A/N: Characters of Naruto are not mine. Pity. And the chapter was going to be a bit longer but it's still a good cliffhanger point. Been so busy I couldn't update on the weekend I wanted to. Next update should be after (if not on) New Years.

The Portrait From the Attic
Chapter 6

Sasuke was horny once again, to say the least, but at least this time he was coherent on his surroundings. After last time, he really didn't want to risk the chance of scaring Naruto into leaving him. The faint sting of his scratches against both his back and chest were enough to keep him from completely getting wasted. The house was dark except for the one window near the top, making him frown. He was pretty sure that was the attic window, and Naruto had been spending a lot of time up there. Did he forget to turn the light off before going to sleep?

Sasuke stumbled into the house and made his was down the hallway, sneering at the painting in the hallway. For no real reason, Sasuke hated the painting. He didn't mind the sketch since it looked so much like Naruto, minus the scars on his cheeks, but the painting... it bothered him. He never mentioned it to Naruto, but whenever he looked into the supposed Sai's eyes, he felt like he was being drawn into a dark hidden world.

He stumbled his way up the stairs, stopping by his room just to see if Naruto was sleeping. He frowned when he saw that the room was empty. So he made his way to the stairs that would lead to the attic, trying to figure out why Naruto would be up there.

Arriving to the top, he stopped and tried to make sense of what he was seeing. The attic was somewhat in shambles, as Naruto was just sitting there on the floor, holding two garments in each hand. Despite his unstable view, Sasuke could make out that Naruto looked confused and lost.

"Naru?" he called out.

Naruto looked up at him.

"What are you doing?"

Naruto looked back down at the garments. "Making... costumes?"

"Why?"

"I... for the party?"

Sasuke and Naruto stared at each other for a few seconds.

"Come to bed," Sasuke finally said, reaching out with one hand towards Naruto.

Naruto grabbed his hand and allowed himself to be pulled up. He silently followed Sasuke to their bedroom, looking around, his expression clearly stating that he wasn't sure where he was.

Sasuke helped Naruto change, sobering up as the time went on, realizing that Naruto was clearly not himself. Maybe being alone for long periods of time was bad for Naruto. But his fear that Naruto would just up and leave weighed heavily in his heart as he tried to talk himself into following through with his promise and buy a car for Naruto.

Laying down next to Naruto, he watched him as the other man fell asleep. Even then, he continued watch Naruto until his eyes began to burn for the need to sleep. His eyes were almost shut closed when a passing shadow caught his attention. His eyes snapped open for a moment and he could have sworn he saw a black mass swim in front of his eyes, following the contour of Naruto's cheek. He sat up and looked around but didn't see anything that would have caused that. Shaking his head, Sasuke settled back down and moved closer to Naruto. He shortly fell asleep, his arm draped around Sasuke's waist. He woke up briefly an hour later to a sharp stinging sensation on his arm. Rubbing at it, he looked around and saw nothing. Giving a huff, he settled back down and tried to fall asleep for a third time. He didn't notice the welts that rose in four straight lines on his skin.

X

The days went quickly for Sasuke and Naruto as the day of the party drew near. Because of the decorating, Naruto didn't have time to read Kushina's diary except for a few pages. From those pages he was able to understand that Kushina was just recently married to Sai when she began writing in her diary. It was almost like a cheesy romance, reading how she adored and worshipped the ground that Sai walked in. She spoke of how much of a gentle lover he was, how she loved it when he held her in his arms. How he was always so cold to people, but in the privacy of their house, his actions proved just how passionate he was. Several times she mentioned her brother, and how he seemed to be the only male friend Sai had. There seemed to be a touch of concern in what she wrote, wondering why Sai rarely sought the company of other gentlemen outside of work. She couldn't understand why he wasn't lonely for friends. Although at the same time she herself didn't seem lonely. She always had the company of her brother and of Sai. And due to her health, she would sleep for long periods of time.

But Naruto still wanted to keep reading, hoping for a deeper insight and understanding of the woman in the portrait.

