Adult-FanFiction.org : Naruto

Ties that Bind	By : BishounenKrazed Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male > Naruto/Sasuke Views: 2157 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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Hiashi rubbed his forehead then his eyes, trying to wake himself up a little more. He’d been staring at the crime scene photos for hours, trying to find any other clues that could help figure out what the hell had happened. None of the hospitals had admitted any young men with gunshot wounds, so it was looking more and more that Sasuke had either been taken or hadn’t made it to… wherever he might have been going.

Something being set down on his desk had him opening his eyes, and he saw Commander Sarutobi removing his hand from a mug of coffee. The old man smiled sadly at him and nodded at the mug. “Drink up. We need to be alert.”

Hiashi nodded as he reached for the coffee. “What brings you down here, Commander?”

Hiruzen hummed thoughtfully as he leaned against Hiashi’s desk. “In exchange for Minato keeping his mind on the entire police force, as per his position, I promised to help out Homicide. And just so you know, Asuma and the entire S.W.A.T. are awaiting a go from you to take out anyone suspected of killing the Uchihas.”

“Keep your son on a leash, Commander,” someone drawled behind Hiruzen. Both men looked over at Captain Hatake. “Despite everyone’s determination to avenge a fallen brother, Morino and his FID dogs will bury us in red tape if we don’t do this by the book.”

Hiruzen chuckled softly. “Well, Ibiki will only be doing his job, but I will so warn Asuma if it will make you happy, Kakashi.” Hiashi smiled slightly at the thought of Ibiki and Asuma glaring at each other over an interrogation table.

“Happy doesn’t begin to describe it,” Kakashi said drily, giving a quick roll of the eyes as he pushed off from the door jamb of his office against which he’d been leaning with his arms crossed. He walked the few feet to Hiashi’s desk and looked at the pictures splayed out on the top of it. “Nara said you were bothered by the way the shooting played out. Have you seen anything in the pictures that would help you in that regard?”

Hiashi shook his head. “No, sir, I don’t see anything here that I didn’t already make note of at the crime scene.”

“What exactly bothers you?” Hiruzen asked.

Hiashi sighed as he laid a hand on top of a picture of Fugaku’s body. “Above all else, I want to know why Sasuke was only shot once. If this was a hit,” he said, pausing only long enough to deduce the best way to phrase his confusion, “Why was someone left alive?”

“We don’t know if Sasuke is alive,” Kakashi said as he leaned over Hiashi’s shoulder and picked up a picture of the lone casing from Sasuke’s shooting. “But a thought occurred to me earlier while I was going through Uchiha’s open cases.” He paused as his eyes roved over the other pictures on the desk. “There aren’t a whole lot of bad guys out there who would go after Uchiha, for fear of being caught by one side or… the other.”

Hiashi nodded as he realized what Kakashi was hedging around, but specifically not saying. The leaders of the local gangs and their veteran underlings would never go after Fugaku for fear of being caught by a really good cop… or facing the wrath of the really good cop’s brother. But the brazen upstarts of the gangs, the cocky low-level grunts that want to prove themselves… they just might. Smiling at the thought of any kind of lead, no matter how small, Hiashi made a mental note to have Inoichi run through the gang member database for younger associates; young gang members could provide some link to Sasuke.

Kakashi put the photo back down, and Hiashi began to gather them together as he asked, “Did you find anything interesting on the phones and laptops Nara collected?”

Kakashi didn’t immediately answer, and Hiashi noticed the pause, so he glanced up from his desk to ask the question again when Kakashi finally said, “Interesting? Yes. Helpful? No. No strange phone calls or text messages on Uchiha’s phone or his wife’s that would at least give us some path to follow.” Kakashi stood straighter and scratched at his scalp.

Hiashi was going to ask about anything found on Sasuke’s phone, but before he could say anything further, Hiashi’s phone rang. Excusing himself, Hiashi picked up his phone. “Hyuuga.”

“Sir, we’ve received a call from an apartment building reporting blood smears in the elevator and on a tenant’s door. I would have rolled a unit on patrol, but the building is only a few blocks from the Uchihas’ house. I thought it might be important to your case.”

“Yes, thank you. Roll Nara and Yamanaka. I’ll meet them there.”

“Yes, sir.”

