A/N: I now officially dedicate this chapter to my friend, Maerc-Eci!
Too Many Interruptions
Chapter 8: Kurenai
Naruto was walking out of the ramen shop after a big lunch when he spotted Sasuke through the crowd, moving away from him. Calling a quick "Thank you!" over his shoulder to the people who owned the shop, Naruto hurried to catch his boyfriend. There was something important they had to discuss. Naruto wasn't going to allow any interruptions in this conversation.
When they reached Sasuke's house, Naruto broke the news. He wanted Sasuke to come with him when he went out that night. Sasuke wasn't cheered by this idea.
"Dancing?" he asked.
"Naturally," Naruto answered patiently.
"People?" Sasuke continued.
"It's what you'd expect at a party." Naruto shrugged. Sasuke continued to look at him in disbelief. "Please, Sasuke. I want you to come with me!" Naruto pleaded, knowing instinctively that Sasuke was going to say no.
Abruptly, Sasuke turned around and walked over to the kitchen. He turned the corner and went out of sight. Naruto followed him curiously. "Sasuke?"
As he entered the kitchen, he discovered Sasuke examining the calendar. His face was devoid of all expression. Not that that was rare or different for him, Naruto only noticed because he didn't know what Sasuke was thinking, although he wanted to. Usually, even when Sasuke's expression and actions gave no indication, Naruto would at least have a vague idea of how he felt.
"It's tonight," Naruto offered cautiously but helpfully. "The party, I mean. The 6th." He sneaked his hand into Sasuke's, still totally out of his depth with this mental gap between them.
"I'm not checking when it is, Naruto." Sasuke turned a baleful eye on him and pulled his hand away. "I'm just checking if the world is scheduled to end tonight," he explained sarcastically.
"Well, that's just strange. Why?" Naruto asked, playing along.
"Because, quite frankly, there is absolutely no way in hell that I, me, would ever be caught dead at any party." Right, so that was a no, as Naruto had dreaded. But he wasn't going to let Sasuke get away that easily.
"Awww, Sasuke!" he whined. He really needed Sasuke at this party for his latest plot to get them discovered. "But it's vitally important that you come! Uh, no pun intended," he added slightly awkwardly.
Sasuke smiled briefly. Very briefly. The kind of brief that if you blinked, you already missed it. Then he sighed. It seemed to Naruto that Sasuke was at least considering his request. But he became impatient again. "Why should I?"
"There'll be cake!" Naruto blurted out the first thing that had come into his head and pretended like it was a perfectly good reason to come. Damn, I really hope there'll be cake…
Sasuke raised one eyebrow. He knew Naruto was stupid, but lately it seemed that his influence was making Naruto smarter. Perhaps he was mistaken. Sasuke wandered back into the living room and Naruto followed.
"You're so simple, idiot," Sasuke stated, sitting down on his couch. He made a mental note to one day fix that hole he put in it when Kakashi-sensei discovered Naruto and him making out. He'd had to pretend they were fighting to throw their teacher off the scent.
Such fond memories.
Naruto sat on the floor in front of Sasuke and leaned his head against the dark ninja's knees, looking up at him cutely. He was secretly pleased that Sasuke had insulted him. It meant he wasn't too angry.
"There's a mystery…" Naruto teased in a sing-song voice, trying to tempt Sasuke into coming to Shikamaru's party and helping to figure it out. They could really use Sasuke's brains. This was the reason he'd agreed to go, so he hoped it would have the same effect on Sasuke.
Sasuke was very, very bored, so maybe the party wouldn't be too bad. As an added bonus, at least half the guests were sure to end up drunk. Drunk people were usually entertaining.
"Hmm, what kind of mystery?" Sasuke asked curiously, leaning forward and running a hand through Naruto's hair. He shouldn't give in so easily, and usually he wouldn't, but this was a request from Naruto. Perhaps he would do it. Just for him. Just this once.
"The kind of mystery I'll only tell you about if you come…" Naruto trailed off tauntingly, still using that sing-song voice. He may not be the best ninja, but he has his ways of persuasion. Sasuke let out a huge sigh. He was letting his curiosity get the better of him again.
"Well… you'll owe me," he said, resigned to his fate of being 'persuaded' by Naruto for the rest of his life. Naruto's face lit up like a computer does when you move the mouse and the black screensaver goes away. He grew brighter and brighter as his happiness skyrocketed all the way to the Milky Way.
