Adult-FanFiction.org : Naruto

The Long Run	By : Sasunarufan13 Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male > Naruto/Sasuke Views: 1939 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto nor make profit of it. Kishimoto owns it.

Chapter List
- 23
- 24
- 25
Author's note: Look at that, for once I manage to update this story again before midnight here. A miracle.
Warnings: Angst; mentions of suicide
I hope you'll like it!
Chapter 24
Sasuke couldn't make sense of what he was seeing. It was as if his brain wasn't making the connection with what his eyes were witnessing, as if the link between his eyes and his brain had been cut. Because he couldn't be seeing what he was seeing, right? There was no way a zombie had actually managed to best Naruto and bite him, no matter if this zombie was his dead best friend. That just wasn't happening. That couldn't be happening, not after Naruto had survived for so long already. Not when Naruto had already killed so many zombies before, when he was one of the best fighters Sasuke knew.
There was an odd buzzing noise in his ears, muting everything else, and something seemed to be pressing against his chest, making it harder to breathe. He looked down, dazed, expecting to see something pushing against him, but there was nothing, not even when he dragged his hand down his chest. Still, it was getting harder to breathe; the edges of his vision growing fuzzy, dark spots dancing in front of his eyes. He seemed to have acquired tunnel vision: all he could see, was Naruto sinking down on his knees, bringing the zombified Gaara down with him. Naruto's right arm spasmed; some blood droplets flying through the air, dotting the grass. Sasuke's breathing turned laboured as if he was the one who had his neck bitten and he stumbled forwards when something bumped into his back.
"What the fuck are you doing! The hell are you spacing out for!" Karin snapped, followed by the sound of something whacking to the ground.
He didn't hear her, however. As if in a dream he slowly walked forwards, his legs heavy like they were filled with lead, hampering him. He tried to go faster, but his body refused to cooperate, dragging himself across the remaining distance as if he was walking through molasses. His heart had crawled somewhere in his throat by the time he fell down on his knees next to Naruto, heedless of the zombies still roaming around them and Karin cursing up a storm as she dealt with the remaining dead ones.
He didn't dare to look, more than ever terrified of what he would find, but he forced himself to look properly, because it was the least he still could do for Naruto, when Naruto was … when Naruto was …
Staring back at him with empty eyes; his fingers wrapped tightly around the hilt of his dagger. The dagger, which blade was driven straight through Gaara's temple, putting an end to his undead life. As Sasuke sat there shocked, Naruto lowered Gaara's body further to the ground until he was laying awkwardly in Naruto's lap; his jaw remaining unhinged, some drops of blood welling up from around the blade. With a care almost reminiscent of the way he would touch Sasuke when they sought comfort in each other, Naruto pulled out his dagger, placing it next to him on the grass. He stroked Gaara's hair back, covering the gaping knife wound.
Those blue eyes filled with tears then, the emptiness chased away with grief so heavy, Sasuke felt his own heart breaking, echoing the way in which Naruto's heart no doubt had shattered now. Naruto bent down over Gaara and wrapped his arms around his shoulders, clutching him tightly against his chest as he broke down, crying hard for the friend he had just lost for the second time. His screams filled the air and Sasuke's heart broke all over again, ripped to shreds at hearing the absolute agony in Naruto's voice. How was it possible to go through so much pain without shattering apart completely?
Sasuke had no idea and he feared he was about to find out soon whether it was even possible.
No teeth imprints. Hours after they had disposed of every zombie, that fact still had Sasuke marvelling quietly. He kept glancing at Naruto's neck from where Naruto laid nestled between his legs, his back against Sasuke's chest. No matter how many times he looked, though, the skin remained as unblemished as it had been when they had woken up this morning.
This couldn't be called anything else but a goddamn fucking miracle. This wasn't just sheer dumb luck, it was an actual intervention of the gods or whatever was up there. Because if it had been anyone else, they surely would have been bitten. They would have been infected and Sasuke would be holding their weakening body now, waiting for the virus to take over completely. Somehow, however, Naruto had beaten the odds again. Somehow he had managed to be quick enough, even in his shocked state, to stab his dagger through Gaara's temple right before those teeth could have chomped down completely. Nothing less than a miracle that; it couldn't be called anything else.
