Me: If I get any characters OOC, I apologies for it. I own nothing of this great an importance. This fic was originally on AFF, but I got removed for being fifteen….. So anyway, if you like the first chapter review and tell me because I have like four more chapters sitting unused in my files, so……and as a warning, no like gay storied no read this one. That's about as clear as I can get it.
"Kiba, remind me again why we're even entering a place like this?"
The young man in the lead glanced back at the blond who was speaking. The boy looked like he would rather be any where other then the place he was currently in, but was reluctant to say so. Which, in all actuality, he was. Not that he would ever say anything. Nothing scared the great Uzamaki Naruto! Not even the really creepy looking, HUGE, biker guys that populated the bar and pool hall they had entered. Naruto took a brief moment to consider the fact that any of these men could easily snap his neck with out much of a struggle, before he returned his attention to his friend leading the way thought the dim, smoky interior up to the bar. He'd be damned if something as dumb as unease scared him away from a job that paid as highly as this one did. But he had a feeling that something would happen tonight. He couldn't say if it were to be bad or good, however.
"Because," Kiba, his companion, muttered back to him after a moment of hesitation, and glancing around for who knows what (Naruto sure didn't)
"We need the money, and we're supposed to be gathering information. As you know, this is one of the best places to do it." Kiba slid up onto one of the stools at the bar. He was as nervous as the tan blond now seating himself a little farther down from him. They were young and small for patrons of this particular place, and they were attracting some weird looks. But he figured as long as
A) No one found out why they were there,
B) Naruto could keep a reign on his rather explosive temper, and
C) Naruto didn't try to order alcohol again (they weren't quite 18 yet), they should be relatively safe. Not that either of them had ever had such good luck.
They had been quietly working the bar for about an hour. People had gone to basically ignoring them, and they had been quietly nursing drinks, eavesdropping on various promising conversations, and even chatting with a few people, when disaster hit. Naruto had gotten himself engaged in a conversation with the bar tender, a young man with a scare across his nose, when the door opened and a young man about their age and an older man entered. Naruto had glanced up in mild interest before going back to his apparently engaging conversation with the brown haired man standing on the other side of the bar. Kiba, on the other hand, watched the boy with more interest. He had dark raven hair and eyes, accented greatly by his pale-as-Death-skin. He looked vaguely familiar, though Kiba couldn't place him. The man with him had silver hair that stood up alarmingly on his head at unimaginable angles, wore a head band slanted over one eye and a black turtle-neck sweater yanked up to just below his ears, which struck Kiba as odd, since it was the middle of July. The man was slouching and looked spaced out and board, as compared to the boy, who expression was sharp albeit uninterested. Or at least it was until his glance fell on Naruto. There was something very unsettling about the way the boy's cold black eye settled on his friend, and that was when the trouble began, because apparently Naruto felt that unsettling gaze on him, and he obviously didn't like it one bit either.
"Hey!" Naruto snapped, whirling to face the strange boy . The man he had been talking to (who had introduced himself as Iruka (he owned the place)) looked up in alarm, like he was about to say something, but Naruto wasn't paying attention. He didn't like being stared at. AT ALL!
"You have a problem!" he demanded, failing to notice the lull in noise as people turned their attention to the two boys. Kiba stiffened at the other end of the bar. The raven-haired boy just smirked while the silver haired man glanced at him, looking vaguely curious. That smirk! Naruto felt annoyance rise in him a the site. What did this boy have to be so smug about, anyway!
"I SAID" He yelled when the boy didn't answer him, his irritation turning to full fledged annoyance. "DO YOU HAVE A PROBLEM!" Another smirk.
"You don't have to shout. I heard you the first time." The boy said smoothly. His quiet, mocking tone carrying across the now dead silent bar. Naruto's face flushed like it always did when he was losing his temper.
"WHAT!" he shouted. Another smirk.
"I don't have to repeat myself for someone like you."
"Why you…!" He snarled. His fingers curled into a fist. He wanted nothing more than to punch this kids face in. And why not? Giving in to his temper-induced impulse, he swung as hard as possible, very aware that Kiba was going to chew his ass out for this later.
Iruka had been watching the exchange with a certain amount of apprehension. He could tell by Naruto's personality that he had an explosive temper, and he didn't want to kick the boy out. He was actually enjoying his company. The boy was…sweet…in his own way. That thought all but when flying out the window when he saw Naruto ball his hands up into fists and prepare to swing at the taunting teen in front of him. He also saw the silver haired man at the boy's side move to either block the punch, or attack Naruto back, both of which Iruka would prefer not to happen, as it would no doubt cause the fight to escalate. He vaulted over the bar and in between the two just in time to catch both by the arm and stop the blows before they started. Naruto growled and squirmed, trying to break the older man's hold on his wrist, but Iruka just tightened his grip. The silver-haired man just looked up at him with an expression in his single visible dark eye with something that could have been surprise, or could have been any number of other emotions. It was hard to tell, and right now, if he wasn't a threat any more, Iruka didn't care.
"If any of you want to stay in this bar, I would suggest you stop this right now before you force me to throw you all out!" he snapped. Naruto opened his mouth to say something, but Iruka interrupted him before he could make a sound.
