Warnings: Nothing much for this chapter
Disclaimer: Characters are property of a certain Masashi Kishimoto, I'm just borrowing them.
A/N: Wow, sorry this took me so long to write. But! This is a longer chapter than the ones before so don't complain (much). Thank you, again, for the reviews, they make me feel so inspired
For Didi
Moments like this made Naruto wonder if the reason behind Sasuke's grumpiness was lack of sleep. It would definitely explain all the glaring and the dark clouds he could almost see looming over the raven's head. He also understood that being tired from not sleeping well made one very easily angry, and knowing how annoying it was he tried to hold himself back the best he could.
Because indeed, today it was Naruto's turn to be moody.
He couldn't recall ever sleeping so little just because of dreams. He had kept waking up every now and then, surrounded by the darkness, but every time the clouds revealed the bright moon it would illuminate Sasuke's face that was right in front of Naruto, and the memories of his dreams would come crushing in.
Naruto attempted and failed to stifle a yawn, his eyes constantly trying to betray him and turn to look at Sasuke. The raven was riding on his right, looking as relaxed and comfortable as ever in the saddle. Rayo was of course the same as before, tugging the reins and doing some nervous stepping every now and then, but they had earlier figured out that she simply had too much energy for her own good. The saddling had again been quite a fight in the morning.
Naruto had finally got up by the dawn, starting to make them a simple breakfast that was almost identical to their meal last night. The only addition was coffee; there wasn't much of it but half a cup of coffee helped Naruto get up every morning. Sasuke had just wrinkled his nose at the dark liquid and refused to even taste when he had finally managed to get up. It was quite clear that he wasn't used to getting up so early.
They hadn't been talking much, but the oddly comfortable atmosphere still loomed over them, or so Sasuke thought. The raven had been so nice in his own way that Naruto felt almost guilty for being in such a bad mood.
He just couldn't help it. They packed up in silence and destroyed all the evidence of their little camp there, and all the time Naruto kept stealing quick looks at Sasuke, his eyes being drawn to the raven in a way that was definitely not natural. With every glimpse of dark hair and pale skin he got, he couldn't help but be reminded about his dreams.
They had been the same type as the ones he'd had back in Soundsville, when he had still been under the impression that Raven was a woman. Fortunately for both of them, these dreams he was now having had been a lot more tame, otherwise Naruto wouldn't have been able to look Sasuke in the eye at all. Even now it was difficult, and that's why he kept his gaze directed forward, avoiding looking at Sasuke. The memory of the dreams was fading already, but he could still recall how soft that milky skin had been under his fingers and how the raven had gasped due to his touch, every detail so vivid that Naruto could've almost sworn it had happened for real.
If Sasuke had noticed something was wrong, he had decided to ignore it, just enjoying the silence while it lasted. Naruto was rarely quiet, and even with the odd fidgeting he was now doing, being silent was more than fine with Sasuke. At least it spared him from the blonde's idiotic question, and to be honest he was still a bit too sleepy to start arguing about some minor thing. Waking up at sunrise was not his thing.
The sun kept climbing higher on the sky, and as more time passed Naruto started growing really anxious with the silence. He hated being quiet when there was someone around, and even if he still felt rather uncomfortable about his dreams, they had almost completely faded and he wasn't the type to dwell in bad memories for long. The bounty hunter cleared his throat, giving his companion a careful glance.
"We'll reach Leaf Creek in a couple of days", he informed Sasuke, catching the frown that crossed the other's features. However, it disappeared so quickly that Naruto wasn't sure if it had ever been there.
"Although, if you don't mind... Could we take a longer route? It's not by much, only half a day, but that way we wouldn't have to pass that old ranch close to the town... They say it's haunted, people keep seeing odd lights and figures moving there, but it has been abandoned for at least ten years already..." Naruto's eyes narrowed as he watched Sasuke. Now the raven had definitely tensed, his back suddenly a lot straighter and the look on his face more forced to appear calm.
Deciding to push the matter still a bit further, Naruto relaxed and kept his eyes on Sasuke as he continued.
"You see, horrible things happened there when I was still a kid. I grew up in Leaf Creek, you know?" As an orphan, but Sasuke didn't have to know that much.
"I was around seven that time, I think, or maybe six? It was a home to one rich family, that ranch, they had cattle and horses and wealth, but they weren't really nice people."
Sasuke was clearly even more uncomfortable, his attempts to hide it were all in vain.
"No-one knew to expect it, though. One morning someone went to the ranch, I can't remember why, and he found them all dead. The family that had lived there, all their workers and even the horses were slaughtered in one night, and they had no clue who had done that. But there was something odd to it, you see..." Naruto kept a little break, watching Sasuke intensely. The raven was stiff as a gun barrel, looking like he might break his teeth from pressing them together so hard.
The bounty hunter took a sip from his water bottle that had been filled from the river this morning, and then continued the story.
"They never found the bodies of the two sons of the family. Some who had known the family better said that also the older son's horse was missing, but they couldn't be sure of that either. However, they say that the younger son now haunts the ranch, seeking for revenge for his slaughtered family and ruined life. It is said that whoever goes to the ranch will meet the same end as the poor family. The ghost of the son is waiting for the real murderer to come back someday, and only then he can rest in peace." Naruto licked his lips as he finished, feeling uneasy. Even if he'd started to tell that story to perhaps scare Sasuke a little bit, he had ended up making himself nervous.
Naruto was a fearless man when it came to things he could fight, but ghosts were something that always got under his skin.
The raven kept quiet, staring at Rayo's neck. He still looked tense, so tense, and Naruto felt a pinch of guilt for destroying Sasuke's good mood so completely. The look on the other's face was odd, there was something really alerting in it but Naruto couldn't quite grasp it.
Finally Sasuke shrugged stiffly and scoffed, not giving Naruto a single glance.
"I've heard that story before, idiot."
Naruto blinked.
"Y-you have?"
"Yeah. I've been to Leaf Creek a couple of times with Rattlesnake. It's not like he never traveled."