He hung up his phone and stood. “I have a possible lead. I’ll keep in touch.” They both nodded at him, their faces grim, and he strode out of the room as he put on his suit jacket. He took the elevator down to the garage and slid into his non-descript vehicle. His phone sounded in his pocket, so he pulled it out to see the message Shikaku had sent him. It was the address to the apartment building. He laughed quietly at himself since he’d overlooked that small detail and pulled out of his spot and sped through the garage.

The building was relatively close to the police station, so he pulled up behind the black and white in about fifteen minutes. Shikaku and Inoichi were waiting for him, and after nodding a greeting, they led the way inside.

“The manager arrived at the leasing office at about half past seven this morning and noticed blood on the front door and in the middle of the corridor,” Inoichi explained, pointing out the marked off places as they walked to the elevator. “Further inspection found blood spatters by the elevator.” The three of them ducked under the yellow tape that cordoned off the right elevator. “There are large smears of blood in the car. An inspection of each floor found more blood on the ninth floor.” Inoichi pressed the button with a gloved finger, and the elevator doors closed as it moved up.

“Where is the manager?” Hiashi asked.

“He’s waiting at the apartment that has the rest of the blood. He said he didn’t want to go in without the police in case there’s a body.”

Hiashi nodded. The elevator slid to a stop, and the doors opened with a low sound. He spotted a man standing at a door down the hallway on the left, and Shikaku and Inoichi led him that way. As they neared, he saw the blood on the door, and there was a dark stain on the carpet in front of it.

“Lieutenant, this is the building manager Tazuna. Sir, this is Lieutenant Hyuuga.”

Tazuna nodded. “Thanks for coming. I didn’t really know what to do when I saw all this blood.”

“You did the right thing. Please open the door.” As Tazuna moved to unlock the door, Hiashi, Shikaku, and Inoichi pulled their guns and held them ready. When he pushed the door open, they motioned for Tazuna to step back and carefully entered the home. They cleared all of the rooms, not finding anything suspicious. They holstered their guns, and Hiashi called for Tazuna to enter. “There’s nothing here. Who lives here?”

Tazuna grunted, seeming relieved that they hadn’t found anything. “This apartment is rented to Naruto Uzumaki.”

Hiashi froze at the name. He looked over at Shikaku and Inoichi, and their faces also wore shocked expressions. Trying to rein in his surprise, Hiashi nodded at Tazuna. “Thank you. Please head downstairs and shut off the elevator so that we can get Forensics over here.” Tazuna nodded and left. “Yamanaka, call the Chief and ask him to get his son here. Nara, go downstairs and wait for him.” Both nodded. Shikaku left the apartment, and Inoichi slipped his phone from his belt and placed the call.

As Inoichi dialed and waited for Minato to pick up, Hiashi wandered over to the front door. He didn’t know what he was looking for exactly, but it seemed odd that Naruto hadn’t alerted someone to the presence of blood outside of his apartment.

“I’m sorry to bother you, Chief, but we have a new lead in the Uchiha case.” Inoichi paused as Minato supposedly asked a question. “Lieutenant Hyuuga asked me to call you because the lead brought us to your son’s apartment.”

“WHAT?”

Hiashi flinched with Inoichi at Minato’s enraged outburst. He decided he’d let Inoichi handle calming Minato down as he knelt down to get a better look at the lock. The apartments in this building weren’t exactly cheap, and so Hiashi wasn’t too surprised to see that the door was fitted with an auto-lock; you didn’t need a key to lock it, only to get in. So Naruto wouldn’t have turned around and seen the door when he exited.

“Sir, there are no signs of anything suspicious inside the apartment, but there are blood stains outside the apartment. We want to question Naruto and were wondering if you could call him back home.”

Minato said something, and Inoichi hung up the phone. “He said he’ll get Naruto here, but that he’s also coming. He hasn’t yet informed Naruto of what happened.”

Hiashi grimaced slightly at the thought as he picked himself up and walked back over to Inoichi. He’d told his daughters this morning, and Hinata had broken down in tears. He’d been at a loss as to how to comfort her, but Hanabi had been able to calm her down, and both girls had left for school.

Inoichi must have been thinking along the same lines, because he turned to Hiashi and said, “Ino didn’t take the news so well. Her mother forced her to go to class this morning since she has a test, but I doubt she’ll stop crying for days.” He paused. “I hear from her that Sasuke and Naruto were close. I wonder if the Chief will tell the kid the truth, that he might not be dead.”

