Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters. Masashi Kishimoto does!
Author's Note: This chapter is rated M. I'm getting a little creative now with this kinda thing.
Land again. Taiga was grateful, and she wasn't surprised that she was greeted with some familiar faces. Ino had ran towards her and pulled her and Sakura into a group hug ( mainly pulling Sakura and Taiga close with her arms over their shoulders and their heads pressing together ), and honestly Taiga was half happy and half annoyed by it. But she didn't say anything about it and gave an awkward pat to Ino's back. "Nice seein' you again, Ino."
"Wow, Taiga seems way less grumpy than before!" Teased the Yamanaka, "Did you and Naruto get right close?"
Confused, and slightly flustered, she immediately shook her head. "No, w-what the hell is that supposed to mean?" Her stutter didn't help because Ino's chuckle began to fill her ears and Sakura seemed to be confused by it. At least she didn't buy into Ino's words or understand them.
Naruto had walked over, seeing Taiga trying to cover her red face and Ino still cheesing. "Uh, what's going on?"
"Oh, nothing~" Naruto knew better to get involved when Ino sounded like that, he dismissed it as "girl stuff" and quickly walked away.
"Have you been on any missions lately, Ino?" Sakura changed the topic, which relieved Taiga. Now that she wasn't the center of attention, she could finally breathe.
With a nod, Ino let out a sigh. "Just some simple stuff, like C-ranked. Nothing really big or nothin' or a wild goose chase like your mission."
"Yeah," The pink-haired girl hung her head, "Naruto and Taiga got most of the action. I just wanna punch somethin', y'know."
Taiga couldn't help but chuckle at this. "Yuuma's too cowardly to face all of us at once, so that might be a while, Sakura."
"Yeah, 'cause he knows if it's all of us then he's finished!" Her confidence intrigued Taiga and made her wonder what the girl's potential was. She knew, for the most part, that the girl was a medic but her other capabilities? Taiga knew nothing of them.
"So, are you coming straight to the village or do you have other things to do?" Asked the blonde-haired kunoichi.
Sakura nodded, "We're going back to the village. We heard Yuuma or one of his subordinates were spotted around here, but since it's been awhile since we came back, we know they are nowhere around."
Taiga nodded, "We'll just have to be patient."
Ino gave a nod, showing she understood but it came to a halt when a sudden explosion happened in the distance. All of them jumped at the sound but then pressed their feet down in attack stances to show they were alert.
"What was that?!" Naruto immediately asked, his hand resting on the handle of Nakigitsune.
"We're going to find out!" Kakashi said, "I want everyone remain silent and travel by trees."
With a nod, everyone prepared themselves and followed after him. Taiga just hoped that this was a sign of Yuuma.
) o (
The smoke had begun to clear, and one man among the many dead bodies was playing possum. He was eagerly placing blood on his face and lying in a pool of it. That had taken a lot of guts, but did they think she was stupid? Did he not know that his heart was beating so loudly and clearly in her ears?
Her tongue had slid across her upper teeth and she went down on all fours like a lioness ready to capture a meal for the day. Standing was too much since she nearly used half her strength since walking wasn't enough, but crawling was better than anything. If there was anything she learned from that idiot she worked with, it proved quite effective.
The raven-haired female had took slow strides, her apple-red eyes looking nowhere else but at the "smart" shinobi that laid not too far from her. The right corner of her lips went up to unveil a sinister smirk on her face as she grabbed him by the shoulder and sunk her sharp nails into his flesh.
He screamed, as he should, and stood to try to fight her off but she had maneuvered herself so that she cling onto his back with no attempts of letting him go as he moved side to side for her to fling her off. Her nails dug deeper and from the amount of blood he was losing, his fight was becoming more and more weak. He soon fell forward, the poor man's legs giving out while she was still clinging to his back with her legs wrapped around her waist. Her right hand let the nails come out, letting the blood ooze quickly and much faster at this rate. One arm had wrapped around his head to execute a swift and strong snap of his neck.
Another shinobi was alive and once they made eye contact, he knew she was his target. His chakra must've been low, so he settled for something in his pouch, frantically searching for something to take her out with. Now that the dead man was free of her limbs and nails, she was ready to attack this next buffoon.
Her steps were slow again, and very lethal. Perspiration was dripping down his face from fear as she moved closer and closer. To her surprise, he did not beg for his life but it might have been because he knew it would be falling upon deaf ears. She took another step, her head slightly tilted back with an empty yet dark look on upon her face as she was advancing forward.
Her body was worn out, but she was pushing it, which wasn't healthy but something she would have to do.
"The look on your face…" Her voice was rather raspy as she inched forward another step, "Do you what your expression is called?" Her voice was barely a whisper, but the man heard. He tried to take a few steps back as her face was still that plain expression. All of her emotions were written clearly in her eyes, "Its called fear~ And I love it! I love that expression because whenever I see someone have it they know something is about to happen to them. Something they don't want… Something that they," she let out a soft chortle, crazed beyond normal behavior, "have been avoiding for such a long, long…" She paused, leaving thick and heavy tension between them, "time."
