AIYH
Author: Ladelle
Rating: M
Comments: Yeah, I know there was a wait. Thank you so much for sticking with me though, I really appreciate it. Everything is back to normal in the life of Ladelle so updates should come a little easier. And hey! I even made a little section on my profile page that gives you guys the status of my updates. Check it out 'cause I'll be loyal to it.
Thank you for all of your reviews and I hope you enjoy!
Thank you Allys!
Chapter 10:
In less than fifteen minutes a shoulder-high stack of boxes had formed near the front door, and as Sasuke crept down the stairs in answer to his name being called, a mad flurry of commotion had occurred. Kakashi looked like a dock manager, calm and collected with a clipboard in hand and a pen tucked behind his ear. He was motioning Sakura towards a bookshelf near the kitchen, and then towards Iruka who was folding boxes near the dining room.
Meanwhile, Kiba was jogging back and forth from the stack of boxes and Iruka's FT Cruiser, anxiously trying to load the vehicle. Sasuke glanced around, wondering if Sai and Hinata had returned yet, and from behind him he heard a shuffling. Turning, he let out a sigh and drifted the rest of the way down the stairs, making room for Naruto and a heavy looking box he seemed to be supporting.
Naruto didn't look at him as he wandered over to Iruka, propping his leg out to support the box while he had a short conversation. Sasuke glanced over to Kakashi, prepared to ask what he could help with, but the grey-haired man seemed to notice something in relation to Kiba because he darted outside. Feeling irritated, Sasuke wandered over to Iruka, hardly meaning to catch the end of his and Naruto's conversation.
"I promise they'll be kept safe, Naruto."
Sasuke glanced to the box in his hand and noticed that it held his journals, and he ignored the defensive glare Naruto was giving him. He turned his attention towards Iruka and frowned.
"You're getting rid of a lot of paperwork," he noted, and he glanced around with skepticism. Iruka glanced between him and Naruto before holding out a pre-made box.
"If you want to help, which we would appreciate very much, you can either help Sakura fill some more of these or help Kiba with loading them into my car."
Sasuke glanced over to Sakura who seemed to have her own little routine for packing, and motioned towards Kiba who was stewing about working alone. Iruka nodded and smiled lightly, a 'thank you' wordlessly sounding from his lips.
Naruto turned from beside him and stalked towards the door, and Sasuke walked a few steps before picking up one of Sakura's boxes and making his way towards the small path Kiba had carved for loading. He weaved past a few notebooks that had been scattered on the floor, and stepped out into the bright sunlight, squinting in order to shield his eyes. In front of him, he could see Naruto and Kiba, both working diligently to arrange the diverse array of packages in the long trunk space Iruka's SUV had.
"I can't believe they're going to be here so soon. Ten to one Iruka will be passing them on the street as they pull in—that's how close this is going to be," Kiba let out a bout of laughter, and Naruto shook his head before climbing out to take the box from Sasuke. "Here, I'll take it—"
"I'm fine on my own," Sasuke said and he weaved past Naruto to push the box in himself, sliding it like a puzzle piece between two others. Naruto frowned and sighed, ignoring the look of vague concern Kiba was giving the both of them.
"Of course you are," he stated quietly, and he walked back towards the house, leaving Sasuke slightly bothered. Kiba looked confused, and he lifted a finger in question, but Sasuke only turned back towards the house himself.
"There are a lot of boxes. Come on."
He found one close to the entrance and knelt down, using his legs to push himself into the air, hoisting the box against his chest. He tiptoed around Kiba back towards the car, sliding it in alongside the others. He felt hot already, as the sun beat down on him, and he wiped his forehead, wondering if they could get everything packed in such a short amount of time.
He caught a glisten of black from the street and waited a moment, knowing that Sai and Hinata had arrived from the store. They came up the driveway looking confused, and Hinata glanced his way.
He was about to say something in explanation when Naruto's voice cut him off from behind. "They're coming early. Hinata, would you mind helping Iruka? He was asking about you," the blond said, and Sasuke twisted around to him, surprised that he hadn't even heard him come outside. Naruto hoisted a large cardboard box into the trunk and let out a deep breath, leaning against it for a moment.
"Naruto, you're the most muscular out of any of us. Don't go wussing out after a couple of boxes," Kiba jogged out and pushed one in next to Naruto's, laughing hard. Naruto turned slightly, his expression becoming playful in the process.
"Mm. You give me boxes that aren't the heaviest and we'll see what happens, huh?" He lowered his eyes and grinned, all before turning back to the house. Kiba started to arrange the two, and Sasuke scowled.
