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Disguised Curses	By : Raholea Category: Naruto AU/AR > General Views: 2438 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 18
- 19
- 20
*bows in apology to everyone* Ok, so I haven't updated in a while. Apologies from me to everyone who bothers to read this. and, to those who bother to review, omg, I love my few reviews. except Leeana, who didn't read it until recently and left, like a review a chapter. you did me proud darlin. ^^ Oh, Sneakyfox... Yes. You read that correctly. I have pairings up my sleeve. Hopefully you will enjoy all of them, even if you don't prefer them. *shrugs* here's to hoping. AND to ANYone who complained or thought of complaining about Naru/Hina. I did that for a reason. Naruto needs a "wife" in every sense of the word. Agree with me or not, Hinata is a perfect choice for that. But for all you Yaoi lovers... Hina isn't the only one who will be getting some action from Naruto. Wait and see. And now, on to the next chapter (the one that gave me hell).

Thank Blackwidina, Leeana69,Feion_Phylar, and Aini for giving me the support I needed to get this chapter done and giving me tips. THANK YOU GALS!!!!!!!!!!!

CH 19

Sasuke stood outside a writhing wall of chakra, concerned at how the blue twisted with red in odd, intricate patterns. He tentatively activated his Sharingan, wondering if there were any specific order or repetitions. It only took a few minutes, though, from the backlash of chakra to after his closer observations, that the chakra wavered. The energy disappeared, leaving the atmosphere thick in its wake. Naruto sat in the center of a washed area, head hanging between his knees. He was murmuring, much too quietly to hear, but it wasn’t hard to decipher the minor twitches, shaking head, or clenching, clawed fingers.

“Naruto.”

Everything went still. It wasn’t always good when his body took on that utter stillness, the almost tense way muscles bunched together, the way the twitching stopped. Then all that blond hair shifted, and a glinting red eye peered past his knee. Sasuke paused, letting a tense quiet build momentarily. He wasn’t exactly sure who was staring at him, who was in control. A soft snort broke the unease.

“Kyuubi?”

The body rose, turning a full pair of piercing red on the last Uchiha, fangs dimpling the plump lower lip. “He really doesn’t listen well. I don’t know how you put up with him for so many years.” Sasuke shifted his feet as his demon- controlled friend circled around him. He wanted to track the fox- he didn’t trust it at all- but knew he couldn’t change anything if he were to be attacked. He was too recently familiar with the speed of this version.

“Since he refuses to listen to me currently, and I have to give control back soon, do something for me, Uchiha.” The words brushed warmly across his neck, and Sasuke shuddered. Way too close… the fox was dangerously close. “Tell him this was my last choice. When it is done no one will have to worry about me ever again, until he dies. I can’t reincarnate while he holds nearly all my power. But he will be free of my immediate consciousness. The control issues of who has his body- they’ll be gone. He’ll just have to learn to control his own hungers, his own power and abilities.”

Sasuke flinched when a claw dragged delicately over the curve of his upper arm. “How do I know you aren’t lying?” Snarls rumbled into his body.

“The others aren’t like me. I wield the most power, the most potential. Akatsuki can’t finish whatever they have planned if they don’t have all nine of my kind. I can leave us vulnerable, for them to take us and risk getting caught and chained to possibly a worse situation, or I can do something about it. They can’t touch me like this, once this is completed. There won’t be enough of me left to try and remove from this brat of a kit.” The rough tone softened slightly. “He makes me proud in ways I never thought a human could. Unlike most of you wasted bits of meat, he’s got enough drive to make this successful. But he needs to let go of his pathetic worries. They’ll only hold him back.”

Abrupt movement heralded another person merely feet away, and a pale blur settled into Hinata. “Naruto- kun! Sasuke-” Her eyes widened as Naruto turned more towards her, revealing his new accentuating looks. “Naruto…?”

The fox nearly purred in pleasure. This one, this girl, was young, pretty, and reeked of the one he’d marked as prey. But the lingering, cloying scent of innocence clung to her as well. She wasn’t afraid. He growled low and stalked closer, leaving Sasuke to stand alone. Her cheeks flushed, and breath quickened, but for the first time he could remember, she held his eyes. The fainting, weak girl he’d scoffed at years ago, while lurking in Naruto’s mind, was gone. “Uchiha. Tell the brat I’ve found his other mate.” He snickered as he released his sway over Naruto’s mind and body, enjoying the gasps of shock from both of the humans. Kami, they were fun to torment.

Hinata could barely believe the young man before her was Naruto. Blazing red eyes, elongated fangs, wide whisker scars- she’s seen glimpses before, but nothing like this. Even knowing what he was hadn’t prepared her for this reality. This was how the demon within influenced Naruto’s body. “Naruto…?”

