Chapter 23: Red hair! Poncy Noble! Wierdo!
Sasuke read the final page of Karin's report and stood up quietly. He looked over his shoulder when he heard a commotion outside. The door slammed open and seconds later Naruto stormed in.
'Break it off,' he said harshly as he stopped right in front of Sasuke.
'Break what off?'
'What do you think?' The blond's eyes took on a slight red tinge. Sasuke wondered what had got him wound up to this extent. 'How long have you known?'
Sasuke stopped himself from rolling his eyes, 'Known what, baka?'
The young prince was momentarily disarmed by the intensity of emotion evident on Naruto's face.
Naruto almost shouted, 'How long have you been engaged?'
Ah, Sasuke thought as he was slammed against the wall, that's what got him upset. The prince calmly took Naruto's hand off his shoulder and stepped to the side, away from the wall. Only Naruto's gaze followed him. The prince thought it best to be honest - maybe he could even use this. 'We have been betrothed for eight years.'
Naruto stilled with a disbelieving frown on his face. Then his eyes narrowed. 'Yes, but how long have you been engaged?'
Sasuke would have laughed, if it wasn't so tragic. He resigned himself to what he had to say now, to what he had to do. 'For all practical purposes, they're the same thing.'
The blond boy's eyes widened. 'Eight years! You knew - so the whole time - you knew - but you . . .!'
Sasuke folded his arms making himself keep his expression neutral. 'Naruto, when I left the palace, I meant to leave it forever and to leave all of this behind. But, since I've had to come back, I can't do that now. It's going to happen. Now will you believe me when I say you have to go?' He balled one hand into a fist and continued in a smaller voice, 'Something has to get into that thick head of yours.'
Naruto tried to form words for a minute. His mouth moved, and eventually something came out, 'No! Nothing will!'
Sasuke rolled his eyes helplessly and took a deep breath. He could sense that Naruto was itching to hit him. He wondered if he should react. In the end he did decide to dodge the punch, and the next, and soon found himself up against the wall again. He suppressed a sigh. To get out of this, there would have to be some sort of fight.
The prince straightened his back, his neck, lifted an arm elegantly and slapped Naruto with the back of his hand. 'Stop being an idiot,' he said quietly.
Naruto's eyes were wide and blue, a red mark was already forming on his cheek. The boy stared in open confusion for a moment, through blond strands of hair. Then his hand shot out, got a death-grip on the back of Sasuke's neck, and kept him there as he leant forward and kissed him.
Naruto stepped against the black-haired boy, pressing him to the wall, his fingers between strands of hair. He moved his mouth down Sasuke's jaw, down his neck to the curve of his shoulder and whispered softly into the skin, 'You want me to go?'
The prince bit his lip, but was otherwise still as Naruto played his tongue, his lips, against his neck.
'Hmm?' Naruto whispered slowly, biting skin.
Sasuke closed his eyes and tried to stop himself arcing into the heat pressed against him.
Naruto then moved his lips to within half a second's of Sasuke's, and kept them there, so close - his mouth felt their warmth even though they didn't touch. The blond flicked his gaze up to Sasuke's eyes and moved so that their cheeks brushed, but Sasuke found his mouth, his tongue, and grabbed hold of him, his hands moving as if he had to feeling everything, now.
Then Sasuke was the one to push Naruto up against the wall. (1)
xXx
The sun rose. There was a knock at the door.
The Grand High Prince grumbled darkly into a tanned neck. He cracked one eye open in a most disgruntled fashion, saw blond hair against his face and inelegantly, but very promptly, kicked his companion off the bed. He leant over the side and slapped his hand over Naruto's mouth before the blond could yell, and slid him under the bed.
He was calm and composed and the bed was unruffled by the time Suigetsu strode in holding a heavily laden hangar.
'Good morning, your highness,' he said, a touch wryly. 'Here is the new imperial outfit you ordered. I took the liberty of bringing it in.' He laid the robes on a chair. (2)
To Sasuke's surprise, Suigetsu then extracted a pair of perfectly folded boxer shorts from his pocket and held it up delicately between two fingers. Suigetsu doubled over to peer under the bed. 'Good morning, stupid blond boy. I took the liberty of procuring some underwear for you.'
There was a mumbled thanks from the darkness below the bed.
Suigetsu straightened up to see Sasuke pinching the bridge of his nose. As he left he glanced over his shoulder to see the blond stick his head out from under the bed and begin to examine the new imperial uniform.
Naruto looked at the lack of complicated ties and buttons, nodding approvingly at a healthy, simple zip. He grinned at the prince who was eyeing him warily. 'I'm not leaving. This design is . . . interesting.'
Sasuke put his head in his hands. 'I'm only putting that on once today, baka.'
