Author's Rant: Whoa, I hit the 100k Word-mark! Banzaii! And, good news! I have my little procedure/looking into my stomach in a week, so they're going to figure out what the hecks going on in Author-Junior, the firey pit of hell's digestive tract! On an unrelated note, I said I'd have this a week ago...but I apologize. Alot's been going on, and I just got distracted. I'm going to be transferring into dorm-room soon! Sweet freedom. Thank you all for being patient!
When Sasuke stepped into Mangekyou, he wasn't in his usual top form. Before leaving his condo this morning, his hair decided to defy him by refusing to work with his comb. He wasted precious minutes trying to find his briefcase. His car wouldn't start. Then when it finally did, there was an accident along his route, which caused him to take the long way to work. To make matters worse, just prior to getting ready, he witnessed the last of his remaining stability walk off in a mini dress and stilettos. The stripper had taken more than her nasty choice of fragrance with her this morning; she'd taken Sasuke's ability to work with clarity by feeding his brain thoughts of him.
Not that Sasuke needed a woman in bed to bring about the images oozing from his subconscious. He had no trouble reliving his conflicting feelings for Naruto day after day. Since Naruto left, his past three nights have been plagued by wild blonde hair, and clashing blue eyes. Even the comfort of other women could not derail Sasuke's dreams for even a moment, it seemed. Because when Naruto left, he hadn't really left. He simply occupied the space inside Sasuke's mind, instead of his office, without a lease; and the businessman wanted nothing more than to vacate him from the premises.
Unfortunately, this intangible Naruto, who paraded happily around in his head and refused to leave, was just as steadfast and stubborn as the real Naruto.
The incident in his bedroom was the effect of such stubbornness. The constant struggle to rid himself of the others presence, resulted in the embarrassing incident of snoozing before sex. This was practically an anomaly for Sasuke, who was usually ragged on by Itachi and Juugo for not sleeping at all. For them this would probably be a welcomed change. He could just imagine Itachi breathing a sigh of relief knowing that he was taking more, what he would call, "personal time" to himself. Though if this "personal time" led to more visions of his past and the tired eyes that came with it, Sasuke preferred staying an insomniac. He'd rather go nights without sleep than constantly feel this drained.
Karin was sitting at her post, filing her nails when she saw Sasuke approach. With incredible speed she put away the filer and waved her arms around.
"Sasuke, Sasuke! Can you come over here please?" She urgently hissed, motioning for her boss to approach. Sasuke sighed, reluctant to do so since he speculated she was just trying to flirt with him again. Regardless, he walked up to her.
Karin's large heels clacked loudly against the alabaster floor, and she made her way around the desk to face him. Karin glanced at the time on her wrist and asked in a worried, fast pace, "Are you alright? Are you sick? Did something happen on your way here?"
Sasuke didn't expect to feel Karin's cool hand press against his temple. She felt his skin, checking his temperature. He flinched with surprise.
"What, are you doing?" Sasuke grumbled.
"Did I fail to inform you that today's meeting starts at twelve?" Karin asked cautiously. She grimaced, as if bracing herself for the worst response imaginable.
Her eyes darted around.
"It's twenty minutes from now..." She whispered.
"I'm aware," Sasuke took her hand off his head. "And no, I'm not sick. I was stuck in traffic."
At that, Karin let out a sigh of relief.
"Phew," She giggled to cover up the anxiety. "Because for a second there..." She thought she was going to be fired. Karin's shoulders slumped. Folding her arms across her chest, she eyed Sasuke up and down. Something was different about him today. He looked a little more rugged. It was kind of sexy. Karin grinned. She pushed up her breasts to show some more skin, almost shoving them in his face from where she stood, before she cooed, "Well as long as you know, Sasuke, I'm happy. Tell me if you need anything else today, okay?"
"Tell me you're not all hot and bothered by these melons," Naruto's voice mimicked in Sasuke's head. The image of a teenage Naruto, stuffing his shirt with school paper, appeared before his eyes; and Sasuke's eye twitched in annoyance, a noise escaping his throat. He fixed his face into an indomitable wall of imposing strength. Karin's head magnetized towards the sound.
