Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ The Boy In The Closet ❯ Taboo Lives: Uchiha Itachi ( Chapter 14 )

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

A.N: Sorry for the late update but the other story I'm working on took a while.


...............


Hatake Lee to the guidance room, please. Hatake Lee to Guidance. Thank you." The P.A. died in a crackle of static. Everyone looked confused before looking at Lee with a whisper or a pointed giggle. Lee was confused as well. He's never been to guidance a day in his life, so what could they possibly want him for? Swallowing, he stands from his seat in Math class then scoots his way past two other kids at his table then starts up the little row to the door, stumbling in his steps when he reached Chouji.

"Excuse me." He said with a quick bow, though, he new the boy had tripped him on purpose. Chouji must still be mad about him talking to him at the park last week. It can't be helped.

"Lee?" Says his teacher.

"Class is almost over, you might want to bring your backpack with you."

Double taking from the door to his desk, the ignored child retrieves his backpack being sure to watch out for the chubby boy his second trip out the door. Guidance? Guidance? What could they want? He questioned during his long walk from the third floor all the way down to the front office, through another hall and then into the guidance wing. The school has four of them; guess they figure the students could get worse by the generations so they add on each year.

Which room? His mouth twisted in confusion.

A door opens, one down from where he's standing and a young woman walked out. She isn't anything special, her short, black, hair is pulled into a tight ponytail, sharp black eyes frame her face being the most noticeable thing about her and she's wearing a gray suit without stockings. "Mr. Hatake?"

".......Yes."

"Right in here please." She placed a hand on his back to lead him in.

Lee walked into the small office, his onyx eyes looking about the place. Its a typical room in his standards: fake plant, mini couch, a desk, plaques, and a coffee maker. Lee took a seat, his eyes skim the desk for a name. "Uh, Mrs. Shizune." He waited until she took a seat to finish his words. "Can I ask what I'm doing here?"

"Your fathers called me, they wanted me to talk with you about how things are going with you lately." She said very honestly.

"How things are going?" Asks Lee, still in the dark.

"They say that you haven't been yourself lately, would you like to talk about that?"

He says in a voice that sounds like he's gonna faint in a minute, dragging his word like someone whose been fighting sleep for hours. "....No."

"Come on." She smiled to coax him into it. "Surely there's something you would like to talk about. How's about your new brothers. How are you getting along with them?"

Still feeling like he's in the middle of a dream, he answers. "Fine."

"Changes can be so difficult to deal with at first." Shizune seemed to be thinking about something that she recently went through. "Which is why its good to have someone to talk to about it."

What is going on? Did I miss something? He shakes his head a bit. Is she talking about my relationship with my brothers or Gaara and me? He looks down at his lap.

"Lee, please talk to me. It would make your fathers very happy if you let out your feelings."

"Mrs. Shizune, this may come as a shock to you but my relationship with my brothers is great. Same thing with me and my fathers... There's nothing going on out of the ordinary."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes." After a second though he added. "I think I'd know my own life."

Deciding that being discreet was getting her nowhere, she clasped her fingers together. "Lee, you've been talking to yourself lately- this is what goes on at home. Can you tell me about that?"

"Why should I, you won't believe me."

"Try me."

Shrugging, getting a little annoyed with it all, he says. "I've been talking to a boy, a friend I made up."

"Alright, what's his name?"

"Koutaro." He didn't believe it himself, but whatever.

"Koutaro. And what kinds of things do you do with Koutaro?" She asks. "Things that you don't get to do with your brothers or your fathers?"

"What makes you think that my life at home is the problem?" He closed his eyes feeling himself shaking with anger and tears. "Open your eyes lady; my life at school is my problem, these kids.... I don't fit in with them- none of them! And I've tried so many times to do it but it doesn't work." Opening his eyes he looks directly at her, frowning. "Unless you'd like to set me up with a play-date here at school then we really have nothing to talk about. People can change, but they won't.... So, I get by." Shizune blinked at his words, truly sorry for him. "Please don't make my time here any harder by making me talk about it with someone who gets paid to care."

