Adult-FanFiction.org : Naruto

Rot, Another One Bites the Dust	By : LucklessMallory Category: Naruto AU/AR > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 1219 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I make no profit from the distribution of this story.

Chapter List
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"There's more outside than there were the other day... or even yesterday." Tenten was looking out the window shades from the second story of the apartment building, counting zombies and their position around the block's perimeter. She swallowed slowly, her eyes narrowed. She had a sinking feeling in her gut.

"Aww, don't worry Tenten, I'll be taking them down from above and Gaara will knock their heads off their shoulders. Akamaru will make sure nothing reaches you." Kiba assured her. They all had backpacks on with food piles tied together and improvised weapons at hand. While they were going for stealth, it was better to be armed in some way. He tugged on the pulldown set of stairs to the roof, waving goodbye to Shino and Hinata who were heading to the first floor.

Downstairs, Gaara finished tying the cloth band around his hands, testing his grip and flexing his fingers. He took the idea of Lee's arm wraps and scrounged for old fabrics he could tear up. Those golf clubs wouldn't be slipping out of his grip easily now. "We'll leave the apartment as a safe house, but the mall should have everything we need. Hinata, stay in the middle of the group. You're carrying most of our food so you need to be quick and alert." He instructed in clipped tones. The stress on his face gave away his worries and doubts about what they were doing.

The girl nodded and shied away from Gaara's authoritative tone, moving closer to Lee. Gaara didn't pay her much attention as he walked past his family photos and belongings, not bothering to take anything bigger than a single photo as he checked outside the front door. Shadows passed over his face with each walker that shambled past. "We need to run to the end of the street. Then enter the first alley we come to. We'll do a parallel sweep of the residential area until we get to the mall, clear?"

"Understood." Lee nodded and put a hand on Hinata's shoulder bracingly. His other hand held an aluminum bat, something he'd found during one of their food searches in the other apartments. He had his gun as well, but that was only useful for a small number of shots. The bat wouldn't run out of ammo.

Shino was standing at another window, examining the zombies that shambled across the street. He'd been characteristically silent while the group prepared. He'd gone over their route carefully when the plan had been set, and had made a few attempts to contact the people in the mall, but there was no getting through. "We should leave now," was all he said, murmured just loud enough for the others to hear.

"Right." Tenten turned away from the window and made her way across the apartment, leading the way down the the first floor of the building.

The moment they stepped out, Kiba fired a few shots on the opposite side of the street while the group dashed towards the other side. Gaara took the lead, clearing a path through the walking dead with golf club in hand and sturdy kicks when they got too near. "Alley!" He instructed veering left towards the network of alleyways in the residential area.

Hands grabbed at their shirts and gaping mouths chewed soundlessly at air where they passed. Entering the alleyway, they were aided by Kiba with shots to the ground far away from them, trying to lure the zombies away. Akamaru was growling as he ran alongside them, intelligently drawing away the zombies that got too close like a sheepdog herding ewes.

Lee tried to stay between the zombies and the girls, but it was impossible when the undead were shambling toward them from every side. In the alley a dead man with broken legs dragged his stiff rotting body toward them from behind a trash bin. Close behind them a woman with dislocated jaw and a band tee shirt was reaching for them with blood stained nails. Lee almost ran into the arms of a tall, bulky man with a limp and blood dripping from his slack jaw, but Shino hauled him away just in time. Nausea clawed at Lee's stomach as he spotted a boy with snarling exposed teeth, no taller than Lee's waist reach for Hinata as they emerged from one alley and ran to another. She dodged his little hands by inches, and huffed as she kept up with Gaara.

"Tenten!" Lee called out, eyes widening as the girl slipped on something and fell against an alley wall. Tenten put a hand over her mouth as she looked down and realized that what she'd slipped in was a thick pool of blood. Behind her, the corpse that was still bleeding reached for her from where it was sprawled on the ground. Shino shoved Tenten forward, and Lee cracked down on the reaching arms with his bat, grimly registering the feel of bones breaking under metal. He darted after the others as they picked up speed again.

Gaara was starting to wear down by the time they wound through the maze of alleys. He could still hear Kiba shooting from the rooftops, but sound wasn't enough to draw all of the zombies away from them. They were so close to the mall but they'd already passed a couple of dead ends where there should be shortcuts.

