A.N.: Hello, minna-san! I'm updating! Finally+hides behind keyboard avoiding sharp pointy objects+ Teehee… sorry for the wait… but it was Sasuke's fault!! He's just so damn kinky that…that… +faints from nosebleed+
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Okay… now for my dearest, dearest reviewers. I really love y'all+glomps+
xcloudx: Thank for your kind words! And you'll have to forgive me again, cuz this wasn't corrected properly. I was so excited to post this chappie, though that's no excuse… +mopes around+
Prozacfairy: hehe yes she is. But wouldn't you be like that too if you had messed with Sasu-chan once? And I surely would, too +shivers+ He's just so damn scary. Naru-chan? He's innocent! He's up to nothing+innocent eyes, far too innocent eyes+
Princess Teah: Thank you for your-no-flamer vote! Glad you liked this far, and hope you like this chappie.
Alerting Alliteration: Glad you like it! And I wouldn't do something like that, oh no! There's so much thing left to do… +snickers, nosebleed+ Anyways… this chappie does have mistakes, but I'll I try to fix them later. So please, bare with me. :D
sweetpotato1992: You shall see the answer to that question soon. Mwahahahaha! XP
Crimson Aries: Oh why thank you! Hope you like this chappie too. :D
Fitful Fantasy: I think Kakashi is always sneaky. And, well… Iruka's afraid… etto… I shall put the answer to that question next chappie, cuz if not it'll be spoiler. Please wait till that. :)
Xia Momo Capernicus: Thank you so much for your kind words! It makes me…feel guilty. I T-T You see…this chappie isn't beta-ed properly… T-T Me was so anxious… +bows deeply+ Gomen nasai! And don't worry, you don't have to look for flashy words, because you like this story and review and keep reading even though sometimes it's crappy, and that's all that matters. :D
ShinraTurk-Krena: I'm really glad you understand me. :D Please keep reading this story till the end:D
brenu: Glad you liked it:)
HopeDoesn'tExistStupidityDo: Wow… that's a long name. Sorry for not putting it to its full extent. :S Or is that complete…? --;;,And I'm really glad you liked it. And my crappy humor, that is. And here's more! Hope you like it. :)
Non Innocent angel: Yeah…he's sooo perverted… And I'm really glad you liked it. Tee hee. Sorry it took this late. :S
sasunaru lover: Oh why thank you! That makes me feel so guilty, though. You see… this chapter isn't properly corrected… Gomen nasai+bows deeply+ hehehe and thank you for your wishes. XP And I'm also glad that was humorous. That Jiraiya and Tsunade part… hehe I could practically picture it in my mind. XP
gemstones: Oh why thank you. I guess I followed your advice here. ;D I hope you like this chappie, though.
Rating: T –for its theme, insinuations, perverted-Sasu-chan… you get the drill. XP
Main pairing: SasuNaru
Disclaimer: Don't own it, never will. Why+mopes around in the corner about unfairness of the world+
Warning: I don't even what to do this anymore… boy on boy's love… etto… OCCness… crappiness… some sappiness… Yeah. --;,,,
Now, onto the fic!
A.N.: It's corrected! And finally I can post it! Thank you Nyaron for your great, great work+glomps+
Saint Valentine's Day a la Naruto
By Aya Honey
Chapter 14: The prelude to it—the party –Part II: Preparations?
Tenten was making her merry way through Konoha market. Well, she, along with Hinata-chan, and Ino— Sakura couldn't come, as she said she'd much rather try and organize the things for the party at Ino's (the girls just knew, especially the aforementioned Ino, that she was just trying to hide from a certain Uchiha) –were there, trying to get whatever it was lacking to the party's preparation that night.
There, when they were leaving a certain store and call it a day, the odango-haired girl suddenly stopped, causing the other two girls to bump into her.
"Tenten-san, something's wrong?" Hinata quietly asked.
There…there…at the other side of the street…was…was… Oh my god! The weapon-lover girl began to giggle.
"Tenten…? What's so fun…" Ino questioned the other, her question dying on her lips, before she finally saw it, too. There…was the respectable figure of Uchiha Sasuke-kun…in…in… She never though there would be a day when she'd be able to see Sasuke-kun in that color- Orange. And a bright orange at that.
And the cause of it- it was probably the blond boy standing next to him, grinning. But contrasting Naruto's wide grin, the Uchiha was wearing something akin to a pout, but not quite, and a fierce deathly glare aimed at whoever dared to even glance at him.
Yeah, Sasuke seemed pissed.
Before the trio could even wonder properly in their head how the hell Naruto managed to put those clothes onto the raven (because it was definitely Naruto's thing –Sasuke would never put that color into any kind of garment he had on his own free will—and sanity) and live to tell the tale (because, well, Sasuke-kun wasn't exactly inoffensive) when they heard the culprit call at them; waving his hand as he cheerily made his way to where the girls where, gripping the raven's hand, pulling him along.