"Sasuke?" Karin inquired, noticing he was just standing there.
"A cough." Sasuke covered up smoothly. His expression was void of any humor. His stance, completely business. "You can go back to work."
"O-Oh! Yes. Sure." Karin nodded, Sasuke's tone having convinced her that she was just imagining things. Maybe this desk job was making her teensy bit crazy. She seriously needed to get out of here early today.
Sasuke continued his march towards the elevators, pushing past a few people, and she stared at his back. He hit the button to go upstairs, and was convinced that he needed to seek some professional help. There was no reason an idiotic event from the past should make him react like that. Especially in these circumstances. Sasuke rubbed at his eyes.
Karin, as she did her routine gaze, realized there was something really wrong with her Sasuke lately. Sure she always thought her handsome employers face, irate or otherwise, would never put a damper on her spirits...but at the realization that he barely showed up on time, she couldn't help but feel disturbed.
Sasuke knew the meeting was in twenty minutes. She didn't forget to tell him, she was certain of that now. Yet he was just arriving - and it wasn't in his personality to take a risk like this, since this was the same Sasuke who would show up for work hours before anyone else did, and she suddenly felt inclined to say something about it.
In fact, Karin noticed Sasuke hasn't been the same since that Naruto guy quit a few days ago, and although she didn't want to fathom Suigetsu being right, her boyfriend had been saying he suspected something went on between them. Something that went much further back then work.
Still, she didn't want to believe someone as cool as Sasuke would be bothered by that shrimp. Suigetsu had to be wrong, right? He was an idiot when it came to everything else, so clearly he misread this. He must have.
"Sasuke," She found herself calling after him again. "Wait, Sasuke!"
Karin ran after him. The elevator dinged. Sasuke looked over his shoulder to find Karin now standing behind him, hunched over and panting. He held the mechanical door open with one arm. Her smile was replaced with unease.
"What?" He questioned, pressed for time.
"Sasuke...are you sure you're not sick?" Karin asked apprehensively.
Sasuke lifted a brow.
"No."
"Well, you just...never come in this late," Karin pointed out, glancing again at her watch. "You've been acting strangely since...Narut-" She stopped. Karin brought a hand to her mouth, hoping she caught herself before he could catch onto what she was saying, but it was already too late. Sasuke's face had transformed. Fully facing her, Sasuke gave her a look so dirty it made sludge look clean.
Karin took a step back.
"You have work to do," Sasuke spat venomously. "Worry about that, or I'll find somebody else who will."
Karin's eyes widened and she croaked out a jittery, "Y-yes, Sir."
"Good."
Sasuke disappeared behind the elevators doors. When he made it to his floor, before he stepped out of the elevator, he hardened his features and straightened his back. His Zegna Ermenegildo suit, as neat as his hair, settled on a pair of broad, confident shoulders. Eighteen minutes now. Eight chairs. This would go smoothly, Sasuke told himself. He just needed to focus. The raven took casual strides towards the conference room. He walked regal and slow through the cubicles; effectively making sure to cover up the disorder which now decidedly made itself known to Karin, of all people.
He was well prepared for this board meeting, despite being late, and Sasuke was determined to make these next two hours fly by. Though he was uncharacteristically behind on other things. If it weren't for Juugo, who offered to help him with most of Naruto's load, Sasuke realized he would have probably made a fool of himself in front of his brother and his associates today. Along with his uncle Madara, head of Mangekyou's southern branch, and a stickler for perfection, Itachi would be returning from an overseas business trip this past week. Which is why he couldn't afford to fuck up in the presence of those, who would surely be questioning his leadership. This was a test, and not one he was about to fail at in front of his own blood.
Sasuke rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. He took note of the mounds of paper work in his office as he passed it. Knowing that by the end of this meeting he would be the one to look over them, his frustration spiked. Wonderful. That would usually be Naruto's job, but since he quit, the load piled up towards the ceiling and it was Sasuke's problem now. It would probably take him a few days to complete. None of Sasuke's past secretaries could get it done quicker…except, well, Naruto.
Naruto was the exception.