Naruto's grin widened. 'Well, then the rest of the day is planned out.'
'Out.'
xXx
'Is that a hickey?'
Naruto turned around in his chair in the classroom, a pencil still in his hand. He frowned at the red-haired boy who looked down at him. There was something dangerous about that gaze.
'G'morning Subaku,' Naruto said with a yawn.
'Is that a hickey?' The boy seemed very intense this morning.
'What's a hickey?' Naruto asked innocently, wide-eyed with interest.
At which point, Kiba decided to join the conversation. He leant forward from the row behind and said lightly, 'Otherwise referred to as a love-bite, Naruto. I can't believe I left that out of your education.'
Realisation dawned in blue eyes. 'Oh,' he said, pulling down the neck of his shirt, 'these?'
Gaara half choked. Kiba chuckled. A line of 'love-bites' made its way down to the edge of Naruto's shoulder.
Gaara paled, watched by Neji, who, next to him, balled his hands into fists. Seconds later, Gaara pointed his frown at Kiba, hissing. 'You educated him?'
'Woah, calm down, carrot-top, it's not what you think. I wish it were otherwise, but it isn't.'
The glare didn't change - until Neji sniggered spitefully and muttered, 'Carrot-top.' The glare then intensified.
Naruto, who hadn't been listening because he had been trying to come up with a cover story while all the rest of this went on, said, 'These just sort of . . . happened . . .'
'What, do you get mauled in passageways by dark strangers?' the red-head asked. 'And you let them? Who? Who are they?'
'What's it to you, weirdo?'
Gaara sat back as if stung. Neji sniggered again.
Kiba grinned evilly, showing sharp teeth as he cast a glance at Neji. 'Maybe he's simply bored of what's available here, and you're new, Naruto.'
Neji stood up so quickly the girl behind him fell out of her chair. He faced Naruto with a scowl and announced in an uptight, irate voice, 'I challenge you to a duel, Uzumaki Naruto!'
Naruto blinked. He blinked again. 'What's it to you, . . . weirdo?'
Kiba could hardly breathe, he was laughing so hard.
Neji straightened up, his nose ever so slightly in the air. 'It is not for you to question such things. Being elevated in status because of magic potential does not make your blood pure. I am Prince Hyuuga Neji from the house of Stone, while you are barely more than common filth.'
Naruto knew he had just been insulted, if not exactly how. The tone of voice was enough to make his jump up in anger as well. 'You poncy, lazy, bastard. I don't give a rat's arse for your stupid House or your stupid, meaningless title, or even you girly hair.'
Kiba doubled over, clutching his stomach.
'I am not a bastard. How dare you?'
'Oh yeah?' Naruto shot back. 'Let's have this duel thing - now!'
Kiba broke in, 'Um, guys, class is about to start. How about afterwards?'
Neji thought for a moment, but Naruto charged ahead with, 'What? You scared? Come on - now!' He smirked. 'It'll be a short fight anyway, we will be back in time for class.' Then he turned and walked out without a backward glance, his gait confident.
Neji, Gaara, Kiba and a few people who didn't yet know what was going on, followed him out the door just as the teacher walked in.
xXx
In the expansive hallway, the two boys faced one another. They each raised their thin rapiers - the only permitted weapon during duels. Naruto eyed his gingerly, thinking that it was more of a cake tester than a sword - not like a decent pirate's heavy curved blade. He shrugged. It would have to do until he found something better. He glanced around.
Neji, on the other hand, was still, one hand on his hip, the other holding the rapier at a precise downward angle. His pose was practiced - his weight balanced perfectly. He looked Naruto straight in the eye, his pale pupil-less eyes hard and steady.
There was coldness to the stare that made Naruto shiver, so he crouched down and pounced at the noble's legs, taking him down with him. May as well begin, he thought, just hearing Kiba start, 'All right, the fight commen . . . . Oh, I see you've started. Nice one, Naru-chan!'
Neji, for a second merely a seething pile of indignation, kicked himself away and jumped to his feet again. He resumed his stance, this time his weapon lower to the ground. Naruto raised an eyebrow to stop himself from laughing. Even Naruto knew that if he ever used that pose in front of Kakashi, the captain would get entirely the wrong idea.
'What are you going to do? Dance at me?' Naruto taunted. 'Scary as that seems, it won't make you win.'
Neji did not move, 'But your ignorance most certainly will.'
Naruto didn't know if he had an ignorance, but he sure as hell thought he didn't. The blond lunged at Neji with his rapier, ready to swing it down as he had so many times on the pirate ship and in training. To his surprise, Neji was lightning-fast and seemingly impossible to hit. He paused only when Naruto slammed his heel down onto his toes - the soft leather of his palace shoes didn't give much protection. He grimaced slightly, and the resolve in his eyes hardened. Then he came at Naruto, his sword moving like a thing possessed. Before the blond knew what had happened, there was a blade at his throat, and a pale hand holding his wrist in a tight grip.
