Chapter 36 Black Alley
Tailor Narubi
"Don't."
Sasuke blinked up at him, Sharingan melting back to black.
"Don't use what you just copied." Naruto said.
Sasuke's lips twisted into a frown.
"If you do you will hurt yourself." Naruto said. "My wire attacks use a certain amount of fine control of both my body and my environment. You have memorized the technique but it does not mean your body will move how you want it, and if you try what I just did in a different place it will not work out. One tiny mistake with my wires can turn deadly for yourself."
Sasuke scowled but appeared to be listening.
"The Sharingan is a powerful weapon." Naruto said easily, "But it is also dangerous. If you used it to copy things such as attacks, then wrote them down and studied them, it would be safe. But if you just copy and then try to use them you can badly hurt yourself."
"How?" Sasuke asked through gritted teeth.
"Say you copy a taijutsu move." Naruto said. "If you try to use that move you may be able to pull it off perfectly, but you could kill yourself doing it. If that move takes a certain amount of speed or flexibility you don't have and you attempt to do it, you break things or tear muscles."
Sasuke's eyes flashed with surprise but he kept his scowl firm but thoughtful.
"And if you copied a jutsu and then used it but did not have the reserves to do it you would kill yourself. Of if you copied an attack but it had been done incorrectly to begin with you could hurt yourself. And say an enemy knows the Sharingan. They purposely show you a mistake they learned when learning the jutsu themselves. Then you use it, make the mistake and gravely wound yourself while they had already known about the flaw and how to avoid the damage. Your Sharingan is a double edged blade."
"…How do I counter that?" Sasuke asked slowly bitterly.
"When you learn something," Naruto said, "Write it down and then practice with supervision and slowly enough that you can test the waters so to speak."
Sasuke stared at him for the longest time.
"How...how did you know this?" he finally asked.
"Do you remember the kimono hanging in my work room?" Naruto asked.
"Itachi's." Sasuke scowled.
"He was my best friend." Naruto said. "I was the one he'd come to and talk to. I learned much of the Sharingan and the Uchiha clan. More then you know most likely."
Sasuke was silent.
"I won't use what I copied." Sasuke finally said.
.-.
"Stitch? What are you doing?" Sakura asked from where she was flipping TV channels.
Naruto glanced up at girl, sewing kit in one hand.
"I have some business that I need to take care of. Do you wish to come?"
"Sure, nothing good on." She said popping her sugarless gum.
"How about you Scorch?" Naruto asked.
"Nh."
Naruto just smiled and pulled his shoes on, the two following suit. Leading them out of the apartment building all together he started heading down the street.
"Where are we going this late?" Sakura asked with a bored tone, a kendo sword resting on her shoulder.
She'd started to learn sword practice in her free time and had quickly shown an aptitude for it. And if Naruto had eavesdropped correctly Zabuza was interested in taking her as an apprentice. She looked dangerous in her black clothes, sword on her shoulder and green eyes glinting madly behind a mask of boredom.
"Black Alley." Naruto said easily. "It's the nocturnal part of town. All the shops open for the night. You need something you come here. It's in the center of the red light's districts."
"Huh, didn't think we'd have a place like this in Konoha." Sakura blinked.
"We may be considered one of the best ninja villages and one of the kindest but we are still as corrupt as all humans." Naruto smiled. "We just hide it better. And mostly that title comes from how we treat our ninja much more humane then most villages."
"Nh." Sasuke frowned thoughtfully.
Naruto led them through the neon lit streets, the two peering curiously at the passer-by's and the stores that had every manner of things in them. Naruto led them right to the two gates marked with led lanterns and right into the red light district.
Some girls in doorways called greetings to Naruto recognizing him from his trips here and the few favours he'd done them. Many of these women he charged lower prices. He knew that while some of the more popular geishas and such made a lot of money, many did not. So he charged according to customer. He was also one of the very few teenagers in the area that appeared frequently and not hiding his face out of embarrassment at being caught.
When he found the Purple Butterfly he walked right in. The girl at the front just waved him in and he headed down the traditional hallway ignoring the mutterings from the other rooms.
"They just let you waltz right in?" Sakura smirked.
"I have been doing this for years now." Naruto smiled easily. "Many of the women employed here also live in our apartment building. I sewed a few tears for them and told them of the low room prices and they remembered my name."
"Huh." Sakura popped her gum.
