Embracing Dreams

Warnings: drama, humor, smut, NaruSasu

Part 36

Sasuke wasn't in bed when they opened his door. Kyuubi had made certain they opened it without making a sound. Sasuke hadn't made a sound, either. He was standing in the shadows to the side of the door. He looked them over and shut the door behind them. His eyes narrowed when Naruto flicked on the light.

Naruto was absolutely filthy, dirt caked to his clothes and under his fingernails. Only his face was the last bit clean. Sasuke shook his head. "That means you're not worth talking to."

"What?" Naruto snapped. He was so angry his voice shook.

"When he does that," Sasuke explained. "It means you've said or done something so utterly stupid you're not worth talking to."

"He's done it to you?"

"Once. How did you get out so quickly?"

Naruto's shoulders went back proudly, "I made duplicates to dig me out. Five of them!" Actually, he'd made the duplicates and then the Kyuubi in each had handled the digging. Even after seeing him do it, Kyuubi hadn't been willing to drift off. Instead, he'd helped Naruto make the duplicates by shoving him out until one appeared, dragging him back and then shoving him out again. Naruto had gotten pissed by the fifth one, feeling like a disembodied yo-yo. "I couldn't move under there!"

"That's the point. What do you want?" asked Sasuke. Naruto should have at least hosed himself off. Sasuke refused to be punished if the filthy idiot had tracked dirt all the way up to his room.

"How strong is your brother?"

"Is that why he buried you?" Sasuke demanded. "Idiot! I told you to stay out of it. It has nothing-"

"It does!" Naruto cut him off. "It does have to do with me. If he hurts you-"

"He won't-"

"Bullshit!"

"He won't," Sasuke repeated, keeping his own voice calm. "He won't hurt me unless I attack him. I haven't done that in years. I told you, I don't have the energy to use the best talents I've copied - and he knows I've copied them because he's the one who sent them after me, so it wouldn't matter even if I could use them. I'm not stupid enough to bother fighting him now."

"Then why even bother running? If he's that much stronger and he'll always be that far ahead, what's the point of anything? Why not just kill yourself and call it quits!" Naruto scowled. Sasuke's cool stare made him feel as childish as Kakashi's had. He glared harder at him. "Why did you want to run today if you're so sure it's useless?"

"Because I don't like it." Wasn't it obvious? "I'd rather run knowing it's futile than stand still waiting for it."

"And I'd rather fight knowing I don't stand a chance than stand aside doing nothing!" Naruto snapped.

"It's not the same." Sasuke stepped right up to him, stopping his protest with one look. "He won't kill me for running. He doesn't want me dead." He continued advancing on him until Naruto's back was to the wall. "He'd kill you for fighting, but me? For running? All he'll do is lecture me." His voice dropped to a soft murmur that made the hairs on Naruto's arms stand up. "Foolish little brother, denying the inevitable. After all I've done to help you, all my efforts, you still remain so weak..."

Naruto cringed back against the wall. It wasn't just the voice. Sasuke's face was a mask, void of anything human, and his eyes, the dark curls in his eyes were spinning, multiplying, bleeding together until he felt sick looking at them, but he couldn't look away. Even Kyuubi was struck silent, caught. "Sasuke..."

"Does your fox still want to know?" Sasuke murmured. "I'd never tell, but maybe I could show. He's done it enough, I'm sure to have copied it perfectly. It begins like this and ends with me," his hand rose until his fingertips touched Naruto's temple, "in here."

"Stop it," Naruto whispered. He could feel himself trembling, unable to move, unable to look away. Then those fingers brushed across his face and pressed his eyes closed. Gone. He sagged, braced on wobbly legs.

"I probably could do it," Sasuke said, his voice normal again as he crossed to sit on the bed. "I don't know what would happen if I did, though. To me, or to the person I used it on. If you can keep him from catching your eyes, you're safe, at least from that. Once you look, it's already too late."

"Shit, Sasuke!" Naruto gasped, angry and shaken. "Do you have any idea how scary that was!? I can barely stand up, bastard!"

Sasuke's eyes flicked up. "Of course I do! Why do you think I'd rather run than stand around waiting for it?"

