A/N: This is old. As in, I've posted this on y! over a year ago. I figured I'd post this here just because I happened to come by to update my profile. Further chapters may or may not be coming, but not anytime soon at least.
Chapter 2
When Naruto finally came back to his senses, the first thing he thought was that he had dreamed the whole encounter. He was inside a cabin on a ship, sleeping on something not necessarily soft but not really hard like the floor either, and while the room was very dark there was a small amount of light streaming in from the small windows on the wall. The cabin didn't look really familiar to him but being as groggy and confused as he was, Naruto just figured he probably couldn't see very well due to the darkness. It was night time after all, had been earlier at least, and very dark even after the storm had passed. He had probably just gone to sleep after the storm and now he was waking up...
The problem with that theory was that he wasn't rocking. He wasn't sleeping in a hammock like he usually did on the ship, no, it was a solid bed, the like that they only had in their captain's cabin, and this room definitely wasn't that. As he blinked, trying to shake the sleep off him, the blonde was slowly starting to come aware of the aching in his muscles. It was all thanks to the storm and he knew it, but he couldn't really explain the dull ache on the back of his head the same way. He hadn't hit his head on anything, he really hadn't, which meant... Well, it could mean many things, and as Naruto tried to slowly roll over to his side he realized that the one thing he really didn't want to believe it meant was probably very much true.
The blonde frowned, closing his eyes again. The reality was very slowly starting to set in, and along the aches and shakes that came with it were the feelings of the current. He knew he was on a ship since it was swaying very gently from side to side but it almost felt like the ship was anchored somewhere since he couldn't feel any other movement. When he'd opened his eyes he had seen nothing but black and even more black, and so he supposed he was on Black Ship. Something cold settled into his stomach as he thought of that but he tried not to think too much. The whole thing was just so entirely crazy it didn't feel real and the blonde was sure he was still asleep somehow.
The scariest thing, though, was that he really couldn't move. It wasn't just that he was sore or numb or his limbs were asleep, no. As he tried to move he could feel ties around his knees and his wrists, and he wasn't even sitting in a chair or something. He was lying on his back with his arms spread to his sides and his feet tied together straight down and as he thought about it, he felt like a fish seared ant put up on the table. He still couldn't see anything but the black ceiling and the walls and the closed space was making him a little claustrophobic. He was not used to being tied down or closed into a room when he didn't want to be there and now he was starting to panic even though he had chosen not to do so.
"Hey!" he called out as loud as he could, trusting that someone was going to hear him. He didn't know if it was a good thing that they knew he was awake, hell, he didn't even know who 'they' were, but since it seemed nothing was going to happen if he didn't do something...
"So... You're awake."
It was the same voice he'd heard on the ship. It still had the same hollow quality to it, almost like a distant echo, and Naruto shuddered involuntarily as a cold breeze brushed over his bare skin. It was suddenly very cold in the room but he couldn't tell if it was because of the ghost man there or because someone had opened a door or a window somewhere. He still wasn't seeing any light anywhere so he was not putting much hope on the door theory, and despite turning his head to each side and taking a look he couldn't see the talker either.
"I hope you are not too uncomfortable. Once we've found what we need, you will be released."
The voice was closer now, coming directly above him as though the speaker was standing just behind the bed or desk or whatever Naruto was tied onto. The fact that the man was staying just out of his reach was making the blonde really nervous, although it did prove one thing. If the speaker had to stay away from his field of vision to stay unseen, that meant he couldn't be invisible, which meant no ghost. Or at least, no invisible ghost which made it all the easier to bear. Any little relief was welcome when his situation was as desperate as it was.
"Who are you?" the blonde tried, his voice hoarse and dry like his lips. He had apparently been there longer than he had thought as his voice sounded so bad. He wasn't sure if the words were even comprehensible to his abductor but he was sure they could grasp the meaning without any trouble. What else would he be asking? At least they should be smart enough to know that. Now he felt just naked and vulnerable.
"All your questions will be answered when the time comes", the hollow voice replied, followed by a sound of something swishing near his head.
And in a blink of an eye, everything went dark.
"H-hey! What did you do?!"
But it was like the speaker hadn't even heard him. A soft sound of almost inaudible footsteps circled the table and Naruto pulled at his restraints, his arms shaking as he tried to trash away from the table with very little success. It only made his head hurt and as he stopped for a moment, his realized his arms felt somehow very heavy and relaxed, more so than he would've wanted to.
