Chapter 26:
Naruto threw his arms around Kakashi's neck, stuffing his tongue down the nin's throat hungrily. Kakashi lifted the young man up and wrapped his legs around his waist, carrying him to the sandy edge of the river. He laid Naruto down just at the water's edge, Naruto was bucking his hips wildly, tugging harshly at Kakashi's hair, mewling with arousal. Kakashi pinned Naruto's hands down to his sides and lowered his mouth down to his aching length. Kakashi licked the weeping length from base to tip, sucking lightly on the slit. Kakashi could feel Naruto's pinned arms straining to break free. He took Naruto's full length into his mouth, sucking harshly down and dragging teeth back up. A dark growl reverberated in Naruto's chest. Kakashi looked up to the face of the blonde to find him baring his teeth in a sneer, eyes gone completely red. Kakashi withdrew his mouth from Naruto's length, released his wrists and covered his Sharingan with one of his palms. "Can I help you with something, Kurama? Now is a less than opportune time." "I was roused from Naruto's subconscious because he was feeling desperate and overwhelmed, I assumed he was in danger and here I find you have him forcefully pinned down, Hatake." Kakashi sighed heavily, "I was hoping you would at least trust me a little by now Kurama, I know you have been watching me carefully. Naruto was very… aroused and … demanding. I was restraining him so I could take care of him without him hurting himself or me. I could show you what happened with this Sharingan if you like..." The Kyuubi's eyes were glaring at him with hatred. Kakashi took Naruto's wrist and placed his hand around his throat until he could feel the Kyuubi grip around it tightly. "Here, I will show you and if you think I am trying to harm you or trick you, you can rip my throat out. Deal?" The grip on his throat tightened, which he took as a yes. He opened his Sharingan eye and placed the Kyuubi under a genjutsu. The hand on his throat tightened further, cutting off his air supply, but he persisted, showing Kurama what happened with Naruto moments before they reached the sandy shore. Kakashi slapped his hand back over his eye as soon as the memory was over, freeing the Kyuubi from the genjutsu. The hand around his throat loosened but remained in place, Kakashi fought back the urge to cough. He took a measured breath in, "See?... I have told you that I will not hurt you or Naruto and I mean it, Kurama. Send him back to me." Kakashi slowly moved back down to Naruto's still hard length, the hand around his throat finally releasing. He captured both of Naruto's wrists again as before and pinned them back at his sides. Kakashi repeated, his one eye still fixed on the red eyes of Kurama, "Send him back to me, Kurama." He licked at Naruto's cock, watching carefully as the red eyes shut. He took Naruto's full length in his mouth again, sucking and bobbing. "Kashi…" Naruto gasped out, blue eyes back and shining. "...I… oh fuck." Naruto's hips bucked forward, driving his length further down Kakashi's throat. He hummed around the length gripping firmer onto Narutos wrists. The blonde was moaning loudly now, head thrashing from side to side. "Oh, Kami, oh fuck.. Kashi…." Naruto came hard, back arching alarmingly. Kakashi released his wrists and pushed down on his stomach to ease the arch. He swallowed, licked his lips clean and gave Naruto's tip a soft kiss. Kakashi crawled back up to Naruto's side and placed a hand on his heaving chest. "You are insatiable, you know that." Kakashi laughed at the panting blonde. Finally getting his breathing a little under control, Naruto asked, "What happened… Did I pass out at some point? I remember jumping on you and you bringing me here and you.. ummm… but then it was like I passed out or something and then came to again..I…" Sudden realization hit Naruto then, "It was fucking Kurama wasn't it!" Naruto seethed with anger. Kakashi grabbed Naruto by the chin, forcing him to look at him. "It's fine Naruto, Kurama was just making sure you were okay. Nothing bad happened. Please, calm down." He kissed the blonde softly on the mouth, feeling him start to relax under his fingertips. "I think Kurama and I have a better understanding of each other now, you can ask him about it later. For now, I think we should get dressed and head back out to the woods to restock some supplies and do a bit more elemental training. The rain has finally stopped." Kakashi kissed Naruto again before quickly standing up and dragging him to his feet.
Kakashi summoned a few of his ninken to give the woods a thorough search while he and Naruto got dressed. They made the quick journey back into the forest, greeted by Pakkun who once again reported an all clear. "Okay, so we may have gone a bit overboard yesterday with the number of clones you were using. How about today we just work with half as many?" Naruto nodded and made the hand signals, two hundred and fifty clones surrounded them. "Alright, same idea as yesterday, you each grab a leaf and try to split it. I am going to leave Pakkun with you while I go check your traps and collect tinder." Naruto was already focused on the task at hand before Kakashi could even finish talking. He nodded down to Pakkun before setting out, giving Naruto a quick adoring glance over his shoulder.
