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[naruto] Possession, beginning of chapter 3
http://www.livejournal.com/users/askerian/163429.html
previous part there.
don't remember if i posted that before, but ehh. I find myself facing an empty inbox and this is simply unbearable.stop calling me a review whore already.
"Call me Arashi," the man said.
It wasn't helpful.
"So, who the hell are you? And how --" Sasuke waved at him, at his -- his brother's -- body, at Naruto still curled up in his corner.
The man hesitated. Sasuke's eyes narrowed. He'd been promised an explanation, and he was going to get it.
"... Well. You know what's inside ... Naruto?"
"Kyuubi no Youko," Sasuke snapped back impatiently.
The man frowned, displeased. Sasuke tensed, remembering how devastating his brother's angers were -- and then chided himself for it.
"How did you learn that?"
"What does it matter now? Answer my question first."
Arashi pulled absently on Itachi's ponytail, messing it up even more than it already was. Sasuke could assume safely that he'd had short hair before... whoever he had been.
"The forbidden jutsu I used requires the soul of the caster. I was assuming that it meant the Death God would take me, but I ended up... I don't know. Being the seal, I guess. Or part of it, anyway." He gave Naruto a worried frown. The blond was whimpering quietly in his sleep.
"So now the seal is messed up." Hm. Naruto seemed to be holding on, but for how long before he lost it? Sasuke scowled and stared at the fire for a few seconds. He guessed he should at least carry the idiot back to where someone could get him to someone who'd fix the seal. Maybe Orochimaru's ex-teammate, Jiraiya.
"That's an understatement," the man replied wearily, pushing Itachi's bangs away from his face.
Wait. The soul of the caster... Sasuke couldn't think for a second, and then it finally clicked. "Oh fuck. You're the Fourth Hokage."
"And you," the man with his brother's face replied, staring at him as if he could read his heart, "are an Uchiha. Yet you are not wearing a Konoha headband."
The implication stayed in the air for a few seconds, and then Sasuke decided that he wasn't going to hide anything.
"I'm a missing-nin," he confirmed tonelessly, and wondered if he was going to die now, absently steeling himself against disgust or contempt or hate.
There wasn't any to be found in Arashi's eyes. Just sadness.
"You're so young."
"Fuck you."
He busied himself with the fire for a few minutes, glaring at it as he tried to make his eyes go back to black. He didn't need the sharingan right now; he wasn't going to fight, as much as he wanted -- needed -- it.
"Let's start again." The Fourth's voice sounded neutral, full of good-will and patience. It made Sasuke twitch. "You are... Sasuke? Uchiha Sasuke." Arashi gazed at Naruto -- Sasuke was once again unnerved by his expression, so utterly alien on Itachi's coldly handsome features that he couldn't even name it -- then pointed at himself. "And this is Uchiha...?"
Sasuke clenched his fists. "... Itachi."
"Your elder brother." It wasn't a question. Sasuke had yelled that at some point, after all -- he supposed you didn't become Hokage by being dim-witted. "Uchiha Itachi... What's your father's name?"
"Fugaku," Sasuke replied tonelessly. He knew that there was a good chance the Fourth didn't know that there was no present tense about any of the rest of his clan. It was so ... weird that he didn't suspect something that had been so central in Sasuke's life. He shouldn't have been allowed -- it was irrational, Sasuke knew it, but he couldn't help but resent the man for being so blissfully unaware, for probably not even caring. Though, the Fourth was the one who had supposedly given his life for his village. He probably cared, at that -- like he cared about everything and everyone, which made his bleeding-heart compassion absolutely worthless.
There was a long moment of silence, as the man untied his headband and stared at the scratch going right through the Leaf symbol. "I am guessing," he asked in a careful tone that irritated Sasuke more than uncaring bluntness would have, "that Fugaku-san isn't in a position to protest his sons being missing-nins?"
Sasuke jumped on his feet, and tried hard to stop shaking. He knew the questions were to be expected, he knew it, and yet hearing that in Itachi's low, disinterested velvety voice, from someone wearing his face -- it was too much. "You killed him, you bastard -- Itachi. Itachi killed him."
Such a sad look in his brother's eyes -- it was unbearable. He wanted to punch it right off his face, for daring to make it look like Itachi could reach anything approaching compassion.
"...rrrrgh..."