Now even more surprised, Naruto turned to fully stare at Sasuke, finding it hard to believe what the raven had just told him.
"Seriously? And you just didn't feel like mentioning that earlier when I talked about Leaf Creek?"
Sasuke shrugged again, running his fingers through Rayo's dark mane.
"No, not really. What does it matter anyway? Are you disappointed for not being able to scare me with that ghost story of yours?" He gave Naruto a blank look, still too tense to appear comfortable with the subject.
Naruto puffed his cheeks and tried not to roll his eyes.
"No, I just-"
"I think you scared yourself with it."
The amused smirk on Sasuke's face made Naruto sputter incomprehensibly, his face reddening as he shook his fist at the raven, not daring to do much more. Rayo was the type to use any excuse to shake Sasuke off her back and run through the fields to freedom.
"Bastard! I'm not scared! I... I know it's just a ghost story!" He wasn't that easy to read, now was he?
Sasuke's smirk widened a little and he shook his head, murmuring something in Spanish as Rayo took a couple of irritated sidesteps.
"Of course. Just a story."
The raven didn't say anything more, but as Naruto watched he started to slowly relax again, the tension wearing out. It made the blonde think there had maybe been something Sasuke had expected him to say or ask, but since he hadn't the runaway dancer didn't feel threatened anymore.
That night they made a camp a little before the darkness fell and Naruto made sure to sleep as far away from Sasuke as he could, hoping that it would keep the dreams away. The flames of their little fire slowly died, leaving them in complete darkness.
Naruto rolled over to his side, his eyes wide open. He was again staring at Sasuke's direction, seeing nothing but knowing that the raven was there. He pictured the other man in his head, the dark hair a little bit tousled already and eyes shut, the black lashes making a stark contrast to the pale skin of his face. Although if he was completely honest, Naruto had to say Sasuke had started to tan a little bit. It wasn't much and the color was more reddish than brown, but he wasn't as sickly pale as he'd been when they had ran away from Snake's Lair.
Grinning into the darkness Naruto shook his head, his grin turning into a grimace as his cheek rubbed against the saddlebag. It was good to see Sasuke getting healthier, now he was just waiting to see the raven gaining some weight and muscle. It amazed him that Sasuke ate so little, even when the man said it was a lot to him, and somehow Naruto wished he hadn't heard that last comment. The Snake had probably fed Sasuke like a dog or something, so small was the amount of food he needed.
Huffing at nothing in particular, Naruto closed his eyes, attempting to finally fall asleep. He had been awake for a while already, and he really didn't need another sleepless night. Sasuke had noticed his bad mood as well, telling him that he was acting worse than Rayo at some point of the day, and after that Naruto had very maturely refused to speak to the raven for a while. He hadn't been pouting for long, though, he had never been the one to hold the grudge, and so he had just tried to hide his mood from the raven.
An odd sound from Sasuke's direction caught the bounty hunter's ears and he stilled, listening as closely as he could. At first there was nothing, only a cry of some animal from distance and buzzing noise the bugs made in the darkness. It took so long that Naruto relaxed again, thinking that he'd probably been just hearing things, but then another low sound emerged and he could hardly keep himself from running over to Sasuke's side.
He couldn't really describe the odd noise the raven had just let out. It was something between a growl and a whine, and it sounded extremely pained. Sasuke was obviously dreaming, but about what, Naruto could only guess. He knew that answer would probably be Rattlesnake, and if that was the case he really didn't want to know any details. It was enough to have the sight of the man practically eating Sasuke's neck burnt in his memory.
Yet another choked noise made Naruto's fingers curl, frustration growing. He didn't know what he was supposed to do. Just lying here made him feel rather voyeuristic, like he was witnessing something he really shouldn't see, but it pained him to leave Sasuke alone with his dreams. Nightmares were never pleasant.
Naruto had yet to come to decision when a weak gasp and a groan from Sasuke's direction told him that the raven had woken up on his own. The blonde almost sighed in relief, but he never had time to do so as he realized he shouldn't give himself out to Sasuke. It was better if the raven thought Naruto didn't have the slightest glue of the nightmares, and so the blonde forced his breathing back to slow and even, trying to appear asleep if Sasuke took time to listen.
He didn't, but it didn't sound like he was going back to sleep either. His blanket rustled softly and in mild horror Naruto realized Sasuke was getting up.
Biting his lip to keep from speaking, he shifted slowly, the sound of the movement stopping Sasuke for a second. Then, when Naruto didn't move anymore, the raven stood up in the darkness, the moon providing enough light that he could see the blonde's figure on the ground.
Naruto held his breath, his eyes narrowed to slits as he watched Sasuke walk closer with silent steps, the raven soon looming over him. He had to close his eyes completely to keep up the act, but his hearing seemed to have sharpened remarkably. The bounty hunter heard painfully well the other kneeling down next to him, and after a moment a slim hand lightly brushed over his hair, moving down to his neck.
Biting the inside of his cheek was the only thing to keep Naruto from gasping from surprise. The pale fingers stroked the skin on his neck so gently they could've as well been feathers, and the bounty hunter felt his chest tighten oddly as he kept his eyes shut, anticipating Sasuke's next moves. The fingers slid over his neck and finally pressed down a little harder as if their owner was looking for something.
Naruto froze still as he realized that fingers were pressing against his wind pipe, not hard enough to cut his breathing but definitely enough to make his survival instinct kick in. A man like him didn't live long if he wasn't careful and aware of his surroundings, even while sleeping. His heart picked up speed, a hint of fear pinching his insides. Not that there was any real threat; Naruto would've been able to grab Sasuke's hand and wrench it away anytime, and now he would have the element of surprise on his side. However, he didn't want to go and test that theory.
Not giving himself much time to think about it, he let out a soft groan and rolled over to his back. The blonde let his eyes flutter half open, their gaze remaining unfocused as he stared at Sasuke's direction. The hand was immediately gone from his neck and Naruto sighed in relief, hoping that Sasuke would think of it only as a sound of him waking up. Other than that the raven wasn't moving, and Naruto wasn't sure if he should be happy or worried about that. Right now he was a bit of both.
