Ten hours into their trip on day three finally brought them into Sasuke's home state. They still had a couple of hours of travel ahead before they got to his city, but Naruto could see Sasuke grow a little paler at the sign welcoming them home to the state he had grown up in, but apparently never gone back to since leaving it.
"Want me to take the wheel?" Naruto asked calmly. Dark eyes snapped to him for a moment, pulled out of the spiral of memories Naruto could see Sasuke had started to fall into. He hesitated a moment before shaking his head. Naruto figured it was best not to press the issue. Sasuke had steadily gotten more shut off as the day progressed, and Naruto knew there was little he could do to stop that. Sasuke was finally coming head to head against the literal demon of his past, and all Naruto could do was to stand firm by his side and help him through this.
Smothering a yawn he leaned his head against the cool window, staring blankly into the sunset colouring the sky a brilliant splash of red, finding the fiery look slightly unsettling. He clenched his eyes shut for a moment, willing away the unease that seemed to have settled over him. He needed to be strong for Sasuke, but the encounter their first day of travelling had created a ball of worry deep in his gut.
Even now he could feel his beast stirring inside, an angry force wanting to be free. He had struggled so hard to contain it during the fight with the vampire followers, to the point of forgoing protecting himself altogether in fear of any aggressive moves on his part stirring it into action. It had all been futile the moment Sasuke had been threatened. The fear that washed through him as he saw Sasuke with the barrel of a gun pressed to his temple had torn all control out of his hands and he could only follow the motions as the beast pulled free of its leash.
Nails digging into the fleshy part of his palm pulled him out of the bad memories of blood and violence with a slight shudder. He couldn't allow himself to wallow in his own misery; he needed to be strong for Sasuke, needed to be a rock for him to cling to in the storm that was the final showdown between Sasuke and the demon that called itself his brother. He drew in a shuddering breath and hoped Sasuke didn't notice his inner turmoil.
The city spread before them, a smattering of high-rises surrounded by progressively smaller buildings before trickling away to suburbs. The highway cut across the landscape in a straight line, leading them directly towards the heart of the city. To the untrained eye Sasuke would look completely unaffected by their arrival, but Naruto saw the way his fingers tightened around the steering wheel, the joints whitening.
Naruto wanted to lean closer, offer up any kind of comfort he could, but he knew Sasuke wouldn't accept it, not now. He was too tense, too on edge. It took everything Naruto had to give him space and shut his mouth, but he did. Iruka would have been so proud of him.
Sasuke didn't say anything as they drove through city streets, so Naruto just kept staring out the windshield, seeing unfamiliar street names pass them by. They finally stopped when Sasuke pulled into a parking garage belonging to a hotel. Obviously he was sick and tired of the shoddy motels they had been staying in, and Naruto didn't blame him.
The hotel room was all dark wood and muted colours, and Naruto dearly hoped Sasuke would foot the bill when they left, because no way was he going to afford a place like this. They'd ordered the room for an unspecified number of nights, and it only cemented the fact that they had no idea what they were getting themselves into. They had no idea when they were going home, or if they were going home at all.
Naruto took in the view of the city while Sasuke diligently went through their luggage, placing weapons within reach of the bed and making sure they were fully stocked on ammo. When he finished the task he ended up standing in the middle of the room, staring at the floor, hands fisted at his side. He looked like he was on the verge of a major breakdown, the situation dawning on him. He was home, close to the place his life had been torn away from him as a child, ready to face the same horror all over again. Sasuke had a tight rein on his emotions as always, but Naruto knew that beneath that blank surface there would be a tempest of emotions.
Naruto left the view and headed over, wrapping his strong arms around Sasuke, pulling him close to him, showing him that no matter what happened he wasn't going into this alone. Naruto was with him every step of the way.
"Come," Naruto said, gently pulling Sasuke after him into the bathroom. He had hoped it would have a shower big enough for the two of them, but was surprised to see a huge tub taking up a corner. He pushed at Sasuke so he sat down on the toilet while he walked over, turning on the tabs. The tub would be big enough for the both of them, and after the long drive they could both need a wash, not to mention that he thought Sasuke needed comfort more than anything just now, even if he was too stubborn to ever voice those needs. Naruto wouldn't let that stop him though, he was stubborn, had been told so enough times.
