Disclaimer: I don't own nor have I contributed to Naruto in any way! Nope! None!
2nd Disclaimer: The songs and lyrics mention in this fic do not belong to me! Nu-uh! The songs in this chapter are: NONE!
Sky-eyed Kitsune and Gomi-kun blab & Updates
Sky-eyed Kitsune: Gomen! The last chapter was shorter than my others! I was updating all my stories and I looked at this one and I was like O.O "Zomg! I haven't updated in lyke one month!!!" So basically I wrapped up the chappie real quick and posted it to satisfy my readers and reviewers! T.T I sorry!
Gomi-kun: It was a nice vacation for me from translating.
Reviewer Replies
Ahem…I'm afraid that some of you might kill me now since I took a break and gave you a half-assed short chapter, so I'm going to thank everyone at once so that you all can satisfy your need for this chapter. –clears throat— ARIGATOU MINNA-SAN!!! LUVLES JU! (Don't kill me! Eep! X.x)
IMPORTANT CRAP!!!
Here's who you wanted to see Naru dance with! –POLL CLOSED--
Gaara: 3
Itachi: 8
Sai: 1
Sasuke: 3
GOMEN! THE DANCE KEEPS BEING PUT OFF! I'LL PUT IT IN WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECT IT, LOL! IN THIS CHAPTER! NARUTO WAKES UP AND THE FIRST PERSON HE SEES IS…ITACHI! AH! HOW WILL NARUTO EXPLAIN HIS ACTIONS?!
HEART POINT TALLY!
O Beating Heart Points (good!)
X Broken Heart Points (bad!)
Gaara: OOO
Itachi: OOOO
Neji: OOOOOOO
Sai: --
Sasuke: XOOO
Chapter Dedication
To everyone who won't kill me…O.o Meep!
An inspiring song for this chapter!
"You're Beautiful" by James Blunt
My life is brilliant
My life is brilliant
My love is pure
I saw an angel
Of that I'm sure
She smiled at me on the subway
She was with another man
But I won't loose any sleep on that
Cause I've got a plan
You're beautiful
You're beautiful
You're beautiful, it's true
I saw your face in a crowded place
And I don't know what to do
Cause I'll never be with you
Yes she caught my eye as we walked on by
She could see from my face that I was fing high
And I don't think that I'll see her again
But we shared a moment that will last to the end
You're beautiful
You're beautiful
You're beautiful it's true
I saw your face in a crowded place
And I don't know what to do
Cause I'll never be with you
You're beautiful
You're beautiful
You're beautiful it's true
There must be an angel with a smile on her face
When she thought up that I should be with you
But it's time to face the truth
I will never be with you
Chapter 13: What the Hell just Happened!?
-
Sasuke sighed as he opened the door to his room.
He blinked.
Where the hell was that dobe?
Sasuke set his bag at the foot of his bed and the stack of papers he held by his laptop on the desk to his side of the room.
"Prison gates won't open up for me, on these hands and knees I'm crawlin'. I reach for you."
Sasuke blinked again. Was that Nickelback?
"I'm terrified of these four walls. These iron bars can't hold my soul and all I need is you."
Sasuke looked over to Naruto's bed and followed the song.
"Come please, I'm callin'. And oh I scream for you. Hurry, I'm fallin'. I'm fallin'. I'm fallin'…"
Sasuke lifted up Naruto's pillow to find his orange and black cell phone ringing like mad.
Sasuke thought for a moment before picking up the phone and flipping it open. It was better than the message machine, wasn't it?
"Yea?" Sasuke said, holding the bright electronic to his ear.
"You're definitely not Naruto," a masculine voice matching the smoothness and tone of Sasuke's own said.
"No shit Sherlock," Sasuke smirked.
"Why the hell do you have Naruto's phone?" the other male bit out.
"Because the dobe left it in his room."
Sasuke could practically feel the other teen bristle over the line.
"Don't call him that," he spat. "When Naruto comes back, will you tell him that his friend Neji Hyuuga called?"
"Hm, I dunno Hyuuga. The two of us have something planned later."
