I'm not sure I fully understand this whole reviewing process. Am I supposed to be responding to them? I don't want you guys to think I don't read them or don't appreciate them. I do, very much. I just wanted you guys to know that. And if I'm supposed to be responding to reviews, then I'll try to do better about it. I don't know, I just tend to put stories up and check in on them every once in a while instead of actually keeping tabs or getting updates about them. But I still appreciate each of my readers =)

The Family Business
Tycho Kouros

The first thing Naruto realized was that his entire body hurt. The second thing was that he was laying on something that wasn't his bed. The last thing he realized was that a warm head was lying on his shoulder, the hair tickling his arm. He shifted, only to regret it when the dull ache all over his body turned into throbbing pain. The head moved, and Naruto opened his eyes to see a pair of familiar dark eyes staring back at him.

"Hey," Sasuke said. Naruto could hear the tiredness in his voice. It was ragged, and slightly hoarse. Naruto felt a hand grab his, squeezing it gently. He squeezed back, smiling.

"Hey. How long have you been sitting there?" Sasuke checked his watch.

"Just a few hours." He smiled when Naruto's eyebrows furrowed. "How are you feeling?"

"Like shit." Sasuke chuckled, bending forward to rest his chin on his arm. Naruto couldn't help but feel excited that Sasuke was so close to him.

"The doctor said it will take a day for the other medicine to get out of your system. You'll feel better in a few hours, but it will be tomorrow or the day after until you get your energy back." Naruto nodded, but his chest felt like it had collapsed when he remembered the night before. He sat up quickly, panicking.

"Where's –!"

"He's fine," Sasuke said, pushing Naruto down by his chest. "He was detained, but I got him out last night. He had to go to work is why he's not here." Naruto was still breathing fast, but nodded. "I told him I'd stay with you so you didn't wake up alone. He really wanted to be here."

"When will he get back?" Naruto cringed at how needy his voice sounded. He couldn't help it though. Iruka was everything to him, and he felt like he needed to have him close right then. Sasuke squeezed his hand again.

"Probably around two. Kakashi dropped him off and will be picking him up. He also said he'd eat lunch with him, but I'm not entirely sure that was just for Iruka's 'safety'. He really likes him, you know." Naruto nodded, but didn't answer. There was still something about the man that Naruto didn't like. But he knew that he wouldn't like anyone that got so close to Iruka. It was stupid to be jealous, but he couldn't help feeling resentment towards him for the things he was doing to the only family he had.

"What's wrong?" Naruto looked up and saw Sasuke staring at him.

"Huh?"

"You looked upset." Naruto shook his head, forcing a smile.

"No, it's nothing, really. I'm just tired." Sasuke nodded, but didn't look convinced. A bird was chirping somewhere outside the window. When Naruto looked back at Sasuke, he saw that his eyes were closed, his breathing slow. It was then that he noticed the dark rings under Sasuke's eyes. He reached up and ran his thumb across one of them, pulling back when Sasuke flinched. Sasuke stared at him, but didn't say anything. He reached out again, and felt the soft, squishy skin. Sasuke closed his eyes and leaned into the touch. "You really should get some sleep," Naruto said. Sasuke nodded, and put his head down on Naruto's shoulder. Naruto smiled, and brought his hand up, weaving his fingers through Sasuke's hair, before closing his eyes.

The sound of the heavy, wooden door closing echoed in the stone stairwell. Itachi followed the nun down the curving stairs, the rustle of her habit and the clicking of shoes bouncing off the walls as they walked. His eyes burned, and the corners of his mouth ached, and his throat was raw from screaming. He kept his muscles tight so that he didn't break down right there in the church, though he'd run out of energy to cry hours before. The stairs seemed to be endless, a bottomless pit with just the occasional torch flame flickering.

He pulled the coat tighter around himself as they reached the bottom of the stairs. The nun knocked on a heavy wooden door. A small slit opened, before closing again as the door opened up. People were moaning, the room smelled of stale alcohol. The door closed behind him as the nun walked back up to the church.

"Itachi," the blond woman said as she walked by, reading from a clipboard. She had on her usual green lab coat. "Haven't seen you in a while."