Hiashi grunted. Revealing that information wasn’t exactly safe for Sasuke, but it wasn’t his call to make. “Well, I’ll leave it to the Chief. We’ll just ask Naruto some questions and find out what happened and why Sasuke was here.”

Inoichi looked around them. “There’s no sign that anything was recently wiped clean. If Sasuke came here, I doubt he was inside the apartment.”

“It would make sense, in a way. If he left the house, he would perhaps seek help from a friend.”

“If that’s the case, maybe Naruto wasn’t home. Then he might not be of any help.”

Hiashi sighed, not really having thought that the boy might not have been home. “He might at least be able to tell us other places Sasuke might go.”

“Shit! Is that blood?” someone yelled from the hall.

Hiashi and Inoichi turned at the sound, listening as Shikaku told someone to shut up and open the door. After a second, the door swung open, and Shikaku walked in, followed by a young man with shaggy brown hair and Naruto.

Naruto looked pale, Hiashi noticed, and his eyes were riveted to the blood on his door. Shikaku whistled at him, snagging his attention, and motioned for the boy to join them in the apartment. Naruto swallowed and did so, shutting the door behind him.

Hiashi walked forward, his hand outstretched in greeting. “Naruto, thank you for coming. You got here quicker than I expected.”

Naruto shook his head as he took Hiashi’s hand. “Kiba brought me home. Shika’s dad told me you were calling my dad to get me here, but we were already on the way. He called on our way up.”

Hiashi nodded. “I’m sure he told you that he’d be here shortly. In the meantime, I have some questions.”

“This is about Sasuke, isn’t it?” he whispered as he gazed at the floor.

“Before we tell you what we know, tell us what you know, Naruto. You seemed surprised by the blood on your door. When was the last time you were home?”

Naruto wiped his palms on his jeans. “I was home last night. This morning. I was distracted when I left this morning. Talking with my mom on the phone. I never saw my door.”

“So you were home last night. Did you have any visitors?”

Naruto’s eyes widened and, to Hiashi’s shock, filled with tears. “Sasuke was here!” he said. “He was here! H-he knocked on my door at like, three this morning. I wouldn’t… wouldn’t let him in!” His breathing became labored, and he was unable to inhale. Hiashi quickly directed him to a chair at the nearby table.

“Breathe, Naruto. In and out.” He rubbed Naruto’s back. “Calm down, Naruto. It’s fine. Did Sasuke say anything to you?”

Naruto violently shook his head, still trying to breathe normally. “He knocked. Asked me to open the door. I didn’t. He went away.” Tears slid down his cheeks.

“It’s okay, Naruto. You did nothing wrong. Now, he didn’t say why he was here or where he was going?”

Naruto shook his head again. Hiashi looked up to make sure Inoichi and Shikaku were paying attention. They nodded for him to continue, but before he could ask another question, the door swung open again. Minato walked in, and when he saw Naruto, he rushed over and knelt in front of him.

“Hey, Naruto, hey, champ,” he crooned.

“D-Dad! Sasuke, h-he’s dead! Sasuke’s dead!” Naruto reached out to grab Minato’s arms, his fingers digging into his father’s sleeves.

“Shh, Naruto, it’s okay.” Minato stood and hugged Naruto. His arms still around his son, he glanced at Hiashi. “Hyuuga?”

“Sir, I began questioning Naruto a few minutes ago, asking him when he was last home and if he had visitors last night. He’s informed us that Sasuke did come by at around three this morning.”

“I want to see Sasuke!” Naruto yelled into Minato’s stomach, his fingers clutching the man’s shirt.

“Hush, Naruto,” Minato said softly.

“I won’t believe it until I see his body!”

Hiashi knew how the boy felt. Without Sasuke’s body, there really was no way to know if the boy was dead or alive. Minato caught his eye and motioned to Naruto. Hiashi nodded, letting his superior know that his questions for Naruto could wait. Minato squeezed Naruto and turned to the other boy in the room.

“Kiba, please take Naruto to our house. His mother is waiting for you.”

“Yes, sir,” the boy—Kiba—replied, moving to Naruto’s side and hovering as Minato tried to get Naruto to let go of his shirt.

