Disclaimer: Naruto = not mine ::wails::
A/N: Ano.. Sorry guys, for the long wait... ." I started writing this chapter soon after I posted the last one and then in the middle of it, I hit writers block... then I was towed away on vacation and I had no chance to work on it!! So yes, I'm very very very sorry. But yay! Here it is! The next chapter! Personally, I dislike how this chapter turned out... don't know why but somehow it just doesn't seem right... so I apologize for the crappiness beforehand.

Demonic Inc: the blending of the likes and dislikes doesn't necessarily destroy their personality. It's not that strong anyway, more like, if Sasuke loved .. um... M&Ms, Naruto would eventually learn to tolerate them, but not necessarily like them. Does that make sense? Itachi is still nice because... well... you'll see later on. I've changed the timeline considerably to fit into the plot. Sorry bout that if it bothers you but shrug its for the sake of the story. I call Shikamaru Shika because.. umm... secretly? I'm too lazy to type out his entire name.. shhhh. But yeah, I thought other people shorten his name as well.. correct me if I'm wrong. Thanks for your feedback. XD

Thank you again, so so so much to Kitty Meow, Lili, Someone, Renn, GhostNinja85, Izumi, Monkan, Bishiehuggler, Ein Dwang, Nangthida, and Doodlepye!!!! You guys are amazing!

The Legend of the Thiasa: Chapter 5
Tendrils of Compassion

Sasuke's mind raced as he soared high above the Avian forests. He had just come from a meeting with Lee. The thick-browed boy had enthusiastically explained the concept of bonding to him. Sasuke had nearly developed a headache watching his zeal – not to mention that horrible green suit. He repressed a shudder at the thought of Lee's fashion tastes. It was worth the trouble in the end, though. There was much more to being bonded than Sasuke had assumed. Today had not been a good day so far. He had awoken this morning panting and a silent scream in his throat. The damned nightmares were getting more and more frequent – and bloody. The faces of all the men and women he had killed in his bloodlust haunted him. In sleep they would come – demanding why, why, why. It was only when he pushed their faces out of his mind and cleared his mind that he almost fell out of bed in shock. He could feel something foreign in his mind and for a few minutes, he had panicked that the Canis High Shinobi had developed a new jutsu for spying. His fears had been slightly dispelled by Lee's explanation of telepathy but not by much. Still digesting the information, Sasuke continued to fly south toward Miehra Lake, sunlight glinting off his shimmering black feathers.

A few minutes later, he reluctantly descended on Miehra Territory. He hated giving up the thrill of flight. But he had heard stories from the older men of how one could become Lost in the joy. Slowly, the Lost would relinquish his mind to his bird side – until there was nothing left of the former man. He would spend days and months alone, in his bird form, until an unknown force would pull him back to the clan. There, the transformation wore off – for Kyarae had not meant for them to be pure animals - and the human husk that remained would no longer be able to change. Looking into the eyes of the Lost was like looking into a doll's eyes. There was nothing there – no soul to complete the body. Sasuke did nothing to stop the shudder that ran through his body this time. He could not let that happen to him. Stubbornly, he pushed away the depressing thoughts and surveyed the scenery.

Before him, a worn dirt road meandered through a meadow dotted with patches of trees. Wildflowers bloomed in abundance, taking advantage of the plentiful space and the summer sun. Sasuke started walking down the road, following the signs to the lake. As he rounded a bend, he came across a couple with their small daughter. All three were laughing and Sasuke could tell they were Canis from their slightly pointed canines and the typical brown and blond hair. They became aware of Sasuke's presence and as they passed him, gave him a friendly nod that he returned with a slight smile. Sasuke sighed, wishing that all the land could be like Miehra territory.

Miehra had been established as a neutral ground many centuries ago. The two kings then had agreed to the establishment of vacation houses and recreational businesses there. Perhaps they had both been in awe of the beauty there. In any case, even though it was officially neutral, the two clans still remained distant – the Avian settling on the east side of the lake and the Canis on the west. It was more the awkwardness of integrating than lack of desire to do so that kept them apart. Still, Sasuke thought, he would raise no questions by being with Naruto here, not even from the Brae clan that had appointed themselves as guardians and keepers of the territory.

As if summoned by the thought, Sasuke suddenly became aware of his name being called repeatedly. He recognized the voice and kept walking, although he slowed his pace a bit. When Naruto finally caught up to him, he was panting too much to yell at Sasuke. Sasuke smirked and restrained himself from taunting the boy further. When Naruto managed to eventually catch his breath, he exploded.

"Damn you, Sasuke! I was calling your name for well over a minute! The least you could do was wait for me!" the blonde fumed.

"I never heard you." Came the cool reply.