"Seriously?!?" he asked in a rather hyperactive fashion, jumping to his feet and, unable to contain his excitement, pulling Sasuke forwards into a tight hug. It made him so glad to know that he'd managed to change at least one small part of his lover's fake personality: the part that hated crowds and cheerful get-togethers—or just about everything cheerful, really. Then again, maybe that part of his personality wasn't quite so fake.
"Oh, I love you!" Naruto squealed enthusiastically, swinging Sasuke from side to side.
"Yeah, yeah. Me, too," Sasuke said, rolling his eyes again. He struggled to release himself from Naruto's tight grip, but the number one hyperactive ninja wasn't letting go anytime soon. Sasuke did enjoy it whenever Naruto hugged him, but when he held on so tightly that he was strangling Sasuke, the enjoyment disappeared.
"Get… off me," Sasuke gasped, beginning to lose feeling in his right arm—not to mention he was finding it almost impossible to breathe. This lover was dangerous.
Naruto smiled even wider, if that was at all possible, and gently removed his arms from around Sasuke's neck. He then proceeded to sit himself down calmly on the couch, right next to Sasuke, as if to prove that he was, in fact, capable of being normal. Sasuke didn't quite believe that, and faced Naruto apprehensively, unsure if Naruto was still planning on glomping him to death.
Naruto stared back, wearing a mock serious expression.
Slowly, smiles broke out across their faces, and they relaxed. No words were said; they simply sat together. Sasuke shook his head, trying not to laugh, although he had no idea why he wanted to laugh in the first place, and turned to face the window instead of Naruto. Said ninja followed suit.
It was later than they'd thought; the sun was setting. As the light slowly faded, it seemed to be trying its hardest to be noticed, throwing brilliant purples, oranges, and reds around the room.
The sky was awash with colour. And the almost-happy couple found themselves stunned by the beauty of such a normal, everyday occurrence. How could they have never noticed before? In all their years, had not one of them searched the infinite sky for some deeper meaning and come across this instead? No? …Oh.
They watched the scene unfold before their eyes, absolutely mesmerised. The sun soon disappeared behind distant hills, only to be replaced by the moon. Before they knew it, night was upon them.
"That was so clichéd," Sasuke said, finally breaking the long silence.
"Totally," Naruto agreed, wondering exactly how long they'd been sitting there, immobile, watching the sun set. Sasuke stretched his arms out in front of him.
"So… weren't we going to some party?" He asked, standing up and offering his hand to Naruto to help him up, as he was, in fact, a gentleman.
"Yeah, Shikamaru's," Naruto answered, taking the gentleman's hand and standing up. As thanks, he did his best impression of a curtsy, which was so ridiculous—as he almost fell over—it set them both off laughing.
"Ah, come on," he said, wiping the tears of laughter from his eyes and leading the way to the door. He stopped and turned upon realising Sasuke wasn't following him.
Sasuke hesitated for a second, then said, "Do we really have to go? We could have our own little party right here… if you know what I mean."
Naruto tried his best to ignore the very tempting offer, as he was not sure he would be able to resist. "You already agreed to come, Sasuke. Now let's go!" he said enthusiastically, pointing to the door. Sasuke gave in gracefully—for the second time that day—and so they went.
The scene was set for Naruto's grand plan—now with superior smartitude.
When Naruto and Sasuke finally arrived at Shikamaru's house, the party was already in full swing. It seemed like everybody and their dogs were there. In Kiba's case, that was not a figure of speech. 'Everybody' was excluding the adults, of course.
Nobody noticed that Naruto and Sasuke arrived together. Or even that they arrived, period. All except Shikamaru, who seemed like he actually cared about this party, which was exceedingly rare for him. He wasn't being lazy at all. In fact, he was the perfect host, serving them drinks as soon as they got in the door. Naruto, of course, drank his all in one go, probably trying to prove something. Sasuke thanked Shikamaru, then took his slower. Much slower. He didn't like being in public with Naruto, as it might be cause for suspicion, so he headed off to the nearest vacant corner. He sipped his drink—vodka—slowly, whilst scanning the room for something fun/interesting to do/watch. He would have much preferred to still be at his house with Naruto, using this time to their advantage, but his boyfriend insisted that he come, and who was he to refuse?
