Tainted Embrace

Hello again! This is my new fan fic that I've been working on in the last two weeks as a distraction from exams, lol. I apologise for any spelling or grammar mistakes as I've usually stayed up late to get a chapter finished, lol.

A.N. Warning, this chapter does contain yaoi and indirect violence. Italics means that's someone's thoughts or emphasis.

Happy reading!

Chapter 1 - Crime

Moonlight streamed into the small room, falling over the form of a troubled nineteen year old man who tossed and turned in bed. His forehead was creased and a moan of pain escaped his throat. His fists clenched and unclenched as he slept, rolling his head from side to side. A burst of pain shot through his body and Naruto sat bolt upright, yelping in shock. His breath came in sharp, heavy gasps and his body was covered in a cold sweat. He raised a hand to his forehead and wiped his brow, taking deep breaths in a attempt to regain control. His hand fell to his lap and Naruto pulled the covers off his muscled chest and looked down at his bare stomach, to the spiral shaped mark that kept the Nine Tailed Fox locked away. Naruto sighed and lay back down. The seal was only supposed to appear when he concentrated on his chakra, but he had found it appearing ever since he started having those dreams. The seal looked fainter than the last time he had seen it, and it wasn't just the dim light.

The dreams were getting worse too. At first they were just feelings of panic and alarm, even fear. But then the visions had started. Scenes of the strange room inside the corner of his mind where the Kyubi resided haunted him, and a low, manic laughter that resembled a growl vibrated throughout his mind. Naruto knew who the voice belonged to, and felt frustrated at its taunting tone. Lately, Naruto felt the Kyubi's chakra infusing his body as he lay unconscious in his bed; a place where he thought he was safe. He would wake in pain and be lost in breath, sometimes even disorientated, not recognising where he was. It had been happening for over a month now.

Seconds turned to minutes, and minutes turned to hours, and no matter how hard Naruto tried he just couldn't get back to sleep. He usually couldn't after having one of his dreams. Sighing, Naruto rolled out of his bed and stood, stretching his arms over his head and arching his back, trying to relieve the pent up tension. He walked through to the bathroom that was joined on to his room and turned on the shower. Removing his boxers, he climbed in and welcomed the cold water. It was the best remedy for him at the time, and he actually quite liked a cool shower now and then. After taking his time to wash, Naruto stepped out onto the tiled floor and wrapped a towel around his waist. He went over to the sink and rummaged around in the cupboard on the wall. Taking out his razor he closed the mirrored door, and carefully shaved his face. He winced as he caught his neck. Dabbing the small wound with some toilet paper, Naruto quickly finished up and trailed back into his bedroom. The clouds outside his window had become tinted with pink, signifying that dawn had come.

Making his way to his wardrobe, Naruto fished around until he found his black trousers and short sleeved, open collared vest. Drying off his lean body, he pulled on the rest of his fresh clothes and boots. He picked up the silver chained amulet Tsunade had given him years ago off the table beside his bed and hung it over his neck. With another towel he dried his lengthening hair, brushing his hands through it so the bangs fell around a parting instead of sticking up everywhere, then tied on his head protector. Opening the draw Naruto took out his side pouch filled with supplies, as well as his katana. Strapping on the sword over his back and the pouch round his slim waist, Naruto glanced out the window before rushing out of his house, quickly locking the door before he jumped up to his roof and made his way towards the Hokage mountain. Taking the route he always took, Naruto made his way up the cliff with speed, occasionally using chakra as he ran vertically. Reaching the top, he somersaulted and landed on one knee.

"You're late," a voice said and Naruto turned, finding a dark haired shinobi sitting at the edge of the mountain, leaning back on his elbows and looking out over the village.

Naruto made his way over to the Uchiha, sitting down beside him and instantly being pulled into a kiss. A hand ran through his blonde locks and pulled him closer, and he willingly complied. A small moan escaped the blonde as Sasuke trailed his kisses down his chin, and to his neck. Suddenly, Naruto winced as his lover's lips brushed against the cut. Feeling Naruto flinch, Sasuke pulled away and looked at his neck, noticing the wound.