"What the..." It was all he could say until his mouth went relaxed as well, pushing his words out as non-understandable gibberish. He could swear he heard someone mumble or snicker but then it went rather quiet again. For a little moment, at least, and the blonde found himself almost smiling as he relaxed against the bed-table-something, feeling like he should probably do something about the funny feeling but having absolutely no way or the mindset to actually starting something.
It was still quiet for a while and then something compositely else happened. Soft warmth was emitting from his right side and then something light and rather lukewarm pressed against his stomach. A low gurgle escaped Naruto's lips as his skin went to goosebumps but he couldn't find it in himself to move or try and push them away. The light object multiplied and started sliding across his stomach, following some weird patterns. It took Naruto a while to realize that the objects on his skin were in fact fingers and that they were moving across his skin in very random manner. They slid over his navel, caressing his skin and sending funny shivers up and down his spine. The fingers moved on after a while, sliding down his legs and brushing very close to his more private parts that, as he now knew, were covered by nothing but a simple loin cloth that he had never owned in his life. The fingers stayed a lot longer on his calves and ankles and feet than they had on his thighs, a fact that made Naruto slightly sad but not enough to have him complaining.
At the moment, he was actually feeling pretty good and he was starting to almost feel silly for fretting so much over the situation. Whoever it was touching him now was making pretty good job of it and he didn't even feel too embarrassed to let out a content sigh as the unknown person kept massaging him with his fingertips, still drawing those weird patterns on him. The only time the blonde even thought of protesting was when the fingers went to his toes, tickling him to the point of making him trash lazily in his place. He was almost giggling by the time the fingers pulled back and returned to his stomach, but letting out such a noise would've taken way too much effort and he wasn't willing to so more than just lay still now. The fingers were still occasionally brushing against the coarse blonde curls on his lower stomach, a trail that led to his groin and the thought made his senses tingle rather pleasantly.
He tried to say something but his words still came out as a jumbled mess, sounding again more like a groan than actual sentence. His ears were buzzing nicely as he arched his back a little, showing his appreciation to the toucher. He didn't hear anything in response, but he could've sworn the fingers rubbed on his nipples a little as they moved upward.
Only when the fingers started to travel down his tanned arm Naruto finally realized, through the funny haze still clouding his mind, that the stranger was in fact getting familiar with his tattoos. The idea made him oddly upset, about the fact that the secret person wasn't touching him just because he found him hot, but he supposed he should let that pass. He was a prisoner, after all, though if all his time there was going to be like this... he wouldn't complain. In any other situation he would've found his own reasoning very weird, but right now he just felt really nice and comfortable and he wished the strange lady would touch him a bit lower. Or at least he supposed it was a woman, the fingers felt very delicate and soft, not like a working man's that was for sure. At the moment he didn't really give a damn because oh god it felt nice.
It felt like the touching went on for hours and hours and then Naruto finally let his eyes fall shut as sleep took him over, the arousal still curling in the pit of his stomach as everything went even more black. Or so it felt at least, he couldn't really tell. The hard whatever he was sleeping on still felt rather nice and almost soft now, but it was a lonely feeling when he heard a door falling shut somewhere close to him. It was followed by surprisingly heavy footsteps, or at least they almost echoed in his ears as he tried to listen as closely as he could, not really caring about how it sounded except that it was louder, even through the door that he supposed was now shut. The air in the room felt cold and he shivered, twisting his hips in hopes of managing to rub his crotch against something but there was nothing but the air and he frowned, wondering what exactly was going to happen now that he had been left alone again.
The next time he opened his eyes it was lighter in the room. Not like outdoors light, no, but someone had brought in a lantern or something because weird shadows were flickering on the wall on his left. Not that he still could turn his head properly, but at least he could see something, and that was definitely a positive. What subdued his joy a little was that his head was aching and his muscles felt sore, as though he had been fighting or running for a long time. The ache was weird, not really throbbing but a constant heavy stinging in the back of his skull, making him cringe as something clonked on his side. It didn't touch him, but the sound was enough to make him want to lash out to someone and tell them to keep it quiet. He was also having hard time remembering what had happened during the last few hours, or ever since his abduction actually, but he had the feeling he probably didn't want to know either. He wasn't really hurting, he wasn't feeling bad in any way except for the headache and the weird feeling in his muscles and he didn't even feel very nervous, although he knew he should have.