Sasuke rubbed his head. If only he could get through this meeting, simply slip out after, and leave; then he could get ahead on some work in the comfort of his own home. With this thought, Sasuke realized he truly wasn't himself.
He would never think about leaving, because he never required any sort of down time. His attendance record was near perfect, and he didn't intend to squander that now. He was great at working under pressure. He just needed to go through the motions of this conversation, well, interrogation, until it was over. They would discuss the state of the company, evaluate the workers, evaluate him-almost like a checkup.
Sasuke smoothed a barely noticeable crease in his pants, before he took a deep breath and stepped inside the room where Itachi and the others would join him. The board meetings were annual. Practiced. He'd learned to run a meeting since he was twelve years old, courtesy of his father, and he'd led countless oral presentations with finesse. So why was today any different?
As Sasuke took out the thick portfolio—the yearling earnings and losses—from his brief case and placed it on the large, round table, a pair of overtaxed eyes met a white wall. Rather than the steely gaze that held expectations and measureless authority. His tongue, which procured results, felt swollen and unwilling to cooperate; and his hands were the clammy doppelgangers of a nervous, and ridiculously twitchy teenager. Today was different, because it was far from normal. He was far from normal.
Ever since Sakura gave him that speech, work was the farthest thing from his mind, and if his insomnia was bad before, it seemed to worsen with the added spices of frustration and guilt.
Nothing made sense.
"He's a scatter brained, impulsive nitwit...But he's not like you and me. You know he's not capable of intentionally hurting anyone."
Sasuke didn't know if he could believe that.
Sakura's words had unhinged him, but there just wasn't any other evidence, except the idiot's word, to suggest Naruto was guiltless. Was Sasuke supposed to reevaluate his whole life based on that? Sakura seemed to think so. And since that day, she hasn't attempted to see him even once.
At times Sasuke could be prideful, but he knew that at some point, as justified as his skepticism was, he had crossed the line. He had snapped at her, even though he knew she was coming from a good place. He had acted bitter, driven by resentment, and even went as far as to bring up her past. Sasuke sighed. He hadn't turned on his laptop much since then. He supposed he didn't have the earnest will power look over many documents on recent sales since he was peeved. He knew Sakura cared about him. Probably more deeply, and stubbornly, than most people, but she was partly to blame for his anger. If she hadn't gone and stuck her nose where it didn't belong...
"You know he's not capable of intentionally hurting anyone."
Sasuke rolled his eyes.
Why was it Naruto who was portrayed as some sort of martyr?
More importantly, why was Sasuke even thinking about this right now?
"Sasuke," a deep voice sleeked from behind, pushing back his veil of thought. Sasuke turned around, surprised to see his brother leaning against the door frame. His normally pale skin was tinged a shade darker, and Sasuke could see a little sunburn on the side of Itachi's neck. It looked like it hurt.
He wondered how long Itachi had been standing there, watching him think.
"I'm happy to see you again," Itachi said with a smile. "You look well prepared for the meeting today."
Sasuke nodded in affirmation as Itachi walked in, "I am."
"Uncle is on his way. He and the others should be joining us shortly." Itachi took a seat in the nearest chair. Leaning into it, he folded his hands together while Sasuke moved to start up the projector, "How have things been, Sasuke?"
The dreaded question.
"Good." Sasuke lied, facing the opposite direction. He pressed the button on the top of the projector. It came alive with a dull roar. He was glad Itachi hadn't been around to witness everything that took place, but knowing his brother, he would find out eventually. The question is, was Itachi already aware of Naruto's termination? "And fine. It's been fine." He took a steadying breath as he shuffled some paper on the table, knowing just how ridiculous he must sound. "How was Australia?"
His brother studied him for a moment. "Hot," Itachi drawled with a sour look on his face. "But overall, it was a pleasant experience. I saw a few once-in-a-lifetime sights. Believe it or not, the only thing I can say was disappointing was that I didn't see a single Kangaroo."
"I see."
"I did, however, see an Opera in Sydney. It was breathtaking."
"Interesting," Sasuke watched the light from the projector flicker, appearing disinterested. Itachi was talking a little too much, and coupled with the intense staring Sasuke could practically feel burying into his back, Itachi wore this unnerving smile. Sasuke tried to tune him out and finish his preparations.
