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• Everyone's Got Secrets	By : Erisabesu Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 1097 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
  Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

• Chapter List
  • 1-Chapter 1
  • 2-Chapter 2
  • 3-Chapter 3
  • 4-Chapter 4
  • 5-Chapter 5
  • 6-Chapter 6
  • 7-Chapter 7
  • 8-Chapter 8
  • 9-Chapter 9
  • 10-Chapter 10
  • 11-Chapter 11
• • fast_rewind
  • chevron_left
  • 5
  • 6
  • 7
  • chevron_right
  • fast_forward

• ♦

  Chapter 6:

  ♦

   

  Iruka’s body felt heavy with sleepy contentment.
  He breathed deep, the temperature of the bed exactly perfect; Kakashi’s soothing fingers combing through his long brown hair in even strokes made him feel totally, peacefully protected. He sighed, shifting closer to rest his cheek on Kakashi’s chest.
  Kakashi moved his arms around him, tucking his head beneath his chin and going still so that Iruka could fall back asleep if he chose. Iruka lay there in bliss for several more minutes, letting his consciousness surface at its own pace; he trusted that Kakashi would wake him if he were in danger of being late. He slipped his own arms around the Jounin, and hugged him tight, thankful for his presence and not wanting the moments to end. He felt Kakashi brush his lips across the top of his head.
  Iruka lifted his chin, moving to kiss his lover good morning, and then he buried his face in the Jounin’s neck, denying that tomorrow had become today so swiftly. Kakashi chuckled in amusement, resuming his languid combing of Iruka’s hair.
  Iruka sighed, his voice muffled against Kakashi’s smooth skin, “I don’t know what’s worse.”
  Kakashi turned towards him, “Hmmmm?”
  Iruka moved so he could look at Kakashi’s face, and slid one of his hands into Kakashi’s silver hair, curling a lock of it around and around his finger.
  “I don’t know what’s worse,” he repeated, “The times I have to watch you walk out the door for a mission, or the times I’m the one who has to walk out the door.”
  Kakashi leaned forward and kissed the scar across the bridge of his nose, cradling his head with his strong hand.
  “You’re working too much, Iruka-sensei,” he commented. Iruka nodded grimly.
  “This festival business is exhausting. A double shift last night at the mission office, teaching during the day, another shift tonight…” he sighed. “I’ll probably have to work during the Opening Ceremony as well.”
  Kakashi kissed his mouth, sliding a hand down the curve of his back. “So, ka.”
  Iruka let Kakashi maneuver his body so that he was straddling him on knees and elbows. Kakashi smirked, “Maaa, I guess we better take advantage of the time we have.”
  Iruka bent his neck to touch his lips to Kakashi’s throat, nibbling along his handsome jaw and then kissing his mouth eagerly. “Mmmm,” he moaned, feeling Kakashi’s hands stroke down his back in unison and grip his buttocks tightly.
  “How much time do we have?”
  His lover only chuckled, whispering against his lips, “Time enough.”

   

  ♦

   