That stung her a bit. Nodding, she points to the door. "I'm sorry Lee, I really am." Getting up from the desk, she walks over to the boy pulling him into a hug. "It doesn't matter what other kids think about you, Lee."

He stood there within the hug, he wasn't sure if he wanted to hug her back or not but his arms came up and around her anyway. "And regardless what you think, I do care about you students, not just because I'm paid to." Releasing him just when he found his comfort in her arms, she says finally. "You may go."

".....Thank you." He says a bit dazed by it all. "I'm sorry for being a trouble." A quick bow and he was down the hall hoping to make it to class before the bell rang.

When he left she heaves a big sigh; Shizune can recall another boy with the same problem. Sabakan Gaara. She wondered what ever happened to him.

..................

Sasuke was prepared to tell Naruto that he wanted to talk with him later but the young boy had the nerve to switch seats with some kid he doesn't know in Iruka-sensei's class. The bluenet was beginning to wonder if what he was planning to do was the right thing after all; this kid could end up hurting him in the end- or worse, tell everyone about his past. Naruto doesn't seem like the type to do that but you never know with loud guys like him. Things slip out all the time.

Naruto.... it's strange how something as dumb as blond hair can call up so many bad thoughts and good ones... But his eyes are completely different. Blue. A hopeful color or whatever Dad said it was. Turning his attention to the chalkboard though he is still lost in thought as his hands write out the assignment. Alright Sasuke, make a deal with yourself. If Naruto doesn't show then forget about it and him for good, its better that way, but if he does... Hn. Will I be prepared to fully give myself to him.

The bell gave a long beep allowing the class to stand and leave.

Iruka drooped his shoulders as if to say he wasn't done with the lesson plan, but there was nothing he could do about it with class being at an end. "Alright class you have a test this Wednesday so please study for it Naruto."

The rowdy boy faltered in his exit but flipped the man off over his head before he left the room. He is on a steady trek down the hall when he feels a tap on his shoulder. Turning his head ready to greet whomever it is, he then frowns seeing that it's his... Whoever Sasuke thinks he is to him.

"Naruto I wanna talk to you." Seeing the boy not even flinch, he scrunches his brows. "Listen to me, this is important."

Poking a boy in front of him, he says in a snooty tone. "Do you hear something random stranger?"

"Say what?" The kid almost looked offended.

Baring his teeth, Sasuke grabs Naruto by the collar of his shirt backing him up with his forward movement until he's slammed into the wall behind him. Leaning in close to his ear he says in a hard voice. "When I talk you listen." He strengthened his grip when the plucky blond struggled to get free. "I'll be waiting at the tree behind the school to talk to you, if you don't show up don't ever bother with talking to me again. Got it?"

"W'ever." He smacks Sasuke's hand away hardly threatened. He's the one who runs this school which means he can snap his fingers and make anyone disappear at anytime even someone as pretty and popular as Hatake Sasuke. "But I'll show. Just to hear another one of your lame excuses." Seeing Lee pass by them he smiles. "Wait up Gejimayo." Sticking his tongue out at his should be boyfriend the blond child speeds off after Lee. If Sasuke thinks he can kiss him off he has another thing coming. Maybe hanging out with his brother will make him a bit jealous.

Lunch was going smoothly on Naruto's end, Sasuke is quiet and he's chatting up his idiot alien faced brother like they're best friends. Shikamaru has been absent from their little circle for days since that Neji kid came along and Kiba, who was bored to tears, decided spit balling kids at other tables was better than dealing with a moody Sasuke and a best friend that is clearly off his bean.

"Really?" Naruto said with as much enthusiasm as he could muster. "I didn't know you were one of those fitness kids." Taking it upon his self to reach under Lee's shirt, he grinned perversely at the gasping child. "Yeah, saay, feel that. Abs of steal."

"Uhh, I guess."

"No foolin' you know a guy like you could really go some where in the wrestling bizz."

"You really think so?" He grabs his chin. "I've never thought about wrestling before."