He looked down when Naruto stirred; the first sign of life he had shown since he had stopped crying. They had left the field behind for now, having decided to spend the night in the remaining shell of what once had been a lovely cottage. Now only its bare skeleton remained: four walls, a roof with some holes, and a door hanging off its hinges. It was safe enough for tonight at least.
"Should have helped Karin with setting up camp," Naruto muttered. He sounded exhausted, which was only slightly better than the empty tone he had used earlier when Sasuke had coaxed Gaara's body from his arms.
He would have given Naruto more time with Gaara if he could have, but Karin hadn't wanted to risk lingering longer, fearing more zombies might show up soon. Sasuke had agreed with her, but it still hadn't been easy to convince Naruto to release Gaara and leave him behind in the field. The guilt at Naruto's broken and lost look when Sasuke had pulled Gaara away from him still stung like bile in the back of his throat, hours later.
"She understands," Sasuke said, listening to Karin moving outside, perhaps preparing their dinner.
She'd been pissed off at first, of course, demanding to know what the fuck the both of them had thought they were doing until she had caught sight of Gaara in Naruto's arms. She didn't know that Gaara was Naruto's best friend, the one who had kept him going for so long, but she wasn't dumb either. She had surmised quickly that Gaara must have been someone important to Naruto and had ceased cursing at him immediately. Instead, she had killed the last three zombies and had helped Sasuke pull most of the bodies into a pile before Sasuke had gone back to Naruto to coax him away.
They would have to go back tomorrow and set the pile on fire. They should have done it immediately, he supposed, but none of them had been able to muster the energy needed to set up the fire. They would do it tomorrow, after they had rested and worked through the events of today.
His gaze was drawn to Naruto's neck again; his arms tightening unconsciously around Naruto's waist. Naruto must have felt him staring, because a hand rose up, fingers gliding across the unblemished skin.
"He didn't manage to bite through," Naruto said quietly. "I ki-got my dagger up on time."
"I know. I'm just … I can't believe you were quick enough to stop him," Sasuke said and shook his head; disbelief filling him once more when he recalled just how close Naruto had come to dying today. "When I saw him walking towards you … I freaked out when I saw how close you were letting him get to you," he admitted; his thumb rubbing up and down over Naruto's left side. "And when I saw him chomping down, I really thought I'd lost you."
"I thought about letting him bite me," Naruto said to his utter shock. The words sounded as loud as a gun shot even though his voice was still quiet.
Naruto didn't look at him. "When I saw Gaara walking towards me … I didn't want to move away. I stood there and I thought, what's the point in continuing to fight? I'm tired of fighting. It would be so much easier if I just let him bite me. If he bit me, I would die and I would finally be able to see everyone again. I could see mum and dad again, Jiraiya, Gaara … I would have them back." His voice wavered. Something wet dripped down on Sasuke's hand.
Listening how Naruto had actually been ready to die, how willing he had been to let Gaara bite him … Sasuke thought his heart couldn't break even more, but clearly it could.
"You stopped him, though," he couldn't help but point out. The proof was right here in his arms: Naruto was still alive, not even teeth imprints left to show how close he had come to courting death. "Why did you if you …"
"Because I remembered I'm not alone anymore," Naruto said softly.
Sasuke blinked, wondering why the back of his eyeballs was stinging.
"If it had been just me there, I probably would have let him bite me," Naruto continued; his voice raw after having screamed and cried for so long. "But then I thought about you, about how I have you now. I'm not alone anymore. I've got someone to return to now. It's not longer just me. And …"
He swallowed, sniffled a bit before wiping the back of his hand across his eyes. "I know Gaara wouldn't have wanted that. He would have hated himself if he knew he had been the one to kill me in the end after all and that's not … When I see him again when I do die, I don't want that hanging between us. I don't want him to think I gave up, that I went back on my promise. I don't want you to think that I gave up on you."
Sasuke grabbed his hands and squeezed them, feeling Naruto squeezing back after a second. "I'm sorry you had to be the one to put an end to him, but I'm glad you didn't give up," he whispered and kissed Naruto's temple, the part he could reach. "You're incredibly strong, Naruto, don't ever forget that."
