BLURRED SOUND
Sasuke Uchiha met Naruto Uzumaki when he was seven years old; a twist in the time line, and he meets her again five years later during the Chunin Exams – as an Otogakure Genin. SasuFemNaru. AU/AT. Dark Naruto.
CHAPTER SIX
- - LOVE THE WAY YOU LIE - -
'Love is not blind – it sees more, not less. But because it sees more, it is willing to see less' – Rabbi. J. Gordon.
Turning back to Naruto's match, the sight that met Sasuke eyes sent cold shivers over his skin; the man must have tried to do something while he wasn't looking, but it was not his actions that chilled him so much.
Naruto had her fingers on the wrist of the hand attached to her forehead, keeping it there. He could see with the Sharingan that the man had been trying to suck her chakra out, but he was screaming...
Watching, he noticed that he wasn't sucking it out any more, Naruto was forcing it in through his skin. But... there was something odd about it, something frightful in the density, noticeable even to his eyes. It made him wonder what it looked like with the Byakugan...
As the chakra bubbled through the man, it forced its way through his skin, bursting through and actually seeming to gnaw as it emerged from the bloody exits. It was only a small amount, but it was an angry red instead of the normal blue; Naruto certainly looked repulsed as she dropped her grip and the man collapsed to the ground, shrieking and clawing at the ground in a mad fit of pain.
She looked horrified by what had happened, and stared at her hands, at the blood that had splattered on them when her opponent's skin had burst. She bit her lip, and it looked like she was holding tears back from a distance. Not to sasuke - to him it just away.
If had to guess, the hidden smirk on her face meant she was... enjoying it. No, she definitely was enjoying it; she must have known about his abilities, so she had forced him to use them by drawing out the match... He caught sight of her eyes, and remembered the almost hallucination flash he had seen at the dock a few days ago; they really did turn red... Was it this chakra that had done that?
The man had stopped moving now, and was slumped on the floor with blood trailing from the corner of his mouth, his wounds where the chakra had burst through his skin from the inside, and even from his eye sockets. There were a couple of splashes of his blood on one of her hands and...
His stomach might have lurched when he watched her lick it of like a cat licking milk form a saucer, had he not concentrated on her nails – they were like actual claws... A horrified expression crossed her face, as if realising what she was doing, but he saw through that too.
Sasuke had never killed someone on a mission, not even that masked guy in wave country, but Naruto had just... It hadn't even raised a hair on her neck. It was like she was used to it... Was she used to it? Was this what Sakura had been referring to? He knew Naruto had a lot more skeletons in her closet now but...
Sakura began muttering her horror behind clasped, shocked hands, and even emotional ice block Sai looked a little shocked by the display. Glancing at the other teams, he could see matched expression on their faces, except the sand team. Team eight in particular looked very uneasy... Had they seen this before? They had been giving her wary looks for a while...
Naruto seemed not to notice, or not to care, and started heading up the steps after the proctor haltingly declared her the winner.
"Sasuke, stop!"
Sasuke ignored Sakura's voice and set off down the walkway to meet her as she reached the top of the steps. Naruto met the questions in his eyes, but didn't reply until he had started asking them in a hushed tone.
"What the hell was that? What the hell was that chakra? How could you kill him just like that?" he hissed.
"He signed the form – he shouldn't have tried to steal my chakra like that. It's his own fault for being cocky – yes, it was ugly, but what the point in delaying the inevitable? Jeez, if you really want to kill your brother, you should probably start loosing some of that Konoha compassion..." she muttered, moving past him without even a hint of nerves.
He froze in disbelief and anger for a few seconds before a scowl crossed his face and her turned after her, grabbing her wrist and keeping her still.
"Don't you dare mention him! That's different and you know it! You made him use that technique for your own amusement! What the hell are you doing here Naruto? What the heck is this thing on my neck?" he hissed, pulling her back to mutter directly into her ear.
"I already told you Sasuke – I'm just doing my job."
"Stop talking in fucking riddles Naruto! I want a straight answer this time!"