Sasuke wanted to tell Lee that Naruto is a bullshit idiot but he didn't bother. Maybe this way he'll actually get to like Lee so then he can make a friend. Nodding to Kiba who turned his head just in time to shoot a little piece of chewed paper at the center of Sasuke's forehead he laughed before waving a hand.

"My bad."

"Yeah, did you finish the history assignment?"

"No." He grinned a sharp toothed smile. "Can I copy yours?"

Shrugging, he passed the sheet over. "You wanna hang out later at my place?"

"Can't. I've got try-outs after school." Sasuke nods. "You can stick around if you wanna wait."

"No. I should probably just go home."

Using the straw for what its for, the doggish boy takes a drink from his can of grape juice. "I might could come over for dinner."

"Okay."

Naruto cut his eyes at his best friend for having the gall to take his attention from Sasuke. How is he supposed to make him jealous when they're over there discussing dinner plans. "So Lee, how's about inviting me over for dinner."

Blinking in morbid confusion by all of this sudden friendship, he smiles and nods. "Sure, if you'd really wanna come."

"Why not? How long have we known each other a year?"

"Just about four months." Corrects the raven haired male.

"It feels like a year." He touched his heart. Sliding an arm around Lee's shoulders he picks up a hunk of fish from the boys lunch. "Open wide, Gejimayo."

Moving away from it, he shakes his head while gathering his things. "This is getting too weird. I'm sorry Naruto; you can still come over later but I have to sit somewhere else right now. See you."

Pouting he leans his elbows on the table, his head supported in his hands. Jackass.

Sasuke snickered, proud of his middle brother for having the back bone to shoot that perve down. Looking at Naruto's pouting face he had to turn away before he noticeably blushed. Why does everything he does have to be so damned cute... so much like him. Maybe he does take more after his brother than he does his father.

Sasuke fidgets in his seated place on the grass. Crossing his arms like he's crossed his legs. The boy looks up through the leaves of the large tree he's sitting under; pieces of sunlight kiss Giraffe like spots on his face and body. He could remember a lot of clear days like this when he was younger; when things were still good.

"Alright, I'm here." Says Naruto so suddenly the unsuspecting teen almost jumped out of his skin. Taking a seat he mimics Sasuke's posture; eyes close to a squint as he glares at him in mock interest. "What did you wanna say?"

"I have to tell you that," he hesitated a moment looking down at his lap then a stray dog passing by across the street. "That.... I've been lying to you."

"Mmmm." He questioned gruffly. "Lying about what?" Scrunching his shoulders in, he turns his head away from him to grouch. "That you're a couple tease and never had any intentions of getting closer to me... and to think I actually wanted us to wear matching t-shirts."

Sasuke cocked a concerned brow at the boys rambling. "Naruto listen, please; this is important."

Looking back at him he's ready to grit him out until he sees the sadness in his friends face, tears sparkling in his eyes, refusing to fall. The boys blue eyes sadden in remorse. "Sasuke, wha-...."

"My sur name isn't really Noriyuki, its just a cover." He says quietly. "My real last name is Uchiha."

Naruto nodded slowly. "Okay, but what does that have to do with us?" Laying a hand on the grass he leans over to the boy to get a better look at him. "I don't even know what an Uchiha is?"

Sasuke scoffed a laugh. "Then you're lucky, to know us is to be cursed I think." He sets his hand down on top of Naruto's, rubbing lightly. "My dad started a police force back in my old hometown in Osaka, my family became famous because of that and we were always looked at as the perfect family, the prime example of the ideal way to live."

"I don't see-..."

Sasuke felt kind of nauseus listening to the thick layer of sympathy in Naruto's tone but if this is what it meant to make the boy understand then he will have it drilled into him no matter what he had to reveal.

"Naruto, my family was not perfect." Shaking his head, he adds. "No family is."

"You're not... making any sense."

"It's my older brother, he had a secret and it destroyed us."

5 years earlier...........

