Title: Ketsueki, Fukushuu, to Daisuki (Blood, Revenge, and Love)
Summary: Blood and revenge had been the only addictions high school junior Sasuke Uchiha had, but it seemed that the teenage vampire had discovered another even more serious addiction in the form of Naruto Uzumaki. (Sasunaru) (AU) (Title: Blood, Revenge, and Love)
A/N: Yay for Japanese-English dictionaries, because KFD sounds cooler than BRL. Sap and angst ahead, people. Please be nice, because I'm a newbie author and PLEASE REVIEW!! Reviews mean even more to a newbie like me than some author who's used to getting bucket loads of reviews, and I truly, honestly cherish every one. I would print them out and tack them up on my wall, but that would be killing trees. And my wall.
Disclaimer: Do you really think that Masashi Kishimoto would sell Naruto, possibly the most popular anime right now, to an American minor? I don't think so.
Key:
Thoughts/flashbacks
"Speech"
Ketsueki, Fukushuu, to Daisuki
Prologue
Picture Perfect Paradox
Some people would say that Sasuke Uchiha had it all: the looks, the money, and anything else he might desire. But, that couldn't be farthest from the truth. Sasuke did have the looks, but he spent every second of his life hating himself because, when he looked in the mirror, he saw his brother, Itachi Uchiha. Sasuke didn't have the money, not anymore. After the murder of the entire extended Uchiha family sans Sasuke, the Japanese government had cut off the enormous Uchiha treasury from the rest of the world so Itachi, now one of the most wanted men in the world, couldn't get funds. And, Sasuke couldn't get two of the things he most desired: blood and revenge.
"You will live, otoutou, but not as the Sasuke Uchiha you once knew. You will live as a vampire; a creature of the night. You will taste the life I had to live, and you will hate me for it. Nothing will make your living easier and better, for I'll never let you have anything in this life, Sasuke. Not until you kill me, otoutou, if that is even possible for someone as weak as you."
Itachi was keeping him from everything, just like he had promised.
Somehow, everything always came back to Itachi.
It had started eight years ago. Sasuke had been in third grade at the time and hadn't had a clue as to what had been going on. It was only until later, when the police had explained it to him, that he realized that Itachi had been involved with a group called Akatsuki, a group much smaller but even worse than the Yakuza(1).
In order to prove his loyalty to Akatsuki, Itachi had murdered his entire family, even his distant relatives residing in the cultural melting pot that was America. He had left Sasuke alive, but not unscathed.
Blood.
Red, crimson red, streaming down like water…
Like tears…
The rivers in the garden, once so peaceful, ran scarlet, the air filled with screams...
Filled with the scent of death…
The smell of despair…
The cold, biting into me, so ruthless…
Yet there was no cold in the Uchiha complex, only the ice within my soul, climbing to my heart, freezing my very being until I could no longer breathe…
Fear, icy yet burning, constricting around my heart, squeezing out my hope…
The horrible screech of metal on metal…
The sobs, mourning those lost…
Gunshots, signaling more sacrifice…
The sickening sound of teeth tearing through flesh…
The gurgle of a man's lifeblood being sucked from him…
The snow as it fell, virgin white, too pure for such a horrible day…
But, in my eyes, it fell in cascades of red…
The same shade of his crazed eyes.
Death, everywhere…
Fighting, so useless…
Escape, impossible…
Survival, unfathomable.
No one was spared.
No one but me.
I ran.
I bolted.
I didn't know where I found the strength, but I did, somewhere.
Even though I could here nothing but the pounding of my heart pumping in time with the slap of my bare feet, I knew he was following me.
Death on silent feet.
Itachi caught up to me like I knew he would.
His hands, so pale they were whiter than the snow that rested on my lashes, heavy and cold, gripped my shoulders, and I felt the warmth leach out of me along with my blood as his mouth descended upon my throat.
Death did not come.
He pulled back.
He wanted to play with me.
"You can try to use your powers to help others, otoutou, but it'll do you no good. When Kakashi finds you, yet another victim, he will take you in. You will live off of blood pills, but you're an Uchiha, and Uchihas settle only for the best. Soon you'll succumb, and you'll become just like me."
It was then that I promised myself and went against my boyhood dreams:
I would never become Itachi.
The first few years were hard, oh so hard.
I still can't believe I survived them.
As an eight-year-old, my grasp of life wasn't the best. My world consisted of my family, people outside of my family; the good guys and the bad guys; white and black. In the years between the time I learned to curb my desire for blood and when I first became a vampire, my concept of the world was stretched to the limits of comprehension.
I was forced to acknowledge grey, first in the form of Kakashi Hatake.
He protected humans by either killing vampires or saving whatever vampires he could from sinking into total loss of self. He, himself, was a vampire who had found the light on his own. How he managed it, I shall never know. Kakashi's past was every bit as painful as mine; he had been turned by his own father and had been forced to kill Sakumo Hatake to keep him from hurting others.
