A/N: Aha! Naruto's great return! And Lee's... (cough) question. I felt very evil for doing this to Lee of all characters but couldn't resist. Enjoy!
The Sound of Pain: Chapter 2
In a different part of Konoha, a pink-haired kunoichi is dragging behind her an orange-clad blond, who looks all the world like he wants the ground to swallow him up.
"Naruto, he's been acting really strange! Now if you could please just go to him and see what's wrong!" The please is fully superfluous coming from Sakura's lips. This is an order and Naruto knows it.
"But Sakura-chan! He's weird. It's normal for him to act weird! Besides if you're so worried you can go and ask him yourself!" The speech is punctuated with several attempts at escaping the pink Kunoichi's grasp, all successfully thwarted by said pink menace.
There's a light blush gracing Sakura's cheeks and she mumbles, "I don't want to seem impertinent... you stick your nose in everything, so it's okay for you to ask. It might be a... guy thing. You know..." Sakura's free hand waves about, trying to illustrate a point to the blinking Naruto.
"Oooh, I see. You have a crush on him." Naruto looks pleased with his conclusion and nods seriously to himself, "Alright, Sakura-chan, I'll find out whether he likes you back!" Naruto never saw the fist coming. He finds himself on the ground, nursing his hurting head, "What was that for?"
"You idiot! Moron! Just because I'm worried for my friend, doesn't mean I've given up on..." She interrupts herself, breaking from anger to sadness in a split second.
Naruto pauses in his charade too. His heart gives a lurch, because every time Sasuke's name isn't mentioned, every time they avoid saying it, they both feel his presence that much more keenly. It's a touchy subject they usually succeed in not thinking about, this absence in their hearts. Sakura must really be worried to slip so easily.
"Anyway. Just go and see that he's okay." It's a fake attempt at cheerfulness and Sakura sighs inwardly at just how fake it sounds too.
"Hai, hai!" The smile is back full force on Naruto's face, but it's worse than before. He disappears through the doors and dismisses the dark mood hovering near him. A ninja must be strong. Naruto's smile widdens. Yeah. Strong. He's on a mission now. Naruto's eyes shift from left to right in search of his prey. If he were a green-clad, bowl-haired, thick-brow ninja, where would he hide?
Of course, the pantry.
Naruto lowers his body's center-balance to a near-crawling crouch and stealthily tip-toes to the large pantry in the back of the Dojo. Distantly, he thinks it's a horrible place to hide and no way is he going to find Lee there. It's the single most obvious thing in the Dojo. But it doesn't deter him from at least attempting to look like he knows what he's doing and he holds his breath, the tips of his fingers curling around the handle. He pulls the door open with one harsh move and yells out a battle cry.
He's answered by an equally enthusiastic cry of surprise and a well-aimed kick slams into his chest, propelling him back to the entrance door where he awkwardly lands upside down, shoulder and ear on the ground, feet in the air. Naruto groans and slumps from the position, sliding on his back, lying on the floor. "Ow, thick-brows! What was that for?"
Said ninja uncurls from his position in the pantry and apologetically offers a hand up to Naruto, "Ah, gomen, Naruto-kun. I was preoccupied and my youthful senses were all involved in my thoughts. I should have known you were not my enemy!" He seems regretful enough and Naruto knows what he's going to say before he even opens his mouth, "To show you my regret, I shall do 2000 push-ups with you on my back!"
Naruto blinks. He's used to Lee's strange ways, but even this is a little extreme. Not the self-punishment, that's just a part of Lee, but the not seeing him coming part. That's odd. "Nah, it's okay. Didn't hurt me none!" Naruto's smile brightens and he rubs a hand through the back of his hair where his head made contact with the door. Ouch though.
Lee drops into position for his push-ups and looks expectantly at Naruto, "I must insist, Naruto-kun. My lack of attention caused you injury. It is only fair that I be punished so as to not make the same mistake again."
