Disclaimer: Characters belong to Kishi/Naruto.
Juugo's note: Tried to make it longer this time. Wrote first half in school, part on the bus ride home and the rest was typed in the security of my room.
Shades of Gray
ItaSasu, NaruSasu.
He quickly pressed his sweaty back against the head of the queen-sized bed. His eyes were shut tight – he dare not open them. He swore he saw those red eyes staring up at him. Had Itachi come back to finish the job? Slowly, he opened his mouth to let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. Now wasn't the time to act like a scared little child. If it was Itachi, he'd stand up to him. He knew he couldn't beat him, but he'd try.
Five sweaty fingers were digging into his chest, as Sasuke tried to calm himself down. His breathing was labored; it could be easily heard by anybody else that could possibly be in the room. Did it rise a few degrees in here?
His eyes slowly opened, and he soon found himself staring into two unblinking eyes that stared curiously back. "It's…" He scooted back as much as he could, taking in the sight before him. This is what he had gotten scared about? A very un-Sasuke like grin spread across his face. "…just a stupid cat." The cat was a bit small. One foot? It was obvious the horrible stench was radiating from the animal, he was sure it was just a random, stray cat picked up from the street. Probably from the ramen shop. Leaning forward, Sasuke poked the cat in its cheek. All he got in response was a soft "mew."
"Out. Shoo." Sasuke waved at the cat, scowl back in its place. He wouldn't stand for this. I'm Sasuke Uchiha, avenger. Not cat-keeper.
The cat didn't move an inch.
A sigh escaped Sasuke's lips as he leaned back, rolling his eyes upward and peering at the ceiling of his small bedroom. They should know I don't like animals. Mom never got me a pet, no matter how much I asked. And besides. I wanted a dog. Standing on his lap, the cat pressed itself against Sasuke's chest. It was close enough to hear the fast beating of Sasuke's heart – he was still unable to calm himself. "Ugh…" Its tail swept his bottom lip and its head rubbed against his shoulder. "I think I'm allergic to this thing." The feline turned around to do it again, this time nearly knocking Sasuke's eye. Growling under his breath, Sasuke used the back of his hand to knock the annoying pest away. It was sent hurling across the room, slamming against the wall face-first.
Unlike most cats, this one didn't have a graceful landing. I thought they said cats always landed on their feet. The animal fell with a quiet thud against the ground. "Get out!" he yelled, wondering how crazy he must sound to anyone who could not see. The cat peered back at him – Sasuke could have sworn he saw a disappointed frown – and quickly retreated from the room.
The young Uchiha let out another sigh, using his hand to tuck back part of his hair that had gotten into his face. "That thing had to have come in with the damn gift. I'll get rid of it after training tomorrow…" Swearing under his breath, he fell back onto his bed, staring at the ceiling again. What did I do to deserve all this?
The cat was smarter than he thought. As he arrived home from training, helped by Sakura and led on by Naruto (who now memorized where he lived), he noticed a small, well-groomed cat sitting patiently outside his door. It was if it was waiting there all day. "Hey, Sasuke, I didn't know you were going to clean the cat, too. Was it hard? I heard cats don't like water." Naruto's voice came from ahead. Naruto stopped completely, squatting down as low as he could as he watched the feline. The cat, though, wasn't focused on him; it was staring behind him at Sasuke. "Hey, you didn't even read the note, Sasuke-teme!" Pulling a small folded paper from the cat's collar, he held it out for Sasuke to read. As he took it, Naruto opened the door.
"Here is Ramen the first, a mackerel tabby cat I found wandering around with another cat outside the ramen shop. I've noticed how down you've been lately, and maybe you've been scared to be living alone. So I was like, hey, why not give that bastard a cat? I would have gotten that other cat too, but I know how careless you can be. It was big and fat, too, and it kept hissing at me. You'd kill it if I gave it to you. So think of Ramen as…a brother.
-Uzumaki Naruto"
"Oh, how-" He looked up from the fancy writing, to find himself standing awkwardly in an empty hallway. Both Naruto and Sakura had left him alone…save for the cat that was now standing inside his living room, staring at him in the hallway. With a shrug of the shoulders he ripped the paper in half, and dropped it onto the floor. He was exhausted. Nothing had gone right that day.
It started as soon as he fell back to sleep that night. He couldn't wake up the next morning. Luckily he didn't have another nightmare, but when he woke up, the cat was curled comfortably by his feet – which he didn't notice. He stretched, kicking the cat and causing it to bite his foot. From then on he had an unusual limp. The cut stung every time pressure was put onto the foot. It slowed down his movement, allowing Naruto to beat him in training today. Sad part was, he swears someone was watching. The bushes kept moving, even when he could perfectly see where everyone was – Kakashi was in the tree reading his book, Sakura was underneath the tree shouting who-knows-what, and Naruto was hurling shuriken at him like there was no tomorrow.
And I swear there was someone in here. There's no way that cat cleaned itself. The cat's short hair smelled like a soft, wafting vanilla. The purple collar around its neck didn't look like it was covered in mud – but there was a coffee stain on the back. Its claws were trimmed, it seemed to be fed, and all of this happened while he was gone.
"Who names a cat ramen, anyway?"
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.Four Days Later.
Have I progressed at all? Sasuke was awake, but he kept his eyes closed. He didn't want to open them to the bright, white light. The freezing white room with white sheets, walls, with the occasional metal instrument sitting alone on the counter. It brought back too many memories. When was he last in here? Wasn't it only a few weeks ago? A month? He didn't know. He didn't count – Sasuke hadn't planned to end up in the hospital again. This time, though, he was under house arrest and wasn't allowed to go to training. There'd be Anbu parading around his apartment door, and watching him from his apartment window. It was unfair. How was the dead last stronger than him…?
