Chapter 2! I cannot wait to tell you the rest of this story.
Warnings: Language, slight gore, light romance(and bad writing :D)
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Naruto is the first to speak. "Who..." Naruto says as he takes a step back, eyeing Menma's shirtless form. " are you?" He raises his arms in a protective manner.
It clicked, Naruto thought of Menma as a whoremonger, or a torture expert.
"My name is Menma." He states as he walked slowly to the other, extending his arm cautiously. He can only imagine what Sasuke has tried to do.
"What are you doing here?" Naruto asks as he bends his knees, ready for a fight of sorts.
"..." Menma didn't reply. He honestly doesn't know himself. Pursing his lips, he quickened his pace and moved toward Naruto. Dropping his hand, making a light scuff on his pants.
"Hey! I asked a question!" Naruto says, his voice rising and beginning to show traces of panic. Naruto stepped back closer to the wall. Back leg bending deeper into a crouch.
"I need to talk to you!" Menma retorts, lengthening his stride by double.
"No way!" Naruto yells as he bumps into the wall. Menma chuffs as the boy lightly bounds off the wall, forced to face the intruder.
"Dont you dare get any closer!" Naruto says lowly in a threatening tone.
Menma gets within six feet of the other when Naruto throws a half-hearted kick to Menma's head.
Menma recognizes the kick. It's something of a ninja manner as opposed to the theives adapt-to-all mechanism.
He ducks on instinct, the ankle brushing over his coarse black hair.
Naruto wasn't anticipating the duck, he stumbles on the balancing leg and swings to the other side. Too wild of a kick and too much speed.
Menma grabs the others arm in a flicker of the wrist as it passes his open hand. He then turns Naruto's chest to the wall in a forced manner, as he brought up Naruto's imprisoned arm in a kinked position behind the whipped back. He brought his other hand and held Naruto's firmly against the wall. Menma lightens on the tension as he remembers the harsh torment from Sasuke.
He winces as the cuts and food leave a residue on his fingers, and he smells the hint of iron.
"Listen." he snarls into Naruto's ear, puffing a few loose strands "I don't know what the hell is going on. I was brought here for a bounty and the next thing I know, I'm a prisoner in a castle." Menma watches as Naruto looses some of the previous tension. He watched as Naruto tried to get to where he could see Menma.
"So, you're not here to bribe me into Uchiha's bed?"
"No. I oppose the Uchiha." Menma says as he pulls away slightly, aware of how close he is.
"Ok. What are you for?" Naruto pulls away from Menma. It's not out of fear, it's to get comfortable in the position. His arm is kinked on his back and his forehead in the wall.
Menma shrugged before answering. "I'm a Theif. I came from the tropic areas. I support no kingdoms, especially the Uchiha." Naruto's body swelled with a sigh of relief against Menma's palm, skin stretching.
"Thats good. Why does he want you here?" Naruto asks, this time with lighter tones.
"Beats me." Menma said as he pulled away from Naruto. The other began to laugh. Menma felt that he should move away as quickly as possible.
"Finally!" He turns around and Menma can see, even under the veil, that Naruto is grinning. "Something good!" He rose his arms and lightly punched the air. Menma grins, even though he knows his mask won't show it.
Menma looked around the room. A bed was to the far left of the entry door. Beyond that, several closets.
On the right was a large fireplace, two large, posh chairs on either side of the giant mantle with a stool in between them. A pot of what he assumed to be water was boiling in the heart of the flames, pot clattering every few moments.
A differing room was on the same wall of the fireplace . Everything was colored in the crimson red of roses and cream to white. A bright room, no doubt. The windows made the room brighter in the slowly dropping sun.
To the right of where he slammed Naruto, there was a door that Menma assumed to be the balcony. Judging by the windows on the same wall, he was right.
He wiped the residue of the blood and food on the hem of his black pants.
It hit him.
He looked at Naruto expectantly, who is just standing there, exhaling in relief.
He must've felt Menma staring. Naruto dropped his hands and replied with a confused look.
"Where's the rags, water, and clothes?" Menma said, trying to focus on making the other as relaxed as possible. He'd have to if he wanted an ally.
"In that room." Naruto points to that room on the left. He didn't give Naruto a chance to ask why, and if he did, Menma didn't answer.
