Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Sacrifice ❯ Impatient ( Chapter 2 )

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

Author's Note:  Sasuke got the sharingan at 12 and it's been 4 years since then, so he and Naruto are about 16 yrs old.  I haven't watched the fillers, so when I refer to 'Sand Country' I'm talking about Gaara's homeland.  The village and the country, all as one.  Same thing with Konoha - I doubt I'll ever refer to it as 'fire' country, it's just Konoha or Leaf.  For this fic, the countries are named according to the shinobi villages they harbor.  The smut in this chapter is not very romantic.  It's more of an awkward first-time deal.  Practice makes perfect and they'll get a lot of practice in this fic.

Warnings:  hard yaoi lemon, NarutoxSasuke NaruSasu

Sacrifice

Part 2:  Impatient

The woman Naruto had referred to as 'Baa-chan' was in fact a good looking blonde who appeared even younger than Sasuke's mother.  True to his word, Naruto had taken them from the hall outside his cell straight to her office.  They caught her with a saucer of sake raised halfway to her mouth.  

She didn't look particularly surprised by the entrance, merely letting out a casual, "Do you know what a door is?" before downing the drink.  

Naruto released the light hold he'd taken on Sasuke's sleeve and stalked to her desk.  He placed his palms on it and leaned forward, "I thought you were cutting back, eh?"

"You were mistaken," the woman drawled.  She flicked a casual look at Sasuke before focusing back on Naruto.  "What do you want?  I've just spent the last three hours cleaning up your mess.  Do you have any idea how tedious reconstructive surgery is?  You're lucky I haven't knocked you through the wall yet."

"Like you could," Naruto scoffed.  "I'm not a kid anymore."

"Then stop acting like one.  You're too old to be throwing temper tantrums."

"He totally deserved it!  It was discipline!"

"You destroyed his face.  It was excessive."

Naruto pushed himself back off the desk, "Whatever.  Look, this is Sasuke."  He turned to jerk his head at the woman, "That's Tsunade, but you can call her Baa-chan."

From the way the woman's eyes narrowed, Sasuke didn't think he could.  Not that he would have called her that, anyway.  She shot a hand out and caught Naruto's collar, pulling him so he was leaning over the desk again.  They reminded him of bickering children.  It was suddenly very difficult to believe either of them held a position of power.

"What do you want, brat?" she muttered.  "I'm tired."

"Yeah," Naruto snorted, "you look it.  I need you to heal Sasuke's face."

Sasuke stared back when the woman's gaze shifted to him again.  It was a speculative, measuring look.  He met it blankly.  She was trying to read him, possibly intimidate him.  She was wasting her time.  He let her waste it until she grew bored of the game.  He'd seen enough to know he fell short in her estimation.  Not good enough?  Possibly.  Certainly not what she'd expected him to be.  He didn't particularly care.

She turned her attention back to Naruto, wrinkling her nose, "That scratch?"

"It'll scar!" Naruto scowled.

"All shinobi have scars."

"Maybe, but he didn't have one there when they picked him up so he shouldn't have one now!"

"You should have thought of that before you made extra work for me.  Now I have more important things to do," she released him and waved at him. "Have Sakura do it."

Naruto fidgeted, "She's busy!"

"Do it yourself, then," she said, in a dismissive tone.

Oddly enough, Naruto blushed.  "But-"

"Out," she sniffed.  "Before I embarrass you by recounting the last time you were in my office asking for a favor.  I believe it had to do with an especially troublesome rash on your-"

"I'm going!" Naruto yelped, his face a mottled purple.  "I'm going, already!"

"Good."

Naruto growled as he stalked to Sasuke and caught hold of his sleeve.  A moment later, they were in a dimlit room.  Naruto was already grumbling when he turned to undo the cuffs on Sasuke's wrists.

"Hateful old hag," he muttered.  "It would have only taken her a minute."

"It doesn't bother me," Sasuke shrugged.  The woman was absolutely correct.  All shinobi had scars.  

"It bothers me!" Naruto snapped.  He turned, pulling the ankle cuffs out of his pocket and tossing both in a pile near the door.  He promptly kicked them.  "It shouldn't have happened in the first place.  She's only being like that because she thinks it's funny."  He kicked the pile again so they rebounded lightly off the wall.  "The whole situation.  Like it would kill her to show some sympathy or something..."

Sasuke looked around while Naruto was busy with his rant.  Naruto's apartment, which it had to be since he'd removed the cuffs, was surprisingly small.  Sparsely furnished, a few decorative scrolls on the walls, four photos on the bookshelf, one of which was face down, and no visible traps guarding the door or the darkly curtained window.  The scuffed floor gave it a lived-in feel, but he got the impression Naruto didn't spend much time here.

"Where's the bathroom?" asked Sasuke.

Naruto looked up in surprise, his foot paused in preparation for another kick to the cuffs, "Down the hall on the left."

Sasuke nodded in thanks.  He heard Naruto deliver the interrupted kick as he went down the hall.  There were bound to be some new scuffs on the floor by the time he was finished.  The bathroom was too clean.  Naruto struck him as unorganized and impatient.  His apartment was the exact opposite.  Sasuke had stayed in a variety of places over the years.  He'd never been in a place cleaner than his own home before.  He wondered if Naruto had hired help, or if he'd been hoping to make a good impression.  If it were the latter, it implied Naruto had been sure he would agree to stay with him.  Sasuke preferred to believe he regularly hired someone to do the work.  He didn't like the idea that Naruto had predicted his decision this far in advance.

He pulled the bandages off his cheek, eyeing the cut in the mirror.  It was a little more than the 'scratch' the woman had made it out to be.  The coward had pulled a kunai when he hadn't fallen - or even stopped staring at him in disgust - after the first blow.  If he'd moved his head, he might have lost an eye and the tip of his ear.  He didn't consider himself especially vain, but he wouldn't have minded letting it scar.  It would be vivid and noticeable even from a distance.  Striking.  Scars were history.  He had next to none.  He concentrated his chakra and healed the cut until only a faint bruise remained.  Awkward.  He'd never been good at healing.

He could hear Naruto in the kitchen when he came back to the livingroom.  He left his sandals by the door.  Then he started looking for traps.  Hokage's son.  Assassination attempts.  There had to more than exterior traps for the entrances considering Naruto had transported them directly inside.  It took him two sweeps before he recognized one of the decorative scrolls as a seal.  He didn't understand it.  A seal might allow Naruto to come and go freely, but it should have blocked him.  How had he bypassed that?  He activated the sharingan.  He was following a spiderwebbing chakra trail across the ceiling when Naruto came into the doorway.

"Don't do that," Naruto said quickly.  "You might set something off."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed.  As if he were so incompetent as to trigger a trap just by reading it.  He'd already seen enough to know the trail led across the room to one of the other scrolls.  He wondered if any of them were merely decorative.  And he wondered what purpose they served, to make Naruto sound so jumpy.  He let the red fade from his eyes before turning.  Naruto looked at him, grinned, and came over to catch hold of his sleeve.  That was three times now.  For someone who wanted him as a lover, Naruto was oddly careful to avoid actual contact.

"You healed it," Naruto said, staring at his face.  "Still a little bruised, though."

"I'm not skilled at healing."

"Me, neither," Naruto admitted.  "I have too much chakra so it's hard to do it the conventional way."

Implying there was an unconventional way?  Sasuke recalled how Naruto had blushed in the woman's office and decided he didn't want to know.  He looked over Naruto's shoulder.  "What were you doing?"