A girl in torn jeans lunged at Gaara as he rounded the corner, mouth agape and her torn chest a gruesome sight. He brought his club up with barely enough time to pin her neck against the wall and twisted it with a sick crack until her head lolled to the side. Moans resounded in the air from all around them as Gaara breathed heavily in exhaustion.

Before they could even start running again, hands grabbed at Shino's coat collar and pack. There was no time to react as a dead man sank his teeth into his shoulder and tore skin and muscle. Hinata shut her eyes with a frightened whimper as blood dribbled from the corpse's mouth, everything suddenly slowing down and a dull ringing filling her ears. She didn't see or hear her friend screaming as the zombie moved in for another bite. She didn't see Kiba shooting the corpse in the head and shimmying down the building with an unfamiliar look of horror on his face. By the time she opened her eyes again, her legs were moving on automatic as the world came alive.

Shino clutched at his shoulder as he ran alongside her. He was shrugging off his pack hurriedly and arguing angrily with Kiba. All Hinata understood was that Shino forced his pack into Kiba's arms then abruptly took another turn. He was gone.

"Do not look back," Lee had a strained look on his face as he fell back to run alongside Hinata. Tenten looked over her shoulder at him with horror in her wide eyes, but Lee shook his head grimly. They didn't have time. Several of the undead that had been chasing behind them had separated to follow Shino instead.

They rounded one last corner and entered the last alleyway, a narrow-one way street that lead to the service entrance at the back of the building. A large truck blocked the opening to the main street, but the group could see a fenced off section in the opposite direction. They could hear loud shuffling and moans from the alley they'd just fled, and around the building corner that lead to the front entrance. There were only two zombies in front of the fence, two young dead men in bloody hoodies.

Lee lifted his bat and descended on the zombie to the left, trusting Gaara to take care of the other. Lee's first swing missed the boy's head and hit his shoulder, knocking him onto his knees. Lee started to back up, but the zombie only crawled after him with gaunt, fixated eyes. Lee cringed and swung hard, cracking his bat against the zombie's skull with a sickening crunch. He hit it once more as it fell onto its side to be sure it wasn't moving, and then turned on his heel to follow the others toward the fence gate.

Gaara was tapping his club on the ground to shake off the guts at the end. Sweat dampened his back and dripped down his face, giving a flushed look to his eyes. None of them were really equipped to fight long term. He threw the bent club away as they stood in front of the fence. The loss of a member of their team brought a numbness in his chest just as Hinata's sobs did, but he knew they couldn't have done anything for Shino.

Kiba was already scaling the fence when the door inside burst open and a couple of people rushed towards them. "Hurry, get inside!" One of them hissed as they worked to pull open the large fence. As soon as the gate opened, they rushed inside with the sound of running feet following behind them. Tenten helped push the fence closed just as part of the horde following after them appeared from the alley they came from.

"Close call," said one of the people who let them in, taking off his cap and fanning himself with it. "We have to get Deidara to finish those explosives. The fence won't hold forever."

"You go do that. I'm getting these people inside." Turning to the surviving party, a girl with pink-dyed hair began ushering them in. "Are you all alright? Does anyone need medical help?"

"Sakura, if any of them's bitten, we can't let them inside."

"It's fine, Shikamaru. They don't look sick to me." Sakura called over her shoulder at the spiky-haired man who had his hands full jabbing a knife on a stick through the fence's holes, stabbing the zombies on the other side. The girl scanned the party with a medic's eye, pegging their sweaty but flushed faces to their recent chase through the alley instead of to the epidemic. One of the girls was crying with a man pressing her face to his shoulder. The rest looked spooked but unharmed.

Lee was hunched over, hand on his knees as he tried to catch his breath. His bloody aluminum bat lay on the cement beside him while he panted and focused on calming his racing heart. He'd been ignoring the stitches in his sides until now, but now it was hitting him with full force. He looked up, dazed as he identified their rescuers. If he hadn't already been flushed red from their desperate run, he would have blushed when he caught sight of the pink haired girl, Sakura. She was pretty. Now wasn't the time to think of that type of thing however, so he shook his head and put it out of his head. Hinata's sobs easily distracted him.

