DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters. (Except the OCs are mine!)

Webs of Deception

Chapter Nineteen

Tripping Through Tangled Weeds

It was 9:53 pm when Sasuke emerged from the walls of his room. His body clad in a standard navy blue--long sleeved shirt with the only design of the Uchiha symbol embroidered on the back. Black jeans that hung slightly low on his hips and black steel-toed boots. His weapons pouches were attached to both of his legs and his hitai-ate tied around his forehead.

As he made his way downstairs, the voices from the dining room filtered up to him. A couple much louder than others. But what he found that surprised him, was that he didn't find himself getting pissed off at the noise level. Yes, it was still annoying but he found himself liking it better than the lonely silence that always settled in the house. It made the place seem more alive.

But the noise suddenly stopped once he appeared in the entryway of the room. All their eyes focusing on him as he stood there in the entryway for a long moment. His own eyes scanning the faces of the occupants.

Itachi, Kyoko and Miki were sitting on the left side of the table. Itachi sat in the last chair at he end of the table with a plate of food in front of him. Miki sat in the first chair on that side with Kyoko to his left. The male also eating from a plate of food. Though he was having some difficulty from the girl next to him. Who was already long done with her food and pestering the other just because she could.

Shikamaru and Ruri sat on the right side. Shikamaru sat in the second chair from the end with his books and scrolls filling up any available space left on the table and a small plate of food near him. Which had hardly any of the food touched on it. Ruri sat two chair from the front, also with a plate of food. Her chopsticks stopped in midair.

"Well look who decided to grace us with his godly presence." said Miki. Though he only meant it as a joke but obviously Kyoko didn't hear it like that. Because she whacked his head hard enough to slam his face into his plate of food. "Don't you have anything better to say to Sasu-chan than that!" she exclaimed at the poor man. Who was now screaming like a girl and flapping his arms about just because some of his mild curry sauce got into his eyes and were burning them like hell.

Sasuke's eye twitched at the 'Sasu-chan' but didn't say anything about it. He merely walked around the table, ignoring the commotion coming from the white haired male. Personally not really caring as he stepped over several piles of folders and boxes positioned on the floor. Trying to make it to the kitchen without tripping over anything.

Itachi also ignored Miki, as usual, and took a small glance at his little brother before going back to eating his food. He was just glad that Sasuke was out of his room and doing some kind of socializing. Even if that socializing is just walking into the same room as other people. It was better than nothing.

Ruri dropped her chopsticks on her plate and quickly went over to Miki. Grabbing a napkin as she did so. "Stop swinging your arms like that Miki-san and calm down. I can't do anything if you continue like this."

He forcibly calmed himself down and placed his hands on the arms of the chair. Gripping them so tightly that his knuckles were turning white. Ruri used the napkin to clean off the excess of the sauce to ensure no more would enter into his eyes. Then she concentrated healing chakra into her hand and brought the same limb to the male's eyes. Healing the burning irritation that was there.

"I think I heal more wounds caused by the two of you than anything else." Ruri stated as she finished.

She shook her head when Miki immediately started yelling at Kyoko about trying to harm people with there own food. She sighed as she turned around and headed toward the kitchen. Knowing that no matter what anyone every says to the two, they would still argue like cats and dogs. She concluded along time ago that, that was just how there relationship worked and that's how it will always work. Period.

When she entered into the kitchen, see saw Sasuke leaning against a counter, drinking a glass of water. His body language giving an impression that he was staring off into space. "Would you like something to eat?" she asked, bringing the stoic boy out of his musings. "I made enough of both meals. So you're welcome to have some."

"Hmn." he grunted in reply.

Ruri smiled softly at the younger boy. Inwardly hoping that his grunt noises matches with her meanings that she came up with for Itachi. So, deciphering his grunt as a 'I guess', she went over to the two separate meals that she made for everyone. "Which one would you like? We have beef curry and chicken tempura."