Sasuke had never be so glad for Naruto's constant shifts into Kyuubi mode than he was now. He turned around, resolutely ignoring the man in his brother's skin -- the legendary Fourth Hokage, fucking hell, how to wrap his mind around that? -- in favor of shaking Naruto's shoulder quickly. "Hey, idiot, wake up. Wake up or I'll kick your ass."
It didn't work this time; he almost got bitten, and had to jump in a crouch as claws raked the air.
"Naruto!"
The angrier Sasuke got, the wilder Naruto acted. Maybe it was his scent that disturbed the blond. Sasuke took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down, and then tried a different tactic.
"Hey -- if you don't finish your ramen, I'm throwing it away."
"Wha-- nuh! D'n touch my ramen, bastard." Naruto frowned blearily at him, shaking his head to get rid of a headache, and looked around the camp in confusion. "Huh? Ramen?"
Well, a good thing Naruto was so predictable. "... Naruto. Naruto, look at me."
"Huh?"
Sasuke grabbed his chin and tilted his head to make Naruto face him correctly, trying to convey the seriousness of the situation. "Stay awake this time."
"... Sasuke--"
From the sudden gasp and the stare, a mix of lost and angry and hurting, Naruto had really recognized him -- had remembered. The blond's fists clenched, and his eyes hardened. Sasuke scowled. "Not now!"
"Whaddya mean, not now, you prick?" Naruto snapped as he pulled free.
"You can try to beat me up when you're not half dead. Right now I wouldn't even work a sweat." Sasuke sneered, the familiar mocking comebacks slipping off his lips effortlessly. "Not that it's more of a challenge at any other time."
"Fucker. You lie. I coulda beat you last time."
Naruto could have killed him, if he had aimed for his chest instead. "But you didn't."
"I was making a point, asshole!"
Sasuke opened his mouth to answer, then remembered that Ita-- that Arashi was there, watching, listening to them. "I know. It was stupid of you." That was not what he wanted to say -- he'd wanted to tell him he'd gotten the point just fine -- but it was a dangerous thing to admit, anyway. There were a surprising number of things he was discovering he wanted to tell Naruto, but they were not comrades anymore; it wasn't allowed.
"Well, sorry, next time you desert I'll just kill you inste -- WHAT THE FUCK?!"
Naruto, it seemed, had finally noticed the Fourth.
previous part there.
don't remember if i posted that before, but ehh. I find myself facing an empty inbox and this is simply unbearable.
"Call me Arashi," the man said.
It wasn't helpful.
"So, who the hell are you? And how --" Sasuke waved at him, at his -- his brother's -- body, at Naruto still curled up in his corner.
The man hesitated. Sasuke's eyes narrowed. He'd been promised an explanation, and he was going to get it.
"... Well. You know what's inside ... Naruto?"
"Kyuubi no Youko," Sasuke snapped back impatiently.
The man frowned, displeased. Sasuke tensed, remembering how devastating his brother's angers were -- and then chided himself for it.
"How did you learn that?"
"What does it matter now? Answer my question first."
Arashi pulled absently on Itachi's ponytail, messing it up even more than it already was. Sasuke could assume safely that he'd had short hair before... whoever he had been.
"The forbidden jutsu I used requires the soul of the caster. I was assuming that it meant the Death God would take me, but I ended up... I don't know. Being the seal, I guess. Or part of it, anyway." He gave Naruto a worried frown. The blond was whimpering quietly in his sleep.
"So now the seal is messed up." Hm. Naruto seemed to be holding on, but for how long before he lost it? Sasuke scowled and stared at the fire for a few seconds. He guessed he should at least carry the idiot back to where someone could get him to someone who'd fix the seal. Maybe Orochimaru's ex-teammate, Jiraiya.
"That's an understatement," the man replied wearily, pushing Itachi's bangs away from his face.
Wait. The soul of the caster... Sasuke couldn't think for a second, and then it finally clicked. "Oh fuck. You're the Fourth Hokage."
"And you," the man with his brother's face replied, staring at him as if he could read his heart, "are an Uchiha. Yet you are not wearing a Konoha headband."
The implication stayed in the air for a few seconds, and then Sasuke decided that he wasn't going to hide anything.
"I'm a missing-nin," he confirmed tonelessly, and wondered if he was going to die now, absently steeling himself against disgust or contempt or hate.
There wasn't any to be found in Arashi's eyes. Just sadness.
"You're so young."
"Fuck you."
