Summary: Naruto had been a good boy all through high school, and what had it gotten him? Rejected by his best friend for a series of one-night-stands. (OOC: darker Naruto, sexual Sasuke) SasuNaru - College AU
Warning 17+ only: Yaoi (Boy x Boy) - Homophobic readers please hit the back button NOW. Not appropriate for young readers.
Disclaimer - Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. Sasuke would dispute that claim.
Author's note: Holy CRAP I can't believe this story has over 400 reviews. All I can say is thanks! I totally would have taken this story down by now if not for all your comments.
-xXx-
They had stayed in Kohona just long enough for Naruto to empty his storage unit and say goodbye to Kiba. Naruto had thought about stopping in to say goodbye to Itachi, but he just couldn't do it. He didn't know how much Itachi knew about what was going on, but knowing Itachi he'd probably figured out most of it. And Naruto was just too embarrassed to tell the elder Uchiha that his friendship with Sasuke had ended because Naruto liked him as 'more than a friend'. He was pretty sure Itachi would have been cool with the idea in general, but he did tend to go a bit overboard on protecting his baby brother.
So in the end, they had loaded up the rest of Naruto's things and left for Suna.
Nagato's house in Suna was enormous. It was on the outskirts of the city but with a huge stone wall surrounding it, sporting a pool and a tennis court. Naruto wondered again where Nagato had made his money. It certainly was not from writing books.
The only problem with Nagato's place was that it wasn't walking distance from campus. Naruto bought a cheap bike so he could get around the city without having to bother Nagato or his friends for a ride everywhere. It was getting late into winter, so it was a little chilly but at least he wouldn't have to worry about rain much in Suna.
"I'm going to head to campus and make sure everything is ok with my transfer, and see if there is any word on my scholarship and whether or not that carried over."
"Are you sure you don't want me to drive you? I have time today. I could show you around," Nagato offered.
"Nah. Stuff at the administration office can take forever, and I'd feel like shit making you sit around for nothing. You are already helping me out by letting me stay with you. Maybe you could show me around tomorrow?"
Nagato shrugged, and didn't force it. Naruto threw his pack over his shoulder and headed out.
Nagato sat for a moment, looking at the closed door. He had been asking Naruto for a while to see his writings, but the boy was reluctant. Nagato had moved Naruto's things into one of the guest rooms, and had seen Naruto put away his notebooks in the drawer of the desk. Feeling only slightly guilty, Nagato went and pulled out the most recent volume. Writers always improved over time, so he decided he might as well start there. He still remembered the piece that Naruto had brought to the writers workshop a year ago. He wondered how Naruto had progressed since then.
. . . .
After three painful hours waiting in lines and talking to different people, Naruto was finally assured that his transfer had gone through, and he would still receive the tuition discount even though his godfather had been 'temporarily loaned' to another school.
Feeling satisfied with his accomplishment for the day, Naruto headed over to the student dining hall to get some coffee before he headed back through the cold to Nagato's. He was surprised to see a familiar profile seated at one of the tables. Or more accurately, slumped over sleeping at one of the tables. He'd recognize that pineapple ponytail anywhere.
Naruto grinned, walking over and dropping his pack loudly right next to brunette's head.
"Mpf... what the hell?" Shikamaru looked up sleepily, then his eyes widened in surprise. "Naruto! What are you doing in Suna?"
"Transferring. I just finished up at the administration office. I start here next semester."
"I thought you were going to school with Sasuke. Is he here, too?"
Naruto sighed, trying to push the weight of depression off at the mention of his erstwhile friend. "No. I got expelled for helping out a friend who was getting the crap beaten out of him."
"Troublesome," Shikamaru sighed. "I try to stay out of stuff like that. So, Sasuke just let you leave?"
Naruto shrugged. "There wasn't really anything he could have done. In any case, we'd just... drifted apart over the past year. He's into girls and business courses now. We didn't really spend much time together while I was there anyway."
Shikamaru heard the casual tone that Naruto was trying to adopt, but he wasn't fooled. He had seen the looks that Naruto had sent Sasuke when Sasuke wasn't looking. And vice versa. He had hoped that rooming together in college would have helped them figure it out, especially after Sasuke had broken up with Sakura. Evidently not. Shikamaru sighed. I thought at least Uchiha was supposed to be smart.
