Disclaimers: Naruto is someone else's, this is purely a fanfic using someone else's characters.
Warnings: This story includes strong language, violence, angst, hopefully some decent jokes, and (of course) beautiful SasuNaru love. Some hot yaoi in this chapter- so get ready. ;)
Chapter 22: A Fragmented Curse
"This was a different kind of kiss.. a hard painful one."
-Penelope Ward
--
"We should have told him.."
Sasuke eyed the blonde, who was still sitting against the wall, clearly shaken from their kiss and the sharp electricity that it sent rushing through their veins. The raven couldn't help but drop his gaze to his lips, still swollen from his aggressive embrace.
He blinked, forcing himself to refocus on what his anxious blonde was saying.
"Naruto- if we report this you'll wind up in the hospital again. You didn't want to go back. You asked me to help you," his eyes hardened. "I did."
"I know.." Naruto threw his head back against the wall, closing his eyes. "I know, ok! But what the hell are we supposed to do..?"
"We need to find that guy and figure out what he did wrong."
Naruto shook his head. "I'm sure they have him locked up somewhere with the interrogation team. We're not going to be able to just walk in there and talk to him."
Sasuke lifted an eyebrow. "Naruto. It's us." He grinned. "Of course we can." He reached out a hand and Naruto took it, letting him heft him back to his feet.
"You're a bad influence on me."
"Is that so.." Sasuke jerked their clasped hands back, forcing Naruto close. He reached out and buried his free hand in tangled golden locks, eyes gleaming with mischief. He leaned in, but Naruto clapped a hand over the Uchiha's smirk.
"Chill, Romeo. I'm still recovering from the last one."
Sasuke growled as he pulled his hand away. "Don't be a tease, Naruto."
The blonde rolled his eyes and slid out of the Uchiha's grasp, getting some distance between them.
Not too much distance though.
Which reminded him.
"There's something we need to do before we break into a secret base."
Naruto noticed the look in his eyes and rolled his own. "Not that- you horny bastard."
Sasuke put his hands in his pockets and leaned his torso forward. "Alright - what do you have in mind?"
"You're not going to like it."
He narrowed his eyes. "Just spill, dobe."
Naruto dragged his fingers through his hair, feeling jittery. He wasn't exactly looking forward to this part either. "We need to figure out exactly how far we can go before everything hurts like hell."
Sasuke clenched his jaw.
"See- told you you wouldn't like it."
He didn't want to see Naruto in pain, again, but he knew the dobe was right. "Fine", he took a step towards him, "but we take this slow. As soon as you feel any pain at all, we stop."
Naruto opened his mouth, prepared to make a joke about it, but stopped. Sasuke's face was tense. His lips pursed and set in a firm line, jaw tight, obsidian pools hardened- pushing all other emotions beneath the surface. Naruto closed his mouth, and chose to nod instead.
They decided to try their little experiment outside. This required an exact distance, so they needed to walk in a straight line- like two insulted English gentleman preparing for a dual. Naruto shook the ridiculous thought from his head and stood facing Sasuke. The two exchanged a look and each took a step back. Followed by another, and another.
Their eyes stayed locked onto each other, looking for any sign of distress, hoping to stop before they faced the immense pain they felt before.
Apparently, that's not how it works.
At about twenty-four feet away, they both collapsed to the ground, groaning in agony. Naruto gasped trying to catch his breath, and he could hear Sasuke doing the same. He blindly crawling in what he hoped was the right direction, his vision a flash of white as pain writhed beneath his skin and lodged deep in his chest. A horrible pressure slammed into his head, and he gritted his teeth to keep himself from crying out.
"Nnn-Na.. gahhh.. Naruto-"
He dragged himself in the direction of Sasuke's voice, and the pain slowly began to subside. When it finally released him, he dropped his face down into the dirt, controlling his breathing and trying to keep himself from passing out. He sensed Sasuke drawing closer and raised his head as the raven crawled over to him.
"Hey.. 'ske," Naruto said, his voice strained.
Sasuke closed the distance between them and dropped a hand on his head. Naruto could feel it trembling in his hair. "You ok?" he asked. The blonde nodded, and they slowly rose to their feet.
"Well.. that sucked" Naruto muttered. "But at least now we know that shit hurts at around twenty-four feet."
"Let's say twenty to be safe."
"Fine, twenty feet. How the hell do we scout a whole base if we can't be more than twenty feet apart?"
"Just stay close." Sasuke said firmly. "Anything doesn't seem right, and we get out of there immediately."
"Yeah, yeah- I know, mom. I'll be careful."
Naruto walked back to the Uchiha manor, hands casually folded behind his head, and Sasuke followed, still trying to decide whether he wanted to kiss the infuriating dobe or punch him in the head.