"I don't care who started it, Naruto." He said, guessing at what the boy was a bout to say. Naruto's jaw snapped shut with an audible click. Iruka gave each of them his best glare, which usually worked in keeping order with the rowdy occupants of his establishment. The silver haired man arched an eyebrow in what could have been amusement, but once again it was hard to tell. The raven haired boy just snorted softly and turned to walk off, his companion giving Iruka another unintelligible look as his wrist was released before following the boy. Iruka watched them for a moment before turning his attention to the still smoldering Naruto. He fixed the blond with a stern look.
"Come on, Naruto. I know you're more of a man than this! Don't pick a fight because some look got you a little riled! He's not worth your time." Naruto's shoulders slumped and he gave Iruka an apologetic look. Iruka's face softened and he released the boy's wrist, reaching up instead to muss the boy's spiky hair.
"Sit back down and I'll give you some more milk, OK?" Naruto grinned up at him, immediately plopping himself back down on his bar stool.(his job had been forgotten when he had gotten into the conversation he had started with Iruka. The man actually listened to him!) Iruka vaulted back over the bar (it was easier than going around to the opening in the corner) and looked out over the bar with his stern no-nonsense-bar-tender-look and the noise returned to the room as people got the drift and went back to minding their own business. He spotted the raven haired boy and the silver haired man at a table in the darkest corner of the room. The boy was still watching Naruto, though much more inconspicuously, and the silver haired man…Iruka's stomach shifted oddly as he realized the odd man was watching him, though for what reason, Iruka couldn't fathom. He supposed as long as they didn't cause any more trouble it didn't matter. That, and as long as Naruto forgot they were there. Which the boy apparently had. Iruka smiled at the blond boy's impatient gaze and turned, pouring him a glass of milk. He hadn't met a teen so fond of this drink in years. It was kind of endearing.
"Ya know what, Iruka-san?" Naruto asked after chugging half of the glass when it was place in front of him. Iruka raised an eyebrow. Naruto grinned. "You should sell ramen noodles!" Iruka stared at him uncomprehending for a moment, before he burst out laughing. Naruto looked like he had just been slapped.
"What's wrong with ramen!" he demanded heatedly. "Ramen rules all! It's the best! It is ALMIGHTY!" Iruka stuffed a fist in his mouth to calm his laughing and forced a straight face.
"Of-of coarse it is Naruto. I'll keep that in mind." Completely pacified, Naruto was about to go back to happily drinking his milk when Kiba came up and grabbed Naruto's arm.
"Got it." He said. Naruto's eyes widened. He set down his milk, grinned at Iruka, threw some bills on the table (too few, but Iruka figured he'd let it slide this time) and got up quickly. He and Kiba began to leave, but Naruto paused for a moment to look over his shoulder and flash a grin at Iruka.
"Hope to see you again!" He called. Then he was gone.
"So what do you think?" Kakashi asked as he watched the youngest Uchiha stare at the door the blond loud-mouth and his friend had just exited with a curious expression on his usually board countenance. The boy didn't answer, but his gaze trailed off to the far wall, a speculative look coming into his eyes.
"We need to find the two informants that are supposed to be in here." He said finally. "If we don't want that information to leak out to the wrong people." Kakashi allowed his eyes to travel back to the bar and briefly light on the young bar tender, who was dumping out the half empty glass of milk the blond had left, his back to them at the moment. It was interesting. He moved quickly for someone with his line of work. Not that he knew much about being a bar tender. It had never been his occupation of choice, though he was surprised by the amount of respect the man, who couldn't be more than a year or two younger then Kakashi himself (and he was twenty five) was shown by the questionable occupants of the smoky den.
"The blond boy." Sauske said, drawing Kakashi's attention back to him. "Find out everything and anything you can about him. I want to know his life as well as he does, and I want to know it by tomorrow afternoon. Will that be to much trouble?" Kakashi shook his head, gave the scared bar tender another passing glance, and stood fluidly. Before he could leave, however, Sauske stopped him. "And find out what that bar tender knows. When people come in here, the person most likely to know what is said and done is the bar tender, especially one as dutiful as that. But be careful. He probably won't trust you after that episode with that blond kid." Kakashi raised and eyebrow mildly.
"You think the blond was one of the informants." It wasn't a question, so Sauske didn't bother to answer. He just had a gut feeling, and when the feelings came from his gut, he never ignored them. They had saved him more then once. Kakashi turned and disappeared. Sauske turned his attention back to the wall, thinking. That blond, blue eyed boy. There was something about him….His lips curled into a smile that would have cowed any man in that room. He had a feeling that he and this boy would be seeing much more of each other, and not just because the Uchiha heir found him interesting, but because he had a feeling that this kid was going to get himself in up to his eyeballs in his affaires, weather he realized what he was doing or not.
Kakashi nodded briefly to the bar tender as he headed out the door. The young man blinked in surprise, then gave a careful inclination of his head. Kakashi chuckled to himself as he exited the building. The wariness in the young man's eyes was amusing. And rightfully placed. If he had anything to do with it, no matter how much the young man knew, Kakashi was going to make a point of getting to know him better. Not that said young man knew that yet…..
Kakashi inclined his head towards the stars, inhaling the cool early spring air. Even in this ritzier part of town, the air held that faint scent of hope that always seemed to come with each new beginning of the season cycle. Actually, now that he thought about it, in this part of town the clean, well maintained bar and pool hall stood out almost strikingly. He "hmmmed" wondering where to start before stretching and continuing his stroll down the street.
"Oh well, I'll think of something."
End chapter 1. Review, or don't, but I won't update until I get at least…….. Ten. (If I suck, then constructive criticism is welcomed with open arms.)