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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“Um, hello, Miss Sakura,” Lee could feel the heat in his cheeks, so he knew they were turning red. Of course that was making him flush worse. He stepped into the doorway of what used to be a natural-health store in the mall, but has since been converted into Sakura’s medical station. She had raided all possible medical supplies she could find, and was doing regular checks on each of the survivors to make sure they weren’t experiencing any flu-like symptoms. Since no one was entirely sure how the virus spread- aside from biting- it was a safety precaution as well as research for her to examine everyone.

The medic looked up and raised her brows in surprise. “Oh, those are pretty, Lee.”

Lee had found the mall’s flower store, and had collected all the roses he could find that weren’t already wilted and dying since the outbreak. There had been just over a dozen in a refrigerator at the back of the shop. He had even tied a bow around their stems, but now he worried that he had overdone it and was coming on too strong. These things always occurred to him when it was too late!

“What are they for?” she asked, looking back down at her notebook and making a couple of pen marks. She gestured for him to take a seat, just as Tenten was getting up. They’d already finished Tenten’s check up. She winked at Lee as she passed him in the doorway and gave him a knowing smile, which almost made him swallow his tongue with embarrassment.

“I just, um, found them. Some of them are pink and they made me think of your hair- so- um! C-can I set them somewhere?” Lee realized he was acting like a dork, so he settled for closing his loud mouth and smiling. It probably wasn’t helping the situation however, because his smile was too wide and looked uncomfortable on his face.

Sakura glanced up at him and nodded, gesturing to the far coffee table. “It looks like there were some flowers in that vase, but they’re dead by now. You can replace them if you want.”

“Th-thanks.” Lee put his head down and walked stiffly over to the vase, and switched out the flowers. He threw the old ones in a nearby trash bin.

“How’s your breathing? Any sign of congestion?” Sakura asked, setting down her pen as she shuffled her papers together neatly. All of the survivors in the mall had a file here for a record of their health. If anyone suddenly became infected, she’d have to see what prompted it. Sakura slipped the papers in her drawer before facing her visitor. “Thank you for the flowers,” she added.

“You are welcome.” Lee took a seat put his hands on his lap, watching Sakura as she organized her papers appropriately. He smiled widely, hoping that he hadn’t gone overboard after all. Maybe he could even pull out the haiku he’d written for her... “I have not had any problems with my breathing. In fact, all this practice with running has helped me build my stamina, and I do not get stitches in my sides as often as I used to.”

“Hmm, that’s good. I’m worried about this coming winter, but we should be okay as long as there are blankets and coats for everyone.” Sakura cocked her head to the side as she pulled out Lee’s file, her long bangs falling down her cheeks as she noted down Lee’s remarks. “You and the rest of the teams that go out often need to take good care of yourselves. I’m not having another Naruto incident on my hands.” Glancing up at Lee, she blinked at the wide smile on his face before meeting it with her own.

“Sorry for the lecture. When I’m in the clinic I don’t usually have social visits. Was there anything you wanted?” she asked.

“Yes! Um,” Lee paused, twiddling his thumbs while his mind raced. She was smiling at him! That had to be a good sign, right? Right! He should tell her what his intentions were. Maybe even ask her on a date! She’d liked the flowers after all. Lee took a deep breath, then sat straight up in his chair and gave her a bright thumbs-up. “I promise to protect you with my life! I am glad that we met, even if it is because of the zombie outbreak!”

Sakura’s mouth parted slightly in shock and her cheeks flushed in a mix of embarrassment and alarm. She hadn’t expected to receive a confession when they were in the middle of surviving the epidemic! A bout of silence fell as the woman fidgeted with the folder in front of her, broken when she cleared her throat. “I’m flattered you feel that way, Lee. You’re a really nice guy.” She ran her fingers through her hair before turning to the other man. Lee wasn’t handsome the way her ex-es were or even her type. But he still held on to the same morals she did, probably even more. And he was sweet.

A look of decisiveness came to her eyes when the reality of the outbreak came to mind again. “Look, I like you. You’ve been a good friend since you came. Maybe it’s too early for anything else? I’d like to get to know you more though.”

“O-of course, Miss Sakura.” Lee’s posture wilted, and his thumbs-up dropped as his broad smile melted. He must have said too much after all. But it wasn’t a total rejection, right? She called him a nice guy, and it wasn’t unreasonable to want to get to know each other better. They would have plenty of opportunities here in the mall to do that. Lee tried not to look too down-hearted as he clasped his hands on his lap and glanced at the flowers on the other side of the room. “I understand completely. If you need me for anything, I promise I will be there.”

“Thank you, Lee,” Sakura said, feeling bad for causing Lee’s downcast expression. But even if Lee wasn’t proposing anything yet, it was a relief to know that he wasn’t going to push her to respond to whatever feelings he had. Tentatively, she reached out and patted Lee’s clasped hands. “Tell you what. Join Naruto, Sai and me for lunch. You can bring some of your friends too. It would be good for all of us to spend time together outside of planning our next food run.”