"What about you? I had forgotten you were coming here. What did you decide to major in?"
"I'm pre-law. Majoring in international relations and philosophy," Shikamaru said, sounding bored.
"Wow, that's awesome!"
"Where are you staying in Suna? You won't be able to move into the dorms until classes begin in the spring. And I heard Jiraya got caught with some co-ed from one of the courses he was teaching, and was shoved off somewhere else until it blows over."
"I'm staying with a guy I met at a creative writing workshop here a year or so ago. Nagato. He's some kind of writer, but he doesn't write books."
"He's write the lyrics for a group called Pain. They were huge a few years ago," Shikamaru said. Was there nothing this guy didn't know? Naruto had yet to discover it.
"Oh my god! I remember them. Yahiko was really hot," Naruto immediately blushed at his blurted out comment, realizing that Shikamaru probably didn't know he was bi. "Er... anyway, I was afraid to ask Nagato what he did, because I thought maybe he made his money dealing drugs or something, given some of the friends he had... and I didn't really have any other place to go, so I figured as long as I avoided the issue...," Naruto realized he was rambling a bit. "But that's so cool! I wonder if I'll get to meet the band. I remember being really into them my freshman year in high school."
Shikamaru shrugged. "Just watch out. The band has always had a pretty wild reputation. Especially Yahiko."
"Yeah, well... I've been hanging out with some of Nagato's other friends for a while, so I think I'm pretty well already exposed to most of it."
Shikamaru raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. His watch beeped. "Shit, I have to go to class. This is the only class that has part of its grade based on attendance."
Naruto smiled, "Hey, no problem. Let me give you my new number," he punched the digits into Shikamaru's phone. "Give me a call if you have some free time. It would be great to catch up. I don't know anyone else on campus."
Shikamaru nodded, and headed off to his lecture with a lazy mock salute to his friend.
Naruto finished his coffee, then headed back to Nagato's house. He pulled off his shoes and jacket, thinking he would cook some dinner for Nagato and whoever was over today He wanted to do something to earn his keep.
He stopped short when he saw the person who was sitting on the sofa talking with Nagato. He had orange hair, blue eyes, and multiple face piercings. He wore black leather pants and a ripped-up black T-shirt that screamed rock star. Naruto recognized him instantly, but had no idea what to do. He didn't want to come across as some stupid groupie. "Oh, hey, Nagato. Sorry... I didn't know you had company. Should I come back later?"
Naruto found his gaze held by the redheaded man. He knew that Yahiko was 28. He had dropped out of high school at 17 to be the front man for Pain, and the gamble had paid off. He had made millions as a musician, and had a cult following due to both his raw sex appeal and the dark, emotional songs that he sang. Naruto forced himself to look over at Nagato, trying not to stare or act like an idiot fangirl in front of Yahiko.
"Naruto! I'm glad you're back actually. There is someone I'd like to introduce you to," Nagato said, motioning Naruto over. Naruto could feel the gaze of the pierced man following him as he walked over. He tried to meet the gaze calmly, but couldn't help his slight stammer.
"Hi! I'm N-Naruto," he blushed slightly, cursing himself. This was Nagato's friend. Just a regular person. Naruto just kept telling himself that over and over. But he had never met anyone famous before, and he couldn't really hide the excitement he felt about it. "I really like your music," he said, glad that this time he didn't stammer.
Yahiko smile slowly, pure sex, and offered his hand in greeting. "Yahiko. The pleasure is definitely mine."
Naruto's blush intensified, and Nagato frowned a bit at Yahiko. "How do you two know each other?" Naruto asked, hoping to distract from his flaming face.
"We're brothers," Yahiko said, smiling at Nagato.
"Well, basically brothers. We were both at the same orphanage. We met there. Yahiko is several years younger than I am, but we were close growing up. When Yahiko started his band, I helped write the lyrics," Nagato said, smiling slightly.
"That's so cool!" Naruto instantly wished he could have said something that didn't make him sound like such a teenager.
Yahiko laughed softly. "I guess. But Nagato's been in a bit of a slump writing-wise for the past couple of years. He has one song that is really great which we already recorded, but we need more than that if we're going to come out with a new album."
