It didn't take Sasuke long to realize he was being tested. He wasn't allowed near the trees, where he might have had some cover to mask his actions. He used a basic Body Flicker technique once, just to see how determined the man was to keep him out in the open. Kakashi promptly did the same, catching up and driving him back toward the center of the training ground. Aside from the hand signs Kakashi used to add smoke to the move, it was identical. Sasuke immediately determined not to use the technique again. For all he knew, Shisui had picked the technique up in Konoha, and it was a standard skill for all of the shinobi in the village. If he had built upon the technique in any way, Sasuke didn't plan to reveal it. That was what the man seemed to want from him, after all. He was reminded of the test Sand had put him through, where he had stood in a room and performed jutsus on command. He was already a recognized genin. Why should he suffer through that again?
He stopped moving, pausing a few feet from the post he had bumped into earlier. He was waiting for the taunts to begin. Aside from a bland comment about learning to 'see beneath the underneath,' the man hadn't said anything since inviting him to attack. He was beginning to suspect that this entire thing had been a ploy to leave him confused and angry, just so this man could test his level. He might have accepted that grudgingly if their tactics hadn't scared him as well. He couldn't do a thing about his confusion, but if it was anger the man wanted out of him, that was precisely what he wouldn't get. He relaxed his stance and quickly, but casually, took better note of his surroundings. Whoever regularly used this training ground was sloppy, because there were a number of weapons that had been forgotten and left behind. Kakashi hadn't bothered to recover the two kunai he had thrown while herding him away from the forest earlier, but he disregarded those entirely. For all he knew those might have been left intentionally as some sort of trap. There was no water near this training area, but there were plenty of soft leaves mixed with the dead ones spotting the packed dirt. He supposed he could use that. The man might even find it amusing, which he could use to his advantage. There was no cover to be had, and none he could make without tearing up the ground itself. Destroying this training area wouldn't bother him, especially if it served to annoy Kakashi or the Hokage, but he had to consider the shinobi who regularly used the spot. He had nothing against them. So far.
"What's wrong?" Kakashi called, still sounding as amused as ever. "Are you that afraid to attack me directly?"
Not afraid, just reluctant. If Konoha did intend to use him, even if it was limited to allowing him to accompany Naruto on missions, then they would need to know some of his weaknesses. That didn't mean he had to like it. He sniffed and turned his back, walking a few feet away so the training post was behind him. "Shinobi attack from the shadows." As he had expected, the man made no move to attack him from behind. Kakashi expected him to display his skills, without revealing any of his own.
"Ah, but unfortunately we can't wait until nightfall. We don't have much time at all. So I suggest you get on with it. Unless you're content to remain a genin?"
As if they had any intention of changing his rank. Naruto had already warned him about the unlikelihood of that. He turned anyway, glaring until the man was satisfied that his taunt had struck home. If he were going to be taunted for being a genin, then he should at least prove that he could perform like one. Genin level techniques were nothing to scoff at, anyway. There was a good reason they formed the basics of all higher level techniques. As someone who had relied almost entirely on the replacement technique during that Anbu mission, Kakashi knew that as well as he did. He thumbed open the pack strapped to his thigh and pulled out two kunai and a senbon. There was no point trying to hide anything, so he didn't bother. He tossed one of the kunai into the air, flicking up the senbon to redirect it so it landed at the man's feet. If Kakashi noticed that the senbon embedded itself in the training post, so be it. He wrapped chakra wire around the second kunai and fired it directly at the man's head. He had his attention now, and a bit of interest, but he could see a hint of annoyance in Kakashi's eye when he easily dodged the missile. He tugged it back, just in case Kakashi hadn't noticed the wire, and let it fall placidly to the ground a few feet behind the man.
Kakashi sighed, eyeing Sasuke's set up with a touch more visible annoyance. "You're not playing like a proper Uchiha, you know."
"We don't play," Sasuke responded. That was the entire point. If the Hokage had wanted to test him, he should have said so. He didn't appreciate being played with, especially if he was just being used to punish Naruto for whatever 'stunt' it was that he had pulled. He had gathered that much without looking underneath anything. He waited to see if Kakashi would wait for him to spring his trap, or if he were going to end this charade now. When the man shook his head and remained right where he was, he had his answer.
