Chapter 14
It is easier to forgive an enemy than to forgive a friend.
At the crack of dawn, Naruto was yanked awake by the transformation. He was still in that basement, and it was still really dark, but he knew the sun was coming up outside because his body was changing forcefully, whether he liked it or not. His bones snapped back into place and it hurt so much that he couldn't breathe properly. The fur disappeared completely, making him feel vulnerable and exposed, and cold. His eyes were dry and they burned so he couldn't keep them open for too long at first.
They had restrained him in those chains, tied up to the wall. The chains were rusty and bloody and gross, and they were tightly secured around his waist, neck, arms and legs. He realized with a start that the chains were bloody because of him. That was his blood. Those wolves hadn't gone easy on him with their claws and fangs. His neck hurt so badly. He was starting to feel the pain again and it made him suffocate. He almost threw up but he had nothing in his stomach. Yeah, that bite in his neck had been pretty deep, he could tell without even seeing it. Every time he swallowed the pain was excruciating as the chain irritated the raw and broken skin.
He tried to assess the damage on the rest of his body even though he couldn't see too well in the dark with his human eyes. He had been bit pretty roughly on his side, too, and arms and legs. The wounds were still bleeding, too; the transformation had reopened them. He couldn't help but moan as he tried to sit up against the cement wall. Everything hurt. And movements were difficult because of the after effects of that sedative. His muscles wouldn't obey—or they would, but it took them forever to do so.
At last he managed to sit in a rattling of chains. He looked up as he heard footsteps coming towards him. And he saw Neji. He looked all nice and clean and a long white lab coat covered his clothes. His black hair was combed back. There seemed to be something in his coat pocket, but Naruto couldn't see what it was.
"What do you want?" Naruto said. His voice sounded weak and broken. His throat felt like sandpaper and that bite hurt so much that for a moment the basement started spinning and he was sure he would pass out again. He tried to fold his legs in a way that would hide some of his nakedness.
"It's simple, really." Neji started explaining. "My parents want to do a bit of an experiment. Well, it sounds harsh when I say it like that, but… All we ask for is your cooperation."
"Cooperation for what?" Naruto said tiredly. His head still felt groggy and painful.
Neji sighed shortly. "At first my parents thought it would be very simple. Surely you would date my sister and one thing leading to another…" He waved with a hand as he stepped forward. "But, we quickly realized that wasn't going to happen, because you have some other… preferences."
"So wait a second. Your parents are angry because I'm not dating Hinata?"
"Well, I wouldn't say angry. More… annoyed. They did want you to date her. Mostly they wanted you to make her pregnant," he explained matter-of-factly.
What the fuck?
"What? We're seventeen. That's crazy."
Neji looked away. "I don't necessarily agree with this. I'm just doing what my father—what my pack leader wants me to do. Still, I can explain. Clearly you don't know anything. It is common for werewolves to start having children very young. Almost one child out of two will not survive their first transformation. So if we want to maintain our bloodlines, we don't have a choice."
"But why me?" Naruto asked nervously. "I'm not even a werewolf."
"Well precisely. Werefoxes are very rare."
"Fox spirits," Naruto muttered.
Neji ignored him. "Your kind has very particular abilities. My parents are interested in those abilities, and they want Hinata to give birth to a hybrid."
As Neji stepped closer, Naruto tried to crawl away in a rattling of chains, even though it was pointless and he was caught against the cement wall.
"Okay, that is fucked up on so many levels."
And now Neji was taking out medical gloves and an empty plastic cup from his pocket.
"Oh, no, no way. You've got to be kidding me."
"Oh please," Neji replied, "don't look so shocked. I don't like this anymore than you do. I'm just doing what needs to be done. It's all right. I'm in med school. I'll do that sort of thing all the time for work."
"I'm pretty sure doctors don't do that sort of thing."
Neji frowned. "I meant a prostate check. What did you mean? Oh God, you really are disgusting. I would never—"
"I'm disgusting? I'm disgusting? Look at yourself. Look at what you're about to do."
"Not my finest moment," Neji amended, "I'll admit. And I assure you it wasn't my idea. I don't relish having a little nephew or niece that might have your… genes. But," he sighed, "this is what my parents want. So honestly, let's just get it over with, and then you'll be free to go."
