Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Between A Rock And A Hard Place ❯ Conflict ( Chapter 10 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

It was like toxic, Naruto's warmth burning through him and fueling his eagerness for more. What was he to do? This simply kiss had brought Gaara such pleasure, such love he had never felt before. He was afraid to linger in the blissful contact, but he could not pull himself away from it. Could the saying be true; could too much of a good thing really be all that bad? Within moments he had known he was addicted to this wonderful sensation that came from affection. And to know that he had neglected this feeling for so long, only made Gaara more sad.

Naruto leaned more into his kiss, their chest lightly touching. Gaara's cheeks flushed upon the other's willingness to continue, but he didn't scold the action at all. Without much recognition, Gaara's hand slowly trailed up from the damp flesh of Naruto's shoulder to caress the timidly blushing cheeks of the blond. There was such a delicate feel to them as his fingers traced the tiny scars across Naruto's face. Naruto flinched at being touched in such a sensual way.

It was certainly odd to be touched like this, as though he would break any moment. But it wasn't at all intimidating like how Sasuke made him feel if ever he treated him with care, this was totally and completely different. He moaned softly into Gaara's mouth as the red head practically took his upper lip into his mouth, sucking on the plump fold of skin before running his tongue along it. Helpless to the sudden urge of desire, Naruto slipped his own hands into the wavy tresses of Gaara's hair.

With the moment of intensity between them, neither had seem to notice when Gaara fell on top of Naruto, straddling him above in the kiss. His body laid perfectly overlapping the blonde's yet he managed not to smother the younger male. But soon the requirement of air called for Naruto to suddenly pull rashly from Gaara's passionate kiss, throwing his head back and inhaling deeply. Taken aback by the suddenness of Naruto's departure, Gaara stared astonishingly at the other male, trying to comprehend what he had done wrong.

"I-I'm sorry." Gaara apologized somewhat embarrassed by he anxiousness before. Despite Naruto's consent to the action, the blond did not give him permission to ravish him so much that he would loose most of his sanity. Naruto stared blankly at Gaara, his eyes wide with confusion and a little bit of humility. he didn't mean to worry Gaara any, but it seems he had anyway.

"Uh...don't be..." Naruto excused lamely. He was not accustomed to speaking to people in this predicament, especially while he was still writhing beneath his intimate friend. Shyly, Naruto's cerulean orbs rolled to the side as if avoiding what he knew must be asked. "So...what does this make us?" Naruto asked dumbly, his face reddening more after the silence. It was extremely uncomfortable to know that this had happened between them and yet they did nothing to define the limitations of their curious relationship. Naruto just had to know what this now meant. Did this change anything between them? He would just hate for it all to have meant nothing in the end. And he couldn't accept that Gaara might not want anything to do with him after he got what he wanted. But maybe it was just stupid of him to even think Gaara would do such an inconsiderate thing.

Silence resumed even after Naruto's next question, simply because Gaara was so stunned to even respond. Of course he was thrilled to here that Naruto was actually looking for something out of this moment, yet he was worried. He didn't think he deserved the angelic shinobi he had grown to love so unknowingly. Nor did he deserve the blonde's equal affection. But he would have hated to steal Naruto's first real kiss only to deny him completely the next moment. Contemplating this great conflict, Gaara finally convinced himself it would do them no harm to at least see where the strings of destiny would lead them. If they were truly meant to be, then something good would come of this.

With a mild smile, Gaara lightly lifted his weight onto his arms so he wouldn't being pressing against Naruto any more. "I was hoping to call you my boyfriend, but that seems a little cliché' doesn't it?" Gaara actually teased. Bemused by the instant look of bewilderment on Naruto's face, Gaara rolled over with a chuckle. "I will be happy with simply being close to you." He muttered, staring up at the ceiling as he laid sprawled out on the cave floor. "But you can refer to us with any title that suits you." Gaara explained in a stern voice. He didn't seem to notice how upsetting that was to Naruto.