“Hey, kid, listen to me,” Minato said sternly. Naruto finally pulled away, sniffling as he looked up at his father. “We will do everything in our power to solve this. But you know you can’t see the bodies until the notification is made. We’ve yet to locate the next of kin.” He smiled sadly and ran his hand through Naruto’s hair. “Now go home and rest. We’ll talk later.”

Naruto looked like he wanted to argue, but he eventually nodded and stood from the chair. He and Kiba walked to the door, and when it opened, Naruto’s attention was again snared by the blood on the door. Kiba prodded him forward as he mumbled something close to the boy’s ear, and Naruto eventually continued into the hallway and turned toward the exit.

The door closed, and Minato turned to them. “Sasuke was here at three?”

Inoichi nodded and stepped forward, his notepad in his hand. “The coroner put time of death for Mikoto at around 2:15AM. If she was able to patch Sasuke up, he may have had time to leave and come to Naruto’s apartment, arriving around three.”

“If he was wounded and in shock, it may have taken a while to get here,” Shikaku added.

“If he came here, where is he now?” Minato asked.

“Naruto confirmed he came here, but says he refused him entrance. He says Sasuke only asked to be let in and when Naruto refused, he left,” Hiashi related the information they’d gained from the boy.

“And we have no idea where he went after that,” Minato finished for them.

“When Naruto has calmed down, I would like to continue our talk to determine any places he may know that Sasuke would go.”

“Any chance that Sasuke would go to Madara?” Shikaku asked. They looked at him in surprise. He shrugged. “If he’s smart—which we know he is—he knows what Madara does for a living. He knows he could receive help if he showed up on his doorstep.”

Minato seemed to mull that over, his brow creased in thought. After a pause, he shook his head. “I don’t see how Sasuke would know how to even get in touch with Madara. Fugaku cut ties with that side of the family long before he entered the academy.”

Hiashi’s phone suddenly rang, and he excused himself as he stepped aside to answer it. “Hyuuga.”

“Detective, this is Tsunade Senju calling from Konoha General Hospital.”

Hiashi furrowed his brow in confusion; he knew the name, but couldn’t immediately think of a reason why she would be calling him. “What can I do for you?”

“My assistant has just informed me that the police have asked for any information on young men admitted to local hospitals with gunshot wounds.”

Hiashi’s eyes widened. “I was informed that your hospital had no such admissions.”

Tsunade didn’t immediately answer, but eventually said, “That is strictly true. No one had a cause of admittance as a gunshot wound. But last night I had a John Doe come in, hit by a car. During surgery prep, we found a bullet lodged in his torso. He lost a lot of blood from the gunshot and suffered several contusions from the accident.”

Hiashi’s heart started racing as she recounted the incident. “John Doe, you say. No ID?”

“Nothing that came in with him. But I would have to be blind not to know who he is.”

Hiashi whirled around and motioned to the others as he walked back over to them. “Where is he now?”

“A private room with restricted access, per my orders.”

“Excellent. I’m on my way now.” He ended the call and smiled at his colleagues. “I think we’ve found our wayward victim.”

“Sasuke?” Minato asked hopefully.

“More than likely. That was the Chief Surgeon and director of Konoha General. She said she operated on a John Doe last night who had a bullet in his torso. I’m going to verify his identity now.”

Minato nodded. “Do that, and let me know the second you’re sure either way. Hopefully I can give Naruto some good news fairly soon.” He frowned. “No, the priority is to protect Sasuke and solve the case.” He looked at Hiashi. “If it’s Sasuke, work with the hospital on a cover ID for now. We’ll keep him under wraps until we know more. If he’s coherent, see what he can tell us.”

“Yes, sir,” Hiashi said, motioning for Shikaku and Inoichi to head out first. “I’ll call the Captain and let him know what’s going on.”

“You concentrate on this. I’ll swing by Homicide and fill them in.” Minato turned to leave.

“Thank you, sir,” Hiashi said as he followed Minato out of the apartment. “Nara, stay here and get this door and carpet covered so as not to cause panic. The elevator is to stay out of commission and cordoned off. Get Forensics to rush the scene downstairs so that the building manager can get it cleaned up. Yamanaka, you’re with me.”