9 year old Sasuke is scrambling home at warp speed; carryall banging him on the hip as he runs, he's just gotta make it! Breaths coming out in short huffs, he turns the corner to his street. Just a quick dash up the steep hill and he's there. A smile broke out on his face upon spotting his house; nearly tripping over a stone on the street he kicked it out of his way like it were a soccer ball. House 204, house 205, house 206. He thinks as he passes them to one at the very top of the hill. 207. Sasuke spots his brother and his brother's best friend since they were in diapers, Kurita Mamoru, sitting on the porch swing that's in front of their porchless home.

The Uchiha's have the biggest home in this small gathering of houses for the force. It's set up to have three houses on either side of the street and their own being seven in the center of the six home culdasac.

Coming up to the house he can hear the blond teen chuckle. "Sasuke?"

Grabbing his self, he looks at the two. "What? Make it quick I have to pee."

"Your brother and I are... hold on I forget," he bites his thumbnail in thought. "What was it now?"

Holding his self harder, he scrunches his legs together for further assistance. Will he hurry up with whatever it is already? Sasuke glares when seeing a small smirk appear on his brothers lips. They're teasing him, they probably don't want anything at all! Teenagers. He pouts before pushing the front door open.

Snapping his fingers the pale male says. "That's it! We're going out for ice cream in a bit, you wanna come with us?"

A slow smile crept up on the younger boys face. "You really mean it?!" He asks his brother. Itachi merely looked at his brother then gave him a single nod. Elated with joy, Sasuke nodded rapidly before he remembers how badly he has to use the bathroom. "I'll come out as soon as I'm done, don't go without me. Okay?" He dashes into the house.

"Ahaha. He's a good kid."

"Mm." He says in agreement.

"When I came back outside my brother was touching him in such a tender way, almost like he were made of glass." Says Sasuke cutting through his memories. "I never thought of it as anything other than friendship, what did I know, I was 9." His hand scrunched over Naruto's a bit hard, but the silent child didn't seem to notice. "But as the years went by I began to suspect something was up with the two of them. It was the way my brother stuck up for him without question.... It made me jealous, it made me angry because I didn't get that sort of protection from him. He may have watched over me but he never fought my battles and I guess I just wanted that. Just once, I wanted to be the one he protected."

"Go deep, Sasuke." Itachi says to his little brother who's down by his side. Holding the baseball in his hand, giving it a twist this way and that until his brother is far enough down the yard, Itachi then launches it at him. The ball soared through the sky over to where the younger boy is standing.

"I've got it! I've got it!" Called Sasuke, glove open.

Mamoru snuck up behind Sasuke catching the ball over head before it could land into Sasuke's glove. "Intercepted!" He called out with a light laugh.

Glaring, Sasuke raised his elbow jamming it into the boys side as hard as he could. "Thanks a lot!" He punctuated his words with the jab.

The older boy sprawled over in pain with a low grunt. Lowering his self to his knees Sasuke turned his nose up knowing he was faking it, but when his brother shoved him so violently out of the way he knew something was up. Holding his pained chest, the young boy asks. "Hey, what's the matter? I didn't really hurt you, did I?"

His brother glared at him coldly as he escorted his friend into the house. Sasuke hung around outside, sitting on the porch swing after he cleaned up the makeshift bases, and put the balls and gloves by the door so they wouldn't be forgotten had he set them someplace else. Sasuke doesn't know whether or not he should be scared or sad. It was just a little jab, he couldn't possibly have hurt the older male, he's just a kid after all and he didn't even hit him that hard. He stiffened when his brother came outside after about ten minutes.

"Brother I'm-..."

"You could have really hurt him Sasuke." Said his older brother holding a drink out to him. "I don't ever want you to touch him like that again."

"I won't! I swear!... But, Itachi..." He takes the drink. "Brother... I'm sorry."

Itachi looked at him with question but then his face softened to a smile. "I know you didn't mean to do it, and I'm sorry for shoving you so hard."

Sasuke rubbed his chest a bit, then the moved his hand to his butt. "It's okay brother, don't worry about it."

Squeezing his glass between his hands, the older male frowned. "Sasuke, Mamoru isn't like the two of us. He's delicate."

"Like a girl?" Wonders the boy.