"None of us are infected." Tenten stepped up to Sakura, struggling for breath, though not as bad as Lee or Gaara. She hadn't had to fight anything, only flee. Her expression was a mix of crushed and shocked. "We had one more... but we lost him on the way here. We heard your message on the radio."

"Gaara," Lee murmured, stepping up to the redhead and trying to meet his eyes. Gaara looked exhausted. "Are you okay?"

"...No." Gaara whispered, pressing a hand against his heaving chest. His eyes focused on the other man's thick brows when Lee stepped up to him, the quirky features grounding him until he could put away Shino's screams to the back of his mind. A mask fell over his face as he straightened up and addressed his companions in a monotone. "Did we lose any of the packs?"

"You cold bastard! We lost Shino and all you can ask is if we still have the packs?!" Hinata stiffened at Kiba's outburst. Her friend's fists were clenched around her shoulders and there was a tell-tale clench in his jaw from anger. Akamaru whimpered at sensing Kiba's anger.

"Shino knew what he was doing. There was no hope for him once he was bitten and he gave us a chance to escape." Gaara replied, his eyes lingering on Lee's face before he turned to look at Kiba. The concern he saw in the taller man's eyes was disconcerting. It wasn't as if they were family. "If we lost another person or one of the packs, his death would have been for nothing."

Tenten turned toward Lee, Kiba, and the others, but her eyes were tight and downcast. The wet, bloody groans of the zombies that gathered on the other side of the fence were growing louder as the horde migrated toward them.

"I don't think we lost any packs," Lee said quietly, turning away from Gaara and stepping up beside Tenten. He put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. "Maybe you should not mention it for now Gaara. We will take inventory when we are safe inside."

"Speaking of," Sakura stated, turning toward the building. "We need to get inside before they get through the fence." She banged her fist on the metal door and hollered. "Oi! Let us in! No one out here is infected, open the door!"

There was a brief pause, and the handle turned with a loud click. Sakura stepped inside and held open the door for the others.

Gaara wasted no time replying as he headed on inside. He could still feel Kiba's heated glare on his back, but he couldn't care less as long as they made it here alive. Tenten shivered after one last look at the fence and followed after the redhead.

"Okay, since there's only about four or five of us who have killed one of those zombies before, and you guys can obviously handle yourselves, we'll split into pairs for two scouting parties. We'll leave Sai and Shikamaru behind to work on our defenses. Hidan and Deidara need to finish those molotovs so we'll leave them behind too. The rest can take turns guarding the barricades until we get back." Naruto, the blond man who'd been leading the survivors at the mall, told the group huddled in the third floor atrium.

All of the survivors from their party were welcomed by Naruto. The man was a warm presence and a source of hardheaded optimism in these times, and he'd already started getting to know the newcomers in just a few days. Gaara felt his insides cramp at the thought of spending hours with the talkative man.

"Any questions? I'll even give our newcomers first dibs on their partners." Naruto said cheerfully, grinning at the mixed group.

Lee's first instinct was to turn toward Tenten, but a large man named Choji had already secured her as a partner. He glanced at Sakura out of the corner of his eye, blushing a light shade of pink similar to her hair. She wasn't just pretty. She'd been incredibly nice to them ever since they'd arrived, and she was very reliable thanks to her skills as a medic. Lee opened his mouth to ask if he could partner with her for scouting, but she was preoccupied with something in her first aide bag and wasn't catching his eye. Lee turned to Gaara instead, putting a hand on the redhead's shoulder to catch his attention. "Would you like to stick with me for scouting?"

Gaara had already turned away from the others when Lee called his attention. His brow knotted but he just nodded sharply. Despite the number of people living in the mall, he'd stuck to keeping to himself outside of eating together with the group or meeting for food runs to the mall's supermarket. The only people he really talked to were Naruto, Lee, Tenten, and strangely enough, Hinata. "We'll take the main street." He called to Naruto with the blond man's thumbs up.

Facing the taller man again, he tilted his head towards the city map tacked on one of the pillars and got right down to discussing their route. "The roofs should be safe to run on. Long-ranged but silent weapons are all we need, since gun shots will just draw zombies towards us." He said, biting his lips from inside his mouth. This wasn't the first time he'd had to partner with someone on a foray, but it was with Lee. Staring hard at Lee's face, he remembered all the times Lee chose to be merciful or to just run, and wondered if he could really trust him to watch his back. "Do you have a weapon of your own?"