"Is he—?"

"Fine. He's a tougher bastard to kill than that, Itachi. He'll be out of commission for a few months, and needs to take it easy," she said, glancing over at him. "No strenuous activities. But he'll be fine." Itachi walked along side her, nodding. He snorted and shook his head, wanting to break down right there. Just fall on the floor and cry. An arm wrapped around his shoulder and rubbed his arm, pulling him closer, still walking. "It's up to you how you handle this. We have room for the both of you down here. You could let the apartment go and move down here, or we can move him back up as soon as he's ready. We can get your rent taken care of."

"Thank you, Tsunade," Itachi said, "but it's fine. We'll make it work somehow. My brother's agreed to help us out, and I can get a job to take care of the rent." Tsunade stopped him and turned him to face her.

"You'll do no such thing. Itachi, that's what the aid funds are for. So people can offer us their time without having to worry about finances." Itachi looked away, shrugging. "I don't mean to say that you owe us anything, Itachi. God, we owe you more than we could possibly afford to repay. But if it's money that's the problem, then you'd better think twice about me letting you go that easy." Itachi smiled a little and nodded. Tsunade hugged him with one arm, her other arm and the clipboard down by her side. Itachi sighed and let himself go lax, closing his eyes. "Just don't make any decisions yet. There's plenty of time for that later." Itachi nodded and started walking again. Plenty of time. He looked at the people in the beds, IVs hooked into their arms. Some were conscious, some were pale. Most of them didn't have sheets. Itachi knew that Tsunade did the best with what she had to work with. She was a renowned surgeon, both for her skill and her leadership to the Resistance. She and the General, both. The Nazis knew her well. Before the war, she'd been an international name. They also knew from documents inside compromised bases that she was a major figure in the Resistance. But beneath the church, she was invisible. Thanks to the loyalty she inspired, the security protocol in place, and the extreme measures in place to make sure the base was invisible from the outside, she was untouchable. She and the hospital, both.

It had been, quite literally, a gift from God that the nuns had approached them with the offer to use a corridor underneath the church. It had been meant for use as catacombs, but shortly after its completion the use of catacombs was ended by an order from Rome. And since it was just a hole, it wasn't on the blueprints. With no electricity running to it, the Nazis had walked right on top of thousands of times without any idea what was beneath their feet. They could search all they wanted. It was a hole with just a few entrances and exits.

It had been just a few short tunnels to make it a functioning hospital with hundreds of patients.

Itachi's breath caught when he saw Kisame. He was pale, with an oxygen mask covering his face. Itachi staggered a little before running to his side, burying his face in the pillow by Kisame's head as he cried. A weak hand moved and rubbed the back of his head, Kisame's head turning. Itachi looked up to see a small smile on Kisame's lips underneath the mask.

"Hey, 'tachi," he said, lifting the mask a little so Itachi could hear him. Itachi was quick to press it back down onto his face.

"It's oxygen, dumbass. You need it," Itachi said, voice shaking as he swallowed. Kisame laughed a little, grunting in pain. Itachi frowned, looking down at him. "How bad?"

"Like hell." Itachi nodded and put his head down on the pillow again. Kisame rubbed his back, sighing.

"His lung's reinflated. He'll be out of here in about a week. Where, again, he'll need rest," Tsunade said, adding, "non-strenuous rest," when she saw the look in Kisame's eyes. Kisame just smiled at her.

"Hear that, 'tachi? Sounds like you'll be riding cowboy for a few weeks." Itachi buried his face deeper into the pillow, where the "bastard" he muttered was muffled and just barely understandable. Tsunade gave him a dry look.

"From what I saw, I'm surprised there's enough for him to ride." Itachi snorted into the pillow.

"There's growers and showers, Doc. I can give you a demonstration if—"

"Keep it under the sheets, Hoshigake," Tsunade said, "there's plenty of time for me to see when you're pitching your tent in the morning." Kisame smiled, nuzzling the top of Itachi's head.

"You better breathe, Itachi. Don't want both of us needing oxygen masks." All he got was a groan that sounded like, "Let me die." Tsunade chuckled.