"Lunch!  Come on," and he tugged on that sleeve till Sasuke followed him.  "I don't keep much.  I hate cooking and I usually eat at Ichiraku's, anyway.  That's a ramen stand.  They're really good.  We can stop by there tomorrow."

Sasuke let himself be led into the kitchen, which was as small and spotless as the rest of the apartment.  He sat in one of the mismatched chairs and stared at the food Naruto offered him.  A heaping plate of something that looked like a cross between salad and a casserole.  All he recognized was the pasta mixed in with it.  Despite the unappetizing appearance, it did smell good.  He gave Naruto a questioning look.

"I didn't make it," Naruto said, with a sheepish grin.  "Sakura dropped it off yesterday.  She's a friend of mine.  I used to have a huge crush on her, but that was before I saw you.  I mostly liked her because she wasn't interested in me.  Typical crush.  You know how it is."

He didn't know.  The only females he'd ever paid attention to were shinobi.  Uchihas didn't have crushes, they had arranged marriages for the sole purpose of producing children.  Since he'd been a sharingan holder, he would have married in another year or two.  Preferably to one of his second cousins.  He'd never say it aloud, but he suspected the lack of outside blood had a hand in the decline of the clan over the years.  His parents had been first cousins, but he considered them an exception, not the rule.  He wondered how Itachi had gotten out of that tradition.  He'd come back to find his brother still single, still childless, and no explanations were forthcoming.  Just one more reason for the rest of the clan to look askance at them both.

"Aren't you hungry?"

"Not really," Sasuke admitted.  He ate some of the food, more to be polite than anything.  It did taste much better than it looked, his stomach just wasn't interested.

Naruto frowned at him.  "I heard you didn't eat hardly anything on the way here."

He sounded disapproving, as if he were scolding a picky child.  Sasuke leveled a cool stare on him.  "I thought I was coming here to die.  I didn't want a messy death."

"Oh.  Right."  Naruto dropped his eyes, suddenly intent on cleaning his plate.

Sasuke took a few more bites and then gave up.  He'd reheat it later or just eat it cold.  Considering he didn't know what it was supposed to be, it might even taste better cold.  Naruto ducked his head when he went to the refrigerator.  A glance inside told him why.  There was a jug of milk, a pitcher of what might have been juice, and an open cup of instant ramen with disposable chopsticks poking out of it.  Sasuke stood for a long moment, looking from the refrigerator to Naruto.  Naruto was blushing till his ears turned faintly pink.  If he hadn't known who Naruto was, he'd have assumed he was extremely poor, very young, or both.  He sat back down, propped his elbows on the table, and stared at Naruto over the top of his folded hands.  Normally he'd have told himself it wasn't any of his business.  But this was the person he'd just agreed to live with.  Indefinitely.

"Why do you live like this?"

Naruto choked on a mouthful of his salad-casserole.  "It's not that bad!  Everything here I paid for myself.  I've been living on my own since I got my first paying mission.  I think I've done pretty good for myself.  And it's not like we'll be staying here now.  I know the place isn't really big enough for two people.  As soon as we get the main house fixed up, we can move over there.  We can keep groceries then, if you don't like eating out."

"Can you afford to move?" asked Sasuke.  Knowing Naruto was supporting himself made the tiny apartment easier to understand.  He still didn't approve of eating out instead of keeping food in the house, but he understood the need for independence.  If Itachi hadn't stretched his own independent streak so far, Sasuke would have gladly moved out on his own years ago.  After Itachi, his parents had kept him on a very short leash.

"Oh, I have money.  I've been saving up for years."

Four years?  Sasuke didn't ask.

"And you already own the house," Naruto shrugged, "so we won't even have to worry about rent or anything."

"What do you mean I own it?"

"I told you," said Naruto, "it's the main house from the old Uchiha district.  It's been left alone in case any of them ever decided to come back.  Now that you're here, it only makes sense that you'd get it.  It's the house you were born in, after all."

Sasuke considered that.  He remembered little of his childhood.  Movement, unrest, not being comfortable because the adults around him weren't.  By the time he'd started paying attention to his surroundings, he'd already discovered Itachi and envy, competition, hero-worship.  One of his earliest memories was of bragging to his mother that he'd grow up to be a ninja someday and having her laugh and say of course he would.  He was an Uchiha.  What else could he have grown up to be?

"Did they leave anything behind?" asked Sasuke.

"I don't know."  Naruto looked surprised by the question.  Interested, rapidly curious and excited by the possibility.  "It's been off-limits since I was a kid.  There used to be rumors that the Anbu had meetings in there.  Not true, by the way, I was kinda disappointed when I found out.  But the rumors kept people out as much as the traps did.  If they did leave something, it'd still be there.  Probably shouldn't get your hopes up, though."

Naruto was the one who appeared to be getting his hopes up.  Sasuke refrained from pointing that out.  He let his gaze wander around the room again.  This time his attention was drawn to the crack between the refrigerator and the sink, visible just over Naruto's left shoulder.  He could see all the way to the wall and there wasn't a speck of dust on the linoleum.  His lips twitched.

"Is your apartment always this clean?"

"Of course!  I'm very neat!"

Naruto grinned so widely the smile looked painful.  Sasuke stared at him.  He waited.  There was a convulsive tug on the left side of Naruto's face.  Then his head swung down till his chin touched his chest.

"No," Naruto mumbled.  "Sakura-chan came over yesterday and helped me clean up.  I'm really messy..."

Sasuke snorted, "Thought so."

"Yeah, well," Naruto glowered at his plate, shifting fitfully in his chair, "it's just because I've been living alone so long.  I didn't notice how bad it'd gotten.  I could be neat if I tried."

"It doesn't matter," said Sasuke, as much to himself as to Naruto.  He had to remind himself to focus.  This was only amusing on the surface.  "You were preparing before you even met with me.  What made you so sure I'd say yes?"

"I don't know what I'd have done if you'd said no," Naruto admitted.  He was wearing a stubborn frown.  "So I only planned on you saying yes.  I'm optimistic like that."

Sasuke tried not to be irritated.  The complete lack of guilt or shame, or even embarrassment, rankled him.  He agreed with what the Hokage had said in the hall outside his cell.  This entire situation was unorthodox.  It was bizarre.  Naruto's straightforward approach, as if he took it for granted, as if it were normal, made the situation stranger still.  What had Naruto done?  Recruited friends to help him get ready before Sasuke had even arrived?  What had he told them?  That the person he'd been obsessing over for the last four years was on his way and he wanted to make a good impression?  Surely someone had pointed out how insane that was.  It was bad enough Naruto had assumed he'd agree to his terms.  He didn't want to think that other people, absolute strangers, had made the same assumption about him.  It was insulting.

"Why were you fixated on me?" Sasuke demanded.  He did his best not to glare.  "You said you were too young and susceptible.  Susceptible to what?  We only had that one encounter and I didn't even fight you directly."  

He'd been far too busy avoiding the Anbu who'd been trying to kill him.  Naruto, who he'd then dubbed as the rookie of the group, never made any overt moves toward him.  It wasn't until he'd made his escape that he even paid attention to him, and then only because Naruto had been one of the last two tracking him when he gotten deep enough into Sound for them to call off their pursuit.

