Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Colour of his... eyes? ❯ The Couples (Part 1) ( Chapter 4 )

A/N: So, I finally got around to making this chapter. For those on TONFA, I'm really sorry about the delay, but I had some important stuff to do. Um, this particular chapter is going to be less light humor and more dark humor and angst, really, for the beginning at least. I mean, life ain't all a bundle of strawberries. Also, it's probably going to be the longest chapter so far. On FF.net, all my other stories are going on hiatus so I can concentrate on this story and `Epidemic of Love'. So, I'll just stop rambling away now and get on with the show.

Naruto: -sigh-

Sasuke: This is a disclaimer. AJ has no ownership over any part of Naruto. Kishimoto does, as does the producers from Bandai and SJ and stoofums. So, don't sue him. The only thing that belongs to him is his laptop and the stupid plotlines he comes up with.

Warnings: dark humor, implied rape, psychological torture, and foul language. Oh yeah, and maybe some GaaNeji fluff! -squees- Oh, and also, Itachi/? fluff!

 

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Chapter 4: The Couples (Part 1)

 

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Orphanage

 

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Something cold tore against his body, ripping it, shredding it. He felt his blood drip silkily down his shivering body, running rivulets, coating him in something sinful and forbidden. Stop it! His mind protested weakly, he was unable to verbally voice his anguish. Stop it! The voices inside kept torturing him, they wouldn't let him go. Dark, insipid thoughts threatened to overwhelm and break him. A shuddering breath was all it took to send his world into blackness: The only thing penetrating his dark solitude, the gleaming cornea of a demented, psychopath. STOP IT!

 

He awoke to the noise of blood rushing in his ears, an empty room, and the cozy light of the early morning sun filtering into his room through unclosed curtains. Seemingly fathomless cerulean eyes blinked the remnants of sleep from his eyes and the events of last night came flooding back to the blonde who occupied the now fully lit room.

`Where did that dream come from,” he asked himself, `I haven't had that nightmare in a while.' Shaking his head, he slipped out of bed, pausing only to look at the clock on his bedside table. The face of the clock told him it was 6:37 AM, way too early for anyone else besides Iruka to be up, especially considering the way the evening had passed the night before. Grimacing as he felt the beginnings of a hangover headache ebbing over his already troubled mind, Naruto fought the urge to gag on the flavor of dry cotton wool which plagued his mouth.

 

Swallowing weakly, he stumbled out of his doorway and into the bathroom. Everything felt so hot, so heated, so annoying. When he collapsed next to the toilet bowl, he felt overwhelmed by the coolness of the tiles before him and laid his head down against them. They soothed and calmed him, but as he lay, his heart began to speed up and the underside of his throat seemed to expand. Breath becoming harsher, he panicked when the room began to spin as he sat up quickly and he swallowed twice in quick succession. That seemed to be the straw that broke the camel's back. He let out a weak moan before his stomach heaved once, twice and a final third time, emptying its contents from the day before, possible extending to the day before that. As the flow stopped, Naruto rested his head against the seat of the toilet, coughing and mewling pitifully. He hadn't been sick like that in a while. He peered down at his belly, where his night shirt had ridden up, and traced the black pattern that had been etched into his skin since he was born. Nobody knew what the mark in the midst of the spiral which had been brutally carved into his stomach meant, apart from the fact that his brother had it too.

 

However, he couldn't remember the last time he had seen his brother. It could've been weeks, months or even years. In fact, knowing what kind of temperament the golden red-head had, the latter seemed to be the most truthful option, no matter how much he wished it was one of the former ones. Pulling a face at the mess in the toilet bowl, Naruto pushed down the button that activated the flush and stood up shakily before hobbling over to the sink. He couldn't have looked more awful if he tried. Blonde hair at the front had matted together with sick and his eyes with red rimmed and blood-shot. Black bags decorated the underside of his eyes and his usually glowing tanned skin and dulled down, the cold sweat covering his body making him look slightly pasty. The fact that streaks of blood running from his mouth to his neck didn't really help with the issue at hand either. It seems he had coughed up blood this time. He didn't panic, this had happened once before. Of course, that had been the one time he hadn't called for Iruka, though he had always had the suspicion that the man knew it had happened again that night.