He was a bit concerned of the sudden plague of blackouts he was suffering, and wondered if he should see a doctor. The times varied, but unlike before, they sometimes went longer and when he came too, Naruto discovered that he had done something during that time, or would be somewhere in the house with no recollection of how he got there. But he did his best to keep that a secret from Sasuke. He didn't want to worry him, especially as he seemed to get more stressed out as the company party drew near.

Meanwhile, Sasuke found himself keeping a close eye on Naruto. The night he had found him on the ground holding two outfits was alarming, although no where near as frightening as the time he had watched Naruto sleepwalk into the dense grass area and stop breathing for no apparent reason. And the blackouts seemed to have gotten worse. He wasn't sure if Naruto was aware of them, or if he was did he even know that Sasuke was aware of them? He had watched as Naruto blanked out and cleaned a room for almost half an hour before Naruto moved into another room and started having a conversation with an imaginary person. Shortly after than, he would move to another room, stand still for a bit, and then look around, completely confused. A couple times Sasuke approached him during this stage to ask if anything was wrong. Naruto would just smile at him and say that he lost track of time.

And now Sasuke wasn't sure what he should do. Concern for Naruto's well being had him come home straight after work several times. But the blackouts and the skittish nature that Naruto was developing also stressed him to the point of not wanting to go home. Sasuke found himself drinking more heavily on the days he stayed in town a couple times he stayed at a hotel. He would call home thinking that Naruto would really get on his case and would sometimes not get an answer or get a busy signal. When he finally got home, Naruto acted like he didn't even notice that Sasuke never made it home, which was both a relief and an annoyance to Sasuke.

But one thing he promised himself was that he would start looking for doctors after the party. Sasuke couldn't risk that the black outs were associated with some type of brain tumor or some mental health issue. He wasn't sure if he would be able to handle that.

He only hoped that Naruto wouldn't suffer through a blackout during the party.

X

Naruto felt nervous as he looked at the calender. The party was for tomorrow night, and although the room looked fabulous, he was afraid something would go wrong. He thought back to the past few days as he prepared some of the cold cuts, trying to get as much of the food preparation out of the way so that he would only have to worry about the hot foods the next day. He hadn't suffered, as far as he knew, a blackout at all this day, but he was positive he kept seeing someone standing in his peripheral vision almost all day long. Sometimes it looked male, and sometimes female. The figure would flitter in and out of sight, depending on where he was in the house.

But he refused to tell Sasuke, afraid of what the man might say to him. It was bad enough after the yard incident and the attic incident, he really didn't need to add that he was seeing things on a daily basis. Nor was he brave enough to tell Sasuke that some nights were a complete blur to him. There were at least a couple nights that he swore Sasuke did not come home, but at the same time his body felt the phantom touches he usually had after a night of gentle love making from Sasuke. Which if Sasuke was not home, it would be impossible for his body to have those phantom memories, unless it was only an extremely vivid memory.

Plus he was fairly certain that although he did not see Sasuke, he felt a presence behind him in the bed. On those nights, Naruto felt like he couldn't move, and while the first night had him scared, just feeling Sasuke behind him put him at ease. He would fall asleep and wake up the next day, Sasuke already gone. Or at least that is what he can assume. Although for some reason Sasuke seemed to go to work in the same clothes that he wore the day before on those nights. Unless he never came home. And then Naruto was left to question who was he feeling instead of Sasuke. And that thought process made his head hurt and he refused to think too much about it, preferring to believe that Sasuke just wanted to minimize laundry by wearing the same outfit a couple times a week.

On top of that, Naruto was a bit hurt that he hadn't heard a single word from Kakashi. Even though he didn't have time to read Kushina's diary, he was hoping that he would at least get a call from the eccentric man and listen to things that he had read from Rey's journal.

That night Sasuke came home early to help him finish minor details.

"I called several times," Sasuke stated, sounding a bit annoyed.

Naruto frowned. "But I didn't hear the phone go off."

"Yeah, well, it's happened a couple times this week and I think I figured out why."

"Oh?"

"You've disconnected the base phone."

"What?"

"The phone wire wasn't in the jack, you dumb ass. You're just lucky there hasn't been an emergency."

"But..." Naruto was confused. "But I never go near the base phone during the day! I'm always using the other handsets or the corded phone in the kitchen."