"Mmh? Sa... suke?" he croaked, doing his best to make his voice hoarse like it often was when he had just woken up.
The reply he got was soft, almost inaudible.
"Yeah?"
Naruto felt a slight frown crossing his face, but he didn't comment the way Sasuke didn't sound the slightest bit sleepy. It was almost like he hadn't slept a second that night.
The silence stretched out, a cry of some night animal breaking it after a moment. They listened carefully to the sounds of the night, Rayo's huffing making Naruto grin lazily. That mare sure had some temper. Quietly he cleared his throat and rubbed his eyes, and Sasuke shifted as the blonde slowly sat up, staring at the other man under the bright moonlight.
"Couldn't sleep, huh?" Naruto asked goodnaturedly, watching Sasuke's face. The pale skin was almost glowing under the light, and even if Naruto couldn't make anything out of the dark eyes under his bangs, he could feel them studying him.
After a moment of what almost felt like hesitation, Sasuke gave a curt nod and then shrugged. His eyes never left Naruto's face as he made a move to get up, something in his posture screaming of discomfort.
Immediately Naruto's hand shot out and grabbed his arm, holding the raven still. As soon as his fingers had wrapped around the pale arm he felt stupid, not knowing why he had done so. The blonde sure hadn't meant to hold Sasuke here, but for some reason, seeing the raven attempting to get away from him had made him react instinctively.
"Don't", he chocked out, the hold he had of Sasuke's arm tightening.
The midnight black eyes turned to look down at the fingers before returning to Naruto's face, meeting the other ones that were now dark blue and gleaming oddly. It was likely caused by the moonlight, but it made Sasuke feel a bit uncomfortable.
"Don't what?" he asked, his voice blank.
Naruto blinked slowly, trying to come up with at least a decent answer. He didn't want to sound like a complete idiot in Sasuke's ears, knowing that the raven still didn't think too much of him. But thinking too hard never got him anywhere, so he had to settle with voicing the truth.
"Don't go."
The raven shifted, his hair catching and reflecting the moonlight in a way that made Naruto crave to touch it.
"It's foolish of you to think I'd stay either", Sasuke answered slowly, gently prying Naruto's fingers off his arm. He didn't move, however, as he watched the other man and then turned to look away at their horses' direction.
Naruto swallowed, trying to ignore the way his throat had tightened. For some reason he had the feeling that Sasuke didn't meant this night only when he talked about staying or leaving, and knowing that made the blonde a little anxious.
"I know", he finally murmured, shaking his head as he placed his hands in his lap.
His words brought Sasuke's eyes back to him, and for a moment the raven remained silent, just watching Naruto with an unreadable look in his eyes. Then he slowly stood up and brushed dirt off his clothes before giving Naruto one last look.
"I have something I need to do when we get to Leaf Creek, so we'd better hurry up tomorrow", the young man muttered, making it clear that he had no interest to continue their previous conversation. Then he turned around and walked over to his blanket, lying down to sleep again.
Naruto watched him go, feeling oddly restless as he thought Sasuke's words over. He had known that the raven wasn't going to stay with him for forever, and he could only assume that as soon as they were done with whoever Sasuke wanted to kill, he would be on his own again. What the other would do Naruto couldn't even guess, but the raven had probably everything planned already, so he didn't feel too worried. Just... lonely.
Not wanting to think about it any longer, Naruto dropped his head back to the not-pillow and glared tamely at Sasuke's direction.
"Don't you order me around, bastard", was the last thing he murmured before sleep took him.
The next morning Naruto was feeling slightly uncomfortable as they packed up and continued their journey to the town. It didn't bother him as much is probably should, because being uncomfortable was nothing new when he was around Sasuke, so the blonde just ignored the feeling and relaxed in the saddle, imperceptibly keeping an eye on the other man.
Sasuke didn't look much different to the previous day, but there were dark shadows under his eyes, telling a clear story of the amount of sleep the raven had gotten last night. He didn't look tense though, and Naruto felt a smile pulling his lips as he realized Sasuke was starting to feel at ease with him around. Nothing that had happened last night didn't seem to concern the raven, and briefly Naruto wondered if he was just overreacting to their odd conversation but he couldn't shake off the feeling that there had been a lot behind Sasuke's words back then.
It had been almost a warning.
Naruto shook his head slightly, Sasuke's eyes immediately catching the movement and turning to give him a glance with arched brows.
"What is it?" the dark-haired man asked with unreadable voice. There was no real interest behind the question, he was trying to be polite, a good companion for the rest of the ride.
Naruto mulled over the question for a moment and then decided it didn't need an answer. Sasuke wasn't interested for real, and he didn't really have an answer anyway. The blonde took a better hold of Whirl's reins and adjusted his position in the saddle before deciding to change the subject completely.
"So...", he drawled slowly, turning to give Sasuke a good look, his eyes searching for the dark ones.
"Who exactly are you hunting?"
Sasuke's reaction honestly surprised the bounty hunter. The man tensed to the point where Rayo started taking nervous sidesteps, tossing her head as if to trying to tell her rider to calm down. The obsidian eyes turned away from Naruto, a hard look in them, and the blonde watched as a cold mask set to Sasuke's face, leaving all his emotions and thoughts hidden from the other man. As Naruto glanced down, he noticed that Sasuke's hands were clutching the reins hard enough to make his knuckles white, and suddenly he realized that there had to be something deeply personal behind this.
The raven didn't look like he was going to answer, and as the silence stretched Naruto came to the conclusion that he would be given no answer. He waited yet another moment and then decided to give up, a slightly irritated scowl crossing his face.
"Fine, you can k-"
"I suppose you have heard of Black Weasel?"
