A/N: Next chap will be mostly Sasuke's POV. I can't wait to write it. I guess you guys will see why once you read it. I can't see this story going beyond chapter 8, so I guess I'm almost fnished? I'll be happy to have another project successfully completed; my to-do list of fanfic works is growing and growing...darn those plot bunnies!
Anyways, Thank you tons and tons for the reviews! I'm surprised no one feels sorry for Sasuke...
Onward!
No, wait, I forgot the disclaimer. (Ahem) Not affiliated with Disney Channel or the songs mentioned in this chap. Now Onward!
Chapter 6
Gaara didn't walk; he skipped. He also didn't talk while traveling beside Naruto; he sang.
"The lock upon my garden gate's a snail, that's what it is," he sang in his high voice.
The terrain they were traveling through was mountainous but grassy, much like the valley. Butterflies were startled into flight as Gaara bounced through the knee-high grass.
"First there is a mountain, then there is no mountain, then there is…"
Naruto walked beside Gaara's skipping form and contemplated the plausibility of mountains vanishing and reappearing with such ease.
"The caterpillar sheds his skin to find a butterfly within…"
Gaara caught the sidelong look Naruto gave him. He offered a sheepish smile. "Do you watch Disney Channel?" the redhead asked.
"I don't know what that is."
"It's TV. They have cool shows and songs. Alex Russo so wants me."
"I didn't have a television in my apartment."
"Yeah, I wish the valley got reception. We don't even have electricity. Sucks. I sneak into town sometimes and watch TV in this abandoned house. Wanna come with me the next time I go?"
Naruto allowed as how he might be interested in going at some point. "What is our mission?"
"Escorting some hag from the Sound village back to the Land of Tea. It's A-rank, so it will pay well."
"That doesn't sound like A-rank."
"She's Orochimaru's prisoner."
"Oh."
"Yeah. Should be fun."
Naruto had never been on a mission that he considered fun. Then he stopped to think that he'd never actually had fun doing anything. Not as Sasuke defined the term. Fun, according to Sasuke, was anything that made you laugh and scream in happiness. Naruto could not remember laughing once in his life, though he'd been happy many times. He certainly never screamed the way Sasuke and Gaara did.
Gaara seemed to sense that Naruto was thinking about the boy he'd left behind. "Did you love him?" the redhead asked softly. His sensitive side wasn't something he displayed often, but he felt comfortable enough around the blond to be himself.
Naruto knew who Gaara meant. "Yes. I still do."
Gaara nodded in understanding. After a few moments he began singing again, though this song wasn't about mobile mountains. He sang some kind of open vowel sounds before actually singing words. "Why do birds si-ing so gay…and lovers await the break of day…"
Naruto listened and watched how Gaara managed to dance in time to the music while still moving forward. A sense of awe and wonderment fell over the big blond. It wasn't the words that caused this so much as the voice. It was high, clear as the mountain air they were traveling through. It was melodious and sweet beyond description. Naruto watched Gaara singing with his mouth slightly open.
"Whyyyy do fooools fall in loooove," Gaara finished with a small flourish. "That's you," he told the blond with a snicker. "A fool in love. I mean Jesus, forget the fucker. He ditched you, didn't he?"
"I don't think he meant to," Naruto said.
"What, 'cause of what you said about his brother?" Gaara made a rude sound with his mouth. "Puh-lease, man. If he really wanted to he could resist. He's Uchiha."
Naruto changed the subject to one that was less painful. "Your singing is the most wonderful sound I have ever heard."
Gaara was bending to pick up a stick. He straightened now with a flabbergasted look on his face. "Really?!? You mean that?"
"Yes. I feel…good. Inside. When you're singing."
Gaara rolled the stick absently in his fingers as he considered Naruto's words. It hadn't been lost on him or Killerbee how different Naruto was. Killerbee said the kid was a victim of neglect or some shit. The explanation he'd given for Naruto's weird behavior had been long and complicated but what it boiled down to was simple: Naruto was an extremely introverted, self-contained machine. For him to praise Gaara's singing so highly was probably nothing short of the truth as he saw it.