Shock and uncertainty froze her in place as her crush moved closer, not daring to break eye contact, not wanting this to be a dream- or a nightmare. She blushed under the intense scrutiny. Naruto had never paid quite this much attention to her, and although she’d been wanting him to, there was too much perception in the crimson gaze. Those eyes felt like they were searching her soul. She flinched as a coarse tone filled the air, watching and listening to that gravely, deep voice came from Naruto’s mouth. This was Naruto’s body, but not his presence, and the words and tone only supported the fact.

“Other... what?” Wait, what did he mean, his other mate? Stunned, she barely realized Naruto’s body was collapsing toward the dirt, and Sasuke ended up catching the limp form before it hit the sand and dirt of the alley- like area. With the efficiency ingrained from years of ninja training, she shoved the current puzzlement aside and moved to check on her friend. He hadn’t woken up yet or seemed conscious. But he was breathing, deep and even, and his vitals were fine. “Sasuke?” She wasn’t sure which question she wanted to ask first.

“He’s fine. Stressed, and tired, but ok. He just needs some sleep.” She watched as he hefted Naruto up to carry, head and shoulders drooping down over his back. “I’ll lead you back to the rooms. If you have questions, now is the time.”

Hinata fell in step beside Sasuke, grateful for the walking pace. It allowed a little more time, and she was tired enough without having to rush back to whatever accommodations the Kazekage had set up. “That was Kyuubi?” Bluish spikes gave a short nod. “That sound… I heard him scream, a while ago. What happened?” A thin eyebrow raised in her direction. She stopped. “I care for Naruto. I may have not been open about it, and I doubt he knows… but I want to help. In any way I can.”

“Hn.” Sasuke turned and kept walking. Slightly flustered, Hinata followed. “He’s fighting himself, like the dobe he is. You want to help, Hyuga- kun, then you’ll stay out of this.” A flare inside her sparked, and she was moving, grabbing at his free arm to make him look at her. Her hand clawed through sand instead, and she backed away, finally locating Gaara standing a few feet away. His sand was flowing around him in restless waves, a tendril still between her and Sasuke.

“What is going on?”

“Talking.”

The word left both bodies at nearly the same time, surprising the both of them. Gaara merely sighed inaudibly and used his sand to bring Naruto’s body to him. “When you’re done ‘talking’, I suggest you head back to your rooms. I’ll take care of Naruto.” The unconscious body settled easily into his arms and he walked away, not caring that behind him were two ninja glaring daggers at his back.

“You know, if anyone can take care of Naruto better, it’s him.” Sasuke’s words caught Hinata’s attention, where she’d been watching the Kazekage walk away. It annoyed her for some reason, his taking Naruto, but she would never argue with the redhead. That was something very few people ever did.

“I’m not worried about Naruto’s safety with him. I’m concerned about what I heard before, and what this all means.” Pale, worried eyes lifted to look directly into ebony, wanting answers and not seeing any forthcoming. “What did you mean by he’s fighting himself?”

He’d recognize that look of determination anywhere, even though this one was milder, and tempered with worry. It almost made him want to smile. Almost. “You say that you care, but how much? Enough to risk your life for him?” The words lifted Neji’s conversations about the same thing to the forefront. Would you stand against the clan elders if you had to? Even if they threatened to kick you from the clan? She felt her eyes grow hard and blank as she straightened and returned Sasuke’s intense glare.

“I’d die for him, kill for him; protect him from enemies and threats any way I must. Including from himself.” Absolute conviction, total honesty. She didn’t let herself sink into this place often; actually, the first time or two had scared her. But now she knew being able to do whatever she had to was worth the loss of a bit of her younger, naïve, embarrassed self.

“And if he is a threat to himself, to you, to everything and everyone else you love? If he becomes a true threat to Konoha?” Sasuke had already answered this question to himself. He just wasn’t sharing that with anyone else. He didn’t need the risk of being outcast from the village, not after barely managing to come back.

“I-“ She hesitated. What was Sasuke really saying, in his questions? She doubted she could kill the one man she’d loved for so long, but if he was a threat to the village, to herself, to everyone else… Could she do it? Would she even be able to try? A despairing, terrifying picture entered her mind- one of Kyuubi using Naruto’s body to do whatever whims he had. She shook her head violently- if the fox had plans on retaliating for its long imprisonment, no doubt he would have done so already. It was obvious the fox had the ability to do so if he wanted.

“I’d stop him, if I had to. But I don’t think I could ever kill him. There are other ways to restrain or suppress him without resorting to killing. Even you know this.” Hell, all ninja knew that. But unless a mission called for live capture or innocent civilians, those tactics weren’t often used. Enemies were enemies, and live ones tended to retaliate.

