Author's note: Man, this turned out way longer than expected. If you've read The Long Run then of course some scenes will be similar; can't be helped.
Thanks to the following reviewers: Fictionlover87; 666snoopy; Ellasauras; solitare1; Richon
Warnings: Violence; angst; attempted sexual assault; threats of rape; homophobic slurs; mutilation; character deaths
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Kishimoto owns it.
Prepare for some heavy shit!
Chapter 16
"Well, it looks like Ritsu's nose was broken in two places and his jaw was almost fractured according to Tsunade-sensei," Father announced, walking into the living room.
"Only almost? We didn't punch hard enough then," Gaara muttered and crossed his arms, leaning back into the chair.
"I want to believe that there is a good reason why you two punched him, because neither of you have caused trouble before," Father began and took a deep breath. "I am pretty certain, though, that we agreed not to turn against each other like that. Not with the undead already intent on taking us all out."
"We also agreed to not be raging dickheads to each other, but I guess he missed the memo that day," Sasuke sneered.
From the corner of his eye he could see Gaara briefly smirking.
"What happened?" Father asked resigned.
"Like I said, he was being a raging dickhead," Sasuke repeated. "He couldn't keep his mouth shut about Gaara and Naruto, saying some pretty nasty things. We warned him several times to shut up and he decided not to listen. So we punched him. He had it coming, father."
"I'd say he got off pretty easy still," Gaara mumbled.
"What did he say?" Father frowned.
"Utter and complete bullshit," Gaara said curtly. "I don't care what he said about me, but he has to keep his mouth shut about Naruto. Next time I won't stop at just one punch."
When father looked at Sasuke, he shrugged. "Like Gaara said, it was bullshit. Maybe now he'll learn to keep his mouth shut when he's being warned."
Father sighed and rubbed his forehead. "I suppose I won't have to expect either of you apologising to him, hm?"
"If anyone has to apologise, it's that piece of shit," Gaara said irritated and clenched his jaw. "He asked for a good punch and he got it. I'm not going to apologise for that."
"Neither am I," Sasuke said. "Sorry, father, but he doesn't deserve an apology at all."
"Some on the Board might try to use this against you," Father told Gaara, who simply shrugged and rose up from his chair.
"I don't care, let them use it against me. Now if that's all, I'm going back to the apartment," he said and without awaiting father's response, he walked out of the office; the sound of the front door falling shut quickly following.
"I suppose I shouldn't have expected something else," Father said wearily and sat down in one of the other chairs. "You can go prepare for tomorrow. Ah, but before you do, can you tell Gaara to let Tsunade look at his hand? He left before I could tell him."
"Sure," Sasuke agreed, knowing he was getting off really easy now. He maintained that Ritsu had had it coming, though. If he had just kept his mouth shut when they had warned him … Perhaps now he would think twice before spouting bullshit again.
He quickly left the house as well, though he had a feeling that telling Gaara to go to Tsunade would be a moot point anyway, knowing him.
"Gaara!" he called out, glad to see that the red haired man hadn't gone that far yet.
Gaara turned around and raised an eyebrow. "What? Need to relay a punishment?" he asked mockingly.
Sasuke shook his head, coming to a halt a few steps away from him. "No, nothing like that. Father suggests you let Tsunade take a look at your hand."
Gaara's knuckles were red, the skin split in one place from where his fist must have scraped one of Ritsu's teeth when he had punched him.
As expected, the other man just snorted derisively. "No need for that; it doesn't even bleed. It's just a scratch; I've had way worse before."
Both Naruto and Gaara appeared to believe that such a statement was reassuring, but they couldn't be more off the mark with that.
"Are you going to tell Naruto about this?" Sasuke questioned.
"No, there's no reason to," Gaara dismissed it. "Besides, if I told him, a fractured jaw would be the least of that prick's worries." He looked speculatively before adding, "Hm, perhaps I should mention it after all …"
Sasuke snorted and shook his head. "Well, all right. Have a good night," he said and made to turn around so he could go back home.
"You're not joining us at the apartment tonight?" Gaara asked curiously.
"No, got to prepare for tomorrow."
"A new run?" Gaara tilted his head to the left.
"Not exactly," Sasuke replied and rubbed the back of his neck. "It's more a reconnaissance? The compound will have an expansion soon and my group is going to check a nearby town for any supplies we could use."
"Who's going with you? Naruto?" Gaara inquired, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his jackets.