"The only long range weapon I have is my hand gun," Lee said, glancing at the map as Gaara did thoughtfully. "I will have to find something that I can use."

"When you boys come back, remember to use the emergency doors on the other side this time," Deidara told them, sitting only a couple feet behind. He had an unnerving grin on his face as he leaned forward. "If I get those molotovs done early, I'm gonna reinforce the fenced areas. We don't want you to knock the wrong part of the fence and lose an arm."

"Thank you for the warning, Deidara." Lee turned and smiled, though the odd edge to the other man's expression when he talked about his bombs honestly made the hairs rise on his neck.

"Make sure the emergency doors are clear of zombies." Gaara replied, unfazed by Deidara. There was a rumor that Deidara and Hidan were part of an organized crime ring, but all that mattered was that they knew their stuff and were willing to help the group. "Lee, we move in an hour. Meet me at the third floor emergency exit then."

"Hey, don't go too far, alright? We just need to cover the next two blocks this round." Naruto reminded them as he tied on a cloth headband to keep his bangs out of his eyes. He was paired up with Ino, a similarly blond haired salon owner who had a knack for finding strategic positions and routes. She brushed her long bangs to the side of her face and placed a hand on her hip. "Don't forget to have one of you map the area while you're out." She said, "And grab me some makeup if you find any!"

Gaara nodded in acknowledgement, turning to Lee to discuss their route. Hinata's timid voice cut in before he could say anything. "Please be careful out there, Gaara. I've packed something for you and Lee." She said, holding out a wrapped lunch pack, a shy smile crossing her face. Taking the pack from her hands, Gaara's sharp look softened for a moment as he thanked her quietly.

"Thank you very much." Lee smiled at Hinata, and started to say something more when he felt Tenten patting his shoulder.

"Lee?" Tenten leaned against her friend and looked up at him with her arms crossed. "Choji and I are going to take C Street. We'll only be a couple blocks away from you and Gaara, so let's keep an eye out for each other, alright? If you need help, just scream and I'll come running."

"Thank you, Tenten," Lee said, bracing himself against the girl's lean. "But I am not too concerned for my own safety. Mr. Sabaku has my back! And I will have his, so you will not have to worry about us. If you need help, we will come for you however."

Choji was standing in front of one of the pillars, examining the map. Lee had heard that Choji lived in the city before the outbreak, so he knew how to get where he wanted with the least amount trouble. Lee was a little concerned that the man's extra girth would slow him down, but over the past couple days since arriving here, Choji had shown that he could more than keep up with the others. Lee nodded at the man when he glanced their way, and Tenten left to join him for planning their route.

Once the two were gone, Gaara ran through his and Lee's route quickly, making sure to point out the areas where hordes were spotted. The man might not be as aggressive as he was about killing zombies, but he was certain that Lee would never leave him behind.

Their careful steps on the roofs of buildings and low-rise homes couldn't make up for the crumbling shingles they just walked on. Gaara clenched his jaw as loose roofing fell on the garbage bins below them, attracting walkers to look up at them. The rotting corpses moaned and raised their hands at them uselessly, their bodies already showing signs of decay despite the shiny red sheen of their torn organs peeking from tattered clothes. Looking into those dead eyes, Gaara felt a chill go up his spine. He tapped Lee's shoulder and pointed to the fire exit of the condominium building next to them.

He hauled himself over the railing and froze when the metal stairs began to creak and shudder.

"Be careful," Lee whispered quietly, holding out a hand in case Gaara slipped or the stairway gave out. He put a hand on the rough shingles as he crouched, trying not to make any noise as he shifted his feet. The sun was at an angle in the sky today, and kept getting in Lee's eyes when he surveyed the blocks. He and Gaara hadn't run into any trouble yet, but every moment was unnerving and they were slowly attracting the zombies in the alleys with their scent or through the noise they made on the rooftops.

Gaara scowled at the reminder briefly but took greater care in making his way up the fire exit to the roof. If they could get higher, they could lie low and keep out of sight from the zombies. When he reached the last floor though, a woman suddenly appeared with her hands and face pressed against the glass, her eyes bloodshot and rolling wildly. Her teeth were bared as she pounded at the glass. Gaara staggered backwards in surprise, the railing banging against his shoulders painfully and making the stairs groan louder. His hands gripped the thin metal rods behind him as he got his bearings again.

