The Challenge

Well busy season of doing income tax is over so I’ve written a new chapter. The next is half done and should be out soon.

Chapter Ten: “Boxed Kisses”

“No.” Itachi said without looking up from his computer. He’d brought home some assignment his graphic design teacher was working on. During the summer he worked for this man in an internship with the promise of a real job after he graduated.

“But, I promised.” He stood by his brother’s side and grabbed his arm.

“Listen Sasuke,” Itachi turned to him, “you shouldn’t have promised something you can’t deliver. I’m the one who now has to cook three meals.”

“Come on it’s just going to be once and a while. I doubt he’ll have another correct assignment any time soon.” Sasuke wrapped his arms around his brother’s shoulders and begged loudly in his ear. “Please, please I’ll love you forever. I’ll even stay on extra special good behavior for Ebisu-san.”

“Fine,” his brother flinched away from the yelling in his ear. “Why did you agree to this and better yet why did you agree to tutor him in the first place when I told you to stay away from him?”

“He wouldn’t leave me alone and it’s a way to fill up the mornings since I have to be there so early.” Sasuke took a seat next to his brother and rested a cheek on his palm, elbow on the table and watched his brother type away. “Hinata and he are the only friends I have. I’m sorry that you don’t like him but he’s funny and nice to me.”

Itachi stopped typing and looked up at him. “It’s not that I don’t like him, it’s that I’m not completely sure he’s a good influence. Your lungs can’t handle being around smoke and you didn’t convince me that Naruto had nothing to do with your panic attack.”

“He didn’t do anything, I wouldn’t lie.”

“You lied about not having anything to do with Naruto and now I find out you were tutoring him all this time.” His brother’s hand came up and a finger pocked him rather hard in the forehead. “My little boy is growing up so fast.”

“Oh gross.” Sasuke stood back up and went to his room.

The older Uchiha watched his brother walk away and then tried to return to his work but his mind kept drifting away from the code.

He liked Hinata and didn’t mind his brother spending time with the girl. Naruto, however, was a different story. For a while now, he knew this was bound to happen.

In the beginning when he first brought Sasuke home from the foster home his younger brother clung to him desperately. Sasuke was so terrified of being abandoned that they had to sleep in the same bed and Sasuke would wait out side the door if Itachi used the restroom. Following Anko’s advice they set up a rigid schedule that included a menu. His brother responded well to it and started to worry less. The nightmares and anxiety attacks that formed whenever he left a room started to die away. On the inside it was easy to say that he wanted his brother to think for himself and be independent but every time Sasuke took to slightest step out on his own he burned to lock him away and keep him hidden forever. Anko told him when they made the schedule that he needed to weed out the pattern or Sasuke would get so comfortable with it that change would bring back the anxiety. A tiny part of him that he wanted to deny existed thought there was no problem with that.

When he really thought about it he didn’t understand how he couldn’t be prepared. Sasuke was every bit an Uchiha; strong, resilient, and a survivor. His brother seemed a lot frailer than he really was. He didn’t like to admit that he was partly to blame for that. They were both works in progress working past loss and trauma. In therapy he focused on learning how to let Sasuke become his own person and his own feelings of inadequacy at being too late to help his brother.

For the most part the feelings inside him that told him to keep his brother helpless was beaten down by how proud he was of Sasuke. Their therapist agreed that Sasuke made quick progress for going through the kind of abuse he did. As a layman he could tell that his brother got better and better with every year that went by. Now he had two friends and spent time out of the house working on a project for a fair. The younger boy also succeeded in talking him into bringing a rodent into the house and making food for his friend. It wasn’t too surprising since Sasuke always had the ability to wrap him around his finger.

XX***XX

Holding the bento he made for Naruto against his stomach he made his way over to the table in the back of the library where they always met. He had no idea that Naruto would come back with a perfect assignment so quickly. Naruto explained that he went to Iruka’s house to use his computer. He promised that Iruka didn’t help and he only typed it up there. Sasuke only died of shock when the blond handed the typed piece of paper and smirked.

Over at the table Naruto looked up and smiled at him. Hinata was absolutely right, Naruto always lit up when they were together.

“Here’s lunch.” He put the box in-front of his friend and took a seat next to Naruto.

“Yes,” Naruto grabbed the scarf wrapped box pulling it close. “I love food; I wish it was lunch time right now.”

“That sounds dumb, shut up.” Sasuke sat in the chair facing him. “You act like if it weren’t for me you’d never eat.”