 

Tonight was a bit more serious though. Try as he might, Naruto couldn't get himself close enough to the door, nausea creating wave and wave of dizziness to clog his mind and send his knees colliding painfully with the floor each and every time. He began to cough again and felt blood pile up in the back of his throat with an underlying hint of bile, before he released it onto the floor in front of him, and down the front of his pajama pants. He had even managed to get it upon his somehow bare chest, a fact that didn't go unnoticed by the blonde, if the grimace on his face was anything to go. Of course, the grimace could just have been from the sickly mix of yellowy-green bile mixed with the strong crimson of his blood, creating a disgusting colored splat on the floor, and letting off the most pungent odor of sick, copper and alcohol. In the end he gave up trying. He knew that someone was going to find him in that state, and as much as loathed to admit it, he needed help. In any other circumstance, he would've called for Iruka by now, but it seemed that the teen's voice box had temporarily shut down from the abuse his throat had been receiving, and he could do little more than rasp out a few faint `help's, before he coughed up a bit more blood.

 

He soon lost track of the time he had spent on the cold floor. All he knew was that he was very grateful for the darkness that eventually took over him. Even dreams of his past were better than the cruelty of his current reality. Did no God pity him anymore? That was the last thought that drifted through his conscience before succumbed to the sweet, blessed darkness.

 

“We have him in our grasp,” said a raspy voice, the malicious tones not wasted on a certain five year old blonde boy. Cerulean blue eyes opened wider than could be thought possible and tears collected above his lower lashes.

“Please let me go. Please,” he cried out, his tiny legs flailing in midair as he was picked up and slung roughly over a broad shoulder. The group moved silently, heading deeper into the forest, the very place where Iruka had warned him not to go. Oh how he wished he had listened. Still, he had just wanted to collect some flowers for his `father', and the ones that blossomed in the forest were supposed to be of splendid beauty, at least, that was what the woman in the flower shop had said.

 

Like a wide-eyed, stupid buffoon, he had traipsed gaily into the wood, thoughts of pretty flowers and wreaths he would make for everybody flitting through his head. When the big tall men arrived, he had naïvely thought they had come to play with him also. The world was so innocent when one was young. Those men had always hated him, and he had never understood why. Perhaps their hatred was what drove them to it. His poor little body hadn't been able to handle the beatings; they had been too large for his body to accept. Blood pouring out of wounds he couldn't see, bruises forming in places he hadn't known existed, he had clutched his tiny fists in his ears, trying to cover up their grunts of pleasure and jeers.

 

How could they say those things to him, and carry on violating him, over and over again. As soon as one finished, was spent, the next would home in. It was a never ending cycle. And so it carried on, his cries dead on his lips, once vibrant eyes, dulled to dusty-ish grey hue, like the sky on a particularly cloudy day. He couldn't even cry anymore, and the blood in his mouth where an overly-excited participant had backhanded him had long since lost its flavor amongst the bile that he had been retching out for a good half an hour. With the sickness came the panic, came the almost overwhelming sense that this was wrong, this was sick, this wasn't supposed to happen. His entire little world was shattered.

 

But no, that wasn't enough. Something large nudged between his lips.

“Open wide, little shit,” was the only warning he got before the large member was thrust between his lips.

 

He couldn't even cry out, his aching jaw was stretched beyond its limits, he couldn't breathe and he was choking. None of this mattered to his captor, who forced himself repeatedly down the child's throat. Once he was spent, another one took his place. Finally, they finished their slow torture, the dirty abuse, and started with their physical abuse. They wanted him broken, tainted, worthless. So they told him, took great pleasure in carving it into his skin all down his belly.

“Worthless.”

“Filthy slut,”

“Tainted,”

“Not so innocent now, are ya, little shit?”

