Chapter 3: The Heat
"Perhaps all romance is like that; not a contract between equal parties but an explosion of dreams and desires that can find no outlet in everyday life. Only a drama will do and while the fireworks last the sky is a different color." -Jeanette Winterson, The Passion
Naruto (Club Celsius)
"Why aren't you talking to anyone?"
Sakura's tone is concerned, repeating the question an octave louder when the bass of the music behind them pulses at a higher beat making every object nearby seem to thrum to life.
"I am; I'm talking to you now and I've greeted everyone here!" He replies back easily, waving around with the drink he's been nursing slowly to emphasize his point.
Granted before Sakura approached him, he was sitting to the side mostly watching everyone else dance and talk. It isn't like him to want to sit alone yes, but he's being tracked and he needs to scour the area for anyone who doesn't fit in...
'It's been two and half weeks without another photo or message, however I still can't let my guard down.' He considers.
Somebody within these club's walls could be here just to watch him or Hinata.
Sakura rolls her eyes, cheeks stained scarlet from the earlier rounds of sake and margaritas that went around.
"You know that's not what I meant." She snorts and Naruto shrugs with an easygoing smile.
He shouldn't have expected Kiba's 20th birthday to be a small affair really, booking out one of the fanciest nightclubs Konoha has: 37° Celsius, aptly named for the point at which most people have a fever among other themes based on making the body sweat.
Beside them and all around are glittering lights and plush chairs in shades and glows of gold to velvet blue. To his left side most the rest of their friends are clustered together, some still dancing while others are taking a break to try the snacks and sweets being passed around by various waiters and waitresses catering for their group.
Sakura sighs at Naruto's ongoing silence, verdant orbs sharpening on something behind him making a teasing smile play at her lips.
"Hinata just got here, you haven't greeted her yet!" She emphasizes.
And before he can help it in front of Sakura he perks up, following her gaze seeing violet hair and pearl eyes coming into view.
Sakura's grin widens tenfold, waving her over eagerly.
"Ino's right, you need to make a move on Hinata before someone else does!" She snickers at his expression just loud enough for him to catch, giving him a light shove towards her.
Hinata reddens, scooting in beside Naruto. She's dressed in a floral lavender sleeveless top, ruffles on the ends brushing at his shoulders and he realizes he's staring too long when she discreetly pokes at his side beneath the table.
"Ino could say the same in regards to Sai." Hinata remarks back lightly, but then none of them know if there is anyone interested in Sai besides Ino despite what she says.
Sakura hums her agreement, though her stare flits between them pondering what to make of them. Maybe something has already happened between these two, but then either she or Ino would've caught it.
"Well, don't get caught up in the heat and intensity this place brings out of people! Who knows who we might see going home with each other!" She cheers.
Naruto pretends not hear Sakura's half-joking warning, shooing her gently back to the dancefloor as a fast-paced techno song blasts overhead.
"Sorry, I was making sure Hanabi didn't try to follow me and then Kiba caught me at the entrance." Hinata smiles, glad for the crowd obscuring them somewhat. Most of the faces that glance their way are strangers or one of the attendants seeing if they need a drink or meal.
"It's fine. I've been looking all around to see if anyone is trying to sneak into our group or looks out of place. I got some of those photos too." He admits, scowling faintly at the memory of the envelop sitting on his bed like a gift.
Hinata's grin falters at that, squirming.
Before either can say more on the matter though, Kiba approaches up this time, champagne flutes in hand beaming from ear to ear.
"I would say I shouldn't be giving these to you little 19 year old's, but hell you'll both be 20 in just a few more months! And so my nose wasn't wrong either I see; you two have been spending more time together then?!" He laughs.
He hands them both a glass of the amber cocktail they reluctantly accept, fruity scent of grapes tinged in alcohol fizzing at their noses. Naruto takes a sip, cringing as the liquor burns at his throat sliding down.
Kiba snickers at his reaction, shaking his head. "Geez Naruto, you definitely won't be able to hold your liquor when it comes time for your own birthday!"
He gestures at the lack of space between them then and it occurs to Naruto despite the flush of his cheeks that Kiba is sober enough to question the nature of their relationship, to wonder why indeed he has picked up their scents on each other more so as of late when this is probably his first time seeing them so close together.
And unlike Sakura, he can't just lightly push him to go away!
"So...how long has this been a thing?" He asks, question directed more towards Hinata than him.