"I-I don't know what to say," Gaara stammered when he could speak. "Thank you. You're the only person who likes it besides my sister. Killerbee said he'd set Hachibi on me if he had to listen to my singing. He only sings enka shit."
Naruto could see that Gaara was embarrassed and strangely shy of a sudden. He kept his red head down as he swished the stick in the air. "You mentioned a sister," the blond said in an effort to make Gaara forget whatever had embarrassed him. "Tell me of your family."
Gaara seemed relieved to have something else to talk about. He launched into an account of his life in Sunagakure.
Itachi thrust savagely into Sasuke's prone body, throwing himself towards his impending orgasm. He closed his eyes, prepared to savor it.
The pounding on his door couldn't have been more ill-timed. Whoever it was did not let up, but kept hammering at the door. Itachi's orgasm slipped from his grasp and he yelled in aggravation. He wrenched himself from his brother's body and went to his door to snatch it open.
Kisame stood there. His face was unapologetic. Itachi considered that maybe he hadn't done a thorough enough job instilling fear in him the day they'd brought Deidara and Zetsu's bodies. "What the fuck do you want," Itachi spat.
"We believe we've located the Nine-Tails, Boss." Kisame eyed Sasuke's inert body on the bed. He was lying on his stomach. He didn't turn over at hearing Kisame's words.
"Well?" Itachi shouted up into the shark nin's face. Kisame was brought back to himself sharply.
"He appears to be staying with the Eight-Tails. Should we-"
"Go up against the two most powerful Jinchuuriki in the world?" Itachi finished. "No. Going after one is all well and good, but not both. For now, we'll just observe his movements. If you find the Eight-Tails or Naruto alone, however…"
Itachi glanced over his shoulder at where his brother lay unmoving. Ideally, he should go himself, but he didn't want to leave Sasuke; his brother needed to be under the constant supervision of Itachi's watchful eye or he would get up to all kinds of fuckery. Sasuke had proven most difficult to subdue. If Itachi wasn't around him night and day God only knew what would happen.
"Right," Itachi said as he turned back to his former partner. "Here's what I want you to do." He gave specific instructions for the remainder of Akatsuki to carry out. Kisame listened attentively.
"Yeah my dad was a singer," Gaara was saying. Afternoon was almost gone, dusk approaching as the two Jinchuuriki traveled consistently southeast. "Guess I got it from him. I really miss the guy."
"Do you ever visit him?" Naruto asked. A father. Such a fascinating concept.
"No," Gaara said quietly. "He died getting me out of Suna safely when Akatsuki came for me."
Naruto said nothing to this statement. He asked another question. "Did the villagers ignore you? Were they afraid of you?"
"Ignore me? I was the Kazekage's son, of course they didn't ignore me. 'Sides, I was the village's strongest weapon. I was respected. Killerbee told me what your village did to you. I don't understand it. I mean you're a Kage's son, too."
Naruto stopped walking. "What?"
Gaara stopped and turned to him. "What."
"What do you mean I'm a Kage's son?"
The green eyes widened disbelievingly. "Don't tell me you don't even know who you are? Well, fuck! Jesus, you-"
Naruto stepped to him and lifted him to eye-level by a fistful of his red tunic. "Who am I? Who was my father?"
Gaara eyed the way Naruto's blue eyes blazed. "Namikaze Minato? The Fourth Hokage? How come you didn't know that?"
Naruto dropped him. He stared out across the hilly landscape, the setting rays of the sun turning everything golden and orange. Gaara rubbed his ass with a wince. Naruto dropped his eyes to where he sat. "How do you know this?"
"Standard Kage education," Gaara muttered sullenly. "We know all Kages and their family trees."
"We? You are a Kage?"
"Fifth Kazekage, though my sister is acting in my absence." Gaara rolled to his feet. He resumed walking as if he had not just set Naruto's world on its ear. Naruto did not follow.
