A/N: OH GAWDDESS I PHAIL SO HARD AT LIFE! TTTT I've been trying extremely hard to get my stories done, but I've been so damned lazy. There's school and my DA account and friends and parents and GenCon and studying and I HAVE MIDTERMS THIS WEEK! TT TT I'm not ready for them. I'm gonna PHAIL. It's not that I can't do the work, it's that I can't bring myself to actually do the work. I do try! But I get distracted or I make excuses or something like that. TT TT I need ADD medicine or something.
On the bright side, I have a more friends than I can count on one hand. :D Yay! I got adopted by one of my brother's friends and I have a whole scheduled planned out for seeing pretty much all of my friends at least once in the day. Of course, in ten weeks, it's all gonna be screwed over when I get new classes. D: But after midterms I get two weeks off! Maybe I'll actually do something for my poor neglected stories!
But you can see the stuff I've been doing while slacking on my stories on my homepage, which is now my DA account. I'm so happy with most of the pictures up there. I might be tempted to draw scenes from this story when I finish off the ones I promised to do. Gawd, I'm such a failure.
XExplodingChickenOfDoomx: Thanks, and thanks for the review!
Shadow Kitsune67: X3 Of course he does. This wouldn't be a yaoi story if it didn't have Sasuke getting a new girlfriend (cough boyfriend cough). Thanks for the review!
Lady Blade WarAngel: Thanks, and thanks for the review!
sasunaru panda: It's amazing what yaoi will do to things. X3 Thanks for the review!
aloukou101: Heh. I really wish I could have properly explained Naruto's expression to you guys though. Thanks for the review!
PirateCaptainBo: Because we all know Kurenai is a yaoi fangirl in hiding. I'll let her have Asuma just for being as cool as she is. And it's perverted Jiraiya to the-! …Actually, I got nothing. Thanks for the review!
Niver: It's all right. If you comment, it doesn't matter to me when you do it. Thanks for the review!
Ozette: Thanks, and thanks for the review!
ChibiesRevil: Heh. Thanks. And I figured a good relationship-building dinner would be nice. I'm trying to get the whole easing into a relationship thing down, so there's probably going to be a bit of drama in the near future. I've been trying to get the song lines to have some meaning in the chapter, but that might have to end soon. Anyway, thanks for the review!
ONTO THE LONG-AWAITED CHAPTER!
Chapter Four: I Could Be Your Girlfriend
Sasuke tapped his pencil on his desk irritably. It had been a week or so since Naruto and Lee had transferred into their school. Nothing terribly exciting had happened in those days, other than the Akatsuki had adopted Naruto. The Akatsuki was the 'gang' in school that both Itachi and Kisame were a part of. They were the most unique, most exotic boys (and one girl) in the school gathered together in a sort of club. Itachi had been accepted due to being one of the rare Uchihas, while Kisame was not only from California, but also rather exotic looking. There was also Sasori, the eldest brother of the Sabaku siblings, Hidan, Kakuzu, Pein, Zetsu, the plant fanatic, Tobi, Zetsu's fanboy and the Akatsuki's lackey, and the Demolition Twins, also known as Deidara and Konan. Both liked to blow things up in science class and pull if off as an accident.
Sasuke had been offered a place among them for being Itachi's brother, but he had declined rather viciously. He hated Itachi, he hated Itachi's friends, and he really didn't want to spend more time than necessary with them. The other reason he didn't want to join was because one time when Itachi had invited them over to his home, he'd walked into the kitchen to find Tobi on top of his refrigerator wearing a lavender apron and having a conversation with a pair of his pants. Of course, he later found out that Tobi was just a little bit ADD, not to mention slightly schizophrenic, but that only added to his not wanting to join.
"And now he's one of them!" Neji looked over his book at the heir.
"Who's one of what?"
"Naruto's one of the Akatsuki!"
"Oh, that." Sasuke gave the Hyuuga a bit of a glare.
"'Oh that'? Everyone in that group is insane!"
"Even Itachi?"
"Especially Itachi." Smiling a bit, Neji just shook his head and went back to his book.
