Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Between A Rock And A Hard Place ❯ You Wash My Back And I'll Wash Yours ( Chapter 25 )

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

It was a miracle that all four guys could cooperate long enough to even make it to the bathing house within the Inn. Kabuto had been reluctant to come with a group of his enemies, or at least he pretended to be any way. Gaara and Sasuke naturally didn't even want to be in the same room together, much less the same bath. And Naruto, he simply didn't want to be caught in the shooting range when his two admirers suddenly decided to ripe each other limb from limb. So just passing through the main doors to the bath was considered a great accomplishment in Naruto's standards.

They meagerly lined up along the wall, finding their own individual cubbies for their clothing. Naruto wasn't too appreciative of the two sets of menacing glares being exchanged on either side of him as Sasuke and Gaara threatened to kill each other just over having the other stare too long at Naruto's naked form. Which was all the more reason Naruto had stripped in a hurry and covered himself with a small towel. Kabuto seemed to be the only one who found this very amusing as he went ahead and joined Naruto by the showers.

"Will you two stop hating each other long enough for us to enjoy ourselves?" Naruto huffed, rolling his eyes. The statement had only succeed in distracting the two for a while, but they eventually returned to glowering again. It was by the time they were both fully unclothed that they tore their eyes away from each other and marched to where the blond had settled.

With a frustrated sigh, Naruto sat down at one of the small stools and took hold of a bar of soap. To his surprise Gaara and Sasuke had sat on either side of him, adding to the uncomfortable feeling of being watched so intently. It was a little nerve wrecking to know they were merely inches away from straggling each other, and that he was the only thing between them. How did this happen? Since when had he been so popular with love or even dates? But now all of a sudden, the two people he cared about the most...cared about him in return. And now it was so hard to figure out on his own whether or not his love for one was true enough.

"Naruto?" Gaara lightly murmured when he noticed the boy's usually vivid blue eyes focused worriedly ahead of him without any particular purpose. It wasn't like Naruto to be in thought so deeply, so it only made sense Gaara would be concerned. After all it was Naruto's carefree, naive nature that made him so easy to love. And he so badly wanted the blond to stay the same way he was.

Naruto hazily gazed back a Gaara with a dumb look on his face as though he hadn't a clue what had taken place. "Yeah?" He questioned. Naruto felt his cheeks burn when an actual smile of what appeared to be relief graced Gaara's lips. He seemed pleased that Naruto had not been lost entirely to his sorrowful thoughts.

"It's nothing..." Gaara muttered back with a timid grin before returning back to the task at hand. Since he was more so a heated person, he was not too fond of baths, however it was quite frequent he acquainted himself with the shower. Supposedly it would use up his time more seeing as how he had entire nights to waste. Distantly taking up the soap, Gaara lathered his hands in the numerous tiny bubbles.

"Hey Gaara! Can I wash your back?!" Naruto exclaimed with his casual everyday smile. The question had caught both Sasuke and Gaara off guard as they nearly gagged on their last intake of breath. Gaara of course had just been startled because it was the first time he had ever heard a request, not to mention this was one of the very few occasions he shared a bath with anyone. He remembered as a child Yashomaru would bathe him, but that was completely different.

Sasuke on the other hand was simply appalled by the idea and deemed the moment worthy enough for his objective nature. "How do you expect to clean someone else when you can't even keep yourself clean Naruto?" Sasuke growled, jerking up his own soap and wetting his naked form with hidden furiousness. To say he was offended Naruto had offered it to Gaara rather than himself, when it had been Naruto in the first place to dirty him up, would be an understatement. No matter what he did, it always seemed Gaara was the one getting all the benefits.

"Shut up teme!" Naruto hissed, pointing an accusing finger at Sasuke. "Who's fault is that anyway?!" And without even receiving an answer for his last statement, Naruto turned back to Gaara. His expression had drained of all anger, leaving only the sugar coated, goofy grin of the over active blond. "So what do you stay Gaara? I promise you I'm a whole lot better than Sasuke-teme! I bet he hasn't cleaned anything in his life, he'd probably just get all his fan girls to do it since they want to be his wife so much." Naruto spat out bitterly, saying it loud enough for Sasuke to overhear.

And for a moment Gaara was tempted to laugh at Naruto's antics. He so much loved to hear the two bicker, since it would always assure him he was not so close to losing Naruto to the very trader he had believed to be a worthy adversary. He would never forget how quickly Sasuke had clung to Naruto that night he left for merely a few hours. It was unacceptable; and only after just having agreed to a fair battle. It was obvious it had been Sasuke's intentions all along to get Gaara to let his guard down so he could swoop in and steal Naruto right from under his nose.

"I don't mind Naruto." Gaara answered calmly. He couldn't help but inwardly smirk when he saw Sasuke's repulsed expression as Naruto turned on his stool toward him. As nervous as Gaara was to having someone lay their hands on him, his amusement with Sasuke's suffering was stronger and allowed him to relax when he turned his back to the blond. It was still a reflex that made him flinch the moment Naruto's hands first laid upon his shoulders, but he quickly adjusted. Gaara was actually happy about Shukaku's weakness for the moment, for at least his chakra was to frail to protect him from this.