Kakashi headed deep into the woods, following the path they took the previous day to check Naruto's traps. Two of the four traps yielded catches this time, Kakashi quickly reset the traps and looked around for any edibles nearby. He spotted a few fiddleheads and a patch of asparagus, adding them to his bounty. He started slowly making his way back in the direction he left Naruto in, collecting tinder as he went. He was close enough that he could see the backs of Naruto's shadow clones through the trees. As he approached, the clones all disappeared in a puff of smoke, dissipating just in time for him to see Naruto fall face first onto the ground. Kakashi dumped everything he was carrying and sprinted toward him. "Naruto! What happened? Are you okay?" He rolled the blonde over carefully. Naruto was smiling, he held up his closed hands to Kakashi and whispered, "I did it…" showing him the split leaf inside his palms. "Well holy shit…" Kakashi scooped up Naruto, "I think that is plenty of training for today. Pakkun, can you and the other hounds bring the items I collected back to camp please."
"You can put me down Kakashi, I'm fine…" Kakashi chuckled back, "We are almost back at camp, I'll put you down when we are safely back in the gully." Naruto grumbled but rested his head on Kakashi's chest, still clutching the leaf he had split in his hands. "You know, it's incredible how much you have progressed in just two days." Finally back at camp, Kakashi put Naruto down, watching him move about carefully. "I told you I'm fine Kashi…" Kakashi smiled at him and replied, "Alright then. How about you collect our supplies from the dogs and hang out with them for a bit while I try my hand at spearfishing?" Naruto nodded his ascent, rushing off to help Pakkun and the rest of the pack with their loads. Kakashi grabbed, what he deemed to be, his best spear and made his way out to the ocean. The waters were fairly calm, he climbed his way across the rocks that formed the natural water break near the gullies opening. Perching atop a rock that sat low in the water, he squatted down and stood still. He watched the water intently, catching quick movement and flashes of silver from fish swimming just below the surface. Kakashi readied his spear slowly, trying not to let the movement startle the fish. He stood still as a statue for what felt like an eternity, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike. A particularly large trout was slowly swimming its way closer to Kakashi, breaching the surface a short distance away. Kakashi struck, plunging the spear quickly down at the fish. He pulled the spear back up out of the water and was pleased to find the fish impaled on the end, still wriggling.
Naruto helped the hounds bring the rest of the supplies back to camp, setting them all in their appropriate places. He pulled up a seat in a shady section of sand and watched Kakashi scale the rocks out in the distance. Pukkan came to sit near him, licking softly at his hand, "He is a good man, Naruto." Naruto scratched the pug under his chin, "I know he is. I am so grateful… I love him so much." Pakkun rolled onto his back, baring his belly for a rub. Naruto laughed, petting the dog fondly. Naruto looked back out toward the ocean, watching as Kakashi made his way to a low boulder near the water. While Kakashi was away it felt like the opportune time to talk to the damn nine-tails and see what the hell happened earlier. Naruto laid back and closed his eyes, walking the halls of his subconscious to the cage of the nine-tails. "Kurama… HEY KURAMA! Get up, I need to talk to you." Naruto watched the kitsune's tail sweeping back and forth, his back turned towards him. "Don't ignore me dammit! I want to know what happened earlier… come on… please." The Kyuubi finally turned to face him, head resting on top of his paws, eyes glowering down at him with malice, as usual. Naruto stood firm, staring back at the damned fox waiting for him to answer him. "You were feeling a touch of fear and pain, nothing too dramatic, but it put me on edge. Then I felt you become desperate and overwhelmed, I decided to check and see what was going on. Hatake had you forcefully restrained so I stepped in. End of story." "No, no, no… not end of story. There is more to it than that. What did you do, Kurama? What did you say? I appreciate you looking out for me, I do, but you have to stop shutting me out of shit." Naruto stared up at Kurama, the kitsune staring right back. Finally Kurama sighed, clearing wanting the conversation to be over. "I confronted Hatake about what he was doing, why he had you restrained. He explained what was happening and I let it go." "I highly doubt you just took his word for it Kurama, I'm not stupid enough to believe that." The kitsune chuckled loudly, "Well, you would be right in that assumption. I let him put me under a genjutsu to show me his memories to prove to me what…" "YOU WHAT? I don't believe you, you wouldn't let him do that. The Sharingan scares the shit out of you…" Kurama glared at him angrily, not enjoying being talked over, "Hatake put your hand up to his throat, allowing me to grab it. He told me I could rip his throat out if I felt he was attempting to screw with me. He showed me his memories under genjutsu and then released me. End of story." Kurama rolled away from Naruto then, not giving him any chance to ask any more questions. Naruto was shocked, couldn't believe the nine-tails had willingly been put under genjutsu. Maybe Kakashi was right, maybe he and the kitsune were gaining a better understanding of each other. "Thank you, Kurama." Naruto could hear the faint scoffing of the nine-tails as he pulled himself from his subconscious. He opened his eyes slowly, startled to find Pakkuns face looking down at him, "You okay, Naruto?" Naruto sat up and looked back out toward the ocean, quickly finding Kakashi exactly where he had last seen him. "Yeah, I'm good." Naruto watched on as Kakashi quickly stabbed something in the water, pulling the spear back up with a huge fish attached to the end. "He really is good at pretty much everything, huh Pakkun?" The pug just laughed and rolled back onto his back for more belly rubs.