"Uh-huh." Sasuke did the Uchiha equivalent to a pout.
"How can you not understand how serious this is? Naruto is in danger!" Closing his book, Neji gave Sasuke a bit of a grin.
"Sasuke, you don't know this yet, but you'll learn soon enough that it's true. Naruto is almost always in some kind of trouble or another. I'm actually glad that Itachi convinced the rest of the Akatsuki to adopt him as their lower-classman. At least this way he'll have a ten people, ourselves not included, keeping an eye out for him. And they won't even try anything since they're pretty much all in relationships already and Kisame and Uzumaki-sensei will cause severe amounts of pain to anyone who tries something. Besides, Naruto may look fragile and delicate, but he can take care of himself. I'm really not concerned at all." Sasuke Uchiha-pouted again. He had been bested by Neji's calm logic. Again. Then another thing popped into his head, one that had been making him just as irritated.
"Where is Naruto anyway?" Neji's smile faltered and he looked down.
"He's…probably out sick…"
"Sick? With what?"
"Well, it's not uncommon for Naruto to get really bad migraines. They usually come once every two months or so. He locks himself in a room on the top floor and just hides there all day."
"Wouldn't the basement be better?" Neji shook his head, leaning back a bit.
"No. If he's in a basement or a lower floor, he can hear people moving around above him and it makes him freak. His family is really careful about it. They make sure he always gets the top-most room and has a hammock to sleep in so he can't hear the vibrations in the floors. They also get these thick black sheets to put over his windows so no light gets in. If they can they soundproof the walls, floor and ceiling they will. They usually just leave him there until it wears off, leaving bread and water for him to eat and drink." Sasuke let out a low breath, a concerned look on his face.
"It sounds bad."
"It is. They can't figure out why he gets them and there doesn't seem to be any medication for it, so the only thing they can do is just wait for it to pass. They only last a couple of days though. He takes a sleep medication so he can sleep through most of it." Sasuke nodded, turning this new information over in his head. The thought of the happy-go-lucky blonde in agony for two days with almost no relief was…depressing, to say the least.
Since it was the last period of the day, the bell rang about five minutes later and the duo headed for the entrance. Along they way, they met up with Lee, whom had been called to the headmaster's office for something. He seemed to be moving much, much faster now.
"Hey Neji!"
"Lee, there you are. Where were you?" The boy looked a bit sheepish, scratching the back of his head.
"Well…Godaime-sama made me take off the weights…" Sasuke cocked an eyebrow.
"You've been wearing weights?" Lee nodded.
"…Why?" Rolling his eyes, Neji shouldered his bag and continued for the front doors.
"Lee does training with his sensei, Gai. The weights are part of it." Sasuke nodded slowly, watching the odd boy out of the corner of his eye. Lee seemed really…uncomfortable. He kept darting ahead of them and then coming back, tapping his toes on the ground, rubbing his shins with his heels, and fidgeting. Neji noticed too and frowned.
"Just how much do you wear those things?" The odd youth suddenly looked a bit sheepish and fidgeted again, rubbing the back of his leg with his foot.
"Um…well…" There was a bit of silence, then the Hyuuga sighed.
"Lee…"
"I-it's not like they hurt or anything! A-and I don't sleep with them on!"
"Not the point. You shouldn't wear them so much." Lee looked like a hurt puppy. The look had never worked on Sasuke, nor had it ever worked on Neji. Though the brunette seemed to be falling for it. Lee ruined it by suddenly seeming to realize something.
"Where's Naruto-kun?"
"It took you the whole day to realize he was gone?"
"Well, it is Naruto-kun."
"Oh. Right." Sasuke cocked an eyebrow at this, but neither of the two filled him in.
"I'm guessing he's out sick again." Lee looked upset now, like someone had just grabbed his heartstrings and yanked on them.
"I thought he was getting medicine…" Neji sighed, running a hand through his hair.
"Lee, when has medicine ever worked for Naruto?"
"Good point…"
"Where's Naruto?" The trio turned to see a few people at least one of them didn't want to see. Neji bowed his head.
