xxxChapter 7: Streams of Lightxxx

Orochimaru cast Sasuke a glance as they walked side by side through the forest. "What's the matter with you?" he scolded. "You're stiff."

The dog flinched, coal eyes rising to look at his master. "I'm worried about my brother...we shouldn't have left him behind. Or we should've waited until he could walk, at least."

The man's features remained apathetic. "That would've taken up too much time. Kabuto will take care of him, he'll be fine. We have more important matters to attend to, Sasuke, and I can't have you distracted by thoughts and worries over Itachi." He stopped in front of a wired fence.

Sasuke considered his words and nodded to himself before observing the sign hovering over them:

GAME PRESERVE:

HUNTING NOT PERMITTED

BEYOND THIS POINT

A list of warnings, threats, penalties and fines were written below the words, jumbled and small.

Orochimaru scoffed lightly and kneeled down, pulling wire cutters out of his pocket. "Well, we're not really hunting, are we Sasuke?"
Sasuke didn't answer.

The man smirked, "No, of course not. We're just looking for one" he snapped a wire "little" and another, "fox," the third split apart between the cutter's metal teeth.

Orochimaru smiled and tucked the tool back into his pocket, then turned serious. His golden eyes flicked to Sasuke with a frown. "Get to it," he ordered.

Without missing a beat, Sasuke got to his knees and crawled through the fence.

x-X-0-X-x

Naruto groaned softly before cracking open one eye, the sun beating on his face hotter than usual.

He threw an arm over his eyes, tail flitting this way and that, and reached behind him to grab his blanket and pull it over to block out the bright light.

His ears twitched when he felt something soft but spiky brush his hand. He fisted the material and yanked at it, earning an annoyed growl that snapped his eyes wide open.

Naruto immediately tossed his arm to the side, blue orbs widening with shock and confusion and darting from side to side in panic.

He hastily pushed himself up on his knees and pivoted his head every which way, bellowing out, "Where the hell?" before catching sight of some sleeping animal beside him.

He jumped back with a loud yelp, accidentally kicking the creature which caused it to wake up with a snort.

It sat up slowly and looked at the blond, rubbing one eye with the heel of his palm.

Naruto backed away.

"Naruto?" the creature drawled through a yawn, "What is wrong?"

Naruto shook his head in bewilderment. "Who are – what?" He continued to scoot backward on his elbows, dragging his body along the floor. "Where am-" he broke off in a gasp as the ground gave way, and found himself falling back until his body met painfully with the earth.

He cringed and then lay still, head reeling from the fall.

There was a heavy silence as Naruto took in his surroundings with a wide gaze, only broken by the twittering of birds. His ears flattened, and he peered up the tree, spotting the animal he'd seen earlier poking his head out of the trunk and staring down at him.

How had he managed to fall out of such a small hole?

"Naruto?" the creature called, "Are you alright?"

The blond sat up slightly and shrank back, leaning on his hands. And then it hit him.

Lee. The hedgehog. He remembered now.

Naruto whined softly, looking up at the sunlight that speared the treetops.

The forest.

A soft sigh escaped him as he recollected the previous day. Orochimaru, Iruka, the rain, Lee and that Neji guy.

This was his home now.

Groaning, he bent his legs and stood up.

Lee leaned out more. "Do you need me to come down?" he asked.

Naruto dusted off the back of his pants and looked up at him with a smile, then waved to show that he was alright. "Thanks Lee, I'm alright! I'll be fine! And sorry about kicking you!"

Lee smiled at this answer and waved a dismissive hand. "If you ever need anything, you know where to find me, yes Naruto?"

Naruto grinned and gave him a thumbs up. "You bet!"

And with that said, Lee gave a quick nod and retreated back into his tree.

After a moment, Naruto's smile dimmed, and his hand fell to his side.

What now?

He groaned again and blew a bang out of his eyes with a light huff.

"Well good morning."

Naruto nearly jumped out of his skin and twisted his body to see Kakashi standing behind him. "K-Kakashi!" he stuttered. He placed a hand over his racing heart, brows furrowing at the wolf. "You damn jerk! Don't sneak up on me like that!"