Within moments, Gaara was feeling better. The steam that floated about the room had eased his worry and made things a little more comfortable considering he was near Naruto; his biggest weakness mentally and physically. And with said blonde's hand soothingly rubbing slippery circles along his back, Gaara hadn't a care in the world. It was the first time he had grown to appreciate another's company in such a way. How marvelous it was to be touched like this, and how absolutely breathtaking it was that Naruto was so good at this. It was as though all the pent up stress had been washed away with the gentle stroking of the other's fingers against his spine and back. Gaara had even been so bold as to let a timid moan pass through his lips.

But the heat evading from the water was not the only steam in the room. A certain infuriated Uchiha was practically pulling his hair out when he had chose to shampoo his hair in order to distract himself from the others. Trying to avoid getting shampoo in his eyes should have been reason enough to close them and not just to block out the luxury Gaara was blessed with at the moment. But when that simple moan emitted form his rival, his eyes flew open and his had nearly strained is neck to jerk it in that direction. With cold, large, intense eyes Sasuke had watched as Naruto's almost elegant looking hands roamed over the other's form with such carefulness.

Sasuke found the longer he watched the more he was wishing it had been him Naruto's was caressing with such love and warm. Just the thought had Sasuke aroused and yet cursing on its behalf. To ease the sore hardness of this nameless desire, Sasuke had done something completely incompetent. "Teme! What are you doing?!" Naruto gasped when he felt Sasuke's own hands coming over his back like a heavy blanket of silk. Red rushed to Naruto's cheeks when he realized he had just compared Sasuke's hands to the softness of such a material.

Noticing Naruto's shaky tone of reluctant rejection, Sasuke smirked. "Well if you've got Gaara's back, I might as well have yours." Sasuke jested, bubbling up his hands with more soap to shroud the tan skin of his teammate. "You have layers of dirt back here Naruto." Sasuke replied with a hint of humor in his voice. "But that's what happens when you lay around in cages or desert grounds.

Naruto grumbled low about Sasuke being a trader. He was trying to make Gaara worry about what happened earlier, Naruto was sure of it. He had a feeling Sasuke would be a lot more tempted to speak again if he didn't agree with the Uchiha on theses terms. "Fine, but don't try anything funny teme," Naruto pouted as he turned his attention back to Gaara. He had noticed right of the bat that Gaara was not too pleased with being interrupted, nor was he fine with the idea of Sasuke touching Naruto in such a familiar way when in fact they were not so familiar, at least eh had hoped they weren't.

Sasuke was urged to grin cheekily when Naruto had accepted his offer, but he didn't want to lead Gaara on too much. So he resumed with cleaning the blond in front of him. It was amazing how soft and smooth Naruto's back was, and sensual the dip along his spine looked as tiny beads of water ran down him. Sasuke just wished he could lick that very flesh, but he settled for caressing the tan skin so tentatively. A coy smile appeared on his lips when he felt Naruto shudder beneath his touch. How could anyone be so sensitive? It was intriguing to think just the slightest little touch could make Naruto involuntarily react. And soon enough thoughts of other ways to touch the blond popped into Sasuke's head.

Naruto however, was getting some rather different thoughts. He could merely see Sasuke mocking him over this and then taunting Gaara bout earlier. It was so unfair, Sasuke was such an unfair player. He mistakably whimpered when Sasuke squeezed one of his shoulders too hard. "Damn teme, can you do anything nicely?" Naruto growled, moving forward a little to ease the intensity of Sasuke's massage. He knew Sasuke had an intimidating nature, but this was just too much. He was sure his flesh would be red and sore by the time Sasuke got through with him. Oh kami! That brought other thoughts to mind as well! Naruto winced quickly trying to block out the unwanted images from his mind.

"Come on Naruto, it doesn't hurt that bad." Sasuke insisted, pulling back a little. He supposed it was his own fault for being so involved in thought that he didn't realize how hard he was scrubbing or caressing. "If you can't stand this, then what makes you think you can even tolerate the pressures of being Hokage?" Sasuke questioned knowingly, only to have discouraged blond drape his head pathetically between his shoulders. For a moment Sasuke was in disbelief. Since when had Naruto accepted anything he had to say without a sloppy come back or even an insult "You seriously don't believe me do you?" Sasuke asked in a skeptical tone.

This question had startled Naruto and Gaara. It was almost a confession of having actually joked with Naruto all those other times and that was totally unlike Sasuke. "No!" Naruto huffed, his head quickly bouncing up. "I'm just tired of all you pestering teme-!"