  After seeing Iruka off to work, Kakashi traversed the length of Konoha in invisible speed, heading towards the vacant Uchiha district to check in on his student one more time.
  Sasuke should have taken Shizune’s medicine last night, and he hoped to see a remarkable improvement—though he had to admit that Sasuke’s spirit had a lot to do with how quickly he’d recover. He ducked under the majestic archway and zigzagged through the quiet streets, his feet kicking up only a minute amount of dust. He observed Sasuke’s house from the outer wall, searching for signs of traps or an ambush, both of which would be a typical greeting.
  Sensing only Sasuke’s strong chakra presence emanating from the kitchen, Kakashi ambled casually across the courtyard and opened the front door.
  “Yo,” he called from the entryway, taking off his sandals.
  Sasuke’s voice answered him from around the corner, “Ohayo, Kakashi- sensei.”
  He went into the bright kitchen, finding Sasuke standing at the island counter with a pile of grocery bags and several yards of uncoiled ninja wire. That in itself was curious, but what made Kakashi gurgle in surprise was the sight of Sasuke’s face as he turned to look at him with his usual smirk. Kakashi rushed over, grabbing his student’s head and turning it back and forth to peer closely at his skin.
  “Masaka…” he whispered, amazed that Shizune’s medicine had worked so well. He caught Sasuke’s glare at being manhandled, but poked and prodded to make sure he was truly as healed as he looked—there wasn’t a single scratch on him!
  Sasuke put up with it for a few moments before shaking him off, and brushing his own hand over his face. He tossed his head to shake his black locks back into place.
  “Shizune is amazing,” Kakashi commented, “I didn’t expect it to work so well.”
  Sasuke lifted his fingers to trace the curve of his left cheekbone, almost as if he were remembering something.
  “Aa,” he replied, “I slept a long time, but it was worth it.” He resumed his project, stringing rounded objects on the ninja wire at even intervals.
  “I made tea, Kakashi-sensei.” Sasuke nodded to the far counter.
  Kakashi moved across the kitchen, taking the steaming mug in his half-gloved hand. The mug was wider than the ones Sasuke used with his tea tray, and had ridges curving up the sides left visible by the potter. The inside glaze was white in contrast to the outer rusty-brown, accented with black markings that depicted a bamboo grove. Kakashi turned towards his student and leaned against the counter, lifting the mug to his lips.
  Just as he was about to take a sip, Sasuke’s red eyes glanced up at him, and Kakashi chuckled, lowering the mug.
  “It’s nice to see you’re feeling better, too,” his eye crinkled as he smiled, relieved that they were back to their normal pastimes.
  “Hn,” Sasuke replied, placing a lumpy bundle of items into the pillowcase at his feet, obviously annoyed that he hadn’t caught the Jounin with his mask down. Kakashi watched him with interest, eyeing the assortment of things his student was working on, and analyzing the possibilities.
  “Are those–” Kakashi started to ask, but Sasuke interrupted him.
  “–Does Shizune know the medicine was for me?” he asked.
  Kakashi regarded him shrewdly, and shook his head, chuckling, “Iie. I told her it was for Gai.” Sasuke raised his eyebrows, but didn’t comment.
  Kakashi continued, “Anyway, Shizune is pretty busy with Tsunade-sama, getting ready for the festival. I doubt she remembers that I asked for it anyways.”
  Sasuke’s body tensed; Kakashi could see his pulse beating faster in his neck.
  “A big job, setting up a village-wide festival.” Sasuke glanced up from his work, watching for his reaction and his reply.
  Kakashi decided to test the theory budding in his mind, looking casually around Sasuke’s kitchen and making mental notes.
  “Aa. A lot of shinobi are still out on missions, so everyone’s shorthanded—Iruka had to work a double shift last night at the mission office. Some will miss the festival altogether, although Tsunade is bringing back as many as possible.”
  Sasuke appeared only half interested, though it was obvious his ears were tuned into every nuance of Kakashi’s voice. “Oh?” his student prodded.
  Kakashi moved around the kitchen idly, sipping his tea when Sasuke wasn’t looking. “Aburame Shibi and his son, along with Hyuuga Hinata will probably make it back from their mission in time, though Anko will probably miss everything. But it’s been busy at the Hokage office aside from missions, what with all the liaising between Konoha and the Feudal Lords of Fire Country who’ll be watching the…fireworks.”
  He’d left a deliberate pause, and smiled inwardly as Sasuke’s shoulders twitched. Sasuke had clearly expected a different word, which revealed a great deal of what Sasuke thought he was hiding. Kakashi continued to stroll around the kitchen, peering into the wok on the counter by the refrigerator, and running his fingers across the nearly empty rice bag next to the rice cooker.
  “The Feudal Lords are coming too?” Sasuke asked, “I thought this was a ninja festival.”
  Kakashi considered how to respond, then decided to throw him a bone. Sasuke would be smart enough to read between the lines.
  “They’re always interested in visiting Konoha and seeing what we have to offer. Tsunade-sama relies on their continued support to keep things running smoothly for us, and this is a chance for them to see how valuable our village really is, while also enjoying our hospitality.”
  “So, ka,” Sasuke seemed to be lost in thought, his hands moving methodically in their preparations. Kakashi glanced at him, amused at Sasuke’s determination. He could think of several ways this festival could prove very fun for the both of them.
  Moving around the island and casually examining the chopsticks in the dish rack, Kakashi changed the topic.
  “Maaa, Sasuke. Do you have any fancy Yukata?”
  Sasuke’s brows drew together, “I don’t know. Why?”
  “Tomorrow night is the Opening Ceremony of the Festival,” he answered.
  “So?”
  Kakashi continued, “It’s a pretty big deal, Sasuke. Everyone in Konoha will be there.”
  Sasuke paused before responding. “What happens at the Opening Ceremony?”
  Kakashi shrugged, “Well it’s mostly food, crowds, a speech from the Hokage, a huge fireworks display…all the typical festival activities. Although with more… ceremony.”
  Seeing Sasuke wasn’t too interested, he tried a different tactic. “They also call it First Night.” His voice gave the words a sensual weight.
  Sasuke raised his eyebrows, repeating his words with added sarcasm, “First Night?”
  “First Night is known to be one of the biggest romantic nights in Konoha!”
  Sasuke gave a dramatic roll of his eyes. Kakashi went on, chuckling as he teased. “Everyone gets dressed up, and couples walk hand in hand through the streets, being romantic together… and of course—cuddling and watching the fireworks finale!”
  Sasuke glared at him, “Tch.”