Naruto stared at him. "They're using their own daughter for experiment? That's horrible." Stalling for time was his only option right now.
"That's none of your business."
"Well I'm sorry but I think it's my business if this is gonna be my kid. I'll be the father. That's no way to treat me, surely…"
Neji took a step back and studied him. "So you're saying you'll do it willingly?"
"No, I'm not saying that. I mean," he cleared his throat, and winced at the pain, but went on anyway, "I mean, maybe." Stalling for time. Stalling for time. "You didn't exactly give me and Hinata much time to get to know each other. I actually really liked her. You should just—"
"Liar," said Neji harshly, making Naruto start. "You don't like my sister. I've seen you with that demon. Sasuke. He's dangerous. We've been watching your every move. Why do you think we decided this is our only option?"
"He's not a demon," Naruto said defensively, then caught himself. "I mean, yeah, he's half-demon, I guess. And we're just friends, by the way. I don't even like him that much, you know. We're more like acquaintances, really. I'm sure I could really hit it off with your sister, if you just give me a chance. Wouldn't that be a better way? I'm just in a weird place in my life right now—not the best time for a relationship—but if you just…"
"We know all about that, Naruto. Why do you think we're doing this right now? We can't wait. We know you're hanging out with the wrong crowd. Honestly, the way you're going, I would be surprised if you live to see another full moon."
"Well I wouldn't exactly call Sasuke the 'wrong crowd' I mean I don't see him attacking me and drugging me and putting me in chains and—"
"Whatever. You're a really terrible liar, by the way." Neji was putting on the medical gloves. That wasn't good.
Naruto swallowed, and it tasted like blood. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"All that stuff about not liking Sasuke. I'm pretty good at reading people. I know how you feel about him. You think I didn't hear your pathetic little mental plea to him earlier? 'Sasuke I need you, but please don't get hurt…' That was cute."
Naruto's face flushed in pure humiliation, so much that it was almost physically painful. How embarrassing. How fucking completely humiliating. So much for stalling for time.
"Let's get this over with," Neji said, in a tone that wouldn't be argued with.
…
But Neji never got to practice his 'prostate check' skills.
A metallic door got unlocked and opened in the opposite corner of the basement, and Naruto narrowed his eyes, trying to see who that was. The person approached with quick, light steps as Neji was frozen in his actions. Naruto felt a wave of relief as he saw the black clothed lithe frame and long blonde hair.
Well, he highly doubted anyone had ever been so happy to see a reaper before.
And it wasn't Sasuke, sure, but that didn't matter. Actually, it was better this way. He wouldn't want Sasuke to see him like this; in such a helpless, humiliating, vulnerable state. He was embarrassed enough as it was.
"Get me out of here," Naruto said before he could stop himself. He rattled the chains in his weak attempts to crawl away from Neji.
Deidara stepped closer, coming out of the shadows completely. His hood was on, smooth blond hair coming out of it on both sides, pale blue eyes gleaming in its shadow.
"Sure thing, little fox." Always with that exaggerated British accent.
"Who is this?" Neji asked angrily. He faced Deidara with a fighting stance, but that only made the reaper laugh.
"I'm a dark angel, and your worst nightmare." Deidara did a little curtsey. "Sasuke sends his best regards. He couldn't come himself, you see, but I owe him a favor so here I am. Plus I can be invisible, which makes it a tad more practical to sneak in some fancy building and steal the keys to the top secret werewolf pack basement." He winked at Neji.
"You think I'm afraid of you?" Neji said dismissively. He reached for something in his coat's inside pocket. From his angle Naruto couldn't see.
"Oh, you should be," Deidara replied casually, "since Sasuke gave me the permission to kill anyone who hurt the little fox. And," Deidara glanced at Naruto, "he looks hurt. So, any last words, werewolf?"
"What are you talking about? You think you can kill me?" Neji took out a gun. Naruto flinched even though it wasn't aimed at him.
Deidara didn't even react. He examined his black nails.
"Course I can. This is my job, mate."
