A/N: So… turns out I still have time to update before this year (2013) ends. Well, I'm very sorry for neglecting this story for many-many months. Some of you probably get sick of waiting and decide to stop reading, but if you are still with me, then… please do and enjoy this new chapter.
Disclaimer: Naruto © Masashi Kishimoto
Warning: the usual crude language, shounen ai, etc…
Chapter 6: I Want to Know You More (Part 1)
Los Angeles, Red Moon Modeling Agency; 16.50—
"Thank you for your hard work, Kisame-san!"
A boy, presumably still in his early teen, no older than 13, bid his goodbye to a man in his mid thirties. The man's skin was unnaturally pale, almost bordering into light bluish, and he bore a facial form that lived up to his name since there were three pairs of odd scars bellow the both of his small, round eyes without eyelashes, like gills. He also had lines of jagged sharp teeth as an addition, and his nose was really pointy. Overall, he looked like fish, shark, to be precise. Still, despite his slightly scary appearance, he was undeniably professional with his working suit.
"Be careful on your way, Yukimaru. Don't rush to your sister or you might fall down on your face instead of your butt this time," the man, Kisame, advised while smirking, amicably amused as the long-blond haired boy's face turned interestingly red, like a ripe tomato, in reaction to his jest.
"Sheesh… that was one time! I won't fall again! Please stop making fun of me, Kisame-san, you idiot!" the cute, caramel-eyed kid huffed in annoyance and mostly in embarrassment, before he slammed the door close as soon as he stepped out of the room instead of rushing out like he intended to do earlier.
Kisame cackled while beside him, another man sent him a disapproving stare. "Stop teasing the kid, or he will sue you for sexual harassment, Kisame."
Kisame turned to face him this time, his grin widening. "That's my privilege, obviously, since I am his manager," he responded to the smooth, long-black haired man smugly.
"No wonder those previous models requested to have you removed from their manager position. You just never learn how to stop when you need to," the other man deadpanned, but Kisame just let out a small laugh at that.
"Despite it all, you stick to me, Itachi-san," he pointed out and the other man, Itachi, almost, almost smiled. He knew Itachi was as amused as he was even though his expression revealed nothing of such. Only a twitch of one of his jet-black eyes indicated that he wasn't even serious with his rebuke.
"Well, you do a decent job in this line of business." Itachi shrugged indifferently. It was the closest Kisame would get for a compliment from the normally very composed young man. Itachi was still 24, but he possessed predisposition, intelligence and persuasive appearance to bring himself around in entertainment industry that he was pretty much a top model of Red Moon Modeling Agency now, along with the rising star actor, Akasuna Sasori who was considerably older despite his baby face and adorable look. Ah, and not forgetting that flashy little blond of his boyfriend… who was quite a charmer when he wanted to be. Though, people tended to avoid him after knowing how loudand whiny he could get at times.
Who is it again…? Deilara? No, that's not quite… Dei… Dei-…
"Though, you will do better without your unnecessary… mockery." Apparently Itachi couldn't help adding his remark and Kisame snorted as he was distracted from his train of thought.
"Mockery, really? Who says that nowadays?" He shook his head, resisting the urge to laugh harder at Itachi's antics. Despite their long history as partners in modeling business (well, Kisame was fairly new as a manager when he was first assigned by his boss to take care of Itachi, still undoubtedly a brat himself because he was still a freshman in university at that time), he still didn't understand the grace of diction Itachi spouts out time to time. He presumed it had something to do with a family background, bearing the name of Uchiha and all.
Not that Kisame wanted to ask why an Uchiha landed a job as an entertainer across the world of his nation. Nope. Not at all…
…
…alright, who was he kidding? He was dying to know, but Itachi never cracked at his (not so) subtle ministration to trick him into revealing his past and secret. By now, Kisame already half-gave up hope on finding out the answer.
"Anyway, what about that new job request from Japan? Has the… leaderdecided who will go to fulfill the show?" Itachi's question once again brought Kisame back to reality.
"Ah, that… actually, the client's company specifically asked for you to model for their latest batch of spring collection. You do have a time off for a month after that…" Kisame noticed the slight frown of rejection on Itachi's face immediately and shook his head, "Uh-oh… it's boss' order because you've never taken any vacation and gone home to your home country for the past six years since you started a job in our agency," he sent the younger man a pointed look. "Go home, Itachi-san. Your family must terribly miss you."
To his credit, Itachi didn't look too offended even though he did seem rather thoughtful. "I honestly doubt it…" And if he sounded partly resigned after that, Kisame would just pretend that he didn't hear any of it.
"By the way, a letter came from Japan today, addressed to you," Kisame rummaged through the piles of fan letters which amount never seemed to decrease despite the attempt to relocate them again and again to the disposal bin since all models, actors and actresses in their agency didn't care to read them one by one at all, much less to reply them. Obviously, they didn't have time for that. But letters and postcard from family members were different; Kisame and the other managers made sure to short them out carefully before dumping the rest to the incinerators.
Some of those fan letters are exceptionally disturbing after all—Kisame shuddered when he remembered that one time he read a fan letter, obviously from a male fan with such messy hand-writing and an attached photo of him being in indecent position, asking for Itachi to make babies with him. Kisame was scarred for life and refused to do his managing job for a week after that mortifying experience, professional or not. His eyes and mental didn't deserve such horrible image. Thank you very much.
"From Japan?" Itachi raised his eyebrows. Truth to be told, he wasn't really known in Japanese modeling world despite being a full-fledge Japanese himself. For some reason, Itachi only accepted jobs in America and Europe, never in Asia. Again, Kisame didn't know the reason, but it probably had something to do with Itachi's family background, ahem.
"Yep, from…" Kisame paused, looked over the white envelope and read the writing that bore the name of the sender, "-Uchiha Mikoto," he finished while offering it to Itachi.
Itachi looked detached for a moment and Kisame swore the very handsome model hesitated for a fraction of second before his expression turned neutral once again while he accepted the letter. He didn't make any gesture to open the envelope though, only stared at it for awhile before he slipped it into his black Armani trousers pocket.
"I will think about the job offer and the order from the leader," Itachi said as he stood, getting ready to go home since there was no more job for him today at the office and certainly not at the field because he just finished another fashion show that afternoon. He must have been quite tired. Kisame wondered why he didn't just go home after finishing his job instead of lounging around in the office with him.