“Yes, sir,” they both said. They all trekked down the hall to the stairs and took them down to the lobby. Shikaku immediately sought out Tazuna, while Hiashi, Inoichi, and Minato continued outside. Minato said goodbye and got into his car. Hiashi watched until he was out of sight before getting into his own vehicle, waiting for Inoichi to buckle up before he drove away.

~*~

Karin hadn’t exactly felt like sunshine and rainbows when she’d woken up, but as she watched the looping coverage of the Uchiha shooting, she felt like she could easily vomit all of her internal organs if she only opened her mouth.

There’s… there’s no way! No way Sasuke could be dead!

She watched as that horrible liar on the screen went on about the deaths of the Uchiha family. She watched as the neighbors who’d made the 911 call were interviewed and asked about the horrific screaming they’d reported hearing and shook their heads as they quipped that it was a shame to lose a boy that young.

She watched—and started crying—as film of three black bags being wheeled out of the Uchiha house and loaded into coroner’s vans played on the screen. She stared, unblinking, at the last bag loaded into a van, unsure that it held Sasuke’s body, but staring all the same.

Karin felt it, a horrible rage swelling within her as more people came on the screen to hypothesize as to the why and how of the crime. She clenched the remote control in her hand, hearing it creak the slightest bit in her grip, before she hurled it at the television, causing the small flatscreen to teeter and crash to the floor.

She whirled around and grabbed her phone off the coffee table, angrily punching in her passcode to unlock it before scrolling through her contacts for the number she wanted.

As the phone rang on the other end, she ground her teeth together, tension coiling within her and waiting to explode with every second that passed. After what seemed like forever, a groggy voice answered on the other end, asking what the hell she wanted.

Narrowing her eyes, she practically screamed into the phone, “You killed him, you son of a bitch!”

~*~

Kiba hung back as Naruto and his mom hugged each other at the door. Kushina’s face bore visible signs of her distress, with red-rimmed eyes and tear tracks. Naruto clung to his mother, though he was much taller than the petite woman so had to hunch in order to bury his face in her neck.

Kiba looked away, not sure what he should do. He didn’t want to leave Naruto alone, but the Namikaze household had always been much closer to the Uchiha household than any others, and so he felt that he didn’t really belong here at the moment.

“Kiba, come inside,” Kushina said. He looked up and saw that Naruto had already gone inside. Kushina smiled at him, the action a little tired but not forced, so he nodded and entered. “Thank you for bringing Naruto home. I know you also had that test today; I’m sorry that you missed it, but I’m sure Iruka will understand.”

Kiba laughed nervously. “I certainly hope so.”

Kushina patted him on the back and closed the door. She looked over at Naruto just standing in the foyer looking at the floor and frowned. “Naruto, honey, let’s go into the kitchen and get you something to eat.”

Naruto shook his head slowly. “I’m not hungry, Mom,” he said, his voice thick with unshed tears. “I just want to go to my room.”

“Okay, honey. Let me know if you get hungry or want something to drink. Kiba,” she said, turning back to him, “Would you like something?”

“Uh, no, ma’am, I’m fine,” he said, watching as Naruto slowly made his way upstairs. “I’ll just stay with Naruto for now.”

“Okay. Let me know if you change your mind.” She patted Kiba on the back again, and he headed up the stairs after Naruto. He walked down the hallway and pushed open Naruto’s door. Naruto was curled on his window seat, his knees hugged to his chest as he stared out of the window.

Kiba knew to leave him to himself for now, so he closed the door and moved over to Naruto’s desk, powering on the computer as he sat in the chair. As the computer booted up, Kiba thought back on the events of the morning.

He’d woken up to the sound of his mother’s coffee mug shattering on the floor and Akamaru’s barking. Then he’d been told that Sasuke, a guy he only mildly tolerated because of Naruto, was dead, and he’d been a lot sadder than he thought he would be. He’d gone to class and seen what he expected—Sakura and Ino crying their eyes out—and what he hadn’t expected—Naruto without a fucking clue.

Shit, I owe Hinata big time for telling Naruto. I don’t think I could have done it.

Kiba looked at Naruto, who hadn’t moved from his position. He turned back to the computer and logged in to check his email to see if Iruka had sent anything about missing the test. That got him thinking about Hinata’s dad questioning Naruto, and Kiba looked over at Naruto again. He bit his lip, wondering if he should ask the question that was now burning in his mind, before mentally shrugging and turning the chair to face Naruto.