The suddenness of the answer broke Naruto's concentration and it took him a moment to process what Sasuke had said. For some reason, the raven tended to cut him off quite often, almost as if he was enjoying the way he could make Naruto silent. He rarely answered Naruto's question when the blonde was silent, but as soon as Naruto opened his mouth to speak the raven started as well, making him shut up like a good boy. Perhaps it made the raven feel like he was in control of the situation somehow, but it was starting to piss Naruto off.
And then the blonde realized what Sasuke had actually said and his mouth fell open, eyes wide as he gaped at Sasuke.
"Black Weasel?" he choked out, unable to believe what he had just heard. Naruto had known that Sasuke was slightly off his rocker, but this was completely unheard of.
"You can't be serious! You're going get yourself killed! That's just-"
"Shut up", Sasuke snapped and kept his eyes away from Naruto.
But for once, Naruto refused to obey.
"I won't!" he snarled, guiding Whirl closer to Rayo.
"I'm serious, Sasuke! You might be a good shooter and everything, but Black Weasel is... Even higher reward than Rattlesnake! He will kill you before you get close enough to even aim at him."
Sasuke tensed even further, giving Naruto a cold glare, but he didn't say anything else.
That only infuriated Naruto even more. He could almost smell the silent confidence oozing from the raven, and he couldn't believe the man was capable of being that arrogant. Sure, Sasuke had killed Rattlesnake, but Naruto had always thought that it had been just a lucky shot and not because the raven was somehow skilled. The Snake had just kept Sasuke so close that it had been easy to strike, but the same surely wouldn't apply to Black Weasel. That man was something entirely different.
Naruto's fists clenched as he stared at Sasuke, trying to desperately understand what was going on in the other's head. No matter what kind of grudge the man held, going after Black Weasel would be a suicide for someone like him. Good shooter or not, Sasuke would be no match for that man, and seeing that the raven simply refused to accept that fact made Naruto want to punch him in the face.
His shoulders tense, Naruto rode Whirl right next to Rayo, ignoring the way the mare immediately huffed and puffed and started taking shorter steps, threatening to kick the other horse.
"Sasuke, be reasonable", the blonde spat through his gritted teeth, doing his best to keep his cool.
"He'll kill you, you know he will. That man is a cold-blooded murderer, he won't even let you see him before he shoots you. You just ran away from Rattlesnake! You're a free man now, don't you get it? Why do you want to run to your death like that?" Naruto hadn't realized how loud his voice had gotten before he yelled the last word. He clamped his mouth shut after that, giving Sasuke a glare that would've made a lesser man shiver and reach for his gun.
To Sasuke, however, it seemed to mean nothing. He just shifted in the saddle a little as Rayo started dancing away from Whirl and put back her ears in warning, but his eyes slowly turned to Naruto.
Seeing the cold, empty look in them, the bounty hunter could barely keep from flinching. He had opened his mouth to yell some more, but that look made him close it again, leaving him suddenly feeling uncomfortable. Naruto had the feeling that he had said something he shouldn't, but he couldn't guess what it had been; not before Sasuke spoke again.
"He will." The smooth voice was full of the same annoying confidence that marked his appearance most of the time, and the single-minded determination peeked through in a way that made Naruto blink.
Had he been ready to let go of his anger, it might've ended at that, but being as hard-headed as he was, Naruto refused to give up. Having Whirl walk closer to Rayo again, the blonde frowned and refused to look away as Sasuke held his gaze firmly.
"Will what?" he growled, his hands still itching to wrap around that irritatingly pale and slender throat to throttle the other man.
Sasuke just stared at him for a moment before a hint of the familiar smirk pulled at his lips and he shook his head slowly, as if silently laughing at Naruto's stupidity.
"Let me see him", he explained as if it should've been obvious.
Naruto couldn't believe his ears. He had known that Sasuke was a bit too sure of his abilities, but this was going beyond measure.
"Are you an idiot?" he growled, not even noticing the way Rayo jumped to the side at the sound.
"You won't be going there. I won't let him kill you, Sasuke, and if you go after him, he will. I really don't know why you even want to do it, but now that you're free, you're going to live your life and-"
"Don't you understand?" Sasuke hissed suddenly, his eyes growing even colder. Despite Rayo's attempts to get away, he forced the horse as close to Whirl as she could go, glaring daggers at Naruto.
"It is why I ran away. I don't want anything else, I don't need the 'freedom' you seem so fond of. I only need to find him and kill him, even if I am to die with him. That's the only reason I ran away from Orochimaru."
Naruto froze, staring at Sasuke with incredulous eyes. Suddenly it all made sense, everything just clicked in his head. The way Sasuke seemed somehow disconnected to the everyday things they did, the man's lack of need to be social, his way of brushing Naruto off and seeming to care only about getting to Leaf Creek. Earlier he had thought it was because Sasuke wanted to sleep in a real bed and eat at least decent food again, but now he realized it was probably because he wanted to look for a trail to get to Weasel.
"I won't let you." The words slipped past Naruto's lips before he had time to think them over, surprising both of them, but for different reasons.
Much to Naruto's shock, Sasuke barked a dry laugh and then shook his head, the long fingers already curling around his gun.
"You can't stop me, Naruto", the raven informed the other man shortly, giving Naruto another look with those dark, dead eyes of his.
"I won't give you chance to do that." His hand tightened its hold of the gun.
The blue eyes widened and Naruto brought his hand to his own revolver, ready to draw if the situation called for it. There was something very hostile in Sasuke's voice and in the way he appeared so prepared to draw the gun. Naruto didn't think he would actually do it, at least not right now, but seeing the other so serious made his anger deflate rapidly.
"It's foolish of you to think I'd stay either."
Sasuke's earlier words flashed through Naruto's mind and he shook his head sharply, not wanting to dwell in those again. He knew it already, in the name of God, that Sasuke wasn't going to stay with him for long, but he didn't need to be reminded of that again!
"So you say", the blonde finally muttered, letting Whirl pull away from Rayo. The mare kept stepping nervously for a moment but then relaxed, glaring at Whirl's direction every now and then.