"Be careful on your way. Ah… do you need a ride?" Kisame was being considerate because Itachi rarely used his own car and preferred public transportation even though it was obviously a bad choice because, Hellooo! Supermodel here! Please swarm me with rabid fans and paparazzi!—yep, it was certainly NOT a good idea.
Though, like a miracle that was Uchiha Itachi, the supermodel managed to go through that every time without a single scratch in his perfect form. Kisame suspected that Itachi was secretly a Ninja who could travel without presence and sound when he wanted to. He was creepy like that, regardless of his amazing prowess to entice men and women from behind a camera.
"That will be unnecessary, but thanks anyway," Itachi responded to him evenly, not as much as looking at Kisame's direction before he fixed his cap to conceal much of his face, and walked out of the room with a soft click of the door closing.
Kisame shrugged at that. "Suit yourself." He mumbled, before getting back to his job.
~Sasuke x Naruto~
Itachi took a taxi to go home to his loft. Yes, he owned one and he had no problem in paying for the expense, even with the pricy cost of buying instead of renting. He was a supermodel after all, though he was careful to never show his face in Japan entertainment world, meaning: Asia was off limits. It wasn't because of anything special per se… he just didn't want to be seen by… certain fellows.
…
…fine, certain fellows consisted of Itachi's family, since he didn't part with them in good term, especially with his father and younger brother.
Itachi sighed right after he sat on his sofa and put down his bag on the coffee table. He dropped the cap beside his thigh and massaged the bridge of his nose periodically with his left hand, before then sinking his back altogether on the backrest of his plush couch, letting another long tired sigh escape his slightly parted lips.
For awhile, he stayed like that with closed eyes. A few minutes later he opened them again and started to fish out the letter in his pocket. He took it out carefully, smoothed the wrinkle at the corner of the envelope before he peeled the lid slowly off the sticky seal. He blinked as he found a piece of picture inside instead of a letter. Yet what surprised him even more was the writing under the picture.
My remarriage ceremony! My new beloved husband, Uzumaki Arashi, and my adorable children Naruto and Sasuke. Now you have two cute little brothers!
Itachi knew his mother hand-writing by heart because she always wrote to him in spite of his lack of response for the past years. Okay, in Itachi's defense, he didn't really have time to do so because of his stupidly hazardous schedules in his early careers as a young male model and by the time he was considered as supermodel, he already took another job that required his time as much, perhaps more than his modeling job. Well, he was certainly a genius that he could compartment his life and divide his time flawlessly and still survived to the present. Punctual was the secret and Itachi didn't hesitate to turn down a job offer/order if he didn't think he could handle it.
Alright, back to the case. So…Itachi's mom remarried. Her new husband, spiky blond, aquamarine eyes, nice body built, cheery smile, Uzumaki Arashi; he looked like a good person. The children, one of them obviously his brother, Sasuke, and the other… a carbon copy of his father, spiky blond, though a shade darker, closer to orange, and cerulean eyes… more like the sky color instead of the sea, Naruto; they seemed to be content as well, although there was something electrical with the way those kids glanced at each other.
"Hmm…" Itachi shifted his gaze on the taller blond man once again, taking in the detail appearance until he was satisfied. Then he flipped over the photograph only to find an 'I miss you' note from his mother and he couldn't resist the small smile forming on his usually stoic face.
Despite being a supermodel that could change his facial masks any other way for the photographer's multiple requests, Itachi actually had such… expressionless basic look. That's what made him very good at his job. But exclusive for his family, he could muster his will for his facial nerves to show any expression that matched his feeling. And right now he felt warmth all over his heart.
Maybe it's not a bad idea to come home… Certainly it will ease mother's worry.
Itachi shut his eyes and the smile stayed on his lips for many minutes later before there was a knock on the door and the knocks were repeated particularly, coded, that Itachi instantly noticed, his smile gone. The person behind his loft door was not paparazzi or salesman or any fan. Otherwise he wouldn't bother to stir at all. But since these knocks would lead him to his other job, he opened his eyes, stood up slowly and then padded to his home entrance.
Itachi stopped in front of his door and knocked twice on the hard wooden surface. There was a faint rustle behind the door before an A4 sized brown envelope was slid into his loft from the mail outlet. Itachi picked the envelope up and strutted back to his living room where he could sit down once again and read the detail of his job before burning the said job description for… security reason.
Itachi retrieved a bunch of classified files from the envelope and he raised his eyebrows quite higher than usual as he was met with a face at the top file, that looked familiar and yet unfamiliar at the same time since he just saw the picture of the very same man, albeit rather older in the picture his mother had sent him, rather than the man in the picture he was holding now.
"Oh boy…" Itachi couldn't help mumbling as he set aside the picture to read the detail of his assignment underneath it. "Hmm… Namikaze Minato, huh?"
Different name…
Now, Itachi didn't need to get bemused over what he would do with that job offer from the Japanese clothing company. With this secret task in hand, he certainly needed time to go home to his new family. Besides, a month seemed fine enough time to look into things… more deeply and carefully.
~Sasuke x Naruto~
Naruto was… unusually quiet.
Gaara and Kiba stared at their blond leader, one in deadpan and one in bewilderment. In their argument, it was because the view was too surreal. Naruto was never silent, despite being in the middle of a school lesson (to his teachers' dismay because he tended to disturb their teaching). He usually had less than five seconds attention span after all, like a brat suffering from ADHD, and apparently, it wasn't just the two of them that was baffled by this… state of affairs.
Iruka who had been glancing at the blond time to time also looked considerably bothered. Naruto seemed to be deep in thought, but his eyes were unfocused… like he was dazed out of his mind. No matter what happened to him (or what was happening inside his head right now), it must have been something big enough to render him mutedlike that.
Frankly, it made everyone in the class nervous (even Shikamaru who was usually in deep slumber was staring at him curiously), sans Gaara who was actually more uneasy than he seemed to be since he didn't have that many ranges of facial expression. Naruto being quiet for almost two hours after the class started this morning was very alarming. Iruka looked like he was about to address Naruto several times now, but he stopped himself, probably because he didn't have any excuse to do so. Naruto didn't actually break any rule by being silent, but Iruka apparently also knew that it would be too cruel of him to ask Naruto to answer questions from the lesson because he knew his favorite pupil had not paid attention to his explanation in the first place. Iruka settled by sighing, almost certainly making note to himself to call Naruto to the teacher's office after the school.
