Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Embracing Dreams ❯ Chapter 20

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Notes: I still think it's weird when an 11 day wait between chapters is a 'long time'... I wanted this to be done last weekend, but I got caught on Iruka's talents - now or later - and had to do some adjusting to my overall plot. Yeah, I've got an overall plot. You'd never guess from how slowly the fic moves.

Warnings: dialogue, violence, shounen ai

Part 20

The first coherent word Naruto managed was a strident 'why', followed by a horrified 'how could you'. Kyuubi gave a casual response before he could launch into more of the same. 'You'll have to calm down and envision the trap door if you want to get out of there,' Kyuubi informed him. 'The entire point of that cage is that it can't be affected from the outside when it's occupied.'

And then he smugly went back to ignoring Naruto for the moment. It was his own fault for handing him the reins. The kiss had been stimulating, sure, any sexual contact would have been stimulating. That hardly excused turning into a puddle of mush two minutes into it just because the dark brat knew how to use his tongue. Pathetic. 'Yes, you,' Kyuubi sniffed, when his thought made the muted clamor increase in volume. 'Feel free to stay in there. I'll be more than happy to take up where I left off when I'm finished here.'

Then he was lifting the phone, holding it a few inches away from his ear. It was a good thing he did, because the noise on the other end of the phone was even louder than the clanging of an outraged and caged Naruto inside his head. He bared his teeth at the double assault on his sensitive ears and growled a sharp, "Yes?"

"Umino Iruka?" a harried voice demanded. "Hello? Is this Umino Iruka?"

"No," Kyuubi snapped. "He's out."

"I need to speak with him," the man said quickly. "Or maybe I don't. It doesn't matter who. This is his house, yes?"

Kyuubi grunted. The phone had been ringing off and on since they'd gone onto the roof, earlier. Now he was glad he hadn't mentioned it to Naruto. This man sounded as panicked and impatient as the brat in his head. Oddly enough, he could swear he heard actual bars clanging over the phone, in perfect sync with Naruto's efforts.

"And you take mutants? Young ones? Free of charge, no questions asked?"

Charging, Kyuubi sniffed. Now there was a thought. If other humans were as desperate as this one, Iruka could make a killing taking in unwanted mutants. Naruto stopped his fruitless banging in his cage and sent a blistering warning about not 'screwing up Iruka-sensei's plans' like the 'greedy fox' he was. Kyuubi ignored him.

"We take them here," Kyuubi muttered into the phone. His mouth pulled into a disgusted sneer as he added, "Free of charge."

"Great," the man sighed. "That's great. We've had him for a week now and no one will take him. He's driving the other inmates crazy, but we don't have anywhere else to put him. As far as we can tell, he's a complete loon - but he's not dangerous! Really, he's not dangerous, it's just - we can't let him out on the street and we can't keep him here. There's an institute in Wharthup we usually send our crazies, only they don't take mutants, so..."

"He'll fit right in here," Kyuubi drawled. Even Naruto couldn't argue with that.

An exaggerated sigh answered, "I'm so glad to hear that. We'll arrange an escort immediately."

The man went on with his thanks, rattling off names and information about the facility he was calling from, what they had on the kid in question, and how they'd gotten the number in the first place. Kyuubi tuned him out, giving one more grunt when the man finally trailed off so he could hang up the phone. Then he sank down on the soft couch that took up the wall of Iruka's office and turned his attention to the brat in his head. Naruto was sitting in the middle of his cage, shoulders slumped, head down, all but exuding syrupy wafts of depressing colors. He didn't even look up when Kyuubi manifested himself in fox form on the other side of the bars.

'Gave up already?' Kyuubi prodded, half curious, half disappointed. 'That's not like you.'

'I didn't give up,' Naruto muttered. He folded his arms and glowered at them. 'Making a door's easy,' and he didn't even have to look up to imagine one opening right behind him, he could feel the shift in the air, 'but there's no point. You screwed it up. I was all set to tell him if you'd just waited, but, no, you had to go and screw it up.' His voice sharpened as he sent a furious glare at the fox, 'And you don't even feel guilty about it!'

Kyuubi curled himself comfortably, dropping his head so they were closer to eye level, 'Guilty about what?'

'Doing that to me!' Naruto spat. Did the fox even have a conscience?

'I was doing things to him, not you,' Kyuubi pointed out, red eyes glinting with amusement. 'I didn't do nearly as much as I'd have liked to. You should be grateful. I only held back on your account.' What did he need a conscience for when he had Naruto?

Naruto shot to his feet, stalking through the door he'd created so he could rant at the ass properly. 'You were holding back,' he repeated sarcastically. Then he exploded, 'What the hell is wrong with you! How can you say you were holding back when you just - did that! You attacked him. With no warning, no reason. We weren't even fighting, and he was already injured and you just...!' He swallowed a gulp of air and stared at the unrepentant fox. 'How could you do that? What were you thinking?'