"Fine, fine!" Naruto grumbles a little as he climbs onto Lee, trying to find a comfortable position. He ends up sitting crosslegged in the middle of the green nin's back, arms crossed stubbornly. The ups and downs begin and Naruto's balance is compromised for a few seconds before he settles into the rhythm.
Near the five hundred mark, Naruto's yawning and drumming fingers are out of control. He's bored, bored, bored. "Boring, boring, boring..." Naruto shifts his position on top of Lee so he can watch the ceiling, "Ne, thick-brows, what were you thinking so hard about?"
Though not even breathing hard yet, the green-clad nin pauses in his series on a firmly spoken, "Five hundred and six..." He starts again a few seconds later, answering Naruto's inquiry, "It was nothing relevant, Naruto-kun."
Curiosity piked, Naruto plants his knees on Lee's back and bends over his head to look at his eyes, "Really? Nothing at all?"
The blush could be from the exertion but really, Lee, tired after five hundred push-ups? Right. "Really, really, really nothing at all?"
The lack of answer has Naruto itching to know. He grabs Lee's left wrist, stopping him mid-push and tugs him up. "Come on, thick-brows, spill!"
"It is a... personal matter. You would not wish to hear of it, I am sure." Lee's movements keep mimicking the push ups for two seconds before he realizes that he and Naruto are facing each other, now upright.
"Hey, c'mon. You're my friend, of course I wanna hear!" Naruto forcefully sits the other nin, then settles beside him. "I promise not to breathe a word of it to anyone! Even though Sakura-chan's going to kill me for it! So? How about it?"
"You spoke to Sakura-chan? Why would she kill you?" Completely side-tracked from his exercice and thoughts at that name, Lee looks at Naruto with hopeful, wide eyes that almost brim with tears.
"Geez, you've got it so bad. She's concerned about you. Says you've been weird, avoiding her when she wants to see you, jumping at every small thing. I keep telling her that you're always weird but she didn't seem to hear me so that's why she sent me here so viol..."
"My prized, youthful Sakura-chan was concerned!" Lee exclaims, interrupting Naruto's spiel. His tearful eyes widden even more ridiculously and he stands, "I must go apologize at once!"
Naruto roughly pulls him down and growls at him, the sound more animalistic than it should be coming from a fifteen-year-old. His voice is more serious than anyone would give him credit for as he asks, "What's wrong, Lee? Sakura was really worried about you."
The tone is enough to cut through Lee's enthusiastic attempts to go apologize to the object of his affections. He straightens up, looks down at Naruto with a deadly serious expression that Naruto would swear he only has when he fights. "Naruto-kun. I apologize in advance for my words. But if you repeat even one word of this issue to anyone, I will be forced to do something bad to you."
"Whoa, thick-brows, this mustbe bad if you're trying to threaten! You know you're horrible at it. Come on, you can trust me. Just tell Naruto what's wrong, okay?"
The green-clad nin sighs and sits back down. He looks like he's focusing intensely on trying to form words, so Naruto just lets him have his time. In the end, Lee manages to put the entire problem in one sentence that completely stuns the blond.
"Have you ever had... thoughts about a man, Naruto-kun?"
Thoughts? Lee?
Naruto's dumb persona would pretend to misunderstand until Lee gave up adressing the subject, but looking at the uncomfortable squirm and confused eyes of his friend, Naruto can't find it within himself to ignore the issue. His eyes take on a mature look and his mouth loses the ever-present smile to settle into a contemplative line. He looks like a completely different person than he did seconds before with just those few changes.
He carefully measures his answer, pondering what he can say and what he can't.
"Yeah, I have. What's going on, Lee?"
"In all my youthful enthusiasm, I believe my body has mistaken some of my teammates for females. It is unbearably embarassing, Naruto-kun! I dearly love the sweet Sakura-chan and I have been having unsanitory thoughts about her which I cannot control! And worse! I have even had one dream where some... male teammate was... with her... and me." Lee's face is a dark tomatoe red and he looks so ashamed that Naruto can't help the pang of sympathy.