Naruto shook his head, leaning on the wall until his knees stopped acting like jello. "Does he actually sound like that? Like he's about to suck your tonsils out?"

Sasuke gaped.

"That's what it sounded like!" Naruto insisted. "Like some creepy old man or something coming on to me."

"Then I didn't do it right," Sasuke grimaced. "He sounds like he's about to ooze under your skin."

"Yeah," Naruto pointed. "That's exactly what I'm talking about! It was all soft and intimate and," he shuddered, rubbing his arms. "He actually talks to you like that?"

"He talks to everyone like that."

"What's wrong with him? Yeah, insane, I know, but I mean...was he always like that? What was he like before he found out he was a mutant?"

"I don't know," Sasuke frowned. He didn't have many early memories of him, for which he was grateful. The few he did have were pleasant, disturbing compared to the Itachi he knew now. "He was quiet. Perfect. My father was harder on him and prouder of him. I never got to see him as much as I wanted to. Then he left."

"Where did he go?"

"I don't know. Developing his sharingan, collecting talents, experimenting on other people. I'm not the first person he tried to give the sharingan to. Some of those failures must have happened while he was gone, or while I was in the hospital."

"You never asked? I mean, do you even know why he's doing this to you?"

Sasuke shrugged. "At first I was too scared to say anything. When he took me, he burned down the entire building where we lived. Our parents, relatives, hundreds of people who had nothing to do with it. There were no survivors except him and me. His reasons don't matter now. I haven't spoken to him since before he left home. I never will again."

Naruto's stomach twisted. Sasuke's tone was cold, almost casual. Whatever anger and pain he'd felt was old now, dried up, impersonal. He spoke of losing his parents as if it had happened to someone else. "You must hate him so much..."

"I did. But you have to care about someone to hate them. I won't give him that." And it bothered Itachi as much as his silence did. As much as anything could bother Itachi. He didn't connect Itachi with the vaguely pleasant memories he had of a brother with the same name. He was the same person, of course, but he considered him a stranger. Itachi's insistence on calling him 'little brother,' as if that meant something, only strengthened his resolve.

"Spar with me," Naruto said suddenly. Sasuke didn't act upset, but he should have been. If fighting was comfort food for him, he'd give him as much as he could stomach. "Come on."

Sasuke followed without comment, pausing only to arm himself. The house was silent when they left. The fields and night air felt the same, as if they were the only ones alive on the planet. But they weren't. Sasuke caught Naruto's eye, "If someone comes while we're out here, I'm putting the shield around you. If you can't accept that, go back to the house."

"You won't even give me a chance to fight?" Naruto scowled.

"I won't give you a chance to die," Sasuke corrected.

"What about you? What if it's not your brother? What if it's someone stronger who wants to kill you?"

"Then I'll use the shield on myself as well." Maybe.

"So why don't you do that when your brother comes instead of running?"

Sasuke stopped in his tracks. He'd never considered it. Why hadn't he considered it? The look of disbelief Naruto shot him asked the same. Why not?

"It would hold against him, right? 'Cause if it won't, then there's no point putting me in it, either."

He'd be a captive audience, Sasuke thought, imagining it. He couldn't run once he was inside, but Itachi wouldn't be able to make him meet his eyes. Itachi could talk, but he couldn't do whatever it was he did when their eyes met. How would Itachi react to that? Would he get angry? He'd never seen Itachi angry. Even when that rogue of his had touched him, breaking the rules, Itachi had been cold, vaguely disappointed in the man, casually dismissive of his pleas for mercy. No, Itachi wouldn't get angry. If he couldn't force him to meet his eyes physically, then he'd find another way to get what he wanted. Using anyone who happened to be nearby at the time. The no bystanders rule applied to his underlings, not to Itachi himself.

"It would hold," he said, finally. It had to hold against Itachi. He was counting on that. "But it would be pointless to put myself in it. All he'd have to do is threaten someone else and I'd come out."

"Don't listen to him."

"He doesn't make idle threats. Using that on myself would be the same as attacking him. It wouldn't help, but it would make things worse."