I have a father, the blond thought with a shiver of longing. That the man now had a name and an identity opened doors within Naruto that had been previously locked. The blond now knew where he came from. He knew something of himself at last. A Hokage's son. I am not just some person born to faceless parents. I am the son of the Fourth Hokage, whose name was Minato. But who was my mother?
Naruto came to his senses and looked around. Gaara was nowhere in sight. He didn't sense the boy anywhere. The blond began heading in the direction they'd been traveling, assuming he would catch up to Gaara eventually. He had more questions for the redhead.
An hour later, when Gaara was still nowhere to be found, Naruto stopped walking. He was in a small copse of trees. He was just considering searching for the other boy when Gaara dropped from the trees above with a piercing shriek. He landed on Naruto's back. "Boo!"
Naruto didn't budge at the impact. He reached behind him and helped the smaller boy off. Gaara stared at him expectantly.
"What were you doing all this time?" Naruto asked curiously.
"Trying to scare the shit out of you. Did it work?"
"Scare? No," Naruto said puzzled.
Gaara wilted. "Darn. I'll just have to make you show human emotions some other way. You ticklish?"
Naruto and Gaara camped by a stream that night. Gaara said he didn't know much about Naruto's mother, but he had tons of stories about the blond's father. Naruto listened raptly. Gaara seemed to be an insomniac like Naruto. They stayed up for most of the night talking. Naruto felt himself growing closer to this energetic boy.
The next day saw the two looking into the Sound village from a thicket of tall grass. The closer they'd gotten to their destination, the less talkative Gaara had become. His smiles had come less frequently. Even his voice changed. It dropped from its high, carefree pitch to a deeper timber. When Naruto asked what was wrong, Gaara had said that nothing was wrong; Business was at hand and one needed to be serious for business.
From the thicket, the two watched the patterns the Sound guards exhibited as they patrolled. Otogakure was not a walled village.
"Strategy?" Gaara hissed.
"Diversion," Naruto whispered back. "You said the woman is in Orochimaru's mansion. You can provide the diversion while I retrieve her."
"No," Gaara said. "You provide the diversion. I know the layout of the mansion. I'll get her."
Naruto was forced to point out the flaw in this plan. "I do not excel at diversionary tactics. You must do it. Tell me where the woman is in the mansion and I will retrieve her."
Gaara admitted to himself that Naruto was a blunt creature, though a brilliant fighter. "What did you have in mind?"
"Sing. Dance. I will slip past the guards. When you see that I've gone, you can join me. By then I should have the woman."
Gaara's eyes, so near the color of the grass he hid in, lit up. "Sing and dance? I like the way you think!" He pushed his face into the dirt to muffle his laughter. Then he was serious again. "If there weren't so many guards we could have both snuck past them. Yosh, wait for my signal."
Naruto nodded.
The signal, when it came, shocked even Naruto's un-shockable sensibilities.
Gaara made several sand clones, enough to form a sizable band of singers and dancers. Every one, including the real Gaara, was stark naked. They jumped out from the cover of the thicket and zipped to a position before the Sound guards that had them looking away from Naruto and his entry point into the village.
Naruto heard the group of Gaaras begin singing something about sex before he gave himself a mental shake. He concealed his chakra and disguised himself. He chose the old crone he'd killed in that cottage. He shuffled out of the thicket and into Otogakure, his eyes keeping a sharp lookout for anyone who might stop him.
The body was awkward to move in, but Naruto did not rush. He ambled through the streets as if he had a perfect right to be there, drawing steadily closer to the mansion that dominated every other dwelling. He could hear Gaara in the distance, singing up a storm. People around Naruto heard the commotion as well and jogged to the village entrance to see what was going on. Naruto distantly heard one of the guards ask Gaara if he was busy later.
Gaara had briefly gone over the layout of the mansion with Naruto, as well as the description of the woman they'd be rescuing. She was the Daimyo of the Tea Country's niece. Naruto reached the mansion and shuffled up the wide steps to the tall double doors.
The guards at the doors eyed the old woman struggling up the steps. They had no idea who she was or what she could possibly want, but they would send her on her way in short order. If she even lived to reach the top of the long stairway at all; the hag was wheezing and clutching her chest as if she were on death's door from the exertion.
