Hello again! Gomen for not posting soon… got distracted by a certain book released this weekend… something about a boy wizard. Anyhoo I had difficultly writing this chapter. I wasn't really pleased with the first draft so I re-did it! hopefully this one's better! Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter! hugs Sasuke pup!
Perhaps his doggy instincts were taking over, but whether it was the word 'bath' or 'we' that made Sasuke panic more, he couldn't tell. Sasuke bolted for the door only to find it shut. Unable to reach the handle, Sasuke spun around and found him himself facing Naruto, who stood ready with blanket in hand. He tried to back away but found himself caught between the door and the advancing blond ninja. His keen ninja senses started scanning the room, thinking up possible escape plans, but his quick thinking was no match for Narutos clumsiness. As the blond walked forward, he stood on the blanket which dangled from his hand and tripped, launching him forward. Sasuke yelped as Naruto tumbled down on top of him.
Naruto landed with a thud, but luckily it was on something soft. He pushed himself up off the floor with his hands and looked down to see the dog squirming beneath him. Naruto beamed down at him and laughed triumphantly,
"Got you!" he cried. In one sudden movement Naruto picked up the inu and carried him into the bathroom, closing the door behind him. Like the rest of his apartment the bathroom wasn't very big. But then when you lived alone you didn't need one.
It was an average, white tiled wall room, with a bath, a sink and toilet in the corner. Below the single frosted window was a shelf, on which stood various bottles. In the corner next to the bath was a small cupboard. Naruto dropped the dog on the floor and turned toward the bath. He turned on the taps and after a few moments small puffs of steam started to rise from the water. He let the water run while he turned to face his furry friend. The animal was sat on the floor, glaring up at him, it appeared to be sulking. Naruto smiled and laughed.
Sasuke sat brooding on the floor, watching Naruto move around the bathroom, searching for something among the shelves. Slowly the bath began to fill up with hot steaming water and the air grew warm and heavy. Sasuke closed his eyes enjoying the feelings when suddenly he felt himself something move around his neck. He opened his eyes and found Naruto kneeling in front of him, his hands around the back of his head. Startled, Sasuke watched as Naruto lent over him and carefully undid the knot at the back of his hitai-ate and folded it neatly, placing it on the shelf nearby. Suddenly Sasuke felt himself whisked into the air. He looked down just in time to see water coming towards him. He landed with a heavy 'plop' into the bath, sending water sloshing over the sides and onto the floor. As the warmth of the water seeped through his fur, Sasuke looked up to see Naruto smiling happily at him,
"There," he said, "that's not so bad is it?"
Sasuke only glared in reply and shook the water from his head. Naruto was laughing at his obvious discomfort. Right then, if that's how he want to play it. Sasuke stood up in the water and shook his body vigorously, sending water spraying everywhere.
"Watch it dog." Naruto laughed, trying to dodge the flying water. "You're getting me soaked!"
Sasuke stopped and looked at his team mate, the front of his shirt damp and clinging to his chest. Naruto sighed loudly and with one swift movement he stripped off his shirt. Sasukes blinked and his face heated up. He clamped his eyes shut, his heart pounding in his chest. He heard the soft rustle of clothes and forced certain images from his mind. Sasuke shook his head, what was he embarrassed about? It wasn't the first time he'd seen a guy without his shirt, but somehow this was different.
Like he was seeing something he shouldn't.
He glanced up at Naruto, watching as small droplets of water made their way teasingly down the blondes' chest. Sasuke swallowed. He hadn't realised just how much the other boy had grown, his extra training was paying off. His body had gotten stronger and his chest more defined; even his face seemed more mature. He seemed so different to the scrawny kid Sasuke knew from the academy. As Naruto moved Sasukes eyes were drawn to a strange marking on Narutos stomach, just round his navel. The marking seemed to get darker and paler in certain lights, as if it faded in and out of his skin. Sasuke caught himself staring again and forced his eyes to look away. Dog or not, it still wasn't normal to stare at your semi-naked team mate.
No matter how good he looked.
