Chapter Four:
The Understanding
(The theme song for this chapter is "Papercut" by Linkin Park")
Sasuke was exhausted.
And dirty.
He had not bothered to try to avoid the mud and grime, but after being dirty for so long, he quickly regretted it.
"We need someone to install plumbing. I'm not a plumber; but I do know they make a lot of money, and that means they are expensive," said Kakashi, shaking his head.
They had just begun their work on demolishing the old village two nights before; but after nearly three full nights of work, they were already exhausted... and dirty. Sitting in a circle, they began to discuss their options on how they were going to get clean. Sasuke remained mostly quiet, letting his companions hash it out.
"I saw an inn by Steve's bar," Naruto began. "Maybe they offer rooms by the hour? It seems like that kind of joint; you know. Shady and stuff. Our kind of place. We could get a room for an hour and all have fast showers... Well, you two can have fast showers. It's going to take me a full 30 minutes to get this muck off!" He blew a raspberry in disgust.
Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Do you think we are made of money? We can't afford that."
"Can we afford not to?" Naruto countered.
"The river is looking like a good option at this point," Kakashi chimed in. As was customary in the past, villages were often built around bodies of water. The Uchiha clan's village was no different; but the water was murky with pollution and Sasuke could only guess what else.
"You couldn't pay me to get in that water..." Naruto shuddered.
"Speaking of paying... We need to come up with a solution for figuring out our finances." Kakashi's tone changed. Naruto lovingly dubbed this side of Kakashi's personality his "serious mode."
"With our current budget, we need a small fortune just to get electricity and plumbing in here. I have money set aside for that. However, it is going to be much more expensive than originally predicted. Sasuke and I will run out of sustenance money in a few weeks. And you, Naruto, are extremely expensive to keep fed." He appeared grave. "We need to be in a position to where we can afford donors."
Naruto shifted uncomfortably. "... You know that creeps me out."
"And you know it's a part of our culture and is an accepted alternative to killing humans. Buying bagged blood is expensive, and donors serve other purposes as well." Kakashi paused for a moment, obviously deep in thought. He sighed. "I'm going to ask if Steve is hiring at the bar."
"Ehhh that lug was a bit of an ass, if you ask me." Naruto crossed his arms. "You are too good for that place. Maybe you could work at the gas station? They're open late. I made sure, just in case I get hungry at night."
"We really need to stick to a place that understands our special... circumstances. Also, he may give us discounts on blood until we can find an alternative," Kakashi continued. "I realize this isn't ideal, but we are not in a position to be picky."
"I'll do it."
Both men turned toward Sasuke, who had remained mostly silent that day. Naruto's mouth was hanging open.
Sasuke scowled. "Don't look at me like that."
"Why would you prefer to do it instead, Sasuke?" Kakashi asked, keeping his tone as neutral as possible.
"It makes the most logical sense. You have all the knowhow with building and such. If you were to work at the bar, I would be in charge of... all this. And Naruto working would cause more problems than necessary. He would scare all of the customers away."
Naruto glared at Sasuke, who glared back.
"Also," After a brief pause, Sasuke continued, "I think making connections in the community is important. If I'm going to lead, I need to let them know I have a presence here."
Kakashi beamed. "I must say, I'm impressed, Sasuke. Well, it's settled then! We will go down there, order drinks, and then you can talk to him while Naruto and I vacate the premise, so to speak."
"Teme needs a bath first. No one wants to hire someone who stinks!" Naruto pinched his nose. "I still say we should look into that room..."
Kakashi sighed again. "I'll trace there and return promptly. Hopefully they are still open and have a vacancy..." Kakashi's voice trailed off as he stood. He disappeared from the room, silent like always.
Sasuke got up, deciding he could do some more work before his mentor returned.
"Sasuke..." Naruto stood as well, and when Sasuke continued walking away, Naruto blocked his path. His eyes were serious. The two of them were nearly the same height, but Sasuke was taller. Naruto was not intimidated.
"We need to get started and moving, dobe," Sasuke tried to walk around him, but Naruto stopped him.
Though the two of them were like brothers, Sasuke did not appreciate being challenged. He knew what Naruto wanted, and he would rather not oblige him.
