Ok, super nervous here: it's my first Naruto fanfiction and I always get like this when I start a new fanfiction from a new thing. Ok, I've been really into NaruDei lately and I wanted to write a Fanfiction about them before I lose my interest.
Just so you know: This is M-Preg, Naruto is the dominant one (seme, or so I'm told) and Deidara is the submissive one (uke, I think, correct me if I'm wrong). Also, since this actually follows Naruto's story and not Sasuke's, I'm giving an AU warning...
Also, just a quick side-note: Naruto is the first and only thing (out of books, anime, tv series and movies) that made me a Yaoi fan. Yes, I am a proud Yaoi fan and it's all due to the fact that Naruto has so little females that you can pair with hot guys, so we have to use dudes...
On to the story!
Oh, about the timeline: This is somewhat early shippuuden. Sasori is gone but Sai hasn't joined the team yet and neither has Yamato.
Disclaimer: I do not in any way own Naruto.
Chapter I (New Member)
The council of Konoha was divided in two sections. The important clans and the not so important ones. Examples of important clans would be, for example, the Uchiha clan (of course, those pompous bastards) and the not so important... let's say... the Hatake (not that I don't love Kakashi, I just think he is a minor clan).
They usually fought among themselves and sulked in the corner when the other won, but, for once in their lives, the council was together on something.
They were hell bent on exiling Naruto Uzumaki, for the fact that the demon bastard (their words, not mine) had once again failed to retrieve the brainless bastard Uchiha (my words, they used something like precious) to their village.
So, like the cold-hearted bastards they were (all except the Hatake, who I love very much), they went behind the Hokage's back and found a loophole in the law that allowed them to banish someone without the Hokage's permission.
So that's why we could find, on a completely normal day in Konoha, Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno and Kakashi Hatake (who had left Pakkun to be the head clan for that time) standing in front of the council, completely clueless as to why they were there.
After a long pause, Kakashi finally gathered the courage to ask.
"What exactly are we doing here?" The Uchiha Head Clan (who turned out to be a very distant cousin of Sasuke's father) glared at the daring Hatake.
"Well, Kakashi Hatake, we are here to condemn Naruto Uzumaki to exile." Everyone stood speechless at that statement. Kakashi blinked in utter surprise.
The first one to speak was Sakura. The pink haired girl opened her mouth, then closed it again and then opened it.
"What the heck are you talking about?" She chocked out "Naruto has done nothing to deserve that!"
The council Head, who was actually Danzo, chuckled somewhat evilly.
"We do not have the slightest care. You cannot expect us to accept a boy marked as a demon inside our village"
"I didn't know you were suddenly the Hokage" Kakashi's voice was not indifferent anymore. The rage present in the loud tone would be heartwarming, had Naruto been paying any attention to what was being said.
He had lost any kind of sensation when he had heard the word 'exile'. An exiled shinobi could not become the Hokage. An exiled shinobi was just that... worthless.
He coughed, stopping both Sakura and Kakashi in the middle of their protests and smiled weakly, to the best of his ability.
"When do I have to leave?" He asked, ignoring the shocked stares he was being given by his teammates.
"You have one hour to pack anything you wish to take with you before you meet an escort at the gate. Goodbye Naruto Uzumaki" With a final nod, Naruto ran out of the office. He felt a strange feeling rising in his chest. He shook his head furiously. It wasn't defeat. It couldn't be.
He didn't even bother to enter his apartment by the door. Concentrating all the strength he could in his body, he jumped right through the window and then looked around.
His apartment was small. Well, he wouldn't have to live there anymore. He quietly collected his clothes: two spares of the same bright orange jumpsuit and his weapons: two kunai and a pouch full of shuriken. He wouldn't need anything else. After a brief moment of thought, he decided to take a picture of Team Seven with him too.
Stuffing everything inside a small bag, Naruto exited his old apartment through the door and took some time locking the door. It would be the last time he did that, he realized. With one last sigh, he placed the key in the floor by his door and turned his back on the apartment.
Later, Naruto would say that he could have taken a lot more stuff that he liked, and that he somewhat regretted not doing it, but in the present moment, the only thing the blond haired jinchuuriki could focus on was walking.
It was simple – one step after another. It was natural, just like breathing. But in that moment, walking away from the very spot he had made the decision to be Hokage on, was making it hard to breath and think.
He forced some air into his lungs and carefully placed his right foot in front of him, followed by his left and then his right foot again. It was just like a cycle: right, left and repeat.
Closing his eyes in order to focus on the current task, Naruto walked away from the apartment. He didn't need to open his bright blue eyes to know the way – he walked it every day when he went to training.
