Chapter Text
Naruto leaned against the brick wall, taking in a deep drag from his half-finished joint — his neck and shoulders relaxing as the dense smoke filled his lungs.
The air was getting colder, mercilessly piercing through the leather jacket, but he couldn’t shake the sensation that the shivers running down his spine were due to the ominous feeling pulling at his senses rather than for the autumn weather.
He looked around — the music coming from the club was quite loud despite him standing on the other side of the street.
His gaze latched on the small crowd gathered outside.
Eyes lazily roaming over the people there, Naruto brought the smoke to his lips again as his attention got caught by two men — probably in their twenties — sharing a passionate kiss right beside the club’s exit.
His chest clenched uncomfortably as he took in the shameless display — the lovers totally uncaring of the others murmurs and stares, as their hands roamed each other’s back, torso, ass-
“Hey, dude!” Kiba’s voice snapped him back from his reverie, and he spun around slowly, shaking his head to chase away his thoughts.
Not the right moment.
He took in another drag before throwing the stub away, “You’re late.”
“Yeah, sorry man but we got-”
“He-” Sai snorted, cutting the other man off, “Thought talking about his dog would allure Haruka.”
“Hey! I’ll let you know Akamaru-”
“Of all the days you could choose to get rejected-”
“At least I’m getting rejected.” Kiba interrupted him, “You’ve got no game ever since that blond chick.” His grin was way too smug for his own good, but it didn’t falter under Naruto’s glare.
“Thinking about it, I’m starting to worry the last sitdown left you dickless.” Sai smirked before jokingly moving for Naruto’s pants.
Swatting his intruding hand away, the blond released a breathy laugh. “Which side are you on?”
The other man only shrugged in response, his pale face unreadable once again.
Naruto grimaced. Even when he knew the guy from ages, the other’s ability to shut down, completely and all of a sudden, never failed to creep him out.
Sighing, he finally turned to face Shikamaru, confident at least he would give him some rope, “Shika, what do we know?”
“Dock 31, the one near the factory. We still have half of an hour, though.”
Naruto rolled his eyes at the other’s usual lethargy — sure as hell his friend would have rather stayed at home playing some ass boring videogame instead of discussing this shit in a fucking barely lit sidewalk.
Not that he’s completely wrong.
“Something Mito hasn’t told me already?” He prodded — his hand snapping up to scratch his neck.
“Things might get violent.”
“When don’t they?” He chucked, “Still no clue on who they are?”
“Gotta be one of the big clans.” Shikamaru paused briefly, “No one else would dare to challenge Mito like this.”
“Uchiha?”
“Possible.”
Naruto searched his friend’s face for any indication of his opinion on the matter, but it revealed nothing unusual, if not- the light clench of his jaw made Naruto’s eyes dart up again. Shikamaru held his gaze for a couple of seconds before nodding.
The chances of the Uchiha being involved were high, but the secrecy and how the meeting had been handled in general didn’t match the usual proceeding of the ancient clan — at least not what they had come to learn over the years.
In Naruto’s opinion, there were several weird things going on.
First and foremost, Uchihas were way too proud to engage in this sort of exchanges — asking other Clans to provide them with an ungodly amount of junk was bound to become a monumental sore spot for their ego.
They also had a proclivity for publicly announcing their interest in whatever appealed to them — proudly owning every move they made — so shying away from the matter really appeared out of character.
Moreover, the urgency with which they had demanded their product was unheard of — people of their world knew the perks of waiting for the right time and place to make their transactions.
Naruto was aware Mito had accepted the meeting only because the profit would be stratospheric — for this reason she had sent him — but the location, along with anonymity, was just another motive for them to be wary-
Unclaimed neighborhoods were always a leap into the fucking void, after all.
“Whoever they are… They are getting bold.”
Naruto grunted in agreement. He was relieved his suspicions weren’t just some shit-anxiety-induced paranoia his mind was making him swallow, but if the Uchiha were really raising their bets, then…
He straightened his back and stretched his arms, “Got the stuff ready?”
Shikamaru nodded, “We’re ready to go, if you are.”