The more Naruto heard about this guy, the more he wanted to prove everyone wrong. No one was invincible. Given their history, it was understandable that Sasuke was convinced. Brainwashed. Or conditioned to believe, as Kyuubi put it. Kakashi hadn't said he'd ever actually fought the guy. He was probably convinced just because Sasuke was. Sasuke did sound awfully convincing. But Naruto wasn't about to be scared of someone he'd never even met. Kyuubi definitely wasn't.

"How do you want to do this?" Sasuke asked, turning to face him.

"Huh?" Naruto glanced up, remembered they were out here to spar, and grinned at him. "Just watch this. You can tell how much energy I use, right? Do the math for me, okay?" Kyuubi was eager to help, but he didn't feel like being yo-yo'd again. His fox enjoyed shoving him out of his own body a little too much. On his own there was no yanking involved, just a push, more projecting than actually leaving. He made five copies. The last two appeared too close together and immediately started arguing and shoving each other. Just like in his dream, they were prone to fighting. He didn't like taking orders from anyone, even from himself. He scowled at the bickering pair and then looked over at Sasuke. "Well?"

"Well, what?" Sasuke frowned.

"How much did I use on each one? I mean, what fraction of my total energy? I'm trying to figure out how many I can make without actually doing it and risking that 'burnout' thing you mentioned. And how do they compare to me? Could one of them make more of themselves? And if one of them was seriously injured, would he use more energy healing himself than it would take to just make a replacement for him? Does it take energy to keep them around, or is it a one-shot deal?"

"You think I can tell you all that just by looking at them?" Sasuke stalked over to the two who were now yelling at each other. He slammed their heads together. Both disappeared in a whoosh of air. He quirked an eyebrow at Naruto. "Did they even try to heal?"

"I can't believe you just did that!" Naruto yelled.

"Yeah!" one of the duplicates put in. "Is violence your answer to everything?"

"How were they supposed to heal when you just knocked them senseless?" glared another.

The third, who was now red-eyed, growled and nodded his agreement.

Sasuke ignored all three of the clones. "Did they?"

"No," Naruto scowled. "They didn't have a chance to even try healing. And I felt both of those impacts the second they got dispelled. Just so you know!"

"But you're not injured," Sasuke noted. "So it's just the memory you get from them? The physical damage doesn't carry over, then." He looked thoughtfully at the remaining three.

Naruto tensed. "What are you gonna-" Too late. Sasuke had dispatched them before he could even finish the question. Their pain and surprise - and anger - immediately transferred over to him. "Damn it, Sasuke! That hurt!"

"Not physically."

"I still felt it! They might be copies, but they're still me! And Kyuubi," he grimaced. "Boy is he mad at you, now..."

"Make some more," Sasuke ordered.

"No way!" Naruto refused. "Not if you're just gonna get rid of them again." Sasuke turned to look at him and he was momentarily thrown by his expression. Gleaming eyes, a small smirk that promised nothing good. "What are you thinking...?"

"Make some more. I'll give them advance warning this time."

"Sure you will," Naruto scoffed.

"They may not be able to heal," Sasuke drawled, "but they should be able to block. And shield."

"Oh." Naruto's eyes widened. "But why would they be able to if I can't?"

"Because they only have as much energy as you do when you're holding it all back. They'd have to use it all to shield. If they can, then that's the same amount you'd use to shield yourself. The amount it takes to make one of them."

"But I don't know how much it takes to make one of them. That's why I asked you to watch and do the math for me!"

"Then practice and pay attention until you do know," Sasuke snapped. "You'll have to learn to monitor your own energy at some point. I won't always be watching to tell you how much you used."

Naruto didn't like the sound of that. At all. He decided he'd interpreted it wrong. Of course Sasuke couldn't watch him every second any more than he could pay attention to Sasuke constantly. He certainly didn't want to rely on Sasuke all the time. That would just be humiliating. He promptly repeated that rationalization to Kyuubi. His fox wasn't really buying it any more than he was, but he agreed to play along. For now.

"Well?"

"Keep your pants on," Naruto muttered. His boyfriend had a bossy streak.

.-.