Her hands swiftly took out the kunai from the sheath around her thigh as she hadn't broke eye contact with the shinobi. Her sais were a specialty, but both of them were lodged deeply into the two other shinobi. She didn't have time to run back and get them.
Her legs felt like they were starting to buckle, but she couldn't stop herself now. And so, with no other option, she threw herself on him and placed the sharp end of the kunai at his neck. "I'll cut you open with such precision, but let's just hope I don't decide to do more~" Her voice was breathy as she slid the tip of the blade across his pale, smooth neck and watched him writhe beneath her as the thin line of blood appeared. His pain did not bring her joy.
In fact, it bothered her.
This was nothing compared to the pain she suffered from. These people died so easily that she couldn't perform the same acts that had been done to her. Lapping up the blood with her tongue, she made another thin line as his body shook of pain and his eyes widened in fear, his body nearly going into shock from it all.
The bloody kunai was raised to her mouth, her tongue sticking out as she danced the crimson glazed blade down to the tip of her tongue. He watched in disgust and fear as she leaned in over his face, licking the sweat from his forehead. His perspiration tasted of agony, but it still found no joy in her. She was tormenting him, but not to the extent of how she felt. It wasn't enough, but he was going to die soon from all the blood he was losing. "Not enough..." She mumbled as she felt her grip on the kunai become far too tight. What could she do? What could she do so he could understand how painful it was to be tortured as she had? This was nothing compared to what she had endured.
Her eyes turned into slits as she jammed the kunai into his stomach, through his belly button. She didn't have the strength to keep going and she wanted his blood to taste of anguish, regret, and detriment. From the corner of her eye, she had seen his arm wriggling on the ground in attempt to figure out what he could use to attack her. The woman had pressed her foot down his hand, crushing it beneath her. She raised his wrist to her lips, pressing her dry lips against it into a kiss; a sweet little peck, right on the area where she could see his green veins. He grew paler and paler, death knocking on his front door as he watched in horror as she punctured the skin on his wrist with her teeth and twist the kunai around and around his stomach.
Blood was raining down like a waterfall down his arm, her tongue catching every bit of it as tears slipped down the corner of the man's eyes. Yes, he was crying. Her vengeful spirit was shivering with happiness. Revenge was something she craved for; she drowned herself in it when given the chance. Soon she could feel his heartbeat slowly come to a halt after beating so furiously just minutes before. Her slender, pale finger had swiped up his salty tears and she rubbed them against her lips as if it were lip gloss. Her lips glistened with the tears of death of a self-righteous twit who dared attempt to kill her with the rest of these fools.
She soon fell atop of him, her body feeling a bit strained. Her ear was pressed to his chest and this was the first time she had been this close to a dead body. The heart in his chest cavity was silent like she had thought of her own and she reveled in the fact that she had been the cause.
Her beautiful performance left him… breathless.
) o (
By the time they had reached the area of the explosion, dead bodies were piled everywhere. Ino gasped at the sight, her blue eyes wide in surprise. Taiga's eyes searched frantically for any sign of Yuuma, but she hadn't seen anything that would lead her to believe that he had been here. "It wasn't Yuuma," She said her eyes looking over to Kakashi, "but it might be one of his subordinates."
He gave a firm nod as he walked towards him. "These are Konoha ninja. They have the Leaf headband…"
Naruto eyes narrowed in anger, a frown adorning his face. "Now they made this even more personal!" He said, infuriated. "These guys look like chuunin too, they weren't strong enough to…"
Taiga rested a hand on Naruto's shoulder to give it a squeeze. The least she could do was comfort him, just a little. He appreciated it and gave her a small smile.
"Yamato, alert Tsunade-sama what happened here." Kakashi ordered, the brown-haired ninja gave a nod before disappearing. "This is brutal…" He mumbled.
It was hard not to vomit at the sight. Sakura had to turn her head away as well as Ino. Taiga had seen something like this before, so she was immune but the stench of blood and dead bodies never really became something you got accustomed too.
"Why would someone do this?" Sakura managed to ask, "How could they be so… ruthless?"
Taiga tried to find anything that would be a clue. Her feet stepped around the puddles of crimson, her eyes searching for anything out of the norm. Some men had three punctures wounds to the chest that were diagonal, which seemed odd. What weapon could do that? The one in the center appeared deep too, as well as thicker than the other two.
Yuuma, as she stated before, left precise cuts that were like a surgeon with a scalpel and none of these wounds resembled that. One shinobi had a kunai protruding from his belly button, which didn't identify with the other wound on two of the other men's chest.
Was it more than one person? It made sense and since there were so many shinobi, she couldn't rely on footprints to make a difference and none of them trailed away from the pile to indicate they had left either.
"Did you spot anything familiar?" Kakashi asked.
Taiga shook her head in reply, "But I found these two men with strange markings. I don't know what weapon does that." She led him over to the two men with three diagonal holes in their chest.