Then the sound repeated and Naruto realized he wasn't alone.
"Good to see you're up."
Naruto frowned, immediately recognizing it as a strange voice. He didn't know who the speaker was, and even though he hadn't liked the weird hollow voice from before, it had been a familiar one by now and he had had a person to connect it to. He'd seen the man on the ship and he knew the voice belonged to him, but this new voice was he had no body for. It could as well have belonged to a ghost. Which, in fact, it probably did. That thought wasn't exactly comforting.
"Who are you?" That was, at least, what he had wanted to say. What did come out was simply nothing. His lips were so dry and his tongue so oddly swollen that he couldn't get out anything but pitiful piffing sound, his cheeks momentarily growing red at the weird, embarrassing sound.
In just a second or so something cold and solid pressed against his lips and without hesitation Naruto parted them, allowing the cool liquid to flow in and moist his dried mouth. Never had simple water tasted as good to him as it did at that moment and when the cup finally went empty, he licked his lips and sighed contently, waiting for the person in the room to speak. He was feeling much better now that he could again move his lips without having to fear he'd crack them. He closed his eyes for a while, trying to get over the stupid headache but not really succeeding at all. Despite that he supposed he could try and get some information out of this man now that it was a new person in the room with him.
"Where am I?" he asked simply, feeling just a little weird when he still couldn't see whoever he was talking to. The light made it much more bearable though.
"On Black Ship, right?"
A low humming sound came from somewhere on his right.
"Yes, that would be correct", the voice admitted, followed by a sound of scuffling.
Naruto shuddered involuntarily but immediately suppressed his initial reaction. This was alright, he had known that before, now his suspicions had just been confirmed but it really didn't change the situation. He did need a few calming breaths though and he took his time, sensing that the man he'd been talking to was in no rush to go anywhere. It was a comforting feeling, somehow.
"And why am I here?"
"Because we brought you here."
"Yeah? And why did you do that?"
The voice went quiet for a little while, and when it spoke again, it sounded almost a little bit hesitant at first.
"It's not my place to speak about it." And it fell silent again, a tone of finality in it. It seemed clear that he would not speak of that subject, no matter how hard Naruto pressed.
The blonde didn't really feel like pressing the subject that much anyway, but he was curious, and the curiosity was slowly starting to gain footing over the fear and anxiety that had first ruled him when he had woken up.
"Fine. Then, who's is it?"
"The captain's."
"Right. Who are you then?"
"My name is not of importance to you."
Naruto gritted his teeth. He had almost started to like the speaker, sort of, but now he was just getting a little frustrated. Whoever the man was he was clearly avoiding all the questions that would've given Naruto any real information about himself or the place he was in, but he was still glad to actually get to talk to someone, even if it was utter nonsense that gave him nothing. It certainly made him feel less lonely and less like a prisoner.
"Fine. What about the weather? Is it pleasant? Not very stormy I suppose, the ship isn't rocking much."
"No, not stormy. It's very... dull, really."
And so they went on for some time until the voice announced he would have to leave and that the captain would probably come to speak to him soon. He didn't, but eventually someone came to feed Naruto, with a bowl of dull, greasy stew that still tasted rather wonderful after his time of no food at all. It took the time of one day, he estimated roughly based on his poor sleeping patterns, that the captain finally arrived.
He came with silent steps, closing the door after himself so quietly that Naruto wouldn't have noticed it at all had it not been for the cold sweep of air brushing against his bare body as the door opened. He tried to turn his head to look at the person once again, but he failed as he had all times before. They still kept his head tied to the bench even though he was certain that was not necessary. He couldn't run away with just his neck muscles, that was for sure.
He didn't greet the person, as it had become a habit of his to speak only after the whoever came to see him. It had been just the same man from before, the one who had given him water and fed him, to let him relieve himself twice, which had been very embarrassing and involved a bucket, and give him some more water. They hadn't spoken much, but he sort of liked the guy, whoever he was.
Now, though, Naruto was sure it was not the man. He was not silent like this and the air in the room felt suddenly a little colder, like something from another void had entered to the room. Against his will the young man tensed and his skin prickled as the other entity drew closer with its silent steps. The fire was still burning in the lantern so it wasn't dark, but somehow it was very hard for him to look at the being as it stood by his resting place, a pale hand appearing seemingly out of nowhere to his field of vision. It drew closer to his stomach and the blonde felt a sudden urge to pull back, away from looming touch, but he couldn't move thanks to the troublesome restrains. He hadn't been allowed to get up even once and he was feeling seriously sore already.