This time, it was different. He stopped when he walked outside of the building that hosted his old home and looked right. If he followed that path, he would end up in the training grounds. He could pretend it was normal day and then wait for the ANBU to come and force him out of the village.
His blue eyes turned to the left. The gate was in that way. He could go peacefully, as if leaving the village was his own decision. The temptation seemed too great to resist, but Naruto did anyway. He was still a shinobi from the Leaf Village and he would act as such until he was out of the gates and out of everyone's life.
He couldn't lie to himself. He knew his friends – his closest friends, at least – didn't want him to go. He knew Tsunade would never agree with that and that Jiraiya would be devastated, but he couldn't bring himself to care.
He had watched as they turned their heads away from the Sasuke problem, frowning whenever his name was spoken or glaring at whoever suggested that they had not tried hard enough. He had also watched as, slowly, they seemed to regret trying to bring him back at all.
He would be treated the same way. They would miss him but after a while, they would give up and just be like everyone else – uncaring and cruel.
Sighing once, he started to walk to the left. His objective was to reach the gate without breaking down. He made it.
The Kyuubi host was surprised to see what seemed to be a rather large crowd near the gate. All of the crowd was composed by his friends – The Rookie 9 and their senseis, Iruka, Tsunade and Jiraiya and the ramen shop guy (whose name escapes me at the moment).
His breath got caught at his throat as he forced tears down. He would not break down. Forcing a smile, he bounced to meet the crowd.
He was hugged, kissed in the cheeks, high fived and everything he could think of. Lee was in tears, as was Gai, and this time it wasn't because of the youth. Neji smiled at him and Hinata didn't stutter when she told him to be safe. Tenten offered him a kunai. Kiba and Shino both slapped him on the back with glistening eyes and smiled weakly.
Sakura ran up to him and hugged him. Naruto closed his eyes – he wanted to relinquish in her hug – and took a deep breath, inhaling Sakura's scent.
"I'll miss you" She whispered, letting go of him. Naruto smiled sadly.
"Yeah, I'll miss you too, Sakura" Was the best he could offer.
He found himself standing in front of Kakashi for a while – neither knew what to say or how to act – until Shikamaru shouted that their attitude was being 'troublesome' and pushed them into a hug.
Kakashi awkwardly patted Naruto in the back.
"Ok, you take care" He warned, stepping back. Naruto beamed.
"I will" He promised.
"Your escort will now lead to your destination. From there, you can go wherever you please as long as it isn't here" Said an ANBU, with a mask of a raging tiger. The blonde exiled boy nodded once before turning to face the large gates that stood in front of him.
He murmured one hushed prayer to all of the people he would leave behind, asking Kami to watch over them and remind them of him. He smiled when he was finished. Yes, they would be safe.
The boy then turned to contemplate Konoha for the last time. He prevented the tears from escaping his eyes at the thought of exile and managed a bright smile – as bright as he could manage.
"Goodbye, Konoha" He said, turning his back on the village without anymore tears or emotions.
"Goodbye, guys" He bid farewell to his friends too as he took one hesitant step towards the gates. Just before he left he spun around to be pulled into a hug by his perverted teacher – Jiraiya.
"I'll miss you, brat. I wish Tsunade and I could revert this crap" He sighed, letting go of his student. Naruto felt his throat close.
"Yeah, don't worry about it, Pervy Sage! I'll be just fine!" He tried to be cheery, but the words seemed foreign to his ears and they left a bitter taste in their wake. Nonetheless, Naruto smiled cheekily and turned towards Tsunade.
"Now you take care, Granny Tsunade! Don't drink too much sake" For once, Tsunade didn't make a nasty remark on Naruto's title for her. She would have yelled that she was not old and that he was a brat had the situation been different.
Being as it was, she just nodded and looked away. Naruto smiled once more, feeling his facial muscles stretch and ache from misuse. It was not the time to smile, but to let emotions flow at their fullest.
Of course he would have none of that.
Once more did Naruto turn to the gates, now open and awaiting him. He sighed once – all the emotion he would share inside the village – and proceeded into walking through them with confident strides. The ANBU followed suit, each masked man taking his place in the ring that surrounded Naruto – more of a precaution then real concern for his safety – and disappeared, along with Konoha's Most Unpredictable Knuckleheaded Ninja.
They had been running for quite a long time, leaping from tree to tree at a confusing speed that turned everything blurred, when Naruto suddenly smelled something he should not be smelling at that time.
Was that nail polish?
With a low gagging noise at the slightly chemical odor that emanated from god knew what, Naruto came to a halt, dragging the six ANBU with him.