Lee clenched his teeth and nearly cursed under his breath, twisting his body to see what had startled Gaara. Lee was slowly following him on the stairway. He hustled, struggling not to fumble his footing as he caught up. The stair frame creaked, but it the pounding on the window glass and the groaning was louder.

"Just keep moving," Lee said quickly, putting a hand on the pouch at his waist cautiously and tightening his grip on the metal hand rail with the other. "Quick, before she breaks through. We should get higher first, and take care of her if she breaks the glass and follows."

Gaara didn't waste time and got to his feet quickly, moving past the shuddering window and heading up the final flight of stairs. When he reached the ledge, he reached behind him for the club he'd strapped to his back, holding it in front of him warily as he waited for Lee to follow after him.

The sound of glass breaking made him rush to the edge, looking down just in time to see the zombie crawling out of the window despite broken glass cutting into her skin. "Kill it!" He hissed, hands scrambling to find something sharp in his tool belt.

Lee was just stepping on level with the window when the zombie broke through, making him step quickly back until he felt the metal railing behind him. Eyes wide, he pulled out his gun and flicked the safety off. The woman turned her head and faced her dead, unseeing red eyes on him as she crawled, mouth open and gnawing on air. She was bleeding profusely, but she didn't care or notice as she reached for his legs and started to lunge. Lee pointed his gun and pulled the trigger twice, grimacing from the noise it made as the bullets impaled her skull and her body crumpled. Blood poured down her long, ragged hair like thick wine and dripped down the stairwell.

A couple deep breaths and a guilty, sinking feeling later, Lee stepped over the woman and climbed up after Gaara. He gave a nervous glance through the window, but he didn't see any other zombies inside... yet.

"Sorry, I did not have time to reach for my bat," Lee said, chewing the inside of his mouth anxiously. He could already hear moaning and shuffling approach from the connection of alleyways. "We should move before more find us."

"Next time bring a knife or ice pick." Gaara exhaled through gritted teeth, scanning the streets below. The gunshots had attracted a lot of zombies. They'd have to take another route the next time they went out. There was something in Lee's eyes and the curve of his mouth that bothered Gaara, but that look was becoming a common sight on everyone who'd killed a zombie. "We're almost done with this street. Two more and we head back."

"Sounds good." Lee followed Gaara up the rest of the stairway, sighing in some relief when the reached the roof. He glanced down, then stepped away from the edge of the roof so the arriving zombies wouldn't see him. They need to move, but Lee hesitated. He had something on his mind. "Mr. Sabaku? ...How would you kill a zombie with an ice pick?"

Gaara's brows knotted before he snorted. "You stab it in the eyes so the pick goes straight to its brain." He replied, pausing before taking out a pocketknife he'd taken from the hardware store. Holding it out to Lee, he kept his gaze steady despite seeing the bloodstains on the other man's pants legs. "Keep this on you."

Lee took the knife and wrinkled his nose briefly at Gaara's answer. He wondered if Gaara spent a lot of time thinking about makeshift weapons and how they can be used to kill zombies. Lee flipped open the knife and examined it, making the sunlight reflect off the sharp edge and illuminate the dark stress circles that had formed under his eyes. He closed it again and slipped it into his pocket. "Thank you. I will be more prepared for next time."

Satisfied that Lee wasn't rattled too badly, Gaara nodded and turned away to lead them on to the next building.

By the time they reached the end of the block, there were no roofs for them left to jump on and they had to make a quick run down the side of a building, leaping onto the roof of a car, and dashing across the backyard of a school to get to the next street. Most of the zombies after them were left behind clawing uselessly at the sides of buildings or stuck behind cars. Gaara killed a few walkers on the street, trusting Lee to watch his back.

They were now at the back of a residential area with pre-fab houses. The zombie groups were thinner here with most of the houses empty already after the mass evacuation. One of the houses had a 'SOS' painted on the roof and on the wooden fence running around it. Gaara spotted the sign but moved past it without looking inside. They couldn't afford to take survivors with them.

"Wait-! Gaara," Lee caught the redhead by the shoulder and turned toward the SOS house. He whipped his head around, but he thought they could afford to pause for a few seconds before any zombies caught up to them. "We should look inside and see if anyone needs help. They might still be alive."

