Disclaimer: Yea, I don't own Naruto.

More M-rating ahead, but the full extent of the m-rating won't be until a bit later. Again another dark chapter, but don't worry I'm just trying to build a strong character foundation. It won't all be like this. Thanks to all my reviewers also.

The Way Things Are

Chapter 4

Naruto's hands stayed tied firmly behind his back as he squirmed in his bed. Sasuke's arms caressed his smooth, tan skin. Sasuke was on top of him now, his hands massaging the blonde's muscular chest. His hands wandered farther and farther downwards. They slid along Naruto's supple stomach; rubbing at the other boy's toned sides and his slim waist.

"Ohawhwhw uhhhhhhhh." Naruto moaned and grunted in pleasure. "Sasuke……" Naruto felt Sasuke's lips touch his navel. His tongue trekked curiously along the helpless boy's abdomen, admiring his slender physique and tight stomach. The dark haired boy continued downward, leaving a trail of light pecks from his lips.

Sasuke reached Naruto's tight, black boxer briefs and pulled at them slightly, tempting the blonde. Sasuke kept Naruto's boxers on and delicately placed his hand on Naruto's bulge. Sasuke's fingers caressed Naruto's throbbing dick delicately. Naruto's head leaned back suddenly, his back arched and he slowly lifted his hips towards the Uchiha's hand, craving for more.

Sasuke licked his lips at this display and looked into Naruto's gleaming, cerulean eyes. He kneaded tenderly at Naruto's balls through the thin fabric, making the blonde grunt and groan.

Suddenly, everything changed. The room became dark and the air was stifling. Naruto went to speak but felt something in his mouth, preventing him from doing so. He was gagged. He laid helplessly on black table spread eagled with each of his limbs tied down. The moon beamed down on his helpless body. He looked around and saw barren, leafless trees all around him.

Chains and snakes hung from the branches of the dying trees. On one of them, Naruto swore he saw a red fox watching the event happen through spiteful eyes. The fox disappeared slowly, starting with its tail. It kept up this vanishing act until only its eyes remained. The glare of those eyes shot sharply through Naruto like a kunai. Eventually, they disappeared too.

Sasuke appeared on top of the table with Naruto. The dark haired Uchiha's passionate demeanor changed and his eyes filled with aggressive lust. He formed a wicked, dark smile and slapped sadistically at the bulge in Naruto's boxers.

"mmmmphughuhh!" Naruto's yelping was silenced from the gag.

Sasuke crawled upwards toward Naruto's chest. His strong legs wrapped themselves around the restrained boy's waist. Naruto shook in fear, anxiousness, and, surprisingly, in pleasure. Sasuke slapped playfully at the blonde's chest. Each of Sasuke's hands traced neat circles around Naruto's nipples.

Sasuke's hands abruptly gripped tightly at the other boy's nipples. Naruto clenched his teeth tightly in pain. Sasuke twisted, pinched, and pulled at Naruto's nipples for what seemed like hours. The blonde cried out in pain, but, discovered he also enjoyed it a little.

"Where are all your smartass comments now? Huh, Naruto? Come one dobe where's that smile of yours? HUH!?" Sasuke spat wickedly towards his old friend. "Where are all the wisecracks? Not so clever now, are you?"

Sasuke continued working Naruto's nipples over, but, stopped every now and then to rub at the helpless ninja affectionately. He licked Naruto's neck and then bit fiercly at it. He sunk his teeth into the blonde's ear and then massaged it gently with his avid tongue. He slapped Naruto's cheek and then kissed it lovingly. He pulled at Naruto's blonde, messy hair and then gripped the boy's tight ass. Sasuke combined pain and pleasure masterfully. He kept Naruto in a state of pure, exhilarating sexual tension.

Naruto looked up and his eyes stared into an intense, almost white sun. The heat was unbelievable. He felt the room change yet again. His arms stayed tied but were now behind him. The gag strangely disappeared. He felt himself surrounded in warm, white sand. It shifted slowly around his helpless body's frame, providing him with peaceful comfort. He was in the middle of a quiet, empty desert.

Naruto never considered deserts beautiful, but, thought that it was one of the most stimulating, surreal places he had ever been in. It was so bright; however, it caused no discomfort to Naruto's eyes or skin.