"I don't know why," Naruto frowned.  He leaned back in his chair far enough to fold his arms.  Defensive.  "Dad thinks it might be because of my age at the time.  That I just matured all of a sudden, or Kyuubi did something and it was pure chance that I was looking at you when he did it.  I don't buy that.  If it were that, I could have focused on anyone in the village I saw before I left that day, or one of the Anbu, even one of the kids who died.  You don't just hit puberty in a second, even if you have a demon.  And it wasn't like that, anyway.  I just...noticed you.  Halfway through the fight.  It was like a flash and I just...noticed.  It took me a few months before I realized I was seriously obsessed.  I thought it was just like...a rival thing because you got away and it was my first Anbu mission.  I'm a sore loser, so I thought I was just obsessing over you because you made us look bad.  Made me look bad.  I take stuff like that personally."

Now Naruto started looking embarrassed, a faint blush breaking on his face.  He continued to frown stubbornly, "If it was some kind of instant puberty, I think I would have noticed.  I was almost fourteen before I started having those kind of dreams about you.  It didn't start out like that at all.  It was just pure obsession.  I'd see dark hair in a crowd and get frustrated because I still didn't know who you were, no way of telling if I'd ever find out, and I couldn't forget no matter what I tried.  I really kinda hated you to start with."

Naruto sounded as if he hadn't wanted to admit that.  Sasuke was glad he had.  Oddly enough, it made him feel better to know Naruto hadn't enjoyed being obsessed with him.  He certainly wasn't enjoying being the object of that obsession.

"By the time I did hit puberty, it just got worse."  Naruto scowled at the table, at the memory.  "That's when I broke down and told my dad about it.  I couldn't focus anymore.  I've never had a lot of patience to begin with, but..."  He made a disgusted noise.  "My training went to hell.  I couldn't trust myself to work with others because I'd get impatient and lose my temper.  They weren't you, so I didn't want to partner with them.  It felt wrong.  That's it.  Just wrong.  But I couldn't stay in the village, either, because the only thing I knew for sure was that you had no connection with Konoha.  So I was taking solo missions that got me into other villages, even though I knew I'd become a liability.  It was like everything I'd been working for my entire life got put on hold, endangered.  I hated it and there was nothing I could do until I found you and settled-"

Naruto glanced up and stopped.  He frowned, looking apologetic and wary.  "I don't feel like that anymore.  Really.  I just...lost it for a while there.  I didn't know what was happening and I couldn't do anything to stop it, so I blamed you for it.  It wasn't fair of me, but it kept me from self-destructing.  My dad countered it with seals - to this day he's still convinced Kyuubi's causing it somehow.  I don't know that he's wrong.  Either way, the seals helped.  Just being able to talk about it helped."  And he gave a wry grin, blushing lightly.  "Sakura-chan said I was suffering from love at first sight, and as corny as it sounds, I like her explanation the most.  It fits the whole want-hate phase I went through.  And once Gaara finally told me who you were, I settled right into want-need instead.  Then the only problem I had was restlessness cause I wasn't allowed to go near you.  I think half the reason I was so angry before was because I had no way of knowing if you were even still alive.  I can't count how many dreams I had where I found out who you were only to learn that you'd died of your injuries right after I first saw you.  It helped a lot to know you were fine, right there in Sand, even if it was frustrating to think that you'd been there all along."

Sasuke didn't know what to say.  His immediate response was inappropriate.  He thought that if Itachi's intentions during that raid had been to take down Konoha, he'd nearly succeeded.  Naruto's apparent affliction had been caused simply because Sasuke had been chosen to distract that Anbu team.  If that were true, than had it been done deliberately, it would have been a stroke of genius.  He reminded himself that it hadn't been done deliberately.  He'd certainly done nothing to make Naruto focus on him.  His father had sent him, but he couldn't have known Naruto would be part of that Anbu squad.  Even if he had known, he couldn't have predicted Naruto would latch on to him to the point where his stability was in question.  It was pure chance.  Bad luck.  If he had to blame anyone for things happening this way, he thought he'd side with Naruto's father and blame the demon.  That was safe.

"That's quite a story," Sasuke said quietly.

"It's true!"

"I believe you.  What would you have done if I'd said no?"

Naruto scowled, "I told you.  I have no idea what I'd have done if you said no, so I didn't plan on it."
"Guess," Sasuke prodded.

Naruto folded his arms again.  "Gone crazy, maybe," he muttered.  "I promised I wouldn't bother you if you turned me down.  I probably would have broken that promise within a day or two and asked you again.  I can't imagine being able to stay away with you in the village.  Knowing you were here.  Seeing you.  It was bad enough not being allowed to go near you when they brought you in, not getting to talk to you when you woke up.  I guess I would have...backslid."  And he shifted suddenly, a dismissive annoyance taking over his face.  As if he'd just reminded himself that it hadn't happened and so he could make light of it.  "I'm sure Dad would have tried some new seals on me.  Or shipped me off to Sand for a while to train with Gaara.  Maybe sent me on another whore-house hopping trip with Jiraiya, like a little sex is gonna fix the problem, as if a henge would even fool me enough to get it up.  I'm obsessed, not delusional."

Naruto leaned forward abruptly, his eyes burning blue.  He spoke quietly, "You know that seal you were looking at?  It's supposed to keep me from losing control.  When I first set it up, it knocked me out cold.  Just last week it made me sleepy any time I was in the apartment for more than a few minutes.  But since we came in, earlier?  Might as well not be there.  I can barely feel it.  It's set to activate when there's a chakra surge - when I'm restless and frustrated I'd come back here and sleep it off.  I was afraid I'd snap the second I got you in here, so I strengthened it last night.  That seems silly now.  I'm at peace.  Just knowing you'll stay, it's like...I'd be fine no matter what.  I haven't even touched you and I'm okay with that.  I feel like I could live my entire life without touching you and it would be fine as long as you're near me.  I'm okay with that."

"I'm not."

Naruto jerked back, confusion flashing over his face, dispelling that dreamy expression.  

Sasuke grimaced.  "I don't go back on my word."  Though he wished he did.  Naruto was giving him a perfect opportunity to do so.  "The deal was that I stay with you as a lover.  You were very specific about the terms and I agreed to them.  Should I find sex with you unbearable, I will tell you and you will respect that.  In which case I will continue to live with you in abstinence.  I didn't say anything about you not being allowed to touch me.  That sleeve-tugging thing is childish and ridiculous.  How were you intending to train me or partner with me on missions if you're afraid of physical contact?"

"Afraid?" Naruto blurted.  He seemed to forget his inner 'peace' in favor of defensive outrage.  "Me?  You're the one who was talking about suicide!  I told you I wouldn't do anything that upsets you.  I'm trying to be considerate here.  You think I actually like the idea of never touching you?  Hell, no, I don't.  But I'll do it if I have to, if that's what it takes to make you comfortable.  And I never said anything about 'unbearable' - I said if you didn't like it.  You're a shinobi, aren't you?"  He rolled his eyes.  "I'm sure you could 'bear' just about anything I did if I warned you first.  You'd just consider it a replacement for that 'training' you missed.  Your definition of 'lovers' is really screwed up, you know that?  Just totally missed the point.  Lovers.  Love - ers.  Get it?  It's about compromise and being considerate and doing everything you can to ensure that your partner enjoys the relationship as much as you do.  And notice how I said 'enjoy' - not 'tolerate' or 'bear' or anything that makes it sound like torture.  If I wanted you to hate me, I'd have left the cuffs on and bent you over the arm of the couch the second we got here.  Stupid."