Laughing, Itachi shakes his head. "No, not like a girl."

Looking at the house as though he has x-ray vision and can see the boy wherever he's sitting, he then looks back to his brother. "Can I say that I'm sorry? He's my friend too you know."

"I know. He's in my room." Poking his brother lightly on the forehead, he smiled. "I'm sorry, little brother."

Rubbing his forehead with a pout, he says. "I told you, I'm alright." He reached out to poke his brother as he often does to him but the older male stopped him by grabbing his fingers.

"You have to be quicker than that."

Nodding, Sasuke rushed into the house, glacing over his shoulder to see that his brother just drank from his glass as he stared at the sky.

"I got upstairs and found Mamoru in my brothers bed, he wasn't resting or anything he just seemed to be sitting there staring at the wall." Sasuke released the blond childs hand. "He smiled at me when I walked in, he was always smiling- always happy."

"Hey Sasuke!" He said in a chipper tone like the young boy hadn't just knocked the wind out of him.

Sasuke walked cautiously over to the bed taking a seat right beside him on the chair. He stares at the plantinum blond hard. Mamoru cocked a brow, his sweet smile turning a bit confused.

"Come to finish the job?"

"Brother says you're different from us... What does he mean?"

Blinking in somewhat revelry, he reaches over to the tak board beside the bed removing one of the colorful pins. Taking Sasuke's hand he holds up the index finger. The young boys eyes widen in fear as the older male gave him a little prick. Sasuke winced rather than cried out, jerking his hand away.

"What did you do that for?" He asked almost in tears from the betrayal.

Holding the boys hand he looked at where he pricked him double taking in confusion. "You didn't bleed? Hahaha, looks like you're not human." He began to laugh.

Still hurt, Sasuke's pout began to disappear until he laughed as well. Mamoru kissed his finger then brushed it lightly. "I'm sorry, the point I was trying to make is that, whereas you can stop bleeding rather quickly, my blood drains as fast as someone pouring water into a glass." He retreaved a band-aid from the dresser beside the bed when the blood in the boys finger finally found its way out. "Sasuke, I'm a hemopheliac."

"He's a what!?" Cried Naruto, the big word going right into a brick wall of his comprehension.

"It means he has a blood disease and his body doesn't possess a lot of the cells that normal people have to stop him from bleeding once it starts."

"That's gotta be rough." He rubs his hand.

"It was. It all made sense to me why my brother was so protective of him and why he was always so happy. He contracted it from his mother, she bled out once he was born like most of them do. The only luck he managed to get was to be a lower risk than his mom." With a shrug he looks back into the sky. "Things started to snap into place for me... Things were going so well, but when we went from a joking happy threesome to just the two of them always sneaking around, I got curious and followed them."

Sasuke is walking around the front yard with a sharpened stick in hand, poking at any large bug he sees cross his path. He pretty much cried out in joy when he spotted a large earth worm trying to dig its way back underground. Picking it up, he tosses it into the air hoping to see a bird snatching it out of the sky like you can do with Seagulls and just about anything that goes up into the air. After a few tosses the worm went a distance away from him by the shed. He went over to it and heard a low sound coming from beyond the door.

"Huh?" Going around to the trash cans on the side, he steps up onto them and peeks through the lightly pollenated windows to spot Itachi and Mamoru lying on the old couch in there, the two of them joined at the lips with the fragile child on top. Sasuke didn't know whether he should scream, or continue watching this odd sight. When did this happen? Never in his life has he seen something like this and he's 11! He's done it all! It made his pants feel funny, and as he started to step down from the can he stumbled back onto the ground with a grunt.

The shed door opened not a minute late and his brother was staring down at him. Picking his self up, he lowered his gaze. "I'm sorry brother, I wasn't spying, I just lost a worm over here."

"Sasuke-.." Itachi started but the blond spoke over him.

"Sasuke, your brother and I are.... lovers, but you have to understand that this was all very sudden for the both of us and we'd kind of like to keep it a secret." He knelt down before the boy so they could be eye level. The older boys black eyes drilled holes into Sasuke, but they were friendly.