Iruka and Kakashi both slept in the next morning. After spying on the kids for most of the night, Kakashi had turned off Iruka's alarm, not in the mood for a morning ambush. Naruto's clone technique was a strange one. They weren't real. Oh, they looked real enough, and the way Sasuke dealt with them, they were definitely physical. But they weren't true duplicates. They didn't smell like Naruto. The dirt on him didn't carry over to the copies. Physical damage to them didn't carry back to him. Kakashi had seen a mutant actually duplicate himself. Both copies were half the strength of the original, damage to either carried over when they merged back, and most importantly, any stains or wounds or scents on the original were still there in the duplicates. What Naruto did was something else entirely. The dirt. If he could make facsimiles without the dirt, then he could make ones that didn't look anything like him at all. And neither of the kids seemed to realize that.

What else could Iruka's kid do? More precisely, what the hell were Naruto's actual talents? His base energy was the orange, healing and strength. And shielding, if Sasuke's lesson panned out. The copies were also made with the orange. Just with the orange. There was no sign of the red until one of the clones went red-eyed and the fox took over. Unlike the orange, which was just a fraction for each clone, the fox could use as much red via a clone as he did in the original. He accessed it by remote. That had thrown the kids, literally in Sasuke's case since he hadn't been expecting it. It had thrown Kakashi, too. As many copies as Naruto could make, any one of them having full access to that red, well... Attrition was the first word that came to mind. Misdirection came next. Surrounded by an infinite number of expendable copies, any one of which could attack with that red at the drop of a hat...it sounded like a lot of fun. It was tempting. But Sasuke had dibs tonight, so he'd just have to wait his turn.

Iruka woke around one in the afternoon, berating him for touching the sacred alarm clock. Kakashi accepted the lecture with equanimity and would have rolled over and gone back to sleep if he hadn't been thrown out of the bed. Letting Iruka sleep in was a mistake, he realized. The man wasn't at all pliable when he'd had a decent amount of shut eye. In fact, he was downright crabby. Kakashi sullenly retreated to his own room and slept the rest of the day away. He understood 'Day of Rest' even if Iruka didn't.

For Iruka, the day was all but ruined. He hadn't just missed half of it, he'd lost his chance to pound in yesterday's punishment while it was still fresh in his three troublemakers' heads. Learning that two of them had apparently slept as late as him didn't help.

He had to apologize to Ino first. She'd made breakfast for all of them and only three had shown up. Not to mention the pot of coffee that had gone black and thick and been poured down the drain. Or the fact that she'd sent Lee up to check on them and knew Kakashi hadn't spent the night in his own room. The way she'd sighed, shaking her head at him, he'd been half afraid she had a mind to give him The Talk herself.

Despite his late start, he went ahead with his plans. Yesterday had proven one thing, at least. The kids jumped at the chance to compete, so group activities were definitely in order. He had to get their interests clearly sorted before the new arrivals came tomorrow.

Neji needed order, structure, and at least one of the kids available to quietly buffer him so none of the others set him off. He'd fancied Sakura for the buffering, since she was quiet and considerate, but she could also be pushy, almost as fussy as Ino, and her outburst yesterday proved she could get just as worked up as any of the boys. Naruto was out of the question. He was much too close to Hinata and he couldn't have been subtle and unobtrusive even if he tried. Lee was the most suitable, since he had so few preconceived notions about the world, with such natural optimism he'd provide a perfect counter. But he was as bad at subtlety as Naruto, if not worse. Aware that he was basically playing matchmaker, not one of his strong points, he considered the ones left.

He didn't want anyone getting too close to Sasuke right now. As unfair as it was, he considered him a risk, Kakashi's 'runaway waiting to happen' more now than ever. Naruto didn't seem to have any trouble getting closer, but Iruka suspected a push now, even from him, would send Sasuke over the edge. Besides, he really didn't like the idea of them sharing a room. Even if by some chance Sasuke did agree, there'd be the issue of beds. If he moved two in, it would imply he was passing judgment. Moving one in was the same as giving them permission, even encouragement. He couldn't think reasonably about their relationship. His natural, unreasonable, inclination was to say they were too young, would always be to young, end of story. His protective, and even more unreasonable, inclination said they were a bad match. Sasuke was incapable of giving Naruto the unconditional love and acceptance he needed and Naruto was far too protective and obsessive to give Sasuke the space he needed to deal with his own twisted situation. Iruka knew his views were biased. It wasn't his decision to make, so the less he had to do with their relationship, the better.

