Thank y'all for the favs and alerts. I'd really appreciate a few reviews as well ;) Sorry for the wait, but my vacation came out longer than expected.
Music I listened to while writing this chapter: Adam Lambert ("Born to be wild"), "Playing with the big boys" (from the movie The Prince of Egypt), Noriaki Sugiyama, DBSK/TVXQ ("Are you a good girl", "Mirotic", etc.)
Uchiha's Eleven
Written by Venerate
Chapter eight: Caravan
April 20, 2010
Dear Gaara,
I know that you're furious, but I'm kinda stuck here. I think I won't be able to get back to Tokyo for another week. Y'know, I've got a lot of things to do and stuff. I'm pretty important nowadays, he.
We'll have to meet up as soon as I get back, with Temari and Kankuro! I'd call you, but my cellphone is throwing another fit. It's soooo old.
Ah, anyway, I got the letters from mom and I've read them. I just don't wanna write about it in a letter. We'll speak when we meet, ne?
See you,
Naruto
April 26, 2010
When they returned to Tokyo, everything seemed to speed up. Time flew by, and Sasuke just couldn't find any of that precious time to spend with Naruto. The day after they returned, today, he vaguely registered that Naruto left to meet a couple of friends, and the Uchiha was busy spending time with Neji, Hinata and Shikamaru.
They were cramped up in his apartment, having moved all the technology to the, now messy, living room. Chouji was in the kitchen, searching for something to eat.
"Aren't Sakura and Ino coming?" Neji asked, wondering where the girls were. He had heard that they would drop by, for what, he didn't know.
"Yeah, they're getting some clothes for our decoy." Shikamaru leaned back in the sofa, closing his eyes. He trusted the Hyuuga cousins to watch the screens. "It seems that they wanted him to wear something more sophisticated."
A part of Sasuke felt grateful, because he had tried to get his blond lover to dress properly for ages. Another part wondered if he'd ever get to see Naruto's long, bronze legs as he only covered his cute butt with a pair of trashy shorts. He did appreciate the view, but only when they were alone.
"Or what do you think, Uchiha?"
Sasuke looked up at Shikamaru, trying to look as if he knew exactly what they were talking about. With a neutral grunt, he returned to watching the screen. He had yet to see his brother, but he did recognise the other Akatsuki members very well. He had met them all, in person, when he had been hunting down his older brother's location.
"I think he's going to make it," Neji said. "He seems determined enough, and I would like to believe that the stars are with him."
"So far it seems that," Chouji said as he entered the room, pausing to stuff his mouth with popcorn, "he's quite stubborn."
They looked at Sasuke for confirmation, and the Uchiha nodded. "Indeed. He doesn't know when to stop."
"Perhaps that's just what's needed to overthrow Hoshigaki Kisame."
April 29, 2010
Naruto and Sasuke were spending the day alone, for the first time in almost a month. It felt good, and Sasuke was determined to make the best out of everything. Even if that meant compromising.
Tomorrow, Naruto would show up at the diner where Kisame and Itachi always had their lunch meetings, to make an impression on the blueish man. Despite his faith in Naruto, Sasuke disliked the idea. Yet, upon the sight of Itachi and Kisame with one of their clients at the diner, his blood boiled. Naruto was his only chance. If it was a chance worth risking, Sasuke was still unsure.
The weather was great. It seemed as if it would continue like this until summer was over, even though it hadn't even started. They were outside, Naruto on his back as the blond had demanded to ride piggyback on his lover. Naruto's lanky arms were wrapped around Sasuke's neck, his nose buried in the Uchiha's silky, black hair.
"How about a movie?" Sasuke asked, tired of walking around in strange shops and boutiques. He didn't want to buy anything, nor did he want Naruto to buy those ugly frog-shaped vases. Once Naruto started shopping, unnecessary (and ugly) things would sneak their way into the apartment. He didn't want anymore of those stupid dream catchers or silly posters with unknown, western musicians.
"But the weather is perfect," Naruto whined.
