Disclaimer: The characters nor the world of Naruto do not belong to me!
Warnings: The arrival of Sasuke! (Try not to drool too much, folks!) Apart from that not much else. Shounen Ai, swearing, etc. Don't like, don't read
IMPORTANT NOTICE! I'm currently in need of someone who can help me co-write a lemon for this story. Obviously, it'll be between Sasuke and Naruto. Any offers/suggestions, please let me know! I'd appreciate any help you guys could give me!
Part Five: Cruelty and Beauty
It's amazing
How you make your face just like a wall
How you take your heart and turn it off
How I turn my head and lose it all
Naruto watched and tried not to fidget as the horse van pulled up in the courtyard. It was followed immediately by a sleek black BMW limousine with black tinted windows and shiny silver trim. Even the horse van was impressive- it looked to be one of the most expensive and sophisticated brand names about.
Naruto stood with the other stable hands; the ones who weren't required had retreated to the common room for the night. He was hidden behind Genma and Kakashi, who were speaking quietly to one another. Beside him, Shikamaru was quiet, and managing to look extremely bored and alert at the same time.
Uchiha Itachi was also present, standing a little to the side by himself. As the driver of the van got out, he looked sideways at Naruto and beckoned to him slightly.
Hiding his reluctance as best as he could, he left the safety of his friends and walked over to join him. Those cold eyes slid over him once before returning to observe the scene before him.
The driver was lowering the ramp slowly, as noises of restlessness came from the horses within. Voices from the other side of the van where the limo had stopped drifted on the cool night air and reached Naruto's ears, making him slightly more agitated than he already was.
"Remember my orders, Uzamaki. If you disappoint him, you'll answer to me. I'll accept no excuses."
Naruto tried to hide the fact that he was trembling slightly. He bowed his head demurely and kept his eyes on the ground.
"I understand, Uchiha-sama." He said softly.
"Good."
Naruto turned to go back to the others; there was no way a Uchiha would want to be seen with a servant of any kind.
Once he'd rejoined the others, he breathed a sigh of relief and closed his eyes for a moment to regain his composure and his wits.
He watched as two people appeared by the ramp, talking with each other and managing to look incredibly beautiful (which made sense, seeing as the Uchiha's only associated with other beautiful people and business associates) at the same time.
One was a stunning young woman, with long ash blond hair held up in an impossibly long ponytail. She wore low slung jeans which were so tight they seemed to be moulded to her skin. Her top was of a pale grey silver, a strange halter-neck top which left her back bare. Long silver earrings dangled from her ears, and carefully applied makeup enhanced her perfect features. An elegant forelock of hair hung seductively over one eye- no doubt to make her more appealing to men.
"High heels? In a stable?" Genma mutter incredulously.
She was indeed wearing high heels, which made her long legs seem even longer.
Naruto turned his attention to the other person accompanying the female.
For a moment, he thought that the person was a female too, but after seeing the face, he was definitely a male. Yet there was something slightly androgynous about his features. Naruto couldn't quite pin it down, but he definitely had the fine features of an aristocrat. Pale, almost colourless silver eyes surveyed the courtyard, and Naruto shivered at the cold ignorance in that gaze, shifting to hide a bit better behind Genma. The man's pale skin seemed to catch the moonlight and reflect it back at the world. It didn't look sickly either. Just beautiful…He was tall, taller than the female and he was slim and graceful. His most stunning feature, however, was his hair.. It fell down his back in shining, dead straight cascades. Almost waist length, it was so glossy and fine and luscious that Naruto wondered how he kept it so…perfect. There wasn't a hair out of place on his head, and the colour itself was amazing- a deep mahogany brown with coppery highlights.
Naruto shook his head slightly, confused at his own thoughts.
Suddenly, a third male joined the two, and Naruto's eyes became fixated on his face. He was looking at a god. A very handsome, beautiful god.
Naruto took in his appearance, feeling slightly stunned. If the other two were beautiful then he was…exquisite.
Shining, blue-black trendles of hair fell over a pair of the darkest eyes he had ever seen. His skin was slightly less pale than the other males' but it was still practically flawless. He possessed a thin nose and sensuous lips which any person, male or female would swoon over. His shoulders were broad, but not so much as Kakashi's or Genma's. His chest tapered down to slim hips and long, long legs. This was definitely Uchiha Sasuke. And he was definitely not happy. Although his eyes were completely emotionless (a Uchiha trademark it seemed) his stiff and tense posture betrayed him.
Sasuke's long legs were encased in black dress pants , his torso covered by a black long-sleeved button up shirt which was undone to reveal a body hugging black tank top (obviously he liked black. The sleeves were rolled up to the elbow, revealing muscular forearms and graceful slender hands, which were covered by fingerless black leather gloves, much like the ones the stable hands used when handling horses.
As Sasuke headed towards Itachi, Naruto remembered that if he didn't start breathing again he would probably pass out. The possibility of that happening in front of these Uchiha's mortified him.
He clenched his hands to stop them from shaking.
Sasuke was beautiful. Naruto's breath was catching painfully in his throat and he tried to tell himself that he was being stupid. Even though he looked beautiful, that didn't mean he had a good personality.
But damn….
"Easy, Naruto," Shikamaru whispered. "Remember what I said."
He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.
No one can make you feel small unless you let them.
But still, in the presence of such…exotic beauty, he suddenly felt very small, and very, very ordinary.
"God! Can you imagine the attitudes that go with those faces?" Genma muttered, but even he seemed slightly subdued.
Naruto was doomed.