Lee perked immediately, rejection dismissed for now. He smiled and took Sakura’s hand, squeezing. He was surprised by the callouses he felt on the pads of her palm and fingers. It only strengthened his opinion of Sakura as someone reliable and hard working, earning her more respect and admiration in his eyes.

“That is a brilliant idea! You are an angel. Everyone in the mall should be spending more time together anyway, to get to know each other and strengthen our bonds outside of survival needs!” Not to mention that this almost kinda sounded like a date, or at least in the ballpark of one, despite the company they would have. “I will try to bring Tenten and Mr. Sabaku. Maybe even Miss Hinata, if she isn’t busy with Kiba again.”

Sakura smiled at Lee kindly and pulled her hand back with a twitch in her lips. He shouldn’t have held her hand without warning! But just as it was too soon to date anyone in their safe house, it was too soon for her to unleash her inner self on him. Besides, Lee was an unconscious flatterer. “Alright, we’ll meet at the atrium by noon. Don’t be late!”

Stressing her last sentence with a finger pointing at Lee sternly, she relaxed in her seat and picked up Lee’s file. “Now about your last check-up...”

“So this guy calls me and keeps telling me that his internet’s broken. I ask him if his modem is on and he tells me to quit making up stuff and fix his computer for him.” Naruto laughed, nearly spilling the last dregs of his bowl of instant noodles on those beside him. Apparently a former customer care specialist for a large computer firm, he had a lot of funny stories that lifted the mood throughout the whole lunch. “Then there was this other caller who couldn’t ‘click’ his files because he didn’t even have his monitor set up.”

While everyone chuckled in the small group, Hinata was already packing away the empty containers with Sakura going around and passing plastic cups of water.

“That was the best meal I’ve had in weeks.” Tenten sighed in satisfaction after chugging down her cup of water. She clapped Lee’s shoulder, glancing at Sakura then back at her friend with a grin. “You owe me a story on what happened. You’ve been sneaking glances at her all afternoon,” she murmured.

Gaara tilted his head towards the two, looking at them from the corner of his eyes. How anyone could think of finding a partner in this situation, he couldn’t imagine. “Are you dating her now?” He put in without bothering to lower his voice. Sipping his cup of water, he gathered the leftover containers and handed them to Hinata, nodding at the girl’s smile.

Lee made a choking noise into his water and hunched his shoulders with mortification. He coughed roughly and swallowed, shaking his head vehemently as he glanced between his friends. “Uh, I am-” Lee coughed again and cleared his throat, throwing and embarrassed glance at Sakura when she looked at him only a few feet away. He ducked his head to hide his blush as he replied in a hush. “No, I am not! I will, um, explain in a bit.”

Tenten snickered at her friend’s expense, but patted his back while he coughed and pulled his cup out of his hands to keep him from spilling it until he was done. She passed her dishes to Hinata with a grin of appreciation. “I think we’ll have to get together like this more often. It was fun! But now I think we have a few things to take care of today, so we’ll get going.”

“Next time I want to hear about some of the news stories you guys covered!” Naruto piped up, standing and brushing off his legs as he spoke. “If you’ve got any celebrity dirt, I wanna hear it!”

“That wasn’t quite our forte, but we’ll try to give you an interesting story.” Tenten stood and gestured to her friends to join her toward their section of the mall. Hinata walked away with Sakura to finish clean up, while Naruto and Sai began bickering about whose shift it was to cover the radio broadcast. Lee stood and followed Tenten, wishing his cheeks weren’t so red as he watched Sakura walking out of the corner of his eye.

Gaara followed quietly after the two as they headed into the east wing of the mall, then down to the second floor. They’d all chosen specific spots in the mall where groups of three stayed at. They ended up close-knit within their groups while keeping their numbers spread out just enough to keep watch. Since their group joined the survivors at the mall, they’d been able to clear out the upper floors and supermarket. Gaara, Lee and Tenten stayed close together, assigned a place where Gaara had room to swing his clubs in case zombies got past the wire fence and the doors in front.

The redhead listened as Tenten began ribbing Lee once they were out of earshot. “Okay now spill. Did she fall for your manly charms and bright white grins?” Tenten nudged Lee with her elbow. “We want to know everything, right Mr. Sabaku?” She leaned back and hooked an arm around the redhead, bringing him closer between her and Lee.

“I have no interest in them fucking.” Gaara deadpanned, uncomfortable with Tenten’s handling. It reminded him of Temari on her good days.

Tenten’s cheeks flushed and she looked away quickly. “Ugh not like that.” Tenten wrinkled her nose and pressed a fist against her mouth to stifle the snorts, knowing how this must be killing Lee inside. “Besides, Lee’s not exactly the type to have sex so soon.”

