Alright peeps! This story will be somewhere around 20 chaps long! I plan on dragging this one out as detail work and excersise for actually describing things and such. Everything will be explained in time so be patient and don't ask questions that WILL be answered in later chapters. If something confuses you, however, please feel free to ask.
Disclaimer: I don't own naruto... sad isn't it?
Cry Me A Sea Of Stars
"Merchant and pirate were for a long period one and the same person. Even today mercantile morality is really nothing but a refinement of piratical morality."
Friedrich Nietzche
"Where there is a sea there are pirates"A Greek Proverb
A sailor once came to me and said, "I know of a heart ache and a beauty that will rip the soul and heart inside you apart, that will make you sob because of the sadness and hope it holds, will make you want nothing more than to stay within that endless expanse and float aimlessly forever. It's called space, the last great sea in the entire world of being." I remember that being the first thing that led me to this vast nothingness that draws men like the Sirens of old used to sing sailors to their deaths among the rocks. Nothing else has managed to captivate my heart like the black, deep blues of the space surrounding me as the ship I helped crew sailed soundlessly through the silent universe. The only light to guide us being the light from the stars.
Sasuke was the first person to take me up. I had lived peacefully with my sister and brother, one of the few families that had remained on the planet called Earth. It had been mainly abandoned from the old years of cities and industrialization. The new planets were much the same, most polluted and dying while others thrived due to their lack of industry. Earth only recently returned to its full glory of wilderness, but still nothing draws me like the freedom of the open sky and the different world beyond the clouds and atmosphere. It's at these times that I realize that I'm a free man. The government wants to take all that away, however.
For years my kind has been tolerated due to the ease of travel and trading goods seeing as we'd take any job we could. But there were still those that enjoyed trouble. Now the local ships and crews are being ordered to surrender, find a new line of work and disappear or be hung. That was the last thing we were going to do. So instead of staying as honorable as we could, we took a vote and became what the wanted us to be. We became what they THOUGHT the word pirate meant. For them it was a curse, a bad word outlawed from society. But for us it was a life style, a way of living. We were once honorable men, but now we sail the stars in a ship called the Isolde running from the law, taking what we can and giving very little in return. Now our time was running out.
I walked up onto the bridge where my captain stood, shoulders squared, hands clasped behind him in a dignified pose. Staring down the ship approaching us, He didn't notice as I walked up to him. He'd ordered all crew off. He wanted to go down with the ship just like any captain would. And I, being the loyal fool I am, refused to leave my captain's side.
"Captain..." I greeted, stepping up beside him, making sure to stay at least an inch behind him like I'd done for so many years. He didn't look over at me.
"They're beautiful aren't they?" He voiced, his gaze trailing over the vastness surrounding the vessle we'd called home.
"Captain?" He finally turned to me with a small, saddened smiled.
"The stars, Gaara. Aren't they beautiful?" I blinked and then followed his gaze back out to the place called space.
"Yes, sir... they are."
"Drop the formalities, Gaara... I'm not your captain anymore... just an old friend." He chided softly, his gaze never leaving the stars. I couldn't. I would be showing disrespect even if he had asked me to. I had so much respect and loyalty to this one man, this man the law called a thief, a murderer, and dishonorable man. I knew the true man, the man that held his crew so highly that he'd die for them. And here he would die without ever knowing just how much blind trust we all put in him.
"I'm sorry, sir... I can't do that." was my weak reply. Again he smiled sadly.
"I expected that. But what I don't know is why?" I kept my eyes cast out at the sea of stars before us. I didn't dare look at him, I couldn't. To see the hurt and defeat in his eyes would be enough to make me give up.
"You don't know how much we all respect you... do you, sir?" I glanced at him but quickly looked back to the stars. They were quiet as always, ready to listen to my worries and troubles. "I won't ever see you as a friend, Sasuke... you'll always be my captain. You'll always be the man that saved my life in a way no one would ever dare. You took a chance on me. You gave me something to look forward to, something to get up for in the morning. You showed me freedom. Sasuke... you're not just my friend, not just my captain... you're my family. And I'll never look at you any other way." Silence followed, not heavy and suffocating, but calm and relaxing. I let my thoughts drift back to memories on board the ship. My focus left the stars and drifted to the pilot's chair. I smiled slightly, one corner of my mouth drawing up ever so slightly.