He stayed silent for a moment before saying, "Tempura would be fine." He placed the now empty glass on the counter as she went and grabbed a plate. As she was dishing a good amount of tempura on the raven's place, he said with some reluctancy, "Thank you for the food for the passed few days."

"Hmmm......how do you know that I cooked the food? There's two other Akuma members that can cook just as well as I can."

He didn't give any response to this. Though that didn't stop her from continuing, "Taichou and Itachi-san are quite proficient when it comes to cooking. But they're usually busy doing one thing or another. So they don't have the time to fix a meal for everyone, let alone themselves." She turned around with a full plate in her hands and lifted it toward the raven. A smile gracing her features as she went on, "If someone didn't cook, the whole of Akuma would be nothing but skin and bones. Ooor living on nothing but instant ramen. Which is just as unhealthy."

Sasuke took the plate from her hands. One thought oddly running through his head, 'I didn't know Naruto could cook.'

Ruri paused in her walking out of the kitchen and turned partly around to Sasuke. "I hope that you'll sit at the table with us." she said before continuing on out of the room.

Sasuke stared aimlessly at the floor. His mouth grunting, "Hmn." automatically. Once he came back out of his mind, he also exited the kitchen. Grabbing a set of chopsticks before he sat down at the dining table with the other Akuma members.


Sasuke walked through the darkened forest, heading into the direction where the blond indicated they meet. The darkness of the night not hindering his trained eyesight in the slightest.

Fallen and sun dried branches and leaves crunched underneath his feet as his stomach repeated flipped in a nervous dance. Though this nervousness wasn't showing on his face. No, that was as blank as a flawless concrete wall. Portraying nothing that was flooding through him.

He gazed aimlessly in front of him. He was extremely tempted to not even show up but that temptation was short lived. So short lived that it only lasted a good three point one seconds. He wanted answers. Naruto's answers to his questions. And no matter that part of him that wanted to stay far away from the blond, the other part didn't. And that latter part was seemingly being more of influence than the former.

His senses caught the familiar sensation of passing through a genjutsu. With this new knowledge, he became more cautious in his movements. Though in the back of his mind he knew that it probably belonged to Naruto. But he wasn't going to lower his ground with that thought either.

Sasuke walked for another half a minute before passing a line of trees and entering the clearing that he used to spar in with Naruto when they were younger. He stopped just as he entered. The first thing catching his attention being Naruto standing upside down in a handstand on a square piece of wood. His clothing following gravity; cloak covering his face and flowing to the ground, shirt pooling around his neck area and his jeans bunching in the legs.

For obvious reasons, Sasuke couldn't remove his eyes from the exposed skin of the other's chest. The smooth tan skin and chiseled six pack had his eyes captivated. He didn't bother to announce his presence. For one, he didn't want to lose his little distraction and two, if the other didn't already know of it then he really isn't as good as rumors say he is.

And just as he suspected, Naruto lowered his body back onto his feet after only ten seconds from entering the clearing. Amusement appeared in his onyx when the cloak didn't go back into place correctly. Instead, the back material was completely flipped over into the front, covering his face.

Naruto struggled with his damned cloak that secretly wanted revenge on him for unknown reasons. Probably the abuse he's put the poor thing in over the years. Mumbling curses under his breath. When he finally got his cloak situated, he turned--with fox mask on--to Sasuke. Who pushed the amusement back away from the surface of his eyes.

"You know, sometimes I hate these things. Getting tangled and all that......" he trailed off, all the while biting on his inner cheek.

He hesitantly took his mask off and lowered his hood. His sapphires now boring into onyx across the clearing. "I didn't think you would actually come." he said softly. Truly believing that the raven wouldn't show. But he guessed he shouldn't think that what he believed was true. Because his believing always turns in the opposite direction, proving his ass wrong.

Sasuke didn't respond to the other's statement, instead he asked his own question. "Why did you ask me here?" his tone cold and emotionless. Which made Naruto flinch ever so slightly.