"Kiba, we're just talking!" Hinata points out through reddening cheeks, but Kiba blows out a breath, dark eyes shimmering with mischief able to easily see through her lie. Shino would normally mediate right about now that this is none of his business, though he for once wants to indulge his curiosity. He's sure he isn't the only one out of their friends group that wants to know what's going on with these two as of late anyways, whispers don't gather information.
Asking out right does.
"Talking in what sense; with your lips or your body?!" He pries further.
"Kiba-" Naruto starts with an edge of warning only to see fingers curling at his shoulder tugging him back from them.
Tamaki.
"There you are birthday boy! Come on, the bartender said he'll make your favorite on the house!" She beams, sending the pair a wink before her nails dig and tug Kiba along before he can utter a word of protest.
Naruto watches them go, waiting until they are out of sight before nodding for he and Hinata to go the opposite way.
Outside.
The night air is refreshingly cool, a break from the oppressive mix of sweat and warmth encompassing the club's walls. A crescent moon shines overhead, silver light spilling against the crowded streets of others reveling in various parties or gambling despite it nearing 1:00 am now.
Okay, now he can think and properly talk.
"Before we got rudely interrupted there I wanted to say that we need to get into the minds of these blackmailers, they're clearly trying to get under our skin. I think it's best to ask someone familiar with the world of crime." Naruto explains.
His voice starts to dry the more he dwells on it, knot fisting at the pit of his stomach.
Hinata blinks, eyes moving from the scenery below back to him. There is only one person that comes to mind when it comes to connections with that part of society.
"Crime? You want to to talk to Orochimaru?" She whispers.
Naruto nods with a grunt.
"I'm sure he's had no problems working with blackmailers before." He determines.
Naruto & Hinata (Otogakure)
"Well, this is a pleasant surprise! I would've made more tea if I knew I was going to have so many guests coming over." Orochimaru beams, sitting up from his tatami mat.
He gestures eagerly to the awaiting cups he's set out for them that they both refuse to touch.
"You knew we were coming." Naruto answers back flatly, Yamato-sensei's presence hovering just outside the door. They spent the better part of the morning convincing him that they needed to talk to Orochimaru in private, it's hard enough to catch him when he is here at this base and not at one of the others scattered about the other nations.
Rain had fallen over the rice fields sometime in the night, swelling the ground and leaving patches of mud and dew along the trail lines. No matter how much they had brushed off, a blade or two of grass clings stubbornly to the ends of their clothes and had prolonged the journey.
"Yes well, I'm used to having my visitors be ones more involved in law enforcement and what not. It really is shocking that you of all people Naruto would come to me for advisement." He purrs.
"Well, you're the closest person we can ask about the way criminals operate." Naruto responds dryly.
Orochimaru tsks, feigning hurt at his words. "I've learned a lot since the end of the War you know. I don't think I should be categorized as a 'criminal' anymore."
Hinata takes in his features, trying not to stare at the relative youth of his appearance. He's the same age as Lady Tsunade she recalls, but if anything he looks as young as their jounin-sensei. Naruto knows him better from his ties to Sasuke, though everyone knows Orochimaru's history in general, from his murder of Lord Third years ago, his brief stint aligning himself with the Akatsuki, to his continued experimenting and body-swapping.
"So you still like to trade out bodies it seems. You know you could just do with what Granny did if you want to look younger." Naruto mentions at his current appearance.
"Naruto, don't be rude!" Hinata nudges him, though she has been wondering herself whose body this is he currently resides in. Queasiness rises up like a wave, shaking away a myriad of thoughts before any can take root.
Orochimaru shrugs, golden orbs shining, flicking his long black hair off his shoulder. "I admit that I don't have as much chakra to spare as her to do such a thing and besides, where is the fun in that? That would never feed my constant appetite for research or on all the ways to push a body to it's limits."
Hinata blows out a breath, they need to get this over with.
"Have you ever worked with blackmailers? Or people trying to siphon ryo off of you or somebody else?" She asks directly.
His gaze twists to her, smile widening, silent for too long of a minute before speaking again.
"The byakugan...hmm, is someone trying to take it from you or one of your clan members perhaps? That was one kekkai genkai that never interested me, didn't have the rarity like the sharingan or could be used in a manner to reach my goals. There's also the fact that you all put that seal on the branch members' that activates upon death..." Orochimaru muses, half talking to himself recalling the past.
And Naruto feels his patience snap, cobalt eyes clouding over turning into a billowing storm.
"Is that all you care about? Endlessly chasing research, research that you never even ended up getting your hands on properly anyways? Jiraiya was right, you're pointlessly wasting away the years going after information and goals that you're never going to obtain. It didn't work with Sasuke, did it? In fact, he killed you at one point." He snarls, slamming a fist down on the table.