"Sempais." Itachi nodded to the Hyuuga, his fellow Akatsuki members following his lead. His fellow comrades in crime included Kisame (which was typical, since you barely ever saw Itachi without Kisame and vice versa), Sasori and his hyperactive boyfriend, the blonder half of the Demolition Twins. Also known as Deidara.
"Otouto-chan."
"Ass-hole."
"How crude, but not unexpected. Hyuuga-kun, I was wondering if you could repeat your theory as to Naruto-kun's whereabouts." Sasuke really hated how Itachi could call him Naruto-kun instead of Uzumaki-kun. Since Naruto was the adoptee of the Akatsuki, they were entitled to be a little friendlier with him. Which pissed Sasuke off to no ends. Especially since they'd taken to calling him by their own little nicknames (Kisame called him Barbie, Deidara and Konan called him Whiskers, Hidan called him Sunshine, Kakuzu called him kid, Pein called him a headache…).
"He's most likely out sick." Kisame made a humming noise in his throat.
"That's right, his migraines." Sasuke's eye twitched just barely, but his face didn't move other than that.
"You know about them?"
"Yeah. Hard to be friends with him and not." Kisame had no idea, but he had just mashed an entire fistful of salt into an open, gaping wound. He, blissfully unaware, continued.
"Actually, it's pretty much impossible." And there was the vinegar. Sasuke felt like hiding in a corner and crying. He hadn't known about the migraine thing until today, but he'd spent most of his time since meeting Naruto with said blonde. And every time they actually talked, it was usually about Sasuke or what Naruto liked. Sasuke felt…pretty awful. Itachi noticed and gave a small 'hm'.
"Yes, Kisame did mention that a bit ago." He'd thought something had been missing. Itachi kindly supplied the lemon juice that had been vacant. Having done enough damage to his little brother for the time being, Itachi turned his attention back to Neji. Both the Hyuuga and Lee were unaware of Sasuke's self-loathing state.
"Can he see people?" Neji seemed to think it over, then nodded.
"Yeah. But they have to be extremely quiet." Itachi nodded.
"Very well. Sasuke, you can go see Naruto-kun as a representative of the Akatsuki."
"I can WHAT?!" The elder Uchiha kept the grin off his face flawlessly.
"You can go see Naruto-kun as our representative."
"Like hell! One of you go!"
"We're all unable to. Kisame's size makes it difficult to be quiet, I have to stay with him to console him over being unable to go, Sasori has to take care of his younger siblings, Deidara and Konan are staying after to help with the science fair, Tobi and Zetsu have their part-time jobs at the flower shop to attend to, Hidan is helping out his church, Kakuzu is assisting his father at his bank, and Pein is having a student government meeting." However much of a passion Sasuke hated the Akatsuki with, he grudgingly had to admit that they were rather well diversified.
"As if I would go as your damn gang's 'representative'."
"Language, one, two we're not a 'gang' but an organization and three, you're going over to Naruto-kun's to make sure he's all right anyway, aren't you?" Sasuke hated, and I mean hated to be outsmarted by his brother. Actually, he hated to be outsmarted by anybody. He hated to be out-anything-ed by anybody. But he hated it even harder when it was Itachi who out-did him. Actually, hated was too kind a term. He loathed and utterly despised it with a fierce, fiery passion. And Itachi out-did him constantly. In grades, in sports, in fighting, in wits, in vocabulary, in having control over his emotions, in how many girls he could have fall in love with him, in how many guys he could have fall in love with him, in how long he could have sex (actually, they weren't too sure about this one since Sasuke had never really had sex and they hadn't had a chance to measure how long he could last, but they just assumed that award went to Itachi since at one point he had been gone for four whole days over a break to Kisame's house and they only got roughly twenty-four hours of sleep the whole four days), in fashion, in how many friends he had, in just about everything.
So you could understand why Sasuke was always so angry.
"…"
"Then it's settled. You'll go as our representative to make sure he's all right."
"I'm going to kill you one of these days." Kisame grinned and draped an arm around Itachi's waist.