"I'll be back later to check you out while they're changing your bandages. Bye Itachi, see ya later pencil dick," Tsunade said. "Unless I forget my microscope." Kisame sneered at her as she walked away, turning to Itachi.

"Sorry, but you know how she gets under my skin." Itachi looked up at him, his face red.

"Call it selfishness, Kisame, but keep your dickwagging to our bedroom. It's mine, and I'm not interested in sharing." Kisame smiled at him, kissing the tip of his nose.

"Of course, 'tachi. It's yours and only yours to play with." Itachi smirked, laying his head down on the bed again. "Did you sleep last night?"

"Yes," Itachi said with a sigh.

"How many bottles?"

"It doesn't matter."

"It does matter. You promised you'd keep cutting back."

"And you promised nothing would happen. I guess we can't always keep our promises, can we?" Kisame looked away while Itachi glared into his shoulder, tears and anger making the pillow hot against his cheek.

"I'm sorry." Kisame said, turning his head again and rubbing his cheek against the crown of Itachi's head. "I love you."

"Love you too," Itachi said, murmuring. Kisame smiled and started rubbing Itachi's back again, closing his eyes when he heard soft snores after about ten minutes, still rubbing as he breathed through the pain.

Sasuke glanced over at Naruto as he put the key in the ignition, watching the blond rub the leather seat, smiling.

"Are you sure you feel okay for this?" Naruto nodded, looking back at him.

"You promised, Sasuke. And I need to get out. I'm tired of lying down." Sasuke nodded, starting the engine. Naruto smiled even wider as the engine roared, leaning on the door as Sasuke pulled into the street. "So Iruka's okay?"

"Kakashi said he was fine and that he'd tell him where you were." Naruto nodded and watched the city from the window. Nazi flags were hanging from every lamppost, giant banners were hanging from the sides of occupied buildings. As they turned onto a wider street, he saw a tank up ahead, at the next corner, and took a deep breath. Sasuke noticed and slowed down a little, ready to pull over. "You okay?"

"Just... yeah." Sasuke looked at him, watching.

"Carsick?" Naruto shook his head.

"Tank." Sasuke turned his head and looked at it as they passed.

"Oh... sorry," Sasuke said, frowning.

"It's not your fault. Are you sure this is okay? To be taking me places, I mean."

"Just stop looking so scared and don't say anything. You'll be easy to pass off as a friend from back home who's visiting." Naruto kept looking at the window, silent. Sasuke reached over and grabbed his hand, rubbing the back of the hand with his thumb. "Really, relax. I won't let anything happen to you." Naruto smiled a little, squeezing Sasuke's hand. "I promise."

The rest of the ride went well. Naruto eventually relaxed, even as they passed the occasional tank, and began to nod off from the car ride. He woke up when he was lurched forward, the car stopping at a security check leading out of the city. He heard a window being lowered and a German conversation. He rubbed his eyes as he looked around, looking up at the barbed wire along the walls and the large metal gates.

His stomach turned when he saw the wall covered in a thick layer of spatter-edged red. He tried taking deep breaths, tried looking at Sasuke, who was busy talking to one of the uniformed guards. Finally he closed his eyes, pressing his cheek against the cool glass of the window. Boot hells clicked and Sasuke turned, seeing him, noticing the heavy breathing and the sweat that was beginning to form on his brow.

"Naruto?" Naruto kept focusing on deep breaths, trying to keep from getting Sasuke into trouble. Trying not to think about the guards finding out about him and being another bloodstain on the wall. "Are you okay?"

"No." Boot heels clicked and more German. The guard handed Sasuke back his papers and the metal gate began to creak as it was opened.

"Is he okay?" the guard asked, nodding towards Naruto.

"Carsick," Sasuke said in German, "not used to the rich food here, I guess." The soldier nodded, laughing as he walked back to his post and Sasuke drove away. Naruto was shivering, taking quick, deep breaths. Sasuke kept driving until he was a mile or two away from the gate, well out of view. He pulled off the road and into the grass. "Get out." Naruto's eyes shot open, another chill as his stomach flipped at the sound of Sasuke's voice. Sasuke threw open his door and ran around, pulling open Naruto's and pulling him out of the car. Naruto started to lose it then, a small whine before he finally began to throw up into the grass. Sasuke had an arm around his shoulder, kneeling beside him. After the third time, he was dry heaving, spitting out the saliva from the taste of vomit as he kept retching. He started sobbing between heaves, and Sasuke rubbed his back, hushing him quietly.

