I don't own Naruto, if I did I would not be here. Probably.
I know it's been a long time since the last time I updated this story, but don't worry. More will come in the future.
Beta Readers: PyrothTenka, Duesal Bladesinger, AlmostElectric, Ser Serendipity, Ekusukallybaa, Zenthisoror and as a special guest, Lord Darkly.
Also, special thanks to E3-FantasyandReality and darkerdeepdown for their support.
Man, that's a lot of people.
Staring down the barrel of a twelve gauge that was just a few inches away from his eyes was not exactly an experience that Naruto had ever planned to try, especially if behind the semi-automatic shotgun was a finger on the trigger.
Neither dared to move. Neither dared to even blink. They couldn't afford to break eye contact.
The lights flickered, yellow and dim, slipping along the length of the dark metal barrels like oil.
Naruto caught a glimpse of how they highlighted the lines of the shotgun's rifling.
A small sign was flashing on the side of his HUD, telling him of a detected threat.
Yeah, no shit.
Naruto was pretty sure that it was a semi-automatic gun but that didn't really matter. A single shot or a burst from the cannon at that range and not even he would survive.
Not that he'd ever actually tested it but that was one experience that he didn't want to try, ever.
The only reassuring thing was his own pistol, which was trained upon the Uchiha's exposed neck.
"Naruto Uzumaki," the cop proclaimed ignoring the weapon, "you're under arrest for association with criminal elements, illegal possession of firearms, trespassing, destruction of private and public property, assaulting an officer, suspected multiple accounts of murder and association with cyber-terrorist groups."
"Hey, I resent the last ones!" Naruto protested. "And you're out of your jurisdiction here, red-eyes!"
"Then I will just have to drag you back."
"Oh yeah? You make a move, I shoot."
"I believe that's my line," the Uchiha said, raising an eyebrow.
"And do you know what my line is?" Naruto sneered.
While his virtual persona that resembled a snake-headed man in a business suit was maintaining its usual cool exterior, Kabuto was inwardly fuming.
He had to leave; his firewall wouldn't keep the Sarutobi deckers out for long.
Months of planning wasted by two runners running into him, both in the real world and in C-space.
His employer would not be pleased.
He had to leave, disappear from C-space for a while. Not without getting a little revenge first.
The deer-like decker had escaped just in time to save his mind but his accomplice was still out there: he could clearly see the data feed of the camera inside the elevator.
And he had company. Why an Uchiha would follow someone into Sarutobi Enterprises' territory was beyond him.
With a little luck, the police officer would kill the runner. Which was the result he'd wanted all along.
But where was the satisfaction in that?
Too bad for the cop.
Smirking Kabuto quickly changed a few of the directories inside the elevator's monitoring program, each one causing a string of data to change inside the program's scheme.
As he finished, his firewall was finally broken.
In the blink of an eye, a security backdoor opened, assuming the form of an unwrapping wormhole formed by purple pixels.
A team of deckers arrived on the scene through it, immediately spotting him. They ordered him to stop, loading attack programs and trying to put a tracer on him.
He threw the remaining Black ICE he had at them, before simply walking out his own backdoor that he had installed weeks ago.
Let the fools pay for underestimating him.
His entrance closed and quickly disappeared in a mist of spam data.
It happened before he could react.
The first thing Sasuke felt was the ground itself dropping out from under his feet.
That caused him and his only lead to the runners' circles to lose their balance, badly.
Then there was was the recoil from his weapon as the buckshot was fired.
His eye implants told him that the pellets' vectors were nowhere around the suspect. His sudden disequilibrium had swayed the barrel of the weapon well away from the blond's head.
He secretly felt relieved at that. After all, he needed him alive.
The fugitive too had lost his balance, falling head over heels and instinctively distancing himself from Sasuke's weapon, swearing viciously all the while.
There was the same expression of growing panic on his face that Sasuke imagined he had on his own.
The violent impact with the metallic flooring almost left him winded.
It was only after then Sasuke realized that the elevator was falling down the shaft.
His vision was spinning,and he tried to stay on his feet.
Sasuke could feel the lift below his feet gaining velocity, and he tried to haul himself upright via the handlebars on the wall, only to see the armed guy before him doing the same.
He immediately pointed his shotgun towards him and the runner did the same with his gun.
"Oh, not this again," the fugitive whined. "Are you for real?!"