Naruto walked towards his car without another word, and the others followed him equally silent.
Whatever the game was, they had to play with the hand they were dealt.
§~§~§
When they arrived at the dock, the place was eerily silent. Naruto’s eyes checked their surroundings quickly to detect any sign of an upcoming ambush.
He turned towards Shikamaru — even when nothing appeared to be amiss, his words remained barely more than a whisper, “What do you think?”
His friend followed his gaze as he scanned the contour of every container lined up the wharf. The silence prolonged until Shikamaru shifted beside him — his fingers flickering, “Naruto.”
“Mh?”
Blue eyes narrowed at the not-so-unexpected sight of Uchiha Sasuke, followed by his most trusted henchmen. His mouth tightened in a thin line as he gestured to his friends not to move.
As the others came to a stop, Hozuki was the first to speak, “Oh shit!” He snickered, “The dogs are actually here. You were right, Sas-”
The pink-haired girl — Haruno Sakura, Naruto’s mind provided — slapped his arm, immediately outraged, “Of course he was! Sasuke-kun-”
“Shut up.” Sasuke’s low voice redirected Naruto’s attention, “What are you doing here?”
Naruto felt his hands prickle at the disgust the other man's tone carried, “We?” He scoffed, “You called us here, prick.”
Sasuke frowned, and his gaze hardened slightly before the dark eyes darted briefly in Hozuki’s direction.
“What’s with all the secrecy, though?” Naruto insisted when the Uchiha seemed to hesitate, “I thought you were all about announcing yourselves.”
“We didn’t call you, idiot.” Sasuke finally spat. “As if we could ever need anything of your low-grade shit.”
Kiba moved beside Naruto — his grin widening and his eyes crinkling the way they did whenever he sniffed a good fight approaching, “Don’t bother with these guys, dude. I smell a group of rats here.”
Of course-
“Check your dog trap.” Suigetsu replied as he too took a step forward. “Sas, why aren’t we kicking their asses yet?”
“If anyone will get their ass-”
“Shut up, Kibs!” Naruto’s hand snapped on the brunet’s forearm as if on reflex — he could sense the damn imbecile bristling, “Shika, what-”
His question was drowned by Haruno’s piercing shriek — all of them turned to witness the woman clutching her arm as if it was about to tear from her body.
“Sakura, calm down.” Juugo pulled her to the side — she was still yelling like a fucking pig (can’t she shut the fuck up?) — trying to pry her manicured hand away with a delicacy that was admittedly surprising for a man of his size.
Naruto knew the guy was pretty infamous in the underground fight’s business. He was sure Juugo got-
The blonde’s line of thought derailed as soon as his brain registered the blood trailing down Sakura’s arm-
What the fuck-?
A new projectile brushed his legs, barely grazing his jeans, and he had to force down the shock along with the slight burning of his thigh in order to not let his friends be drilled right on the spot.
“It’s a fucking ambush!” Naruto’s shout seemed to startle everyone in motion. “Go, go, go!” He barked at his team while fisting Kiba’s shirt and throwing him forward.
Inuzuka and Sai — after a handful of seconds during which their expressions went from confused to holy fucking shit, we are going to die — rushed in the direction of the warehouses they had spotted earlier, their guns unsheathed and aimed at seemingly invisible targets.
As they ran away, Naruto’s mind went into a frenzy. He practically forgot about Uchiha and his group of pricks doing the same, but he sure as hell caught the bullets raining on him and Shikamaru.
Without hesitation, he pushed his friend behind a boat — his body following suit a fraction of a second later.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck! Where did they go? I’m going to kill that fucking Uchiha!” He tried to raise his head when the ominous sounds ceased, but soon new shots started to impact against their cover.
“Naruto we need to move! Now!” Shikamaru pulled at his sleeve, eyes wide and panicked, and Naruto stilled for a moment.
Nara looked at him as if he was going fucking crazy when he nodded to then silently crouch on the ground to assess the situation. The blonde would have found it funny if his friend’s intuition hadn’t been so accurate.
From his position, he couldn't see much, but what little he managed provided him with the image of several mysterious figures moving in the shadows, no more than a few meters away — no sign of Kiba or Sai coming to their rescue.