  “There’s going to be endless food stands, streets lit only by lanterns, lots of dark corners to get lost in…I bet Naruto’s going to be there…” Kakashi cajoled.
  Sasuke hurled the object in his hand with deadly accuracy, and Kakashi just managed to catch it before it hit him, careful not to squeeze it too hard. He chuckled at Sasuke, whose cheeks had turned pink, and pocketed the item.
  “Maaa, I know you wouldn’t normally take yourself Yukata shopping, so I thought I would take you out as an early birthday present and get you something nice for First Night. We can get dinner afterwards. How about it?”
  Sasuke tied a knot in the ninja wire, moving another string of objects into the sack at his feet. He sighed, brushing some locks of silky black hair out of his eyes, which had narrowed in suspicion.
  “When?”
  Kakashi leaned against the island, shrugging, then gesturing at the remains of the project strewn about on the countertop. “Tonight. Whenever you’re done with…” He let Sasuke think he didn’t know exactly what he was up to.
  Sasuke hesitated as if he was trying to come up with a reason to refuse; finding none, he reluctantly agreed. “Okay.”
  Kakashi’s stomach burbled in excitement. Yes! This was going to be fun.
  “Good. I’ll meet you at my place,” he said, smiling to himself as Sasuke nodded his agreement. He stood up, folding his arms across his body, letting the room fall silent before dealing the Ace up his sleeve. “So. When’s Naruto coming over?”
  Sasuke looked over at him in surprise, though he quickly recovered and glared as he turned back to his ninja wire and uncoiled several more feet of it.
  “Tch. Why would Naruto come here?”
  Kakashi plucked a pair of chopsticks from the dish rack. “May I point out that you are preparing a training method which is ineffective for one person?”
  He used the chopsticks to gesture to the wire project on the counter. “This requires at least two people, and I am certain you aren’t going to all this trouble for me, although I am impressed at your variation—very clever. It’ll work perfectly with Naruto’s abilities.”
  Sasuke’s eyes locked on his, probably trying to decide how much to reveal. Kakashi tried to make his face look innocent.
  Eventually Sasuke shrugged, “We’re just training.” He paused, then added quickly, “That’s nothing unusual.”
  “Hmmm.” Kakashi waited patiently, tapping a chopstick against his masked lip and letting Sasuke sweat. “So… what did you cook him for dinner last night?”
  Sasuke dissembled unconvincingly, looking away, “I ate alone.”
  Kakashi held his tea mug in the air. “This mug was in the middle of the cabinet two days ago when I made us tea. It was behind two narrower mugs with blue fish that would fit neatly on your tea tray, which I presume you don’t use for just yourself. You must’ve used your tea tray, and the two mugs, sometime since yesterday morning.”
  He went on, setting down his tea mug and using the chopsticks to indicate the evidence he’d compiled since he came into the kitchen.
  “Second, this bag of rice is nearly empty. I know, because I cooked our lunch two days ago, and there’s more rice missing than you would have eaten on your own between then and now. So someone else must have been here to eat some of it.”
  Kakashi pointed to the Wok. “Third, this is a large Wok, and it’s been used recently. If you were cooking something only for yourself, the smaller one I know you keep in this cabinet would have been sufficient,” he gestured to the cabinet in question. “Therefore you must have prepared food for two or more people.”
  Sasuke’s hands were fumbling the knots as he tried to ignore his teacher. Kakashi moved over to the dish rack.
  “Fourth, there are four pairs of chopsticks here in your dish rack. One is the ordinary set I watched you use yesterday. This other ordinary pair is still damp from your breakfast this morning. But these two pairs,” he picked up the set that matched the one he was already holding, “These are made from Coconut wood. These you would have chosen to serve someone special. There’s only one person I can think of that you would consider worthy of your nice chopsticks.”
  Kakashi paused, letting the evidence speak for itself, and then pointed to the other two damning objects in the dish rack. “And of course the fancy matching chopstick rests!”
  Sasuke rolled his eyes, trying to seem bored while concentrating on keeping his hands busy. He sighed in irritation, and Kakashi felt a flare of murderous intent from the back of his student’s head. Sasuke turned and faced his sensei with arms crossed, his expression acknowledging how he’d been trapped and that he was not happy about it.
  “Tempura Donburi,” was all he said.
  Kakashi raised his eyebrow, “Yum.”
  He moved around the island to stand across from Sasuke, leaning his hip into the counter, eye crinkling happily.
  “So what happened? Did you make up? What did he say? What did you say? Was it a date?”
  Sasuke glared at him in open hostility, waving away his questions. “Naruto came here yesterday. We ate dinner. He’s coming here to train here this afternoon.” Sasuke’s voice lowered, becoming coldly insistent, “Which is why you’re leaving. Now.”
  “Hmmmm,” Kakashi paused sarcastically, a grin spreading underneath his mask. “Is that what you’re going to call it? Training?” Sasuke shot him a look dripping with murderous intent.
  Kakashi simply laughed, “Daijobu, daijobu Sasuke-kun. You can call it whatever you like. But you know,” He reached over and picked up one of the objects waiting to be threaded with ninja wire, “This variation of training could lead to some fairly sexy things…”
  Sasuke made a swipe to take back his item, but wasn’t quite fast enough. Kakashi evaded him and tucked the object into his shuriken pouch with the other one.
  “Maaa…I can see you’re busy getting ready for your…guest,” he winked. “So I will be off. But don’t forget our date.”
  He waved; Sasuke only glared at him, lips pressed tight together. Kakashi grinned wider, making his way to the doorway, then stopped, turning to look over his shoulder.
  “Oh, and Sasuke?”
  Sasuke looked over at him, arms still crossed stiffly, only deigning to arch an eyebrow in his direction.
  “Make sure Naruto knows to use a lot of lube!”
  Sasuke’s face flushed crimson, and he darted forward bristling with shuriken, clearly intent on thorough punishment. ‘It’d be painful, too, no doubt,’ Kakashi thought as he grabbed his sandals and bolted out the door, laughing quietly at the image of his student’s scandalized face and vanishing in a burst of speed.
  He sensed Sasuke pursue him through the Uchiha district, but as he passed under the archway Sasuke’s presence slowed and the distance between them grew. Once he considered it to be safe, he paused in the shadow of an apartment building to put on his sandals, first brushing the dirt and grass from the soles of his feet.
  Kakashi cackled, looking forward to his little shopping date with Sasuke and finding out what had come of their “training.”