"You're a suspect—"
"Do you think that matters, now? We gotta stop this thing or we're both dead!"
Sasuke knew he was right, of course. A part of his mind was telling him that it was futile trying to capture him now but on the other hand this was a wanted runner; he couldn't just lower his guard.
"Do you want to die in an elevator? Because I sure don't!" Naruto Uzumaki continued.
Hell no he didn't. If they both died, nobody would chase down that man.
"Fine," he said, "but leave the weapon on the ground."
The runner did so rather quickly, before sprinting as fast as he could toward the control panel. As he kept pressing the button to stop the elevator over and over again, Sasuke got on his feet and retrieved the pistol from the floor without letting the fugitive out of his sight.
"Oh come on!" the blond yelled before reaching for his left ear. "It's not working... Shika? Shika! You hear me?"
Interesting, Sasuke noted. So he had at least one accomplice after all. He filed this away for later use.
"He's not answering. Now what?" he asked, turning towards Sasuke.
Fear started to grip Sasuke's heart.
How many levels were left before they reached the bottom?
It couldn't end like this! It couldn't.
"Check for a manual override!" he urged.
"I can't find—Oh, here it is," the runner said brightening as he tried to pry open a compartment on the panel. "Great, it's sealed tight."
Sasuke decided to throw all caution aside, since the elevator was reaching a frightening speed and moved beside Naruto to see what the problem was.
The panel was indeed locked shut. They needed an ID key to open it.
Unless...
"Tear it open!" Sasuke ordered. "Like you did with the robot!"
"You saw me doing that?!" the runner asked, panic in his face "I mean—"
"Just do it!"
"I can't! I don't have a good handhold to—Quick! Shoot it!"
"What?"
"I said, shoot it!" the blond yelled as he stepped away from the panel.
Sasuke aimed carefully and squeezed the trigger.
The gunshot resounded as the pellets tore off part of the brake hatch, leaving it dented and deformed.
"Thanks!" his unexpected companion yelled as he grabbed it with both hands and tore it away, sending it clattering to the floor.
Sasuke realized that maybe following a runner with an unknown amount of augmentations was not such a bright idea, but it was too late to worry about that now.
He would just have to remember not to be in arm's reach when this was over.
Naruto pulled the brake lever and Sasuke found himself tumbling to the ground once again as the elevator came to an abrupt stop with a loud clang.
Then something went wrong and with a protracted screech they started to fall again, although at a slower speed.
Sasuke didn't know how the blond was faring; he was too busy trying to not lose his grip on the weapon that would be his lifeline if they both survived, or so he hoped.
He could still hear the runner's swearing even with the terrible noise that almost masked it, albeit it was barely comprehensible.
Just as it had started, the metallic shriek of the brakes ceased and Sasuke found himself thrown upwards. As he slammed down onto the elevator's floor once again, he thought that something had finally broken as the lights went down.
He thought that this was it, that they were now falling towards their certain doom but quickly realized that the elevator wasn't moving at all.
He groaned, trying to get up. The Sharingan implant entered in low-light mode, showing him his surroundings in a slightly reddened filter.
He saw Naruto Uzumaki, the runner that he had been chasing down for months, the one who had probably just saved his life, scrambling to get to his feet.
Sasuke immediately pointed his shotgun at him.
The motion alerted him and he tried to reach for his pistol... which was safely tucked away in Sasuke's belt.
"On your knees, now!" he barked . "Don't try anything stupid."
"You're a real bastard, copper," Naruto snarled in anger.
"Just doing my job," Sasuke lied. It wasn't a job, not now. This was personal. "Now get down or—"
Sasuke was interrupted by a ping sound as the elevator doors opened slowly, letting some light inside and blinding him for a second as his artificial eyes readjusted to the new lighting.
Outside of the elevator shaft, there were dozens of security bots from Sarutobi Enterprises, weapons readied.
"Fuck," both of them said.
Shikamaru opened his eyes hesitantly.
It didn't change much because the room he was in was completely dark but after the emergency disconnection it felt like he had hot rods going through his pupils, right into his brain.
He also had a troublesome headache, the mother of all the troublesome headaches ever had by humanity until then.
Maybe he should just fall unconscious and hope he woke up when it resembled something closer to a terrible hangover.
Then he remembered about Naruto and the robots that were shooting at him.
"Oh shit," he said as he tried to get up from the floor. At his sudden motion, flashes of pain went through his body, after-effects of his unpleasant departure from cyberspace.