“No, never!” Lee slapped his hand against his face, red to the ears with embarrassment. He defended himself indignantly. “That is not my intention! The youthful flowering of love is something pure and wonderful, not full of- of- selfish and ignorant lust! That is not what I feel for Miss Sakura.”

“You’ve always been the romantic type.” Tenten rolled her eyes knowingly. “So? Seriously, how’d it go?”

“She liked the flowers I gave her, so I thought it was a good sign and I confessed. She did not accept my feelings completely, but she did not reject me either.” He ducked his head, smiling with hopeful optimism. “I think she was surprised. She made a good point about just getting to know each other for a while, and I did not want to overwhelm her, so I did not share my poetry after all.”

“Poetry won’t get you anywhere,” Gaara put in, pulling out of Tenten’s hold but keeping the pace between the two. Turning his head to face the taller man, he felt his throat constrict briefly before speaking words someone had told him not so long ago. “You’re thinking in movie standards. I’ve never met anyone who did those things in real life. If you’d asked her right upfront she might have said yes.”

Tenten’s eyebrows raised at Gaara’s uncharacteristic advice, but laughed it off and poked Lee’s side from behind. “Well it’s good that she didn’t reject you. No matter what Mr. Sabaku says, I still think it was a sweet gesture. I heard that she’d been asked out a lot before...before it hit, but only had one steady boyfriend. She doesn’t talk about it much.” Tenten’s eyes unfocused for a moment. It couldn’t be helped, but it hurt to be constantly reminded of what was lost when the epidemic hit.

They’d reached the small cluster of shops situated at a circular dead end where mattresses were laid out. Gaara went ahead of the others and curled up in one of the sofas they’d placed around their area, crossing one leg wide over the other. Next to him was a table with a pile of books and a mechanical crossbow laid out on top.

Lee plopped down onto his mattress, criss-crossing his legs and sitting up with a thoughtful look on his face. “I can believe that Miss Sakura was very popular. She is very pretty! And she is smart, and I cannot imagine why anyone would dislike her.” Lee pulled a slip of paper out of his pocket and unfolded it, fidgeting with it in his hands. His cherry red blush had finally died down to a fond dusting of pink on his cheeks. “I just want to show her my youthful intentions. Meeting someone like her right now of all times, in the middle of such disaster is like finding springtime in a barren desert!”

Tenten held out her hand with a knowing grin, gesturing to the paper. “Can I see?”

Lee handed it to her without hesitation, smiling with shy pride. “It is just a haiku.”

“Pretty Sakura,” Tenten read out loud slowly. “Your pretty hair makes me think... Of pretty flowers.”

Gaara’s eyes lidded in unspoken exasperation. This wasn’t the first time Lee voiced his attraction to the pink-haired girl. “This isn’t the right time to start a relationship with anyone,” he said levelly, picking up the crossbow and polishing its surface. One of the stores they were next to was a hobby shop. A hunting hobby shop that is. And the three of them had been learning how to handle different, less noisy weapons.

“Aww, don’t say that,” Tenten chided. She smiled and handed the poem back to Lee. “It’s simple but carries the point across. If you want, I could ask her what she thinks of you. It’s the least I could do for my best friend.” Thinking out loud, she glanced over at Gaara. “By the way, I’ve noticed how you’re much nicer to Hinata than to anyone else.”

Lee tucked his haiku back into his pocket and turned his attention toward Gaara. The redhead was always naturally negative, but Lee had gotten used to it by now and liked to think that Gaara’s responses were automatic and he didn’t mean every word.

“Miss Hinata is a very sweet girl,” Lee said, smiling in approval. “What do you think of her, Mr. Sabaku? Is she the kind of girl you have dated in the past?”

Gaara lifted the crossbow scope to eye level, aiming it at a target hanging on the far wall. “Hinata needs to learn how to protect herself. She’s kind, but still ignorant of many things.” He fired the bolt, hitting the outer ring of the target to his disappointment. “I’ve never dated anyone like her.” He reset the hinge and set it back down on top of the books. One of these days, he’d be able to shoot the middle on the first try. Rolling his shoulders back, he regarded Lee and Tenten with a quiet intensity in his eyes. “I’ve never dated women.”

Eyes widening slightly, Tenten blanched at Gaara’s reply. “You’ve never dated anyone? Wow, I’m surprised! I thought girls were all over you.” And, she thought, Gaara was in the realm of ‘edgy, handsome, and very pretty.’ The quiet, broody type that women of all ages tended to mother, whatever their stand on feminism was.

Simply shrugging one shoulder, Gaara licked his dry lips and plucked a book from the pile. “Hinata’s not my type,” he said, leaving Tenten to her assumptions.

Lee sat up and raised his bushy brows in surprise. “I thought you would have had a girlfriend before. You do not seem to me like the kind of guy who would date many different people unless you honestly liked them, but you are really attractive and smart, so I thought there might have been some girl who wanted to be with you.”

