::heavy sigh:: Whew. Again, sorry for not updating sooner. Life and all. I'll save my blurb for the end.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters (though that would be nice.I wouldn't have to write these disclaimers, for one thing.)
SPOILERS: If you have not been keeping up with the manga and you do not want any inkling of spoilers, you may not want to read. But it is up to you.
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Run From You
By Doskoipanda
Chapter 12: Beginning
Shikamaru frowned at the door handle that led to Ino's room. I'm not going in there, he thought derisively. She's just trying to use me-
"She's asking for you."
Bullshit. Shikamaru shook his head violently and pushed the door open with a bang. He'd prove it, the moment she saw him, she'd fix him with her sinister baby blue eyes and start having him run all her errands and-
She was asleep.
All of his insides shrank as she stirred a little at the noise, then he sighed in relief as she fell still once more. He snorted to himself; Sakura had obviously tricked him, but for what purpose, he had no idea. Women. He'd never understand them, they were tricky...calculating..they were..
His thoughts smoothed out and faded away as he stared at the slumbering kunoichi before him. With her eyes closed, her face so relaxed and calm.she looked so quiet and vulnerable-
Shikamaru jumped as he realized that he was no more than a foot from the bed. How had he gotten there? Like some kind of moth drawn to a flame, he had moved without conscious thought or effort.
He put a hand his forehead and sighed deeply. What was he doing, why was it that he was always reduced to idiocy around her, that his stupid emotions would always do things for him and get him into trouble, why..
Why did he torture himself like this so much?
He ignored that thought and refocused on Ino's face. Some golden tendrils of hair were hanging over her lips, pale against the bruises and bandages on her cheeks. Involuntarily and with unconscious tenderness, he brushed the hair away, tucking it carefully behind her ear.
It was ridiculous how focused he was on this simple action, how carefully his senses noted just how warm her skin was against his hand, how blue her eyes were against the white of the pillow, how quietly she-her eyes were open-
He leapt back as if bees had stung him. Ino's gaze followed his hasty retreat without expression. "Hi," she finally said at length.
Remembering to breathe, Shikamaru willed his face muscles to thaw and regroup into his usual scowl. "Hi," he muttered, turning his head towards the floor, pointedly not looking at her.
The soft humming of the overhead light quickly became the loudest thing in the room. Shikamaru shifted uncomfortably, then rubbed at the back of his head. "Sakura told me to come see you," he muttered, as if making an excuse. "So..yeah."
Ino blinked. Then she scowled and began to push herself up. "I'm going to murder that girl-"
She winced a bit as tight muscles and broken bones screamed at her for her carelessness. "Oi, oi, lie down," Shikamaru held up a hand, managing to sound annoyed. "You shouldn't be moving around so much."
Ino sniffed in response and tried not to grimace as she settled into a sitting position. Shikamaru rolled his eyes at her stubborn defiance and lifted his free hand to rub the back of his head.
It was a mistake. Ino's eyes had followed his movement, and now she was focusing upon his chest with alarming intensity. Shikamaru blinked, then followed her gaze to his bandaged left arm, fixed securely to his body. Oh hell, he thought resignedly.
"What happened?" Ino asked in a strange, hard voice.
"I fell," Shikamaru said calmly. He'd rehearsed this conversation already. "All those summoning animals underfoot, it was hard to sta-"
"That's not the way I heard it," Ino said in that same low, harsh voice. "Chouji said that you got hurt trying to help me."
Shikamaru shrugged, making a mental note to remind Chouji about minding his own business when it came to Ino. "Whatever makes you happy. I don't really care," he said nonchalantly.
He figured she'd blow up as usual, that she'd scream and rage and tell him that he was an inconsiderate, lazy idiot who should have gotten to her sooner, Sasuke-kun would have gotten to her sooner. A dull surge of anger welled through his gut, but he refused to acknowledge it and closed his eyes instead, waiting for her tirade to hit him.
It didn't come. In surprise, he opened his eyes looked at her questioningly. Ino had turned her face away, her hands tight in her lap.
"I know you don't," she said quietly. And just a little bit sadly.
What?
"Oi, Ino?" Shikamaru ventured tentatively. And after an awkward pause, he smirked on purpose. "You ok?"