Kiba already had a roommate in Akamaru, and his personality was too abrasive and rough to foist him off on Neji. They'd grate even worse than Lee would. There was really only one solution. Move the girls in together, offering Sakura anything it took to make it up to her, and place Neji with Shikamaru. He absolutely would not let any of his kids share a room with whoever Tiedoll was sending, even for a short week. And while Shikamaru wouldn't help Neji adjust, he'd certainly be the least obtrusive roommate Iruka could give him. And it was only for a week. Hopefully the girls would agree to remain as roommates so Neji could have his own room after the spy went on his way.

He called the girls up to his office and explained his proposal. He was pleasantly surprised that they didn't erupt immediately, though Sakura's simmering eyes said she was close. "There just aren't enough rooms."

"Kakashi's not even using his," Ino scoffed.

Iruka blushed. "He's in there right now."

"But he's not staying, right? It's only temporary."

For a moment, Iruka was caught in the grips of blind panic. How could he have forgotten? Was he getting used to him? Taking his presence for granted so that the moment he did leave- He shook his head. No, he'd simply gotten distracted. Kakashi was amusing to have around and he made a nice bed warmer, but that was all. He gave Ino a firm smile. "Of course when he leaves one of you can move into his room. But for at least the next week-"

"I can deal with her for that long," Sakura muttered gloomily.

Ino rolled her eyes. "I'll be the one dealing. But you should move Shikamaru in with Lee instead. Then the new boy can have his own room right from the start."

Iruka hadn't considered that. Shikamaru liked peace and quiet. Lee was anything but. He started to ask Ino why she'd come up with that arrangement, but Sakura beat him to it.

"You just want him where your toady can control him," Sakura accused. She shook her head at Iruka. "Lee couldn't get his door open this morning to wake him up for breakfast. She figures if they're in the same room he won't be able to ignore her summons. Don't even consider it."

"He doesn't eat enough to keep a bird alive," Ino glared. "It's for his own good!"

Iruka winced. "He hasn't had regular meals in a while." Or any meals at all, for that matter.

"Which is why he should be eating small portions throughout the day," Ino pounced. "He can't do that if he sleeps the entire day away."

"Sleeping helps him recover his energy," Iruka explained, as if he didn't believe it was also a way to avoid being sociable. "Don't forget that he used his talent to bring all of us here. As long as he is getting up to eat each day, we should let him sleep as much as he needs to."

Sakura flashed a smug smile at Ino, who sniffed and looked away. Iruka regretted having to force the two of them together. But as Ino had pointed out, it was only temporary.

"If you'll start moving your things, I'll have some of the boys help move in a second bed."

"You have extra beds?" asked Sakura.

Had they thought he expected them to share? He wondered why they hadn't protested more. "There are more rooms at the back of the house, but I haven't had time," or money, "to repair them. I imagine this building was a hotel or boarding school at some point." Or, more likely, home to an entire clan of immigrants. Some of the other mansions he'd looked at before settling on this one had a similar design, though a few had rooms so small they were more like servant quarters or walk in closets with beds crammed into them.

"We're moving into your room," Sakura said to Ino. "It's bigger."

"And has a window," Ino smirked.

"So does Kakashi's. I'm getting his when he moves out."

Ino sniffed at Sakura's challenging tone. "It's too close to the bathroom for my taste, anyway."

"Then it's all settled?" asked Iruka.

"I suppose," Ino conceded. "But they better not be bunk beds you're moving in. I'd rather lose half the floor space than have her snoring over my head."

"As if I'd sleep on the top bunk with a freight train rumbling under me," Sakura sneered.

"Glad to hear it," Iruka smiled. He shooed them out, still bickering as they hit the hall. Two down, one to go. Compared to them, Shikamaru would be easy. Iruka could guarantee him Neji would be the quietest roommate he'd ever have.