Neji shot. But his hands were trembling, and he missed. Besides, Deidara moved so fast that the bullet might have never hit him anyway. Before Neji could catch his breath, Deidara was behind him, one arm around his neck. Neji immediately looked paralyzed with fear.
"I had a dagger," Deidara said, "but I think Sasuke's strange roommate stole it. Anyway, I can still kill you. What would you prefer? Heart attack? Suffocation? Aneurism? I can do pretty much any death. Though I charge extra for opiates overdose."
"Stop it, Deidara," said Naruto suddenly, sitting up in a crouch and pulling at his chains. "Don't kill him. Let's just go."
Deidara dropped Neji, who fell to his knees.
"You sure?"
"Yeah," Naruto said tiredly.
Neji was an asshole, but he was terrified and humiliated right now, and that was good enough for Naruto.
Deidara nodded and bent over to search Neji's coat. He found the keys for the chains and came to untie Naruto.
"Hey," Neji said in a defeated voice as he looked up at them, "I'm sorry. About everything. You're not who I thought you were, Reed. I was sure you would let him kill me. But you didn't. Maybe you should've."
"Well you clearly feel like an ass right now," Naruto said, "which is good. Because you are one. I hope I never see you again. Tell Hinata I'm sorry she has such a shitty family."
"We're teleporting," Deidara said simply as he helped him up.
"Wait…"
"Relax, foxy. I know you don't want Sasuke to see you like this. I'm not an idiot. But you do need to see him. If you two spend one more day apart, you'll both go mad. We'll just make a little stop to my crypt before heading to Sasuke's apartment. Trust me," he said and the world seemed to blur around them, the darkness becoming even thicker.
Naruto felt himself becoming very light, and he got really dizzy for a moment. Then his feet found the floor again, which seemed to be polished black stone. Equally dark walls surrounded them, and the ceiling held several vibrant red candles, all lit. The effect was actually really nice, in a freaky gothic way. Naruto glanced around.
He saw black roses in vases and steampunk style paintings on the walls, including a really freaky robot spider. Swords of all sizes and colors ran across one of the walls and there was a cage in the corner with what looked like a pet raven in it. Cozy black and white blankets were stacked in a corner, and Naruto wondered if that was where Deidara slept. On a desk were some accessories, makeup and hair styling products—which kind of clashed with the rest of the décor.
"You should feel lucky," Deidara said, slapping his shoulder and making him wince in pain, "I don't take just anyone here. But yeah this is my humble abode." Deidara went to some shelves lining the smooth black walls and selected a small glass bottle full of a blackish liquid. It was stored in between expensive bottles of tequila and rum. He handed it to Naruto. "Here, drink this."
Suspicious, Naruto opened it and sniffed its contents. It smelled disgusting, like a skunk had sprayed in it.
"You expect me to drink this?"
Deidara rolled his eyes. "It'll make you all better. Just ignore the smell."
"Easy for you to say," Naruto said but he did as he was told. He couldn't drink the whole thing, but he downed at least half, and then gave it back to Deidara.
The taste was absolutely revolting and it made him want to hurl, but he held it back and forced himself to breathe and keep it down. It was worth it, because immediately he started feeling the effects. Instead of hurting, his wounds started feeling tingly and a little itchy; they were starting to heal.
"This is amazing," he said, looking down at the claw marks and bites on his arms that were slowly mending.
"Told you," Deidara shrugged. "Now come with me."
They went through an arched passage in the black stone and stepped in an adjacent room. Naruto thought he could hear the soothing sound of a waterfall in the distance. But right now Deidara wanted him to choose some clothes. They were folded in piles; black shirts, black pants, black shoes.
"Do you own anything that's not black?"
"No, not really. Here, let me choose for you. I haven't got all day."
Deidara threw a thin long sleeve shirt at him with tight looking pants and some combat boots. Naruto wasn't used to wearing outfits like this one but he didn't want to show up naked at Sasuke's place so he wasn't about to complain.
"Hey, wait, don't put them on yet." Deidara stopped him. "You're all dirty."
"Well I just assumed you didn't have a shower…"
Deidara smiled. "No, but I have something better. Follow me."