Naruto reached the top stair and allowed himself to sink to his knees as if completely worn out, completing his ruse of being a feeble old woman. One of the guards came over to him. Naruto unmasked his chakra.
The guard reared back at feeling the change, but he was too late. Naruto morphed into his real form and caught the man in a choke hold that had him unconscious within seconds. The second guard was on him by then. Naruto gave him a head butt and the guy sank to the marble steps in a boneless heap.
Naruto made two shadow clones and transformed them into likenesses of the two senseless guards. The real guards he carried to the side of the mansion and shoved into some bushes. He hesitated a moment then broke the knees of both men. He didn't want them following him too quickly.
Back at the mansion doors, Naruto's clones let him pass without incident. The blond made his way inside the dark interior of the mansion.
He was helpless not to remember Sasuke's words about this place and the things he'd suffered under Orochimaru. Naruto's eyes flickered to red before returning to blue at the thought of meeting the Sannin.
The interior of the mansion was dim, the heavy drapes drawn. Chandeliers gave watery yellow light, hung with cobwebs. Dark wood paneling covered the walls. A moth-eaten carpet covered the floor. The color had once been a rich red, but now it was worn and faded until it was featureless beneath Naruto's soundless tread.
Naruto saw children darting here and there, mostly boys. They did not look at him as they scurried past. There was a fearful quality to their hunched shoulders and downcast eyes. Naruto could not imagine the vibrant Sasuke among these frightened and cowed children.
No one raised a cry or seemed to think it strange that a large teenager was walking through the place. Naruto finally reached a door on the ground level of the structure that had two ninja standing in front of it. He judged it to be the location Gaara had said was the entrance to the basement cells. He faced the two guards.
Jirobo looked the big kid up and down. "Who the fuck are you?"
"Naruto. Is this where you keep prisoners?"
"Depends," said Tayuya. "You interested in becoming one?"
Naruto did not answer that. He only looked at one then the other, assessing them.
Tayuya took in the tall, muscular frame, feeling her pussy swell. She licked her lips suggestively, giving the blond a smoldering stare. Naruto ignored her.
Jirobo's warning shout cut off as Naruto's hand slammed into his throat. Tayuya drew her flute as she jumped aside, bringing it to her lips.
Kyuubi served to dispel the Genjutsu, as usual. Frequently, he detected them before Naruto did. Naruto chased her as she turned to run. He caught her by the hair and swung her into the nearest wall. She fell to the floor, motionless. Naruto walked calmly back to the door and examined it.
Jirobo lay suffocating on his crushed windpipe as Naruto concluded that he would be unable to penetrate the solid steel door without going Kyuubi. The blond turned to examine the wall beside it. Ordinary wood and plaster. Naruto formed a Rasengan and slammed it through the wall. It caved and left a gaping hole. By now several dirty children had gathered to watch.
Naruto climbed in and landed on a rickety wooden staircase that led downward. The hole he'd made let in enough light for him to see by. He moved cautiously.
At the base of the stairs was a landing then another staircase leading down and to the left. Naruto descended these in the same manner. At the bottom, he found himself in a long low room lined with barred cells to either side. Three weak, naked incandescent bulbs shed wavering light. To Naruto's right sat an odd individual some twenty feet away. The man had six arms. To Naruto's left a two-headed man was sodomizing one of the boys from upstairs. The boy whimpered in pain.
The two-headed man and the six-armed man looked up when Naruto entered. Naruto wondered that they hadn't heard the noise of him breaking through the wall earlier. Were they lax?
Naruto just managed to turn his head as he avoided some yellow projectile the six-armed one shot from his mouth. He heard it shatter against the stairs behind him. He saw the two-headed one shove the boy aside as he charged Naruto, but the blond turned to face the six-armed one; he was closer.
Kidomaru shot a web of his special substance out, catching the intruder squarely. His smirk was short lived as the blond muscled his way out of it. Kidomaru would have said that was impossible until he saw the orange chakra glowing around the kid. What the shit?? He jumped back to observe him, wary now. Besides, Sakon was coming up behind the guy.
