Of Birds Who Fly Free

Chapter Fourteen_Yours and Mine

Laughter filled the local Konoha bar, always guaranteed at the expense of others. Naruto sighed and smiled, pushing past the cloth door and entering, immediately greeted by shouts and waves from his clustered friends.

“Naruto! You’re late…” Shino greeted him.

Naruto grinned apologetically and rubbed his neck, walking over to them. “Sorry…Yuda and Gent were starting trouble again. They just can’t seem to get along…”

Kiba cracked a sadistic grin at Naruto’s suffering, then reverted to a pout. “Oh? Really, we’re starting to think you prefer hanging with your genin more then with us.”

“Genin…geez…” Shikamaru sighed and frowned.

“At least Naruto got a team that is just like his old team,” Neji also cracked a sadistic smile.

“Assholes…all of you!” Naruto declared with a scowl.

“Well…it is really amusing. Let’s just hope one of them doesn’t tear up the town someday,” A feminine voice spoke up, drawing Naruto’s attention.

Naruto looked and suddenly found himself enveloped in a warm hug, soft strawberry blonde hair pressed against his nose. He felt a huge smile break across his lips, his arms wrapping tightly around the smaller frame and embracing her.

“Sakura-chan! You’re finally home.”

Sakura smiled and broke their hug, giving him a sudden scolding look and raising her fist. “Uzumaki Naruto…what’s this I heard about you bullying Sasuke-kun!! Prepare for pain, you annoying idiot!”

“Woah! Hey!!!” Naruto faked a panicked look, seeing Kiba snickering out of the corner of his eye.

“Nah! I’m just kidding,” Sakura relaxed and smiled again, smacking him over the head. “Now sit down, already.”

Naruto laughed and rubbed the spot, taking a seat alongside her.

“Speaking of finally being home…I’m surprised you’re still here, Lee,” Neji glanced at the bowl haired man, who was drinking some water.

Lee looked up and blinked, smiling warmly, “Ahh…yes. I can not return to Sunagakure just yet.”

“Chuunin exams,” Shikamaru voiced. “They’re being held in Konoha.”

Lee nodded in agreement, smiling warmly.

“Wait! So Gaara’s coming to visit!?” Naruto exclaimed and felt his excitement grow at the prospect of seeing his friend.

“Give it up, Naruto. You’ll never see Gaara even if he visits,” Kiba cut in.

“What? Why not?” Sakura frowned in mild confusion.

“Yes, I am not sure what you mean, Kiba-kun. Gaara would very much like to see Naruto-kun,” Lee objected with a frown.

“So you’re saying you wont be keeping him locked in your bedroom the whole time?” Kiba suddenly broke out into a sadistic grin, poking Lee in the shoulder.

“Ah, that’s right. Gotta christen the barely used apartment,” Naruto joined in the joke.

Lee flushed scarlet and suddenly scratched the back of his neck with a shy smile, stammering in an attempt to form a sentence of denial.

“Oh stop it! You two are always teasing Lee-san,” Sakura scolded both boys, trying not to laugh.

“Its jealousy,” Chouji spoke up around a handful of beer nuts.

“Bullshit!” Kiba objected, hugging Shino’s arm tightly. “I’m very happy with Shino.”

Naruto laughed nervously, fingering a silver chain around his neck. “Yeah…why would we be jealous?”

Shikamaru smirked evilly. “Two words…sand tentacles.”

And with that, almost everyone at the table turned beat red, but none more then Lee who looked ready to die from the embarrassment.

“Awe…man….I did not need that visual, Shika…” Naruto whined after a moment, banging his head on the table. “I’ll never be able to look at Lee or Gaara the same way again!”

“We…We do no such thing!!” Lee exclaimed with a slight crack in his voice.

“OH MY GOD, YOU HAVE DONE IT!!” Kiba cried, taking the higher pitch of Lee’s tone as evidence of truth.

“Have not! Besides…what of you two!?” Lee accused, pointing the finger at Kiba and Shino now.

Kiba frowned, “What do you mean?”

It was Naruto’s turn to grin evilly, “Oooh…that’s right. What do you two do behind those closed doors?”

“Something that creeps and crawls?” Neji added with a cruel smile.

Shino’s eyebrow raised up at the innuendo and Kiba chocked on his sake.

Naruto laughed along with everyone as Kiba burst into a rant to defend himself. He relaxed and the next few hours flew by with talks and easy jokes between him and his friends. It was wonderful to be able to hang out and spend time with them again.

He split a bottle of sake with Sakura, and snickered when Lee got another on Kiba, who flushed red once again.

“H-Hey! At least I don’t have to worry about fleas anymore!” Kiba pointed out when his and Shino’s relationship was brought into question again.

“So all I’m good for is flea control?” Shino cut in and Kiba paled.

“What! No! Shino-baby, I love you and you know that!” Kiba whined and cuddled up in an attempt to make amends.

Shino just grunted and scooted away so that Kiba fell down off his chair.

Naruto burst into tearful laughter along with the others guys, doing his best not to choke on his cup of sake.

“Oh? Hey, Naruto. Dark and beautiful’s got eyes on you,” Sakura suddenly cut in with a playful tone, winking at Naruto.

Naruto looked at her in confusion and immediately Sasuke came to mind. He turned around to look, but instead he met the eyes of a very beautiful woman who was checking him out. Naruto hmmed thoughtfully and finished his cup of sake, eyeing her only once before turning back with a smile.

“That’s nice.”

“Wait…what!?” Sakura and Kiba both exclaimed at the same time, drawing everyone’s attention from laughing at Kiba to looking oddly at Naruto.

