Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto
Y'know, I've already got three stories on my plate, and still I continue to write more. Ah well. I enjoyed this one. This fic is gonna be more light than my other stories, which seem to always have depressing plot lines. -Sweatdrop-
Chapter 1
Naruto sat bored by an easel, tapping his pencil repetitively on the wood. He watched casually as the teacher proceeded to argue with a red haired man. The blond wasn't quite sure what they were talking about, but after listening to them for a while, he got the general gist of the quarrel. Something about what art was. He watched lazily as the blond man finally shooed the other way and tried to get the classes' attention.
"Okay, everyone! We have a new model coming in today. His name is Hyuuga Neji. And no, Sai, he's fully clothed. Un." Naruto peered at said raven, who was currently sporting a disappointed, yet sickly amused expression. The blond displayed his partial disgust openly by grimacing. Sai was so perverted. Every week he would ask whether they were drawing a nude. And thankfully, the answer so far was always no.
Several seconds passed, during which Naruto continued to stare at the blank page in front of him. He had no doubt that the new model would be another haughty bastard. Hell, they always were! He sighed as he remembered the one from last week. Uchiha Sasuke. Geez, of all the people in the world, he was probably the most conceited bastard Naruto could hope to meet.
Or, rather, not hope to meet.
The kitsune broke away from his thoughts as the door opened with a creak. A head popped around it tentatively. Naruto stared at him, surprised. It wasn't that the man was handsome that shocked the blond. Oh, no, definitely not. It was to be expected, considering the man was a model. But what was interesting about this person was his eyes. They were the most unusual color, pearly white, and yet, when Naruto looked again, they appeared a pale lilac. The Hyuuga's hair also caught his eye. It was very long, tied in a loose ponytail towards the bottom. Naruto had to hand it to him, as the male seemed to pull of the long hair without looking too feminine.
Neji made his way cautiously to the middle of the room, settling himself into a stiff chair. Naruto watched his expression carefully. He appeared rather guarded, as his eyes darted nervously around the room. Well, it was kinda hard to tell, considering his pupils were almost invisible, but Naruto could sense the suspicious air surrounding the brunette. He would ignore it for now, however, as all he was interested in was drawing the model. The blond was happy with the angle, as he was able to see the Hyuuga's face clearly. The lighting gave his hair a healthy luster, making it shine beautifully. Still, the kitsune felt uncomfortable. It was like Neji's unease was rubbing off on him. Every time he looked up at the raven, Naruto became more and more certain that the man was about to jump off of the chair and out the room. Even so, the Hyuuga remained seated for the rest of the hour, obviously relieved when the teacher called for the end of the session. As hard as the blond man tried to make Neji stay, he refused, apparently impatient to leave the room.
Naruto packed away his things, hoisting the heavy bag over his shoulder. He was the last one in the room, as usual. The blond shut the door quietly behind him, spotting Kiba standing nearby, whistling.
"You've been waiting for me, eh Mutt?" Naruto smirked as he used the much hated nickname.
"'Course. Why are you always the last person out?" Kiba ignored the dog remark, falling into step with the kitsune.
"I have a lot of stuff to pack away. Cut me some slack, Mutt!" Naruto said defensively. The brunette snorted in response.
"What do you have in there anyway? It looks pretty heavy to me." The two walked out on to the pavement, the bitter wind whipping at their faces. The blond was about to reply, when the dog boy snatched the bag. He stumbled a little, obviously surprised by the weight.
"Woah! What do you have in here? A house?!" Kiba repeated his question, heaving the bag along as it threatened to drag on the floor.
"Oi! Careful with that! It's new, I don't want to get dirt all over it!" The blond laughed, taking it back again. The two increased their pace, staying silent.
It seemed very strange, almost disconcerting, to see both very talkative men in such silence. But it didn't bother either of them. It wasn't awkward by any means, to them, it was comfortable. They reached a cross roads, each waving goodbye to one another. Naruto walked along jovially, a skip in his step as he wandered down the country road. It was quite surprising, how such a busy town could change to the quiet countryside so quickly. The blond continued on his way, admiring the stars twinkling in the clear sky. Since it was such a beautiful night, he had an urge to burst into song, but refrained from doing so when he spotted a figure in the shadows.
"Hello?" The blond called out cautiously.
The person froze, then moved forward into the moonlight at the sound of the voice. Naruto recognized the well-sculpted face straight away.
"Hyuuga?!" He said, shocked to see the handsome male standing there. "What are you doing here?"
"Hmm?" The raven squinted suspiciously at Naruto as he tried to remember him. "Ah, you were at the art class, correct?"
"Uh, yeah." The kitsune smiled sheepishly, "Sorry for not introducing myself. Uzumaki Naruto." He thrust out an arm expectantly. Neji stared at it for a few moments, before realizing what the other wanted. He stretched out a pale hand warily, as though he was ready to snatch it back at any moment.
"So, how are you, Uzumaki-san?" The blond was slightly taken aback by the brunette's respectful tone.
"Uh, I'm good. And just call me Naruto. Do you mind if I call you Neji?" He asked. The Hyuuga shook his head. The two stepped along for a few minutes, before Naruto broke the silence.
"You never answered my question earlier, Neji. What are you doing out here? Especially so late?"
"Oh, nothing. I was just looking around." At that comment, the blond snorted. The brunette gave him an accused look. "What?"