The hand landed on his bare stomach, the long fingers barely touching his skin, and suddenly the blonde realized he had been speaking to this person before. Or not so much spoken, but it had been the exactly same touch as before, and then the very hazy memories flooded back to his mind. They were really clouded, as though he had been very drunk or drugged somehow, and for a moment he believed he really had been. He remembered something else too, the lazy arousal that definitely hadn't gone unnoticed by the man now touching him, because a man it was for sure and not a ghost, and a tint of red colored his cheeks again as he thought about it. The thought of being drugged though was making his blood boil but he had a strong feeling that the time wasn't right to confront the man about it.
The fingers didn't move this time, just rested on his stomach, spread wide all across his skin and making him shudder again. He didn't dare to move, not with the ghostly touch lingering on him, but that didn't mean he couldn't talk. The blonde wetted his lips with his tongue, hoping that he could form proper words this time but not sure id he could actually hope for it. Before he could say a word the cold-fingered man spoke, his voice low and still somehow a little hollow.
"Things have not gone as easily as I hoped they would", he said, his fingers pressing just a little tighter against the tanned skin.
Naruto blinked, confused, and once again hoped he had any idea of what was going on.
"What?" he asked, his voice again gone rather hoarse as he tried to turn his head or stretch his eyes or anything to get a proper look at the man speaking.
He wasn't sure if the man had heard him or if he had just been about to explain anyway, but either way he was rather glad for it.
"I hoped you would be carrying it with you, or at least had it clearly written on you. But you weren't carrying nothing and your captain told us you had no personal belongings of any kind. Your body doesn't have it, and I can't think of anything but extracting it from your mind." The voice diminished, ending with a near whisper as the hand moved up to Naruto's chest.
The young man shuddered again, goosebumps raising on his skin as he tried to make some sense out of the words that had just been uttered out. He couldn't even begin to guess what the man was talking about and he wasn't very fond of the fingers on him anymore, they made him feel very vulnerable as though they could just snap his neck at any moment. The voice hadn't sounded pleased at all but he hoped it was nothing too serious.
"What?" he repeated, his voice coming out a little high-pitched even to his own ears.
The speaker either didn't hear him or simply ignored him, again.
"That means, it might help if we didn't keep you like this... I had hoped we wouldn't have to go this far, as I know you probably are unaware of your own fate, but you are giving me no choice." The voice had gone cold again, calculating, as though the owner was planning what to do next.
Naruto blinked as he saw a knife flashing in his line of vision, his body going cold for a few seconds until he started trashing, trying to pull free from the restraints before that psycho could cut him apart.
"I have no idea what you're talking about, I swear! Just let me go! Let me go, dammit!"
Whether it helped or not, he wouldn't know, but a moment later he was sitting up with only his feet tied down anymore. The blonde blinked again, immediately lifting his hands to rub his face until his attention snapped back to the knife he had seen before. It was now laying by his feet on the table-like thing he was on, too far for him to reach which probably was the plan, and as he tried to catch it anyway his sore muscles protested, making him cringe. Then, with numbing coldness he realized that he had, again, forgotten the most important thing; his abductor.
His head whipped around as he stared at the chair by the table. It was empty, with no-one in sight, yet the blonde was sure no-one had left the room after the appearance of the knife. The door hadn't been opened, he would've noticed. The thought made him shudder as the presence of ghosts again had him wondering if he was ever going to make it out alive, and then it occurred to him that he might just as well be dead already. What would stop a ship full of spirits from making him into one of them? He still couldn't for the life of him figure out why though, but he chose to ignore it for a while as he rubbed his arms and torso, almost groaning at the nice feeling of finally being able to move again. His blood was starting to flow properly, making him tingle and squirm.