 

When the were done, to add insult to injury, they rubbed soot, dirt and black ink into the wounds, which they had conveniently marked in many spirals, until the markings on his belly were permanently stained that way. Then they had left, which was both a blessing, and a curse. He was lost, he was in pain. Where was Iruka? He didn't know how long he lay there, bleeding, coughing, retching, before he was found and brought back, black and blue all over his body. He had never said a word to any of them. Not a damn word. The worst part of it was he knew exactly who'd done it. That time had been the first, but definitely never the last. Iruka had been so angry yet so relieved when he had been brought back, and though the older man had tried, time and time again, to get through to him, the once sunny blonde had now withered into a small, shivering object, curled into the very same fetal position he had been in when they swooped in on him like vultures, savages.

 

He had to lunge for the toilet bowl to dry retch over it, only the tiniest dribble of sick making its sloppy way down his chin, to plop squarely in the center of the bowl. He stomach heaved, and his breath was laborious. He let out a low croak, hoping, praying, wishing, someone would hear him, but his tiny prayer, alas, was not to be answered. Instead, he was greeted with an abrupt spin to the room, and the unpleasant feeling of something connecting with the back of his head before a cursed darkness curtained his vision, and plunged him into a bleakness he had only ever witnessed once before.

 

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The Castle

 

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Neji's mind was reeling from the information Itachi had supplied both he and his raven-haired cousin with and he was feeling the oddest sensations in his face. As he strolled down the empty corridor, Neji caught sight of himself in a jewel encrusted mirror and nearly face-planted into the floor. The muscles in his mouth twitch and his teeth flashed as his face performed one of its most horrific feats. The grin was so unnatural, that as he carried on down the hall, no less than two guards had cowered away from him, eyes planted firmly on the plush, forest green carpet muffling his footsteps. Really, one would think the Hyuuga had never smiled before. But even as this thought occurred to Neji, he realized that yes, it really was an unnatural phenomenon, which, once he'd thought about it, was actually quite depressing.

 

Though, the reason for his new found talent seemed to lie in the fact Itachi had given him, and Sasuke, very valuable information of both their mysterious vanishing women. It gave Neji the shivers just thinking about his own redhead and her cool, minted green eyes.

 

`Damn that Sasuke,' he thought as he sighed for what seemed to be the thousandth time.

“For the last time, your Highness, the girl is nowhere to be found,” Neji muttered angrily, resisting the urge to smack his cousin firmly round the back of the head. If things didn't wrap up soon, he was going to miss the meeting his father had planned with the head of the Hyuuga clan about Hinata's wife training.

 

`It's probably for the best. She acts more servant-like every time I see her,” he thought darkly, he longs bangs obscuring his angry pale eyes, `in fact, both I and Sasuke have found ourselves nearly forgetting she's not actually a servant. Just last week I—`

 

He was interrupted from his train of thought by Sasuke's angry voice.

“JUST FIND HER, NEJI. OR SO HELP ME YOU'LL REGRET IT,” the errant young prince raged before sulkily clambering back in his couch and giving orders to find the next best restaurant, effectively leaving the Hyuuga behind, pissed off and hungry. Sighing, yet again, Neji prepared himself for some fruitless searching when his eyes locked unto the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. He let out a shocked gasp, and before his mind could register what was happening, he found himself drifting almost subconsciously towards him.

 

Finally, he stood in front of her and she looked up, apparently searching for something. Chartreuse eyes met dusky, pale violet in a clash of irises and enlarged pupils, and for the very first time, Neji felt heat creep into his cheeks. The “girl” blinked once, twice, before her own cheeks reddened and her full, plump lips parted in the beginning of speech.

 

“Hi, have you seen a blonde girl with pigtails, three whisker marks on each cheek and deep, cerulean eyes run past?” she asked, her voice, while not exactly being the epitome of femininity, melodious to listen to. His eyes widened in shock once more as he realized the beauty in front of him seemed to know the mysterious, vanishing blonde that had caught the prince's eye.

 

Just as he was about to reply, a brunette boy in a suit with strange triangular markings on his cheeks ran past, yelling “Naru~ko”. The redhead's head snapped towards the owner and Neji watched as the beautiful eyes widened in recognition a fraction.

