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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
- 19
- 20
- 21
I'M BACK!!! OK, seriously, this took me forever to beat into shape. I spent a solid two months staring at it going... "my brain is dead"... and then poof, it kicked in. This is a long chapter (compared to the others I've put up) 3671 words. Please enjoy.... And don't hate me for the end. Thanks!!

Chapter 20

“That, ah, that was great.” Naruto flopped onto the ground next to Gaara, who looked as exhausted as the blond. “Ya know, I never have to worry about hurting you. Not like I do with everyone else. Even with Sasuke, I can’t quite let loose, because even he can be seriously hurt if I go cloaked.” A soft grunt of acknowledgment greeted the comment. Naruto grinned a little and turned to check out his friend.

Gaara’s hair had been rumpled in the fight, nicks scattered in his clothes where they’d tussled at one point with no concern to ninja skills or jutsu. The same tussle had left rug- burn like marks around Naruto’s wrists, where Gaara hadn’t quite recalled his sand in time. Already the marks were healing, extraordinarily hot to the touch as the demon’s influence sped the healing process. A small, claw shaped mark had appeared under one eye, and the slight blemish attracted Naruto’s attention almost immediately. Gaara never showed such signs- no one ever got close enough. “Did I do that?” A finger crept to touch the mark only to halt at the sight of the claws still decorating his hands. “Gaara?”

The redhead merely wrapped one hand around Naruto’s. “Enough. You didn’t hurt me, though I must admit I’m impressed you landed that. So few have ever moved fast enough to catch me off guard.” A compliment, style uniquely his. “Try to calm yourself and do whatever you have to so they go back to normal.”

He tried. Ensuring that Kyuubi’s chakra wasn’t still channeling through his hands he focused inward, trying the meditation technique that had taken him forever to learn. Yet the black talons persisted to tip his fingers. After an half hour of trying to retract them, he gave up and managed to find a kunai to trim the more lethal point off. As he ran his now blunt nails against each other, he silently wondered how long it’d be before he’d have to trim them again. Even without the point, it wouldn’t take long before his friends noticed the change from pale nail to black claw.

/Next day /

***

Breakfast the morning after the arrival of Sakura’s team was quieter than one might have imagined. Naruto looked exhausted, though at least in a somewhat cheerful mood. Gaara, to everyone’s surprise, was sporting a small spot that looked suspiciously like a bruise on one cheekbone. He refused to admit or deny related questions, though, simply answering that it was none of anyone’s business. When Temari gave him that older sister glare, he simply shrugged and glanced at Naruto. She got the hint- and a nicely puzzled look. It amused him greatly.

Sakura’s first action was to hug Naruto, nearly crushing him in her worry as she then proceeded to casually scan over him, looking for any clue as to the previous night’s havoc. He gave her a wan smile and hugged back, simply whispering that he’d explain later. It was the same line he gave to Lee and Kiba as well. Neji appeared at the breakfast table but lingered a short distance away, watching. The last three to enter led to a few questioning looks and several glances toward Gaara.

“Uchiha. I trust that you and Hinata- san are done ‘talking’, yes?” Both turned to Gaara, Sasuke nodding and Hinata bowing. “Everyone, this is the newest warrior to Suna. Kimi, meet the rest of the guests I have invited here for this stay. Sakura- san, medic- ninja. Kiba, and his companion Akamaru. Lee, taijutsu specialist. And Hinata Hyuga, another pride to her clan. Hinata- san and Neji- san are cousins.”

None missed the way sharp golden eyes flicked over each person as they lifted their hand or nodded at their names. She had entered behind Sasuke and Hinata, who were walking closely, but not intimately so.

“Gaara- sama? Am I still permitted to spar with anyone willing to take my challenge?” She stalked forward, scanning the table again as she went. Hinata had hit her radar as someone above prey, but still somehow weak. She was only human, and until Kimi had an idea how the pale girl fought, she was dismissible. The pink haired one radiated a silent strength that was intriguing, but still not what she was looking for. That left the dog-boy, and the one in green, or the others she had yet to fight. “You.” She paused across from Kiba. “What is that mutt to you?”

“Akamaru? He’s no mutt, but pure Inuzuka best! He’s my companion and my teammate, we do everything together!”

A wicked return comment crossed her mind. Should she.. or wait… Nope, she couldn’t keep silent on that one. “Does he stay in the room when you’re fucking, too?” Oh, that shade of red was heady, a mix of anger and embarrassment. Looks of shock, outrage, and even a frown or two circled the large table.

“Kimi.” The warning in Gaara’s tone was so clear. But she couldn’t resist, just one little crack.

“But Gaara- sama, he did say everything. I simply had to clarify that some things are still… private.”