"No, it's hot," Sasuke argued. He felt a small tug at one of his bangs, but ignored his boyfriend's childish antics. "Let's go see a movie," he suggested again. Naruto let out a disgruntled sound, but Sasuke continued before he got the chance to protest, "I'm the one walking, I decide where we want to go."
Though it was said with love and playfulness, Sasuke could hear the tiny hint of annoyance as Naruto spoke,
"You bastard."
When Sasuke's cellphone started buzzing in his pocket, Naruto groaned in annoyance. They had seen an action movie, and it had taken them quite a while to get to the restaurant when Naruto was trying to re-enact the kung-fu scenes. They had just ordered, and Sasuke picked his phone up.
Two unread messages and two missed calls. He did recognise the number, and sent a look to his lover. Naruto pouted, crossing his arms over his chest as he pretended to be highly offended. Not caring about the childish act, Sasuke called back.
"Sasuke?"
"I do hope that there is a fire or that someone is seriously hurt."
The words, as horrible as they were, made Naruto chuckle. The blond continued to play with the red napkin as he listened to Sasuke speak. The Uchiha grunted impatiently, urging the caller on, to hurry up. It made the young Uzumaki feel important.
"I'll make sure of that. Goodbye." Sasuke turned off his phone, showing the dead display to Naruto before putting it away. "We need to stop by Aburame before we get back. He has some shit that needs to be installed at the diner tonight."
"Can't we install them?" Naruto asked with a grin. "Wouldn't that be awesome?"
"We'll see," Sasuke answered calmly. He didn't enjoy pulling Naruto into these criminal acts, not when there were other options, such as Kiba or Lee and TenTen. He had only made Naruto do something illegal once before. All the other dots in Naruto's police record were made by the blond before they met.
"It'd be like the time we got out of that cop-mess," Naruto reminded loudly.
Had they been on any other restaurant, Sasuke would have hit the idiot hard. However, they were at the Akimichi Restaurant, which Chouji's father owned. Chouza was, as Chouji, a round and loyal man. Happy and nice to those he met. He was well-aware of his son's career, and wasn't bothered. Though Chouza didn't commit crimes or fiddled much with taxes, the Akimichi Restaurant was a sanctuary for criminals, illegal immigrants and people without identities.
They did serve good food as well.
"And here comes your food," the heavy restaurant owner walked up to them and placed their plates on the table. Large spots of what looked like tomato sauce and grease covered the chef's white shirt. In Sasuke's eyes, the spots reminded of blood and pus, as if an infected wound was hiding behind the thin fabric. "It's been quite a while! Food's on me today, since you're taking care of my boy."
"I'm merely his employer, Chouza-san," Sasuke muttered.
"And in a world like this, those who offer jobs are saints," the chef said merrily. He turned to Naruto, a warm smile upon seeing the lively blond. "Dig in, boy."
When they had finished their late dinner, they made their way to Aburame Shino. Neither had a clue where the sunglass-wearing male lived, but they had been given directions. After a five minute drive, they left their car to take the train.
Half an hour later, they were somewhere in the outskirts of Tokyo. Here, the houses seemed emptier, with a wider space between them. A parking lot by the local grocery store was lit up by the street lamps, and they looked at each other.
"Is it just me, or is there a caravan over there?" Naruto pointed at what could only be a caravan. Not a single car was parked nearby, but it seemed to be someone inside. "Did you know that Shino lives in a caravan?"
"No." Sasuke scowled, wondering why on Earth his boyfriend expected him to know such things. "Just get moving."
They walked through the silent neighbourhood, reaching the beige caravan and knocking on the paper-thin door. Sasuke unconsciously put his hand by the holster hidden under his suit jacket.
"Who's there?"
Sasuke glanced at his lover, who happily responded, "It's Naruto! And Sasuke."
Silence followed as the door was opened. "Get inside, quickly. I'll tell you how to install them."
They got inside the caravan, which seemed even smaller on the inside. On one side of the door was a made bed, batteries and tiny cameras littering over the covers. The other side was occupied by a table, covered miniature things, things that looked like robots and a few GPS that had been taken apart.
"I'd offer you coffee, but the store is closed," Shino said calmly. "So…"
"Just tell us what to do," Sasuke agreed. Naruto sent him a look, saying, no need to be so rude.
