Hello, dear readers. This is an incredibly short chapter - I was originally going to combine it with the next one, but I think they'd work better on their own. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this taste of what's to come, and I promise to have the next chapter up before Thanksgiving. Now, on with the chapter!

53. A Soldier Cleans and Polishes a Gun

Kiba was panicking – that much Naruto could tell as he entered the apartment when he heard the Inzuka call out to him. It was the first Friday after their winter break, and the blond was well aware of Kiba's impending date. As he turned the corner to the dog-boy's room, however, he was not prepared for the sight that awaited him.

There stood Kiba, wearing what appeared to be the top-half of a suit. It was a black jacket with a pink shirt, paired with a lime green tie – Naruto thought it looked like a pig vomiting. He held a pair of navy pants in one hand and a pair of pinstriped pants in the other, wearing neither. Below the waist, he wore only some red briefs and black socks, giving him quite a comical appearance. Naruto simply shook his head at the sight.

"What's the matter, Kiba?"

"I need help, Naruto," the Inuzuka said, holding up the two pairs of pants. "Which ones go better with this suit? I thought I had black pants, but I can't find them, and this is the only jacket I have and I don't want to look bad for this first date because she's from the Hyuuga family and they're used to class and…"

"Slow down, there! Where exactly are you two going, anyway?" Naruto said, waving a hand for his roommate's silence.

"Umm… she wanted to go somewhere simple…" Kiba replied, his cheeks coloring slightly.

"Where, Kiba?"

"Ichiraku…" the dog-boy admitted with a sigh.

"You're going to a ramen stand for a date, and you're planning on wearing a suit? Doesn't that seem a bit excessive?" the blond asked, shooting the other teen a skeptical look.

"Well… yeah… but what if this is just a test? Maybe she wants to see whether I'll dress up even if it's just a ramen stand, and if I don't do that then she'll dump me on the spot…"

"Look, Kiba, she's not going to dump you because of something like that. If anything it would be because you blinded her with your shirt there," Naruto said, pointing at the neon pink garment.

Kiba glanced down at his front and frowned. "Too much?"

"Definitely. You might want to pick out some tamer undies, too… just in case she gets the chance to see them…"

The Inuzuka's face turned almost as red as his briefs. "W-what? No! That's not gonna happen! Besides, these are my lucky undies…"

Naruto turned his head to the side to offer his friend some privacy as he began unbuttoning his shirt. "Well, whatever makes you more comfortable, I guess. I'll tell you one thing, she really won't want to go out with you again if you're a sweaty mess tonight."

Stripping off the shirt, Kiba tossed it to the side of the room, where it landed atop a startled Akamaru. "I can't help it! I haven't been this nervous before in my life! There are so many things that could go wrong… what if I say something stupid?"

"Like you almost certainly will," the blond said, scratching the back of his head. "You just have to take your time. Don't respond too quickly – think things through so you don't make any mistakes."

"That's easy for you to say – you're not the one going out on a date. You know what I'm like when I'm nervous… I just keep talking until I've shoved my foot so far into my mouth that it comes out the other end."

"Thanks for that mental image, there," Naruto replied, shuddering. He knew Kiba was right, though: he really did have a tendency to talk too much when he was nervous.

The blond could remember when their landlady had accused them of keeping a dog in the apartment, which was strictly against the rules. Kiba had pretended to hate dogs altogether, saying that they gave him allergies, despite the obvious dog hair clinging to his shirt. Fortunately, Naruto had been there to cover for him, claiming the hair had come from their friend's dog earlier that day.

That had been a relatively minor situation, too – Naruto could only imagine what Kiba might say if he were truly nervous, as he undoubtedly would be on his date. What he really needed was a wingman to bail him out, should the situation arise. It would be awkward if Naruto just tagged along, though – there had to be another way.

Suddenly, it came to him. A broad grin crossed his face. "I know! What if Sasuke and I come along? We could make it a double date!"

Slipping on a nice, long-sleeved black shirt, Kiba looked up to Naruto with an expression of gratitude. "Are you serious? That'd be great!"

"I mean, I'd have to give him a call first, but I doubt he'd mind. We've been meaning to go out for a while now, but we just haven't had the chance," Naruto said, reaching into his pocket for his cell phone. "Let me call him real quick."

Nodding, Kiba finished getting dressed while the blond dialed. With the phone held to his ear, Naruto listened to it ring, waiting for his boyfriend to pick up. When Sasuke finally picked up, he sounded mildly irritated.

"Naruto! Where are you?"

"Umm… I'm home…"

"Don't you remember what today is?" Sasuke asked, his voice growing more aggravated.

"Friday, of course. Why? What's up?" Naruto asked, scratching his cheek in confusion.

"You're supposed to be helping Iruka move in today!" The Uchiha snapped, forcing Naruto to hold the phone away from his ear.