…And was Sasuke-kun…blushing at the contact…?
Nah…the girls thought it just must be a hallucination…
Uchiha people never blush, or have any sort of embarrassed situation, after all. He's just too cool and collected to do that.
"Hello Naruto." Ino greeted the boy, a grin on her face. "Hello, Sasuke-kun." She bit the inside of her cheek, trying hard to not chuckle. Which was really hard…
Big-forehead…you're so missing this…
"Nn." The raven grunted, clearly glaring all the more, having caught up with Ino's and the other girls' soft snickers. Even Hinata.
"Why Sasuke-kun…never should've guessed you had a like for that color." Ino continued, not being able to control herself, as this chance was unique. "You look lovely in that." Uchiha just glared all the more, if possible. Why hadn't he killed them when he had the chance?
"Yeah, he does, doesn't he?" Naruto was the one to reply, grinning broadly now.
"Shut up. Dobe." The raven warned.
"Wouldn't you guys want to know how I got the almighty Uchiha to wear colors as undignified? that's how he described them… as these?" Naruto asked the girls, grinning all the more.
None of the girls dared to respond, afraid of the look that one Sasuke was giving them, something that meant along the lines of 'don't you dare ask him, or else…' hung in the air; and at the same time fascinated at the way Naruto seemed to handle said Sasuke, not even fearing nor minding the feral look the raven was almost giving him.
"Dobe…" the pale boy threatened.
Naruto continued, not even caring of the warning tone his want-to-be-lover gave him (Naruto hadn't given the raven that chance yet, no matter how much the raven looked for any opportunities for it to happen since the moment he and Naruto got together), and not even minding if he got an answer from the girls or not, "Well…" and then the blond boy began telling his story to the girls.
Naruto had been looking some clothes in that store with Sasuke leaning in his corner against a wall, arms crossed and not wanting to have a participation in the matter, but also not wanting to be away from the matter—or in this case, Naruto.
Now…Naruto was plotting in his head as to how to make the raven there to put on some orange —because the raven challenged him (in a way) and he never backed up from a challenge, had he? So why start now?
And then —it came to him. The Perfect Plan.
Naruto was smirking so much and so brodly that he was sure he looked like a maniac. …In fact, some of the salesclerk women where eyeing him warily; a few of them backed away from him.
Having decided his Perfect Plan inside his head, he decided to put it into action.
He continued to check on his choice of clothes on his basket, then began skimming through it…continued, saw something he wanted, put some more on his basket, and then made his way to the cashier to pay for them, shouting a faint 'Hey teme, I'm done and I'm paying for them!' over his shoulder.
Sasuke approached his boyfriend-it still felt weird to even think of that definition, and that Naruto was finally his, if not yet in the way he'd want him to be—and pulled out his wallet. "I'll pay for them." He declared.
"Huh?" was the smart reply from the Kyuubi tenant, looking surprised.
"I said that I'll pay for them. I highly doubt you even have the money to pay for them." He smirked, hanging the cashier lady the money. His smirk disappeared the moment he glanced at the lady though, feeling a little more than disgusted when said cashier lady winked at him, she was obviously flirting with him. Even if he was used to this—used to all the people of the opposite gender drooling at the mere sight of him and trying to flirt with him; he didn't have to like it.
Naruto felt all warm inside at Sasuke's actions, and that almost made him feel guilty about what he was about to do.
Almost.
And so, after they had paid—more precisely, after Sasuke had paid—they were sitting on some little western-like café. Naruto was claiming how hungry he was after the shopping-thing, and how he didn't get to eat anything since morning. Sasuke questioned why not going to Ichiraku's then, but then Naruto replied that that was way too far, and that he was so hungry he didn't mind a change of menu now and then.
Sasuke narrowed his eyes at that explanation, suspicious; but let it slide, for the moment.
A waitress had come, and after fucking blinking at Sasuke again, she asked for their orders. Sasuke calmly—or as calmly as he could, considering the situation of one annoying woman ogling at him— he skimmed on the menu. The raven just settled for some tea, asking the girl if they had it, which she cheerily answered that of course they had (and even if they didn't, she would still most probably make a way to arrange some for the just so handsome and sexy Sharingan user— she was member of his still active fan-club, after all). Naruto settled for some sandwiches, along with some tea, claiming that later on he'd make Sasuke go and buy him a decent dinner at Ichiraku for him. Sasuke snorted at that.