Fuck, they’re too many!
When he stood up again, he saw his anger reflected on Shika’s wary expression. “Ok. Ok, listen to me,” He squeezed his shoulder reassuringly, “When I say run, you run towards the warehouse, got it?”
“What the hell! You’re gonna get killed-”
“Got it?!”
Shika looked at him harshly, but Naruto held his stare until the other man relented, drawing in a deep breath. “Don’t die or get captured. I don’t want Mito to cut my balls.”
“I’ll be right behind you. Now fucking go, Shikamaru!” Naruto peeked his head out and snapped one last glance to his gun, “Go, you fucking idiot!” He hissed.
He revealed his cover only once Shikamaru had finally started running. Naruto was quick to shoot the son of a bitch aiming at his best friend’s head but, as soon as his body fell down, two more took his place.
Shots could be heard all the way across the pier, and he growled before launching himself in the open, trying to avoid being hit and shielding his body behind a long line of containers.
The row seemed fucking endless until-
A guardhouse.
The door burst open and he bolted inside.
He narrowly managed to shut the metallic door before fumbling to the ground — a foreign grunt resonating through the room from beneath him.
“What the actual fuck-”
Uchiha fucking Sasuke was struggling to get rid of Naruto’s weight, pushing on his chest to throw him off. Naruto scrambled back, his lungs were on fire, and sweat was already running down his forehead, “What are you doing here!?”
“I’m gonna fucking kill you-”
In the matter of a second, Sasuke was standing and wrestling against him again, slamming his back against the door with staggering violence — Uchiha’s elbow dug on Naruto’s collarbones and his arm pressed against his windpipe, effectively cutting his breath off.
“Why-” Naruto choked his words out, his free hand reaching up to take a hold of Sasuke’s hair — the other grunted when he pulled, grimacing slightly as his head tilted back, “What do you want, asshole?”
“You tell me! This is all your fucking doing-”
Finally managing to put Sasuke’s footing off, Naruto freed himself from his hold, “Do you take me for an idiot? You fucking ass-”
“One of mine got shot! You are an idiot if you-”
“Ahhh yes, your prissy girlfriend. Who the hell-”
Taking advantage of his outburst, Sasuke darted forward — the blonde’s breath caught, and he made a turn to try a counterattack, but the other, faster than him, was already opening the door and kicking him out of the protection of the guardhouse — long fingers curled around Naruto’s weapon.
“Fuck you!”
The blonde grabbed the other’s arm — Sasuke tried to shake him off, sinking his nails in Naruto's wrist — almost successfully unbalancing him, when another rain of bullets dawned on them.
He didn’t even register his knees hitting the grained floor before blinding pain made his flank burn — the suffering groan ripping out of his chest caused Sasuke to flinch.
As Naruto bent forward, another shot zoomed so close to his head he thought his eardrums would explode. He didn’t notice Uchiha shouting, nor picking him up and practically carrying him along the hallway, until he was shoved into a dark, secluded place — his back slumped against a cold wall.
With blurry eyes, he tried to take in his surroundings, attempting to reorient himself — whatever, he thought. Sasuke’s pale face seemed the only thing his mind could focus on anyway.
Naruto snorted — the pain making him nauseous all of a sudden, “Do you have a manhandling kink or what? What- What’s with all the throwing around? You fucking a-asshole.”
The effort of pronouncing so many words made him notice how ragged his breathing had become. Naruto’s head lolled down as his hand trailed over his abdomen to-
“Shit!” His fingers trembling at the feeling of the blood gushing out from his wound, he gathered enough strength to send another glare at the Uchiha standing frozen in front of him.
“What the fuck, asshole! Are you gonna help or what?”
“What the fuck asshole! Are you gonna help or what?”
Sasuke shook his head, trying to get rid of the panic freezing his limbs — the red stain coloring the Uzumaki’s shirt widening by the second.
He kneeled without sparing it a second thought and, with his hands trembling slightly — every attempt to suppress the motion failing miserably — reached out to grip the other’s jacket.