"I suppose they don't," Kakashi said. "But they are supposed to impress people. You haven't done that yet."
Sasuke smirked, giving him a taste of his own amusement. "Sorry to disappoint you." He sincerely hoped he was about to disappoint him even further.
He snapped his end of the chakra wire, letting it drift to the ground by his feet. Then he performed a henge, doing the hand signs slowly enough that even a civilian would have been able to follow them. He could see Kakashi's attention heighten, just a little. Did he think he was transforming the senbon embedded on his side of the training post, or something else in the yard? There weren't many pebbles beneath the loose leaf cover, so he would probably notice if one suddenly transformed into something else. Then again, it wasn't as if Sasuke was making an attempt to hide anything. Kakashi had wanted this out in the open, so far be it from him to use subterfuge or anything befitting of a shinobi. He barely resisted the urge to roll his eyes. If he had known he would be doing this, he would have borrowed some of Naruto's orange before leaving the apartment.
Since he had Naruto's word that it was a Konoha favorite, he performed a multiple shadow clone jutsu next. That was a mistake. It was obvious that Kakashi had been hoping for something like that, because he looked far more interested, his posture tightening in anticipation. Had he impressed him after all? No, he didn't think so. The man certainly wasn't watching for an army of clones to spring from the trees. Then again, maybe he didn't have to be visibly on guard in order to deflect an attack. He was a jounin, and an Anbu besides. Maybe he had even seen right through him. After their last encounter, Kakashi probably knew he didn't have the chakra to create that many clones of himself. Sasuke watched him closely, noting the exact moment he started to get bored with the wait. He performed another henge, going through the hand signs a little quicker this time. That did the trick. Kakashi was back to being annoyed and possibly disappointed. He didn't seem to have any idea what he was doing. Sasuke smirked again, just in case it would annoy him. Whether Kakashi thought he was wasting his time or building up to some sort of attack, it was obvious the man didn't appreciate his methods at all. That made them even. No matter what he tied around around his forehead, he wasn't their shinobi. If they wanted him to perform on command, they would have to make it worth his time.
"Would you expect a real enemy to stay in one place this long?" Kakashi drawled.
"If he had no legs," Sasuke said, just to make him wonder. The man was standing right between two kunai, one of which still had chakra wire attached to it and leading directly to him. The clan had come from Konoha originally, so their affinity for fire jutsus should be common knowledge here. Unfortunately, his retort had the wrong effect, bringing a spark of amusement to the man's dark eye.
Sasuke quickly flew through another henge jutsu, at nowhere near his top speed but fast enough to show that he wasn't entirely ignoring this pointless genin test. There was a wisp from the training post as the ball dropped into the little cradle he had transformed for it. Kakashi must have had sharp ears because his attention snapped toward the sound. Sasuke was finished, anyway, so it didn't matter. He took a deep breath and performed the most pitiful water release imaginable. It didn't even reach far enough for Kakashi to have to dodge it, and he could only transform his chakra into enough water to leave a light sprinkle over the ground. Sadly, it was the best he could do without a water source nearby. Happily, the display brought open disgust to Kakashi's face. It was almost comical.
"Who was your jounin instructor?" Kakashi demanded. "Did he teach you nothing?"
"Gotou Aritomo was my instructor," Sasuke admitted. "He tried to teach me wind release, but I didn't take to it. Suiton suits me much better."
Kakashi's gaze snapped down to the drops of water speckling the ground, and Sasuke could almost see his mind working. This man might have enjoyed games, but he didn't appreciate being the butt of one. He was trying to determine the rules Sasuke was playing by.
That was his mistake. Sasuke had never been playing to begin with. Kakashi had annoyed him and was now wasting his time. He was merely returning the favor.