Kakashi's eyes closed in what could be assumed as a sheepish smile, his hand reaching to scratch the back of his head. "My apologies, I didn't mean to startle you Naruto."

Naruto lowered his hand, face still set in a frown as he turned fully to the wolf. "Where the hell have you been?"

Kakashi opened his eyes. "Why? Did you need me for something?"

"Did I...do you have any idea what kind of night I had?! I had to sleep in a fucking tree!"

Kakashi tipped his head. "You should be grateful, that's a luxury out here." He paused and scratched his chin with one finger, "Though, you should be in a den, not a tree."

Naruto only continued to complain at his blatant response. "I was soaked and cold Kakashi! And you weren't even there for me!"

Kakashi crossed his arms and flicked his tail. "What are you, a kit? I trained you on living out here. I understand your first night might've been a little rough, but it will only get better if you try to make it better. And complaining to me won't help."

Naruto paused for a moment, his lips forming a pout. "Well, some damn company would be nice. I met this guy named Lee and he was great and all but I don't want to wake up with an energetic hedgehog every morning."

"You don't want company," the wolf said, then lifted his hand and poked Naruto in the right side of his chest, where his heart was. "You want somebody to fill that void that Sasuke left behind."

Naruto flinched, his gut twisting. "That's not...true."

"Isn't it?"

Blue eyes slowly lowered to the floor, and Naruto couldn't help but remember the dog's blood red eyes, the way they had burned through him with utter rage.

Naruto gasped lightly, and looked up at the wolf, "Kakashi, there' something I've been wondering about...Sasuke, actually."

This seemed to touch an interest in the wolf. "What?"

Naruto laced his fingers, placed his hands over his head and looked up. "Well...since I've known him, Sasuke has always had black eyes. But...one time, they were red, blood red, like Itachi's. You know a lot about-" he had to pause and force out the next words, "hunting dogs, do you know why they...changed?"

Kakashi raised a brow before closing his eyes. "Yes, I do."

Naruto's hands fell apart as he leaned forward, "Really?"

"Believe it or not, Sasuke is a very rare and...special breed of hunting dog. His whole family line is pure and one of its own. Every dog from his bloodline cost a fortune and is extremely difficult to obtain."

Naruto's eyes widened. He'd never known Sasuke was such a big deal. "Why are they so great?"

Kakashi opened his eyes to stare at the blond. "Because," he said, "they're all born with exceedingly developed hunting abilities, and if you train one, then they simply become perfect killing machines. And as for their eyes, that's a unique trait that no other breed has. Their eye pigment fades to red through their anger and aggression, often when they are about to kill their prey. And sometimes, the eyes will remain that color, permanently, if the dog becomes nothing but a cold killer, with no sympathy towards anything."

Naruto stood utterly still and speechless when Kakashi finished.

No way...if their eyes turned red when they were about to kill their prey...then that meant...

'Sasuke really would've killed me.'

Naruto suddenly felt sick.

Kakashi uncrossed his arms. "You know, I thought for a while, when Sasuke came back, that maybe you two could really be together, because he still seemed to care for you. I encouraged it because I honestly believed it would work." He sighed and placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "But I think we both were wrong. I told you once not to be surprised if Sasuke comes back different, do you understand that now?"

Naruto bit his lip, his fists clenched and unclenched at his sides. "I want company," he said, "I don't want to be out here by myself. I want a friend, a real one...not a replacement for him."

Kakashi observed him lightly. "You really want help?" he asked.

Naruto licked his lips and nodded. "I need it."

Silence held for a while. And when it broke, Kakashi was back to his carefree, laid back, perverted old self. "Well alright, come with me."

Naruto's head shot up, "To where?"

"To get you some...similar company, of the dog genre."

Naruto jerked, 'dog' automatically connecting to Sasuke. "You're not going to stay with me?" he asked, a bit surprised.

"Wouldn't you prefer being around someone closer to your age?"

Naruto cocked his head, and after a moment, he smiled, happy that the heavy mood was gone. "Alright" he said, "Yeah, why would I wanna hang out with an old wolf all day anyway?"

Kakashi blinked. "Old?"