To Naruto, the rest of the day passed in uneasy silence. He never bothered staying angry for long, but Sasuke behavior was irking him even when they got ready to go to sleep. They hadn't spoken much during the rest of the day, in fact they both had kept the interaction to minimum, and even as Naruto cooked them a simple dinner neither of the men said a thing.
It was as if they were trying to keep from fighting, knowing that if one of them said something, it would eventually lead them back to talking about Sasuke's goals. With silent determination in his eyes, Naruto watched as the raven pulled the blanket over himself and rolled over to his side, facing away from Naruto and the fire.
A quiet sigh escaped the blonde's lips and he shook his head, turning his gaze back to the fire. He had already decided that there was no way he'd let Sasuke go and do what he wanted, killing Black Weasel wasn't something the raven was capable of, even with help from him. It just wasn't going to happen, because Naruto refused to save anyone just to see them running head-first to their death.
With that in mind, the tanned man wrapped his blanket around himself and closed his eyes, hoping that the night would help him clear his head.
Naruto clasped a hand over his mouth to stifle a yawn and glanced at the sun, trying to calculate the time they had before it would set again and let the darkness fall. They had already passed a sign that told them they were on the right track, and it would be only half an hour or so until they reached the town. Then there would be the search for a hotel room and then, as Naruto had planned, a visit to a bath house. He knew that Sasuke was already suffering from the lack of washing, and even if Naruto found it mostly ridiculous that the other man insisted on washing at least his face and neck every day (wasting their water supplies greatly), he knew better than to try to take away his daily wash. The fit Sasuke had thrown the last time had been enough.
Another yawn tried to make it's way past his lips and Naruto let it out, giving Sasuke a brief look. The man was tense again, and the blonde supposed it was because of his thighs; those blisters had to hurt for real, even when bandaged.
Clearing his throat, Naruto brought his hand to the scarf tied around his neck and tugged at it, preparing to pull it over his cheeks again. Coming from Leaf Creek or not, he preferred keeping his identity hidden even there; it wasn't like there weren't any outlaws passing by, especially in the shadier parts of the town.
"We'll be in Leaf Creek before nightfall", the bounty hunter muttered, not caring if Sasuke heard him or not. The pale man had been ignoring him the whole day, much thanks to the fight yesterday, but Naruto had noticed the way the man was staring at the old ranch in the distance. They were far from it still, far enough that Naruto's stories about the ghost weren't scaring the blonde, but for some reason Sasuke kept staring at the buildings, lost in thought.
He didn't acknowledge Naruto's words now either, and after a moment of looking the blonde turned away from Sasuke, yanking the scarf back to its place. When it securely covered his nose and the whisker-like scars he huffed and frowned, thoughtfully patting Whirl. It was always good to come back to Leaf Creek, he still considered the town as his home, but it was always unnerving as well with too much people recognizing him. Sasuke probably didn't have that problem and for a moment Naruto almost envied him for being free to go where he wanted, without having to be afraid of someone shooting him at his back. Then he realized that Sasuke had actually been free for just a couple of days and that he wasn't going to use his freedom at all, and his brows knit together in annoyance. That idiot.
Leaf Creek wasn't as spotless and polished as Soundsville had been. The buildings were a lot older, some of them had had lots of repairing done during the years and there were signs of recent shootings, but that was nothing strange in a town that big. The sun was looming just above the horizon, giving the buildings a strange yet fascinating golden color, hiding the largest scratches and holes on the walls, and Sasuke found himself taking in the scenery, everything looking just so different and fascinating. He hadn't been out of Soundsville in years, and Leaf Creek was a lot larger than he remembered. Everything was just so new and had he been alone, the raven would've likely gaped a little, but now he couldn't. Not with Naruto.
The said bounty hunter didn't pay much attention to Sasuke as he guided them through the town. A strange but welcome feeling of familiarity had bloomed in Naruto's chest when they passed the first buildings and entered the city, and he cherished it as long as it lasted. The town didn't look much different to the last time he'd been here, even the people looked the same, and a relieved smile crossed Naruto's face as they rode past a bank. He had some money saved there and it would be the first place he visited the next morning. Now he just wanted to get to a certain hotel.
He lead Sasuke through the town, keeping his head low to stay away from focus. There was a lot of strangers passing through Leaf Creek every day so a couple of travelers didn't attract much attention from the townsfolk save for some kids that stared at them from behind a corner of an old-looking store building. Naruto waved at them and they let out matching squeals before scurrying away and the blonde chuckled, watching them go. Other than that, they were hardly given even occasional glances until they were at the hotel he had been looking for.
Naruto jumped off the saddle with ease and patted Whirl affectionately, trying not to stare as Sasuke dismounted in a way that could only be described as painful. The raven was obviously tense and his muscles had to be sore, and Naruto sincerely hoped that the planned visit to a bath house would help him with those problems. He wasn't sure how the blisters would react to hot water though, but they couldn't really get worse so it didn't matter. Giving Sasuke one more look the blonde pursed his lips and then headed to the stable behind the hotel. It was a small but comfy one, and from past experience Naruto knew that the place kept a night guard to look after the horses.
Sasuke eyed the hotel as he passed it, stopping for a moment to look through the window to a brightly lit saloon. He could hear loud singing from building, the clink of glasses and bottles accompanied with someone playing a piano quite decently. Briefly the raven wondered if this saloon had dancer girls performing tonight but immediately dismissed the question as a ridiculous one. Of course it had, and it shouldn't matter to him. He just hadn't visited any saloon except Snake's Lair in years, and he could already tell it would be weird to sit there as a customer and just enjoy himself when he was used to sitting with Orochimaru at one of his tables and playing his part as the Snake's bondwoman.
Rayo poked him in the shoulder, and glancing down Sasuke noticed his knuckles were white from clutching the reins. Sighing irritably he loosened his hold just a bit and almost reached out to pet the horse before remembering that his hand would likely meet some sharp teeth. Giving the mare a glare instead, Sasuke rolled his shoulders and neck, satisfied to hear some cracking and popping from the stiff joints.
