I do not own these series, nor do I make any money off of this.

"talking"

'thinking'

Chapter 81: Dust Covered Lies

The ground looked like there hadn't been any rainfall for years. It was like a desert at night, dust rolling around in the wind. The gray ground was cracked, soaking up more of the sun. The only life in the area were a pair of young men who had a tent set up. The blond basked in the sun, trying to wash his clothes. He had to use a few bottles of water since there wasn't any nearby. The other boy was in the tent, organizing their things. He whipped the sweat off his face, a disgusted look on his face. Standing up, he took off his shirt. He glanced at the opening of the tent before shrugging and taking off his pants.

"Sasuke?" Naruto called, walking into the tent. "It's not work...ing." His eyes widened at Sasuke's form, before he turned away. "S-sorry."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. He then looked at the soap covering Naruto's hands. "It is too hot."

"What should we do?" Naruto asked.

"We should probably move," Sasuke said. He grabbed his bag and pulled out his map. "It looks like there is a town a few miles away." He pulled out a pair of shorts and put them on. Sasuke looked at Naruto. "Well?"

"R-right." Naruto left the tent and walked over to the mess of water, soap, and clothes. He frowned. He didn't want to put this back in the bag, but there wasn't anything else to do. He grabbed a fresh scroll and sealed the clothes in there. He'd burn it later when the clothes were fully clean. Sasuke walked out of the tent, carrying his backpack. He was still shirtless. Naruto then walked over to the tent, sealing it as is in its scroll. The two of them gave the area one last look around before heading towards the nearest town.

-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-

When they got to the town, the two were surprised to see that no one was out and around. The two continued walking through the town until they found what looked to be an inn. It was rundown, but the two didn't care. The man at the desk looked over at the two boys, eyeing them up and down. He then rolled his eyes. Naruto chose to step forward to ask for a room. The man quietly pushed a key towards him, not saying a single word. Naruto hesitantly grabbed it. Sasuke followed after Naruto as the two went up the stairs, careful not to fall through the broken step and headed towards their room. There was no need for the key as the door was unlocked. They looked at each other before entering the room. Inside was a bed with dust covered sheets as well as a desk and a chair. Not wanting to go back down and starting an argument, Naruto swung his backpack around and pulled out a towel. He began to clean the desk. Once it was clean, he put his backpack down. He then turned towards the bed, frown appearing on his face.

"Are we seriously going to stay here?" Sasuke asked. Naruto just gave him a look. He then walked over to the bed, stripping it of its sheats. He tossed them to the floor and turned back to the bed. The mattress was in pretty good shape. Naruto pulled out his sleeping bag and placed it on the bed. Sasuke rolled his eyes before doing the same. Naruto grabbed the scroll of the half cleaned clothes from his bag and started to leave the room. "I doubt they have a place to clean those."

Naruto looked over his shoulder at Sasuke, briefly wondering where all of his negativity was coming from. He shrugged. "It won't hurt to try." Without another word, Naruto was out the door.

Sasuke sighed. He cleaned off the chair and sat down. Taking out his journal, he began to update it with recent events. Suddenly, his back felt a little itchy. He jumped up and out of the chair, Sharingan spinning. He could see small bugs crawling on the chair. Sasuke instantly grabbed the two sleeping bags off the bed and shoved them into his bag before grabbing Naruto's and leaving the room. He found the blond talking to the innkeeper. He grabbed his wrist. "We are not staying here." He headed for the door, dragging the protesting blond behind him. Once they were several feet away from the place, Sasuke released Naruto's wrist.

"What the hell, Teme! I was just finding out where we could wash our…"

"That place is filled with bugs! They attacked me!" Sasuke scratched at his back. "Dammit!"

A look of concern took over Naruto's face. "Are you alright?" He walked around the raven to see his back, but their packs were in the way. "Let's go somewhere else so I can look at your back."

"I know where you can stay," a voice said. The two shinobi turned to see a little girl. "Mama won't mind if you stay with us." She grabbed Naruto's hand. "You don't want to stay out here, do you?" Naruto and Sasuke looked at each other. Something was off about this little girl. But she wasn't wrong. Naruto allowed her to lead the way, while Sasuke prepared himself in case. She led them to a small house. "Mama's at work right now, but she should be back soon." She headed towards a room in the back of the house. Inside was a bed much cleaner than the inn's. "I'll start making dinner." She left Naruto and Sasuke in the room.

Naruto sighed. "Alright. Take off the backpacks." Sasuke did so. He then sat on the bed, turning his back towards Naruto. Naruto frowned at the blotches of red that covered the pale skin. "There should be some itch cream in one of the first aid kits." He grabbed his bag and took out a first aid kit. Digging through it, he found what he was looking for. "I'm going to clean your back first. He grabbed a towel, the soap, and a bottle of water. He carefully mixed the water and soap onto the towel. "This might sting." Naruto carefully moved the towel over Sasuke's back. The raven bit back a groan. Once Naruto was sure his back was clean enough, he grabbed the itch cream. "This might be cold." He squirted some cream onto his fingers before spreading it over the red blotches. He added some of his healing chakra to the cream to speed up the recovery. "There. You should be ok now."

