Gaikokujin

:a whole new world:

Chapter Ten

Author: shutupandsing

Rating: M

Summary: Backpacking through Southeast Asia with thirteen other strangers wasn't Sasuke's idea of a stress-reliever. Especially after meeting one jaded Westerner who can't seem to accept his own culture. NaruSasuNaru, AU.

Comments: I apologize for the delay this has taken getting this up, I really have been working on it, honest. :) I just needed a direction to end it with. And for future reference, I want to be lost with Naruto in a jungle any day. At least then, I'll know I'll get out eventually. ETA: added to the fact that this site was down since Friday! when I checked and went to upload this chapter. So hurray for late delays. :) I like to feel that my email to them made the difference. :) Rawr, I have superiority complexes.

Disclaimer: Please refer to your browser and read. Thanks.

Mood Song: Miss Misery by Elliott Smith

Day Seven

jungles of Cambodia - Phnum Penh, Cambodia

"Getting out of a jungle is a lot easier said than done, that's for sure," Sasuke called out to Naruto a couple paces ahead of him, who was hacking through the vines and foliage with the back of his arm.

"I bet we're out...of here...by nightfall," came the labored reply. Sasuke rolled his eyes at the beads of sweat rolling down the other man's forehead, feeling irked that Naruto had told him that he wasn't allowed to help clear the way because of his shoulder.

But to be honest, it wasn't like he could have set himself up to do much of anything. Ever since the late morning sun broke the horizon of treetops and the incessant humidity squashed down around them like a fat aunt at Thanksgiving, Sasuke could feel the sore ligaments and tendons and blood heat up inside his shoulder, and every few jarring steps caused a tremendous amount of pain to shoot forth from that place.

He made up his mind that getting stabbed was not fun, and dealing with the repercussions and the nausea and the pain was even less fun. Not to mention every time he swallowed, it felt like eating tacks. Sasuke could vaguely remember the last time he had eaten, and that was before they had left the hotel, two nights before and the only thing he had to drink in the meantime was the strong drink Temari had handed him in the club. Every so often, he could hear Naruto's stomach let out a long, loud grumble, and his own responded in turn.

"We need to find a creek or something sometime soon and see if we can find some water, I'm practically dying of thirst." Naruto's voice echoed around the dense foliage, and Sasuke stumbled on his feet, hissing as he caught his shoulder in his other hand.

Concerned eyes fell upon him, but he waved Naruto away, insisting quietly that he was fine, just tripped over a branch back there. Naruto signaled for him to wait there for a second before he goes traipsing off into the trees, leaving him chagrined and irritated. He didn't like it when they didn't stick together.

Carefully, he sunk to the forest floor, sighing heavily in exhaustion. Taking his index finger, he barely lifted part of the shirt around his arm, wincing at the bloodied flesh he found underneath. If he didn't tend to it soon, infection would no doubt find its way into the wound. If he didn't die of dehydration first. How long could a body go without water? A week?

The crack of twigs announced Naruto's arrival back. "Come on, I found one." Slowly, Sasuke stood and followed the man through the precarious undergrowth that he was quickly growing to hate.

The stream Naruto had found was about waist-deep and muddy-murky and Sasuke had a brief moment of apprehension at the possibility of snakes or leeches but those thoughts were quickly gone as his bare toes touched the edge of the cool water.

Stripping carefully, he waded into the water until his lower half was totally obscured, rolling his eyes at the cannonball splash that a nude Naruto created next to him. The blonde man came up sputtering and rubbing water out of his eyes but the happiest grin graced his tan face.

"Haha, I can see your tan lines," Naruto laughed, pointing at the fine line where Sasuke's arm went from alabaster white to a orange-undertone brown. Glaring, he sunk down beneath the water quickly until it came up right under his nose. A horde of hair bubbles rose up as Sasuke blew heavily out his mouth at the stinging pressure the water created on his cut. Naruto cast him a concerned look before wading back towards the bank and dragging their clothes into the water.

"What are you doing? You're going to lose them!" Sasuke exclaimed, rising up and making a lunge towards Naruto.