As Sasuke started to remove the clothes — his mind vaguely registering the tattooed skin — Naruto exhaled in a shaky breath. “You’re pretty, Uchiha-” The blonde grunted, “But you’re not my type.”
“Shut the fuck up!” He was way too occupied with discarding the last garments to even get pissed at his lame attempt at a joke.
His hand moved to the newly revelad skin as soon as the damp shirt touched the ground — the blood flowing through his fingers making his throat close, “Fuck- we need help.”
“No, fucking kidding.” The Uzumaki words lacked the usual wit, his voice weaker than just a minute earlier.
Sasuke felt his own breath hitch as he moved to take off his top — the cold so harsh and his arm so stiff he didn’t even manage to-
“Use the belt, genius.”
He nodded absentmindedly, following the other’s suggestion and using the fabric, along with the leather belt, to secure Naruto’s wound. “Didn’t you say I wasn’t your type?” Sasuke found himself blurting out, tension making his tongue loose, “Stay-stay still.” He added as Naruto started to fidget.
“‘t’s not like I could go anywhere, anyway.”
His jaw clenched, “Mh.”
“Why- you’re so pale.”
Sasuke frowned — the idiot was fucking dying and he was worrying about him? — allowing his gaze to meet Naruto’s.
The blonde titled his head — probably more out of exhaustion than curiosity — and spared him a crooked smile, “Don’t tell- have you never killed anyone, Uchiha?”
His eyes widened as Naruto snorted. “I don’t think this counts, no worries.”
“Dobe-”
“‘not your… fault-” The words came out more like a mumble, the blue eyes blinking slowly before they began to close-
Sasuke felt his panic surge again, “Na-Naruto!”
His arm stretched to shake the blonde, then moved up to slap him softly. He distantly realized that was the first time he didn’t use an insult, or the other’s clan name, to refer to Naruto, but didn’t have the opportunity to dwell on it for too long- his slaps got more forceful in an attempt to make the blonde react.
“Naru-”
“Kinky,” Naruto croaked out suddenly, a low chuckle stealing his breath away right after.
For a second, as he stared at the other’s tired grin, Sasuke’s mind whitened — the subdued giggle still ringing within his eardrums making mild relief flow through his body-
Sasuke shook his head again, “Shut up! Come on!”
The Uchiha stood up first, a grunt pulling out of his chest when Naruto’s whole weight clinged on his side. He patted his jeans, fingers sinking within his pocket looking for- “Fuck!”
The phone clanked on the ground with an obnoxious noise, its already shattered screen exploding in several pieces. Stabilising his footing, he thoroughly searched the blonde’s clothes too, giving up only when he didn’t find anything useful to ask for reinforcements.
“You can ask, you know,” Naruto’s forehead melded in the crook of his neck, the hot whispers tickling his skin, causing him to shiver.
Sasuke steadied his stance, moving in the door’s direction. “What.”
“My number.”
“Do you ever shut up?” Had it been a different situation he was sure he would have rolled his eyes.
Naruto struggled in following his lead, but didn’t complain as Sasuke pulled him out of the door and towards his car. They moved stealthily through the container’s maze, bullets and shouts still reverberating from afar.
Sasuke had to drag him a couple of times, Naruto’s body melting against his at every step. Once or twice a tan hand darted up to grab on Sasuke’s shoulders, only to get loose again as soon as his breath got ragged and shallow.
Thankfully, even when they could hear foreign people running around and talking loudly on the other side of the dock, they seemed far enough not to get spotted.
When Sasuke eventually saw what Naruto muttered was his car, he sighed in relief- only to immediately curse at the same deities he had been praying till this point when he noticed the opened trunk.
“Bast-ards stole-” The blonde trailed off but it was enough for Sasuke to confirm his fears: not only the assholes had tried to kill them, they had also took all their fucking stuff.
Shit! Madara is going to kill me.
His rage spiked dangerously fast, but he contained himself, squeezed his eyes and forced Naruto to sit on the passenger seat — never losing sight of him even as he walked to the other side of the vehicle to get in as well.