He snatched up the ball and darted in a small circle, firing his remaining weapons so that the man was forced to move at least a little in order to dodge them. After the first few, Kakashi pulled a kunai of his own and used that to deflect them. The man still made no attempt to attack in return, merely turning to track Sasuke's progress and blocking or dodging what came close enough to move him. Sasuke ran out of weapons sooner than he would have liked, but Kakashi had shuffled the green water-specked leaves around enough to do the job. He was now standing in the middle of a small wet area spotted with metal weapons. Perhaps he had seen through everything and was still waiting to be impressed. Sasuke did one more round of the training area, picking up the weapons that had been left there and firing those at him as he charged the ball in his hand, transforming as much of his chakra into lightning as he could without it being audible. When he returned to his original position by the training post, he tossed the ball into the air and fired a small katon jutsu at it. The clash was ugly enough to capture Kakashi's attention as Sasuke snatched up the chakra wire and flung the kunai on the other end into the crackling ball. He released the henge a second before the kunai struck the cluster of cloned senbon.
The resulting spray had a nice trajectory to it, and it was satisfying to see that Kakashi deflected a number of them before realizing there wasn't just fire in the chakra coating them. The kunai tumbled from his numbed fingers and he darted out of the trap before the currents crackling over the ground could catch him. He didn't waste time adding smoke to the body flicker this time, so Sasuke added some to his own when he dashed over to halt him with a kick to the gut. If he couldn't run for the trees, then Kakashi couldn't either. Kakashi blocked the blow, of course, and easily countered the flurry of taijutsu Sasuke followed it up with. He also seemed unwilling to back up into the still crackling area Sasuke had prepared for him. He was strong enough that budging him was out of the question. Sasuke didn't need to move him, though. His own movements were stirring up enough current for some of the damp leaves to swish against the man's legs. It probably had no more effect than a wasp sting, but those could be quite irritating. Kakashi did look rather annoyed now.
"Was that the extent of your plan?" Kakashi asked, as he pushed back against Sasuke's assault enough to be out of the leaves' range. "To trap me in that spot and tingle me to death?"
The man was taunting him again, but Sasuke could tell he was disappointed, possibly even disgusted. That was gratifying enough that Sasuke put a little more effort into his taijutsu. He wouldn't give him the sharingan, and he certainly wasn't going to waste anymore chakra, but he had to admit that Kakashi was more fun to beat on than a training post. A little more of this and the man might even start fighting back. He began targeting his face. People with masks usually disliked that, and this one was no different. He kept it up until Kakashi, visibly exasperated, caught one of his fists. Sasuke promptly swiped his foot over one of the kunai littering the ground, attached it with his chakra and rammed it into the man's right ankle. The response was immediate and painful. Sasuke blocked the worst of the blow but found himself skidding back a few yards before he could get enough traction to stop himself. He didn't bother rising out of his crouch because Kakashi made no move to come after him.
There was no visible emotion on Kakashi's face as he stared down at the kunai protruding from his leg. For a moment Sasuke worried that he might have gone too far, but he quickly squelched that. It was a basic genin level move, no more difficult than tree climbing, and if Kakashi hadn't seen it coming, it was his own fault. The man was lucky he hadn't been close enough to snag the kunai with the chakra wire attached. Or the senbon. He had kicked him hard enough that he might have had to dig that out.
Kakashi bent and pulled the kunai free, tossing it aside. When he rose it was clear from his sober expression that this farce was over. Sasuke rose as well.
"Are you entirely self-taught?" Kakashi asked, frowning at him.
"Of course not," Sasuke scoffed. He knew what he meant, though. He hadn't been trained properly, not like Itachi had. The clan hadn't expected him to need that sort of training. His jounin instructor had taught him a few advanced jutsus, or tried to anyway, since he hadn't been able pick up any of his wind-based techniques at all. He had sparred with him originally, helping him to round out his taijutsu and build his proficiency with chakra wire, but as soon as it became apparent that Sasuke could easily beat him in a fight, that training had stopped. "I was taught the skills required to accomplish my missions. Everything else, I picked up from shinobi I encountered during those missions."
"And you haven't done any missions since acquiring the sharingan. Is that why you didn't use it?"
