Here we go, the next chapter. FYI, I am currently working on chapter 65, which means we still have another ten weeks set for regular updates (yay)! And hopefully by then I'll have a few more chapters done, so it'll actually be more. Also, I have a general outline up until about chapter 75, so we're good for now! The next chapter of SA is currently in the works, also, for those of you waiting for it, but the chapter's kinda running away from me, so we'll see.

So this chapter continues where the last left off, so enjoy!

Disclaimer: don't own

Warnings: more of last week's fun, unbeta'd

I don't think I've been mentioning this, but my beta kinda vanished on me, so all of these chapters I'm updating have not been checked by anyone but me. Sorry for any mistakes.


He was sitting next to Sasuke, Kakashi across from him at the dinner table, plates of food heaped up before him. The dinner was well set, many delicious foods to enjoy, but no matter how many glares sent in his direction, he wouldn't stay still. Fidget fidget, drop his food, fumble with the napkin in a clumsy attempt to clean up, then fidget some more, knock over his drink and struggle with the napkin again. It was getting really annoying.

After that little scene, Naruto just knew something bad was gonna come of it, and he couldn't sit still. Sasuke was as blank and expressionless as one could imagine. He was completely unfazed. But then, he had been the one with the upper-hand.

So Sasuke, of course, was all dignified calm. Casually he took a sip of wine, delicately dabbed at his mouth with a napkin, and with much grace and refinement, brought a perfectly proportioned bit of food into his mouth, skillfully balanced on his chopsticks.

Kakashi was almost gawking at the completely opposing specimens before him. He made a silent prayer to his sensei, apologizing for the sheer klutz of a son he hadn't been able to watch over, and tried to look like he wasn't in shock. Which, as it was Kakashi, was not difficult to do. All he really had to do was keep his eyes on "distant" and his mask firmly in place.

Jiraiya, for his part, couldn't keep the frown of confusion from his face. How the hell had these two idiots even managed to get together? They were from two completely different worlds, different universes, and he couldn't imagine how the prick Uchiha was managing to put up with the blond idiot. The sex must really be good…

And then Naruto, actively taking part in the relationship like this. The sex must be really, really good...

As if almost sensing the dirty thoughts burrowing their way through Jiraiya's mind, Naruto dropped his bowl on the table, sending bits of rice flying, a considerably large chunk making its way, somehow, into Jiraiya's nose.

"Damnit brat!" Jiraiya growled, rubbing at his nostrils. Kakashi tried to look pleasant. Sasuke frowned at Naruto.

"S-Sorry!" Naruto shrieked, and in his rush to clean up, he shot up out of his chair, reached over the table, and spilled the bottle of red wine.

Sasuke was beginning to feel a tick develop in his eye. Really, so far as he had seen, neither of these idiots was worth all of the nervousness. The green tome was tucked away in the silver-haired man's jacket (close to heart), the words Icha Icha still clear enough on the cover, had noted the leering of the old white-haired man as Mariko served dinner, the drool as he watched her as she headed back into the kitchen, knew enough to know the man wasn't hungry for food.

Both of them were perverts, of that he was certain.

Why Naruto would be so anxious to please them was beyond his superior Uchiha understanding. Which was really a feat, as it included "superior" and "Uchiha", which were, admittedly, synonymous.

But for the blond idiot's sake, who looked like he was about to have a stroke, he stood up and began cleaning the mess up himself, gently pushing Naruto back into his chair and away from pointy objects, aka broken glass. Naruto bit his lip and watched as Sasuke used his own napkin to clear the table of the red wine, pushing bowls and glasses and other things out of the way, not saying a word, but obviously wearing a frown.

Jiraiya cleared his throat. "Well. What a nice dinner."

Kakashi nodded, trying to be sociable. "And the apartment is… very lovely," he added, a bit late. Jiraiya nodded. Sasuke ignored them.

"Y-Yeah," Naruto replied. "I really," he cleared his throat, and continued, "really like it."

"Must'a cost a fortune," Jiraiya muttered, eyes wandering as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

Kakashi hmn'd in his seat and took another bite of his meal.

Sasuke dumped his napkin in the wastebasket and grabbed another from a kitchen drawer and headed back to the table.

"Very nice," Kakashi murmured as he reorganized the food on his plate, eyes wandering the room again. "Everything does look very expensive, though, doesn't it..."

"And the neighborhood is a good neighborhood... So close to Shibuya," Jiraiya added.

"A very lovely neighborhood," Kakashi agreed.

"Did you even see it?" Naruto muttered, imagining Kakashi must have been too busy reading his porn to notice something trivial like what neighborhood he was in.

"Are you working Naruto?" Kakashi inquired.

Sasuke snorted.

"Uh, no," Naruto replied as he reached for his wine glass. Sasuke stopped him, and moved the glass closer to the blond himself. No need of a repeat of a few minutes ago. Naruto bit his lip.

"No job, huh. But then, with a sugar daddy like Uchiha, guess you don't need one," Jiraiya said.

Naruto blushed. "I told you, he's not my- Stop calling him that!"

"So cute. Naruto-kun can't say it," Kakashi grinned.

"I-" Naruto began, then dropped his chop sticks in his lap. At least they weren't breakable.

Sasuke sighed and took another sip of wine. He'd probably need more alcohol before the night was over, if he couldn't manage to get rid of them quick enough. They had been sufficiently brought down by what he had said to them, but they almost seemed ready to retaliate. He wasn't sure what to expect. He glanced at the blond, his cheeks still red, his hands kneading the napkin in his lap.

"Well, doesn't matter. Though I suppose you could technically say your job is in bed," Jiraiya mused.

"Wha- No!" Naruto replied, knocking over the salt. Sasuke sighed and reached over to clean it up.