Now that he thought about it, didn't Naruto mention a mystery that needed solving? Sasuke spotted the blonde across the room, talking animatedly with the puppet-using sand ninja, Kankuro.
Sasuke weighed the pros and cons of going over there and finding out what was up. He was certain it had something to do with that mystery, and he decided he was too curious to let it go. As he contemplated the difficult task of navigating his way across the crowded room to reach Naruto, Hinata joined that conversation. Sasuke's curiosity reached its peak. Naruto noticed him looking and beckoned for him to join them.
Sasuke pushed through the crowd, earning a few knocks from unhappy guests. Upon reaching his target, he asked, "What are you guys talking about?" in a tone that was carefully measured to be curious but not desperate. It was a general question, directed at anybody, but it was Kankuro who chose to answer it.
"Well, there's this thing. It's about Shikamaru."
Sasuke was more curious than ever, but he contained it, wondering how this side of him had managed to get so close to the surface, blaming it on Naruto and gesturing for Kankuro to continue.
"We know for sure that he's been going out with Temari for a while now, and they're about as close as two people can be. I mean, she's my sister—she told me," he said, pointing at himself. "But he's been spotted going places with Kiba and Neji," he continued, looking at Sasuke meaningfully.
Sasuke didn't get it. "They're friends, right? They go out together to catch up, of course, so why do you think…?" he asked, unsure of exactly what Kankuro was implying.
"But that's just it, Sasuke," Kankuro said, leaning in and glancing around for eavesdroppers. He lifted a hand to his mouth and, making a 'shush' sign with his index finger, he murmured, "They're not going out together, all at once. Shikamaru goes out with Temari, then Kiba, then Neji. All out to romantic restaurants and such. We think he's cheating on all of them with each other." He paused. "We think he's gay."
Sasuke thought that was just about the dumbest conclusion anyone could draw from the information at hand, but he kept silent. He might as well play along for a while. These people were obviously influenced by alcohol and therefore unable to quite distinguish between possible and probable. Heck, it might even be fun to see what kind of things they come up with next.
The small group assumed Sasuke was silent because of the shock of that information. Naruto nodded, going for encouraging but it coming off as hyperactive.
"So we're going to try and find out what's going on with him," Hinata said quietly—or she may have been trying to speak loudly, but with Hinata, quiet was the only type of sound that could be produced.
Sasuke aimed to put some reason back in the conversation. "I don't see why we can't just ask them." He knew full well where this was heading. They'd probably get arrested for stalking Shikamaru.
"Awww, but then it would be no fun!" Naruto whined.
Naruto really was childish sometimes; always more likely to do something fun than something right or logical. This got Sasuke wondering: what was it that drew them together so constantly? Perhaps it was their differences. Or maybe it was the truth in them, even though nobody else could see it.
As Sasuke pondered, the strange investigative group started towards Kiba to begin the interrogations.
"What are they doing?" the mixed group heard Ino ask one of the other youths at the party.
"What a weird mix…"
"I never thought I'd see all them acting so friendly."
The comments from the guests continued as Kankuro, Sasuke, Naruto, and Hinata made their way to the middle of the room. It's weird how quickly rumour could spread at a party of this size.
"Maybe we'd better spilt up," Kankuro suggested nervously. He didn't want word to spread to Shikamaru that some guests were acting suspiciously. "Divide and conquer, you know?" he said strategically, working out the best method.
Usually, he wasn't the type to come up with a well thought-out plan of attack—or in this case, movement—but he seemed to be caring more than usual. Maybe it's because Temari was involved. It was important to him because he didn't want his sister getting hurt.
He knelt down to the ground and the group all huddled together around him as they received their mission objective.
"Sasuke, you're smart." It wasn't a question. "Go talk to Neji. Take notes. But don't make it too obvious! And take… Naruto with you." Sasuke and Naruto looked at each other after receiving their orders and went off in search of the objective: Neji.
Conveniently, Shikamaru, Kiba, and Neji were all on different sides of the room, so it was simple for Kankuro to direct his small army. He sent Hinata after Kiba, as they had a strong relationship already, and then he directed himself to Shikamaru. This was a serious matter—just not to Sasuke.