Sasuke seemed to be slipping into a mood, his eyes vacant. Naruto hated seeing him like this, wanted the Sasuke he had slowly managed to find underneath that well-maintained exterior, needing him
Leaning down he untied Sasuke's shoes, pulling them off alongside his socks. He gently kneaded the pads of his foot, thumb digging into the soft flesh. He was rewarded with Sasuke closing his eyes, leaning back, a soft sigh escaping his mouth. His lover was tense, and Naruto needed to fix that. Needed to distract him and make him forget, if only for a moment.
Moving up he unbuttoned the shirt Sasuke was wearing, pulling it off him and dropping it to the floor. He ghosted kisses down Sasuke's shoulders before his hands trailed down a toned chest to pop open the buttons of his chinos, slowly pulling down the zipper.
He pulled Sasuke to his feet, the pants falling down to pool around his feet, leaving Sasuke only in his tight boxer briefs. He was still soft beneath the cotton, but Naruto had every intention of fixing that, later. Hooking his fingers in the waistband he pulled the boxers down, Sasuke helping in kicking it away, leaving him gloriously naked. Naruto took a moment to watch in amazement at the perfection in front of him, yet again wondering how he had managed to make this god of a man his.
Unceremoniously he pulled off his own clothes, and then they walked towards the tub. Naruto helped Sasuke get in before sliding in behind him, pulling Sasuke's back against his chest, wrapping arms and legs around his flawless body.
Sasuke relaxed in the warm water, his head leaning back against Naruto's shoulders, eyes closed.
For a while they just laid like this, close together, finding solace in each other's bodies, Naruto's hands lazily tracing nonsensical patterns against Sasuke's smooth skin. Some of the tension in Sasuke's body seemed to seep out of him, leaving him calm as he relaxed against Naruto.
Brushing his lips against Sasuke's ear Naruto gently whispered. "I love you." It felt so natural to say. He truly did love Sasuke, loved him like he hadn't loved anyone before, loved him enough to be ready to sacrifice everything for the man he was embracing. Loved him for his strength, his weakness, his soul and his mind. Loved him for allowing him to glimpse the true Sasuke no one else had seen. Loved him for loving him back.
Sasuke turned his head, dark eyes meeting Naruto's. Naruto knew Sasuke wouldn't be ready to say the words, and he really didn't care, because he saw the words clearly in Sasuke's eyes. He knew Sasuke cared about him in a way Sasuke never cared about anyone, knew Sasuke would put his life on the line to save Naruto, knew he needed Naruto just as Naruto needed him.
Even if he couldn't say the words yet Sasuke seemed determined to show Naruto how he felt. His soft lips searched out Naruto's, claiming them in a lazy kiss as he slowly rotated in Naruto's embrace until they were chest to chest. He wrapped his arms around Naruto to hold him up from the water, deepening the kiss. There was no hurry, just a slow build-up of emotions expressed through a kiss.
Naruto brushed Sasuke's bangs out of his face, wanting to see more of him. Apart from that one time when they went out Sasuke had stuck to his old hair do, bangs framing his face and a controlled mess of spikes rising from the back of his head. Not that Naruto minded, Sasuke could pull off any look, and this was how he had gotten used to seeing the man anyways.
Leaning in they pressed against each other harder, kiss steadily growing more passionate, bodies sliding against each other in the water, warm and soft. Naruto's hands travelled down Sasuke's back, pushing into the muscles as he went, finally getting his hands full of Sasuke's perfect ass. Using his grip on the firm flesh he pulled Sasuke close, their groins pressing against each other, erections steadily growing harder.
They let the water steer their movements, the gentle flow bringing them brushing up against each other before sliding away again. It wasn't enough though; Naruto could see it in the way Sasuke was frowning. Sasuke needed to forget himself completely, needed to stop thinking for a moment, and Naruto knew just how to do that.
The tub was surrounded by an edge just wide enough for Sasuke to sit on; the tiled wall behind him a support for his back. Naruto gently moved his lover into position, lifting him up out of the water and depositing him on the edge. His legs were still mostly in the water, but from his thighs and up he was free for Naruto to do what he wanted without drowning.
The cooler air from the room hardened Sasuke's nipples to small pebbles that Naruto's tongue were quick to lick at, running along the hard flesh, encircling it, lips nibbling on it. Sasuke moaned under Naruto's ministrations, his hands flying to Naruto's hard, burying themselves in the wet locks.
Naruto moved lower, his tongue tracing across a hard abdomen, licking up the water droplets that adorned the pale skin, dipping into the belly button before moving down to a prominent hipbone, leaving a love bite there, harshly red against the white of Sasuke's skin, a mark of just who Sasuke belonged to.