“Kiba?!”

The brunette, now identified as Kiba, span around quickly, eyes darting around frantically before the snapped unto the redhead.

“Gaara? Er… I mean, Ara-chan, have you seen Naru…ko?” he asked, his eyes betraying his obvious panic.

 

“No, I was just looking for… her after that whole prince scenario. Ah, here's Shikamaru with the annoying little—“

 

“You really don't like your sister, do ya?”

 

“Well, I do, but I don't. Sibling rivalry, if you need something to attest to.”

 

“Yo guys, what's up,” Temari called out.

“Hey Shika, hey Temari. Nothing much. Naru-chan has pulled a fast one on us,” Kiba grouched, arms folding over his chest.

“Mendokusai (so troublesome),” Shikamaru sighed lazily, already wishing he were back home, spending some quality time with his girlfriend.

“Ah well, Tenten's already gone home, so it's alright I suppose,” Kiba sighed before waving goodbye to them, muttering something about setting Akamaru unto the blonde when he got home.

 

Neji had been practically ignored through this entire exchange, and when he realized the redhead was about to leave, his hand snaked out to grab hold of a slender wrist. He blushed deeply when Gaara's eyes rose in questioning at his unexpected action, though he realized gratefully the “girl” hadn't tried to shake him off.

“I… Can I s-see you again?” he blurted out, stumbling slightly over his words.

 

Gaara's eyes clouded over a second before a mischievous gleam entered them, though he pointedly ignored the blush sneaking over his face. Stepping closer to the long haired boy, Gaara pushed his lips against Neji's, tongue lightly flicking over the other's bottom lip until he heard the pale-eyed boy moan before pulling away and walking over to where Temari and Shikamaru stood, shock and amusement evident in both their faces.

“I'll see you real soon, Mr. Knight,” the red haired beauty smirked over his shoulders before vanishing into the crowd, leaving a dazed and confused, and horny, Neji behind..

 

He had stayed there a good few minutes before he headed back to the spoilt prince Sasuke, secure in the knowledge that there was someone out there that caught his fancy and possibly returned it, despite his uncertainty of what there name was. Could it be that one as beautiful as she had such a masculine name like Gaara?

 

Yet, as he pictured the black lined eyes, and shimmering jade irises, he felt the strange notion that the name, no matter how masculine, seemed to fit completely. He had returned to the castle on a spiritual high that not even the prince and his surly mood could break though.

`Ha, take that Sasuke Uchi-dork.'

 

Still, the words echoing around his head sounded stupid, even to him. He hadn't intended on telling the younger Uchiha, or the older one for that matter, about his red haired beauty, but it seems that one couldn't keep many secrets from Itachi. If one did and he found out, one would wish they had never had a secret in the first place. Despite his cheeriness and constant hyperactive mode, Itachi was a very, very scary man. Even Sasuke, the Ice Prince, feared him. Perhaps that's why he claimed to hate Itachi. It's not everyday one finds Sasuke scared of someone, but then again, it's not everyday one encounters a person like Itachi.

 

Finally reaching the sweet solitude of his bedroom, Neji shirked out of his heavy uniform and into a pair of sinfully tight silk pajamas. A guard at the castle though he may be, Neji was a Hyuuga, the second most powerful family next to the Uchihas. The third being the Aburames, but given how odd Shino was, Neji preferred not to think of them. Of course, there was always the Inuzukas, but since their oldest son disappeared at birth, they'd become more recluse, despite still flooding the place with their abundance of children and dogs alike. Briefly, and image of the boy called Kiba flashed into his mind, and he paused, midway to his bed. As he thought more and more about the marks on the boy's cheeks, he felt it strongly connected to something he had just been thinking about and something Itachi had mentioned before.

 

“Ah well, I'll think on it tomorrow. For now, I am going to think over what Itachi has told me,” he called out loud to no one in particular clambering awkwardly into his bed, and sliding into the sheet, pulling out his hair tie, letting the soft, glossy locks spill around his body. He sighed lightly as he turn to his side, fingers intertwining into a soft clump of hair as he mind played over the unusual afternoon with his two cousins.