“There was. Were. They weren’t my type,” Gaara said, fingering the thin book spine and looking for the fold he’d made earlier. He was already at the chapter detailing the right conditions to fire a crossbow; the redhead planning to put theory into action as soon as he could.

Tenten scratched her temple in confusion. She wasn’t going to give up on this line of conversation though. It was rare for Gaara to entertain this much questioning, even if Lee told her the other man opened up to him once. “Okay...I hope you let them down easy, Mr. Sabaku. So what is your type?”

Gaara had a small stiff frown and a strange look on his face that settled back into stoicism. Their questioning was starting to irritate him. “Someone who can understands boundaries,” he replied, glancing up from the book and frowning at Tenten. “A man prepared to die for his beliefs.”

There was a short pause, then Lee jumped in his seat with a loud “Oh!” of understanding as he registered what Gaara had said. No wonder Gaara had said that he hadn’t dated any women.

“Well, those are noble things to look for in another person.” Lee put a hand on his chin thoughtfully and tucked his pillow onto his lap. “Although I suppose a person like that would be more difficult to find than someone such as Hinata. During a time like this though, those people will stick out now more clearly than ever.”

Lee flopped back on his mattress, still holding his pillow against his stomach as he stared up at the ceiling tiles and mused out loud, his voice hopeful and his expression romantic. “Maybe it is just movie standards in the end, but I believe that love will always find a way. It may take hard work to see it through is all. You may still meet a man who understands your boundaries and has passionate beliefs.”

Gaara snorted and went back to reading. Relationships were the least of his priorities now. He firmly believed that Lee’s crush on Sakura would only breed heartache if something happens to her. He just didn’t know if he’d be willing to stick around when it did.

A cloud of dust rose up as Gaara finished loading another box of canned goods on their cart. Dusting his hands and sneezing a few times, he followed after Hinata to the next aisle.

“Shikamaru said the generator’s almost out. We need to get as many supplies in the upper floors as possible,” Hinata chirped as she made a note on her pad. She had her long hair tied in a ponytail, and Gaara could see the mild sheen of sweat forming on the back of her neck. She was being brave in front of him, but they could both hear the banging and moaning outside the supermarket doors. The undead had redoubled their efforts when they saw the two moving inside. “Do you think anyone would want chips?”

“Choji would,” Gaara said, heading into the next aisle first and sweeping the row of cans into a duffel bag. He eyes darted towards the doors every so often. If the fiberglass broke, he was ready to grab Hinata and make a run for the back door. “We should hurry. Pick only the most important items on your list and we’ll do another run next time.”

“O-Okay.” Hinata gripped her pad tightly and let out a frightened squeak when there was a particularly loud bang on the doors.

Both made quick work of what they could carry and load in the service cart. Gaara was silently thankful that they’d cleared this place of walkers and bodies long ago, though the floors were still dirty with dried blood. Just as Hinata reached the drinks section, she turned around to call the redhead. Gaara felt an icy panic when he saw her feet skid on the melting ice from the refrigerators and Hinata slipping backwards onto the metal edge of the fridge.

There was no time to think as he dropped everything, running quickly over the tiles and sliding onto his knees to grab her arms. The motion propelled them around until Gaara’s back hit the floor with a painful thud and Hinata’s forehead snapped against his chin.

Hardly a second passed before Kiba swung around the corner of the isle, drawn by the crashing sound of fallen cans and the hearty thump from their landing. He’d been standing in a place where he could see the primary doors and the zombies outside, acting as guard and look out while Gaara and Hinata collected supplies. When he saw Hinata in Gaara’s arms, he rushed quickly down the aisle in panic and wide eyes. His nostrils flared.

“Hinata?! What happened, are you okay?” He leaned over the two, reaching out as if to take her from Gaara.

Hinata pushed up from where she’d landed on Gaara and cringed when her forehead throbbed. “I’m...I’m fine, Kiba. I think I slipped--” When she opened her eyes and found Gaara staring up at her through pained slits, she blushed and quickly got to her feet. “I’m so sorry!” she cried, turning pink.

Groaning faintly, Gaara sat up and rubbed at his chin, blinking his eyes at the ringing in his ears. Hinata’s apologies were too high-pitched and had him reaching out to hold her wrist. “Stop. It wasn’t your fault,” he said, pushing himself up. A quick assessment of Hinata had him exhaling in relief at the lack of any wounds. There would probably be bruises, but she wouldn’t be getting infected from the dried blood on the floor. “Calm down.”

“Thank goodness.” Ever since they’d lost Shino, Kiba had developed a protectiveness over Hinata that bordered on overreaction most of the time. He wrapped his arms around her and squeezed tightly. His heart was still thumping in panic. The groans and thuds against the windows from the zombies wasn’t doing anything to help calm his nerves either. “Try to be more careful, okay? It freaks me out when I see you in some other guy’s arms. I’m the only one who can hold you like that, alright?”