"Weren't you guys worried about him getting sick earlier?" he asked, and he helped Kiba pull a smaller box on top of the others. As he slid it back against the back of the driver's seat, Kiba shook his head.
"Naruto's a big boy. He can handle himself," Kiba offered his hand to Sasuke as he shimmied out, but Sasuke didn't use it. He only nodded in reflection to Kiba's comment and drifted back towards the house, avoiding the blond as he made his way out with another heavy load. Sasuke noticed that there were only a few more boxes left and he lifted one into his arms, turning slowly towards the front door.
His foot caught on one of the loose notebooks from before and he pushed forward to steady himself, surprised when someone seemed to stabilize him from the front. Glancing forward, he glared.
"Yeah, yeah, you're fine on your own," Naruto let go and squeezed through the empty part of the doorway, not bothering to turn back to see Sasuke's expression. Sasuke watched him walk away and drifted out, happy to see that Kiba had managed the last two boxes on his own. The last few fit perfectly and they latched the back, Kiba handing Sasuke a bottle of water from his pocket.
"Ugh, and now the worst part. I hate cleaning," He shook his head and walked past Sasuke and into the house, picking up a few scattered notebooks and textbooks from the floor. Sasuke followed him inside until Kakashi came down the stairs, motioning him.
"Sasuke, can you help Sai in the kitchen? He's got a file cabinet…"
The house was noisy as people bustled about, and as Sasuke nodded he noticed Sakura dodging around with a dust rag and Hinata following closely behind with a vacuum. Naruto was alongside Kiba, trying to re-organize the bookshelves now that they had so much space.
He inwardly wondered how much paperwork they had to get rid of. It seemed like most of the books had been journals or work-studies, and it was interesting that if they were Iruka's belongings, that they were left out in such obvious places.
He took a step towards the kitchen and stopped, a rush of cold overwhelming him. It had been a while since he had a vision all his own, and he gripped the side of the stairwell, leaning against the wall for support. He closed his eyes and the commotion from the room seemed to drown out, instead filling his head with a hushed anxiety.
This vision was different. He was in the kitchen, in someone's head. He saw the counter below and the person's head jerked up, yanking open the cabinet above the stove and rummaging through it idly.
"It's ridiculous."
The voice was low and sounded strange—the kind of echo you hear inside of your head when you think to yourself, and his hand felt something cool, something round, something—
"Sasuke!" Sasuke blinked and snapped his attention up, surprised to find Kakashi holding his shoulder. The room had gone strangely quiet and Sasuke straightened up, annoyed that he hadn't been able to finish the scene playing out in his head. Still, he had seen enough. He pushed past Kakashi and weaved into the kitchen, shoving Sai out of the way as he dug through the upper cabinet, ignoring the presence of Kakashi from behind him. His hands felt a smooth round bottle and he pulled it out, spinning around.
Kiba and Naruto had followed Kakashi in suit, and Sasuke chucked the bottle of Tylenol at Naruto, who caught it in his hands. The blond looked at it for a moment before glancing up to Sasuke, and Sasuke glared at Sai.
"Try to be a little cleverer with your hiding places," Sasuke snorted, and he rolled his eyes before pushing between Kiba and Naruto back into the living area. His head felt a little woozy from the sudden rush of cold, and from behind him, Kakashi tapped his shoulder.
He turned, and Kakashi looked stoic. "What did you see?"
Sasuke shrugged Kakashi's hand off and lowered his eyes. "An idiot in the kitchen, obviously."
Kakashi didn't smirk, and Iruka came up beside the two of them. He looked unknowing to what had just happened, and Sakura and Hinata were tag-teaming the upper hallways with cleaning supplies.
"I'm going to take off. They'll be here any minute. If anything happens—"
Kakashi nodded. "I know where to reach you. Now go," he motioned towards the door and Iruka smiled before turning to Sasuke and looking serious.
"Please be nicer," he said, and before Sasuke could raise an eyebrow the older man darted out the door. Sasuke snorted and shook his head and soon after the revving of the Cruiser's engine could be heard whistling down the street.
Kakashi's hand left his shoulder as Kiba called out to him, and Sasuke stepped outside in hopes of getting some quiet. The house had returned to it's bustling and he was already tired, wondering what exactly would come with the agents. He heard a jingle from behind him and turned, just in time to catch the bottle of Tylenol from Naruto. The blond was looking at him uncertainly, and Sasuke frowned.
"Why would I want these?" he stated coolly, and Naruto shrugged.