"No, Deidara, Yamato and Anko," Sasuke replied. "Deidara and I have been to this town before so we know our way around there for the most part. Yamato is basically our construction expert while Anko wants to go outside the walls again. We'll be back before evening falls; we just need to take stock of what's left there."
"Well, try not to die tomorrow," Gaara told him.
"I'll do my best," Sasuke snorted.
Gaara offered him a lazy wave before making his way to the apartment he shared with Naruto. Sasuke turned around and went back to his own house. He had a trip to prepare for.
When he walked inside again, Itachi looked up from his seat on the couch. He raised an eyebrow. "You and Gaara punched Ritsu?"
Sasuke sighed. Well, he supposed a little explanation was in order before he could start his preparations.
When Sasuke arrived at the gates the next morning the last remaining traces of sleep abruptly left him when he caught sight of Naruto, who was waiting for him.
"I didn't expect you here. You're up early," Sasuke commented surprised, jogging over to him. The clock had just struck a bit past six; the sky was showing glimpses of soft red and orange streaks as the day broke. "You didn't have to get up so early."
"What kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn't see you off?" Naruto smiled teasingly; their breath escaping in little puffs of hot air. "Plus," he said while he tugged Sasuke closer by the lapels of his jacket, "my shift starts in a bit. Apparently I've been deemed safe enough to guard the walls today."
"You have?" It surprised Sasuke to hear that as father hadn't mentioned any additions to the guard roster when he had briefly spoken to him last night.
"Hm, got the news last night," Naruto said and stepped even closer. "One of the guards got sick apparently, so I'm kind of a stand-in, I suppose. Gaara will take over in the afternoon. We're on probation to find out whether we've got what it takes to guard such important walls," he added mockingly.
"It shows that they trust you, though," Sasuke insisted and linked his arms around Naruto's waist, resting his hands on his lower back.
"Mah, I don't give a shit whether they trust us or not," Naruto scoffed, wrinkling his nose. "I've got you, Gaara and that's all I care about."
His cheeks stinging with heat was because of the sharp cold biting at his skin and not because Naruto's words warmed his chest.
"Hey lovebirds!" Anko snapped from her position next to the car. "That's all very touching and all that, but we need to leave so finish your sappy goodbyes already! Let's go! We don't have all day!"
"Well, someone's not feeling the romance," Naruto quipped.
She flipped him the bird before opening the car door and getting into the back of the car.
"Right, that's my cue to go before Deidara decides it's his turn to be funny," Sasuke sighed softly. "I'll see you tonight, okay?"
"Hm, stay safe out there."
The kiss they shared was short but sweet and Sasuke couldn't stop himself from pecking Naruto's mouth a second time, which made the blond man grin. They squeezed hands and shared one more look before Sasuke got into the car as well, watching Naruto making his way up the scaffold for the first time.
"You two make me want to throw up," Anko mumbled and dumped her bag between her legs.
"I personally think it's sweet," Yamato said, smiling, and started the engine while the gates rolled open.
"I'm just happy that you didn't take until summer to hook up with him, un," Deidara commented from his seat next to Anko. "Thanks for helping me win that bet!"
Sasuke rolled his eyes in mild annoyance but said nothing, choosing instead to gaze at Naruto's form on the wall in the sidemirror for as long as he could.
When he could no longer see Naruto, he settled back in his seat and absently touched his lips; their kiss lingering like a ghost on his mouth.
The town was still filled with a lot of building material, but the question was how much they could still use after weather elements and time had done a number on the supplies.
"What do you think?" Sasuke inquired when Yamato joined them near the pallets still stacked with bricks.
"The metal bars and the bricks are still useful, but the wooden blocks are a complete goner," Yamato replied, sighing, and scratched the back of his head. "They were left in the open for all these years, so they've rotted from the rain."
"What about those bags with mortar?" Anko asked and gestured at the four bags she and Deidara had dragged to the car.
Yamato squatted next to them, lifting up the upper left corner of the first bag. "Hm, these might still be useful. Where did you find them?"
"Got them from underneath a collapsed shed," Deidara answered, casting a quick look at the grey sky. "Don't think the rain got to them, un."
"Doesn't look like it," Yamato agreed and rose up. "We can take these with us already, but the second group will have to pick up the bricks and the metal with a van. You found any tools we can still use?"
"None," Sasuke said, wiping off his katana on the grass. So far he had had to kill two zombies, but overall the place was rather quiet.
Anko, however, perked up. "I think I saw some, yeah, I'll go take another look." She sprinted away, past the farm where they had parked the car.