Gaara and the others though, were not that patient.
As soon as the lunch break arrived, they closed in on the gullible blond who only just noticed them when they already surrounded him apprehensively. Naruto blinked once and looked upward at them, raising his eyebrows in question. "What?"
"Are you ill?" Kiba asked, very vexed now, though that didn't prevent him from putting Akamaru down in front of the still sitting Naruto, on his desk.
"What?" Now, Naruto looked endearingly dumbfounded, glancing at the puppy distractedly before reaching out his hand to pat the head, ruffling its soft fur absentmindedly.
"Kiba has a point. You're being so… unnaturally noiseless for-," Shikamaru paused, looking over the watch of the student beside him, before continuing, "-almost five hours now." He nodded, satisfied with his calculation of time in mere seconds. Gaara didn't say anything and only gave Naruto a pointed gaze, agreeing with Shikamaru.
"Oh, that…" Naruto shrugged. "I'm thinking," he didn't even pay mind to them anymore as he smiled at the puppy nuzzling at his palm, and decided to pick it up to put back down on his lap, so he could play with it better.
At that, Gaara and a handful of people raised their eyebrows. Well, in Gaara's case, his brows, since his eyebrows were so thin such that they were hard to spot. "You seem to think quite much these days…" the red head couldn't resist trailing off. He didn't want to sound too care lest the others would mock him for getting soft. He had a reputation to uphold after all.
"We-ell~," Naruto dragged his speech, looking almost wry at some point. "It is a…private issue that needs to be taken care of…" And he was annoyingly being cryptic.
Gaara's eyes twitched. He hated it when Naruto was being difficult on purpose. "Then try to take care of it right here," he almost hissed in challenge because that's what usually started Naruto's gear to blab whatever it was whirling inside his brain.
There was a flash of defiance in Naruto's eyes for a second before it dulled once again to his brilliant blues. "I told you. It's personal." He looked almost pouting now and Gaara didn't find it cute or amusing at all.
"Naruto…" Gaara growled in warning as the blond decided to look the other way nervously, a bead of sweat sliding down his cheek. Then Gaara got an epiphany. "Does it have something to do with Jinchuuriki?" He shot and the chatter around them died down instantly.
…
"What?!" Kiba was the first to break the eerie silence in total horror as Shikamaru almost dropped his jaw on the floor, totally speechless.
"No, no, no! Dear God, no!" Naruto frantically flailed in rebuff, shaking his head repeatedly. "It has nothing to do with thosepeople! I swear!"
"Hey, you—damn red head! Stop scaring us like that, sheesh! I thought my heart jumped out of my throat just now!" Kiba immediately shrieked at Gaara, protesting while pointing at him as if he had just committed a murder under his nose.
Gaara only huffed lightly. "I am not sorry."
"What did you say?!" Kiba's screech was louder and Shikamaru only sighed in resignation as Gaara and Kiba started to bicker. Well, it was a one-sided screaming match because Gaara pointedly ignored the dog-lover.
"Cut it out, Kiba! You're too loud!" Shikamaru finally snapped and kicked Kiba's shin in annoyance, causing him to yelp and curse at Shikamaru now, for being violent so suddenly.
"You have bags under your eyes, Shika," Naruto observed.
"Thanks for being obvious, genius," Shikamaru rolled his eyes, tone dripping with sarcasm.
He must have been up very late last night—the others couldn't help thinking, sweat dropping.
"So… what's going on?" Now Shikamaru crossed his arms in front of his chest, narrowing his eyes at Naruto. "Spill," or else—was left unsaid, but sometimes even Shikamaru could be intimidating despite his laziness. He was still one of Naruto's gang members, and frankly, he was the genius one. He appeared harmless, but he was actually quite deadly in a more… subtle way.
Naruto scratched his cheek, looking uncertain. "You guys… are just too persistent."
"It's called an intervention for a reason, you know." Gaara smirked and Naruto sighed deeply as Kiba grinned.
"What do I do with you guys…" the blond gave them a small smile and it was basically a victory for them because a smiling Naruto was much better than that… brooding one.
"So, is it a love problem?" Kiba wagged his brow and elbowed Naruto's side suggestively.
"Idiot! It's nothing like that!" Naruto shoved him none too gently, but the blush on his face was quite priceless.
"Then what is it?" Shikamaru was impatient because he was sleepy and Naruto wasn't helping by shouting like a five year old throwing a tantrum.
"Ah… it's… a family issue…" Naruto once again avoided looking into their eyes, and Gaara looked upward at him in alarm.
"Something happened to your father?" The others gasped slightly at that as well.
"No, well… in a way, yes, but… it's not about that," Naruto shook his head again. "It's complicated…" he let out a long suffering sigh again, looking defeated.
Gaara, Kiba and Shikamaru glanced at each other, silently communicating with their eyes. Then they decided. If it was indeed family matters, they didn't have any right to force Naruto to tell them. Unless Naruto determined that it was okay to do so… because Naruto's family circumstance was a sensitive topic to him and them, generally.
Gaara sighed again after a few minutes. "Fine. You don't have to tell us," he turned around and walked away.
"Gaara?" Naruto sounded apologetic and unsure, but Kiba immediately tapped his shoulder, still smiling widely.
"Just remember. We're here for you if you need us!" Kiba's grin widened and Naruto smiled again at him and Shikamaru, who was grumbling 'troublesome' in his wake, and also at Gaara's retreating back.
"Thanks, guys." Naruto looked touched and sounded poignant as he said it.
~Sasuke x Naruto~
Sasuke heaved out a deep sigh on his desk, staring blankly at a file on his hand. He had come in to student council office at lunch break to take a look at some suggestions from the students on how to improve their school facilities, but… he couldn't actually consider and think about them when his head was in a mess.
Alright, hyperbolic, he knew. But Sasuke couldn't help it. He was restless and as much as he loathed to admit it, he started to feel like fidgeting, causing Neji, who was sitting at his own desk beside him (for the same reason as Sasuke, apparently, but the piles of suggestion sorted out by Neji on Sasuke's desk hadn't decreased at all in the past ten minutes), to give him an odd glare.