Naruto had sat in that chair many a time with his legs over the top and his head falling off the seat. He'd tried an entire day of piloting like that. He'd always been one to brighten up the room and give a little light to those with none. Just his smile could brighten up your day. The boy may not have been the brightest in some areas, but he was a genius in his own way. My gaze then drifted to the gunner's chair.
Shikamaru had always had a thing about keeping space an organized mess as he called it. We'd told him to clean it up countless times and each time he'd tell us he'd get to it eventually. Now it was clean, spotless and it seemed wrong. He'd cleaned it the last time he'd sat there, knowing we'd need the extra space.
A hand on my shoulder brought me out of my thoughts and I realized I was crying silently. Looking at the calloused hand and then at the person it belonged to I sealed my own doom. Sasuke met my gaze calmly and squeezed my shoulder once in a comforting gesture.
"It'll get better one day... We'll sail together under the same flag again one day soon... Once again... someday soon." I swallowed my guilt and nodded.
"I know, sir... I just hope that day comes sooner than we think."
((A year earlier...))
"Are we there yet?" A some what gravelly, energetic voice called over the roar of the nearly dead engine called. Looking over at the crazy haired blond I cracked a small smile.
"Naruto... you're the one piloting the ship. You'll be the first one to know if we've reached our destination." Sasuke growled as he walked onto the bridge. As he passed the gunner's chair, he lightly smacked Shikamaru upside the head, waking the poor weapons specialist from his peaceful dreaming.
"Get up ya slacker." Once again came the good humored growl. I went back to the controls before me and checked our radar. Our pilot was the best, but Naruto had a thing for getting side tracked and forgetting to check such things as the fuel gage and the radar. Our last mechanic had left so I was now on engine watch. Another loud boom issued and I flinched.
"Sir... we really do need to get a new engine." I finally voiced.
"Yeah! We don't replace that thing soon I'm outta here! It ain't gonna fall out of the sky with me in it!" Shikamaru added, grumbling as he sat up and strapped himself in.
"What are you talking ab out? The engine's fine!" Naruto said as we started to ready for landing and possibly crashing. Another loud bang and the ship dropped out from underneath us.
"Shit!" Naruto hissed, grabbing the controls of the plane ands quickly turning the auto pilot off. "hold on! We're going down!"
"Again!?! Shikamaru! Was it yours or Gaara's turn to check up on the engine?" Sasuke called, from where he'd taken refuge. I flinched.
"My job, sir. When I checked we were fine for the last few leagues until we could get to repair shop. Apparently we ran out of oil just now." I added, checking the oil gage. It was at flat out empty.
"WHAT!?! but I just checked that yesterday!" Shikamaru yelped.
"well then we have a leak!"
"WOULD EVERYBODY SHOT UP!?! I'M PILOTING HERE! OR DID YOU NOT NOTICE THE FACT THAT WE'RE FALLING OUT OF THE FRICKING SKY!?!" Naruto yelled over our voices, even managing to drown out Sasuke's scoldings. Everyone went silent and just stared slightly shocked at Naruto. He didn't often raise his voice like that. I glanced at the captain and he shrugged. Shaking my head I went back to the radar.
"Um... Naruto..."
"Little busy!"
"Naruto..."
"Not now, Gaara!"
"NARUTO!"
"WHAT!?!"
"The steering cables snapped!" He stopped and blinked.
"well that explains a lot... wait.. WHAT!?!" Naruto, finally having grasped what I'd just told him, jumped up and proceeded to run around the bridge flailing his arms and screaming, "We're all gonna die! We're all gonna die!"
Sasuke stood up and quickly restrained the blond. He growled and looked around the room for somewhere to tie him up to keep him out of the way. He found one. Quickly binding Naruto up in a corner, making sure the pilot was tied to a chair as well, he turned to us.
"Gaara, get as much control as you can over this boat! Shikamaru! Go check the engine!" He said before slipping over to the com and typing in coordinates and codes to get to the closest landing bay.
