hmm...well, here it is. Naruto doesn't belong to me.
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Whore Street
Whore Street was quiet and deserted again, the sun's weak rays trying their best to pierce the heavy grey clouds. Thought they didn't really succeed in that, they had managed to chase away the night with its rough and cold customers in those sleek, anonymous cars. The early morning workers had left the apartment blocks already and had taken the bus to wherever they spent their days, and now, at eight, it was about time for the next rush hour.
Shino woke with a small shudder from his nightmares and lay still for a moment, disoriented. Then he relaxed, feeling Kiba's arms around him and Akamaru's wet snout on his hip. He tried to get back to sleep, but gave up on it after a few minutes and very carefully got up. Kiba was a bitch in the mornings, and Shino didn't like waking him.
He squatted down in front of his insect boxes, scanning them for any sign of something being wrong. Finding nothing, he stood and stretched before rummaging around in the army issue backpack he shared with Kiba, getting out a grey -- he wondered briefly whether they had anything that was still its original color -- T-shirt and slipping it over his head. His jeans were getting stiff from grime, he realized with a cheerless grin. On the streets, it took a while to notice stuff like that, even amongst this comparatively clean group.
Shino frowned, rolling the five-cel-chip that Kiba'd gotten from the old lady yesterday around in his fingers. He debated with himself whether he should go get breakfast for the crew. Of course, breakfast on Whore Street could mean only one thing; ramen. The ramen place was the only food place on the whole Street, unless you counted the weird stuff that you could get down at the Arcade.
He stepped over Kiba's sleeping form and into the weak warmth of the sun, deciding to go get the ramen after all. He scuffed his faded boots against the cracks in the sidewalk, wrinkling his nose a bit in disgust when he saw a used condom lying at the curb. God, he was glad he didn't whore himself out anymore.
Kiba and he'd met two years back, and the older kid had made him promise to stop whoring once they'd started...well, Shino wouldn't call it going out. The only dates they'd ever had were the long afternoons of sitting around, waiting for friendly passersby to take pity on them. But still, Kiba was one of the better things that had happened to Shino, and he was glad to have someone like him.
Shino reached the ramen place, and cast the trannies an amused glance. There five of them that slept on Whore Street, and their bodies were a big, tangled heap among a scattering of bright blankets, clothes, and bottles. They were all pretty nice, though Shino tried not to talk to them too often. They easily got touchy-feely.
He stepped up to the clean steel of the ramen place's counter, behind which the shop owner -- a friendly-looking man who never seemed to sleep -- waited expectantly. Shino didn't understand how the man could have such a boring job -- sitting around all day, waiting. It would have Shino crazy by the third hour.(1)
"I'd like a supersize tub of ramen and a supersize --"
"Hot chocolate. With seven plastic bowls and chopsticks. Got it, kiddo." The man grinned.
Shino offered him a slight smile. "Yeah."
He leaned against the warm counter and watched the first people of the eight o'clock rush hour leave their apartment buildings, the students and the businessmen mostly. A few of them got into cars and drove off, but mainly they flocked to the bus stop. They did their best to avoid looking at the groups of sleeping whores.
Shino rolled his eyes behind his goggles. The stupidest thing about the ignoring was that -- and he knew this for sure, he'd seen some of them with his friends -- not a few of the businessmen took advantage of Whore Street's selection of prostitutes.
He turned around as the ramen shopkeeper plunked a massive bag down on the counter behind him. "Makes two cel, kid."
Shino handed him the chip, and got three of the intricate one-cel-chips back. Hefting the bag and nodding to the ramen place dude in thanks, he made his way back to the Konoha. Heh. A five-cel-chip --- Shino wondered what had gotten into that old lady. You didn't just give five cel away. One cel maybe, two cel were already weird. Five cel was just... hell, a fuck and a blowjob together cost five cel!
He reached the awning and maneuvered his way between the sleeping forms, dropping the heavy bag on the store steps. Taking out one of the plastic bowls and a pair of chopsticks, he opened the tub of ramen and scooped himself some into the bowl. He closed the tub again and began to eat.
