Disclaimer: See previous chapters.
Warnings: Swearing, what could possibly be a graphic scene if you have an over-active imagination, and bad writing. Oh yes. I've got it all.
Leaf Symphony
Chapter Six
:The Encounter:
Naoko stood still and let the crowd flow around him, ignoring the occasional bumps and jostles. He had somehow lost sight of Haku in the mass of people.
Suddenly the hair on the back of his neck stood up and Naoko quickly scanned the surrounding faces, searching for the cause of his alarm. He could see absolutely nothing amiss, yet -
There.
Staring at him with almost-gold, flat, snake-like eyes. Unsure why the strange man with the long black hair and pale skin made him so uneasy, Naoko resolutely turned his face away to search for Haku again.
A moment passed, then a body bumped against his, hard. He started to turn, but the offending person wrapped his arms around the teen in a vise-like grip, his back to the man's front.
Naoko stiffened. "Ah, my toy. It has been so long. I've missed you," the man sighed in a hissing whisper. Half-formed nightmare images invoked by the first three whispered words flashed behind Naoko's eyes. "Ah, my toy." The clink and rattle of chains. The biting cold of a stone floor. A sharp coppery tang in the air. Images - memories? nightmares? - beginning with trust and some kind of love and ending with pain and blood flitted by his mind's eye, teasing him with their elusiveness. Naoko could feel the man's hot breath on his ear.
Naoko closed his eyes, wanting to break away from his inner demons and outer captivity but not having the strength to. There was a rough growl and Naoko found himself yanked free of the snake man's embrace. He opened his eyes to look at his savior.
Zabuza stood before him, eyes blazing with killing intent at the stranger. Naoko touched the taller man's sleeve, drawing his gaze down, worry immediately replacing murder in the older spy's eyes. "You all right, kid?" He asked, his voice rougher than usual with a growl.
"Yeah, yeah. He's just some pervert." Naoko said, waving his hand dismissively with an airy smile. "Let's go, okay? I bet Haku thinks we've been kidnapped." Zabuza studied the boy's face, noting the pale pallor under his golden tan and the shadows swimming in his jewel blue eyes. 'You don't look like everything's all right, kid.'
Nevertheless, Zabuza nodded. "I seem to remember the words 'kidnap' and 'dead in a ditch' being mentioned." Naoko smiled and tugged on his arm, pulling the giant away, but not before the man could shoot the pervert a warning look full of deadly promises over his shoulder. He didn't notice the hungry, possessive look in the man's eyes as they followed the line of Naoko's body as he slid through little spaces between pedestrians.
"Soon, my pet. Soon." The man crooned, unblinking eyes still on the laughing blond.
Ruthlessly forcing his mind out of the gray numbness it wanted to sink into, Naoko dropped Zabuza's hand. "All right, O Knowledgeable One. Where's the little shopaholic hiding?" Mutely the man pointed at a fashionable little store for teens. "Oh no. He wants me to look my age? My students will never respect me." Naoko moaned in a pitiful whine. The effect was ruined, however, by the snort of laughter that slipped past his lips.
"Cry me a river." Zabuza said sympathetically as they entered the store. Immediately their ears were assailed by some loud rock song that kids these days seemed to like. Haku waved them over from the back of the store.
"Where did you find him? The next village?" Haku scoffed. He thrust a small mountain of clothing at the unsuspecting Naoko. "Try these on." Whimpering under the cloth heap, Naoko walked into the dressing area like a man going to the gallows.
An unbearable two hours and innumerable outfits later, Naoko hefted his bag of purchases and exited the godforsaken marketplace. He parted ways with his fellow teachers a block from his apartment, as they lived on the next street. Haku promised they'd be joining him as soon as they dropped their bags off.
Happy to be alone again, Naoko almost didn't notice the two teens standing in front of him until it was almost too late. He pulled himself back sharply, stopping close enough for his full hands to be brushing the dark-haired boy's chest.
"Sorry, sorry. Didn't watch where I was going." He muttered, shifting his load to a more comfortable position. When the two in front of him didn't move, he finally turned his eyes on them. "What?" They were staring at him in a way that made him uncomfortable. That was saying something, because it took a lot to make him uncomfortable. Or it used to take a lot.
The pink-haired girl spoke first. "We're looking for our instructor. Have you seen him? About your height, silver hair, wears a mask like yours, has one eye covered? He wandered off again."
Naoko snickered. "You make him sound like a lost kitty. No, I'm sorry. I haven't seen him."
"You're that Mist proctor." The raven-haired teen finally stated.
Naoko's eyebrows rose. "Usually I go by my name, but yes." A wicked glint of humor entered his startling blue eyes. "And I believe you are Rin-chan. You make a much cuter girl, you know." Naoko winked lecherously and blew the gaping boy a kiss. A flush tinted the boy's pale cheeks.
"Bastard." He growled.
The blond smiled, twitching hair out of his face. "I go by that, too. I think I'll be off now. Ja!" He would have floated breezily past the two teens, but Sasuke's hand shot out and clamped onto the blond's arm. He turned his head to face the boy, eyes still bright and friendly, but with an ominous stillness behind them. "That's mine."