"Hmmm…." He hummed, "The only weapon I can think of are sais…"
"Sais? I never heard of them." She said as she noticed how the center hole almost pieced all the way through, so that it could poke out from the man's back. "Seems deadly."
"They are when the right person uses them." She took his word for it. They were sharp as a katana blade, but more piercing like a needle. These men looked like they suffered greatly and didn't die quickly either. From the amount of blood, it was slow and torturous.
Naruto had stepped towards them, "Kakashi-sensei, do you think the person who did this got far?"
"I'm not sure. It smells like they all died minutes ago, but the killer might have gotten away fairly quickly since they were all dead before we arrived." Kakashi explained before standing on his feet, but we should still be on alert. "They might be close by but we shouldn't count on it"
"Tch, you always have to make a mess don't ya?" said a rather masculine voice.
"You know I love theatrics~" said the woman from before, her scarlet eyes staring
A young man with long, royal-blue hair that was disheveled and covering his eyes turned towards her. "Is that supposed to be an excuse for being messy?"
"Oh, Akechi~ Aren't you the sweetest when you speak when I do not ask?" Her cooing was enough to send a shiver down his spine, which he opted to look away from her and back the shinobi that were investigating her "performance".
"I wonder how Yuuma-sama is gonna feel about this." He said as he tilted his head slightly, "He said we can do what we want, but he said to kill samurais not ninjas."
Sucking her teeth, she let out a slight snarl. "Ninjas deserved to die too. Why don't we just rid the world of both of them? All they cause is pain and grief as well."
"I know, I know." He sighed, "You have a hatred for ninjas, but did those guys have anything to do with ya?"
He knew he got her right there because for the first time, she was quiet. Her eyes narrowed slightly as she glared at him, "Can't a girl have fun?"
"Heh, I suppose." Akechi shrugged, "But just not too much or else we'll end up dead."
"Who would kill us? These petty ninjas?" Her eyes roamed back to the group, "Who is to say they aren't as weak as that bunch I just killed?"
"Can't you tell? That guy right there is the infamous Kakashi, the Copy Ninja. And the boy, I think that's the one Yuuma-sama said was Naruto Uzumaki." Akechi pointed at the two. "They aren't weak, Kureha."
With a hum, she felt herself more intrigued. "The Copy Ninja? I've heard of him, but I've never heard of Naruto Uzumaki. What's to fear about him?"
"He's the jinchuuriki of the kyuubi." He answered and he watched her stiffen up some. "Heh, and you weren't scared before but you're scared now, huh?"
"I'm not scared." Kureha retorted, "I'm just… wary. So any time, that nine-tails could release itself?"
With a shrug, Akechi tilted his head. "Who knows."
"But that girl, her, she's the one Yuuma-sama assigned us to, right?" Her eyes slowly glanced towards the magenta-eyed girl, who held onto the handle of her katana tightly.
"Yes, that's Taiga Sanemori." Now that it was confirmed, the girl felt a little bit of excitement in her bones. "He said to capture her, not kill her."
"Why? Doesn't she want to kill Yuuma-sama?" Kureha asked, "You know, she's probably on that avenger trip like most people when their loved ones get killed."
"I don't know what for but Yuuma wants her alive." Akechi had reached into his pocket, "We'll keep an eye on 'em until she's alone or with some people that's easy to knockout."
His eyes rolled when she released a long, dramatic whine. "But killing people is more fun! I want to kill them~ Let me kill these Leaf idiots!"
"No." Akechi said sternly, "That's not what we were assigned." With a sigh, he stood up on the branch. "Although if you do it behind my back? Then I guess you could get away with it."
Soon, Leaf shinobi had came to take the bodies back to the village. Taiga didn't want to see the families that would have to identify the bodies and grieve over their loved ones. It was hard thing to do and even harder to watch. Naruto stayed closed beside her, sensing her uneasiness as they made their way back to Konoha. He offered to eat at Ichiraku, but she didn't have the stomach for it. How Naruto was able to block out the images from his mind so quickly made her envious, but she was sure that those images would haunt him like they would anyone else.
"So, where are ya going to stay?" He finally asked, "You can stay with Sakura-chan, like you tried to last time.
Taiga looked down the path of the busy market area and gave a slight shrug. "If it doesn't bother you then can I stay at your place?"
Immediately, he stopped walking. Noticing he wasn't at her side, she turned out to look at him as he looked completely stunned. He tried his best to not look red in the face but it was so hard to fight it. "Uh… w-why my place?"
"I feel comfortable with you." Taiga gave a shrug, "I don't want to be a nuisance to Sakura and her family."
"O-Oh…" What did he expect? But why would a girl want to stay all alone with a boy anyway? Maybe Taiga didn't see what was problematic about it. Naruto was just her friend… A friend she could trust.
For some reason, he felt a bit stilted and disappointed about it. He wasn't sure what he expected, but he was a bit excited about the possibility of someone staying over his house. That place felt lonely with just himself, and to have company that didn't leave? He wondered what that was like.