Finally Sasuke nodded. “You and I have much to talk about, Hyuga- kun. But not here.” His eyes flicked to the rooftops above them, even as he inclined his head back toward the hotel. ‘Too many ears’ was implied. It’d be safer- in many, many ways- to keep most of this conversation between just her and him.

Damn you, Kyuubi.

***

“Sas?” Naruto groaned. He hated waking up after arguments with Kyuubi, he always felt groggy, or at least had a headache. It took a moment to realize that yes, he was being held by someone, a trusted someone, because his instincts weren’t screaming at him. But that wasn’t Sasuke’s scent- too dry, earthy. Crimson and azure eyes finally opened and peered up. “Gaara. Why am I with you? Did I do something?”

A low chuckle escaped Gaara’s usual quietness. “No. You’ve done nothing wrong. Just scared Hinata Hyuga and made most of the rest paranoid. You really can be quite unpredictable, but sometimes, the most predictable of any of us.” He paused while Naruto shifted next to him, sitting close but curled in on himself. It was easy to recognize the self-defensive posturing. “What are you worried about the most, Naruto?”

“Not worried. Just don’t want to relive the past.” The pair stared out over the desert night, letting dismal silence reign for several long minutes. “We both survived alone for so many years. Now that I have friends, and my precious people, I don’t want to ever go back to being alone. I hate being lonely, Gaara. But worse than that... it’s the people who hated me- the ones who thought I was Kyuubi, and evil, a monster. I acted like an idiot for years just to try and show them something that wasn’t ugly, deserving of their hate and judgmental bull-crap.”

“But you aren’t Kyuubi any more than I was Shukaku. We aren’t the same as the things sealed within, even if at times, we act like them. I didn’t know how to control the blood-lust until after you showed me a different way to prove to myself that I lived.” It had taken more than that, but he credited Naruto with the start. The blond had been the best influence in his life. “But this time you’ve earned the respect of your village. You have good friends. Have faith that they will support you. I will. And I know others will do whatever they have to, out of nothing more than friendship and loyalty.”

“Loyalty? And if the council sees fit to kick me out, will their loyalty spare them? Will it incite them to stand up on my behalf, or visit me even after being forbidden? Sasuke is loyal to no one but himself. I serve Konoha as a ninja, and would never betray it, but that doesn’t change the fact if I’m not wanted, that I might be kicked out, or hunted down. If I’m seen as a true threat, the council could order my execution. And no one could stop it. Would they make my friends choose which ‘loyalty’ to be honest to?” Naruto shook his head, trying not to let everything escape. He knew that the thing called loyalty was fickle, and traitorous. And he was tired of having to fight the scorn he still felt from people.

“You will always be welcome in Suna. You, and anyone that may come with you. If your council is so blind to the truth, then make your home here.”

Naruto laughed, low and bitter. “You’d risk your alliance over someone as worthless as me?” His red and blue eyes came up to finally look at Gaara again. The intensity and honesty in the ex- jinchuuriki’s eyes was enough to sober him, a little. “Thanks, Gaara. And I’m sorry. I’m being an ass.”

“You are who you are, Naruto. No matter what happens to your body, you are still the same. You only change when your mind and soul changes- and only you can let that happen.”

“But I am changing. I don’t know what kind of changes this may have on my body, but it is playing hell on my mind. I can’t trust myself around my best of friends. It is too easy to hurt, maim, kill. And that isn’t my way, Gaara. I’d rather hurt myself, than hurt my closest people.”

“Your closest are ninja. If they can’t protect themselves enough to ensure you don’t overdo it, then they are weak. And I know none of your friends are weak.” His hand slipped softly onto Naruto’s shoulder, lightly gripping. “Enough for now. Trust yourself. It will come in time. And besides, you are here to relax.”

“Me? Relax?” Naruto gave a wry chuckle. “Okay. I’ll try- though you may be asking for more than I can manage- or you can handle.” He stood and stretched, working kinks out of his body. He felt too alert to rest, too stressed to head back to his room. He knew Sasuke was safe, and out of trouble. Well, hopefully. “Gaara?”

“Hai?”

“No holds spar?”

An almost- smile worked its way onto the redhead’s face. “If that is what you want.”

Naruto grinned, flashing up and away several feet. ‘No holding back, but no losing control.’ He reminded himself. He breathed, deep and steadying, and charged.

______

End. well, for this chapter. I hope the next one won't take as long. No promises. PLEASE R&R!!!! it does me good to come read responses, makes my day better. and trust me, chasing a 1 y/o infant, 9 m/o boston terrier, and 4 m/o mutt (rottie/ lab/) around the house doesn't leave me lots of writing time. I steal as much support as possible. FEED THE MUSE!
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