"Whatever. Just make sure you don't leave it unconnected again."

Naruto nodded, glancing up as he tried to remember when he might have accidentally disconnected the main phone line.

Despite that minor argument, the rest of the evening went smoothly, and Sasuke treated him gently in bed.

"Thanks for agreeing to dress as a girl for me," Sasuke murmured to him after they had sex.

Naruto only let out a muffled sound in response, his body still slightly shaking from his orgasm. When Sasuke was gentle with him, he felt nothing but exquisite pleasure and he was usually unable to form a coherent thought. He turned his head to face Sasuke, his face serious but flushed. "Anything to help you," he said.

Sasuke gave him a small smile and brushed his fingers across Naruto's cheek. Naruto closed his eyes and quickly fell asleep.

Sasuke frowned and turned onto his back. He knew he was being unfair, but he couldn't help it. He would do what needed to be done to advance his career and make it easier to maintain Naruto by his side.

He gave a quick start when he thought he saw dark eyes staring at him from above. Rubbing his eyes with one hand he looked up at the ceiling again and could only make out spots that faded as his eyes adjusted. Frowning to himself again, Sasuke pulled up the covers, turned to his side, and closed his eyes.

Both Naruto and Sasuke were unaware of Naruto's hair briefly moving as if a gentle breeze swept through the tightly enclosed room.

X

Sasuke glared at the image in front of him. The coat fit fine, but he wasn't too thrilled about looking like the man in the portrait. It wasn't until that morning did Sasuke realize he hadn't bothered looking for a costume for the party.

Naruto told him that if he was dressing up as a girl in olden times, then he might as well match and really look like a couple.

Sasuke debated if he should slick his hair down or leave it like he normally wore it. Then he decided that with the eye mask he would be wearing it really didn't matter. He ran his fingers through his hair and ruffled it a bit more in agitation. If he had to wear the stupid outfit, he wasn't going to look completely like that old bastard.

"Naruto, are you done yet?" he called out, glancing at his watch and seeing that there was only an hour before the party officially started.

The food was all done and lined up buffet style to one side of the ball room, chairs lined on the other side with a few round tables. The floor was waxed and polished to look shiny but to not be slippery.

"Yes, dear," came a soft voice from nearby.

Sasuke turned to look and spotted a blushing woman staring at him.

"N...Naruto?"

"Do I look bad?" Naruto asked, feeling very self conscious about his appearance.

"Uh... No..." Sasuke actually looked stunned.

Naruto glanced at himself through the reflection of the window, feeling a small sense of deja vu as he watched his uncertain blue eyes watching him. The wig fit perfectly and it was slightly messy, making it look even more natural. His lips shimmered with pink lip gloss and his face looked like there was no makeup on except for the faint trace of blush. The dress that he made fit perfectly, and whatever he sewed into the bodice made him look like he had small but shapely breasts, a thin waist, and hips that gave him a curve.

He looked like a nervous lady in waiting, not quite a princess but still regal looking.

Sasuke forgot all about his earlier grumblings and went to Naruto. He smiled gently and held out his hands. "You look pretty. I'm sure you'll be making a lot of real women jealous."

Naruto sighed. "That's not what I really want to do."

"I know, dobe. But Neji's uncle will be delighted and I'll be able to move further up in the company if the party goes well."

"But how long will I have to play the part?"

"Only until he croaks. He's on so much medication and shouldn't be incredibly long."

"Oh yeah? He'll probably live another ten years. And then I'm sure the subject of children will come up. How will you explain why we haven't had children during those long years?"

"Well, you're sick. Too weak to have kids. You don't seem to get better. If he really does take that long and starts asking questions, I'll figure something out."

Naruto pouted and Sasuke leaned forward and gave him a quick kiss on the lips.

"Relax. Things will turn out well. You'll see."

X

The party itself quickly picked up pace as everyone arrived. One thing was for certain, Sasuke's colleagues were all punctual people. The music was provided by a dj one of Sasuke's supervisors hired. The food was quickly disappearing and everyone commented "Nikki's" excellent cooking skills.