The blonde kunoichi did not answer. Alarmed, but managing to look like he wasn't hurrying, he slouched over to the bedside and sat down alongside her. "Oi," he said quietly, leaning a bit to get a good look at her face-
And then Ino suddenly leaned forward into his chest in one deliberate move, her forehead resting on his collarbone.
Holy shit!! he screamed mentally. What the-
His heart pushed up into his throat, and he swallowed hard to get it back down to its original position. All of his senses were electrified, his hair was standing on end, he felt Ino's light breath on his skin as powerfully as a physical caress. They were as still as stone, soft as rain, quiet as air, save for the erratic drumming of his heart, pulsing loudly under her ear.
And then..
No.
As gently as he could, Shikamaru began to lean back, out of her reach, out of her touch. "Hey," he said quietly, laughingly, as if uncomfortable. "Come on, Ino, what-"
He froze again as she seized his jacket in an iron grip, keeping him there.
Jaw tightening, he closed his eyes. He had to say something. He had to say anything. But his soul was vibrating with too much power and raw feeling, and he could not. This thing, this beautiful, horrible thing that seemed so attainable and so simple for others, was just impossible between them. Too difficult. Maybe their lives were too tangled together, perhaps their souls were too different-whatever it was, it was too much of a barrier to overcome, and so the precious secret that he hid deep in his heart could never escape its prison.
It's too hard, Ino.
As if she'd heard his thoughts, she sighed softly against his chest. The hand clenched in his clothes relaxed ever so slightly. "I'm sorry you got hurt, Shika," she said quietly.
Shikamaru nodded stiffly. "Whatever," he managed. "It wasn't too troublesome."
Ino let herself smile a little. Idiot, she thought a sleepily. It might have been her medicine, or her injuries, or the warmth and comfort of the moment, but in any event, she was feeling waves of drowsiness lapping at her consciousness.
This moment..
Something in her warmed, spreading through her stomach, and just as quickly died. In such a moment, was it so impossible that she could be right? Was it?
But what would that mean to her, ultimately?
Shika, are you.
Am I..?
She didn't know. She just didn't know. And she was too afraid to know. But when he shifted as if to rise, her body resisted almost violently, fist tightening in his clothes once more, leaning against him with more force.
This moment would end soon, and she didn't think she wanted that.
Shikamaru's hand gently closed over hers, attempting to disentangle her fingers from his jacket. "You're going to fall asleep on me," he said softly.
"S'fine," she mumbled sleepily. "I don't care."
He snorted. "Thanks. Come on, Ino-"
"Just stay," she said quietly, closing her eyes. "Till I fall asleep."
"Wha-"
"Thanks, Shika," she smiled. It was a small smile, as if masked, but it was true. "Thanks for everything."
Her breathing deepened, and her body relaxed completely as she fell asleep. He waited for a minute before carefully lowering her to the bed, his skin prickling from the lost contact and dissipating warmth. Pulling the covers over her shoulder, he made as if to turn and leave, but on impulse, he bent down to her once more and carefully peered at her slumbering face. And he smiled a secret, tender smile.
Mendokuse, he thought fondly.
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Kakashi sighed and scratched the back of his head. "Well, there's nothing much more to do if we don't see anything," he said reasonably, casting an eye at the covered body of Unjou Kogaku lying on a pallet some distance away. "Someone contact Jiraiya and the Hokage. We're done here."
As the patrol party began to prepare to head back to Konoha, Kakashi swept his gaze over the area once more. Sensing nothing, he turned back to the patrol, noted that they had a firm hold of the corpse, and all present vanished in a cloud of smoke.
Through the clearing mist, a snake came forward, making its way to the flattened grass that had supported Kogaku's dead body for the day. The serpent moved around the area slowly and carefully until its head bumped into something wrinkled and black. Opening its mouth wide, it took hold of the object and turned around, returning the way it had come.
It slithered blindly, the object in its mouth obscuring its vision. Abruptly it bumped into something yet again, and then felt itself being lifted into the air, felt its burden taken from its mouth.
"Thank you, my friend," a man's light voice said pleasantly. The snake coiled around the hand holding it, hissing with familiarity.
The sound was extinguished as the hand clenched and crushed the snake's vertebrae. Letting the reptile fall from his fingers, the owner of the murderous hand used it to carefully cradle the shriveled dead thing that the serpent had brought to him.