They went through another passage and the sound of the waterfall became louder. The stone was becoming damp as they walked quietly, Deidara showing him the way. They arrived to a nice, calm stream of water that went on in the darkness, beyond where Naruto's eyes could see. The waterfall trickled down from an opening in the ground above. There was only one thing reminding Naruto of where he was. The sunlight should have been shining, but instead the strange unlit dark sky stared at him as he looked up. The water seemed so nice, though. And it was warm, too, he realized as he inched his toes in.
He tossed Deidara's clothes aside and walked in the water. He swam all the way to the waterfall and closed his eyes. It felt purifying and cleansing.
"Thank you," he heard himself say to Deidara. "This is great."
"I thought you might like it," the reaper said simply as he stood on the shore. "Take your time. Well, don't take too long, or Sasuke will have a panic attack."
Right. He had almost forgotten about Sasuke for a moment there. He had almost forgotten about everything, actually. That stuff Deidara had made him drink was pretty strong. It healed his wounds but it made him feel more relaxed, too. And that water was just so nice and warm. But he wasn't supposed to be here.
He was supposed to be in school right now. Though he often missed on days following the full moon, and Itachi didn't mind. Transforming into an animal and then back to a human being seemed a good enough excuse to be too tired for class. But still. Instead of being in school he was hanging out with a Dark Angel in Hell. Naruto wasn't sure Itachi would like the idea very much.
…
They eventually got to Sasuke's place. And they explained everything. Well Naruto explained everything, even though he was tired. Deidara left, deciding it was clearly better to leave them alone.
Naruto liked Sasuke's bedroom. He found it endearing and quirky that he had so many plants. Five of them actually. Naruto really liked the one that rested on top of the dresser. The leaves were big and dark green and there was a really pretty white flower blooming in the middle. It was cool that Sasuke put up quotes on his wall to decorate, too. Naruto read one that said: 'The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.'
And he liked that fox tribal tattoo design, too. He wondered if that was something Sasuke actually considered getting done, or if he had just put it on his wall because he liked it. But now didn't seem the right time to ask about random things like that. Sasuke looked angry. He was even angrier than Naruto about this.
"How can you be so calm right now?" Sasuke raged. His dark brown eyes had a menacing glint in them. Naruto was starting to feel a little uneasy.
Outside the sky was clouded, and very little light slipped through the gray curtains. Naruto leaned against the wall as Sasuke closed in on him, pointing an accusing finger.
"You shouldn't have trusted her!"
Naruto couldn't really be angry at Sasuke, because he looked really tired and worn out, and he could tell he had been really worried the whole night. Also, he knew Sasuke had been the one to find him using some kind of magic. Deidara had told him how Sasuke had passed out after that, waking up momentarily so he could tell him the address, and then collapsing again. He had been yanked awake when Deidara and Naruto had showed up in his room in a cloud of fading black smoke earlier. Sasuke wore only black jeans and Naruto's necklace around his neck. His dark hair was a bit messy and ruffled from sleep. Naruto couldn't help but admire the way his pale skin clashed with the darkness of his hair. He couldn't help but crave his touch and the comfort of his arms.
And as always he felt stupid for avoiding him. When they were apart the thought of Sasuke made him really nervous, but when they were together he was reminded how good it felt, and everything else just seemed silly and unimportant.
But still, right now, Sasuke was being annoying. Naruto resented the accusing tone.
"Come on. How was I supposed to know that her family was crazy? So, what, I was supposed to just guess that they wanted me to make her pregnant with some experimental hybrid baby?"
Sasuke didn't answer that. He stepped closer and grabbed the hem of his shirt.
"Take it off," he said, tugging at the black fabric.
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me. Take it off. I want to see what they did to you."
"What's the point? We told you earlier. Deidara gave me some weird medicine thingy and it's almost healed already. It's no big deal."
Sasuke was stubborn. "I want to see."
So Naruto gave up. "You know what? Fine. I'll take it off." He took his shirt off, wincing at the pain—almost healed wasn't quite accurate; truthfully the scratches and bruises still hurt a bit, but at least nothing was infected or bleeding—and then he took off his pants, too. "I'll take everything off, if that's what you want."