   

  ♦

   

  In his tiny shower, Naruto let the hot water beat down on his head and neck for quite a while, rinsing away the soapy bubbles and filling him with relaxed contentment.
  He loved the feel of the water forging its own rivulets down his skin from the top of his golden head down his firmly muscled torso and curving over his belly and legs. It made him tingle. Not as much as the time with Sasuke… but a weak copy of something similar. Though his eyes were closed, Naruto’s mind mapped the droplets as they curled over his pectorals and slid across his tight abs below, and where they spread over his shoulders to converge down the valley of his spine and over his firm butt.
  The sight of him would be enough to make a straight man weep, however Naruto, completely unconscious of his own physical beauty stood naked in his shower under the hot water thinking only of his teammate.
  Naruto ran a hand over the ridges of his washboard abs and settled it just above the Kyuubi seal, pretending it was Sasuke’s hand instead. His body responded to the fantasy—the tiny streams of water changed their course over his hand and wrist to drip along his hardening shaft.
  Naruto sighed, closing his eyes tighter and remembering the husky aroma from when he’d kissed Sasuke’s cheek, a rich, languid spiciness that was different from his own sharper scent. He could almost believe that his black-haired rival was right in front of him. It was so real he leaned forward, lips parted, intent on kissing Sasuke at last—and stumbled into the tiled wall of the shower, catching himself with hands pressed against cold ceramic squares.
  Naruto’s eyes snapped open, and he chuckled at the growing intensity of his fantasies, leaning into his splayed fingers on the wall. Just as soon he acknowledged how much he wanted his rival, the fantasies started getting more and more real, sometimes real enough to wake him in the night. He had to get in control of himself! He stepped back into the spraying hot water, tilting his head to get a full blast in the face, then shook himself and turned the water off.
  He grabbed a towel and gave his body a cursory rub down as he stepped out of his bathroom, shaking the excess water from his blond hair, and approaching his dresser with trepidation.
  “What should I wear…” he muttered to himself, tossing his towel aside on the corner of his bed.
  He usually wore whatever he grabbed first, but today was different. Today he was training with Sasuke. Today he was going to Sasuke’s house, and they were going to train.
  So what do you wear to train with the guy you like in the middle of nowhere?
  Naruto opened his top drawer, and pulled out some yellow boxer-briefs. ‘Well it’s a start, at least.’ He pulled out the next drawer, and went through the balled-up T-shirts he kept there.
  “Great,” he cursed his laundry habits, feeling even more nervous about his rendezvous. ‘Sasuke’s clothes are probably pristine, folded and arranged by color.’ No wait, he mostly wore black… ‘Arranged by sleeve length then.’ He pulled out several handfuls of shirts and spread them out on his bed, trying to pick the very best one.
  “Hmmm,” Naruto muttered
  He didn’t understand how it could be so hard to pick something to wear, not realizing that his indecision was a clear indication of how much he really wanted to impress his teammate. He put aside all the black shirts, since Sasuke usually wore black. He wanted something different, but equally cool… he put aside all the orange ones too. He looked good in orange, but it was kinda… well… un-cool. What was left? Blue? Red? Green? White?
  He picked up a white shirt and held it up to his chest. White was cool. White wasn’t black. He scowled, lowering the shirt. But he’d worn white yesterday. Would Sasuke remember?
  ‘Of course he would, Sasuke notices everything.’
  Naruto threw the shirt back towards his dresser, but missed. The shirt caught on the corner of the open drawer, then slid to the floor in a small heap. Naruto muttered curses as he crossed over to pick it up and put it away. As he let go of the fabric, he saw something in the way back of the drawer that made him hesitate. He reached deeper inside and pulled out a shirt he’d completely forgotten was there, a birthday present from Jiraiya two or three years ago. Naruto moved over to the mirror and held it up in front of his body.
  It was white, but not white: a white mesh that felt silky to the touch and shimmered under direct sunlight. Naruto pulled it over his head, feeling the mesh stretch over his muscular body to hug him tightly, but not so that it was uncomfortable. He turned to the side, looking at himself in the mirror, evaluating the results.
  The mesh was a tight weave, giving the appearance at some angles of being solid white fabric, but in the shadows you could see the crossing fibers and tiny, tiny squares of his tanned skin beneath it. He twisted the other way. It felt good; he could move easily and quickly, which was perfect for training. It was lightweight, so he wouldn’t get overheated, and it was …cool. Naruto grinned. This was the one!
  He went through his shorts and picked out some Khaki’s, then put on his shuriken pouch and kunai holster. Lastly came the hitai-ate, which he tied tightly in anticipation, giving his damp blond hair a few shakes to keep it from dripping down his neck.
  “Now I gotta find out more about this Scavenger Hunt.” Naruto went to his doorway and put on his sandals, and rushed out of his apartment towards the Hokage office.
  The streets of Konoha were bustling, but not with the usual swarms of shoppers. Up and down every major road were ninja of all ages climbing ladders and hanging colorful lanterns at regular intervals. Shopkeepers had their staff helping out near their shops, and in-between these Naruto recognized some of the Chuunin Academy teachers directing their students to help decorate the village. He glanced around for Iruka- sensei, but didn’t see him on the way to the Hokage tower.
  Naruto slowed down as he approached the office, and saw with dismay that there was a very long line of people waiting to speak to Tsunade. Some of them held large covered trays, some were dressed in colorful costumes, and three strange men were struggling to roll an enormous barrel up the steps. Behind them was another man—whose appearance didn’t resemble a ninja of any kind—leading a large black horse.