Naruto mumbled something under his breath that sounded remarkably close to a curse on all arrogant, bastard birds before he shot a death glare at Sasuke. Sasuke felt a bubble of laughter nearly escape him and was shocked. He hadn't truly laughed since that first day when the bloodlust curse overtook him – let alone been caught unawares by laughter. How long had it been? Five? Six years? He had lost count. He regarded his companion with wonder. Just how had Naruto done that?

Naruto, oblivious to Sasuke's surprise, continued to grumble. He was on a very nice rant about how he deserved respect as well when he stopped in mid-sentence. Sasuke shifted his eyes from the ground to the blonde. Following the direction of Naruto's stare, he found himself taking in the sight of the main village gates. Figures dressed in white could be seen, keeping guard in their stiff formality. He gave a start when Naruto gave a whoop of joy and ran down the road.

"Neji!!!"

By the time Sasuke had reached the gate, Naruto was already conversing happily with a long-haired boy dressed in white. Sasuke caught sight of the boy's eyes, pure white with no pupil and immediately realized that he must be one of the Brae clan. It was another five minutes before Naruto could be dragged away from Neji. Apparently, the sight of his old friend had lifted his spirits immensely, Sasuke mused as he half-listened to the blonde's chatter. It seemed as though Naruto came here often to escape the confines of his home.

Sasuke led Naruto to the banks of the Lower Miehra River where after a few minutes of walking, they came upon a bridge. Naruto's chatter stopped as he eyed the small island on the other end of the intricate bridge. He watched as Sasuke fumbled in his pockets before drawing out a folded slip of paper. Sasuke unfolded it and placed it against one of the posts of the bridge before taking a kunai and tacking it firmly in place. He stepped back to admire his work and Naruto leaned forward to read: "Keep Away: Unstable Bridge".

"Now no one will disturb us," Sasuke explained dryly as he stepped onto the wooden planks and crossed over to the small island. Naruto followed him dutifully. Halfway across, he spared a glance toward the sky and took note of the gathering clouds with worry.

"Ne, Sasuke," Naruto asked. "D'you think it'll rain?"

Sasuke shook his head stiffly. "No."

"But, Sasuke –"

"It won't rain, ok?"

Naruto's reply was cut off as they reached a tiny clearing. They had been following a small dirt path for the past couple of minutes and now it seemed as if they had finally reached their destination. Weak beams of sunlight filtered through the leafy canopy and the shadows they cast seemed to dance in the wind. The grass in the clearing was flat and trodden down and it was apparent that this site had been used often by picnicking families.

Sasuke sighed as he leaned his back against a tree and slid gracefully down to a sitting position. Without glancing up, he motioned for Naruto to do the same. A second later, the blonde joined him warily. The silence that filled the air was tense at first, but as the minutes trickled by, it eased. Surprisingly, Sasuke broke the stillness first.

"Naruto?" Sasuke's voice was low and hesitant. "Why can't you shift?"

Across from him, the boy stiffened. Defensiveness instinctively sprung up in his eyes, but not before Sasuke glimpsed the deep anguish it hid. "Why do your eyes turn red?" Naruto retorted, avoiding the question.

This time, it was Sasuke's turn to tense. His mind flashed to that first horrible day, when the Bloodlust curse had first surfaced. He had run to Itachi, crying, and his brother had explained his family's burden to him. He sighed mentally. Itachi was always so much better at controlling the curse than he was. Then again, Itachi was better at pretty much everything.

"Who's Itachi?" Naruto interrupted Sasuke's thoughts.

Sasuke started. Had he accidentally said it out loud? He quickly replayed the past minute. No, he was quite sure that his thoughts had remained in his head. His brow furrowed as he stared at Naruto.

"I never said anything about Itachi."

"Yes you – "Naruto's features loosened in confusion. Had Sasuke spoken? No, he hadn't. Then how the hell had the name Itachi come to him? It had just ... appeared in his mind, out of nowhere. But somehow, it had seemed as if Sasuke was speaking.

Meanwhile, Sasuke was furiously putting two and two together. It didn't take him long to figure out what had happened. He recalled now, what Lee had told him about telepathy between bondmates. Tentatively, he tried calling Naruto's name in his mind. Nothing. A small frown appeared on his lips. He was sure that it was the telepathy. He tried again to reach Naruto, but this time, imagined the link between them as a bridge and sent his thought down it.

[Naruto?]

The boy in question yelped and leapt to his feet. Sasuke's voice had been in his mind! Swiftly, Sasuke calmed Naruto down and explained how to send his thoughts.

"This is freaky. I mean –"

"Naruto." Sasuke spoke. "Try talking with your mind more, to practice, ok?"

"But I don't want to! I don't want a filthy Avian in my head!"