After some minutes of light banter, waiting for their order to be ready, the waitress arrived with their food, extra fast just for Sasuke. She gave another wink at Sasuke for his chargin, and a not-really-hidden-scowl at the blond's direction. Sasuke just glared at the girl's reaction towards his boyfriend but said nothing. Settling for a cold glare at said girl's direction and sending the girl going back to work, cowering in fear and almost crying. Served her right.
And then, Naruto set his masterpiece plan into action.
When he was just about to grab a napkin to apparently clean himself (even though a simple sandwich such as his cheese and jam didn't need it) he just accidentally tipped off both their drinks, making it just for them to soak the raven's garment, especially his shirt.
Oh, what an accident.
The raven backed in his seat in reflection, feeling the warm liquid soak his shirt, muttering under his breath.
Oh, what a terrible accident, indeed.
Sasuke glared at him while trying to wipe the liquid out of his shirt with another napkin, and not making any progress no matter how hard he tried.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Sasuke-teme!" Naruto said at the least bit apologetic expression and tone, and grinning widely, "You'll have to change your clothes if you don't want to get a cold." Then, he added, "Luckily, we just came from shopping." The grin just intensified.
Sasuke glared all the more, even when the moron seemed to be unaffected by it. He knew what all of it implied, and he wasn't going to fall for it. Glaring at the bag that the azure-blue-eyed boy held in front of it, he replied quite stubbornly, "I'm fine. I don't need it. It'll dry itself quickly." He said through clenched teeth, knowing full well how uncomfortable it would be when drying, feeling quite sticky already without the liquid still not even drying.
Naruto smirked, and then leaned onto the table, both hands leaning onto it, being careful not to put his hands onto the mess of the tea on it, and breath caressing the pale's boy ear, he whispered (quite seductively to the Uchiha, despite the situation), "Your nipples are showing."
The older nin then quite grudgingly (and quite red, too?) sat up and snatched the bag from the younger's grip, making a bee-line to the restroom. Already in there, he didn't bother to smother his curses as he saw that all there was inside that bag was either orange or red.
And that was how the Uchiha was in that situation.
And Naruto was damn proud of it.
'You just wait, Usuratonkachi.'
"So…that was what happened, Sasuke-kun…" Tenten commented, smirking (and teasing), the five nin were now walking down the road as the dusk made its appearance in gold, blue, crimson and purple colors, mingling beautifully in the sky. The three of them (four, if you counted Naruto) decided that it was better (and safer) for Konoha's population if they were in a more tranquil (and more isolated place, if possible;) what with Sasuke muttering and glaring when people started staring at him—it wasn't every day that you got to see an Uchiha wearing something that wasn't blue, black, and the from-time-to-time white. Also, it didn't help the fan-girls that didn't even care to disguise their drool toward that certain Uchiha…
…And the weirdest thing of all was that Naruto wasn't the slightest jealous…
…Which just pissed the Uchiha more.
And so…they were walking somewhat more peacefully out of the market, going towards Ino's house's direction. Or so the girls were doing that. Naruto just took that as an excuse to drag Sasuke out there before a rampage occurred.
…The Uchiha seemed to be losing his cool… Sasuke was idly wondering whatever happened to his cool demeanor…
It seemed it went down with the wind the moment he decided that Naruto was going to be his.
This was one more thing he had to blame the blond whiskered obnoxious loud boy for. Along with the feeling of happiness and content-ness he felt more and more as he spent more time with that blond. Along with that peaceful feeling he got around him, too.
Yeah, really, Naruto was…special, to say the least. He had that uncanny ability to change people, to change the unchangeable. With that stubborn nature of his, he deemed everything possible.
Everything was possible, if you just believed and worked hard.
And one of the most important things he learned was, that you had to sometimes sacrifice something, big or small, for whatever you wanted. And sometimes, the dreams changes with time. Dreams had the ability to change along with time. They matured.
And so, Naruto helped him realize that the dream he had about revenging his clan and killing Itachi, was nothing compared to live with and protect the lives of the ones you held important. That if you wanted to protect them, you had to sacrifice something important.
And so he did.
He chose to renounce to that dream of murder and death and revenge, to be able to be by his hide, to protect him, to protect the one that gave up so much for just a change to be with him.
Yeah, he knew that, that time when they had managed to kill Orochimaru along with Naruto, Kakashi and Tsunade-sama…that the other group hadn't been able to kill Itachi. …No-one'd be able to. …But…he was glad that neither of his peers—the ones that had helped Naruto rescue him—hadn't died at his aniki's hand, as marvelous as that sounded.
He knew that Itachi was still alive, and he didn't deny that sometimes he felt the urge to leave everything and just go after him…But even with those urges he still had, he still stayed, for he wanted to protect Naruto, the light of his existence, from everything, and from his murderer of a brother. He still knew that Naruto might still be under threat.