Naruto held out his palm before him. "Lead the way old timer."

"Well I might just change my mind if you keep insulting my age, I'm not old."

Naruto shoved him slightly. "Just go."

Kakashi 'hm'd' and started walking, Naruto following close behind.

x-X-0-X-x

Kakashi pushed aside stray branches and bushes in his path, Naruto still following and suddenly getting a face full of leaves as a branch struck him, nearly taking out an eye.

He sputtered incoherently and shoved the offending object away. "You did that on purpose!" he yelled.

Kakashi smiled. "Sorry, you know your eyes get weary with old age."

Naruto gaped at the wolf. "You're still sore about that? It was just a joke!"

"Shh!"

The fox's lips stiffened in a thin line, brows furrowing as Kakashi parted the bushes before them to reveal another animal crouched in front of a flowing river.

Naruto raised a brow and studied it, finding that he had a dark red tail with matching ears, a small brown patch on the left one.

Blue eyes widened. "Is that...he's not..." His head snapped to the wolf, "Kakashi! Is that-"

"Another fox," the wolf finished.

Naruto's lips slowly spread out into a smile. "Wow," he whispered, voice laced with wonder as he looked back to the animal. "Another fox..."

Kakashi suddenly pushed forward and stood up, leaving Naruto to sputter with confusion and stumble behind him.

The wolf stopped behind the other fox. "Good morning, Kiba."

The fox flinched before his head whipped to the wolf. "...Kakashi," he grumbled in annoyance before letting out a light snort and turning his attention back to the water. His eyes were fixed on a fish, trailing it as it slowly swam back and forth.

Kakashi glanced at the fish, then back to the fox. "Kiba, I brought a little something for you."

"Don't care. Doing something," he answered curtly, lifting an arm in preparation to swipe at the fish.

Kakashi pressed on, "It's another fox."

"Don't. Care," he repeated.

Kakashi sighed at Kiba's stubbornness and looked back, signaled for Naruto to come closer.

Naruto hesitated before stepping forward until he was behind the fox as well.

Kakashi turned his head to Kiba's direction and Naruto licked his lips nervously before murmuring a small "Hey," in greeting.

Kiba growled and splashed the water, causing the fish to swim away frantically. "Damn it!" he yelled, "What part of I DON'T CARE don't you get?!"

Naruto shrank back quickly as Kiba shot up and whirled to him.

He wore a baggy pair of beige shorts, chest bare and wild brown hair fell around his tanned face. His eyes were narrowed and slit pupils peered at him, fangs bared and two curious, inverted triangles marked his cheeks.

After a moment of simply glaring at the stupid blond who had cost him his breakfast, Kiba glanced up, catching the other's red ears and blackened tips. His own ears twitched, muscles relaxing and snarl settling into an indifferent expression. "So," he said, "you're a fox too. There aren't many of us out here, but I've never seen you before."

The blond grinned. "Yeah, I'm new."

"Pfft, I can tell."

The comment made Naruto frown, his brow crumpled.

Kakashi hastily stepped in, sensing the beginnings of a quarrel. "Naruto, this is Kiba. Kiba, Naruto. He's new to the forest, and I was wondering perhaps, since you two are the same breed and about the same age, maybe you both could get to know each other?"

Kiba snorted and pointed at Naruto while looking at Kakashi. "Why would I want to hang out with that?"

Naruto snarled and shouted a "HEY!" before the wolf could answer. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?!"

Kiba scrunched up his face and stepped closer to the blond, leaning in and sniffing him before cringing back in disgust. "You have the scent of dog all over you. What'd you do, screw with one?"

Naruto's arms subconsciously flew up to wrap around himself, and he glared at the fox. "That's a pretty good nose you have," he stated blandly. "I haven't been around a dog in days and I washed their scent away a while ago. Plus, it rained on me last night."

"Yes, Kiba does have a bit of a gift for catching faint smells, sometimes he recognizes scents that have nearly faded completely," Kakashi commented, hoping to change the subject.

Kiba scowled and placed one hand on his hip. "And I can tell that he's just a pampered priss-"

Naruto sneered. "I am not!"