Before Gaara could argue, Lee had hopped the fence and was making his way to the front door. He pulled his bat out, just in case the people inside had already been infected. He opened the door and peered inside.

"Don't!" Gaara called in vain, shaking his head when Lee was already over the fence. The idiot was going to get himself killed running off like that. He had no choice but to follow after him, bracing himself on the side of the fence and jumping it with more difficulty than Lee. He hurried to the front of the house just in time to see Lee poking his head inside the door.

Inside the house, there was an eerie sense of normalcy with the smell of eggs frying and air freshener greeting the two men. That is, until someone with long hair and a long knife rushed towards them from the kitchen with a cry.

Gaara heard the cry outside and grabbed hold of Lee's pack, yanking the other man backwards and cursing under his breath at Lee's impulsiveness.

"Woah, woah!" Lee stumbled back on the porch as Gaara yanked him, narrowly avoiding the swing of the stranger's knife. Lee held up his bat with both hands in front of him, trying to ward off the assailant. Whoever it was, they couldn't be a zombie! Zombies don't use weapons! "Wait, wait, do not do that!"

The stranger backed up, keeping the knife held between them as she panted, her feet spread in a defensive stance in the doorway of the house. She examined them with cold, dark eyes, her lips in a tight line as her nostrils flared with her sharp breath. "Are you sick? Are you here to help us?" She said slowly, in a matured voice that was bordering on masculine.

"No to both." Gaara replied, glaring at Lee as he let go of the man's pack. He lowered his voice as he berated the taller man. "She obviously can take care of herself. Let's go."

"First of all, I can hear you and I'm not a girl," the stranger said, lowering his knife when it didn't seem like the other men were a threat but keeping it between them. Something thumped from inside the house, making the man's eyes narrow slightly. "Who are you? If you're not here to help, what do you want?"

"No, we do want to help," Lee said, settling Gaara with a quick scowl and then trying to seem earnest for the stranger. He slowly lowered his bat and took a look over his shoulder nervously. He could hear moaning, and he was sure they would be seen if they stayed in one place for much longer. "We have a safe house just a couple streets from here, with clean water and food. How many are with you? How long have you been here? Is anyone hurt?"

The man narrowed his eyes tightly and glanced over Lee and Gaara's shoulders. He stepped aside in the doorway and gestured for them to come inside. "Get in quick, before you draw them here."

With the moans coming closer and Lee refusing to go, Gaara uttered a short groan and crossed his arms. "We'll only stay a few minutes. We need to finish our route." He said, following after Lee and the other man inside the house. The feminine looks of their host didn't even surprise him with the horde on his mind.

Another thump resounded in the house, but the stranger didn't pay attention to it, instead looking over the two of them with a furrow growing between his brows. "Tell me who you are and where this safe house is before I answer any of your questions."

"We can't let you know where the safe house is." Gaara interjected, throwing a warning glance at Lee. The thumping noise had him on edge, and heightened his wariness of the stranger. Lee was being too nice and helpful when they didn't know a thing about why the man was signaling for help. "We were only passing through when we saw the SOS signs."

The man was silent for a moment before he sighed. "My name is Haku. I've been staying with my friend, Zabusa since the outbreak."

"So it is just the two of you?" Lee glanced at Gaara when he heard the thumps, and saw that he noticed it, too. Lee raised his brows, both questioning the noise and feeling hopeful that he wouldn't get too much trouble from Gaara in helping Haku and Zabuza. There was only two of them after all, so their group wouldn't be very large. "If you can both run, I am sure that it would not be difficult for us to take you with us."

"Do you have any medicine at your safe house?" Haku asked suddenly, frowning. Another thump resounded in the house, louder this time. It was becoming obvious that Haku was ignoring it, not oblivious to it. "Has the CDC or anyone from the government found a way to treat the outbreak yet?"

"Are... are you infected?" Lee asked slowly, frowning and feeling his hopes begin to sink.

"No." Haku didn't blink, his gaze sharp and demanding answer.

"There hasn't been word from the CDC. We don't have a cure either." Gaara replied, meeting Haku's sharp gaze with a stoic look. "If you're sick, we have basic medicine available but we can't risk having you join us."