"I wouldn't allow it, Sasuke-kun." Oh yes. Kisame called him by his first name. Another thing about Itachi's boyfriend that pissed him off, and in turn yet another thing about Itachi that pissed him off. Itachi grinned at Sasuke's glare and waved to his younger brother as he and Kisame headed for Kisame's car.
"See you when you get home, otouto-chan." Sasori smirked at him.
"Say hello to Naruto-kun for me." Deidara grinned, following his self-proclaimed 'Danna'.
"Later Spazz-cat." And there was one of the reasons he hated Deidara. After he had freaked over Tobi talking to his pants, Sasori had mentioned how he spazzed out too easily like some hyperactive cat. So Deidara began calling him Spazz-cat. If anyone else had mentioned it, Deidara would have waved it off as unimportant information. But Sasori said it. So he took it to heart. Which was one of the reasons Sasuke hated Sasori: because he was the one who brought about Spazz-cat.
"I really hate all of those bastards." Neji rolled his eyes heavenward and shook his head, turning towards Naruto's house. Lee looked a bit confused.
"Why do you hate them so much, Sasuke-san? Uchiha-sempai seems really nice, and so do the rest of the Akatsuki." Sasuke could hate Lee for implying the Akatsuki were 'nice', but Lee always called him Sasuke-san, even though he didn't have to, so the younger Uchiha forgave his ignorance.
"They're all plotting bastards! Itachi is always gloating over how much better than me he is and that damned boyfriend of his is…is…so not Itachi's type!" The only one not really participating in the conversation had to resist the urge to giggle. Sasuke had several reasons why he disliked Kisame and none of them made sense to anyone who wasn't Itachi's brother. Neji had learned to just nod and listen to Sasuke rant about the supposed stupidity of it all. Lee, on the other hand, made a point of questioning things that were accepted as is. Predicting this to be extremely entertaining, Neji tuned in an ear to the two.
At the moment, Lee was getting ready to question everything Sasuke stood for.
"What's wrong with Uchiha-sempai going out with Hoshigaki-sempai? They seem happy with each other."
"That's just it! They shouldn't be! Kisame isn't really smart, he's crude, he's blunt, he's loud, he's cocky, he's arrogant, he's everything Itachi hates! He hates people who aren't as smart as him but act like they are, he hates people who are always crude, he hates people who don't know how to handle delicate situations, he hates people that are always loud, he hates people who are always arrogant, there's no way he should like him!" Lee shook his head.
"I think you are missing a great deal, Sasuke-san." Sasuke's tone got rather flat.
"Oh really. And what am I missing?"
"Uchiha-sempai's masochistic nature." There was an awfully long pause, then Sasuke finally spoke again.
"His what?" Neji almost burst into laughter at the tone in Sasuke's voice. He was so glad he had decided to listen in. Lee continued, giving reason to his stand in the debate.
"From what I heard, Uchiha-sempai got together with Kisame right after losing a match against him, correct?"
"Pretty much, yeah. Why?"
"Up until the loss, he had bested everyone he came across, always coming out without any scratch. He'd won every challenge and had never lost at all. Correct?"
"I don't see where you're going with this, but yeah."
"And he didn't like Hoshigaki-sempai before he lost, right?"
"He hated him. It was the only time I'd ever seen him so mad."
"Well, my theory, and this is just theory, I can't prove if it's true, is that he went into his fight with Hoshigaki-sempai, expecting to win and leave him as nothing more than a bested opponent. When he lost, he was confused and disoriented. All he could think about was how he'd been beaten and the person that had finally beat him. More than likely, due to a masochistic side I believe he has, he saw Hoshigaki-sempai differently. He began to see him as someone who could pose a challenge to him instead of just another defeated person like everyone else. This made Hoshigaki-sempai more attractive and alluring to him. Hoshigaki-sempai liked Uchiha-sempai to begin with for whatever reasons and as such, they got together." Sasuke and Lee had stopped walking about halfway through Lee's explanation, since Sasuke was too stunned to perform basic functions. Trying very, very hard not to laugh, Neji double-backed around behind the Uchiha and placed two hands on his shoulder blades, pushing him down the sidewalk.