 

“Well, now that I have both of your attentions, I can tell you that I have some information on both your disappearing maidens,” Itachi grinned, chuckling slightly as Neji choked on his spit in his shock.

Sasuke frowned and looked questioningly at the pale-eyed boy, confusion for once, clearly displaying in his usually emotionless eyes.

“Yes my dear little brother, you weren't the only one struck with cupid's arrow this afternoon. I believe cousin Neji found his own red haired beauty,” Itachi snickered, loving the usually stoic boy turn an interesting shade of cherry red.

 

“Wh-what are you talking about? I was not struck,” Neji blustered, trying to reign in his emotions like he was taught from a young age, but finding that, for once, he couldn't and the blush stayed firmly in place.

“You probably were. Imagine that; the great Neji, master of fate, falls in love without prediction,” Sasuke smirked, enjoying the angry look spreading across his cousin's face.

“At least I didn't go shit crazy and send an entire entourage after her.”

Sasuke flushed at that and simply turned his attention back to Itachi, glaring when he found the older boy suppressing his laughter as he watched the two teens bicker.

 

“Anyway Aniki(big brother), what information did you have anyway,” Sasuke asked, finally turning his attention back onto the matter at hand.

“Ah, well, I found out that both girl's either live, or are staying in an orphanage, near the forest, and that the blonde girl ran straight back there, shortly followed by an irate brunette boy with strange marks on his cheeks,” Itachi said, seriousness flooding over his being, “the redhead headed back to the orphanage after leaving Neji dazed and star-struck, but then both her and another blonde-haired girl got into an argument with some pub lads, and managed to out-drink even the bartender in a drinking competition.”

 

He paused their, checking to make sure he had the utmost attention.

“The blonde haired girl was totally inebriated, and he boyfriend, another brunette with a high ponytail dragged her home, but the red haired girl was totally composed and had a rather frightening grin on her face as she left twenty setas on the bar and walked back to the orphanage.

 

“Here's the weirdest occurrence though. About four hours later, a girl named Tenten left the house, dragging a blonde haired boy with the same whisker marks and eyes as the blonde haired girl Sasuke was so smitten with, saying that they needed to buy another dress for her and Naruko and Ara. Shortly after that, a red haired boy came out and picked up both the blonde haired boy and Tenten and carried them back inside the house, muttering something about a celebration.

 

“After that, there wasn't much activity outside we could see, though there was a mechanical bull, so we don't know how the two boys are connected to the girls, but they are definitely connected,” Itachi finished, an evil smirk playing about his lips.

Both Neji and Sasuke had the mouths hanging open until Itachi, taking pity on them both, not-so-gently snapped their jaws shut for them.

“Are… are they siblings,” said Neji, feeling with a certainty that there was something very important Itachi wasn't telling them.

“That's the most likely thought, but I'll look more into it,” Itachi grinned, bidding both awestruck teenagers alone in their thoughts.

 

Sighing, Sasuke rubbed a hand across his eyes, moving over to his closet, deciding to dress himself for bed. No doubt Hinata was already in bed.

“I think I'm going to sleep on this, Neji,” Sasuke muttered with an out-of-character grin spreading across his face.

“Yeah, me too,” Neji said, unable to stop the answering grin from sliding its way across his face as well; he'd exited the room with that grin still spread across his face.

 

The pale-eyed Hyuuga finally allowed one last smile to creep across his features, as he fell asleep to extremely pleasant dreams about chartreuse eyes, soft red hair, and a very masculine body. It wouldn't be until morning that Neji awoke with a girly scream tearing from his mouth until his room was suddenly invaded by Shino and Itachi, with an also screaming Sasuke, glancing worriedly down at him as he babbled about males. Of course, the possibility that he was probably gay didn't occur to Neji until breakfast time when he collapsed off of his chair, and naturally, the fact that he'd thought of Ara-chan as a male and liked it didn't occur until after he'd been revived after his fainting spell at breakfast, causing him to faint again. And, at the risk of repeating my self, of course it didn't occur to him that the same thing was happening to Sasuke until after they'd woken up beside each other in the nursing room of the hospital.