He rubbed the back of his hand under his nose, trying to wipe away the almost-dried blood crusting up beneath it.
The nausea was coming back again, aided by her ally, the troublesome headache.
He had to deal with those. But first, Naruto.
Where had he left his phone?
Shikamaru pondered for two whole seconds whether he should lift the blinds or not, but decided against it.
If he was feeling bad now in the almost total darkness of his messy home, he didn't want to imagine how he would feel with actual light in his eyes.
He slowly stumbled around, reaching for the vague outline in the dark room which he knew to be his desk.
Shikamaru blindly searched for his phone. He knew it was on there somewhere.
Various items were pushed away or fell off of the desk but he finally felt a square, plastic shape.
He touched its surface, which brightened as the phone's screen came to life.
Victory was sweet. And painful to his poor eyes.
He immediately called Naruto's number, hoping that the knucklehead was fine.
They had been in business together for a few years after all.
Shikamaru waited as only the sound of ringing came from the device, the light of the screen casting ominous shadows on the walls.
Finally, the sound of someone picking up a call.
"Naruto, are you alright—"
"The number you're trying to reach is unavailable," a synthetic voice said. "If you want to leave a message—"
He turned the call off as he started to rub his temples.
Not available could mean a lot of things, but he wouldn't find out staying idle in a messy flat.
Not without access to the network at least.
But cyberspace was out of question, his brain wouldn't be able to handle it for a while.
He would have to find Naruto the old-fashioned way.
With a screen in front of him.
Shikamaru grappled with the thick, square case that was his "mundane" computer, the one he used when he didn't have to enter C-space, and somehow managed to push the right button.
With a humming noise, the machine came to life and started the brief set-up to become operational.
Meanwhile Shikamaru needed to fix the throbbing headache that was distracting him and maybe even the nausea. He could live with the cramps for a while.
Using the phone's screen as a lamp, he scanned the room until he found what he needed: the med box.
He pried it open and took a few packets out of it, checking for the tablets and pills he needed.
One for the nausea, two for the headache and one for the eye sensitivity.
He put them all in his mouth and swallowed them with the help of a little water that he took from a bottle that had been laying on his desk from who knows how long ago.
Sitting down on the squeaky chair, he turned on the old, flat screen, averting his gaze so that he wouldn't suffer for the sudden brightness too much.
Normally he would've waited for the pills to work—not that he made a habit of taking them—but he couldn't afford to lose time that way.
As he started up a browser, routing the signal through five different proxies, each of them encrypted, he called Naruto one more time only to hear the same automated voice message.
He hung up again, hissing in annoyance. It was clear that it was futile.
Better start looking around then.
Shikamaru's hands found his keyboard and his fingers started to dance across it.
"Alright, Naruto. Let's see what news there is about what happened around the pylon."
It wasn't that difficult, since he knew where and what he had to look for.
In the eyes of a normal person, it was incredible how fast news spread around the sprawl... or how well hidden its secrets were.
For Shikamaru, however, having to search for any reports of a firefight around a pylon in Little Chiwa seemed too slow.
Accessing the security footage from this machine would have required time, too much time compared how fast cyberspace was.
Without being able to directly interface with cyberspace, there was no way he'd be able to keep up with the top notch security deckers. He'd have to settle for second hand knowledge.
Rumors on the 'net about a big firefight somewhere in the eastern fringes of Little Chiwa, but no mentions of bodies on the scene. He made sure it wasn't about the incident in the alley, and moved on.
Variations in the local traffic, where it was evident that the police had closed a certain area around the pylon.
Chats on social networks, where various messages, mostly from young adults and teenagers were discussing a big incident that apparently had happened around the pylon.
Local news headlines—just in case the media had even heard of what had happened. The only noteworthy breaking news was about a joint operation between the UPP and the Sarutobi's security department had caused some technical difficulties to the security system.
Yeah, right.
It also explained that a squad of technicians was already moving towards the scene.
Taking all of these into account, he started to get a picture of the events.
The shooting had continued for a while after Naruto had hung up the call, but no bodies were mentioned regarding the accident.
Either the people didn't know, or Naruto was still alive. Shikamaru was partial to the second one because people seemed to have an almost morbid fascination with death and destruction, and the more death the better.
They always tried to stay and watch until the bodies had been removed.