And so, he would be there, by his side, to protect him.
Because the moment his aniki started anything, he'd—
"…me…? You here? I said that I'm still hungry…" a too-familiar voice called to him, snatching him from his dark thoughts. Oh, Naruto. And he was whining, as per usual.
"Nn." Was his answer. Looking around, he realized the two of them were alone, and in front of Ichiraku's, of all places. …Where were the girls…?
"If you were wondering about Ino and the others, they left five minutes ago." The blond nin was eyeing at him worriedly. "You just spaced out, all of a sudden. What's wrong?"
That got the Uchiha a slightly surprised expression onto his face, before smirking and replying, "Nothing, dobe. Just figuring out payback-ways that are more suitable for you." he figured, signaling his much-too-bright outfit.
"Why, you…! And I said to stop calling me that, teme!" as always, the blond dobe seemed red with anger at that name, not even bothering to hide it.
Sasuke just shrugged it off in his usual way, and began walking in the infamous ramen place's direction. Calling to Naruto he said, without even turning back, "Are you going to stand there all night? I thought you were 'starving'…" in a much too teasing tone of voice.
"Teme!" the other nin whined in his annoying characteristic way, and successfully ran up to where the stoic boy was walking to, with his hands tucked into his pockets.
And sure enough, it was the Ichikaru's ramen place, to Naruto's delight.
It was amazing that after all those years the baka still loved that stuff.
And when Sasuke and Naruto were finally eating their fill, Naruto kept eating his fourth bowl when Sasuke stopped at his second, and Sasuke felt very calm and…content. So content as he never felt before. Just watching the dobe…it gave him that feeling.
…And…that was the first time they got to eat there again, on the ramen stall…after their argument there…after their kiss that ensued later…and after being finally together.
He felt a little unnerved when he felt the teme's entire gaze on him while not saying anything, and so Naruto said, "What, teme? Do you have something to say?"
Waving his head the slightest before replying, the brunet replied, "No…it's nothing."
The blond just narrowed his eyes at that, suspicious, before simply saying, "Okay." Then, he continued to eat. And out of the corner of his eye, the blond ramen-lover saw a certain Uchiha smirking maliciously.
…Suddenly, Naruto had a bad feeling…
Some time later, and some bowls of ramen later piling in front of the blond at Ichiraku's, said blond was patting his belly (his full and big belly) happily with a lazy smile on his tan features, he let a "gochisousama…" slip through his mouth. "Thanks for the meal, teme." He said to the other.
"Nn." was all the reply he got. Sasuke never thought the blond would eat…that much. Though he should have…what with Naruto's eternal love for that food, anyway. He took out his wallet, and took the correspondent money to pay for it.
"That was great, occhan!" Naruto enthusiastically complimented the owner, before hastily slipping off the booth he was on when he realized Sasuke was already silently leaving the place. "See ya later!" he yelled at the old man (well, older than him, anyways) before calling for the bastard, "Oi! Wait up, teme!"
When he finally got by his side, a "Nn." was all the reply he got. Again.
"Oi! Can't you at least give me a proper answer, teme!?"
"Nn."
"Argh! I swear, Sasuke, one of these days—" and whatever else he was gonna say was interrupted by a pair of surprisingly warm lips on his own. Paler lips on his own.
When the paler boy pulled back, he was clearly smirking. "One of these days, what?" No answer, just a crimson face. Then the other took that as a cue to continue, "Besides, I think that was a proper answer, don't you think?" and the teme was still smirking, dammit!
"Mmph!" was all that the flushed boy (Naruto) was able to muster, besides crossing his arms over his chest and looking to the side. Oh, and he was still as red as a tomato.
And Sasuke kept smirking while continuing on his way. To what Naruto hurriedly tried to catch up to him, again, yelling, "Oi, teme! Wait up, dammit!"
Really, this type of normalcy mingled with contentedness was…
…The raven wasn't able to help but to smile a genuinely one in a long lost time at that notion.
Next morning. A beautiful morning. A calm and beautiful morning. A calm and beautiful and peaceful morning. A calm and beautiful and peaceful and—
Well, it would have been all that, if not for some kind of ruckus. And a female kind of one at that. Well, several, in the form of the 'diabolic fangirls', as he liked to call them.
Several fan-girls roaming the front door of certain Uchiha's home's door.
…Yeah…talk about peaceful… Gods, how the Uchiha hated days like these…
And he hated it all the more because, inwardly of his wishes, said Uchiha was all…alone. Naruto wasn't with him.