 

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Next day - Middle of town

 

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To say that Itachi was enjoying the day would be a major understatement. Not only was his little brother and his cousin Neji confined to bed in the nursing room after the fainting spells over breakfast, but he also knew the exact reason for their fainting spells. In fact, Itachi knew exactly what was going on with the two “girls”. The fact that his little brother had fallen in love with a cross-dressing boy had not failed to amuse him, and the fact that Neji had also fallen in love with a cross-dressing male had just made him laugh so much that his parents had nearly confined him to the nursing room as well.

 

Needless to say, he'd made a quick escape and legged it out of there, deciding now was a good a time as ever to walk around town. It was as he strolled about town that his gaze fell upon one of the most magnificent sights Itachi had ever seen. Silky golden-red locks cascaded gently below broad yet slender shoulders. An elegant dove grey suit framed a toned, yet not overly so body, and elegant hand covered by a pristine white glove came up to brush imaginary lint of a smooth pectoral. Full cherry red lips that Itachi had the very strong urge to ravish, decorated a smooth, tanned face, an aristocratic nose centered upon his face. Chocolate-hazel eyes with minute green flecks glanced up to meet seemingly endless obsidian pools.

 

For a moment, the noise of the street seemed to fade away as both held the other's gaze and before they knew it, they both moved towards each other. Finally within touching distance, they stopped, neither knowing how to continue, until the fox-like male gave a tiny gasp that made Itachi shiver, and bowed.

“Good afternoon, your Highness,” the gorgeous vision in front of him murmured, the voice alone causing some discomfort in the groin vicinity of Itachi's pants.

 

He returned the bow and smiled, holding out his hands.

“Good afternoon to you too, please call me Itachi,” he smiled, not missing the faint flush spreading across the golden-red head's face, or the way his body shivered slightly when their hands came into contact.

“Alright then Itachi, you may call me Kyu,” he replied, white teeth flashing in a cheeky grin.

Itachi felt like he could've died and gone to heaven as he gripped the hand that seemed so delicate in his own hand.

 

Kyuubi neither seemed to notice or care that Itachi was still holding his hand, as he was too busy trying to control the tingles of pleasure spiking through his body at the contact between the heavenly figure in front of him and himself.

Finally he snapped out of his lust induced haze and brought forth words to his lips.

“Do you know how to get to the orphanage near the woods? My brother lives there but I haven't been there in so long, I can't remember where it is,” Kyu mumbled, blushing as he finally, albeit reluctantly, removed his hand from Itachi's warm grasp.

 

To say Itachi was shocked was an understatement.

“Well, well. Looks like we're all smitten with something to do with that house,” he chuckled lightly under his breath.

“Hmm?”

 

“Ah, nothing, I was just talking to myself.”

 

“Oh… so, do you?”

 

“Hn? Oh, of course. I'll show you there. I was actually going there myself.”

 

“Ah, who were you going to see?”

 

“A woman named Tsunade,” Itachi replied, cheerfully offering his arm, which he was pleased to note Kyuubi took shyly.

“Ah, the head house parent… freakishly strong. Once knocked me out with just a flick of her fingers,” Kyuubi muttered, obviously still sulking about the occasion.

Itachi let out a small bubble of laughter at the cute expression on Kyuubi's face, and it soon escalated into full blown laughter at the mildly affronted expression on Kyu's face.

 

All those that knew the older prince stared in shock. They had never seen the prince act so carefree before. An old woman smiled gently as she surveyed the pair.

“Looks like we'll be having two Kings this rule(1),” she cackled lightly before mysteriously vanishing back into an alleyway, an arrow and a bow clutched in her seemingly ancient hands.

 

 

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The Orphanage

 

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“Naruto! Naru~toooooooo! NARUTO YOU BAKA, WHERE ARE YOU?” Kiba screeched as he came out from a rather empty bedroom, a puzzled expression across his face, Akamaru answering with a confused whine. Naruto wasn't usually up at this time in the morning, so where could he possibly be except in bed?