  Naruto scrunched up his face, trying to imagine what this motley assortment of people needed with the Hokage, and decided to use another entrance. Avoiding the gazes of the Hokage’s Jounin guards, Naruto dashed around the back of the building and climbed up the wall on chakra-focused feet. He passed beside the large, curving window at the back of Tsunade’s office, and hopped onto the conical roof ledge above it, leaning his nose and forehead down over the side to peer through the open glass.
  From behind her, Naruto could see Tsunade seated at her desk, rubbing her head. There was a platter of food on the desk in front of her, and Naruto saw her assistant Shizune looking anxiously in her direction, standing next to a very fat man in a Chef’s hat. Tsunade reached out towards the platter, hand shaking in hesitation, and Shizune came over to whisper in her ear. Naruto inched closer so he could hear the exchange from his location.
  “Tsunade-sama, perhaps I could send for someone else to handle the food vendors’ samples… You’re looking a little green,” Shizune whispered.
  Tsunade straightened in her chair, “I think you’re right—I’m not sure I can eat another thing this morning. However…”
  Without turning, she suddenly flung a kunai out the window, aiming close enough to Naruto’s inverted head that the tips of several of his golden hairs slowly fell down to the sill.
  “AH!” Naruto heard Shizune gasp in surprise, taking the words from his mouth as he forced himself to breathe again, hanging frozen over the window ledge.
  Tsunade humphed in satisfaction and turned to look at him, her mouth quirked in a goading smile. “Something you wanted, Naruto-kun?”
  Naruto uncoiled his muscles and flipped through her window to land light on his feet in her office. He glared indignantly and yelled.
  “Oi! Be more careful, Tsunade-no-baa-chan!” He crossed his arms defiantly.
  Tsunade pinched the bridge of her nose, crinkling her eyes shut, “You’re too noisy!” She stood up, turning to him with hands on her hips. “Can’t you see all these people waiting properly in line to see me?” Her graceful arm swept the air, gesturing to the line of festival participants looking scandalized in their direction.
  “How dare you so rudely disturb Tsunade-sama!” Shizune scolded, stepping forward in disapproval, but was halted by Tsunade’s raised hand. The Hokage sighed.
  “Naruto, what do you want? Make it quick, before I assign you a mission far away from me that you’ll detest.” Tsunade looked like she meant it, and Naruto glared at Shizune for scolding him before making his request.
  He pointed a finger at the Hokage, “I want to know everything about the Scavenger Hunt!” He stuck his thumb into his own chest, his face fierce in determination, “Because I’m going to win!”
  Tsunade rolled her eyes, “Tch. Is that what you’re interrupting me for?” She waved him off, turning back to her desk.
  “Oi!” Naruto moved up beside her, “I said I’m going to win! So what do I have to do?”
  Tsunade sat back down behind her desk, “You’ll find out tomorrow night along with everyone else at the Opening Ceremony, Naruto. Now, I have work to do.”
  Naruto could see Shizune bobbing around in the background, clearly wanting to yell at him. He shot her a glare before asking his next question.
  “What’s with this Opening Ceremony? I don’t want to wait until tomorrow, I want to know now!” Naruto leaned his hands on her desk to be at her eye level, ignoring the hushed whispers from the onlookers in the room.
  Tsunade sighed. “Tomorrow night is the grand opening of the Festival of the Golden Kunai. During the Opening Ceremony—also known as First Night—I’ll be making an official speech that will tell you all you need to know about the Hunt. Now I have lots of things to do today, so go…” She gestured vaguely, looking for a suggestion that would keep him out of her hair, “…Iron your festival Yukata or something, and let me get back to work!”
  She shuffled a pile of papers stacked in front of the large food platter. Naruto straightened up, confused.
  “Festival… Yukata?” He scratched his head, “I don’t think I have one…”
  Tsunade cocked her head at him, her eyes traveling up and down his athletic body. Naruto saw her watching him, and tried to read her expression, but couldn’t decipher it at all. He grew a little uncomfortable at being regarded so thoroughly, and reached a hand to his neck in self-consciousness.
  Her head soon straightened, and she nodded at him. “Jiraiya’s been dressing you, hasn’t he?” She questioned.
  Naruto’s eyes widened in alarm. ‘Was that bad?’ He looked down at his shirt, craning his neck to see his back, twisting one way and the other to find what was wrong. He looked back at her in dismay—he didn’t know what she meant, and he didn’t have anything else to wear—
  “Nevermind,” Tsunade’s voice interrupted his thoughts. “Saa, come see me early tomorrow morning. I have a festival Yukata that should fit you. But!” she held her finger in the air, “You have to leave me alone about the Hunt and let me get on with my duties. No more sneaking around my office!”
  Her voice was firm and commanding, and Naruto readily agreed to the terms, relieved he wouldn’t have to find a Yukata on his own—it sounded difficult. He gave the Hokage a little salute, smiling in thanks, then turned and walked across the office to the door, passing the long line of people waiting to be addressed and hearing Tsunade apologize to the fat man in the background. Naruto walked out into the sunlight.
  Though his mind was half somewhere else, he regarded the assortment of people with interest, his nose trying to place the mixed odors of food and his eyes roving over the bright colors of the performer’s costumes. He came around the bend and his blue eyes fell on the man who was leading the horse.
  The horse was gorgeous, but seemed uncomfortable around so many strangers and snorted and tossed its head; Naruto saw the man make clucking noises at it, rubbing a hand along its velvety neck in calming strokes. Naruto slowed his pace as he approached, wanting to get a good look since he hadn’t been around many horses.
  Its coat shone a glossy coal-black, and its mane danced in the Konoha breeze, giving it a look of wildness. As Naruto came up beside it, the horse turned its head and stared down at him; he felt a shiver ripple across his skin as their eyes met. The horse’s ears flattened against his head, and it snorted, almost in challenge. The shiver became a shudder of desire—the horse’s cunning eyes and the taunting challenge reminded Naruto of his best friend, who was just as dark and powerful as the black steed.