The accident and the "joint operation" were obviously connected but it was clear he had no further elements about that to understand the truth behind it.
The fact that technicians were already being sent on the scene instead could mean an important piece of machinery or equipment had been damaged.
And the only important thing around the pylon, besides the pylon itself, was the elevator used by maintenance crews.
Naruto had managed to enter the elevator, something happened and now it was damaged?
Yeah that was something that Naruto would do.
Shikamaru had no way to find out from there how much the elevator had descended. But if Naruto's communicator hadn't been damaged or turned off, it could mean only one thing.
Naruto had arrived in the Underlevels.
Shit.
Troublesome shit.
Shikamaru grabbed his phone immediately and pressed the speed dial without looking at it.
"Tenten? We have a problem."
"STOP SHOOTING!" the cop yelled from his cover, being audible even above the gunfire. "I'm with the Uchiha Private Police!"
Between the runner and the Uchiha, through the open doors, raged a storm of bullets.
"I don't think they really care about that!" Naruto shouted from the other side of the elevator as he checked the sealed bag that contained the package.
Thankfully, it was still intact. He had still a few hours to take it to the other side of the city.
He decided to face one issue at a time, though.
There was a sudden stop in the hail of fire and Naruto felt the hope that maybe, they would get away from the idiotic machines.
"UPP jurisdiction protocols invalid inside Sarutobi Enterprises' property," was the reply of one of the robots outside of the elevator, demolishing his expectations. "Maintain sentry mode."
At least most of it was aimed towards the cop's half of the elevator.
"Told you," Naruto deadpanned.
"SHUT UP!"
"Hey, how come they haven't rushed us yet?" Naruto asked, ignoring the police officer's ire.
The shoots' intensity started to drop, reducing themselves to a single double-tap pattern every few seconds, probably just to keep them suppressed.
Or to conserve ammo.
"This is what bugs you? Seriously?" his persistent chaser asked with disbelief badly hidden in his voice.
"Well, we've been here for... what? Twenty minutes? Every time we try to leave they shoot at us but if they charged us with those numbers..."
"They're probably basic models set on sentry duty. They won't move unless a different order is issued from the directories that are controlling them."
"So, we're pinned here because they're too dumb to act on their own?"
"That's right so—"
"New parameters set," a voice came from the robot's ranks. "Organize breach & clear team."
"Oh you've got to be kidding me," the cop grumbled as another round of fire peppered the elevator's cabin.
Naruto had been trying to close the doors by pressing the 'emergency shut' button on the control panel since the robots had started shooting, but nothing happened. Either the impact or the shooting had rendered the doors useless.
"Can I have my gun back now?" he asked in the most petulant tone he could muster.
"So you can shoot me with it?" the incredulous cop asked, raising an eyebrow but remaining serious otherwise.
"I can just wait for the security robots to do that, if you want," Naruto grumbled. "Now give me my gun!"
The Uchiha glared at him as loud, metal clanks could be heard approaching the elevator.
The sound seemed to convince him and after taking it out of his belt, he slid it over towards Naruto's side of the elevator, albeit reluctantly.
A few more shots passed through the open doors as Naruto picked up his gun and checked the safety before taking it off.
They could hear the security 'bots just outside of the elevator, positioning themselves on both sides of the entrance.
The suppressing fire stopped.
Naruto prepared himself.
The cop took aim with his shotgun, taking a few step back.
Then something was tossed directly inside the elevator.
Its cylindrical shape allowed it to roll further down the confined space and Naruto saw what it was.
Tear gas.
"Oh fu—"
A metal clink was heard as it stopped and with a furious hiss, grey tendrils of smoke quickly erupted from its tip.
Even if it hadn't even covered his ankles, Naruto could already taste it in his throat.
As the silk-like fog invaded the elevator's cabin, the first of the 'bots rushed inside, rifle at the ready.
Naruto acted, grabbing the machine's gun and pushing it upwards.
A small burst exploded, the impacting bullets created a shower of sparks from the elevator's roof.
As the robot struggled, Naruto pointed the muzzle of his pistol to the robot's head and pressed the trigger one, two, three times.
Its humanoid form crashed to the floor, motionless.
Out of the corner of his eye he could see the Uchiha dart forward and kick the gas canister between the broken automaton's legs, back toward their assailants.
The cop dove back under cover just as the robots started firing again and Naruto did the same, letting the metal body clatter to the ground.
