CHAPTER 10
Naruto cuesed. He had spent only an hour on the movie set and Sai already managed to piss him off three times. Because of that he was shouted at by Tsunade, which was there to keep things working. It also didn't help that it was only a day after he shouted at Hyyuga Hiashi.
"Alright, blondie, get your ass here!"
"Yes, ma'am."
Uzumaki dragged his feet to the set. Today they were filming a battle scene, where their own village fought with a neighboring one. The whole group met up in the woods outside the city. He wanted badly to scratch his cheek where a fake cut and blood were put on his face. His clothes were tattered especially and splashed with red, since it was assumed that the battle was going on for hours. In comparison to Naruto's ark blue outfit, that had holes and tears here and there, Sai's was more revealing. Half of his left hand was exposed as was the pale belly. Make up artists worked on his filming partner also. A few cuts on the exposed body parts smeared with fake blood.
"Ok, boys, get in positions and we're starting!"
Naruto found himself surrounded by the enemies with one hand holding a kunai. 'Here it goes.' One word "ACTION!" and everyone reacted as one, jumping, running, fighting. As planned, the blonde fought off several guys and forced his brain to remember the hand-signs he had to do. Going through a short series of them, he made a move for the attack. Later, added the visual effects, it would look like a blue blast swept the enemies off their feet. Also, as planned, the number of the guys surrounding him grew. Finally, he heard shouts coming from behind him. It meant that Sai aka Kouhei came for the rescue. Together they eliminated shinobi that caused Naruto, aka Kin troubles before.
When the small dialog they had, ended, Uzumaki had to fight his fight or flight reflex. It was Sai-kissing-time. The blonde thanked everything holy it was brief. But he knew the most explicit scene was saved for later. Apparently, they began shooting even before they took Naruto as their main character. Those were not too important moments, which didn't require at least Naruto's presence. So, while the battle scenes were edited and polished on computers, they would, as Tsunade put it, film 'some man loving'.
Naruto had to admit though, the woman knew how to do her job and schedule everything so that the movie could be released as soon as possible.
...
4hours later.
"Dammit, Sai! Tone down a bit your libido next time!"
"Shut up, brat. You two did great."
"But it's not porn we're making!"
Naruto was furious. Sai went all out on kissing scene: frenched him good and groped all over. The Uzumaki had to admit - the man was good at it, but it didn't mean there weren't any boundaries. Especially in front of so many people.
"Naruto, our characters are supposed to be in love."
"Go fuck yourself, Sai! There is no time for heavy making out sessions on the battle field! We could have been killed with how long it lasted!"
"Stop whining, brat! You did well, Sai. We're not going to edit it."
"Are you trying to convert it into porn, old hag? I didn't agree to this!"
"I have to admit, Tsunade, that Naruto and I need to practice a little more. To work out some chemistry between us, so to speak."
"Do what you feel is needed. I want your interaction in this movie to be realistic."
"Oh hell no!"
"Thank you, Tsunade. We'll do our best."
"Are you even listening to me, you two perverts?"
"Sai, just don't molest him too hard. We still need him intact for other scenes."
"Of course. By the way, when are we filming the sex scene?"
"Sai, take your hand off my ass! No! It can't go there! SAI! YOU SON OF A BITCH!"
"In two weeks. We decided to speed things up a bit. With the way everything's going the movie will be in theaters in three months. Oh oh, next time I want your hand on Naruto in the same place it is now."
"I SAID NO! SAI, IT'S TOO CLOSE TO MY CROTCH! GET IT OFF!"
"I'll be sure to remember."
"I can sue you for molestation! And stop kissing my neck! DON'T LEAVE ANY HICKEYS ON ME! BLOODY MORON!"
"You brat, stop shouting, or I'll make you have sex with Sai for real in front of the cameras!"
"The hell? You can't do that!"
"Of course I can. I think Sai will only be happy."
"I will be incredibly pleased to have a piece of that cute butt to myself."