Naruto's derisive scoff had Sasuke clucking his tongue, using his hold on Naruto to shake him gently. "No, you really are. I don't know anyone else who could go through so much pain and still come out on top. You lost so many people and yet you're still fighting, you didn't give up. You never give up. Even I lost it after mother died, but you managed to keep yourself together even after losing Gaara. You're so incredibly strong, Naruto. You keep fighting every day and that's something I admire about you."
"I wanted to give up today, though," Naruto interjected bitterly. "Even though I have you, I actually considered giving up. I'm not as strong as you think I am."
"You didn't give up, though," Sasuke refuted immediately. "You thought about it, but you didn't go through with it, which shows how strong you are."
"Maybe," Naruto muttered.
It was clear he didn't believe Sasuke, but that was fine. They had time to make Naruto realise how strong he truly was. Most people, if not everyone, had moments when they wanted to give up. That was human. Their world had turned to absolute bullshit, so it would be weird if nobody wanted to give up. Deciding to keep living, however, especially during those moments when one felt lost was what separated the strong willed people from the weak ones. Sasuke wouldn't allow anyone to call Naruto weak, not even Naruto himself. If Naruto wasn't considered strong for pushing through in spite of everything, what did that make of the rest of them then?
"I've got food," Karin announced softly, entering the rundown cottage. She held a large bowl in her hands; three pair of chopsticks clenching against it. "Beans and rice. Didn't really dare to try to catch anything tonight, sorry."
"It's fine," Sasuke reassured her. He wasn't that hungry anyways, but they needed to eat.
She cast a look at Naruto, who slowly straightened up, staring at the bowl with dull eyes. "I checked our surroundings; couldn't find any zombies. I hung up the rope with the cans, though, just in case."
It was rather primitive, using a rope with empty cans as a warning system, but it had also proven to be quite effective against both zombies and other people.
They were halfway through the bowl when Naruto asked subdued, "I know this isn't a vacation, but can we leave a bit later tomorrow? I'd like to bury Gaara before we move on."
Sasuke and Karin exchanged a look. While she had been pissed at the beginning, now there was nothing but understanding and sympathy in her eyes.
"Sure, we can do that," Sasuke agreed.
Burying Gaara might give Naruto some closure hopefully. Sasuke and Karin could take care of the other zombies in the meantime. Taking a bit of time for that wouldn't hurt their run that much.
Karin took up the first watch of the night. Sasuke had offered to be the one to take up the first watch, considering she had had to deal with the last remaining zombies, but she had waved off the suggestion.
"I don't mind, it's a pretty nice night. Besides," she'd said, glancing at Naruto, "he needs you now."
So she settled herself somewhere outside the decrepit cottage while Sasuke and Naruto prepared their sleeping bags. They laid them out against the wall which showed the least amount of cracks and settled next to each other; their weapons nearby just in case. Aware of the gaze lingering at the side of his face, Sasuke turned onto his side, meeting Naruto's eyes. Naruto had been quiet ever since his request during dinner. Now his hand reached out and curled around Sasuke's neck, gently tugging him closer. Sasuke followed the tug until their bodies pressed together; only their layer of clothes and their sleeping bags acting as a barrier.
He didn't have long to question what Naruto wanted; as soon as he was close enough, dry lips pressed against his. A soft noise of surprise escaped Sasuke, but he kissed him back, resting his own hand on Naruto's side, curving around it. He allowed Naruto to coax open his mouth; their tongues meeting each other midway. The sleeping bags rustled like a hushed whisper when Naruto shifted, rolling on top of Sasuke. He hadn't zipped his sleeping bag shut yet, so he rolled out of the bag easily. Their mouths stayed connected, their kiss deepening and Sasuke placed his hands on Naruto's hips. Naruto straddled his lap, his legs clamping Sasuke's thighs between them. A light shock went through Sasuke when one of his hands was grabbed and boldly pressed on Naruto's arse instead. Feeling oddly intoxicated by their kissing, Sasuke started almost absently squeezing one of Naruto's arse cheeks; the supple flesh easily moulding to his hand through the jeans. The blond's moan reverberated against Sasuke's lips; his hips rocking forwards, making Sasuke inhale sharply.
Naruto broke their kiss, only for his lips to carve out a hot path across Sasuke's cheek, going down to mouth at his jaw. It was when the zipper of his sleeping bag went down and a warm hand slipped underneath his shirt, touching bare skin, that Sasuke grabbed Naruto by his shoulders to push him back.