As Naruto and Sasuke wandered over to Neji, a drunk guest cut across their path. He stood right in front of them for a full ten seconds, then turned around and ran straight into a wall. He then stood there, just staring at it, before proceeding to start a discussion with said wall. Sasuke and Naruto continued on their way, Naruto seeming unperturbed and Sasuke trying to contain his laughter.
"Neji! Hey… So, gone out with anyone lately?" Naruto greeted Neji.
Sasuke felt a strong urge to slap his own forehead. Wasn't it one of their primary objectives to keep what they were doing secret? So Naruto should not be asking outright who Neji has been going out with.
"Uh…no," Neji answered in confusion. He looked to Sasuke, the question clear in his eyes: Why is Naruto asking weird questions? Sasuke shrugged his shoulders. He simply didn't care enough to interfere.
"You sure?" Naruto persisted. "'Cause, you know, you can tell me." He winked suggestively.
This bothered Sasuke greatly. Flirting? Naruto still had his innocence, so he probably didn't even realise what he was doing. But Sasuke knew that not everybody would see it that way. He tried his hardest to keep his possessive instincts below the surface of his lake of emotions. It joined all the other bottled-up feelings down there, which greeted the newcomer quickly, then stayed quiet as their master wished. So Sasuke is a bit controlling. Who isn't?
"Yeah, I'm sure. Nobody," Neji answered dismissively, still seeming confused. He began walking away, but Naruto stopped him.
"You've been spotted at fancy restaurants with Shikamaru," Naruto blabbed, doing exactly as he'd been told not to.
Neji's eyes widened in surprise, and he seemed to think it through before controlling his expression.
That piqued Sasuke's interest. Neji was hiding something. There was some crucial bit of information that they didn't have.
"And what of it?" Neji asked rudely, but also cautiously, as if he was testing exactly what they knew.
Naruto was taken aback by Neji's straightforward manner—he wasn't used to other people taking control. He recovered quickly and answered just as rudely, "It's not nice to Temari. What have you got against her and Kiba?"
Sasuke took that moment to wonder what he had gotten himself into. He had the feeling this would end badly—very badly.
"I have nothing against Temari, or Kiba. Piss off; you are bothering me," Neji said bluntly, walking off in an annoyed fashion.
"Yeah, I hate you, too!" Naruto called after him, drawing a few curious eyes.
"You're losing friends, Naruto," Sasuke said in an offhand manner. Naruto ignored him. Sasuke was actually quite shocked. He'd never seen the usually calm and boring Neji act like that before. Then again, he had been acting a little strange lately—like before, when he'd interrupted Naruto and Sasuke. He'd come up with a completely ridiculous excuse for what he saw.
Could Naruto's drunk friends be right?
"Well, there's something there. Right?" Naruto turned to Sasuke.
"Yeah," Sasuke answered truthfully.
Well, what do you know? It seemed there was some kind of issue in the relationships of Shikamaru, Temari, Neji, and Kiba. How strange.
"But what does this have to do with us?" Sasuke asked, stepping closer to Naruto so he wouldn't be overheard, while also trying to seem like he and Naruto weren't very close friends. It was a difficult task, in short.
"Nothing, I guess," Naruto said, oblivious to Sasuke's discomfort.
"Then… you know, I spotted a closet as we came in," Sasuke said suggestively, trying ever so hard to hide his odd behaviour from the other guests.
"Yeah, there was one next to the door," Naruto agreed. He had no idea what Sasuke was doing.
Sasuke sighed and shook his head in disbelief. What was with Naruto? Seeming clever one minute, then being a total idiot again the next. He laughed quietly.
"Come on; follow me," he told Naruto. He led the way to the closet and went inside, Naruto following right behind. None of the people noticed their departure.
"This is kinda small," Naruto stated. He couldn't see much at all; the only light came from the thin gap beneath the door.
"Naruto, you're an idiot," Sasuke said quietly so no one would know they were in there. "I dragged you in here because of… a little problem I have."
Naruto finally got it. "Oh."
They stood there silently for another few moments, before Sasuke stepped forward and kissed Naruto. They couldn't see each other, but they certainly could feel each other.
Their lips moved gently at first, then more forcefully as Sasuke pushed his problem area up against Naruto's leg. Hands grasped at clothes and the two men pulled each other as close as was possible. Sasuke's discomfort had only grown during the course of the evening, leaving him with a large and bothersome erection.