He busied himself with the fire for a few minutes, glaring at it as he tried to make his eyes go back to black. He didn't need the sharingan right now; he wasn't going to fight, as much as he wanted -- needed -- it.
"Let's start again." The Fourth's voice sounded neutral, full of good-will and patience. It made Sasuke twitch. "You are... Sasuke? Uchiha Sasuke." Arashi gazed at Naruto -- Sasuke was once again unnerved by his expression, so utterly alien on Itachi's coldly handsome features that he couldn't even name it -- then pointed at himself. "And this is Uchiha...?"
Sasuke clenched his fists. "... Itachi."
"Your elder brother." It wasn't a question. Sasuke had yelled that at some point, after all -- he supposed you didn't become Hokage by being dim-witted. "Uchiha Itachi... What's your father's name?"
"Fugaku," Sasuke replied tonelessly. He knew that there was a good chance the Fourth didn't know that there was no present tense about any of the rest of his clan. It was so ... weird that he didn't suspect something that had been so central in Sasuke's life. He shouldn't have been allowed -- it was irrational, Sasuke knew it, but he couldn't help but resent the man for being so blissfully unaware, for probably not even caring. Though, the Fourth was the one who had supposedly given his life for his village. He probably cared, at that -- like he cared about everything and everyone, which made his bleeding-heart compassion absolutely worthless.
There was a long moment of silence, as the man untied his headband and stared at the scratch going right through the Leaf symbol. "I am guessing," he asked in a careful tone that irritated Sasuke more than uncaring bluntness would have, "that Fugaku-san isn't in a position to protest his sons being missing-nins?"
Sasuke jumped on his feet, and tried hard to stop shaking. He knew the questions were to be expected, he knew it, and yet hearing that in Itachi's low, disinterested velvety voice, from someone wearing his face -- it was too much. "You killed him, you bastard -- Itachi. Itachi killed him."
Such a sad look in his brother's eyes -- it was unbearable. He wanted to punch it right off his face, for daring to make it look like Itachi could reach anything approaching compassion.
"...rrrrgh..."
Sasuke had never be so glad for Naruto's constant shifts into Kyuubi mode than he was now. He turned around, resolutely ignoring the man in his brother's skin -- the legendary Fourth Hokage, fucking hell, how to wrap his mind around that? -- in favor of shaking Naruto's shoulder quickly. "Hey, idiot, wake up. Wake up or I'll kick your ass."
It didn't work this time; he almost got bitten, and had to jump in a crouch as claws raked the air.
"Naruto!"
The angrier Sasuke got, the wilder Naruto acted. Maybe it was his scent that disturbed the blond. Sasuke took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down, and then tried a different tactic.
"Hey -- if you don't finish your ramen, I'm throwing it away."
"Wha-- nuh! D'n touch my ramen, bastard." Naruto frowned blearily at him, shaking his head to get rid of a headache, and looked around the camp in confusion. "Huh? Ramen?"
Well, a good thing Naruto was so predictable. "... Naruto. Naruto, look at me."
"Huh?"
Sasuke grabbed his chin and tilted his head to make Naruto face him correctly, trying to convey the seriousness of the situation. "Stay awake this time."
"... Sasuke--"
From the sudden gasp and the stare, a mix of lost and angry and hurting, Naruto had really recognized him -- had remembered. The blond's fists clenched, and his eyes hardened. Sasuke scowled. "Not now!"
"Whaddya mean, not now, you prick?" Naruto snapped as he pulled free.
"You can try to beat me up when you're not half dead. Right now I wouldn't even work a sweat." Sasuke sneered, the familiar mocking comebacks slipping off his lips effortlessly. "Not that it's more of a challenge at any other time."
"Fucker. You lie. I coulda beat you last time."
Naruto could have killed him, if he had aimed for his chest instead. "But you didn't."
"I was making a point, asshole!"
Sasuke opened his mouth to answer, then remembered that Ita-- that Arashi was there, watching, listening to them. "I know. It was stupid of you." That was not what he wanted to say -- he'd wanted to tell him he'd gotten the point just fine -- but it was a dangerous thing to admit, anyway. There were a surprising number of things he was discovering he wanted to tell Naruto, but they were not comrades anymore; it wasn't allowed.
"Well, sorry, next time you desert I'll just kill you inste -- WHAT THE FUCK?!"
Naruto, it seemed, had finally noticed the Fourth.
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