Naruto nodded. "Do you want me to leave you guys alone so you can try to work on some new songs?" He didn't want to seem clingy, or be a third wheel if these guys had work to do.
"Actually, Naruto, that was something I was going to talk to you about," Nagato began. "I remember that poem you brought in to the writers workshop last year. It was really good, especially for your age."
Naruto shuffled his foot, not sure if that was really a compliment or a jab at his maturity level. "Thanks?"
"I was curious about some of your new writings. I know you might be annoyed, but I looked through them. They're really pretty good. Yahiko agrees. And we were wondering how you'd feel about us using them as the basis for the songs on Pain's next album."
"I... what?" Naruto was a little upset that Nagato had read his notebooks... his writing was almost like his diary. He had poured out all his emotions into the poems and short prose pieces. But he was also incredibly excited at the idea of his work being praiseworthy to Nagato and Yahiko. They were older, successful, and talented. "Really?"
Yahiko chuckled, "Yeah, really. Your work is very original. It's raw and dark... it would be perfect."
Naruto stood there, feeling shocked and still processing this very unforeseen turn of events.
Nagato slightly misinterpreted the silence. "You'd get copyrights and royalties for the songs, of course. We can have something drawn up if you are worried about that."
"Uh, sure. That... would be great. I mean, yes, if you think they'd be good material for your next album..." Naruto trailed off. He had no idea about contracts, copyrights, or royalties, but he knew that people who didn't pay attention to this generally got screwed over in the music industry. He bet Neji would know what to ask for, but if they were going to talk through that live he'd need someone local. Then he remembered bumping into Shikamaru. Aside from being possibly the smartest guy on the planet, Shika was now pre-law. If anyone could help him navigate this, it would be him.
"We'd have to adjust some of the pieces to fit the meter of the songs, but we could work together on that. If you're good with it, I'll have our agent draw up a contract and you can come by the studio tomorrow and sign it. Then we can start work on them."
"Great! That would be amazing," Naruto knew he was almost vibrating with excitement, but at the moment he didn't care. His first thought was Wait until I tell Sasuke about this... and then he realized that wasn't going to happen. He felt the happiness fade a bit. These were the hard moments for Naruto. Usually he could go along fine, but every once in a while, something would come up that he would automatically want to tell his friend about. And it brought the absence of that friendship crashing down around him again.
"We should go out and celebrate," Yahiko said, noticing the sudden fading of the boy's excitement but not saying anything about it.
"Yeah, sure. That would be great," Naruto said. But the tone was flatter than it had been a minute ago. Nagato and Yahiko exchanged glances, but didn't say anything. They had read Naruto's writing. It was pretty clear what had happened.
Yahiko took them out to a five star restaurant. Naruto had never been in such an expensive place, nor dined with a celebrity. He was a little awed by the special treatment they received, walking in without a reservation, being immediately shown to a private room. Naruto didn't even recognize most of the stuff on the menu. He had planned on just ordering the cheapest thing, but realized there weren't even prices listed. He glanced nervously at Nagato, who had been watching him with amusement. "Just order what you want, Naruto. Yahiko has enough money to cover the tab, believe me."
. . . .
Naruto called Shikamaru the next morning.
"Mpfh," came the lazy voice over the phone.
"Shika. Get your lazy, pre-law ass out of bed. I need your help," Naruto grinned, easily imagining the sleepy scowl on his friend's face.
"Naruto, do you have any idea what time it is?"
"It's nine in the morning," Naruto said, checking the clock.
"Yeah. Nine in the morning on a day I don't have a morning class. Call me back in a few hours," the lazy brunette said, clearly about to hang up.
"Wait! I need your help! I got offered a job writing lyrics for Pain with Nagato and Yahiko. I am supposed to meet with some rep from the record company today and their agent to talk terms and sign some sort of contract around fees, copyrights, and shit that I don't know anything about. I need you to come and help me. Think of it as... practice for your future career in law?"
There was a brief silence. Naruto mentally crossed his fingers, hoping Shikamaru would find the idea interesting enough to be worth his time.
"Fine. Where do I meet you?"
"Meet me in the parking lot by your dorm. Nagato and I will swing by and pick you up in half an hour."