The stable doors opened in front of him and Naruto disappeared inside with Whirl, leaving Sasuke behind for a moment. The raven used the opportunity and stopped, glancing around. It was obvious that Naruto came here often, he was so at ease with his surroundings that it made the raven slightly jealous. Despite living with Orochimaru for so long, he had never felt like he belonged to Soundsville, not like Naruto belonged here. He hadn't felt so comfortable even when he'd still lived with his family at their ranch, and slowly watching Naruto was making him realize how much he had actually lost during the long years under Rattlesnake's command.
Had he run away earlier, he might've had a completely different life, one away from Orochimaru and his demands and the dancing and everything he was used to. Sasuke wasn't sure if this type of life he was living at the moment would've suited him, traveling was weird after staying still for so long, but he knew he would've had to run away from Orochimaru's men for a couple of years anyway. Perhaps he could've escaped to Mexico and perfect his Spanish, but now it was too late. He was old enough to do what he had sworn to do years ago.
"Sasuke? You coming?"
The shouted question shook Sasuke from his thoughts and he quickly made his way into the stable, his sore muscles protesting loudly. A hot bath crossed his mind briefly, but the raven immediately dismissed the idea as an impossible one. It wasn't like they'd have a bath waiting here.
Half an hour passed before they finally entered the saloon and Naruto rushed off to get them a room. The man behind the counter looked happy and surprised to see him, and they appeared to be chatting animatedly for a moment before Naruto got their keys and returned to Sasuke, giving him a dazzling smile that made something flip unpleasantly in the raven's stomach. Sasuke blamed the feeling on hunger, knowing full well that it wasn't lack of food that had caused the odd feeling, and then followed Naruto into their room.
Two beds, a dresser, a table and a couple of chairs, a carpet on the floor and a large window made it appear a lot like the last real room they had slept in. But despite the similarity of the furnishing, this room had something a lot more comfortable to it, almost a homely atmosphere. Sasuke watched with the slightest smirk on his face as Naruto stomped over to one of the beds and flopped onto it, legs and arms sprawled as he lay on the bed, eyes shut, muttering something about 'good ole Leaf Creek'.
Figuring that they wouldn't be going anywhere, Sasuke took a step closer to the other bed, only to stop as Naruto cracked open an eye.
"Don't you get lazy yet, m'lady. We're going out now, I'll take you somewhere nice", the blonde drawled with low voice, peering at Sasuke curiously to see his reaction.
Warning bells immediately dinged in the raven's head as he heard Naruto's words and instinctively he took a step back, glaring at the other man. He wasn't so sure what he and Naruto considered as a nice place to go to would be anything alike, because he sure as God wasn't going to spend his night at a brothel, no matter what Naruto wanted. Not that he really believed in God though, he had always found the old Indian beliefs more easily approachable, but that was beside the point.
"Where are we going?" Sasuke asked in warning, his brows knit tightly together. The sly look on Naruto's face was making him suddenly feel very self-conscious and he felt like throwing his boot at Naruto to make him spill his guts.
Naruto's smile widened even more, making his eyes squint, and he shook his head. He had planned to keep this a secret until they were at the bath house, but since Sasuke looked like he might actually stab him with something unless Naruto told him, the bounty hunter gave in.
"Bath house", he replied shortly with very self-satisfied voice.
The look of utter shock, delight and relief that crossed Sasuke's face made it impossible for Naruto to hold back a laugh, and after a long second a howl of pain echoed in the room as a heavy boot hit him in the head.
Naruto could feel anticipation boiling in the pit of his stomach as he pushed open the bath house's door and stepped inside, closely followed by Sasuke. He had been a regular of this place for a while already, some years to be precise, and by now he had started to get little discounts every now and then. The reason why he favored this specific bath house was simple; he could get a bath, a girl and a meal at once, and the price was fairly decent even for a traveler like him.
Grinning reassuringly, Naruto glanced over his shoulder at his companion, hoping that Sasuke would enjoy everything the house had to offer. The price would be the same even if one component was left out, but the bounty hunter couldn't imagine anyone saying no to a good meal or a pretty girl to spend the night with, even Sasuke couldn't be that stuck-up.
"Ho, but isn't that Naruto?" A flat male voice emerged from behind the counter, and a bunch of gray hair appeared to the view.
"I thought you'd be away still at least a month or two." The man didn't sound the slightest bit interested, and even as he spoke, his eyes darted to a book he held in his hand.
Sasuke eyed the man suspiciously, the whole place starting to suddenly feel rather shady. He hadn't noticed the man at all before he had spoken, and now that he was visible the raven wasn't sure what to think. The gray hair was one odd thing, but what drew his attention the most was the black eyepatch the man was wearing, and the end of a long vertical scar peeking under it. Scars and injuries weren't that unusual, but something in this man felt off. Sitting there behind the counter he looked rather harmless, especially while reading that book, but something in his posture suggested that he was nothing but harmless. The eyepatch spoke of the same thing, a rough past and experience in some sort of fighting, and Sasuke instinctively tensed, a frown crossing his face. As he stepped forward, the man's only visible eye turned to look at him, a hint of interest flickering in the otherwise lazy stare.
"I see you've brought someone along." The voice was still disinterested to the point of sounding bored, but Sasuke couldn't bring himself to relax. There was something unnerving in the way the man kept staring at him, it felt almost like he was about to be sold to slavery and this man was the one contemplating buying him. The raven also couldn't shake of the haunting feeling of familiarity, it was as if he he should've recognized the man from somewhere. Perhaps he was a former outlaw that had visited Snake's Lair at some point, perhaps even a former partner of Rattlesnake at some point of his life? It wasn't usual for some lesser criminals to settle down to have a real job after years of crimes if they weren't hunted by bounty hunters.
A touch of a warm hand brushing against his own made Sasuke almost jump, and he threw a glare at Naruto, embarrassed at being surprised so easily.
"Don't worry about him", Naruto murmured quickly, low enough for only Sasuke to hear, and then he had bounced to the counter to talk to the man.