“Well, he does have that human- mimicry thing that Akamaru can do…” A second later the sound of Naruto’s head crashing into the table drowned out any other reaction, Sakura standing next to him with her fist still clenched. Kimi chuckled quietly and tuned out Sakura’s ranting about how gross that sounded, and how Naruto needed to learn better manners, only to be drawn back at the flicker of power she felt sweep through the room. Naruto had risen in that distracted moment, and was holding Sakura’s hand high, eyes dancing with frustration and pain. “I know that I’m an idiot sometimes, that I don’t always ‘get’ things. I know I say stuff that sounds wrong, or is crude, but I was with Jiraiya for far too long not to pick some of that up. I know it’s habit but stop hitting me.” The low voice carried through the room, calm even though the tone sent shivers down several people’s spines. He looked up and that fierce gaze swept the room. “I’m not the weak, pathetic fool I was as a kid, back at the academy. Things are changing; I am changing, and I will say this now. You want to spar, we’ll spar, but no more abuse. Even if you’re holding back, Sakura, this is unacceptable. If someone wants to spar or train, I’m always willing, but this, I can’t stand. Plus, I learn better when I haven’t had my brains scrambled first.”

Surprise and shock ruled the room for a moment, waiting for Sakura’s reaction as her wide green eyes bore into the crimson and blue across from her. Slowly she looked from him, to his hand holding her own, then back down over his body. A grim smile stretches her face. “I’m sorry Naruto. I do treat you like a kid.” Her free hand came up and brushed against his cheek as he visibly kept from backing his head away. Sadness sparked in her face at his obvious distrust. “I’m sorry, Naruto. I know it’s not enough.. but you’re right. You’re not a kid, no matter how childish you may act.” She tried to turn away, but his grip on her wrist stayed constant.

“You should have known, Sakura- chan. I stopped asking you out long ago. And I don’t get into near as much trouble as I did when we were little.” He drew her back towards him, lowering his hand so he could bring it close to his face, waiting until she was watching before brushing his cheek along her fingers. “I need everyone to stop hurting me, Sakura- chan. Can you do that?” He whispered the last, but sensitive ears around the table heard it anyways. She nods and he gathered her into his arms in a tight hug, like the one he had first given her that morning before she punched him. He lifted his head, meeting Gaara’s eyes over her shoulder. Teal orbs flicked to the side and red followed, to see the room looking uncertain and shocked. He nervously let go of Sakura. A pale hand clapped onto his shoulder as Sakura moved away. “About damn time, Dobe.”

Naruto mock-growled. “Enough, bastard. I’m hungry, I’m tired, and I feel like today is going to be a rough one.” His voice lowered greatly. “And plus, I got left with another little surprise last night.” He casually placed his hand against Sasuke’s arm for a moment, before moving away, but he knew the Uchiha had seen his fingers by the way his eyes widened. Naruto narrowed his own, giving warning before the Uchiha could say anything. “Hn. Later.”

Slowly everyone sat down to eat, Naruto sitting gloomily a few seats down from Gaara. Sasuke sat down next to him, which was mostly expected, but Hinata settling on his other side made him glance back and forth between the two. Sasuke made a slight motion with his hand, repeating without words what he’d spoken just minutes before- later. Pieces were falling into place, and while some of it would eventually become public, it didn’t have to start that way. There were steps to be taken before Naruto could claim Hinata as his publicly without facing severe rebuttal. Hinata was a clan heiress, and plus, she still had to break her news to the fox-boy herself. Sasuke was so not getting involved with the whole love thing- that wasn't his job here. In fact, he was still brewing over Kyuubi’s words.

The gloomy mood of breakfast cast over the entire morning, with low conversation, moderate avoidance, and some underhanded bickering between Kimi and Kiba. No one bothered Gaara and Naruto, for the duo had withdrawn to private quarters, and over the hour or two after breakfast, both of the Hyuga, Sakura, and Sasuke had also disappeared. An hour later the girls had returned, but the men had stayed in seclusion, deep in talk while the small slice of world waited, impatient and nervous for things to finish.

Sakura had been the second person called into the private chambers where Gaara and Sasuke were giving Naruto a complete exam. Well, the redhead was watching with hard eyes as he listened to Sasuke report his findings with his Sharingan compared to his own personal, intimate knowledge of the jinchuuriki. She wasted no time in shoving Sasuke out of the way and turning her medical attention on Naruto. “What is going on?”