"Think this will be enough to expand?" Deidara questioned, eyeballing the pallets sceptically.
"Definitely not," Yamato snorted. "Not when you consider how large the expansion will be. It'd be a good start, though."
Sasuke looked up and watched grey clouds drift over them idly, obscuring the weak sunlight. "Once Anko is back we should get a move on. It's not going to be that long anymore before it starts to grow dark."
"Downside of the winter," Deidara remarked with a sigh, cracking his fingers on purpose. "Those dead bastards might be slower because of the cold, but the short days aren't doing us a real favour."
"We're making the best of it, though," Yamato smiled, as always optimistic. "And we'll be able to go back with good news. That's got to count for something, no?"
"I guess, un," Deidara conceded and straightened up from his slumped position against the wall. "Going to check whether Anko-chan needs any help."
"Yeah right, you just don't want to lift these heavy bags in the boot," Sasuke said unimpressed.
The older man grinned and clasped his shoulder on his way past him, shaking him gently. "Hey, Anko-chan and I already dragged them all the way here. I know you muscled up through the years, Sasuke-kun, so these won't be a problem for you."
Sasuke's tsk'd and shook off his hand, but smiled faintly when Deidara snickered amused, going the same way Anko had taken.
"Think everything will even fit in the biggest van we have?" he asked, grunting a bit when he dumped the first bag in the car's boot. His muscles were already burning slightly due to the heavy weight of the first bag and he still had a couple more to go.
"I think it's going to be a tight fit," Yamato admitted, frowning. He grimaced slightly when he picked up the second bag, only talking again when he had dumped that one in the car as well, "But we'll have to make it work somehow. It could be a while still before we find other supplies and the longer they're laid here to waste, the worse their state will be."
"Feels like trying to find enough material will be like trying to find a needle in a haystack, though," Sasuke mumbled, dropping the third bag in the boot on top of the first two.
"It's a gamble for sure," Yamato said and rolled his shoulders, groaning softly, before heaving up the last bag. "But like I said, we'll have to try. Everybody's got enough space for now but with some families growing bigger … We're going to need all the space we can make."
Hushed as they were talking, the sound of a gun being cocked right behind them had the hairs in Sasuke's neck rising up in dread and Yamato tensing next to him.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here? Looks like a couple of little thieves!"
Sasuke moved to grab his gun but the stranger behind him put an immediate stop to that plan. "Ah, ah, ah, I wouldn't do that if I were you. Turn around slowly. You try to grab your gun or I see your hand twitch and I'll blast your head apart."
Slowly Sasuke and Yamato did as they were ordered, turning around. A man with lanky grey white hair wearing ripped jeans, a smudged dark blue shirt and a leather coat stood just a few feet away from them, grinning widely and holding a shotgun aimed straight at them. Next to him an identically looking man smirked at them: twins clearly. On his right side an orange haired, fat guy hovered, his tongue slipping out to lick his lips once while his thumb slid almost lovingly across an axe. A fourth guy with dark brown spiky hair was seated on what had once been a well with a white haired man with green eyes standing next to him. The last guy only wore an open jacket showing off his naked chest and trousers so thin they wouldn't be able to protect him against the cold wind, but the icy temperature didn't seem to bother him in the slightest.
All five of them were strapped with weapons ranging from an axe to a dagger to multiple guns and neither of them looked particularly open to having a civil conversation.
Motherfucker.
"Jirobo, Kimimaro, see if there are other rats sneaking around," the guy holding the shotgun ordered. His small black eyes turned gleeful when they caught sight of Sasuke's katana. "Can't have our guests be separated from each other now, can we?"
The fat guy laughed obnoxiously, swinging his axe on his shoulder while he and the white haired man disappeared around the corner.
"Look, I swear we don't want any trouble," Yamato began neutrally. "We had no idea anybody was staying here, we'll take our leave now."
"Aw, leaving so soon already?" the guy mocked and came closer. "Why? Think we can't entertain guests?"
"We are really not looking for any trouble," Yamato insisted, eyeing the shotgun warily. "Just let us leave, okay? We won't bother you anymore."
"Hm, do I want that, though?" the guy mused aloud, stopping right in front of them. "Hey Ukon, what do you say?"
His twin grinned nastily, his hand braced casually on a large knife. "I'd say we give our guests a proper welcome, brother."
"My thoughts exactly!"
Before Sasuke could evade it, the butt of the shotgun slammed into his right temple. Throbbing pain had his vision exploding with stars, but he bit down on his tongue, forcing himself to remain upright and conscious.