Sasuke stared.  He was choking on white hot anger.  He swallowed, took a shaky breath, and forced his voice to remain steady.  It came out as pure ice.  "You're blackmailing me.  Sexual favors and a lifetime commitment in return for freedom that is, at best, questionable.  And you say my definition is twisted?  You are delusional."

"It's not blackmail!"

"Yes, it is," Sasuke snapped.  "It was either agree to your terms or be rendered helpless for the rest of my life.  A very long life, according to the Hokage.  A life where anything I do will be used against my clan.  If I defend myself, it's used against my clan.  If I put up with it until I break and suicide, it's used against my clan.  That's no choice.  I told you I couldn't do it.  I couldn't live helpless, defenseless.  But I couldn't die, either, not without betraying my clan.  I would have accepted any alternative you offered if it meant I'd be able to have at least the freedom to defend myself in the future.  Delude yourself all you like, but don't insult me.  I agreed to be your whore and your companion.  Love has nothing to do with it."

Naruto matched him glare for glare, his hands gripping the edge of the table, lips curling to reveal clenched teeth.  Sasuke egged him on with as much loathing and disgust as he could put in his eyes.  He'd pushed him too far again, was still pushing him.  If Naruto snapped it would be a quick end.  And he had the Hokage's assurance it would be on Konoha's head, not his.  He wondered what that would mean.  The clan wouldn't demand retribution for the murder of a dead man.  What penance could the Hokage exact from his own son and heir?  Ridiculous.  He was beginning to wonder if he hadn't been kept alive because of Naruto's obsession, rather than the story the Hokage had given him.  That made more sense.

"You're right," Naruto said, in a bitter, biting tone.  He pulled his hands free of the deathgrip they'd taken on the table.  "It wasn't much of a choice.  But I'm giving you all the freedom I can.  We can't kill you, we can't let you go, we can't have you suicide in our custody, we can't have you powerful enough to be a liability to the village, we can't have you roaming unattended.  Konoha didn't have much of a choice, either.  The alternative I offered is something only I could give you.  Me, not Konoha.  I can track you.  I've known exactly where you were since they brought you through the gates.  I can't not know.  I can monitor you without having to seal your chakra.  I can train you and work with you as a shinobi because I can be there in an instant should you ever become a liability.  It's not real freedom.  It does come at a price.  You aren't obligated to enjoy it or to like me.  That doesn't mean I can't hope you will.  This is my chance to make you feel what I do.  I've waited four years for this chance.  I'm taking it."

"You sound like your father."

Naruto blinked, suddenly looking hesitant and young again.  Sasuke sighed and closed his eyes.  The moment was over.  He didn't know how close he'd pushed Naruto to snapping.  Not close enough, too close.  He didn't feel disappointed or relieved, just tired.  Ashamed.  Deliberately provoking an attack was the same as suiciding.  He shouldn't have done that.  He didn't know how to handle this.  Die willingly and proudly.  He couldn't be both at the same time and this was too slow a death.  Do not resist.  He couldn't do that without swallowing his pride.  What could he do?  Nothing.

"Neiji said you were empty."

How many times had Naruto mentioned that name?  Sasuke wondered if he realized he didn't know who he was referring to.  He stared at his folded hands, letting the blonde blur across the table from him.  Empty.  That was his best skill.  He could do it effortlessly.  He'd had plenty of practice with his father.  It came in handy on missions as well.

"He said all these years of imagining what you'd be like had set me up for a huge disappointment because the real you was cold and empty.  A flawless tool, as a shinobi, but a horrible partner.  I was mad at him for saying that.  I guess I got so used to the idea of you, of us, that I took for granted we'd be perfect for each other.  He was right, you're not what I expected.  But I'm not disappointed.  I wanted the real you, not some perfectly fake fantasy you.  It's just a matter of figuring out who you are.  Besides being a good shinobi, an Uchiha, and having a very sharp tongue when you're angry.  I know you're pretty good at the 'blank-eyed' thing, too."

Sasuke focused enough to catch Naruto smirking at him.  He gave a cool stare in response.

"What are you like?" Naruto prodded.  "I'm stubborn, abrasive, sometimes childish, I tend to act without thinking first, I have a short temper depending on who I'm with, and I'm very easy to like.  No, really, I am.  I grow on people.  Like a fungus.  The itchy kind that you complain about, but secretly enjoy because it feels good when you scratch it."

Naruto flashed him a cheeky grin.  Sasuke sniffed.  That didn't sound like something to be proud of.

"What about you?"

"I don't know," Sasuke shrugged.  "Too proud."  He'd been called conceited and arrogant, but never to his face.  There was a reason he looked down on people too pathetic to make their insults openly.  "I'm loyal to my clan."  Obedient and ignorant, though again, his teacher was the only one to ever say that to his face.  "Intelligent."  His teacher might have argued with that, citing his ignorance of what was going on around him.  That had nothing to do with his ability to learn.  He'd always absorbed information quickly when he was actually given access to it.  "Easily bored."

"Really?"  Naruto looked surprised, and pleased.  "Me, too.  I never had patience with the basic jutsu - I wanted to skip right to the powerful stuff.  Forbidden stuff."  And he grinned.  "The more restricted, the better."

"I get impatient," Sasuke admitted.  "If there's no challenge, it's rote.  An exercise.  A waste of time.  I hate wasting time when I could be accomplishing something."  An accomplishment that would benefit the clan.  Something he no longer had to be concerned with.  He stared at his folded hands.  He had to stop reminding himself of that.  There was no use in constantly reminding himself that he'd lost his motivation, his entire purpose.  Nothing he did could benefit his clan.  Everything he did could potentially harm them.  Better to do nothing.

"We should spar together.  I want to see how good you are."

Sasuke flicked him a narrow-eyed look.  "You're Anbu.  I never even took the Chunin Exam."

"I'm not," Naruto said quickly.  "I did that one mission and that's it."  He frowned, looked away, and spoke quietly, "I couldn't kill kids my own age.  That mission was horrible.  We could have taken them all alive.  It would have cost us extra time, but we spent too much time, anyway, thanks to you.  They never stood a chance.  We slaughtered them and it was for nothing.  We didn't even accomplish our mission.  I couldn't reconcile that.  I'm not cut out for assassinations, either.  I decided to stop at Jounin.  You don't have to serve in Anbu to be Hokage."  He shook himself like a dog shedding water.  Then he smiled again, "You were being trained by a Jounin, right?  Gaara said you had a personal teacher.  One of the Sand shinobi?"

"He was a Jounin," Sasuke said, in a bland tone.  "I don't know enough about Sand to make blanket statements, but if he was typical of their Jounin, I'd rank them even with a Chunin from Konoha or a Genin from Sound."

"A Genin!"

"According to rank.  They do things differently in Sound.  The few Genin I had contact with should have been ranked much higher.  I suspect they weren't because it's easier for unknown Genin to get the slip on enemies than if they'd made names for themselves by passing a public examination."

Naruto's eyes narrowed, "Would you be willing to tell us about Sound?  You're not obligated to, but-"

"Anything I know," Sasuke shrugged.  "I have no loyalties to them.  The clan is allied to Sand, and Sound is their enemy."

"Ours, too," Naruto muttered.  "Between them and Mist..."  He stared for a long moment.  "Sasuke, are you loyal to Itachi or your clan?"

It was strange hearing someone else ask that question.  He'd never expected to hear it out loud.  He still didn't hesitate, "The clan."