Kakashi had been alive for nearly four hundred years. He had been turned at seven and had only aged twenty years in the span of four centuries: a year for every twenty. It's been one hundred and sixty four years since my turning; one hundred and sixty five years of moving from place to place, country to country.
I know what your thinking: If vampires age, than doesn't that mean that they die from old age? Only the type of vampire me, Kakashi, and the others are die from old age. Blood is what keeps a vampire from aging. Blood pills curb the desire for blood, but they don't keep us alive like blood does. So, I guess, in a way, we're wasting away.
I had been one of the few lucky enough to be saved. To insure that I did not lose my memories and my desire to avenge my family, Itachi left me on Kakashi's doorstep.
After that, I don't remember much; just an insatiable hunger and constant pain and darkness. Slowly, I learned how to resist the hunger for human blood as Kakashi took me out for strolls through town. Sometimes, the other vampires, all much older than I, would take me out.
Genma Shiranui, our resident pervert, a few physical years older than Kakashi. Raidou Namiashi, Genma's 'babysitter' and the person who keeps Mr. Octopus Hands in line. Asuma Sarutobi, an easy-going chain smoker and everyone's confidant. And last and most definitely least, Gai Maito, a green-spandex-wearing, youth-spouting lunatic.
Oddly enough, we were an all-male group of vampires. It isn't that there aren't female vampires, because, contrary to popular belief, most vampires are of the female persuasion. Females are popular victims among male vampire, and they are left alive more often than not, so it's only natural that the population of female vampires has exceeded that of the males.
My upbringing was not conventional in the least. I was brought up by a bunch of mismatched male vampires with conflicting personalities. The environment in which I grew up was not at all nurturing: Kakashi's porn, Genma's perverted tendencies, Asuma's unhealthy chain smoking, Gai's 'Youth' spews (pretty rich coming from a guy about to celebrate his two hundredth birthday)… I mean, I didn't exactly have the ideal childhood. The only person who wasn't a bad influence in some way or another was Raidou, who's probably the only normal one of the lot.
Thankfully, my Uchiha integrity kept out the bad influences.
Vampire hunting is one of the hardest parts. It's virtually impossible to predict what a vampire is thinking and what it's going to do. But, I guess me and Kakashi have it easy with the sharingan and all. The sharingan enables us to predict, copy, and manipulate the movements of our enemies. It's a delicate, difficult art, and Kakashi's got it down squat, but I still have a lot to learn. We always hunt at night, using a patrol system. Whenever we move to a new town, I cover one sector, Kakashi covers another, so on and so forth. Sometimes, we work in pairs, but only when the town's small enough or of one of us is hurt and needs someone watching their back. Usually, since there's five of us, Kakashi works alone. He's the best at it out of us, but we all have different skills.
Kakashi and I are all-rounders and the jutsu specialists. We can do everything, from jutsus to hand-to-hand to using guns and silver knives and so on. We also have the sharingan, which takes all the guess work out of it. We're probably the most adept hunters.
Gai and Asuma specialize in using simple weapons and hand-to-hand. Gai is incapable of using jutsu, but Asuma can and just choses not to. He says it's too much trouble and it take too much trouble. Better to just punch the vampire out.
Genma and Raidou are weapon and technology specialists. They make all our weapons and design new ones as well as handling all the techy stuff. They're also most adept at using the more complicated weapons.
I guess we have a pretty well-rounded team. Kakashi and I are good strategists, but I guess we could use someone who specializes in that. Special techniques or bloodlines to help us detect vampires would help as well, but we're well off the way we are.
Another particularly hard part of being a vampire is trying to fit in. Vampires are, of course, naturally pale, but that's not the worst of it. Our eyes turn red when around humans with particularly savory blood, so tinted contacts or enormous self-restraint is required. We also age incredibly slowly, so we have to move around a lot so no one suspects that we don't age at all. And, vampires are also unnaturally beautiful. Like fallen angels, some might say.
We're probably the farthest thing from that, though.
Contrary to popular belief, we don't fear the light, but we don't particularly like it either. Garlic doesn't affect us, and only crosses wielded by someone with strong beliefs can repel us, but it only makes us think twice about attacking the individual wielding the cross. If a vampire is hungry enough, it will do nothing against them. We can't stand being in holy places, but it only causes discomfort. Silver does hurt us, but only in it's pure, untainted form. We don't sleep in coffins or hold a certain degree of affection for bats. I actually hate those things. They're just rats with wings.
Starting a new school every time we move isn't all that hard. It's actually kind of fun recreating myself at every school, and no matter how much of a total bastard I made myself out to be, I'm still popular for my looks.
It always amazes me how superficial people are capable of being.
It's time to move again, this time to somewhere called Konoha.
I wonder who I'll be this time.
By the Sasuke walked through the doors of Konoha High, he would be yet another version of Sasuke Uchiha. This time, he was dressed in dark wash drainpipe jeans, a black leather studded belt wrapped around his narrow hips, more for decoration than for actually holding up his skin-tight jeans. He wore a tight black t-shirt under a grey Skeleton Crew hoodie. And, oddly enough, his sleek black and white Converses weren't out of place, and his leather messenger bag fit right in. His hair was gelled into its usual style and his piercing black eyes were rimmed with kohl.