"My, my, quite the stubborn one, aren't you? Ah, doesn't matter, that's just more fun for us."
Left disorientated from the first blow Sasuke couldn't duck away from the second one. The ground rushed up to meet him, but everything turned dark before he even hit the ground.
The mother of all headaches pounded away at his skull when his consciousness returned; his head pulsating with pain so badly he wanted nothing more than to embrace that sweet, soothing darkness again.
"This one's finally awake too!" a guy bellowed from behind him and he winced when the loud noise drilled into his skull like spikes.
"Well, bring him here then! It's time for him to join the rest of the party!"
Sasuke nearly busted his face open on the ground when his arm was roughly jerked upwards. Two hands slipped underneath his armpits and dragged him along to a fire where Anko, Yamato and Deidara were already forced onto their knees in front of it; their hands held behind their back by three of the men they had encountered before. Sasuke ended up between Yamato and Deidara and he hissed through his teeth when he was forcibly pushed onto his knees; gravel digging painfully into his skin, his jeans providing not the least amount of protection. He caught sight of their weapons dropped in a pile on the other side of the fire and he bit down hard on the inside of his cheek. Fuck, this was just getting worse and worse.
The unnamed twin – the leader? – sauntered towards them; his hands casually tucked into the pockets of his jacket. The guy who had dragged Sasuke to the fire remained standing behind him; his presence cloying and suffocating.
"While pretty boy here was taking his beauty nap," the guy smirked: his black eyes gleaming, "we've been trying to figure out what we're going to do with y'all."
"Well, not with everyone," the fat guy behind Anko snickered, leering at her.
She stiffened underneath his disgusting stare but refused to turn her head.
The first guy smiled indulgently, inclining his head. "Well, yeah, that's obvious. That still leaves us with you three. Whatever will we do with you?"
"I could take the blond one," Ukon mumbled. The look in his eyes when he stared at Deidara was enough to make Sasuke's skin crawl with repulsion. He was guarding Yamato; the tip of his knife aimed at Yamato's head, precariously close to his skull.
Deidara glared back at him, baring his teeth.
"For real, dude?" the fat guy snorted derisively and shook his head. "Man, what the hell, when we've got a beauty like this one?" His pudgy, grimy hand clawed around Anko's right shoulder.
"Women are way too fucking fragile," Ukon huffed, sneering. "Their bodies give out way too quickly for my taste."
"Well, maybe if you hadn't been that enthusiastic when fucking that whore before, she'd still be with us, you idiot," the guy – it had to be the one with the spiky hair because the white haired man was right behind Deidara – guarding Sasuke snorted harshly.
Sasuke's blood turned cold at the dark implication in those words. Were they really planning on …
"Let bygones be bygones and all that shit." The leader clucked his tongue and flapped his hand dismissively. "We've got to take care of some business first before we can have some fun. Where's your settlement?" he asked Yamato, whose face was completely blank.
"We don't have a settlement," Yamato stated firmly.
The leader tsk'd disappointedly, shaking his head. He walked over slowly to Yamato until there was barely distance left between them. "Now, I've got to warn you that I'm really not a fan of liars. It's cool, though, you didn't know that yet. Now you do, so let's start fresh, all right?"
He squatted down, giving Yamato a smile that could have been interpreted as friendly if one was very naïve and blind. "Name's Sakon; this is my little group here. We got ourselves settled all nice here and then you go and stomp around all over the place like you fucking own it. That's not nice, you know? And then you try to lie to me. Not nice again."
"I'm not lying," Yamato insisted, staring at him boldly.
Sakon sighed, immediately losing his smile. "Look, I might not have attended any of those fancy smarmy universities y'all pissed your lives away at before the world went to shit, but I know that one plus one still equals two." He pursed his lips and counted down on his fingers. "I know you've got a settlement somewhere because one, why else would you try to smuggle construction material out of here and two, y'all look way too fucking clean and too nicely dressed up to be living on the road. So I'm going to ask you one last time and you better think carefully before you answer me: where's your settlement?"
Yamato looked him straight in the eyes, inhaled deeply and replied, "We don't have a settlement."
Sakon blinked slowly and stood up, placing his hands on his hips as he stared at the ground. The rest of his group was looking at him, appearing way too excited for what was currently happening and Sasuke's gut twisted as his bad feeling intensified.
"Here I am, being all proper and nice even thought y'all are the ones who broke into our home and there you go, lying again and again," Sakon sighed.
Sasuke's heart shot straight into his throat when Sakon whipped a gun out suddenly, aiming it straight at Yamato's chest.