The shorter male shuffled on his feet while his hand fiddle with the material of his cloak. These two actions being the most obvious signs of his nervousness. "Well......to talk....." he said non to convincing. His voice barely loud enough for Sasuke to even hear.

And that's all that was said. A whole minute passed without another word spoken. Naruto's eyes were staring at everything that wasn't Sasuke and the latter stared directly at the blond. Etching the blond's grown features into his mind. They stayed like this for yet another minute, until Sasuke's patience ran thin, "Are you going to talk or are we going to stand here all night?"

This caused Naruto's eyes to redirect themselves back at the raven. This was harder than he thought it would be. A lot harder. Though, of course, he never thought it would be easy either.

'Come on Kit, talking is the one thing that you do best.' Kyuubi tried to encourage. But it wasn't really helping though. He was scared way beyond shit-less.

He opened his mouth slightly and then closed it again. Biting his bottom lip nervously. This felt vaguely familiar from when Sasuke first found out that he was still alive. He opened his mouth again and said with more confidence than he felt. But his eyes gave him away completely. "Why don't we spar. That's how we used to solve our problems. So why can't we do that now?" asking this without expecting to get any kind of answer.

But he got one anyway. "And you actually think everything will be solved by just beating the shit out of each other." his voice staying cold and emotionless. 'Nothing can be solved that easily.' Even if he wished it could or just plain disappear.

"No, I don't." admitted Naruto, "But it's a start. You have to admit that we never really talked or anything. I don't know how to begin talking to you. At least this way, it gives some kind of start.....maybe--" he was suddenly cut off by barely dodging a punch from Sasuke. Then jumped back to avoid a kunai from slicing him across his chest.

Wide sapphire eyes stared back at the stoned Uchiha. Who glared in return and said, "What are you so surprised about. Isn't this what you wanted? So why don't you name the damn rules." He just wanted him to stop looking at him like that. Wanting not to be able to see the emotions that were hidden there.

Guilt and sadness entered Naruto's blue depths as he stared at Sasuke. Seeing the pain and betrayal through his facade that he carefully put up. "Taijutsu and weapons only. No killing and Kekkei Genkai are allowed." he said flatly as he took his cloak off and threw that and his mask to the side.

"Going to fight without your mask and cloak. Aren't you afraid of being seen?" he asked without any concern in his voice as he pushed up his sleeves and positioned himself into a fighting stance.

Naruto also took a fighting stance before saying, "There's genjutsus and traps surrounding all over this place. They were rigged so they would only allow you to enter and no one else."

A long pause followed as both stood and stared at the other. Both wanting this and not wanting this at the same time. Wanting this because this is the only way they knew how to interact with each other. And this gave them a sense of the past they used to have. But that was also one of the reasons why they didn't want this. Because it reminded them of what used to be, with a chance of never being again.

Naruto took a deep breath, readying himself for the hardest fight and conversation of his life. "What do you want to know?" And just as he expected, he didn't receive another question in return. And truth be told, he was kind of thankful. But instead of that question, he received a lethal Uchiha.

In a blink of an eye, Sasuke covered the distance between them with his sharingan activated and aimed a punch at the blond. Naruto caught the punch with his hand just before it made contact with his gut. Then twisted around and with a flat hand, attempted to hit him in the side of his neck. But Sasuke blocked the hand with his arm and with his hand still in the blond's grasp, he used his weight to throw both of them to the ground. This momentum detaching Naruto from his limb.

For the next seven minutes, the two rolled, flipped each other around, punched, kicked and made several collisions with various sizes of rocks and other kinds debris. But in this fierce struggle, Sasuke managed to get the upper hand. His body straddling the blond's as he brought his arm back to punch the male beneath him in the face that he's grown to love and hate at the same time.

"Why did you leave?!" he shouted his question with emotion that he hasn't shown since he entered the clearing. His hand slammed into the spot where Naruto's head was present a moment before. Creating a large hole from the strength he put behind the blow.