"I wrestled some crocodiles," Itachi pitched with a sly smile, his eyes glinting with awareness. Sasuke went to turn on the laptop he brought with him.
"Hn…"
"I was invited to join a tribe of Aboriginals while I was there, but I had to politely turn them down."
"Ah…" The screen came into view and picking up the remote, Sasuke dimmed the contrast. He knew he could never cover up anything from his sibling, but just this once he hoped he could avoid the headache of that conversation.
"Did I mention I got lost in the Outback for three days? Did you know you can survive on nothing but dirt and rocks, given the proper encouragement?"
"Interesting…" Sasuke vacantly murmured.
"Really the most amazing trip. Could you believe I raised a pack of dingo babies?"
Sasuke blinked. He glanced over his shoulder to look at his brother skeptically, slowly beginning to notice what Itachi was saying.
"Wait…what?"
"Exactly," Itachi affirmed, apparently proving some sort of point to himself. Sasuke cursed himself for being so obviously distracted. He pulled up the power point for his presentation and flitted through the settings some more. Sasuke heard Itachi sigh.
"Earlier, when I asked you how things have been...you said you were fine."
"I did."
"So you lied to me, Sasuke," Itachi accused. He crossed his legs underneath the table. Sasuke drew a breath, his back still to Itachi. He didn't need to turn around to feel Itachi's piercing gaze. "Tell me what happened."
"What do you mean?" Sasuke feigned confusion.
"You said things were fine. Karin downstairs would beg to differ."
"You're getting your information from Karin?" Sasuke scoffed. That was rich. His lips curved into a sneer. "If she's not fixing her hair or stalking me, she's spreading rumors through Suigetsu's various channels. You'd listen to anything she says?"
"Luckily for you… I overheard the conversation myself."
"You were there?" Sasuke tried to mask his surprise. Trying to keep his voice leveled, toneless, he said, "What exactly did you hear?"
"That you came in late," Itachi said with a trace of disbelief, though he didn't look quite as relieved as Sasuke thought he would be. "When I heard that, even I was a little nervous."
"My alarm didn't work this morning."
"You've never needed to depend on an alarm, Sasuke."
"The door in my apartment was broken."
"Sasuke."
Sasuke's hands clenched at his sides. Itachi could be infuriatingly perceptive.
"I was tired," he said. "It was a long night."
"Well exhaustion has never stopped you before," Itachi was quick to point out, given Sasuke's track record of going days without sleep. "Especially before one of these meetings."
"Let's just call this a first, then." Sasuke just wanted to end this conversation.
"I witnessed you threatening to let Karin go, Sasuke."
Sasuke folded his arms, eyes narrowing. "Karin was being indecent."
"And that comes as a surprise to you?" Itachi questioned with a frown, looking unconvinced. "If I remember clearly, just a few weeks ago one of your hires was attempting to give you a blow job under your desk. I think Karin is pretty harmless in this comparison, isn't she?"
"This conversation is irrelevant," Sasuke was starting to be pushed into the defensive. He walked towards the door, attempting to leave. He felt the need to collect himself. At this rate, he wouldn't be able to perform as expected. "Madara should be here soon."
Itachi's next few words were like a bullet through Sasuke's chest.
"Where's Naruto, Sasuke?"
And there it was.
Sasuke glared, shifting positions to expressly convey that he was not in the mood for this, he faced Itachi.
Now deeming it fit to become hostile, Sasuke hissed, "I'm not discussing this."
"I haven't seen him since I arrived," Itachi continued, his voice louder. Haughty with the knowledge Sasuke had failed to conceal. Ignoring the look of disdain on Sasuke's face, he said, "Usually your assistant would be helping you with preparations, but he's nowhere to be found. When I looked into his office, his station is cleared out...After I spoke to a few people; they informed me that you two had a fight that resulted in a costly bathroom repair, and a few bruises. Why didn't you tell me, Sasuke?"
"It's nothing," Sasuke bit out.
Itachi looked disappointed.
"I would have found out eventually. The broken toilets in the men's bathroom would suggest it wasn't nothing."