"Why? Do you need a- hey wait!" But Menma is already in the room, so this was the bathing room. To his right was a empty stone tub. On the edge was several white cloths. He made a note to take them. What!? Sasuke didn't deserve them! He grabbed two stacks and folded them under his arm. There were white looses bed pants and baggy shirts worn under tunics. He grabbed those too.
He'd use that boiling water in the fire.
"What're you doing?!" Naruto yells as Menma came back out of the room hurriedly and nearly collided into Naruto. He grabbed Naruto's arm and led him to the fireplace.
Against Naruto's confusion, Menma shoves Naruto by the shoulders onto the stool.
"Shush." He orders. Naruto folded his arms and shifted on the stool, waiting for Menma to explain.
"I'm going to clean your wounds." He says then turns to grab the pot handle and lowers it onto the ground next to Naruto.
When Naruto doesn't reply. Menma looks at him and is greeted with hollow suprise.
"Are you sure? I can do it myself." Menma ignores the question and turns to ask his own.
"Where can I find another stool?" He asked, crouching by the pot.
Naruto surrenders and points to the closest one. Menma walks to it and drags it back, placing it behind Naruto.
"Why are you-" Naruto asks, trying to look at Menma. Turning his body to the other. He is pushed to where his back is facing Menma again. He chuckled at the aggravated response.
Menma slowly reaches at the connecting brooch for the veil material. He touches it and watches as Naruto's body tenses and contracts.
"Do you want me to do this?" Menma asks. A defeated sigh comes from Naruto. "If you feel like it." Naruto isn't sure how to react to the show of care. Part of Sasuke's punishment is to let him be and collect sicknesses.
"Here, wait." Naruto says after getting up and leaving Menma irritated. He reached up on top of the mantle and snatches a small bottle filled with blue liquid. He gave it to Menma before sitting back down.
"It's a special soap they let me have, it's supposed to help with sickness." Menma arches an eyebrow and pops the cap, then drops a portion of the liquid into hot water.
His eyes widened as the water turned a yellow then back to reflecting the pot color.
He warily touched it. Marveling when the rest of the food residue pulled away from his skin. Re-focusing his attention on Naruto, he sat down and popped the brooch.
Menma pulls and peels away the veil material. Sticky noises coming through as it separates from blood, flesh, and old food.
He grabs a rag and dips it in the tonic water. Letting the coarse fibers soak before he pulls it out. Then rubbing it slowly across the others back.
Naruto flinched as the sudden heat came in contact with ripped skin, boiling and stinging away the potential diseases.
Twenty minutes passed in thoughtful silence until Menma breaks it.
"Did you know," Menma starts as he resoaks the cloth "that bands of thieves do this after every heist?"
"Clean each other's wounds?" Naruto asks as Menma wipes away another food remenant.
"Why?"
"It's like a truce, or expressing trust between bandsmen." Menma says as he clears another area of skin.
"Ah. So this is your way of saying you're not gonna hurt me?" Naruto asks cheekily.
"... I guess you could say that." Menma grins quietly through his mask at the others silly analogy. He watches in alarm as Naruto curls his spine when Menma reaches lower.
"What did I do!" Menma barks.
"Sorry. It's... Touchy down there." and Menma either assumes it's a soft spot, or Sasuke has tried to seduce him many times.
He grumbles and stuffs that thought away.
"Sorry." Menma apologizes and cleans the area as quickly as possible. Then he moves on to Naruto's injured arms.
He peels away the tomato residue, the infected blood crackling and dropping into the cloth.
Another hour passes. Menma went back to the bathing room to get fresh cloths and bandages for the cleaned and scabbing wounds.
He returns and begins to rewash the wounds. He couldn't help but be meticulous. Heists had to happen. They wouldn't work if a person was injured, cuts had to be thoroughly tended to.
He was used to skin under his fingers. Not in a perverse way, though. It happened nearly every heist. Heck, he wasn't even wearing a shirt, it caught on everything he bypassed and hindered the heist.
He pulls back and let's the water boil again under the heat of the fire.
As he turns to wrap more of the whip marks, he notices something else.
Light scars layer Naruto's back. The skin wasn't indented, just lightly pigmented to a brighter shade.
"Why?" Menma asks as he brushes over the cuts.
"Huh?" Naruto says through the veil. Menma pulls back and reaches for the pot, re-soaking a fresh rag.
