And The devil Marches On

Chapter 24

Previously On ATdMO:

"Yeah… She's right. It's time you knew the whole story." Kyuubi replied with a nod as he snuffed out his cigarette on the railing and flicked the offending object off the side of the two story building. I cautiously looked down over the railing as I listened to Kyuubi mumble something like, "Where to start…."

I looked up at him eagerly while repressing the urge to jump up and down with excitement.

He was silent for a few more seconds before turning towards the door that led back into the school.

"But, I can't tell you the whole story just yet. Next period is about to start, and I don't wish to be fired... I'll find you after school, Naruto. I'll let you come over to my place and then we'll talk."

Naruto's POV

'oh-mi-gooooddd! When is this period going to be over!?'

I couldn't stop my eyes from constantly glancing back at the clock as I fidgeted in my seat, and I have to admit that the damn minute hand was going by extremely slowly today! Why does father time want to torture me? Maybe I've done something horrible in a past life or something?

Either way—I don't deserve this!

I can feel my nerves slowly frying and shriveling up and I attempted to doodle on my desk to distract myself, but that only worked for about a minute, because I found myself glancing at the clock… again.

"Oi, what the hell has got your panties in a twist?"

I jumped and widened my eyes at the sudden voice that ghosted past my ear, making my blond hair tickle my cheek.

Moving slowly, I looked over my shoulder to eye the person behind me.

It was none other than Sai.

When the hell did he sit behind me?

Oh that's right, he personally asked Kyuubi if he could sit behind me, and he used the excuse of 'I'll pay more attention in the presence of the blond'… but we all know that that's complete BS.

"I just really want to go home…" I mumbled, before looking back at my doodle, which happened to be of a fox. It kinda looked like the tattoo on Kyuubi's arm—only it had four tails instead of nine.

"You're not sick, are you??" The youngest Uchiha brother questioned, and I felt him reach around me so he could press his cool hand against my forehead.

"No." I grumbled before smacking his hand away.

Sai seemed a little put out by my attitude, but I didn't really feel all that guilty at the moment. Sure, it'dprobably eat away at me later, but I was too busy glaring at time to let it bother me at the moment.

"Well, I hope you feel better tomorrow for the field trip." Sai sighed with a small pout as he leaned back in his seat.

My eyes widened and I quickly turned in my seat to look at the raven-haired teen.

"What field trip?!" I whispered harshly, not wanting to raise my voice and get in trouble by Kyuubi-sensei. I'd rather stay on his good side, thank-you-very-much.

Sai blinked at me and then gave me that look that said 'are you stupid or something?'

I growled at him threateningly, making him immediately raise his hands in defeat and wave them in a calming motion.

"The field trip to the onsen. You know… Coach Anko gave you the permission slip yesterday." He explained and that's when it finally clicked in my head.

Shit! How could I have forgotten!?

Well… I guess on the way to Kyuubi's I could call Iruka and ask him to pack my stuff for me… He's going to be going with me anyway. I remember him asking Principle Tsunade if he could help patron the field trip, but I knew he only wanted to go because he was afraid that some old people might try and 'violate' me.

Yeah, like that'll ever happen.

I huffed out an annoyed breath as I glared down at Sai's desk and I quickly replied, "Yeah I remember now. Don't worry, I'll go tomorrow." Then I turned back around in my seat with a sigh. I felt my body freeze up slightly when I noticed smoldering crimson eyes looking straight at me, but relaxed when I realized that it was just Kyuubi-sensei. He was eyeing me with an amused smirk, making me look away with an embarrassed flush on my cheeks.

Can't believe I got caught talking to Sai while Kyuubi-sensei was lecturing!

Well, it's not like I was paying attention before either, but at least it looked like I was.

I jumped in surprise when the loud ringing of the last bell sounded around the whole school, and that's when I realized that it was the end of class… End of the last period… Which meant that Kyuubi was finally going to tell me everything!!!

I couldn't hold back the excited shout from escaping my lips, and I didn't even try to stop myself when I jumped up out of my seat with my arms raised high in a victorious sort of way.

Take THAT, father time!!

Many of the other students rolled their eyes at my sudden giddiness, but I ignored them as I shuffled over to Kyuubi-sensei.

"So when are we going to leave?" I asked eagerly as I bounced up and down on the balls of my feet. I just couldn't hold in the sudden burst of energy that was coursing through my veins.

Kyuubi-sensei chuckled at my ebullient attitude, and he placed his hands on my shoulders to help stop my constant bouncing.

"Calm yourself, Naruto." He said in a soft and soothing voice, which actually made me stop. I was kind of used to his harsh and calm tone: I'd never really heard him sound soothing before… I liked it. "I have to finish putting my papers away first before we leave. And before we do, you should call Iruka and tell him that you'll be staying at a friends or something." He said while lifting my hands and placing his cell phone in them.

I was just about to do what he said, but I paused and looked up at him quizzically.

"Wait… you want me to lie to him?" I asked when I realized that he said 'friends house' and not 'my house'.