"Are you planning to read that one paper forever?"
And he was cranky to boot. What was wrong with Neji anyway? Did he still hold a grudge toward Sasuke or something? Sasuke did report his wrong doing to the supervisor of disciplinary committee which then caused Neji to get a detention from school, but was that a reason to resent Sasuke at all? He was just doing his job.
"No," Sasuke put the paper down. And then sighed again as he recalled the event yesterday.
Sasuke jumped out of Kakashi's car the moment he pulled the vehicle over the side road just beside his house. He immediately ran and entered his house with a bang on the front door which surprised Iruka who had just emerged from the kitchen.
"Ah, welcome home, Sasu—"
But, Sasuke ignored his teacher and ran passing him in bullet speed to the staircase. He jumped two stair steps at a time before rushing to his room. He was about to barge in when the door opened and—bless his agility. This time he could stop before he could collide with, or worse, run over Naruto who just came out of his room.
"Oh, you're home? That's fast." Naruto raised his eyebrows at Sasuke who was panting slightly because of his sprint earlier.
"You… don't just touch my stuffs as you like it!" Sasuke snarled warningly.
"Are you stupid? How am I supposed to clean your room if I can't touch your stuffs?" Naruto looked at him incredulously.
"I can clean my own room!" Sasuke snapped, irritated because Naruto insulted him again.
"Well, too late! I already finished!" Naruto thrust out his tongue at him then.
"What?!" Sasuke was distressed and pushed Naruto away so he could enter his room to check if anything was damaged, out of place, or worse…!
Sasuke involuntarily glanced at his computer desk and his gaze zeroed on the wallet just beside the keyboard. It was still there, where he had left it before. There was also no sign that it had been touched.
Sasuke glanced over his back where Naruto was still proudly standing on his doorstep. "What? I clean well enough to your taste, Sasuke-sama?" Now the blond mocked him, but Sasuke couldn't care less at that moment. He was wondering if Naruto didn't notice the wallet at all.
Or maybe, he noticed but chose not to say anything…
"Why are you looking at me as if I am a puzzle?" Naruto huffed, looking befuddled, probably because Sasuke didn't rise to his goading. "Whatever. Seriously, you need to get a life, Sasuke. I can't believe I actually didn't find a single porn book in your room."
"I don't have any!" Sasuke practically shouted in direct reaction, inwardly horrified because Naruto seriously hunted down some dirty magazines inside his room.
"Exactly," Naruto made a face. "Now, get downstairs. Iruka-sensei has cooked something for our lunch."
And then the blond nonchalantly left Sasuke to ponder alone in his room. Sasuke retrieved his wallet and then stared at it for a moment, debating if he should open it or not to check, just in case. But then he decided against it and pocketed it safely in his pants.
Sasuke rested his chin on his palm, still reminiscing. Even after that, Naruto still didn't say anything about that wallet and its content. Maybe he really didn't touch it, much less seeing what was inside it. Though, during the lunch after that, the blond was unusually quiet.
Another sigh escaped his lips and apparently, Neji was at his limit of his patience because the pen head in his hand cracked while he was writing. Sasuke inwardly winched when the long haired older teen sent him a death glare. "Sasuke… maybe you should take a break and eat your lunch at cafeteria rather than being a distraction here since you're not helping with the work."
Alright, Sasuke admitted that he was being ridiculous with all the unnecessary concern about that thing (still, he would die of shame if Naruto actually saw it and considered him…weird).But man… Neji could be totally intimidating when he wanted to be. Besides, Sasuke was indeed at fault here, so he couldn't really blame Neji for being prissy.
"I'm working," Sasuke replied coolly. Well, it didn't mean he would admit it out loud that he was being unreasonable and Neji made a frustrated groan about 'Sasuke' and 'alien' there, even though Sasuke didn't understand how those two words could stand together in the same line.
Whatever. Let's just hope that Naruto really didn't see a thing. I should just stop obsessing over it…
Thus Sasuke shrugged and once again tried to concentrate on the paper on his hand.
~Sasuke x Naruto~
Naruto was enjoying his bread while walking at the backyard when something, or actually someone, rushed over to his direction and jumped him from behind. "Naruto-kun!"
"Yargh!" Naruto was caught off guard as something hard connected to his back and he almost tumbled down on the ground as he jumped to stable his balance in an odd angle. He immediately turned around and threw a punch that was instantly caught in a strong calloused palm. "Fuzzy Eyebrow, you bastard! You almost made me drop my lunch!" he couldn't help yelling as his sight was met with a pair of very thick eyebrows above a pair of round funny black eyes, in perfect order of an oval shaped face, and topped by a bowl-cut short, black hair.
"Ahaha! You are always so full of spirit, Naruto-kun! I missed fighting with you!" the guy, Rock Lee, held Naruto's fist strongly for a moment before he pulled the blond in a crushing, manly hug with his other arm, almost knocking Naruto's breath out of his lungs with the force.
"Don't get too close to me!" Naruto shuddered and pushed Lee's face away from his. Seriously, this guy needed to understand the concept of personal space.
"Whaaat? That's harsh, Naruto-kun! Aren't you missing me at all when I was recuperating in hospital for a week?!" Lee demanded, looking like a kicked puppy that Naruto flinched slightly, actually feeling a tiny-weenie bit guilty.
"That wasn't my fault, you know. You tripped on your own feet when you ran delivering your ultimate technique," Naruto still tried to pry Lee's hold on his neck, despite his softer tone. "How's your head, by the way? I heard you got mild concussion or something…"
"I'm perfectly fine now! Seven stitches to the head is nothingat all! I feel awesome and brimming with energy to renew our battle!" Lee finally released Naruto to strike his trade mark 'good guy' pose, with a thumb rising, one hand on his waist and a cheery wink. His teeth even were shining. Lee was always eccentric like that, despite being a white gakuran wearer. Naruto couldn't really dislike him. Surely, he was hard working and studious like the other whites, but he didn't look down on the black gakuran wearer. In fact, Lee interacted more with the blacks for some reason… probably because he was so persistent and good natured, even though it could be annoying. He was also a year older, in the same class as Neji, and he was a captain of the Karate Club.