“Um, you okay over there?”

That was a really stupid question, but Kiba was surprised when Naruto laughed, though the sound was brittle and hollow. “That’s the question, isn’t it? Then again, I just keep asking myself, ‘Will I ever be okay again?’”

“Naruto, I want to ask you a question.” Naruto didn’t move. Kiba licked his lips and rubbed his palms on his pants briefly. “Why didn’t you let Sasuke in when he came to your apartment?” It took a moment, but Naruto finally looked at Kiba, his eyes wide and panicked. Kiba put up his hand. “I’m not like, blaming you or anything. I just thought it was strange that you wouldn’t let him in.” He shrugged as Naruto continued to stare at him.

Eventually Naruto straightened and leaned back against the wall. His hands were clasped together in his lap, and he stared at some point past Kiba and said softly, “We had a fight.”

“What?”

Naruto licked his lips. “We had a fight,” he said a little louder, eyes focusing on Kiba. “He’d been at my apartment earlier last night, and we fought. He said some things that hurt me, so when he showed up later, I didn’t let him in when he asked. And now he’s dead.”

Tears fell silently down Naruto’s cheeks, but his body was shaking minutely as he tried to hold back. Kiba jumped up from the chair and rushed over to Naruto, his hand coming up to rest on his shoulder. “That’s not your fault,” he whispered, upset that Naruto was taking this so hard and so personally.

“It certainly feels like my fault,” Naruto said through his tears. “If I had opened the door, maybe I could have gotten him to a hospital or something.”

“But, Naruto…” Kiba trailed off, uncertain that he should finish his thought, but Naruto shouldn’t be blaming himself for something like this. His fingers tightened on Naruto’s shoulder. “Naruto, Sasuke could have called 911 or something instead of coming to your house, especially if he knew you were mad at him.”

It sounded horrible to him even as he said it. How could he shift the blame for his own death onto Sasuke? But… Naruto needed solace, whereas Sasuke was past that kind of healing.

Naruto closed his eyes and cried more, his sobs finally breaking out and loud in his grief—raw, pain-filled sobs that sounded like Naruto felt nothing would ever be right in the world again. His hand reached up to grasp Kiba’s in a tight grip. This was odd to Kiba. It was obvious now that Naruto wasn’t just upset by this; Naruto was fucking devastated by Sasuke’s death. Yes, they were friends, but Kiba didn’t think it warranted this level of reaction.

Unless… the hunch that Shikamaru had shared with him in the strictest of confidence… was true.

Kiba swallowed nervously before saying, “Naruto,” wanting to confirm Shikamaru’s suspicions, but he stopped. It wasn’t really his business, and even if it was, this wasn’t the time to ask.

So Kiba stood there for several minutes, his hand on Naruto’s shoulder in Naruto’s grasp, until Naruto’s sobs died off. Naruto squeezed his hand and let go, his own falling back into his lap. He released Naruto’s shoulder and leaned back, sticking his hands in his pockets. He looked Naruto in the face, noticing how lifeless his eyes seemed to be as they looked past everything in the room to something beyond sight. Kiba didn’t know what to say to make it better, but after a moment Naruto took a quiet breath and spoke.

“Kiba, have you ever lost something precious to you?”

“W-what?” Kiba stuttered, not expecting such a question. Naruto turned those lifeless eyes on him, and he nearly flinched. “Um, I’ve lost a few pets that I cared a lot for,” he said slowly. When Naruto didn’t respond, seeming to still be waiting for a serious answer, Kiba carefully said, “I guess… not.”

“It feels like I’ve lost the most precious thing in my life, the part of me that completed me and kept me going every day.”

Kiba felt that this was going in a very bad direction. “Naruto,” he asked very quietly, “What are you trying to say?”

“Kiba, you know that Sasuke and I were more than friends, right?”

Momentarily caught off guard, Kiba clenched his hands in his pockets and nodded. “Well, Shikamaru thought so, and I couldn’t find it in myself to say he was wrong, you know?” He paused. “You were, uh, going out?”

Naruto laughed humorlessly. “Nope.” He turned a mirthless smile Kiba’s way. “Just a fuck buddy thing. But…” Naruto stopped and swallowed, his eyes moving to look at his hands in his lap. “I really love… loved him,” he whispered so low that Kiba barely heard him.

