Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Ice Picks and Hand Grenades ❯ Dreams or Vices? ( Chapter 15 )

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

Disclaimer: It's not ADD, I swear. If it was some shrink would be prescribing me drugs. Drugs are bad, m'kay.

A/N: here's a short chapter. It just happened that way.

Chapter 15: Dreams or Vices?

o.o.o.o.o..o.o

Dusk falls suddenly and quicker than I'd imagined, pulling over us like a blanket tossed over our heads. But despite my low chakra, I don't really feel tired. I guess it's not really a surprise. Nary a peep of anything slowed us on our trek.

Well, nothing in the form of an enemy, at least. There was this one instance where we had to chase down Akamaru... let's just say he decided this particular nut chucking squirrel had to die. He started down the WRONG path, yapping and running at an almost unmatchable gait, tracking the little bastard rodent like a heat seeker. Luckily we caught him before he tore it to pieces, but it ended up taking three of us to do it. First, Kiba calling the dog enough to slow him from top speed, me to finally catch him with kage mane when I got close enough, and Lee to tackle him once he was caught. Well... I don't really know if Lee's part was actually considered helping... all it did was make me eat dirt, but you know what I mean. I guess there are worse things than eating dirt. Shit. It's still not on my list of preferred outcomes.

Fortunately, that was really the high point of our first day's travel.

Just to be on the safe side, though, we'll switch to civilian clothes before morning and, well, get Kiba a shirt in the first place. Not that he looks bad trudging around with just the vest. It eccentuates his arms, which are pretty toned, and since he's left it open... okay, so he looks like a ninja from one of those fanservice magazines the kunoichi are always huddled around early in the mornings. I think it's like a pre-work ritual. Drooling over half-dressed ninja... sounds like something us guys would do. Fortunately we don't, okay, I don't know, maybe I just don't. The closest thing I have to a pre-work ritual is the coffee and pastries in the break room every morning. I guess that counts.

But first and foremost, we need a campsite. Somewhere not too hidden, but definitely out of view of the road. We'd sent a scout to scour the surrounding area some time earlier, and hopefully, he's due back any second now.

Speak of the devil. And not a second too soon. Yuki reappears, suddenly, panting like he worked harder than he had too on his little scouting stint. But when he reappears he does so with the sparkling energy only a twelve year old could have. Let me rephrase that... a twelve year old and Lee.

"Hey! Found it! Found it!" He points to the east. "An empty clearing ten or eleven meters from the river!"

"Good job!" Kiba tries to fein enthusiasm, which doesn't seem to be convincing anyone but the boy. Just give it up, Kiba, before you pass out... aaahhh... I told him not to push it. Never listens. "Damn." Kiba continues, stretching out his arms. "I'm ready to call it a day for like forever."

"Settle in the country, pop out a few kids and raise some pigs, eh?" I say, with a tone obviously in jest.

He doesn't laugh, instead shooting me a cold as ice look too quickly for anyone else to notice. "I dunno, maybe I'll retire, become a teacher and sleep the rest of my life away."

"Haha. Very funny."

"I thought so." He grins, almost paling just from that action alone. Hah. I know I could just give him a little shove right now, and he'd land face first in the dirt. But, luckily I'm not that mean... or I'm just too lazy, either way.

"Settle down." Sudoko snaps, mumbling further about 'fucking kids'. As the obvious response, Kiba flips off her backside, which in turn makes me snicker a little. After all, they say men never really grow up. "You won't be laughing when I knock your fuckin' heads together!"

Lee shouts something as he begins pursuit of the cranky hunter, but I can't quite make it out. All I can clearly tell is that Sudoko has picked up the pace a little too much. I stop in my tracks, letting Kiba catch up to me. "Damn. What a pain. You might want to hitch a ride on Akamaru, if he can take it."

He smiles toothily, regaining the bright aura that had been radiating off of him, earlier. "Hmmm, he's pretty tired right now, maybe you should let me ride piggyback, instead."

I put a hand on my hip and let out an unenthused sigh. "Only if you're serious. I don't have a hell of a lot of chakra left, either."

"Really?" His face brightens like a little kid just handed a candy bar. Don't think I quite like the expression.

"You're not serious, are you?"

"I am now! I mean, it's only fair, right? I'd let you ride me anyday." What? No! Bad imagery! Go away. He doesn't mean it like that. I glance back upward when I hear him laughing.

"What?" Asshole.

He stops, or, well, he tries to, his words coming out as chokes in the atempt, his cheeks flushed a brilliant pink. "Nothing, nothing... hey Shika, anyone ever tell you you're cute when you blush?" Dammit. Suddenly aware that I just grit my teeth in a fairly painful manner, I turn away and start off into the forest. If he's well enough to crack those kind of jokes, he can make it to the campsite on his own. That was totally uncalled for. Now I feel all nervous and bothered and I'm not liking it one bit. Fuckin' tease. I hate it. I can hear him leaping through the trees a ways behind me, and dammit... now I can't tell WHAT my stomach's doing. I need a nap. A good, long nap. Or a good thorough screw, but that's not fucking happening.

o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o

As soon as I make it to the campsite the fire's already going, from the look of things, obviously the kids' doing, seeing as Lee and Sudoko are already changed into their civilian clothes and slouched up against a couple of trees. I stop at the site, lightly, but it unfortunately doesn't escape the well trained ears of a certain shrewish red head. "You guys sure did take your fuckin' time." Sudoko snarls, once again spitting over her foot.

"Well, one of you guys could've dealt with the gimp." I say in a flat, lackluster tone.

"Hey!" Kiba pushes toward me, nearly running me over. Akamaru barks in agreement. The two stare at me, one with a doggy glare and the other with a perfectly jutted lip. As to which, I leave that decision to you.