Actually, Naruto heard that Neji was the captain, but he was too busy in student council to attend the club practice regularly since his second year started, so he gave the position to Lee, because he was the strongest after Neji. Their Karate Club was quite powerful since they seized second place in National Tournament last year. Lee had been working to lure Naruto into the club these past months and he had done so with challenges day after day after day that Naruto eventually got sick of him and last week, he had agreed to fight him in condition that if Lee lost, he had to leave Naruto alone.
Naruto didn't want to attend any club. He tended to go brawling outside the school and if he was in any club, the club would be banned from any official match, catching on to his latest escapades. He'd rather die than being a burden like that.
Then Naruto blinked, realizing what Lee had said. "You still want to fight…" He looked at Lee deprecatingly.
"Why of course! We hadn't finished our match because of that tiny accident! Now that I'm fully healed, we can do so!" Lee's eyes were burning with passion as he brought his fists in front of his chest.
"Fuzzy Eyebrow, I hate to inform you, but I won that fight since your carelessness caused your own defeat. Still, whatever the reason, you have to fulfill your end of our bargain. Stop bothering me already," Naruto huffed at him.
"Eeeh?! But, BUT! That kind of defeat is very LAME!" Lee protested. "Guy-sensei will be ashamed of me! I don't want to embarrass my shishou like that!" and he looked kind of panicked and pathetic with that horror-stricken face.
"That is not my business," Naruto turned away, before he could feel another strike of guilt for seeing such helpless look in his senior's face.
"Guy-sensei… please forgive my worthlessness…!"
And Naruto twitched in exasperation when he started to hear the lament and snivels from behind him. He stopped and scratched his hair curtly in frustration. "Fine, alright! Let's fight one more time, but not today, okay?! I have something to think about!" He finally gave in and Lee immediately perked and jumped to hug him once again in total joy.
"Thank you, Naruto-kun! I know you're a good guy! You're my best rival!"
"Geeh! Don't decide as you please like that!" –and then Naruto was back to struggling, trying to peel the guy off of him while screeching in annoyance.
After some time though, they ended up sitting side by side under a Sakura tree, rather worn out. Naruto was finishing his interrupted lunch earlier and as an apology for disturbing Naruto, Lee gave him half of his melon bread that he could not finish. While eating though, Naruto couldn't help his mind wandering to the yesterday event, which prompted him to speculate a lot of things since he found that wallet in Sasuke's room and saw what was inside.
It was a picture… an old picture, probably years old. The color was still okay, but there was no doubt it had aged quite a bit judging from the yellowish tinge on the surface. But the obvious hint that it was an old picture was… the people in it.
There was Sasuke and someone that resembled him very much, only older. Sasuke in that picture was still a kid, probably still in elementary school and the older one… his father? But he looked too young to be a father. Besides, he still looked totally like a high school student. That mysterious guy had straight, long, black hair, tied into a loose pony tail and Sasuke was…
Sasuke was… smiling.
Surprisingly, Sasuke looks very expressive in that picture, happiness brimming in his wide grin and glittery sparkling eyes. None of them faces the camera, but…—it was a beautiful picture in Naruto's eyes. The older guy seemed very kind with his gentle smile and Sasuke was delighted sitting on that guy's lap, laughing at something merrily.
Truthfully, Naruto was completely astonished when he saw the picture. He had assumed that Sasuke was always aloof and stoic, but… that picture blew his mind up. Even Sasuke could make such cheery expression. He couldn't help wondering what had happened in Sasuke's life that turned such pure, joyful child into an ice-prick teen like Sasuke nowadays.
Rebellious age? Teenager's angst?—Naruto shook his head, dismissing those stupid thoughts. He wasn't that dumb not to understand that something big must have happened. Big enough to change Sasuke's mindset… to turn his warm smile into constant cold sneer…
"You can't run from your destiny!"
Naruto closed his eyes, once again being reminded by his own experience that changed his life forever. And yet, he refused to succumb back into such dark thought. That guywas gone now. Naruto was safe, away from his mother's family.
Well… Sasuke must have his own family issue before our parents married each other. Though… that being mentioned, I actually know almost nothing of him personally, except maybe his fighting techniques and his preference of language when he's dealing with me—Naruto mused once again; Ah, but since we've lived together, I know that he likes Japanese dishes more than Western ones, and he adores soft, dark colors rather than the bold, bright ones. I don't think I need to know more about him, but… this kinda intrigues me…
Yep, it made Naruto curious of Sasuke's past. He didn't like being nosy, but if Sasuke was willing, maybe they could share something in their past to each other. Not that Naruto was interested to being close to the bastard. He just wanted to know, and it was only fair if he shared something first if he wanted to snoop into Sasuke's life.
"Err…Naruto-kun?"
Naruto jerked in surprise when he felt someone tap his shoulders. He lifted his eyes to meet the fuzzy eyebrows' curious look. He grimaced for actually forgetting that he was with Lee at that moment. "What?" he blinked once at Lee, questioning.
"You'd been lost in thought for quite awhile, Naruto-kun. I've been calling you in the past five minutes," Lee informed and Naruto laughed sheepishly at that.
"Sorry 'bout that, Fuzzy Eyebrow, things have been hectic at home recently," he answered vaguely and Lee seemed about to say or ask something, but stopped himself before shrugging.
"Okay," he said and Naruto was grateful that Lee decided not to pry. "The lunch break is almost over, though. We should get back to our respective classes," Lee then started to collect their trashes while standing up.
"Ah, you can go ahead. I still need to think of something," Naruto waved him off, not intending to be on time since he didn't really like Ebisu's World History class anyway.
"No can do, Naruto-kun! You can't slack off or you won't be able to move a grade!" Lee scolded, or actually, he was a nosy guy for something like this. Naruto just resigned himself when he was being dragged back by the older teen, but he blinked in surprise when Lee suddenly stopped moving.
"Fuzzy Eyebrow?" Naruto looked upward at Lee and he looked… kind of suspicious.
"Naruto-kun, do you see that guy?" then he whispered at Naruto, pointing at the back gates approximately 30 feet in front of them.
