Hello? (waits-------receives no response.)...oh yeah, thats because everyone thinks I died.

! One THOUSAND A MILLION apologies for my disgustingly long updating time for this chapter! NEVER again! what was that, 7 weeks almost? maybe you wanna go back and read the previous couple chapters so you remember whats going on? lol...my gawd.

Ok now it might not seem like it from your point of view but this was probably one of the hardest chapters I've written on this story. Don't know why, it just didn't want to make itself happen! Well I worked hard, and think of this chapter as more of a suspenseful bridge into the next chapter which WILL be up within the next 3 weeks heck lets try for two.

I luv u all... im sorry i neglect you and hope this chapter is alright for what it is!!... :) (throws teddy bears into crowd of readers)...(and cookies)...(and SasuNaru plushies)

!Kitsune!

Chapter XXXVI

Suspense

Sasuke was happy the entire day. Granted, Sasuke was basically never openly and visibly happy, but Naruto could tell. Even if he wasn't the type to smile, Sasuke always showed his happiness in some manner, even if the rest of the world didn't know which signs to look for. For one, Naruto found it hard to focus or keep his mind on their mission if Sasuke was touching him every chance they had. He knew Sasuke was managing to both focus and flirt, a rather advanced task—he knew he couldn't ever do that, so he remained distracted.

All he wished was that he felt better physically.

Naruto could practically feel his chakra draining from his body. It was slow, but steady. And yet, his problem remained secret.

Sasuke continued his good mood streak as they grew still closer to their target destination. The thick forest had gradually thinned as they'd passed through it all morning, and by the time it was mid afternoon, the Grass Country had lived up to its own name. There were a few trees, but their path now consisted of rolling hills covered with thick, at times 4 foot tall, grasses.

Naruto hung behind just a few steps, watching Sasuke from behind as they trekked their way through the seemingly endless fields, gazing at the sharp contrast of Sasuke's dark hair and clothes against the vibrant green and blue of surrounding nature. And as he watched, his thought patterns focused on only one thing.

"There aren't many trees here…not much that I could really mess up if…if I actually lose control of Kyuubi. But…Sasuke would be the only one around me. I won't have any control over who's my enemy or my friend. Sasuke would be the only object of focus." Naruto's train of thought broke as Sasuke stopped walking and turned around.

"Quit lagging behind, Naru-chan." Sasuke grabbed Naruto's wrist and pulled him forward, to walk evenly with him. "By the time it gets dark, we'll be right on the edge of our target location. So we're almost there." Naruto took a deep breath, nodding. He was looking elsewhere, but he could feel Sasuke's eyes on him.

"Sasuke…he's going to see right through me. He knows me inside and out." Almost as soon as the thought had finished in his mind, Sasuke spoke up.

"You're alright…aren't you…?" Sasuke's hand came and made Naruto look at him by turning his chin. Naruto desperately tried to force himself into a carefree demeanor. He forced the tension and fear from his eyes as they met with Sasuke's.

"Sasuke I'm fine! What's with you?" he laughed it off lightly, and in his heart he prayed that Sasuke wouldn't have a reason to use Sharingan any time soon. Sasuke's Sharingan could sense fear and uncertainty, and also motive. Any façade Naruto would erect, he knew the Sharingan would tear it down in a second.

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Not yet an hour had passed before Naruto felt that his body was near to a breakdown. He almost always had boundless energy; more than he knew what to do with most times. But now, he knew that he was actually out of his own chakra. If he were to run out, both Kyuubi and the curse seal would try to compensate for his lack of strength, and at the same time. Kyuubi never had been one to stand for invasion of territory, and Naruto knew that his own body was Kyuubi's territory. The curse seal was the unwelcome invader.

Sasuke suddenly paused and turned to face Naruto.

"It seems like we're closer than I thought…" Sasuke mused. As Sasuke peered around, Naruto stared constantly at the two visible curse marks on Sasuke's temple and neck, then he stared at Sasuke's chest and stomach, knowing that there were two others.

"How does he handle it…he's unbelievable.." Naruto then began to focus, realizing what Sasuke was saying.

"The Sharingan should be able to sense any nearby chakra. I can't use it for long though." Naruto froze up.

"Sharingan will sense I'm not stable…" "No!" he blurted out. Sasuke watched him extremely closely, waited a few silent seconds, and then asked.

"Why?" he questioned simply. Naruto shook his head.

"You…you can't, what about your curse seals?" he asked, turning his own situation onto Sasuke. Sasuke only smirked.

"Don't worry Naru-chan." He blinked, and when his eyes opened they were using the Sharingan; Naruto took a step back defensively.