Naruto nodded and gave them small smiles, grateful that the mask he wore his the marks on his cheeks really well. He danced several times with Sasuke, and felt slightly put out when Sasuke handed him over to some of Sasuke's male colleagues.

Naruto would use his "sickliness" as an excuse to cut some of the dances short -- Neji being the only one that he danced with the entire song -- and the few times he made his way to the sidelines, he would find himself swamped with ladies all wanting to know how "she" landed a guy like Sasuke, or to complain about their husbands and wanting dirt to prove that Sasuke was not as perfect as he seemed.

Naruto watched the time carefully, planning on making his breakaway.

He timed it well enough so that he felt as if his feet were going to fall off from wearing high heels.

Naruto softly spoke out, regretting that she had to retire because she was too worn out, and asked her guests to continue enjoying themselves. Sasuke offered to help "her" out but Naruto refused, stating that Sasuke needed to attend to his guests.

"You're starting to ham it up," Sasuke murmured with a playful smirk on his face.

Naruto just smiled back at him.

"Once again, thank you," Sasuke then murmured, giving Naruto a kiss in front of just about everyone. "You know... you make me feel pretty horny knowing that you'd wear anything for me."

Naruto genuinely blushed. "Pervert," he whispered back and left the room as Sasuke turned back to the party.

Naruto sighed as he leaned against the door, feeling really tired. He walked down the hallway and into the living room. From there he walked to the hallway on the other side, stopping briefly to look up at the portrait that he and Sasuke resembled at the moment. With a small smile, he made his way upstairs to where their room was, planning on changing to his "Rey" costume after resting his feet for a bit.

As he unzipped the back of his dress, the sound of their bedroom door opening startled him.

X

Neji watched with calculating eyes as "Nikki" made her apologies about leaving the party prematurely. Sasuke stood by her side, acting like a dutiful and loving husband. Naruto was playing the part so well that even he almost forgot he wasn't dancing with a real woman.

Neji briefly thought back to the first time he met Naruto. He had only made the visit to see just what kind of person would go out with Sasuke. The man was a great business man but Neji had a hard time believing that Sasuke could care for anyone. That or whoever was dating him was a really suave gold digger. Depending on who the person turned out to be, Neji would plan his next move. He really expected the person to be a ditz or another cold person. To his surprise, Naruto was a very outspoken and after getting over his shyness with strangers, very fun to talk to. Or at least listen to. It was at the table while they were having that Neji was struck with a very vivid fantasy.

Hearing him laugh and seeing his face flushed with merriment, Neji wondered how Naruto's face would look like flushed with lust and pleasure. It took extreme self control not to grab the blonde man, throw him on the dining room table, and have his way with him. He was left wondering how did Sasuke land someone like Naruto?

And now seeing that Naruto actually dressed up a girl to help Sasuke out, Neji realized he had to have him. Not necessarily as his own lover, but just to enjoy him from time to time. He knew of Sasuke's exploits in the clubs when he stayed behind, and he wondered if Naruto was ignorant of them or just didn't care. He could only hope that Naruto didn't care and therefore would be more receptive to extra company, but something about Naruto said otherwise. To be honest, Naruto didn't strike him as either gay or bi, which intrigued him even more. And so he silently moved forward to follow Naruto as he left the ballroom, his heart beating fast in his chest. If he played his cards right, he was going to do a most sinful thing.

The thought of banging Naruto underneath Sasuke's roof during his hosted party made his blood boil in excitement.

X

Naruto stared in amazement at the figure in his doorway. "Neji?"

"Simply amazing," Neji murmured, as he closed the door behind him.

Naruto felt alarmed by the motion, and he felt like he was going to be in danger.

"Um, what are you doing here?" Naruto asked. "This is Sasuke's and my bedroom."

"I just wanted to talk to you for a bit, privately." Neji stepped forward.

"About what?" Naruto asked, tugging at one of the wig's curls, wanting to take it off but at the same time feeling weird about being left in a dress with short hair.

"Just how amazing you are."

"Uh, thanks?"