"I really do not like liars, you know," he stated coolly.
Deidara yelled, "NO, WAI-"
The warm wet sensation of something splattering against the side of Sasuke's face, dripping down his cheek, registered before the noise of the gunshot did. His ears rang, a high pitched noise filling it, his heartbeat going as rapid as that of a hunted rabbit, as he watched in numb shock how Yamato slumped down, blood freely gushing out of the fresh gunshot wound in his chest. Yamato's eyes were still wide open when his skull bashed against a splintered rock; Ukon no longer holding him up and stepping back.
The crackling of the flames sounded unnaturally loud when the noise of the gunshot died out, fading away.
"One simple answer, that's all I wanted," Sakon tutted and stuffed the gun behind the waistband of his trousers. "And he couldn't even give me that. Fucking rude."
"Can't we start with the fun bit now?" the fat guy whined and licked his lips, leaving a sheen behind. "You've still got those two to play with, you don't need her for this."
Sakon considered him thoughtfully; his gaze flickering towards a wide-eyed and shaking Anko only once. "Hm, suppose you've got a point there. Fine, man, if you can't keep your dick in your pants for just a couple of minutes longer, have at it, I guess."
"LIKE HELL YOU WILL!" Deidara snarled and managed to break free before the white haired man could react, lunging himself straight at the fat guy. He managed to land one firm punch against the guy's jaw before Ukon tackled him to the ground, forcing him onto his stomach so he could sit on his back.
"I swear, one by one y'all seem really determined to piss us the fuck off, don't ya?" Sakon said eerily calm and cocked his gun again, aiming it at Deidara.
"No, please let him go!" Anko begged; her eyes wet with a sheen of desperate tears. "Please, don't kill him!"
"Chick's right, brother," Ukon snorted and scowled at his twin brother. "Didn't I tell ya I wanted this one for myself? Got no interest in fucking a dead corpse, man, and it's been so long. Who knows when we'll get another opportunity like this?"
"Hm, what to do, what to do," Sakon muttered idly, tapping his gun against his thigh. "You got me in a right pickle, brother. On the one hand I do want to keep my men happy but on the other hand, we can't let shit like this slide, you know. Can't have our little guests thinking we're soft."
"There's always the axe," the guy behind Sasuke suggested, sadistically amused as he chuckled.
Sakon snapped his fingers at him, grinning. "Bingo! He only needs his mouth and his arse to keep a dick warm; he doesn't need an arm to do that. Hold our little feisty bitch still, will you, brother? Don't want to ruin your fun before it can start after all."
No, wait, they couldn't seriously … They wouldn't …
The axe gleamed menacingly in the fire before it was brought down in one heavy, fast blow. Silence reigned for a short moment before Deidara started screaming, his eyes wild, when Sakon ripped his forearm away – leaving him with nothing but a bleeding stump starting from the elbow. His blood spurted out, gushing out of the stump like a morbid waterfall, the gleaming white of his fractured bone visible through the shredded muscle and veins. All the while Deidara kept screaming and screaming, staring horrified at what remained of his arm.
Sakon laughed manically, his face splattered with some of Deidara's blood, and tossed the amputated arm somewhere to his left. "How's that for being so punch happy, huh, you little faggot bitch!"
Anko broke down completely, her strong exterior shattered by the sight of her mutilated friend, and tears started pouring down as the fat guy manoeuvred her onto her back, pushing her legs wide open as he leered down at her, his nasty fingers moving to unzip her trousers. Sasuke saw red.
Yamato had just been killed, Deidara was mutilated for life and Anko was about to be raped – Sasuke moved before he could reconsider. He wrenched himself loose, his fist shooting out and catching Ukon in his right temple, knocking him off Deidara's back. He landed two more blows into the fat guy's face, making him yell out as blood spurted out of his nose, and was about to grapple for the knife he saw strapped to his belt when a boot caught him in his lower back, right in his kidney, making him howl in pain and curl up instinctively.
He tried to scramble away but whoever had kicked him wrestled him to the ground and before he realised it, his left arm was forcefully extended in front of him, kept in place by the white haired guy's hand while his sleeve was yanked back.
"You know, I've never had much of a preference myself," Sakon began idly; his footsteps reverberating against the earth when he approached Sasuke. "Got to admit, though, it's not every day you see a pretty face like yours. Can't lie, I like me some fire between the sheets and if a guy's hole is good enough for my brother, hell, it sure as fuck is for me. Probably be tighter than pussy anyways. All that said, you did just attack my men so I can't let that slide. Suppose you don't need your arm either, right?"