The hysterical blond sat up immediately, his cheeks filling up with air as he glared at Gaara. "Hey! You can't just kiss me and act like you don't like me!" Naruto screamed dramatically. Maybe to only his ears it sounded like Gaara wasn't at all concerned with what should happen between them. And personally, Naruto wanted something more and was hoping Gaara would at least sound enthusiastic about it as well. "I don't want to be your boyfriend if you won't even acknowledge me!" Naruto growled, crossing his arms and turning his back to the baffled red head.

Had Gaara missed something? Was it just him or was Naruto really picky when it came to things like this? He sat up, staring at his supposed boyfriend's back. "What do you mean? I told you I liked you, isn't that acknowledging enough?" Gaara was pretty sure he had done this right, so why did Naruto act like he forget his birthday or something? "What more do I have to do?"

Naruto huffed dryly, but Gaara could have sworn he heard a muffled whimper. "Just forget it. You didn't do anything wrong Gaara." Naruto sighed finally. He knew he was just being stupid but he just felt like there was something missing, that there should be more. He had never been in a real relationship before, but he knew that a couple was at least suppose to be...romantic. As much as Naruto hated to admit it, that was a quality both him and Gaara were not so skilled at.

Sensing the sulking attitude of the boy in front of him, Gaara crawled over on his knees. He gently wrapped his arms around Naruto's shoulders. "I don't do this a lot and I'm not a very good boyfriend. But I'll try...if you'll still have me. I really do want to be with you. You're the only person I feel I can truly trust; the only person that can understand me." Gaara gingerly pressed his lips on the back of Naruto's neck. "So will you have me Naruto Uzumaki?" Gaara asked politely. He felt so ancient with the formal permission during courtship. But regardless of the overwhelming fear of failure, Gaara could truly be proud of himself for at least giving it a try.

Naruto smiled genuinely before nodding. But a small portion of him kept Naruto from giving himself wholly into the smile. Please don't let this be a mistake? He desperately pleaded with himself. He feared being hurt again. To feel betrayed by the first person to ever ask for his love like this, it would kill him. Thanks to Kyuubi...he would never know how it felt to be loved by a whole city or even just a small portion of that. But going into a nearly forbidden relationship with Gaara would only further him from that dream. He just wanted the sacrifice to be worth it in the end.

Throwing a mid glance to the wooden clock hanging on the wall, Sasuke moaned distastefully. Naruto had left out to find food more than an hour ago; what could possibly be keeping him? Sasuke knew Naruto ate a lot, but he surely wouldn't try to eat those poor kids out of house and home. And even if he were to eat that much food, it would never take him this long. But considering it was Naruto, Sasuke had thrown in the possibility of the idiot deciding to take a nap right afterwards.

Not wanting a repeat of last night, Sasuke grumpily stepped out of the room. There was no need getting Gai or Kakashi worried about the situation, so he simply headed out without mentioning it to them. If he was lucky, maybe Naruto would still be eating when he got there, then he would have an excuse to eat as well. He was rather famished himself, but nothing compared to how Naruto was feeling right now. "Dobe...you better be there." Sasuke hissed deeply as he made his way into town. Sadly, he didn't know where those children lived. And he doubted they would come out just to answer to his calls, especially when they thought he was hurting Naruto last time.

Sasuke growled at the thought. Yes, the event earlier was still weighing heavily on his heart. He couldn't stand knowing Gaara had kissed Naruto like that. What type of freak was he, randomly kissing naive people on the lips? The only comfort Sasuke had was that he had long ago claimed Naruto's first kiss. What the hell?! Did he seriously just think that? Since when was he proud of that, even with it being an accident? He couldn't have cared less about being Naruto's first kiss...back then. But lately...