The tea cups fall to the ground with a resounding crack, tea staining the mats a brownish-black.
Orochimaru stays silent, though the smile on his face cracks enough to know the words sting.
Hinata squeezes at his hand and the anger melts out of him; a burst of thunder now gone.
For a second he saw the shift though, the flash of sadness hearing his old friend's name before his same eerily calm grin is back in place.
"Contrary to what you may think Naruto, I do miss Jiraiya despite the things I used to say about him. It seems his ideas are the ones that lasted over the years versus my own. I also do want to work on making Otogakure more of an established village than just a place I used for my experiments or hideaways. You're the peace Jiraiya always used to blabber on about every time he came back from Mount Myoboku based on that old Toad's visions apparently." Orochimaru relates.
At their silence he goes on. "Let me at least give you some advisement, that's the reason you came here after all."
"We're being blackmailed." Naruto finally says.
And at this Orochimaru's interest truly returns, straightening in a way that reminds him of a snake watching it's prey.
"Huh, now who would want to blackmail the Hero of the Fourth Shinobi World War and the Hyuga Princess?" He jests teasingly.
'Good question, that's what we want to know too.' He restrains a scowl, so far this is getting them nowhere and Orochimaru isn't being serious enough.
Orochimaru takes a long sip of his black tea, expression shifting to one of deep thought.
"They're keeping to the shadows at least for now perhaps because they know they couldn't win in a physical fight against you. The blackmail they have I presume isn't one you would want to go public, enough to make you uncomfortable." He reasons.
"They've only asked for ryo so far and...they must have something on my sister." Hinata adds in.
Orochimaru clicks his tongue. "In that case, they might want your clan's abilities as well."
A rush of goosebumps prick her skin, Hinata nodding her agreement that had been one of her thoughts as well.
"Without any unique identifiers it will be hard to trace them. It's possible you could ask one of the special sensory dogs such as the ones Kakashi uses or the ones from the Inuzuka clan to see if they can pick up on any trace scent from where you first found the blackmail. If that doesn't work, you may just have to use camera equipment of your own to stake out your rooms, but then there is the chance they'll still use the transformation jutsu, mask their chakra signature, or catch wind of your plan and get to you in some other form or fashion." He considers.
"They keep following us around from the shadows you know, eventually they'll slip up." Naruto scowls.
Snake orbs gleam in amusement, taking in the rage barely subdued in his eyes. "Yes, I imagine you'll both find a way to handle this. Most likely in a manner that spills the least amount of blood, right? After all, you wouldn't want new rumors to spread!"
Naruto clenches his teeth and Orochimaru's grin widens at his lack of a response.
He follows them to the door, humming a tune to himself.
"You know, you and I aren't much different Naruto." Orochimaru begins, patting at his shoulder.
Naruto immediately shrugs him off, regarding him blandly. He wonders not for the first time what Orochimaru was like before war and his obsession with experimenting and studying the human body consumed his life.
"Once upon a time, he and I used to be friends. We had similar backgrounds after all, lost parents to war, on the same team. Hell, he even went along with some of my stupid plans to woo Tsunade!" Jiraiya sighs.
Naruto nearly chokes on his noodles in shock, glancing up to him. It's rare to hear Pervy-Sage speak of his past, choosing always to dwell on the present or the future.
Maybe it's because his whole body is aching from their training in the mountains since dawn or that he's been pestering him for days to tell him how he became the so called great Toad Sage.
Or perhaps it's just this sunset making him feel nostalgic, the blending of amber into violet, the smell of wildflowers and dirt beneath them.
"Really?! But he's so creepy looking!" Naruto manages out, wincing at moving his arms too fast.
Jiraiya chuckles, patting his back until his throat properly clears. "Yeah, that's one thing I have over him; my good looks!"
The Orochimaru Pervy-Sage knew has long since disappeared to time, though he can't be completely buried away going by the fleeting look of sadness he had at his mention of Jiraiya.
And he hasn't done any major criminal activity since the war's end going by Yamato-sensei's updates.
"In what sense?" He questions warily.
Orochimaru remains cheery, glancing to Hinata then back to him.
"Starting a family of course; I'm sure you two both want children as well! I myself plan to have a son so who knows, maybe our children will go to school together one day!"
Hinata (Konoha-Naruto's Apartment)
'When was the last time I was here?' Hinata wonders, taking in piles of strewn clothes and empty bowls littered around Naruto's bed.
"Sorry, I haven't had the time to really clean up the place you know! I'm not normally this messy I swear!" Naruto remarks over his shoulder, hurriedly stacking long dried ramen and cereal bowls together out of the way.