Naruto turned around to face him, and the smiled he had seen on her face before were gone, it wasn't really a cold look, just one that didn't have the energy he had once associated with her. He could see the stares of the others, in particular the Hokage on her, then she pulled the rug from under his feet; slumping forward, she buried her head in his shirt collar.
She was playing up her acting for the sake of the observers, obviously trying to look like she was upset about having killed someone, and it looked like they believed her; he used the opportunity to put one arm around her shoulders, preventing her from running as he asked his question again, behind the guise of comfort.
"What are you doing here Naruto?" he asked, making sure his lips were hidden from view in case someone was reading them – which Kakashi was trying to do.
"I'm doing what I have to; like my parents, like Itachi... I'm doing what I have to. I'll tell you later, but not here..." she muttered in reply.
Like her parents? Like his brother? What the heck was she talking about? He wanted to know, but she was right – this was not the time or place; instead of interrogating her any further, her put his other arm around her for a moment – adding more reassurance to those watching - before, with odd reluctance, releasing her and returning to his team.
Kakashi watched as Naruto headed down the walkway towards the sand team, before turning to quiz him.
"What was all that about...?"
Sasuke scowled at his nosy teacher, but quickly formed a suitable reply that drew a disbelieving stare from Sakura.
"I've seen that chakra before... I dunno what it is but she can't really... its like a natural reaction. It was just her eyes before, but... it's like breathing or something. She can't just turn it off, but it made her do that..."
Kakashi fixed him with a disbelieving stare, but it didn't seem to be at his excuse, more the words themselves; did Kakashi know about that chakra? Naruto had been in the village before, so it was plausible that he knew something about her...
What was that chakra? It seemed important for some reason, he knew it. Gai said something to Kakashi and they both disappeared as Shino's match started – Kakashi an exasperated look on his face. No doubt they had moved off to scheme and try and figure out what he was lying about together. The moment they were gone Sakura started in on him too.
"Why did you lie for her like that? She's not the same any more Sasuke! It's because of her that you have that mark on your neck! You know that!" she said, in a pleading tone that he ignored.
"Sakura's right Sasuke! She's twisting you around like an Inuzuka on a leash and your letting her do it! You know she's dangerous – you know that far better than we do! Why can't you use your brain and report her?" Sai added, equally displeased.
"Because there nothing to tell; she's not actually done anything. There's no proof but suspicions. All she's done is kill that Genin, and it's not like she broke any rules doing that – that's what those forms were for..." he replied, lying once again.
It was true that. What they said was the definite truth, but that wasn't why he was playing along at all. He didn't know why he was playing along with Naruto himself.
There was nothing but question after question after this fiasco of an exam; what was that mark? What did she mean 'more where that came from'? What was that chakra? What was she planning..?
What on earth had happened to her...?
After Shino's match against Kabuto's remaining team-mate, the matches progressed very quickly.
The puppeteer from Sunagakure defeated Choji relatively quickly and without any fatal injuries. It was followed by quite a long match between Sakura and Ino, which appeared to be going in Sakura's favour (thanks to her baby Tsunade punches), before Ino used her own hair and trapped Sakura in one position.
It was a relatively simple matter for her to use her family's mind transfer then, but Sakura somehow shook her out after a cheer from Sai of all people, and won the match. He was actually cheerfully surprised by that; he had thought Sakura was a weakling, but she really was beginning to pull her weight on the team now.
For some odd reason Sakura and Ino were both grinning instead of scowling at each other when they returned to the viewing platform, so he supposed there was some personal buisness in the fight. After that there was a quick match ending in a loss for Tenten against the sand girl, before Sai was faced off against Shikamaru.
It was almost as long as Sakura's fight with Ino, but eventually Shikamaru proved too quick minded and strategic for his competent but socially challenged team-mate.
Then it was his turn, against Lee; it was one of the hardest matches he had ever had but, through sheer stubbornness, he had won. He'd actually withstood the boy's lotus and been able to trump him with a good old, well timed fireball.