"Okay then." Naruto gave a nod, "I, uh, don't know how to cook so…"
A brow arched and she shrugged, "I'm not the best but I'm not the worst. C'mon, knucklehead, let's go."
The blond led the way, and also took his time to point and explain certain stores and places. Even though Taiga hadn't asked, she was grateful and interested; listening to what he had to say and even asking questions herself.
The place wasn't as difficult to get around like Kumogakure. In fact, she had an easier time making her way around. The only route that was hard for her was to the training fields because she had gotten lost several times on her way there from the hospital. She braved through it and even broke down to ask directions, but she had made it seem she got there so effortlessly so Naruto wouldn't have been forced to tour her around.
When they reached the place that Naruto called home, she tilted her head at the little apartment. She could tell Naruto was hesitant on letting her in, fiddling around with his keys until he opened the door. She stepped inside after him and immediately she felt the place was just a little bit cramped as they took off their shoes and slipped onto some slippers.
"Hehehe…" Rubbing the back of his head, he shyly looked around and was a bit relieved that it wasn't as messy as it usually was. "This is, uh, my home."
Taiga grew up in luxury as a child, and it felt odd to see that a place that was the size of a cleaning closet. And then, as she lived with Orochimaru, there wasn't luxury but the rooms were large and spacious.
Since she had nothing nice to say, so she decided not to say anything pertaining to it. "I'll sleep on the floor."
Immediately, he stood in front of her and made a "no way" motion with his arms. "Huh?! You can't be serious! I can't let you sleep on the floor, you can't take my bed."
Thankful at the suggestion, Taiga had better manners. "No, I'll just need a futon. It's no big deal."
"It is a big deal! You're my guest, I can't let you sleep on the floor!" He insisted, which seemed odd because she hardly took Naruto as someone who had house manners.
Placing her hands on her hips, she shook her head. "No, I'll be sleeping on the floor. I'm not going to keep arguing with you, Uzumaki."
Since it seemed fruitless to try to change her mind, he sighed and made his way over to a drawer and pulled one out. He coughed some since it was dusty since Naruto never had guests over his house before.
Taking it from him, she gave him a deadpanned look. "I'll wash it. You take care of all those dishes in the sink. Is there any food in the fridge?"
Now she was making him clean? "I thought this was my house." He mumbled.
"And I thought you cared about your guests? Get to cleaning." Taiga walked away with the futon and he sighed, trudging his feet towards the sink to see bowls on top of bowls, spoons and forks all over the place. He hated cleaning.
Taiga had taken it to another level too. Now she was forcing them to clean up the whole place. Naruto was given a broom and he had raked it furiously back and forth across the hard, wooden floors. He didn't want to hear her rebuff, so he swept as if his arms would fall out of his sockets.
On her hands were yellow rubber gloves, her hair was done up in a simple ponytail, and a white scarf was wrapped around the bottom half of her face. She was wiping down all the surfaces with a wet rag until they were shiny and sleek as Honjo Masamune's blade. Where she managed to find a duster was beyond him, but she was using it to wipe away the surfaces of much taller objects.
His blue eyes followed her around as she whizzed around the place to make sure everything was spotless. Outside the window, he could see the futon on the clothing rack to dry. Who knew that Taiga was such a clean freak. She had then opened the windows to let air in and rid the apartment of dust and any other stenches. Honestly, the place was cleaner than he ever thought was possible.
When she deemed it as thoroughly clean, Taiga pulled down the scarf and looked to Naruto, who was leaning against the broom. "Can I help you?"
"W-What?" He shook his head, now paying attention to what he was saying instead of staring at her.
"You've been staring at me for fifteen minutes straight." She then pointed at him and then at the floor, "You haven't even cleaned up the mess."
"O-Oh!" He stuttered, "I was, uh…" He couldn't even find the proper excuse.
Sucking her teeth, she ripped the broom from his hand and gathered up all the dust and junk. He found the duster and allowed her to sweep into it until everything was picked up from the floor.
Now that cleaning was done and her hands washed as well as free of gloves, Taiga made her way to the fridge. Just to say she was disgusted seemed minuscule, all she could see was an expired carton of milk and a few soda cans. "Really, Uzuamki?" With a sigh, she hung her head. "I'll be back. I'm going to the market."
"I'll go with you!" She raised her hand, halting him.
"I'll be alright. Stay here, relax or something." And like that, she left without another word.
Naruto had sighed and sat at the chair with the small table. Was this what it was like to live with someone? Did you clean together? Naruto wasn't fond of cleaning itself, but he figured it would be fun if he was doing it with someone else. His eyes roamed around the place, not seeing a trace of dirt or dust. It smelled like lemon, probably from the cleaning products she used that he never remembered buying. Maybe he thought of cleaning at one time but completely abandoned the idea.
It did feel better, the atmosphere that is, and even though Taiga was gone, it didn't feel lonely as it usually had. It could've been because he knew she was coming back that he couldn't be able to feel lonely at the moment.
