Disclaimer: not mine

Warnings: male/male pairing

This is the beta-ed version, many thanks to the amazing Lazy-Hime

Chapter 2

Naruto carefully put his black and crimson mask back on his face as he left the Hokage's office. There were only three people who knew he was the infamous Shinku: Tsunade because she was the Hokage and had watched him choose that mask out of a bunch of others, Jiraiya because he had travelled with him for the first couple of years keeping an eye on him, and Genma, the Jounin who had been ordered to evaluate him and had become his lover.

Naruto was very fond of his mask, especially the anonymity it gave him. There were certain people he wanted to avoid, which would be difficult if they caught sight of him. Actually, he would have to go shopping if he had to stay in Konoha for the foreseeable future. Tsunade had practically demoted him from hunter-nin to Jounin-instructor, meaning he wouldn't be allowed to wear his hunter-mask.

Walking out of the tower, all the while ignoring the looks the occasional Genin- and Chuunin-teams gave him, he thought about his next course of action. Being ordered to stay in Konoha presented him with several problems.

At the top of the list was the fact that he didn't have a place to stay. Before leaving on his hunting-trip, Naruto had cancelled his apartment, seeing no need in paying for the little hell-hole when he had no intentions of staying in Konoha for even a night, much less live there.

Looking up in the sky, he sighed. He didn't want to go room hunting, he would have to sign with his name and in no time at all, certain people would know he was back and where to find him. On the other hand, he wouldn't be able to stay at an inn, either. He wouldn't be able to sleep at a place where anyone could get into.

Now, where would he be able to keep both his anonymity and be able to sleep without having to worry about strangers entering at any given time?

A small smile curved his lips beneath the mask, when the face of his current lover flashed in his mind's eye. Well, he did give me his address…surely he won't mind taking me in for a night or two.

It was early afternoon now. He would go to the bank first, then clothes shopping and then try his luck at Genma's door.

In a small restaurant in Konoha, famous for its fish dishes, a young man with pale skin and midnight black hair was waiting impatiently for his friend and former sensei. He was hungry and frustrated by the gaggle of fan girls sitting at a nearby table, shamelessly trying to attract his attention with their skimpy attire and flirtatious comments.

The only thing keeping him there was the fact that Kakashi had promised him he would have news about Naruto.

Sasuke's hands clenched into fists at the thought of his best friend, a friend he hadn't seen for four long, agonizing, lonely years. Sadness crept into obsidian eyes that were hidden behind his bangs.

When he had learned about the blond's long-term deployment, the last Uchiha had been dangerously close to killing the pink vulture that had lured him and Naruto into a painful trap. His eyes still instantly changed into Sharingan when he saw anything pink in the vicinity and into their most dangerous form when he caught sight of her.

A cheerful "Yo!" pulled him out of his vengeful thoughts.

"Hn."

"Your conversational skills are as great as ever, I see," the silver haired, chronically late Jounin commented lightly.

A waiter appeared and they ordered lunch.

Kakashi waited until they were alone again, before telling his former student in an uncharacteristically serious tone of voice, "He's alive, Sasuke."

Black eyes shot up and pinned their intense gaze on Kakashi's one visible eye, the relief in them nearly painful to watch.

"Sadly that's all I was able to find out. You know as well as I that a hunter-nin's anonymity is sacred."

The older man watched as disappointment and weariness replaced the relief and marvelled once again at the fact that Naruto seemed to be the only person on the planet who was able to get any emotions out of the Uchiha, even in his absence.

It was like the younger man was wired so that he only felt for or because of Naruto.

Taking pity on the usually stoic Uchiha, he continued. "However, I strongly believe that the Hokage will order him to come home in the near future. You know how fond she is of the idiot."

The waiter appeared with their orders at that point. The topic wasn't brought up again even after he left and both men ate in silence.

It was early evening when Genma came back to his apartment, sweaty from training and bored to death by the routine task of guard duty. Impatiently grasping his key, the Jounin tensed when he felt a second chakra source reveal itself seconds before a figure appeared from the shadowy hallway.

He turned at once, still tense, ready to grab a kunai or form a seal without a second's notice. It was a bit embarrassing that he recognized the other ninja's mask before he recognized his chakra signature.

He relaxed instantly, a lazy smirk forming on his face. "Must be my lucky day, today." he drawled sensually.

Turning back to open the door, he waved Naruto in.

Once they were inside, Genma pulled the crimson mask off his lover's face and proceeded to kiss him senseless. The blond was addictive: absolutely lethal, deliciously submissive. It was a heady mixture and Genma felt honoured that the younger man trusted him enough to let him touch him, to let him dominate their sexual encounters.

"So, what brings you to my humble abode?" he asked when the kiss ended.

Naruto frowned and answered, "Tsunade is giving me a Genin team to train. I'll have to stay in Konoha for at least a week, and then I'll simply fail them, and thus be free to leave again."

A delighted chuckle escaped Genma, who hurriedly explained after seeing the dark look on Naruto's face. "I'll have to take the week off then, to properly make use of your stay."

The blond snorted at that, playfully accusing the other, "Pervert."

"Only with you. So, are you gonna stay here?"

"I don't have anywhere else to stay at; your place will have to do," Naruto countered, relishing in the light banter. Before the older man had put the moves on him, the hunter-nin had been slowly drowning in darkness. Somehow Genma had managed to coax him into the light again, forcing first amusement and smiles out of him and later passion, laughter and trust.

Strong arms encircled him and a chin came to rest on his shoulder, the height difference between them making it so that the position came almost natural to them.

Hot breath brushed against Naruto's sensitive ear, causing him to shudder lightly.

"Then stay for real."

TBC

AN: Reviewing doesn't hurt ;-)