'I was holding back,' Kyuubi sniffed. He didn't mind having Naruto angry, frustrated, shocked. This was more betrayed and hurt, and he didn't care much for the implications of that. Surely Naruto knew him better than that by now. 'You know what I wanted to do to him, what I'm capable of. The main reason I didn't is because of you.'

Naruto's stomach twisted until he grimaced. It wasn't like he'd forgotten. He could still remember the first time he'd talked with Kyuubi, when the fox had smugly told him about the people he'd killed, how he'd enjoyed it, the rush and predatory pleasure he'd taken from it. He hadn't forgotten. The stalking and mutilation dreams wouldn't let him forget entirely. But none of that had ever seemed real to him. It was all in Kyuubi's imagination, in his own forgotten past. He'd never seen that aspect of Kyuubi firsthand, never wanted to see it firsthand. And so he'd focused on the Kyuubi he'd gotten to know over the years, snarky, sly, perverted, but basically an okay personality he shared everything with. Everything. Especially the few people he'd become close to.

'You can't do that,' Naruto said quietly. 'Not to Sasuke. Not to someone we know. You wouldn't do that to Iruka-sensei.' And he firmly believed that, no matter what he knew about Kyuubi's darker side. Kyuubi valued Iruka every bit as much as he did and had from the start.

'Of course not,' Kyuubi growled. 'Iruka is off limits,' as he'd acknowledged from the beginning. 'That has nothing to do with this. Don't jump to conclusions. I wasn't referring to mutilation or murder. You're overreacting.'

'I am not!' Naruto snapped. 'You attacked him! He was off guard because he trusted me and you took advantage of that. You just admitted you wanted to do something even worse - how am I supposed to react to that?'

Kyuubi's response was scathing, 'I did not attack him. If you were paying attention, instead of overreacting, you would have noticed that he struck the first and only blows. All I did was take up where you left off, making my intentions clear, which is more than you can say. Don't think for a second that I didn't catch you wavering the moment he kissed you back. You weren't going to tell him. Changing your mind without giving me any say in the matter. You should have known I wouldn't accept that after you specifically promised to tell him. If you want to play up a bleeding heart, consider how unfair it is for you to take advantage of him without telling him that I'm in here as well, having him every bit as much as you are, without his even being aware of my existence. I have no problem taking advantage, it's in my nature, but if you're going to do it yourself, don't spit indignant at me when I do the same.'

'It wasn't like that...'

'No?' Kyuubi drawled. 'What was it, then? You've had plenty of opportunities to tell him. I would have told him from the start. Now he knows.' He drew himself up, eyes glinting with smug approval. 'He took it well, better than I expected.'

'How can you say that?' demanded Naruto. 'He freaked! You saw how panicked he got when I kissed his neck and you went and - and...you know.'

Kyuubi gave a derogatory snort, 'If you can dream it, you can say it.'

'Groped him,' Naruto glared. 'Molested him,' because that was what it really came off as, 'right when he was actually relaxed a little. Yeah, maybe I was having second thoughts, but only because I knew you'd screw it up by being a horny pervert! I was still gonna tell him. I just wanted to wait till he was used to me before I sprung a mega-perv like you on him. And I was right! What did you do the second he saw you? Violate him so he tries to kills us to get you off!'

'Violating him would have gotten me off nicely,' Kyuubi pointed out. He continued while Naruto was too busy sputtering to think of a comeback. 'And he didn't try to kill us,' he sniffed. 'He was angry, not afraid. If he'd panicked, we wouldn't be having this conversation. I've no interest in someone broken. He's not. He's twitchy, skittish, and I told you before that his reactions are wrong. Everyone who touches him is identified as a threat. As I said, I only held back on your account. He hesitated because of you, because you're not threatening. I am. And now he's aware of that. The next time we fight, he'll know better than to hesitate. And so will I.'

'You're not doing it again!' Naruto blurted. He could admit that Kyuubi had a point about his not telling Sasuke sooner. That was at least as unfair as Kyuubi coming out to molest him when he least expected it. And he did want the chance to fight Sasuke seriously. That was the reason he'd decided to tell him, so he wouldn't feel guilty and uncomfortable letting Kyuubi really join him in a match. He still wasn't about to let Kyuubi mutilate him in a fight and that was just what the fox would do on his own. 'He's my friend. Well, sort of,' and he glowered a little, 'even if we don't get along half the time. I still like him. And I know you! You'll tear him up and then molest him and - and there's no way I'm letting you do that! He probably won't even speak to me now, let alone spar with me. Even if he did, I still wouldn't let you fight him without me!'