Sasuke started the engine as soon as his ass touched the leather and Uzumaki handed him the keys — one of his hand clawing the steering wheel, the other rummanaged the drawer to grab the phone Naruto told him was hidden-
Where the fuck-
“Karin-”
“What?”
Naruto drew in a harsh breath, “Ask for Karin. ‘s a medic- medic-”
§~§~§
“Fucking listen!” Sasuke ran a hand through his hair — getting in touch with Uzumaki Karin had already been hell, and he was tempted to snap Suigetsu’s neck if he kept fucking with him on the phone, “Don’t bring anyone else. Just you and Juugo.”
“Should I leave Sakura somewhere?”
“I dont fucking care where Sakura goes or not. Do. Not. Bring. Anyone. Else.” He gritted his teeth, patience running thinner by the second.
“What about Nara and the dogboy-”
“Don’t mess with them!”
“Are they already there? I can’t really understand-” Sasuke shut out his friend’s rambling, his voice just an annoying background noise, and turned back towards the whining idiot and the medic currently stitching his flank.
He tried — really tried — to avert his gaze as soon as his eyes took in the bare torso flinching against the headboard, but the muscles rippling underneath the tan skin, the inked spiral displayed artfully on the taut stomach, the broad shoulders tensing every time the needle pierced the area over his ribs-
Jesus Christ.
His hands prickled with raw need — to touch, to grab those hips and lick all over the colorful lines gracing Naruto’s arms, neck-
“ke? Sasukeeeee!”
Sasuke’s eyes widened slightly — Suigetsu’s cries effectively shattered all of his fantasies, “What.”
“The fuck are you doing-?”
“Get your ass here, Suigetsu.” He pressed on the end button as if he feared the phone would catch fire.
“Karin! Jesus- Auch!” Naruto slapped Karin’s hand — a pout forming on his face when the woman pinned him on the bed with a dreadful stare.
She sighed before reaching out to take care of his wound one more time, “Naruto, shut the fuck up! You are going to-”
“Are you doing this on purpose?! Christ ! Slow down!”
“You’re such a cry baby.” Karin chortled, totally unfazed by Naruto’s suffering.
Sasuke felt his lips curl, an unexpected snort leaving his mouth. The blond’s attention darted back on him immediately, “Don’t judge, teme.” A mischievous glint made the blue eyes crinkle — Karin’s brows arched, her head snapping back and forth between the two men.
“I bet you’ve never got shot either.”
A smirk still playing on his face, Sasuke only shook his head, getting closer to him to give back the device, “Thanks.”
“Did you call your girlfriend?” Naruto’s mocking grin made his neck flush.
“She’s not my girlfriend!” He snapped.
If there was something Sakura was not, that was his girlfriend. Nor friend. Nor his, in any way or dimension possibly contemplated on this holy earth.
Sasuke had spent years trying to make the concept he was not interested sink into that thick skull of her and, at one point, he had almost managed; then, his fucking brother had deemed it necessary for her to join his team.
“It’s always wise to have a medic in the team, Sasuke,” Itachi had said when he had tried to refuse his proposal.
If he was honest, the suggestion had immediately rubbed him the wrong way — he had been so adamant that Sasuke had thought there was something odd, lewd even, going on between the two of them — but eventually, he was forced to acquiesce.
Obviously, he didn’t trust her, even-
“Ooook lovebirds. It’s two in the fucking morning, and I’d like to go to sleep,” Karin attempted to push Naruto down one last time — the blonde sputtering and grunting lightly when she pressed on his stomach.
Sasuke’s gaze darted away, snapping back again when his ears caught on the tail of her mumbled complaints, “-pid idiot. Only one centimeter to the left and you own liver would have drowned you in fucking blood.”
Naruto’s face split in a shiteating grin, “Death, a necessary end…”
Will come when it will come. Sasuke found himself completing the quote, and his heart missed a beat. What were the odds that someone like the dobe knew something like that ?
The idiot didn’t strike him as the classic-literature-passionate kind of guy — he was way too hot for such a thing — and he surely didn’t seem stuck-up enough to use random quotes just to seem smarter.
