The Trouble With Pets
Chapter 8
Iruka was just taking the apple pie out of the oven when Sasuke and Naruto came in. The pie smelled heavenly and it looked great too.
"Is this pie?" Naruto asked. He was looking at the large, round, intricately woven lattice sugar dusted pastry. "It smells amazing! When can we eat it?"
"Tomorrow. The Key Lime is already in the refrigerator," Iruka said, petting Naruto's ear. "I don't think I've made pie since I brought you home. But I made the apple pie for breakfast tomorrow and the Key Lime for supper."
"We get to eat that for breakfast tomorrow? That's awesome!"
"It's something my grandma used to do when I was a kid. On holidays and birthdays she would make two pies and one would be for breakfast the other was for supper."
"But, everything is tomorrow! Why can't something cool happen today? Man, and I'm so hungry too!"
Iruka smiled. "Well, I don't like it when he fights, but I always like to watch Sasuke train too. Unfortunately, sometimes you just have to be patient. Now, if you're hungry I can do something about that. What would you like to have? It's not really time to start supper. I'm just warming up the grill for later. I think we're having grilled pizza tonight."
"Really?" Sasuke nodded. "Awesome. But, hey, Kaka-sensei, something happened while Naruto and I were playing. A weird man in black ran over, took my picture and ran away. But he smelled like that horrible stuff that Ruka-sensei catches catfish with. I couldn't get his scent. He even put it on his shoes."
"Kashi, you better call the agency," Iruka said. "Just to be safe. I mean, we're having cubs and Sasuke's collar isn't used to him yet."
"There's no use panicking. But yeah, I will."
"Hey, and ask Tsunade about the investigation too." Sasuke said, following his human into the bedroom where they closed the door.
Naruto huffed. "Well, now what do we do?"
"They'll be back soon," Iruka smiled. "How about some ice cream? I got Cookies and Cream!"
"Really? Alright!"
"Did you have fun playing outside?"
"Yeah… Well- sort of..." Naruto's face fell. The stranger in black reminded him of the monster in his dream- especially when his mate said that the people who were mad at Sasuke would attack their humans first…
"Naru, what's wrong?" Iruka asked, putting a hand on the Fox's slight shoulder.
"Uh, you know those bad dreams I have sometimes? I had one the night we got here."
"Oh, Naru… I'm so sorry. I had no idea…"
"But- this time it wasn't about the machines!"
"I don't understand," Iruka said slowly. "You've always said that's all you can remember."
"That's because I never had this dream before… I-I was happy once. Or at least I think I was. There was a pretty little girl with pink hair and green eyes. She took me everywhere with her. We were always laughing and smiling…"
Iruka just listened quietly, waiting for him to continue.
"Then one day, a monster found us playing outside. It was big and green and it had very sharp teeth... I was scared… The monster grabbed her and tore her apart with its claws and teeth… Her blood went everywhere but I was too scared to do anything. When the monster finally dropped her, she didn't move. He picked me up instead. I thought he was going to kill me too! But, when I woke up, I was all alone in... that room."
"N-Naru…" Iruka wrapped his arms around him gently, holding him while he cried. "My poor boy. I'm so sorry. I had no idea."
"Wait," Sasuke said as he came into the room. He looked at Iruka and then at Kakashi behind him. "Naruto- are you sure the monster was green? Could it have been blue?"
"No. He was huge and green and his mouth was really big… It was kind of- u shaped..."
"You mean his mouth kind of jutted out?" Kakashi asked.
Naruto nodded, shuddering, he started to cry even harder. "How did you know?"
Sasuke watched Iruka and Kakashi exchange worried looks. "Then they weren't all put down…"
Sasuke wasn't confused anymore, he was angry. So, there really was another type of hybrid out there- and it must be even worse than Kisame. "There's another kind of hybrid, isn't there?"