Sasuke's black eyes seemed to darken even more. "It's not like I enjoy being bonded with a mutt! But it's happened and I can't change it. What if you were hurt or in a losing fight? I die if you die! That's why we need to practice mindspeech, dobe."

Naruto clenched his fists. "Don't call me that, you bastard!"

The two boys bickered for a few minutes more, before huffily settling down to practice their newly discovered mindspeech. Both of them quickly became absorbed by the intricate workings of it and the complexity of shielding the thoughts that they didn't want to transmit. Neither of them noticed the angry clouds drawing closer, nor the distant booming of thunder. It was only when the first couple of drops fell that they realized. In seconds, the rain had become a sheet of water and the lightning flashes and thunder filled the air.

Naruto ran outside of the cloister of trees to the banks of the island. To his horror, the banks and the bottom edges of the bridge were already underwater. He realized with a sinking feeling that the storm had probably come from upstream. He turned, blue eyes flashing with anger, to Sasuke who had followed close behind.

"Shit! You said it wouldn't rain, you bastard!" Naruto yelled over the noise of the downpour. "Now what do we do?"

Sasuke grabbed Naruto and dragged him into the relative safety of the trees. There, he shook his head violently, sending droplets of water everywhere, before he answered. His dark eyes were calm and cold. "We'll wait until it stops and the water goes down and then we'll go back, dobe."

As soon as he finished speaking, a loud crack filled the air. Both of them whirled around and stared, horrified, as the bridge was finally overwhelmed by the rising waters of the river. With a second magnificent crack, the entire thing collapsed into the rushing river, taking with it, the two boys' hope of getting off the island.

A second passed in stunned silence before Naruto exploded in panic.

"Damnit! Oh Shit! What do we do now?! I'm stuck on a freaking tiny island with a freaking bird for company! There's no food, no shelter – shit! What will Iruka say? I'm supposed to be home by nightfall – "

"Shut up, will you?" Sasuke demanded wearily. How they hell could Naruto have so much energy? He considered their situation. He was stuck on an island that was getting smaller by the minute with a hyperactive Canis. They had no food, no shelter, but plenty of water. No search teams would be out since no one knew they were there. The dark haired boy's expression grew grim. This was definitely not good.

He sighed aloud this time in exasperation and suggested that the two of the retreat back to the clearing they were in, seeing how the waters were still rising, and the place was as near to the center of the island as they could get. Naruto agreed, his eyes still flashing, and stormed back through the trees. Sasuke allowed himself a grimace. This was going to be a long night.

It was later that night. The rain had not stopped, but it had slowed considerably to a light summer shower. Faint moonlight fought through the clouds, casting a sickly glow upon the tops of the trees. Beneath the trees however, the light could not penetrate, and the two boys were left in near darkness. The ground was soaked and muddy, so they were forced to sleep on a small mound that had been kept pretty dry by the thick foliage that covered it. Turning their backs to each other, both trying to pretend the other wasn't there, the two boys fell slowly into an uneasy sleep.

Their breathing gradually evened and deepened and both were fast asleep when the rain finally stopped. Naruto shifted in his sleep, his eyes flickering behind closed lids. He was usually a very deep sleeper who rarely had dreams, but tonight was different. Images flickered through his head, making him tense unconsciously. The images were so strong, so vivid. He whirled through the dream. There was blood everywhere. Everything was red. So red. He looked down at his hands and saw that they were tainted crimson. He tried scrubbing them against his pants to no avail. With anguish, he looked up in the cold eyes of a stranger.

It reached out a pleading hand that dripped blood. Red covered the man everywhere. 'Why?' he whispered. He was quickly swept away and replaced by another stranger – a girl this time, no more than 15. Naruto saw that her torso was torn apart and again she looked at him with beseeching eyes. 'Why?' she echoed.

Person after person flickered through the dream and Naruto could only watch helplessly, unable to tear his gaze away from them. Every one of them whispered to his soul, tore at it with their anguish until it seemed as if he would die from the guilt. With amazing clarity, he knew that he had killed each and every one of them. Once, he cried out in grief, "Forgive me!" but he saw their cold faces and knew their answer before they opened their mouths. 'No.'

Naruto's soul was finally beaten and with a final cry, he was torn from the dream into reality. His eyes snapped open and he sat up abruptly, panting. He raised his trembling hands to look at them and to his relief, he saw that they were clean. He shuddered at the memory of the nightmare. The blonde glanced over at Sasuke. The Avian was shaking and muttering things in his sleep. Quickly forgetting his own distress, Naruto's brow creased in worry. Leaning in closer, he caught a few of the mumbled words.

"No... I'm sorry... sorry... forgive...no...please..." the last word was said with such raw sorrow and desperation that Naruto felt his heart reach out. So that dream had been Sasuke's. He would have to talk to him in the morning – figure out a way to shield themselves in their sleep. He turned slightly to go back to sleep, but another strangled cry escaped from his bondmate.