Naruto's eyes popped open, staring down at him confused. His face was mostly shrouded in the shadows; some moonlight spilling through the gaps in the roof, offering just enough light for Sasuke to read his face.
"What's wrong?" Naruto asked; sounding a bit breathless.
Sasuke smiled faintly, taking deep breaths to calm himself down. "Not really a comfortable place to do it," he murmured as explanation, though in all honesty he was more worried about Naruto's current state of mind.
He normally was quite enthusiastic about having sex with Naruto, but doing it now just didn't feel right at all. Not only because Karin was just outside, not only because this was nothing but some dingy four walls and a broken roof, but because Naruto was too fragile right now. Fucking him a scant mere hours after he'd been forced to kill his best friend who had been about to take a bite out of him? Yeah no, not a good idea. It had been one thing to have sex with him after that shitfest in that town with the priestess, – even if doing that had been probably somewhat dubious as well – but doing it now didn't feel right at all.
Naruto cocked his head to the right and looked behind him. When he turned to look at Sasuke again, he smiled bemused. "I can be quiet if that's what you're worried about," he said teasingly and bent down as if to continue their kiss.
Sasuke braced his hands against his shoulders, keeping him suspended above him. This time Naruto frowned, looking a bit lost.
"I don't think this is a good idea now, Naruto," Sasuke said quietly. "Not after what hap- "
"I think it's a great idea," Naruto cut him off flippantly; his lips thinning. On either side of Sasuke's shoulders, his hands curled into loose fists.
"Nope, it's really not," Sasuke said, eyeing him carefully. He wasn't afraid that Naruto would lash out, but he didn't want this to devolve into an argument either.
Naruto bared his teeth. "I'm not weak, so stop looking at me like that," he hissed. He took a deep breath, gazing up at the ceiling for a moment before he stared down at Sasuke again. "I just want to think about some-"
"Something else? Yes, I know," Sasuke finished his sentence. He had already guessed that from the way Naruto had been so insistent on kissing him. It appeared that Naruto liked to deal with trauma by trying to fuck it out of himself, but Sasuke refused to give in this time.
It already hadn't been such a good idea to have sex with him right after they had left that shithole behind, but now with Naruto still raw from meeting Gaara again? Maybe having sex would let Naruto hide from the event for a while, but it would catch up to him eventually and when it did, it would hit him hard and fast and it would be ugly. Naruto had already proven before that he didn't really give a shit about himself, so it was up to Sasuke to take care of him instead. If that meant having Naruto be pissed with him … Well, so be it.
"I don't think you're weak either, we've talked about this before," he continued when Naruto just scowled at him. "And I know you want to forget about what happened today, but you know very well that doing this will just come back to bite you in the arse in the future."
If it hadn't already been obvious that Naruto was still feeling off kilter, then his lack of a stupid joke regarding Sasuke's last comment made it very clear that he wasn't all there now.
"I just don't want to think about him anymore," Naruto mumbled; his voice so small it was barely audible.
Sasuke's chest squeezed painfully together and he clasped his arms around Naruto's shoulders, tugging him down so he was sprawled out on top of him. Naruto went down willingly and once there was no sign anymore of resistance, Sasuke rolled them onto their sides, keeping the other man pressed against him.
"I know," he whispered and kissed Naruto's forehead, feeling fists bury themselves into his shirt. "I'm here, okay? I'm not leaving you. I'm right here."
It took a long time before Naruto's shoulders would stop shaking.
"Sorry we left you to deal with the last ones yesterday," Sasuke sighed, dragging another dead body to the pile.
Karin straightened up, quickly brushing her hair out of her face. "It's fine. That red haired guy – he was close with Naruto-kun, right?" She nibbled on her lip before bending down and dragging the body of an elderly man to the others. "I mean, I've never seen him freeze up like that before, though granted, it's not like I've been out with him that often."
"His best friend," he murmured.
She winced. "Shit," she said eloquently.
He snorted. Shit indeed. He stepped back once they finished gathering all the zombies in a large pile. They had briefly considered throwing some petrol over them to quicken the burning process, but they were reluctant to lose any amount of petrol, no matter how small. Instead, as fuel, they would use dead branches and leaves to set them on fire.
"That's really shitty luck, you know," she commented, staring at the amassed zombies. "Encountering your dead best friend here."