"Orochimaru-sama," he whispered. And then his lips spread apart in a sinister grin.
Konoha..I'm coming.
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It was sunset, the mating of day and night, and the sky was a merged palette of glorious color, blue and purple underlying the brilliant orange of the diving sun.
Sasuke had seen it through the window, and he had needed to be out there with it. He had to get out of the whiteness, the nothingness of the room, his head, his thoughts, his soul. Since that moment with Naruto, he had not processed any information or food, he had not slept. The only thing he could grasp was a sense of completion. There was nothing after that.
But he ultimately needed more than that, more than just white, or just black. His life, so easy and simple to define in his youth, had been too enriched with color, the hue of emotion, people and memories. He could not last long without the complexity that he had grown accustomed to, symbolized in shades of red, of green and blue, and orange.
So he went up to the roof, and there he saw Naruto.
It was so fitting that Sasuke almost laughed. The blonde shinobi was standing at the edge of the rooftop, framed against a blinding sun, the awesome rays of light seeming to emanate from his own body. Like a deity watching over his lands.
The source of light turned, as if knowing that Sasuke was there. Eyes glinted over with orange, they watched the black-haired shinobi silently.
Sasuke stared back, unsure of what was going to happen. Would he run? Would he turn away? Would he attack? Or would he be absolutely predictable and-
Naruto grinned, teeth flashing in the dying sunlight.
Something in Sasuke relaxed, and he fought the urge to smirk himself. He moved up to stand next to Naruto, and also looked out at the village of Konoha.
They were quiet for a moment. And then Naruto's grin fell away as he looked at his home. "It was kinda close, huh," he said softly.
Sasuke shrugged. "Konoha's still here. What's done is done." The phrase seemed to echo in the air, laced with heavier purpose.
The blonde shinobi nodded. And waited. And then.
"What happens now?" he asked of Sasuke. And once again, the air was filled with deeper meaning.
"I don't know," Sasuke said seriously. Truthfully. The sun had sunk lower, throwing a piercing ray of light directly into his eyes, and he brought up a hand to shield them. Or maybe he did it to hide a sudden thought.
"It won't be easy," he said quietly.
Things have never been easy between us.
He lowered his hand and turned his head to look at Naruto, whose blue eyes were wide and thoughtful.
And excited.
"Well, no shit, Sasuke," he said patronizingly. "It wouldn't be worth it if it were easy, ya know? It'd be something to work on."
Sasuke's eyes were dark, refusing to show anything reflective of his emotions. "Even then, it may be too hard."
I can do anything, learn anything, and see anything. Except for our future. And if we fail, it could kill us both.
Are you ready for that, Naruto?
As if he'd heard, the blonde shinobi turned back to the sun and took a few steps forward, closer to the edge of the roof. And then he twisted back to look at Sasuke.
"I'm not good at giving up," Naruto declared with a huge grin. That's my way.
I'm not going to lose you.
He smirked, then whipped his head back to the sunset, refusing to let the Uchiha see the light flush brightening his face. The last of the sunlight was blessing the streets, paving them with a temporary sheen of gold. It was captivating, brilliant and rich and beautiful.
And all the beauty and splendor fell away in an instant and became as meaningless as dust as Naruto felt Sasuke's arms encircle him from behind, pull him close against his chest and let his chin rest upon Naruto's shoulder.
After a breathless moment, Naruto leaned back, one browned hand rising to grip Sasuke's arms in a reassuring hold.
They didn't have to speak. They didn't have to verbalize the forces between them any longer. Words were clumsy and inaccurate and so unworthy of the moment that was now. All that mattered was touch. All that meant anything was scent. And all that either of them knew was each other's existence. Naruto's protective darkness. Sasuke's joyous light. There was no more fear, no more doubt, no more insecurity because this embrace was as natural and beautiful as life itself. Nothing could bespeak more of eternity. Nothing in heaven or hell would separate them, now that they had come together.
Sasuke turned his head so that his mouth brushed Naruto's neck, mouthing something against the warm skin. Naruto's grip on Sasuke's arm tightened in response. "Yeah," he whispered back.
Forever, like the night chasing the day.
And deciding that he had waited and feared and hoped long enough, Naruto lifted his head towards Sasuke's to-
"OOHHHHHHH!!"
"Lee-san!!"