Now that he was finally somewhat free, Naruto took a moment to inspect the room he was in. It was smaller than he had thought, maybe half of the size of his captain's cabin back to his ship, and there was very little furniture in. His table thing was in the middle of the room, taking up a chunk of space, with a couple of chairs by it that didn't look very used at all. A few lanterns were hanging on the walls and a window far his left provided the room with very little light. It was probably rainy outside as the light seemed rather dull and gray-ish, not the warm sunshine he was used to at all. Other than that, the room was empty and so Naruto took a moment to inspect the chairs a little closer to find at least something useful. The chairs itself looked somehow very weird, too decorated and just oddly shaped for a ship of any kind, but after a while it finally occurred to Naruto that they were probably very old. They said the ship had been rowing these waters for centuries after all.
He didn't get much farther than that as heavy footsteps descended the apparent stairs behind the only door leading to his room and Naruto tensed, for a moment torn between laying down again and pretending that he was tied up still and sitting up and facing the stranger. He ended up doing something between them, not really lying down but not sitting either, and he mentally prepared himself for seeing something terrible, like a ghost man with his stomach torn open and his guts eternally spilling out. Or maybe a decapitated man that carried its head along in a see-through sack.
What came out of the door, however, was nothing like that. The man was large, very large indeed, and so tall Naruto was sure he had never seen anyone that huge before. He also looked like he could probably lift both Naruto and his table to the air without much effort despite not being overly muscular. He was wearing a simple black vest and black pants with a dark purple belt and his hair was short cropped, dull shade of orange. Naruto couldn't remember ever seeing hair like that before and he shivered involuntarily. This man didn't really look that frightening, he wasn't glowing or see-through and he was actually giving Naruto a small smile as he got closer, holding a bowl of something that steamed just like warm soup could.
"Hello again", the man said, sitting down by the table and still being high enough that he could've easily fed Naruto.
The voice clicked immediately in the blonde's head and his expression brightened a little.
"Hey, it's you!"
The man nodded and he offered the bowl of stew to the blonde, still smiling almost a little awkwardly.
"Yes, it's me. Nice to see you up. Here, have some food, and afterwards we'll be going for a little walk."
The wording probably should've sent warning bells off in Naruto's head but instead of doing that he just heard the word walk and his toes curled in anticipation. He had no idea how long he had been tied down but it was seriously making him achy -and cranky- and he would've given his left hand earlier for a little walk, even just around the room. The thought of actually going somewhere else thrilled him, and he was still chatting with the orange-haired man as he ate, falling to the easy and comfortable pattern straight away.
When he had finished, the man took the bowl and put it away under the table, taking the knife from the table and sliding it into his belt, ignoring the way Naruto momentarily tensed. He made the blonde promise he wouldn't run away and then undid Naruto's feet restraints, stepping back as the blonde climbed off the table.
His legs felt weak and wobbly and the moment he set his foot on the floor and his weight on them Naruto just knew he wasn't going to make it far without falling. He was been still for way too long and now he felt like he was made of pudding, his hands clutching the edge of the table as he slowly stood up, breathing in deep as his legs started to tingle unpleasantly. The ghost man was watching him patiently, but after a moment he stepped closer and took Naruto by the arm, starting to lead him to the door. His grip was firm but not painful, just enough to keep Naruto on his feet and make sure he wouldn't run away, and for a moment Naruto welcomed the help. This man had been feeding him and helping him take a leek too (by the most condescending way that included a cup or a bottle or something and still being tied to the table), and while it was damn embarrassing it couldn't be helped anymore. By the time they reached the door, though, he was sure that he could as well walk alone and the man let go, following Naruto to the stairs.
The door to his room hadn't been locked, a detail that the blonde immediately noticed and made sure to remember. It was either because this ghost crew was sure he couldn't' get out of his restraints or simply because they knew that Naruto would have nowhere to run even if he tried to.
Everything around him was black. The walls, the floors, the ceiling; everything. Even the lanterns that were unlighted now were made of something very dark and quite not shiny. It was weird, but Naruto didn't really have the time to think about it. The stairs weren't long, and even though he wasn't very fast at climbing them, they ended soon. He was told to open the door, and, while almost expecting someone to shoot him the moment he did, the blonde pushed the heavy door open, stepping out to the deck.
It was exactly as in the old tales. The ship truly was black entirely, even out here, and there was no sign of wear anywhere. The ship could just as well have come out of painting only minutes ago, so polished it looked. It was a weird color of black though, somehow dulled while being the deepest shade of any color Naruto had ever seen. It almost looked like the ship itself was just a large black hole in the air, not a real thing, and as he looked down at his feet he had a momentary feeling of walking on air above a huge tear in the world. He gasped and stopped, trying to look away from the utter blackness that was just the deck beneath his feet. Then the man behind him shook him out of his thoughts and he raised his head, only to find himself staring at a few men who had stopped working and come to stare at him instead.