"Chill, I'm not going to lose our stuff," he smiled back, holding the sopping mess above his head. "It's no use getting clean and putting on the same sick clothes."

"How close do you think we're to a road or village?" Sasuke said, quieting down and unwinding the shirt around his shoulder to get a better look at the stinging wound.

"I don't know, -- hey! Try not to get the water directly in that. I'll find some way to boil it clean or something."

Sasuke must have made a horrified face because Naruto chuckled, splashing the water around him. "The water, not your shoulder!" Slowly, he waded out of the water, slipping into his soaking wet boxers as he went. Sasuke tried to suppress the blush that rose to his cheeks but it was most likely futile.

The water was starting to get too warm and the soft lull of the river against the bank was making him nauseous. After finding a shady mossy area a couple feet from the creek, he lay down, dropping the cooling shirt over his lower half for modesty's sake.

Naruto was moving about constantly, collecting twigs and dry leaves and scooping them into a pile close to Sasuke. He dug around in his jeans pockets until he produced a lighter, holding it up triumphantly.

"I filched it from one of the men the first hour I was there. It was hella funny watching him roam around looking for a light."

Within a few moments he had a small fire going, the flames licking gently at the dried grass.

"Uh, I was a boy scout," Naruto explained sheepishly, squinting into the sun.

"Good job, Cowboy," Sasuke teased lightly. Naruto stood from his crouch, dusting his hands together.

"Thanks...Jadebud," he laughed back, easily dodging the clump of sod Sasuke threw at him. The Japanese man watched as he walked around the trees a bit, before stripping a large piece of wet, flimsy bark from one of them.

Gathering a few sticks lying around him, he pushed the ends into each side of the bark, before balancing it over the fire, so that it formed a sort of hollowed out bowl. Scooping his hands in the river at his side, he cupped a handful of water and carefully poured the contents into the bowl.

"Boiling water?" Sasuke asked incredulously, fearing that Naruto was some sort of alien or something for knowing how to do all this survival stuff.

"Yeah, the bark is soaked because it's a rainforest, right, so it isn't going to burn. But the water in here will get hot and once it's boiled, it's safe to drink and to use."

"Where did you learn all this?"

Naruto shrugged flippantly. "Books, television, stuff I've picked up over the years. Movies always make it seem like it's some great epic battle to survive out in the wilderness. It's mainly just knowing when to use your head and what not to eat or drink. And while that gets hot..."

He stood once more and started inspecting the trees again, this time focusing on the large, frond-shaped leaves. After a moment, he returned once more, delicately holding a couple of fronds in his hand. "These had the most dew on them, and if you're still thirsty, I'll go get some more."

Sasuke took the proffered frond and held it up to his face. "You're wanting me to drink the moisture off this leaf?"

Naruto paused, his tongue already licking halfway up the frond he was holding. "Uh yeah...unless you rather drink from Mr. Muddy Stream over there. No telling what kind of bacteria is festering in that mess, y'know."

Sasuke sniffed, before tentatively touching his tongue to the soft plant, grimacing that he was actually, truly sucking on a leaf. Naruto shifted to where he was sitting next to Sasuke, legs spread out in front of him.

"Hey, look. I know this isn't easy but I promised I'd get you out of here. And I know you're thirsty, you were probably well on your way to becoming dehydrated even. I know it's hard but could you at least try to work with me here?"

Sasuke turned his head sharply towards the man, finally realizing how close the other was to his own face. The proximity of the Naruto's nose nearly brushed his cheek. He narrowed his eyes at Naruto before turning back to the frond he held in his hands.

"I'm sorry I'm not being the most happiest camper here or something but if you hadn't realized, we're kinda sorta LOST in this fucking jungle here. And yes, I'm dying of hunger and thirst, and yes, I've been stabbed, and yes, we've both been beat up and yes, I realize that fucking Mr. Muddy Stream right fucking there has a breeding pool of nasty shit but you know what Naruto? I DON'T really give a fuck if I'm being a pain in the ass right now!"