Holy shit.

Kiba swallowed and licked his lips. “Is that what the fight was about?”

“No, not really. But also, yes, in a way.” Naruto shrugged and was quiet for a moment. “He got a text from someone and wouldn’t tell me who.” He paused again. When he spoke again, it was in a quiet, sad tone. “Despite how precious Sasuke was to me, I never really thought that Sasuke needed me as a person, you know? Never really wanted to open up to me as a friend or… something more. And then, when he needed me, when he finally needed me…”

Kiba could only stare helplessly as Naruto started to cry again.

“I told him I didn’t want to see him, Kiba. The last thing he heard before he died was me telling him I didn’t want to see him.”

Kiba looked over at Naruto’s old bed as Naruto wiped furiously at his eyes. He frowned as he tried to think of something to say to that. Eventually, he removed his hands from his pockets and moved closer to Naruto, turning him to face forward and placing his hands on either of his shoulders. “Naruto, there was no way that you could have known this would happen. From your side of the door, you would have seen him in class this morning and maybe punched his face in.”

Naruto chuckled lightly as he wiped at his cheeks, the sound still brittle, still hollow, and Kiba released his shoulders and leaned back. “Probably.” He dropped his hand and looked to the side. “Do you think he was mad at me when he died?” he whispered.

Kiba felt his stomach drop at the question. “Naruto,” he whispered hoarsely, “Don’t do that to yourself.”

Before Naruto could reply or, worse, ask another question like that, they heard the front door close downstairs and the rumble of a man’s voice. It only took a second for Naruto to realize it was his dad, and then he was out of the door and down the stairs, crying out for Minato. Kiba quickly followed and reached the bottom of the stairs to see Naruto clinging just as tightly to his dad as he had his mom.

Minato smoothed his hand over Naruto’s hair and shushed his son. “It’s okay, Naruto, it’s going to be okay.” He smiled tiredly over at Kiba. “Hey, Kiba. Thanks for bringing him home.”

“It wasn’t a problem, sir,” he said, his hands in his pockets as he avoided looking at Naruto. Watching him now, knowing he’d lost a lover as well as a friend, really made it sadder than before for him, almost painful to watch.

Minato nodded and patted Naruto on the back. “Come on, son. Let’s move to the living room.” He turned Naruto in his arms and led him into the room off the right of the entrance, motioning for Kushina and Kiba to follow. Again, Kiba wasn’t really sure what he should do, but if Minato had more information, he really wanted to know it. He settled on the couch next to Kushina, who placed her hand on his thigh for a moment in comfort, and turned his attention to Minato, who’d sat on the couch opposite them.

Minato had his clasped hands between his knees as he sat forward. “I don’t even know where to start. Fugaku was a good cop and a good friend. His loss affects me both professionally and personally.” He looked over at Kushina. “It even affects the people I love.” His eyes, tired and sad, moved to Naruto. “This is an ongoing investigation, and IA would have my ass for talking to you about this, so let’s all make sure we understand that nothing I say leaves this room.”

He glanced at Kiba, who swallowed nervously and nodded vigorously as Kushina quietly promised not to speak of it and Naruto nodded as he looked at the ground. Minato nodded and leaned back in his seat, letting out a sigh as he stared at the ceiling.

“We don’t know who did this, or why, but we think whatever this was, it was staged to look like a robbery gone wrong.”

Kiba held in a gasp at what that would mean. Naruto, however, was less reserved.

“You mean someone killed them on purpose?” His eyes were wide and practically begging his dad to say otherwise.

Minato, still looking at the ceiling, sighed again and nodded briefly. “That is what Shikaku thinks.”

“Who would want to kill the Uchihas?” Kushina asked, tears in her eyes.

Minato rolled his eyes down to look at her. He was quiet for a moment before saying, “The sad reality, honey, is that cops often have enemies that seek to harm us after getting busted. Unfortunately, Fugaku had many enemies that might want to kill him.”

“But why Mikoto and Sasuke?” Kushina persisted. Kiba saw Naruto flinch at the boy’s name.

Minato lifted his head. “I’m sorry, Kushina, but when cops are targeted, so are their families.” He closed his eyes and shook his head. “You know this, right? That’s why Naruto goes by your maiden name, for his protection.”