"Is there a problem?" Asked one of the masked men, undoubtedly with a raised eyebrow hidden behind a nasty dragon mask. Naruto shook his head slowly, trying to focus on his surroundings.
"What are you doing?" Asked another man, with the slightest irritation tainting his rough voice as he moved to a more comfortable position. Naruto frowned.
"I'm trying to focus here! Be quiet" He ordered, with such authority that the ANBU went silent at his voice. No one dared speak – some didn't even breath – as Naruto carefully lifted his nose and sniffed the air. His eyes opened suddenly.
"To your right!" He yelled, jumping forward to avoid a kunai throw swiftly at him. The ANBU growled in unison as they readied themselves for combat. Tiger stepped forward and performed a couple hand seals. Naruto recognized them and nodded with a smirk of satisfaction.
"Fire Style! Fire Ball Jutsu!" The man growled, arching his finger in front of his mouth and expelling all the air he had in his lungs. Said air soon turned into a massive ball of fire that swirled and lunged forward, burning a few trees in the process.
But Naruto could still smell nail polish in the air.
"Guys, they're not done yet!" He screamed, but it was too late. Two cloaked figures jumped from the cover of the trees at stunning speed, one tall and shark-like throwing himself at two of the ANBU at full speed, knocking both men down.
The other one, with a face so much like a younger relative of his, landed in front of the four ANBU that were left and narrowed his crimson eyes dangerously.
"If you hand the boy to us willingly, we will not hurt you" He spoke in a deep and somewhat enraging voice. It was completely devoid of emotion, and it was unnerving Naruto.
The ANBU seemed to be pondering on the offer for a moment, taking a step back and relaxing their stances. One of them – with a tiger mask – turned to look at his two fallen comrades, who moaned as Kisame stomped on them, before turning back to Itachi.
"We will accept your offer" Naruto gaped at him, utterly speechless. They were really going to offer him to the Akatsuki... Then again, it made perfect sense, in a sickeningly flawless logic. They didn't like him and were most likely under Danzo's orders to dispose of him. That, however, would not only dishonor them as it would also put Danzo in an extremely delicate position within Konoha.
To hand him over to the enemy having two men injured to prove that they were indeed attacked and hadn't just sold the boy was an opportunity made in heaven.
Itachi nodded once before motioning for Kisame to let go of the two fallen men. The shark-like man grinned before jumping off after one last kick to the spine of the man he was currently standing on and joining Itachi in the center of the clearing they were in.
The ANBU retreated, then, kicking Naruto towards the two expectant Akatsuki members and vanishing from sight.
The blond demon vessel turned to the two men standing in front of him and sighed.
"Well, this sucked. Pretty bad" He commented, picking up the bag that had fallen from his back during the fight. Itachi raised a flawless eyebrow.
Naruto then started walking in the direction the two Akatsuki members had come from, ignoring their shocked stares burning holes on his back. With one annoyed glare at the two men, he sighed.
"Are you two coming or what?" He asked, pouting a little in irritation "I can't wait all day, you know?"
"You're... You're coming willingly?" Kisame stuttered, with a look of utter confusion as Itachi just shrugged and moved as to not fall behind the blonde.
Naruto threw him a bored look.
"No. This is all part of a super duper awesome secret plan in which I was NOT banished from the village and I intent on killing you alone, with no reinforcements, all at the same time, with my hands behind my back and my eyes closed" He explained patiently, sarcasm dripping from his voice. Kisame narrowed his eyes.
"You don't have to be an ass. If you're coming willingly, then the better for us" The shark man replied, frowning deeply.
"Oh, turn that frown upside down, will you?" Naruto pouted, mimicking an overly concerned mother he had seen on the village one day and turning his voice into an annoying high pitch "A smile makes you so much more handsome!" He cried out, reaching out to pinch Kisame in the cheek. The blue skinned man didn't react, preferring the apathy of pure shock.
Itachi snickered in a very out-of-character way that made Naruto frown.
"You should follow your own advice" Itachi commented, pinching Naruto's cheek and drawing a yelp from the offended boy.
"And you should kill your mother for giving birth to something as ugly as you... Oh wait! You already did, didn't you?" He growled, annoyed to no end. Regardless of his brave act, Naruto's breath itched as he feared he had crossed over the line.
Turns out he didn't. Itachi gave another snicker.
"That's the best comeback you've got? You're all messed up" He stated plainly, coal eyes twinkling in amusement.
"Your face is all messed up" Naruto retorted, shooting Kisame a look. The shark man was shaking from barely contained laughter and looked oddly terrifying.