Haku wasn't giving them any assurance with what little he said. Gaara stepped a little closer to Lee and the way back out, preparing to grab his companion or fight if Haku made any moves towards them. At least Lee didn't give out their names yet. As another thump sounded off, catching Gaara's attention towards the kitchen. There was a bolted door there either leading to the pantry or a cellar. When the next thump came, it was accompanied by the tell-tale moan of the undead. Gaara's neck hairs rose. "You have a zombie in your house?" He snapped.

Haku reacted as soon as he saw Gaara looking at the door. He stepped in the way of his gaze and gripped his knife tighter. "None of your business."

Lee's eyes slowly widened in understanding. He gripped Gaara's sleeve tightly, and took a step back. The full threat of the potential danger they were in finally occurred to him, and he had to swallow his dry throat with some difficulty before he could speak. "Mr. Haku... I am sorry, but those who are already infected cannot be helped. Is... is that your friend? Zabuza? He-"

"None of your business," Haku repeated sharply, taking half a step forward and squaring his jaw. Strands of his long hair were falling into his face as he tilted his head, filtering the wild edge to his dark, narrowed eyes. "You two should go. Now. If you don't have a cure for the infection, then you're useless to me."

Lee shuddered as he heard the long, dragging sound of nails on the other side of the bolted door. He backed up to the front door, not letting go of Gaara's sleeve until they were outside again and took off at a run.

The sky was burnt orange and turning purple far to the east. Gaara knew it would be a few hours before it grew completely dark. Looking down at the street, the redhead was relieved to see that most of the walking dead had dispersed from the time Lee fired his gun. Most of the convenience stores they passed by also seemed fully stocked aside from a few that were already raided.

They still had time to head back to the mall while there was daylight, and after the day's scouting and the encounter with Haku, they'd stopped to rest and finally eat. The heels of Gaara's sneakers hit against the rooftop ledge as he glanced at Lee from the corner of his eyes. Lee had been quiet from the time they fled from Haku's house until the end of their mapping.

Unwrapping the lunch pack Hinata made for them, he pushed one of the containers towards Lee and took the other for himself. Instant curry and rice had never smelled as good as it did now.

Lee paused for a few long seconds, examining the length of his bat while his mind wandered. The blood stains in the aluminum had long darkened into a brownish-black, splattered in a sick design that made his stomach churn. He finally set it aside and picked up his half of Hinata's lunch, opening the container slowly and picking at a few pieces of rice. He wanted to eat, since it would be a waste to throw it away and it would probably hurt Hinata's feelings if he brought his lunch back uneaten. At the same time, it was too hard for him to swallow more than a couple grains at a time.

"We could have taken Haku back with us," Lee murmured quietly. He seemed to be speaking into air.

Gaara chewed his rice slowly, wondering why Lee's change in demeanor bothered him so much. They'd all gone through stages of depression and denial, but it always seemed like Lee was the one who wouldn't break. Not when there was still hope of seeing their families again. Swallowing, he exhaled through his nose. "It was his choice to stay." He replied just as quietly. "...We should have killed his friend. Then he could move on."

Lee blinked quickly and lifted his head, looking at Gaara in shock. "What? But he cared about his friend, probably even loved him. That is why he stayed! It... it would have been horrible if Haku knew that we had hurt him, much less bashed his head in!" Lee frowned. "Is there no one you would have stayed for, if you were in his position?"

Gaara's lips tightened briefly, but he looked away when he replied. "A zombie isn't human anymore. If you stay, you'll only end up bitten or rot away while clinging to the past." He stirred his curry into the rice, letting the flavor seep into the white grains. "If I were bitten, I wouldn't want anyone to stay with me. I'd do what Shino did to save them. If my family members were bitten, I'd rather kill them with my own hands than see them turn."

Jaw hanging limply, it was a few seconds before Lee could think of what to reply. The thought of Shino's sacrifice weighed heavy on his mind whenever he was mentioned. Lee finally picked up his spoon and scooped some of his food into his mouth and swallowed. "I could not do that. If I were bitten, I would want to do what Shino did as well, but... If someone I cared about was infected, I could not bring myself to hurt them even then. Zombies are... they are still human. I know they are. They were someone's family, and they had jobs, and they went to school, and they had emotions and could feel pain before they died."