"I had just started working at the agency- right out of college. This was over and done with ten years ago- long before you were born, Sasuke. And w-we never talk about them because the man who created them was crazy… He crossed snakes and crocodiles- we're talking giant Saltwater Crocodiles with people… and then he fed them as a pack. They fought over other hybrids- live hybrids. Orochimaru was a sick, evil son of a bitch and it was actually one of his monsters that accidentally killed him while getting it ready for an illegal pit fight. And the next day, when we raided Orochimaru's lab, the KHPA had all of his creations put to sleep on the spot. Or at least, we thought we did. How one got out, I'll never know. I thought we had the place locked down tight. I still have nightmares about that place..."
"Y-You mean the monster I saw was real?" Naruto's face crumbled even more.
"It sounds like it," Kakashi admitted.
"T-Then… my dream… That girl…" Naruto cried even harder, holding onto Iruka's shirt desperately.
"Naru," Iruka said softly. "It's not your fault. But that explains why we can't find the papers that say you're a purebred. If you were stolen, like it sounds like you were, then we can search all of our records compiled at the agency and look for a little blond fox adopted by a family with a little girl who had pink hair and green eyes. Then at least we'll know who your little friend was and where you came from."
"R-Really?" Naruto asked hopefully.
"Yes. But I wish that you told me that you were having nightmares again."
"I didn't want to worry you or make you sad."
"Naru, it's my job as your human to keep you safe and happy. How can I do that if I don't know that you're scared and hurting like this?"
"I'm sorry," Naruto said.
"It's okay. I'm just glad that you told me." Iruka gave him one last squeeze and then stood up. "Do you still want some ice cream?"
Naruto rubbed at his eyes and tried to smile. "Yeah!"
"What about you two?"
Sasuke nodded then nuzzled Naruto from behind. "Sure. Are you okay?"
Naruto nodded, leaning into him. Sasuke smelled good. He felt safe and loved so he managed a smile. "Yeah."
"Iruka, why don't you call the agency about... what he just said and I'll dish up the ice cream?" Kakashi said. He got a few bowls out of the cupboard and the ice cream out of the freezer.
"Thank you," Iruka said, kissing the other human on the lips before disappearing into the bedroom and closing the door.
"Who wants the first bowl?"
"Naruto can have the first one," Sasuke said, releasing the fox so they could sit down together at the kitchen island.
"So, what are we going to do next, Sasuke?" Naruto asked, taking a big bite as soon as Kakashi slid him the overstuffed bowl.
"I say we have a quiet night with our humans. That man in the woods- I don't know how he found us. I wasn't moving in a straight line…"
"It's alright, Sasuke." Kakashi said, passing him a bowl with less than half of the amount of ice cream that he gave Naruto. "Just forget about it. There's nothing you could have done differently."
"Hey! What's with the tiny servings all of a sudden?" Naruto asked.
"Sasuke prefers frozen custard to ice cream. I'm just giving him what he will eat. If he wants more he can have it when he finishes that."
Naruto nodded, Iruka told him that sometimes too- that he should eat what he was given before taking more food. "But what's frozen custard?"
"It's a lot like ice cream, but there's egg in it. It's extra creamy and silky smooth," Sasuke said.
"I want to try some!"
"Tomorrow maybe you and Iruka can go get some from the burger shack down the road. That's the place where Sasuke and I first tried it."
"Really?"
"Yep." Sasuke agreed.
"So, if you two are spending the evening indoors are we just going to watch TV or do you want to play a game or make a puzzle or something?"
Sasuke shrugged. "I don't know, Naruto's never seen Supernatural before, we could watch that."
"I dunno, I really like the safari channel…"
"Half the stuff that you like in those nature TV shows, lives in the forest right outside, Dobe."
"Really?"
"Do you want to go out tomorrow and I'll show you how to hunt deer? Not to hurt them, just to watch them. I used to do it all the time when I was a cub. Trying to see how close I could get without scaring them away."
Naruto nodded. He liked deer too, but he usually only saw them from a distance! They were slender and incredibly graceful. He couldn't believe how high and how far they could jump or how fast they and their babies could dash through the trees and get lost in the underbrush.
"They're looking into your paperwork, Naru." Iruka said, coming out of the bedroom. "We should know in about a week. Kakashi? You must've left your phone in the bedroom, it rang twice while I was on the phone."
"Sorry, I'll just go see who it was."