Naruto maneuvered his leg between them and kicked the raven off of him. Sending him tumbling across the clearing. Halfway across though, he flipped himself into a crouched position and skidded the rest of the way to a stop. His sharingan adorned eyes glaring at the other male as he stood from the ground. A few scratches littering his arms and one slightly bleeding on his cheek.

Naruto lifted himself back onto his feet and thanks to Kyuubi, his very minor wounds that he received were already healed. And with not bothering to dust off the dirt stuck to his clothes and skin, he said, "I already told you! I was banned from Konoha!"

"WHY?!!" he shouted across the clearing as he extracted about twenty kunai from both the kanji on his wrists. And with a flick of said wrists, they all soared dangerously toward Naruto.

His dagger appeared in his hand when he saw the sharp kunai plummeting in his direction. "Because of what I am! The council didn't want the Jinchuuriki of Kyuubi in their precious little village!" the resentment he felt toward those old farts flooding into his voice. He deflected half the kunai's with a swipe of his dagger and flipped and twisted his body to avoid the others. He was barely on his one foot before Sasuke used his speed to strike a blow, with a kunai in hand, at Naruto.

The latter's other dagger appeared in his empty hand and blocked the blow. Almost making him lose his balance from the force put behind it, but at the last half an second regained it. Digging his foot that saved him from falling, into the ground. He knew that he couldn't match the Uchiha on his speed and that had him cursing the other mentally.

But he wasn't the only one that was mentally cursing there opponent. Because Sasuke was also doing just that. He was mentally spouting any and all obscenities that came to mind. Because he was actually enjoying this fight between them. He could get his answers that he secretly desperately wanted to know and also get the pent up emotions out on the person that's causing most of them.

And it's a lot better when that said person is fighting back too. It makes it a hell of lot more exhilarating in his mind. But even with all of this, he still had reservations about enjoying anything that involved the blond. He just felt like he was betraying himself that he likes being around the person that hurt him so much.

"So, when you didn't show up at training and were at my house....."

Naruto's head nodded solemnly, "They told me that I had to be out of Konoha's walls by sunrise...." He internally winced at the spike of emotions in the red eyes in front of him at his words.

A growl irrupted within Sasuke's throat and with a sprout of strength, shoved the blond back. And as the latter jumped and flipped away from the vicious attacks from the other, Sasuke snapped, "Then WHY?!! Why did you come to my fucking house?!! Why did you......?!" He couldn't finish his sentence. But it didn't matter, Naruto knew what he was going to say.

"Because I wanted to." letting the first thing that came to his mind to stupidly slip out. 'Oh. That didn't come out right.'

'Kiiiit......What the hell. Is. Wrong. With. You. Did your brain finally malfunction? To say something like that in his emotional state......tsk tsk tsk.....'

Sasuke stop in his attacks and his features turned back to there blank state. What he said running over and over in his head. 'So that's how it was. Because he wanted to.' He turned his emotionless onyx to Naruto's sapphires. Not letting his pain show through his endless black for the other to see. He wouldn't let the him see any further how weak he made him.

"You wanted to?" he repeated, "Hmn." Biting his inner cheek to keep himself calm. "Hope you enjoyed the easy fuck you got." he sneered out. His teeth breaking the skin in his mouth and letting the blood slided over his taste buds.

"It must have been fun getting all those reactions out of me. Being the first one to get under the cold Uchiha's skin. You must of felt so proud of yourself." he spit out bitterly.

"It's wasn't like that! It just happened!" He instinctively closed his eyes from his own stupidity. 'That wasn't any better.....' he berated himself as he felt Kyuubi shake his head in a disapproving manner. "I-I mean...." he stammered, 'God, why does this have to be so hard.' "......is that I didn't anticipate it to go that far."

In response, he received a lifted eyebrow and, "Then what were you anticipating? If you knew you were leaving, why the fuck did you come to me?" The bitterness not leaving his voice even for a second.

Naruto shrugged his shoulders dejectedly and leaned against the closest tree to him. Lowering his head so he was staring down at the ground and not at the accusation of the other's gaze. "Because I wanted to tell you what I felt. I didn't want any regrets....." A far away look came over the blond features as he muttered, "Too bad that didn't work out to well."