"Stop fooling yourself." Gaara said, his voice calm despite his words. "Whoever they were before they died, that person isn't there anymore. They don't feel pain or emotion, just a hunger to bite and spread the virus." He ate another spoonful of curry and rice before turning to the other man. "You told me once that you wouldn't hesitate to protect Tenten. And me. What if I became a zombie and was going to bite Tenten? What would you do?"

Lee hesitated. He felt almost indignant with Gaara's opinion and questioning, but at the same time he knew that what he was asking was completely relevant. It was even possible. If Tenten were in danger and Lee had the choice of letting her be hurt or saving her, he knew what option he would take. "I would kill you. I would hate doing it, but I would protect Tenten." Lee took a couple large bites of his curry and shook his head. "I do not ever want something like that to happen. We have few enough friends left already, I would not want to kill one to save another."

"But you would if it was necessary." Gaara was satisfied with Lee's answer. It didn't comfort him, but it was enough to see that Lee still had his priorities straight. He fell silent as he continued to eat, feeling strangely sensitive to the other man's unhappiness. He'd inevitably grown closer to Lee and Tenten out of everyone in their group.

Breathing in the cool afternoon air, he cast a glance in the direction of his home. There were still zombies gathered at the lower end of the street, but that safe house was still an option for them. If his family was still alive... Gaara swallowed. They wouldn't stay in one place either. Just as he put his survival over others, so would his father and siblings. They could take care of themselves.

"...I could have stayed in my building." He said, speaking before he could stop himself. "My brother and sister were somewhere inside, but I had to leave them."

Lee swallowed the rice in his mouth and looked at Gaara out of the corner of his eye. The redhead was always so guarded and reserved at all times, it was rare to hear him voice concerns about people he knew before the outbreak, or his life before. If their conversation wasn't so dark, Lee would almost feel touched. "If your family is anything like you, they would have wanted you to be safe without them," Lee said. He stirred the last dregs of his lunch and pushed it all into one corner of his container as he spoke. "If they are anything like you, I am sure they are strong and resourceful enough to be safe."

Gaara lifted one shoulder in a half-hearted shrug. "I know." Fighting his way out of the building had been a necessity, but he would have wanted to search for his siblings given the chance. "It doesn't matter. I will do what it takes to survive. One day, I will go back and look for them if they have been turned or not. Even if it's the last time I'll see them." He ate the last spoonful of his lunch pack and began setting everything back into place. Lee and Tenten, and everyone who live somewhere else were lucky. They could still hope to return to their old lives if they found their families alive. He didn't want to think about it, but he had a sinking feeling in his gut that his were already long gone.

Lee could only nod. He scooped the last bite with his spoon and ate it, his mind lingering on Haku's face before they'd left. The look in his eye had been bordering on manic and there was no hope that his situation would result in anything but a tragic end, but... Lee couldn't help respecting Haku. He must have had a real, powerful heart to care so much about his friend, loyalty, dedication... Lee admired his conviction. Would it be easier for a person to make up their mind to stay no matter what the consequences, or to constantly ponder between one hopeless choice over another? Would it be easier on a person's heart to feel that zombies were still human, and still had something inside that made them the person they used to be, or to accept that there was nothing left of them now but the virus and bloodlust?

"We will make it through this." Lee packed away his empty container and re-strapped his bat to his back. He stood tall on the rooftop and put his hands on his hips, facing the sunset with his chin up. "If we can just survive for as long as possible, human beings can conquer anything! We just have to Work Hard, and never forget our goals and passions. Springtime still exists, it is just more difficult to obtain now! But we can still reach it if we help each other."

Gaara thought Lee couldn't get any weirder until right now. He stared up at Lee with an even gaze, just listening to his breath and the silence this high up on the building. Then he snorted and stood up as well, hiding the small twitch of his lips by slipping the lunch pack inside his knapsack. "Okay." He replied, slinging the pack on his back again. Lee's optimism was hard to understand, but it was easier to accept compared to Naruto's. He didn't need to make sure everyone saw it his way.

Turning towards the sunset, he tried seeing things from Lee's eyes for a moment but only saw a fading horizon and the incoming night. His eyes hooded as he murmured, "Go on believing that. You can leave everything else to me."
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Rot, Another One Bites the Dust