He was about to close the door to his office when Sasuke showed up, appearing out of nowhere. The boy was as quiet and fast as Kakashi. Iruka hadn't caught a glimpse of him or Naruto since he'd gotten up.

"What is it?" asked Iruka.

In response, Sasuke stared off into the distance over his shoulder and presented his right arm. Iruka had to bite his tongue to keep from exploding. The burn extended from elbow to wrist, painful just to look at. And it was drying, meaning it had been exposed for hours. He wanted to demand an explanation, how, when, and he couldn't. Sasuke was doing exactly what he'd promised to do. Iruka wasn't about to ruin it by prying. He chewed on his tongue for a moment after healing him, and then asked, "Anything else?"

Sasuke shifted, still not looking directly at him. Finally, he frowned and muttered, "My shoulder hurts. Can you heal through clothing?"

"Of course," Iruka said and did just that.

"Thank you."

Iruka smiled. "You're welcome."

.-.

Kyuubi was prowling. In fact, there were three Kyuubi's on the prowl tonight. One, the original, was back at the house, upstairs in their room. One was in the fields. The other, him, was prowling the town. This was much better than taking over while Naruto slept. The house wasn't left defenseless, and there was no physical danger to him or Naruto in the 'fake' bodies. Even better, after sleeping for most of the day, Naruto was wide awake. Kyuubi could slip back, take a wide view of their surroundings, before taking the lead again.

He'd been right the first time. When he extended his senses, leaving Naruto to navigate, he could feel the mutants in the area. All nine of them. The number alarmed Naruto, and left Kyuubi feeling threatened. And thus angry.

He tracked the most familiar scent first, the swordsman and the other two, to a hotel. A seedy, busy hotel, thriving enough that he kept to the shadows. There was a fourth mutant in there as well, the old man Naruto had met in the mall while he slept. The old man's scent was all over town, often accompanied by the orange-haired teen's. The other two didn't seem to have left the hotel at all except to track them in the fields. To Kyuubi, it was clear they were the strong ones, biding their time while the other two gathered information. He still didn't consider them a direct threat because Sasuke didn't. They were Iruka's fortune-telling cult. Busybodies, but not necessarily enemies.

He picked up two more at the black-windowed house. The building was empty, a good thing since Naruto was adamant that they not go into the yard. Kyuubi tracked one of the scents to the hospital, where the mutant currently was. Sasuke's 'doctor,' no doubt. His trail also led to a small house nearby that Naruto identified as having been empty as long as he could remember. The For Sale sign was still in the yard. There was no scent of the other one, the flunky. His scent had led from the yard of the dark house, into the fields, and then vanished. Kyuubi had sensed him somewhere near the hospital when he'd first started his prowl. Now there was nothing. Even knowing that no damage they took would harm their real body didn't stop him from feeling completely exposed. Kyuubi kept that to himself. Naruto was nervous enough about this, and Kyuubi needed his cooperation so he'd be free to do his sweeps without being limited.

'Let's check the house,' Naruto suggested.

'Why? No one's in there.'

'Exactly. So it's safe. Maybe the guy can teleport like Shikamaru. If you catch his scent by the house - but not leading up to it - then...'

Of course. Naruto could be quite quick in his own right. Kyuubi circled the house, still wary of an ambush. The moment he saw the back yard, he pushed Naruto to the front and let his senses flare. The mutant was there, deep beneath that patch of churned dirt, underground. He felt dead. Kyuubi knew he wasn't. Sleeping, more like. Possibly as aware of them as Kyuubi was of him. The mere possibility had Kyuubi rushing forward, getting them away as fast as he could. Strangeness didn't begin to cover it. That mutant was utterly unnatural. Kyuubi snorted once he deemed them far enough away, trying to get the earthy corpse scent out of his nostrils. No wonder Akamaru had reacted so badly to that mutant. Anything with a lick of animal instinct could tell that...creature...had no right to exist.

'What's wrong with him?' Naruto asked quietly.

Kyuubi shuddered. 'Everything.'

'Then he's dangerous. Strong?'

Kyuubi couldn't answer. When he'd sensed him from the house he hadn't seemed any stronger than the others, certainly not compared to the swordsman. Even now, it wasn't his strength that made Kyuubi want away from him. It was just his utter wrongness.

