Naruto POV

Shit.

Shit.

Maybe that's enough.

His ears were still ringing and hot. As a matter a fact, the room had gotten nice and toasty—his shirt drenched in his sweat. Beads of it trekking down the contours of his face. His palms moistened against the powdery texture of Hinata's bedroom wall. The pitter-patter of the thing in his chest continued its acceleration—a breath crept through his lips and he stares down at the boy sitting beneath him.

Lee sat—barely responsive at his feet, body slumped against the wall. His head back—the bangs of his bowl cut sideswiped. His eyes go from trying to bulge out of their sockets, to rolling behind their eyelids.

"Yanno, I didn't expect that shit, it was—fuckin' impressive. Shit," Naruto reluctantly admits—faux adoration coating his tone. He licks the top of his blood coated lip, hot copper on his tongue. "you—you got me good Lee. Just when I thought you couldn't possibly be any more of a grovelingspinelessfeckless gutless speck of waste, you've managed to add a sneaky failure onto that long laundry list of shit qualities."

He spat down on Lee, watching his blood-filled saliva foam, sliding from his forehead and down his bushy brows.

Lee's mouth twisted up in useless disgust, his pupil swirling around dizzily. His breath hitching—a near soundless hiss in his throat.

"How dumb can you be?" He asks rhetorically, passing a thumb beneath his bloody nostrils—his head a swivel of adrenaline and tamed rage. His nostrils wet, burning and leaking profusely. "Huh?" he asks placing his blood slicked fingers back against the wall and pressing a heavy foot against Lee's broken knee.

That gets the life pumping back into him.

"AHHHHHHhhhggh!"

His left leg was as warped as the floorboards in the house, his knee seemed displaced. It lays there disjointedly under the menacing soles of Naruto—who began nudging at the blood dampened spot of Lee's jeans.

"That was low. Cheap shotting me like that and trying to lock me in? May have been the most courageous thing you've ever done in your life, too bad it was to the wrong person."

Lee's cracked lips shudder, "You…y—you we—ere going t—to—kill m-eee AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHGH!"

His head shot back like a whip, cracking itself against the wall—tears in his eyes as his body spams after every anguished cry.

Naruto sighs, hating that searing burn within his nostrils when he attempts to breathe through them. A poignant reminder what hesitating had gotten him. This little shit had punched him—punched him. The obscene amount of restraint it took to not immethodically amputate the guy made him feel deadly sick to his stomach. His nerves were jumping with a familiar high—hands shaking erratically against the wall. His brain heady and giddy with unpleasant ideas.

He bit down on his bottom lip to quell the feral impulses surging through him like the hot white sizzle of electricity.

A part of him wanted to lean into it—lean into the sheer will of it and unravel for just a moment. He felt so painfully pent up, so overdo for something much more—eventful. Although not much time had passed since Sakura, that moment was unsatisfactory for a multitude of reasons. One of them being that the bitch couldn't even make her death look appealing and he couldn't quite drag it out like he had planned to. It was incredibly frustrating, like working up to a nut and being interrupted.

That kill hadn't sedated him and he wanted some more. He wanted to bathe this room in blood, limbs and entrails. He wanted to lock himself inside and revel in whatever madness he saw fit to inflict.

Like before all of this shit.

Just the thought of it made his collar hot. The paralyzing thud of his chest nearly deafening.

How much time do I have?

Before he could even entertain the idea, a singular thought plagued the back of his mind—like a nuisance.

She'll hate you..

"Tough shit, she'll get over it. It doesn't matter to me…" He lies to himself, hoping that'd jump start his body. He doesn't move a muscle; his eyes bore into the blood-stained wall.

Maybe she'll finally get it.

He doesn't want to stop himself; he wants it even more. It's like a cruel whore that coaxes his lips to her breast and expects him to just rest there. He can't keep stopping himself. Its inviting—fuck…it's warm and who in their right mind would run from that type of warmth?

The gurgled sound of laughter effectively cuts through his mental tug-of-war on what to do with Lee.

Speaking of Lee, who's pupils are finally not spinning around—he's looking up at Naruto. His body a tight shake of stifled laughter.

"You're on some very thin ice buddy. Not sure laughing in the face of danger is the best course of action."

Lee shakes his head, one eye strained shut beneath the gob of blood/spit.

"It's o—over." Lee rasps.

Naruto stares down at him, a blonde brow cocked.