"Who am I kidding?" Sasuke finally exclaimed, exasperated by his efforts to fool himself. "I don't want it to be true!" Sasuke yelled at himself, grabbing his head and wildly scrapping his fingers through his hair. No Uchiha was gay. That simply did happen! But why did he care so much for Naruto? Just knowing that someone else could make the blond more happier than he could, upset Sasuke greatly. And more recently, knowing that Gaara actually stood a chance just because Naruto thought of him as a friend, drove Sasuke mad with jealousy and anger. He didn't want to lose the closest thing he to a crush as soon as he realized it. Or maybe this is just what it took for him to realize it.

Coming to this conclusion, Sasuke calmed himself before drawing further curious eyes to him. Unfortunately it was too late for that. A few villagers were already whispering about the crazy teenager standing in the middle of the street, talking to himself. Sasuke moved along more swiftly now that he knew he was more likely to be classified as a nut for his previous actions. To his surprise, he didn't have to walk far before spotting the familiar pair of spandrels along the small shopping strips. This immediately struck Sasuke with curiosity. If Naruto was suppose to be eating with them, then why were they here without him? The situation brought Sasuke to furious realization. The blond had probably lied to him just so he could sneak out. But why would he lie? Not waiting a moment longer to think this thing through, Sasuke dashed over to the two children, happily collecting vegetables for what he supposed was diner. "Hey! Little girl!" Sasuke yelled out, approaching them.

Haruka's expression hardened immediately to spotting the annoying older boy. "Go away!" She demanded, quickly grabbing her brother's hand and dragging him back towards their home. Before she could manage to get away, Sasuke had ran directly in front of her and grabbed her by the arm.

"I'm not playing with you! Tell me where Naruto is! He told me he was eating diner with you two, yet I don't see him." Sasuke insisted, ignoring the rage filled eyes of grown ups upon him. Sasuke was just to angry to care about that. He was being constantly tricked and lied to by the only person he thought incapable of a perfect fib and the only person he thought could trust him.

"Please don't go hurt Naruto." Kaito suddenly begged. "Panda-san went to go rescue him at the cave ont he outskirts of town." The boy explained. His sister quickly turned to him, punching him in the shoulder for telling who she thought was a sexual or abusive predator to Naruto. Sasuke merely rolled his eyes at the boy's plea. He would definitely hurt Naruto for his stupidity, but he might give him a break until after he was safe. How was it Naruto always managed to be in some sort of trouble? This was seriously putting a strain on Sasuke's free time, no that he actually did anything useful or fun during that time anyway.

Sasuke raced off in the direction specified. Just the mention of Gaara with Naruto made Sasuke's blood run cold. Who knew what type of heartless things that beast would do to his defenseless and clueless blond? If Gaara could force a kiss on him, then surely he could do more than that. And much to Sasuke's fear, Naruto probably wouldn't even see it coming. "What is he doing in a cave anyway?" Sasuke growled to himself.

Gaara slowly felt his patience slipping away. He knew it would take some time for word to get out about their disappearance, but that didn't change how easily he got agitated by waiting. And Naruto's constantly bickering and complaining about his hunger was not helping Gaara's situation at all. Not that he found the incisive talking annoying, he just wished Naruto would stay calm. Too bad Naruto was not such a good listener.

"I can't even remember what ramen taste like anymore." Naruto whimpered, rocking back and forth in his spot on the floor. It was beginning to make Gaara dizzy since he had been staring at Naruto the whole time. About fifteen minutes ago, Gaara gave up on trying to make romantic small talk. Not only was it hard to come up with the right thing to say, it was hard for them both to be entirely open about their past. So much for strengthening their relationship through conversation. Gaara could barely think anyway with Naruto's stomach roaring every three minutes. "Gaara...do you think I can digest rocks?" Naruto asked dumbly, turning to his new boyfriend with wide and hopeful eyes.

Such a stupid question didn't even deserve Gaara's rare words of speech, so the teen simply shook his head. This frustrated Naruto all the more. He finally screamed out hysterically and slammed his body against the floor dramatically. "If you are that hungry, I'll try and find you something to eat." Gaara answered, standing up. Naruto was beginning to worry him some. It couldn't have been good to starve one's self for two days, especially after being poisoned. That had to have drained Naruto's energy, so Gaara was amazed Naruto was still moving and talking so spiritedly.