It definitely felt little weird and Naruto wasn't exactly sure what to do. He was hearing voices, low whispers that seemed to originate either nowhere or everywhere around him, and even though he had already established the fact that he wasn't afraid of the ship or the crew, he couldn't help the chill that ran down his spine. Down in the cabin he had been held it'd been just... well, dark but otherwise very normal, but this was weird. He couldn't even see anything but mist around the ship and the sounds of the waves was very quiet, eerie, coming from somewhere far away. None of the men was saying anything, they just stared at him with somehow very dull eyes, yet the whispering was still there. He was seeing no-one familiar but that wasn't a surprise, he hadn't met any ghosts recently or ever really, though he had assumed the man from the ports had probably been from this ship. He wasn't hearing the voice from before either, the one that had to belong to the said follower, but he supposed he'd see him in time, After all, he'd been told he was being taken to the captain.
He stood there for what felt like minutes thanks to all the probably curious eyes, but finally the large man escorted him away. Naruto could still feel the eyes on him and he had to resist the urge to turn around and tell them to stop staring at him, but he didn't think it would do any good. He didn't know how long it had been since these men had had a living man on their ship so he sort of understood where that staring was coming from, but that didn't make it any better. It was unnerving and he didn't know what was going on here or why he had been brought in, other than the fact that they needed something from him. What, he had no idea, but he hoped it was going to be explained soon. And that they wouldn't decide to dispose him once they had found out what they wanted. Or when they didn't.
Another small staircase led down to a cabin right below the wheel deck, and after a very respectful knock Juugo stepped back, allowing Naruto to go in first. To the blonde's surprise the large man didn't follow him as he stepped inside but just closed the door after him, leaving him alone in the cabin.
Or, well, alone with the captain he soon found out. Naruto didn't have the time to check the room, his eyes went straight to the figure standing by a window. Surprisingly the window itself wasn't black at all, more like a dulled version of every window he had seen in his life, but it wasn't letting in all that much light. It was like the same dull color of the air outside was slowly bleeding into the room but something in the room was stopping it from spreading around and trapping it to a small circle right by the window. A dark figure was standing right outside that circle, just hints of the light touching his chest and the hem of his coat. He was very still, practically unmoving like a statue as he stood there, staring at the window as though Naruto had never stepped into the room. He had a very commanding presence, even while standing it felt like he was demanding Naruto's attention and the blonde couldn't help giving it to him. He felt stupid just standing there. As long as he didn't know what exactly his situation was he wasn't going to start testing the limits.
"So, here you are." Despite the almost hard presence he had, the man had a very soft voice, soft yet somehow dangerous. And it was, not too surprisingly, the same voice Naruto had been hearing before so many times.
He nodded, not wanting to speak. The air in the room was very eerie, definitely the most ghostly place of them all so far, and somehow he knew his voice wouldn't fit. It would stand out just like his coloring did, he could almost see his hair radiating oddly in the darkness. Although it wasn't exactly dark there, there just wasn't any bright light. If there ever was such a thing as dark light existing.
"Please, have a seat. This will take a while."
And so Naruto did. Not right away though, since he took a while to actually locate the chair. The cabin was actually really large, much larger than it looked from the outside, and very tastefully furnished, in the same kind of old style that he was seeing everywhere. There was a dresser and a mirror, a bed on one side (and quite a large bed at that, fit for two people at least), a working desk with papers and what looked like maps spread over it, a couple of very simple wooden chairs in front of it and another set of more cushioned seats closer to the window. It would have been really pretty if it hadn't been all black around him. As a difference to the rest of the ship this room actually had some color, there were splashes of dark red and blue in the cushions of the chairs and the covers on the bed, and even such little color was a welcome change to Naruto. He was very fast starting to like this room, and eh would've liked it even more if the man in front of him, the captain it occurred to him, hadn't been so still and not even looking at him. In fact, it would've been the best option to be here alone so he could go and check if that bed felt as nice as it looked. Although anything probably felt nice compared to the desk he'd been strapped onto before.
That thought made the blonde cringe and he slowly walked over to the chairs in front of the table, coming to the conclusion that he wasn't supposed to be getting too comfortable here.