"Are you sure you're not lost, Neji?" Naruto grinned broadly. The Hyuuga did a mock double-take, but didn't deny it. "So, you are lost?" The kitsune concluded. The raven winced slightly at Naruto's bluntness.
"Just a little." The blond stared at him incredulously.
"You really are? I was just kidding earlier! How did you get lost exactly?!" Naruto gaped as Neji frowned at the blond's amazement.
"Hey, it's not like I'm stupid or anything. I don't live around this area. I was just walking along, and got lost! You would too." The Hyuuga resisted the temptation to pout. Hyuuga's did not pout. Far too childish. Still, it didn't seem too childish for a certain blond.
"I wouldn't get lost! I have fantastic instincts!" Naruto winked boldly at Neji.
"Sure." The raven rolled his eyes. At least, Naruto thought he did. Once again, Neji's lack of visible pupils made it difficult to tell. This made another question run through his head.
"Hey, Neji... What's with your eyes? I mean, I would say you were blind, but you seem to be able to see me okay..." It was only after he said it did the blond realize how tactless it sounded. The brunette raised an eyebrow at his question.
"I'm definitely not blind." The raven shrugged as he confirmed Naruto's suspicion. "It's just my eye-color. No big deal. Everyone in the Hyuuga family has eyes like these. Just genetic."
Once again the kitsune began to think.
"Hyuuga? Sounds familiar..." After Naruto said it, Neji grunted off-handedly.
"Probably because it's a shampoo company? I wondered when you would notice." The brunette sighed heavily as Naruto's jaw dropped. "Yeah, my family owns it. Very popular brand." At the comment, Naruto rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"So that's why you're hair is so pretty! Y'know, you should work as the model for them, not that girl in the advert. Hyuuga... Hanabi, is it? You would get loads more customers." Naruto announced. The Hyuuga stopped and stared at the blond.
"You think my hair is pretty?" Neji said in an amused tone. He ignored the rest of the remark about the model, but this didn't seem to bother the other much.
"Of course! Has no one ever told you that before?" Naruto's expression turned to one of disbelief as the raven shook his head. "Well, it is pretty." He answered firmly. He fell into thought once more.
"You sounded kinda bitter about your family. What's that about?" The kitsune wondered. Neji opened his mouth in protest, but then closed it. Simply because there was no protest. Neji did hate his family, he wouldn't deny it. The brunette grimaced as he answered the blond.
"True, I'm not a big fan of my family. The Hyuuga's." The raven spat out the name venomously. Naruto decided it was best not to pursue this line of questioning, and instead fell silent. They walked on for a while, before Neji spoke up.
"So, where am I going to stay for tonight?" Naruto gave him another incredulous look, as though the answer was the most obvious thing in the world. "Y'know, if you stopped gawping and told me, I would understand quicker." The brunette stated, giving the other male a withering glare.
"My place of course! Where else are you supposed to go?" The long-haired man shrugged in response. Another question slipped inconspicuously into the kitsune's mind. "Why are you in Konoha anyway? You said you don't live anywhere around here, and considering you're part of the -coughrichcough- Hyuuga family, why don't you have an assistant or something?" Naruto asked, peering curiously at the raven, who had stopped. His mood darkened alarmingly quickly, and the blond backed away worriedly.
"I ran away." He muttered, dangerously soft, tone of voice matching his dark expression.
"You WHAT?!" Naruto yelled out, probably giving the few birds that were flying by a heart attack. "Woah, man! I know that you said you didn't like you're family, but still! Don't you think you went too far?!"
"You are not one to judge. I'm old enough anyway! You've never actually met the Hyuugas, have you?! You don't know what they're like. Arrogant, selfish pigs!" Neji shouted back at the blond, the hatred for his family visible in his milky white eyes. "Obsessed with money! Bastards!"
"Okay! Calm down, Neji. Geez, I didn't expect that outburst! You seemed like such a mild person..." Naruto laughed nervously, reaching out to give the raven a pat on the shoulder.
The brunette flinched at the touch, wincing as the tanned hand made contact. When Naruto saw the Hyuuga's reaction, he pulled it away just as quickly, a hurt expression on his face. After what had seemed like an eternity, they arrived at a small cottage.
"Here we are!" The blond said jovially, pushing all bad thoughts to the back of his mind. He ran eagerly towards the door, removing the bag from his shoulder. Neji watched with little interest as Naruto rummaged through it, concentrating hard.
"Aha!" He pulled a key out of the bag, while the raven raised an eyebrow.
"What on earth do you have in there?"
"Trust me, you're not the first to ask." The kitsune muttered truthfully, jamming the key into the lock impatiently. After a few moments, he fell into a deep silence, keeping his back to the Hyuuga.
"Uh, Naruto? Are you okay?" The brunette asked, brow furrowed at the strangely quiet blond. "Can we go in now? It's getting cold out here..." He trailed off as Naruto turned around, holding up a jagged piece of metal. He smiled guiltily as the Hyuuga's eyes widened in realization of what the other had done.
"I broke the key..."
I've had the idea of Naruto being an artist in my head for a while now. I kept trying to think of an actual context that would work, and I've been wanting to write some NejiNaru. So, this was born! Neji seems kinda OOC to me, but he'll get more into character as the story continues. At least, I hope so. The summary will make sense in the next chapter. The 'cuddling' bit.
Hope you liked it! Oh, and I'll give a cookie to whoever can tell me the identity of the art teacher and who the red-head he was arguing with was It shouldn't be too hard, especially if you've been watching the lastest shippuuden episodes.