"Huh?" Naruto looked over Lee's head and spotted what Lee saw. There was someone outside the gates, conspicuously looking inside the school premise. He was rather tall, probably over 170cm, and he wore hat and sunglasses that covered most of his head and face. He also wore fur-trimmed, long-heavy looking black coat despite it already in late spring. "How suspicious," Naruto decided immediately.
"Right? I've seen him skulk around our school since this morning. Do you think he's some kind of criminal?" Lee's eyes sparkled with challenge, probably intending to bust that guy up or something.
"Let's not be hasty. It can be just a tourist wanting a close look at our school," Naruto pointed out. Well, who knew how long that suspicious person had been hanging around the school ground? Lee only came back today and he already caught his interest after all. "I'll go talk to him and you, inform the disciplinary committee, in case he turns out to be a real criminal," he directed.
"Will do! Be careful now, Naruto-kun!" then Lee immediately dashed away to do his mission after saluting.
"Alright-y then," Naruto turned to face the gates once more and made a bee-line to greet their mysterious guest.
~Sasuke x Naruto~
Itachi was staring beyond the gates nostalgically. He had graduated from this school. Three glorious years of being a student council president and having fun with his friends, though, his idea of fun at that time was quite… restrained. Oh, well… he was raised in a strict environment after all and he was too obedient because he longed for acknowledgement from his father.
Itachi had to say that he found Uchiha's principle too… self-centered, always has, since he was little. That's why he decided to leave as soon as he graduated high school because he realized that it was his life and he deserved to live it as he liked. Not even his father's disappointment or disapproval could stop him because he also inherited the stubborn and determined characteristics from an Uchiha. What he already decided, he would do it until he succeeded.
Now… lo and behold, Itachi did succeed. He was an independent working adult, a supermodel whose name was famously known in America and Europe continents. He was successful and he was itchy to gloat at his father, but no… he'd rather not be found right now.
Although it would be satisfying to see the horrified look on his father's face if he knew, Itachi was rather…concerned on how a certain someone would react to the news. He closed his eyes. He still regretted slightly that it had to come to this situation, between Itachi and him. Now though, he couldn't avoid the confrontation because he had a mission from the organization that employed him.
Besides, it's bound to involve my family. I guess this is the time to make amends…
Apparently, Itachi had taken his time shutting his eyes for too long, because when he opened them once again, they were greeted by a pair of curious blue eyes staring deeply at his face behind the gates. Since when has he-?—Itachi was quite startled, even though he didn't show it much what with his baseball cap and purple-tinted sunglasses hindering the other's view of his face. He only blinked once as the blue-eyed blond gave him a feral grin.
"Hey, onii-san (1), what are you doing lurking around my school in such suspicious getup?" the boy asked while Itachi immediately realized that he knew this boy. His face was familiar even though he didn't spot his whiskers-like scars on his cheeks from the photograph his mother had sent him. Bad lighting, he guessed.
"You are… Uzumaki Naruto?" Itachi asked tentatively and the boy raised his eyebrows at him.
"Wow, am I that famous? I don't even know you," Naruto narrowed his eyes then. "Who are you and what do you want with me?" And for some reason, the blond decided to intimidate Itachi even though he didn't do anything wrong.
Well, maybe prowling around the school ground wasn't his brightest idea. However, Itachi didn't want to suddenly appear on their house doorstep and introduced himself as a family member without informing part of the family first, especially the new one. He could always call his mother of his arrival, but then it would be boring because there was no element of surprise and Itachi kinda dug on it. It's what made him unpredictable in the first place. Things that brought headache to his father… he couldn't help smiling slightly at that.
"Well?" Naruto seemed impatient because he hadn't said a thing and Itachi decided to remove his cap and sunglasses to test if Naruto could guess who he was just by looking at his appearance. After all, he bore an uncanny resemblance to Naruto's step brother.
Naruto frowned at the gesture, but then the more Itachi revealed his face, the more Naruto widened his eyes and opened his mouth, gawking at him. "You—!"
Oh, yes, apparently Naruto indeed could guess who Itachi was.
~Sasuke x Naruto~
Sasuke just happened to look outside the window when a certain view at the backyard caught his eyes. He was at the third floor, so the sight might not be clear enough, but he would never mistake that blond hair anywhere. There was only one person with such spiky hairstyle in that color at Konoha Academy. It was undoubtedly that dimwitted Naruto.
However, what stole Sasuke's attention even more was not the blond, but the person that stood outside the gates facing Naruto. When that person removed his cap and something which looked like sunglasses, Sasuke noticed his long, dark ebony hair, tied into loose pony tail and that body posture…
Sasuke widened his eyes in shock and stood up in a sudden, causing his chair to screech on the tile floor, surprising Neji who jolted in alarm. "What?!"
"Neji…" Sasuke couldn't help his voice sounding heavy and serious and Neji blinked at him in perplexity. "I'll take that previous offer and go to have that lunch now. I'll leave the rest to you." Then he turned and marched out of the room, leaving Neji staring at the open door (yes, he didn't even have the decency to close the damn door) open mouthed.
"But the recess time is almost over!"
His shout that followed Sasuke's abrupt leaving could still be heard even though the raven already reached the stairs. Of course Sasuke ignored that call and went downstairs immediately. If what he suspected was true… and if his eyes didn't play trick on him, then….
That guy has come back!
~Sasuke x Naruto~
"Holy crap…! You're an Uchiha!" Naruto shouted, pointing at the dark haired man's face as if he were a culprit of some heinous crime.
The man raised his flawless eyebrows slightly, looking so effortlessly cool. Damn! He was really an Uchiha after all. Those enticing dark onyx eyes, that perfect nose. Those -easy on the eyes- pale pink lips… and his voice, dear God. Naruto had never heard such deep, alluring voice before. Although he looked a bit more masculine than Sasuke was with his slightly hard face lines, he still resembled Sasuke very much.
"And you look like Sasuke!" Naruto hitched, just realizing that this person was the same guy as the one in the old picture with the smiling Sasuke. "Wait, why—how on earth are you guys so alike? Who the hell are you?!" and now Naruto was confused.