His decision finally sparked a reaction out of the other man. As soon as Naruto was seated, feeling rather stupid just sitting there in his rather non elegant clothing with his hair messy and face probably very puffy from just lying down so long, the captain turned away from the window, only his hair moving around his face as little as the strode over to the table. His coat fluttered a little behind him but other than that he still had a rather statuesque air around him as he sat down behind the desk, running his shockingly pale fingers through his pitch black hair. It was a deliberate gesture, meant to look effortless and random and succeeding perfectly, but somehow it didn't feel like this man would do anything without a reason. Then he leaned over the desk a little, his eyes suddenly focusing on Naruto and Naruto alone.
The intensity of that gaze was something the blonde would've never expected from a dead man.
"Is there anything you would like to tell me?" the captain asked with his smooth voice, staring straight into Naruto's eyes with his own that were so perfectly black he thought he could see himself reflecting in them if he looked close enough.
He didn't dare to try though, simply because what he was seeing in those eyes now was alerting on its own. They weren't eyes belonging to a man as young as the captain appeared, they looked like the eyes of an old man who was just waiting for death to come and collect him. Or maybe more of an old man who knew death would never come. The thought made Naruto shudder and he quickly looked away for a couple of heartbeats, telling himself to calm down. He didn't want to appear nervous so he took a deep breath and then turned back to the raven haired man, shaking his head firmly.
"No, I don't think so." He was proud of himself for how little his voice shook.
"Hn." The captain appeared amused but didn't comment further.
Naruto frowned, trying to stop his foot from bouncing against the floor. It was his natural reaction to having to sit still like now.
"Why you asking?"
"I was thinking about getting your name, actually."
"Name? You don't know that already?"
"If I did, I obviously wouldn't be asking." Now there was a hint of sudden annoyance creeping to that smooth tone, just deepening the impact it had on the listener.
Naruto blinked twice, already knowing that for now he wouldn't want to anger the captain.
"Naruto. That's my name. What's yours?"
The raven chuckled breathlessly, again back to amusement. He was clearly a man of quick temper and rapid changes of mood.
"I'm Sasuke. I'm also the captain of this ship. Welcome on board, Naruto", he greeted rather surprisingly, slowly tapping the desk with his index finger. It didn't look like an impatient gesture, more like he was taking time by counting seconds in his mind and using the finger to keep the pace.
Naruto smiled rather awkwardly.
"Well, thanks, I guess. Would you mind me asking why I'm here?"
"No, I wouldn't."
Silence followed for a little while, expectant one on Naruto's part, and finally he frowned.
"Well?"
A small smirked appeared on the captain's previously stoic face.
"You haven't asked yet."
Naruto opened his mouth to say something in return but then closed it immediately, seeing the logic behind the ghost man's words. Stupid and childish, but logic anyway.
"Yeah, right. So, I'm asking now. Why am I here?"
The captain was quiet for a while and then nodded at nothing in particular.
"We brought you here."
Naruto huffed, not daring to roll his eyes.
"Yeah, well, I sort of figured that out myself. I meant, why did you do that? And why would you, uh, nap me from a ship like that? You could've just talked to me in a port and I... Okay well, I probably wouldn't have wanted to come unless you had a very good reason but that doesn't mean you couldn't have tried!"
After that, silence fell again and Naruto fidgeted a little in his chair, wondering if he had said something inappropriate, what with the way this captain Sasuke was watching him. The dark, dark eyes were still too old for him, making it hard to look him in the eye and finally Naruto just gave up, staring at the curtains on the wall right behind Sasuke. It was much easier that way cause really, those eyes were giving him the chills. Everything else he could handle but not being stared at like that, it just didn't feel natural.
It felt like hours until the moment Sasuke finally spoke, his finger still tapping against the table.
"You really don't know, then? It's very unfortunate... But I'm sure we'll figure it out."
The captain was being purposely secretive, of that Naruto was sure, but he didn't think he should bring it up. Instead, he shook his head, feeling honestly rather helpless. These guys seemed to expect a lot from him without giving him any clue of what that something was and it wasn't a very good starting point at all.
"No, I guess I don't. ...should I say sorry or something? I really don't know what you're talking about." He shrugged helplessly, scratching the back of his hand. He was itching all over from being still so long.