Naruto picked a bottle of shampoo from the shelf and place it on the side on the bath. He picked up his wet shirt from the floor and threw it into a small hamper in the corner. He smiled at the damp animal and carefully knelt down beside the bath. Sasuke watched with interest as Naruto tipped up a small bottle and poured its contents into his palm. A white, strong smelling liquid flowed into his hand and he put the bottle down before rubbing the liquid between his fingers. Sasuke watched in some curiosity, he wasn't sure why but something about watching Narutos hands moving like that captivated him and he swallow hard.
Sasuke felt his stomach make an odd swooping motion as Naruto leant forward, leaning in close enough for their bodies to touch. He could feel the blondes' breath, soft against his damp fur. He closed his eyes willing Naruto not to move closer in case he could hear the frantic thumping noise from inside his chest. Suddenly Narutos hands moved forward and reached for Sasukes head. Realising what he was about to do, Sasuke jerked his head backwards but there was no room to move and Naruto was too quick. Instantly Naruto began rubbed the soapy liquid into Sasukes fur, gently rubbing in small circles with his fingers. Sasuke sat unhappily glaring at Naruto, while the boy jostled him around, covering his fur with soap.
Naruto hummed happily while creating a large pile of foam onto on the dogs head. The animal growled at him and he laughed,
"Oh, stop complaining." He said, "It's better than smelly of dirty stream water isn't it?"
The animal grunted and slumped forward slightly, giving in to his torturers administrations. Naruto just smiled at the animal, gently rubbing his soapy fingers into the dogs' blue fur.
The water had grown cold by the time Naruto was satisfied his new companion was clean. Sasuke on the other hand felt completely humiliated. Naruto had insisted on washing him three times in some shampoo that smelt faintly of ramen, which he didn't even know you could buy. The inu now stood on the bathroom floor patiently waiting for the blond to draw nearer... revenge would be his…
Naruto reached into the cupboard to get some towels after lifting the dog out of the bath. He pulled out a large orange towel and moved to the soaking animal on his floor. The dog was shaking from what Naruto presumed to be cold. He looked down at the bedraggled looking creature and smiled. Naruto unravelled the second towel and knelt down close to the dog when suddenly the dog glared up at him, almost like a smirk and shook his entire body sending large droplets of water flying in all directions. Naruto yelled and flung up his hands as the cold water hit his face and body. The dog stopped shaking and Naruto glared at it, over the top of the towel. The animal was now sat looking perfectly innocent, his tail wagging slightly. If Naruto hadn't known any better, he'd have thought the nin-dog had done it on purpose. He edged towards the animal, holding the towel up in front of his body, wary of another attack. The creature was shaking now probably, Nauro's rational mind would have suggested, from the cold. But Naruto had never been the rational kind of ninja; he thought the dog was laughing at him. Without warning Naruto launched himself upon the animal wrapping the towel tightly around him and began rubbing him dry.
Sasuke stopped chuckling as Naruto softly rubbed his head with the over sized towel. The movement brought him out of his laughter and a sudden blush flushed his face. He suddenly felt extremely uncomfortable with Naruto so close to him but even though he knew he should move away, he didn't. He sat there while Naruto ran his fingers through his fur trying to dry it off. Sasuke watched hesitantly as Naruto reached up gently scratched him behind the ears. It was actually enjoyable. It had been alone time since he had shared such close contact with another person. And surprisingly he had he missed it. There was something soothing about the warmth of another persons hand against the back of his neck. He relaxed slightly against Narutos hand and closed his eyes. Sasuke thanked the gods that he hadn't been turned into a cat or he might have started purring.
Naruto smiled when the dog didn't pull away from him. Perhaps he was starting to trust him. He continued gently rubbing the dog's fur until he was satisfied the animal was dry. Naruto picked up the Konoha protector he had folded neatly beside the bath and carefully tied it around the dog's neck. He sat back on his knees, adjusting the protector so it sat square around the animal. Naruto smiled to himself and for a brief moment the idea that the animal was his flashed through his mind. But as quickly as it came, it disappeared. Regular dogs didn't run around with Konoha hitai-ate around their neck. His smile dropped slightly and Naruto stood up, hanging the damp towel over a hook on the back of the dog. With a small smile he turned back to face the dog, gently patting the side of his leg. The dog cocked his head to side before standing up and following the boy out of the door.
I know, I know. I said I'd have Sasuke pup named in this chapter but I didn't seem to fit with the rest of the chapter. Next one I promise!