Sasuke Uchiha didn't care that Konoha High had a uniform.
When Kakashi saw what his half-brother was wearing, he raised an eyebrow. "Do me a favor, Sasuke, and never wear pants that tight when Genma's around. You should be glad I managed to get a separate apartment for just the two of us."
Sasuke stared coolly back, unaffected. "Hn."
Kakashi just rolled his eyes and took a sip of his morning coffee, returning to his beloved Icha Icha Paradise. Sasuke grabbed some onigiri, wrapped it in a napkin, and headed out the door. He got into his sleek silver Nissan and drove to school, recklessly breaking every law of the road out there.
Then, with a smirk, Sasuke got out and strode through the doors of Konoha High.
On the outside, Sasuke looked like he knew exactly who he was and who he wanted to be: an emo with gay undertones who didn't give a damn.
On the inside, he didn't even know who Sasuke Uchiha really was.
He was, after all, a picture perfect paradox.
Naruto Uzumaki bounded through the door of his and Iruka's new condo. He took in the plush white carpet, the harshly modern glass-and-metal tables, the stark white furniture, the blindingly asylum-white kitchen, and the cold white walls. Everything was white.
Naruto turned to Iruka and raised an eyebrow. Iruka smiled. "Decorate however you like, Naruto, but we have a budget. I think we might be staying here for a while."
Naruto beamed. "Good." He said, brandishing a brush and a bucket of sky blue paint. "I'm tired of moving anyways."
I've always hated moving, but this time, it's different. I mean, it's not that Gaara and Temari and Kankuro weren't cool and all, but I was tired of being the virtually friendless druggie who's never gotten high once. But this time, I'm going to show everyone who Naruto Uzumaki really is!
Me and my guardian, Iruka, are moving for a pretty cracked up reason: Iruka's cyber boyfriend, Kakashi or something, got a teaching job at Konoha High School, so Iruka automatically applied for a job at Konoha Elementary School, because if there's one thing good old Iruka can't stand, it's a bunch of high school kids squashed into one room together.
Iruka said that once we get settled, he's finally going to meet that Kakashi guy. He seems a little shady to me, but, well, as long as Iruka's happy. For all I know, he might be a serial killer or a psychopath or certifiably insane or… ugly! But, Iruka will love him all the same, so Kakashi's one lucky guy.
And, get this: he had a half brother my age. Iruka practically had kittens when he heard this. "Oh, Naruto, this is going to be so great. I know you and Kakashi's brother are going to be great friends. How great is that?" Iruka said 'great' so many times, I promise myself never to use that word ever again.
But, even if Iruka does get kind of corny sometimes with his word choice and is over-protective as hell, I'm still lucky to have him. I lose my parents when I was too young to remember how. No one knows, actually. But, somehow, I ended up with Iruka. It was in my father's will, I guess. That I go to Iruka if something should happen to him and mom, that is.
But, that's all ancient history now.
I've moved so many times, I kind of forget what the town I was born in looked like. I forget what it was called too. Iruka never keeps a steady job. He says that moving around is good for us.
Sometimes, it's almost as if we're running away.
And, sometimes, I wonder what from.
When I tell Iruka this, he just laughs it off, but there's always something off about his laugh. It's the kind of laugh and shrug you give someone who's gotten too close to the truth; the kind of smile that throws people of the scent.
And it only makes me wonder more.
But, I'm ready to put reasons behind me. I'm ready to get rid of the old Naruto Uzumaki and create a new one because, this time around, I'm ready to show the world who I really am.
No more being someone I'm not.
Get ready, world, because Naruto Uzumaki is coming your way!
Naruto pulled on the uniform Iruka had brought back for him: navy slacks, an un-tucked white dress shirt, and a navy blazer with the school's emblem on the right breast pocket. He slipped loafers onto his feet and straightened his sleek white tie. Naruto grinned at his reflection.
"Looking good, Uzumaki."
Naruto headed down the stairs. Iruka smiled when he saw Naruto. "It's good to see you being you." Naruto grinned right back.
"See ya, Iruka." He called, swiping Iruka's half-eaten doughnut and heading out the door. He hopped into a beaten up Toyota and drove like a madman, but somehow managed to avoid breaking any laws. Iruka would lecture his ears off if he got a ticket on his first driving day in a new town.
When Naruto got out of his car and made his way through Konoha High's imposing front doors, he was exactly who he was on the outside as he was on the inside. He wore his heart on his sleeve and was proud of it.
He was completely transparent.
Naruto Uzumaki was the farthest thing from a picture perfect paradox.
(1) Japanese equivalent of the Mafia.
A/N: A boring but completely necessary prologue. This insecure newbie author needs to know: is this worth continuing?
PLEASE REVIEW!! –puppy dog eyes-
For the sake of possible sasunaru to come?
For a… cookie?
-begs and grovels-
Thanks for reading.