Kiba’s words were almost teasing, except for the serious, stern glare he gave Gaara from over Hinata’s shoulder.

“I’m sorry. I’ll try to be more careful next time.” Hinata said, relieved to find her tone shaking only once. Her knees and forehead ached from catching her weight on Gaara, but Kiba’s concern for her and Gaara’s hand on her wrist heightened the situation. She and Kiba couldn’t afford to lose each other the way they’d lost Shino. Gently squeezing Kiba back, she murmured, “It’s okay. I’m okay. Gaara caught me.”

Gaara let go of Hinata’s hand when Kiba’s gaze narrowed at him. Kiba’s protectiveness gave him a sick feeling in his stomach at how much he could empathize with it. The bump to his head didn’t help matters, and he spoke to the other man in a quiet voice. “She won’t survive long on her own if she keeps relying on other people. And you can’t always be there to protect her.”

Hinata’s back stiffened at his harsh words, the girl looking over her shoulder with hurt and surprise. “Please don’t say that. I can take care of myself too.”

Kiba’s arms tightened and his nostrils flared at Gaara lividly. “Don’t say shit like that. You sound like an ass. Everyone here relies on each other.”

Finally unwinding himself from Hinata, Kiba picked up one of the fallen bags and began stuffing cans into it quickly. He avoided the ones that had gotten covered in old blood, but the others they could clean later just to be safe. “If every person here could only take care of themselves, we’d have all died by now.”

Hinata hesitated, then followed suit and picked up another bag to fill. Outside, the groans seemed to get louder as more zombies gathered around the windows.

That hadn’t been what Gaara intended or meant to say. Lips thinning, he felt like he was back in high school when he couldn’t relate with anyone. “If you care about her, then teach her how to fight. Or I’ll do it myself,” he said, walking away from the two to get their abandoned service cart.

Stressed by the tension between the boys and the aches she still felt, Hinata withdrew into silence and just quickened her movements.

Kiba stewed to himself as he quickly collected food stuffs and stacked the bags in the cart. He occasionally paused to take a look at each of the exits and the windows, still acting as guard while he tried to speed up their work. His eyes were narrowed in stress and frustration.

Why did Gaara have to spend so much time around Hinata? Kiba hadn’t tried to stop the two from spending time together, since Hinata was a grown woman and could make her own decisions without needing his permission, but to be honest it pissed him off sometimes. Gaara was too cold to be around someone as soft hearted as Hinata. He kept saying things that would upset her, such as the comment about her survival, or asking about the packs after losing Shino.

When the cart was finally full, they pushed it toward one of the doors quickly. While Hinata guided the way, Kiba stepped up and put an arm around her shoulder. He momentarily pretended Gaara wasn’t there. “You’re already really strong, Hinata. We’ll keep practicing and make sure we keep in shape.”

“Thanks Kiba.” Hinata’s eyes were downcast and haunted, but there was a stiffness in her movements as they hustled up towards the mall. “But Gaara’s right. l-I can’t be a burden to anyone. I need to be stronger.” She looked up at Kiba and her lower lip trembled. If Kiba was in trouble, she didn’t think she would be able to fight off any zombies attacking him or even hold her own. Not even her long time friend knew that she had nightmares of Shino’s death and woke up with a cold sweat and her voice caught in her throat.

She glanced back at the redhead, simultaneously saddened by his attitude and admiring his firm pragmatism. Kiba always protected her, always hid the world’s problems from her. It had been refreshing to find someone who didn’t sugarcoat anything, who was brutally honest with everyone.

“Can you teach me how to handle a weapon?” she asked quietly, looking back at Kiba.

Kiba’s eyes widened, then tightened. He took a breath, flashed an irritated glare over his shoulder at Gaara, then squeezed Hinata’s shoulders with a nod.

“Yeah,” he said, letting go of her and stepping forward to hold open a door. “I’ll teach you to use a weapon. We’ll pick out a couple, and we’ll see which suits you best. If I don’t do it, you’ll probably go running to Gaara, anyway.” The last comment was petulant, but resigned.

Gaara was silent throughout their exchange, but satisfied with their decision. The more people they had who could fight, the higher their chances of surviving. They were living in a cliche where you either killed or be killed by the undead.

“Do you really think anyone’s alive in there?” Tenten whispered as she, Lee and Gaara peered from the roof of the adjacent building. Below them was a whole school yard full of zombies walking around or some, almost comically, knocking into objects around the place. They were high school students who’d been trapped inside the locked fence surrounding the yard while the undead and the virus infected them one by one. It was a horrible sight to digest, but their main mission was more important.

Someone had activated the fire alarm in the school, and almost as quickly shut it off like it had been an accident. Naruto sent out their team the minute they were ready to investigate.