"It is, nothing. It's done with." Sasuke's voice rose, his blood boiling. "Naruto quit." Itachi looked taken aback. Sasuke was just sick of hearing about Naruto. Thinking about Naruto. Dreaming about Naruto.
NarutoNarutoNaruto-
"That's what you get when you hire someone as under-qualified as that idiot. Naruto couldn't handle the pressure or the workload, so he quit."
"Sasuke, you know that's not-"
"I'm not talking about this—!" Sasuke spat. He didn't care what Itachi knew, or what he didn't know. "He's gone, and that's the end of it, Itachi."
His brother stood up, opening his mouth to speak, but the noise of a door opening kept his words from coming out. The tension was heavy in their throats as Sasuke and Itachi glanced over to see their uncle, followed by a few of his business partners, file into the conference room. They awkwardly glanced at each other before falling back into a relaxed stance. Both their faces became a practiced, blank slate.
Sasuke shot Itachi one last look that said he wasn't going to talk about this again, before taking his place at the table. Itachi put on a fake smile.
"Good to see you," The elder greeted their guests kindly. "Shall we begin?"
Madara didn't look at either of them. He only said, "I have somewhere important to be after this. Let's make this quick."
Itachi made a sound of acknowledgement, glancing at Sasuke once more, before also moving back to his seat. While Sasuke conducted the meeting with flawless precision, Itachi's unremitting eyes didn't leave Sasuke's.
Not even once.
Sasuke looked through them.
He pointed to the screen.
"The projected data for this week's sales..."
Kiba held what he deemed the holster-of-all-heart attacks. The big guns. The seizure inducing salts, close to his chest. In the hallway of his condo, heading back to his place this late at night, he held a grocery bag filled with over twenty packs of instant soba and ramen, and he wasn't afraid to use it. Not unless he really had to. In which case he feared even his goodie bag of high cholesterol wouldn't be enough.
For the past two hours, his fist had been in a bloody battle with Naruto's bedroom door, repeatedly rapping against it, and nothing worked in convincing the idiot to leave. The loud pounding could be heard three doors down, and a few neighbors had already angrily swung by and asked what the hell he was doing, to which he sarcastically replied he was building a birdhouse. Looking back on it, Kiba would have thought it was hysterical that his efforts brought their landlady, in nothing but green footie pajama's, to their door step; because what seventy-something year old wore footie pajama's? And for that matter, who owned those anymore?
But there was nothing funny about this situation.
Naruto was in one hell of a slump.
Three days. Three fucking days have passed and things have been rough in the Inu-maki household. For Kiba, it's like someone really did die recently. Since Shikamaru gave them the low down on what was really going on with those debt collectors, Naruto hasn't been the same. What can ya expect? If he were in his friend's shoes, he would have probably booked a flight for South America, the North pole-anywhere then to deal with this bull shit. Just being a spectator made him feel sick to his stomach, and no…it wasn't cause he tried Akamaru's doggy treats this morning just to see what they tasted like.
This was honest-to-god disgust with the people responsible for making Naruto depressed like this, and with himself for being unable to do anything about it.
After Tsunade told them Jiraiya said he was going to die, she wouldn't even explain herself. The saggy titted broad decided to leave without any notice, and Kiba had to watch his friend just sit there like a vegetable and grieve all over again. He attempted to go after her, but Shikamaru stopped him.
"Now's not the time, Kiba."
Fuck was he pissed.
Still he couldn't go against anything Shikamaru said. He'd been helpful so far, and even though it sucked, Shika told them that until they could find out where Orochimaru was conducting his business, Naruto needed to act like nothing was wrong. That meant that when they came to collect their pay, Naruto had to give it to them as usual. He couldn't act suspicious.
"Listen, if we jump the gun and take Kabuto into custody, Orochimaru's just going to disappear, and I doubt Kabuto's going to tell us his whereabouts," Shikamaru had said that day, staring directly into Naruto's tired, solemn eyes. "He's been hiding out somewhere and I'm pretty confident that once we find it, we'll have enough evidence to put the two of them away for life. Even if we were to detain Kabuto and threaten him with jail time, I doubt he's going to sell out his boss. So until we get a lead, or we're able to track him and his location, I need you to act like nothing's wrong. Can you do that for me?"