Rocking, his chair back in forth out of boredom, he wondered what it would've been like if Taiga lived with him. Would they argue a lot? Would they clean together constantly? Would she want to buy groceries and would she eventually let him go with her? It oddly felt good as if that was exactly what he wanted; to come home with someone, to be here with someone, and know they'll come back.
What was cooking together like? Having a home meal with someone you lived with? Was that fun too?
He hadn't realized how long he had been in his thoughts until a good thirty minutes went by and then there was a knock on the door. Scrambling to his feet, Naruto had opened it eagerly to see Taiga with two large, brown grocery bags. He took one and brought it to the kitchen as she held the other and followed behind him once she changed back into slippers.
Taiga plopped it down on the counter and let out a sigh of relief, combing her fingers through her fringe. "Alright, that should last us a while."
"What did ya get?" Naruto asked.
"Some meat, veggies, and some fruit." It was clear as day that he wasn't happy about the sound of vegetables. She should've known he wasn't big on them since she could never recall him eating any. Of course, she wouldn't mind shoving them down his throat if he was reluctant.
"So…" His head tilted, "what are you going to make?"
Raising a brow, she huffed. "We're going to make Sukiyaki."
Taiga figured he wasn't going to be enthused about it, but he surprised her by his excitement. She carefully pulled out the ingredients and he pulled out the miniature stove and a hotpot.
It was quiet as they individually chopped up the ingredients, and he was more than eager to add the seasonings needed for it. This was the first time she had cooked in a kitchen like this since when she was young, she used to watch the chefs at work and help out whenever they allowed her to.
During her time with Orochimaru, Kabuto usually cooked or she and Sasuke used to put fish by a fire whenever they were out on missions. It felt different to be in a home and to cook with fresh ingredients, but she thought that maybe one day she could get used to it.
"You're not so bad with a knife." That was her way of complimenting as he chopped the kikuna leaves.
"Heh! Maybe because I'm seeing it as Nakigitsune." It didn't surprise her, his answer that is. "But, uh, do I really have to eat these flowers? That seems pretty nasty."
At least he was honest.
"They're not from actual Chrysanthemums, idiot." She couldn't help but laugh, "But they give a nice, herbal flavor to the meal. So suck it up."
He cursed under his breath, staring daggers at her from the corner of his eyes. It didn't bother her as she placed some of the thin sliced beef into an oil pan on the stove to sear it.
Looking over her shoulder, Naruto watched as she used the huge cooking chopsticks to turn them over to help them brown. "That smells really tasty!"
Frozen by the closeness, Taiga kept her eyes fixated on the meat and added the seasoning. "P-Pass me the soy sauce!"
Confused by her stuttering and sudden yell, he did as she said and watched her quickly add a certain amount. "Uh, you okay?"
"I'm fine!" She huffed as she tried to keep her face away from his view. "A-Add the vegetables!"
Still wary of her sudden behavior, he brought vegetables and placed them all around the meat since she kept it in one corner. Eventually, she brought the mini stove to the table and sat down and he followed suit.
"Go ahead. Eat." She said as she plucked out a piece of beef first and sighed. "This came out better than I expected." Taiga didn't hear a peep, but when she finally looked at him, the boy was stuffing his face… Mostly of meat. "Eat the vegetables too!"
Of course, she was given a stare and then a shake of his head. So, out of anger, she picked up some of the kikuna leaves and stuffed it in his mouth. "A-Ah! It's hot! Its—"
He forced himself to chew it but was surprised that the seasoning and the beef kind of took away that healthy taste he didn't particularly like about them. So, he settled for them.
"That's the reason why I made it in the first place." She explained, "You can barely taste them."
He puffed his cheeks some and looked away. "Yeah yeah."
With a small smile, she finished her fair share. "I'm gonna take a shower." Standing on her feet, she then turned towards him. "Do you have spare clothes?"
"Uh…" Turning the mini stove off, he walked towards him room and into the dresser. He only had a few shirts he slept in and hardly any pajamas pants. What could he say? That he slept in his boxers? Maybe her sleeping here was a bad idea. No doubt, she'd be pissed seeing him walk around in those, right?
Taiga leaned over his shoulder and took a green shirt with the Konoha swirl and a pair of black pants. "Thank you."
The least he could do now was take the futon from the clothing rack and place it down by his bed on the floor. He even fluffed the pillow as much as he could as he heard the shower running. Then it occurred to him that girl was taking a shower in his house.
With wide eyes, a perverted grin had spread across his lips as slow, manic chuckle escaped him. Even though he matured, his perverseness hadn't fully left him just yet. After all, he was a teenage boy with some hormones that had been ignored. As well as after trying to get Sakura on a date after many failed years, he couldn't help but think that maybe he should act on them just a little.
That's when he noticed something else. Why hadn't he thought about Sakura as much as he used to? Didn't he say he like her or loved her even? Yet, every since he had met Taiga, Sakura wasn't in his thoughts as much as she used to be. Now all he kept thinking about was why Taiga so distant? What was she up to? Did she trust him?