"…"
Sasuke gave himself a mental high five. Now he knew for sure that this friend of Naruto's didn't see the blonde as a friend at all.
"Who the hell are you?" Neji spat.
"Uchiha Sasuke," Sasuke replied smugly. "Remember it. And also remember that from here on out, Naruto is mine."
"You little f-"
"Tsk tsk Hyuuga. Rotten language will get you no where."
"Keep your paws off him Uchiha!"
"Oh, so you have a thing for him? Are you declaring war?"
"T-thing? He's my friend! And what, do you?"
Sasuke thought for a moment.
Did he?
The blonde was good looking and apparently smart, and overall a nice, if not hyper guy. Every time he walked into their room Sasuke felt it light up a bit more and his heart pumped faster. And those eyes….those sky blue eyes could make glass melt…
True, he wanted to know more about the blonde. So much more. He wanted to know his likes and dislikes, his quirks, his fears…
"Yea," Sasuke said. "I really do." Sasuke didn't care if this made him gay. He just liked Naruto…a lot…
"And if you don't Hyuuga, I'm warning you now to back off him."
"Well I do Uchiha," Neji replied.
"Fine. If it's war you want, its war you'll get."
"Bring it."
"Now if you'll excuse me, I promised to watch a movie with Naruto tonight."
Sasuke flipped down the phone and threw it back on Naruto's bed. He gripped the front of his shirt, a strange feeling eating up his insides.
Then…he slowly smiled.
He couldn't explain it, and didn't want to. He liked Naruto…he really liked him…but he wanted to know more about him…
And it felt so right to admit it.
Itachi finished wrapping bandages around Naruto's arm delicately, making sure they weren't too tight.
He sighed as he finished.
Naruto lay on the couch in his dorm room, breathing slowly.
There was a knock.
"Come in," Itachi said, and Gaara entered the room.
"I cleaned up the blood in Naruto's dorm," he said.
"Thank you," Itachi said, his eyes not leaving the blonde.
"How is he?"
"It's hard to tell. I've patched him up but he's running a fever."
"I have to meet Lee now. Will you tell me tomorrow how he's doing when he wakes up?"
"Sure."
With that Gaara left, his expression belying his inner turmoil.
Itachi stood and went to the kitchen, returning shortly with an icepack and placing it over Naruto's hot forehead.
Itachi sat down next to the blonde above his head, keeping the icepack steady on his forehead.
Naruto…why would he have hurt himself like this? He didn't seem like the type to cut himself in such a serious manner. What then happened? And…
Itachi reached up and touched his fingers to his lips.
…what was that kiss?
Flashback—
"NARUTO!"
Naruto raised an eyebrow. That wasn't Sasuke's voice…
Naruto blinked as he suddenly found himself wrapped up in a warm embrace, moonlight dipped skin and long blue-black hair invading his vision. He breathed in the scent of vanilla and roses, and he closed his eyes.
"Itachi…" he breathed, his head spinning.
Itachi held onto the blonde for dear life, tears threatening to pour from his eyes.
"Naruto, why would you do this to yourself?" Itachi asked quietly.
Naruto didn't answer, and Itachi pulled back to look at him.
Naruto noticed that Itachi's hair was down for once, spilling past his shoulders to his upper back and the front shards of bangs shining almost blue against his deep black, nearly red eyes.
Naruto reached out a crimson hand and ran it through Itachi's hair, forgetting the blood.
"Your hair looks better down…" Naruto breathed, and pain flashed across Itachi's face.
"We need to get you to the hospital," he said, shifting to let go and stand up, when Naruto gripped his shirt and looked at him with pleading eyes.
"Don't…" he breathed. "Please don't…"
Itachi sighed. "Naruto-"
"Itachi…don't..."
Itachi's eyes widened and his cheeks flushed pink as Naruto lifted his face inches from Itachi's.
"Don't…leave…"
Itachi's breath hitched in his throat as Naruto pressed his lips against his own.
Wait! Stop! Rewind!!!
Naruto placed his lips against Itachi's!?