Sasuke stared blankly at him. Was he kidding? "I didn't use the sharingan because I didn't need to. You just stood in one place. You weren't moving, let alone using chakra."
Kakashi's eye narrowed a little at that. "Your jutsus might have had more effect if you had used the sharingan."
"No," Sasuke said flatly. "They would have had more effect had I used more chakra. I didn't see any point in that."
Kakashi hummed softly, as if he wondered about that. He looked over his shoulder at the metal strewn ground. The senbon clones had vanished and the water had already dried up. A light breeze was spreading the bits of ash from the few dead leaves that had been burnt. Once the weapons had been retrieved there wouldn't be any sign of what had happened there. "Do you always use the minimum amount of effort required?" he asked, without looking around.
"Yes. Unless I have a reason to put forth more effort." Proving himself would have been reason enough. But Kakashi had invited him to pay him back. Refusing to give him what he wanted was far better payback in Sasuke's eyes. Besides, Kakashi had only asked him to prove that he had the skills required to accomplish the missions he had laid claim to. Few of those missions had required anything more than the skills he had displayed here. He had even thrown in a few extras like the fire and lightning, just in case Kakashi was one of those people who thought flashy techniques were required to kill a fellow shinobi. Most of the time it was just a matter of being in the right place and attacking when and how they least expected it. As an Anbu, Kakashi had to know that. If he wanted more out of him, he would have to give more. A little respect would be a nice place to start. But Sasuke doubted he would be getting that from anyone in this village no matter how long he was stuck here.
He passed Kakashi and began retrieving his weapons. That didn't take long. Kakashi found the senbon, but leaned away when he reached to take it from him.
"The first henge," Kakashi prompted, rolling the senbon between his thumb and index finger. "Was that to change the size?"
So he had seen through that. Sasuke dropped his arm and sat back on his heels. "Yes."
"To make it small enough that you could clone more of them with the kage bunshin jutsu without me seeing them from my side of the post. And the second henge? To turn them into a ball you could handle more easily?"
Sasuke didn't care for the man's tone, but he didn't let it show. "No. The second henge was on the post, to catch the ball I made with the third henge."
Kakashi shook his head, a bemused expression curving his eye. "Why...?"
"So you wouldn't see what I had done until I wanted you to." That should have been obvious. He had done it because Kakashi had wanted him to do everything openly and he hadn't felt like complying.
"No. I meant, why go to all of that trouble when you could have simply brought more senbon? You weren't very well equipped for someone who intended to train today."
Sasuke's eyes narrowed. Naruto must not have used senbon much, because there had only been a few in his closet. Sasuke had used the only one he had in his pack because he hadn't wanted Kakashi to know where the others were hidden. But that wasn't the point. Kakashi knew very well that he owned nothing. He had been there, watching from the trees, when his equipment was taken away from him. Which meant he had only asked to get a rise out of him. Did he really get that much satisfaction out of taunting him? Maybe it was a Konoha tradition and that was why Naruto was so good at it. Sasuke stood, folding his arms over his chest. "I did not intend to do anything beyond basic taijutsu today. I thought you knew that." If there had been Anbu watching before the Hokage arrived, Kakashi had probably been one of them.
"No," Kakashi said, blinking in seeming surprise. He stood smoothly and handed Sasuke the senbon, watching as he stowed it away. "The Hokage just asked me to keep you company until Naruto showed up." He slipped his hands into his pockets and sent a slow look around the clearing. "I really thought he would have gotten here sooner. I guess that toad decided to wait the full two hours after all."
Oddly enough, Sasuke believed him. It was those questions about the sharingan that convinced him. If Kakashi had arrived with or after the Hokage, then he wouldn't have seen him cast that genjutsu. That was a shame. He really wanted to know how those men could have been promoted to jounin. Maybe Konoha really was on the same level as Sand. Or, as he was beginning to suspect, the ranks really did mean nothing. According to their book, his first kill had been an A rank missing-nin. That rank hadn't helped him any. In the end he was just a man. A tiny dose of a poison he had no immunity against and he died the same as anyone.