Kyuubi glared for a long while, staring him down. Then he shoved up and walked into the cage. It immediately shimmered until it was the same cushiony den he used most often. He'd placed it there for that exact reason, convenience and comfort. Naruto bristled and turned toward him. Kyuubi didn't bother speaking until he'd curled into a boneless ball.

'Keep telling yourself you'll be able to stop me if it makes you feel better,' Kyuubi muttered. 'I'm too tired to prove anything right now.'

'Tired?' Naruto stopped short. 'From what? Since when do you get tired?' Lazy, bored, moody, but never tired.

Kyuubi gave a helpless snort. 'He really distracted you well, considering it was his first time participating in a kiss. Did you even feel the injuries he gave us? Healing takes energy, brat, and I use too much on my own. Don't worry, a quick nap and I'll be as good as new. Next time I'll be sure to wear him down before I go in for the kill.'

'There's not gonna be a next time,' Naruto said quickly.

'Keep telling yourself that...'

.-.

Sasuke wanted to break something. The fact that there was nothing available to destroy made the antsy frustration that much worse. Any damage he did here would have repercussions if it were linked back to him. He couldn't simply vent and move on. Well, he could, but he didn't want to. What he wanted was to go inside, corner that...thing...in Naruto, and settle this. Seeing him walk away, apparently unscathed, listening to his parting taunt, and having to sit tight, knowing that whatever the personality was, it was still a part of Naruto. He wanted it over. He'd been challenged and he'd met that only to have his opponent - aggressor? - walk away as if he were in no more of a hurry to challenge him to a real fight than he'd pretended to be with Naruto earlier. He was wound painfully tight now, desperate to get this over with and unwilling to make the first move himself. He'd known better than to get involved in Naruto's issues. He had more than enough of his own to deal with. If he confronted him - them - right now, he'd only be getting himself in deeper in a mess that he didn't want any part of.

He didn't know how to deal with this. The fighting, sparring, he'd come to terms with. From Naruto's perspective, it was relatively harmless. Despite what he'd said earlier, he'd been sure Naruto would continue to hold back. And he'd have to push him a little further each time, giving him a chance to perfect his own defenses until they were challenging each other without any real danger. Naruto healed fast and Sasuke had been adjusting his fighting style for years. It would be mutually beneficial. He didn't have any experience fighting someone with Naruto's strength, and even if Itachi never sent someone with that particular talent after him, there were other rogues to consider. It was a good opportunity for him to experiment with a different sort of opponent. Then there was Naruto, who'd never fought a mutant and, by his own admission, had little control over his talent. Tricks he thought he could do but hadn't figured out yet. Sasuke had immediately thought of his own 'incorporation' stage - where he adjusted a newly copied talent and practiced until he could perform it himself. Knowing it was possible and knowing how to do it were two entirely different things. So he'd understood Naruto's motivations and seen enough benefit on his end to support the idea of them fighting more in the future. All of that seemed meaningless now.

Split personality or not, that side of Naruto clearly had no need of him as a sparring partner. He'd known Naruto was holding back, but he'd had no idea it was that much. Instantaneous healing. He hadn't even been able to see it. Naruto's energy had thickened at the point of injury when they'd fought earlier, notably delayed, overdone, and easily trackable with the sharingan. What that 'Kyuubi' had done was immediate, possibly even automatic. If he could do that, why had he hesitated earlier when Naruto had obviously been in shock and pain? And how was he supposed to counter a talent like that?

That was another reason not to provoke a confrontation right now. He could adjust his energy well enough to counter the strength, but not indefinitely, certainly not against an opponent who could heal from every attack as soon as it landed. And if this other side of Naruto healed that much faster, there was no telling how much stronger he'd be. He couldn't go into a blind fight with him. At best this 'Kyuubi' would adhere to the rules Naruto had given before, with a simple 'pin' equaling victory, in which case he'd still have the speed advantage. At worst, he'd be stuck defending against someone he couldn't land a lasting injury on until he slipped up. He knew what would happen then. The second his defenses fell, his instincts would take over and he'd go for an instant kill. It was what he'd been conditioned to do.

He stared fixedly at the trench Naruto's landing had dug in the 'garden' patch, at the ruddy orange energy still hovering sluggishly over the dirt. There were two faint smears of blood there, from the impact and the wrist he'd crushed. He'd seen that once or twice. Energy still wafting over a severed limb, unable to be reabsorbed for one reason or another. He'd never seen so much for such a small amount of shed blood. The cynical part of him noted what a gross waste of energy that was. The rest was caught on the fact that Kyuubi had healed so quickly only two faint smears had made it to the ground before the wounds had closed. That served to peak his already jangled nerves. And he suddenly caught what he'd been too distracted, or focused, to notice.