"Keep moving, Sasuke. Come on Lee." The youth blinked and trotted after them, probably wondering why Sasuke looked so shocked as he did. About two minutes later, Sasuke finished processing the theory and Neji recognized the look that came over his face: stubborn reluctance. He glared elsewhere, doing the Uchiha equivalent of a sulk.
"I still don't think they should be so happy together." Most people would have taken this to be the end of the conversation. Lee was not and had never been among the 'most' percent of the population.
"Well, why wouldn't they? It's common for opposites to attract. And on top of that, I've gathered from the way they react to each other, Kisame poses a challenge to Itachi, since he acts differently than everyone else. For example, even when Itachi beats him at something, he doesn't get upset or angry, but acts like he won something much more important. People don't usually act like this when Itachi defeats them, so it interests him and he stays with Kisame since he's more interesting than anyone else he's met. Kisame, again, likes Itachi for whatever reasons and is more than happy to stay with him."
"It still doesn't make sense."
"Sure it does. Haven't you always found people who are like everyone else to be boring and not worth your time?"
"Of course I-" Then Lee gave him The Look. Sasuke had never seen The Look before, but somehow he knew that's what it should be titled and he knew it was 'The', singular, Look, instead of just A Look. The Look made him stop and think over his answer before actually giving it, something he hadn't intended to do. But The Look seemed to command him to do so.
"…Do." The Look was off Lee's face faster than anything Sasuke had ever seen and he beamed.
"See? Itachi is bored with everyone being alike all the time. He deems them unworthy of his time and finds them to be nothing more than tedious and boring. But with Kisame, he sees something different, and as such is attracted to him." Sasuke pulled off the Uchiha-Scowl. The Uchiha-Scowl had been developed by Itachi, perfected by Itachi, and used by Itachi quite a bit. It wasn't a full-blown scowl like most people, but much more refined. The edges of Sasuke's lips pulled down just slightly, his lower lip sticking out a bit. His eyes seemed to darken and become colder as his brows were pulled down a bit.
"But it still doesn't make sense. I mean, everyone in the Akatsuki is different from the general population. That's why the damn gang even exists. Why doesn't he go out with any of them?"
"Have any of them ever challenged Itachi?"
"Yes."
"Have they ever won?"
"Well…no…"
"Did they ever challenge him again?"
"…" Grinning, Neji turned a bit and called over his shoulder to the Uchiha-sulking Sasuke.
"Sasuke, answer the question." Sasuke shot him a glare that clearly stated 'you bloody traitor'.
"…No." Lee looked victorious.
"I think I've made my point by now." Sasuke had nothing to add, having been bested for the first time in his life by someone other than Itachi. He just glared off at the street, just scowling instead of trying to refine his features. Neji smiled back at Lee, only adding to the youth's triumphant feeling. Lee beamed back at him. The Hyuuga suddenly noticed where they were and stopped, smile slipping off his lips some.
"We're here." Lee and Sasuke pulled up short as well, the carefree happy feeling dissipating rather quickly. They all exchanged looks before Neji opened the gate door and led them in and up to the door. There was a note on it asking for people to press the intercom button and speak quietly. Sasuke felt his chest harden.
"Do they really get that bad?" The other two nodded and Neji pressed the indicated button, lowering his voice some.
"Excuse me." A male voice answered, one that was rather rough but soft.
"Neji-kun?"
"Jiraiya-san, I hope we're not intruding, but Lee, Sasuke and I were wondering…"
"No, not at all. He can see a few people, but you'll have to be quiet. Hang on a moment." The intercom flicked off and they waited for a few seconds before the door opened to reveal an elderly man with long, white hair and black eyes. Sasuke recognized him to be the man who sat on Naruto's porch and wrote porn. He looked all three of them over before stepping aside and letting them in. He kept his voice soft, but loud enough that they could hear.