Itachi felt his heartbeat quicken as Naruto gripped the front of his shirt, bringing him down to kiss him gently.
Itachi almost melted, the sensation of Naruto's soft pink lips on his own making his head spin with a comfort that he had never felt before.
What was running through Naruto's mind the blonde didn't know, but he just had the desire to kiss the raven senior right then and there, so he did. It wasn't about how good he looked, hot that he was, or that he was sexually frustrated, no. He just…wanted to.
Itachi closed his eyes and kissed Naruto back a bit timidly. Him, timid? This had to be a first for him! Then again, this was his first real kiss. He'd never allowed anyone to get close enough to him to develop as anything but friends. In fact, most were just acquaintances. But Naruto Uzumaki…he had only known him for a few days despite hearing about him and S.T.R.A.Y, and yet he could somehow get this close to him.
Neither teen deepened the kiss, keeping it soft and simple.
Naruto broke away and leaned his head against Itachi's chest, his body numb with pain.
"Naruto…" Itachi said. "What are you doing to me?"
Naruto lifted his head back up to see Itachi smiling a bit, before his vision finally blacked out and he fell unconscious.
--End Flashback
Itachi blinked back to reality as Naruto groaned and scrunched up his face.
"Naruto?" Itachi said softly, moving stray shards of blonde locks from Naruto eyes.
Naruto slowly opened his eyes, blinking a few times.
"I-Itachi…?" he breathed, his vision slightly hazy. "Where…what…"
"It's ok Naruto," Itachi said. "We're in my dorm."
"Sasuke…the blood…"
"The blood has been cleaned up. Sasuke won't notice anything."
Naruto lifted his arm, wincing as he did so, and examined it.
Flecks of blood still stained his golden skin where bandages wrapped up his wound.
He looked down at the rest of his body.
His shirt was gone, his scratches and other wounds bandaged up. He looked at his hands which had so previously been slammed down on broken glass, to see them wrapped in white bandages.
Naruto sat up, wobbling and ignoring Itachi's urges for him to stay down. The ice pack fell off his forehead, but he didn't seem to notice.
Naruto fell back a little, and Itachi caught him, gently lowering him back down, this time with his head on the raven's lap.
"I'm sorry," Naruto said quietly. Itachi smiled a bit.
"Don't push your body too-"
"No…I'm sorry…for doing this."
Naruto looked up at Itachi, his golden hair splayed over his lap and his sapphire eyes a bit foggy.
Itachi ran a hand softly through Naruto's hair.
"Why did you?" he said.
"I…" Naruto flicked his gaze away. "I remembered something…about my parents. Actually, about my dad."
Naruto closed his eyes as Itachi kept up the steady stroking rhythm of his fingers through his hair.
"I was seven. We were walking on the beach together…just walking. Then we stopped and talked about the ocean, and my father told me about how surfing was communicating with the sea, with nature. He told me that he was going to teach me how to surf, and I would inherit his red fox surfboard."
Itachi looked on sadly as Naruto's eyes opened softly.
"When the memory stopped, I…I was in so much pain. Just seeing how much I was loved by him, then having it all taken away in one night of flames. It hurt…god, it hurt so much. I wanted to forget about it, forget about the memory, forget about my father's face…so I made myself focus on other pain…"
Naruto lifted his bandaged arm.
"This kind of pain. It's just raw, no strings and no memories attached. It was a way to divert my heart from what I saw. To try…"
Naruto grit his teeth and shut his eyes as tears spilled down his cheeks.
"…to try and forget, anyway I could!"
Itachi pulled Naruto to him so that his head was resting on his chest.
Naruto gripped the front of Itachi's shirt, silently crying into it as Itachi continued to stroke his hair.
"Naruto…" Itachi said quietly. "This isn't the way to forget. I can't tell you what is, because I've never gone through what you are now…"
Itachi pulled back a bit and gently tipped Naruto's chin up.
"But at least I can be here for you."
"Ita-"
"Shh," Itachi shushed, closing the distance between himself and the blonde and kissing him gently.