"Ha!" He choked out. Him? Liking Taiga? That had to been the craziest thing he ever thought. Yet, it didn't seem as ridiculous as he tried to make himself believe it to be. They were just different from each other and she hardly cared about him, right? Even though he could recall that she protected him with her life, taking that hit from Ryuuji so that he would be safe; no girl had ever done that for him.
The last person he could remember sacrificing themselves for him like that was Sasuke, and before him, it was Iruka. She was poisoned because of him. She could've clearly died, and they had barely known each other then. Why did she do that? And why when he thought about, his heart began racing? Maybe that's why he was so fond of her because of that similarity to Sasuke again. That had to be it.
It wasn't like Taiga wasn't attractive. Naruto definitely thought she was. Her skin was brown, nearing a caramel color and her eyes were slant yet round and magenta. Sometimes they looked orange-red when she was angry. Her hair was a flaxen color and usually neat, which meant she probably took the time to comb and brush it at night. She was shorter than him, which he didn't mind since he figured that's why she was so mean like most smaller people. Her bust didn't matter to him. He never really cared about bust size, but it wasn't unnoticeable nor something he disliked. Just thinking about it made him red in the face.
Did he like her? Why else would he be taking the time to think of her or get flustered over the stupidest of things? Maybe because she was the only girl around other than Sakura, that's why he was taking notice of her. She was the only other girl he spent most of his time with nowadays, so it was easy to mistake admiration and camaraderie for a crush.
He hadn't noticed the shower had stopped as he sat at the table in thought. His fist was pressed against his cheek as he leaned onto it. He was stuck here waiting until she was done with the shower so that he could use it after her.
When she came out, her hand was holding a towel and attempting to dry her hair with it. It was still wet and clinging onto the sides of her face and the back of her neck. Naruto's eyes slowly looked away from the empty space and towards her and he felt nervous all over again. A girl was wearing his clothes? And no doubt, they fit her loosely but it was still hard to get over that a girl was going to sleep in his clothes.
His Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed, that blush stain coating his face again. Her eyes were elsewhere, too busy paying heed into drying her hair to notice his stare. "You can take the shower. I left some hot water." He watched that subtle drop of water slid down her face, along her neck, and then into the shirt going Kami knows where.
He barely understood her as she glanced over to see this goofy look on his face. Squinting her eyes, she rose a brow. "Uh, Naruto?"
Surprised to hear her name come out of his mouth instead of the usual 'Uzumaki', he jumped up, making the chair slide back as he stood. "Uh, yeah!"
"What's your problem?" Now she was genuinely curious. Why was he acting so weird?
"Nothing!" He immediately said as he ran towards the bathroom. He ran so fast that she felt a strong wind ready to knock on her backside as it whizzed past her.
Taiga made her way to the futon and flopped down. It must've never been used since the pillow didn't feel flattened and nor did the cushion. Pulling the blanket over her shoulder, she eased her face into the pillow. It felt warm and comfy.
Her eyes had opened halfway, staring out into nothing as she lost herself in her thoughts. Why did she decide to come here? She easily could've went to one of the girls house. That nuisance to Sakura and her family business felt like an excuse now that she thought about it. Taiga had grown comfortable with Sakura and they have conversations that entertained her.
Sakura wasn't as girly as Ino, so she didn't feel uncomfortable or off-put. Although she liked Ino, it was just awkward with some conversations. That whole "who looks hot?" and "Who do you like?" conversations made her squeamish. Was she really not used to that? Isn't that what normal girls her age thought about? Karin was feminine, well, not as feminine as Ino. She enjoyed perfume, wore lip gloss, and was never shy about how she felt about Sasuke.
Their conversations never centered around them though. In fact, they had much more fun laughing at the dumb things the boys did than actual feelings. Had she become desensitized from those things? It could be from the fact that while she was growing up, she had to cosplay a boy, a perfect heir, than being taken under her mother's wing on being the virtues of a samurai woman. There were so many things to blame, and so many ways to deem herself as abnormal among her female peers.
Eventually Naruto had left the bathroom, fully clothed, with a towel drying off his face, neck, and hair. Taiga had watched him come into the room and then looked away.
This was a lot more awkward than she had thought.
"Are you sure you don't want the bed?" Naruto asked again, making sure. Girls were weird sometimes. Sometimes they get mad if you don't insist something and other times they get angry when you do. He had no clue on what she wanted exactly.
Her eyes peered up at him and she gave a nod. "I'm fine. The futon is comfy."
Without argument, he flopped onto the bed and placed his arms behind his head as he looked up at the ceiling. "Taiga."
"What?" She replied as he called her name.
He took a few minutes before he spoke, "Do you miss your family?"
The whole room had gone insanely quiet, and Naruto thought he even felt a chill down his spine. He knew it was sensitive topic but there was a lot on his mind and there were some things he wanted to pry about her personal life.
Taiga was shocked by the question, that much was certain. And she even sat up to look at him with her eyes wide in that shock. He sat up as well to return her gaze but then watched her shoulder's slumped and she looked away in thought.