"Sasuke... Is that tree-"
"I don't know." Sasuke cut him off. It was better than the truth, because Sasuke couldn't explain the truth. How was a tree that has a lifespan of less than 30 years still standing and living after more than century? Sasuke had no explanation, and he didn't want Naruto pestering him with questions he couldn't answer.
"Well, why we don't go look? Then we will know if the pretty lady was batshit crazy or-"
"I'm too busy to look for a tree that probably died a long time ago."
Sasuke brushed past Naruto, leaving him to wonder why Sasuke was always so difficult.
Kakashi returned and was almost gleeful when he informed Sasuke and Naruto that he had booked a room at the motel. After using his powers of persuasion, the man relented and gave them a great deal. The room was theirs for the rest of the night.
"I told you the inn was a good place to go!" Naruto patted himself on the back.
Kakashi sighed. "It's a motel. There is a difference."
"I don't care," Naruto continued as they walked towards the town. "I'm getting clean! And we are going to eat!"
Naruto proceeded to inform them of all the different food he was going to try. As Kakashi began to remind him that they were broke, Sasuke tuned them out, as he was apt to do.
Unbeknownst to Naruto, he had indeed visited the tree that night, under the guise he was going to gather more supplies. Naruto was too dense to realize what he was doing, and if Kakashi knew, Sasuke silently thanked him for the privacy.
Sasuke's brow furrowed. The tree was about to bloom, but it was happening so fast. The flowers were a "puffy" white, a sure sign that they would be beautiful, pink buds any day; or, possibly, any moment.
Sasuke had always been a man of logical thought. He had goals; he had goals to attain those goals, and so on. He had mentally hardened himself after the genocide of his people; he didn't have room for floaty, questioning thoughts and ideas. But what the women had said a few nights before disturbed him in a way nothing had in recent memory.
It was all too much to be coincidental: the supposed "fortune," the tree that still lived, its flowers blossoming so quickly... Things like this just didn't happen for no apparent reason; at least, not to him. Sasuke had always seen things as black and white, and when presented with grey, it threw him off.
"...Well, fine. Sasuke can bring home food to me everyday. He can say it's for him, then maybe he can get it for free."
"That's not going to fool anyone, Naruto..."
"Maybe he is a food-eating vampire!"
"Food doesn't taste the same to us as it does to you..."
"You just haven't found anything you like yet."
"I assure you, any food, to me, would be like eating dirt... Tasteless, but with an uncomfortable texture..."
"Ew, Kakashi! You've eaten dirt?! That's gross. I would never eat dirt. Unless I dropped my food and it got dirt on it. Then, I might eat the dirt if I couldn't get it off."
Sasuke wished his companion had an off button, but he was in luck: the village was in sight.
"Drop the Lorean talk, Naruto," Sasuke scolded. "We already get enough looks as it is."
"It's midnight. No one is even awake right now, except for the ones like us..."
"Can it."
Naruto grumbled to himself as they approached the motel. Kakashi greeted the man at the desk like an old friend. He paid for the room, handing Sasuke the room key and instructing the two younger men to go to on ahead while he paid.
The room was secluded at the end of a long hallway, and for this, they were silently thankful. It was a modest room with few furnishings: a chair and small desk, a bed with a simple royal blue bedspread, a miniature dining table, and an old TV. Sasuke, having volunteered to carry their belongings, threw his bag on the bed and sat beside it. "Get your stuff out and go first; if you use up all the hot water, I'll kill you."
Naruto narrowed his eyes at him, his baby blue eyes bright. "I'm going to take a long, long, LONG shower. You go first. If you use all the hot water...Then I will kill you."
Sasuke huffed as pulled his clothing from the bag. "No promises." He gracefully stood, glaring at Naruto as he walked away and into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him.
As Naruto heard the water in the next room start to run, he wondered what had gotten into Sasuke. He was much more tense and even bitchier than normal, which seemed like a difficult feat to pull off.
Naruto, already filthy, decided to lay on the floor - no sense dirtying a clean bed. He hadn't been sleeping much in an attempt to keep a close eye on the vampires while they slept. He supposed it added to his often-sour mood. Sometimes, he couldn't help himself. He wasn't eating enough, and Sasuke could be such a prick, which added to his frustrations.