After that, there was a match between Kiba and Hinata, which to his astonishment Hinata won hands down; what happened to the meek little mouse that used to hide at the back of the classroom? He could have sworn he saw a smile on her cousin's face when she danced a tiny jig at the end.
That left Neji to the remaining sand ninja, the one Naruto seemed so friendly with; there was something oddly similar about them, but he couldn't place it until the boy started using his chakra to manipulate his sand. It was much less so than Naruto's but he had that same, strange second supply of chakra.
Unlike Naruto though, he made no attempt to hide his nasty side, and the Jonin were forced to intervene before he actually killed the boy after beating him fair and square; Neji was taken out by the medics, his cousin hurrying along behind them as he returned to the walkway. Naruto scolded him a little, but she didn't seem too serious about it.
Then they were all lined up and told who they would be fighting against in the first round; he was paired against Shino, after Temari and Shikamaru opened the matches. Following his match was that of Hinata and Kankuro. The match he was most interested in though was the one between Naruto and Sakura.
It wasn't that the victor would face Gaara, but the match-up itself. It felt like an odd twist of fate in some way; Sakura for her part looked halfway between petrified and impatient, but Naruto just looked amused. She even turned to Sakura and warned her that she'd better train hard, because she wasn't going to hold back.
Sakura looked very nervous after that, but he cast the though aside, hurrying after Naruto as they all exited the building; he wanted some answers, and now that the exams were over of a month, he was going to get them.
Sasuke sat with his legs hanging over the edge of the cliff-face, with a very sour expression on his face.
Never mind not being able to catch up with Naruto after the exams, he and Sakura had been taken to a plateau on one of the nearby mountains to train with Kakashi. He didn't even have the chance to look for her in the village now.
Kakashi had yanked the bandages from his neck as soon as they had arrived, and then set about sealing away what he called a cursed seal; once he had woken up, he could tell from the look on Sakura's face that she had told Kakashi about the mark. Of course, once he had regained his wits the lecture had started, and what a lecture it had been...
"For the most promising student in your graduating class, you're acting very much like the class idiot; have you ever thought about just how dangerous this seal is Sasuke, or even where it came from? It has a ten-to-one survival rate! This is Orochimaru's signature!" Kakashi snapped as soon as he was coherent enough to listen.
"Orochimaru? Who's that?" Sakura asked, though her face expressing concern that should have been Sasuke's.
"Orochimaru is the third member of the legendary Sannin; he committed various atrocities ranging from murder to unlawful human experimentation, before betraying the village; he's an S-Rank turncoat!" Kakashi snapped.
Sasuke was somewhat alarmed by that, enough for the surprise to show on his face, but he wasn't as surprised as he might have been otherwise; he knew Naruto had mixed up with a slightly dangerous bunch. That was just... a bit more than he was expecting. It explained why she was so strong too; there was no other outcome for someone studying under any of the Sannin.
They were famous for a reason; it just didn't explain what Naruto was doing here though...
"So... Naruto is working for him? But why would she do that? She's from Konoha! Why is he after Sasuke anyway?" Sakura asked, her face growing very pale, eyes darting from Sasuke to Kakashi.
Kakashi give them both a considering look, sighed, and crossed his arms before replying.
"Most likely...for his Sharingan. As for Naruto... well, her disappearance was never very clearly defined. I don't know what she stands to gain from this at all – she could just sympathise with him, or she could have her own agenda..."
Sakura's face fell to an even lighter shade, thin lines of anger forming on her brow. Sasuke was considering Kakashi's words, but definitely not in the manner Kakashi wanted him to. It just made him want to talk to Naruto even more.
"Whichever the case may be, Naruto is dangerous to the both of you, especially you Sasuke, and the sooner you realise that the better it will be."
Sasuke stared down the ravine and frowned; Kakashi was right, but... he still wanted to hear the answers from Naruto herself. If she was working for Orochimaru, he wanted to hear it from her own mouth, and if she had her own agenda, he wanted to know what it was...
What reason would she have for teaming up with a turncoat of this Orochimaru's calibre? Even aged seven, she would have been smart enough to know someone like this Orochimaru was bad news right? Why was she working for him? What did she really want from him?