"THIS IS SPECTACULAR! TRUE LOVE! AN AWESOME AND MIGHTY FRIENDSHIP HAS ERUPTED INTO AN INFERNO OF TRUST AND DEEP FEELINGS AND-"
"Lee-san, for pity's sake-"
"GAI-SENSEI WILL BE EXTREMELY PLEASED! I MUST TELL HIM WHAT HAS TRANSPIRED, AS HE HOLDS SUCH VALUES IN HIGH ESTEEM AND NARUTO-KUN AND SASUKE-KUN ARE A MODEL PAIR OF THE POWER OF FRIENDSHIP!! HE WILL PROCLAIM OF THEIR MIGHT TO THE VILLAGE OF KO-"
Sakura sighed heavily, shook her head, and put a hand to her brow. "Oh.Lee-san.I'm feeling faint." she said in a frail moan.
"WHAT?!" Lee's attention was immediately focused upon Sakura. "Are you ill, Sakura-san? What should I do?!"
"Some water," Sakura managed to gasp. "Lee-san, please-"
Lee's eyes glowed with the fire of worry and duty. "Never fear, Sakura-san! I shall return immediately!" He was gone in a flash.
Sakura waited for a second, then rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Can't take him anywhere," she muttered. Her bright eyes snapped onto her former teammates, who were edging surreptitiously towards the edge of the roof. "Mou," she said, directing her words at Naruto. "I let you go get some fresh air and look what you do."
"Sakura-chan," Naruto said weakly. The kunoichi waved a hand. "No excuses, you little sneak. I was all set to make you a homemade dinner, but I don't feel like it anymore." She glared at Naruto, though a glint of gentle mirth glowed in her eyes. "And you, Sasuke-kun," she threw at the Uchiha. "You shouldn't be out here either. The two of you, I just don't know.."
"Whatever," Sasuke said dismissively. "I'm fine."
At once, Sakura's face changed, and something warm and tender shone through her gaze as she looked at the two men she'd grown up with, looked at the birth of something unbreakable.
"Now you are," she said gently. I'm so glad.
And she was about to say more, but Lee arrived with her water, and Rock Lee was, of course, not to be ignored. "Be strong, Sakura-san!" he exclaimed, all but throwing the water into her face in haste to administer it. "I shall take you to the Fifth immediately! Not even death will keep me from my quest!" And despite Sakura's vehement protestations, he scooped her up in his arms, flashed a rakish-and-yet-devilishly-handsome smile at the other two shinobi present, and vanished in a puff of smoke.
Naruto blinked. Sasuke was silent. And then the golden orange shinobi burst out into raucous, joyous laughter, and even the ebony red shinobi smiled.
Sasuke smiled even wider when the laughter was cut off by a horrible gurgling sound, and Naruto turned to stare at him with a stricken look. "I'm starving!!" the blonde exclaimed, as if this was a new, novel experience.
"I'm hungry too," Sasuke looked out at the dusky village, soft and muted with shadows. "Let's get out of here."
"Ramen!"
"....I don't like you THAT much."
"Oh come on-"
"No."
"Why the hell not?! We don't always have to do what you want, you goddamn bastard! I need noodles!"
"No, dumbass."
"What the-fuck you! Where the hell do you get off calling me dumbass-"
"YOU just called me a bastard...just forget it. Let's go."
"Hell no! Not before you apologize to me, you goddamn arrogant-"
"We can have ramen."
"...ok, but you're not getting out of apologizing to me-"
And though they fought just as loudly as before and called each other the same names, they leapt off the roof hand in hand, as interwoven as chain and as eternal as the returning dawn.
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* ~ * OWARI * ~ *
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::blink blink:: Oh whoah. ::scrolls up:: Ohmigosh. I finished.
Huh.
Geez, never thought I'd finish this anytime soon. Well then again, it's not really over. The idea for my next work comes right after this one, so it's just a matter of writing it out now. I'm going to try going down an entirely new path (humor) and work on what I left unfinished in this fic.
But even though it's not really over, I feel I should say: This work has been an adventure, y'all, and I'm really glad I tried putting this up. Thank you so much for all your comments and support, they brighten my day. I'll do my best with the next fic as well (it's going to come out REAL quick, as I've been thinking about it for a while now, so.I hope I can hear from all of you once more!)
Thank you so much for reading.
Doskoipanda