"I'll help you scope the area…" Naruto murmured. Sasuke leaned and briefly kissed him before stealing off through the grass. There were two trees, about 70 yards from one another. Sasuke was heading for one, so Naruto went for the other. Nearly as soon as he got distance. He felt Kyuubi's chakra grow stronger within him, something that only happened whenever extra chakra was needed for survival. He darted to the tree and leaned against it out of Sasuke's view, sliding against it to the ground.

"That Uchiha's seal is annoying me, kit."

Kyuubi's voice.

Naruto sat up straighter, his breathing rate picking up a few notches upon hearing the demon speak to him.

"I can't help it.." he murmured in response, beginning to feel sick. He closed his eyes as his body began to feel as though it were heating up. He wanted to beg with Kyuubi not to fight against it, but no matter how much of a basic "agreement" he had with the demon to coexist on friendly terms, Kyuubi was still an evil force; there would be no reasoning. He felt a jolt inside his body, and his hand flew to his stomach as if putting his hand over the five-pronged seal there would keep Kyuubi under control.

"Control…control…that's all I have to focus on…"

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He heard Sasuke calling him soon, and then Sasuke's voice grew closer. Naruto stood, suppressing the shaking in his body and rounded the tree, nearly running directly into Sasuke, who caught him around the waist on reflex.

"Naru-chan…? If the run-in we had with those mimics is still bothering you…." He paused there as Naruto shook his head.

"It's not that. It's not bothering me.." he murmured. The truth was that he had no idea what had set it off.

"Suck it up…My stupid problems aren't important right now…" Naruto told himself. "If Sasuke use to handle it even before Anbu gave him more control, then I can do it!" He looked up, forcing the same smile.

"Let's get going! Did you see anything from the tree?" he asked. They resumed moving along, but now they were purposely moving quicker. Sasuke's natural quickness was making itself evident as they flew through the high grasses. A small clump of forest was lying up ahead.

"There are chakra remnants in that clump of trees up there. Even without the Sharingan, which predicts chakra movement, I can tell that. Something's most definitely there. This is our target area." Sasuke briefed Naruto quickly.

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The further they progressed into the clump of forest, the darker it became. Not because it was late in the day, but because the forest ceiling cover was so thick that sunlight could barely penetrate it. It was deathly quiet.

"There are no animals here…" Sasuke whispered almost too quietly for Naruto to hear. Naruto stayed close to Sasuke as they were crouched in some brush, surveying a particularly dark area just ahead of them.

"There's something there…" Naruto whispered momentarily. Sasuke turned to look at him, wondering how Naruto had picked up on something he had missed.

"What do you mean…" Naruto glanced at him but didn't answer. The truth was that he didn't know, Kyuubi had told him. He stood up, alarming Sasuke, who pulled him back down immediately.

"You know how much I didn't even want you here with me Naruto, I'm not letting you do whatever you're about to do!" he hissed in Naruto's ear, keeping a firm grip on Naruto's wrist. Naruto looked at him sharply.

"Sasuke-kun…do you trust me as a ninja?" he asked simply. He didn't know what had come over him, but he had full confidence that whatever was there, he was the one to take care of it. Sasuke stared at him apprehensively, his dark eyes not breaking contact. "Don't stare at me like that." Naruto said with a brief chuckle. "Let me take this." Sasuke continued staring, and what he saw was that Naruto's eyes read unwavering confidence. Sasuke's hand went to Naruto's hand with the engagement ring. He grabbed Naruto's ring finger tightly, squeezing.

"If you can't marry me, I'll kill myself." Sasuke muttered, narrowing his eyes for emphasis. Naruto stood up again as Sasuke let him go.

"Don't talk that way Sasu-kun!" He left, finding it amusing that Sasuke was acting that way. So damned dramatic…He crept up into a tree, standing sideways on the trunk as he focused into the woods up ahead.

"You're not looking close enough kit."

Kyuubi's voice again. Naruto swallowed nervously. If Kyuubi kept talking to him this way, it would only add up to something bad happening. As if that weren't enough. Naruto's body jolted again from the inside. He looked up, into the dark woods, and his vision had gone reddish. He gasped openly, but nothing bad was happening no him. His vision had improved itself tenfold. Far in the distance he could see the edge of a clearing, and guarding the edge were a series of white puppets. They were solitary for the moment. "I see puppets…" He said to Sasuke. Sasuke was beside Naruto suddenly, his hand rested in the center of Naruto's back as they both stood sideways on the tree, staring into the distance. Sasuke closely stood beside Naruto, trying to see what Naruto was seeing. "Naruto…how are you seeing what you're seeing…?" Sasuke asked. Naruto hesitated before he spoke, continuing to stare solidly into the trees.