Neji pulled suddenly on Naruto's hand - flipping him over onto his back, knocking the air out of him.
Looking up from the ground into that haughty, cold stare, what could he do, really, but knee the guy in the balls?
The noble stiffened, and stumbled back.
Naruto jumped up in time to see Neji resume that bloody stance again. Was this guy human? Did he feel any pain at all? The blond could see that the long-haired boy was about to launch into one those whirlwind-killing-Naruto moves. He thought quickly.
Even Kiba was surprised when Naruto turned and ran into the nearest classroom. Neji went after him with a frown, followed by the small crowd that had gathered on the edges of their fight.
What the crowd saw, just as Neji entered through the doorway, was a blond blur that landed on and attached itself to the boy's shoulders and ears for balance, a blur that sent both of the fighters careening into chairs and tables, clearing a wide destructive path through the room as Naruto shouted, 'Fall already, you idiot!'
When they skidded and fell to a halt, Naruto began hitting Neji on the head with a crystal bowl, his legs locked around his neck, while the black-haired boy tried to breathe and get his rapier out from underneath them.
Seconds later, Naruto yelled and kicked away, realising he had lost his rapier. Spying an ornamental sword on the wall, the boy dashed for it, the movement surprising Neji yet again, as Naruto seemed to be running away from him once more.
The blond pried it off the wall before the noble even thought to give chase. Naruto swung around with a look of victory, weighing the heavy, curved blade in his hand. The comforting weight promised an interesting turn to the fight.
'Heh,' he said with a grin. 'Bit bigger than yours, eh?'
They went for each other. Naruto was good with the sword, but Neji was equally good at dodging - hence the furniture suffered. Desks swung into the air, chairs splintered, cabinets fell and shattered. Naruto used desks and chairs and any piece of hardy debris to fend off the blows rained down on him. Neji ducked, rolled, grabbed whatever he could find to protect himself from the deadly weight of steel.
They slashed their way through a window and ended up in another courtyard, where Naruto landed a blow on Neji's side, making him clutch his waist with a grunt.
'You do realise that you have already lost the duel, peasant?' Neji gasped out.
'What? I never lose!' Naruto shouted, pointing his sword at the noble and charging.
Neji, with a bewildered expression, raised his palm instinctively - it glowed briefly. Naruto's eyes widened and he threw himself to the ground. Behind him, a colossal pillar toppled in a rain of white dust.
The young noble's eyes were wide for a moment as he stared at his own hand. The blond looked from the hand to where the pillar had been, and back. Then he rose to crouch, gave out a yell and launched himself at his opponent.
Each boy forgot weapons and simply laid into the other - hitting, slapping, kicking, shouting, scratching until an imperious voice boomed across the courtyard.
'Hyuuga Neji! Uzumaki Naruto! Stop this idiocy at once!'
The Grand High Prince stood alone where the crowd had parted, the imperial cloak over one shoulder, his gaze dark and expressionless. Neji stopped with a scowl. Naruto stilled and his expression changed from one of anger and frustration to an open one of adoration and excitement. 'Sasuke!' he exclaimed.
The Prince hardly looked at him, saying through gritted teeth, 'Preserve the shreds of your remaining dignity and separate this instant.' (3)
The two glanced at each other, Naruto straddling Neji, one arm poised to hit him. He lowered his arm and rolled off.
Sasuke continued, 'Hyuuga - using magic in a duel is illegal. And Uzumaki, fighting like that in duel does not make it a duel at all, not to mention that it is . . .' he made a face, 'in extremely poor taste.'
Naruto shrugged. 'It works.'
Sasuke ignored him and spoke in a cold, commanding voice, 'I will not have an unauthorised fight in my court. I shall hear your reasons for this duel and reschedule it, should I see fit.' He turned and walked through the parted crowd without a backward glance. At the doorway, he glanced over his shoulder and snapped, 'Uzumaki, come with me.'
xXx
Footnotes:
(1) Just for those who may be interested in the planning process and inner workings of the fluff-pirate team: here's an extract from our notes, from which we extrapolated this last scene: 'blondie realises that boot-boy is engaged – fight – They shag again in the emotional bla bla turmoil crap :)
(2) since we've turned Suigetsu into a butler, let's have Karin as a tailor ('Why does he want such a weird fucking design? Zips? Too many zips!') and Juugo carrying in reams of cloth ('Found a nice new pattern at the market today! Silky enough?')
(3) little pirate has been reading too much David Eddings and keeps on trying to insert thee and thou into every sentence the poor prince utters. Tut tut.
xXx
and there you have it! Hope it was worth the wait!