He tossed everything to the floor and he stood, completely naked, facing Sasuke. His heart started beating really fast as he realized what he'd just done. They were standing really close, too. Naruto held his own arm, feeling awkward all of a sudden. He cleared his throat.
"See? It's not that bad."
But Sasuke looked troubled. "Not that bad?" His voice was weirdly emotional. Naruto was shocked when he saw that tears threatened to fall from the corners of his eyes.
"H-Hey don't freak out…"
Sasuke ignored that. "They bit you," he said in a low voice as he reached up with his fingers to touch Naruto's neck, "they hurt you, and you called for me but I didn't come."
"None of this is your fault," Naruto said firmly.
Sasuke looked really shaky and distressed. Naruto couldn't help it; he put his arms around him and held him close. And he closed his eyes as he breathed in Sasuke's scent, soft dark hair tickling his neck. Sasuke wasn't crying, but he wasn't far from it.
"I should be the one comforting you," he whispered against Naruto's shoulder. "I just can't stop thinking about… what that guy… was about to do…"
"Neji. Yeah, he's an asshole. But he was following orders from his pack leader, who also happens to be his father…"
"Don't give him excuses."
Naruto laughed weakly. "You're right. Heh. The fuck am I saying?" He had one hand in Sasuke's hair, and the other around his waist. Sasuke held him back tightly as well. It felt nice…
"I wish Deidara had killed him."
"I'm the one who told him not to."
"He should've killed him anyway. And then I would've followed him to Hell to personally kill him again. He can hang out in purgatory with my asshole of a father for all I care."
Naruto raised an eyebrow. Sasuke wasn't making much sense. Anyway.
"Forget about it. It wasn't even his idea. Wasn't Hinata's fault either, I could tell. It was their parents. They're completely insane. They wanted to try and have a half-fox, half-wolf grandkid. I don't know what they would've called him, or her. Werewox? I don't know."
That made Sasuke laugh. Naruto felt the vibration in his chest, and he smiled.
"Werewox," Naruto said. "That makes you laugh? I'll say it again if it makes you laugh. Werewox."
Sasuke pulled away from him slowly, still laughing. He wiped under his eyes. Naruto was still holding his waist, and they were still really close. He could tell that Sasuke was tired; he had dark circles under his eyes. But he was still beautiful. Naruto looked at his lips and before they knew it they were kissing. Soft at first, then hard and deep. Sasuke held him and kissed him like he needed him more than water or air.
When they broke apart for a short moment Sasuke said, "You're naked."
"And you are excellent at stating the obvious."
Sasuke let his hands run down Naruto's sides, all the way to his hip bones. He looked up at him under long black eyelashes. Those dark brown eyes… A glint in them. Like fire.
"You don't mind?"
"Not… not really." He swallowed. "Not with you. Earlier, I was… really scared, I guess. With anyone but you it's scary. Even though I don't want you to kill him, I can still acknowledge that Neji's a jerk for what he—for what he almost did. That's just… not okay."
"Not okay? Not okay? Naruto… that's a euphemism."
"What's that?"
Sasuke just stared. "Go to class more often, Naruto."
"Jerk. Don't ruin the mood."
He tried to pull away playfully but Sasuke held him close, and kissed him again, crashing their lips together, bruising them, darkening them, and it didn't matter. They just couldn't stop. Naruto threw his arms up around Sasuke's neck.
At some point Sasuke pressed his leg between Naruto's thighs. So he threw his head back and moaned. Sasuke used this opportunity to kiss his neck.
"I love the sounds you make," Sasuke whispered in his ear, before kissing the skin under it again. He tangled his fingers in Naruto's hair, too. It sent shivers all across his body.
"It… tickles," said Naruto. But that wasn't exactly the right word. And he couldn't help but moan again.
Sasuke smiled. "You're so sensitive." His hand travelled down Naruto's flat abs slowly. "I kiss your neck and you get hard… I fucking love it."
But then Naruto pushed him away softly. He needed to catch his breath. He needed to… he didn't know what he needed to do. But he was just so afraid of losing control. At the same time Sasuke made him want to lose control.