It wasn't like he hadn't wanted it. Oh, quite on the contrary; he even insisted— offered himself to spend the night at the dobe's place. He ended ungracefully thrown out of said dobe's apartment. And quite literally at that, with the help of the always helpful shuriken and kunai…
Really, Naruto was no fun…
And so, here he was, Uchiha Sasuke at seven o'clock in the morning, with an early headache— and in the process of it turning into a massive one— and having to put up with his eternal fan-girl club…
Dammit, wouldn't they just grow-up and marry somebody and leave him alone or something…!?
…Wait, no use…he recalled some of them being already happily married…and they still stalked him…
HAD THEY NO LIFE…!?!?
… … …
Sighing inwardly with his hand massaging his temples, he hoped he could stand the whole day of them bothering him without any bloodshed till he had to go pick Naruto up…
…and he really hoped the day to pass faster… if not Tsunade-sama would have to arrange a massive burial ceremony… and an explanation why two of the village's best ninja became missing nin…
Today was the day. Today was definitely gonna be the day when Sakura cleared things with Sasuke-kun. Yeah. She would do it. Definitely. Definitely…
Taking a deep, deep, deep breath, Sakura then purposely stalked towards the Uchiha's front door- scaring off the not exactly few 'Uchiha Sasuke Fan-girls' in the process— she raised her hand to it. She was determined to knock it and talk to Sasuke-kun, damnit!
Because nothing was gonna stop her! Nothing! Not even fear-even when she claimed she wasn't afraid—was gonna stop her! Not even if—gulp!—Sasuke-kun was mad at her! Because she was gonna explain herself to him, calmly and reasonably, tell him that the whole Naruto-date-thingy was just part of The Plan to get the two of them boys together, and that she wasn't interested in Naruto in that way. Not in the sentimental way anyway—not that she wouldn't complain if that happened, because Naruto managed to get plain hot through the years—but that wouldn't do, because she had Lee now, even if he wasn't that hot he was cool—and besides Naruto had Sasuke now, and Sasuke would kill her, which lead again to the main point of—
Then…a creepy silence emerged outside where the girls were. The sudden cause…? A sudden noise…that seemed awfully like…like…birds…chirping…?
Oh…damn…
Chidori…
In least than a second, Sakura left —or more like she desperately fled—the place, with tears of humiliation running down her face.
"…I'm such a coward…"
When seeing the image of one depressed Sakura in that fashion, Ino couldn't help but feel amused about the whole situation. Along the years, the girl with the brute strength—thanks to one Tsunade-sama—she managed to scatter fear, utter and genuine fear in people, fellow shinobi, kunoichi, and enemies' alike, hearts.
She had been witness of it far too many times to count.
But on the prospect of facing one certain Uchiha, it was like that her…etto…what was it? What was the word…? ah! courage had a tendency of vanishing into thin air, and even doubting if it was even there was any before.
…Not like she wouldn't act differently had she been in her place…
But still…
"You really look pathetic, big-forehead." Ino said, approaching the really looking-depressed Sakura. The girl did not even snap at that name-calling, and instead just sighed deeply.
"Yeah, I know…" the pink-haired girl said, putting some red strings in one of the corners of the room where the St. Valentine's celebration was going to take place. They were there along with Hinata, Tenten and the formerly disappeared Temari—the exams were up for a couple of days (the three Suna people had really come ahead of time) —decorating the place.
"Then, you must really know that Sasuke-kun might have even figured things out by now. Because if that wasn't the case, he would already be here, cutting your head off a long time ago. So stop being stupid."
Sakura this time glared at the blonde girl. "I'm not stupid, you pig-girl! If anything, I'm much smarter than you would ever be!"
"Why, you—!"
And so, the not so unexpected fight between the two— and let's not forget best friends and rivals—started.
None of the other occupants of the room—the girls or the other males—one Shikamaru that one Ino forced to join, one Chouji the same one Ino dragged and menaced as well, and Lee—he would always be there with his 'pretty flower', a.k.a. Sakura— tried to pry the two apart. They all knew rather well that trying to do that was even more dangerous than ten S-missions combined, and it was rather futile, too.
No, the best definition was that it was plain and simple suicide.
They then decided that it would be wiser to just continue their work—even Lee was aware of that—he always shivered at the memory at that one time he tried to separate the two girls.
Yeah, it was one pretty and peaceful and uneventful morning…
In a certain nin's room, the sun's rays crept through the overly-used (and not to say a little bit old) curtain, said sun's rays landing on a certain sleeping nin's closed eyelids as the curtain was moved by the occasional wind, making him to stir in his sleep.
Yes, that person was a he. And that had finally woken him up, that person groaning, rubbing his eyes, and showing the bluest of eyes for the sight, he promised himself he would be getting a new (and decent) curtain, even if that was the last thing he did.
He wanted to sleep more, dammit.