Sasuke tensed, his teeth gnashing over a low growl, "Stop doing that."

He snapped a livid red glare on the man standing a few feet behind him. No energy signature, no sound, no way of telling how long he'd been standing there. How did he do that? And since when did Kakashi bother to wait to be noticed? Usually he'd have touched him just to see him flinch and lash out. Or creep right up behind him until he could murmur some infuriating comment in his ear, as if Sasuke didn't already know the pervert had a death wish. Their eyes met and all of that paranoid frustration coiled until he couldn't stop himself from bristling. Kakashi was staring at him with a blank expression, sharingan locking with his own. Too familiar.

"What are you doing?" he asked, his tone quiet and deadly. His first thought was that it wasn't Kakashi at all, that the rogue from before had come back to influence his mind again. He hadn't felt this wary of Kakashi in years. Then the man sighed and he caught a sober frown beneath the mask.

"I was just looking at you," said Kakashi.

Sasuke managed a disgruntled glare, "Well, don't." Not with the sharingan. Not with such a blank face.

"Ah, sorry," Kakashi sighed, his tone far too casual. He pulled his headband down, covering the eye up. Then he went back to frowning at Sasuke. "Which one of them broke your arm?"

Sasuke flinched, instantly embarrassed, resentful, and livid. Naruto wouldn't have told Kakashi about his other 'personality' and not him, which meant the pervert had picked it up on his own, while he hadn't had a clue. Worse still, Kakashi had been watching long enough to know that Sasuke now knew. If he'd planned to tell him about Naruto's 'other side' he would have done it before he'd left earlier. Which meant he'd seen the kiss. And the rest. Bad enough he had to deal with Kakashi at all when he was already on edge. He didn't want to hear anything the nosey silent stalking pervert had to say after spying on them.

He forced a cool expression onto his face, his eyes narrowing. "How do you know it's broken?"

Kakashi flashed a faint smile at that, "You wouldn't have bothered to bind it, otherwise. And I'm sure you'd have used your right arm sooner if the injury had been minor. He certainly heals fast," and his smile faded. "I didn't expect him to be so forceful, or I would have intervened."

"I don't need your help."

"True," Kakashi allowed, "you took care of it quickly enough after your initial shock. However, I-"

Sasuke shot to his feet, teeth clenched in frustration, "Shut up. I don't want to hear it."

"I specifically told him not to jump you," Kakashi finished, frowning at the roof as if he could see through it to the person in question, his tone as calm and casual as ever. "I'll have to have words with him. There is such a thing as being a little too eager." He flicked a curious look at Sasuke, catching him midstep, and ignoring the promise of violence in the boy's stance. "Do you know you're bleeding?"

Surprise broke over Sasuke's face and lifted a quick hand to the back of his neck. He grimaced when it came away sticky, the touch awakening a vague sting. "It's nothing," he muttered. "A scratch." And entirely worth having gotten the pervert off him so quickly.

"It's orange," Kakashi informed him. That faint smile returned when Sasuke made an expression of disbelief. "Just a little, but very noticeable when mixed with your energy, like oil and water. The wound is almost completely closed now. Which makes me wonder, if the fox's residual energy can help heal wounds he inflicts, does that mean Naruto broke your arm? Why would you let him do that? Sure, he might be good at necking, obedient enough to seek permission before making a move, but that's no reason to let him-"

A rush, more felt than seen, cut him off. Kakashi pulled to the side and caught a crackling fist in his left hand. He'd helped Sasuke refine that particular talent, since he'd copied a similar one himself. That Sasuke bothered to use it on him proved how disturbed the brat was. Kakashi happily diverted all of that paranoid frustration onto himself. As much as he disapproved of Naruto's, or rather the fox's behavior, he knew Sasuke didn't want to kill the kid. The fox, maybe, but not the kid. If he had, he would have done so instead of freezing on the roof for so long. Best not to let him go inside till he cooled down.

"Oh," Kakashi murmured, with a playfully guilty smile, "Did I touch a nerve? Or are all those years of sexual frustration finally catching up to you?"

"Stop spying on me!" Sasuke hissed. He wrenched free, aiming a round kick that Kakashi dodged with seeming ease. That served to frustrate him even more. Kakashi wasn't that much faster than him, he just had a way of moving that made it look more casual. He refused to admit that his own attack might have been less controlled than usual. It was difficult to focus when he was trying not to scream at the nosey bastard for making something uncomfortable a thousand times worse by talking about it. "Shut up and fight, or get the hell away from me."

