A/N: WHOO! I had fun writing this! WHOOT! Anyhow, the romance should be starting now, ya impatient fools! (J/k, j/k, I love you all.) And a plot line is finally peeking out! OMG! Let's see if you can find it! I'll give ya a cookie if ya can. XP GOOD LUCK! Anyhow, this was fun to write; I really liked how it went. The style I wrote it in was fun as well. Whee. Anyhow, enjoy! OH! ANd Autum Jade, I HOPE THIS HAS ENOUGH ACTION FOR YA! XP
Disclaimer: Naruto and Co. belong to Masashi Kishimoto.
Naruto stretched his arms over his head quietly as he walked down the sidewalk, looking around the sleepy roads of the people. It was Sunday now; seemed like the weekend had gone by much too fast for his liking. He walked by a few people sitting around a radio, listening to a song, and he smiled slightly, stopping to listen as well.
They looked up at him with wide eyes, before one of them smiled and waved at him. "Hey Naruto."
"Hey Konohamaru," Naruto nodded, looking at the radio. "What's the song you're listening?" He asked curiously.
"Oh? It's 'You're Beautiful' by James Blunt." The girl in the group answered, smiling at him slightly. "Remember me, niisan?" Naruto laughed, grinning at her.
"Hey Moegi." He said, flicking one of her pigtails, before he sighed as he sat down with them, listening to the song as well.
And I don't know what to do…
'Cause I'll never be with you
Naruto blinked, before he snorted. 'Sounds familiar…' He thought sarcastically, before he leaned back against the concrete railing behind him on the stairs, listening to the song.
"Naruto-niisan, you sure have gotten calmer growing up." Konohamaru stated, looking at the serene looking blonde on the steps. "You used to be really loud and hyper."
"I had to calm down a little." Naruto stated, opening his eyes and looking up at the sky, which had a few clouds floating by slowly in the light blue sky. He shivered slightly in his orange and black jacket, rubbing his arms absentmindedly as a chilled wind blew by them. He crossed his legs, his black jeans making that noise jeans made whenever they rubbed against each other, his combat boots clicking slightly with the buckles. "I mean; I couldn't stay hyper and loud for the rest of my life; it would make things really, REALLY obvious."
Konohamaru smiled slightly. "I miss the old you, though. You were really fun."
"And what, I'm not NOW? Ouch, Konohamaru, that HURT." Naruto said, shoving the small brunette back slightly and grinning at him. "Damn, you know how to bruise an ego, don't ya?"
"I've been practicing."
"Wonderful; I'm DOOMED."
Sasuke sighed as he leaned against the wall of the store, watching as customers walked around quietly, flipping through pages in books and looking at the titles of certain tombs, before he pushed himself off of said wall and walked to the back to get something to drink.
The dark haired boy made himself some coffee that had been made a little earlier by Sarutobi, and he sipped it quietly, looking out the window of the Employee Room. He saw people walking down the sidewalk outside, laughing at something or listening to music. He frowned slightly. These people were good at interacting; they were used to the things in the city. They didn't have anything insane going on in their lives.
Unlike him; he was remembering his forgotten past; he was learning things about himself he should've known forever; he had a crazy child molester out for his blood or whatever; and he had a blonde haired idiot with an interest in him taking care of him in school.
No, he was NOT a screwed up child.
Really.
Sighing softly, he closed his eyes, sipping his coffee again, when he heard the door open behind him. He turned his head, raising an eyebrow at the old man and blink. "Yeah?" He asked simply, not really caring if he wasn't showing respect to the older man. He was half Japanese, okay? HALF.
"Taking your break?" Sarutobi asked lightly, walking over to him as he smoked his pipe quietly. Sasuke looked away from him, gripping his throat slightly like he had when he thought of Asuma smoking the other day. "You don't like smoking? Sorry if it bothers you…"
"No, it's not that; I don't really care. I just…I get the feeling that it has something to do with me." He said, and then shrugged. "My imagination, I guess. And yeah, I'm taking my break; my shift's almost over anyhow, and I want to get home before Aniki." He said, smirking slightly at Sarutobi. "Just so I can attempt to make him lunch."
"And poison him?" Sarutobi asked. "He told me of your culinary skills; which is nonexistent." Sasuke shrugged slightly and Sarutobi laughed. "Oh my; I hope he doesn't end up in the hospital. Tsunade doesn't need to have another Uchiha in her hands."