Sasuke found himself looking at the forest, his gaze skirting the treetops. He wondered where this training area was located in relation to the other one. He couldn't see the village walls over the trees, some of which were enormous. He couldn't hear anything aside from a few birds and animals rustling around in the brush. The undergrowth was much thicker as well, with heavy vines and creepers and no visible paths. This was a much better area to train in than the one Naruto had picked out. If Kakashi had let him into those trees, he might have given him a real fight just for the experience.
"Where are we?" Sasuke asked, glancing at Kakashi.
"The forty-fourth training ground," Kakashi said, flashing a smile that curved his visible eye. "Also known as the forest of death. Part of Naruto's chunin exam was staged here. He has horrible memories about this place and hasn't been back since. He'll be horrified when he finds out I brought you here."
Which was precisely why he had done so. Sasuke shook his head. He didn't understand these people at all. Would he ever? "Why?" he asked. "What did he do to deserve this?"
Kakashi's expression sobered swiftly. "Naruto has a problem controlling his temper. He's made a lot of progress, but when he found out you had been attacked on your way here, he had a relapse. He nearly killed the man responsible. A man who was already in the hospital after having his chakra paths burnt by none other than Hyuuga Neji, someone known for his restraint. You're clearly a trigger for Naruto and anyone else eager to protect you on his behalf. The Hokage wants to curb that before it becomes a habit." He snorted softly and turned to eye the treeline. "Of course, his method is more likely to have the opposite effect, but I've never claimed to understand the way his mind works. If he thinks driving Naruto to the brink of insanity with worry for you will help him not overreact so much in the future, well...that's his prerogative."
Were they holding him partly responsible for that? He was no more to blame for Naruto's 'temper tantrums' than he was for Naruto's obsession. And as far as he was concerned, a little disfigurement was no more than that jounin deserved for attacking a helpless prisoner. He wouldn't argue the point though. This was probably another 'moral issue' that Konoha and his clan would never agree upon. He focused on the name instead. Hyuuga Neji. So that was the person Naruto had been talking about, a member of the clan with the questionable morals. Sasuke looked forward to meeting him again.
A sudden surge of chakra had Sasuke flinching and looking around wildly. A quick glance found that Kakashi hadn't so much as twitched. Sasuke flushed, quickly controlling himself. The chakra felt wrong, nearly as disturbing as the chakra of some of the Sound shinobi he had encountered, but it was too far away to be a threat. He had automatically activated the sharingan, which was more worrisome than anything. That was twice today that he had instinctively done that. He would have to make sure that didn't become a habit of his.
"That's my cue," Kakashi murmured. He waved a hand at Sasuke. "I'm going to leave you here now."
"What?" Sasuke blurted. He didn't even know what direction the village lay in.
Kakashi jerked his head in the direction of that fluctuating chakra. "Naruto. This wasn't my idea, so I'm not going to be here when he finds you. If he doesn't run straight to his dad, then you can explain things to him." He lifted his hand to teleport away, but paused at the last second. "That forest is dangerous, by the way. Don't ever go in there alone. Just stay in this clearing until he gets here."
Sasuke's mouth dropped open, but the man was gone before he could speak. He was left standing alone in the training area, stunned. He looked around slowly, suddenly uncomfortable with the trees surrounding him on all sides. There were no Anbu watching now. He had no basis for that, but he was convinced of it anyway. He was alone, in an unknown place, and that chakra was Naruto's? It was certainly large enough to be, if Naruto hadn't just been boasting about his reserves. But the feel of it was unnerving. Was he tapping the demon's chakra? He had to be. Why would he be upset enough to...
He shook his head, unconsciously digging his fingers into his folded arms. He already knew why. Kakashi had been perfectly clear about that. He was the trigger. The toad had told Naruto that he had been taken to be 'interrogated' and Naruto knew exactly how he felt about the prospect of being tortured. But even if it were true, he wouldn't have suicided. Naruto should know that. Did Naruto really think he would hurt his clan that way? He already had the answer to that as well, though. Naruto wasn't thinking at all. The wildness of his chakra made that painfully obvious. And he was expected to deal with him? He wasn't about to wait around for that.