Gaara scanned the school building itself with binoculars, wishing that they’d found night-vision capable ones instead. It was too dark to see anything this late at night. “The alarm came from the east wing of the school. We’ll have to find a way around the yard that won’t draw the horde.” The school building couldn’t even be reached by jumping from the surrounding roofs.

Lee was crouched a few feet away, studying the property with his eyes characteristically round in the dark. He was resisting the urge to bounce on his heels. He was eager to see if there were any survivors here. If there were, he wanted to help. He didn’t want anyone to be on the run, hurt, or scared when they could be relatively safe at the mall with other people to help them.

“I could draw them upwind along one side of the fence while you sneak downwind around the other side,” he suggested. He still wasn’t sure how the zombies sensed the living, but if it was through smell he was confident that he could lure them one direction while Gaara and Tenten went unnoticed in the other. He pointed down the street. “I can make some noise, too. If I make it to the building on that side quick enough, I think I could climb up the fire escape and find my way back here across the other roofs.”

“I’m better at fending off more than one zombie than you are,” Tenten said, turning and looking at the far building Lee was talking about. The fence would hold back the horde for long enough to make that distance, easy. “You and Gaara are better at forcing your way through to get where you need to. I should be decoy.”

Gaara nodded in agreement with Tenten. “If we find survivors, we’re better equipped to help them out of the building. Tenten’s better at spotting for us.” He cocked his head towards Lee, a brief look of assessment crossing his face. “...If anyone’s hurt, you can aide them while I cover for you on the ground and Tenten from above.” After butting heads with Lee and Tenten on other occasions, he was starting to learn how each of them thought and worked. He was also gaining a new appreciation for their strengths. And their friendship.

Tenten smiled at Gaara’s clever prodding. Hopefully, Lee’s focus on possible survivors would also keep him from doing anything extreme. “It’s 8:45 on my watch,” she murmured, “Anyone alive in there will be wide awake and alert unless they’re hurt. You guys better watch your backs even when you’re past all the zombies.”

Lee paused, and then nodded in agreement. He didn’t like the idea of sending Tenten off on her own, but he had faith in her. She was strong, and she knew how to handle herself under pressure. “We will give you a head start, then go our direction after a moment has gone by, to give the horde time to move.”

Tenten nodded. She gave each of the boys a firm pat on the back, then moved to the far right of the roof and began to lower herself down. Lee stood and went in the other direction, scouting the alley to be sure it was clear before he started to climb down.

Staying close to the other man, Gaara moved as quietly as he could towards the left side of the school. He knew Tenten was mirroring them and hoped nothing would sneak up on her while they were separated.

All of a sudden, there was a sound like glass breaking from Tenten. The woman appeared on the other side of the fence, throwing down empty bottles and cans she somehow got ahold of. The zombies raised their heads at the sound and with groaning, dragging steps, followed after Tenten’s lead.

“Go.” Without sparing a glance at Lee, Gaara dashed around the fenced side of the school and spotted a side door. He headed that way and went with the momentum of his run to ram his body against it. The apparently unlocked door swung open with a bang and ended with Gaara hitting the far wall instead. Teeth clenching, he inhaled deeply and waited for Lee to get inside.

Lee was just half a second behind, and had to throw his arms out to catch himself against the wall next to Gaara, almost crashing into the redhead. Lee huffed, then threw himself back at the door to close it, careful not to slam it and make noise. He turned back to Gaara, but had to squint his eyes. There were no lights on inside the school, so the only way he could see was from the flickering street lamp outside the window.

He forced his breath to slow, trying to be quiet and listen for anyone that might be nearby, alive or otherwise. He could only hear the distant moans and scuffling from outside. He lifted his hands and gestured to Gaara. Where should they go now? They were in.

Gaara’s eyes were wide, trying to see in the dim light. He pointed towards the end of the hall then up. Any living or undead person still inside the school would have heard the door bang open. A quick sweep of each floor would ascertain if there were survivors still inside the building. He assumed a slight crouch and began to creep out in the hallway.

The crossbow on his back was lighter than the bag of golf clubs. Its unfamiliar weight left him feeling vulnerable. Thankfully, there weren’t any zombies visible besides the dead bodies littering the floor. Even if they didn’t find anyone, there had been someone who’d killed those walkers.

Lee nodded in understanding. He pulled out his baseball bat so he’d have it ready if they encountered anything, but he kept light on his feet in case Gaara needed to take the lead. The crossbow would be the most quiet.

They covered the lower floor quickly, peeking through doors and around corners until they’d circled back to the door they’d entered from. They only encountered one stray zombie, and Gaara had taken it down easily at close range. They moved up the stairs slowly, and found the hall at the top empty as well.

“If there are any survivors here, they might have cleared the building,” Lee whispered softly to Gaara as they rounded the corner down another hall. He opened a door with a mathematics plaque, found the room empty, and moved on. “It would explain why the place is so empty-”

Lee opened the next classroom door with a soft click, and swung it open. His eyes widened and his throat caught in shock.