Naruto sensed the presence behind him long before he felt the man slam into his back. To the blond's thinking, the six-armed one was the more dangerous of the two. When he felt a tearing inside him, however, he was forced to revise this assessment. He looked down to see a grinning demon head protruding from his chest. His blue eyes widened in surprise. That was all. Then Kyuubi's chakra did the rest.
Sakon screamed as the demonic chakra incinerated him, doing away with the intrusion of his cells in it's host's body. Ukon, watching from some distance away, backed to a wall fearfully. "What are you?" he hissed at Naruto.
Kidomaru was wondering the same thing. As a precaution, he activated his curse seal, going to Level Two. Naruto watched this in silence.
No matter how much the Sound Jounin tried to catch the intruder with his substance, the kid dodged. Big as he was, he was too damn fast. The entire basement room dripped with the hard yellow stuff. Ukon hung back in a corner, not caring to fight without his twin. He didn't dare try to escape, lest he catch the eye of the intruder.
Naruto formed a Rasengan. He approached where the six-armed man was crouched against the ceiling like a spider and looked up at him.
Kidomaru was out of breath and nearly out of chakra. He panted heavily, his three eyes glaring down at Naruto.
Naruto leapt. The man dodged, but Naruto caught him. He rammed the Rasengan into his chest. Ukon let out a wail and ran for the stairs. Naruto threw the body of the six-armed man at him. Ukon went down, crashing through the aged wood of the steps.
A shout from above had Naruto raising his head in time to see Gaara, fully clothed and running down the stairs. The redhead stopped at seeing the horned creature at Naruto's feet. "What are you doing?" Gaara hissed. "You're late! Did you get her?"
"There was opposition," Naruto said calmly. Gaara leapt over the creature and Naruto both as Naruto slammed a Rasengan into Ukon's screaming face. Then the blond turned to follow Gaara.
The Kazekage was muttering to himself as he walked quickly along the cells, looking for the Daimyo's niece. Every occupant of the cells reached their hands between the bars, beseeching Gaara to rescue them. When they saw Naruto they begged him as well. Naruto was offered riches, sex, power, anything so long as he released them. He ignored their pleas to watch Gaara.
"Here she is!" Gaara said. He hurried to one of the cells near the end of the room. "She's the only one not begging us to save her. What a joke!" Gaara looked around for a set of keys.
Naruto walked up to the cell and saw a woman who looked to be in her thirties. She was of a dusky complexion, big brown eyes, curly black hair. She sat curled in a corner, wearing a filthy dress. He placed his hands on the bars and began pulling.
By the time Gaara came back with the keys jangling in his small fist, Naruto was helping the woman step through the warped bars. He dropped the keys in disgust.
In the interest of saving time Naruto carried the woman on his back, following Gaara swiftly up the stairs that led to the ground floor.
"Success!" Gaara crowed as they climbed through the hole in the wall.
"Not quite," a pleasant voice hissed. Naruto and Gaara looked up to see a thin, greasy-haired man staring at them with reptilian eyes and a slimy smile.
Kisame, Konan and Sasori studied the cottage from high up on the valley wall. They lay on the ground, using the natural concealment of the terrain to hide their bodies. They further concealed themselves by masking their chakra.
They watched for two days, but nothing and no one came out of the cottage. No one entered it either.
They were each scarred from the last time they'd failed Itachi. They did not want to fail him again. But after two days of nothing, Konan finally broke the silence. "Maybe we were wrong?" she ventured.
"How could we be wrong," Kisame snapped. "We tracked that chakra here. And we know this is where the Eight-Tails lives."
"But we haven't seen anyone in all this time," Konan persisted.
"The longer we sit on this ridge, the longer the Raikage has a chance to discover us trespassing in his country," Sasori said as he shifted inside his puppet. "I don't know about you two, but I would rather not run into him."
Konan shivered. "Neither would I."