"But.."
"Or you can go and find another place to work at. I highly doubt that other Studios will hire you, thanks to Uchiha's effort."
"Damn it!"
"I thought so."
"Can we have sex now then, Naruto?"
"NO!"
...
The same day. 'Blooming Shuriken'.
Yamanaka Ino was waiting for her friend to come. The young woman closed the cafe already, but had the lights on. Due to the tight filming schedule Naruto couldn't work much now and the only time they could meet up was after closing hours. She didn't mind much, since she was worried for him. Ino heard about Sai and his harassment attempts and didn't like it. After all, she wanted Neji to be the one dating Naruto, not some pretty-boy superstar. Even though it sounded good, the cafe owner wanted what was best for her friend. In addition, the two of her favorite guys together looked totally hot.
Ino never thought like this when Naruto was with Sasuke. That couple was a complete turn off. Seriously, the Uchiha never struck her as the handsome man: blank black eyes; as Naruto called it - duck butt hair; superiority complex matching the size of Russia; and that infuriating smirk. Just what in the world attracted people to that bastard? No, Neji was much better: long silky hair, rich with color; beautiful eyes of a rare shade; passive handsome face, which softened in the presence of cherished people; objective towards people and reasonable. That was Neji in a nutshell.
He called Ino the day before and told that Naruto had a conflict with Hiashi. That was not good. Not good at all. She feared what the man would say to Naruto once the two met again. It was no secret that Hiashi was a strict man, Ino went through an interrogation herself. She had to get an approval from the older Hyuuga to be let into the house as Neji's friend. But what the young woman knew, was that he loved his family unconditionally. He loved Neji, so he made his nephew do what he saw was the best for him. Sadly, it didn't mean Hiashi was right. Yamanka hope Naruto would influence the man so he wouldn't be so uptight.
The bell above the door jingled and pale blue eyes snapped in its direction. A completely worn out Naruto dragged his feet into the cafe with a tired smile. The girl skipped to her friend.
"Hey."
"Hey there, Naru-..." Ino stared at the other blonde for a few seconds. "Are these hickeys? Why didn't you tell me that things between you and Neji progressed this far?"
Naruto sighed. Of course, she would think so.
"It's not Neji, it's Sai. The creep molested me today as if there is no tomorrow! And Tsunade just encouraged him!"
"Poor baby! Tell me where he lives and I'll kick his ass!"
"Relax Ino. I'll survive it somehow...probably...hopefully...we have a sex scene in two weeks..."
"What sex scene?"
Two blonde heads cautiously turned to the front door. For some reason Naruto felt like it was happening in slow motion. Ino, for her part, forgot to let her friend know that she called Neji too. Matchmaking skills be damned! The younger of the two blondes scratched his head.
"Well, in the movie. Tsunade and Jiraya came to a decision that it'll be about two gay ninjas."
Even with the skin pale as Hyuugas' it was fairly easy enough to see Neji's face go lighter at the admission.
"I...see..."
Ino felt bad for the young Hyuuga. There he was, trying to capture Naruto's heart, only to learn that some other guy would be touching the man he desired. Naruto cleared his throat. This was getting awkward.
"It's not like we're going to
have sex on the set. Though the had threatened me that we will, if I continue calling the movie 'porn'."
Neji sighed, trying to let out the anger that rose in him at the mention of an intimate scene.
"Then, it will be in your best interest not to refer to the movie as 'porn'. Tsunade is well known for her unorthodox methods of dealing with problems. So I have no doubts that her threat is real."
The young blonde man hung his head. Sometimes he felt like the whole world was against him, even though he knew it was just his paranoia speaking. But seriously, Neji siding with Tsunade? Ok, he exaggerated, he saw the brunette tense at the mention of the sex episode. And given that Neji had feelings for him it was understandable.
"I know, I know. Let's forget about the movie for now, because I'm starving."
...
The weekend. Hyuuga mansion.