"I thought you might have a headache," he said and as Sasuke prepared himself for a mean retort, Naruto smirked. "I mean, you were almost human for a moment."
The blond didn't leave room for Sasuke to reply before he turned back into the house, and Sasuke glanced down at the bottle, hearing the pieces jostle inside. He did have a headache, but it wasn't something he was willing to admit.
The house was nearly sparkling when the doorbell rang, and it had only been about ten minutes since Iruka had left. Sakura and Hinata had hidden away the cleaning supplies well, and Kiba had even turned on the television to make it look like they hadn't spent the entire morning scavenging through years of potentially incriminating research.
Sai had finished organizing the file cabinets on his own, and as far as Sasuke knew, the downstairs lab had been completely re-organized as well. The house was spotless, except for their rooms he assumed, and he felt passive that the agents had just arrived. After all, he didn't have much to hide and he wasn't intimidated by the people he saw enter the house.
"I apologize for being so early," the first person said, and Sasuke examined him from the stairwell. He was tall and lean, and his expression was strangely detached. He was Asian, something that vaguely interested Sasuke, and as he glanced around the room, he appeared extremely bored.
Kakashi placed himself before the other students and extended a hand, looking slightly confused himself, and Sasuke would have bet it was because the person looked so young. They all looked young, actually.
"It's nice to meet you," Kakashi was searching him steadily, "I'm Kakashi Hatake."
The boy pulled his hair into a high ponytail and let out a sigh.
"Shikamaru Nara. Just Shikamaru, though. Formalities are troublesome."
Kakashi nodded and Sasuke followed his vision to the other two characters, the first of which being a girl. She was tall and glamorous, much different then anything Sasuke would have expected. She had pale skin and platinum blond hair, tied back with some sort of fashionable headband. Her eyes were a hazy blue, and the amount of mascara and eyeliner she had chunked around them made them seem more like marbles then anything else. She extended a hand formally and smiled, too perky to be a teammate of the first agent.
"Ino Yamanaka. Same with him though, Ino is perfectly fine." She must have shaken Kakashi's hand hard because Sasuke saw the older man's eyebrow rise in bewilderment.
The last person shuffled in from the front door, lugging a suitcase behind him and panting at the exertion. He turned to the group and smiled, his pudgy face turning boyish with the action.
"Chouji here," he saluted the group in a playful gesture, and Sasuke felt his head hurt. In all actuality, he was surprised. This is what the government had sent? There wasn't even an adult in the group. Sasuke glanced up to Kakashi and could see that even he must have felt the same way.
"Did Asuma not have the opportunity to come?" Kakashi asked, and Shikamaru shook his head.
"He'll be here. He's running late though."
There was a moment of silence before Kakashi spun around, smiling in an attempt to act enthusiastic. Sasuke let his eyes wander the room, curious as to how everyone else was taking in the current situation.
Hinata looked shy, as always, and Kiba was standing dutifully close to both her and Sakura. His expression was less vacant then hers, he looked openly skeptical. Sakura looked confused, and Sasuke could see her careless glances towards the Yamanaka girl, a sign of potential drama in the future.
Sai was sitting on the couch, his expression completely passive. He looked irritated, if even possible, and kept making dubious glances towards Naruto who was leaning against the frame of the kitchen doorway.
"Alright kids," Kakashi said, and he widened his eyes in a sort of'please-just-let-this-go-by peacefully' sort of way, "Let's not be rude."
There was a moment of silence before Sakura spoke up, the most knowing and polite of the group. "I am Sakura," she smiled.
From beside her Hinata looked nervous, and she spoke quietly. "My name is Hinata."
Kiba, however, looked less affectionate by far, and he frowned. "I'm Kiba, and if you do something stupid, I'll sick my dog on you." Sasuke would have been less amused if the small little dog known as Akamaru hadn't yipped from beside him.
The agent named Shikamaru pulled his attention towards Sai and the boy blinked before smiling brightly, an action that seemed to catch everyone off guard.
"Sai," he said nicely, and Shikamaru nodded incredulously before letting his eyes wander to Naruto who was still stationed against the door.
"And you are…?" Shikamaru asked, and Naruto seemed strangely focused. Sasuke watched the way his eyes lowered and wondered just what the other him was saying. All thoughts of curiosity vanished, however, when he stepped forward and extended his hand formally to grasp Shikamaru's.
"The name is Naruto. I'm just here as an assistant though, so my name probably isn't that important," he grinned with charm and smiled at the other two, and inside Sasuke's head, he couldn't help but feel impressed. Naruto's energy was enough to deceive anyone, apparently.