Sasuke's cock was rock hard by now, pushing up from the short black curls surrounding it, precum dripping from the slit.
"Naruto, please," Sasuke moaned above him when Naruto leaned in just close enough for his breath to fan over the sensitive skin, but not touch.
To have Sasuke beg, that just broke all of Naruto's ideas of any more teasing. He wrapped his lips firmly around the head of Sasuke's cock and in one smooth motion took it all in his mouth. He had to fight down his gag reflex, but soon his lips brushed black curls and the head of Sasuke's cock pushed against his throat, making him swallow around it. Only a firm grip on Sasuke's hips seemed to stop the raven from soaring off the edge, thrusting hard into Naruto's mouth.
Adding suction Naruto slowly pulled back until only the throbbing head was still in his mouth. He swirled his tongue against it, pressing against the slit, sucking up the precum that pearled at it, teasing the spot underneath where head met shaft.
The hands in his hair tightened their hold as Sasuke's breathing grew ragged. Naruto didn't think it would take him long to make Sasuke break apart. He worked up some spit and slowly took Sasuke's hard length into his mouth again, starting a slow up and down motion, his tongue teasing the warm flesh as his head bobbed.
His own cock was demanding attention, not content to Naruto just sucking off Sasuke. Moving one hand from Sasuke's hip he curled it around his erection, feeling it twitch against his palm.
Sasuke was panting now, his hips twitching as he got closer to his orgasm. Naruto took him deep, swallowed around the head and hummed a little, knowing how the vibrations could feel, and just as he started to pull back he felt the fingers in his hair pull hard, and then bitter liquid was filling his mouth, Sasuke moaning out his orgasm, hips pushing up, forcing his cock deeper in Naruto's mouth. The force of it hurt just enough for a few tears to escape Naruto's eyes, but not enough to diminish the orgasm that soared through him at the taste and feel of Sasuke coming in his mouth. He came hard, white ropes of cum hitting the side of the tub to run into the water as his hand moved fast, pulling him through his orgasm.
Swallowing the mouthful of cum he slowly pulled back from Sasuke's softening cock, placing a quick kiss on the tip before grinning up at his lover, loving the flush that had crept to Sasuke's cheeks.
Pulling him back into the water he threw his arms around him, and lazily they kissed as the water slowly cooled.
Early next morning Naruto was sitting on the bed, meticulously cleaning his gun and going through his stock of bullets, deciding which to load it up with. Expanding bullets were good for putting big holes in all kinds of creatures, but silver nitrate filled ones were better for vampires. They were going in for recon firstly, but both of them knew there was a chance they'd be pulled into a fight before they were ready, so it was better to prepare for anything. Problem was that they had no idea what they were preparing for. Itachi was a vampire, but the chance of him just sitting all alone waiting for them was slim to none. To have stayed alive and under the radar for so long he would most likely not be working alone. Hidan and Kakuzu was testament to just that.
Naruto'd eaten a large breakfast of eggs and bacon while Sasuke nibbled on a dry piece of toast earlier, and he was starting to regret his choice. He was feeling mildly queasy by now. Not because they were going into a potential fight with a vampire today, but because this could make or break Sasuke. Even if they managed to get out alive it would mean that they had managed to kill Itachi. And no matter how much reason would dictate that Itachi actually died years ago it would be hard for Sasuke to separate the brother he knew from the demon in front of him. Naruto had seen and read about that enough times during training. The human mind had a hard time keeping the memory of a person and the knowledge of what the vampire truly was apart.
Naruto looked up from his gun towards where Sasuke was sitting at the desk across the room. Papers were overflowing the surface, Sasuke going through what he had of notes to create something resembling a plan of attack. He had barely looked up at all for the last few hours, his shoulders tense and back hunched.
Sasuke had slept fitfully all night, tossing and turning. Naruto was sure he wouldn't have fallen asleep at all if it hadn't been for their bath together. The warm water and blowjob on top of days of hardly getting any sleep had exhausted Sasuke to the point where he had fallen asleep almost immediately as they crawled in under the soft sheets.
Worry gnawed at him, but Naruto tried to ignore it, knowing it was little he could do about it now.
Instead he pulled out his phone, finally remembering that it had ran out of juice the first night, and he had kept forgetting to charge it. Plugging it in now the messages soon started trickling in. The first he saw was a missed call from Iruka. Kakashi must have talked to him, because otherwise there would've been a lot more of those. Five new text messages-Naruto had never had a lot of friends to text so the small number wasn't all the surprising.