"Of course I do." She finally said, "I miss my mother the most."
"What was she... like?" Naruto had no idea what his mother looked like or what her personality was. It made him envious that both Taiga and Sasuke had gotten to know their parents and spent time with them. Taiga had them longer than Sasuke had his.
There was a twinkle in her eye and a warm smile on her face. The expression was soft, and very unlike her. It made his breath hitch and his eyes widen as she seemed to take herself back into a good memory.
"My mother was kind, and beautiful." She looked at him bearing the same expression, "But that's so overused. Most people say that about their mothers." She nodded, "But it's true, she was. My mother was the symbol of what a samurai's wife was supposed to be and many of her shinobi comrades recognized her as loyal and also unyielding."
"She was also terrible cook." Taiga laughed, "She burned anything she touched! Her handwriting was terrible and Raikage-sama, before he became Raikage, had always teased her about it. She was terrible in math, she was terrible with kids. You figure, if just a kid crying made her uneasy then how was she able to have me?"
Naruto grinned and rubbed the bottom of his nose. "Heh, I guess the only thing she was good at was being your mom and a kunoichi, huh?"
"Basically." Taiga nodded, "But she made everything feel fine. How? I don't know. My mother just had a way of making you feel like everything was going to be fine. You would always believe her, even if you didn't want to. I don't know what my mother saw in Yuuma, but I guess she saw some good in him."
His eyes looked down in thought, "Maybe Yuuma was a good person before. People change."
"Maybe." Her shoulders went up and down in a shrug, "But I'll never know."
"But you're lucky." She looked over at him, "You got to meet, grow, and love your parents. I mean, I love mine but… it's hard to love people you don't know, but I just feel it, dattebayo."
It felt odd to be happy that she didn't have the same situation as him. Every night, Taiga was grateful of having her mother, her stepfather, and her grandfather in her life at one point in time. "I bet they loved you too, Naruto. I bet your parents were good people and was sad they didn't get to see you grow, but I know they'd be proud of you."
His heart felt out of control again. The beating was erratic as if it was going to leap out of his chest. He hoped the darkness hid his face well as he lied back down. "Thanks, Taiga."
Lying back down as well, she opted to look at the ceiling. Maybe Naruto had gone to sleep since he was quiet. "Hey, Taiga."
She thought wrong.
"Yes?" She replied again.
"Would you want to stay in Konoha… After the whole Yuuma thing is over? I mean..," She hadn't expected that question.
Her eyes closed halfway. "Honestly, I don't think I'd be alive to make that decision. I always figured that I would die with Yuuma."
Immediately, Naruto sat up and flopped down off the bed and onto her futon. Startled, she sat back up as he grabbed her shoulders and shook her. "Why the hell would you do that?!"
"What else is there to live for?" Taiga asked. "My family is dead. I want to be with them."
How could she give up? With the skills she had with a sword? With the friends she had made? How could she end her life after getting her revenge? What was the point in that?
"What else is there to live for?!" His fingers dug themselves into her shoulders, making the grip tighter. "You're an awesome samurai! And, you have friends! Those are things to live for! And then, you can rebuild your clan! Why would you let all of this go? Why does Yuuma have to take another Sanemori with him to the grave?!"
All of those things didn't quite sound appealing to her. Her eyes looked at him, quite dull too, and she shook her head. "The Sanemori will never be as it once was. I can't make that happen. Friends? My friends have their own lives; friends aren't a forever thing, Naruto. Yuuma is my father, so I'd end the Sanemori clan with him. There should not be a child with his bloodline. I'll be the last; I'll be the end."
Naruto couldn't believe how serious she was. And it was like there was nothing he could do the change her mind right then. He could see her so clearly since the moonlight came from the window, highlighting her features, especially her eyes. Her body seemed to stand firm with those beliefs, but Naruto wasn't going to give up.
"Taiga!" He yelled at her, shaking her again to knock some sense into her but her expression hadn't changed. There was no sign that she was going to change her mind. "I won't let you."
Her brows furrowed then. Her eyes nearly turning into slits, "What right do you have?! This is how I want my life to end. This is what I want! I'm not asking you to live your life differently, so don't make me change mine!"
Although she was telling the truth, Naruto would not allow her to end her life like this. He'd stop it. She'll be angry if she wanted to, but Naruto would not hear any of this.
"I don't care." He shook his head, "I'm not letting you waste your life like this."
"It's my life and I should live and end it how I want it to." Her hands reached up to her shoulders, grabbing his hands and squeezing them tightly. "Most people don't get to choose how they die, but I will."
It was hard to argue when she said it like that. Maybe, this was the way of samurai, right? How they choose to die with such honor and valor, that's what they wanted. A ninja died fighting for their village, pride wasn't on the agenda but honor did hinge on how a ninja ended their life.
Still, the thought of her letting Yuuma get what he wanted like this angered him. And to one day now that Taiga gone, completely from existence didn't sit well with him either.