Kakashi danced back, admiring the feathery way Sasuke skimmed over the roof. As if he were weightless, just like that pretty blonde. So that was where he'd gotten his latest trick. He paused long enough to deflect a few blows, his energy absorbing the hits and giving the frustrated brat a chance to feel the impacts. Sasuke's arm was definitely going to hurt later. Reckless, as always. But he appreciated how much the kid needed to vent. Until the fox had made his appearance, things had been going so well Kakashi had felt obliged to avert his eyes. Despite what Sasuke believed, he had no interest in watching two teenagers make out. He'd come back just in time to overhear Naruto's 'introduction' comment and so he'd waited around to see how Sasuke reacted to the fox. About as badly as he'd expected.

"Now, now," he said playfully, giving no evidence of the effort required to deflect Sasuke's attack. No sense inflating the kid's ego. "No need to get all bent out of shape over it. A few pointers never hurt anyone. I'm sure with a little practice you'll be fine having your neck nuzzled. You just have to teach the brat to leave hickies without using his teeth. Though, personally, I've always been rather fond of love bites. Spicy, you know, having a bit of sting to go with the heat."

A furious blush broke on Sasuke's face. Ah, so it really was a touchy subject. Kakashi winced and dove to the side, just as a jet of fire erupted where he'd been. He rolled back to his feet, paused just long enough for a quick, "Iruka will be very upset if we burn the house down," and then flipped off the roof. Sasuke followed.

.-.

Iruka woke up disoriented. Everything was a sick yellowy blur that worsened when he tried to blink the stickiness out of his eyes. There was a splitting sensation in his temples and a swollen burn right above his neck that made his ears tingle strangely. The two erupted into one painful flare when a flat palm slid out of the shadows to knock him upside the head. He yelped. Then he grimaced as a furious face leaned over him, so close he recognized it despite the blur.

"That hurt," Iruka protested.

"Good! It was supposed to," said Tenka. "That's what you get for doing stupid shit the second I'm gone. Do you have any idea how I felt when I got back? I almost beat the hell out of that girl, I swear, if Bunchu hadn't held me back..."

"What-" Staring at that blurry face was giving him motion sickness. Iruka gulped and closed his eyes, "What went wrong? And why would you even be tempted to take it out on Ino or Sakura? It's certainly not their fault if I failed to help them."

Tenka was silent for a while. Iruka wondered if that should make him as nervous as it did.

"...what do you remember?"

That was always the first question asked. How he hated that question. He sighed and forced his eyes open. The blur didn't seem as bad this time. He could make out Tenka's outline standing beside the white of the cot. "My head hurts."

"No shit," Tenka snorted. "That's not what I asked."

Iruka sighed and forced himself to think about it. As painful as it was to think at the moment, it was better than having Tenka whack him on the head again. The years hadn't taught him much in the way of restraint. "Bunchu had to put me to sleep. I couldn't calm down enough on my own." And it had been embarrassing. Every time he started to doze, he'd remember what he was about to do and it snapped him awake again. Eventually he'd been forced to ask Bunchu to knock him out. One queasy look at the man's third eye and he'd dropped into absolute black.

"And," Tenka prodded, already having heard Bunchu's side of it.

"Black. Sensory deprivation. Drifting," and he'd never be able to say how long that had lasted because, as Ino had discovered herself, a few seconds 'nowhere' seemed like an eternity. Iruka felt himself grinding his teeth. His head hurt too much to shiver right now. "Then a push. That must have been Bunchu. I couldn't tell." A hint of disgust tinted his tone, "I'd already forgotten what I was supposed to be doing." Not that it really mattered. His instinct to help always took over, with the 'why' and 'who' being unimportant. "I saw Sakura first. I didn't recognize her. There were two of her, and one of them was...bigger, somehow."

"You were younger," Tenka said helpfully. He'd gotten the girls' side of it too, while he'd waited for Iruka to wake up. "She was having a bad dream. Memory, maybe, I'm not sure." She hadn't exactly made a lot of sense, and he'd been too busy trying not to beat the hell out of her to really listen. "She didn't recognize you, either, just some kid that wasn't supposed to be there. Bitch tried to run you out."

"Don't call her that," Iruka frowned. "You did the same thing when I went into your dreams that time. Sakura had even more reason, considering she already had Ino to cope with."

"Maybe," Tenka muttered. "I still say it's fishy that she remembered it at all. I didn't remember a thing when you woke me up from that coma. And I've talked to that Ino girl - she was harassed the entire time she was in there. Even when the bi-" and he changed words before Iruka could do more than narrow his eyes, "the other one - even when she was asleep. She's got some kind of split personality or something that's always awake. And that right there is why the blonde couldn't get out on her own. Which you would have known if you weren't so damn trusting."

