ELK! You have NO IDEA what your review meant to me...(sobs profusely into handie dandie hankie)...WAAAAAAAHHH! I DON'T DESERVE ALL THIS PRAISE! Yer makin me feel all warm and fuzzy...POOOOOOOOTTT (me blowing nose)...I love you...
Chapter 28: Confusion
In the Hallways
Naruto snuck a quick peek at his lover beside him. Neji seemed utterly calm, his face arranged in an almost serene expression. Sometimes he envied the Hyuuga for his expressionless mask. The trip to meet Neji's dreaded uncle stirred butterflies (along with other flighty insects) in the region of his stomach. Granted, he'd seen Hiashi once before when he was first introduced to Neji, but even so Neji's uncle positively radiated an aura that seemed to overwhelm just about anything in the room. A furious Hiashi would be so much worse. A furious Hiashi, Naruto thought musedly, would be able to crush one's soul.
He snuck another peek at the Hyuuga beside him, eyes flicking briefly over Neji's high, accentuated cheekbones to his perfectly straight nose to his firm, full lips. Neji had a regal air about him, shoulders impeccably squared, chin high and confident yet serious, and lips pressed in a firm, no-nonsense line. And his hair…the way his hair billowed in great, black folds behind his back….Naruto could easily see why Neji was one of the most sought-after bachelors in the whole of Japan. The blond's lips curved into a secret little smile. Yes, he had to congratulate himself. Yes, he had successfully managed to ensnare one of the coldest hearts possible, a feat no other female had ever executed before. He gave himself a mental pat on the back, inwardly sassing all the other females who wanted his Hyuuga. Neji was his. Neji was his, and no existing element on earth would be able to take his Neji away from him, fawning females be damned.
He snuck yet another peek at the Hyuuga beside him. Neji caught his gaze from the corner of his eye and turned to capture Naruto's stare with his. The blond blushed and looked down, missing the smirk Neji had pasted on his face. They continued walking down the maze of corridors in silence before they stopped in front of two enormous double doors.
Naruto bit his lip to refrain from shuddering. The doors themselves had an immensely imposing aura, implying that Hiashi himself would be quite the same, if not worse. Neji glanced over at his lover, concern filling his opalescent eyes as he witnessed the uneasy look on Naruto's finely sculpted face. Reaching over to the blond, he gave him a light kiss on the tip of his nose.
"Don't worry. You'll be fine. Just try not to wince when my uncle spits all over you." He laughed softly at the mortified look on Naruto's face.
"I was joking." Naruto visibly relaxed, letting out a sigh.
"You're not helping, you know." He grumbled. Neji smiled, lifted a hand, and knocked smartly on the door. A few minutes later, a muffled reply came through.
"Enter." The Hyuuga snuck a peek at Naruto, smiling inwardly when he saw the blond stiffen.
"You'll be okay." With that, Neji went in, Naruto in tow.
Why oh why do they have to make the hallways of extremely large studies so impossibly long? Naruto thought. It was almost like prolonging his own doom. Taking deep, steadying breaths, Naruto pasted what he hoped was like a mildly pleasant expression on his face. Neji's own visage was completely impassive, showing no emotion whatsoever. The blond looked ahead to see a lone figure sitting at a desk, hands clasped and resting on his mouth. Hiashi's long hair was combed back to the point where not even a strand of hair was allowed to stray, revealing his marble façade and his stern, forbidding features.
Naruto subletly flicked his gaze back and forth between Neji and his uncle, mentally noting the differences. Hiashi had a more squarish face, heavy along the jaw, and thick among the brows. Neji's jaw was less defined and more graceful, sloping upwards in a softer line, whereas his brows were gentler and much more elegant, arching gracefully towards the ends. Hiashi had a slight list to the nose, a crook just along the bridge, and his eyes were stern and deeply embedded into his face. His nephew's eyes were much more angular, and had a curious, catlike tilt to them that accentuated his long lashes.
Naruto was snapped out of his thoughts when Hiashi spoke, his deep baritone echoing throughout the room.
"Well you know that the Tanabata Festival is coming soon, Neji?" The Hyuuga nodded.
"It is my preference that you attend, however you need not go if you do not wish to." Neji nodded again, his face wooden. Hiashi gave no sign that he acknowledged Naruto's presence.
"That is all. You may go now." Neji bowed shortly, though Naruto could see the faintest traces of surprise in his snow-white eyes. Subtlety beckoning to the blond, Neji whirled and walked out of the room.
"That wasn't so bad, was it?" He said, once the door was safely closed. Naruto nodded.
"Are his meetings usually this short?" The Hyuuga shook his head, features contorted in a puzzled expression.