Kisame stared at the homey cottage. He made a decision. "Come. We can at least carry out part of Itachi's orders."
He stood and the other two followed him as he crept watchfully down the slope.
Naruto and Gaara, Daimyo's niece in tow, made haste to the Tea Country. They did this in silence and looking over their shoulders. Well, Gaara looked over his shoulder often. Naruto merely ran tirelessly with the woman on his back.
Their pursuers hadn't followed them much past the Sound village, but that was small comfort. Both Jinchuuriki knew the Sound ninjas had only held back to make sure they weren't meeting up with reinforcements. Plus they were probably still reeling from the way their leader had been beaten. Gaara supposed he could thank Naruto for that. The guy was unbeatable, ruthless. In short, fucking awesome! Gaara thought there must be no finer individual.
The woman said nothing beyond a heartfelt thank you back in the basement cell. She was quiet as she held on to Naruto's thick neck. Naruto loped along easily beneath her slim weight. Gaara used the branches in the trees above. They did not stop to rest or eat.
Once they reached Tea Country the next day, they finally slowed down. The woman was allowed to walk. Gaara led the way with Naruto bringing up the rear, the woman safely between them. They were alert as they hurried to deliver their charge to the Daimyo. They wanted this business over with.
Gaara did the talking once they reached the village and handed the woman into the Daimyo's safekeeping. That gentleman was crying and busily hugging his niece, but he managed to conclude the transaction by having his assistant pay Gaara. Gaara received the thick wad of cash with a bow of thanks, grabbed Naruto and got out of there.
The Tea Country was a good twelve hours behind them when the attack came. Sound ninjas erupted from the stream they were crossing and surrounded them. Neither Gaara nor Naruto were surprised; they'd been expecting such a thing since Naruto had shown the village Orochimaru's severed head. They were just glad they'd offloaded the woman before the attack came.
"Maybe you shouldn't have killed Orochimaru," Gaara said tensely to Naruto. He had his back to the blond's, staring around at their enemies.
"He wanted to keep you as one of his child prostitutes," Naruto said. His eyes shifted from side to side, counting opponents.
"I can handle myself, alright? Besides, I'm no child." Gaara rode the small waves of the stream easily.
"He hurt Sasuke. I owed him for that," Naruto answered. "And he was preventing us from leaving."
"Whatever. I don't do so well with water so why don't we take this fight elsewhere?" Gaara suggested. Naruto agreed. The Sound ninja's tried to stop them, but Naruto and Gaara vanished as they closed in.
The fight took place a good mile away. Naruto killed a few, but it was really Gaara who handled it. He covered their opponents, and a good part of the land, with Desert Requiem and that was that. The Sound nins were all dead and buried. Gaara dusted his hands off proudly and gave a little bow to the watching Naruto.
The rest of the trip back to the valley went like the trip to the Sound village, with Gaara resuming his singing and skipping. Naruto concluded that now that the mission was done the boy was in his normal spirits. He had a question.
"Gaara. Why did you say you weren't a child?"
The redhead glanced up at him. "Because I'm not. How old do you think I am, anyway?"
Naruto studied the small body that barely cleared his elbow. "Nine, possibly ten years."
"That's insulting. I'm seventeen."
This surprised Naruto. Gaara was his age. "Oh."
"Shit, we didn't get to do our spree," Gaara moaned.
"What is a spree?"
"Mmm…hard to explain. I guess you could describe it as a set amount of time where you do as much of something as you possibly can within that time-frame. There are all kinds of sprees. Killing sprees, shopping sprees…"
"I see. What kind did you want to do?"
"Well, killing sprees are always lots of fun. Killerbee frowns on it though, so I make sure I only kill bad guys so he doesn't kick me out his place. See, what you do is you find a nice big prison crammed with baddies and give yourself, say, an hour? Then you get to butchering. Madness, I tell you. So much fun."
Naruto listened with curiosity. It sounded like something Sasuke would be interested in.
"Want me to sing again?" Gaara asked after awhile.
"Yes, please."