Naruto tried hard not to fidget in the chair he was sitting in, while confronting Hyuuga Hiashi.
The week flew by so fast with the dreaded feeling of meeting with the man, that the blonde still wasn't sure if it was real or just a dream. Sure, the last time he met Hiashi he acted all brave and macho, defending his pride, or what was left of it. He knew himself pretty damn well: he could say whatever was on his mind in the heat of the moment, but when it came to actually explaining his actions eloquently or, at least, understandably and logically he fell short on words. One of the reasons being that Naruto never felt comfortable enough around such important, stuck up people to let his words flow and make good points. Besides, all that 'Sasuke stuff' didn't make the situation any better. Most wouldn't even want to listen to what he had to say, before jumping into their own conclusions.
The blonde felt heavy pale gaze drilling a hole in his head - the feeling he had been rather used to. But in this particular situation there was Neji to think of and how his words would influence the relationship between the brunette and his uncle.
"Uzumaki, I hope you will accept my apologies for the behavior displayed by me and Hanabi the last week. The words we said were unacceptable."
The blonde blinked owlishly at the man. That was not something he expected.
"Ugh, please, call me Naruto. I apologize too for my temper and everything I said, because it was uncalled for. I hope you can forgive me."
The older man smiled slightly.
"After Neji explained everything there is nothing to forgive. I understand perfectly that you tried to defend your pride and that's honorable. Not many young people in our days are unafraid to do that. You should also understand why I acted the way I did. In the business world there are very few men that are not corrupted by the power. You being with the Uchiha and then befriending Neji didn't help to build a good opinion of you. Also, as I think you already know, the most will believe Uchiha when searching for true reasons of the two of you growing apart. His word holds more weight."
Naruto knew all of that already, but it felt nice to have someone that believed him, though not directly.
"Yes, I understand all that and the fact that I can't do anything about it. Besides, even if I decided to somehow right things it will only cause another round of gossips and worsen my standing. If you pardon my language, Sasuke is a bastard. Always was and will be. But we were friend first, so I never dared to even imagine that he will do such a thing. So now I can only hope that this whole situation will settle down with time."
Somehow, the way Hiashi smiled and shook his head seemed fatherly and the action made the blonde feel warm inside.
"Naruto, my dear boy, you can't just sit and wait until everything goes back to normal. I know about my nephew's...preferences and that he has strong feelings for you. From his words and what I can see now, you are a good man. I will accept your relationship if you ever come to love Neji, but I will also destroy you if you decide to go back to the Uchiha. You must understand that I only want happiness for him. I want you to give me your word that you will not associate with the Uchiha under any circumstances and then you will have my full support."
The young Uzumaki stared at the man in front of him in shock. That was some strange turn of events.
"I don't want you to trouble yourself with my problems. But, yes, I can give you my word that I'm not planning on going back to Sasuke. And I never go back on my word. You can ask my friends - they can easily confirm that."
"No need to go to such length, my boy. From now on you have full support of the Hyuuga family and I will personally see to that this conflict is solved. You are welcome in this house anytime. Now, I must ask you to leave for I have some business matters to attend to."
"Ah, yes, thank you very much."
Naruto left Hiashi's home office in a daze. He never thought the last week's confrontation would lead to something so...so nice. It felt a little like he had a family now. Who would have thought that Hiashi was a really honest, noble man, offering his help to someone he barely knew. That only showed how much he trusted Neji's judgement and words.
As soon as the Uzumaki entered the living room, Neji appeared by his side.
"Naruto, how did it go?"
The blonde couldn't contain his happiness. Plus it all happened thanks to the brunette, who cared for him deeply and sincerely. In a blink of an eye Naruto was hugging Neji so tightly, that the young Hyuuga thought he heard his ribs crack.
"Thank you, Neji! Thank you so much! Everything is ok now."
And as an ecstatic Naruto kissed the stunned brunette hard on the lips, he thought that maybe being with Neji was alright and he wouldn't have to wallow in pity anymore.