"Why is the Uchiha doing this to you?" Menma pulls it back an squeezes it to dampness.
"Do you mind a longer story?" Naruto asks.
"No."
"Well... My family was never royalty." Menma raised an eyebrow.
"Mother and Father were dirt poor. They didn't have anything. No special objects from family, nothing." Menma waited for him to go on. He didn't even know this part of the story.
"Then one day, as Dad was trying to build us a place to stay, a group of thieves passed us by." Menma furrowed his brow. Is this why thieves valued the Namikaze rule?
"Mom and Dad welcomed the company. Told them they didn't have anything, hardly any food. But these thieves were... Subtle. They didn't see my parents as a harm. So they stayed for the next two nights."
"So what happened?" Menma asks as he straps another bandage on a cut.
"My dad must've been friendly or something because they stayed with them. Helped build a small home with dad, they set up their tents and before they knew it. They became family." Menma sat in silent interest. "So. They supported us. Gave us food when we needed it. Their messengers were sent out around the land and before dad knew what was coming, there were people around. People wanting to be with mom and dad."
Menma dipped the cloth back into the warm water.
"Somewhere along the way, I was born. Mom tells me that the thieves were delighted when I was boy. They joked that I would be trained like a theif." Naruto paused to chuckle. Menma placed the scalding rag on one of the wounds, making Naruto cringe.
"Dad got more and more support from people. There were homes being built, families making friends, and the thieves dropping their heartless ways." A realization shot through Menma.
"That's were the first law of the Minato Code came from!" Menma exclaimed.
"Never steal from those who cant have food or hope."
Naruto nodded dismally. "Somewere along the years, dad became a king of sorts. The people decided it. We flourished." Naruto's voice dropped.
"Then the Uchihas came. Real royalty. They wanted to meet my mom and dad, talk with them. That was also when Sasuke came." Menma stiffened at the name.
"Sasuke was always... Jealous of his brother and me. Or just jealous that Itachi and me became friends quicker." Menma could hear the shadow in Naruto's voice.
"Later, our castle came in. The Uchiha became snobs. Parents totally losing the reins on Sasuke." Naruto clenched a fist. "He became a cynical snob. His brother left the palace. Then it happened."
Menma felt his stomach drop with dread.
"The day our village and castle burned. Then in the midst of the chaos, I saw him. Sasuke stood in the center of the village. Flames all over him. He took me Hostage minutes later."
Menma wants to crush Sasuke, just like Sasuke did to Naruto.
"I was the choice. Either I died, or the people did." Naruto halted and Menma placed a compassionate hand on Naruto's bandage. A silent show of pity.
"But then," Naruto's voice shadowed again. " When I was ready to die, he offered a third option. I could go as Sasuke's new toy, and everyone lived." Naruto stops because the rest is old news.
The evening has already sunk low.
"Does he hurt you like this everyday?" Menma asked as the wound stopped bleeding and began to scab. He pulled a new bandage on them.
"Nah, he was showing off cause you're here." Menma sighed in relief as he handed Naruto a fresh sleeping shirt and loose pants. He averted his eyes as Naruto changed clothes. An arrow of self-hate shot through Menma's toes and into his skull, it ricochets through his body as he caught understanding of Naruto's words.
"Thanks." Naruto slips on the white garments and turns around to Menma. It's then that Menma sees the veil is still on Naruto's face. He reaches up and asks
"Is it ok if I do this?" Naruto pauses? Contemplating. Naruto hadn't even taken it off on his own.
"Yes." Naruto gives the permission. His voice steady, he believes Menma can handle the odd truth.
Menma peals it back, relieved to see that food was stuck to the material instead of skin. But then, in the firelight and dimming day.
"Do you want me to put it back on?" Naruto asks in a panic. He covers his scars. Menma snaps out his hand and holds Naruto's intruding palm out of the way. Intrigue and confusion laced over his face. Naruto tenses as Menma rubs his thumb against his cuts. Tracing the scars. His brows narrowed in bewilderment Then realization hits him and he snaps his hand away.
"Do you-"
"Shush. This is bad." Menma says as he reaches behind his neck at the main strap. And lowers it. Naruto gasps in shock when be sees the same whiskers cut into Menma's face. They're just deeper and darker.
"What?" He says when he notices that Menma is a near reflection of himself. Menma's face is slightly harder and more square. His skin tone is just a tad lighter. Then it clicks.