"So, how's the ice cream?"
"Great!" Naruto said. "Sasuke's going to take me out to see some deer tomorrow!"
"That's great! I'm about to start cooking. Do you guys want to help?"
"Are you still making grilled pizza?" Sasuke asked.
"Yep. That's the plan. Do you want to help put the toppings on? You used to love to help with that when you were a cub."
"Sure," Sasuke said, carrying his empty bowl to the sink. "Thanks for the ice cream."
"You're welcome," Kakashi grinned. "That asshole Madara just won't give up…"
"What do you mean?" Sasuke asked suspiciously.
"He wants you back… and I'm not even considering it. He sold you after he promised you to Iruka. The man can't be trusted… But... there is something I've been meaning to tell you."
Sasuke felt sick wondering what was wrong this time.
"It's- Itachi…" Kakashi said.
"What's wrong?"
"He's very, very sick."
Sasuke felt like the wind had been knocked out of him. "B-But I don't understand- hybrids almost never get sick…"
"It's cancer. We know, it's incredibly rare in hybrids, but it does happen. Usually it manifests when one of the first human donors in the line was sick and didn't realize it when they donated their DNA." Iruka said gently.
"Wait- are you serious? Itachi really has cancer?"
"Yes. He's been in pain for months now. You haven't seen him lately."
"Yeah, I know, but what about treating him?"
"Madara has had him in treatment for over a year now and he's only getting worse."
"S-So what's going to happen to him?"
"Madara is putting him to sleep at the end of the breeding season…"
Sasuke growled. "But the breeding season just started! If it's that bad why not just do it now? Greedy bastard. And that's why he wants me? He wants me to take Itachi's place in the breeding shed?"
Kakashi nodded reluctantly. "Basically…"
"I'm mated. I'm not going to fuck a bunch of random hybrids to make him more money."
"You wouldn't necessarily have to," Iruka said gently. "You could just give them some of your eggs."
"That bastard has already sold me once. Why are we even talking about this?"
"Because he also saved your life. And... he said that Itachi wants to see you."
"Me?" Sasuke was surprised. "Itachi wants to see me?"
"Yeah." Kakashi said. "You don't have to decide anything now-"
"I don't want anything to do with that bastard, Madara. And I would rather remember my brother being strong and healthy. I'm going outside."
Naruto jumped up to follow him, but Iruka shook his head quietly. "Stay in here for now. You can bring him in when it's time to eat. For now he needs to be alone."
"Why?"
"Families can be complicated subjects. On the one hand you love them because they love you, even though they also know all of your little quirks and stuff. And on the other hand they're also kind of a pain." Kakashi said. "Just leave him be for now. He'll be fine."
"Anyway, come with me, Naruto, we're going to make pizza crust."
"You mean so I can't sneak out and go find Sasuke?"
"Yes," Iruka said, smiling. "That's exactly right. Isn't he smart?"
"Yes, indeed."
Naruto huffed. He didn't understand what all the fuss was about. Sasuke's brother was dying, that was terrible, but what made this Madara guy want Sasuke so bad? "I don't get it."
"What's wrong, Naru?" Iruka asked, he was getting the flour, salt and yeast for the pizza crust ready in a big mixing bowl.
"If Sasuke's a fighter why do they want to breed him?"
"Because he's bigger, tougher and stronger than most leopard hybrids, his babies should inherit those things as well. It's called selective breeding- mating the best to the best and hope for the best. Plus, he's also smarter than most humans. Purebreds are rarely used to fight, but Sasuke makes that custom seem silly. If his cubs inherit his size, power and stamina they'll make good fighters or breeding stock." Kakashi said. "Madara would have to be crazy not to want him back."
Iruka nodded. "Right. Madara had been trying to refine leopard breeding for ages and he hit the jackpot when Itachi and Sasuke were born. I worked with Itachi when he was a baby too. He was in the first crop in the nursery that I ever worked with. Itachi was just as smart and strong as Sasuke, but he was also just as gentle, affectionate and kind. Back then Madara didn't know that Itachi would get sick someday, so I'm sure he wishes he'd kept both of them now."