"Okay," said Naruto.  "I'm not going to ask you anything else right now.  I don't know how much I'm allowed to tell you, so it's better that we don't talk about it."

"You don't have to tell me anything."

"But I will if we talk about it.  So let's not.  Net yet, anyway."

Sasuke shrugged again.  He was accustomed to delivering one-sided reports and getting nothing in return.  It bothered him, humiliated him at times, but it kept him from obsessing over things he couldn't do anything about.  If Konoha could use information about their enemies, he'd give it.  They were allied to Sand, after all.  Any benefit to them was a benefit to the clan by association.  He doubted that he'd picked up any particularly significant information during his brief stint in Sound.  But he had noticed things and heard things and he hadn't been asked to report on anything when he'd returned to the clan.  His father hadn't wanted to know.  Or maybe it was that he'd already known and hadn't wanted to acknowledge it.

"I'm done," Naruto said, getting out of his chair.  He set his half emptied plate on the counter.  Then he walked over to him, "Do you want anything else in here?"

"No."

Naruto took an audible breath and gave him a strange look.  Wary and determined.  Sasuke thought he recognized what it signified.  He stared blankly at him.

"I want you to sleep with me," said Naruto.  "Will you?"

As if he hadn't already agreed.  As if he hadn't just reminded him of that agreement mere minutes ago.  Sasuke didn't say anything.  He stood up.  Then he clenched his teeth.  Naruto had latched onto his sleeve.  Again.  He shot him a seething glare and was met by a tight, mocking grin.

"Calm down," Naruto scoffed.  If he were trying to sound flippant, he failed miserably, "I'll be doing a whole lot of touching in a minute.  You can handle a little sleeve-tugging till then.  Come on."  Naruto led him down the hall and stopped outside the door on the right.  "Wait here."

Sasuke watched him enter the room.  It was dark, faint light coming through a curtained window.  He hadn't realized it was that late.  Naruto turned on a lamp, illuminating a small bedroom that was cluttered with shelves, scrolls, discarded clothing, and at least two lumps that looked suspiciously like take out bags.  The room wasn't quite filthy, but it was nowhere near the conspicuous clean of the rest of the apartment.  Naruto bit a thumb and smeared it over a wall scroll just inside the door.  Then he came back, took hold of that sleeve he seemed so fond of, and tugged him in.  He shut the door behind them.

"No one's been in here since I started renting the place," Naruto explained.  "I cleaned up a little, but I couldn't let Sakura help.  Gotta have some privacy, you know?"

Sasuke looked over the seemingly decorative scrolls.  They were different from the ones in the livingroom.  Now that they'd been...deactivated?...he could see the seal used to keep people from transporting directly inside.  And traps on the door.  Set to Naruto's chakra frequency?  Probably.  Similar traps were set up around the window.  Compared to the livingroom, the defense here was noteworthy.

"This is where I sleep," Naruto shrugged, as if he knew what he was thinking.

And there had been assassination attempts.  Sasuke wondered if Itachi's trip to Konoha had been one of those.  That would be ironic.  Having sex with someone his brother wanted to kill.  He looked at the smear of blood Naruto had left on that scroll near the door.  It was already being absorbed into the cloth.  "What does that one do?"

"Smothers me," Naruto grimaced.  "It took so long to set it up I can't just get rid of it, so I deactivate it as soon as I come in.  I don't think it'd bother you, but it might.  Makes it hard to wake up and I have bad dreams."

"What is it supposed to do?"

"Oh, it's supposed to keep Kyuubi's chakra from leaking when I sleep if I've had a really frustrating day.  It doesn't, though.  I get the feeling it was actually doing the opposite.  I usually don't see Kyuubi unless I'm in a near death situation.  With that, I saw him every night..."

Sasuke winced at the idea.  He didn't know anything about demons aside from the fact that Gaara had one and there were rumors of more of them existing in other shinobi villages.  They were so deadly people continued to fear them long after they were defeated and sealed inside their human hosts.  Naruto's hand had clenched around his sleeve.  He didn't say anything this time.  After a moment, Naruto let go.

"Anyway, I stopped using it once I realized it was backfiring.  I'd take it down, but it's easier to set the room to me if I link the other seals to that one.  Someone might be able to duplicate my own chakra.  No one could duplicate Kyuubi's.  It's useful.  I'll take it with me when we move.  The main house is big enough for us to have separate rooms so you won't always have to wait for me to deactivate it before you can sleep."

"You don't want me to sleep with you there?"

Naruto gave a weak grin, "I'd like you to, yeah.  But you'll have your own room, too, so you can get away when you're sick of me.  I'm the clingy type.  I'd drive you crazy if you didn't have your own space.  I'll try not to smother you too much."

That was more than he'd expected to get.  The way Naruto had gone on, he'd thought he would be watched, kept close at all hours.  "Will you stay out of my room if I ask you to?"

"Of course," Naruto said quickly.  "That's the idea.  It'd be the place you go to when you want me to leave you alone.  I tend to go outside and find a high place when I want to be alone.  I don't think I'll do that much with you, but it's only fair that you have somewhere, too.  I can't promise not to bug you if you're outside.  If it's a room, then I can just knock if something comes up."

"That's generous of you."

Naruto shifted, rocking uneasily, "No, it's not.  Generous would be me staying here and you living there.  Or me not asking you to sleep with me for a few weeks so you get a chance to know me better first.  That'd be generous.  Hell, that'd just be considerate.  But you're right," and he frowned unhappily, "we're not dating.  This isn't that kind of relationship.  And I couldn't stand having you live that far away from me even if it was."

"I assumed we'd be living in the same house together," Sasuke said.  "I appreciate getting my own room in that house."

Naruto gave a slow nod, "Okay."  He set his Anbu mask on a cluttered bookshelf and took off his jacket, tossing it over the back of a chair.  "I should warn you," he said, without looking around, "once I touch you I'm not gonna let go for a while.  That's why I haven't done it so far.  Your first time shouldn't be in a hallway or an office or a livingroom or a kitchen.  The first time is supposed to be special."

"Was yours?" Sasuke asked, in an even tone.

Naruto let out a small derogatory laugh, "No.  I was trying to forget about you.  It was disturbing.  The more I tried, the worse it got.  And then I felt guilty and sick afterward for betraying you.  That was around the time I lost it.  Not the easiest way to go through puberty."

Naruto tugged his shirt off without turning around.  Sasuke followed his example.  His shirt wouldn't be good for much of anything without a thorough washing.  He folded it and set it on the stand near the bed.  Dirty as it was, he'd still want it later.  He'd never slept naked in his life and had no intention of starting now.

"Is the light going to bother you?"
"No," said Sasuke.

"Good.  I want to see-"  Naruto turned and cut himself off.  He blushed.  His eyes were too wide, too bright.  He swallowed audibly.  "I can't tug your sleeve now..."

Sasuke snorted.  He sounded disappointed.  Petulant, even.  "I can put it back on."

"No!  I was..."  Naruto's expression flickered through a variety of emotions before settling in a stubborn frown.  "Screw it."

He had just enough time to brace himself before Naruto caught him.  He was pulled close, embraced fiercely.  He bore it awkwardly.  He didn't know what he was supposed to do.  Fingers dug into his back.  Uncomfortable, but not painful.  Naruto ducked his face into the curve of his neck and inhaled deeply, held it, and released it in a hot gust that brought goosebumps to his arms.  He forced himself not to react either by shivering or squirming.  He was highly aware of the way Naruto's skin felt against his own.  Smooth, heated, intimate.  It was the intimacy he had issues with.  He knew that.  Just being held like this was strange.  Naruto was hugging him.  His mother had hugged him.  Not since he was five, but he still remembered it.  He was fairly sure hugging was not a necessary part of sex.  He pressed his lips together, waiting for Naruto to get on with it.  He had a long wait.