Kakashi made his way back to camp with his spear slung over his shoulder, fish still impaled on the end of it. Naruto was sitting in the sand petting Pakkun, watching him return. "Look what I got…" Kakashi brought his spear back around to show Naruto the fish he had speared. Naruto pushed himself up from the sand, waiting patiently as Kakashi made his way to him. When Kakashi was finally standing in front of him, Naruto grabbed his chin and lifted it up, exposing his neck. "Ah, I see you have talked to Kurama then." Kakashi could feel Naruto's fingers brushing against his throat. "You're going to have big ugly bruises here Kakashi, why would you agree to something so reckless?" Kakashi laughed softly and captured Naruto's hand, "I'm fine, it doesn't hurt. It was the only thing I could think of to get the nine-tails to trust me. Plus, I doubt he would actually kill me unless he felt threatened, otherwise he would have to deal with your wrath." Naruto just shook his head and placed a soft kiss on Kakashi's throat. "It's getting late and I'm starving, let's go make dinner." Kakashi tugged Naruto along by the hand, the rest of the way back to camp.
The trout was delicious. Kakashi had sent the hounds home as they were sitting down to eat. "So, I think before we turn in for the night, I will write a report for the Sandaime. Let him know you have decided to eventually come back to Fire Country, that way if he was planning on sending a search party maybe he will call them off." Naruto nodded and replied, "When do you think we should start making our way to Uzushiogakure?" Kakashi was thoughtful for a moment before responding, "I would like to spend a few days here still training you in taijutsu in case we run into any problems during our travels. But we can stay or leave whenever you want. I'll leave that up to you." They finished the rest of their meal in comfortable silence, Naruto gazing thoughtfully into the fire as he ate. Kakashi excused himself and quickly rinsed off his plate. He went to the tent to dig through his rucksack to find a scroll. Finally finding one buried near the bottom of the bag, he sat himself down in the sand to write out his report. It was starting to get dark by the time he finished writing. He rejoined Naruto by the fire and handed him the scroll to read over. The young man looked exhausted, he had had a couple heavy days so it was no surprise he was worn out. Kakashi was sure there was a limit to how much Kurama was able or willing to help Naruto recover. Kakashi was still floored by the amount of progress the blonde had made with elemental training in just two days. The young man was a natural, it was a shame he wasn't given the opportunity to learn when he was younger but he was more than making up for the lost time now. Kakashi looked forward to sparring with him tomorrow. He enjoyed watching the young man's face light up as he mastered something new. Naruto quickly read through the scroll, yawning, "Looks good." Kakashi summoned a hawk and sent the report away. "Come on, let's head to bed." Kakashi prompted. Naruto yawned and replied, "But it's not even that late yet." Kakashi laughed and pulled the blonde up from his seat, dragging him toward the tent. Naruto was struggling to keep his eyes open as Kakashi helped him undress. Kakashi guided the young man to lay down and gave him a kiss on the forehead before getting back up to undress himself. By the time Kakashi crawled into bed, Naruto was already snoring, sprawled out on his stomach, face buried into the bedroll. Kakashi looked down fondly at his love, drinking in his sun kissed skin, his silky blonde strands splayed wildly about his face, at the soft rise and fall of his back. A gruesome image resurfaced in Kakashi's mind. Naruto laying in a startlingly similar fashion, face pressed into the earth, lying in a puddle of his own blood. Kakashi fell to knees, clutching desperately at his chest, sudden panic overwhelming him. He was sucking in terrified breaths, trying to focus on the rise and fall of Naruto's back, he's breathing… he's fine… he's alive… calm down. His hands were shaking violently, hot tears rolling down his cheeks, he was overcome with the need to feel Naruto's heartbeat. Kakashi brought a shaky hand up to the blonde's neck, searching for his pulse point, frantically pressing his fingers around until he finally found it. He let his fingers linger there, pressed tight to Naruto's neck, while he tried to get his breathing under control. Naruto stirred, catching Kakashi's hand in his and rolled over onto his side. Kakashi rubbed at his eyes with the back of his hands, trying to compose himself while under the careful scrutiny of those beautiful sapphire eyes. Naruto brought himself to his knees in front of Kakashi, taking Kakashi's hand and placing it on his chest. More unrelenting tears fell from Kakashi's eyes, "I… I'm sorry… I just…" Naruto silenced him by pressing a soft kiss to his lips, brushing the tears away with his thumbs. Kakashi pulled him tightly to his body, burying his face into his hair to breathe in his comforting scent. Still shaking harshly, Kakashi laid down on his back, pulling Naruto down on top of him. Naruto hummed happily, nuzzling his face into Kakashi's neck, quickly falling back asleep. Kakashi could feel the young man's heart beating steadily in his chest pressed tightly to his own. The weight of the young man pressing down on him and the feel of his heart beating was slowly calming Kakashi. He hugged the blonde tightly, "I love you, Kami, I love you so much." Naruto was murmuring in his sleep, hugging Kakashi back softly. Kakashi focused on relaxing his tense body, running his fingers gently through Naruto's hair. He closed his eyes and waited for sleep to claim him.