He closed his eyes for a moment. "I'm sorry. Can we just… slow down?"
"Yeah," Sasuke said softly, "that's okay. Don't apologize. You never have to apologize with me. Just be honest. Let's just… sit down."
They went to sit down on the bed together. Naruto felt self-conscious, but he tried to ignore those thoughts. He let his fingers trail across the soft fabric of the duvet.
"Naruto… why does this keep happening to you? To us? We keep… getting hurt." Sasuke's voice was merely a whisper. He seemed thoughtful. But it sounded like he was in pain at the same time.
"I don't know."
"Like the wolves," Sasuke went on, "why would they do this to you? Why now?"
Without looking at him, Naruto took Sasuke's hand and laced their fingers, squeezing reassuringly. He just wanted to show him that he would never blame him.
But he told the truth. "Neji said that they felt they needed to hurry, because they knew I was hanging out with the wrong crowd—their words, not mine—and they weren't sure my life span was very… promising. So they wanted to hurry and get my… you know. Before it was too late. For the werewox." Naruto paused, looked up and saw Sasuke's lips twitching into a smile. "Why does that make you laugh so much? I only said it again to see if it would still make you laugh. Seriously though, Sasuke. Are you okay?"
"I'm just tired, I guess. I shouldn't laugh, though. They hurt you, and I hate them, and that's final."
"I guess. I feel bad for Hinata though. Her parents are horrible. And her brother. But whatever. Let's not talk about it anymore. I'm tired, too."
"So we should just sleep."
"We should," Naruto agreed.
But then their eyes met, and they were all over each other again, kissing, holding on to each other, crashing their lips together, and falling on the bed. They rolled over together, and eventually Sasuke was getting rid of his pants. Naruto helped him, and then they kissed again, Sasuke rolling him over and pinning him to the bed. Their fingers touched and intertwined. The necklace fell from his neck and the feather pendant touched Naruto's chest as Sasuke leaned closer.
They kissed for a long time. Sasuke's skin was warm and his lips were bruised. Naruto reached up Sasuke's arms to press his hands to his back, feeling the lean muscles there and then feeling the curve of his spine and lower back. He wanted so desperately to feel all of him.
"You're beautiful," he said to Sasuke.
"So are you."
Between two kisses, he whispered, "I'm sorry I avoided you. I wasn't ready, and I guess I felt shy, and nervous, and… I'm sorry."
Sasuke stopped. He looked annoyed, but his eyes were soft. His bangs were getting too long, Naruto noticed. Dark strands of hair kept falling in Sasuke's eyes, and Naruto wanted to reach up and brush them away.
"Don't apologize," Sasuke said. "Being shy, or having been hurt, aren't things you need to feel sorry for. You are who you are and you are enough. That doesn't mean you can't work on improving yourself." He frowned, and it seemed he was searching for the right words. "It just means that you can't live your life waiting for some magical point in the future where you'll be good enough. Your life is now. You're good enough now. If anybody thinks otherwise, they are assholes, and not worth your time."
"Was that one of your quotes?" Naruto asked, locking his arms around Sasuke's waist in an attempt to pull him closer.
Sasuke just shook his head. "No. Just something I wanted to say to you."
"Thank you…"
"Don't thank me."
"I'm not allowed to thank you. I'm not allowed to say sorry to you." Naruto brushed their noses together teasingly. "What am I allowed to do?"
"We can… We can do more of this," he breathed, "if you want to."
"More of what?" He teased.
Sasuke bit his darkened lip for a moment, moving back on the bed. Naruto's heart was beating so fast. So loud. He felt like Sasuke could probably hear it.
"I want to make you feel good." Sasuke grabbed Naruto's cock in a warm hand and licked the tip at the same time. "I've been wanting to do this for a long time."
"Oh my God…" Naruto arched his back and moaned loudly. Sasuke was licking the tip again. Then he took half the length in his mouth and started to give him the first blowjob of his life. He moved his hand at the same time. Then gradually he took all of it in his mouth…
"Shit," Naruto hissed, breathing loudly. He closed his eyes then opened them again because he wanted to see Sasuke. This was amazing. He could see Sasuke's hips, his butt. He was so fucking sexy. In every possible way. Naruto wanted to touch him more. But as he reached out to him Sasuke did something with his tongue—flicking the tip more intensely or something. And Naruto fell back on the bed, moaning louder. He didn't have much to compare with, nothing at all in fact but…
"You're so good at this," he said. He stroked Sasuke's hair, then touched his arm. Their hands found each other against the mattress. "Fuck… I'm gonna come."