"Whatever. I'm gonna go change." I take only a step before I'm stopped by a small hand. Glancing down I lock eyes with yet another glare, this one occupying the face of a slightly irritated, black haired twelve year old.

"Wait." Keisuke says, sharply. "Shirt."

I let out a sigh. "I'll get it to you after I go change."

"No. Now." The boy orders, shifting his glasses with his free hand. Kiba seems to find this funny, but I certainly don't.

"You better do what he says." Kiba says between throaty chuckles.

"A pushy little brat you've got there." The boy narrows his eyes at me, hard. He'd beat the crap out of me if he thought he could win, I swear it.

The boy coughs to push back his swelling anger and speaks very curtly. "It's going to take me an hour to fix and hem up the arms by hand once I cut them off. And that's not including whatever else I'm going to have to change."

Kiba flashes his trademark grin. "Keisuke is really responsible and he puts a lot of pride in his craft."

I raise a brow and start removing my vest. "What craft? Sewing?"

He nods. "Yup. He specializes in physical disguise. Hair, makeup, sewing, all sorts of it. Most of his highest grades were in ninjutsu, especially the ones dealing in elusion and stealth categories. He's not much for taijutsu or genjutsu, pretty average or subaverage I suppose."

I quickly pull my shirt over my head when I notice the boy tapping his foot irritably. Talk about impatience. Must have been another thing he learned from his sensei. As soon as I hand Keisuke the shirt I notice him whip out a piece of white chalk and a tape ruler. He tosses the shirt to Kiba, who, as if by instincts, flips the shirt inside out and pulls it on awkwardly.

Err... that Keisuke boy goes all out. He starts marking up the shirt in various places with his chalk, grunting every now and then when he notices the shoulders are a little too tight, or that the bottom is a little long. What an eccentric kid. Or.. maybe I just don't know anything about artists? Maybe it's normal? Whatever.

I need to change. It's getting kind of chilly, and this whole shirtless thing is getting irritating.

o.o.o.o.o.o.

By the time I return to the campsite the transformation has already begun. The sleeves of my-er-Kiba's shirt are off, the bottom cut short enough to show off a little of his midsection, and he's currently arguing with Keisuke about the proposed neckline. Apparently Keisuke wants to leave it long, but to flare it out a little, while Kiba seems to be opting for more of a scoop or v-cut. I'm not a fashion buff, so I have no say in this. Not my fight. Hell, I'm surprised Kiba even cares. Heh. Maybe he's afraid of getting the retro-Sasuke look. That would be funny.

I step away and towards the fire where Sudoko and Lee are engaged in some sort of mindless prattle. Ignoring it, of course, I lean up against a tree and close my eyes, letting my body slide down toward the ground at its own pace.

Ah, the quirks of natural heating. My eyelids and the tip of my nose are warm, almost so warm that I have to turn away, but the rest of my face feels icy cold. I'm not quite sure if it bothers me... I open my eyes and shift my weight forward. It's a little warmer this way, I guess.

"Cold?" Kiba asks, plopping down in the dirt beside me... his legs crossed and his knee brushing against mine for but an instance before it's gone. Why does he have to sit so close? It makes me so painfully aware of his presence.

"A little."

"Me too. Got no shirt." I turn my head toward him. Yup no shirt. And in the background I can see Keisuke working away, his little hands flying like his life depended on it.

I tilt my head a little, but without any particular intent. "If you're cold, why don't you go cuddle with Akamaru like usual?"

In response he nods his head and points behind me. I turn my head, and sure enough, there's Akamaru, snuggling with a sleeping Naomi and Yuki, awake but very content. "Spot's taken."

"Kinda cute."

He smiles warmly. "Sure are... especially when they're not talking." I don't respond, simply because I don't know how. "Shika?"

I turn. "Hmm?"

He spits out a sigh and rises to his feet. "Ah, nothing. I'll ask you later."

"You should sleep anyway. Chakra depletion shouldn't be taken lightly, you know. And we're going to need all the strength we can get for tomorrow."

o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o

As it turns out, I can't fuckin' sleep. Even with Sudoko's hawk keeping watch and even though I'm surrounded by a camp full of able bodied ninja who could wake at the drop of a pin, I can't sleep. Somehow I don't think safety is the problem, anyway. It seems more localized than that. That's right. I'm not alone, and that's exactly the problem.

I can't believe it just hit me that I'm not the only one awake. Is that why I'm edgy? No, it's not that. This person is familiar. It's just a little case of anxiety, that's all. It has to be.

"I know you're there, ya know." I say to the eyes I feel hovering over me. The figure moves in the darkness, not surprised at all by my discovery.

"I wasn't trying to hide, I swear. I just couldn't sleep, I've been smelling you all night." A familiar voice whispers. I prop myself up on my elbows. My eyes aren't adjusted to this darkness. "It's been driving me nuts." I see a figure approaching me, a singular shadow in a darkened world. I don't feel ill intent from him, all I feel is a... shiver down my spine and a warm breath on my neck. The figure kneels over me. "I almost wish Sudoko's shirt would have fit me instead." An uncertain pause. "Shikamaru, will you answer that question for me, now?"

I nod, glad the dark is hiding the hot flush on my face and skin. Kiba edges up closer, the slightest touch of his lip barely brushing against my ear.

"Are you bored yet?"

kxsxkxsxkxsxkxsxkxs

A/N: BWAHAHAHA! Reference to chap. 6 here I go!

NEXT TIME

Here we define the lines. Here we push the limits. Here we go too far. Here is something not supposed to be. Here is something beautiful. Here is something fragile. Here we look over the precipice. Here we redefine congeniality. Here we walk the lines. Here we cross them. Here we bring beauty to an otherwise bleak and weary world.

In this place, we grow and prosper, even if we can only grow so far.