"No, it's not necessary. I think you people have forgotten our story along the years... As sad as it is." The raven turned away from Naruto for a while, looking at the dull window on the wall with his shoulders softly rising and falling with his slow breathing. When he turned back, however, it was almost like his eyes had suddenly gotten even older, like more years had passed by as they sat there, all reflecting in the black depths. It was rather frightening, the change, or it would've been had there not been an element of sadness somewhere in those eyes as well.
"You see, very long ago, more time than you can think about, this was but a normal trading ship, just like so many others. But after some unfortunate events, a curse fell upon the ship and all of its crew. That much I'm sure you know already. Maybe even what the curse is." The captain was still watching Naruto, his ancient eyes unblinking as he spoke. As Naruto shook his head he looked slightly displeased but otherwise showed no any kind of emotion, then carrying on with his story.
"This ship is trapped into the mist, into another realm that exists somewhere within yours. We can only move when it's dark and when we do, the light from the world vanishes around the ship. Everything here is black and so are the minds of many of the men who now sail this ship. Weapons can't hurt us and we hardly need any food or drink. None of us can step on land, none but me, and I'm only given three chances every year. Three times I may spend a day on land, but my tongue is bound and my body weak. None of the crew can even dream of such an opportunity."
He went silent again, watching Naruto as though he was expecting something from him. Not a comment, but maybe recognition, something that would tell him the blonde knew the story.
But he didn't. Naruto had never heard anything more than that the ship was cursed and sunk other ships, so he couldn't do anything but to wait for the captain to continue, leaning slightly forward in his chair. Even though it was a simple story and an old one at that, the way the other man was telling it was somehow very captivating, his voice pulling Naruto in as though he could feel everything that was being told.
"But what you all have forgotten is the way to lift it, our salvation that was promised to us. It was said that somewhere on the land a map was to be found, a map that would show us a way to lift the curse. Because of the curse we couldn't go to the land, however, so promising it like that was but an addition to this torture. However, when the curse was brought upon this ship, one man, the first mate and the best friend of the captain, managed to escape it. He promised the captain he would find the map and then return to the ship to save them all."
Naruto was leaning even more forward now, almost hypnotized by the low, flowing voice that was slowly wrapping around him like a warm blanket.
"But he didn't", he whispered, finally keeping his eyes on Sasuke and not shying away from the old gaze.
"No, that he didn't", Sasuke answered, shaking his head sadly.
"Maybe he tried, maybe he didn't, but he never returned to the ship. The captain never stopped hoping though. You see, there was this special sign that they had agreed upon so the ship wouldn't have to check every ship sailing on these waters. At the time, it was an old habit to paint that black stripe to the ship. It was said to protect you from all the dangers out there, and the agreement they made was that once the map had been found, the first mate would find a ship and make sure it wouldn't have the mark. It wouldn't need the protection from ghosts and the ship was supposed to be able to approach it. When the first of the ships without the sign appeared, the captain and the crew celebrated. They were already growing older and weary of the wait, and when they saw the ship they thought for sure that the first mate had returned to them with the map. But the ship was a foreign one, not used to these waters and customs and so it lacked the mark for those reasons. Full of disappointment the captain chose to sink that ship, letting just one man survive to tell the story of the ghosts as a warning for others."
Naruto winced, briefly wondering if that was what had happened to his ship as well. He was alive, after all, and no ship had ever survived from meeting Black Ship before. He recalled something about the captain saying that they'd be left alive but he couldn't' tell for sure, his memory was still rather hazy. His thoughts were interrupted as soon as Sasuke started speaking again, and he found himself fully leaning on his knees, as though trying to get closer to the source of the voice.
"And so it began, the legend of the Black Ship that appeared only to those without the mark. During the years, more ships appeared and they were all sunken, but the map was never found. The captain went to the land to search for the map himself but not knowing what he was looking for he never found it. Only a while ago we finally managed to recover an old notebook of the long gone first mate, with a short description of the map and how to read it. It wasn't what we had been expecting, but from that point on, it was much easier to keep up with the search, to look for clues. After all, we finally knew that the map we had been looking for wasn't a traditional map after all."
Naruto froze, his mind already fitting the pieces together. He was done with it even before Sasuke said it, but it was still enough to make him shudder as the raven looked at him, those eyes piercing straight through him and his voice low as a rumbling storm in distance as he spoke.
"That's right, Naruto. You are our map."
TBC