"He only discusses important matters, which is confusing since Tanabata is supposed to be for entertainment." Naruto nodded.
"Will you be attending?" Neji turned and ran the pad of one finger slowly down the bridge of Naruto's nose, then moved it down to caress Naruto's whisker-like scars.
"It is your choice."
Naruto's eyes immediately lit up, retaining a special scintillation of vividness and life. Neji felt his heart contort in pleasure; the vision before him was beyond magnificent. Naruto seemed the very embodiment of sunlight, always sparkling, constantly joyful, and perpetually happy.
"Really? We can? I've never actually been to Tanabata before!" Neji delicately arched an elegant eyebrow.
"You've never been to Tanabata before? I find that hard to believe. It's supposed to be the most famous festival in all of Japan." Even Naruto's hair seemed to droop.
"Well, Iruka was almost always busy teaching at the academy, so he couldn't take me. I know what Tanabata's like though, since I used to watch the whole festival from a tree, but I've never actually experienced the festival itself. Besides…" And the blond mumbled something so low, Neji didn't catch the last part.
"What did you say?" Naruto hesitated before answering.
"Well….no one really wanted me at the festival…so I didn't go."
Neji drew back in shock. Naruto's eyes, normally a glittering shade of clear blue had darkened into their blackened state once more. For a moment, time slowed to a stop as Neji looked into the blond's eyes. He'd suspected this for a very long time, for Naruto had hinted briefly at it, but never had he actually seen the degree of hurt, anguish, and sadness in the blond's blue eyes. It tore at his soul, flayed him alive, and ground into his heart with a painful jabbing to see Naruto's eyes bear such pain and torment. It was frightening to the point of being petrifying, seeing this normally optimistic boy suddenly become the very personification of loneliness and depression.
"Tell me what happened." Naruto looked up, the sadness quickly evaporating.
"What?" Neji stroked the side of Naruto's neck in a soft, gentle caress.
"You have unlimited amounts of torment and pain hidden in your eyes. Tell me what caused it." Naruto sighed and wrapped his arms around Neji's waist, nestling in the folds of his shirt.
"Well, it was about when I was five…."
He meandered around the crouded playground, eyes wide with curiosity. He'd been anticipating this for a long, long time, his first time in this playground. He'd looked forward to the swings, the slide, the children to play with, and fantasized the trees and soft grass simply waiting to be nestled in. He'd dreamed about this playground ever since he'd got the wind of it from a passerby. And now that he was in it, he couldn't wait to play.
It wasn't the sort of playground he'd expected…there were slides and swings…it was a bit smallish though. But there were plenty of children to play with. Baby blue eyes widened in wild and eager delight, and with a whoop, Naruto leapt into the fray of children, giggling softly as he saw all the activities going on in the playground. A boy with long black hair tied in a ponytail bounced a ball in the corner. The small blond child, noting that the boy was all alone, decided to introduce himself. Walking up the boy, he tapped on his shoulder.
"Uhm…hi. My name is Uzumaki Naruto." The boy nodded and smiled.
"My name is Nara Shikamaru." Naruto grinned a toothy grin that reeked of childish innocence.
"Can…can I…can I play with you and your ball?" Shikamaru gave a little half-smile in return.
"Sure you can."
For the next five minutes, the two happily bounced back and forth the small red ball, laughing playfully as they tossed it back and forth. A shadow fell over their game, and they both looked up to see a tall woman scowling down at them. Shikamaru's eyes widened in surprise.
"What are you doing here, Aunt Yuri?" The woman frowned down at her nephew.
"I was assigned by your mother to take care of you. And I am extremely disappointed to see you playing with this…this monster." Naruto's eyes widened in shock. Monster? Him? He was a human, the last time he checked. Shikamaru seemed to think so too.
"There's nothing wrong with Naruto. Why can't I play with him?" The woman's scowl deepened.
"Because he's a scandal, a monster, and a filthy, disgusting little child. Now come. I won't stand for you to corrupt yourself with him." Tugging impatiently on Shikamaru's arm, she hauled the boy away.
Naruto watched him go with a mixture of sadness, shock, confusion, and depression. He'd just made a new friend, only to have him snatched away from him so quickly. Shikamaru himself was a nice person, so why did his aunt have to hate him so? He wasn't a monster. He wasn't anything but a small, human child. With that thought in his head, Naruto wandered off to find other playmates, a saddened look on his face.
Child after child he tried to play with, and each time their parents came and snatched them away. Time after time he was rejected and scorned until he gave up, wandering away to sit under the shade of a sakura tree, absently playing with a small, pink, silken petal. Another shadow fell across his form and he flinched, instinctively raising his arms up to shield his face. When he wasn't hurt after a period of three minutes, he slowly lowered his hands and looked up into the face of a kindly old man. The man had a nice face, suggesting years of wisdom, and his eyes were kind and inviting, radiating warmth and touching Naruto's soul. He extended a hand out to the small blond.