"I…don't know." He closed his eyes, squeezing them shut as if trying to hide as he almost immediately felt the stare of the Sharingan.

"Your chakra…It's sporadic. Almost like it's…not…yours…" Sasuke drew his conclusion, but before Sasuke could react, Naruto turned to face him.

"I'm fine! Give me your shuriken." He asked sharply. Sasuke wordlessly handed him the 18 inch long weapon. Naruto took it and positioned himself. The blades flared in a circular motion, and Sasuke watched Naruto leap onto the next tree, and with minimal surveying or studying the obstacles, flung the shuriken at an arch. Sasuke moved quickly, trying to get closer soon enough to see the shuriken do what would have to happen to be successful, which was swing at an angle, spin at a spectacular curve through the trees without hitting even one, and hit its targets. Finally arriving at a high perch with an excellent vantage point, he noticed that Naruto's throw had indeed hit all three of its targets, destroying them. Sasuke came back to Naruto, who was staring blankly, seemingly in disbelief that he'd done what he just did.

"That's not even your power you're using…I can't even see that far." Sasuke said without hesitation. Naruto didn't attempt to deny it this time.

"I know…it'll be fine though…I can control it." He reached out for Sasuke's hand. "Can we just go do what we came here to do…?" Sasuke warily took Naruto's hand, then looked away, toward where the puppets had been.

"We will…but we'll wait until dark." Sasuke decided suddenly. He jumped to the ground, and immediately sat. Naruto came beside him after a few seconds.

"Wait? Right here?" he asked. Sasuke nodded.

"Sure…since you can see from here anyway. There's no need to get closer." Naruto sat down beside Sasuke.

"Well then…what do we do until then?"

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Quiet laughter flowed through the trees as the sun set; they tried to keep more quiet, but it was useless.

"Jeez Naruto…we're on a mission can't you be quiet…" he murmured with a smirk. Naruto, underneath him, twisted his body lightly, adjusting his position.

"When you touch there it tickles—ah! Stop it!"

"You stop—"

"Wait—" They both halted, sitting up abruptly when Naruto slapped his hand over Sasuke's mouth. In the distance, in the midst of the thick darkness, there was a dull red glow.

"What's that…" Naruto asked in a low whisper. Sasuke narrowed his eyes at it, staring intently.

"Don't know…" He stood up, Naruto after him. "But we're going to find out…right now." He turned to face Naruto, smirking slightly.

"Ready?" Naruto was hesitant in his mind; Kyuubi's forceful use of his body to see the puppets in the distance had unnerved him. He had no idea what else Kyuubi could forcefully use through his body. He was powerless.

"Ready."

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The night air grew humid the closer they got to the dull red light pouring through the dark. Mists began to accumulate, and visibility was low. Naruto soon realized that he was navigating himself more easily than Sasuke was.

"This feels strange…I haven't felt this in awhile…" They were making a quick pace toward their target destination; Sasuke had entered a "zone". The look in his eyes was more intense than Naruto usually ever saw, and Sasuke looked pretty intense most of the time anyway, even if nothing was happening, so that was saying a lot.

"Maybe I haven't ever felt like this…Kyuubi either acts purely on instinct and anger, and I'm pretty much unable to control my own head… or he just replenishes my chakra…He never takes over all of my functions but leaves me in my own state of mind. Does it mean that he'll completely take over? More completely than any other time?" He and Sasuke ducked briefly into a bush, staring into the distance and what seemed to be a clearing, and then more cautiously moved on, but still at a quicker than normal pace.

"What's setting me off…why is my curse seal conflicting with Kyuubi, and Sasuke's curse seals aren't even activating? He has four…" Suddenly they were stopping, and Sasuke turned to face Naruto.

"This should be it…let's go." He was saying quietly, so quietly in fact, that Naruto was surprised he heard him.

"Jeez…He's really good at being quiet…" He took a deep breath. "Let' s go." "No time to worry about the stupid seal." They broke into the clearing noiselessly, and before them was a building. A strange, one story, metal building that took up a ridiculous amount of square footage. The red glow had been coming from a single, but very obnoxiously large red bulb light beside the door. Sasuke's Sharingan was activated, but he didn't seem to be picking up on anything unusual. Naruto stared intently at the building, and heard only one voice. Kyuubi again

"There's no one there."

"There's no one there." He echoed automatically. Sasuke turned sharply to look at him. "No one...is there…?" Naruto looked sideways at Sasuke, extremely aware of the Sharingan's sharp gaze. Sasuke stood up straight, stared at Naruto, and then at the building, then back at Naruto.