He looked away awkwardly and scratched behind his head as he answered. "Yeah, I guess you can say that. Listen, if you tell him that you're coming to my place then he'll only say no, so you might as well just tell him that you're going to a friend's." He explained and shrugged before turning towards a small stack of papers, his long red hair fluttering gently around him.

I blinked and stared down at the phone in my hands, and for a while I just stared at it, as if afraid that it would bite my ear off if I tried to use it. But I then began dialing the number when Kyuubi-sensei looked towards me expectantly.

The receiver rang about three times before I heard the familiar voice of Iruka.

"Hello?"

I felt my brows furrow in confusion when I noticed that his voice sounded out of breath, as if he'd just been running a marathon or something. But I'd never seen Iruka go running… so I just shrugged it off.

"Iruka? It's Naruto." I said as casually as I could, and as soon as those words left my mouth I swear I could see him going into mother-hen mode.

"Oh, Naruto!? Is everything okay?? I didn't recognize the caller ID, where are you?"

Shit, he really did go into mother-hen mode…

I was about to reply, but I paused when I heard another voice in the background. It sounded somewhat familiar, but it was too faint to make out any words.

I guess he must be at work?

"Iruka, please calm down. Look, I'm not going to be home until late tonight. I'm going to be at a friend's house." I clenched my eyes shut anxiously as I waited for his reply, and I was acutely aware of Kyuubi's curious crimson eyes burning holes into my skull.

"…Oh. Okay. That's great!" Iruka said excitedly, but at the same time he sounded a little distracted, and I swear I could hear some rustling and I could still hear that other man's voice.

What the hell was going on?

"Yes. And I was wondering if you could pack some of my stuff for that Field Trip tomorrow, too." I ventured as an after thought, and I pressed the phone closer to my ear to try and make out the quiet talking, but it was muffled, as if someone was covering the receiver.

But I'm pretty sure I heard the words, 'hurry up, tight, fuck and dolphin.'

Seriously, what the hell was Iruka doing?!

"Of course! Have fun, Naruto, and don't get into any trouble." He called out hurriedly and then the line suddenly went dead.

Huh… That was odd…

Once the cell phone was away from my ear, all I could really do was stare at it dumbly as if it just came alive.

"Is everything okay?"

I was snapped out of it when I heard Kyuubi-sensei's silky voice, and I nodded before handing him back the device.

"Yeah. Iruka just sounded like he was a little busy."

And that was pretty much true. He must've been in the middle of work , but I guess I won't know until I ask him about it later.

"So are we leaving now!?" I immediately went back to super-excited-mode and I was bouncing up and down once more, unable to hold in the pent up energy that had been accumulating all of last period.

He chuckled at my enthusiasm and nodded slightly before turning towards the door and making his way out with me right at his heels.

The halls were pretty much empty now, so I didn't really have to worry about people seeing me as I practically gamboled after the redheaded man.

The car ride and the short walk to Kyuubi's house seemed to be a blur. I didn't even realize we were inside the house until he sat me down on the soft leather couch that rested right in font of a large television. I blinked as I took in my surroundings.

To my right was a hollow doorway that led into the kitchen, where Kyuubi was currently rummaging through the fridge. And to my left was a loveseat that crookedly faced the small fireplace. I also noticed a hallway right beside the television which I presumed led to the bathroom and bedrooms.

"Here."

I blinked again as a glass of water was held in front of me. I took it gratefully and sipped from it before placing it on the small, knee-high table that stood in front of the couch.

I watched as Kyuubi let out a long sigh before falling onto the couch beside me—though not so close that it was uncomfortable.

Actually, now that I think about it, I don't feel uncomfortable in his presence at all.

I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not though.

I snapped out of my thoughts when I noticed Kyuubi reaching into his pocket. I tilted my head and curiously eyed the wallet he pulled out, and then my eyes widened slightly when he peeled out a worn-out looking picture. It was old, with dents and wrinkles, as if someone kept holding and moving it around. The picture was of a golden haired man with a wide, toothy smile and bright blue eyes that sparkled with unsuppressed happiness. I had seen that same exact picture near Counselor Gai's office, it was the last principle—or so I've been told.

"Here." Kyuubi said softly as he handed it to me. I looked up into his eyes, which were looking down at the ground before reaching out to retrieve the photograph. I held it delicately in my hands as I stared at the golden-haired man's grinningface.

"He… was my father?" I guessed aloud and Kyuubi slowly nodded.

The thing was, I wasn't really surprised now that I think about it. This Yondaime guy looked a lot like me. In fact, I was kind of disappointed with myself for not figuring it out sooner.

"Lee said something about the Yondaime and you being an… 'item'… If that's true, then wouldn't that make you my step-father or something?" I rambled, my blue eyes never leaving the photo, but from my peripheral vision I saw Kyuubi stiffen slightly.

"Well… That's not quite—…" He cut himself off and shifted uncomfortably on the couch for a second before letting out a long, drawn out sigh, and then he forced his muscles to relax before turning towards me again. "Why don't I just tell you the story, and you be a good boy and listen?" He snapped, and I would've flinched away from him if it wasn't for the playful glimmer in his crimson pools.

"Okay." I nodded and turned my gaze away from the photo in order to give him my full attention.

~TBC~