Sasuke stroked him with his hand for a moment as he looked up and smiled. "I want you to come. I want you to feel good," he said. Sasuke's smile was the sexiest smile of all times, ever. In Naruto's honest opinion, anyway.
Holding himself on the bed with one hand, and holding Naruto's hand with the other, Sasuke went down on him again, and he was so intense.
"You're amazing," said Naruto. He arched his back. "I'm gonna come…"
He couldn't help it. And Sasuke wasn't stopping… This was so hot. Sasuke was so… fuck. He came and Sasuke still licked him. He actually swallowed it. Naruto felt all flustered and still so turned on. If he hadn't just come, he would get hard all over again.
Sasuke looked at him with that sexy smirk again and his hair was all messy. The necklace's pendant was on the wrong side of his neck. He was so fucking cute. Naruto wanted to hold him so badly.
"Come here," he breathed, and he didn't care that his voice sounded desperate and weak. He felt too good right now. He had forgotten all about the craziness. All about the pain. There was only pleasure. And some kind of tingly warmth as Sasuke fell in his arms and cuddled against him. Naruto held him tight. He didn't want to let go.
But he felt something poking the side of his thigh.
"Your turn," Naruto said. Even though he felt nervous because it would be his first time doing that and he was pretty sure he wouldn't be very good at it…
Sasuke stopped him though. He pinned him down on the bed.
"No."
"But—"
"Not tonight," Sasuke said. "You need to sleep. You need to heal."
"But it's not fair though…"
Sasuke shook his head softly. "What are you talking about? I had fun. We had fun. You don't owe me anything, Naruto. Okay? If you want to make me happy, sleep. Get better. You look fucking exhausted."
"You're awesome."
Sasuke replied, "I know."
That made Naruto laugh. Softly. Tiredly. He was indeed really sleepy. He couldn't even keep his eyes open anymore. They kissed one last time.
…
As strange as it sounded, training in Hell felt very calming. It was just so quiet. No cars, no buildings, no people, no animals, nothing. Deidara had brought him to the place called 'White River Valley.' The ground and the rocks were so white that the river running across the land appeared white as well.
They were sparring. Sasuke with his obsidian sword and Deidara with a new long silver sword, pure white at the hilt with an embedded diamond-like gem. A gift from Nagato
"With this I can kill Temari," Deidara had said, "and free all her victims."
"Good," Sasuke replied.
Their boots stomped the rocky white ground as they sparred in a clashing of metallic blades. Sasuke tried to remain focused. There were only three nights left before the fight. He wasn't entirely sure being good with a blade would make a difference, but he had to do something—anything. And he couldn't sleep at night anyway.
He kept thinking about Naruto. Their night—or rather morning—spent together after the werewolf incident. The bed had felt much warmer, and safer. Sasuke had wanted to sleep forever in Naruto's arms after that. But waking up to reality was always harsh. And he'd had to tell him about the fight. Naruto had freaked out, and it pretty much ruined the mood. But Sasuke couldn't blame him. He would freak out, too, if he didn't have this physical outlet. He was already starting to enjoy sparring even more than rock climbing.
Deidara broke through his defenses and scraped his side.
"Stop being so distracted, Sasuke. I know who you're thinking about," said Deidara in a singsong voice.
Sasuke was holding his side. Blood slid between his fingers, and dripped onto the gravel, staining the white.
Deidara sheathed his blade and came towards him, sighing. A soft cool wind blew in their hair and rustled their dark clothes. In the distance they could glimpse mountains and forests, but not much more, and it all appeared so far away and wrapped in fog. The valley seemed so vast and empty.
"I'm going to teach you to bend reality." Deidara looked in his eyes.
"Bend reality?"
"Precisely. You're going to heal your wound. Well, not so much heal, but make it so it never happened."