He felt Naruto's hands move down his body to the bulging lump in his clothes. He gasped at the wondrous jolt that shot through him when Naruto gripped it tightly. He moaned happily, tangling his fingers in Naruto's hair and kissing him. His mouth, his neck; any part he could reach. Naruto was busy slipping Sasuke's pants off his body, which was limp with pleasure. He took Sasuke's quivering member in his hands and began pumping it.
"Haah… Naruto…!" Sasuke couldn't help the sounds from tumbling from his mouth. He couldn't believe he'd agreed to come to this party when they could have been doing this all night instead.
Naruto stroked and rubbed Sasuke's shaft and Sasuke reacted with a different sound each time. He was so lost in the pleasure, panting heavily, that he didn't notice Naruto moving down so his face was right in front of Sasuke's manhood. But he did notice when Naruto took it into the warm cavern that was his mouth.
Sasuke's eyes flew open, although he couldn't remember shutting them, and he fought against his initial instinct to cry out, remembering where they were. As it were, he had to do something to express his delight, so he pulled Naruto as close to him as possible, moaning as he felt himself become fully enclosed in Naruto's mouth.
Naruto's tongue was doing all the touching, starting at the base and then working its way up as far as it could go. Then Naruto did the only thing he could do to give something to the tip: he swallowed.
"Oh!" Sasuke exclaimed, feeling the heat rushing through his body. "Do… that again," he panted, bracing himself for the coming pleasure. Naruto obeyed, swallowing again, then letting his tongue run up and down Sasuke's erection just as before.
"Ah! Haa…" Sasuke groaned, feeling himself getting closer to reaching the edge. He began to buck his hips straight into Naruto's mouth. He felt sweat trickle down his spine, and heat all the way through his body. Naruto swallowed again and again, moving his whole mouth around Sasuke's member.
"I'm… Oh, Naruto…! I'm coming…" Sasuke managed to gasp, blinking a few times as he felt the pressure in his penis build to a maximum. One more swallow, and he was sent over the edge.
A blinding flash of white, a cry of pleasure, and he felt himself release into Naruto's mouth and throat. He bucked one last time to keep it going, but alas, it had to end eventually. Naruto pulled his mouth away from Sasuke's no-longer-erect shaft and swallowed the liquid evidence. Both men were panting heavily. They looked at each other happily and Naruto stood up.
Sasuke became aware that he was indeed looking at Naruto, and seeing him quite clearly. That wasn't possible before—had he developed batman-like night vision? No, that would be weird. He turned around to the source of the light, and what he saw made his heart stop.
A woman was standing in the doorway, eyes wide in shock. Naruto noticed her, too, and Sasuke quickly put his pants on. Both were sure that there would be no getting out of this one. She had most definitely seen what they were doing.
A/N: Oooh!! To be continued! But you all know it's Kurenai coz of the chapter name. Has anyone else noticed that my stories are getting a bit… Battle plan-ish? It's my Code Geass obsession. Try not to let it worry you.
And now, my avid readers, shall I explain the huge delay in my updating of this story?
1. Well, I had to study for exams. Then we had the week when we actually had the exams.
2. Then I was either abducted by aliens or my memory was erased, because I can't remember what I was doing that next week which prevented me from finishing this chapter…
3. The two weeks after that, I was sick. I tend to get sick a lot; don't worry about it.
4. Then it was before Christmas and my whole family was like, "Oh! I want Nichola and Derry to come over!" Yeah, ALL of them wanted us (Derry is my brother). So we spent before and after Christmas visiting random family members.
5. I had roughly one week to catch up with all my friends before I was forced to go on a family holiday. So, I did.
6. Then we went on a holiday and, unfortunately, I squished my thumb in a barbecue, which stopped me from writing for that week.
Now I'm healthy and planning some good chapters!! I probably won't disappear again. Probably. I hope. ^_^
BR/N: … I don't feel I should leave a note now that Ciel In A Dress has just left that wonderful explanation *cough*excuses*cough* of why she couldn't update. Oh, what the heck, who am I to talk?
Hm, I like mysteries. Even though I know how this one's going to turn out, I still really wanna read the thrilling conclusion to the group's investigation into Shikamaru's distorted love life. Look forward to it. ^^