Just as he was getting into sleeping position again— he was so damn tired, and sleepy, and was Sunday for gods' sake!— he shot up on his bed again, wide-eyed.
Shit. Today was…the party at Ino's.
How could he have forgotten about it? How could he…? Damn Sasuke-teme! It was all his fault!
Just that previous night, the bastard had once again tried on his moves of what Naruto called it 'Trying-to-get-laid-with-a-certain-superior-sexy-blond-like-me-by-using-stupid-ways', and damn he was persistent. And he almost fell for them—oh he almost fell (he gingerly raised the palm of his hand to a certain spot on his neck, where sure that just the night before there used to be a bright hickey before it was healed by a certain Kyuubi.
—Or not.
The damn nine-tailed fox just loved to tease him of, by not healing those particular…injuries.
Damn him!!
'Oh, come on, brat. I'm doing you a favor.'
"Kyuubi. Shut. Up." He really doubted what the Kyuubi though the definition of a 'favor' was.
Pointedly ignoring the fuming Kyuubi-tenant, the aforementioned Kyuubi continued on, 'And you know, brat…it would be so much better if you let that other brat do his thing.'
And by 'thing', he meant…?
'Yes, brat, I'm talking about sex.' That resulted in the blond blushing profusely. 'Keh, so an inexperienced child. Really, what holds you now from having sex with him? I remember very well those dreams that had a one certain Uchiha in those, doin—'
"Kyuubi!"
'But really…are you having second thoughts now?'
"No, I'm not having seco—hey! Why do I have to explain things to you!? And why do you care, anyways?"
'It's not like I care or anything. Really, you humans are so undecided as to what you want—but it's getting boring in here, and without a proper body, I just thought I could get a little fun by watching.' And damn the fox, Naruto could picture the damn…damn perverted fox's—if such a thing ever existed— knowing grin, teasing him.
"Okay, Kyuubi. You. Tuning out. That's really none of your business."
'Alright, brat, I give in for now. But just so you know—I'll know whatever you do, with or without him.' and then, the fox did obey by tuning off, in that cunning way of his.
'Damn you, Kyuubi!', that was what Naruto furiously repeated inside his head, along with a furious blushing that came at the implied statement.
He really was surrounded by perverts.
…but then again, he thought grudgingly —though he would never, ever admit to no-one, especially to one Uchiha—that, that could come in handy, sometimes.
…And also, speaking-or in this case, thinking—of that… he still thought why he still hadn't given up to the—now really increasingly— Uchiha's advances. It really wasn't because he didn't like them (the advances) quite on the contrary, he rather enjoyed them. He thought he had reasons for it…but then again…
Also, it wasn't because of the 'going slow' thing—heck, he just thought of their relationship, as weird as it was, had to be the longest one he'd ever seen (and knew, for that matter), and that they liked each other since. Certainly, the time they had been away from each other… and that type of liking…wasn't exactly the 'like' he would usually feel toward family…or a brother…or a friend…something like that.
It went beyond that.
Way beyond that.
Moving on, that proved that what the two of them had been doing the most was waiting and going slow, and he thought he really had enough of it.
Also, the excuse of first having to spend time to know each other was bullshit. Heck, they'd knew each other since they were kids, knowing what irked the other the most, what their weakness were, what their best traits—yes, they grudgingly accepted that the other had them—were… they were the ones that knew the other the most.
So, that reason—excuse—was out of date as of now. And since a long time now, too.
And also, the other excuse of not wanting to raise suspicions amongst the villagers, to make them not to notice about the change of nature in their relationship—it was also just that—a mere excuse. Even if that though made him shiver, he rather knew that some—a large quantity—knew that some way or the other, the two of them had a bond stronger than anything else. If anything, it was stronger and deeper than what friendship, rivalry, betrayal, sadness, deception, disappointment could ever be. It greatly surpassed all those.
And even when said villagers didn't exactly know about the precise nature of that relationship between the two, they knew the depth of it—even when they didn't exactly like Naruto, and some still loathed him, and some thought the great Uchiha prodigy could do better. And…there was a increasingly large quantity increase of the female kind into some kind of suspicious fan-club—yes, a fan-club yet again—that didn't exactly disagree with the two of them being together—it seemed that what they called 'female intuition' actually worked, and it was rather acute. And what was more…they even liked it. And that was putting it short, if their blushing (and some of them drooling and fanning) was any indication.
So that wasn't a real reason.
And furthermore, he couldn't say he was actually —not that he ever said and-slash-or felt that— ashamed of the real meaning of their relationship, and of the real depth and implication of it. Yes, sometimes he was kinda timid to public showing-kind of affection. Yes, it really exasperated him sometimes that the other had a knack of wanting to grope and molest him whenever he felt like it—read always. And yes, it felt really weird, sometimes, considering that he was always shunned. That he wasn't permitted for the affection and human contact before— always alone, always rejected… But…
…He wasn't ashamed at all.