Sasuke tensed up and tried to buck off the guy sitting on top of him but he merely bore down before grabbing Sasuke by his hair, lifting up his head and slamming it into the earth, making Sasuke's vision spin with stars.
"Oh yeah, going to enjoy breaking you so much," Sakon chuckled. "Why don't we see just how sharp that fancy toy is of yours, hm?"
With the side of his head mushed into the ground, Sasuke could only spot Sakon's shadow moving out of his vision. His footsteps walked around the fire before he picked up something there and came back. He knelt down next to Sasuke and grabbed his arm.
"Let's see how well you sharpen it," he chuckled nastily.
Sasuke bit down hard on his lip to prevent himself from making noise when his own katana started cutting through his arm, burning pain easily chasing away the stars swimming in front of his vision as his own blood started dripping down, warming his cold skin.
"Looks like it's going to slide through it like but-" Sakon's sadistic glee was abruptly cut off and Sasuke's katana dropped to the ground next to him before it could do more than cut open the first layer of skin.
"THE FUCK?!" Sakon yelled. His voice was a mixture of fury and disbelief; every last trace of his sadistic glee wiped away completely.
Sasuke's head shot up and his eyes widened, the burning pain in his arm momentarily forgotten, when he saw an arrow sticking straight through Sakon's hand – the one which he had been using to cut Sasuke's arm. The sound of an arrow whizzing through the air followed swiftly and all of a sudden there was no more weight on top of Sasuke as the guy toppled off him.
There was an arrow stuck in his temple, killing him instantly.
Two arrows shot straight through the white haired guy's throat and he gurgled panicked, his eyes wide as saucers as he tried to claw at his throat but it was no use. He tripped over the dead spiky haired guy and tumbled onto the ground, bleeding out as he made a futile attempt to stem the bleeding. He made the mistake of pulling it out, which only made the blood gush out like a geyser, speeding up his death.
A fourth arrow was a clean shot through Ukon's head and the fat guy followed just a second later; three arrows sticking out of his chest. He was dead before he slumped onto the ground; his soulless eyes staring up at the sky.
"What the fuck's going on?" Sakon raged, whipping his head from left to right, trying to catch whoever had just killed off his group entirely. His hand reached for his gun and Sasuke could only watch stunned how a ninth arrow pinned Sakon's hand straight to his thigh; the tip of the bolt protruding out of his inner thigh.
Sakon yowled and tried to pull out the arrow, but a tenth one found its way through his already injured hand, speering it neatly through the middle.
"Want to try for another one? Buy ten, get two free, you fucker."
Sasuke's mouth dropped open in shock when both Naruto and Gaara stepped out of the shadows of the nearby trees, sliding out of them as if the shadows themselves parted around them. Both had their crossbows trained on Sakon's forehead. Gaara's green eyes were burning and Naruto's blue eyes were a shade of ice that Sasuke had never witnessed before.
Dimly he started to realise how those two had managed to survive for so long on their own.
"Anko, hold Deidara's arm in the fire. We need to cauterise it before he bleeds out," Naruto instructed as he and Gaara approached them quickly. "Sorry, Deidara, it's going to hurt like a bitch, but we've got no choice."
"If we cauterise it, his arm - " Anko began to argue, but she gingerly grabbed Deidara by his remaining arm.
"Hate to break it to you but unless you got an operating room and a surgeon hidden away, you've got a fat chance in hell to attach his arm," Gaara said bluntly, but his eyes briefly softened with some sympathy when he glanced at the bleeding blond.
"I've been told baa-chan can perform miracles, but I fear this is above her paygrade," Naruto added, his mouth thin. "Do it before he loses even more blood."
"Who the fuck do you think – "
Sakon caught Naruto's foot right in his stomach and he gasped painfully, doubling over, before a second vicious kick sent him sprawling across the ground, nearly landing into the fire.
"Are there more of you?" Naruto demanded, coming to a halt right next to him.
Sasuke scrambled up and helped Anko bring Deidara closer to the fire, shoving his own sleeve down to stem the bleeding. She gagged when Sasuke pushed Deidara's stump into the fire, letting the flames sear his skin shut. The smell was beyond fucking foul and his eyes started to water. Deidara's almost inhuman pained screeching chilled him to the bone, but he didn't let go of his arm until he was certain the wound was completely cauterised. Only then did he let go of him while Anko caught an ashy, shivering Deidara against her chest, clutching him tightly while wrapping her jacket with trembling hands around his arm.