“I would never eat anything good.” He rubbed at the back of his head while thinking. “Well I would eat ramen. I mean I already do but I would eat it all day.”

“I like ramen but eating that much would make me sick.”

Naruto gasped. “Bite your tongue, ramen is the single best food known to man.”

“Fine, if it’s so great you can buy instant ramen and I’ll take that back.” He reached for the box but was stopped by Naruto grabbing his hands.

“I don’t think so, this is mine now.” They tug-of-warred playfully for a moment before Sasuke gave up and started laughing. “But as a thank you how about this.”

Warm, scratchy palms touched his cheeks holding his head still as Naruto’s face closed in on him. Unlike the time with Gaara his heart raced with excitement and not fear. Naruto kept his eyes on his as their mouths connected. The wet, chapped lips pressed to his making him gasp to allow a curious tongue inside.

His breath caught in his throat as Naruto’s warm, wet tongue moved over his teeth and pressed at his own tongue. One hand slid around to cup the back of his head and tilted it to allow their lips to fit together better. He followed Naruto’s lead letting the blond taste him at his leisure. Suddenly his chest began to tighten as oxygen grew short. Naruto continued to suck and lick at his tongue and lips before worrying the swollen lower one between his teeth.

Sasuke brought his hands up to push and Naruto’s shoulders. He couldn’t breath and Naruto’s tongue in his mouth wasn’t helping. In the moment it took Naruto to catch on, slight panic at the lack of air was beginning to set it making him struggle harder to push Naruto away. Finally the other pair of lips moved off his to trail over one flushed cheek. His hands grabbed at Naruto’s uniform to convey that he liked the kiss but needed to breath.

A soft chuckle in his ear moved his hair tickling his scalp. “Breath through your nose.” With that advice Naruto captured his lips in another passionate kiss. This time he practiced Naruto’s suggestion hoping that he could hide his inexperience.

Almost before he was ready Naruto pulled back and dropped a small kiss on the tip of his nose. Heat filled his face so fast he felt even fainter. Naruto’s hands were still tangled in his hair rubbing gently at his scalp. Breath batted against his face luring him to open eyes that he hadn’t known he closed. “Hey,” the blond whispered. “Am I really that good?”

Sasuke opened his eyes and stared fuzzy eyed at the other boy. He knew Naruto said something but for the life of him he didn’t know what. His brain wouldn’t even let him try to recall what he said. It was too busy screaming at him to lean forward and steal a kiss of his own. “Huh?”

“Wow, I kissed you stupid.” Naruto smirked and cupped his cheek again. Still out of it he just nodded his head in Naruto’s hand. “Feel free to return to reality anytime, I‘ll wait.”

“Shut up.” Finally his mind returned and decided to start functioning at nearly full capacity. There was still a small part prodding to get another lip lock as soon as possible. “You’re not as good as your ego thinks you are.” ‘Liar.’

“Yeah well, your spacing out says other wise, besides I’ve been praised for my kissing.” Much to his disappointment Naruto took his hands off of him.

‘I bet,’ he thought scowling. Suddenly the warning bell to go to class sounded.

Naruto grabbed his lunch while he grabbed his own box. Before they could part company the blond wrapped an arm around his shoulders drawing him into a warm chest. A hot voice whispered thick in his ear making his stomach flutter and knees week. “Do you have any idea how hot you are? I made your lips all puffy and your cheeks turned red. Next time I see you I’m going to kiss you again so be prepared.”

With that he pulled away and started for class with a slight wave good-bye.

Sasuke brought his fingers to his mouth and felt his lips not finding them any different than usual. His cheeks did feet slightly warm. He wanted to stop by the bathroom to see his reflection but he knew he didn’t have time. Slowly he made his way to class moving light footed through the crowd of students clogging the hallway. Most people didn’t pay him any mind but he knew Hinata would be sitting next to him and that girl noticed everything just like his brother.

To avoid her he lingered near his locker before class and made it to his seat just as class started. However, when he got there she was gone.

“Sasuke,” he looked up to see Iruka standing in front of him. “Neji came in with a note earlier stating that Hinata’s sick. Would it be okay if we copied your notes and sent them home with him for her?”

“Yeah sure.” Odd, he couldn’t remember the last time his partner had been sick then again he only really noticed her when they started sitting next to each other in class. Good thing they didn’t need to meet for another couple days. As Iruka started his lesson Sasuke let the school work distract him from Naruto’s kiss.