Not at all.
Maybe… it was trust? …Maybe it was a matter of trust…? Of trusting the other… of…
But maybe, he had already forgiven him.
And he had already began to trust him, again, without him noticing it —because that was what he always did— he always trusted him, he always blindly hoped that someday—
He would come back.
And come back he did. Even when he had to be dragged to finally come to Konoha, the most important thing was—
He let himself be dragged back.
'I don't think he had much of a choice, brat, with the way he could barely move, let alone walk…' Why did he always have to butt in, dammit!? And that damn voice was leering, too, to just top it off…
"Kyuubi, I said dammit butt off!" the damn fox was just so damn EXASPERATING!
…And then an epiphany came to him: these two—Kyuubi and Sasuke, as incredible as it may sound—really resembled the other in some aspects. They both loved to make his life miserable, and—
'I am really, really surrounded by perverted people…' he thought, almost crying, miserably, he raised himself off the bed.
He never thought waiting could be that difficult of a task. It was just…boring. Yeah, that was the word. He wasn't nervous. He wasn't. He really wasn't. He definitely was not nervous.
… … … …
…Okay, who was he kidding!? It was barely ten past five in the afternoon and he felt restless.
Naruto, one of the most carefree people there was, who prided himself of not worrying of such small things, was nervous and restless, over a damn friggin' date.
And it wasn't even that, now that he thought about it through fully. He reasoned with himself that he had gone out with him—the teme—plenty of times before…and so it shouldn't be that big of a deal, right? Right? Even when this time he said he was gonna pick him up at quarter to seven—so that they could arrive on time- so they could go at Ino's place—together. The place where the party was to be held.
The Valentine's party.
But of course—they were a couple, they were dates.
But don't worry so much about it! It was just a party! Just a party they would go to together, and where their circle of friends—members of the infamous 'Rookie Nine', along with the former Team nine, would meet and know them officially as a couple, and they would know, really know, and even when they already probably guessed, it was gonna be official, and—and…
Oh, great, now he officially nervous, he thought, abruptly stopping his pacing in the small of his living room-slash-kitchen.
…He just wanted to get over it. He just wanted to be over with his waiting. Then, he —anxiously and quickly— checked his clock again and he wanted to scream. It was barely 5:17. Damn!!
Just when you really wanted time to pass faster, it was as if it plotted against you just to go slower.
…Okay. So…he just had to distract himself, by looking for things to do. Surely he would have things to do, right? After all, he lived by himself, and that ought to be having some pending things to do.
Okay… maybe he should go and get change— He grimaced. He had already changed more than twice in the last twenty-five minutes. He really should stop acting like that he was acting just like a freakin' girl. Then if not that, he could start cleaning the hou— erm, his apartment— but then he eyed around him, and all the sparkles was almost blinding. He had just finished cleaning his place like he had never before, in the short time between mid-morning to lunch time. Damnit. He really should have a bigger place— if only he could afford it…
So, changing and cleaning was out of the question.
He checked his clock again: 5:22.
So much for letting time pass…
The next hour was the longest one he had ever had.
He wasn't nervous. Of course he wasn't. He was not. He was an Uchiha. Uchiha people don't get nervous. Not ever. And much less about a date. Of course not. He was cool, and he couldn't afford to be nervous. Besides, this would be a great opportunity to show Naruto off, and tell everyone to get the hell back off, for he had an owner now. For he owned him. Yeah, that felt oddly comfortable-ly good…
That would really show them—and especially Gaara, if he even went to that party—that they had no chance.
And the inner laugh that tried to make its way outside of his thoughts was a bit creepy, if not out-of-character of him.
…and that would be so comforting.
Ahem, anyways… getting back on track… he was not nervous. He was the cool kind of guy that didn't get nervous over anything. And so, raising his hand up to the wooden door, he knocked. Oh, he was in front of said blond's apartment door, there at the agreed time.
And knocked.
And knocked.
…Where the heck was the dobe, and what the hell was he doing!?
Just when he was about to give up and just sneak in there through the window instead —which was fairly easy; the dobe never bothered to put traps that much, and when he did, they were really lame—the door was hastily opened.
And then saw the person who opened it.
And he gasped. Well, almost, anyway.
And tried—and willed— for his body to…calm itself down. But it was hard as hell…
There…there in front of him…stood the very presence of Naruto…and… girls thought he was the one who was hot…but this… this Naruto…was just…just…
He was speechless of how he looked.
