Chapter LXVI

Among Boys

"Do you think the boys gonna be fine?" Ino asked nervously.

"I think they should be okay," Sakura shrugged.

The kunoichi had heard feral growls resounding in a distant echo, then lightning and a few panicked voices that were added to this symphony of bad omen. They had put their ears against the wall to listen to the noise happening on the other side, while holding their breath. Obviously, someone had made Naruto angry, but they did not know the cause of that anger. They had to wait outside the baths to find out…

Fortunately, the worrying hisses had stopped; calm returned shortly after. Shikamaru had managed to silence Naruto's aggression… In fact, apart from Kakashi, he was the only one able to do so. Although reassured, Sakura could not help but be sad. This pain never left her.

She wanted to retrieve the bond she had with Naruto, to be close to him again… But the latter did not want her in the way she hoped. No matter how she tried, she only managed to push Naruto away, widen the gap between her and him. She did not know what she was doing wrong. Even Shikamaru fared better than her with him.

Naruto only had eyes for Hatake Kakashi.

Of course, she was well aware of this.

No one could ever take that place.

Since her comrade was entirely silent, she could not ask him what he did wrong either. Besides, Kakashi had not the slightest idea when she questioned him about it. By being patient, she could only wait for Naruto to open up to her. The more she insisted, the more Naruto distanced himself. It hurt her; her heart bled every night.

Sakura, Ino and Hinata were relaxing in the warm, fragrant bath water. The reason why they were here tonight, the subject of Naruto did not take long to occupy their lips.

"Has Naruto started to remember anything?" Hinata asked.

Sakura shook her head. "No… It's more complicated than that. He doesn't want to remember. We found the laboratory where he was sequestered, and they refuse to tell me anything about it. I can only assume that he must have been through hell that he wants to forget at all costs…"

Her words weighed down the now stifling air. None of them could look each other in the eye. Like Sakura, Ino and Hinata knew about this discovery, but nothing more. By order of the Hokage, the reports remained top secret; it was forbidden to divulge anything. Apart from a brief, useless summary by their brothers-in-arms that it was a laboratory of horrors, they knew nothing else. However, seeing the faces of terror and the eyes witnessing the horrors of Shikamaru and Shino, they could easily get an idea.

"That said… It's not Naruto that worries me the most," Sakura continued darkly. "I'm worried about Kakashi-Sensei."

The mention of his first name froze the blood in their veins. They were aware that Naruto was a chakra devourer and thus, knew about his strange appetite for chakra.

"Shikamaru told me he was the one who…" Ino swallowed. A shiver of dread slid down her spine. "…'feed' Naruto."

Sakura nodded. "I can't go into details," she clarified before expressing her fears. "There are the numerous bites, of course, but Kakashi-Sensei is starting to be … very weird."

"What do you mean?" Hinata worried.

A silence.

"He's behaving more and more strangely, that's all I can say…"

Sakura refrained from saying more. This week when she was taking care of Kakashi's disastrous health, she had noticed things that were causing more and more worry in her. First, Kakashi was hiding things. He feigned ignorance by shrugging when confronted; at that, he avoided and abruptly changed the subject. It revealed that he was indeed hiding something, and that he did not want it to be known. She had seen his abnormal weight loss and his sudden difficulty eating.

But what really alarmed her was his unusual preference for being in the dark. She had not believed Kakashi at all when he had given her a seemingly bogus excuse. As she left his home, he hurried to turn off the lights. If she did not turn them on, he did not have the initiative to do so.