He didn't mind ramen, but it was starting to go on his nerves. Actually, it was probably starting to go on everyone's nerves except for Naruto's. But then, Naruto loved ramen to death. Shino looked for the kid among the whores sprawled on the sidewalk, finding him -- predictably -- curled up next to Sasuke on their shared mattress. The blonde kid always slept the same way, his face buried under Sasuke's ribs and his body curled into a fetal position.
Sasuke, on the other hand, slept like the cool kid he was -- one arm thrown across his eyes, the other loosely curled around Naruto's shoulders. Shino sniggered inwardly. Basically the definition of 'Sleeping Bishounen'. Actually the black-haired kid wasn't really Shino's type -- he preferred Kiba's rough good looks to Sasuke's icy beauty --, but he was pretty popular with the customers.
Shino frowned suddenly. Wait... why was there less space under the awning than usual? Peering around to the shop window opposite the one Kiba and he slept under, he found the reason.
Tenten and Ino had fallen asleep while playing cards with Sasuke's expensive black deck -- a waste of money in Shino's opinion, but who was asking him? --, and the elaborate cards lay in a scattered mess around their cuddled up forms, clad only in bras and hot pants. Next to them on their blankets was another sleeping kid, wearing a dark skintight bodysuit. His black hair was cut like a bowl, and he had huge black eyebrows.
Shino cocked his head slightly. What was Lee doing here? He actually lived two houses down, with his caretaker Gai. The older man was Lee's sort-of-teacher in the 'arts of love', as he called it, and at night they whored here with the clique. Shino frankly thought they were missing a few thousand brain cells, but they were nice enough if you kept them away from the old ABBA recordings -- ugh.
Shino looked over at Shikamaru, who looked to be awake and staring up at the awning. The kid's complete lack of any kind of drive frightened him. It reminded him of...other times. Shikamaru spent his days staring up at the awning, grudgingly washing up at the Arcade at around five. Then he'd drag himself to the curb and somehow get customers. At four in the morning he'd plod back to his pile of stuff and lie down, and it'd start all over again.
Shino finished his bowl of ramen and made himself comfortable on the steps, gazing out at the street. By now, the eight o'clock rush hour was in full flow. He watched the people pass by, the sun not helping their dreary expressions as they dragged their way to the bus stop. The sidewalk was still wet from yesterday, and the puddles were splashing under the workers' and students' feet.
Lee stirred with a little sigh, and his eyes opened. He blinked a few times before sitting up. Then he stretched his arms with a huge yawn and looked up at Shino, who'd been watching him amusedly. "Morning, Shino."
"Morning. Why aren't you at home?"
The kid shrugged. "Master Gai had a guest, and I didn't feel like intruding, so I slept here."
In other words; Gai had had a lover over, Lee couldn't sleep because of the noise, and had sought refuge under the Konoha's (blessfully quiet) awning.
"Want ramen?"
The kid nodded and stood, walking over to the bag. He did the same that Shino had, filling himself a bowl. Shino'd have to share his bowl with Kiba, but that wasn't the end of the world. Lee sat back down on Ino and Tenten's blankets, eating quickly. He watched the people passing by as well, and the two kids -- three if you counted Shikamaru -- were quiet.
A strange pair of students, obviously related, came up the sidewalk. Lee hadn't seen them before on Whore Street, which was unusual since such different people stood out easily among the dreary mass of the Street's other inhabitants. They both had straight black hair and milky white eyes, the boy tall and proud-looking and the girl trotting timidly behind him.
They reached the awning of the Konoha, and at their reaction to the sleeping whores Lee knew that they were new on Whore Street. They didn't exactly stare, but they also didn't ignore them, their strange eyes skipping nervously over the half-dressed sleepers. Lee grinned up at them. "Morning!"
The tall kid started and looked away, but the girl nodded her head timidly and smiled, before hurrying after the boy who had continued walking. "Wait, Neji-kun!"
Lee laughed softly, and heard Shino chuckle beside him. The two kids shared a glance.
"Neji, huh?" Shino smirked. "Looks like he's quite a cold fish."
Lee frowned. Yeah, it did.
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(1): heh. that is what Shino does all day.
All right, for all of you that are waiting impatiently for Gaara to show up...it's happening next chapter, I PROMISE!
And now...you know what to do, don't you?
click...click...click...click...CLICK IT!