His eyes, despite the changes, seemed normal and reacted properly. No visible injuries, no bruises, and from what Sasuke had said, no obvious failings in his chakra patterns. Sakura snorted and began her own exam of his chakra, only to discover that things had changed since the last time she’d gotten to do this. His chakra was pulsing, and twining with itself in odd ways. If this was not out of the ordinary, according to Sasuke, how long had this oddity been going on? “I want and need answers.”

It was slower explaining than the night before, because she kept interrupting for particular details, and Sakura made a mental note to raid Tsunade’s private notes so she could keep up with Naruto’s updates herself. But in the end she nearly cried herself, suddenly understanding why Naruto had seemed so different, and she apologized. “I shouldn’t have been such a bitch.”

Naruto shrugged, something he was starting to do more when he had no words. Must be his being around the Uchiha too much. “I know what’s happening to me. I am trying to get used to this…” His throat closed up. His close friends may not be judging him, yet, but there was still a village to consider. If he was really going to be half-demon, then he would face that much more hell from people. “If you can’t handle the thought of how things may be, I’d rather you tell me now. I don’t need any more close betrayals in my life.”

Everyone, except maybe Gaara, flinched at those words. Sasuke had done his fair share of wounding to Naruto, and he was still having to heal damage from those years and meetings. And Sakura had been sometimes support for Naruto, even though she was dealing with her own grief at the same time. She walked into his personal space- which always got larger when he was being moody- and laid a gentle hand on his shoulder. “We’ve been through enough together. You’re you, and as much a knucklehead as you can be, you’re my friend. Nothing is going to change that.”

His crimson and sea-blue eyes met her more normal ones, searching for a long minute, judging her words carefully. She was one of the few people who hadn’t made a habit of wittingly, habitually lying to him. His nose twitched as he studied her, and after a few moments he relaxed, certain she was speaking the truth and her personal feelings. Scent on humans was not easily masked in moments like this. “Thank you, Sakura- chan. That means a lot to me right now.”

She stepped forward, closing the gap between them to give Naruto a hug. After a moment he relaxed against her, pillowing his face against her shoulder as he enjoyed the comforting gesture. He didn’t notice the door to the room opening, but he did hear the pathetic whimpering sound the preceded a burst of running feet. Simultaneous calls from Sasuke and Gaara told him exactly who had stepped into the room.

“Hyuga- san, wait.”

“Hinata!”

Naruto turned to find Sasuke rushing out the door after Hinata, but tilted his head as he heard the footfalls stop not far away. Either she hadn’t gone far or Hinata was faster than any of them thought. He backed away from Sakura and moved toward the door, pausing as he picked up some low tones and not so quiet words filtering through the hall.

“- looked happy with her! How can I change that?” Hinata’s voice, low but carrying, and full of bitterness. Why should she be upset?

“Of course he looked happy. He has one more friend to count on when things start to fall apart. Get back in there and tell him, instead of being so damn weak.” Sasuke, hard toned but just as quiet as Hinata usually was. Clearly the argument wasn’t meant to be overheard.

“I’m not weak.” The amount of venom in those words surprised Naruto, and when he turned at a touch to his shoulder, he saw Sakura’s shocked face next to him.

“Then take your chance. You have it, right now, even if there are a few witnesses. Be the woman you were last night, not the girl you are acting like now.” Naruto peered around the doorjamb, witnessing Hinata standing a few yards away, arms crossed over her chest, Sasuke leaning against the wall a foot or two away from her. As he watched, Hinata drew a deep breath and dropped her arms, allowing the mood to fall away with her hands. It pleased him in undetermined ways to see her stand up for herself like this. He felt Sakura pulling him back into the room, giving the illusion the private conversation had remained unheard.

Hinata stepped confidently into the room, but paused just within as Naruto stepped in from the side and gently took her arm. “If you want a hug, Hinata- chan, you can ask anytime.” Her cheeks pinked but she didn’t pass out anymore, and she lowered her gaze for a moment, unable to quite look at him in that moment. “It’s not just a hug, Naruto- kun…” She stepped in close, leaning her cheek against his chest, chin lifted so she could speak closer to his ear.

“I love you.”

He started, surprised, staring down the couple inches into her eyes. They were almost close enough to kiss, if he was willing to lower his head, but the thought didn’t even appear in his mind. Someone loved him.. like, more than a friend? More than the displays of kindness from Iruka, and Jiraiya, and Tsunade, who he treated like family?

And in an instant he crushed that flickering hope dead. “Hinata- chan, you don’t know about me... I’m not just a typical guy…” A soft fingertip, gently calloused from weapons, touched his lips. He silenced, even though he dreaded the words bound to come from her mouth when she knew the truth.