Still, Naruto was sweating, but, paid no mind to it. Everything was silent, except for the lethargic wind that blew rhythmically through Naruto's blonde hair. He swore he almost heard a female voice moaning low, as though it were singing in a primitive or tribal manner. The sound was peaceful, yet, eerie at the same time.

He watched a raven float randomly above, as though it did not know where it was going. A snake hypnotically attracted his glowing blue eyes as it twisted and curved towards him. It seductively weaved past Naruto and moved towards a large rock sticking out of the ground. Naruto watched as the snake disappeared slowly and a mysterious figure took its place under the rock.

Naruto got onto his knees and stood up slowly. His arms were still wrapped tightly behind him as he walked towards the unknown person. He walked slowly, feeling the warm, sleek sand smoothly brush underneath his feet and between his toes.

He appeared before the person and stared for a moment. It was Sasuke again. The Uchiha sat with his hands wrapped around his exposed, muscular chest. He was in only his boxers, just like Naruto. The sun made Sasuke's pale figure shine and contrast with everything else. He leaned forward on his knees as he sobbed weakly, trying to comfort himself. His crying was silent and unending. Naruto advanced towards the saddened boy. He lowered himself onto his knees, staying only a few inches away from Sasuke's face and body.

"Sasuke?" Naruto asked quietly. He wanted to comfort the hysterical Uchiha, but his restraints kept him from doing so.

Sasuke spoke pathetically between sharp sobs. "I'm sorry………….Naruto………..I'm so s-sorry…………..Please, h-help me……………I n-need you." Sasuke wept endlessly. His chest convulsed as he tried to breathe into his empty lungs. His head had stayed down throughout all this. "I'm sorry……I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

"S-Sasuke, please, stop crying." Naruto leaned his head closer to Sasuke's dark hair. The Uchiha raised his head to meet Naruto's. In that moment, their eyes locked.

Naruto felt a strange sensation overcome him. He had never felt this way when he stared at those ebony eyes before. Naruto began to breathe heavily as his tongue touched his lips lightly. Sasuke stared back at him through blurry, wet eyes. Naruto moved forward, closing the distance between the two of them. His heart skipped a beat. Their lips brushed, and then Naruto pushed his lips back onto Sasuke's.

The feeling was indescribable; Naruto pushed his hungry lips closer to Sasuke's. Sasuke's hand gripped the back of the blonde's neck as he deepened the kiss and sent his tongue into the boy's warm mouth. Their tongues approached each other nervously. As soon as they touched, Naruto let out a moan of ecstasy. The vibrations from Naruto's moan made the boys' lips tingle.

Sasuke ran his fingers gracefully through spiky, blonde locks, eventually tightening his grip. Their tongues fought fiercely as they tried to taste each other and savor each sensation. Sasuke tried to pull Naruto even closer. Their bare chests touched each other warmly and their heartbeats connected. They both sat up on their knees as they rubbed the bulges in their boxers together. Their hips thrust and wiggled, they wanted more of each other.

Naruto's fingers fidgeted heatedly, he wanted so much to touch Sasuke. Sasuke's free hand gripped Naruto's ass. Naruto tightened his ass in reflex but felt his muscles helplessy loosen as the other boy caressed and massaged him. Sasuke slapped Naruto's ass, making the blonde yelp in pain.

Sasuke repositioned his arms and wrapped them around Naruto's waist and back. He held onto his friend firmly, wanting the embrace to never end. Naruto felt his cock twitch and throb against Sasuke's. Naruto closed his eyes and laid his head on Sasuke's chest. He listened to the Uchiha's steady heartbeat and felt Sasuke grip his chin and lift his head upward.

"I love you, Naruto…………………" Sasuke's voice was tender. It echoed in Naruto's ears. There was silence for a moment. "Can you love me, Naruto? A-After what I've………… what I've done? Do you love me Naruto?"

Naruto didn't have time to answer. A growl was heard from above and cut the passion short. There, on top of the rock, was a large, red fox. Its mouth opened, revealing a devious grin and many razor sharp teeth. It began to shine a faint red glow. It spoke unexpectedly.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" The fox had Naruto's voice. It spoke with anger and hate. "Do you realize the way you're letting him touch you?! It's not even that, don't you remember who he is!?" The fox leapt onto Sasuke's back, digging into him with its claws. Sasuke cried in pain as blood flowed from his back. The fox tore and ripped at Sasuke's flesh with its teeth. He was going to die.