"Huh?"
"She works in the hospital part time whenever she isn't working at the school. Its how she pays her gambling debts." Sasuke's eyes widened. Wasn't that lovely; his principal had a gambling addiction. She probably loved sake as well… "And she needs to pay off all the money for her sake." …Oh he called that one.
"Ah." He replied simply, looking back at him, before he sighed. "How do you know my Aniki, Sarutobi?" He asked, crossing his arms. "I mean; it seems like you have regular conversations with him."
Sarutobi looked to the side in thought, inhaling some of his tobacco, before he shook his head. "Only he can tell you that, Sasuke." He then looked at his watch. "Your shift is over; you can go home."
He walked home, his hands shoved into his pockets as he listened to a song on his mixed CD. The song was some sort of Swedish maybe, with really heavy drums, violin and guitar. Heavy metal maybe? He didn't really care, but still, it was a good song.
He slowed to a stop a few minutes later, close to a drug store, still looking at the ground in front of him as three big guys from the alleyway beside him walked out, all grinning maliciously next to each other. "Hey look guys, it's a new one." One of them said, shoving the dark haired boy's shoulder lightly. He took a step back, still looking down. The thug grinned. "Aww, not gonna say anything pretty boy?"
Sasuke looked up, looking at him blankly with no emotion on his face. "What do you want?" He asked simply instead of answering him. The thug narrowed his eyes, frowning a little.
"A little fun."
Sasuke cocked his head to the side as the other two stepped up, pulling out switchblades, before he sighed mockingly, placing his hand under his chin in a thoughtful position, his other hand holding his elbow as he looked up in 'thought'. "A little fun?" He repeated, and then looked at them, grinning maliciously as his eyes bled red. "But of course."
The thugs blinked in confusion at his sudden change in eye colour, before Sasuke dropped his backpack and jacket to the ground, rolling his shoulders. "A little fun…Shall be entertaining." He said, grinning at them, before he dropped down, kicking one of them under the legs and catching the switchblade that he had dropped as he fell, spinning it around so the blade was pointing at the thug and stabbed him in the neck, slicing through it and kicking him in the stomach away from him and out of his choice of weapon.
He watched as she blood dripped down his hand, then looked at the other two and grinned. "Who's next?" He whispered psychotically.
Weekends were boring, Naruto noticed.
He noticed this as he was walking down the alleyway towards his home, having decided that he'd actually do that homework Jiraiya had assigned them the other day. And why not? He had nothing better to do today now did he?
Suddenly he heard screaming ahead of him, and his eyes widened, before he jogged towards it. He had heard something interesting, of course he was going to run! Stopping in front of an empty street, he peeked in, and his blue eyes widened as he saw a bloody body hit the floor as the person who had just finished him off dropped the knife, looking at his hand with an indifferent look to his eyes. Red eyes turned to meet his dark blue, and Naruto took a step back as he saw who it was.
"Sasuke?" He said incredulously. "Holy SHIT man!" He ran towards Sasuke, looking at him as his eyes faded back to obsidian, and he looked at the practically decapitated bodies around his feet. He blinked slowly, before looking up at Naruto.
"Did I do something wrong?" He asked softly. Naruto blinked, looking at the bodies and wincing, before looking at Sasuke with saucer plated sized eyes.
"YES. YOU DID." Sasuke blinked, looking at his bloody hand again, before looking at him.
"Oops."
Itachi groaned as he listened to Naruto explain what Sasuke had done as he cleaned his hands in the bathroom, hitting his head over and over again on the counter as Naruto recounted what Sasuke had told him. "He asked if he had done something wrong and I looked at him like he was insane, and then said he did. He said 'oops'. What the HELL Itachi?"
Itachi sighed, looking at him. "Did you ask him anything else?" He asked, looking at the blonde. Naruto shook his head, and Itachi sighed, nodding. "Alright, I have a theory; he most likely fell back into his murderous little ten-year-old self and didn't know he was KILLING SOMEONE."
Naruto blinked, remembering when he had first gotten information about Sasuke…Almost a week ago now…
"There's a bunch of other crap in there about Sasuke, and it makes me wonder about the guy. He didn't seem so bad yesterday. A little dark and quiet, moody, even, but who knew he was capable of THAT?"