Sasuke watched their interaction with mild interest, finding it funny how Naruto was so excited and practically flailing his arms as he spoke, while the gray-haired man remained bored, giving short replies and looking like he could pass out at any second. And all the time the man kept giving Sasuke quick but sharp glances, keeping the raven on edge. After what felt like an eternity to Sasuke, Naruto finally dug a few coins from his pockets and handed them to the man who waved them on.
"You know the place. Show him around", the man stated before slouching back in his chair and burying his nose to the book.
Naruto snickered but said nothing, waving Sasuke to follow him. The raven did, with one more wary look directed at the man behind the counter, but this time it wasn't returned. Although as he followed Naruto though the door on left, he had the unpleasant feeling of someone watching him with a bit too much interest. Those looks had been an everyday thing in the Lair, but now he looked nothing like back then and the man should've had no reason to stare at him.
"...is just brilliant of him, to keep this place up, I bet he has so much customers he can't even keep up with all of them, but then again, this is the best place in town and..."
Sasuke tuned the other man out, closing the door behind him. They had entered a small room with a few stools in the corner and a pile of sacks on the floor. The raven had no idea what they were going to do with those or when they would actually get to the bath, but he wasn't going to ask. That was, until he turned his eyes back to Naruto, to find the man already half naked.
Unable to hold back a tiny gasp, Sasuke turned to look away, feeling suddenly utterly uncomfortable. It wasn't that he hadn't seen a naked man before, nothing like that, but something made him feel oddly bashful in Naruto's presence. Still, knowing that it was expected, he started to slowly peel off his vest and then the shirt, giving in to the urge to glance at Naruto every now and then.
The blonde was soon out of his clothes save for the union suit he wore under everything else, and the orange color made Sasuke grimace. It suited that idiot, though, and he couldn't bring himself to say anything about it, it would be the same as admitting that he'd been staring. He himself didn't have anything like the union suit, only the shirt and vest that were now folded on one of the stools, and the pants and boots that he had yet to remove. For some reason he didn't feel good about getting out of them at all, he knew that even if the blisters looked better already they still hadn't healed, and he already dreaded the possibility of having to turn down someone offering to wash his back. Sasuke would've preferred to bath alone, but it wasn't likely to happen.
"Hey, are you sleeping upright? Hurry up and get out of those so we can go!" Naruto sounded slightly surprised, and immediately after turning to look at him the raven knew he'd made a mistake.
The bounty hunter was like nothing he'd ever seen before. The man was tan from his head to waist, and there his skin color lightened a little, as if he'd been riding without a shirt a lot. His muscular frame made Sasuke's own body look like young boy's in comparison, and he was afraid to let his gaze trail any lower than the male's chest. There were some blond curls on the tan skin but not as much as the raven would've guessed, and as he slowly tuned to look up at Naruto's eyes he couldn't help blushing lightly at the knowing grin on the blonde's face.
"Impressive, huh?" Naruto asked, still grinning wolfishly at the other man. He patted his chest affectionately and flexed his muscles, holding Sasuke's gaze all the time. He had the right to be proud of his body, after all, but then something went wrong. He wasn't quite sure what was happening, but the longer the raven stared at him the worse the weird tingling feeling inside him got, slowly dripping to his stomach from his chest and then even lower. That was when the blonde finally started to feel a bit uncomfortable, his body reacting in a very wrong way to Sasuke's staring. He had meant to only show off his muscles, but right now he almost hoped there was something else... something else to show. Naruto wasn't sure what he meant by that, but something was definitely wrong with him and he didn't like it, at all.
By the time something unexpectedly twitched between his legs, the grin had frozen to his face, looking nothing more but a forced smile painted to his face by an amateur artist, and Naruto gulped, fighting the urge to squirm.
"I... uh..." He took a step back, towards the door that would lead him to the bathing room.
"I'm... going ahead. Take your time." He practically stuttered in his haste, grabbing his clothes and throwing them to one of the sacks on the stool, then taking the sack with him as he practically ran out of the room.
Sasuke was left staring with a confused frown crossing his face. He wasn't sure what exactly had just happened, but he couldn't shake off a feeling that something had went wrong. He had just stood there, staring back at Naruto, and slowly the smile had started to die on the other's face, making the man look like a twisted statue. Then Naruto's face had become red and he'd stepped back, starting to stutter something about going and then he was gone.
The raven-haired young man blinked and shook his head, starting to slowly take off his pants. He should've probably felt better now that he was alone in the room, but that little incident with Naruto just now had made him feel like skipping the bath entirely. But the need to clean up won, of course, and soon enough he was out of his pants and boots and all his clothes were neatly packed into a sack. Sasuke wasn't sure why that had to be done, but following Naruto's example he walked out of the room, carrying the sack and his boots with him.
The door led to a room full of bath tubs. Full, in this context, meant maybe 15 of those, all placed neatly in line next to the back wall of the room. There wasn't much else here, but there was warm mist in the air and some clothes sacks near the door Sasuke had just used. Out of all the bath tubs maybe half were currently being used, and the raven gave a quick glance to the men sitting in them. They all looked pretty much the same, weather-beaten and down-to-earth type of men from all age groups, and then of course Naruto. The tub next to the blonde was filled with steaming hot water, and as soon as Naruto spotted Sasuke, he pointed at the tub, carefully keeping his eyes away from the raven's frame.
Sasuke tried to ignore the slightly disturbing feeling caused by Naruto refusing to look at him, and then left his clothes sack near the others. He didn't need to take ten steps to get to his tub, but that was enough to make him tense up again. He was naked, surrounded by other men he didn't know a thing about, and he didn't have a single weapon close to hand, save for the tiny knife he kept hidden in his hand as he walked over to the bath tub.