  Naruto kept walking, looking at it over his shoulder, then shook off the lingering shivers and turned at the corner to head over to the Ninja Academy. Hopefully this would be the last stop before going over to Sasuke’s. It was almost time for him to head over that way, but right now he needed to clear something up.
  Naruto crossed the courtyard full of young ninjas eating lunch in small clusters and entered the Academy building, glad that he was still in time to catch his sensei during the break. He ran up the stairs and down the hall of the floor to Iruka’s classroom and threw open the door. His sensei was seated at his desk, grading papers and eating his lunch in the empty classroom. Iruka looked up, and seeing that it was him, smiled.
  “Naruto-kun! What are you doing here?” he asked warmly.
  Naruto grinned, closing the door firmly behind him, “Ohayo, Iruka-sensei!”
  He hurried across the classroom and past his teacher over to the far windows, quickly peering outside, and up above, and down below, checking for anyone who could be eavesdropping. Iruka watched him, puzzled, as he crossed back over to pull up a chair from the closest student desk and sit next to him. Naruto swallowed, feeling a little nervous.
  “Er… Iruka-sensei?” He leaned forward with a hand cupped around his mouth. “I have a question!”
  Iruka’s eyes went wide in surprise, then he groaned loudly and slumped back in his chair, “Oh noooooooo…”
  Naruto’s cheeks grew warm, “No!” he whispered loudly, “It’s not anything like that!”
  Iruka sighed with relief, scooting forward again and pushing his papers aside. He matched his voice to the blond’s, whispering, “Okay, what’s up?”
  “Well…” Naruto hedged, glancing from side to side, then stood up and turned in a slow circle, his words coming out all in a rush: “Do I look okay for training at Sasuke’s house this afternoon?”
  He watched Iruka closely, not breathing, desperate to hear that he looked okay and not like someone dressed up by a perverted frog-hermit. Iruka’s mouth twitched, and twitched, until he couldn’t keep a straight face any more, tossing his head back as he guffawed loudly.
  Naruto was horrified for a moment, before irritation swelled up in his chest and he yelled, “Nan-dattebayo! Sensei!”
  Iruka tried hard to regain his composure, “Gomen… gomen,” he managed between laughs, finally subsiding enough to communicate verbally. “Naruto, you look fine,” he said reassuringly, wiping a tear from his eye.
  “Really?” Naruto asked excitedly, not sure if he should believe Iruka after he laughed so much.
  Iruka nodded emphatically, “You look fine. No—you look good!” He gestured from Naruto’s head to his feet, “I’m sure Sasuke will appreciate whatever you wear. He doesn’t strike me as being too picky about other people’s clothes.”
  Naruto could agree with that, knowing Sasuke was mostly picky about his own clothes. Or weapons, or…well, everything.
  Naruto sighed, “It took me a long time to find this shirt…” He ran a hand through his blond hair. “I don’t know what I’d do if you said I should change.” He sat back down by his sensei with relief.
  Iruka smiled at him, “Glad I could help.”
  “Iruka- sensei,” Naruto asked, a new concern on his mind, “Do you know anything about festival Yukata?”
  Iruka looked a little surprised, “Do you mean for the Opening Ceremony?”
  Naruto nodded, “Tsunade-no-baa chan said she’d lend me one for tomorrow night, but…” He rubbed his neck again, flushing slightly in embarrassment. “I’ve never worn one before.”
  “Well it’s not that big a deal,” Iruka answered, “Especially since it’s summertime.”
  “But what if I mess it up?” Naruto felt a little shy, “Can you show me? Tomorrow before the Ceremony starts?” He grinned at his teacher, “Hey! Then we can go to the festival together!”
  Iruka shook his head, looking a little put out, “I won’t be going; I have to work tomorrow night.”
  Naruto’s face fell, “What? But sensei! Can’t you switch with someone? You have to go, it’s the Opening Ceremony—Tsunade-no-baa chan says it’s important!”
  Iruka considered, tapping his cheek idly with his finger. “Well Mozuku does owe me a favor…”
  “Pleeeeeeeeeeeease, Iruka-sensei!” Naruto pleaded.
  Iruka laughed, “Okay, okay Naruto. I’ll get someone to switch with me. Then we can go together, and I’ll help you with your Yukata.”
  Naruto grinned, “Sankyuu, Iruka-sensei!”
  He stretched back in his chair, visibly relieved, lacing his fingers behind his head. He felt a whole lot better now that his teacher would be there to make sure he didn’t goof anything up. He sighed to himself. Why was he so worried about his wardrobe, all of a sudden?
  His sensei changed the subject, watching close and raising an eyebrow, “So… training at Sasuke’s, huh?”
  Iruka was obviously curious, but Naruto didn’t feel pressured by the question—he’d just have to edit a few things. His cheeks flushed anyhow.
  “Aa. I ran into him yesterday at the grocery store… and he invited me over to train today.”
  “So ka,” Iruka commented. “Well I hope you’re not going to hit him again!” Iruka chuckled.
  Naruto’s jaw dropped—he could never do that! Even if Sasuke held him down and licked him again… Naruto groaned as his face flushed even brighter and his belly tingled in anticipation.
  Iruka laughed harder, “Just kidding, just kidding.”
  They both turned towards the classroom door, hearing the pattering footsteps of ninja students echoing up and down the halls as lunchtime came to a close. Iruka began to put his bento away.
  “Ah. The kids will be coming back soon.”
  Naruto stood and put his chair back just as a cluster of students opened the door and came into the classroom, looking much younger and tinier than he ever remembered being. They moved to their seats, one or two of them slowing in surprise at the unexpected sight of a blond Chuunin beside their instructor.
  Iruka waved hello at his students, and Naruto smiled and waved at them as well. One kunoichi squeaked and hid behind her notebook, and Naruto looked sheepishly at Iruka who chuckled.
  “I guess I’ll get out of your way, Iruka-sensei,” Naruto said, smiling at his favorite teacher.
  “Yeah, it’s hard enough to get them to settle down after lunch,” Iruka smiled at him. He gave Naruto’s shoulder a friendly squeeze. “Good luck!”
  Naruto flushed slightly, “Thanks!” Naruto strode over to the door, turning back and calling, “See you tomorrow!”
  He made his way back down the stairs and out of the building, his heartbeat thrumming in his ears as he dashed across Konoha to the residence of one gorgeous tensai.