"Yeah," Kakashi nodded. "I'm sure he will keep reminding me who saved Sasuke at all of those stupid hearings. He was the one who got them to extend the deadline all those times, but Sasuke is mine. I don't have to give him up just because his favorite breeding stud is sick."
"That's right. Don't let him fool you. If he were the one in your shoes, Madara wouldn't give Sasuke up now either. It happened a long time ago and Sasuke is finally happy..."
"Yeah. But, actually, I didn't know that you knew Itachi too."
"It was ten years ago, a few days before the raid on Orochimaru's lab, actually. Mikoto had four beautiful, healthy cubs that day, but right from the start Itachi stood out from his sisters. After the raid I almost quit. But spending time with the babies helped me forget a little of the evil I saw there. There's nothing quite like a bunch of baby hybrids to make you realize that the world isn't perfect, but it's not completely terrible either. Naru, could you bring me-"
Kakashi winced as they realized Naruto wasn't with them anymore. "That little fox is in trouble when he comes back in…"
"Well," Iruka sighed. "It's normal that he just wants to be close to Sasuke…"
"But that's not a good idea right now."
Iruka sighed. "We'll just have to trust that their bond is strong enough to protect Naruto if Sasuke is really upset. If they're fine it wouldn't be nice to interrupt them."
"Outside of a match, Sasuke won't physically hurt anyone. But he does like to push them away emotionally when he's upset and their bond is still very new. It doesn't seem like Naruto understands what's wrong. I just don't want to see him get hurt."
"Haven't you noticed how much calmer Sasuke's been?"
"Of course, but is it enough? You haven't had to deal with the dark side of his temper much lately. Before his match with Suigetsu, Sasuke was thinking about attacking a staff member of the arena just for poking his head in the door. I'm serious, his claws were out and everything."
"Didn't you have the 'knock only' sign up outside?"
"Yeah, but that's not the point. I don't like to see
Sasuke pushing himself as hard as he was, and now it's going to get even worse because now he wants Kisame's damn record."
Naruto looked up in the Catalpa tree in the backyard, but Sasuke wasn't in it. He walked down to the water's edge and he wasn't there either… Where had he gone?
He decided to use his nose.
But still no sign of him…
Naruto was puzzled so he walked around the cabin. There up in the front yard's Catalpa tree, was his sleepy mate.
Naruto climbed into the tree too, but he didn't try to touch him. He just wanted to see him, make sure he was okay.
He was so pretty. And he smelled good too- so masculine and… rugged. Wait- was that the word he wanted?
Well, whatever. He smelled like he belonged out here- in the trees and high off the ground. It reminded him of the day they were out in the rain… surrounded by the forest in the rain and that made him want to mate with him again.
It wasn't quite as scary now… this feeling of wanting Sasuke inside him. He knew it was because Sasuke had been right.- He was starting to get used to his scent and he felt silly now.
It was intoxicating, made him feel like he didn't care about anything besides being that close to him again.
Was that normal? He wondered. Oh well, maybe he shouldn't be thinking about that right now anyway. Sasuke was upset and he wanted to help. He wasn't sure how, but he was pretty sure that mating wasn't going to help right now.
Sasuke suddenly yawned and turned facing away from Naruto. He laid right back down on his tree branch and let his long, black tail dangle right in front of Naruto, but the end of his tail was twitching warily.
It was a clear warning his mate wanted to be alone. But Naruto didn't want to leave him alone. He just wanted to help make him feel better!
Naruto didn't like being ignored. But he knew he shouldn't be where he wasn't welcome either. Sasuke must be even more upset than Naruto thought...
It wasn't that Naruto was afraid of him. He already knew that Sasuke was many times stronger, faster and tougher than he was. It was just that he wasn't being respectful of his mate if he stayed. Sasuke was always kind to him.
With a sigh, Naruto dropped out of the tree and sat down at the base of it as he looked up. Sasuke hadn't moved or looked down at him.
But Naruto sensed it- Sasuke was happy that he was still close by but not close enough to touch him. Naruto grinned too as he laid down to take a nap in the cool grass.