Naruto's eyes widened, then closed under the warm feeling Itachi sent throughout his body through his kiss.
Naruto wrapped his arms loosely around Itachi's neck as he kissed back timidly, and then pressed into the kiss more.
Itachi placed his hand on the back of Naruto's neck, the other gripping his golden locks lightly.
Naruto jumped a bit from surprise when Itachi swiped his tongue out at the crease of his mouth and requested entrance. Naruto wasn't sure why Itachi was kissing him…but it felt good…
Naruto opened his mouth and let Itachi slip his tongue in.
The taste of warm cinnamon erupted in Naruto's mouth, and he hummed a bit from the good taste.
Itachi pulled back after a moment to let himself and Naruto catch their breath.
"Itachi…you…"
"Naruto, I feel so strange around you," Itachi said, embracing the blonde. "I've never felt this way around anyone before. I really like you a lot…"
"Y-you've never liked someone a lot before?" Naruto sputtered, his face blushing red.
Itachi pulled back and smiled at Naruto's adorable flushed face. He gave Naruto a kiss on the cheek.
"No, I haven't," he said. "I've never wanted to know somebody before unless it benefited me. I've never worried so much about someone outside of my family before, and I've never wanted to kiss someone before…"
Naruto closed his eyes as Itachi's lips met his own again.
He moved his hands to grip Itachi's hair, running his fingers through it as Itachi ran his hands up and down Naruto's back, causing him to shiver as fire trailed up his spine.
"I-Itachi," Naruto said, pulling back from the brunette's kiss.
"I…I don't…"
"You don't need to feel the same way yet Naruto, but I hope that you will soon," Itachi said, smiling softly as he read the blonde's mind.
"Naruto, can I kiss you?"
Naruto blinked.
Why…why did this seem so familiar?
Naruto vaguely felt his head nod and Itachi captured his lips again delicately.
Naruto's eyes went to half mast, and then closed. Suddenly he remembered pale skin…long brown hair…crystal eyes…
"Neji," Naruto thought. He opened his eyes slowly and his mind froze when he saw Neji's lips hovering over his own, his eyes searching Naruto's.
"You're very beautiful Naruto," Neji said, smiling warmly and familiarly.
Naruto smiled.
"Ne-"
Naruto was cut off as Neji pressed his lips against his own, and Naruto breathed a sigh through his nose and closed his eyes.
He waited for the taste, the ocean, the open spray…
But it didn't come. Where was it?
Naruto pressed into the kiss regardless of the taste.
He had missed Neji. It hadn't been long, but he missed him…his smile, his touch, his taste, his presence…
Through all of the craziness that had occurred in such a short time, he finally realized how much he had missed him.
Naruto groaned as his tongue and Neji's met and reunited, coiling together and mixing their saliva. Naruto dug his dull fingernails into the base of Neji's neck where the roots of his hair ended, pressing his head forward and kissing him harder.
Neji groaned and hummed as Naruto explored his mouth, searching for that taste again.
Naruto parted as he caught his breath.
His eyes widened when instead of a crystal gaze he was met with a crimson black one.
"Naruto?" Itachi said, furrowing his brow.
Neji…was Itachi!? He had been egging on Itachi this whole time!?
Naruto shut his eyes and pushed away from Itachi, standing up a bit wobbly.
"Naruto? Are you ok?" Itachi said, also standing and placing his hands on Naruto's shoulders to help straighten him.
"Sorry Itachi…thanks for patching me up but I-I need to go!" Naruto said quickly, rushing out of the room as fast as he could in his current state, not even bothering to throw on a shirt.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A nerve popped on Gaara's forehead as persistent and loud knocking erupted from the other side of his dorm door.
He sat up from his computer desk, turning the screen off and praying to god that it wasn't Lee coming to ask him to join another youthful ten mile run with Mr. Gai.
"What?" Gaara said as he opened the door, and his eyes widened.
"Naruto?" he said.
Poor Naru is so confuzzled and misses his Neji! T.T Sorry, another kind short chappie.
Sky-eyes Kitsune
Translated by Gomi-kun