"If you three stay there any longer, you will all be wrinkly before you even hit the baths." Kabuto teased, standing up from his stoop. It had been entertaining to watch them act so stupid, but he was sure they would get nowhere as long as they continued and he had some plans to get into action. It was surprising enough that the boys had so easily accepted him into their peculiar group without any mistrust or disrespect. Kabuto was aware he was intended to be a hostage in Sasuke's point of view, but they had merely treated him like another friend. Regardless, this would only make it easier for him to corrupt them.

The three didn't portray obedience as willingly as Kabuto had hoped, but they had at least stopped bickering. "Fine, I'm hitting the water." Naruto announced as he stood on his feet. At that moment anything was better than being tortured by Sasuke; the violent bastard. Was it too much to ask Sasuke to see his softer side, without the moody desperation that came with confession. Naruto was all too sure he needed a more stable understanding of where he stood in this relationship between Sasuke and him, and Gaara and him.

The sudden warmth that consumed him as he sunk into the steaming water had put Naruto's thoughts at ease. For now he would just ignore them and enjoy himself. As he leaned heavily against the edge of the large tub, the water level rose slightly as another person stepped in and sat beside him. Thankfully it hadn't been Sasuke, yet it hadn't been Gaara either. "What are you really doing here Kabuto?" Naruto asked absentmindedly. It struck him as odd that Kabuto would remain by their side when he normally waited hand and foot on Orochimaru, who had yet to appear anywhere in town.

Kabuto faked a hurt look and fooled his arms on the edge of the tub as he laid his head on them. "You know it hurts me that you still don't trust me entirely. I came here with you two, didn't I? Isn't it obvious I'm here to help?" Kabuto questioned, looking as innocent as one could after slaughtering an entire village and was still covered in their blood by the time they were caught.

"Well how should I put this...the last time I trusted you with my life, you tried to kill me and the entire village of Konoha..." Naruto mumbled off. His form slowly slid beneath the refreshing water until his chin dipped in slightly. "I can't really believe you when you say you want to help, us that is. So will this work out for Orochimaru if you help?" Naruto asked softly. Kabuto inwardly gapped at the question; that was actually an intelligent accusation Naruto had made, something he was definitely not expecting. And to be truthful, Kabuto had to admit Naruto was right.

"Unless watching Sasuke drive himself insane with jealous is our goal, I can't say it will." Kabuto chuckled idly. "But if you want to believe that it will, be my guess. Just be warned, making false assumptions will only make you paranoid. And I'm sure you don't want to be any more similar to Sasuke right now. If you hadn't noticed, I think he isn't as reliable as he once one. His judgment lately as seemed to be very...how should I put this...selfish; a win-win situation for himself." Kabuto explained casually.

Hearing this only discouraged Naruto more. His timid blue eyes drooped some as he finally spoke again, "Kabuto...you'll help us right? I know you like only things that will benefit you, but I'm sure saving Suna will work to your advantage one day." What Naruto had really been hoping was that Kabuto would change his position entirely and probably return to Konoha a hero. Maybe he could start over and work to be a moral shinobi. His knowledge was sure to further his career.

Kabuto couldn't contain his haughty laughter. "As much as I love contributing in my civic duties, I rather had more visible results. Perhaps we can come to an agreement later tonight” Kabuto offered, the corner of his lips lifted into a smirk. "Meet me in my room at midnight and we'll discuss it. You might not want to bring Sasuke; anything he will have to say will only be a collaboration of his pride." He stated confidently as threw a skeptical look to the raven that was still perched near the showers, rinsing himself off.

"But..." Naruto drowned off. He had to agree with Kabuto, that Sasuke wasn't just dependable as long as Gaara was involved. And he very much didn't want Gaara to come and the terms of which they must sacrifice for his own well-being. No doubt the redhead would insist denying and finding another person to help if the cost for Kabuto's services were too high or risky. But Naruto was aware that there wasn't anyone else they knew of that could help and in such little time. "No ones has to die, right?" Naruto asked weakly.

Kabuto's smirk widened and he stood up. The water poured from his slick form like a faucet and he exchanged Naruto a cunning look. "As long as you can find something of more value than a life," was Kabuto's only words before he walked off to the changing room again. How come Naruto got this feeling Kabuto was expecting a lot more than what he could give?

"Naruto?" The blond stiffened at hearing his name. He had been so dazed he hadn't realized Sasuke had walked over here to check up on him. "What's wrong? He didn't say anything offensive, did he?" Sasuke asked determinedly. His eyes were locked in a cold glare at the mere thought of Kabuto playing his tricks again, but when Naruto gave a stern shake of the head, Sasuke was forced to relinquish his anger. "So...what do you think we will have to give for his help?" Sasuke asked, stepping into the water and sitting beside the distracted blond. Naruto only shrugged as he leaned his head hopelessly against the edge of the tub with a melancholy stare. He wondered the same thing...

To Be Continued…

A/N: Sorry for the wait. But it is reaching a climax of the sorry. Things will get a little frustrating now for you, but it will get better. So please keep reviewing and reading, not in that order of course! And thanks fro sticking wit the story this far with my atrocious grammar mistakes ,lol.