Three hours later, Naruto was signing a series of documents that Shikamaru and the band's agent and the record label's attorney had hashed out. Naruto thanked his lucky stars that he had had Shikamaru there. He felt like his brain was bleeding just listening to the legal jargon that had been tossed around. He had no idea how Shikamaru knew half of what he knew, given that he slept through almost every class he had ever taken since kindergarten and hadn't even gone to law school yet, but Shika had managed to wipe the condescending look from the two professional attorneys' faces, replacing it in turn by shock, confusion, panic, and finally respect for the younger man. But in the end, the deal was done and Naruto knew he wasn't going to be screwed over. Both men had offered Shikamaru a job when he finished law school. When the found out he was still a freshman in undergrad, they had looked mortified. Shikamaru had just smirked, then asked Nagato to give him a lift home.
. . . .
Naruto spent the remaining weeks before spring semester started working with Yahiko and Nagato picking through which pieces of his work would make the best songs, then spending time in the recording studio as the band messed around building out the music around some of the pieces and adjusting some of the lyrics if necessary to fit the timing. He felt a little out of place working with the professional musicians and Nagato, but it was cool to see how they were able to translate the emotions he had put in writing using words into music. It was no wonder the band had been successful for so long.
There were usually drugs and alcohol around, but Naruto stayed away from it for the most part, too afraid of making a total fool of himself. The one time that Hidan and Zetsu had talked Naruto into going out and partying with the band, he had woken up the next morning with a tongue piercing and a tattoo on his stomach, and absolutely no memory of what had happened. He decided after that that he couldn't wait to move back into the dorms once the semester started. It was too easy to fall into the lifestyle when it was all around him.
It was a week before the dorms opened when Naruto woke up in the night to feel someone stroking his hair. Groggily, he sat up, surprised to find Nagato there.
"What.. what are you doing?"
"Sorry..." Nagato said. "I just... thought I heard something in your room and thought I'd check on you."
Naruto's haze of sleep faded, and he noticed the haunted, tortured expression on Nagato's face. "Are you ok?"
Nagato blew out a shaky breath. "Nightmares," he said.
Naruto didn't really know what to do, how to comfort the older man from 'nightmares'. He reached out and grabbed Nagato's hand, squeezing in slightly. "Want to talk about it?"
The older man just shook his head. "No. But... I'm glad you're here. I really wish you wouldn't move into the dorms. It's like... having a family."
"Yeah... I guess so. I never really had one, but... it would have been nice to."
"I had one. But it was a long time ago."
Naruto didn't quite know what to say to that. He knew from experience this wasn't the casual type of void that could be filled with simple conversation.
Finally, he said. "I'll still be here a lot. The university requires students to live in the dorms the first two years, but I'll still be spending a lot of evenings working here with you and Yahiko."
Nagato nodded, but didn't say anything. They sat in silence for a while, then Nagato stood. "I'd better get to bed. Sorry for waking you."
Naruto lay there in the darkness for a while. He felt a strange connection to Nagato. And sadness for the pain he had seen etched in the man's face when he had spoken of his family. He wondered why the man had come to him seeking comfort from his nightmare, almost like a child, despite the fact that he was so much older.
. . . .
Naruto went back to the admissions office to pick up his room assignment for the next semester. He was pretty excited about going back to school. He already had at least one friend, and it looked like his writing was actually going to get him somewhere.
Naruto waited patiently while the student volunteer who worked at the office looked up his file to give him his dorm and room number.
The guy paled. "Um... h-here you go," he cast a worried look at Naruto.
Naruto wondered why the guy seemed so nervous all of a sudden. "What's wrong?"
"It's just..." the guy lowered his voice to a whisper. "... you might want to put in for a room transfer. Your roommate is listed as Sabaku Gaara."
Naruto stared blankly at the guy, the name not ringing any bells.
"You're not from Suna, are you?"
"Uh, no. I'm from Konoha," Naruto said, not really liking the way this guy was freaking out about his roommate.
"Look, this kid is bad news. He went through four roommates in two weeks last semester. The stopped trying to put anyone in with him after that. I guess they must have forgotten about it with the new semester. I'm sure they'd let you switch, though."