"At least I don't have whiskers like someone" The Uchiha teased further.
"No, you don't. You have huge lines that look like wrinkles" Naruto shot back. Itachi's eyes narrowed.
"Shut up. I was born with them" He growled.
"Oh, I see. So that's your weak spot. Afraid of growing old like normal people, all mighty Uchiha?" Naruto questioned, smirking evilly.
"That's not it" Itachi stammered, once again regaining his calm and composed demeanor. Naruto snorted.
"Itachi is old! Itachi is growing old!" The boy sang, soon being joined by Kisame, who took up on the opportunity to tease his partner.
"Shut up, both of you. Naruto, I have some questions for you" The Uchiha growled, pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation. Never had anyone gotten under his skin so quickly before. Then again, no one ever bothered. No one cared. He bit back a bitter laugh.
"What is it?" Naruto drawled, ignoring the growing discomfort provoked by his aching feet.
"Why are you coming with us willingly?"
"Because I have no better stuff to do with my life" The Uzumaki responded before taking the question seriously. Honestly, he had no idea of why he had suddenly decided to follow his two most dangerous enemies "I guess I just find no better reason to live" He explained "I mean, I was banished from the very village I swore to protect and betrayed by some nameless and faceless guys who were cowards to the very core of their being"
Itachi and Kisame listened in silence as the tension grew inside of Naruto.
"I mean, I didn't even do anything wrong! They're just angry that I failed to bring their precious Sasuke back and..." He trailed off, finally realizing who he was talking to. He narrowed his eyes "Not to offend you or anything, but your brother is an ass"
Itachi, who had stopped breathing at some point, released the breath he didn't know he was holding in and nodded carefully.
"I know. That's why I didn't kill him" He explained.
"Of course. Because that makes perfect sense" The sarcasm was back into Naruto's voice. Itachi glared at him, feeling strangely more talkative. It could have been that special ability of Naruto's doing its magic, he wondered.
"Ok, so the sentence was a bit messed up, so what? Who are you, the Logic Police?" He snapped, glaring at the blond, who grinned.
"The Captain of the Logic Police" He confirmed, puffing out his chest in mock pride. The Uchiha sighed.
"Hey" Kisame called out "How come you two are just talking like you're some old friends? Itachi doesn't talk. Ever. Who are you and what have you done with my partner?" He asked, letting a sweet taste of mockery enter his voice.
Itachi glared at him.
"Are you jealous?" He asked innocently, smirking when Kisame scowled.
"Of course not! But seriously, what the crap?" He exclaimed, frowning. Naruto grinned at him.
"I have the special ability to make anyone become a friend of mine!" He boasted proudly, shrugging "Besides, as I was telling you before, my reasons for following you to the Akatsuki were the hopes of perhaps joining you?" The last statement was nothing but a question and Itachi narrowed his eyes.
"If you prove to be a useful member of society for once, then maybe Leader will consider keeping you alive a little longer" The older Uchiha smirked when Naruto scowled at his concealed insult.
"Very funny, old guy" The blonde grinned at Itachi's facial expression of rage at that moment "But really, I would like to join you"
Kisame was about to say something when Itachi suddenly came to a halt. The Sharingan user glared at Naruto before returning to his impartial facial expression.
"We're here" He announced.
Deidara was having a bad day, to say the least. He woke up as usual and wandered about the hideout, vaguely noticing that Itachi and Kisame were not around, finally deciding to go to that place.
He sighed as he found himself in front of his room. The blonde artist struggled to keep the tears in and ignored a fit of insensitive snickers from Hidan, who was casually walking by. The others thought he and Sasori were partners in more ways than one and, in some sort of twisted version of reality, they were. They were best friends, the sort of ones that seem to be connected by strong cables.
They were not, however, lovers. And was it really so wrong he missed one of the only guys that truly understood him? The bomber shook his head sadly, laughing bitterly. He was only nineteen. How did they expect him to behave? Deidara began to walk away from the untouched door, preferring not to enter.
He honestly didn't feel like dealing with the painful throb his heart gave.
He made it to the kitchen, keeping in the slight gasps for air that were slowly trying to overtake him. There were some times when he felt like that – incapable of breathing – and he knew what to do.
The blonde closed his eyes, drawing very slow breaths as to calm himself. There was no need for a panic attack. Everything was going to be fine, everything was...
Not fine.
A slight tremble was all that warned the artist before his shoulders slumped and he started crying hysterically. Now mind you, Deidara was not by any means weak or overly emotional, but he was – as the shrink Pein had taken him to after verifying some changes in the blonde – suffering from Survivor's Guilt.