'Like Frankenstein? He is that doctor guy's flunky...'

'Maybe,' Kyuubi admitted, surprised. 'Maybe just like that. Exactly that.'

He shook himself and headed back to the house. The other three mutants were a long way off. In Sisco, or even further out. As fast as he could run, it would still take the other duplicate all night to find them. And his task was the harder one. He couldn't be spotted no matter what. If the mutants weren't already headed this way the last thing he wanted to do was arouse their curiosity and lead them back here. He'd only get close enough to sense them more clearly. Then he was to self destruct. The thought made Kyuubi's stomach roil. But it was the quickest way, and less dangerous than having him backtrack all that way to tell what he'd seen. At least they could return to the house and let the original dispatch them.

That was the plan, anyway. Except by the time they got close to the house, the original wasn't waiting for them in their room like he was supposed to be. No, Naruto was in Sasuke's room. Only the fact that Sasuke wasn't to know what they were doing stopped him from rushing up there and attacking himself.

'But it's us,' Naruto said weakly. 'We can't be jealous of ourself...selves.'

'Do you want to attack them, too?' Kyuubi demanded.

Naruto fidgeted, grumbled, and finally admitted it. 'Yeah. This is totally unfair! How come they get to mess around with Sasuke while we're stuck doing all the dirty work? Cheating rat bastards. So, do we spoil it? Or wait...'

'Neither,' Kyuubi growled. He turned his claws so they pressed his stomach. 'We off ourselves and go join in.'

'Good idea!'

.-.

"I couldn't sleep," Naruto admitted when Sasuke opened the door to him.

"So you decided to come bother me." Sasuke shook his head and sat back down at his desk. He continued writing in his notebook until Naruto's shuffling started to get on his nerves. He was just about to snap at him when he finally spoke up.

"Whatcha writing?"

"Notes. I keep track of all the mutants I've encountered." Sasuke set the book aside and turned on him. "I found it in the drawer of my desk. Any idea how it got there?"

"Oh, yeah! Heh. Uh, when I carried you to your room that time. I thought it was a diary or something. But I didn't read it! Honest."

Sasuke snorted. "You can read it if you want. Maybe you'll even learn something."

"Hah-hah. Just because I'm a slow learner doesn't mean I'm stupid. I figured out how to shield, didn't I?"

"Once. And you couldn't duplicate it."

"I was tired! Now that I've actually done it, I can do it again. I just have to practice, is all."

"So why aren't you out practicing?"

"'Cause," Naruto said, giving the cutest smile he could. "I wanted to visit you instead."

Sasuke stared. Naruto's expression was so ridiculous he almost laughed. He snorted instead. "Is that supposed to be cute?"

"Oh, come on," Naruto pouted. "I'm cute." He eased closer to him and batted his eyelashes. "Baby blue eyes, adorable smile, golden curls, flawless skin..." Sasuke laughed. Oh, he choked it off the second it came out, but it was definitely a laugh. Naruto grinned and slipped his arms over Sasuke's shoulders. He batted his lashes again. "Can I kiss you?"

"Only if you stop doing that thing with your eyes."

"Spoilsport." Naruto closed his eyes and kissed him. Slowly at first, then more. It felt like they hadn't kissed in forever. He gradually pressed closer until they were flush against each other, Sasuke leaning back against the edge of the desk, his hands lifting up to catch hold on the back of his shirt. He teased, taunting him to take over, and felt Sasuke harden against him. He really did react fast, not that he was any better. He rubbed, pushing as close as possible while Sasuke kissed him in that way that made his insides melt.

The desk was digging into Sasuke's back. He was about to suggest relocating to the bed when Naruto suddenly stiffened. His eyes flashed open. He would have moved away if he hadn't been pinned in place. "What is it?"

Naruto blushed. He'd just gotten a crash of information, memories, along with a whopping dose of jealousy and anger from the town duplicate. He couldn't tell Sasuke that. Instead, his ever opportunistic mind gave him an even better idea. He leaned close, his tongue flicking out to trace Sasuke's jawline. "I want to do something," he whispered. His hands went to Sasuke's waist and lifted him up until he was sitting on the desk. Sasuke was so tense, but when he looked up, his expression was more confused and surprised than anything. He didn't have to make up an excuse for his blush now. His thumbs curled under the edge of Sasuke's shirt and he ducked his head.