Sasuke tuned back into the conversation between Naruto, Gaara and Sakon, hearing the latter spit out, "If there were more you can bet your fucking arse that they'd have shot you by now, you fucking sons of bitches!
"Yeah, guess it's awkward when your men get killed one by one, huh?" Naruto smiled chilly as he looked down at Sakon. "Wish we could take our time with you for what you did to ours, but I imagine we're going to have some visitors soon and I don't want to stick around for that."
"Aren't you getting off easily?" Gaara said coldly, keeping his crossbow trained on Sakon.
Naruto swung his own crossbow on his back and glanced around. His face lit up a smidgen when he saw the bloodied axe. "You're fond of that one, huh? Ever heard of poetic justice, you piece of shit?"
Sasuke furrowed his eyebrows. "Naruto, what are you - "
Two swift, quick swings and this time Sakon was the one screaming in agony when both his arms were cut off. As he stared in horror at the blood pouring out of the stumps, Naruto used the blunt end of the axe to shatter both his kneecaps; the look on his face so deadly, so still, it had Sasuke realising for the first time just how dangerous Naruto could really be.
How dangerous they could both be as Sasuke watched silently how Gaara took over the axe, grinding the blunt end into the shattered kneecaps until Sakon could do nothing but gasp for pain, snot and tears dripping down his face.
A part of Sasuke had acknowledged a while ago that these two could at least be partly dangerous, because you didn't survive in this world when you were a complete pacifist. There was a difference, though, between seeing them getting rid of zombies and seeing them mutilate somebody and leaving them to die from either blood loss or zombies – whichever fate would come first.
And remaining completely unruffled by it all. It was as if they had merely been swatting flies instead of killing four people and mutilating a fifth one, sentencing him to a certain death by cutting off his only means of escape – literally.
Naruto had slit the throats of three men who had tried to rape him and Gaara had killed the others in cold blood, Sasuke's mind reminded him. If they had ever been naïve and innocent to start with, this new world had destroyed that completely. Could he really blame them for that, though? It wasn't as if anyone of the group had shown Sasuke and his group any mercy. Yamato was dead because of them and Deidara was now mutilated. They had deserved what was coming to them, every single one of them. Especially Sakon.
Armless and with his kneecaps shattered to blood bits, Sakon looked a hell of a lot less intimidating as he screamed and cried, snot mixing with the blood on his face.
"Why don't you have some fun with your mater later on, hm?" Naruto suggested nonchalantly while Gaara threw the axe into the fire. "That's if you live long enough, of course."
When he turned to them, the chilliness in his eyes was swiftly replaced by concern and he crossed the remaining distance between them rapidly. "We need to leave," he urged and reached out to wipe away some blood on Sasuke's face. "All the shouting and this fire are bound to attract some dead dipshits."
"The car," Sasuke said and turned around, trying to guess where the farm could be.
It was almost pitch black now, late in the evening, and the darkness did little for the disoriented sensation he was currently experiencing. He had the weird feeling that he was somehow out of his body, following on the outside what was happening.
"A bit further down the road." Gaara jerked his head to the west. "Wish we could give you time to rest, but we really need to go. I don't know how many of them are nearby and I don't want to find out either."
"Wait, Yamato, we need to take him with us," Anko choked out even as she stood up, pulling Deidara along with her.
He slumped into her; his head drooping down.
Naruto glanced at Yamato's dead body, grimacing. "We could put him in the boot?" he suggested tentatively, sharing a look with Gaara.
Sasuke instantly shook his head, remembering the bags in the boot. "Can't, that's filled with mortar. We could pull them out, I guess, but …"
"That'll take too long," Naruto said grimly. "I can't take him with me, we took the bike; it won't be able to hold a third person. One of you needs to drive the car and one of you needs to sit with Deidara, keep an eye on him just in case."
"We can't just leave him behind," she protested in a small voice, biting down on her lower lip so hard it became bloodless. "I know it's stupid, but we can't – "
"We found some plastic sheets a bit down the road," Naruto said abruptly. "We can wrap him up in those and put him in the passenger seat, I guess. Not exactly the best way, but …"
"That should work," Sasuke decided.
Naruto quickly took charge. "You three head up to the car and get yourselves settled. Get back here with the car so that we can get him into the car as well. Then we get the hell out of here. We've already lost enough time, let's go!"