The pilot's area was slightly messy but not nearly as unorganized as Shikamaru's. The steering was sticky with what ever Naruto was always chewing on. He and his addiction to sweets. Of course I had to be the one to replace him at this exact second. I pulled back and instead of leveling up, the ship just took a nose dive. I pushed the control back into the previous position and we leveled out ever so slightly. Steering cables. Lovely. Putting it on auto pilot, I managed to crawl beneath the desk and found the cables. They weren't just snapped... they were frayed and ruined.
"WHA THE HELL HAS A RODENT ONBOARD!?!" the first thing I'd noticed had been the rat sized droppings nearby the cables.
"You're kidding, right/" Sasuke called in disbelief.
"HA! If I was I wouldn't be down here right now!" I called back, already working on twining the cables back together. After finishing, I looked around me.
"I need tape... Hey Shikamaru! Where's the duck tape!?!"
"Um... it's... let me check..." I could hear him shuffling around the control desk, nearly stepping on me once or twice in his hurry to help. I heard thunder and knew we were close t the ground.
"I need that tape!" I called back. A hand suddenly appeared, thrusting a roll of silver tape at me. I grabbed it and began to tape the wires in place.
"Thank you!" I hurried back up into the pilot's chair and switched back to manual. We made a safe landing to say the least. Or at least, a safe landing for skidding across the runway and spinning for a good half mile on the ground. But we didn't blow up which was the big plus.
Stepping off the ship and onto the docking bay ground was like walking away from home. I didn't worry, as always I'd be back on the ship soon enough. Glancing around at my surroundings I noticed we were on Earth. My breath hitched in my throat. The rest of the crew just filed out past me. Naruto nudged me lightly as he passed and smiled at me, the rain soaking his hair and glistening in the faint light.
"You ok?" He asked. I blinked and then looked around me once more before nodding.
"Yeah... I just wasn't expecting to be back here so soon." this earned a laugh from Naruto.
"I know what you mean! It's so nice to be home! Well... slightly home." He said with his crooked grin. Naruto, like myself, was from Earth. Out of all the planets Earth was the only one that had seasons with noticeable changes, making it the most beautiful planet out there. And I used to call it home.
"Hey! You two! Stop acting like Shikamaru and go get supplies!" Sasuke's voice called over, catching our attention. I nodded.
"yes, sir."
"Can I come to, Gaara! Please!!!!!" Naruto whined. Of course i was expecting this but it was also about time the twerp learned how to get supplies. I glanced over at the captain for permission and he just waved us away. I nodded.
"YES! So where we going first?" the blond pilot asked, jumping up and down a few times before trotting beside me.
"A local mechanic... we need to get that engine fixed." He nodded and fell silent. I glanced at him. He wasn't normally this quiet so something had to be on his mind.
"Hey Gaara... somethings on Sasuke's mind... isn't there..." This took me by surprise. So he was as perceptive as I thought.
"Yes... the captain has a lot on his mind." there was a bit more silence before Naruto spoke again.
"but why? What's bad enough to make him lose sleep?" I stopped in my tracks.
"What?" Of course Naruto would know if Sasuke was sleeping or not. His room was beside the captain's. The walls in the ship were paper thin so it was easy to tell if some one was awake or not. Naruto stopped a few steps ahead of me and looked back.
"He hasn't been sleeping. He just sits by his window most the night and thinks."
"How do you know he's by the window?"
"I can hear him whisper about the stars." That would make sense. I sighed and walked over to Naruto. He blinked back his confusion and watched me, waiting silently for my reply.
"I'll look into it and see what's bothering him. For now don't worry about it. One person losing sleep is enough. Alright?" I gave him a half smile to reassure him and it worked. He smiled back and nodded.
"Okay!"
"Go away!" A woman's voice caught my attention and I looked over towards the source. I stopped and Naruto noticed I wasn't following.
"What's wro-' he was cut off as a man spoke.
"But Sakura! Please! I only mean the best an-"
"No! Go away Lee!" the woman, Sakura as I guessed, was nearly as tall as Naruto of which I found amusing. Her green eyes glared out from behind a halo of bubble gum pink hair. I don't know about other people, but that was frightening enough, her attitude and the growl she just issued only sealed the deal. The man, however, was some one I could easily ignore.