XX***XX

Naruto scooped the last bit of rice out of the box before pushing it away from him. “Hey Neji, how’s Hinata?”

“Yesterday she babysat a cousin of ours and this morning she woke up with a fever. They think it could be the flu but it’s probably just a bad cold.”

Kiba looked up from picking at Shino’s lunch. “Want to come over to my place or Shino’s to avoid getting sick?”

“No that’s okay. I doubt she’s too contagious.” Naruto laughed at the slight grimace on Neji’s face. His friend wasn’t exactly a fan of creatures of the four legged or many legged variety. Kiba’s family specialized in dog breeding and ran a kennel. At any given time they housed up to twenty dogs including their own pets and dogs for sale. As for Shino, well his father worked as an entomologist and always brought his work home with him. Shino inherited his love of bugs from the family business and had already been accepted to an accredited University in the study of insects.

The blonde packed the box away and stood drawing the attention of his friends. “I’ll see you losers later. I’ve something to do.” Kiba and Shino waved him off while he turned too quickly to notice Neji’s scowl.

He looked around the lunch room for Sasuke who was no where to be seen. Hopefully the other boy wasn’t hiding from him because of what he said earlier. He only stated a fact and wasn’t trying to scare him. Sasuke looked so beautiful trying to take the boxed lunch back that he couldn’t help but kiss the other boy. Afterwards he was glad he did.

The library seemed like a reasonable place for Sasuke to be so he headed in that direction. Very few students roamed the hallway and the library looked deserted except for the librarian. A girl listening to her iPod sat in the back at their normal table. She didn’t notice him so he walked away. ‘Where could he be?’

Suddenly he caught sight of spiked black hair entering the bathroom right outside the library. He followed and inside Sasuke stood at a sink washing his hands. He opened his mouth to talk but Sasuke brought a wet finger to his lips in a quiet motion. Just then a toilet flushed and some kid he didn’t know washed his hands quickly before leaving. After the boy walked through the door Naruto locked it and stared at Sasuke.

“Did I scare you this morning?” He asked seriously.

“No.” Sasuke answered just as seriously. “In fact I’m glad that Gaara’s not the last person to have kissed me.”

At mention of the red head’s name Naruto growled low in his throat. Gaara bragged about what he did but Sasuke didn’t know that. “That little prick. Is that what happened that morning that made you faint?’

Sasuke nodded but didn’t speak. Instead he walked over to Naruto and leaned against him. His pale face tilted up and black eyes stared into his blue. “This morning were you lying?”

“No why?” He wrapped his arms around Sasuke’s thin waist pulling him closer.

“Because you’re looking right at me but you’re not kissing me yet.”

Naruto let out a low chuckle before lowering his mouth to take Sasuke’s. Last time he caught the other boy by surprise but this time the other boy was prepared like he told him to be. Wasting no time he slid his tongue into Sasuke’s open mouth to taste his tongue and the roof of his mouth. Immediately the slightly shorter boy pressed back letting his own wet muscle slide against his lip and underneath his tongue. An uncontrollable shiver ran up his spine becoming a groan into Sasuke’s mouth. He could feel Sasuke’s lips pull into a grin and a soft, muted giggle vibrated his tongue.

As Sasuke started struggling for air, even though he breathed through his nose like he told him to, Naruto lowered his lips to lick and bit at a pale jaw. Moving down he ran his lips and tongue over Sasuke’s throat and the pulse in his neck. This made a breathy moan escape from the pale boy. He tried to suck at the cool skin but Sasuke pulled away.

“You can’t do that.” Sasuke panted resting his forehead against the hollow of his throat.

After just a second of confusion he realized what he meant. “No marks, got it.” To bad too because that pale neck was perfect for hickies. He tried to continue but an interruption spooked Sasuke.

“Shit,” Sasuke cursed stepping back as the door handle shook and an angry voice shouted something. He wanted to yell at them to go away but Sasuke was already wiping at his mouth and fixing his clothing. His hand moved to unlock the door when Sasuke wrapped an arm around his neck to whisper in his ear. “Next time I see you I’m going to kiss you, so be prepared.”

Naruto shivered at the breathy words in his ear. The other boy quickly untangled himself and disappeared into a stall. Floating on cloud nine he slowly turned and opened the door. Some freshman started to say something but thought twice about standing up to him. Normally he’d pants the kid but instead his mind was filled with where he was going to corner Sasuke next.

XX***XX

“Are you listening to me, Sasuke?” Ebisu’s annoying voice cut into his thoughts.