Hinata laughs because that sounds exactly like what he said the last time she was here, curling into his cotton sheets. It smells of summer rains and the dew of the forest, of the lingering scents of ramen, sweat, and ink after a long day.
The scents haven't changed at all.
"It's fine Naruto, we can split the tasks. I'll help with the laundry and you take care of the dishes." Hinata decides after a moment of thought, already moving to tackle the first pile sitting by his desk.
It will be good for them to both have distractions, to not think about the photos.
But her mind falls back to them mid-folding up one of his old white T's, the splash of faded blue and black ink stains littering the ends. Beside this shirt is another one the color of lilac too small be Naruto's, riddled with the same dark stains.
Her shirt.
The memory comes through with the hush of the evening air into the room, warm and curling around her like a blanket.
They were developing the film from their time in Taki and Kusa.
"Welcome to my room! Umm, you can push that pile out of the way." Naruto announces, waving around his room as if giving a tour. If he'd known they would be coming back here he would've made the place look more presentable via a clone.
But it is nearly midnight and his place is closer than taking Hinata back to the Hyuga compound to face questioning eyes and the blossoming of rumors.
That and maybe Hinata too doesn't want this journey they've had to end just yet either.
Opal eyes take in his room with an interest he's never seen before (normally disgust), from the stacks of rolled up scrolls/books, to the piles of dishes and laundry now a miniature mountain.
"Hmm, it's not as bad as Sakura says." She muses, grin widening when Naruto pokes at her side.
"Ehh, and what does Sakura say?! I'm working on better organizing myself, it's one of the first lessons Kakashi-sensei and Granny told me I'll need to do if I want to keep track of paperwork you know!" He huffs.
Hinata giggles, gaze moving to the camera before stepping forward and opening the side revealing the roll of film.
She peers back up to him, expression giddy and Naruto thinks of the rare smile he captured when he first began using it to take proper photos.
"Can we start working on developing the film?" She asks.
"Tonight?" Naruto asks after a pause and Hinata nods, pink darkening her cheeks at Naruto's cheeky grin.
"Of course!"
And that is how a moment later they are squished close together in his bathroom, moonlight from his tiny cracked overhead window shining on their supplies. The air rises with the scent of the chemicals, cracking his door open enough to keep the room vented.
Their own dark room in a way.
The heady thrum of his heartbeat pulses in his ears, he's seen Pervy-Sage do this enough times to know the process, but he has never been the subject of said pictures.
"Are you sure this how you and Jiraiya-sensei did it?" Hinata questions, breaking him out of his thoughts.
Naruto nods his head, shaking away jitters that make his hands nearly tremble. They won't come out right if he doesn't stay focused, especially when it comes time for mixing the chemicals at just the right temperature.
"First we need to open the film canister and slowly load the film reel into the developing tank." He instructs.
Hinata presses into him reaching for the scissors to cut at the spool and get to work, feeling his stare burn at her until finally she looks back up at him.
"Am...Am I doing this wrong?" She asks carefully at his intense gaze.
Naruto shakes his head and the haze over his eyes fades, swallowing as he sets the half-finished film rolls down.
"No, but you distract me Hinata. Even just brushing up against me like that causes..." He trails off, abruptly moving to stand and leave the room.
Hinata sets aside the rest of the film and bottles carefully out of the way before following after him, unsure what to make of the flush to his cheeks when she is normally the one so tongue-tied around him. She reaches her hand towards him only for Naruto to grab her first, spinning back around to face her.
"This. Us. It won't stop just because we're now back in Konoha, will it?" He blurts out in a rush, words tumbling on top of each other.
"I don't want it to." Hinata answers back softly.
Neither speak in the passing seconds, Naruto stepping forward crossing back into boundaries they've already long since broken.
His lips brush hers, remnants of the dye and ink along his fingers pressing into her sides.
"Oh, crap; I hadn't had the chance to wash my hands off properly!" Naruto notices too late at seeing the fingerprint impressions left along the ends of her shirt.
Hinata glances down at the growing stains, shrugging before dipping her own fingers against the still wet marks and sliding them against Naruto's own shirt.
"We'll match now! Photography isn't always going to be something neat and clean, especially the process of bringing all those images we created to life in different ways."
"I think I'm just about done with the dishes, how are things going in here?" Naruto questions behind her, startling her nearly making her nearly topple over the whole pile of dirty clothes. She only got about a third of a way through before her mind drifted off.
And at seeing her holding up their old shirts a smirk broadens across his face.