Dozens of eyes turned to face the door and Gaara suddenly realized why the moans still sounded so loud inside the school. The classroom was jam-packed from end to end with the undead.

“Lee.” The redhead grasped the edge of Lee’s arm bandages and rasped softly, “Run.” A moment after both men ran down the hallway to the stairs, the rotting bodies flowed out of the classroom in pursuit, their faces splattered with dried blood, some whose faces were torn or missing skin, jaws, or eyes, decaying flesh slopping, and the sick click of jutting bones against the tiled floor.

Gaara swung around the stair’s banister and searched wildly for a safe place to run to. He didn’t have the arrows or the strength to kill that many, even with Lee by his side. Running down the first floor hall, he suddenly skidded to a stop when he heard moans on the other side of the door they entered from. They were trapped!

Lee’s head whipped around, searching for another way out, but there was no where to go! His heart froze in his chest as he watched the dead pour down the stairs and down the hall after them. Lee swallowed, then grabbed Gaara’s elbow and dragged him toward another door.

“This way!” Lee tore open the door to the janitor’s closet, which had been cracked open, and hurled himself inside, dragging Gaara in with him. The heavy door closed behind them with a loud click of the lock. Seconds later, scratching and thumping sounded against the other side, with the horrible tell-tale moans.

Lee’s heart was thumping so hard it almost hurt, and his lungs heaved. The closet was incredibly small, and crowded with cleaning equipment. Lee had accidentally fallen in a tangle with Gaara, half on top of the other man with their legs twined. Lee lifted himself onto his elbows above the redhead and spoke softly to him. “I am sorry! I... I think we are trapped, Mr. Sabaku.”

Gaara’s hand was gripping the scruff of Lee’s shirt with his elbow pressed tightly against the man’s back, while he had Lee’s arm gripped tightly in the other. The crossbow jutted against his back uncomfortably just as much as Lee’s leg caught between his own. “Quiet.” He whispered, listening to the zombies pounding on the door. When it sounded like the door wouldn’t break down, he grunted and relaxed the rest of his body under Lee’s to conserve energy.

Blinking in the low light, he could just make out Lee’s ridiculous haircut outlined by his dark hair and the glint of his round eyes, probably mirroring his own troubled gaze. Their ragged breath sounded too loud in the enclosed space. “Don’t make a sound.”

“Sorry,” Lee whispered again, then shut his mouth quickly. He shifted, trying to crawl off of Gaara, but quickly found that he couldn’t do so without bumping into the equipment around them and making noise. He held still instead, just ducking his head against Gaara’s shoulder so he could loosen his muscles without laying his entire weight on the other man. His panting slowed, but it still sounded loud in the small space.

Lee was trying not to panic. His chest and stomach were shaking in shock from the adrenalin. He didn’t know what they could possibly do from here to escape. There were too many zombies outside their closet, and they wouldn’t be going anywhere now that they knew Lee and Gaara were on the other side of the door. They could try to wait it out, but what could they possibly be waiting for? Help? Lee sincerely hoped that Tenten wouldn’t come looking for them. She’d only be overwhelmed by the numbers in the school. Lee shifted and tried to unhook his legs from Gaara’s, but only managed to bury his face in the other man’s neck instead of his shoulder.

Gaara’s shoulders tensed at the contact and his breath hitched in surprise. Suddenly the moans weren’t the only thing alarming him. The contact was too intimate, Lee’s body covering his, and he didn’t even want to imagine being stuck here for who knows how long. The hand on the other man’s arm tightened even more with Gaara observing how rough the bandages felt. Lee painstakingly wrapped the gauze around his arms, changing them when they were soiled but never forgetting to keep them on. No matter how much people said it made him look like he cut himself, the man was stubborn even in that with the same hardheaded insistence he employed when voicing his opinion and morals.

Another gust of Lee’s breath brought him back to the present, and Gaara slowly stretched out both legs to give Lee more room to move, hopefully to get his face away from his neck. The pounding was less urgent now, but the steady sound was a reminder not to let his mind wander.

“Can you slide the crossbow out?” He whispered close to Lee’s ear.

Lee shivered, his hair standing on end. He moved his arm, wrapping it around Gaara to reach the crossbow. It was in an awkward position, but he could pull it out. “Yosh, just a second,” he murmured, accidentally pressing his lips against Gaara’s skin while he slowly slid the crossbow out from under the other man. He shifted his legs when Gaara gave him more room, and it helped him move the bow. He finally pulled it free and propped it up against a vacuum cleaner beside them.

“Sorry, Mr. Sabaku,” Lee finally managed to lift his face. He looked down at Gaara, so close that their noses were almost touching. He couldn’t make out Gaara’s eyes in the dark, but he could feel his breath. “I should not have pulled us in here. Maybe it would have been better if we had kept running.”