Even if the last sentence was spoken lowly, Sasuke heard every word. But that didn't stop his mouth from saying, "So your no regrets is fucking your best friend--"

"Dammit Sasuke I said--"

"--and then leaving without a word or even considering how I much I felt for you!" he absolutely refused to say the 'love' word to him.

"You weren't suppose to feel ANYTHING for me!!" completely snapped the blond. His eyes burning with a fire of deep sorrow and regret that the other's ever seen in those orbs. "It was suppose to be simply! I would confess to you and you would laugh in my face and say an asinine thing! Then I could of left without any wants of staying! But noooo, you had to be an unpredictable bastard and return what I felt for you!"

Tears brimmed and overflowed down his whiskered cheeks. Letting the pain drip from his face and soak into the earth below. "Why couldn't you just hate me like everyone else?! It would of made it so much easier to leave if you just hated me!" his voice breaking and his insides twisting in a insufferable way. He felt his body lose it's strength and slide down the rough bark of the tree it was leaning against. Letting out a defeated sigh, his mouth formed the words, "You made me want to stay....."

Sasuke was shocked at the unexpected outburst from the Akuma leader. The pure emotion put behind those words caused a moment of speechlessness from the Uchiha. But it was a moment that easily came and went. "You should of told me. Why didn't you just tell me?"

"And what would you of done, Sasuke? It was my problem. I didn't want to get you involved in it."

"You didn't want me to get involved and yet you still had sex with me."

Naruto's mind faltered because he had a point. If he didn't want to get the other involved he should of pushed him away from the very beginning. Should of tried to stop what was happening between them. But he didn't......he couldn't. Because no matter what ever his logical mind told him to do, his heart and body wanted it. Wanted it just as much as Sasuke did.

"I wanted you......I wanted to lose myself in you. To pretend that everything was fine. But in the end it wasn't fine. It only made things worse." 'So much worse.' "You still had your life in Konoha. I didn't want to fuck it up just because mine was being taken away and tossed in the garbage."

"But you did. You did take my life away. You took it with you." saying this without really thinking how sappy it might sound. "And even when I defected from Konoha. When I purposely gave up my supposed 'life' here. You knew about it and we even met again and yet you didn't tell me ANYTHING!"

And this might be the real reason why he was so pissed at the blond in the first place. Because all this time he's been left in the dark without really knowing what the truth really was. And the object of most of his pain had all the chances to tell him that he was fine. But no, he chose of his own free will to leave him falling. To leave him falling in that suffocating darkness.

"I h-had different r-reasons." Naruto finally stuttered out. His nerves increasing to there highest levels with the prospect of telling the youngest Uchiha the one--out of two--reasons that caused him to feel such shame. He didn't want to speak of that time. It hurt too much. But he knew it was going to come up eventually. That he would have to tell him what he found out shortly after the chuunin exams.

But what really had him terrified was how Sasuke would think of him. Would he find him disgusting or would he blame him for what happened......

Sasuke stayed silent, impatiently waiting for the blond to continue with these reasons that seem so important.

"I was....." Naruto began but abruptly cut himself off. Deciding to tell Sasuke that one last. Even if he could tell him at all. "There's something.....wrong with me."

'Besides the most obvious fact of not trusting people with the truth when it actually matters.' Sasuke silently ridiculed in his mind but his at least his interest was peaked.

"Ummm.....we don't really know exactly what it is. Even with Baa-chan and Ruri-chan researching it, they still haven't figured it out. Though they have a suspicion that it might have something to do with Kyuubi. But it hasn't been confirmed or anything......Though we did make up a name for it, a 'build-up'. It's simply and to--"

"What is it?" Sasuke interrupted, not liking how Naruto was beating around the bush.