"We know zombies travel around," he sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "But yeah, it's just awful luck to find him here."
Perhaps he should have realised something like this was likely to happen after they had found Naruto's bike back on that road, but who would have really expected Gaara to have found his way here right when they were passing by? Fate had a twisted sense of humour in that regard.
They collected all the dead branches they could find, together with a bunch of leaves which had fallen off, and stuffed them between the dead bodies. Karin grabbed a box of matches from her backpack and struck a match. Once it lit up, she flicked it onto the pile before striking a second, a third and a fourth one, dividing the matches over the pile. The flames started out small at first before they grew bigger, coming together in one big greedy fire that started eating away at the dead bodies.
"Go on," Karin said, jerking her head in the direction Naruto had gone off to earlier. "I'll pack our remaining bags in the car and wait for you two there."
"All right, thanks," he said and turned away from the burning bodies.
Naruto had offered to help them get rid of the zombies, but they had both waved him off, Sasuke reassuring him that he could take care of Gaara instead. Naruto hadn't been able to properly say goodbye the first time, so he deserved the chance to lay Gaara decently to rest now. It wasn't as if he and Karin had never got rid of zombies before either. Sure, the group had been a lot bigger than the ones they had disposed of before, but it was business as usual in a morbid way.
There was a small path that led Sasuke from the field to a small clearing a bit deeper into the woods. A few years ago this path had probably been used a lot by people wanting to enjoy a day in the woods. Now it was overgrown with weed and dead twigs, the occasionally squished berry the only splash of colour.
He heard Naruto before he saw him and he slowed down to a stop, lingering at the end of the path. Naruto was hunched down in the middle of the small clearing, sitting in front of an upturned rock. The earth was turned over, forming a mini mountain almost: a fresh grave. Naruto was wearing a jacket Sasuke didn't recognise until he realised it must have belonged to Gaara. Hadn't Gaara been wearing a jacket when he'd approached Naruto? Sasuke was pretty sure he had.
"… that I almost gave up," Naruto was saying; his quiet voice drifting over to where Sasuke stood. "I shouldn't have even thought about it, not after everything you did for me, but I just … I miss you. I miss mum and dad and Jiraiya. I miss Temari-nee-chan, Kankuro. I miss you."
A shuddering breath. Naruto's arm came up to wipe over his face. "But I promise I won't give up again anymore. Especially not when I've got someone to think of now." He shifted his weight a bit. "I found a place to stay at actually. Been staying there for several months now. It's … nice. Nearly got killed after pissing off an old dude," he huffed in wry amusement, "but well, you know me. Still am alive, obviously."
He was quiet for a couple of seconds. "And like I said, I've got someone to keep me here. I think you would have either liked each other or butted heads every time." He laughed softly. "You two are kind of similar, actually. Both overprotective as fuck, man."
Sasuke rolled his eyes. Perhaps if a certain blond man didn't always land himself in trouble …
"I'm sorry I wasn't able to save you," Naruto continued and his voice quietened down again. He reached out to touch the stone. "After all you did for me … Don't worry, though, I'll get her eventually."
He stood up, stuck his hands in the pockets of the jacket. "In the meantime take care of yourself and the others up there, okay? I'll be fine. I'm not alone anymore."
He turned around then; his eyes lightening up when they landed on Sasuke. He smiled wryly and walked over to Sasuke. "Did I take that long? Sorry about that," he said ruefully, rubbing the bridge of his nose.
"Don't worry about it," Sasuke instantly replied and grabbed Naruto's hand, slotting their fingers together. "You ready to go?"
Naruto turned his head to look at the grave. The rock was a big and unevenly shaped, resembling something like a triangle if one looked long and hard enough. There was something edged into the surface of it, most likely Gaara's name. With the way the daylight dappled through the leaf roof, the scene had an almost serene touch to it.
When Naruto turned back, he looked determined. "Yeah, come on, let's go. We've got a hospital to raid."
AN2: Naruto is safe (for now)! Just a reminder for you all to not relax completely until I've posted the last chapter because everything can still happen ;)
Please leave your thoughts behind in a review; should you spot any mistakes, please point them out to me.
I hope to see you all back in the next chapter! Please stay safe and take care of yourselves!
Cuddles
Melissa
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The Long Run