Shaking his head rapidly, Sasuke declared. "I would never rat out my brother, honest. Your secret is safe with me but.... how can you two... I mean, aren't men and women just supposed to do that?' He asked shyly looking back at the dirt.

"Its true, but when something like this happens whether between two men or two women its a very special thing." Placing a hand on the boys shoulder he asks. "Do you understand?"

Sasuke nods. "I'm gonna get something to eat, do you guys want a snack?"

Wanting to change the subject, the chipper blond nods. "I could use something to eat. Itachi?" He looks over to him.

The elder Uchiha child glared at his brother a moment, but then he caved in to the boys innocent eyes. "Okay."

"Great." Dashing toward the house he looked back at the slow pokes waving an arm. "Hurry up! I'll make popcorn!"

"Can we trust him?" Asks Mamoru.

"I think so." But he didn't sound sure.

"My brother harrassed me for weeks thinking I was gonna rat them out but I didn't. I wasn't.... Mom started to think that my brother was hitting that phase where having me around was annoying Itachi but that wasn't the case and just as soon as it started it stopped. But, I was curious and couldn't help spying on them and asking them about it..." He licked his mouth. "Watching my brother look so... out of control, I don't know I guess sickly I got excited." He waved away Naruto's shocked stare. "Not like that, I was excited because I wanted to do that to him, not have sex with him, but make him put down the walls that he built up for some reason."

"Oh."

"Anyway, the problem started when my Mom heard me talking to Itachi about it, she told Dad and he got mad." He can still hear the arguing coming from his brothers room, he can remember how he ran off. "One day he came back to get some things; I think he planned on running away." Balling his hands together he felt tears. "That was when it happened."

"Itachi! I'm not letting you set one more foot out of this house!" He stopped his brother in his tracks of heading toward his bedroom. "Tell your friend that if he wants to be part of a disgusting lifestyle he can find someone else to do it with." Crossing his arms when he looks at the frail boy behind his son, he hisses. "You're no longer welcome here."

"You don't have to worry about me bringing shame to this family." Says Itachi, voice always calm. "We're leaving."

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Blocking his sons path by shoving the boy when he started up the stairs. The two power struggled on the narrow stairs but his father, being older, won shoving his son to a stumble right into the blond child behind him. Everything went in slow motion from there....

"He fell, hard. To normal people a fall down the stairs is nothing but to him... the blood filled his head so quickly that..." Sasuke scrunched his face in tears. "I can still hear his screams." He was silent for a moment, tuning out the memory. "My mother called the hospital, he was rushed there on the spot. We waited, week after week until finally we heard that he didn't make it. My brother was devistated all he did and he still lost him, his lover and his best friend. Dad practically said it was the will of God that he died, he shouldn't have been trying to go against man or something like that. That was when my brother snapped, I came home and... everyone was dead."

"You mean?"

Sasuke nodded. "He killed them, and my aunt and uncle.... he told me that when I found love, I'd be next. He never wants me to be happy because he blames me Naruto and that's why we can't..."

Naruto watched the boy cry. It broke his heart, and it made him angry. So angry that he balled up his fist and-... "Bastard!" He spat after socking the boy in the mouth.

"Wha-..."

"I could see if you said you're sour on love but you, you're just afraid of some dumb threat made to you years ago! You're a bitch Sasuke! And a coward!"

Pouncing on the boy, he holds him down on the ground, knees pinning the boy at the wrist while his hands are around his neck. "Don't you get it dumbass!" He is hollering. "I am afraid! I'm afraid of love because I know what it does to people, it breaks them it broke him! I have no one anymore and if I wanted someone I would have to watch them get taken away from me because loving them will consume me so much that I will die... and I don't want to end up like him." He wept. "I can't."

Naruto listened to the boy cry, he felt bad for him, he really did. But what could he say. He loves Sasuke and wants to be with him. If he's saying no then why stick around? "I have to meet Gejimayo." Pushing the boy off of him, he stands. "Feel better." He walks away from the crying boy.