"It's nice to meet all of you," the girl named Ino said, and Chouji nodded as he made the final pull of his luggage over the doorstep. Shikamaru was still skimming the room until he caught Sasuke's eye by the staircase.
"Sasuke, why are you hiding?" Kakashi glared down at him and Sasuke stood up, looking bemused.
"My name is Sasuke," he said firmly, and he eyed Shikamaru for a quick moment before the pony-tailed boy nodded in return. Naruto gave him an awkward look and Shikamaru seemed to dismiss the exchange, instead turning towards Kakashi.
"We're going to need a word with you and the freedom to search through the records you have here. It would be best if the house was empty, for the time being."
Kakashi nodded and glanced round, looking put off. When he spoke, his voice didn't show it.
"Can I show you to your rooms first?"
Shikamaru opened his mouth, presumably to voice a negative, but then Ino stepped forward audaciously, her high heels sounding on the linoleum entry.
"That would be wonderful. The car ride was so long," she ran a hand through her hair and from the corner of his eye Sasuke saw Sakura frown. Kakashi nodded and pointed towards the stairway, motioning for Sasuke to move out of the way.
He turned to the group in the living room momentarily.
"Why don't you all go down to Larimer's Park, or to the movies. I'm sure it will only be a few hours, and it is a nice day."
There were a few selective nods, and Sasuke heard Chouji make some comment about the living dead as he passed on the stairwell.
When the commotion seemed to move upstairs, Sakura turned quickly towards Naruto, who looked more serious then anyone else there.
"Naruto?" She said in a soft-spoken way, and he motioned towards the door.
"Let's go to the park," he said suddenly, and Kiba picked up Akamaru and nodded. Sai looked unphased from the couch but stood anyway, and Hinata made nervous glances towards the upper level of the house.
They all sifted out and shut the door behind them, welcoming the cool summer breeze that seemed to alleviate the heat from the burning sun. It was only a few blocks to Larimer's, and Sasuke wondered why such a strange feeling had passed over the group. They were quiet until they reached a picnic area and settled underneath a lazy aspen, and to everyone's surprise, Naruto spoke openly to Sai.
"What did you get?" he said, and Sai looked irritated.
"I thought you knew it all," he said flatly, and Naruto narrowed his eyes.
"Don't be a dick, I'm being serious."
There was a moment of silence and Sai spoke, although he sounded bored with his own re-enactment. "The guy with the ponytail is a thinker. The girl has some sort of telepathy, and I don't know about the fat kid."
Naruto nodded and Sakura frowned. "How do you know she's telepathic?"
Naruto shook his head, answering in place of Sai. "She was reading you and Hinata the entire time. It's not telepathy though, it's something else…"
Sasuke snorted. "I'm sure you could all just ask, instead of make speculations." In all truth, he didn't have any interest in what they could or couldn't do. They didn't seem like a threat to him, and he wasn't concerned for Naruto's sake in the least.
"They wouldn't be up front with us like we are with each other," Kiba said, and he gave Sasuke a sour look.
"Shikamaru has already picked you out," Naruto said lightly, and when Sasuke glanced over to him, he was surprised to see Naruto looking slightly concerned. He opened his mouth to speak but Naruto spoke over him.
"They're a team. They have to do things together; that's why they stood so close. The only one who can do things on his own is… Shikamaru. That's why he is the only one who shook hands."
"Is that why you shook his hand?" Hinata asked lightly, and Sakura's eyes widened in resolution.
"Yeah, he stepped in front of them, took the risk," Naruto said and Sasuke watched as he knelt his head back against the tree, taking in a few shallow breaths. He wondered if it was related to all of the earlier exertion, or if Naruto really was getting sick. Not that he meant to notice, but the blond did look paler than usual.
"So, in short, we just need to be weary of the dude with the ponytail, right?" Kiba said, and Akamaru barked from beneath him. Sasuke glanced down at it, positive he had heard something about a can of pills.
"Oh, Kiba said, and he glanced over to Sasuke, "Wha—"
"I have them here," Sasuke pulled the bottle out of his pocket and threw it into the garbage bin near the bench, ignoring the strange look Kiba was giving him. It was only a moment before Hinata spoke.
"I'm worried about the adult that's coming," she said softly, and Sakura put an arm around her shoulder.
"We'll manage," she comforted, and Sai glanced over to Naruto.
Sasuke watched the brief exchange of knowing looks between them and wondered just what went on inside their heads that no one else could seem to read.
A/N, Check out my profile page for update info. I'll do my best to stick to it.
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