When the crossbow was finally pulled out, Gaara let out a sigh of relief and rested his back full on the ground. He raised his eyes to meet Lee’s gaze silently, uneasy with the hypersensitivity he was feeling wherever his body touched Lee’s. It was almost impossible to believe that someone could apologize so sincerely when the man probably saved their lives. The hand gripping Lee’s shirt relaxed and slid down to his shoulder unconsciously as Gaara shook his head. “There were zombies outside. You did what you thought was best.” He whispered. “When opportunity comes, we’ll find a way out.”

“Thank you.” Lee had to believe that. Gaara was the one who always had a plan, always took the lead- Lee had to have faith that they would find a way out of this. But, at the same time... he knew it was likely that they would die. His breath shuddered at the thought. They were silent for moment, while the long dragging of bloody fingers scratched at the door.

“I dropped my bat,” Lee realized out loud with regret. He’d dropped it in the hall outside before they’d ducked into the closet.

Gaara’s brows knotted, the feeling of being off-balanced fading with that fact. He’d bent his knees and was about to try and push them both up when the groans outside was joined by a continuous thudding sound and the unmistakable voice of Tenten making a kill. The redhead’s eyes blinked wide and he pounded his fist against the heavy door.

“They must be inside that!” Tenten’s muffled voice called, followed by an unfamiliar young voice replying something intelligible.

In his haste to push them up, Gaara’s leg kicked out at the cleaning materials near their feet and knocked the mops down on the shelf. What followed was a series of clatters and clangs as bottles, rags, and pans rained on them.

Lee yelped and braced himself as the objects fell, smacking him on the back of the head and just about everywhere else as well. He rolled off of Gaara, making more noise as he shoved the mess aside and surged up toward the door. He got to his feet quickly, grabbing a broom and cracking open the door with a hesitant peek. “Tenten...? Are you alright?” Worry seized his chest, but he realized that it was unnecessary as he spotted his friend unharmed, holding his bat in one hand and a bloody crowbar in the other.

There were zombie bodies scattered everywhere, even piled up in some places. There were still walkers on the other side of the windows, but anything indoors seemed to have had its head smashed and broken. Standing in the hall with Tenten, armed with various weapons, were three teenage youths. Two boys and a girl, all covered with blood spatter and panting from the efforts of destroying their undead classmates.

“Do you think we got them all, Konohamaru?” the girl asked in a young voice, wiping sweat from her forehead as she leaned forward with an axe hefted in her hands. It looked like something that would be behind glass in case of an emergency.

“Everyone’s dead. Oh god. Oh god.” A bespectacled boy was muttering with wide eyes. The fire extinguisher he held in a death grip was covered with blood and bits of flesh.

“We did, Moegi.” The last of the group rested the metal pipe on the floor and adjusted the goggles on his eyes. All three of them were skinny and dirty, and had the far-off look on their face of someone who’d killed a zombie.

Getting to his feet, Gaara pushed away the clutter covering him and pushed Lee forward to get the door open all the way. His gaze flicked towards Tenten and the young survivors before grabbing his crossbow and holding it in front of him. “Let’s get out of here. Tenten, stay next to me and provide secondary cover. Lee, stay at the back and make sure we get everyone out alive.”

He didn’t care about knowing who the new additions were, as long as they could keep up with them and hold their own. And if anyone was bitten, well, they’d deal with that later.

The boy with goggles frowned at Gaara’s curt orders. “Don’t think you can just boss us around! Is this one of your friends Tenten?”

“Yes, he is, and you’ll do as he says.” Tenten pointed her crowbar at him pointedly. Judging the look on his face, the kid had seen first hand how powerful the woman could be. He nodded begrudgingly. The boy with glasses and the fire extinguisher shuddered and gripped his weapon tighter, while the young girl nodded and pursed her lips with a curious look at Gaara.

“You kids will be okay,” Lee assured, coming out of the closet behind Gaara and reaching for his bat. Tenten handed it to him with an assessing glance and a nod. He hefted and swung his weapon with practiced ease. “We will take you to a safe place, but you need to stay alert and fend for yourselves along the way. Focus on following Gaara.”

“Fine,” the goggled boy affirmed. He gestured to his friends, seemingly unable to give up a leader’s role altogether. “Moegi, you stay behind me. Udon, you follow at the back. I’ll be right behind Tenten.”

Lee nodded. The group moved down the hall to the exit door, and Lee stepped up to put his hand on the handle. The majority of the zombies outside seemed to be crowding around the windows to look at them, not the door. He could hear some on the other side, but hopefully not too many to avoid. He turned to the group, “I will hold the door and we’ll file out in order, me last. Stay on your feet, and do not jostle anyone on the way out.”

Gaara spared a look at Lee and Tenten, mixed feelings of gratitude and wonder that they were there to back him up. They were really starting to feel like a team now instead of just people thrown into a crisis together. “Stay close.” He added, before turning and leading the group towards the exit swiftly.
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Rot, Another One Bites the Dust