He rushed to the edge of the forest and leapt into the canopy. He wasn't running away. He was moving in the direction of that chakra. He was, however, completely ignoring Kakashi's advice. Or maybe it had been an order rather than a warning. Sasuke didn't care either way. The only orders he considered himself bound by were the Hokage's.
He didn't make it far before he was forced to slow, and then to activate the sharingan. There were traps in here, most of them old, but many unsprung and difficult to spot with the naked eye. With the sharingan he could see the chakra traces and avoid them altogether. At least he didn't have to worry about the branches snapping beneath him. Half of them were as thick as normal tree trunks. There were plenty of dangerous creatures to avoid, though. He was surprised by the number of snakes, considering the prejudice Naruto had implied this village had against the species. Some of the ones he spotted were large enough to do serious damage if controlled by genjutsu, and he narrowly avoided a few that were deadly enough to put his own venomous summons to shame. Then there were the toxic plants and insects. This forest was a treasure trove. If he didn't have an out of control 'lover' blazing his demonic chakra high enough to give him goosebumps, he would have liked to linger here.
That chakra abruptly disappeared. Sasuke halted on the branch he had landed on and rose to send a sharp look behind him. If Naruto teleported to that clearing and found it empty, how much worse would he get? He immediately realized that wouldn't be an issue. Naruto appeared directly in front of him and nearly pitched backward off the branch. Sasuke's hand snapped out, snagging Naruto's shirt and jerking him upright. That chakra was even more disturbing at close proximity. It was a thick reddish orange and hot against his hand, curling and clinging as if it had more substance than it should. Naruto's eyes were red and slitted just like a snake's, which was horribly ironic as far as Sasuke was concerned. The marks on his face were thicker and Sasuke could swear he had fangs. The worst part was the look on his face, the way his eyes widened when he finally saw him through his panic and anger. Sasuke's breath caught in his throat. Was he going to cry? No. He embraced him instead. That was worse, even though he should have expected it. He closed his eyes tight and forced himself not to push away. It felt as if that chakra was creeping all over him.
"Sasuke," Naruto groaned, squeezing him tighter. "I didn't know. I swear I didn't know or I never would have left you alone!"
"Calm down," Sasuke said quickly. He didn't like the edge of panic he could hear in his voice. It was that chakra. He didn't know how long he could take being in contact with it. It felt so...weird. It was too disturbing. "Nothing happened. They didn't torture me. They didn't even interrogate me. Ibiki asked me a few questions and that was all. Your father made it sound like I was going to be tortured so your summon would tell you that. It was just a lie to punish you for what you did to that man who attacked me. Naruto," he hissed, shivering despite himself. "Control your chakra or let go of me. I mean it."
He was released so suddenly he once again had to yank Naruto forward to keep him from falling off the limb. As soon as Naruto caught himself with his chakra, Sasuke let go of his shirt and moved a few feet down the branch. The distance didn't help until Naruto's chakra began to simmer down. He could see the effort that took as clearly as he could see the wince on his face.
"Sorry, Sasuke," Naruto grimaced. "That was a hell of a way to introduce you to Kyuubi's chakra, huh? I was just - I panicked. When Gamakichi told me, I didn't believe it. I was sure it had to be a trick. And then I went to the T&I building and they said you really had come in and they never saw you leave and I just lost it. I couldn't find you there and they said you came in with Kakashi-sensei! I couldn't believe that, either. By the time I remembered I could teleport directly to you, I just-" He took a step toward Sasuke and halted when he saw him stiffen. He closed his eyes, his brows drawn in furious concentration, and the last of that fiery chakra finally ebbed away.
Blue eyes opened back up, and Sasuke walked to him with a sigh, letting himself be hugged. He supposed he would get used to that eventually. "How did you come directly to me?"
"The forehead protector," Naruto murmured into his neck. "I don't know if I'm supposed to tell you about that yet, but at this point I don't even care. My dad wants to put a seal on you so I can come directly to you even when you're not wearing it. He had one on my mom so he could get to her no matter where she was. I know I was supposed to wait a while before asking you about that, but if he's the one who-" He pulled back abruptly, his eyes frantically searching Sasuke's. "My dad did this? He really was the one who came and got you?"