"Why would I switch before I even met the guy? Maybe we'll get along."
"Are you stupid? His father is the mayor of the city, and he also owns the gold mines that the entire economy of Suna was founded on. He owns everything in this town. He's totally ruthless."
"Well, then I'm glad I'm not rooming with his dad. But that doesn't mean this Gaara is like that, right?"
The guy just rolled his eyes at Naruto's naïveté. "Here's your key. Just come back here when you decide to file for a room transfer. I'm sure they'll expedite it."
Naruto took the key and the paper showing the dorm name and room number.
When Naruto opened the door to his room, he found a slender, redheaded boy sitting at his desk working on his laptop. The boy didn't even look up as Naruto walked into the room.
"Hi! I'm Uzumaki Naruto. I guess we'll be roommates this semester," Naruto said, putting on a friendly smile.
The redhead continued to ignore him, not looking up from his screen.
"You know, you really need to work on your people skills. Like... if someone introduces themselves to you, you should smile and return the greeting," Naruto said conversationally.
The redhead turned to give Naruto a glare, then went back to looking at his screen.
"People are totally scared of you. When they gave me my room assignment, the guy told me I should put in for a transfer right away. But you seem nice enough to me. I don't' know what their deal is," Naruto said, wanting to see if the boy would give in and talk to him.
Instead, he received an intensified version of the earlier glare.
Naruto grinned. He had long ago become immune to glares. He found glaring... rather endearing. It made him feel at home. Still grinning, Naruto walked over and reached out to close the laptop screen.
The thin, pale hand shot out with surprising strength to grip Naruto's wrist, and it immediately began twisting it back in a way that would have forced Naruto to his knees. Except that Naruto remembered one of the 'tricks' that Jiraya had taught him, and rotated his arm and body quickly. The redhead, who was attached to his arm, found himself being tossed over Naruto's shoulder and would have hit the ground hard had he not turned his body at the last minute, releasing his grip and landing in a crouched position. Clear green eyes narrowed at smiling blue ones.
"Can we try this again? Hi, I'm Uzumaki Na-"
"Where did you learn how to do that?" The boy asked.
"Do what?" Naruto asked innocently.
"The throw. It wasn't one I've seen before."
"My godfather taught it to me. He used to teach me all kinds of random tricks like that what I was younger."
"Tricks? Who is your godfather?"
"Sanin Jiraya... he writes porn. And a serious book or two. He's a total pervert, but decent enough in a fight I suppose."
"Sanin Jiraya is your godfather? He's one of 3 masters of the Baguazhang* fighting style. He taught you?"
"Well, I don't know about taught. But we used to mess around whenever he'd visit."
The boy stood up. "Let's go," he said, his voice flat.
"Where?"
"Outside. I want to spar with you."
Two hours later found them both laying on the ground, panting, sweaty and exhausted. The redhead turned to look at Naruto. "I'm Gaara."
Naruto smirked. "I know. They told me your name when I got my room assignment."
"Why didn't you ask for a new roommate when they told you about me?"
"They didn't like you because of your father. When I was little, people didn't like me because I didn't have a father. I don't like judging people for things they don't control."
Gaara looked at him steadily for a few minutes. Then a tiny smile appeared on his lips. "Yeah. Me, neither."
Naruto sighed, feeling content. It had been a long time since he felt a bond like this with someone. He knew Gaara was a kindred soul. Somehow, he didn't feel as alone anymore.
-xXx-
The semester had been going really well. Naruto had made it through midterms and had several of his writing pieces highlighted in a student exhibit by his professors. His friendship with Gaara had continued to grow, much to the dismay of everyone on their floor who had firmly believed that it would be impossible for anyone to befriend the redhead.
Naruto had been working in the studio with the band since lunch that Friday. He was tired after the long week of classes and studio work, and was looking forward to going back to the dorm and crashing. Finals were next week, and he wanted to get some sleep before hell week started.
He felt Yahiko come up behind him, and looked up.
"Since you're our new songwriter, why don't you come down to the set where we're going to make the video for first single," Yahiko said, leaning casually against the back of Naruto's chair. Naruto felt the subtle heat of the light contact, and tried to keep his reaction from showing. Yahiko was a famous rock star. He was not going to be interested in some kid barely out of high school.
