3. Grope

The cell was freezing and they had taken his shirt (not that there had been much left of it). The moment Naruto felt the rough ground on his skin he was back on his feet, running to the door. It was no use, the men who had held him had not even taken a step into the cell before shoving him inside. "Let me out of here, bastards!" Naruto yelled, fists pounding at the metal door. "What did you do with Sai?! Tell me, god dammit!"

He slid down the door to the floor, cursing under his breath. They were not going to do anything he asked. In fact, they probably would not even bring him food for a day or two. The group of men who had captured him were probably the most wanted gang aside from the Akatsuki. Team Seven had been sent on a mission to observe their newest hideout. Unfortunately, Sai had set off a trap and when Naruto and Sakura had tried to rescue him, they had all been caught.

Naruto stared out into his cell, but found it to be pitch black. The moisture in the air had collected on the walls and floor, making the room humid and giving it a moldy scent. Naruto almost gagged at the prospect of being trapped there for any amount of time. It could take days for Kakashi to find out where they were and maybe even weeks for him to get in. "I'll get you, you dirty sons-of-bitches!" Naruto yelled one more time.

"Will you shut up?" a weak voice asked from somewhere to Naruto's right.

The noise had been unexpected and Naruto nearly jumped out of his skin. "Why should I shut up?" he asked after the initial shock wore off.

There was a quiet sigh that sounded more like a hiss from Naruto's hidden cell-mate. "You're making the air hotter than it already is, idiot."

Naruto froze, eyes wide. His heartbeat quickened and an almost unbearable hope welled up in his chest. He knew that voice (although it had matured). But how could it be? He was not supposed to be here; it was not supposed to be this easy! He swallowed as he turned to face the direction of the voice. "Sasuke?" he whispered. What if he was mistaken and it was not?

The silence from the other side of the room had Naruto's hopes sinking and his heart with it. Of course it was not Sasuke. Sasuke was safely hidden in Orochimaru's lair, not locked in some stinking cell. "Sorry," Naruto muttered, "I thought you were someone else."

Almost immediately the other man said, "No!"

Again, Naruto stared into the cell. His heart was in his throat and he was short of breath. "Sasuke? You're really there?" he asked.

Another pause, and then, "Yes."

Naruto reached out blindly across the cell, groping in the dark for solid proof. The other wall was not very far across the cell and he awkwardly crawled the distance. His hand came in 

contact with a warm arm. A foreign hand came up to grasp his, pulling him down and into a tight hug.

"Naruto," that soft, familiar voice whispered in his ear.

A smile broke across Naruto's face and he squeezed Sasuke as tightly as he could. "You bastard, you rotten bastard!"

333

I'm soooo tired. Again: written in a hotel room surrounded by family. Firstly, I don't know if this is actually the word I had for today. Secondly, I had a long, internal debate over how to use this word. Lastly... I have no idea where this came from but I really might expand it.