"What's that?" Naruto asked, looking at him with narrowed eyes.
"Look at the last page." Naruto nodded and flipped through the other pages, getting to the last one. His eyes widened.
"The hell…"
"Exactly."
Naruto frowned, feeling a little sick at the picture that was in front of him. A ten-year-old Sasuke sat in front of a mangled and decapitated body, a beer bottle shattered at the ground beside him, his eyes blood red as he grinned like a maniac at whoever was taking the picture. His face, hands, arms and legs were covered in blood, and he had small cuts on his cheeks and neck, blood sprayed onto the front of his shirt, barely visible. It was disturbing…This was the Sasuke that went to this school?
"He's killed at least five people in his life. And that's not the worst thing about it." Shikamaru said offhandedly. Naruto shot his eyes up at him, his eyes wide.
"What's worse than first degree murder? No, this isn't murder…This is heartless SLAUGHTER…"
"What's worse?" Gaara whispered, looking up, his eyes flashing slightly. Naruto shifted, not liking the fact that his red headed friend looked like that.
"What's worse is that he didn't know it was murder." Shikamaru muttered. Gaara looked at Naruto and the blonde gulped, knowing what the second in command was implying.
"Ah…Shit."
Naruto looked away, biting his bottom lip as Itachi swore under his breath for a while. Both their heads snapped over to a creak in the floor and there stood Sasuke, looking a little bit more than a little confused.
"Uhh…what's going on?" He asked, looking around. "Why does Aniki look ready to murder someone with a spork?"
"Because I AM." Itachi muttered, walking by him, then stopped, turning to him. "On your way home…Did you so happen to have a memory?"
"Huh?"
Four Hours Earlier
Sasuke walked home quietly, shifting through songs on his mix CD, before he sighed and stopped, placing a hand on the wall next to him, taking in deep breaths through his nose. His mind felt fuzzy…He sighed; he had taken this as a sign that he was about to have what Kakashi apparently called a 'Memory Attack'.
Sasuke looked down at the unconscious woman in front of him, his eyes wide as his hand shook. He felt a pale hand on his shoulder, and looked up to see Orochimaru giving him a warm smile, something he hadn't seen much from the man. "Don't worry; she isn't dead."
Sasuke nodded, stepping back into the older man's warm presence…Though it suddenly felt cold…So cold…
"Snake?" He whispered softly. Orochimaru's golden eyes flitted down to him. "Why…Are you called that?"
Orochimaru laughed. "An interesting question. It's so people don't know my real name." He said, looking at him. "Gang names, really. I'm sometimes called Manda, after a legendary Snake Summon."
"That's so…Girly." Sasuke said, scrunching up his face. Orochimaru sighed, ruffling his hair a little and Sasuke swiped at his hand childishly. "Orochimaru…?"
"Yes, Sasuke?" Orochimaru asked, bending down to looking at him at eye level.
"…Do I have a name?"
Orochimaru blinked, cocking his head to the side. "Do you want one?"
"Please."
"What would suit you…I wonder…" Orochimaru thought for a moment, then listened to the 'chi' noise that Sasuke made as he shifted in his spot. "…What's the word for bird?"
"Huh?"
"A word associated with birds."
Sasuke thought for a moment, before looking up at him.
"Chidori."
"And that's your new name."
"My name was once Chidori." Sasuke said softly, his bangs hiding his eyes. Naruto stepped back then, his eyes widening greatly, shaking his head. Itachi swore to himself, punching the wall beside him, before his eyes snapped over to his little brother.
"Are you sure, otouto?" He asked, walking over to him and grabbing his shoulders gently. "Are you positively sure?"
"Yes." He said, looking up at him with his dark eyes. "I'm sure."
"No way." Naruto mumbled, and then looked at Itachi who looked heartbroken. "You can't be him!"
"What's wrong with that name?" Sasuke shouted, more confused than hurt or anything that he should've felt. He didn't understand.
"You…You killed…" Naruto took a step back. "….Rin."
Sasuke and Naruto were sitting on the roof, Naruto looking out at the city as the sun was setting, a blank look on his face while Sasuke was looking at the ground, biting his bottom lip nervously. He shifted, looking at Naruto, who looked back at him, and smiled painfully.
"Who's Rin?" He asked softly.