He opened up the messages and saw three from Kiba, one from Kakashi, and surprisingly enough one from Lee.
Kiba's were short; the first one sent a while before the next two. Naruto would guess Kakashi had informed the team of just where they were between the first two messages.
-Where r u guys?
-You asshole im gonna kill u when u get back.
-U two better come back
Kakashi's just stated that everyone had been informed and that the general consensus was that they were idiots, and was in for a beating when they got back. Naruto had a sneaking suspicion Sakura would be the one to administer that beating. He'd thought she was a sweet girl when he first met her, but then he'd seen her temper, and that image was quickly shattered.
Lee's was the surprising one. Naruto hadn't thought one could get tired reading a message, but the all caps, full of exclamation marks, praising the braveness of youth message actually hurt a little to read. Lee was enthusiastic that was sure, and he gave them his full support, obviously believing in them.
Naruto couldn't help the smile on his lips as he put the phone away. He didn't know what he could say to them to make this alright, so he just didn't. he would make it up to everyone when they got back, maybe treat them all to pizza or something, because pizza was almost as good as ramen when it came to fixing problems. Almost.
"Naruto?" Sasuke peered up from his papers, waving Naruto over. Naruto loved that Sasuke hadn't just brought him alone, but was going through the plans with him, looking for any input Naruto had. Sure, with Sasuke being a genius and the one who knew the house Naruto didn't actually have anything to add, but it was still nice to be brought in on the plan. It showed him that Sasuke actually valued his opinions.
Sasuke showed Naruto a diagram he had made of the house. However Sasuke had managed to make one this detailed for a house he hadn't been in in years was beyond Naruto, who would be hard pressed to remember that much about the apartment he was living in at the moment. Bedrooms, bathrooms, living rooms and hallways were all drawn in with neat lines. They had no way of knowing where Itachi would reside until they actually got there, but Sasuke had plotted out where they should enter, and what route they should take, covering the most likely places when they actually went inside. The first step of the plan entailed getting past the gates and survey the house from the vast gardens surrounding it, seeing any activity going in and out. They would go in soon, aiming for an early afternoon. Neither wanted to postpone this another moment, and by going in while the sun was still up it would liken the possibility that Itachi had retreated to a dark corner of the manor, leaving them free to explore the area and come up with a more detailed plan.
Spending an hour going over the plan and the various contingencies the two partners-turned-lovers looked at each other, knowing that this was it, this was when Sasuke either got his vengeance or they went down in a blaze of pain. This was the start of the beginning.
"Itachi?"
Itachi opened his eyes slowly, barely deigning the man in front of him with a sharp look before closing them again as he let the classical music that flowed from the speakers flood through him. He had called for him, but it wouldn't harm the other to wait.
"What did you want?"
Itachi sighed. Obviously the other wasn't in a patient mood. Itachi rubbed his forehead as he leaned forward, turning off the music.
"Have you heard back from Kakuzu and Hidan yet?"
"No. Not a word since they left. Think they were trying to trick us?"
"Considering the fact that they were to be paid after they had delivered what they were looking for it wouldn't be much of a trick would it?"
"So they gave up?"
Itachi pressed his fingertips together as he leaned back in his chair again. "No, there was too much money at stake, Kakuzu would not walk away from that. Something has happened to them."
"What could have stopped those psychos?"
A small smile tugged at the corner of Itachi's mouth as a picture of a young boy flashed in his mind, broken apart by the carnage he was seeing, eyes wide in shock and horror.
"Sasuke," he simply said, and knew it to be true. He had left behind a broken boy, but Sasuke was an Uchiha, just like he—or at least his body—was and it would take more than that to stop him. No, Sasuke would have used the pain of losing his family to grow cold and strong, his mind set on revenge. His parting words would have ensured that.
Yes, there was no doubt in his mind that Sasuke was the reason Hidan and Kakuzu never reported back, and that could only mean one thing. The moment he had been waiting for was growing close. It would only be a matter of time before Sasuke tracked him down and Itachi would be able to put the final part of his plan in motion.
A/N: Well, I guess you can call this chapter the quiet before the storm? The next chapters should be… fun. *sharpens blades and loads guns*
Review or I'll kill Sasuke!
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(How awful of a writer would I be if I actually mean that last sentence? Omfg. XD Obviously no one is safe, reviews or no review. *evil laugh*)