The room outside the elevator was starting to be flooded by the tear gas, spreading in the large space in a fog-like manner.
Too bad robots didn't need to breathe.
Some of them just advanced ignoring the grey cloud and rushed inside.
The two trapped in the elevator were prepared though.
A series of blasts from the Uchiha's shotgun blew off large chunks of their frames, while Naruto finished off the ones not disabled by the cop's weapon, sending them falling in a quickly growing pile of twisted and broken metal.
He was really glad that the copper hadn't shot him with that cannon now.
His ally-by-circumstances moved back to cover, retrieving some shells from his belt to reload his still fuming weapon.
Naruto decided to risk taking a peek outside of the elevator.
He couldn't see anything because of the gas-which was making his throat sore-when a single humanoid figure charged directly towards him, emerging from the grey smoke.
Before the security robot could pull its trigger, Naruto placed a single shot in the big lens that it had for an eye.
The thing emitted a few squeaks and sparks before collapsing a little before the pile of its brethren.
A sudden silence fell on the room.
He returned inside the safety of the elevator and checking his gun, he saw that it was empty.
"Gods, why didn't you throw the can back right away?!" the Uchiha snarled, as he loaded another shell in the shotgun with a metal click.
"Me?" Naruto bellowed back, releasing the pistol's empty magazine. "It was closer to you! Shouldn't you have seen it coming with that Sharingan of yours?!"
"How do you know about the Sharingan?" the cop asked, suddenly wary for some reason.
"I know a guy that has one," Naruto explained matter-of-factly while sliding a new mag inside. "Hey, how many do you think are still out there?"
The Uchiha didn't stop looking at him with circumspect for a few seconds, before talking again.
"I counted at least two dozens, besides these ones," he said, gesturing to the mass of broken robots. "But there could be more. How much ammo have you left?"
"This is my last mag," Naruto grimaced. "I had packed light for this job. You?"
"Five more shells, my handgun and a stun baton."
"That's it?! Shouldn't you UPP guys have more firepower?"
"I did. On the bike," the cop said flatly.
"Oh. Well, it seemed a good idea at that time," Naruto admitted sheepishly.
"Hn," the Uchiha grunted.
"Hey, maybe we could use their guns?" Naruto asked, gesturing with his pistol towards the broken and scattered robots parts.
"No, they're probably chipped. They would not work or might even be booby-trap—"
The Uchiha's explanation was abruptly interrupted by the clattering of various metal objects landing outside of the elevator. A hiss immediately followed.
Naruto widened his eyes and immediately pulled his shirt up to cover his nose and mouth.
Like a wave, the tear gas flowed inside, spreading quickly. He immediately started coughing, feeling his eyes moist. The Uchiha was not faring much better, from what he could hear.
He tried to keep his eyes open but it was becoming more and more difficult with every passing second.
The sound of gunfire and the bullets zipping through the door just a few feet from him made him realize how bad it was.
"Damn, we're trapped!" he managed to say after a short cough. "We've to get out of here!"
"Look for a hatch!" the cop yelled, his voice muffled by the hand he was keeping in front of his mouth. "There should be an emergency hatch on the roof!"
Naruto did so, ignoring the blazing barrage of bullets, but the tear gas was not helping in terms of visibility—
"There!" he yelled enthusiastically. "It's right above you!"
The Uchiha looked up towards the small hatch, a red square barely large enough for a person to pass through.
Both young men's gaze fell on the death-zone that was raging in the middle of the elevator.
"Wait for their lull, then come here! I'll cover you."
"I have a better idea... Kage Bunshin!" Naruto exclaimed, starting up his aug app.
As the confirmation of his command appeared on his HUD, three forms materialized around him in the way he had been accustomed for years, replicas of himself.
The holographic clones darted outside, ignoring the incoming fire.
One didn't even pass through the door before being dispersed by a hail of bullets but the other two had more luck.
Exploiting the few seconds the holograms had bought him, Naruto dove over to the other side of the elevator.
He stopped just next to the Uchiha, pushing himself to the wall and failing to suppress a coughing fit.
"Hurry, open the hatch!" the cop shouted.
"You open it, UPP!" was the lame comeback Naruto managed to say. He really didn't like how this bastard was bossing him around.
"Just do it!" the Uchiha yelled as he blasted the head off a robot that was trying to enter by climbing over the pile of broken ones.
"Fine!" the runner retorted angrily as the UPP officer reserved the same treatment as before for another security robot.