"Sure, that would be cool," Naruto said casually.
"I'll drive you down. It's pretty far from campus. You might want to let your roommate know you'll be late. We can catch a drink or something after."
Naruto sent Gaara a quick text, then followed Yahiko out to his car. It was a black Corvette Stingray. Naruto was a little afraid to touch it.
When they got to the studio, Yahiko showed Naruto to a bar that had been set up 'to keep the groupies and roadies entertained while we practice'.
A man with pale skin and jet-black hair walked up, smiling at both of them. Something about the man's smile put Naruto off, but there was no denying that he was physically very attractive. He reminded Naruto a bit of Sasuke in looks, but didn't have the same burning intensity in terms of personality.
"This is Sai. He does most of the group's photography, and is also going to be shooting the video. He's here tonight to just get some footage of the band while we practice. Why don't you just hang out at the bar and relax while we set up and get some practice runs in? You've been great on this... we made really good progress on the last song. We'll have the album recorded on time, which is almost a first for us. You deserve a break."
Naruto smiled, grateful for the praise and accepted the drink that the man at the bar gave him.
Yahiko smiled, and instead of walking away he leaned in closer, and Naruto couldn't quite suppress the goose bumps that appeared on his arms as the hot breath touched his skin. "I can definitely see why Nagato is so obsessed with you."
Yahiko walked up to the stage, and Naruto noticed Sai observing him. "What?" Naruto asked, uncomfortable under the man's scrutiny.
"You're very attractive, in a slightly feminine way," Sai said. "Here's a form Yahiko asked me to have you sign."
"Feminine? What the fuck!" Naruto hadn't been called girlie since middle school. He was toned and athletic, and taller than most guys. Including the one standing in front of him calling him girlie.
"I just mean the big blue eyes, long lashes, and blond hair. I don't know enough about the rest of you to comment. Yet."
"You're an ass. And you're not going to find out about the rest of me. Ever." Naruto glared at him. "What's the form about, anyway?"
"It just gives us permission to use any photos or videos we take of you working with the band. We might do a documentary on how the album was made," Sai said, his fake smile showing again.
Naruto wished Shikamaru were here, but the form was only one page long. Naruto scanned it, but it seemed to be basically what the photographer had just stated. Permission to use photos and videos of himself and the band, for the purpose of promoting their music. Naruto shrugged and signed it, purposefully ignoring the man next to him and focusing on Yahiko.
Naruto sat there, entranced, watching Yahiko sensually taking the mic on stage where the band was warming up. The man at the bar was already refilling his drink. He watched as Yahiko began to sing the new song 'Fallen Angel'. It was the one song on the album that Nagato had written. Yahiko kept his eyes locked on Naruto's as he sang.
-xXx-
Naruto had rented a house for the summer with Gaara and Shikamaru. He spent time visiting Nagato, but the man had become so overprotective that living with him was a bit awkward. Gaara's sister Temari was often over as well. At first Naruto had assumed it was to check in on her baby brother. But after finding her and Shika lip-locking in the kitchen one morning, he revised his thinking on that.
Sai also showed up fairly frequently, following Naruto around taking pictures of him. Naruto had been pretty irritated by it, until Sai brought him back to his studio to show Naruto his other works.
Sai was amazingly talented. As awkward as the man was socially, he had a depth of emotion that came through in his art that surprised Naruto.
"Look, Sai, what do you want from me?" Naruto had finally said grudgingly.
"You're interesting. And I like taking photos of you," Sai said, not seeming to find anything wrong with the idea.
"You know I'm never going to sleep with you, right?"
Sai just smiled. "Of course."
Naruto sighed. He didn't really like Sai, but he did respect him as an artist.
Until he saw the video.
Naruto hadn't seen Yahiko since that night back on the set where they were going to shoot the first video. Yahiko had evidently told Nagato about it, and Nagato had been furious, refusing to continue to work with Yahiko on the rest of the album. Naruto had tried to intervene, saying it wasn't like Yahiko had forced him into anything, but Nagato had said that Yahiko was older and should have been able to control himself better. Naruto felt guilty about coming between the friends. He knew that Yahiko wasn't serious about him, and it had just been a one-night-thing for both of them. If his judgment had been fully intact, Naruto probably wouldn't have gone so far with someone he was working with, but he would be lying if he said he didn't find Yahiko attractive from the very start.