 

Kiba pondered over this as he made his way to the bathroom. Kicking the door open, he turned to call Akamaru over when the words stuck in his throat as he surveyed the scene in front of him.

A piercing screaming flew between his lips and Kiba practically teleported down the hallway to Gaara's bedroom.

 

Slamming the door open, Kiba's once warm brown eyes, now panicked, connected with Gaara's frosty green ones.

“What… do… you… want, Inuzuka?” Gaara ground out. For once, however, Kiba ignored the warning signs.

 

“Na-Naruto, he's collapsed in the bathroom… c-covered in bl-blood, his h-head's bleeding,” he stuttered nervously, dragging Gaara behind him. When they arrived, Gaara screamed Iruka's name and ran over to the blonde, putting him in the recovery position before wetting a towel and wiping away the blood and sick from around the pale body. Iruka burst in the scene and quickly assessed the situation.

 

“Kiba, go out and find Shizune, Gaara, go and fetch Tsunade and tell her to bring THE pills, okay?” he ordered, drizzling drops of water unto Naruto's chapped lips, having already felt for an alarmingly weak pulse.

Both boys nodded with their eyes wide with fright, both were scared for the life of their best friend. Kiba grabbed his shoes and Akamaru and ran full pelt for the village, for once glad of his inhuman stamina. Gaara, in the meantime, busted through Tsunade's door and threw a cup of cold water on her.

 

Before she could pulverize him, he gave her a brief assessment of the situations and told her to bring “the pills”. For once in his life, Gaara fell over in shock as he watched Tsunade zoom out of bed, speed dress and snatch out a medical pouch in under a minute before practically running him over in order to get to Naruto faster. In hadn't occurred to him how much everyone in the house loved Naruto, but he came to the quick conclusion that he really didn't mind.

 

He too hurried back to the bathroom, slightly panicking, and hoping to God that Kiba would make it in time. If anything happened to Naruto because of that mutt, Gaara would personally make sure that both Akamaru and Kiba would never be able to have pups: Ever.

 

On Kiba's side of things…

He pelted out the front door, feet skidding slightly on the floor Iruka had diligently cleaned and waxed not ten minutes since, and pushed himself towards the village, stopping only once to let Akamaru down to run along side him. He could feel tears prickling at the corners of his eyes, but he angrily brushed them away. Not here, not now Kiba, he grouched angrily to himself, launching himself over the fence that surrounded the orphanage.

 

Akamaru joined him shortly again, the small puppy having a bit of difficulty with the fence, but the pup soon started barking, startling Kiba to a stop.

“What is `Maru?” Kiba asked; his left foot twitching in his impatience to carry on running for Shizune. However, he soon caught sight of what had set Akamaru off and he gasped, one word escaping softly between his lips.

“Kyuubi…”

 

“KYUUBI!” he yelled, waving his arms frantically and speeding over towards the familiar golden redhead. He hadn't even noticed the other person beside the tall figure.

“Hey Kiba,” the man replied, laughing slightly when Kiba pounced on him and pulled him into a tight hug. The laughter soon turned to concern when Kyuubi got a good look at Kiba's face.

“What's wrong squirt?” he asked, peering anxiously down at the damp cheek of the teen.

 

“N-Naruto collapsed… he's bleeding, and I was about to get Shizune, and, and I don't know if he's going to be alright, and I'd just found him in the bathroom and, and…” Kiba stuttered, now crying full force on Kyuubi's soft dove suit.

Kyuubi gasped and hugged Kiba fiercely to his chest murmuring, “It's alright Kiba, but I'm going to need you to do something, okay?”

Kiba nodded, trying to wipe away his tears.

 

“I'm going to need you to calm down, okay? Naruto's going to be fine. Run as fast as you can with Akamaru and get Shizune. If you do that, then we can save Naruto, okay?”

Once again, Kiba nodded, and, trying to be brave, flashed him a sliver of a small and ran onwards towards Shizune, a renewed energy making him speed up, Akamaru running full out beside him.