"Blood loss isn't the worse way to go, don't be so dramatic."

The boy laughs even more, though it fades into a frantic cry and then shallow breaths.

"—…Haru," his breath flutters, his lips turning up at the corners, blood smeared teeth peaking beneath his lips. "She'll—get to him—and y—y-ou'll finally—a—and they'll c-c—come for me." He stutters, willing his eyes to stay on Naruto. "I—its over…for y-you. The c—cops," Lee giggled in agony, "The cops! O-on their way."

The revelation didn't quite pierce him with betrayal. Though it did strike a horrifying key of incompetence. He was incompetent of making a rat like Lee feel true fear. Obedient fear—the kind of shit that made you never raise a hand to someone more unhinged than you. The kind of fear that coerced someone into life threatening servitude. Yes, he was a coward but he was a coward who saw something weak in Naruto.

A smart rat.

Using that weakness to his advantage.

Naruto only sighs, taking a step backward away from the wall and Lee. He scans the floorboards for the crowbar and found it in a trail of Lee's blood. It must've fallen during their scuffle at the door when the idiot tried to lock him in.

Lee gulps audibly, "Ki—ill me."

"Oh, I'm comin'." Naruto assures him, retrieving the crowbar and sliding it up from the floor.


Haru PoV

92-041-9241 [9:30 A.M]

You kids in position?

Me [9:31 A.M]

Yes…

92-041-9241 [9:33 A.M]

Perfect.

I'll be at the rendezvous point but

if I don't hear back from ya or see any signs of ya

by 9:50 A.M, it's my duty to come looking.

Capeesh?

Me [9:34 A.M]

Oh okay.

The metallic clicking of the car made her jump, the sun was beating down on the Audi and without the conditioner the atmosphere became a barely breathable sauna. So, she manually pops the lock on the passenger door and cracks it open. A gentle breeze swept the dampened edge line of her hair dry and she unbuckles her seat belt, stretching her legs—and arms.

How long has it been?

She fishes out the TracFone and pads at the button.

The display screen reads, 9:45 A.M.

Anxiety constricts her throat, her heart ramping up in her chest.

What's taking him so long?

She absentmindedly reaches for her hair, then recoils—deciding to pinch at her wrist instead. The frayed flesh still rough to the touch—but soothing. She pinches harder and harder as the minutes tick by, peering at the back of the house—envisioning Lee emerging from the door.

Poor, poor you. Having to put your life in the hands of some 5 foot nothing coward. If I were you, I would've just gone in anyway. Haven't you learned by now, if we want something done—we've got to do it ourselves.

A buzz so close entered her head she cringed, closing her eyes and pinching harder.

Fine, ignore me—but you know I'm right. We could've had fun in there too. It would have been nice to see how they scraped our surrogate daddy off the living room floor. I can't imagine that they managed to get up every piece.

Hottos chuckles reverberate in her skull.

Haru stares unblinkingly at the house, trying to keep her conscious occupied—counting the darkest bricks.

By the way, that was a nice touch earlier—playing with his head that way. Hotto laughs, "A hug for luck." She mimics Hina's voice. Or…were you really sad to see him go? You don't have to lie to me Haru. It's kind of fun, winding him up. He's easy, the first guy that's ever touched you and without nailing you through a mattress.

Please, shut up.

A bird sails past the house and messes up her count.

Hotto let's loose a menacing snicker, Struck a nerve? I thought it would. You think you're so much better than Hina and me. Hatched a whole plan to get away but here you are—still in the car, waiting.

Waiting, for Lee.

Oh, we're still pretending to care about the guy who needs a weedwhacker to those atrocious brows? You do know its pointless to lie to yourself, right?

Haru takes several breaths, her wrists bruised from her current grounding method. Her skin aching with the sharpest pains.

Be as close as you want, you're not taking over.

Boring that's what you are! Fighting for the center and wasting it being sulky. Like mawmaw, this is the best you could do with our body? Hold it until fuckin Hana gets back and sluts us out to that guy. There are plenty of guys who'd treat us much better—like queens.

None of us are in a good position to be thinking about men.

Who ever said you had to have your head on straight to fuck a guy?

Haru rolls her eyes, shaking her head.

In fact, you don't have to have anything on to do that. You should know that. You're always acting like the smartest person here but I know you are just as hungry as the rest of us. Yes, Hina might be a slut for love and I might jonesing fun but you—you want quiet. You want this body to yourself; you think you deserve it more than the rest of us. You're just as greedy as everyone else.