"What do you mean? How do you know? How—" Sasuke paused and glared at the building, then narrowed his eyes. Naruto stayed absolutely silent, trying to lay low. "We're going in…and after we're done finding out what's in here, I'm going to find out what's up with you." Sasuke stated bluntly, and briskly walked off toward the structure in the clearing. Naruto followed after a few nervous seconds, stuck somewhere in between being turned on by Sasuke's ordering and being scared for his life because of what Kyuubi might be doing to him.

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The building was too warm to be comfortable, due to the fact that it was constructed out of metal and had no shade during the day. Added to the fact that it was abandoned, it was stuffy and had poor circulation. There were countless doors down a long hallway, and every one of them was an empty lab area. At the end of the hall was a single door. The irritating, flickering row of fluorescent lighting on the ceiling grew dimmer and dimmer the closer they got to the door, and the last one, right above the door had completely gone out. They approached it cautiously, and as they did so, the air coming from under the door was noticeably cooler. Sasuke put his hand against the door, flattening his palm against it and listening, then coming closer to press his ear to the door to hear better.

"It's a bigger room." He whispered. He glanced up, and at the top of the door was a small glass window. "We should look first before we just open the door." Sasuke said. He turned around and Naruto was staying about two yards back.

"I—don't really like the feeling of going in there…" he murmured, staring directly at the door, solidly. Sasuke turned and looked at the door, backing up a few steps from it, but saw nothing.

"What're you talking about Naru-chan…" He said slowly. Naruto shook his head hesitantly, said nothing, and then took a step closer. Yet as soon as he'd done so, he flinched and backed up again.

"That's not going to work…" he murmured just as quietly as he'd said the first sentence. "It's interfering." He explained further. Sasuke immediately went to Naruto, coming extremely close and gently sliding down Naruto's shirt collar to expose his shoulder. "That thing's been bothering you this entire time, hasn't it?" Sasuke diagnosed without wasting any time.

"That's not it!" Naruto said honestly, leaning to make Sasuke look him in the face.

"Then what!? What is it?" Sasuke's voice raised slightly, and as he did, Naruto's attention completely broke. His eyes were on the door again, and he backed up a few more steps, more quickly than he had before.

"What the hell! It's like whatever's keeping me away is getting closer!" He exclaimed out of nowhere, his eyes fixed on the door. He stopped backing up, grunting slightly as his hand went to his shoulder by the mark.

"Naruto. Naruto listen to me I need you to focus." Sasuke was saying, remaining far more collected on the surface than he was feeling on the inside. His eyes betrayed his inner panic, but the rest of him remained extremely calm. Naruto fell to his knees, shuddering. "God…it hurts…" He scooted back a few more feet from the door, and just as Naruto stopped and sat sit, that was when they heard a single tap against the door. Sasuke ran to kneel next to Naruto, his hands on Naruto's shoulders from behind as he kept a wary eye on the now silent door.

"What I wouldn't give for Neji's Byakugan right now…the bastard…" Sasuke growled. "Don't do that, he can't help if he loved me…I'm loveable." Naruto said. Sasuk smirked a little.

"At least you're still yourself." He commented.

"Well not if I get any closer to that door…" Naruto replied. Apparently, Naruto's distance from the door was keeping him safer.

"Stay there."

Sasuke stood, eyeing the high-set window in the door. Slowly, he approached. The window was dark, and there didn't seem to be any sort of light in the room on the other side. It was slightly taller than he was, so he would have to stretch to see.

"If there really is no one here…then why is Naruto's seal reacting the way it is...before I was use to the damned things…Orochimaru's presence would make the seal react. Orochimaru is NOT here. So…what's making Naruto behave how he is…? What's behind this door…" He reached the door.

"Sasuke-kun, be careful." Naruto behind him. He nodded slightly without turning back around. He put his fingers on the ledge of the window and stretched up, just barely able to get his eyes to the level high enough to see.

He reacted violently to what he saw. Giving a brief shout, he shoved away from the door, startling Naruto as he fell backward, and scooting back all the way against Naruto's legs.

"What?? What is it!!" Naruto shouted, and Sasuke slapped a hand over Naruto's mouth so fast that it stung.

"Eyes…" Naruto made a muffled, questioning noise and Sasuke turned to look at Naruto in the face.

"Blue…eyes."

I can almost guarantee you that whatever it is that you're thinking it's not completely what you'd expect...teeeeheeee..or idk maybe you're a mind reader and you know exactly what I'm doing.

-Kitsune.