"He's up on the third floor. There's a kind of trap door you can open to get into the third floor hallway. Just close it behind you before you open his door." Neji nodded and he and Lee set their things down, removing their shoes and jackets. Sasuke followed suit, folding his neatly to rest on his bag. Jiraiya closed the door behind them and went back to what Sasuke assumed was the kitchen. Neji beckoned him forward towards a set of stairs. The house was eerily quiet, almost unnaturally so. Actually, it was unnatural. They made it to a sort of later with a door at the top. The Hyuuga went first, gently opening it and disappearing into the opening it made. Lee followed after him, Sasuke just behind the boy. The hallway was completely dark and everything was covered in carpet or something soft. Sasuke closed the trap door after them, giving his eyes a few seconds to adjust. It took the three boys a few minutes to find each other and then feel along the wall until they found the door. Neji whispered to Sasuke, voice so low it almost couldn't be heard.
"Naruto gets a little disoriented when he gets these migraines, so it may take him a bit to remember who we are." Lee spoke up as well, somewhere to Sasuke's left.
"He might say some things that really don't make sense. I don't know what he'll think about you, but he talks to Neji about how he doesn't have to be so sad that he's part of the branch family and he his destiny can change. He also tells me how I'm not a loser and I'm a genius like Neji." Said Hyuuga spoke again.
"We have no idea what it's all about, but it's better to just kind of agree with him for a while until he remembers." Sasuke nodded, then remembered they couldn't really see him.
"All right." The two might have nodded, but Sasuke couldn't tell. Neji opened the door and slipped in, holding onto Lee and Sasuke so they didn't run into the wall. Sasuke could make out basic shapes, like a table near the wall with something on it (bread, he assumed) and a large dark mass stretched between two walls. Neji held them back and called out softly.
"Naruto-kun?" The mass shifted and looked like it might have rolled over to face them. A raspy, cracked voice called out to them quietly.
"Ne…ji…?" The three crept forward until they were in front of the mass. Up close, Sasuke could see that it was in fact Naruto. The blonde looked scared and tired and sad and depressed and hopeful all at the same time. It grabbed Sasuke's heartstrings and yanked violently on them. Neji smiled weakly and gently took his hand, kneeling in front of him.
"How are you feeling?" Naruto gave a weak smile, as if he were trying to smile more but couldn't.
"I'm okay. Tsunade-baa-chan will find medicine soon…Sakura-chan too…she's really good with medicine now…"
"Er…right…" Sasuke figured this was one of those 'We have no idea what the Hell he's talking about' things. He had never heard about Sakura being good with medicine. Lee spoke up this time.
"Naruto-kun, we brought Sasuke-san with us." There was a pause and Sasuke braced himself for whatever came.
"He's…he's back?" Back? Back from where?
Where did I go? Where did his version of me go?
"Uh…sure…" Now Naruto's voice sounded a bit confused.
"But…I thought…you were going to kill Itachi…and become Orochimaru's body…" Okay, that was creepy. Sure, he wouldn't mind killing Itachi, but becoming Orochimaru-sensei's body? What did that even mean? Like a sex-toy or something? Faltering slightly, Sasuke tried to keep rolling with it.
"I…changed my…mind?" A hand reached out from the mass and touched his face, as if to see if he were real.
"See…? I told you…revenge isn't everything…" The Uchiha leaned forward and could just see a small smile on Naruto's face. He smiled weakly back, awkwardly patting his head gently.
"Yeah…"
"But…I am sorry that Itachi…killed your whole clan…"
He what now.
Sasuke…wasn't quite sure how to respond to that. Itachi killed his whole clan? He honestly couldn't see Itachi doing that. Neither could Lee or Neji, apparently. But they just kept rolling with it. They both simultaneously nudged Sasuke and he jerked back into reality. Or rather, Naruto's crazy migraine reality.
"Yeah…well…" What the hell does one say in a situation like this?! 'Naruto, I think you've gone bat-fuck insane 'cause I have no idea what the hell you're talking about'? That would be special nice.
"Is he still part…of the Akatsuki?" Yay! A question Sasuke could answer easily!