"What happened?" Sasuke asked in a whisper. Naruto heaved again, shaking.

"Blood," was all he could get out, saying it over and over again. Sasuke kept rubbing his back.

"I'm so sorry, Naruto. I shouldn't have—"

"Please. I didn't mean to look scared." Sasuke stared at him. He pulled Naruto back and laid him down, resting Naruto's head in his lap. He ran his fingers through Naruto's hair, looking down at Naruto's half-lidded, teary eyes.

"Don't worry about that, Naruto. You didn't do anything wrong, I promise."

"The blood..." Sasuke whispered hushes, running a finger over Naruto's cheek. "So much blood..."

Sasuke walked out of the field office and back to the car with two Coke bottles, a bottle opener in his pocket. Naruto was leaning his head against the glass, still looking pale. Sasuke set one of the bottles down and got the bottle opener, popping of the bottle cap and handing it to Naruto.

"Here, to get the taste out." Naruto nodded and took the bottle, taking a little sip. Sasuke turned the key and back the car up, driving back out into the countryside. Naruto just stared down at the bubbles of his Coke. "Look, I'm really sorry. This was a bad idea."

"No, it's fine," Naruto said, shaking his head a little. "It wasn't you. I just... ya know, forgot, I guess. About that stuff." Sasuke nodded, staring down the dirt road ahead. "Really, thanks for bringing me out here. It's been years since I've gotten to see the countryside. It's nice not to be crammed up in the city." Sasuke nodded, looking over at Naruto. Naruto smiled at him, taking another sip of his Coke.

"We can go back if you want. It's up to you," Sasuke said, stopping at a fork in the road. Naruto was quiet as he looked over at the city for a few minutes.

"Is it okay if we don't yet?" Sasuke nodded and drove away from the city, driving out until he found a nice spot by a tree. He pulled over and got out, walking around to help Naruto with his door. Naruto smiled and walked over to the tree, sitting down with his legs crossed. Sasuke walked over and sat down next to him, a few inches away from him, and leaned back against the tree. He glanced over at Naruto, nervous. He started to say something, but lost it in a shudder when Naruto leaned his head on Sasuke's shoulder. He looked over when Naruto jerked his head away.

"Naruto?" Naruto shook his head.

"Sorry, I wasn't thinking. I... uh..." Sasuke kept watching him. "Is it... okay?" Sasuke kept looking at him, then smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, it's fine," he said. Naruto smiled too, and leaned his head back on Sasuke's shoulder, scooting closer.

"It just... ya know, felt really good. When you were close while I was throwing up, I mean. And when I woke up. You... uh... you're..." Sasuke stared at him, his stomach churning.

"I'm what?" Naruto looked away, blushing.

"You're just... ya know, nice." Sasuke let out a deep breath and smiled. His arm snaked around Naruto's shoulders, watching to see what Naruto would do. But Naruto just looked up at him and smiled. Sasuke smiled back and leaned his head on top of Naruto's. They sat there like that for an hour, hidden from the rode by the tree as Sasuke rubbed Naruto's shoulder and back, warmth swelling every time Naruto shuddered or moaned a little when his hand found a sensitive spot. They were there long enough for the sun to start setting, the sky filled with all kinds of colors Sasuke hadn't seen since he was a kid visiting his grandfather's countryside villa. Naruto's arm wrapped around his waist as a blond head pressed against his chest, curling up closer against him as a cold breeze blew. It was too much for Sasuke to resist. He lifted Naruto's chin and kissed him on the lips, looking into the deep blue of Naruto's eyes. When Naruto didn't do anything, he ran his tongue across Naruto's lip, pushing in when Naruto's lips parted. Naruto was still at first, but quickly began kissing back, wrapping his arms around Sasuke's neck as Sasuke pushed him onto his back, half on top of him as they made out even after the sun had set.