There was a pregnant silence for a few seconds before a soft chuckle bubbled out from the guy's mouth and Naruto's face heated slightly seeing the amused glint in the man's eyes. "What's so damn funny?!" he couldn't help feeling embarrassed so suddenly, because he certainly sounded and looked like a fool for exclaiming and pointing at the Sasuke look-alike-despite-the-longer-hair-and-the-older-age so blatantly.
"No, sorry…" the guy covered his mouth slightly with the back of his palm, still visibly smiling. "I just didn't expect that you will be so…energetic," he coughed, probably to conceal his laugh and Naruto's face flushed harder. He was about to yell at him to shut up, but the guy beat Naruto to it. "I see… so Sasuke had never mentioned me, huh? It's understandable though."
What the heck does that even mean?—Naruto narrowed his eyes at him, feeling anomalous suddenly with the reticent way that man spoke.
"Who are you?" Naruto repeated his question, more calmly now. This guy knew Sasuke and he was almost certainly an Uchiha with such distinctive characteristic.
"Ah, I apologize for my rudeness. I'm Uchiha Itachi, Sasuke's elder brother." Itachi finally introduced himself, offering a handshake and Naruto couldn't help dropping his jaw unceremoniously at the news instead of returning the polite gesture.
"SASUKE HAS A BROTHER?!" And of course he had to cry that out because he didn't think that selfish jerk had any sibling at all. Who would have thought? Sasuke was a spoiled, only child, right? A young master of Uchiha Corporation? How the hell had he ended up being a… a little brother to such fine, polite, young man in front of Naruto?
Itachi visibly cringed at the high pitch of Naruto's voice, but he kept his small smile intact. "Yes, he does. Though, it's been years since we met each other."
"Oh… right…" Naruto mumbled, still dumbfounded and rather taken aback for not suspecting such relationship between them. Of course there was a strong possibility that the guy in the photograph with Sasuke when he was little was his older brother.
Huh? Then why didn't they just meet whenever?—Now Naruto was so curious that he didn't realize staring at Itachi.
Itachi didn't look uncomfortable for being stared at so unashamedly, though. He just raised his nice eyebrows again. "What's wrong?"
"Ah, no… just wondering why all Uchihas have such… shared, similar feature…" Naruto answered absentmindedly.
Itachi looked mirthful now. "For being so cool?"
"Yeah… wait, what?" Naruto realized what he had said, sputtered and blushed furiously. "Wha—, what?! No! What did you make me say!? That's not it!"
"We get that compliment a lot, Naruto-kun," Itachi still looked pointedly amused and proud of all sudden, causing Naruto to scowl immediately.
"Don't forget to add a narcissistictendency," Naruto added dryly, infuriated because wow was he smug. Despite being rather playful, Itachi still had that air of arrogance that always seemed to follow Uchiha's name no matter what.
"But it is a fact, right, Naruto-kun?" Itachi's smile widened slightly and as much as Naruto hated to admit it, he was right. Not that Naruto paid so much attention to such detail of Uchiha's pretty face. Nope. Never.
Naruto clicked his tongue in consternation before he realized that Itachi called his name. Wait. He did call my name three times now!
"How do you know my name?" Naruto asked curiously, giving Itachi the benefit of the doubt.
"Mother sent me a letter-picture about her re-marriage," Itachi answered calmly. "I've come to see it for myself."
However, Itachi didn't elaborate further. Naruto sighed deeply. "Then you should go to the center building and ask for formal meeting with Sasuke to talk about it. Loitering around the school wearing such clothes makes you look like a bad character." He suggested pointedly, eyeing Itachi's feature critically, and then remembered vividly that there was no one remotely resembling Itachi… or any Uchiha for that matter (aside his mom and Sasuke, of course), in the wedding ceremony.
"I should probably follow that idea then," Itachi gave him an expectant look and didn't move from his spot.
Naruto felt uncomfortable being stared at like that. He wasn't used to such look after all. "Do you need assistance or something?" Finally, he couldn't take it anymore.
"My, how thoughtful of you, Naruto-kun, I thank you for your consideration. Please do," Itachi smiled again, rather in triumph now.
Naruto shook his head as he opened the gates with ease. Of course he had his own means to do such thing. He was the boss of East Building after all.
But seriously… all Uchihas are strange—Naruto couldn't help thinking, shaking his head as he led Itachi to the center building's entrance.
~Sasuke x Naruto~
Sasuke looked around as he arrived at the school backyard near East Building. He went straight to the gates and just in time when Naruto opened the gates and let Itachi enter. When the blond started to lead the dark haired man to the center building, Sasuke shouted from afar.
"Wait!"
Both the blond and the raven stopped, apparently having heard Sasuke's voice and they turned around at the same time. Naruto's expression visibly surprised and the other guy… a very familiar guy, raised one of his eyebrows slightly and yet his expression couldn't be read so easily with his very composed look.
"Just in time when we're about to see you, Sasu-chan," Naruto smirked teasingly.
"Don't call me –chan!" Sasuke snapped at him more in reflex than in annoyance, but he was quite distracted from the blond since his eyes followed the other raven's feature quite literally.
"Hello, little brother. It's been awhile," finally the older guy, Itachi, greeted him with a serene smile.
Sasuke held down his urge to snarl at him. "What are you doing here?" he almost hissed though, sharpening his gaze at Itachi coldly. Naruto raised his eyebrows at that, but he seemed to refrain himself from saying anything.
"Isn't that rather obvious? I'm here to meet my foolish little brother," Itachi kept his calm and it infuriated Sasuke more.
Sasuke snorted. "Brother," he spoke the word in such a way that sounded very… degrading even in his own ears. Good. He wanted Itachi to agonize over it. Though, the grown-up raven didn't even flinch.
"I know. You miss me too," Itachi smirked slightly and Sasuke had togawk at him in disbelief.
"Where in the world did that come from?"
"Sasuke is always a bit tsundere (2), how cute." Itachi teased and Sasuke's face heated in instant fury and embarrassment.
"Who the hell did you call a tsundere?!"
Of course, his face was probably flaming-red by now, because Naruto seemed unable to hold himself back anymore and snorted, pointing at Sasuke's face. "Oh, holy shit! Sasuke is blushing!" He doubled over, cackling like a mad boy.