"Come with me." Naruto stood and nodded, wiping the tears from his cheeks. The man lead him over to a bench and sat him down beside him, folding his knarled, ancient hands onto his lap.
"I've seen you around for a very long time, Uzumaki Naruto." The blond's eyes widened.
"How…how do you know my name?" The man laughed a deep, growly laugh.
"I've suspected it was you for a very long time, and I have a few explanations to give you." He smiled down at the blond, who hesitated, then tentatively grinned back.
"Uhm…what should I call you?" The man smiled.
"My name is Sarutobi."
"Sah-rue-toe-bee." Naruto sounded out carefully. The man nodded.
"That's right. I've suspected it was you for a very long time, and now I must tell you the truth, why all the parents are rejecting you so." Naruto nodded and waited expectantly. The man draped and arm about his shoulders and pulled him close. Naruto closed his eyes and inhaled the man's scent. It was a fragrant, nostalgic scent, smelling like herbs and coffee and vanilla.
"A long time ago, your mother was one of the most successful people in all of Tokyo. Rich, beautiful, she was immensely popular amongst the men in Japan. They courted her ardently, one by one, but always she rejected them, turned them away. The women were all quite jealous, believe me, and harshly berated her for not taking a husband." Sarutobi paused, then continued.
"Then there was one day when a young, handsome ruffian arrived in town by the name of Kazumo Arashi. He was greatly dashing, with blond, spiky hair and charming blue eyes. Your mother met him and fell in love with him instantly. They married, and were a very happy couple, and soon they had you." The man swallowed, then pressed on.
"But then things changed. The people in town distrusted your father, seeing that he only ensnared your mother in two or three weeks whereas the rest of the male population took years, even decades courting her in vain. I suspect the ladies were jealous as well, for your father was quite the dashing young man. When you were born, you had three whisker slashes on your cheeks, birthmarks of course, but the people thought otherwise."
"You see, a man by the name of Kyuubi was one of the most feared and respected people in all of Japan. Riches, women, he had it all, but he was merciless in his ways, resorting to torture and murder when he couldn't get what he wanted. For years he chased after your mother, begging, pleading with her to marry him, yet when she married your father, he was completely heartbroken. He'd plotted for years to win your mother, and was enraged to the point of insanity when she married your father."
"Kyuubi himself had three slash marks on his cheeks, so when you were born, the whole town thought you were the product of an affair between your mother and Kyuubi. In truth, the whiskers were a coincidence, just a birthmark, but the town thought otherwise. Your father knew the truth, but kept his mouth shut and continued on with life. The night after you were born, Kyuubi came and killed both your father and your mother." Naruto's eyes widened in shock and filled with tears as he thought about the parents he'd never had.
"Your mother died with you in her arms, but your father managed to kill Kyuubi as well before he perished. The whole town knew about this, but they still had the idea that you were Kyuubi's child firmly implanted in their heads. They see only Kyuubi in you, Naruto, and because of that, they hate you. There is a rule forbidding them to tell their children, but eventually their attitude towards you will be passed down to their offspring. When that time comes, you must stay strong. You must continue to hope that one day you will find one that you love, and when that day comes, you must protect that one with your whole being. And remember," The man leaned forward and placed a kiss on Naruto's forehead.
"Remember that I'm always watching over you."
Naruto finished and smiled sadly, burying his face in Neji's chest.
"And after all these years of searching, I've finally, finally found someone that I love." Neji tilted Naruto's face to his and kissed him, a long, slow kiss that emanated of understanding.
"I've always wondered how you managed to look so like a fox." Naruto giggled.
"Really? You think I look like a fox?" Neji let his eyes roam over the blond's face, nodding slowly.
"Somewhat." Naruto laughed. Neji shifted against him, eyes scintillating thoughtfully.
"You mentioned something about Sarutobi?" Naruto nodded.
"Yes."
"He's here. His grandson is Konohamaru, the boy you've been friends with, and he's my uncle's most trusted advisor." Naruto's eyes were the size of dinner plates.
"Seriously?"
"Seriously." The blond drew back, stunned.
"He is watching over me then." Neji smiled serenely.
"He watches over everyone." Naruto grinned and nodded, snuggling deeper into Neji's chest. The two stayed like that for a long period of time, eternally enveloped in an embrace of deepest understanding.
Now I really don't know what Yondaime's real name is, but Kazumo Arashi is what many people use in their fics, and it is rumored to be Yondaime's name, so...