Minutes passed silent save for the sound of their breaths.  They were breathing in tandem now.  That was only natural considered how tightly Naruto was holding them together.  Sasuke had taken to resting his hands on Naruto's shoulders, just to be doing something with them.  His skin was starting to burn where those fingers were kneeding his back.  He wondered if Naruto even realized he was doing that.  If not for his hands and chest, he was motionless, seeming perfectly content to stay that way.  Indefinitely.  Sasuke was starting to loathe that word.  

He opened his eyes, focusing on the only aspect of this lingering embrace that was at all sexual.  Naruto was aroused, had been since he'd caught hold of him.  How was he ignoring that?  Why was he ignoring it?  Irritation flared in him, mingling with impatience.  He didn't like this.  "Naruto."

Those hands clenched painfully, reflexively, and then slid free.  Naruto pulled back to look at him, hands resting lightly on his hips, eyes a burning unnatural blue.  Sasuke didn't know what to make of his expression.

"That's the first time you've said my name," Naruto murmured.  He took a deep breath, his hands tightening on his hips.  "Say it again."

"Get on with it and I will," said Sasuke.  "I don't want to do this anymore.  This...standing here."

Naruto licked his lips, frowning, "I don't want to rush you."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed, "Rush me.  Naruto."  

Much more of this 'holding' and he'd snap before they ever got around to the sex.  Naruto's eyes widened for a moment.  Then he grinned.  Sasuke was swung around and pushed toward the bed.  He let himself to fall.  His instinct was to roll into a more defensible position the second he landed.  He forced himself not to move when Naruto immediately crouched over him, knees on either side of his hips.  This was what he'd asked for.  The quicker they finished, the less time he'd have to think about it.

"You want me to hurry?" asked Naruto.  There was something knowing about his grin.  "Do something for me."

"Aside from calling you by your name?"

"Yeah, aside from that.  I wanna see the sharingan."

"Now?" Sasuke blurted.

"The whole time.  I want you to watch me the whole time, so you'll know exactly what I'm doing."  He leaned over him so their faces were inches apart.  His voice was husky, "I've only seen you with them once.  You were really hot..."

Sasuke grimaced.  He was blushing.  He could feel it.  He channeled his embarrassment into a sharp glare and his chakra into his eyes.  Naruto groaned and ducked down to cover his mouth.  He could feel the erection pressing into his stomach, a hand ghosting over his chest, and blazing eyes held his own as if challenging him to be the first to blink, to look away.  Naruto pulled his lower lip into his mouth, sucked on it, staring at him the entire time, and he felt his body react.  He couldn't help it.  He closed his eyes and took a sharp breath through his nose.

Naruto released his lip, pushed against his mouth in a nuzzling sweep, and finally pulled back when Sasuke kept his teeth clenched.  "Let me in..."

He sounded surprised, petulant again, but heated all the same.  Sasuke's eyes snapped open.  He didn't want to.  If he let Naruto put his tongue in his mouth he'd want to put more in there.  He couldn't handle that.  Not now.  Maybe never.  The very thought made his stomach churn.  He'd throw up.  He'd be humiliated.  He didn't consider how Naruto might react.  He didn't care.  He'd never be able to stand the humiliation.  This wasn't like anal sex.  This was his mouth.

"Sasuke," Naruto said faintly, surprise and worry breaking over his face.  "Hey.  Don't look like that.  I was just asking to kiss you.  If it bothers you that much, tell me no.  I won't push."  He leaned back, rising on his knees so they were barely touching.  His expression was sobering rapidly, "Do you want me to stop?"

Sasuke forced himself to answer.  He was blushing, grimacing, and he couldn't unclench his teeth.  So much for avoiding humiliation.  "No."  He tried to be calm and rational and honest about this.  He was only partially successful.  He met Naruto's eyes, but he couldn't get rid of the blush or the humiliated strain in his voice.  "You don't have to stop.  But I don't want to participate in oral sex."

If Naruto were thrown by his statement, he recovered quickly.  He gave a slow, thoughtful nod.  "Giving or receiving?  Or do you mean in general?  Are you including kissing in that?"

Sasuke stared, feeling revolted, and impressed despite himself.  "You'd do that?"

Naruto shrugged, not looking the least bit embarrassed, "Sure.  You have to understand, I've had plenty of time to get used to this.  I'm up for just about anything involving you and me.  And I was planning to do that here in a minute.  I expect you to squirm and make interesting noises while you're trying to keep quiet."  He flashed a grin when Sasuke glared at him.  He trailed the fingers of one hand down the center of Sasuke's chest so that his skin jumped reflexively.  "It'll be fun.  And the sex will be better, too, since you'll be ready for it by the time I'm done."

"You don't find that at all disturbing?" Sasuke demanded.

"Nope," Naruto smirked.  He eased down so their noses touched, "I'd happily taste every inch of you if I hadn't agreed to hurry.  It's you and you're mine," he flicked his tongue out to lap Sasuke's lips, "and you taste good."

Sasuke's face twisted.  He was blushing furiously and he couldn't do a thing to stop it.  He hated how easily, how casually Naruto said that.  It made him feel juvenile, inadequate.  As if he were making a fuss over nothing.  Did that make him a coward?  Afraid to try something because he didn't think he'd be able to do it?  Naruto tilted his head and pressed moist kisses over his jaw.  He closed his eyes, letting him.  It wasn't cowardly and it wasn't 'nothing'.  He was genuinely disturbed by the very idea.  He'd try to get over it, but he didn't have to get over it right now.  The agreement was that he'd give it a 'few tries' before deciding anything.  He'd work on that next time.

"You're not looking at me," Naruto teased.  "The more you close your eyes, the slower I'll go."  He smiled when Sasuke's eyes snapped open.  "And you never answered me.  Do you count kissing as part of oral sex?"

Sasuke took a deep breath and glared.  He didn't give himself time to hesitate.  He caught a hand in Naruto's hair, opened his mouth, and pulled him down.  He pushed his own tongue into Naruto's mouth and was rewarded by the sight of those blue eyes widening in pure shock.  It didn't last long.  Naruto's eyes simmered, falling till they were half-lidded.  Naruto groaned into his mouth, teasing him, drawing him deeper, forcing their mouths closer together.  He was glad for that.  He hadn't thought past making the first move, wiping that taunting smile off his face.  He curled both hands in Naruto's thick hair.  It felt better to move, to feel like an actual participant in this.  And he decided whatever he felt about sex itself, he didn't mind kissing.  Everything they did was going straight to his groin.  He wasn't even embarrassed about it because Naruto was pressing so close he could feel his erection rubbing into his stomach.

Naruto broke away with a rough gasp.  He rose, panting quietly, and pressed their foreheads together so their eyes were almost too close to focus.  "I could come just from kissing you," he muttered.  "I'm supposed to be the one with experience and control.  It's a good thing you wanted to hurry."  He let out a shaky laugh and kissed him lightly, briefly.  "You didn't change your mind?"

Sasuke was occupied with catching his breath.  He shook his head instead of answering vocally.  

Naruto levered himself up and off, with a muttered, "Too much clothes."  