Naruto scoffed quietly before getting up and fishing Sasuke's soaking wet clothes out of the shallow water of the river and laying them out on a nearby dry patch of grass to dry in the sun. Sasuke raised his head to look up at the man as he stopped in front of him and he couldn't really tell because the sun was in his eyes and directly behind Naruto's head because all he could see was shadow. But he was pretty sure there was some sort of angry glint directed at him.

"Fuck you," he said with as much malice in his voice he could muster, throwing his inhibitions to the wind. Naruto dropped to his knees in front of him with a stubborn thud of his knees, reaching up and tearing a piece off the shirt in Sasuke's lap. Sasuke shifted nervously, surprised at the sudden invasion of modesty he almost experienced. Naruto dipped the cloth in the now steaming water before moving to Sasuke's side.

"Uh...brace yourself." Before Sasuke could comprehend what exactly that meant, Naruto squeezed out the water in the cloth over his shoulder, clearing out the dried blood and dirt that had gotten into the wound.

To Sasuke, it felt like being stabbed all over again. A slew of curses rasped out his throat at record speed, and he instinctively dug his fingers into Naruto's thigh. "How the hell do you know that would work and not just make it worse?!"

"I don't. I'm just hoping it will," Naruto murmured, now carefully dabbing at the edges of the wound to get some of the more stubborn blood off.

Sasuke locked eyes with the other, breathing out heavily between his teeth. "What?" he questioned quietly. "Are you hurting me on purpose because you're mad at me?"

Naruto looked offended. "No, of course not! Why would I do that? Fuck Sasuke, I'm not like that. I'm trying to help you here."

Sasuke closed his eyes, bringing his head down to his chest. A fresh blossom of pain shot through his body from his shoulder and he could feel himself starting to shake and experience the out-of-body experience one got right before they blacked out.

"Hey, hey, don't leave me now," Naruto's cool hands were there instantly, cradling his face upwards to where Sasuke was forced to open his eyes. "I didn't mean to hurt you on purpose, Sasuke. I promise."

Sasuke breathed out slowly, peering up from under his eyelashes, where he could now feel a brim of moisture welling up. Naruto was so close. He had known all along he hadn't meant to hurt him; he was so tired of being a jackass.

"It hurts," he whispered.

Sasuke was able to take one deep gulping breath before Naruto leaned forward and pressed his lips to his. The soft pressure on his mouth finally distracted him enough to where the tears that had been building up began to fall softly, gently onto Naruto's sparsely-freckled cheeks. He felt hands run up his arms in a soothing manner as Naruto shifted even closer, laying chaste, sweet kisses all over his mouth.

All in all, it was nothing he was used to. He wasn't used to Naruto being this calm and quiet; nor was he used to be able to let his guard down so fully that he was able to sit so still without taking back control over the situation. But most of all, he couldn't get used to how right it all felt and how exceptionally feminine that made him sound.

Naruto pulled back after a long moment, running the pad of his thumb over the soft blush of Sasuke's cheekbone. "Come on, we need to get out of here, okay? I want you sleeping in a hotel bed tonight." Sasuke nodded, feeling a wave of embarrassment now wash over him now that contact was lost.

Standing awkwardly to his feet, he inched his way over to his drying clothes and yanked them on, not caring the least little bit that they were more than just damp. Then they began walking.

Sasuke must have guessed it was a little after three in the afternoon is when he started to really feel the pressure in his stomach that was telling him that he hadn't eaten or drank anything in a long while. And he quit sweating; that was probably a very bad sign. For the past half hour, nothing but right foot, left foot had been going through his head; some blind parade, only focusing on the heels of Naruto's feet in front of him.

His shoulder burned at sporadic moments and it hurt worse when the sun beat down directly on it to the point where he actually felt like there was a fire licking at his skin. Walking, walking, walking.

A mantra that repeated in his head, along with right foot, left foot. Walk, left, right, right, walk, left, right, walk, walk.