 

Behind him, Itachi turned to Kyuubi.

“Is Naruto your little brother,” he asked quietly, reaching out a hand to softly stroke Kyuubi's petal-like cheeks.

“Yeah”

“Don't worry”

“Yeah”

 

Both men sped up as they headed back to the house, Kyuubi's face pinched with worry, and Itachi's body posture stiff as he regarded the now slumped body beside him.

Kiba hurried on ahead, finally pulling to a stop outside Shizune's practice, the place Tsunade owned and called to the dark-haired women.

 

A moment later, she appeared, the bright smile on her face vanishing at the sight of Kiba, covered in dust from his running, cheeks grimy from crying and rubbing dirt into them, shoes on the wrong foot, clothes rumpled, eyes bloodshot, and body quivering.

“What happened, Kiba,” she pressed, quietly but firmly.

Kiba quickly explained the situation and Shizune hurried inside. When she came out again, a few minutes later, she had a huge medical bag with her and a special harness key.

“Follow me,” she barked at Kiba, leading him round the back of the practice where a carriage lay.

 

A special engine inside the cart enabled it to pull itself at high speeds as long as someone steered it, so Shizune was certain it was get them there faster.

Inserting the key into the harness to unlock it, she set Kiba into the passenger seat and quickly sat in hers. Key in the ignition, engine revving, they set off at a speed so inhuman, that even with the direness of the situation, Kiba wished they could slow down.

Shizune turned to him with a grim smile, “Don't tell anyone this, but I'm not supposed to drive this thing since the last time, when I created that major crash. I've only driven one of these things twice before, and both times I had an accident.”

 

Kiba could only stare at her in horror, hoping to death that she was just kidding. However, the horrific events that lead to them nearly flying through a hotel lobby quickly erased any doubt that Shizune was only joking.

“GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! HELP ME!” he screamed, but no one knew how.

“Hold on tight, Kiba. I think this corner gonna be a tight one”

“Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo”

 

()()()()()()()()()()()()()()

 

A/N: Hello, hello, once again my faithful readers. I know what you're thinking and, well, you're thinking wrong. I know I said I'd update ages and ages ago, but you see, I've been in America this whole time and I had to find an American charger for my computer. Yes, that's right, my laptop died. So yeah, I'll try and get back on point, but mother dearest wants me to go to an American High School, meaning, I've only had three weeks summer holiday. I'm in mourning, so the next chapter after part two should be longer, but I'll update in two weeks instead of one. I hope you guys understand, but I do still love you all and I haven't abandoned you. Hopefully, Chapter one for Epidemic of Love will be put up tonight as well as this chapter and chapter five, which is part two, but if not, I'll put it up next time. It is done, finally, and the story should only be about seven to ten chapters long. If you're wondering how long this story will be… my only answer is “long enough”. Sorry for my vague-nossity but I have to do it. I promise to tell you the chapter before the last chapter though, when it's going to be the last chapter. Right, now I bid you adieu. I need my rest.

 

AJ

 

P.s. Itachi/Kyuubi! Isn't it divine? For some reason, I love those two together. I might start a fic up, a vampire/demon fic, just for them. Mmm… -drools-

 

P.p.s. As for the story behind the mechanical bull and other such matters I haven't wrapped up this chapter, you'll be finding them out next chapter. Sorry about the cliffie again, but I couldn't help but end it on a funny note. All the angst from Naruto had made me a bit depressed, so I thought, to hell with this, I need comedy. As for Kiba, I'm sure you've all got some idea about what I want to do with him, but for the moment, let's just not say anything, ne? Damn, this is a really long author's note. Might as well be an author's essay. -grin-

 

(1) She means that instead of a King and Queen during Itachi's rule, there's going to be two Kings, seeing as he's fallen for Kyuubi. This is accepted in their Kingdom, as is most same sex relationships, but it's still very rare when royals do it, but not unheard of. As for whom the old woman is, you'll find out soon enough. I'm going to stop laughing and be nice and tell you that `no, she's not cupid'.