"Were we rushing ourselves this morning?" he asked with a smirk. "Were we that eager to get here?" he teased.

"Shut up teme," Naruto replied and pulled the other back into the kiss, letting the other dominate him. Sasuke's tongue pushed into his mouth gently, probing the warm cavern and sending shivers down Naruto's spine. Sasuke pulled away again for air and nodded to the blonde's neck.

"Why hasn't the Fox healed you yet? Something like that would have gone by now," he asked with a frown.

"Yeah. Maybe he's..." Naruto paused as he yawned. "... being stubborn again."

"Did you sleep at all last night?" Naruto shook his head. "Another dream?" Naruto nodded. He smiled and pointed ahead of him. Sasuke turned to see the sun just coming over the horizon, casting the warm rays over the village almost protectively. They came here every now and then, simply enjoying each other's company and catching the sunrise as it floated into the sky. Here, nothing else mattered to them except each other. Here, there was no trouble in the world, no life endangering situations with the possible chance of one of them not coming back. Sasuke wrapped his arm around the blonde's waist, pulling him closer. Naruto leaned against the other, feeling the warmth radiate from him. He always felt safe in Sasuke's arms, and felt that he could deal with anything as long as he was there with him. It had been like that in the last year or two since they had been together, and Sasuke hadn't changed a bit since then. Well, he might have softened up a little with Naruto. He didn't know how long they sat there for, but the sun had risen higher in a short period of time.

"Wanna grab some ramen?" Naruto asked his lover with a grin.

"This early? And for breakfast?" Sasuke asked incredulously. Naruto's grin never left his face. "I suppose," he sighed and the two shinobi stood. Naruto hooked his hands behind his neck as he walked beside the Uchiha, glancing over to him and sniggering. "What?" Sasuke frowned at him.

"Sakura was right, I am taller than you," Naruto grinned.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "You are not taller than me." Naruto laughed and grabbed the other's waist, pulling him to a stop. Standing close to him so he could feel his breath on his face, Naruto looked down slightly into the obsidian eyes before him.

"See? I am taller, even if it's just a little bit." He couldn't keep the amusement from his azure eyes.

Sasuke glared at him. "Well, we'll just have to fix that," he whispered as he hooked his leg around Naruto's ankle and yanked it back, successfully tripping him up and falling to the ground together.

"Teme! What about my ramen?" Naruto complained as Sasuke kissed his neck.

"Why is your mind always on your stomach?" replied the Uchiha. "Your ramen can wait," he said and pressed his lips to Naruto's.

When the two made their way back into the village, they found the people whispering among themselves, worried looks on their faces. The couple glanced about, trying to catch snippets of conversation, but they couldn't grasp what exactly was going on. Sasuke noticed an increase in numbers of shinobi present in the town, and wandered if there had been some sort of accident. Coming to a stop at Ichiraku's shop, the two shinobi took their seats and found the owner in a less than happier mood than normal.

"Hey, what's going on? Why is everyone all depressed?" Naruto asked.

Ichiraku laid down the bowl he had been drying and threw the towel over his shoulder. "Seems there's been an accident. A body was found in the early hours of the morning."

"What?!" the blonde said under his breath. "Who was it?"

"Don't know. Rumor goes that the body was so badly beaten up it was unrecognisable except for the head protect that was found completely undamaged."

Naruto and Sasuke glanced at each other and immediately stood. "Sorry, but we'll have to come back later!" Naruto called to the man as they set of for the Hokage's tower.

Ichiraku reached a hand out as if to stop them, but his almost-customers were already gone.

They rushed through the streets, both thinking that Tsunade would have the best information available. People scattered before them as they went past, ignoring the complaints. They finally arrived at the office and Sasuke brushed an hurried knock on the door before entering. He skidded to a halt as he was met with the sight of most of the jounin in the village, Naruto banging into his back.

"Hey, teme-"

"Where have you two been?!" Tsunade shouted at them from her desk. She shook her head and waved her hand in the air. "I don't want to know. What I do want to know is what happened last night?" she asked the others before her.

Maybe not the best information then, Sasuke thought as he caught sight of their old classmates and friends. He and Naruto joined the others quietly.