Sasuke stared, shifting his weight from one leg to the other. "So I should ignore the pain, then?"
"No," Deidara shook his head, "feel the pain. Feel beyond the pain."
"I'm not following."
Deidara smiled, tucking his hair behind his ear. "It's amazing, you'll see. It's like an optical illusion. If you look carefully enough, you can see what's really behind it. In Hell you can bend reality; it takes practice, sure. And not all of us are good at it. But some of us are so good at it, in fact, that they can almost use it as their only weapon."
Sasuke was still confused.
"It's difficult to explain to a beginner." Deidara took Sasuke's hand and pulled it away from his injury. "It helps if you close your eyes," he added.
So he closed his eyes. He felt the wind, he felt Deidara's presence, and he felt the rocks under his boots, but mostly he was aware of the pain where Deidara's sword had sliced his skin. It was raw and burning. He felt it until there was nothing else. Just the pain. His body started to shake all over.
It was almost too much. For a moment his entire body felt like it was burning, like a wave of heated air was hitting him and spreading, and consuming him, but then it was gone. The wind was refreshing against his skin and the burning sensation was replaced with a tingle that actually felt rather nice. He felt energized and new.
And he opened his eyes.
Deidara was smiling.
Touching his side, Sasuke looked down and saw the blood, but no injury. The skin was repaired.
"Shit."
"I know," said Deidara.
"That's amazing." He looked up.
Deidara just nodded. "It's nice teaching you, Sasuke. You pick up on things rather quickly."
"Yeah?"
"It takes months to some of us demons before we can use our blades properly, or bend reality like that."
"I'm usually a quick learner," said Sasuke, sheathing his sword in the leather straps on his back. They were probably done for now. He should probably try to get some sleep, anyway. It was most likely 2 or 3 am in the real world now.
Deidara seemed thoughtful, his pale blue eyes studying him.
"That can't be it. I think your father's powers have a role in this. They're making you stronger every time you come here, I can feel it. Can you?" He tilted his head. "Does it frighten you?"
"I wouldn't say that. But I definitely feel some kind of energy. It's like…" Sasuke hesitated, looking up as two black birds flew across the sky. He wondered how he was even able to see them. Black against black. But he saw them.
"It's like time slows down, sometimes. And I can fight. I mean, I can anticipate my opponent's next moves, so it's easier."
Deidara had a strange smile on his lips. "That's another power Malachy was famous for. A variation of bending reality. Time doesn't slow down. You become faster."
Sasuke frowned. For once Deidara seemed in the mood to talk about his father, so might as well…
"Why was he so famous, anyway? Why does everyone know about him?"
Deidara spread his arms. "He was powerful. Liked to stir trouble. Had the worst reputation."
Sasuke almost didn't want to ask, but… "Do I look like him?"
"I wouldn't know. I ain't never met him. Just heard of him is all." Deidara winked. "Don't worry. I'm sure you're prettier."
"Don't bother flirting, Naruto and I are official now," he said teasingly.
"I'm happy for you. And Sasuke, you and your father are very different, despite everything I've told you tonight. You're not like him. And that's a good thing."
"Really?"
"I'm starting to know you more, and I don't think you'd be the kind of person to possess an innocent man and rape his wife."
Harsh words. But Sasuke could handle it, and Deidara knew that.
"Why'd he do it?"
"Who knows?" He sighed. "It's a very rare ability. I heard he was frustrated and wanted to become a Higher Demon, but he was still just a Dark Angel. Maybe it was his way to prove he could do something only an HD should be able to. Oh, and he had pissed off a loads of people. Loads. Especially when he killed Louis. Everybody was after him. So by using possession he was hiding from them, I suppose. Well, anyway, he went too far. And now he'll never get to know you. His loss."
"I don't really care."
"You shouldn't."
Sasuke nodded, glancing away. "Well I should go. I should at least try to get some sleep."
"Tomorrow night bring Suigetsu and Kiba. It's time they start training with us, see this place, get a feel for it. We'll give Suigetsu his own sword so he'll stop stealing ours."
"He'll be ecstatic."
"I'm sure."
...