Naruto was suddenly cut off from Sasuke as a circle of flames surrounded him. He watched helplessly as Sasuke was ripped to shreds, screaming in agony. Naruto heard something hiss from behind him. He turned his head swiftly to see the same snake from before grow to ten times its original size. It wrapped around Naruto's already restrained body.

Sasuke heard Naruto's bones crack and shatter as he was mauled by the fox. Naruto watched in horror as the snake opened its gigantic mouth, ready to engulf him. No matter how scared Naruto was of his fate, he couldn't take his eyes off of Sasuke. The same went for Sasuke. Naruto saw the shadow of the snake loom over him as blackness overcame him. He cried out before Sasuke completely left his vision. Blood flowed from Sasuke's brow and he lost his sight of Naruto as well. He stretched his hand out weakly.

"NARUTO!"

"SASUKE!"…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Naruto woke from his sleep in a cold sweat. He took several deep breaths and came to his senses. "A dream……justadream………" The images of the dream flashed through Naruto's mind. He couldn't believe some of the things he thought about. His boxers felt unusually tight as he remembered the blissful moment in his dream.

"Damn it……….This is………this is g-gross!" Naruto spoke out loud. "Did I really just dream that? Did I enjoy most of that dream?" Naruto thought about Sasuke.

"He……He said he loved me………….I must have really taken it to heart…………TAKEN IT TO HEART!? But why? I never thought………I mean I never thought that I was…………..I'M NOT!" Naruto let out a sad sigh. It had all felt so real to him. He could still feel Sasuke's tender lips wrapped around his own. "STOP IT! STOP THINKING ABOUT THAT!" Naruto sobbed to himself as he remembered the fear he had at the end of the dream.

"Why do I feel so close to him? Why was he so mean during that part in the woods? Why was he so sad in the desert? Why did the fox kill him? Why did the snake kill me? Does it mean anything? Or was it just a dream?" Naruto wiped the sweat from his forehead and began to worry about the present.

"Oh…………Sasuke." Naruto sighed weakly.

"KNOCK KNOCK."

Naruto heard the door and wondered who it could be.

"NARUTO!?" The voice bellowed loudly.

"Sasuke?" Naruto spoke softly. He tried to get up but felt the immediate pain from before consume his body and muscles. His head was on fire again and his blood began to boil.

"Naruto!?" The voice was clearly annoyed. Naruto recognized it immediately.

"Sakura! I'm in here! I can't move!" Naruto yelled towards the door.

"Argh………The door is locked……..Hang on." Sakura sounded like she was losing patience.

"CHA!" Naruto turned in fear as he knew what was coming. He watched as his door was destroyed completely and fell to pieces. There, in the entrance, was Sakura standing with her fist outstretched. She walked over the rubble and approached Naruto's bed.

"She can be a little crazy with all that strength" "SAKURA!" Naruto yelled loudly. "You didn't have to destroy my door! Just look what you did! I thought you were supposed to smar-" Naruto was interrupted suddenly.

"Shut up, Naruto! Where have you been? Everyone is out looking for you! We thought that Akatsu-" Sakura noticed Naruto's weakness. "Oh my god, Naruto what the hell happened?" She jumped onto his bed and her hands began to glow blue with chakra. "You were poisoned Naruto! You're muscles are all torn and cramped! What happened?"

Naruto stared at Sakura. His eyes traveled downwards as he examined her body. He stared at her breasts and pondered. "Haven't I always felt attracted to her? HAVEN'T I? Why don't I feel anything? I mean she's in my bed, practically feeling me up while I'm half naked and I'm not worried or nervous. Ah, what's wrong with me? I wish Sasuke was he….NO!"

Sakura noticed Naruto's wandering eyes but decided to ignore them this time. "I'm sorry if this is uncomfortable for you, Naruto, but I need to check your condition right now. You could still be posione- OH MY GOD!" Sakura's eyes widened as her eyes reached Naruto's neck. "Naruto are those………………….a-are those………….hickeys? Your neck is covered!"

Naruto's hand reflexively covered his neck. His cheeks flushed red.

"Shit."