - Nine-Tailed Fox (spirit). This is the final form of a kitsune. 9 is the most You/Yang number and when a kitsune obtains its ninth tail it supposibly recieves inifinite wisdom. Note that "kyuubi" as a word is not used on its own. You can only use it when referring to something...otherwise it doesn't make sense. It means a nine-tailed -something-. 'Nine tails' on its own would probably be 'kyuu-hon no shippo'.
Oiroke-no-jutsu - ...for some reason, I just decided to stick with the Japanese name here. For those that follow the English version, this is called "Sexy-Jutsu".
...can't really think of anything else to add really... not much jap. used. ...now... time to go to the local ramen-ya to buy myself some kitsune-udon (...okay, it's not really a ramen-ya, but it does the job!)