"I did know," Iruka sighed. Partly. He'd known there was something wrong with Sakura's mind. Ino had let that much slip before Sakura had silenced her. He didn't blame Sakura for wanting to wait and tell him herself. Private things shouldn't be revealed by a third party. Tenka's reaction was proof enough of that. "Anyway, I don't remember much after that," he lied. "I was drawn to the smaller one, probably making the other one trust me more. She must have led me to Ino and - I suppose - Bunchu brought me out. I remember keeping a hold of Ino's hand until she was back in her own body. Whatever went wrong, I know it was successful as far as retrieving Ino goes."

"Yeah, she's fine now. A little frazzled, but fine."

"So I'll ask again," Iruka murmured. "What went wrong?"

Tenka let out an exasperated breath. "Aside from getting attacked the second you went in?"

"Yes," Iruka said firmly, "aside from that. It's not just my head, my hands hurt, too." He didn't have to look to feel how thickly they were wrapped. The pounding in his head could be explained away from his having used too much energy. He'd been completely drained the last time he'd done this, too. That didn't explain how he could have possibly gained a physical injury. "Are you saying Sakura's to blame for that?"

"Exactly what I'm saying." Tenka sounded angry again, in a taunting, frustrated and worried way. "Did you even ask her what her talent was before you went sleepwalking into her head?"

"No."

A huff of breath answered that. Iruka was awake enough to recognize the sound of another impending cuff to the head. He lifted an arm to ward it off. Honestly, Tenka was too old not to have a little more common sense. At this rate he'd wind up with a concussion. A few wary seconds passed before he realized the blow wasn't coming. He glanced over his arm to find Bunchu restraining the livid teenager.

"You were supposed to tell me when he woke up," Bunchu said calmly, pushing the boy away from the cot. "Come back when you're thinking more clearly."

"At least wait till I'm back on my feet before you beat me down," Iruka put in, with a weak smile.

"Like I could wait that long," Tenka glowered, not bothering to shrug Bunchu off.

Iruka watched until the two were lost in the blurry dark a few feet away. He was looking at his bandaged hands when Bunchu came back. This time he didn't bother to ask the question.

"It was nothing you did," said Bunchu. "It took you four minutes to get in and bring Ino out. Sakura woke immediately. She panicked. Her last memory was of you bleeding. She didn't realize that it was just a dream."

"So she tried to heal me," Iruka winced.

He remembered Sakura's dream vividly. Nothing Tenka needed or had a right to know. Even Ino shouldn't have been privy to that, which was the reason Sakura's...'larger' personality had been standing guard the moment he entered. She'd been keeping Ino at bay to maintain what little privacy Sakura had left. He sympathized completely with that and if he'd remembered what he was doing, he'd have waited till the dream ended instead of pushing his way in. It was the pain that drew him. Sakura's dream was a twisted memory and all he'd understood was that she hurt and he was there and he could help.

She'd been inside a car, choking on fumes and crawling over shattered glass. A man dangling upside down, bound loosely by the frayed seat belt. She'd panicked, taking him for dead, and when she tried furiously to heal him, those minor injuries that had kept him unconscious became the deadly ones she'd assumed he had. Iruka didn't know how accurate that nightmare was to what had really happened. The transfer was immediate. He'd felt the heat and tears, guilt and pain, and then hands pulling her, him, out the passenger window. A brief struggle, catching hold of the jagged window's edge, screaming as the grip was pulled free. It was what had happened after that, how he'd gone from Sakura to Ino, that he didn't remember.

And Tenka was right. Sakura shouldn't have remembered any of that. The only explanation was that her other personality, the bigger one, had witnessed it and told her about it when she woke up. Just like that personality had noticed when Ino transferred into her mind, when anyone else would have felt as if they'd fallen asleep, never knowing they'd been taken over, until Ino went back to her own body again.

"Yes," said Bunchu, "she tried. And failed. Instead of healing wounds that weren't there, she created them herself. That's the flaw in her talent. Had you been seriously injured, she would have healed you completely. With minor injuries, her talent backfires."

"Did she tell you that?" Iruka murmured.

"No."

That was what he'd thought. Iruka pressed his lips together to keep from protesting that intrusion. Bunchu must have been alarmed at what Sakura had inadvertently done. He reminded himself that Bunchu never pried without good cause. That didn't stop him from feeling outraged on Sakura's behalf. No child should have her darkest secrets stolen by a complete stranger.

If Bunchu was aware of Iruka's feelings, he didn't show it. His tone remained as sober and unapologetic as always. "She's waiting to talk to you. I recommend keeping a minimum distance of two foot between you at all times. Her talent is very volatile at the moment, due in good part to the excess energy you gave her. Your injuries are not as serious as they appear. I've explained to her that you'll be able to heal them yourself once you've recovered some of your energy. She doesn't believe me."

"You can't blame her for that," said Iruka.

"I don't. However, as she is upset and potentially dangerous at the moment, I'm giving you the same orders I gave her. Don't touch her, and don't let her touch you."