"Hn," Sasuke grunted. He didn't move. Naruto layed down and looked out the window.

"There is something strange about this town," he said. "When you looked at the map, did it look like no one was outside?"

"No," Sasuke shook his head. "Though there were only a few out."

"Hm…" Naruto glanced out at the setting sun. "Maybe it has something to do with the time."

"Food is ready!" the little girl called.

Naruto got up. "I think we should be careful. We don't know what is going on here."

Sasuke nodded in agreement. "I don't want to get wrapped in their problems." He turned towards Naruto. "Don't interfere unless absolutely necessary."

"I won't," Naruto promised. Sasuke grunted before grabbing a shirt and putting it on. The two then walked out together, making their way to the dining room.

The girl smiled at them as she placed a bowl of soup on the table. It was already set with four bowls and spoons. A glass of water was set in front of each bowl. "Mama is a bit late, but it's ok. She said to go ahead and eat." She sat down, grabbing the large ladle. Her hand shook as she brought the ladle down to her bowl. Naruto couldn't help but to reach over and give the girl a hand. She smiled at him. Naruto then filled his bowl along with Sasuke's. Naruto was the first to take a bite of the soup. He knew that if something was wrong with it, Kurama would let him know. When he was sure it was fine, he gave a nod to Sasuke. Sasuke took his first bite, ignoring the stare from the little girl. "Is it ok?"

"Yes," Naruto said. "It's very good."

The little girl then looked at Sasuke. Sasuke nodded, causing her to smile. "Mama taught me how to make it." She took another bite of her soup. "Mama is really good at cooking."

Naruto had to bite his lip to stop himself from asking questions. It wasn't right to pry into their life. A hand on his leg made him turn towards Sasuke, who gave him a look. It was clear that Sasuke wanted Naruto to stay silent. Naruto took another spoonful of the soup and stuck it into his mouth.

"I'm Kiera by the way," the little girl said. "What are your names?"

"Sasuke," Sasuke said. He pointed at the blond beside him. "Naruto."

"Sasuke and Naruto," Kiera said. "Interesting names. You two aren't from around here. Where are you from?"

"Dabi," Sasuke lied. He remembered seeing the name on the map.

"Oh, then you are from the North," Kiera said. "That's a long way from home. Mama and I have always lived here." She put her spoon down, having finished her meal. "We've thought about leaving, but Mama said it was too dangerous. Maybe we can leave when I'm older."

Naruto was the next one to finish his soup. "I'll help you with the dishes." He stood up, grabbing his bowl.

"Oh you don't have to do that," Kiera exclaimed. "You're guests!"

"I insist," Naruto said. He grabbed Sasuke's bowl, seeing that he also was done. Kiera stopped her protests as she began to put the leftover soup away. Naruto watched the dishes while Sasuke kept an eye one them. Once the clean up was over, Kiera wished the two a good night and headed towards her room. Naruto and Sasuke stared after her in silence before heading back towards their room. The two sat down on the bed. "Should I check your back?" Sasuke just nodded before he removed his shirt. Naruto inspected the red blotches, happy to see that they were almost gone. He informed Sasuke of this. Sasuke let out a grunt before he stood up and left the room to relieve himself. Naruto laid down on the bed, staring at the ceiling. He started to wonder why Kiera didn't seem to care that her mother wasn't back yet.

Sasuke came back to the room to find Naruto beginning to nod off. He rolled his eyes. "Dobe, if you are going to sleep, at least change your clothes." Naruto groaned as he forced himself up. He slowly walked over to his bag and took out a pair of night clothes. This made him remember that he still had to finish washing the clothes. As if he could read Naruto's thoughts, Sasuke said, "worry about that in the morning." The blond nodded before he climbed onto the bed. Sasuke sighed before he joined Naruto. He didn't allow himself to sleep as one of them had to stay awake. But as time went on, Sasuke gave in to his tired body as he fell back into the pillow and closed his eyes.

-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-

Naruto was the first one to wake up. He heard a strange noise and decided to inspect it. He moved through the house as quietly as possible, hiding his presence. He stopped just outside the kitchen and peeked inside. He found Kiera standing in front of the sink washing off what looked like blood. His eyes widened as the smell hit his nose and he moved a hand to cover it. Kiera turned around, revealing her blood soaked nightgown. She licked her lips. "I'm still hungry." She glanced towards where Sasuke was still asleep. "They look tasty, especially Sasuke." Naruto shivered at that. "I should save the best for last, just like Mama taught me." She took a step towards where Naruto was hiding. "Shouldn't I, Naruto?" Her face appeared right in front of Naruto who fell backwards.

Naruto looked up at Kiera. The girl's skin had turned a deathly gray. Her neck was stretched out several feet from her body. Her eyes glowed a yellowish gold as saliva dripped down from her mouth. Razor sharp teeth poked out of her mouth, begging to lodge themselves into Naruto's skin. Kiera's head moved towards Naruto. But a large purple arm appeared in front of the blond, blocking Kiera's way. Kiera's eyes moved towards Sasuke who was glaring at her, Mangekyo Sharingan spinning.