And you, like the sound of your own voice.

Hotto snorts, what can I say, I'm a temptress. We've had this dance before, you trusted me enough to try and end that bitch Sakura. We would have been out of this mess, the guy in jail—leaving this place in the rearview.

We were stabbed.

You failed to keep Hina away, don't blame me.

Haru was about to speak when the door swung open. Her mind went blank and she sat up in her chair—peering across the seat peering through the window shield.

The face that appeared wasn't the face she had been expecting and it made her stomach flop and her breath stop.

Naruto appears, not wearing the same shirt he had gone inside with. It's one of her uncles' grey hoodies from his university—a lion roaring valiantly across the chest. He's got a navy-blue cap pulled low over his blonde hair and she could hardly distinguish his eyes.

The crowbar he had taken in earlier is tightly in his grasp as he walks briskly toward the car,

Uh oh.

I think we can outrun him.

W-we can't.

Can't or don't want to.

Breath crashes from her lips and her body can't help but to move around in its seat—fractured into several contingency plans.

I-I don't understand, the plan shouldn't have failed…

I can handle him.

No..

NO!

No!

Did he kill Lee?

Probably. He's naughty.

Shut up Hotto!

The door slamming shut sent her spine into a curl of bone chilling terror and without looking at him she took a breath.

"W—where, where is Lee?"

He smelled like a sewer. Wind touched the side of her face sharply as he flung something into the backseat.

Pills rattled and the car rocked with his abrupt motions.

He's even got you scared now…

"Lee…"

"Dead." Came his chilling reply, void of regret, he threw a familiar orange bottle into her lap. The prescription printed across, faded. "Either you take them yourself or I shove them down your throat, as many as it takes…Haru."

Damn.

He's…he's dead..

D—dead…

A mental image of Lee, sitting in the backseat just a few minutes ago plagued her mind. Her temples thrummed and she shook her head.

Someone else had died…while I sat here.

I told him not to try, I told him it was dumb. He was only trying to-to help.

Yeah, himself.

He was our friend…our—friend

O—our

She's melded to the seat, in complete disbelief.

He's lying.

"How could you do that—t—to her?"

She sets a stony stare on him, noticing the dark—purplish undertones marking the tip of his nose. He leans across the seat and slams her door shut—keeping his eyes locked in. He doesn't quite lean back onto his side, he lingers close to her face, neither of them blinking.

The marks on his cheeks make him look just as feral as he is.

He has a look of indifference—and something else too but she isn't in the mood to try and figure out how to skirt around his feelings.

"You guys almost had me. The both of you—well played."

She swallows, keeping her lips tight for a moment.

"He just wanted to leave."

"And take Hina!" He roared, his voice like a strained rumble—his eyes low and sharp. Never moving from hers. She could see her chest rising and falling. Blood began pulsating quickly through her ears.

It was like a switch had flipped.

The air between them felt thin—like they were sharing the same shred of oxygen. Taking turns breathing.

Tension palpable, like the hum of a voltage gate.

Something cold pressed against her throat, wanting to say something but she was still being held down by the icy reigns of shock.

The blonde backed off her and put the key into the ignition. He whipped them out of the lot urgently—the car bouncing out of the dirt grooves of the backyard.

"If you weren't apart of her, you'd be right beside him," with one hand navigating the wheel, he held out his other hand, "the phone, hand it over—can't fuckin' trust you."

Sheesh.

He fucking hates us.

I bet you wish you had listened to me three minutes ago.

Haru grabs the phone and slaps it into his palm. He tosses it carelessly into the back seat.

"The pills, take them." He demands in a clipped tone.

"Even if I take them, she's not going to magically appear—that's not how we function. They'll do nothing but improve my concentration and coordination and make me tired as shit once it wears off. This isn't going to do what you think it does." She replies, pinching fiercely at her wrist—wincing under the brilliance of the sun.

"So, you want to do it the hard way? Figures."

Haru sat as still as a stone, thinking on all the other times they had done it the hard way. The times she'd try to sneak out of the car at the gas station—or the time he had zip-tied her to the steering wheel of the car when he had gone to take a leak. In the end he would always wind-up man handling her—and forcing her back into a space with him. He has always put her fire out with ease, no matter how precisely she kicked at his groin, or attempted to slap him. He'd either dodge her attacks or lose his temper and lift her—carting her back into captivity anyway.