Naruto knocked politely on the paper door, making sure to hit wood frame and entered when a voice told him to do so. Naruto strode in, easily ignoring the states of undress and lazy indecent posture. This was their rest room. A room where they could do as they wished and take a break. And as it was always warm in the building many took a moment to strip down and cool down. Sakura entered with out batting a lash, shooting a few leers here and there while Sasuke turned tomato red and cast his eyes to his feet.
"Aw! Naruto you brought us a virgin!" One of the women squealed, scooping Sasuke into a hug, face pressed between her breasts, which were half hanging out of her kimono top.
Sasuke looked ready to pass out. More then a few giggles and snickers were echoed. Another woman tried it with Sakura but Sakura just curiously squeezed the woman's breast.
"How old are you?" Sakura demanded.
"Eighteen." The girl lied.
She looked no older then sixteen.
"How did you get such big knockers?" Sakura scowled.
The teen spluttered and a few others laughed.
"Did you bring my order?" A dark haired beauty asked as she flopped over Naruto's lap as he sat.
Naruto rolled his eyes and withdrew a scroll from his sewing kit. Dispelling the contents the woman squealed as she saw the pretty red and purple kimono.
"You're the best Naru-chan."
"What? You got those at fourteen!" Sakura snorted looking at another girl's boobs.
"I matured very fast." The girl sniffed.
"Does anyone have any mending for me while I'm here?" Naruto asked.
The few girls who actually stayed in the building as permanent residents hurried off to get a few things. Two women, twins to be exact, were clinging to Sasuke and embarrassing as much as possible while a few of the more … odd women were flopped around Sakura like a harem allowing Sakura to ask their breast sizes or their 'knockers and can sizes' as she put it. She was also feeling the girls up remarking on how great their bodies were.
If she were a guy it would have obviously been some lame come-ons and flirting but for Sakura it was genuine curiosity and comments. Well maybe. Naruto couldn't really tell. And the way she was eyeing them a bit said it was more of a come-on flirt things. The only thing Naruto could think was that she really was making up a good 'Satoshi bad boy persona'.
.-.
"Nice?" Sakura whistled as she looked over a whip. "I didn't know you were into bondage."
Naruto rolled his eyes. Sakura was of course looking at the few bondage items and sex toys spread about the room ignoring that most were attached to outfits made by the store and were more for display. Naruto himself pulled a few bolts of material from the shelves. This store had some very…unique material. He set the fishnet, crinoline, mesh, see through silk, and some lace on the counter to purchase and continued to browse.
Glancing at the other two he found Sakura eyeing an odd Lolita dress. Sasuke was looking around at the outfits in a bit of surprise. And if Naruto wasn't mistake he caught a gleam of interest in the boy's eyes. He grinned behind the boy knowing what he was getting the boy for his birthday.
.-.
"You called?" Naruto asked curiously.
Kyuubi peered down at him seriously. In a small gust of wind and smoke he stepped forwards, human in appearance.
"I have something for you." Kyuubi muttered.
"Something for me?" Naruto blinked in surprise.
"A gift." Kyuubi grumbled.
"Truly?" Naruto asked with a smile.
"Yes. It is a tradition to give a child a gift when they become an adult. In my eyes you shall always be a child as you are a millennium younger then I, but in the eyes of you humans you are an adult in more then one way. So I have a gift."
"What is it?" Naruto asked excited.
"You humans call them chakra strings. I shall teach you them."
"Chakra strings." Naruto breathed. "For my wire?"
"Yes. If you incorporate them into your wire you will be able to more you wire at will. Live wire."
Naruto grinned at the potential.
.-.
"So," Sakura drawled from where she hung upside down on a tree branch doing sit-ups. "What's up with you and Iruka?"
Sasuke scowled at her from where he was reading a scroll.
"Nothing." He grumbled.
Naruto snorted, deft fingers sewing up a seam.
"Even I can see something is going on." Naruto said to a glaring Sasuke.
Sasuke muttered something under his breath and lifted his scroll higher to hide his face. He was forced to abandon this position as Sakura lazily tossed a kunai at him. He glared at her and retrieved his now ruined scroll.
"Tell us." She demanded.
"Fine." He spat. "Iruka is my legal guardian."
"Huh?" Sakura blinked.
"Well he was." Sasuke corrected. "Before I graduated. We didn't live together but he had to check on me periodically and make sure I had everything I needed. He'd drag me off for dinner every once in a while and he'd help me with homework and stuff."
Naruto wondered which of his ANBU guardians had been his 'legal guardians' on paper. Maybe it was just the Sandaime.
"So," Sakura smirked, "That's why you always listen to him. You owe him a debt."
"Yes." Sasuke admitted grudgingly. "I owe him."