"Konoha's okay... why?"
"Would you leave if you got the chance?"
The memory flashed through his mind like a dart, his hand absently grasping one of the rocks in a pile beside him; it was a confirmation that she knew what she was doing when she disappeared. He already knew that, but in light of what Kakashi had just told him...
"I'm doing what I have to; like my parents, like Itachi... I'm doing what I have to."
What had made her leave? There had to be something that had made her leave; before, she had done nothing but sing praises for Konoha, then she had asked that one weird question and disappeared.
The confusion wasn't much of a change though; Naruto had always encompassed questions even when he had known her. She had always been cagey about her private life, and there were always unanswered questions. Why had he expected that to change? It was the same as before, an endless whirling circle of questions.
"Sasuke! Kakashi-sensei says he's starting us on elemental training..."
Sakura had an anxious look on her face as he stood up, pocketing a few of the rocks from the pile; they had nice sharp edges on them. He'd have to come back and get some more later on. Sakura winced as he stalked past her without a glance, but that was her own fault wasn't it?
If it wasn't for her, he might have been able to go back to the village at night and try to get some actual answers from Naruto, but now Kakashi was keeping his hawk eyes on his every move. The stupid girl should have kept her damn mouth shut.
Sasuke was waiting for her when Naruto tapped on his apartment window, feet perched on the windowsill; he was seated on the bed looking very pensive, but not hostile. After he opened the window, she hopped inside, taking a seat of her own.
She had been checking to see if he had come back from his training for the past few days, and now she had the opportunity she needed. She wasn't going to waste it
"You know I'm not going to answer all your questions, right?" she informed him bluntly.
"I figured..." he replied, his eyes flicking over her.
Despite his attempt to catch her after the preliminaries, he and Sakura had been dragged off by Kakashi to the top of some rocky plateau outside of Konoha to get in some serious training. Especially Sakura – Kakashi wasn't as apparently stupid as she had thought.
There was a significant step up in security now, but nothing that she couldn't handle; the exams were starting the next day, and unless there was some serious movement from the Konoha ninjas, they wouldn't be prepared for the invasion at all.
That wasn't her immediate problem though; snatching Sasuke away from Konoha was, as well personal goals. He kept his gaze on her, considering his questions in his mind – she had to admit this was a little nerve-racking, and unpleasant.
If this wasn't presented to Sasuke in the proper light, she would never succeed, and she couldn't afford to fall out of Orochimaru's good graces yet. That and Kabuto was far from barking mad when he said she had lingering... attachments to Sasuke.
"How did you get here without being spotted? They're watching you now, right? How come you aren't being chased by ANBU?" he asked, quite validly too.
"Politics; if a Genin from another village disappeared or was taken into custody by Konoha so suddenly, it'd be bad imaging. I haven't done anything, so all they can do is watch me... or you. I've hidden from the ANBU here before – how the heck do you think I painted the Hokage monument when I was a kid?"
He almost smirked at that answer, but pulled the blank expression back on his face as quickly as the smile had appeared.
"You've orchestrated haven't you?"
"Yes, but did I actually do something with my own hands that wasn't within the exam rules?"
She grinned at him as he frowned in understanding; sure, they might know she had plotted the whole thing, but considering the only proper witness was Sakura, and maybe Sai, it was her word against Sasuke's and her own. She had plenty of lies up her sleeve, and the look on his face was enough to know that Sasuke would lie through his teeth too.
"What the heck is this thing?" he asked, on hand going to the now sealed mark on his neck.
Damn meddling Kakashi, she would have to work harder at convincing him thanks top that stupid restriction; she wasn't quite to that level of sealing yet, so she couldn't take it off herself... she'd be able to do some damage, relax it, but not remove it.
"It's... call it a free sample; Sensei likes to give them out to people who catch his eye. Well most of them. His fangs didn't really agree with me, so he has to get other people to pass on the message now..." Naruto replied, leaning back against the pillows, seating her self more comfortably.