They finished undressing. Sasuke folded his for later, setting them with his shirt on the stand next to the bed.  Naruto wadded his and tossed them in the direction of the chair.  The wad fell two feet short, landing next to one of the take-out bags.  Sasuke snorted at that.  This was the mess he'd expected when he'd first come into the apartment.  Naruto leaned over him to pull open the drawer of the night stand.  He straightened up with a small gray jar in his hand and a surprisingly modest blush dusting his cheeks.  Unlike the previous blushes Sasuke had seen, this one actually looked good on him.  It made his sheepish smile seem young and cute.

"Here," Naruto said, reaching behind him, "I want you to lean back on the pillows.  That way you can watch me while I do this.  If it bothers you, you can close your eyes or tell me to stop."  He crouched between Sasuke's bent legs and blushed some more.  He leaned forward abruptly to place a kiss between his eyes.  "And keep these red.  Consider it a challenge.  You've got awesome chakra control."

Sasuke shifted against the pillows.  He knew he was blushing again.  He didn't care this time.  It was different when Naruto looked just as embarrassed.  Naruto opened the jar, scooping out a dab of white cream and rubbing it between his fingers.  Sasuke shifted again.  He didn't think he could watch this.  It was difficult enough just holding still.  Naruto kneeled between his legs and strands of his hair tickled Sasuke's thigh.  He flinched and almost kicked him in the face.  Naruto just managed to avoid it.

"Try to keep your legs still," Naruto said, with a weak grin.  "If you want me to stop, all you have to do is say so.  And, hey, you can hold my hair again if you want."  His grin became cheeky.  "I liked that.  I promise not to complain if you get the sudden irresistible urge to take over the pace and choke me.  Hell, I won't even blame you."

He snorted at that, but he did reach out to curl a hand in Naruto's hair.  It gave him a feeling of control that he needed right now.  He really didn't think he'd be able to watch Naruto do this.  With his mouth.  Not to mention what he was going to do with his other hand.  He took a long breath, calming himself as much as possible.  His chakra control wasn't the best, but he did have good control of his body.  Usually.  Naruto curled his dry hand around the base of his erection and it was all he could do to keep his legs frozen in place.  His stomach flexed instead.  Heated blue eyes flicked up, catching his gaze, holding it, forcing him to watch as Naruto lowered his head slowly.  All of his earlier revulsion surged forward the closer Naruto got.  He couldn't believe he was seriously going to do that.  He watched his mouth open, his tongue wetting his lips, and then it touched the tip of his erection and he heard a small involuntary sound escape his throat.  He recognized it as a protest and was glad he hadn't been able to form it into an actual word.

Naruto twisted his hand, stroking him in a feathery grip that was more tormenting than pleasurable.  Sasuke clenched his teeth and glared silently into laughing blue eyes.  Teasing him.  Then Naruto dipped his head and took the tip of his erection into his mouth without breaking eye contact.  Sasuke blanched, choked, and almost came off the bed.  Naruto applied suction and he made a strangled noise in the back of his throat.  If he hadn't been horrified and aroused, he would have been humiliated to know that noise came from him.  His free hand clutched and fisted the sheet beneath him.  The hand he'd curled in Naruto's hair jerked faintly, torn between letting him continue and pulling him away.  He was suddenly terrified he'd cum in Naruto's mouth.  

He let out another muted, strangled sound that couldn't be classified as a groan.  He tugged on his hair.  "Naruto..."

Burning blue eyes glinted at him and Naruto lifted his head.  Sasuke kept his own eyes locked on Naruto's.  He wasn't willing to look at the saliva glistening on himself.

"What's the matter?"

"I almost-"  He grimaced and stopped.  He couldn't even say it.  He didn't need to.  

Naruto's eyes widened slowly.  Then he smiled in sly, pleased way that made Sasuke distinctly nervous.  "It's okay to come, Sasuke.  That's the whole point."

In his mouth?  His expression must have reflected his horror, because Naruto read the question and dismissed it.

"I told you I don't mind," Naruto said lightly, his head tilted so he could lap at Sasuke's erection before continuing.  He smirked when Sasuke flinched at the contact.  "I want you to.  I want to be the reason you did.  And it'll make the rest easier.  Trust me a little, will you?  I do know what I'm doing."

"Can't you just...do it without that?" Sasuke demanded.

Naruto sighed.  He was eyeing his erection sadly, with blatant disappointment, as if it were a prize about to be taken away from him.  Sasuke had a sudden urge to hit him upside the head.  He twisted his hand instead, tightening his hold on Naruto's hair so he winced.

"Okay," Naruto grimaced, "you win.  But...next time?"  He flashed a hopeful, almost woebegone look at Sasuke.  "You have to let me do it at least once or else you can't really say you tried it, right?"

"Next time," Sasuke agreed.  "Not now."  That would give him a chance to come to grips with the idea.  As it was, he couldn't stand the thought of Naruto doing that to him, for him, when there was no way he'd be able to do it himself.  Then he really would feel like a coward.

"I'm holding you to that," Naruto said, in what came out as a stubborn pout.  He leaned forward to frown at Sasuke.  "Now I can't even kiss you while we're doing this.  I'd say you owe me.  I'm gonna take it out of you in hickeys."

"What?"

"Hickeys," Naruto said, in a very serious tone.  "Red marks about the size of my mouth where blood pools beneath the surface of the skin due to prolonged suction.  You'll like it."

Sasuke's mouth dropped open just as a slick finger brushed against him.  He snapped his mouth shut before a startled sound could erupt.

"Tell me if it hurts too much."

"I'm not going to break," Sasuke said scathingly.  He still wanted desperately to hit him upside the head.  That would be childish.  Immature.  He'd never shame himself by doing something like that.  It would be sinking to Naruto's level.  He really wanted to do it at least once.  Hard.

The finger slid into him, a faintly burning, uncomfortable sensation.  Sasuke was abruptly distracted by a similar burning on the side of his neck where Naruto had latched onto him with his mouth.  He glowered at the ceiling.  Put into perspective, the 'hickey' hurt more than the finger did.  Naruto pulled his mouth free with a wet popping noise.  Sasuke retaliated by twisting his hand and nearly ripping a fistful of that blonde hair out by the roots.  He was rewarded by a choked whimpering sound right in his ear.

"I was distracting you," Naruto pouted, when he'd lifted his head enough to look at him.  "You don't have to be violent about it."

Sasuke stared at him through narrow red eyes.  Naruto bore a moment of that stare before cracking.

"Okay," Naruto said quickly.  He gave a weak grin.  "I'm sorry for playing with you when I've got a fi-"  He stopped, looked wary for a second, and then tried again without the grin.  He somehow managed to look entirely serious.  "I'm going to do it now.  I'll go slow, but it'll still feel weird at first.  You're good at relaxing, so it shouldn't hurt much.  Tell me if it does and I'll stop."

"Just do it," Sasuke muttered.  

At this rate he wouldn't even be aroused by the time Naruto got around to the actual sex.  He leaned forward enough to watch Naruto slick himself with more of the cream.  Oddly enough, after watching Naruto use his mouth, this part wasn't as disturbing.  Sasuke frowned and shifted his legs into a more comfortable position.  Naruto glanced up, giving him a strange, considering look.  

Sasuke froze, "What?"  Naruto was the one who'd told him to watch.