He supposed there was no reason he couldn't do both.
Sasuke and Naruto decided to move out closer to dusk, knowing that would be when shifts would change. They figured they should be able to slip in, blending in with the other shinobi entering the building, and work their way down to the cells, where they would undoubtedly find their prisoner.
They would have to be quick and sure-footed to avoid detection, but if anyone could, it was them. There was a reason Tsunade sent them on the kind of missions she did, even as a two-person squad. They could read each other like they had their own language, and their power combined made them a force to be reckoned with.
Besides, they had a score to settle.
The pain Naruto has suffered at the hands of that asshole's curse still sent Sasuke's teeth on edge. And even before that- when they were first captured by the guy. He still couldn't believe that he got the jump on them. Twice.
It wouldn't happen again.
Dressed in black, Anbu masks in place, the duo maneuvered their way into the building and quickly moved down to the lower levels. They stayed just behind other shinobi, ensuring that they would have access to each passageway.
They knew they were in the right place when they stepped out into a dimly lit corridor, lined on each side with dark cells. The place reeked of blood and fear, and the splattered stains across every surface were pretty hard to ignore.
They exchanged a look and moved forward, quietly slipping from shadow to shadow, keeping their eyes peeled for guards and prisoners alike.
They finally found him five cells down on the left side of the hallway. His wrists and ankles were clapped in iron, long rusty chains connecting his restraints to a thick metal loop in the concrete slab that made up the floor of his cell. The prisoner kept his head down, shoulders hunched forward, but they still recognized him.
It occurred to Naruto, then, that he didn't even know this man's name.
Naruto looked back at Sasuke, their eyes communicating everything that needed to be said. The Uchiha nodded and gave a signal before the two traversed the rest of the corridor, making sure the three of them were the only ones there.
All other cells were empty, and there were no guards in sight. They were clearly still switching shifts. That meant they had little time.
They rushed back and stopped in front of the man's cell once more. "Hey asshole," Sasuke hissed, "remember me?"
The man's head shot up, and wide fearful eyes stared back at him. "I-I broke the curse.. you said- you said if I broke the curse you wouldn't-"
"You didn't fucking break anything!"
Sasuke's sharingan flared blood red in the darkness, and the man flinched. "Ple-please. I did what you asked. I-"
"The curse isn't gone" Naruto cut in, "it's just different now."
He could see honest confusion in the man's eyes. So this wasn't intentional.
"Different?"
"We-"
Sasuke placed a hand against Naruto's chest, stopping him. "I don't think we should tell him."
Naruto shot him a look. "We don't have a choice. We need answers. Now."
The Uchiha gritted his teeth, but remained silent. Naruto quickly explained their situation, blushing slightly when he mentioned what happened when they kissed. All the while the man listened carefully.
"So, what the hell happened?" Sasuke demanded.
The man thought for a moment. "It sounds like the curse was stronger than I anticipated.."
"Great."
"The curse wasn't broken," he glanced up, "it fragmented."
The two exchanged a look before refocusing on the prisoner.
"That's why you are experiencing parts of the curse that aren't quite the same as the original. Pieces of it still remain."
"So.." Naruto started, thinking aloud, "us not being able to be apart- that comes from the piece of the curse where I needed Sasuke to reset the hourglass."
"Precisely."
"But when we-?"
"You are locked in when you.." the man looked uncomfortable.
"Kiss", Sasuke finished for him.
"Right. You are likely stuck when that-"
Sasuke's eyebrow twitched.
"-happens because that's what it took to stop the effects of the original curse." He looked over at Sasuke. "You may have noticed that it started to take more time to reset the Hourglass Curse."
Sasuke clenched his jaw, thinking back to the times when he would find Naruto screaming in agony, blood spilling from his eyes, his body convulsing on the floor. He would have to force his mouth closed and.. he was right. Simply kissing him wasn't enough. Each time he had to deepen the kiss and it would take so much longer than the time before. To the point where Sasuke would feel sharp terror piercing through him, fearing that he wouldn't be able to stop it at all.
"That seems to be what is happening now, in a way" the man continued. "You have to 'do more' to end the.. uhh-kiss, just as you had to in order to end the effects of the curse as time went on."
Sasuke and Naruto looked at each other. It didn't sound like bullshit. In fact, it made sense. Pieces of the shattered curse remained. That's why it seemed like more problems with lesser effects.
"So, how do we destroy all of the curse?"
He dropped his head. "I.. I don't know."
"What the hell do you mean you don't know?!"
The man's eyes filled with panic as Sasuke's filled with rage. "I've never done that curse before, ok?! It's not even mine- I came across it in one of those abandoned hideouts."
Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Which one?"