Although, he would admit he didn’t know Uzumaki that well, so he cou-
“So, what is he doing here?” Karin asked, glancing at Sasuke with narrowed eyes.
“I-” The door slamming open interrupted Sasuke before he could utter a single sound — Inuzuka’s sweaty face appearing at the threshold all of sudden.
“Dude!” His disbelief quickly vanished as he pointed his gun directly at Sasuke’s face.
The Uchiha made to unsheathe his own weapon on reflex, but his shooting line was intercepted by the pale-sick guy he had seen with Naruto at the dock.
The creepy boy turned to face Karin, his eyes still side-glancing Sasuke warily, “Are you stupid, Karin? What is he-”
“Naruto brought him, ok?”
“You know he’s a naive fo-”
“Enough!” Naruto’s shout made the others flinch, and he struggled to sit straight — Karin threw her hands up, her eyes rolling in annoyance as she took a step back, “Uchiha is a guest here.”
Sasuke briefly focused on Naruto — who was still glaring at his pals — then made to put the gun away. He spun abruptly when Nara too appeared beside the dog boy — his gaze hard and calculating — shutting the door.
“What-”
The loud knocking caused all of them to stir. Karin looked inquisitively at the blonde before crossing the room in four long strides once Naruto nodded his approval.
“Are we throwing a fucking party?” She inquired while turning the knob — her shoulders tensed as soon as she opened the door again.
“Oi! Dimwit!”
Suigetsu stilled, already halfway into the apartment, and looked down at Karin’s angry scowl, “Sas, who- wow.” He gasped — his mouth parting as his gaze grew wide.
“Who is this imbecile?” Karin’s growl made Sasuke snort, and Suigetsu frowned briefly before his lips stretched in a seductive manner — or that was the impression Sasuke got.
“I like this one.”
Karin exhaled harshly, and fixed the glasses on her nose, “Can you take your mess somewhere else?!” Her hands clawed on Sai and Kiba’s shirts, starting to pull them towards the entrance, “Get the fuck out!”
“No one leaves until we clarify what happened.” Nara’s tone made her freeze on the spot.
“But-!”
“What is there to clarify? They ambushed us.” Sai gestured in Naruto’s direction and to the pile of crimson stained fabric splayed on the floor, “Look at all that blood. He could be dead.”
“It’s not their fault.” Naruto stated firmly.
“Did you hit your head too?”
“His girlfriend,” The blonde pointed at Sasuke — the Uchiha rolled his eyes in response, “got shot.”
“So what?”
“Then Sasuke,” He motioned again, sparing a small smile in his direction — Sasuke felt his stomach twist when Naruto pronounced his name, “Saved me. Well, after he made some bastard hit me, but at least he tried to make up for it.”
“Was this a third party, then?” Juugo asked.
Nara’s eyes went unfocused for a second, then he nodded, humming softly, “Yes, but it wasn’t a lesser clan. At least not the one that got the idea.”
“Oh, I got some clues.” Suigetsu perked up and rushed out of the room. When he came back, there was a corpse thrown over his shoulder. He let the body fall unceremoniously to the ground.
Karin affronted screeches echoed in the room. “What the actual fuck is that?! Are you out your fucking mind?”
“Clues, darling.”
“How dare you-”
“Not the moment, Karin.” Naruto cut her off — his arms and back flexing slightly as he scooted closer to the edge of his — Karin’s — bed.
Sasuke followed the motion until Nara’s form obstructed his sight and he crouched near the cadaver. The man’s hand wandered over the bloodied clothes carefully — a grimace twisted his face.
“Shika?”
“I don’t know who they are. But they sure as fuck got paid enough.” He said, weighting the M16 in his right hand.
Sasuke frowned, nearing him, “What do you mean?”
“Someone just got an upgrade.”
“Huh?” Inuzuka leaned over Shikamaru’s shoulder, inspecting the body with puckered lips.
“Their guns, they look brand new.”
“So?” Suigetsu shrugged, “Their leader wanted them in top shape for the occasion.”
Nara exhaled, regarding him as if he was about to give a lecture to a difficult toddler, “Look at the rest of their garments. These are not their usual weapons.”