But since this narrator is not —ahem!— let's just describe the situation, shall we? We shall do that, as (and while) Naruto willed the still —and shocked— Uchiha inside, a grin over his features, even if that looked strained, for the blue eyed-boy looked utterly embarrassed. What made the ever-stoic act that way was the boy the tanned boy looked right now. Instead of the baggy clothes he was accustomed on seeing the other wearing, this time he was wearing a tight, very tight long sleeved shirt. Which showed just how toned his abdomen was. And instead of the ever-present orange color, the shirt was the color of black —which complimented on his tanned-skin coloration— and some strings of the crimson-red color adorned the end of said shirt; and Sasuke's mind vaguely pointed that it must have been for the party's rules of wearing the red color in order to be able to go.
But that was not all. Oh no. As stated before, instead of the baggy clothes—in this case, the baggy pants- he wore some tight —again— very tight dark-blue jeans. It was so tight that he could s— oh no, stopping right there. If Sasuke continued that train of thought, he was sure he'd be spending time with the blond, yes, but not exactly at the party.
And his mind was almost —and read almost, got it!? —whining loudly at that thought. Okay, he could wait until they got back home… and then h—
"—me? Teme? Are you listening to me?" the blond asked suspiciously. His prior —the blond's— reaction to that was spoiled now by how the Uchiha looked spaced out. It looked awfully familiar, his mind —and the Kyuubi-supplied.
…Why Kyuubi has always to but in…!?
'I don't really have to; I just enjoy doing so.' Was it just him, or the Kyuubi looked—or more like sounded— happier and not to mention hornier than usual?
'Sixteen years of sex-deprivation tends to do that to you, kit.' And now the damn nine-tailed fox managed to make his tenant fully embarrassed—and utterly crimson—again. Why did he always enjoy mortifying him?
'It's because it's—'
"Shut IT, Kyuubi." The damn fox; one of these days he swore he'd—
"—be? Are you listening to me, dobe?" Naruto hastily whipped his head up at that, seeing the Uchiha in front of him clearly smirking up at him.
And his prior embarrassing feeling —not the Kyuubi-induced—returned fully when looking at was in front of him. Sasuke…the teme…looked utterly…gorgeous, for lack of a better word.
He wasn't good with words—never was—but damn the teme looked good.
Instead of the trademark high-collared blue shirt of his, he wore—ahem—something that let nothing to the imagination. Okay, a better definition of it would be that Uchiha was wearing a tight (one might wonder what's up with the tight thingy…), long sleeved shirt, the color of red (more like more of a deep red wine color), that complimented perfectly with his pale skin. Oh yes it complimented…
And below that…below that those black pants suited him just right. Okay. Stopping right there, 'cuz—
"Like what you see, dobe?" the Uchiha asked, with that damn smirk on his face.
Naruto's mind screamed —just as Kyuubi's (no surprise there by now…) as well—that yes, he liked; no that was wrong, loved what he saw. But instead of saying that out loud —that would just prod the teme into teasing him to no end—he just whipped his head to the side, his face heated up to the tip of his ears.
And Naruto swore he could feel that damned smirk just widening, if that was even possible.
And oh yes, it was possible.
Stop acting like a damn uke, dammit!
…Uke…? He was not just thinking about that—was he?
Argh, it was all the teme's fault, and the Kyuubi's, and all those perverted people who surrounded him on a daily basis on most part of his life—
"—be? Are you in there?" Naruto yet again whipped his head up as he heard the bastard's voice, but this time in doing so he found himself locking eyes with very dark, and with a hint of amusement, black orbs. And those orbs just looked closer and closer, and he could feel the other's warm and tingling breath against his face, fanning him, warming him—
And...then he whispered into his ear, oh so teasingly, oh so seductively "Let's go, dobe." He never thought that name-calling could be said in that so sexy manner.
And then, in an anticipated manner—
The bastard just backed away and walked up to the door.
He was teasing him! And the bastard was walking just oh so casually out of it, as if nothing had ever happened, the teme!
Naruto knew he was contradicting himself, but damn he decided he would have his pay-back.
He never saw the smirk that graced the Uchiha's features.
And he never considered that he would be playing with fire, and if he did that, he might get burned.
Oh but we do, and that's what's important.
A.N.: Etto… hope it wasn't that crappy. +hides in corner+ But seriously, I will put corrected version next week, at the latest. Or…if anyone wants to beta it for me? I really, really am in need of a beta, whom can beta this story and/or my others. Someone can do it…? I really can't seem to find all my errors and mistakes…
Now…onto next point. Hopefully…HOPEFULLY next chappie is the final one. And I'm thinking of raising its rank, to M, cuz I'm planning to put a lemon in there. Anyone against it…? Either way, if you don't like that, I shall show it where it begins and where it ends, if you like to read that. So I guess, no prob, right?
Well then, see ya hopefully soon!