"Is it Neji?" Because Neji's the only one who looks enough like a girl to be mistaken for one in sexual fantasies...
A shamed nod of the head is Lee's answer and Naruto gives a sigh, pondering his options.
"There's no mistake that it's him in your... erm... thoughts?"
A dejected shake of the head.
"You know at our age, it's normal to be confused about those things, right? And you think naughty thoughts about Sakura-chan so you can't be gay. Have you tried... talking to him?"
Mortified eyes meet Naruto's and Lee opens his mouth to make an attempt at articulating the enormity of horror that very thought inspires. He can't quite manage it so Naruto's suddenly too-old eyes grow kinder and he says, "You know I had the same sort of thoughts about a teammate too. I would never take any of it back. Things were just... complicated between us." Naruto practically radiates sadness and hurt as he whispers those words. He continues on with the point soon after, "It's not the end of the world if you like another guy, Lee. It certainly isn't easy, but it's not the end of the world. I can testify for it."
And now it's the taijutsu-user's turn to look concerned about the blond, because there's no mistaking who that teammate of Naruto's could be. Naruto dismisses his worries with a fake smile and he adds, "Besides, I think your body's just confused. Neji makes one hell of a pretty girl after all." A glint of mischief comes back to Naruto's gaze and his smile reflects it. "I have a plan."
Distantly, Lee thinks now sounds about the right time to make a run for the door.
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Just outside of room 113 of Konoha Hospital, one medium-sized dog whines pitifully, scratching at the closed door. Having been forced to seperate from his master for a whole day already, the animal is quite enthusiastically scratching a hole through the door. A young girl watches him go worriedly. Her fingers are winding together, tightening, then releasing and over and over again. It's a nervous habit that Hinata still has to rid herself of.
Suddenly, a larger hand closes on top of hers, effectively stilling the nervous motions. The arm belongs to one Aburame Shino, who isn't looking any different from usual apart from the fact that his dark sunglasses are falling just a little to one side, his high collar just a little rumpled around the back. If one knew Shino as Hinata does, they would instantly know that the boy did not spend a good night. Anyone else looking at him would not notice the difference.
The Hyuuga heiress bites her lip instead of trying to bend her fingers out of shape and she turns to Shino, her white eyes concerned, "He'll be alright, won't he Shino-kun?"
The boy attempts a reassuring smile but in the end, it looks a little maniacal on the usually serious bug-user. It's a good thing it's hidden by his high collar. "He'll recover. Of that, I'm sure."
They're interrupted by the sound of a door opening and the Hokage herself exits. She looks more tired than one long night warrants and she nods at them. "You may go see him." Akamaru has already slipped by her and through the door, but before the two young nins do the same, Tsunade instructs them firmly, "Do not ask him anything."
They both nod seriously and Tsunade heaves a satisfied sigh. She walks back to her office, Shizune in toe. Both are silent, Tsunade is still thinking back on the words of the Inuzuka. When she reaches the private rooms assigned to the Hokage, she dismisses her assistant and closes the door firmly. Her chair is tugged to the back of the room, away from the desk and Tsunade settles in. Her eyes fall shut and she thinks back to the words exchanged...
"So you found the remnants of a red-headed female, what happened afterwards?"
"I was..." Kiba's head lowers with something resembling shame and he continues with difficulty, "I was sick... It was so horrible, Hokage-Sama. She was still alive when we found her." Kiba firmly shuts his eyes against the memory, the same feeling of sickness washing over him.
Tsunade gives the boy time enough to compose himself. She doesn't think sympathy would help him right now. She patiently waits for him to regain control over himself and go on.