The frown deepened on Sasuke's face in interest and confusion; she waited until his mind caught up, incorporating everything he had heard from Kakashi.
"What do you mean 'free sample?'" he asked.
Naruto smiled almost genuinely.
"You want the power to kill your brother, and Sensei wants a new body, so he's offering his assistance in gaining that power; that cursed seal is a free sample of it. It's incomplete, but it should give you an idea of what he's offering" she replied.
He frowned, realising the implication of what she had just told him, and he flopped down on the pillows beside her, deep in thought; he seemed to be ignoring the 'Orochimaru-wants-your-body' topic because he was suddenly much more grouchy.
"What are you after here Naruto? Are you really just here at his beck and call? Why did you leave? " he asked finally.
The question caught her off guard; was he asking her for her real objective? Her reason for leaving other than her Orochimaru reason? She hadn't really been expecting to to talk about that. She had never talked about it, actually. Gaara knew she had an objective that was best served working under Orochimaru for the time being, but that was it.
Kimimaro knew a few things, but she had only told him because she had need his help when she first arrived in Otogakure. Now that she could stand on her own two feet, he was nothing more than an annoying pest. It was mereley the fact that if she killed him directly she would fall out of Orochimaru's favour that kept him alive now.
"What makes you ask me that?" she relied, not snappishly, just curious.
He sat up a little, staring down at her with the need for understanding on his face, and she felt he heart speed up a few beats; why did he have to stare at her like that? It made her go all off-track...
"You said you were doing what you had to, then you mentioned your parents... and Itachi; what do you know about him? Tell me!"
His voice rose as he broached the topic of his brother, and the look turned into a hard glare; it didn't intimidate her, she didn't want to deal with him all riled up like this – fun as it was to get him all riled up. She had to deal with her own damn slip of the tongue.
"Why should I? It's none of your business why I'm her-"
He whipped out a kunai from his holster, lunged towards her, and rolled with a thud onto the floor; the kunai was pressed against her throat with one hand whilst the other held her wrists down against the floor.
"Because if you don't I'll call those ANBU myself! I know you have your own objective here, you've never let people order you around, but if you don't tell me what you know about Itachi, I'll make sure you can't reach it!" he hissed.
She laughed. She laughed an almost mad cackle at the threat, then her laughter stopped abruptly. She started letting enough Kyuubi chakra into her coils to turn her eyes and thicken her whisker marks, but not so much as to attract attention.
The effect on Sasuke was immediate. His eyes widened in shock, and she flipped him onto his own back instead, deliberately letting the kunai slice into the side of her neck. He stared at the wound as it closed, fighting her grip on his wrists with little success as she glared down at him.
"You think that's going to stop me from getting what I want Sasuke? A puny little threat like that?" she growled, the chakra creeping through enough to lengthen the nails digging into the skin of his wrists and her canines.
If it hadn't been for the actual fear (or was it disbelief?) on his face it might have continued. Seeing it brought her back with a jolt, and she pushed herself back off of him, quickly pushing the Kyuubi chakra back down. That... she didn't want Sasuke to look at her like that.
Sakura, the old goat Iruka, she didn't care what they thought of her, but she didn't want Sasuke to look at her like that.
And thus, Sasuke has finally grown a brain. Knowing not to be so trusting of Naruto dosent change how easily manipulated he is though - doeen't matter if you like him or hate him, Canon Sasuke is very easily manipulated, even if he doesn't see it. Chunin finals start in two chapters, and next we have some more SasuNaru!
After that, things will get closer to the leaving stage. I've just finished the 2nd-to-last chapter of part one, and now all I've got to do is the final valley ending and arrival in Otogakure. I dont know if I'll continue this yet, I'll see what you guys want once I'm done.
I have a plotline in mind, so I can do that, but I'll need time to get ahead chapter wise if I do, as well as time to think up an ending... Does anyone else have problems writing endings? Thats a big if for the moment though. Lemme know what you thought of this chapter for now!
Title is 'Love The Way You Lie' By Eminem & Rihanna.
Hope you all liked!
Nat.
xxx