"Sasuke needs us for something." Naruto says in a rush.
"We need to get out of here." Menma said as he made his way to the balcony. He felt the panic pulling at his chest, he was needed for something.
"No wait! You can't!" Naruto yelled at Menma, following him out the window doors. Menma leering over the edge on his stomch. He winces as smooth, cold stone comes into contact with his bare belly.
"I'm a thief, I can get out of any palace!" Menma said as he over looked the palace grounds. He blanched. Guards. Traveling in groups of thirty littered the grounds. Everywhere. It was like an army.
"I warned you!" Naruto said as Menma backed away from the edges of the fence-like railing. Menma pulled himself back together, re-re-evaluating the situation.
"Have you ever tried escape?" Menma asked as he looked back at the other boy. If there was a slight chance and Naruto took it before...
"Sixteen times in the first month." Naruto replied with a smart grin. His mouth twitches in an unknown emotion before he asks;
"Wait, how long have you been here?"
"Going on year two." Menma inhaled loudly, thinking. Menma gained his bearings before talking again.
"Is there no way out of here?" He felt claustrophobic in the tight quarters. Restrained.
"I'm working on it." Naruto answers as if it's the most basic thing in the world. Menma releases some of his tension. Atleast he wasn't clueless. The air becomes silent and calm again as Menma graces his fingers over the fence top. Pulling them back an inch or two as he notices how his stomach is wet.
"I see the dew here gathers early in the northern regions?" Menma asked as he brought a slicked palm up to his eye levels.
"Yeah." Naruto says as he leans against the stone edge. He rings the windchimes on his right that Menma didn't see before. The haphazard music calming his panic, lulling him to relax.
"Do you know what windchimes represent in Chinese feng shui?" Naruto breaks the silence and stares at the metal pipes.
"No." Menma looks over his shoulder and his square features soften at the longing look on Naruto's face.
"Freedom."
Naruto looks out into the forest past the courtyards. Beyond the disappearing sun and beyond the walls.
Menma knows. He lives as a riffraff thief, the nobles can't hold him in their pesky grasps.
"Does he ever let you out?" he wants to know if Sasuke ever...
"Yes." Naruto sees the relief flash over Menma's face before bitterly chuckling.
"On a collar and leash."
Naruto watched as Menma's features harden noticeably. Then an idea flashes through Menma's mind.
"I could convince Sasuke to let us out?" Menma asks and this is met with a confused look from Naruto.
"Why!?"
"I might know someone who can help us. A fellow in the black market." He traces his memory back to the message from the ally. A hint of hope passes through Naruto's eyes.
"Sure, but how are we gonna convince Sasuke?" Naruto waves his hand in a circle. Gesturing at the problem.
"I... Hadn't thought about that." Menma replies in remorse as he turns back to the oversight. Surely there was a way to convince him.
"There may be one way." Naruto says and Menma inclines his head back at the other.
"Sasuke has a really weird way of using his concubines. One can 'claim' a concubine by giving them a piece of signature jewelry. When they wear it, no one has permission to touch them, even Sasuke. Even he respects the rule." Menma lifts a brow at the comment.
"What if he makes an exception for you?"
"He won't. If he's seen disobeying his own laws, he won't be respected."
"What about Sasuke disliking us?" Menma figuratively gets ready to put his hopes under lock and chains.
"...He wouldn't get us... If he didn't like us..." Naruto smiles wryly.
"There has to be a catch?" Menma says, brow narrowing.
Naruto sighs. Inside though, he's tense. "If you are not seen by Sasuke showing... affections, then he has full right to remove the jewelry for reasons like 'Dont buy something you aren't going to use when someone else could." Naruto tenses when Menma stays blank.
"But you aren't a concubine?"
"My status is. But Concubines are willing, they have to be. If I'm willing to, then there is nothing wrong with this agreement." Naruto grins inwardly his own intelligence. Menma forces his face to be devoid of obvious emotions.
"So," His chest flickers lightly at the words. "You want me. To place you as my personal slave." Naruto nods, oblivious to Menma's confusion. "A pleasure slave." Naruto nods again. "And we must," Menma holds out on the word. "interact." Naruto blinks and nods again.
"Hey if you don't want to-"
"No! I'm ok with it. But," He looks at the whiskers. "Are you?"