When one survived, they started to wish it had been them instead of the others, which often led to panic attacks.
It was in that state he was, near the hideout's kitchen, when he heard the voices. One of them sounded strangely like Kisame – maybe the two of them had already completed their mission? – And was growling nonsense about not being a shark.
To whom he was talking, Deidara had no idea. Then, he heard the voice of no other than... Itachi Uchiha? Astonishment colored Deidara's tear stained face. The Uchiha didn't talk. Ever. The man was always silent, resigning himself to playing shogi with Kisame or reminisce about his days at the village.
Deidara was pretty sure he cut himself at night.
It was the third voice – as if the first two weren't alarming on their own – that really shocked Deidara out of his panic attack. It was bright and chirpy and was teasing the two obviously older men, actually drawing some answers from them.
Wait... Didn't that sound like...?
The three males made their way across the corner and all the talk died down at the sight of a clearly distressed Deidara. The blonde boy's ocean blue eyes focused on the blonde artist's cerulean blue ones. There was a spark.
And the world stopped. For Deidara, there was only the blonde boy. He struggled to take in all of him, running his eyes over the blonde hair and orange jumpsuit. For Naruto, there was only Deidara. The blonde Jinchuuriki found himself drinking the older teen with the eyes.
He silently wondered why the older teen was crying.
The silence grew awkward.
"Ninetails, we have to go and report to Leader, as well as inform him of your decision" Itachi intervened, scowling at Deidara.
"I have a name, you know? Or is it that you don't know how to spell?" The younger of all of them snapped, turning to Itachi to glare at the Uchiha.
"I am in perfect condition of spelling your name, Ninetails. Just don't expect me to actually do it" The raven haired man scolded, glancing at Deidara, who was petrified in the spot "Now let us go"
And with that he gently pushed the boy forward, beginning to walk as well. When the small group reached the spot where Deidara was crouched, however, Naruto stopped abruptly, causing Kisame to bump into him and swear loudly.
"What the hell is wrong with you brat?" The shark like man growled, rubbing his stomach.
"What the hell is wrong with your face?" The blonde countered. Kisame scowled at the comment, but made no further remarks. Then, the blonde's face softened a bit, taking in a more curious expression "I'll stay here for a bit. I've heard a lot about this guy but never really got a chance to talk to him"
To say Deidara was surprised was an understatement. The bluntness in the blonde's statement was throwing him off balance, but he had no time to be angry as Itachi and Kisame nodded doubtfully and left in a gush of smoke.
"Hello" The blonde boy greeted with a foxy grin adorning his face. Deidara could not help but wonder if he was capable of capturing that creature's essence in a sculpture.
"Who are you, un?" The bomber growled, his panic attack long gone and his face dry and normal again.
"I'm Naruto" The younger blonde introduced himself, extending one hand to take Deidara's, utterly confusing the older blonde.
"I'm Deidara, un" He replied "Why are you here?"
"What is this? 20 Questions?" Naruto teased, stopping when he caught the scowl in Deidara's carefully composed expression "I'm the Fox Jinchuuriki" He announced.
"What?" Deidara cried out, with a growl forming at his lips. He jumped into a standing position and snarled, letting one hand feel the pouch at his waist. He silently cursed. He was out of clay.
"Hey, you PMSing or something? What's with the mood swings?" Naruto yelled, stepping back as well and reaching for his kunai. That only confused Deidara further.
"They let you in without a fight and armed, un?" He inquired incredulously. Naruto stopped and blinked, turning his head to look at his weapon pouch.
"Well... yeah... weird..." He shrugged "Anyway, I came willingly, so..."
"You what, un?" Deidara once more cried out. Naruto was beginning to feel annoyed, not just at the incessant mood swing and questions but also at Deidara's speech problem.
"Ok, you have to stop that, man. Mood swings confuse me" The younger blonde pouted a bit "But the answer to your rather generic question is that I've been exiled from Konoha" He trailed off at this point, fighting to keep tears in before resuming his explanation "and I've decided to join the Akatsuki"
"Un?" Was all Deidara could manage at his poor state of utter confusion.
Naruto sighed exasperatedly.
"Look, I have to go or your Leader might just kill me, ok? I'll see you later!" He barked, starting to run away at full speed. Deidara stood rooted to the same spot, watching the retreating blonde.
"See you... later" He returned, but it was too late as the blonde was already gone.
Holy damn. This is officially the first chapter I've ever written that took more than six pages, amounting to a total of eleven! Go me!
Anyway, if you want to flame, go ahead. Naruto has always wanted Fire Affinity anyway, so...
Well, read and review, folks!