"Yes. Because of what you did to the jounin who attacked me on my way here."
The disbelief and hurt on Naruto's face was rapidly replaced by outrage. "But he deserved it! He could have blinded you - he could have killed you! He totally deserved it!"
"And the Hokage thinks you deserved this," Sasuke shrugged. "For some reason, he thinks this will help you learn to control your temper."
Naruto grimaced, "Well, he shouldn't have involved you in it."
"I agree," Sasuke said bluntly. "If he's going to blame me when your temper gets the best of you, then you had better learn to control it quickly. And, for the record, I also think that man deserved it. But as we've already discovered, I don't adhere to the same moral guideline that Konoha does. You do. Act like it."
"You're going to be a good influence on me," Naruto snorted. "I can already tell."
Sasuke rolled his eyes when he was abruptly hugged again. "What kind of seal is your father wanting to place on me?"
"Don't worry, it doesn't actually seal anything. It's not that different from what we use when we do normal teleportations. It just marks the destination so you can go there any time. What makes it so useful is that it works on people and over long distances. It takes a lot of chakra, though. I have to use bunshin to pull it off right now, but I'll get better with practice. And it's entirely up to you, so don't think he's going to force you into it."
So without a seal on his body, all he had to do was take the forehead protector off and Naruto wouldn't be able to come directly to him. Sasuke understood why the Hokage hadn't wanted Naruto to tell him about it yet. He ran a light hand over Naruto's back. "Thank you for telling me."
"I hate the secrets," Naruto admitted. He rubbed his cheek against Sasuke's neck, pulling him closer. "I really do."
"Some are necessary."
"Yeah," Naruto sighed. Then he stiffened, his hands digging into Sasuke's back. "Sasuke...? Where are we...?"
Had he only just noticed their surroundings? Sasuke sniffed. "The forty-fourth training ground."
Naruto pulled away, giving him a baffled look. "The what?"
"Forest of death?" Sasuke tried. The effect this had on Naruto was dramatic. He recoiled, his upper lip curled, and Sasuke could see the whites of his eyes as he looked around frantically. What could have happened in this forest to make him react like that?
For a moment Naruto sputtered, then he locked his horrified attention on Sasuke. "What the hell are you doing in here? How did you even get here?"
"Kakashi brought me here," Sasuke informed him. "As soon as he felt your chakra spiking, he left me here. Alone." He decided not to mention that Kakashi had actually left him in a clearing and had warned him to stay there.
Naruto erupted. "He what? I'll kill him!"
Sasuke gave him a hard shove before the impending chakra surge he felt could become visible. After a startled sideways hop and some pinwheeling of his arms, Naruto regained his balance and rounded on him. Sasuke glared back. "Don't you dare. I don't want to go through this again."
"I didn't mean that literally," Naruto scowled, rubbing his arm. "Kakashi-sensei was one of my teachers. Even if I wanted to break his face, I'd never do it. I haven't even seen it yet. But you can bet I'll make him pay. He knows how much I hate this place!"
"Why do you hate it so much? This would be an excellent place to train." And to stock up on things that were notably missing from Naruto's closet.
Naruto squinted at him in disbelief, and then recoiled to point a finger at him. "You're like Anko!" he accused, sounding horrified.
"Who is that?"
"Someone who likes snakes and the forest of death," Naruto winced. "And Ibiki, which just proves how twisted she is."
"Ibiki impressed me," Sasuke admitted.
"Don't say things like that," Naruto hissed, flashing a wary look around them. "You never know what in here might hear you. Come on, we're getting the hell out of here right now."
"I wouldn't mind staying for a while..."
Naruto squinted at him again and then threw an arm around his shoulders. "Nice try, but no messing with my head in the forest of death. We're getting out. Now."
Sasuke smirked as Naruto teleported them away. He now had two people in this village he was looking forward to meeting.
.-.
TBC