"Her name was Rin Itsumi. She…Was the mother of Tenten Itsumi. Tenten doesn't really remember her well, though." Naruto said, and then sighed, hugging his arms. "She raised me…When my parents died in a car accident." He looked at her. "She was killed by a guy named Chidori. They said that something had happened to him in his gang, and he went on a rampage. I knew it was a mistake…But I had sworn if I ever met Chidori I'd kill him."
Sasuke stiffened, his eyes widening, before they darkened. "And are you going to kill me, Naruto?"
"What? No way! Now way in fucking hell!" Naruto said, looking at him with wide eyes. "I'd never do that to you!"
"What changed your mind?" Sasuke looked at him, confusion clearly written in his eyes. Naruto froze, his mouth hanging open before he closed it with a click and thought over his answer. He then smiled softly, looking at the city again.
"I met the person who killed Rin." He said gently, and then turned to him. "I won't kill you."
"I don't think you have the heart to." Sasuke said, standing up. "You're a kind person, Naruto. You act cold and calculating, and maybe you are; but you have many different personalities. Inside, though, you're kind and you just want everyone to be happy…Right?"
Naruto looked at him, before looking at the sky, leaning back. "Yeah…"
The door to the roof then opened, and Itachi walked in, Kakashi behind him, giving him funny looks. Kakashi then looked at Naruto, and grinned beneath his mask.
"I was wondering where you had disappeared to; you didn't call me so I worried." He said, scratching the back of his head. Naruto rolled his eyes, grinning slightly, before he stood up and sighed, stretching his arms above his head. He then turned to Sasuke and grinned.
"Well, Sasuke; I'll see ya tomorrow?"
"Yeah," Sasuke said, smiling at him a little. When Naruto was about to leave, though, he grabbed his wrist. Naruto blinked, turning around to look at him. Sibling and guardian looked at them, and then sneakily snuck away from them, giving them their private time.
"Can I…Join Bijuu?" Sasuke asked softly. "You had offered the position to me before."
Naruto looked at him, before he smiled. "Yeah; of course you can. My offer still stands strong."
Sasuke nodded, looking to the side for a moment, a light blush on his cheeks, before he bent forward, gently pressing his lips against Naruto's. The blonde's blue eyes widened, and just when Sasuke was about to pull away, he pressed his lips firmly against the paler boy's, returning the kiss. Sasuke closed his eyes, Naruto doing the same, and they stood there just innocently kissing each other for a few seconds, before Sasuke pulled away, letting go of his wrist.
"You should get going before Kakashi freaks out." He mumbled, then smirked at him and nodded. Naruto grinned back at him, hands behind his head, before he nodded and waved, walking to the door and meeting up with Kakashi at the stairwell. Itachi climbed back onto the roof where Sasuke was looking at the city streets below him, watching as police cars drove down the street and people went to get their groceries. Itachi stood next to him, looking over at him, and he nudged his arm.
"What did you two do?" He asked mischievously. Sasuke grinned.
"Nothing much."
Sighing softly, Tsunade downed her sake, closing her eyes, before she looked at her computer screen, frowning slightly. The information that Shizune had sent her bothered her a bit. She couldn't believe what was going on in this article.
"Orochimaru, you've really pissed off a bunch a bunch of people." She mumbled, sighing as she closed her eyes. She felt someone enter the room, and opened her brown eyes, looking at the white haired teacher that had just walked in, grinning sheepishly at her. "What is it, Jiraiya?"
"A meeting's being called." He said, looking at all serious now. Tsunade straightened a little; meetings were only called when a new member joined…
"When?"
"Tomorrow after school; we're going to the gymnasium apparently."
"This guy's gotta be special." Jiraiya grinned at her, and Tsunade rolled her eyes, making herself comfortable in her seat. "Sake?"
"Yeah, why not."
Naruto sat in his room, on top of his bed, his fingers to his lips as he thought of the feeling of Sasuke kissing him earlier, before he smiled, sighing slightly as he fell backwards onto his bed. He felt light hearted and dizzy, meaning he felt stereotypically dreamy after a kiss, and then he crossed his eyes. He was acting like a damned school girl for crying out loud!
Flicking his forehead he sighed, turning slightly and looking out his window as the stars shone dimly so far away. He then smiled.
That meeting tomorrow should definitely be interesting, that was for sure.
He laughed; the Sannin were coming after all.