Naruto had said nothing.
Kiba had watched him just stare at the floor.
"Naruto…" Shikamaru sighed; he placed a hand on his friends shoulders. "Don't worry…I won't let them get away with this. But until we can get the ball rolling, I need you to promise me you won't do anything reckless, okay?" Shikamaru paused, waiting for any kind of response. "Please, Naruto."
"I need to think…" Naruto had murmured, and after that, he'd got up and barricaded himself in his room.
Before Shikamaru left, he told Kiba their place was going to be under protective custody. Someone was posted a block away, just to make sure things didn't go wrong. And until they could catch these guys, he wanted Naruto to wear a wire and to act like he was none the wiser the next time Kabuto visited.
Naruto hasn't come out, since.
He only left his room to pee, eat something—which was barely enough to sustain life—or brush his teeth. Kiba understood where Naruto was coming from. Despite being notorious for looking at the bright side of things, Naruto was only human, and there was only so much a guy could take before that optimism croaked. But Kiba feared Naruto was beyond the breaking point. This fear only increased when after hours of asking Naruto to come out. He even tried to bribe him with Ichiraku's, and the blond said in a nasally voice that he wasn't in the mood.
Those were all alarm bells right there.
Naruto needed some serious cheering up, which is why if Kiba couldn't bring him to Ichiraku's, he'd just bring Ichiraku's to him.
Sort of.
Kiba clutched his bag and finally made it to his apartment door, struggling to put the key into the lock while balancing this thirty-ton thing of noodles on his shoulder. He almost lost his shit when he dropped the key and someone from behind him appeared to pick it up. A hand reached from in-between his legs to smoothly retrieve the keys from the floor.
"Jesus- shit!" Kiba screamed, jumping where he stood. Turning around to see who the hell gave him such a fright, Kiba came face to face with someone he's never seen before. It was this pasty, prissy dude with dark, long hair and long, nimble fingers. Though the way this guy carried himself definitely set him apart from anyone Kiba's ever seen around here. He looked really out of place.
Standing there, wearing this freaking thousand dollars suit, he really looked ridiculous against the rotting walls of their apartment complex. Kiba wondered if he needed directions to the Grand Lux or something.
"Here you go," the man said, handing him his keys.
Kiba took them cautiously, a little guarded given everything that's happened recently. In a rough voice he wasted no time in saying, "Do ya need directions or something? Cause if ya don't, I'd really like it if you'd back the fuck off. You're way too close."
The guy didn't seem to take kindly to his words, because his face steeled into a scowl.
"What I need, is to find Naruto Uzumaki's apartment. Do you happen to know where he resides in this," He paused to glance at the rusted covered doors, features twisting in disapproval, "interesting …" He trailed off for a moment, still trying to find the right word, "…dwelling…?"
Kiba dropped his bag to floor and glared.
If this was one of those guys…
"Who the hell wants to know? Look asshole, if I were you, I'd get to the point real quick, or things are going to get messy around here," Kiba's nostrils flared. "Naruto doesn't want any visitors right now, and I don't really like how you snuck up behind me; so thanks for the keys, but I think you should get going now."
"I don't intend to leave until I speak with him," the other smoothly replied. He held out his hand. Kiba glared at the outstretched hand, distrusting and ready to pounce. "Itachi Uchiha," he introduced, and Kiba's eyes grew wide. "I'm sure you know of my brother Sasuke. I'm just here to see how Naruto is doing, so if you would kindly-"
Slam.
When Itachi could so much as blink…
Kiba had managed to open the door, pick up his things, and shut it in his face.
Itachi was too shocked to properly react.
"-let me…inside."
Author's closing notes: Things are going to start picking up really soon. A lot of questions are going to be answered. Yes. That question. The one you've all been wanting to be answered.
Stay tuned! And thank you guys!
I've had so many reviews lately, I haven't been able to reply to each and everyone...but I read every single one and fawn over them because they're all so encouraging and positive! Just know how much I appreciate all of you who've been sticking with me thus far. =)