He lazily reached an arm up to the bed and pulled down the black bag holding his clean clothing. Exhausted, he was only half paying attention when he unzipped the front pocket and stuck his hand inside.
His brow furrowed in confusion as his hand brushed something soft and fuzzy.
A moment of realization dawned on him, just before he pulled Sasuke's feather from the bag.
Naruto nearly chuckled. So the bastard has been keeping this, huh? Sasuke sure was complicated. Why say he wasn't concerned about something when he was?
Kakashi came in then. After quietly shutting and locking the door, he turned around; but he stopped in his tracks when he saw Naruto on the floor, holding Sasuke's feather.
He sighed. "This would be awkward if the situation didn't involve you, Naruto; but with you, anything is to be expected and anticipated."
"Teme is stressed out." Naruto said. It was more of a statement and less of a question.
Kakashi nodded in agreement as he walked towards Naruto. He sat down beside him, cross-legged. "He feels an immense amount of pressure. His life hasn't been easy."
"None of our lives have been easy. I don't think that's why he's an asshole. He's confused about the stuff he's feeling." Naruto twirled Sasuke's feather in-between his fingers. "He's hanging onto this for a reason. He doesn't believe in luck, or that kind of thing. Something's going on."
Kakashi didn't answer right away. He was silently gathering his thoughts, wondering if he should share what he knew with Naruto. Eventually, after watching Naruto play with the feather in silence, he decided that it was for the good of the group.
"You're right, Naruto."
Naruto paused and set the feather down as he looked up at his mentor.
"For once you admit I can be right!... But right about what?"
Kakashi took the feather in his hands. "There is something going on." He ran his hands against the feather's spine, enjoying its smooth texture.
He sighed before he continued. "That tree is still there, but not only is it still there... It's alive and ready to bloom any time now."
Naruto sat straight up now. "What does this all mean?"
"It means we need to be prepared."
While questions swam around inside of Naruto's head, he wasn't sure which ones were worth asking out loud. He and Kakashi sat there for an unnoticed amount of time, both deep in their own thoughts.
Kakashi broke the silence. "Don't say anything to Sasuke. He needs to think we don't know."
Naruto furrowed his brow again. "Why? Maybe he needs to know we're in this with him, whatever it is that's freaking him out, and-"
"I can tell you right now, that's a mistake. Sasuke hides his emotions beneath a thick veil of coldness and indifference. You will just provoke his wrath by pointing out you see his weakness." Kakashi waved his hand dismissively. "That's the last thing he needs. What he does need is to believe we know nothing; we need to continue on with our plan as scheduled. That is the best we can do for him right now."
The sound of the shower running ended abruptly. Naruto tore the feather from Kakashi's hand and shoved it back into the side pouch where it belonged. Kakashi raised a brow at the blonde. "You do realize he is not going to run out here naked, right?"
Naruto threw a finger up to his mouth and "shushed" Kakashi. "He'll hear us!" he said in a hurried whisper.
As if on cue, the bathroom door was thrown open. Steam poured from the room, rushing towards the ceiling. A half-naked Sasuke appeared before them, a thin, white towel wrapped around his waist. Moisture covered his body; his hair attempted to defy the water and stick out in the back like usual. He approached Naruto, who grimaced. "You could get dressed in the bathroom like a normal, decent person."
Sasuke reached past his friend and grabbed the bag he had brought. "I forgot my fucking underwear. And no one said I was a normal, decent person." As he walked away, he said "I'll be out momentarily."
After the door was shut again, Naruto sighed. "Well, guess I will just get up and get ready to-"
"Dibs."
Kakashi had traced directly beside the bathroom door a few feet away. He leaned against the wall, a signature stance of his.
Naruto narrowed his eyes at his mentor. "Asshole."
AN:
DON'T HATE ME. It was getting so long again. I needed to cut it off, like if it was in a published book.
This hasn't been beta'ed yet! Fixing all that in the next few days (my beta has been super busy, so I'm just posting it instead of waiting).
Believe it or not, the next chapter should be up sometime tomorrow evening! YAY.