However, she noticed that the Copy Ninja was dazzled by the bright glow, to the point that he rubbed his eyes roughly and squinted for several minutes… Something was definitely wrong with him. Especially since these gestures, yet banal, were the same as Naruto's. Kakashi imitated Naruto, and was dazzled in the same way as him… Knowing the nocturnal preferences of Naruto, she was struck with a very bad feeling…

Shikamaru was the first to whom she had expressed her fears, since he knew the file like the back of his hand. He too had noted that Kakashi was exhibiting strange, even "feral" behaviours. Shikamaru had not told her why, but he insisted that she keep her suspicions to herself. If she noticed anything else, she had to talk to him and only him…

Perplexed, she agreed to remain silent. Only her sensei's weight loss was communicated to Tsunade. The Hokage had asked her to monitor the progress of the eating disorder that Kakashi had visibly developed. If his condition worsened, he would be hospitalized. Since he was the only source of food for a hungry chakra devourer, his health was a priority.

Unconsciously, Sakura had started to believe some rumours that were proliferating in the village…

- XxX -

His hatred satisfied by revenge, Naruto forgave the human named Kiba … sort of. He agreed to forget this incident because Shikamaru asked him to. Otherwise, he would have slapped his face until the swelling made him unrecognizable. Focused on Kakashi's promise and nothing else, he stopped hissing and growling. However, Naruto was now anxious; the fear of someone stepping on his tail pushed him to be cautious. Each foot a bit too close to him agitated his heart, which climbed into his throat. He could not breathe for a little while when this happened.

Aware of his comrade's blindness, Shikamaru grabbed his wrist to guide him better, and Naruto obediently followed the pace of his steps. Like Kakashi, Shikamaru had to explain the procedure before going for a dip. He felt as if he was talking to a happy fool incapable of understanding in words that were more simplified than ever.

Not very receptive, Naruto observed him with his stupid look and listened to him while remaining motionless. Shikamaru even had to tell him to sit down… He was forced to do it himself, because Naruto was acting like he could not understand Japanese anymore. While the others had already settled down to clean themselves, Shikamaru was still dealing with a blinking Naruto. He could not help but sigh painfully.

He sincerely wondered how Kakashi managed to get Naruto to take a shower the first time… Obviously, Kakashi was either more patient than him, or he instinctively knew how to use the right words.

Fortunately, the blond finally understood by observing the others around him. Shikamaru tried to explain it to him, but with the rather noisy voices, he had difficulty assimilating the essence of the words conveyed. It was such that his ears heard all sounds with similar intensity.

Since Shikamaru seemed angry and out of patience, Naruto imitated the humans. He removed his towel and placed it on his thighs. He filled his basin with pleasantly warm water, with which he doused himself. Then, as he did in the den, he took hold of the different bottles, which he smelled in order to dissect their composition with precision. Certain that these products were harmless to him, he used them to soap his skin, taking care not to soil the slightest dark or light hair. He avoided at all costs touching the bottles that had hair poison.

When Naruto cleaned himself in the water room the first time, he almost poisoned his hair with this toxic and acidic substance. Kakashi used that poison to groom his silver hair, since it spread that deceptive scent. At least, thanks to Naruto, Kakashi no longer had to poison his magnificent hair … which he already missed. He could not wait to see Kakashi again, sliding his fingers between the silver locks, which blended perfectly with Kakashi's wintry skin.

While focusing on Kakashi, his sapphire eyes wandered everywhere. He watched and analyzed the other boys.

"He really has to relearn everything from scratch?" Kiba wondered.

"It's a drag," Shikamaru whispered. "I've only been dealing with him for an hour, and I already want to scream. I pity Kakashi-Sensei who has to deal with him all the time…"

"Didn't you say you've been walking him for a while?"

"It's not the same," he retorted. "All he has to do is follow me. I don't have to teach him how to do it. Plus, it's exhausting. You always have to keep an eye on him as if he were a suicidal baby."

Kiba chuckled. Shikamaru laughed too. Then, the two looked serious and avoided each other's gaze. Without saying it in words, they thought the same thing.

"Can you imagine...? We almost end up like him too," Kiba reminded darkly.

Shikamaru nodded. Both were also targeted by the group. Kiba had been close to suffering the same fate as Naruto, who had had no chance, no hope… They remembered the extremely low success rate of the experiments. Naruto seemed to be the first to make it out alive, transcending into a chakra-hungry nocturnal creature for the rest of his life.