Silence reigned as Sasuke once more acted as maid. He glanced at the kitchen, where Mariko was cleaning up, glancing at the clock every few seconds. It hadn't been a good time to have to call her. She had plans to meet her future in-laws in half an hour.

His dark eyes quickly took in the state of what he could see of the kitchen. Well, he was already acting as a maid over here, why not there too?

"Mariko," he called, causing her to pause in her current cleaning. "Go. I'll call you if I need you."

"Are you sure, Sasuke-sama?" she asked, but he could tell she was ready to dash out.

"It's fine. Go."

She stopped and bowed deeply, then pulled off the apron, grabbed her purse, rushed to her shoes and slipped them on, and she was gone.

It was silent again, Jiraiya and Kakashi continuing their meal, Naruto fidgeting more in his seat.

Jiraiya took his eyes off the door, erasing the disappointment of the lovely maid's disappearance and turned back to Naruto. "I noticed last time all the books. You've always loved books, huh brat?"

Naruto gave a hesitant smile, his eyes drifting over to Sasuke who sat back down in his most dignified manner.

"Yes, and you have all of Minato-sensei's again. Too bad yours are-" Kakashi stopped mid-sentence and glanced at Sasuke, who had lost his appetite and was just taking sips of the remains of the wine in his glass. A dark brow arched as if to say, "What the hell do you want? Of course I know already."

Naruto rubbed his arm and pushed his plate away. He had lost his appetite too.

"But then, all of that, it's not your fault. Not as if you haven't tried everything you could. Not as if we haven't also," Jiraiya continued, eyes darting to the Uchiha. Naruto nodded but didn't say anything. "But damnit, those damn Namikazes piss me off."

Kakashi set down his chopsticks and peered at Naruto. "But just because they are a bunch of assholes, that doesn't mean you have to play their game. Hmm, Naruto-kun?"

Naruto looked up at him, not understanding. Kakashi's eyes drifted over to Sasuke. "You are doing much better than they would like. In fact, a place like this, I wouldn't be surprised if you're better off than them." Kakashi smiled widely. But Naruto frowned.

"That's not it. I'm not with Sasuke because I want to one-up them."

"No, you're not are you," Jiraiya agreed. "You're here for the money."

Both of them, clearly, were still upset by Sasuke's little speech, and as wrong as it was, they were starting to take it out on Naruto. But maybe, if they could get him to come to his senses, he at least would be able to walk away.

Naruto's eyes went wide and he shot to his feet. He wasn't going to play along."I am not here for Sasuke's money! I love him!"

Everyone's eyes went wide and Naruto turned beet red. The room fell silent.

That... Jiraiya and Kakashi hadn't expected.

"U-um," Naruto began quietly, blue eyes flicking over to Sasuke, to assess the look on his face, see if he had said something wrong or if, maybe, Sasuke was happy, maybe, to hear Naruto say that?

"What I meant was, I'm not here for Sasuke's money. I mean, it's nice, being able to have whatever I want. I can get stuff my father wouldn't have been able to afford for me. I mean, not that he wouldn't want me to have them, but, you know, even with all of his money from his books, he wasn't, I mean..." His eyes kept glancing at Sasuke, whose expression hadn't changed, "It's nice, having that freedom. And I know," he knew he was babbling, but Sasuke hadn't said anything, and he was getting increasingly nervous, his face getting hotter and hotter, "I know that it's because I'm here, with Sasuke. But even... even if he weren't giving me money for all the things I want, he's been good to me. He's been nice and understanding and," Naruto swallowed and licked his lips, not knowing if it was possible for him to go anymore red in the face. "I really, I'm grateful… to him… and…"

"Hmn. Damn brat." Jiraiya grinned. "What are you, a girl?"

Naruto glared at the old man. "I am not! I'm just saying, if I didn't love Sasuke I could easily have gone back to you two perverts at any time!"

Sasuke was looking at him now, and Naruto looked away from him, not able to meet his dark, gorgeous eyes.

Sasuke sighed and rubbed his eyes. "As pleasant as this evening has been, I have work tomorrow. May I ask that you leave soon? You can come back and annoy me later."

"Kinda rude to your guests," Jiraiya muttered.

"Naruto, you too."

"Huh?" Naruto stuttered, looking at Sasuke, eyes wide.

"It's time for bed, idiot. You didn't sleep well last night. Go take your bath. I'll see them off."

"O-oh," Naruto took a deep breath and nodded, casting a quick glance at Jiraiya and Kakashi, catching their perverted leers before heading to the bedroom and the bath.

Sasuke stood up and nodded toward the door. The two older men stood as well, but neither made any indication they were leaving.

"You know, we really could easily take Naruto away from here, far away from you, at any time," Kakashi said.

"You could try, but you won't," Sasuke replied, full of confidence in his statement. "Naruto would come back." And he was happy to know that, even if he didn't show it. "And besides, you all really haven't done everything yet, to take care of Naruto's problem. Maybe you did everything in your power, but I have far more power than you do."

Kakashi nearly showed his surprise at that statement and Jiraiya frowned. "What the hell does that mean? You're really pissing me off, you know that?"

"You'll be back tomorrow, I imagine? We can discuss it then. I get the feeling you'll be coming over frequently," Sasuke grumbled. He, for one, had never imagined having to deal with annoying in-laws. And if it weren't Naruto, he probably wouldn't put up with these two. His eyes glanced disgustedly once more to that green book in the masked man's pocket.

He turned and headed to the door, ignoring the grins of agreement to his statement as he opened it for the two men, and shut it behind them, the two men exchanging a knowing glance the last he saw of them as the door closed.

He turned and headed for his phone. He had a lot of planning to do.