“They didn’t seem that experienced either.” Juugo commented. “None of us would have made it out of there.”
“Take off his shirt and turn him around.”
“Wait, dude, what?” Inuzuka yelled, his finger pointed at Nara’s chest, “I would have expected that from Sai-”
Naruto chuckled. “He’s looking for his clan crest, idiot.”
Sasuke’s eyes snapped up unbidden, the sound much more enticing, charming than the one the blond had forcefully pulled out of his chest a few hours before.
As the dog-boy struggled to turn the corpse — muttering curses the whole time — and took the shirt off, Nara hummed low in his throat, his gaze fixated on the three rings arranged like a ben diagram tattooed just below the nape of their major clue.
“Shika?” Naruto prompted again.
“I have never seen it before.”
“That was very useful.” Suigetsu huffed, fidgeting with the safety of his gun. Sasuke glared at him, making his hand snap behind his back.
“No, no, no, you don’t get it. If Shika doesn’t recognize it, it means it must be a newly formed clan.” Naruto shook his head, “He knows all of the families’ crests.”
Sai moved beside his superior, silently assessing his wounds, “Why would a new family risk the wrath of the two most powerful clans?” The man mused, as his eyes roamed over Naruto’s abdomen — Sasuke had to bite his cheek to keep his mouth from twisting. He was unexpectedly relieved when the creep didn’t try to touch the blonde, though.
Focus, dammit!
“Even if they had succeeded at eliminating all of us, Mito and Madara would exterminate them in no time.”
“Precisely,” Nara stood up and looked at everyone around them. “They must count on someone’s protection, which explains both the weapons and suicidal mission- and why they didn’t try that hard to kill us.”
Naruto scoffed. “Speak for yourself.”
“At least one member of each group would have survived, I can guarantee.” Shikamaru pinched the bridge of his nose. “This was meant to-”
“Spark conflict between us.” Sasuke’s murmur was echoed by Naruto’s words — his eyes rose instinctively, their astonishment mirrored in the electric blue of the blonde’s.
When the idiot smirked knowingly, Sasuke couldn’t suppress his own chuckle — as the entire expanse of his skin burned under the other's attention, he tried to kill the sheepish feeling forming a lump in his throat for-
Holy fucking shit-
Realisation slowly dawned over him, and he had to battle with his mind to control the urge to slap himself in the face.
He wondered if recognizing his folly was, at least, a sign of his wisdom.
“You stupid-”
Naruto raised his hands in a placating gesture, “Mito-sama, I-”
“Do you have any idea how much money we lost because of your idiocy?!” The woman’s fist collided against the desk, making all the stationaries on it rattle, “Not only did we throw away our best stock, you almost allowed yourself to be killed by a fucking Uchiha!”
“Sasuke didn’t-”
“Sasuke?” She snorted, “What, did our gold child find a friend?”
Naruto felt his inside twist as he spared a nervous look around, trying to see if someone else had caught on the inflection of the word. He knew his godmother was aware of his inclination — and that he was tiptoeing on a very thin line ever since she found out — but he never believed Mito could actually use the knowledge to have an edge over him.
The idea made his head spin with apprehension but, at the same time, it caused his anger to escalate dangerously — stupidly. “Didn’t you hear a word we said?” He clenched his fists. “It was a setup. Someone else tried to wipe us out.”
“And you’re sure about that, why exactly? Because they have shining guns?” She chuckled mockingly, “Don’t make me laugh, kid.”
Shikamaru neared Naruto, ready to speak, but Mito cut him off, “Enough. I don’t care if you have to shit them, but bring me back my money.”
“How-”
“Now!” Her hand slammed against the wooden surface again, “Out! All of you.”
Kiba waited for them to exit the dark office before he remarked, “Told you this would happen.”
“And what were we supposed to fucking do!?” Naruto’s scowl deepened as he turned to punch the wall — wincing slightly at his sore knuckles right after. “The ones behind this shitshow are plotting against us as we speak, but she won’t listen because she can’t let go of her stupid grudge!”
“She’s not wrong.” Sai grimaced right at Naruto’s injured hand. “You think she has managed to keep the clan on top all these years just by being stubborn? We know nothing.”