"Oh… of course. All the boxes are there and everything?"

"Yes. Get your butt over here."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Well, as much fun as that sounds, I have a better idea. Why don't you come over here so we can go out on a date?"

A pause. "You're joking, right? You want to just ditch our dads and go out?"

"Is that a problem?" the blond asked with a mischievous smirk.

Sasuke's voice lowered to a whisper. "Not at all. Just give me a few minutes – I'll have to find a way to sneak out without them noticing."

"Great. I'll meet you here in a few, then," Naruto said before clamping the phone shut. Looking up, he found Kiba zipping up the fly of his jeans, his ensemble complete.

"Well? Any luck?" the Inuzuka asked, scooping up Akamaru from beneath his discarded shirt.

"He's up for it. He'll be here as soon as he can," Naruto responded, shoving the phone into his pocket. He then glanced down at his own attire and realized his ripped jeans and his 'I'm a ninja – you can't see me' t-shirt would not suffice. "Guess I'd better get dressed too."

Hurrying into his own bedroom, Naruto rifled through his drawers until he found what he considered suitable date attire. Essentially, he just copied his flatmate's outfit, slipping on a black dress shirt with some dark jeans. He stood before the mirror for a moment, making last minute adjustments to his collar until he was completely satisfied.

Lookin' good, Naruto. Lookin' good…

Stepping back out into the hallway, Naruto passed by the bathroom where Kiba was busy flossing his teeth for the fifth time that afternoon, as if he were somehow trying to make his mouth radiant in only a few hours. Chuckling, the blond only shook his head and passed by on his way to the living room, where he plopped down on the couch to wait. It was close to fifteen minutes before he heard a knock on the door, which he was all-too eager to answer. Throwing the door open, he found a sharply dressed Sasuke standing outside with a smile.

"Hiya," Naruto said, grinning as he quickly waved his hand.

"So, are we going or what?" Sasuke asked, glancing down at his watch. "We want to beat the dinner rush."

"Yeah, I'm ready to go whenever. We just have to wait for Kiba."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed as he cocked his head to the side. "Kiba's coming along?"

Naruto quickly realized that he'd omitted a key detail. He grimaced. "Umm… yeah… you see, he was really nervous about his date with Hinata tonight, so I kinda volunteered for us to tag along."

"We're their chaperones?" Sasuke exclaimed, outraged.

"No! It's just a double date, and I'm there to bail Kiba out if he says something stupid!" the blond insisted, waving his hands defensively.

Sasuke slapped a hand to his forehead and sighed. "All right… but if anything goes wrong, I'm blaming you."

"And I'll take it gladly," Naruto concluded just as Kiba came up behind him.

"So… are we ready to go?" the dog-boy asked, sweat forming on his brow.

"We're meeting her at the restaurant, I take it?" Sasuke asked, turning his head to mask his ire.

"Yeah – I told her I'd be there around five o'clock. What time is it now?"

"Five fifteen," Sasuke responded dryly.

Kiba's eyes widened. "Shit! Oh, shit… we gotta hurry!"

Without a word, the Inuzuka darted past Naruto and Sasuke, nearly slipping on the icy path as he turned the corner towards the stairs. Naruto looked to his boyfriend – they shrugged in unison before racing after their nervous-wreck of a friend.

Already, their date was off to a wonderful start.

XXXXX

"Tonight's the night, Kisame."

"Already? You're awfully impatient, aren't you? I thought you were more reserved like your brother…"

"Sasuke's equally impatient when it comes to important matters. It has to be tonight: the warden's on vacation for the new year, and I noticed the guard sneaking some alcohol earlier – obviously he wants to party as well. It's the perfect opportunity – who's to say when we'll get another chance."

"I like the way you think, Itachi."

"You still have it, don't you? The syringe?"

"It was a pain hiding it from the guards this whole time, but I got it," Kisame said, reaching into his orange prison jumpsuit. He tossed the tiny needle to his cellmate, who snatched it out of the air.

Itachi stared at the needle for a moment, eyeing the label carefully. "Sharingan… so much was wasted for this…"

"Are you really gonna use it?"

"I have no choice – I have to find Sasuke," Itachi said, raising the syringe to his neck. He took a deep breath and plunged it in, injecting the reddish fluid.

Immediately, Itachi fell to the floor, letting out an agonized scream. Staring up at Kisame's black eyes, he could see the glossy reflection of his own. Three dots, not unlike pupils, had formed in his red irises. His lips curled into a smile of satisfaction.

The Sharingan Project had succeeded.

Dun-dun-dunnnn! What is Itachi planning? How will Kiba's date go? But, seriously, what is Itachi planning? Find out next time (which, as I said, will be soon!) Thanks for reading, and remember: review!