They arrived back in the valley near dusk and to find a very serious-looking Killerbee waiting outside the cottage, arms akimbo. Gaara and Naruto walked up to him slowly, unable to read his expression. Was he angry? If so, why wasn't he shouting at them?
In an effort to ingratiate themselves, Gaara held up the cash he and Naruto had earned on the mission. Killerbee didn't even look at it. Instead, he turned toward the open door of his cottage and beckoned them inside. Naruto stepped right in, unafraid. Gaara clutched the back of the blond's shirt, very afraid.
Naruto's brows drew downward as he looked around, but Gaara gasped aloud. "Fucking hell, what the fuck happened here?!" the redhead said in strident tones.
"I was hoping you could tell me," Killerbee said. "But it seems you two disobeyed me and decided to leave the valley. As it happens, that was fortunate. Look." Killerbee pointed to his open bedroom door.
Naruto walked forward through the wreckage and destruction of the cottage to the room he and Killerbee shared.
It was a slaughterhouse.
How many they were originally Naruto couldn't tell, but limbs torn from bodies were strewn about the room. Blood splattered the walls and ceiling liberally. Entrails were slung everywhere, some having burst to lend their foul stench to the heavy smell of blood. On the mantle of the fireplace sat an envelope with the Uchiha fan engraved on it. Naruto pointed to it. "What's that?"
Killerbee came up behind him to see what he was referring to. When he did, he frowned. "I only just got home before you arrived. I hadn't seen that." Killerbee stepped carefully into the room and plucked the envelope from the mantle. He examined it. "It's addressed to you, Naruto."
The older man walked out of the room and handed the envelope to him. Naruto looked down at the small square of paper. Uzumaki Naruto, it said. He walked to the middle of the main room, away from the smells in the bedroom, as he opened it and read out loud for Killerbee's benefit. The letter inside was short:
Hi Naruto!
Hope all's well with you. Looks like you found that freak, Killerbee. Don't be too upset at the sight of his dismembered corpse, the nigger was a useless peace-loving fuck.
Let's talk about you. You escaped, had your little fun, your little Jinchuuriki powwow, but now it's time to come on back. Sasuke misses you. Well, no he doesn't, he doesn't even think about you, I make sure of that. But I bet you miss him, so here's the deal: You turn yourself over to me and I won't kill Sasuke.
And before you go thinking that I won't hurt my brother, think again. I will hurt him. And I'll kill him. Just like you killed Deidara and Zetsu. Oh, and Hidan and Kakuzu, can't forget about them.
Hurry home,
Itachi.
Gaara turned from where he'd been surveying Killerbee's room with a hand over his mouth. "It was supposed to be Killerbee in there dead? Akatsuki did this?" His green eyes were wide and frightened, his hand still over his mouth.
Naruto looked up from the paper and met Killerbee's shades. It was his fault. The cottage, the attempt on Killerbee's life, it was all his fault and Sasuke was going to die unless he turned himself in.
The paper dropped from Naruto's nerveless fingers as he began to shake. "I-I'm sorry. I've…brought disaster to your home…you-"
Killerbee decided that this was the first time he'd ever seen the big kid display any concrete emotion: he was scared. The boy was trembling with it, his blue eyes showing white all around.
"You can't go to them," Gaara said in a small voice. "You're, like, my best friend. You can't go." Gaara's eyes filled with tears.
"I can't stay here," Naruto said. He'd never felt like this before, the blond noted distractedly. He was hunted, his friends endangered, Sasuke threatened. Naruto felt powerless. He'd never felt powerless or vulnerable before. Was there nowhere he could turn?
Naruto glanced about at the broken furniture. All my fault. He was sad to go, but he couldn't stay. Not after his presence had nearly gotten his friends killed. Friends were a rare thing in Naruto's life and Jinchuuriki friends the rarest of all. They would not be hurt because of him if he could help it. He made his way through the cottage door and was almost to the cave that led to the ravine by the time Killerbee caught up to him. "Son, wait."
"Let me go," Naruto said. He looked pointedly at the hand Killerbee had on his arm.