"Understood," Iruka sighed. "I'll try to restrain myself and save the comforting embraces till we're both feeling better."

Bunchu gave a quiet snort at the playful sarcasm. "You do that."

.-.

Sasuke had no shame about collapsing the second he reached the rock. Trying to kill Kakashi had always been exhausting. As an opponent, Kakashi was the epitome of versatile, switching from defense to offense, dangerous to playful, with no warning in between. He'd never even attempt to 'spar' with him. It would be pointless. Anything shy of an outright murder attempt would be shrugged off, danced around, and returned with amused poking and prodding until he self destructed. Which was exactly what Kakashi wanted.

He'd realized a few minutes from the house that Kakashi was intentionally irritating him. He resented being 'handled' that way, but he wasn't about the turn down the opportunity to beat on something that wouldn't be destroyed with the first few hits. The occasional winces and hisses of pain went far in making him feel better. As a rule, Kakashi hid his pain nearly as well during a fight as he did. Once he'd understood that Kakashi was offering his services as a punching bag, he'd calmed down enough to focus on eliciting as many grimaces as possible. A few more than the last time they'd fought. And one solid hit that was just a hair shy of being deadly.

He turned on his side, half lying on the rock, and sent a dark look at his opponent. Kakashi was crouched a foot away, leaning heavily on his knees. Sasuke took that as another mark in his favor. He'd forced him to the use the sharingan twice in that fight. While Kakashi had more energy and endurance than him, his incomplete sharingan sucked up far more of it than Sasuke's did. So even though he'd technically lost the fight, Kakashi wasn't much better off in the end.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed in amusement. "Do you know you're bleeding?"

Kakashi's head snapped up, his own eye glittering with equal amusement. "Why, yes, I did notice that, thank you. Do you know you're bleeding more? We should take a look at that. I almost gutted you."

"It's fine," Sasuke sniffed. He moved a hand to the tear in his side and wrinkled his nose. This shirt was ruined. "A mere scrape."

"Ah," Kakashi nodded knowingly, "and mine's just a little rug burn." He picked at the ragged patch on his chest, where a last second shift of energy had kept the brat's hand from going right through his ribs and into his heart. Although technically a flesh wound, it was still a bloody painful mess and he didn't look forward to picking the pieces of torn cloth out with tweezers later. Sasuke's wound was bound to be worse. "You're still trying to do too much at once," he sighed. "I keep telling you, if you spread your energy too thin you won't have a successful offense or defense. Pick one."

"And get stabbed in the back?" Sasuke sneered.

Kakashi's eye narrowed in mock annoyance. "I'm not a back stabber. A back poker, absolutely, and proud of it, but that doesn't really have anything to do with fighting." He rushed on before Sasuke could do more than curl a lip in distaste. "That's one of my combos you're trying to master. If you're going to use one of my originals, do it right. I'm telling you, it won't work unless you focus all of your energy at the point of impact. Especially if you're going to risk a return hit in the process."

"That doesn't even make sense," Sasuke said in a seething tone. They'd been over this before. "If I hadn't shielded, you would have gutted me. There's no point killing you if I die as well."

"Which is why you pick one or the other," Kakashi sighed. "If you want to survive, don't spread your energy so thin. Either keep it for defense or put it all into an attack that's guaranteed to hit the mark. What you're doing is beyond reckless, it's pointless." He rose so Sasuke was forced to look up at him, not minding that the look was a stubborn glower. "You don't have enough energy to land that attack on me and defend yourself at the same time. I knew you'd try to do both. You knew I knew that. Why you still attempt it..." He shook his head in exasperation, "I might as well ask why you're such a prude, it's unfathomable to me."

Sasuke clenched his teeth, his eyes narrowing to sharp red slits. He was so sick of being called that. He wasn't a prude, he wasn't asexual, he just hadn't had time or inclination to consider that aspect of life and it was none of Kakashi's damn business, anyway. A hand picked at the edge of his shirt. Sasuke bristled and caught Kakashi's wrist before it had been lifted more than a few inches.

"That's going to need stitches," Kakashi commented, as if he weren't the least bit bothered by Sasuke's painfully tight grip. "Luckily for you, I have mastered that technique, so it's a clean cut. Almost cauterized, really." Much prettier than the grating tear Sasuke's half-hearted attack had done to him.

"Don't touch me," Sasuke grimaced, throwing the hand away from him. "Or my shirt," especially while he was still wearing it.

"Come now," Kakashi wheedled, "It's not as if I haven't seen you shirtless. It never bothered you before." He blinked at Sasuke's very disturbed expression. A slow hand rose to scratch at his neck. "Yeah," he admitted, "I guess it did. Come to think of it, the only time you let me patch you up was when I threatened to drag you to a hospital and you were too exhausted to fight me off. Hm. I seem to recall there being a hospital near here. I suppose you could let them take care of it, instead..."