"Who likes to mess around with hunting dogs-"

Naruto's face flamed. "Shut up! Just shut the hell up! You don't even know what the fuck you're talking about! You have no fucking idea what's going on between Sasuke and me!"

Kiba glanced at him with a light 'hmph.' "You're no fox. Real foxes don't hang out with dogs. You might as well be a dog yourself."

That set Naruto off. "I. Am not. A dog," he gritted out.

Kiba tilted his head. "...Fine then, prove it."

"How?"

Kiba pointed to the river behind him. "You think you can make it out here, huh? Think you're a real fox? Well, let's see you catch a fish."

Naruto paused, his lips stretching out into a smile as he laughed. "That's all? Catch a stupid fish?"

Kiba nodded.

"Tch," with an unwavering smile, Naruto stepped forward. "No problem," he gloated, "You happen to be looking at an expert fish catcher."

Kiba raised a brow expectantly, while Kakashi frowned and placed a hand over his masked mouth. "Oh dear...don't overdo it Naruto," he murmured in warning.

They watched Naruto crouch down in front of the river, smiling when a fish caught his eye. He followed the creature with his gaze and raised an arm into the air much like Kiba had done earlier.

He licked his lips. "Gotcha," and brought his hand down.

x-X-0-X-x

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes as Sasuke lowered himself to the ground. "Well?" he asked.

Sasuke's ears stuck up, his nose twitching slowly, "...Not here. Iruka must have driven him further in; this ground doesn't carry his smell."

The man's jaw tightened. "'Nothing' is what you're telling me."

Sasuke stood up and looked at him. "No. Just because his scent isn't on the ground doesn't mean he's not here. It just means he's farther than we expected."

A brow went up as Sasuke closed his eyes and sniffed the air.

The dog closed off everything and focused on nothing but smell. He picked through the pine of trees and mingled scents of numerous animals until something hit his senses with an almost physical force.

This was it, without a doubt. You could shove cotton up his nose, blindfold him, and toss him in a pit with a myriad of smells. He would still be able to pull Naruto's out without a second thought.

But something took hold of him. The scent burned through his nose and dove down his throat, trailing fire throughout his loins as it shook every nerve within him.

Sasuke's mind raced with images of the very blond fox he was aiming to kill, pictures at first that quickly changed to erotica. His breath caught and he gasped loudly, felt his body shiver with need as his thoughts blurred and Naruto's scent conjured moving bodies and panting mouths.

An all too familiar heat flowed downward.

Suddenly, Sasuke was ripped away from his thoughts, his head quickly snapping to the man beside him, who had placed a hand on his shoulder.

Orochimaru stared at him. "Are you alright?" and strangely, he truly seemed concerned.

Sasuke stared back with a blank expression, as if trying to remember when exactly his master had showed up.

Orochimaru moved his hand and stepped away from the dog. "You gasped and suddenly lost focus," he explained.

Sasuke shook his head slowly and looked down at his hands, noting that they were sweaty and warm.

"Well? Are you alright?" he asked again.

Onyx orbs continued to stare at his palms, before they abruptly clenched to fists and flicked up to the other. "Yeah," Sasuke assured. "I'm fine. He's far but a straight path will lead us in the right direction for now." He licked his too dry lips, "Until we come to something he might've touched or stepped on, then I'll try again."

Orochimaru nodded. "Let's go," he muttered, and began to walk in the direction his dog had given.

Sasuke followed obediently behind his master.

But worry nipped at the edges of his mind.

Naruto's scent had triggered a strong reaction, and forced Sasuke to realize that despite hunting Naruto, Sasuke still felt very much attached to him. Hunting him or loving him, Naruto still belonged to Sasuke, and this worried the dog, as attachment could cause a serious setback on his hunting abilities.

No matter if it was as friend, lover, or prey:

Naruto was his.

x-X-0-X-x

Naruto's arm curved and his hand came down with more elegance than he knew he was capable of.

Unfortunately, that was where the elegance ended.

The second his fingers touched the water, the fish scurried away, which of course, caused Naruto to lean forward after it with an outstretched arm and promptly fall into the water with a loud splash and wide eyes.