“Exactly!” Naruto spun around, emanating the threatening aura Uzumakis were well known for. “Not getting more information would be an idiodic mistake.”
“Naruto,” Shikamaru sighed, his finger pinching the bridge of his nose tightly, “You know she’s gonna send others to do the job if you refuse.”
“I- shit ! I know, okay? Just- just let me think.” The blonde brushed his hair back, “I’m outta here. I’ll call you when I come up with something.”
As he started to walk towards the door, he heard his best friend’s steps falling after his, “What? You comin’ too?”
Shikamaru took out a cigarette and lit it. When he nodded slowly, Naruto opened the door for the both of them.
It’s gonna be a fucking long night.
§~§~§
He and Shikamaru were bundled inside Naruto’s apartment — one of the few things Mito and his clan weren’t informed about — as the dense smoke of the joint fogged the living room with a swirling cloud.
“Okay, okay, okay.” Naruto was pacing the room restlessly. “Who would benefit from the downfall of both Clans?”
“Like, everyone?” Shika said with a lazy tone that didn’t match the severity of the situation.
Naruto rolled his eyes. “Who would actually stand a chance?”
“Sarutobi, Hyuuga, Ootsutsuki… the list is still too long.” The man looked up, his gaze probably following the cracks streaking through the white roof. “This is a surprisingly delicate balance.”
“Argh!” Naruto threw himself into the bed — Shikamaru bounced slightly from his weight, scooting to make space for him. “So we have nothing.”
Naruto quietly revisited their meeting with Mito, what her requests entailed. It was clear the woman wanted at least to be remunerated for all the stolen junk — and the involvement of the Uchiha obviously called for her pride to be appeased as well.
However, despite the fact Naruto loathed to come empty handed, he really had no fucking idea of how to satisfy her without going back on his word.
Furthermore, since their ill-fated encounter with the one Uchiha Sasuke, he was on edge to know whatever was transpiring on the other side of the-
“I don’t think Sasuke got better results, to be honest.” Shika huffed out the smoke, eyeing him suspiciously.
“We don’t kn-” Naruto’s phone rang suddenly, and he struggled to extract the device from his pocket.
Shikamaru’s brows arched as he read the message:
Need to meet.
“What?”
“Sasuke.”
“That was fast.” He mused.
Naruto’s gaze darted back to the other man, “Is that bad?”
When Shikamaru only shrugged in response, Naruto took a second to write back:
something off?
The reply came immediately:
Let’s just say
“What is past is prologue”.
Naruto’s eyes widened fractionally, both for the words chosen and their meaning.
Rather than a Shakespeare kind of guy — the Uchiha were too traditional for such a thing — the blonde would have bet Sasuke was an avid reader of Mishima or Kawabata. Most likely, he had presumed Naruto to be a basic worshiper of western culture, and threw some random quote at him as a test.
Whichever it was, Naruto couldn’t deny his chest felt a little… something. He shook his head when his thoughts appeared about to reel into dangerous grounds — again — and tried to focus on the matter at hand.
After all, even the devil “can cite Scripture for his purpose”.
Before he could type a reply, Sasuke sent another text:
Have you talked with her?
she’d make drown even
the strongest of swimmers
He pressed the send button with a little smirk curling his lips.
Two can play the game.
“What did he say?” Shikamaru pried.
The blonde tried to school his face in a neutral expression, “He asked for a meeting.”
“Are you seeing him?”
Naruto nodded, and the brunet hummed, contemplatively, “You should meet somewhere safe.”
“I know.”
“I think you’re doing the right thing. Just…” He trailed off — Naruto stretched his neck and shoulders as he waited for him to continue, and seated up straight.
“Just?”
“Be careful.”
Catching on the bad-hidden concern in the other’s stare, his mouth widened in a foxy grin, “As always.”
Shikamaru shook his head sternly as his lips twitched — his attempts to suppress his own smile failing miserably fast. They both soon bursted into laughter, the cheerful sound appeasing Naruto’s worries a little bit.
The situation was bound to turn shitty, but, at least, he knew who was on his side.