Naruto jumped up and used his feet to brace himself against the walls of the corner so he could reach the hatch.
Another shot from the shotgun was heard.
With one arm, he snapped off the latch and forced it upwards. He smelled fresh air, or at least air not filled with tear gas.
"Alright it's done!" he called down as he took the bag from his shoulder and shoved it through the hatch, placing it on the elevator's roof. "Let's get out of—"
The rest of what Naruto was saying was lost in a tumultuous crashing and banging and clatter of falling debris.
From his vantage point, he could see that two robots had charged through the messy pile that had partially blocked the elevator's doors, much like how two murderball players would move through the playing-field.
The Uchiha quickly aimed at the closest one and opened fire on it, the pellets tearing off the the machine's light plating but somehow it managed to keep going. It rushed the policeman, tackling him to the ground.
The second robot pointed his weapon towards the struggling Uchiha, who was reaching for his own pistol.
The cop wouldn't make in time. He was going to die.
Naruto activated all his augs and pushed against the walls with his legs and jumped towards them, ignoring the overheating alarm flashing on his HUD.
He felt like if a fever had fallen over him, heating his skin. His limbs felt like hot iron.
But he wasn't feeling sick.
He felt stronger and faster than ever. But he could also hear its laugher in his head.
He had to do this quickly.
Naruto landed feet-first on the robot's, sending it sprawling across the floor from the sheer impact of his leap.
Sparks were sent flying as it grated against the metal floor.
The thing's rifle shot a burst of bullets as it tried to aim towards its assailant, but Naruto blocked the weapon's movements with his left hand and crushed it, breaking the polymer-made barrel.
His right hand immediately formed a fist and slammed it down on the robot's head, caving it in in a spray of smoke and oil.
A loud shot was heard and he turned towards the new detected menace in a fraction of a second, only to stop in his tracks, stunned.
The UPP cop was trapped under the still form of the other robot, his own pistol in his hand, smoking.
There was a big gaping hole in the machine's torso, running completely through it from one side to the other.
What kind of bullets was that thing loaded with?!
"Don't just stand there, idiot!" the policeman yelled between coughs. "Get this thing off me!"
The sound of a multitude of advancing metal legs was the only argument Naruto needed to act.
He grabbed the broken machine and tossed it onto the scattered pile like it was a cardboard figure, before pulling up the coughing and almost blinded cop.
Not that he was faring any better with all the gas around them.
"Hurry!" Naruto shouted, pushing the cop from behind to urge him to go faster.
The laugh in his head was getting stronger and he was aware of the robots coming to finish them. If this was a simple job, he didn't even want to imagine what people like Kakashi did for a living.
As soon as the Uchiha was on his feet, leaning against the wall, the blond leaped back up to the hatch and pulled himself through. In an instant he had turned back around to give his reluctant partner a hand.
Nobody left behind, that's what he had been taught and what he stuck to.
Even if it was a damn cop.
Oh, and do you think he will be grateful for that?
As the policeman grabbed his hand, he pulled him to safety just in time as their persistent assailants rushed the elevator en masse.
"Intruders retreating," one of the security automatons said. "Can't reach new position—"
Guess what, he is not your friend. No one would be if they—
"SHUT! UP!" Naruto yelled at the top of his tear gas abused lungs as he closed the hatch with a slam, denting its side and rendering it impossible to open.
He shut down his augs after that, leaning on the elevator's roof, trying to catch his breath.
The policeman was in no better condition, but at least nobody-or nothing-was shooting at them right now.
He checked his surroundings. The elevator shaft was dark, with just a few emergency lights on each level, one every few hundreds of feet.
There was a big, painted sign on the wall, which said 'U-5'.
Which meant they were in the Underlevels. Great.
"Hey," he said, turning towards the Uchiha. "you alive?"
"Hn," the other replied. "I lost my shotgun."
"Sorry about that," Naruto half-coughed, half-laughed. "But at least we're alive right?"
"You're still under arrest, Naruto Uzumaki."
"Heh... you're still a bastard, UPP," he grumbled. "Hey, what's your name?"
"Sasuke Uchiha... idiot."
Yup, sounded like the start of a great friendship.
A\N: And that's all for this chapter.
I hope you're liking this AU setting so far. Speaking of which, would you like if I wrote small excerpts from a codex à la Mass Effect after every chapter? Let me know.