“Yes,” he shoved his hands into his lap to keep from rubbing at his mouth. “I said I’m fine.”

The social worker noted something on his clipboard. “So you came home early from school a few days ago.”

“It was over two weeks ago and I’m fine. Everything is fine.” He exclaimed hotly, angry at the mere sight of this man who held their future in his hands. Surprisingly he stopped running into Gaara and when they were in close proximity the red head didn’t pay him any mind. Neji, however, still glared daggers at him for no reason.

“Whether you’re fine now or not isn’t the issue. We have to find the source of the trouble and eliminate it.” Ebisu sat on the couch and waited but Sasuke stayed stubbornly silent.

“He won’t even tell me.” Itachi said from somewhere behind him.

“There’s nothing to tell. Everything is fine. Hinata and mine project is what’s important.” He changed the subject to hopefully distract everyone.

Ebisu-sama sighed and rubbed under his glasses. “How is this project going?”

As he told the story of how fast the mouse was learning and what the maze would look like Itachi relaxed into a kitchen chair. Ebisu seemed happy with his progress but still itched to get the whole story behind his trouble a couple weeks ago.

“Well.” he stood collecting his things. “You’re adjusting well. I like your grades and this project sounds like fun. The house is clean and aside from the one episode, the first in over a year I understand, I like the progress. So I’ll be back in a month for the proper visit.” Surprisingly he didn’t say anything about what he would put in the report. Itachi walked him to the door leaving Sasuke on the couch.

Now that Ebisu was gone he let his mind wonder back to Naruto’s kiss in the library and the one he started in the bathroom. He hated comparing it to Gaara’s forced kiss but he was glad that Naruto’s was better. The inside of his mouth was warm and tasted of ramen after lunch. Remembering the skilled way his tongue moved around his mouth bumping his own tongue made his pants tighten slightly.

Getting aroused on the couch in the front room with his brother a few feet away was not a favorable idea. He let his mind come back and try to pick up his brother and Ebisu’s conversation but there were too far away.

Itachi groaned as he plopped down in a chair to his side. “He’s giving a positive review and agrees with Anko’s opinion that separation would be detrimental to your development.”

He snorted and crossed his arms over his chest. “I can’t believe it took a highly educated child psychologist and an experienced social worker to come up with that. Good thing we don’t pay either one of them.”

“Don’t be that way. Working together those two have kept you in this house with me.”

“No,” he argued. “The money our parents left us and jumping through their hoops keeps up together.” The actual main reason they were allowed to stay together was left unsaid.

“Whatever, it’s over now. So if you do your homework I’ll start dinner.”

He pushed off the couch and made his way to his bedroom to grab this school bag and change his clothes. Ebisu was already waiting for them when they arrived so he wasn’t able to get out of his uniform.

This was the fist visit that Ebisu seemed to be completely satisfied with their situation. There were families out there living in cars and abusing their children that never have problems but they had all these official eyes on them. But as long as they were getting a favorable review then they didn’t have to worry.

Instead he thought about where and when he and Naruto could be alone again.

XX***XX

General Notes:

1) I want to concentrate on the Naruto/Sasuke relationship so the Gaara and Neji problems have seemed to disappear. I will resolve it sometime.

2) Next chapter is the science fair. Afterward the heavy angst will begin and the answers brought up in the story will be answered

3) The biggest change starting this chapter is that we are starting to move faster because as much as I love this story the end is in sight. Maybe 5-6 more chapters. I have all the events and the ending planned out.

4) Pairing Note: A reviewer made a comment about the pairing that I really couldn’t understand so I want to clarify. There is a difference between Sasu/Naru and Naru/Sasu. This is Naru/Sasu. Read my profile for a more detailed explanation.

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Mini-Rant:

Another story that was lengthy and well written bit the dust. Again out of respect I will not mention the story title or author. It was about 6 chapters long and hit a cliff hanger before the author decided they didn’t feel like writing it anymore.

Mostly I write this as a plea or suggestion to any authors who read this. When you write a few chapters to a story think long and hard before posting. Ask yourself: How will this end? I’m I really going to write this to the end? Will it survive the mid-story lull and bout of writers block that usually happens toward the middle of a story?

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To end on a happy note I have some story pimping.

“Liar, Not So Much” is really funny. Kakashi/Iruka pairing and a one shot.

“Off Target” is a new Naruto/Sasuke AU story I’ve started.

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Thank you for reading and for the fabulous reviews it makes me feel loved. See you all next chapter.