"S-shut up, you Dobe!" Sasuke snapped, the temperature around him seeming to increase even more having just remembered that the blond was there with them, and he reacted by attacking Naruto, feeling so livid and thwarted for being laughed at by him of all people. Still, Naruto wasn't goaded into retorting Sasuke's insult back because he was still too busy chortling at him.
Sasuke decided to ignore Naruto then, scowling, in favor of focusing once again on Itachi. "Why are you here?" He demanded once again, feeling increasingly irritated because Naruto hadn't stopped laughing yet.
"I told you, I-…"
"Cutthe CRAPout!" Sasuke shouted emotionally now, cutting Itachi's explanation and his raised voice seemed to surprise Itachi a bit, but apparently not enough to make him falter despite Sasuke's fiery gaze at his dark eyes. "There's just no way that you're here just for that. You… who left all those years ago without a word and without any explanation whatsoever…!"
"It's alright, Sasuke. Big brother is here."
"-without even a single letter…!" Sasuke's voice cracked slightly as he felt the sting of something liquidly unfamiliar in his eyes. He gritted his teeth, trying to hold down the sudden pour of emotion that he had kept buried deeply inside his heart, threatening to break the invisible wall he had built for years.
"I'll always be with you, Sasuke."
Sasuke closed his eyes hard, trying to blink back the…whatever it was which almost fell down to his cheek.
Itachi didn't say anything for some time until- "Technically, I left for six years." Sasuke glared at him for that nonchalant comment. Though, there was a small twitch at the corner of Itachi's lips, forming a small smile, and Sasuke would have missed it had he not looked upward, since it was gone remarkably as fast as it appeared before. He had no freaking idea why Itachi smiled though.
"Doesn't matter. The underlined words here are that you left." Sasuke growled, throwing Itachi another annoyed gaze, though he had to admit that it wasn't as hateful as before. He even felt more resigned than anything.
Itachi was silent again then, and Sasuke had to admit that it was a bit awkward. Before long though, Itachi's gaze shifted to Naruto who had been quiet since god knew when because the last time Sasuke remembered, the blond had been laughing like a lunatic. Surprisingly, Naruto were eyeing both Itachi and Sasuke perilously, as if he was considering something.
Sasuke was about to glower at Naruto when Itachi beat him to it. "Of course I want to see my new little brother as well," he said, promptly changing the subject and looking straight at Naruto. Sasuke bristled while throwing the older man another scathing glare. "Blond, blue eyes… a foreigner."
"I was born and raised in Japan, though… Well, my Dad is a foreigner," Naruto shrugged, now gazing solely at Itachi. "You have a problem with it?"
"Not at all," Itachi gave Naruto a mild once over. "To tell the truth, it pleases me. You look kind of adorable with your wild appearance." Naruto involuntarily blushed at that. "And-," Itachi then stepped forward, approaching Naruto, a glint of something akin to mischief in his eyes.
Sasuke was immediately aware of what Itachi wanted to do, widening his eyes. "Oh no! Stop! Nii-san (1)!" and didn't realize that he had called him like that again.
It was too late, though, because then Itachi already reached his destination (in front of Naruto) and said, "It's nice to meet you," before he reached his hand to tilt the unsuspecting, dumb-looking Naruto's chin up and then leaned down slowly, planting a small kiss on the corner of his mouth.
Naruto's eyes literally whitened, probably in utter shock. "Oh," Itachi blinked.
Sasuke stared at them in horror as Naruto suddenly collapsed, fainting on the ground as if he just had a stroke. "ITACHI!" Yeah, Sasuke kind of freaked out. "You—! Don't just go around kissing people like that!" He didn't know why he felt so… so enraged. Surely, Itachi's conduct was inappropriate to someone he just met, but Sasuke had never felt such fury when he saw his brother kiss someone before, at least not like this.
"Like what exactly?" there was a teasing tone in his voice. "Jealous?"
Sasuke's face felt like burning now. "Who the hell would be jealous of you!? It's not like I want to kiss Naruto like that! Sasuke was slightly panting as Itachi raised his eyebrow at him.
…
…
And there was a brief silence before- "I was under the impression that you were jealous of Naruto-kun, though…"
Sasuke snapped and his face would have colored like a steaming lobster if it was possible, his heart beating like crazy as he realized that he was digging his own grave, since he did nothing but humiliate himself in front of Itachi. "SHUT UP!" Well, at least he could still yell disagreeably at his brother despite the shame.
Itachi chuckled slightly then and Sasuke looked upward in surprise because even before he left, Itachi had always been careful in showing his expression. Itachi was usually very detached. Hearing him chuckle was very rare. "You haven't changed, still so foolishly cute."
Sasuke couldn't help but making a frustrated, protesting noise. "It's not like that, you idiot! You've got it wrong! Naruto and I are step brothers! Stop assuming things!"
"Yeah, sure. It's all the reason of giving a greeting kiss to mystep brother such a big deal." Itachi's knowing smirk was very annoying and infuriating. Sasuke wanted to wipe that smirk off of his face.
"Aaaaargh! Shut up already! Stop acting like American! This is JAPAN, you stupid brother! People don't kiss as a greeting here!" and Sasuke continued screeching, spouting out such stereotypical cultural difference that wasn't entirely true, much to Itachi's sheer amusement.
#
Yeah, so the meeting with Sasuke's big brother didn't go very well for poor Naruto because he had become a victim of the Uchiha siblings' very weird and awkward confrontation…
End of Chapter 6
Tbc…
Additional notes:
1)Onii-chan/Onii-san/Nii-san: big brother, the way to call an older man.
2)Tsundere: a strange characteristic, a mix of tsun-tsun (cold, distant, mean) and dere-dere (shy, loving, caring). It's like cold on the outside but loving on the inside.
A/N: Alright, so… the previous version of this chapter was hideously absurd. I hate it with all of my heart because Itachi looked and sounded absolutely out of character and totally idiotic the entire time in there. That's why; I decided to delete that previous one and constructed the 6th chapter from scratch. Yep, a little family background for Uchiha and a bit of mystery for Naruto's dad… *grins* and the plot for this (I Want to Know You More) subtitle will be served in 3 parts with lots and LOTS of drama (and probably violence as well). Saa, what do you think? Good enough? A little bit of suspense is always nice for the spice~ *love* Oh, and I almost forget this! Happy (early) NEW YEAR (2014)!