"I wasn't done. We're far from finished here." Sasuke's eyes flashed threateningly and his grip tightened on the other boy's arm. Naoko tensed then froze as the words triggered another memory.
Pale skin and long black hair. Everything hurt, he could taste blood, smell it. 'Get away, have to get away.' His broken body slowly pulling itself away from the source of his pain. A hand cruelly wrapped around his arm, halting his escape.
"I wasn't done with you. We are far from finished."
The promise of pain dancing behind those words.
Still caught in the memory, Naoko lashed out with his free arm, breaking the grip. His clothes flew into the air, but he was beyond caring. All he could see was dark hair and pale skin. Sasuke immediately aimed a kick at his opponent's face, barely noting the glazed eyes.
The threat became imminent as the other boy's foot sped toward his head. Naoko reacted, blocking it with a forearm. Sasuke took the chance to land a hard elbow in Naoko's momentarily unprotected side. The actual pain made the nightmare in his head seem more real, unlocked more of it, even. He saw the man of his nightmares looming closer above him and exploded into sheer terror driven action.
"Not again!" He cried, face twisting in terror. Sasuke faltered at the unexpected outburst from his opponent and was rewarded with three punches to his midsection in swift succession. The dark-haired boy landed a kick to the blond's jaw that would have broken another secondary level's jaw but the other man only swayed backwards. It would have gone further, but a pair of iron-hard arms wrapped around Sasuke, pinning his arms to his sides. The long-haired Mist proctor was trying to calm the blond and defend himself at the same time.
The blond broke through the other's defenses and caught the smaller man by the throat, lifting him. His face and eyes were terrifyingly blank and there was something terribly mechanical about his motions. "Naoko!" The brunette choked. The blond blinked, his face relaxing, life returning to it.
"Haku? Shit." He gently released his friend. "I'm sorry. I just - I'm sorry." His suddeny dull and tired blue eyes flickered over to the boy in Zabuza's arms. "Shit." He said again, hanging his head.
"What happened?" Zabuza asked, deadly serious. He let go of the boy in his arms.
"I don't know. I guess my control isn't as good as I thought it was." Naoko replied without meeting their eyes, his hands coming up to rub at his temples. "I didn't hurt you, did I? Either of you?" He lifted his eyes to face first Sasuke then Haku. The latter shook his head.
The former straightened his blue shirt. "No, I'm fine. It was my fault anyways. I grabbed him." He directed this toward Zabuza. His lips gave the barest twitch. "He said I was cuter as a little girl. He was acting like a perverted old man with a Lolita complex and I guess overreacted. I just thought Mist instructors were a little more - I don't know - professional. Mature."
Naoko let out a strangled cough that sounded suspiciously like a laugh. Haku snickered. "What are your names?"
"Sasuke Uchiha. Sakura Haruno." Sakura introduced, gesturing between herself and her teammate.
Haku nodded. "And how old are you, Sasuke?"
Sasuke frowned. "Eighteen. Why?"
The long-haired man bit back a smile. "You're older than him." Naoko snorted.
"Sorry to burst your bubble." He finally looked up, eyes crinkling at the open-mouthed boy. "I'm only 17. So much for the pervy old lolicon theory, eh, guys?"
"What!" Sakura cried. "But you're an instructor already! You're proctoring an exam, for God's sake!"
Naoko preened. "Yes, I'm just that good." Zabuza sidled over and whacked him on the head. "What was that for?"
"Your ego looked like it was inflating at a rather alarming rate. I had to take drastic measures before it reached critical mass." The gigantic man answered dead-pan. Naoko scowled as Zabuza wrapped a large hand around his chin and inspected his face. "Are you trying to look like a panda? Go up to your apartment and get a full night's rest. And be on time tomorrow. I don't feel like babysitting your class of snot-nosed little pre-teens."
"At least my class has the basics down!" Retorted the blond, bristling. The brunette pushed the bag of neatly re-folded clothing into his hands and gave him a gentle push toward the building. "Fine, fine." The blond paused, the tired look back in his eyes. "I really am sorry. I'll treat you to a meal or something tomorrow afternoon. Just come to the Academy." Sasuke gave the barest of nods.
Naoko shut his door, leaned back into it, and slid down into a sitting position. Tomorrow he would tell everything to Haku, tell him about the dreams and flashbacks he'd been having. His level-headed friend would help him sort everything out. Tomorrow.
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AN: I'm truly sorry for the wait between chapters. Life's been picking back up, what with summer ending and classes starting again. I'm trying to improve the writing here, but I don't think it's going too well. -- Oh my. Where have my reviewers gone? I know people are reading this. (On that note, Leaf Symphony's almost got 2000 hits! Yay!) Please, please review if you're reading this. (See? I'm begging.) I'll give you Naoko plushies and treats. (Oh, Lord, now I'm bribing my readers!)
AN2: Okay, this story will be going on a SHORT hiatus. I need to do some studying up before I can continue with the storyline. On that note, what about pairings? I know I said this would probably be ItaNaru, but what other pairings would you guys like to see? Just put your favorite (xxx)Naru pairing in the review, and whichever has the most votes may well make it. Now you have to review!