The hard way has never worked in her favor.

If anything, it made her feel incompetent but maybe this time, it could buy her sometime. That officer said he'd come looking.


As impatient as ever, Naruto pulled over not even entirely out of the neighborhood. He parked the Audi in front a big dark barked tree with warm colored leaves. He pushed his door open and stomped through the foliage—his footfalls crackling against the earth.

Haru doesn't feel Hotto near and doesn't know whether to be relieved or worried.

The passenger door swings open and before she could get herself out of the seat, he's ripping her from it and pulling her towards the back door—pinning her against the car after recovering the pill bottle.

Haru feels like a brat, crossing her arms in front of her chest and watching the intense look on his face as he twists the bottle open. She stares up at him—wondering how Hina could like such an impulsive jackass, not to mention someone so incurably sick. Yes, the trio had had their own issues—but even at their worse, Hotto had only killed in defense of the body.

With him, it's like some kind of sport.

Lee didn't deserve that.

"You only have yourself to blame for driving her away."

The blues of his eyes are much darker under the shade of the hats visor. He shakes out two oval pills, twists the cap back on and throws it back into the front seat.

"Shut…the fuck up." He enunciates quietly, lashing out to grab her jaw and pressure it immediately. She stares up at him—annoyance ablaze in his eyes. She's on her tones—teetering. The breeze pressing at her back and ruffles her hair.

"Listen, I'm in an incredibly foul mood—which normally results in an insatiable hunger. Either to fuck or kill and I've already done the latter." he says—voice light with malice, "don't," he stresses, hardening his grip, "push me to that…take them. I refuse to ask again."

Haru stares at him, anger prickling at the edges of her mind. He presses the pills into her open palm with one hand keeping the other on her jaw. Her heart was racing a mile a minute and her thoughts derailing just as soon as she could assemble them.

Something seemed to have changed, inside that place with Lee.

Peering into his eyes—his irises looked narrow, constricted into slits.

A tremor shook her spine and she brought the pills to her lips, taking them dry—choking them down and swallowing to keep from throwing it up.

"Your mouth, open it."

She felt disgust pull her lips into a snarl and his lips curled into a crooked smile.

Playing with her.

Gingerly, she opens her mouth.

"Fuck…" he cooed, a breath shuddering out of him, "I like you Haru…" his voice was so low and intimate, like someone whispering sweet nothings. "…you're like her twin sister—with the better rack, the snobbish fuckin attitude. You're older, you think you're more mature and you'd never get yourself into her fucked up predicaments."

It sounds just as crazy as it was. Most of the predicaments Hina got herself into, Haru has always been the one to battle them. That's how it worked, unless she decided to stay.

"Nothing smart to say?" he asks.

She could feel the buzz of his voice against her chest.

He began kneading her jaw, slowly—like a caress.

"You know what Haru? You hating me, with her face—you pissing me off, with her face. It's making me realize that I don't hate you. Ya you're a bitchbut, you're a bitch who's tied to something I want. I want Hinata, every filthy piece of her. I want to desecrate every hole in your body." His eyes flicker up—staring off into the distance over the hood of the car. "I want to fuck you into the most devastating mania—and hold you captive until you realize…by extension, you are mine." He breathes down on her fervently, "Whoever is in this body, they belong to me."

He's absolutely unhinged...

His eyes drop down to hers.

"I just thought I'd make that clear, so there's no room for misconception—or more treachery."

Haru only glowers at him, her mouth snapping shut.

He grins so wide; she could see the fine points of his canines. The way that his jaws hardened like steel—and the sun really favored the planes of his face. It's no wonder that Hina was obsessed with him but Haru could see past that disgusting charm—right into the pit of it.

Possessiveness, perversion, bloodlust and sickness.

Bleep

Bleep

Two chirps shook them loose from their trance. Naruto stepping back from her to stare at something approaching them from the dirt road.

Twigs snapped and crackle beneath the heavy tires of a black and green police cruiser, approaching the Audi from the rear.

It-its him.

He showed.

An onslaught of nerves tingle under her skin. She looks at Naruto and he's already walking toward the car to defuse suspicion.

She starts to take a step but the tilt of vertigo has her stumbling for purchase against the car instead.

Her eyelids hot and twitching shut.