Somehow, they knew they probably would not have survived.

As he finished rinsing himself, Naruto felt negative waves that darkened the atmosphere. He turned his head. He did not understand the gloomy expression of Shikamaru and the other human. Obviously, something was bothering them. The moment they met his sapphire eyes, they returned to their normal face. Puzzled, Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"You know, Naruto," Shino started, capturing the blond's attention. He was sitting at Naruto's left. "Given the circumstances, I think I can forgive you for not recognizing me after three years. Why, you may ask? Because, you see, it's everyone you've forgotten now."

Naruto became even more confused than he already was. Then he turned his head suddenly. The one named Kiba had approached him in his blind spot. His wet hairs could not stand up in response to the stress; the fear that he would break his tail persisted. However, this human began to sniff him while keeping an acceptable distance.

"Damn it! He still stinks," Kiba said, disgusted.

Naruto got angry and growled. Annoyed, he wagged his tail loudly and angrily. The long, waterlogged hairs made sounds like a rag full of water being hit on the ground. The comments that he stank irritated him. All in all, the young shinobi noticed that Kiba was right. Naruto's vile body odour overwhelmed those of the soaps he had just used.

"Stop fixating on it," Shikamaru sighed.

"It's not normal that it doesn't get better after a bath!"

"What do you want us to do? It's not his fault either," Shikamaru grumbled as he got up.

Annoyed, Naruto grabbed the basin and filled it with boiling water. The latter overflowing and smoking, he stood up. With a quick and calculated gesture, he emptied its contents onto Kiba, spraying him with his liquid fire. His victim became petrified while refraining himself from uttering sounds of pain; his skin turned redder than it already was.

Stunned, the brain of the boiled boy took time to understand what the blond had just done. As he fixed his eyes on Naruto, he saw the smirk on his face. Anger seized Kiba who clenched his fist.

"If it's like that, you're gonna regret it!" he shouted.

Naruto quickly took hiding behind Shikamaru and placed his hands on his now scratched shoulders.

Shino hurried to contain his brother-in-arms while Kiba became more agitated. "Calm down, Kiba! We don't need you to piss him off even more!"

Safe behind the human Naruto trusted, his mocking smile intensified. He also provoked him with his gaze, narrowing his eyes. The feral boy was fully aware that he could do whatever he wanted, given that Shikamaru had promised him that no one would harm him. It was a promise. And for reasons he could not explain, a promise was sacred to him.

"Forget it, Kiba. He's not really aware of what he's doing," Shikamaru sighed, scratching the back of his head.

"He's taunting me! He does it on purpose! I don't care if he has amnesia! Let me wipe his damn smile!"

"You reaped what you sowed," Shino said dryly. "So you stop!"

"Fuck!"

Reluctantly, Kiba gave in and stopped flailing in all directions. His blood was boiling in his veins. Naruto was comfortably hidden behind Shikamaru. He acted proud, with his nose in the air, and continued to taunt him without scruple. Kiba did not believe Shikamaru that Naruto was unaware of his actions. Naruto knew exactly what he was doing. His face spoke for itself. That he could not do anything frustrated him…

As a hypocrite, Naruto quickly showed an impassive face when Shikamaru laid his eyes on him.

"Come with me, Naruto."

The blond accompanied Shikamaru silently. He gave Kiba one last mischievous look. Little by little he took pleasure in annoying him. He listened to the growls of this human, which sounded like a sweet melody. He observed Shikamaru getting in a mysterious spring, from which intoxicating aromas emanated. The suspicious green colour was untrustworthy. On all four, he dipped his palm, with which he inspected the watery matter. He inhaled the strange odours, which forbade the consumption of the water, unsuitable for quenching thirst.

"Shikamaru," Chōji called out nervously. "There's no risk of being electrocuted with him in the water?"