"The captain ordered me to go scout for whoever might've done it. But I don't think he sent me for that, he was just trying to give me a break." Again, Kiba has difficulty swallowing back his grief, but this time the wait is shorter before he goes ahead, "I headed west from the site and Akamaru brought my attention to a man hidden in the bushes." Kiba takes another quick break, as if for dramatic effect, and he says, "It was Sasuke. He was badly injured but alive. I couldn't believe my eyes... After three years he just pops back into our lives to cause havock... I'm sorry, Hokage-sama, but I thought about leaving him there. He looked so hurt though... so hurt..." There's confusion in the boy's voice as he speaks. Kiba was never close to Sasuke. No one ever was but Naruto and Sakura. But he's always looked up to the other boy. Who hasn't looked up to the Uchiha really? Kiba's good and naturally caring nature pushed him to see beyond resentment. In truth, at that moment, he only saw Sasuke as a stray. Kiba could never stop himself from taking in strays. "I gathered him up and went back to report."
A long silence follows those words, so long in fact that Tsunade worries whether she'll have to push the boy into telling the rest of the story. Just as she's about to nudge him on, Kiba continues.
"I heard a scream first. It was Nahoko. She sounded so scared... you know how she is, always tough and quiet. I tried to run back faster to help them. But when I got close... the smell was overwhelming. It smelled of blood and it was so strong that even Akamaru held back. When I finally managed to go back, there was a blond girl in the middle of the clearing. She couldn't have been more than thirteen. My captain and team members weren't moving, they were all in the position I left them in and their eyes were open. P...Part of their... Part of their chest was missing. And this small girl was sitting in blood and smiling." Kiba's voice is quiet with anger, fear and grief. "Who the hell would do something like this? I was gone for five minutes and when I got back they were all dead..."
Tsunade takes in a sharp breath, the information slowly sinking in. "Did it seem like the girl did it?"
"I don't know... I couldn't move... I had the Uchiha in my arms and she was looking at me with such innocent eyes. She took a look at him and I swear I saw her smile widen. Then she disappeared. Just poofed out like one of Naruto's fucking clones." With a growl, Kiba starts again, "Why the fuck didn't they kill me too, huh? I wasn't worth their time? I should've helped them, should've saved them... if only I'd been faster..."
Tsunade cuts him off right there, "Inuzuka, that's enough. There was nothing you could have done. If you keep thinking this way, you'll turn out like the Uchiha. You saved your life and his and you could have done nothing more." Sighing, she stands and pets his hair, "Focus on recovering, Kiba. And remember that you didn't kill them. What I want you to do is keep silent on the matter of the Uchiha. No one is to know of his presence in Konoha, understood?"
Swallowing past his anguish, Kiba nods, "I understand..." A second later, "Hokage-sama?"
"Yes, Inuzuka?"
"If you find who did this, you'll let me know, right?"
And that sounds so dangerously like Sasuke's need for revenge that for a long while, Tsunade doesn't know what to tell him.
"I'll tell you if we find anything. Any helpful details you remember should be immediately reported to me and not a word of the Uchiha to anyone, is that clear?"
"Yes, Hokage-sama."
"Good. Now rest. I'll let in your visitors for a while."
Tsunade's eyes snap open and she growls. She can't send people investigating on so little information... she'd be sending them directly to their deaths. What she needs is to get the Uchiha to tell what he knows. And that promises to be a load of fun...
tbc...
Some replies:
Shadowbright: You're absolutely right about that line. I considered reworking it but I kinda like the jumbled impression it gives of Tsunade's thoughts. (pets Tsunade) Work is evil. And yeah, that was Tayuya. Sasuke's really good at bottling up, but even that one's gonna be a challenge. Hee! I'm glad you enjoy the fact that Sasuke made acquaintances in Sound. I have several more bits of that written that I didn't put in The Sound of Fear because they broke up the rhythm of the story. But I am hoping to find some spots for flashbacks in this one. As to whether or not we'll see a Beast of Pain... well... maybe we already have, who knows? (drops hints and love all around you) Hehehe.
XxHunter The One and OnlyxX: Only the part in Sound is finished. The story is just starting, hun. Hope you enjoy yourself as much with this one as with the last!