"What are you?" Kiera asked. Sasuke said nothing as he moved closer to Naruto. She retracted her long neck, it disappearing back into the rest of her body. "You aren't human?" She sniffed the air. "I don't smell another Yoma. And that sword of yours wasn't a Claymore." She looked at Naruto. "Yours wasn't either." She took a step back. "I don't understand." She brought her hands to her head. "Mama, you said I could eat them!"

"I'm sorry," Naruto said, standing up. "But you can't."

"No," Kiera said. "Mama said I can. Mama never lies. MAMA NEVER LIES!" Her arms extended and she swiped her claws at Naruto, but they simply collided with the large purple arm still around him. Kiera let out a growl before letting her legs extend. She jumped up through the roof, landing outside.

"We have to go after her," Naruto said. "She's going to kill someone."

"Dobe, did you forget what we talked about earlier?" Sasuke asked. Naruto shook his head as he remembered his promise. "We are going to grab our things and get out of this town."

"But…" Naruto tried to argue. A sudden scream caught his attention. It was clear that Kiera had just attacked someone else.

Sasuke placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "This isn't our world."

"I know," Naruto looked down. "But… she targeted us. The reason she is killing others right now is because of us."

"She would have killed them eventually," Sasuke said. Naruto bit his lip. Sasuke sighed. "If she is really targeting us, that means we'll have to keep fighting her off until we leave this world. That sounds annoying." Naruto looked up at that. He caught onto what Sasuke was saying and smiled. Sasuke's eyes returned to black as he let Susano's arm disappear. Naruto went back to their room and grabbed his sword.

"Let's take the fight to her then," Naruto said.

-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-0-=-

Kiera threw another man to the ground, part of his body missing. Screams filled the air as houses began to burn. Kiera had attacked someone in the house closest to her and it caused a fire to instantly form. She brought the fire with her as she kept devouring any human she came across. After her latest kill, she returned to her human form. A moan left her lips as her body began to ache. She wondered if this was how it felt to get stronger. She tilted her head to the side as Naruto and Sasuke started walking towards her. "You," she glared at them. Then she smiled. "This is all because of you." Kiera motioned to the town around them and then herself. "I have you to thank for this power." She giggled as she spun around. "As a thank you for what you've done, I'll let you choose. You can either become my lovely pets, or you can join the others in becoming my food!"

"I'm afraid we'll have to turn your first two offers down," Sasuke said sarcastically. "I'll have to go with option three." He unsheathed his sword.

Kiera let out a childish laugh filled with pure evilness. "You are only human. What can you…?"

She let out a scream as she realized that Sasuke had just cut off her right arm. "You Bastard!" She grew out her limbs, regrowing her lost arm in the process. "I'll kill you!" Her claws came down towards the two shinobi. Sasuke and Naruto swung their swords, cutting through the claws. Her healing ability was slower than Naruto's so the two knew they just had to be faster than her. She swings her arms around, and Naruto was reminded of the time he'd been hit by a titan's hand. He easily jumped over it. Pulling out a few kunai, Naruto threw them in a row, each a few feet apart. Naruto used those kunai as purchases to reach Kiera's head. Summoning some wind, Naruto began to hack at her neck. He was nearly thrown backwards, but Sasuke caught him. The two combined their sword attacks in one area, successfully cutting Kiera's head off. The Yoma let out one last yell as her body began to fall down. Naruto and Sasuke landed on the ground, mindful of the purple blood.

Several minutes later a few people stepped out of their hiding places. They took in the scene of Naruto and Sasuke standing over Kiera's body. "Y-you killed it," a man said. "Y-you killed the Yoma." At his words, several people relaxed. "A-are you Claymore?"

Naruto and Sasuke looked at each other. "No," Naruto said. "Just travelers passing through."

"Father, that was stupid to ask them," a woman said. "They can't be Claymores. They're both men."

"R-right," the man said. "T-thank you for h-helping us."

"It's nothing," Sasuke said before Naruto could. He turned away from them. "We should be going now."

"P-please stay," the man said. "W-we have to repay you. S-since you are t-the ones that k-killed the Yoma, y-you should take the m-money." Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"What my father is trying to say is that we called for a Claymore to find and kill the Yoma," the woman said. "But since you killed it first, the money is rightfully yours."

"Keep it," Sasuke said. He started walking back to Kiera's house, glad it was still standing. Naruto smiled and bowed before he ran after Sasuke. The townspeople stared after them, wondering what to do. When Sasuke got back to the room, he tossed Naruto's backpack at him, before grabbing his own. "We're leaving." Naruto only nodded. They two made their way out of the town, careful as to not run into anyone. Once they were out of the town, Naruto looked over his shoulder at it. The destruction wasn't as bad as it could have been, but Naruto still felt like it was his fault. Sasuke put a hand on his other shoulder, causing him to turn towards him. "Let's go." With another nod, Naruto followed after Sasuke, hoping that danger wouldn't be close behind.