   

  ♦

   

  Sasuke dipped the calligraphy brush into the dark ink mixture, letting the dry hairs absorb just the right amount of liquid.
  With deft strokes he quickly sketched a map of Uchiha property, marking the shape of the lake and the area beyond it in which he intended to train with Naruto. He made tick marks at the edge of the parchment to indicate distance, and drew an Uchiha fan in the corner pointing North. He rinsed the brush before putting everything away and checking his bundles on the kitchen counter to make sure he had everything he needed.
  Feeling satisfied, not to mention eager, he went to the front door to hang the map for his teammate, driving a kunai into the wood just enough for it to hold firm.
  Ninja supplies in hand, he sprinted around his house and through the rear courtyard, sandals splashing across the surface of Uchiha lake. He came to an area thick with trees and shrubbery, not too far from where he usually did target practice, but recognizably different because of the Kudzu that twisted over almost every surface. Sasuke kept the viney-weed contained to one area for several training purposes; the process of taming it alone allowed him to practice many ninjutsu without unwanted destructive results.
  Today, he would use it to test in what ways he could help his teammate win the Golden Kunai.
  He found a spot that matched what he was looking for, and began to set some traps. Naruto had gotten a lot better at spotting them, but Sasuke had also become more skilled at setting them. He felt confident that even if Naruto evaded some of the traps, he’d definitely fall for the last one. And then maybe they’d really have some fun.
  His hands worked fast. The quiet, shaded grove had a great combination of landscape elements that would make the afternoon entertaining, and once the last pieces were set in place, Sasuke chose a tree that would afford him a great view of the surrounding area, and concealed himself behind the natural curtain of Kudzu.
  He wrapped his arms around his stomach to keep from getting too nervous—waiting for Naruto to arrive would be the hardest part. Not for the first time, he wished he had an animal to summon that could give him a warning when his teammate was approaching.
  Instead, he closed his eyes, focusing his senses on the forest around him, ears pricked to hear any disturbance that might signal Naruto’s approach.