"You're not embarrassed?" asked Naruto.  He leaned forward before Sasuke could answer.  "If you're not too embarrassed, the easiest way to do this your first time would be for you to lower yourself onto me.  That way you can wait for your muscles to relax and do it at your own pace.  If you're too embarrassed, that's fine, but-"

"How?" Sasuke demanded.  "What do I do?"

Naruto beamed at him and leaned forward.  He caught himself at the last minute and pressed the kiss on Sasuke's cheek instead of his mouth.  "Trade places with me."  They repositioned themselves so that Naruto was leaning against the headboard with Sasuke kneeling over his hips.  Naruto pulled his arms so he was braced on his shoulders and gripped Sasuke's hips to support him.  "Just go slow.  Don't get impatient and hurt yourself."

Sasuke blocked him out.  He positioned himself and lowered and immediately met resistance.  He'd loosened the muscles he had control over.  This was an involuntary one.  He understood what Naruto had meant about waiting.  Twenty seconds and it relaxed on its own, unable to remain contracted any longer.  He pushed and grimaced at the burning pressure.  It didn't hurt, but it didn't feel good, either.  It felt strange, unnatural.  If it felt like this when he did it to himself, how bad would it have felt if Naruto had done it to him?  He continued down, letting out a quiet breath when he was fully seated.  And he realized, belatedly, that Naruto must have been staring at him the entire time.  His head snapped up, a humiliated blush already blooming on his face.  He was disarmed by the look Naruto was giving him.  A hand lifted from his waist, brushed his cheek, and pulled him into a soft kiss.  He forgot why Naruto wasn't supposed to kiss him.  It didn't distract him from the sensation of being stretched and full and uncomfortable.  But it rid him of the self-disgusted blush and he was glad to have that gone.

Naruto shifted the kiss to his neck, nipping and sucking and probably leaving another of those marks, judging by the burning sensation.  Sasuke rested his forehead on his shoulder and let him.  He was starting to wonder if it might have been better if he'd come earlier.  Not in Naruto's mouth, he still wasn't ready for that.  But he would have had an easier time being patient if he'd already finished.  A hand curled around his erection, giving a tentative stroke.  Sasuke muffled a groan against Naruto's shoulder.  He'd clenched around that length and been reminded of exactly how deep in him Naruto was.  He'd never felt anything like this steady discomfort.  He wanted it over.

"You can move," Naruto murmured, still kissing his way along his neck and shoulder.  He turned his head, breathing against Sasuke's hair, as if the scent were intoxicating.  "Find a position that suits you."

"I don't want to move," Sasuke muttered tensely.  He decided Naruto was simply too deep in him.  He'd waited a few minutes now and it seemed to be getting worse instead of better.  It didn't burn as much, but the pressure was starting to hurt his stomach.  He couldn't stand the thought of moving, of possibly driving him even deeper into him.  What if it did permanent damage?  It was possible.  His body certainly hadn't been designed for this.  He pushed his forehead harder into Naruto's shoulder.  "Can you tilt me back?  There's too much pressure like this."

Naruto lifted him up a little, and Sasuke groaned in relief.  Definitely the pressure.  He'd have to make sure to switch positions immediately the next time they did this.  Naruto lowered him carefully on his back and the movement inside him brought another groan to his lips.  A good one this time.  Naruto started to pull out more and he caught a hand in his hair, the other on his hip to hold him in place.

"I didn't say stop," Sasuke muttered.  He opened his eyes to glare blearily at him.  "Are you in that much of a hurry to quit?"

"I don't want to hurt you."

"You didn't.  It was the position.  I stayed in it too long."  He shifted tentatively and pulled Naruto closer.  "This is better."

"Are you sure?" Naruto frowned.  

He looked stricken, concerned, guilty.  Sasuke marveled at the irony of having to be the one encouraging Naruto to finish what he'd started.  It finally felt good and now he wanted to stop?  He gave a pointed glare, "Do you really want me to change my mind?"

Naruto looked at him for a long moment and then shook his head decisively, "No."

"Then move."

He did, entering slowly until they were flush against each other.  He leaned down and pressed a light kiss on Sasuke's mouth.  "You're eyes are black," he said.  He gave it like an apology.

"I was distracted," Sasuke muttered, defensively.  He was taking it as an insult.  

Naruto lifted his legs so they were braced on his arms, changing the angle slightly.  When he moved it was at the same slow tentative pace he was stroking Sasuke's erection.  Pleasant, but not enough to accomplish anything.  Sasuke pushed his hips up to meet him and caught his eye with an unsatisfied glare.  It came out red.

"You said you would hurry," he reminded him.  "Do it.  You're not going to break me."

Naruto scowled at him for a moment and then gave a hard angled thrust that sent a shard of something besides semi-pleasant friction through him.  Sharp, intense, entirely unexpected.  Sasuke let out a cry, too shocked to be embarrassed.  He choked back another when Naruto did it again.  By the time Naruto settled into a fast rhythm, he had a fist pressed over his mouth to keep the sounds in.  He tried to glare at him for not doing this sooner, for not telling him it would feel like this.  He suspected it came out more as a glassy-eyed stare.  He couldn't tell if he still had the sharingan activated or not.  Naruto was stroking his erection too hard, too lose, at odds with his steady thrusts.  Clearly, he was having just as much trouble focusing.  He was also making more noise than him.  Sasuke supposed that was because Naruto didn't have any free hands to sink his teeth into.  He was still louder.  And that blue-eyed scowl was every bit as dazed as Sasuke felt.  Then Naruto was pulling his hand away and covering his mouth with his own and he couldn't have said which of them finished first.  He didn't care.  It didn't affect the aftermath.

He was a mess.  Sticky, exhausted, and Naruto was lying on him, head ducked against his neck so his breaths were uncomfortably hot.  He was still inside him.  Sasuke pushed on his shoulder.  Tiredly at first, then with more force.  It was over.  They'd both come and now he wanted him out.  He had to clean up right now.  He didn't dare fall asleep like this.

"Naruto," he growled, pulling on that blonde hair.  "Get off."

"...Mnh?"  

Naruto pushed himself up on one arm, blinking down at him.  Sasuke grimaced.  The cream Naruto had used wasn't doing its job anymore.  Naruto seemed to notice it too, though he had to shift a few more times before he woke up enough to understand.  He flushed a reddish purple and all but jumped off him.  Sasuke hissed and lashed out without thinking.  He hit him upside the head.

"Idiot," Sasuke growled.  "Do you know how much that hurt?"

"I'm sorry!" Naruto blurted, one hand on his abused head.  He reached his other hand toward Sasuke and then pulled back, as if he'd just realized touching him again might be a bad idea right now.  "I didn't mean to.  Are you okay?"  Sasuke slid off the bed and he lurched after him.  "Don't go!"

Sasuke recognized the panic for what it was and sighed.  "I'm taking a shower.  I'll be back."

"Oh.  Do you need anything...?"

He eyed his stack of clothing distastefully.  The bathroom was just across the hall.  He still couldn't bring himself to make the walk naked.  He pulled the clothing on, grimacing at the fresh stains he was likely making.  "Do you have something clean I can change into?"

"Sure!"  Naruto hopped up, not the least bit self conscious about his own unclothed state.  He rummaged in a drawer, then another, and finally found something suitable.  He handed the pile to Sasuke with a tentative smile, as if he were afraid he might get another knock to the head.  "I'll wait up for you."

"You don't need to," Sasuke frowned.  He was just going across the hall.

"I have to let you back in the room."

"Oh.  Right."

.-.
TBC
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