"You'll come back right?" Naruto mumbled in almost a dead whisper. His eyes tiredly rolled over to glance at Gaara. Naruto hated to feel this fatigued after only two days. He would have to get use to it, being that he was a ninja and would experience much worse if he was ever taken hostage or tortured for information. But right now he just felt so empty and weak. His body had practically grown numb and his mind was dead. The only thing he could recognize was the loud gurgling of his stomach. Naruto smiled timidly upon seeing Gaara nod.

He watched Gaara head over into the pond. Since there obviously use to be a lot of water here, Gaara was going to see where it had all went. Maybe he could find an exit and probably run into some fish. "Don't move." Gaara advised as he quickly ducked into the water. Naruto was urged to stick his tongue out at Gaara's ironic command. If he even tried to stand up now his jiggly legs would give out beneath him. So Naruto simply stuck to resting here. His eyes, weighed down with exhaustion, closed as he gave way to sleep almost immediately.

Meanwhile evening was finally setting in and Sasuke had finally spotted the cave mentioned. "You better be here dobe." Sasuke shuffled into the cave without a second thought. He had to hurry before the sun came fully down. It would be much harder to search for Naruto then, especially in this darkened cave.

"Naruto!" Sasuke called out. He slowed his pace as he came deeper into the cave, where light had yet to reach. He stopped hastily as he felt unstable land near his feet. "What the?" Sasuke glared down at the giant hole in the floor. Despite the shadows cast into the ditch, Sasuke could clearly make out the reflection of the ceiling within a small gathering of water. "Naruto?" A small grumbling from below assured Sasuke that something was down there. With quick thinking, Sasuke instantly produced a copy of himself. "Go get Kakashi and Gai Sensei." Sasuke ordered the look-alike. He had a feeling once he got down there, he would have trouble getting back up.

Taking a step back, Sasuke ran towards the hole. You better be down there Naruto. He thought to himself. If he was going through all this trouble, than that idiot better have been down here. Sasuke landed in the pool of water just like he had speculated before jumping. He glided along the deep end until he was near the ground. And by a marvelous shock, he could spot a small mop of blond hair against the ground. "Naruto!" Once reaching the shore, he anxiously ran over, dropping to his knees by the motionless form. "Are you alright dobe?!" He asked, Pulling the other up by the shoulders.

Sasuke stiffened upon realizing Naruto had on no other clothes but his boxers and that he was completely damp with an unhealthy chill over him. Like any concerned teammate, he went to expecting the worse. "What did that asshole do to you?" Sasuke asked himself viciously. He didn't appreciate finding Gaara's own clothes a small ways from Naruto. He was going to kill Gaara simply for putting Naruto in harms way. So what if the bastard was the Kazekage and the rest of the village could have him killed, it would all be worth it to avenge what that psycho did to Naruto.

"Speak of the devil." Sasuke snarled the next moment. A small shadow appeared beneath the water's surface until Gaara finally came flailing up for a much needed breath. Gaara was shocked to see Sasuke hovering over a sleeping Naruto, though Sasuke had assumed he was unconscious. "What had you done to him?!" Sasuke yelled maliciously, jumping to his feet and drawing out his kunai. Despite the question, Sasuke was not in the mood for any answer Gaara may have. And so before the red head could even say something in his defense, the Uchiha came charging for him.

To Be Continued...

A/N: Lol, what did you expect form Sasuke? Sorry it took me so long o update, weekends aren't exactly my most productive typing times. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter and will review. As for all of you still wondering, this will end up being a GaaNaru fic. I just can't see how I could change it to SasuNaru by now anyway. But please keep reading it anyway. I know some of you were only here for the SasuNaru, but at least give this fic a chance! And I assure you I will be doing another SasuNaru fic real soon.