His perfectly cropped black hair fell into again perfectly round black eyes. If that wasn't enough, his eye brows were bushy and his eyelashes were easily seen. It the gag factor all over again. The two seemed to know each other and it was most likely a lover's spat. Just my luck, the girl had to spot us. I turned back to Naruto and nudged him forward.
"Keep moving... let's go." I said, urging him on.
"huh? Wha? What's with the sudden urge to get going?" He asked, finally budging and trotting beside me as I quickened my pace.
"civilian spotted us..." His lips formed a silent "oh" and he fell once again into silence, this time focused on not drawing attention.
Walking into the mechanic shop was like walking into a wall of oil and the smell of well cared for mechanical joints and the faint hint of gas tinged the smell of hard work. The place was an organized mess. I stopped. Great, now i was thinking like Shikamaru. I walked over to the main desk and waited. Some one popped up from behind the glass and smiled, wiping the grease from their hands. A cigarette hung in the corner of her mouth and her amber eyes glowed with energy.
'Hi ya! Vhat can I do for you boys, ne?" She asked in a slight accent. Tugging her overalls up higher on her hips and slipping on a pair of semi clean gloves, she leaned on the counter.
"We need a mechanic to take a look at our ship's engine." Naruto piped up, bouncing over from one of the many shelves of junk and spare parts.
"Okie dokie! Vhat seems to be ze problem?"
"It cut out on us just recently. It's been dying on and off for a bout a week now. This is the first time we've been able to look for maintenance." Naruto seemed to be doing fine so I let him take over the talking while I mentally prepared for the soon to be hole in my wallet that this would cause.
"I see... I'll send some one over to look at it some time around noon tomorrow. If you vould, may I have ze dock number so as I can find it?" After giving her the information she needed, we left the shop behind for the fresh air of the small town.
The market square was alive and busy. I glanced around, searching for that pink haired fright and found no sign of her. I relaxed. That was, until some one tapped my shoulder from behind. Spinning around quickly, I came face to face with, you guessed, the woman I'd hoped we wouldn't run into.
"Hi! You must be the crew that just docked! Gotta say! I've never seen an entrance like that! Did you cut your engine just for that or was that unintentional?" she asked, speaking in what seemed a mile a minute. Naruto beamed at her.
"Nope! The engine just finally gave out on us! And happened to take all steering with her!" He added with a small laugh. I rolled my eyes.
"It looks like you've got everything under control her... I'm gonna go check on the captain." I muttered to Naruto. He nodded. I left the two to their talking and made my way back to the ship. The rain was once again coming down heavier and my trench coat was amazingly soaked through from only and hour in the rain. Lightning flashed and a rumble of thunder followed soon after. I quickened my pace against the slight breeze that had picked up and finally reached the darkened ship.
Night was falling and I knew Naruto would be there soon. I stepping onto the walk way into the ship and shook my head to rid of as much water as I could before continuing inside. I found Shikamaru asleep in his room and Sasuke was on the bridge, gazing out at the storm. I sighed and walked over to him.
"Captain..." He jumped slightly and looked over at me.
"Oh... Gaara. It's you. I didn't hear you coming. How'd it go?"
"fine sir. They'll be sending some one over at noon tomorrow. Naruto will be back shortly, I let him go wander on his own for a while." Sasuke just nodded and went back to gazing out the window.
"Good... the boy needs a bit of freedom." I waited in silence again for a few minutes, wondering if the captain would voice any of his worries. When he didn't I decided the blunt approach was best.
"Sir... is something bothering you?" He glanced at me and frowned.
"Slightly... I haven't heard any news of the government ships recently and Itachi's recently lost contact... I'm worried." He answered quietly. I glanced at the com and then back at the captain before looking out the window at the lightning.
"The crew and I are always here to listen, sir..." I said before turning and leaving the bridge, on my way to my own room. I passed a thoroughly drenched Naruto on my way. He gave me a smile and I nodded in return before disappearing into my clean bunk.
That's the first chapter! Please no flames! Constructive critisism is welcome! ((Yes I know I suck at spelling)) Also! I need pairings! Anything is open! I'll right yaoi and normal! so boyXboy pairings or GirlXboy pairings. I'm terrible at any other pairing sadly... otherwise I'd throw it in... TT please let me know who you think should end up with who in your reviews!