"Re-living the good memories of all the fun we had with and without those tops on?" He muses at Hinata's burning cheeks.
"N-No!"
Land of Frost (Outskirts)
"Did you ensure you weren't being followed?"
Keiichiro repeats the statement again, ignoring the flash of rage Setsuko and Yashima give him in return. He scoffs at their dark expressions, hazel orbs sharpening not backing down from his comment.
"The snow has covered our footprints well and good and we erased our chakra signatures; it was a simple in and out. You act as if that was our first bounty operation, there is no reason for you to be so worried." Yashima snorts, tossing his cut of the ryo at his face.
Keiichiro ignores his remark, eyes moving instead to confirm no blood has indeed stained the snow in crimson creating a trail. It's messy enough going after the more valuable targets, even more so nowadays being a missing-nin yourself while doing so.
'These peace talks aren't going to last, are they?' Keiichiro considers, a stab of fear piercing at his chest. None of the past peace summits between the great nations ever worked, war breaking out inevitably over the desires for money and power.
This time won't be any different he imagines; hopes.
Snow falls in a gentle patter around them, a sea of white for miles while ice encases the leaves and fauna making them shimmer in brief patches of light. This deep in the forests of the land it seems like it is always perpetually winter, the cold going deep into his bones.
They'll start heading northwest by nightfall, to Mountains Graveyard.
"...So are you going to tell us about this new job you've taken on without telling us first? Is that why you've been so nervous as of late? You better get your shit together knowing that it apparently involves one of the very heroes of the war." Setsuko asks to break the silence.
"What?! Who is this man you've accepted a job from?" Yashima jumps in.
"Shut it; the ryo involved in this is far and away better than any of the past bounties or jobs we've taken!" He snaps.
Yashima arches a brow, looking to Setsuko to explain more, but he doesn't meet his gaze.
"How much do you know about this guy anyways? Is he one of us? Someone who enjoys killing too, is also dissatisfied with the supposed way these peace discussions are going, or enjoys selling on the black market side of things?" Yashima pressures.
'I don't know, I've hardly gotten a good look at his face. He was pale, wasn't he? Skin nearly as white as all this snow around us.' Keiichiro tries to recall, burying his retorts to his series of questions. All he needed to know at the time during his scouting for a new objective was that the reward would be great all for capturing some risqué photos, that it would be enough ryo to satisfy them all for months.
As long as none of them screw it up or gets too greedy.
"Make sure none of you are caught with those pictures, I assume your skills and jutsu will be enough to keep you and your associates under the radar. I'll deal with them personally if need be when the time comes." His voice had been casual, as if they were two old friends catching up when he'd accepted his offer deep in the grasslands of Kusa out of the public's eye.
But anger crackled beneath that calm tone of his, rage that grows each time he must report neither Naruto or Hinata have responded to said blackmail as of yet...
At least Setsuko is being a bit more patient with him (though he knows it won't last), wanting the details beyond just if this man's ideologies align with their own.
"Photographs, he must be some kind of voyeur to want those types of pictures." Setsuko mutters just loud enough as he explains that so far he's only been tasked with taking the photos and sending the copies back out as blackmail.
"Perhaps, but I think it runs deeper than that for him." Keiichiro reasons, it seems like his interest is only in that of the woman from the photos.
He feels another jab of unease course through him as they trek far enough into the forests that even sunlight can't cross through, he hadn't given Setsuko and Yashima the full details behind this man, why he took on his business in the first place.
Before the day is over they will meet him and know why.
"Don't forget I know details about you all, details about your real identities I can report straight back to the villages you defected from. Those details that will break all of your loved one's hearts you left behind all over again while they watch you die. Otherwise, there are other options I can use if any of you threaten my goals; inadvertently or not."
Death doesn't scare him, neither does the idea of any of his any remaining living relatives having to bear witness to it.
No, it is this other options that he spoke of that is troubling.
Because it is those words that spark up that image, that when he opened his eyes upon him there was only the same ink black of the night gazing back at him.
-x-
For a majority of this past week my throat has been sooo sore you guys! After trying every home remedy possible and googling different options I finally went and got it checked out and I have strep throat. The antibiotics are helping though and I did take off a majority of the week to recover (this chapter was nearly done so I finished it out, hopefully not too many errors). But yeah, that's my week in a nutshell, hope yours was better lol!
I'm sure most of you can guess now who is behind these photographs or the general group behind it, but it's more to it than just him alone I'll say that. Hopefully my next update isn't too far from now, I pushed myself a bit to finish this one.
Enjoy. Review. Favorite. Follow!