"As long as no one annoys him, there's no risk," he reassured him with a smirk. "The water temporarily dispels his veil of static electricity."

Without warning, Naruto dove into the water, immersing himself. Like an aquatic creature swimming gracefully, he quickly poked his head out once he reached the other side. Then he looked at the tap, which was gradually filling the bath with hot water. Leaning against the edge, Naruto just playfully placed his hand under the jet, which splashed the surroundings, thus drawing silent laughter from Naruto.

Shikamaru sat next to Naruto. The teenagers entered too. Naruto's attention was completely taken up by the faucet. He ignored the humans, to the point where he no longer heard them.

It was the first time the blond was swimming. The only downside was that the source was much too small. He could barely kick his feet, and there was no space to swim laps. The presence of humans made the spring too narrow for anything. Naruto wanted to swim, stay underwater and discover the aquatic universe hidden in the depths of the sea, until he had to come out to ask for air… But the source was artificial and atrociously empty. The texture of the water was pleasant, the heat was good, that's all.

Memories resurrected in his mind. A sincere smile appeared. The short swim with Kakashi was a pleasant experience despite the coldness of the river. He had forced Kakashi into the water, since Kakashi would have refused to swim. Kakashi did not like being wet. Kakashi grunted every time Naruto shook himself while spraying him.

In this very moment, he wished that Kakashi would appear by his side, that Kakashi would bathe with him, that Kakashi would play with him. It was the only thing he dreamed of. Melancholy took hold of Naruto from then on.

He missed Kakashi, to the point of being stabbed in the heart.

Kakashi's absence left a huge, infinite void within him.

Without Kakashi, without his world, Naruto gave up on living…

"What is that?"

Naruto was pulled out of his thoughts when someone suddenly grabbed the tip of his tail. He clenched his hands and dug his claws into the wood. He arched his back and stopped breathing. He was frozen on the spot.

Chōji immediately released the tail. "I'm… I'm sorry, Naruto," he stammered.

An infernal tension set in, hearts beat in a similar pace. The young shinobi held their breath and stared at the blond with apprehension. The way he reacted when Kiba stepped on his tail, they feared what would happen next. Into a source of water that conducts electricity, if he decided to produce lightning, everyone would receive a devastating shock…

In this agonizing silence, the tail wrapped around its owner. Naruto curled up into a ball, completely still. After long, painful seconds, the boys could breathe, relieved.

Shikamaru noticed that Naruto was behaving rather strangely. Raising his head slightly, he saw the increasingly scarlet face, which betrayed obvious embarrassment; at that, Naruto pressed his thighs together, tighter than they could handle, curling up even more.

Shikamaru understood what that meant…

Meanwhile, the others noticed Naruto's disturbing immobility. Fears became worry.

"Shikamaru, I didn't do anything wrong with him...?" Chōji asked.

A silence.

"Oh! No, no," he finally replied, waving his palm. "It bothers him when we touch his tail. He'll get over it quickly."

Shikamaru breathed a sigh of relief when they believed him. Like Kakashi before him, he covered Naruto in turn. He understood why Kakashi had lied to him. Obviously, it was not just happening with him. It could happen with anyone who touched his tail.

Although the Copy Ninja indicated in his reports that the tail was very sensitive, he kept to himself that it was so sensitive as to give Naruto sexual pleasure. Placing a hand on the tail awakened unwanted desires. Shikamaru promised himself not to touch that hairy thing. However, it was important to specify it to avoid embarrassing misunderstandings with Naruto.

Maybe Kakashi believed he was the only one capable of arousing these lustful needs? Possible. Naruto was too feral to let another person approach him.

All in all, Shikamaru had proof that anyone could provoke this reaction. Like Kakashi, he believed that only Kakashi could awaken these desires. Now, another question tickled his mind. Was it really everyone? Or only with men?

The boy being as mute as a grave, he could not know. Since he was not planning on asking a girl to touch his tail to confirm it, he could only guess…