Now, for normal, smart persons, this is where the embarrassment would have ended. But no, Naruto being Naruto, his stubbornness got the better of him, and he decided it wise to chase after the fish in the water.

He managed to wrap a hand around the creature and bring it out of the water only so it could slip out. He caught it with his other hand, which again, it slipped out of with ease. "Damn it!" he yelled, and just to add to his predicament, got a mouthful of water for it.

Naruto coughed and sputtered and fell backwards, immersing himself completely before resurfacing again with a huge gasp of air.

The fish, being smart, had long gone.

Naruto floated in the water, dumbfounded and drenched to the core. But when laughter reached his ears, he turned to find both Kiba and Kakashi rolling all over the ground in bursts of it.

The blond blushed furiously with flattened ears and slowly swam back to the bank before crawling out, soaking wet and frowning. "Yeah yeah, laugh it up," he muttered.

Kakashi was trying miserably to stop, "Ahaha – I'm sor – hahahaha – Naruto, you just – pshhhht! AHAHAHA!"

And Kiba wasn't even trying to hide his enjoyment. "DUDE! AHAHAHAH – YOU WERE-" he continued to laugh, hands coming up to clench at his sides.

Naruto was growing angrier by the second, his mind clouding with it. "LIKE YOU COULD'VE DONE ANY BETTER!" he yelled, pointedly at Kiba.

But the fox just kept on laughing.

Naruto's teeth clenched, his body tightened, and his mouth opened before his brain could come up with something to say. "DAMN FOX!"

It was scary, how the laughter suddenly stopped.

Kakashi was wide eyed at the blond, who stood rooted to the spot, wondering why the hell something so...so...Orochimaru, had come out of his mouth.

It wasn't until Kiba was standing right in front of him, fuming, that Naruto snapped out of his trance.

That was quite a nasty snarl on his face. "What did you say to me?" he breathed threateningly.

Naruto inched back, glancing from Kiba to Kakashi, who didn't move to help him, and back to Kiba. "Uh...I..."

Kiba snorted. "You're more of a dog than you think you are," he grumbled and gave Naruto a hard shove against his shoulder.

Naruto stumbled, but didn't fall. His eyes flashed with anger. He knew he was in the wrong here, knew he should apologize, but he wasn't one to be pushed around without pushing back.

So that's exactly what he did. Screw apologies, he shoved Kiba back.

And just like that, they were on each other. Snarling and growling and punching and kicking.

Kiba grabbed a fistful of Naruto's hair and pushed his cheek into the ground, then dragged it across until it was caked with dirt.

Naruto wrenched his head away and swiped blindly at Kiba's neck, leaving two red gashes behind. "ASSHOLE!" he screamed.

Kiba straddled him and brought a fist against the side of his forehead, "DOG FUCKER!"

Kakashi stood and watched, smiling to himself.

Naruto spit out blood and shoved Kiba off before pushing him to the ground, switching their positions so that he was the one straddling him.

Kiba growled and bucked in an attempt to throw the other off. "FUCK OFF LOSER!"

"BITE ME JACKASS!" Naruto pressed on the other's shoulders and stared at him, both panting heavily and bloody with sweat and dirt plastered all over them.

Kakashi still stood with his little smile, which was growing larger by the second.

He mouthed the words, "Three...Two...One..."

Suddenly, Naruto began laughing. And not giggling, light laughter. No, it grew until it resounded through the trees and filled the air, deep and joyful, and truly...heartfelt.

Kiba's brows knitted, but he couldn't hold back his own smile, brought on by Naruto's ridiculous laughter. "What the hell is so funny?"

Naruto forced himself to calm a bit and looked down at the other fox. "It's just," he shook his head and shrugged, "haven't had this much fun...in a while. A long while," he continued laughing, softly now.

Kiba seemed a bit surprised by the answer, and a little confused. But he let out a light chuckle nonetheless. "Hm, Naruto, right?...I guess you're not so bad."

Naruto smiled back. For what, he wasn't sure.

Maybe it was to return Kiba's gesture. Or maybe, just maybe, it was because Kiba could show him, that there was life after Sasuke.