"I can't tell you how to live your life." He said, keeping his eyes focused on hers. "You're right about that, but I can change your mind on how you choose to end it."
"Tch," Closing her eyes, she shook her head. Whatever she said would go one ear and out the other, wouldn't it? "For the first time in a long time, I started to be able to breathe." Her eyes opened staring rather dismally, "Rather than feeling lonely without my family, feeling lonely by myself became better. But at the end of it all, I still feel lonely. I'll always feel it… without them."
Naruto's grip began to loosen, his mouth a severe line but her hands continued to grasp onto his, loosely but with no intention of letting them go or fall. "I'm jealous of your personality." His began to widen, mouth hanging open in shock. "Of course, you're a bit ignorant…" His expression immediately changed into one of shock and offense but nothing too serious, which made her giggle. "But still… you've learned to live with your loneliness but I can't live with mine."
Her words resonated with him, but they still infuriated him. He knew how she felt, that darkness of loneliness that clings onto you and you wonder how someone lives like this. How can someone tolerate it? How can you survive? But yet you wake up everyday, and you get yourself through the day by trying to fill that loneliness. For Naruto, it was pranking; anyway to get anyone to acknowledge him filled it, if only temporarily. He gained friends in the long run, of course, but no one knew the loneliness of being a kid without a family.
Taiga distanced herself from others. Her friendships with Sasuke, Karin, and Suigetsu would've never been forged hadn't Orochimaru found her. Had she been left behind what would've become of her? Would her loneliness drown her?
"I've learned to live with it because I have friends." Naruto said, "And you have friends too. It's hard to live without a family, I know, but life goes on and you can too, Taiga." Her eyes swept up and admired his features from the pale moonlight. His eyebrows were the same bright yellow as his hair, slightly thicker than her own, and round eyes shaded a hue that matched the vault of endless blue that was the ocean. His eyebrows were thick, though not as much as her own, gave the orbs a innocent appearance that matched him.
It bothered her how things she hadn't noticed with anyone else became so clear with him. How his overall presence became natural and comforting while at the same time scared her. Taiga feared the attachment that was growing, she didn't need it. Naruto didn't need it either.
"And you also have me, Taiga. So how can you feel lonely? I'm not going anywhere."
Her bottom lip began to tremble but she shushed the action by biting down on it. Her eyes felt glassy and tears began to pool at the corners. She wanted to cry, and to hit him, but mostly cry. Why was he so annoyingly persistent? Why did she believe him?
"Naruto…" Her voice was eerily calm, but the curiosity on his face hadn't been skeptical of it. His eyes were wide and staring at her as she buried herself into his chest.
She was embracing him, like before.
Although he was surprised, Naruto, for the most part, was happy. That meant another wall had been knocked down, the effort to decrease the distance between them was working. His arms wrapped around her comfortably, feeling her grab onto him as she kept her face hidden against his chest. That overwhelming scent of hers filled his nose, and he inhaled it with a grin. He liked this; he liked feeling needed. Taiga needed him. At least that's what he got out of this.
After a while, he noticed that she hadn't moved or spoke. She was still and her breathing was very light. His head tilted, trying to view her face to notice that she was fast asleep. With a lopsided grin, he laid her onto her back and pulled the blankets up, tucking them underneath her chin. Naruto had manners. In fact, his first instinct was to let her sleep comfortably on him, but he figured she would be angry when she woke up.
Climbing back onto his bed, he flopped down his back and spread his arms before placing them behind his head. His eyes stared at the ceiling before slowly looking over at her sleeping form.
He decided to watch her sleep until his eyelids felt heavy and he had no choice but to close them. Usually, sleep came so easy to him and out of nowhere, but something told him tomorrow would be exciting.
A/N: This chapter would've been wayyy longer, but I see shorter chapters are what people prefer. So, I'll keep 7 - 8k my max until you guys tell me otherwise.
I've drove off the canon storyline but I find it hard to do the whole chasing Sasuke arc in the middle of finding a mass murderer and his mass-murdering subordinates. I guess Tsunade could have given the Yuuma mission temporarily to ANBU, but I'm not quite sure about it. It would be cool for Sasuke to be helping Taiga behind the scenes... but it seems unlike him since he's hell bent on killing Itachi, and then later hell bent avenging him unless I have someone interfere about 'Madara' telling him the whole truth. Who knows, wouldn't Sasuke go back to the village as Itachi wanted? Hmmmmmmmmmm. That would make things much more interesting.
And what do you guys think of Kureha? I'm not sure if I want her to be a regular civilian or a ninja. Akechi is definitely a ninja, possibly a missing-nin is all I'm gonna hint about him. Ryuuji is undecided as well, but he had displayed kenjutsu and ninjutsu. So, he might be like Taiga and Yuuma as ninja-samurai.
Thinking of new jutsus are hard! Sheesh, but I have a few ideas in mind! How I'm going to implement them soon? Well, you guys have to stick around to find out. Though I will tease that there will be fights to be seen next chapter. Akechi and Kureha are fun to write~