Yahiko had been locked in the recording studio with the band since then working on finalizing the recordings for the album that was due to be released shortly. Naruto had heard a heated argument between Nagato and Yahiko on the phone regarding something about the first video, but Nagato hadn't talked to him about it afterward.
When Naruto first saw the video, he thought he was going to have a heart attack.
Oh, my god. He had definitely known people who had posted clips of their sexual exploits on facebook or YouTube. But this was on a whole other level. It wasn't like he was ashamed of his sexuality. But he also wasn't at all comfortable with this level of exposure of his personal life.
Suddenly, his picture was all over the news. He was swarmed everywhere he went, with strangers wanting his autograph. Or his phone number. He had a sudden appreciation for how much Sasuke had hated his hordes of fangirls stalking him all over for sex.
Two days later, Sai had made the mistake of showing up at Naruto's house, and found himself flying through the air back down the steps.
"You fucking pervert! When were you and Yahiko going to tell me about this?"
Sai blinked, rubbing his ass as he stood up. "Yahiko did tell you. Don't you remember signing the paper?"
Naruto glared. "That was supposed to be about a documentary with the band. Not a sex tape!"
"The song was written about you. It was part of the documentary about the song. And I never showed you two actually having sex. There was no penetration."
Naruto blushed furiously. "I know that, but... Sai! Seriously, do you not see anything wrong in what you did?"
Sai shrugged. "I'm sorry if you are upset by the video. I thought you looked quite good in it, actually. Zetsu sent this for you, in case you were upset."
Sai held out a brown paper bag. Naruto just glared at it.
"If you've taken any more naked pictures or videos of me, I will shove your entire studio of photography equipment up your ass," Naruto glared again for good measure, then sighed. "But honestly, this is more Yahiko's fault than anyone's. He's the one who decided to film it, and put it in the fucking video."
Sai just smiled his fake smile. "Of course, Naruto-kun. I would never violate your privacy in such a way again."
"That is the lamest apology I have ever heard. Seriously, you need to get out of here."
"Naruto! The air conditioning is broken. It's boiling hot in the house. Call someone already to fix it!" Temari said. The AC had broken during the night, leaving everyone tired and uncomfortable dealing with the raw heat during the hottest part of the Suna summer. Naruto stalked back into the house, rolling his eyes when he realized that Sai had followed him.
"I can fix it," Naruto said. "We don't need to pay for a repairman."
Sai handed Naruto the bag he had been holding. "These are from Zetsu. He wanted to send you something to make you feel better after he heard about the video. He also said to tell you that you have a nice ass."
"Sai, do you want me to beat the shit out of you? Because it seems like that's what you're aiming for," Naruto glared at Sai, while opening the bag. "He sent me brownies? Seriously?"
Naruto didn't know whether to laugh or throw them back at Sai. He gets a sex tape of him shown on national television, and someone sends him brownies to make him feel better?
Naruto sighed, pulled one out, and bit into it. It wasn't bad, and he hadn't had breakfast yet. Sai grabbed one as well. "Bastard, those are supposed to be for me."
Sai just smiled and continued eating.
Naruto shoved the rest of it in his mouth and went over and pulled off the face plate of the AC that was mounted in the window of the living room. "Ok, I just need to go get my tools. I think they're in my closet somewhere."
"Finally... I'm dying in here," Temari said.
"Why didn't you get Shikamaru to fix it?" Naruto asked.
Temari rolled her eyes. "Seriously? You've known him way longer than I have, and you are really asking me this question?"
Naruto laughed. Temari seemed much funnier than usual. Gaara came out of his room and looked at Naruto, his eyes narrowing.
"What are you doing"
"Fixing the AC," Naruto choked out between fits of laughter. "I just.. have to go get my equipment from my room. Don't worry... I totally got this."
"What the hell is he doing here?" Gaara said menacingly, looking at Sai. Sai had the sense to back away slowly.
"You're still here?" Naruto asked, trying but failing to glare at Sai. The whole thing did seem kind of funny right then.