He didn't hear Naruto's whoop of relief as they stumbled out onto packed dirt. He couldn't heart anything at all, actually. All he remembered was that he was staring out over the sun-drenched sight of a rice field and a sparse dotting of people working out in it and actually shocked that the wide brims of their sunhats reminded him of the pinwheels his father would bring home from work for him and Itachi when they were younger. It started at his ankles, when they gave out, and he tasted grit and dirt in his mouth before the rice field and the pinwheels and his father's smiling face were consumed in blackness.

At one point, Sasuke's eyes were wide open and seeing but he wasn't really sure how because it felt like he wasn't even in his body; that was he was actually somewhere below it, looking up and looking through to the huddle of strange, concerned faces.

"Here, pull down the tailgate so I can set him in." That was Naruto's voice and that must have been Naruto's arms he could feel himself in as his body lifted and was carried before settled back down on heated metal. Despite the heat and humidity, the hot bed of the truck was welcoming; a relief. Sasuke felt like curling into its warmth and closing his eyes against the high raise of voices. So he did.

A cooling wind woke him next and along with it, the spattering of raindrops. On his body's instinct, his tongue worked its way out of his mouth and tasted of the wind, relishing in the few drops that landed. The bed of the truck was growing cool beneath his body and he pulled the tan arm next to him closer. His eyes focused long enough to notice Naruto staring down into his face. "We're getting us home, buddy. Hang in there." Naruto's steel blue irises looked dead against the white of his eyes. He was awake long enough to find Naruto's fingertips and intertwine his own with them.

...."We've just got in word about a devastating incident that happened just south of the Cayman Islands. Flight 187-A went down sometime a little after 11:43 this morning. Officials say it's highly unlikely that there are any survivors. Everyone join me now in a moment of silence, to honor the lives lost in this tragic accident that took place only a few moments ago."

"Itachi, Itachi, hurry come quick, take a look at the news! What plane did Okasan and Otosan say they were on? I hope their flight isn't canceled. Itachi...what's wrong? Why are you shaking? Itachi!, don't cry! What's wrong?

"...oh, Sasuke."

"The flowers are so beautiful, Sasuke. Aren't they pretty? Oh honey, it'll be okay. Don't cry; they're in a better place now. They wouldn't want you to be this sad."

"You're never home anymore! Who's supposed to take care of me when you're not around, Itachi?"

"You're old enough to fend for yourself."

"I'm 10 years old! I need someone to be here when I get home from school Itachi and you know that. I thought you said you were going to hire a nanny?"

"Grow up, Sasuke. If you don't learn to take care of yourself, no one will."

"Sasuke! Your father's home! He's brought you back something!"

"Oh! Cool Dad, where'd you get this?"

"Some nice man traded sold it to me for cheap, said it was one of the greatest toys even invented. Here...you blow on it like this."

"Haha, Daddy, you're just spitting everywhere!"

Sasuke came to for the final time that day in a crowded busy street and the sudden onslaught of faces caused a simultaneous wave of euphoria and claustrophobia break over him.

"Gai, Gai, is he alright!?

"Jesus kid, come on, let's get you out of here. Someone calm Naruto down, and get him up to a room and water and food pronto!

"Gai!"

"He's going to be fine, Naruto! Kiba, help Naruto to his room."

A woman's voice screamed shrilly. "Shit, Naruto, are you okay, man?! Here someone help me grab his arm."

Gai's vest brushed against his face and he closed his eyes, letting the gentle lull of unconsciousness wash him out to sea once more.

"Dadddd, I'm pretty sure you don't blow on them like that. You're just slobbering all over it!"

"Well okay, Mr. Smartypants, teach me."

"Gladly."

Author's Note: So, I did something a bit different around the end of that chapter. The italics in between Sasuke's unconscious parts are obviously dreams, but separate ones rolled into like a reel. I hope that wasn't too confusing.

Dehydration. Not very fun. I'm not quite sure how other people experience severe cases of it but that's what I remember happening from mine. And not sweating when you're hot is trippy. Just sayin'. Questions or comments or insults go below in the little clicker box. :) Either way, they make a rather happy me. Hope you like this; even if it did take me forever and a day.