Kushina nodded and reached for a tissue from the box on the coffee table. She dabbed at her eyes. “So, do you have any leads on who could have done this?”

Kiba watched as Minato’s brow furrowed, as if thinking about the question before answering. Or maybe thinking about his answer. Kiba was one of the few kids in town whose parent wasn’t a cop, but he still knew that cops couldn’t divulge certain information, even to their families, as illustrated by Minato’s warning before he started talking. And Kiba couldn’t help but wonder if there was something he would hide even from his family.

“Not yet,” Minato finally answered. He smiled wanly at Kushina. “But we can always hope a clue falls into our laps.”

Minato’s cell phone rang, and he excused himself to answer it, though he only went as far as the window. Kiba turned to Naruto, who had been rather quiet. Kushina was leaning against his shoulder, her arm around his neck and her fingers petting his hair.

“How are you feeling, dear?”

Naruto shook his head. “I don’t know; a lot of things.” He paused to sniffle and wipe his nose with the back of his arm. “I’m sad. I’m fist-cracking angry. I’m lost. I don’t… know what to do.” He fisted his hands on his legs.

Kushina moved to wrap her other arm around his front and squeezed him tight. “Of course, honey, that’s normal. It’s exactly how I feel and how your dad feels.” She kissed his temple and wiped some tears away from his face. “Come on. Go upstairs and take a nap. I hear your apartment is off limits for now, so you’ll stay here for a bit.”

Naruto practically jerked away from her. “I can’t go back, Mom,” Naruto said suddenly, turning his frantic gaze her way. “I can’t go back there!”

Kushina shushed him. “All right. We’ll figure it out later. For now, just rest.” She rocked Naruto back and forth as she held him. In the quiet that followed, they were able to pick up some of Minato’s conversation.

“Suzuki? All right. I’ll be there later. I have to go to the station and talk to Hiruzen.” Minato turned and looked at them. “Better.” He nodded to something the person said. “I’ll bring him along.” Another nod. “Okay. Goodbye.”

Minato hung up and turned to them. “Naruto, Hiashi has some more questions for you, and I’d like you to go with me to meet him.”

Kushina glared lightly at him. “Naruto is going upstairs to take a nap.”

“Kushina,” Minato said softly but sternly, “This is an official investigation, and Naruto is a witness.”

Naruto looked uncertainly between his parents, but he finally nodded at his dad. Kushina sighed and whispered something in his ear before pushing him off the couch. Kiba stood up with him.

“I’m gonna head out, Naruto. Go check in with Hinata and the girls.” He looked at Minato. “I promise not to say anything about what you’ve said,” he said with a wry grin, pretty sure the man was going to remind him of his promise not to reveal any details.

Naruto moved over to him and gave him a one-arm hug. “Thanks for your help, Kiba,” he said quietly.

“I didn’t really do anything,” he said, a little embarrassed. Really, what could he possibly have done in a situation like this, where his best friend was suffering the loss of a lover? He pulled away from Naruto, though Naruto’s hand remained on his shoulder, and frowned.

“Just having someone to listen helps, Kiba.” Naruto squeezed his shoulder lightly and let him go.

Kiba couldn’t help a small smile. “Oh, what about your car?” he asked suddenly. “It’s still on campus.”

“I’ll send some officers out to retrieve it,” Minato said. “We’ll walk you out, Kiba. Kushina, I’ll call to let you know if we’ll be home for dinner or not.”

Kushina murmured an acknowledgement, and Minato moved over and put his arm around Kiba’s shoulders, Naruto following behind. He steered him over to the door, and when they were outside, Minato gave him a slight hug. “Thanks for being there for Naruto, Kiba. He’ll need a good friend for the time being.”

“Uh, yes, sir. I don’t know how much help I can really be, but I’ll always be here for him.” He heard Naruto mumble something behind him.

“I’m sure that’s more than enough,” Minato said. He smiled at Kiba, but Kiba noticed it turn into a frown as he turned his gaze away.

They parted ways at Minato’s car in the driveway. Kiba watched them drive away, suddenly uneasy about something, though he didn’t know exactly what. He couldn’t help but feel that Naruto’s dad was hiding something and that, whatever it was, Naruto wasn’t going to like it.
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Ties that Bind