Just then there was a knock at the door. Gaara was still in his pajamas, so there was no way he was going to answer it. Naruto was dressed, mostly. He had taken his shirt off due to the heat, but at least he was wearing jeans. "I'll go see who it is," Naruto said, and went to answer the door.
He was shocked to see a reporter and cameraman standing on his front steps. Fuck, he thought. I am going to kill Yahiko and Sai for this.
. . . . .
Naruto hung up the phone with Shikamaru. Of course Sasuke had found out about the video. "Sasuke called... he was asking me if I had seen you over the summer. He just saw the video and was pretty surprised by it. Has he called you recently?" No. Of course Sasuke hadn't called. Not once since their last fight. Not even when he'd been kicked out of school. Naruto felt himself sliding again. He had done pretty well last semester, focusing on his classes and his work with the band.
But now, he just wanted to escape. Everything was fucked up.
The music was pounding against his body. Naruto swirled his drink, already feeling a slight buzz. It had been a while since he had thought of Sasuke, but tonight... he just wanted to forget for a while. Didn't want to feel the weight of the judgment of his former best friend. He didn't want to think about the void his absence had created in his life.
Naruto didn't really care if he ended up going home with a guy or a girl. He just didn't want to sleep alone. He hadn't done this since his birthday, but at least this time he had not made the mistake of going out with a friend. There would be no strings, no embarrassment, and no awkwardness to deal with the morning after.
He had danced with a few guys and several girls, but he wanted to drink a bit more before he left with anyone. He kept getting a weird feeling that someone was watching him, and looked around to see if Sai were stalking him again, but didn't see him.
The fall semester was going to start next week, and Naruto was planning on really buckling down. After what had happened with the video, Naruto didn't want to continue to work with the band as their songwriter. He didn't even know what he'd do to Yahiko the next time he saw him. He'd already been arrested once for assault, and wasn't really looking forward to a second time.
If he got his degree, he could work as a journalist or an editor... something reliable and predictable. At least, reliable and predictable relative to the music business.
A brunette wearing a very short skirt came up and pulled Naruto back out on the dance floor. He quickly downed the rest of his drink, set his empty glass on the bar and followed her out. She pressed her body against Naruto, and he reflexively circled his arms around her small waist.
She slid her hands up his bare arms appreciatively. They danced for a few more songs, their bodies pressing closer together. Naruto again felt like someone was staring at him, but when he glanced around he didn't see anything other than the mass of people grinding together on the dance floor, generally lost in their own little worlds.
Naruto liked dancing. He had the same physical effect in a way that sex did. You didn't feel lonely when you were dancing with someone. And the music helped with the not thinking part. The alcohol didn't hurt either.
He was dancing with a guy now, and felt the man slide his hands over Naruto's back and ass, pulling him flush against him. He wrapped his arms around Naruto's neck and pulled his face down. Naruto took the hint and kissed him. "Let me buy you another drink, ok?" The older man said. "I'm just going to go to the bathroom. I'll be right back."
Naruto just nodded as he headed off. The feeling of being watched had intensified, and Naruto was beginning to feel a little uncomfortable. He started to walk over to the hallway where the bathrooms were, when suddenly pale, masculine arms pulled him to the side into a coat room. Since it was summer, the room was totally empty.
Naruto stumbled, not quite steady on his feet with the number of drinks he had consumed. "Sai? What the fuck, man..."
"I'm not Sai, Dobe," a low voice rumbled against his ear.
Naruto's voice cut off as he turned around to see the tall black-haired man who was gripping his arm. It wasn't Sai.
"S... Sasuke?"
Not bothering to reply, Sasuke pushed Naruto up against the wall, his mouth crushing down in a bruising kiss.
-xXx-
to be continued...
We will find out exactly how Sasuke ended up being where he was, and deciding this was the right approach (no, he is not just being a total caveman). So, the next chapter obviously will have SasuNaru action... unless Sasuke decides he just wants to grab a coffee with Naruto instead and catch up on old times.
* this is a very uncommon martial arts form that uses a lot of circular body motions so it reminded me a bit of the flow of rasengan, so I decided it would be a good fit for Jiraya. I wanted it to be something more interesting than Karate, to fit into the plot. Plus, I'm just a geek about martial arts.