On automatic pilot Sasuke walked to the car, supporting Deidara on one side with Anko bracing his other side. They somehow managed to reach the vehicle without stumbling or tripping even once which was a bloody miracle with how dark it was without a fire illuminating their way. Sasuke bent down, feeling above the front tire for the key they had hidden there. Luckily it was still there and after opening the car, Anko crawled into the back with Deidara. The blond man was eerily silent, staring aimlessly into the distance and Sasuke shared a worried look with Anko before he took place behind the wheel.
Naruto and Gaara awaited them near the fire; their weapons collected in a threadbare looking bag and Yamato's body wrapped up completely in a plastic sheet. The plastic was ripped near his right temple, some blood sticking to the frayed ends, and Sasuke glanced at Naruto when he helped Gaara lift up his body.
Naruto pursed his lips together, chagrined, before muttering, "Had to. Can't risk him coming back while you're in the car."
Sasuke nodded, because yeah, that definitely would not be a good thing. Would have been the icing on the goddamn cake this crap evening.
He shut the door after putting Yamato's body in the passenger seat and turned to look at Naruto, who was holding out the bag with their weapons. Sasuke accepted it, but didn't get into the car just yet, placing the bag next to Anko in the backseat. She didn't acknowledge it, kept murmuring soothing words in Deidara's ear instead.
"How come you're here?" he asked, aware of the way Gaara was walking circles around Sakon like a hawk.
Sakon's pitiful whimpering was nothing but background noise now as he stared at Naruto. With all that had happened in such a short time his brain had only now registered to the fact that Naruto and Gaara normally shouldn't be here. They were supposed to be back at the compound, awaiting their arrival. Why had they come?
"Not really the time now to explain," Naruto murmured. "I'll explain when we're back in the compound, okay? We really need to go, I'm not joking."
"Yeah, all right," Sasuke conceded, because fuck, he was right. They couldn't keep standing here, chatting, when any moment now zombies could appear. Still, he couldn't help himself from reaching out, grabbing Naruto's hand. "I'm glad that …" His voice gave out on him.
I'm glad that you're here. You have no idea how damn relieved I am to see you here, that you saved us. Thank you for saving us.
The words wouldn't come out, seemingly stuck in his throat, but Naruto's features softened as if he could hear them all the same. He turned his hand, entangling their fingers, and squeezed gently. He leant forwards, rose a bit up on his toes and kissed Sasuke gently; the touch heart-breaking tender.
"Let's go," Naruto whispered; his fingers caressing Sasuke's inner wrist when he slowly released his grip. His eyes shone gently in the dancing light of the fire.
"Yeah …" As Sasuke got behind the wheel again starting the car once more, he watched in the headlights of the car how Naruto hurried over to the bike parked near a burnt out shed. The bike was leaning against what remained of the wall and Naruto dragged it upright again, kicking some stones away it appeared judging by the small kicking moves he made with his right foot.
Sasuke hadn't even heard the bike approaching them; had Naruto or Gaara cut it off somewhere on the road and had rolled it all the way here? They had to have, because surely at least someone of the group would have heard the bike's approach otherwise.
He had no idea why Naruto and Gaara had shown up here, but he was content to leave that question unanswered for now. All he wanted now was to go home, see father and Itachi, and be with Naruto. All the rest could wait.
Ignoring the lifeless body next to him – don't look at him, don't remember how friendly he'd always been, how helpful he'd been to everyone who ever needed aid, how brave until the very end, don't think about that now – he pushed down on the gas after the single taillight of the bike lit up, signalling Naruto and Gaara were ready to leave. Naruto raised his arm, pointing in the direction of the main road. However, as Sasuke manoeuvred the car onto the road, he saw Naruto and Gaara stepping off the bike again and returning to Sakon. As Sasuke drove away, keeping the speed as slow as he could get away with, he watched Naruto and Gaara stand near Sakon for a bit. When shadowy figures ambled their way towards a still screaming Sakon, that was when Naruto and Gaara got back onto the bike with Gaara being the one driving.
They had waited to make sure zombies would get Sakon.
Naruto glanced at him when the bike sped past him and that look in his eyes was anything but apologetic as Sakon's screams reached a higher pitch.
Grimly, Sasuke tightened his grip around the steering wheel, letting the roaring purr of the motorcycle drown out Sakon's terrified screaming when he followed the bike.
AN2: Don't fuck with Naruto or Gaara, that's all I'm saying.
Please leave your thoughts behind in a review; should you spot any mistakes, please point them out to me.
I hope to see you all back in the next chapter! Please stay safe and take care of yourselves!
Cuddles
Melissa
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