"I can't let you leave, Naruto. Akatsuki could be anywhere around here. Let me-"
"I don't care. Let them come."
Killerbee lost his patience. "I care! Did you think about that?"
Naruto hadn't. "Whether I live or die should be of little consequence to you. Harboring me has-"
"Stop. Just stop and listen to me," Killerbee said. "Come back to the house, we'll figure out how to save your friend."
Naruto turned and resumed walking toward the cave. He was just outside the entrance when Killerbee grabbed him again. This time Naruto pivoted, his fist cocked and ready to launch.
Killerbee withstood the punch, wrapped his massive arms around the equally massive kid and hung on tight. Naruto struggled to be free, but the older man was too strong. "They'll kill you," Naruto said. "They'll kill you and they'll kill Gaara. Then they'll kill Sasuke. Let me go."
Killerbee marveled that even terrified as he was and fighting against the bear hug he was in Naruto's voice was still evenly modulated. "I'm not letting you run to Itachi. The man will kill you the first chance he gets and then he'll still have Sasuke. What good will you going to Akatsuki do then? Think, Naruto. Never give the enemy what they want. Stay here with us. They won't take on three Jinchuuriki, we're safe so long as we stay together."
Naruto was quiet, listening, though his body still shook. "I can't let Sasuke die."
Killerbee stroked the blond hair. "I know, son. I know. But you can't help him if you're dead, either, can you?"
Naruto shook his head against Killerbee's. "I don't know what to do. I'm…I'm frightened." It was a new experience to admit such a thing. Even worse to feel it.
"It's okay, not knowing what to do," Killerbee soothed. "You have friends now, you're not alone anymore. We'll help." Killerbee's arms came down slowly from where they'd been holding the blond prisoner. Now his hands settled on either side of Naruto's strong neck. He looked into the frowning blue eyes. "Let me help," he whispered.
Naruto had never been comforted, had never needed to be comforted before tonight. He wasn't even sure that comfort was what Killerbee was offering. He only knew that whenever Sasuke was afraid or hurt, he sought Naruto's touch and now the blond finally understood why. He looked at the way the shades glinted dully in the light of the new moon and wanted to be touched.
He moved his head forward and pressed his lips to Killerbee's.
The older man pulled back immediately. "Naruto…you're confused right now. This isn't what you want. Maybe you should just come back with me and-"
"No. This is what I want." Naruto frowned as he stared at the dark mouth surrounded by white hair, searching for words. "I…need it."
Killerbee studied the set features. He didn't argue further. This time he initiated the kiss.
The boy was rough. Extremely. Killerbee tempered his aggression by patiently showing him that kissing was a dance of lips and tongue, not an attempt to chew someone's mouth off. The boy had a serious fixation on biting.
Killerbee's large warm hands moved with slow deliberation. They were strong, knowledgeable hands. Naruto's clothes were removed in the moonlight before the cave. Killerbee discouraged the blond from ripping his clothes off, stepping back to remove them himself. When he was nude, he gathered Naruto close.
There, in the dirt just inside the cave, Naruto learned to submit to Killerbee's powerful, yet oddly gentle lovemaking. That, too, was a new experience.
Back at the Akatsuki hideout, Itachi was sitting in Pein's throne-like chair listening to Konan, Kisame and Sasori make their report.
"You used villagers instead of the Eight-Tails?" Itachi asked. He stroked Sasuke's hair where his brother knelt at his feet. "Can't say I'm not disappointed that you didn't kill that black asshole, but the substitution was inspired. Whose idea was it?"
Kisame inclined his head in acknowledgement.
"I see. Well, I guess Naruto will head back here and try to rescue my brother." He gave Sasuke's hair a little tug. Sasuke didn't respond. "Let's be ready to welcome him home properly. I'm determined to have his head this time. No more fuckups."
Itachi got up then and pulled on the leash that was attached to the collar on Sasuke's neck. Sasuke got up and followed his brother meekly.
Or so it appeared. Had Itachi turned around, he would have seen something quite unpleasant: Sasuke's eyes held Sharingan.