"Hm, yes. It's easy, really. You just pick one out from the bag – be really careful, or they'll break." Shino picked up a minuscule, black thing in his pale hand. Naruto scrunched his nose, narrowing his eyes and tilting his head as if it would help him see. "On the back, here, is a small surface where you can put some of the glue– where did the glue go?"
Shino paused, turning around to face a bookshelf, roaming around for a while before turning yet again. He uncapped a yellow tube of glue. "It's really strong, so be careful. If you get it on the lens, it's ruined. Don't ruin it."
Naruto and Sasuke both kept from protesting, their pride telling to yell at the other for questioning their skills.
"You do like this," Shino paused to finally show them. He put a small amount of the white glue on the black, shiny side of the camera. "There. And then you put it out where you think is needed."
"One more thing," Sasuke reminded. "You finished the bug for Naruto."
"Hm," Shino remembered. He picked up a small box and held it out for the blond. "Don't put it too close to your heart."
"Sure!" Naruto grinned, accepting the little microphone happily. "Thanks."
"No problem. I'm doing it for the money."
Naruto pouted. Sasuke took the glue and the small plastic bag of miniature cameras. "You get the money when we see that this works." With that, Sasuke grabbed Naruto's wrist and pulled him out of the small caravan.
Naruto waved with his free hand. "Have a nice night!"
The diner was located pretty close to the new Akatsuki building. It was pretty big for a diner in these quarters, seeing as there were fast food restaurants around every corner. Sasuke had never set his food in this diner himself, but he had a vague idea of how it would look.
Expensive leather covered the seats, the walls painted in warm beige and the tables lacked plastic menus. It was American-inspired, the bar made of wood and the waitresses acquired to wear strict uniforms different from the usual blouse and skirt.
"Take that shirt off," Sasuke mumbled as he skilfully undid the security alarms.
"What?" Naruto blinked. "But it's in the middle of the night, people might–"
"It's orange, Naruto. You're visible from Osaka." Sasuke took a step back as the lock gave a click and the light became green. He opened the door, ignoring the fact that cars were passing only a street away. The speed limit was too high for anyone to actually notice them. "If you're too shy to undress–"
Sasuke stopped himself when Naruto threw his orange shirt on him, smirking at the sight. "You know I'm not shy, don't you, honey?"
The Uchiha snorted, making his way inside. "You take that side, I'll take this side."
They parted, Sasuke stepping up on the seats before jumping up on the table. Naruto smoothly climbed up with his long legs, the boots on his feet making awful sounds. The older male refrained from hushing the blond, instead focusing on getting this over with.
He quickly glued the black, shiny side of the minimal camera before putting it on a black and white photography. He continued, his sneakers screeching against the leather as he stepped on the seats to reach the lamps in the ceiling.
Naruto mumbled lowly as he accidently glued on the lens. "Oops," he said with a shrug when his boyfriend sent him a glare. "You just continue with yours, asshole."
"It's hard to when I know that you're fucking things up at the other side of the room," Sasuke retorted.
Naruto huffed, putting one hand on his hip and using his other hand to point at the taller man. "Then come over here and do this on your own if you're so good at it."
"Just do it right, Naru."
And like that, the fight was over before it had barely started. They quietly continued, Naruto trying not to get glue on the lenses as he glued the cameras to the frames of pictures and lamps. Once he was done, he jumped off the table, almost landing on Sasuke. The Uchiha let out a grunt as his arms automatically embraced his clumsy lover.
A chuckle escaped Sasuke's throat as he placed a kiss on the blond's scarred cheek. "Let's get home before someone notice that you left the door open."
To Be Continued
A/N: I hope you enjoyed what you read, even though I was a bit slow with the update. I'll try to make the next chapter longer as well :) Please do take time to answer the questions below.
Questions for this chapter:
Do you have any idea where the red thread with the chapter title is? If so, and you answer first, you get to request anything in a one-shot.
Would you like to draw me some fanart? x3 (I'm shameless)
Were there any mistakes?
Is there something you'd like to see in future chapters?