"I was on duty last night," Shikamaru spoke up. "I didn't see or hear a thing. There was no enemy presence or chakra. In fact, it was completely quiet."

Tsunade sighed. "Double the shinobi on guard tonight. We have to find the murderer before anything else happens. If shinobi are defeated by this guy, the villagers are definitely not safe. Sakura, your report on the body?"

The pink haired shinobi stepped forward. "I'm afraid there wasn't much evidence left on the body, but there were claw marks everywhere, but they didn't match any animal I know of. Also..." Saukra paused as she shivered inwardly. "The shinobi that was attacked seemed to have their chakra... drained from their body in a horrible fashion, and that seemed to take their life as well." There was collective gasp at her statement.

"So this guy's aiming at shinobi?" someone in the crowd asked.

"We can't say that for sure, but..." Sakura left the sentence hanging. The answer was obvious.

"Alright. Night duty is done in pairs, and under no circumstances do you go anywhere alone. Dismissed." The jounin in the room either filed out of the door or disappeared with a poof of smoke, leaving the Hokage alone at her desk. Tsunade sighed and rubbed her forehead, and reluctantly continued with her work.

"Man, I hate night duty. Like I haven't had enough sleepless nights already," Naruto pouted as he and Sasuke slowly walked across the top of a roof.

"Well at least you have me for company," the Uchiha smirked at the blonde. Naruto giggled as the other's hands crept around his waist, Sasuke's fingertips brushing his skin underneath his t-shirt.

"Stop it, teme, that tickles!" Naruto said, trying to keep his voice low. The blonde slapped the hands away playfully and jumped a few feet in front of his lover. Turning to face him, Naruto crossed his arms with a mock frown on his face. "We're on duty, Sasuke-kun. We have no time to play about."

"Spoil sport," the dark haired shinobi huffed and jumped across to another roof without another word to the blonde.

"Hey! Wait for me, we're not meant to separate," Naruto called out, following the other quickly to catch up.

"Quiet, dobe. Do you want to wake the whole village with that loud mouth of yours?" Sasuke said as he felt fingers entwining with his own.

"You didn't seem to mind my 'loud voice' the other night." Sasuke snapped his attention to the blonde's grinning face.

"Hn," was his reply, but as he turned away from the blonde, a smirk graced his features.

For the remaining hours the couple were on duty, nothing out of the ordinary happened. Like Shikamaru had said, there was no other presence or chakra. The village was dark and quiet, save for the few odd houses whose lights flickered on for a minute or two before pitching them into darkness again. The moon was full and the sky was filled with stars, and like usual, Naruto pointed out all the constellations that he had learned over his years. Sasuke was quite content to listen to the blonde, occasionally asking a question or two about the blonde's recently developed hobby of star gazing. When it had first started, Sasuke had asked why the blonde was so interested in the night sky, and he had replied there was nothing better to do after having one of his dreams.

The duo jumped down from the tall roof and found their replacements waiting for them below. Giving them the brief report of nothing happening, the two started walking home. When they came to the intersection that led off in the two different directions of their houses, Sasuke wrapped an arm around the blonde's waist and pulled him willingly to his own house. The way Sasuke held him, Naruto knew the Uchiha just wanted his company, and Naruto had no objections. It had become a sort of routine the couple had; whenever Naruto had one of his dreams, he always felt he could sleep better with the dark haired shinobi around the next night. It was his only chance to really get a good night's sleep. It was if his lover was warding off the dreams, and on some level, the Fox inside him. Naruto couldn't explain it exactly, the two just accepted it.

So when they arrived at the Uchiha mansion, they removed most of their clothes and head protectors, and climbed into bed and settled down comfortably. Naruto snuggled into the other's chest and sighed when he felt arms circle around him, feeling the warmth of the other body seep into him. Sasuke smiled when he heard Naruto's breathing even out almost immediately, telling him the other was asleep. He nuzzled into the blonde's locks, inhaling his fresh fragrance, and quickly following the other into the land of sleep.

The story will pick up more in the next chapter, and the mystery begins!

Please leave a review, thanks!

KCT