"It's kind of like a negative chakra build-up. It gathers around--" He brought his hand up and using his index finger, he circled a medium sized area right below his ribcage. "--here about every, give or take, six months. Ruri-chan narrowed down what triggers small leaks but, when it comes to the complete release of the build-up, we have no idea what triggers it. We've tried to make connections with each attack but each one is different and completely random....."

"What happens when this 'attack' occurs?" There was some doubt in him wanting to even know this piece of information. But he couldn't take back what he already asked. And besides, he probably wouldn't even if he did want to.

Naruto was hesitate about saying what happens but he promised himself that whatever Sasuke asked he would answer truthfully. And that's what he planned on doing. "Well, it varies with each one. But once the build-up is released, it runs through my blood stream. Which causes my body to feel like molten lava is flowing through my veins." As he said this his hand unconsciously ghosted over his arm, in like a demonstration of some strange sort.

"Then it starts to attack my organs, deteriorating them at a fast rate. If a medic nin that knows of my condition isn't present within the first couple of minutes, then most likely I'd die from the shock or damage that was caused. And even with a medic nin there, there's still a chance that I'd die anyway. It just depends how fast the damage occurred and if the medic nin can heal fast enough to keep me alive."

Sasuke was trying to take in this new vital piece of information about Naruto as well as he could. Which on the outside was pretty well. "Is there any cure?"

"Non that we've found. And trust me, we've tried a lot of things. But nothing worked. This is one of the reasons why I never sought you out and told you about my non dead status. Because eventually it's going to kill me. That's one thing we're all sure of. It could be this time around or the next or the one a from now or two years from now. It's only a matter of time....."

'Is that suppose to be valuable reason?' Sasuke asked himself as he glared at the sitting blond. He wasn't really sure what to feel. There were so many conflicting emotions running through him that he didn't know which one to stay with. Though his anger was slowly taking precedence again at Naruto's reasoning. "But isn't that the same chances of a shinobi's life. Each mission you take could possibly be your last."

Naruto blinked a couple of times stupidly before chuckling loudly. "Yeah, I guess you're right." 'But at least in a shinobi's life, it's his own fault if he dies. Me, there's nothing to fight. I have no choice on the matter.'

Sasuke's head lowered and shook it as he muttered under his breath, "Still a dobe." But with Naruto's hearing, he heard every word. And with hearing his old nickname from the raven's mouth sent a warmth through his body that he hasn't felt since that night he spent with him. And with this warmth came a wide smile that also reached his eyes.

Upon noticing the smile of the blond's, he narrowed his eyes suspiciously and asked, "What the hell are you smiling at?"

Naruto's smile only grew, "This is probably the first time I'm happy to be called a dobe."

Sasuke didn't give any sign of being glad about this. But inside he liked seeing the blond's smile once again. A smile that he, who wouldn't give any inkling at this moment, loved to see. And deep down he longed for one day to be able to say it to the blond without feeling extremely uncomfortable about doing so. But from now on, he has to get used to his presence and get to know him again. To get that trust he felt for him before back.

For once, something close to comfortable silence settled between the two. A sort of small understanding. Though that comfortable silence was rudely interrupted with Kyuubi asking, 'Kit, are you forgetting to tell the Uchiha brat something?'

Naruto's smile instantly flipped into a deep frown and his breathing quickly picked up speed. He didn't forget. He could never forget. He was just hoping to postpone it. Obviously his idea of postponing wasn't going to happen. 'I can tell him. Yeah, I can. I can tell him. I can tell him. I can.....Oohh.....I think I'm gonna to puke......'

'As long as it's not projectile vomit. Then go right ahead.'

Sasuke's brows furrowed when he noticed Naruto's irregular breathing and how pale he was getting. A thought passed through his mind that it might be an 'attack' happening. Which in turn of thinking this caused panic with a mixture of worry to rise in him. He quickly went over and bent down in front of Naruto. "This isn't one of those attack things happening, is it?"

Naruto lifted his head up to look up at Sasuke. Not remembering when he lowered it toward the ground. His blue eyes showed fear in there depths. "N-No. It's not that." Once said, Sasuke's expression was wiped clean of any emotion again and he stood back up. Stuffing his hands into his pants pockets as he put some distance between him and Naruto.