The water was hot, almost too hot for him, but with an angry hiss Sasuke slowly sank down, the water surrounding him like liquid silk. As he leaned down and relaxed, a deep groan of pleasure escaped his lips and he closed his eyes, cherishing the feeling of warmth. The lack of hygiene was what had mostly irked him when they were traveling; he was used to washing his hands and face at least once every day, even cold water could do, and he always took a bath once or twice every week. Orochimaru had been easily able to afford that much waste.
Naruto gulped, sinking to the warm water until only his eyes were visible. That groan had sent unwelcome tingling down his spine and straight towards his groin, and he couldn't deny that he might be getting the slightest bit aroused. He blamed it on the fact that his body knew what was coming after the bath, he had already mentioned Kakashi which girl he would prefer to spend his night with, and now it was just... preparing. He hadn't spent a night with anyone in a long while and it was obviously getting to him. Stupid Sasuke and his girly face and slim body and all that.
Sasuke preferred keeping quiet as he bathed, and therefore he was just relieved to hear Naruto talking with some other man in the bathtub next to his. He listened with one ear to the conversation, finding it mostly just boring. The stranger was telling Naruto something about a small fire that had occurred in Leaf Creek some weeks ago and then mentioned that there had been lots of strange people on the move lately, shady-looking men passing through the town and keeping everything to themselves. No people had been shot lately, but the sheriff had had one man hanged around a week ago.
The names he listed didn't tell anything to Sasuke and after a while he leaned his head backwards and sank deeper to the tub, enjoying the water when it was still warm. He could just feel his muscles relaxing and the dirt being washed off as he slowly rubbed his skin with his hands. The raven even dunked his head to the water, washing the dust away from his hair. The knife had been dropped to the bottom of the tub since it appeared that weapons weren't allowed in the room and Sasuke refused to obey that command entirely. As long as the knife was kept hidden it would hurt no-one unless he accidentally cut his toe to it or something.
Naruto, on the other hand, was feeling anything but relaxed. He didn't dare to look at Sasuke, fearing the way his body might react to it, and hoping that the man next to him would keep talking for forever so he would never have to face Sasuke again. The blonde felt so weird, so... so dirty for being like this, for the way his body got so warm and tingling every time he as much as thought about looking at Sasuke's direction. He hadn't even seen the guy naked, for the sake of gracious God, and still...
Suddenly it felt like a light bulb went off in his head, and Naruto could hardly keep himself from jumping up. That had to be it! He still hadn't seen Sasuke entirely naked, and since he had first been told that Sasuke was a woman, he still hadn't gotten entirely over that image. As soon as he got a good look at the other's manhood, that would be it; his own body would start acting like it was supposed to again.
Smiling triumphantly, Naruto waited until the older man finished his story about a fight that had broken in the nearby store last week, and then turned to look at Sasuke, only to freeze as his eyes caught a glimpse of the man.
The raven looked alluring, to say the least. He was flushed sweetly from the heat, his lips were slightly agape and eyes closed, yet a faint look of pleasure was still lingering on his face. Sasuke had leaned his head back and it made his neck arch beautifully, the wet hair hanging over the edge of the bath tub and plastering to the man's face. Naruto reasoned that it was the bath, making him look like that, but he couldn't help the jolt that ran through his body.
And just to make it worse, Sasuke seemed to sense his staring and cracked one eye open, giving Naruto a blank look. The bounty hunter felt his groin stirring a little more again, and encouraged by the feeling he jumped up, demanding someone to bring him a towel. In a short moment a young man ran to him and handed him an old-looking but clean towel and Naruto climbed off the tub, starting to dry himself off. He changed a few words with the towel boy and then nodded to Sasuke's direction before heading to the other side of the room.
The raven stared after him, wondering what had caused Naruto to leave so suddenly. There had been nothing to provoke such behavior, but for some reason the blonde had appeared a lot more tense and on edge lately, especially today. He was still loud and bold, but the way he refused to hold Sasuke's gaze for long was making the raven slightly worried. Had the blonde figured out too much about him, had it been too much to say he'd been here before? Something was definitely off, and he didn't like it.
His water was hardly lukewarm anymore when Sasuke finally got up, requesting a towel as well. He received one, and the same boy that had assisted Naruto before asked if he wanted his woman now or preferred a meal first. Looking absolutely disgusted, the raven refused to have any kind of nymph-du-prairie for the night and asked for the meal only. The towel boy gave him an odd look but nodded anyway and took Sasuke to a room where he could put his clothes back on.
An hour later he closed the bath house's door behind himself, feeling a lot better than he had before. He was clean, save for the dirty clothes he wore, and he had to admit a proper bed sounded inviting. That was, physically at least. Inside his head there was a small turmoil going on as he tried to reason with himself, trying to come up with reasons why he really didn't need to be pissed for Naruto abandoning him for a hooker. They were just traveling together, nothing more.
Yawning a little, Sasuke turned to walk towards their hotel, only to stop in his tracks after passing a couple of houses as he heard a low cough from a dark alley between the buildings.
He knew who it was without having to turn to look, but he turned anyway, his fingers curling around a knife that had slid to his hand from his sleeve and other hand slowly moving towards his gun, preparing to draw if the situation called for it.
"Now now, Sasuke, or should I say Raven, no need to get violent with me. I just want to talk."
Sasuke shook his head slowly and his eyes that had widened slightly at his previous name narrowed again as he seized the man up, taking slow steps backwards to the direction of their hotel.
"I have nothing to talk about with you", he growled and grabbed his gun as the man pushed himself away from the wall.
Seeing the motion, the man stopped again and lifted his hands slowly, showing that he held no weapons.
"I want to know what brings you here, why are you traveling with Foxface and..." The man seemed to hesitate slightly, but as he spoke his voice was almost mocking.
"What happened to your master?"
"He wasn't my master!" Sasuke snapped immediately, his hands starting to shake as he backed away. He had a bad feeling about the situation and his skin prickled in warning.
The man shook his head and sighed.
"I see, he truly is dead, then..." He glanced around, and that was when Sasuke's instincts to run kicked in.
"Capture him."
Too bad they were too late.
TBC
A/N: Thank you for reading, and please review!