The two were somehow able to back out of the building without getting caught, but it was a close call. The shinobi that were sent down to replace the day-shift were definitely suspicious of them, but bought into their lie about keeping an eye on the prisoner as they switched. Probably made it more believable with the day group abandoning their post early.
Sasuke would have been irritated if he wasn't grateful for their absence.
The pair kept their masks in place as they rushed from the building and into the night, not removing them until they dropped down onto the Uchiha property. Once they were back inside, they tossed them to the side and dropped down into a chair at the kitchen table.
"Well, do you believe him?"
Naruto nodded. "And I know you do too. Your sharingan would have picked up on it if he was lying."
"A fragmented curse.." Sasuke muttered.
"I didn't know that could even happen."
"Neither did I."
The two stared at each other, still processing everything they had heard. "Well, at least now we know what's happening."
"Doesn't make it suck less." Naruto sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Think we should tell her?"
Sasuke didn't have to ask who 'her' was. "Your call."
The blonde sighed. "In the morning.. we'll tell her then. Let me enjoy one more night away from a hospital."
Sasuke's eyes lit up, and before Naruto could explain what 'enjoy' was supposed to mean, the raven scooped him up in his arms and carried him to his room.
"Sasuke! Dammit, Teme- put me down!"
"I will. Once we get there."
He kicked open the door, and kicked it closed behind him, before carrying the struggling blonde over to his bed. The curtains were pulled back, allowing the moon's bright watchful gaze to pierce the darkness in the room, spotlighting the very place Sasuke intended to drop him.
Naruto yelped as Sasuke threw him down onto the bed, and his eyes widened as the Uchiha joined him, straddling his waist. "Sasuke, come on. You heard what he-"
"Then don't kiss me on the mouth" he said, his voice low and breathy.
Deep azure eyes flickered between inky-black pools as Sasuke lowered his head. "Sa-"
Sasuke ran his tongue up the side of Naruto's neck, earning a deep moan that he could feel reverberate up his spine and settle low in his groin.
That warm electric feeling they had experienced when they kissed was back. Sasuke could feel it thrumming under his skin. He glanced up at Naruto and watched his lips part with the weight of a heavy gasp, and his eyes roll just before they closed.
Oh, he definitely felt it too.
Sasuke worked his way back up Naruto's neck and grabbed his lobe with his teeth, before running his tongue up the side of his ear. The blonde shivered beneath him, sending another jolt of pleasure rushing through him. Sasuke lowered his body down onto the blonde's and pressed their torsos together, forcing his throbbing member against Naruto's. He groaned and jerked forward, smiling against Naruto's neck when he heard him gasp.
But, he wanted more. He needed more.
Sasuke pulled off his shirt and quickly pulled off Naruto's, then moved lower as he kissed and Iicked his way down Naruto's tight chest and lean stomach. Naruto arched his back, aching for more, and something deep and primal sparked. Sasuke growled and ripped down the rest of Naruto's clothes, freeing his pulsing want. He looked up into huge blue eyes, then shoved Naruto's entire length in his mouth.
"Ahhh!!" he cried out, writhing in ecstasy as Sasuke's lips tightened around him. Sasuke pulled his head back, moving his tongue along the length, then slammed his mouth back down to the base.
"Ah- f-fuck!!" Naruto grabbed the back of Sasuke's head and jerked his hips up, shoving as much of himself inside of Sasuke's hot wet cavern as he could. The Uchiha smirked around Naruto's throbbing want, then moved his head, gradually moving faster, bringing Naruto to the very edge, before slowing back down.
"P-please.." he moaned, "Sa- 'ske.. ahh! Nnn.. don't- don't stop.."
But Sasuke kept speeding up and slowing down, until finally Naruto couldn't stand it. He gripped his long raven hair in tight fists, pulling him down to the base as he thrust violently into his mouth, crying out with a need so strong it was almost painful.
He screamed when he finished, his body spasming against Sasuke's, until finally he collapsed, pleasure radiating through him.
Sasuke sat up and licked his lips, as he pulled off the rest of his clothes. Naruto's eyes locked onto Sasuke's huge member, before traveling up his lean body to rest on his burning gaze and wicked smile.
"My turn."
Author Note:
That.. was intense.
Get some water, rehydrate. Uncurl your toes. Breathe. Because there is still more to.. come. ;)
Anyways.. with that beautiful entrance, yes. This story is back in business! I know I stopped for a bit while I wrote up & finished other ones, and I appreciate your patience. I know it's infuriating when you are getting into a story & it's left incomplete, so I will work on this one.
Hope that you're still enjoying it, and I would love to hear your thoughts, especially now that the story is kind of veering off in a different direction.
Alright, time for the next chapter~