The latter shallowed deeply before he stuttered, "I-I-I h-have s-s-something else t-that I h-have to t-tell you." When he was done with the sentence that he found so hard to say, he began to vigorously nibble on his lip. He probably would of ate the whole thing if he could.

From the way Naruto was acting, Sasuke was not looking forward to what he had to say. The movement of the other's hand caught his attention and he took a glance over at it. Watching the limb gently rub the area where he knew that the tattoo of the name 'Asuka' was located. A spike of jealousy ignited within him as his teeth clenched together at the gentle caresses. He gritted out, "It wouldn't have something do to with this Asuka person would it?"

Naruto visibly flinched at the name. Averting his eyes to the ground as he nodded his head with more force than normal.

Seeing this, Sasuke's hands balled into fist inside of his pockets. "Whatever you did in your private life is non of my business." He all but sneered at the blond. Each word he said being a complete and utter lie. He wanted to know for god's sake. But fuck was he was going to let the other know that.

"It's....It's not l-like that." he said lowly. Trying to find the courage that seemed to have ran away, to tell the other what he had a right to know. He was desperately searching his mind for the best way to say this. He was concentrating on this so hard that he didn't take notice of the extra presence within the genjutsu's and traps area.

That is until a male voice said, "Naruto-sama!"

"Ahhhhh!!!!" screamed Naruto out of unique fright. His body hunch in the opposite direction from the unexpected being and clutching to his shirt above his rapidly beating heart. 'Fuck....' Not only were his nerves completely fried for the next year but he got the shit scared out of him too. Boy was this a day. He slowly cocked his head where the voice came from and saw a five tailed yellow-orange-ish fox about the size of a panther.

"Dammit Daiki! You scared the shit out of me!!" Once he got his outburst out, he calmed down and realized something. His expression turning to something of confusion. "Wait. What are you doing here?" Internally thanking to whatever god who did the divine intervention.

"You gave me orders to come to you if anything happened to the village while you were away, Naruto-sama." the fox stated in a professional manner. "And I must inform you that the villagers have all disappeared."

"Disappeared? All of them?" With a curt nod from the fox, Naruto went on as he got up from his position on the ground. Heading toward his cloak and mask that was short distance away. "And this didn't catch your attention?" Going back into 'Tatsuo' mode.

Daiki felt somewhat insulted at the question. "It happened all at once Naruto-sama." Following his master at a slow pace. "The only warning we received was the sudden chakra burst right before the villagers disappeared. There was no other indication beforehand."

Naruto's movements slowed in the middle of picking up his items from the ground. "How the fuck is that possible?" he asked to no one in particular.

As he straightened up, he ordered the fox, "Daiki, I want you to inform my team to meet me in the Hokage's office. Oh and Gaara's part of Akuma now. So don't forget him." Daiki gave one curt nod before disappearing in a blaze of fire.

A deep sigh escaped the blond's mouth as he ran a hand through his golden locks. "God, what else can happen?" he muttered under his breath, then finished silently, 'Please don't answer that.'

He turned back to Sasuke, who was still standing where he left him. His head turned in his direction with his onyx eyes gazing at him. His breath hitched at the blank intensity behind those eyes. Wondering what would be behind those eyes if he had told him about her. He swallowed the lump in his throat at the thought. Moving back over to Sasuke as he put his cloak on.

"Are you coming?" he asked as he passed the raven and headed toward the line of trees to exit the clearing.

Sasuke pulled his hands out of his pockets and pulled down the sleeves of his shirt. Covering the scars on his arms before grunting, "Hmn." and following the blond.

After securing his cloak closed, he lifted his hood over his blond hair and covered his face with his fox mask. Making a silent oath to tell Sasuke about her as soon as the time is right. Which he was quite thankful for wasn't right now.

'I will tell you about her Sasuke. I will......But please.....please don't hate me for it......'