"For now and forever is my guess." For some reason, Naruto deflated. His hand slid off Sasuke's face and he leaned back into his mass of pillows and blankets.
"Then I'm still in danger…" Neji gently touched his forehead.
"Naruto…" The blonde shook his head and smiled.
"It's okay. Kakashi-sensei is really strong…he'll take care of me. Ero-sannin as well…and Sakura-chan…she helped kill one of them, Sasori, right?"
My ditzy girlfriend killed Sasori?
The likeliness of that happening…ever was low. Nay, non-existent. It was inconceivable. Sasori may look like a male model, but he was mean and sadistic and, in Sasuke's book, like any other Akatsuki member, truly, truly evil. And he liked puppets. It was a little bit creepy at times.
"Uh…sure…"
"I thought so…how's Gaara?" When did Gaara come into this? Sasuke suddenly stepped back and came into the question again from a different angle. Naruto had never even met Gaara. How the hell did he know his name, why was he asking about him specifically, and what did it matter? Sasuke wished he hadn't asked this, since none of them knew the answer to it. Gaara stuck to himself and his siblings, and he barely even opened up to them. The only person he possibly liked was Kankurou, and that bit of information had only been gathered from how much more time Gaara spent with Kankurou than Temari or Sasori. Which wasn't much, in actuality. But they had to say something.
"He's…all right."
"Can he sleep now?" Can he sleep now, which suggested that before he couldn't. Again, Sasuke had to wonder why. Why was Gaara's sleep schedule any concern of Naruto's? Come to think of it, he had heard Sasori mention how Gaara had such bad insomnia. But how did Naruto know that? And why did he care?
"I…guess so."
"That's good…then maybe he isn't afraid anymore…" Sasuke could feel Neji exchange glances. They'd all seen Gaara; they just didn't know him personally. What the hell could Gaara be afraid of? Gaara was like…almost the scariest person in the whole school. He wasn't even afraid of Itachi.
"Afraid…of what?"
"The Shukaku eating his soul." And now ancient demon legends had been added to the mix. Sasuke felt woefully confused at the moment, and he could tell from the awkward auras from either side of him that Neji and Lee were in the same state. They were just handling it better than he was.
"Yeah…"
"But I wish this headache would go away…I thought the Kyuubi had super healing powers…" Sasuke felt his brain twitch again. Shukaku and the Kyuubi. There seemed to be this ongoing theme of the ancient tailed demons. What did it mean anyway? What did the Kyuubi having healing powers have to do with anything?
"I guess…they're not working?"
"That's weird…it's never happened…before…" He suddenly groaned and pulled further into the mass, muffled whimpers rising from it. Neji and Lee instantly moved forward, worry probably showing clear on their faces.
"N-Naruto-kun?" There were a few sniffles and Naruto's voice returned to them.
"It hurts…" Neji stroked his shoulder, an action Sasuke took to mean touching Naruto's head would only make it hurt worse.
"I know. I know." It was quiet for a while and Sasuke moved away so that Lee and Neji could be closer to the blonde. When Naruto finally started talking again, he was back to normal. Well, as normal as Naruto got. Which, Sasuke was learning, wasn't much. Still, he had to wonder about all those things Naruto was saying before he switched back to normal. It had to more than just coincidence. How could he know Gaara? Unless Sasori had mentioned him. But when? And why would Naruto ask about him specifically? They couldn't have become friends in such a short amount of time. Naruto was rarely out of Sasuke's sight, except when he was at home. And even then, he never said anything about knowing Gaara.
There were a lot of pieces that just didn't quite fit together. And, being an Uchiha, Sasuke desperately wanted to find the missing ones. However, it bothered him to think that there may not be anything to find.
End of Chapter Four
Urgh…I'm so sorry it took so long to write this. I have midterms the day after tomorrow, and I so don't think I'm ready for them. On the bright side, in three days, I have two weeks of vacation. And I found out that next semester I have Creative Writing I, which means next year I can take Creative Writing II. This is awesome because CW II is essentially an independent study period, or so my senior friend has told me. I am so happy! Anyway, read, review, throw something at my head, see ya'll later!