“Hmm?” Naruto looked up at them all, then realized what was the problem. “Ah…sorry. Just not interested.”

“Wait…since when have you not been interested?” Kiba interjected with a raised eyebrow, pointing accusingly at him. “Who are you and where’s the real Uzumaki!”

“Don’t tell me you’re still alone after Hinata,” Sakura frowned, worried for him.

“No way, Sakura. Completely opposite of that,” Kiba frowned, tapping his cup on the table. “Naruto’s libido came back with a vengeance these past few weeks. He’s screwed more girls then Kakashi and Iruka screw each other in a year.”

Naruto flushed at that comparison. He couldn’t help feel that that was a bit extreme. No one could get that much sex in.

“Really?” Sakura raised an eyebrow at that, probably thinking the same as him.

“Hah…look…I’m just not looking much anymore,” Naruto tried to reason, fidgeting with his shirt where something hard and cool rested against his skin.

“I see…ran yourself dry,” Kiba guessed.

Naruto shook his head at that, Lee speaking up with a pondering look. “Perhaps…Naruto-kun has found someone!?”

Naruto flushed deep red, suddenly finding himself under severe interrogation from Neji, Kiba, Lee, and Sakura. Honestly…


Another hour or so later, Naruto escaped the prying questions and teasing of his friends and made his way up the stairs towards Sasuke and his apartment, letting out a groan of relief. Sheesh, his friends could be so nosy at times. Naruto dug out his key and slid it into the lock, sighing and opening the door.

He got two feet into the apartment when the door suddenly slammed shut and he was pressed hard into the wall face-first, a kunai held against his throat.

Naruto felt his heart jump and his body tense instinctively, his hand moving to where he kept a hidden kunai. However, he wasn’t wearing it because he hadn’t been on a mission in a while. Cursing, Naruto braced himself, but relaxed immediately when a familiar chuckle sounded in his ear.

“Aren’t ninja’s supposed to be on guard at all times?”

“TEME! You scared the shit out of me!” Naruto fumed, trying to crane his neck to the side and glare at his snickering friend.

Sasuke just smirked and backed up, dragging Naruto with him and keeping the kunai pressed against his throat. Naruto glared and followed reluctantly, before he was tossed onto the couch and pounced on.

“The couch?” Naruto raised an eyebrow up at the other.

“I need to branch out my locations, remember?” Sasuke teased and pinned him down, leaning forward and biting softly at Naruto’s neck.

Naruto sighed and turned his head with a look of exasperation. “I wish you’d stop echoing me like that, teme.”

“Just following my sensei’s advice…” Sasuke mumbled in a low voice, busily licking at his collarbone and nuzzling the silver chain that hung there. A small fan shaped pendent poked out from under the shirt at the coaxing, matching the silver chain and circular swirl pendant hanging around Sasuke’s neck.

Naruto blushed and relaxed, sneaking a leg between Sasuke’s thighs and using it as leverage to turn them around and pin Sasuke under him.

“You’re such a pain. I was trying to find my genin when you decided to ambush me,” Naruto growled softly, pushing past a lock of raven hair to kiss Sasuke’s jaw.

“I meant to tell you about that. On my way to you, I actually spotted Yuda and Gent,” Sasuke chuckled, another smirk gracing his lips. “They were doing a…lot of praying.”

Naruto hmmed and continued to kiss up toward’s Sasuke’s ear, before his words sunk in. Eyebrows rising up, Naruto lifted his head and looked dead on into those dark eyes. “Oh, you so have to be fucking kidding me!”

Sasuke’s smirk turned into an amused smile and he stared back teasingly. “You’re life as a jounin instructor has become even more eventful.”

“Oh god! No!!! I hate you!” Naruto exclaimed and whined, dropping his head on Sasuke’s chest and thumping it a few times with his fist in a playful tantrum.

Sasuke laughed sadisticly and ruffled Naruto’s blonde hair, trying hard and failing to be sympathetic. So he just relaxed and laid his head back, staring up at the ceiling with an amused smile. After a moment, Naruto calmed down and took in a deep breath of Sasuke’s scent.

“Man…guess I’ll have to be suspicious whenever they disappear at the same time,” Naruto grinned ruefully and then scooted up a bit, looking down at Sasuke.

He studied the other’s features, running his eyes along the smooth curves of Sasuke’s jaw, the gentle slope of his nose, the firm pink lips parted temptingly, and then down along the delicate neck. He reached out and ran his fingers over what he’d just examined, feeling what he could see and finally resting on Sasuke’s throat. A deep, animalistic instinct to lean down and bite the exposed neck of this rival male stirred, easily overpowered by a more human emotion…

Naruto smiled and kissed Sasuke’s adam’s apple, then took hold of his chin and turned his face to meet his in a warm, tender welcoming kiss. Sasuke sighed and closed his eyes, slipping his tongue lazily past Naruto’s lips and meeting the blonde’s tongue. They didn’t fight for dominance, but merely enjoyed the slow pace.

Naruto pulled away, feeling his chest swell and his body heady with unspoken emotions.

Sasuke reached up and brushed the bangs out of Naruto’s blue eyes, smiling and whispering softly, “My Naruto…”

Naruto returned the smile, pressing their foreheads together and cupping Sasuke’s face gently with a sigh.

“My Sasuke…”


-----------------End. ~


Note: Yep. This is the end of the story. Sorry, guys, but all good things end sooner or later. =P I welcome and thank everyone for reviews you've given or will give, and I'm happy that I could provide a good story. (specially this being my first successful lemon story)

I'm almost sad to leave this version of Naruto and Sasuke. Maybe I'll come back to them someday. =D