Sasuke crossed the yard in a brisk and slightly impatient manner. He seemed to lose that impatience as he stopped in front of his older brother. In fact, they seemed to soften very slightly towards each other. There were definitely similarities between the two, and yet they still managed to look very different. Naruto vaguely wondered how that was possible.
He couldn't hear their voices because they were speaking too softly, but he automatically stiffened when they both looked over to where they were standing, before walking over.
"Kakashi-san, I take it everything is ready for our horses?" Sasuke asked coolly. His voice wasn't as deep as Itachi's, but it was definitely smoother; dark, bittersweet coffee. Naruto shivered at the sheer magnetism in that voice.
"It is, Sasuke-sama. Everything is ready."
Sasuke nodded, and then looked over the group.
"Which one is Uzamaki Naruto?"
Bracing himself, he stepped forward and half-bowed to him.
"I am, Sasuke-sama." He murmured before straightening.
"Come with me."
Naruto followed at a respectable and polite distance as Sasuke strode over to the horse van.
The ramp was fully lowered now, and the lights along the sides had been turned on. A loud bang sounded from within, making him jump, but Sasuke didn't seem bothered by this as he turned to Naruto.
"I want you to get my horse out." He ordered, his cold, ice-like eyes sliding over him in assessment, much like Itachi's had earlier.
His companions were watching silently, seeming a little disdainful. He swallowed and raised his chin slightly, determined not to let them intimidate him.
"Of course, Sasuke-sama." He responded in a quiet and hopefully respectful voice. Walking up the shadowed ramp was a little unnerving, as he was not sure what to expect, but he continued on none the less, knowing that Sasuke was still watching him.
Another bang sounded loudly in front of him, followed by an impatient snort. Before him stood a giant of a horse, obviously dark coloured, because it was extremely difficult to make out it's form in the dim lighting.
This was, presumably, Sasuke's horse. It looked at him with a sharp eye before kicking again and neighing piercingly.
"Hey there, boy. Easy now." Naruto said soothing and quiet as he approached.
He carefully undid the barrier separating him from the horse (carefully because the horse was obviously high strung and therefore unpredictable) and swung it away before attempting to untie the lead rope. A quick, spiteful nip was aimed at his arm, but he was too quick for the horse. He pushed the huge head away before tugging the rope free and turning the horse towards the ramp. For a moment, the beast refused to move, before he minced forward with small steps; obviously the horse hated horse trailers.
But Naruto was patient, knowing that if he forced him forward, it would only enrage the horse and make him bolt down the ramp.
Once at the top of the ramp, the horse lowered it's head slightly before taking an experimental step onto it, then dancing sideways down the ground. His head was thrown up as he tested the air and the new scents. Naruto stood quietly beside him, unsure what to do next. The horse tossed its head and squealed impatiently.
Sasuke shouldered him out of the way. "I've seen enough." He said brusquely.
Naruto, fearing he had done something wrong, followed Sasuke, feeling slightly dejected as Sasuke led the horse towards the barn.
The others were at the van now, and were beginning to unload the other two horses and their accompanying equipment. As he passed them, Genma squeezed his shoulder in comfort.
He could hear the horse stirring up the other horses as he was led to his new stall. Naruto arrived as Sasuke was taking off the halter. After closing the stall door behind him, he tossed the leather halter to Naruto.
"Give him half a biscuit of hay, and make sure his waters clean. I want him fed and saddled by seven tomorrow morning.
"Yes, Sasuke-sama."
Sasuke gave him another once over before walking off without a backwards glance. Naruto swallowed the lump on his throat and massaged his painfully tight stomach muscles gingerly. Sometimes he got so nervous his stomach muscles began to cramp painfully.
He took a deep breath and looked over the magnificent horse in the stall.
It was a dark, dark brown. So dark he looked black, and only his points (knees, muzzle, and around the hindquarters) were a slightly lighter shade, betraying his true colour. The coat was glossy, and fine haired. Naruto betted that it would be softer than the finest silk. The broad, yet beautiful face was something to look at, with finely shaped ears and a long, elegant forelock. His mane and tail flowed like water as he moved around his stall investigating. He had intelligent, alert eyes, which held a sly mischievous humour.
Naruto was in awe of the huge horse. He was restless, always moving, always curious. Naruto didn't even reach the horses withers ( top point of the shoulders) He could easily be seventeen hands high. Naruto was a mere ant compared to this beast.
The gelding was wearing a dark blue cotton stable rug and he was standing knee deep in sawdust, so he was comfortable and warm. Naruto checked to confirm that the water was clean, and then fetched a half biscuit of hay to put in his hay net. The horse pulled impatiently at it, tugging a mouthful free and munching it as he studied his new environment. He looked comfortable enough so feeling, slightly less sick now, he headed back out towards the courtyard once more.
And yes, horses can squeal, for those of you who were wondering.
Just a few explanations;
1).For horses, hay comes in bales, which can be easily separated into sections called biscuits.
2).Height for horses is measured in units called 'hands'. There are four inches or 1/3 of a ft. to a hand. Not many horses reach this height- more common in warm-blood horses and draft horses. Note: Warm-blooded does not refer to their actual blood, but is a category of horses- usually based on breeding and temperament. Sasuke's horse is a purebred thoroughbred, which is considered to be a hot-blooded horse- because of their fiery temperaments and their speed.
Sorry for the late updates everyone! There are no excuses! I still love you all! HUGS
And thanks to all those who reviewed the last chapter! I'll try to reply to them all this time around!
Hopefully you all enjoyed it- the long anticipated arrival of Sasuke! Did you like it? Let me know!
Thanks for reading!
Ja Ne!