Sasuke stopped breathing. What the hell was he doing? No, that much was painfully obvious. He was kissing his stomach and one of his hands was rubbing his- Sasuke's hands snapped down to the edge of the desk and clenched tight. He couldn't breathe.

Naruto looked up, still blushing, but also concerned. Sasuke's expression was stricken, much too pale. Naruto licked his lips. "If it's too much, tell me and I'll stop. Okay?" He could see the way Sasuke's throat worked. When he spoke, it was a hoarse whisper.

"Okay."

Naruto kissed his stomach again, ignoring the scars. Kyuubi had warned him about them and he wasn't going to think about them now. He wouldn't think about anything right now but taking this as far as Sasuke would let him. Inside, he felt as stricken as Sasuke and couldn't believe he was actually doing this. At the same time, he felt giddy as hell and couldn't get over the fact he was actually getting to do this. Sasuke's skin jumped beneath his tongue, his breath coming in sharp bursts, otherwise he was silent and motionless. But his erection was hot and throbbing in his hand. When he stroked it, he felt the tremor work all the way up Sasuke's back, punctuated by another sharp breath. He curled his fingers tighter, working up a rhythm, slow and firm. Sasuke was in no position to thrust into his hand, but the way his stomach flexed, he clearly wanted to. His labored breathing was the most erotic thing Naruto had ever heard. He couldn't stop himself from groaning. He wanted to look at him while he did this.

Sasuke's eyes were closed when he rose, but they snapped open the second he kissed him. A hand whipped up to tangle in his hair. Sasuke kissed him, his tongue thrusting into his mouth, forceful and needy. Naruto moaned, stroking him faster.

This wasn't how he'd wanted to do this, but Sasuke had to be close. He was close and he wasn't even touching himself. As if reading his mind, a hand tugged at his pants, undoing the clasp. If not for the grip on his hair, he might have pulled back in surprise. Sasuke's eyes held him as well, smoldering, demanding. Naruto used his tongue to tell him he hadn't been complaining, not at all. Sasuke's grip was rough and harsh, dragging another moan out of him. He muffled it in Sasuke's mouth, stroking him just as hard. Their kissing became violent. Naruto struggled to maintain an upper hand, wanting to wring a moan out of him, a whimper, anything. He couldn't. Sasuke froze when he came, silently, his lashes fluttering closed. It was so endearing and sexy that Naruto was the one who whimpered, coming in Sasuke's motionless hand.

Sasuke slumped against him, relaxing for the first time since they'd started. Naruto held him tight, kissing his cheek, his neck, even his hair. He wanted to kiss him all over and lick him clean.

"Our clothes," Sasuke huffed into his neck.

"Yeah, messy." He lapped at Sasuke's earlobe. "I was gonna use my mouth," he admitted, "so you wouldn't get dirty."

Sasuke tensed, then pushed him back and kissed him hard on the mouth. "Next time."

"Yeah?" Naruto stepped back on wobbly knees, letting him get down from the desk. They didn't look at each other as they straightened up as much as they could without a washcloth. He should have at least brought a box of tissues. Not that he'd expected to get more than a little kissing, and that only if he was lucky. Now...he felt nervous, guilty, and Sasuke still wasn't looking at him. Sasuke had gone to his closet for clean clothes. Naruto went over to him. For a long moment he simply stared at his back. The he hugged him tightly from behind. He tried not to be bothered by the way Sasuke tensed in his arms. "It was good, right? We're good?"

"Yeah."

Sasuke was blushing. Horribly. Even his ears were red. Naruto ducked his face into Sasuke's shoulder and grinned until his cheeks hurt. He should have known. He pressed a few more kisses on Sasuke's neck, and on his reddened ear. "Can I stay for a while? Just...together? Like we did in the fields that time?"

"Go change your clothes first," Sasuke muttered, turning his face away.

If Naruto could have possibly grinned any wider, he would have. "Okay."

.-.

TBC