Naruto sat in the waiting room. Neither he nor Sakura had gone to check up on Sasuke yet. "I…what happened? I wasn't…he overreacted…" The blonde boy wasn't speaking complete sentences. His entire body, covered from head to toe in burns and scratches, was trembling violently. Kakashi, from the training field, covered the boy's eyes with his forehead protector, and it still hadn't been removed. "..bastard…" He continued to mumble underneath his breath, rocking himself back and forth on his heels. Wiping his hands on his cut, bright orange pants, Naruto stood, and lifted the metal from his eyes. "Okay. Okay." He seemed breathless as he waltzed into Sasuke's room, looking at the raven-haired boy laying peacefully on the bed.
"I'll help you, Sasuke." The kitsune climbed onto Sasuke's bed, pulling off the sheets. "It'll be okay." He felt up and down his arms, putting pressure here and there with his thumb. Sasuke's hospital gown was then ripped to his waist, and the cold skin there was warmed by Naruto's swiftly-moving hands. "I won't let Orochimaru take you away! I won't let those horrible black marks stain your perfect skin." No. Sasuke wouldn't leave Konoha. Naruto would make sure of it. All of this was his fault, anyway. He let it take over – Naruto could have done something to help. He rocked his hips, ignoring the soft moan underneath him. "Sakura-chan and I. We can help you get revenge. Anything you want, just don't leave, it'd break Sakura's heart." Naruto rocked his hips harder, running his hands along Sasuke's hip bone. "The marks were here, too – I know they were." He pushed Sasuke's legs apart so he could get in between.
"Naruto, no, stop!" Sasuke tried to push the boy away, but he hadn't any energy left. The cursed seal took over just hours before, his chakra was drained. What the hell was that idiot doing to him? He didn't have these kinds of feelings for him, and even if he did, this wasn't the time or place for this. "Ah-get off!" Sasuke looked up as Naruto seemed to be attacked by a flying brown ball of fur, which quickly attached to his neck and refused to left go. Naruto began screeching random insults, thrashing about violently. Whatever was on him dug something sharp into him – Sasuke was beginning to see rivers of red on Naruto's fingers.
The ruckus brought along Kakashi, who had his book tucked away behind him, kunai in hand. Even the silver-haired ninja had to stop and do a double-take at what was happening. Uzumaki Naruto was atop an aroused Uchiha Sasuke, who watched with wide eyes as his teammate was attacked by… 'Is that a cat?' Dropping the weapon onto the floor, the jounin quickly removed Naruto from Sasuke's body. "What the hell has gotten into you?" The cat immediately let go, standing silently underneath the hospital bed. "You're going to have to get your own hospital room…" He dragged him out by the back of his torn shirt. With a short word to Sakura, he vanished down the hall.
Sakura soon appeared. Sasuke already had the covers drawn high up to his chin. "Here." Gray pants and a black shirt were flung at his head. A dark blush was on Sakura's face as she ran out, yelling "Get better soon, Sasuke-kun!" over her shoulder. The door clicked shut, and he was alone once again. Sighing, he pulled his clothes on quickly. The room was cold, and without Naruto's roaming hands on him, the cold air attacked at full force. He curled into a messy ball underneath the covers, wishing they were thicker, wishing Naruto didn't just molest him in a hospital bed, wishing that he could ignore the pain between his legs.
"It looks like someone has a problem," came a rich, velvety voice. Sasuke glanced up. No…it can't be. Not again! Itachi was on all fours over his body, a triumphant smirk on his face. "You heard me, foolish otouto." He jabbed him roughly on his forehead, and his head was pushed back onto the pillow. "What…are you doing here?"
Itachi didn't answer. That bastard. He always ignores me. Even now, he can't be bothered to answer my Sasuke's thoughts were cut short by a squeeze in his lower region. He gasped, looking down at the offending hand. His brother wasted no time. The cold air lashed at his heated flesh as his pants were pulled down to his knees. Sasuke's eyes snapped closed as Itachi mouth latched onto his throbbing member. "Ah-Itachi! Stop, this is w-wrong!" Long, smooth fingers wrapped around his base as Itachi's head bobbed up and down. Sasuke's protests were silenced, but he was still having an emotional battle inside of his mind. Why won't he stop? We're brothers! I'm supposed to kill him… Itachi sucked hard, using one hand to hold down Sasuke's hips, the other massaging his base.
Despite how much he didn't want this, Sasuke found that his body wasn't quite working the way he wanted it to. He didn't want his back to arch as Itachi went faster, he didn't want his toes to curl in pleasure, he didn't want his hand on the back of his brother's head, encouraging him on, and he didn't want to scream as he was pushed over the edge by being deep-throated, emptying his load into a murderer's mouth. His back straightened, he panted, his eyes still half lidded, the way they were when this all began. Slowly, his eyes closed completely, and without a second thought he drifted off to sleep.
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"Ah!" Sasuke woke with a start. His eyes were wide, his heart was beating fast. But it was still night. The lights were off completely, he was all alone. Was it a dream? He didn't think it was. His pants weren't very comfortable, he wanted to change them, and he guessed he'd have to wait until morning, when he could ask the nurse if he could get a change of clothing.
Nothing was out of the ordinary in the room, except the cat at the window sill, who was watching the boy with unblinking, hazel eyes.