"Of course! Else I wouldn't have suggested it!" Naruto sounds perfectly ok with acting as a male concubine.
"But I-" Menma is interrupted.
"Hey, I'm ok with people who steal that treasure. You seem to be also." Naruto says freely.
"...If you say so." Menma says before blinking and shaking his head. "I can go along with it."
A silence is blanketed over the two. Naruto thinking of how to get Sasuke to fall for it and hoping with all his hope that Menma knows what to do to convince Sasuke.
"What is considered interaction between concubine and master? At the most basic level?" He wants to know, badly.
"Kissing. And I think showing possessiveness." Naruto ponders. "Sasuke will tell you when you ask." Menma exhales in relief. It's not as bad as he was thinking.
"Have you ever?" Naruto doesn't have to finish. The subtext is clear. Menma pauses before trying to answer.
"I-"
A knock on the door interupts them. Menma makes fast moves to reassemble his mask, fastening the key strap. He and Naruto walk side by side to the middle of the room before Naruto answers
"Come in." Sasuke walks in, arrogance wafting in the room like perfume. Menma feels Naruto's dread and despise. Two bodyguards accompany him, Menma recognizes them as the same ones from the day at the beach.
"I have returned." Sasuke says with controled politeness.
"So I see." Menma replies with a bitter edge.
"Menma, could I show you to your quarters? The princes escort?"
'Heh, when the numbskull tries, he can be quite charming.' Menma chides within his mind.
"Actually, I have a request, my prince." Menma tries to forget the way he treated Sasuke earlier. Then rips that thought away. He and Naruto are his favorites.
"Oh?" Sasuke raises an eyebrow. His polite facade slipping for a millisecond. "What is it?"
"Naruto tells me his status is that of a concubine." Menma forces himself not to grin shrewdly as Sasuke's alert face slips into something much more sinister.
"Yes."
"Is it possible to claim concubines, from anyone else's attention? Naruto does not seem to hate me." He gestured to the person beside him.
"Yes."
Sasuke's eyes narrow observantly. He knew it was a bad idea to let them be alone.
"May I?" Menma asks. He never knew he was such a good actor, but he doesn't know if its enough for Sasuke.
Menma can see Sasuke's disapproval shimmering in his eyes. If what Naruto said was right, he would follow his own rules. Shrewd realization flickers on Sasuke's eyes. Menma fears he has said no.
"Show me." Sasuke says with a low commanding tone.
"Huh?" Menma is thrown off guard at the other not declining the request.
"My concubines must be willing. Show me Naruto is willing. Kiss him on the cheek." Sasuke is trying not to let his satisfaction show through. He knows Naruto is anti-intimacy. If Menma can instill this much dominance...
Menma reached left hand behind Naruto, curls it around the ear in a hooking manner and pulls Naruto's cheek toward him. He used his free hand to pull down the mask to where his lips and nose were visible.
Then leaned in.
His lips meet the lower area of Naruto's cheekbone. His lower lip lightly graces the top whisker indention and Menma let's his eyes lower to see when then skin warms and colors under his lips.
It's softish. He can smell the odd soap he placed on Naruto. He presses close enough until his nose lightly bumps the flesh.
Naruto leans into Menma's kiss lightly. It's barely there, but he knows Sasuke saw it. Naruto's eyes slide over to Menma's. The others eyes are low-lidded, looking at Naruto's pinking cheek. His eyes, Naruto now sees that they are more like aqua-blue. Before he can look anymore, Menma pulls away, eyes still slightly glazed, and slowly looks back at Sasuke.
Even in their sudden haze, they both have to hold back the powerful urge to laugh at Sasuke. His face was covered in traces of anger, coveting, envy, disbelief and jealousy.
"What color and type of jewelry object would you like to claim Naruto with?"
_
TBC
Um... Wow. That was my first uh... Wuvey-Dovey moment that I've ever taken seriously.
So...Ahem (gets self together) how was it? I told you Naruto's past, how he got into the Uchiha Palace, then I gave the slash lovers some MenNaru potential.
((If this becomes yaoi, please note that I HATE it when there are moments of "His breath caught in his throat and the Animators inserted a white background with flowery petels. He felt the first signs o-" -bricks- No. I don't write like that. It's unrealistic.))
This story is cruising along nicely, hey?
Review to rant at me how I can't write womance scenes :D