"No, I'm serious. Here you are, forced to stay in this house except for the rare times you are allowed out to volunteer, waiting for Sasuke to come back from everything that he does... And even though you're not completely aware of what Sasuke is doing or where he is in his career, you do everything possible to help him. I mean, I can't believe that you actually dressed up to play the part of a wife. I mean, I know I suggested it, but I was joking. Of course, most people don't know when I'm joking, or so I'm told, but... I thought he wouldn't actually ask that of you. Especially after I got a chance to meet you. You acted the part well, but now that I'm standing here with you, along... you're not comfortable at all in a dress, are you?"

"No," Naruto admitted, calming down a bit.

"You didn't strike me as the type. Hell, to be honest, I still have trouble believing that you're bisexual. But then I have to wonder how the hell did you manage to ensnare such a cold person such as Sasuke."

"Sasuke isn't cold," Naruto said, defensively. "He's just... He just doesn't trust that many people. He has no close family ties, and neither do I. So we're just... connected. And he really does need me."

"And do you need him?"

Naruto felt his suspicion growing again. "What do you mean?"

"Just curious. So tell me, Naruto...Are you still feeling lonely here?"

"Well, yeah..."

Neji stepped forward again, this time towering over Naruto, reaching up and grasping his chin. "How far will you go to help Sasuke achieve his goals?"

Naruto felt his heart beat increase in speed again. While Neji was a very handsome man, it wasn't lust that caused his heart to race, it was fear. Naruto grabbed Neji's wrist. "Whatever I can do, within reason," Naruto stated, trying not to let his voice shake.

Neji smirked. "Why don't we take care of two birds with one stone? Let us keep each other company in bed and I'll boost Sasuke all the way to the top, all without letting him know anything."

"What?! No!"

Neji scowled and this time pulled Naruto against him, pinning his arms against Neji's chest.

"I hope you're not misunderstanding. Me boosting Sasuke up the corporate ladder is just payment to make up for the inconvenience. Otherwise I'll push him all the way down and out. Something tells me like won't be too happy if he's unhappy."

"Are you seriously blackmailing me?" Naruto asked, furiously as he tried to push Neji away.

"If it makes you see things my way," Neji stated. He quickly let go and Naruto lost his balance, falling back down on the bed.

Before he could react, Neji dropped down on top of him, pulling the dress down enough to keep Naruto from having full use of his arms.

"Get off!" Naruto cried out, kicking out with his legs. To his frustration, the dress tangled up in his legs and Neji was able to pin him down almost effortlessly. "Neji, get off! Sasuke will kill you!"

"Not if he doesn't find out," Neji growled out, an evil grin on his face. Neji trapped both of Naruto's hands and pinned them down. He lowered his face to Naruto's exposed neck line and began to kiss and nip the blond man's neck.

"Stop, you bastard!"

"Scream all you want. I doubt you'll be heard with the party going down there. But if the music stops and someone does hear you... well... it would expose your secret if anyone comes to investigate. Do you really want the whole company to know that Sasuke is living with a drag queen?"

Naruto stopped fighting as the words registered in his brain. His eyes welled up with tears of frustration.

"Good boy."

Neji captured Naruto's lips with his own, his hunger very clear. Naruto didn't respond but just lay there, shaking in impotent anger. He felt like gagging, feeling repulsed that his man was touching him. He rebelled once more.

"No, I can't!" Naruto shouted, jerking his head to one side and trying to push Neji off.

Neji's eyes flashed with anger. "Fine. If you want it rough, then so be it."

Naruto shut his eyes and suddenly the weight was gone. Opening his eyes in a flash, Naruto watched as Neji flew across the room and slammed into the wall hard enough to knock a picture off of it. Naruto scrambled up and looked around. Neji sat up, his face contorted in pain.

"I didn't think I pushed that hard!" Naruto cried out, struggling to get up.

Neji looked up at him, and a look of sheer disbelief and terror crossed his face.

Naruto turned around and swore he saw someone in the room with them. He would have thought it to be Sasuke if it weren't for the fact that the person shimmered and disappeared, a sense of killing intent filling the room. Neji slowly stood up and looked at Naruto.

Neji was thrown up against the wall one more time, held up for a couple seconds before being released.

Naruto cried out in alarm as he watched Neji slump to the ground. As Neji scrambled back up to his feet, the door to the bedroom opened and Sasuke entered the room.

TBC...