"I can sew it up myself." Sasuke skitted off the rock, putting adequate distance between him and the disturbing pervert. It was comments like this that made him wonder about Kakashi. Admittedly, the man had never tried anything with him, but he'd insinuated enough to keep him in a state of perpetual wariness. Just the thought of being partially unclothed in front of him make his skin crawl. "I'm not that exhausted," he said sharply. "Stay away from me."

Kakashi sighed. Then he imagined the brat sewing that wound up himself and he shivered a little. Only Sasuke would prefer sticking a needle into his own skin over having someone else do it for him. Or maybe it was him that put the kid off. He cocked his head to the side, giving Sasuke a considering look. He didn't mind the fact that the brat was slowly edging backward toward the house as if he expected to be chased, pounced, and patched up whether he liked it or not. "Maybe you can ask Naruto to do it."

Sasuke stopped moving. He couldn't be serious. "Naruto? He can't even put a bandage on straight." And Kakashi thought he'd let him near his flesh with a needle?

"Really?" asked Kakashi. "Oh, well, in that case I guess you'd better let me do it. As neat as your stitches are, that's an awkward place to do for yourself, especially left handed."

He wasn't about to fall for that. Sasuke let a cool blank expression slip over his face. Kakashi wanted him to admit that he wasn't going to use his left hand. Then the pervert would remark on his right arm being broken and use that as an excuse to force the issue. In which case he'd have no choice but to run or fight him off, and either way, by the end of the mess he'd be too tired to protest and Kakashi would win. His eyes narrowed, "You're not getting my shirt off. Give it up." He was ten steps ahead of the dirty old-

"Pervert!"

He jumped at the yell that erupted mere feet behind him. Naruto didn't seem to notice, too busy pointing at Kakashi in apparent outrage.

"You leave him alone!" Naruto growled at a befuddled looking Kakashi. "Go hit on someone your own age! Trying to get his shirt off, you - dirty old man, you!" He hesitated when he noticed Kakashi's tattered state and the bloody tear on his chest. He whipped around to really look at Sasuke, immediately narrowing in on the blood that was trailing down his side, soaking his clothes and dripping down his leg. His face went white and he sent one horrified, "You bastard!" at Kakashi before darting over to Sasuke.

Sasuke twitched at the way Naruto's hands fluttered just shy of touching him. This was the guy Kakashi had suggested he allow near him with a needle...

"How bad is it?" Naruto asked, in a panicky voice. "What did you do to him!" he yelled at Kakashi, a second later.

"You really need to calm down," Kakashi remarked, his eye narrowing a little. These weren't the 'words' he'd planned to have with the blonde brat. "We were just sparring."

Naruto gaped in disbelief, torn between hovering beside Sasuke and staring in horror at the bastard responsible. "How can you say that? He's bleeding to death and you're just standing there - hitting on him, even!"

Kakashi's eye ticked in annoyance. "I was not hitting on him..."

"I'm not bleeding to death," Sasuke muttered, frowning and edging away from those fluttering hands. They'd gotten a little too close for comfort. "Stop that."

"Don't worry," Naruto said quickly. He put an arm around Sasuke's shoulders, oblivious to the way he tensed at the contact. "Let's just get you inside, Sasuke. Are you okay to walk? Here, let me carry you."

"Try it and I will kill you," Sasuke blurted. The proprietary treatment had knocked him completely off guard. Naruto's murmuring tone made it even worse. He sounded like Iruka. Then the blonde unaccountably beamed at his death threat and Sasuke wondered if maybe he had lost a little too much blood.

"That's more like it," Naruto sighed, grinning with relief. He gave a soft squeeze of his arm, pulling him closer so he could support him better, not minding at all the way Sasuke was staring at him as if he'd suddenly sprouted fox ears and a tail to go with his whiskers. "You'll be just fine. We'll take care of it, right? You're not about to let some old pervert kill you off. No way. And don't you worry, I won't let him anywhere near you, I promise."

Kakashi glowered when he suddenly found himself abandoned in the backyard. He didn't know what annoyed him more, how weirded out Sasuke looked - which was one very amusing expression he'd never so much as glimpsed on his face before, or the fact that Sasuke hadn't protested being hugged, fussed over, and led placidly inside to be taken care of. What had that blonde brat done to his kid? And where was the gratitude for dragging Sasuke out and letting him vent so he didn't mutilate said blonde brat - and inner fox - the second he went in the house? This wasn't how things were supposed to be.

"I take it back," Kakashi muttered sullenly. "I don't approve of him at all."

.-.
TBC