“You are no typical man, or even a typical shinobi. You are Naruto, jinchuuriki host to Kyuubi, the nine-tailed demon fox. You are loyal, bold, stubborn, brash, but you are caring, affectionate, and have a great capacity for love. You never give up.” She moved her hand away from his face and chin. “It doesn’t matter. I’ve loved you since the academy. And knowledge has only made me love you more, not less.”

She knew- she’d already known about him? About Kyuubi, and why he was judged, condemned by so many of the village… He found himself studying her as he’d done to Sakura, but there was nothing- absolutely nothing that hinted at deceit, or a trick. And then there was some suspiciously loud purring in his head, a rare sign that Kyuubi was extremely pleased. That worried him a little.

He stroked a thumb across her cheek, watching as the simple touch flooded her with color. “Hinata- chan…” He began, but paused. How could he say this without hurting her feelings? He had to try. “I’m not saying no, Hinata. This is… probably the best news I’ve gotten in a long time. But I need a little time to think about this, ok?” Something about her seemed to droop, sadden. “Hinata. I just need to figure out what’s going on with myself, first. I wouldn’t want to give you anything less than a fair chance.” A chance he couldn’t help but give her, for both their sakes. He wouldn’t pass this up. He just wanted to know why Kyuubi suddenly seemed so damn smug and happy.

When she let go and backed away from him, Naruto turned to the side and let out a small glare at the Uchiha in the doorway. Black and crimson clashed, before Sasuke smirked and walked closer. “Yes, I knew. And no, I couldn’t say anything. You know I don’t get involved with this stuff.”

Annoyed, Naruto flicked at his shoulder, briefly forgetting his new claws until red lines opened up in the shirt. Sasuke barely winced but the look he gave Naruto was dark, warning. If he’d done that to one of the girls, Naruto was sure he’d be hurting by now. The only question was who would be pummeling his ass. He apologized and left, leaving Sakura and Hinata quietly chatting with each other and Gaara looking faintly amused. Two left turns, a right turn and a couple hallways away, Naruto ran into Neji wandering around, looking lost. Needing input and finding a source of potentially ready input, he called the Hyuga over.

“Hey, Neji, I need to ask you a question.” The pale eyes twitched slightly but Neji stood still, uncertain of what was happening. Naruto had been relatively unpredictable lately around him. “What do you know about Hinata liking me? I know you two were never the best of friends or anything, but… she just admitted she loves me.”

Ah. His cousin had finally dropped the proverbial bomb and confessed her deepest secret. There was hope yet for her. “She confided in me once, but felt she never had the chance to be at your side. It is good that she has finally come forward.” He cast a critical look at the blonde. “What did you say back to her?”

Naruto fidgeted and the look on Neji’s face grew to that of impatience and anger. “If you turned her flat you are less a man than you seem, Uzumaki. Unless you prefer men?” An itch was forming down his spine as Naruto turned the full heat of slit crimson eyes on the swan.

“Hardly. Her words, emotions, are more than anything I could ever have hoped for. But I refuse to condemn her by being with a filthy mongrel, a wretched beast the village treats me as. It’s not fair to someone of her blood and family.”

“If you like her at all, even just a little, you will give her a chance. I will not see my cousin hurt by you, in any way. Do not give her hope if you are just going to tear it apart.” He’d stepped in close, less than a foot from Naruto, glaring into those crimson eyes. He had a height advantage of a couple inches, but the waves radiating from Naruto made him seem more, taller, bigger, than Neji knew he really was. And all that focus and intensity was turned on him. “Be a man, not some animal.”

A growl rumbled from Naruto’s throat and Neji had a brief instant to wonder if he’d pushed too much, too far. And they were alone, or close enough to alone that it would still take precious time for help to arrive if things went wrong. But Naruto merely grinned and snicked his claws across Neji’s head, neatly severing the headband and white cloth scraps underneath. A single scratch narrowly missed the swirl of green ink on his forehead. “Stop fearing me, or I will become some pathetic animal.” He sniffed, inhaling deeply the scent of fresh blood. Slow inhale, and slower exhale, and suddenly those instincts were screaming in the age-old dance of hunter and prey. A claw tipped thumb came up, swept the drips of blood off pale skin, and brought them back to his nose. Changes were flickering through the jinchuuriki’ s body and eyes, but enough of his sanity was left to grit out a warning before nearly biting his own thumb to get at the salty treat.

“Run, Neji. Get away, now.”

____

A/N: Ok, so I kinda cliffed it. oh well. It's a nice long chapter though, and it's been what, four months? Thanks to all my reviewers (even though I know most of you anyways) and please, if you like this, take thirty seconds and tell me. I write this for my own amusement, but I really like getting input about my stuff. makes me feel better, even if the input is "this sucks." So please, R&R and i will catch y'all next time around.
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Disguised Curses