"...please..."

Naruto turned back and observed his mate, worry showing in his eyes. Even though Sasuke was a jerk, he could admit that he cared about him just a tiny, tiny bit. Just because whatever happened to Sasuke affected him too, of course. Nothing else. He reached out tentatively and placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. A shudder ran through Sasuke's body and his fists clenched. Naruto scooted closer to him and started to stroke his hair.

"Shh... You're ok. Relax. You're ok now. Shh..." with Naruto's soothing, Sasuke gradually stopped shaking. His face remained tight though, and Naruto thought back to what Iruka would have done. Suddenly, he remembered the lullaby his father had sung to him often when he was little and couldn't sleep. What were the words again? Slowly, they came to him, and he sang it softly to his mate.

"The moon is smiling at you, love.
The stars have risen just for you.
Hold still and hold on
The best is yet to come.

Rain will wash your troubles away
Look up, little one, for me
Hold still and hold on
The best is yet to come.

My love will keep you warm
My love will give you hope
Hold still and hold on
The best is yet to come."

Naruto ended his singing with a sigh and glanced down at Sasuke. The dark haired boy was still now, his face relaxed and his breathing deep. Naruto allowed a small smile to grace his lips as he gazed at his mate. Sasuke looked almost ... nice when he was sleeping. Naruto shook his head quickly. What was with these thoughts? First he had been bonded to the Avain, now he was beginning to like him and even sing lullabies to him?! He was in deep now and sinking deeper by the minute.

Sighing he touched Sasuke's shoulder one last time to make sure he was calm. Naruto's hand accidentally brushed against his bare arm and the blonde stiffened. Sasuke was freezing! Gently, he placed the back of his hand against his cheek, only to draw back quickly in dismay. Kyarae! He was like ice.

Naruto gazed at Sasuke with troubled eyes. What should he do? He considered his options. He could leave Sasuke be, and get on with his own sleep. He could wake Sasuke up. He could build a fire for him. He could warm him up himself. Instantly he knew the first option was impossible. Sasuke would probably get sick or something. The second option was no good either. He didn't have the heart to wake Sasuke up, especially when the boy had just slipped into peaceful slumber. A glance around the surroundings eliminated the third option as well. There was little to no wood nearby and any wood that was there was most likely wet. That left the last option. Naruto blushed faintly and struggled inwardly for a minute or two. Finally a second touch to Sasuke's cheek convinced him.

Cheeks flaming, Naruto laid gingerly down next to his bondmate, so as not to wake him. Carefully, he scooted close to Sasuke and placed hesitant arms around him. Naruto shivered as the boy's cold body met his. Damn, he was like ice! Sasuke, feeling the new source of warmth, suddenly turned and moved closer. By now, Naruto's entire face felt like it was on fire. He thanked Kyarae that no one would witness this. Slowly, his tenseness drained away as his exhaustion caught up with him. His eyes fluttered shut and the last thing Naruto remembered thinking was that it felt almost natural to have Sasuke in his arms.

Far above, the clouds drifted away to reveal a brilliant expanse of stars. And the soft music of the night continued on.
Preview:

The two boys were joyous. In the middle of the river, Naruto turned and splashed Sasuke, who had been following close behind. Mischievous laughter burst out of the blonde that was soon cut short by Sasuke's massive wave of retaliation. Naruto sputtered angrily.

"Bastard!"

Sasuke's usually emotionless eyes shone with amusement. "You started it."

Naruto opened his mouth but could find no retort. He HAD started it. So, instead, he snapped his mouth closed and proceeded to fling as much water as he could at Sasuke for revenge. In seconds it had turned into a full fledged water fight.

Thirty minutes later, both boys were exhausted as they crawled up on the opposite bank. Naruto, feeling the exhilaration of freedom once more, managed to somehow find a new burst of energy. He ran up and down the bank, shouting insane insults at the island that had held them captive, then proceeded to perform a victory dance complete with all the yelling. Sasuke watched, perplexed and slightly amused. How the HELL did that boy have so much energy??

Eventually though, Naruto calmed down and trotted over to where Sasuke was sitting.

"Ne, Sasuke!"

"What?"

"We really should take off our clothes to let them dry before going home."

Sasuke's head shot up as he stared incredulously at Naruto and instantly regretted it. The blonde's clothes were still soaked from the swim and they clung to his body damply. Toned muscles could be seen through the wet fabric and it left very little to imagination.

Naruto pouted. "We can't go home with wet clothes. They'll want to know how they got wet."

Slowly, the words penetrated Sasuke's mind and he processed them. Surprisingly, Naruto was right, for once. He nodded hesitantly.