   

  ♦

   

  Naruto gasped in relief when he found Sasuke’s house, after getting turned around for several minutes in the Uchiha district’s labyrinth of buildings.
  He dashed into the front courtyard and up the steps, wondering nervously if he was supposed to knock or ring the bell. Finding the map on the door, Naruto grinned at his teammate’s neat, precise handwriting, and felt a shiver of excitement course through him. Sasuke was evidently taking their training session seriously.
  He gave the parchment a tug, removing it from the door and looking around to orient himself. He walked around Sasuke’s house, recognizing the elaborately carved doors that stood closed at the back of a wide, wooden porch. He remembered the elegant sitting room where he and Sasuke had eaten dinner together, which must be on the other side. The porch overlooked a small garden close to the house and an expanse of land between it and the shimmering lake.
  Naruto rolled up the map and tucked it into a pouch, sprinting towards the lake in the direction Sasuke had instructed. It was excitement—and nervousness too—that propelled him across the lake so fast, but he reigned himself in when he reached the opposite shore, examining the trees growing up the bank.
  “Kudzu… Kudzu…” he murmured, moving from trunk to trunk, trying to find the grove that his rival had illustrated.
  He crept around the edge of the forest, sticking fairly close to the shoreline and just inside the perimeter of trees until his eyes focused on an area thirty feet inward that seemed different than the rest of the forest. He moved in that direction, noticing how little light was passing through the canopy, and the further he went, the thicker the forest seemed to get. Cautious, Naruto eyed the broad, leafy plant that was slowly covering the surface of everything in sight, blanketing the woods in a lush, velvety layer of green.
  When the sunlight abruptly cut off, he halted, feeling like he’d stepped into another world altogether—everything, all the normal plants and trees had been swallowed up by the Kudzu. ‘This must be the place.’
  Sasuke was hiding somewhere, waiting for him. Naruto looked around, senses alert, wondering what his teammate had planned.
  “Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!” He said, creating two clones. The clones turned to him, and he motioned for them to sneak in opposite directions and try to locate Sasuke. They nodded, following his instructions and leaping into the dense landscape and out of sight.
  Naruto thought for a moment. He was at two disadvantages: One, he wasn’t familiar with the environment, and Two, stealth wasn’t one of his strongest points. He pursed his lips. But maybe there were things he could do. He inhaled a deep breath, and then let it out in a tremendous yell:
  “OI, SASUKE TEME! WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU HIDING?”
  Naruto took two steps forward, listening for any rude remarks his rival might be muttering, hearing instead the hiss of an exploding tag about to ignite. He looked down at his feet, realizing he’d tripped an almost invisible ninja wire, and quickly somersaulted to the right, away from the noise. He rolled up to his feet and leaped into the air, scrambling for purchase on a vine-covered tree trunk as the explosion went off where he’d been standing.
  “Tch,” Naruto muttered, holding onto a branch with his hands and swinging his legs up to get a better view of the area. Sasuke really was taking this seriously—an explosion like that could have hurt him! His eyes narrowed as they scanned the forest, his earlier nervous excitement replaced with irritated determination.
  Naruto moved out of the tree, leaping to the next and making an effort to keep silent, although the Kudzu rustled under his hands and feet no matter what he did. At least with his two clones also in motion it was harder to pinpoint any one of the three of them. He thought grimlyof all the lessons he’d had with Kakashi, knowing that while his own movements might be somewhat obscured by the noises, they also concealed those of his rival—his tactic was working equally against him as well as for him.
  He had to find another way.
  He leapt into the next tree and his foot slipped off the branch he’d been aiming for; he grabbed hold of some vines as he fell, peeling them off of the underside of the branch and kicking his feet out, using the momentum of his body weight to swing himself around the trunk and descend to a level where he could safely jump to the ground.
  Naruto landed in a crouch, one hand braced on the ground in front of him, the other reaching for a kunai, not knowing if Sasuke could even see where he was. His expression brightened—the landscape might be helping to hide his opponent, but that meant it could hide him as well. He moved carefully backward against the tree trunk, circling its base and ducking into a mass of vine encrusted foliage. He listened carefully, peeking out from behind the leaves, and then moved slowly towards another tree as far as he could while concealed.
  After a minute of waiting and watching, he decided to make a break for the next cluster. He moved quickly, cutting through the vines with his kunai and dashing across the open space. A shuriken whizzed through the air past him and he ducked his head and dodged it, thankful that Sasuke had missed. Then he realized his mistake, as he felt rope tighten around his ankle and snap him off balance.
  He didn’t fall back and hit the ground; instead he was flung into the air to hang upside down.
  Naruto cursed. The shuriken had been aiming for the counterweight of this trap, and he’d stepped right into it like a complete Genin.
  Before he’d even bobbed once, Naruto reached up to his foot and held the rope steady with his left hand, cutting his leg free with the kunai. His legs dropped, and he twisted his now upright body to the side to fling his kunai in the direction that the shuriken had come from. Watching as it sliced the air, he reached up with his right hand and shimmied himself up the rope, hand over hand to where the rope had been tied to a very high branch.
  He made it to the top before his kunai could hit its target, but he saw Sasuke suddenly burst out of the way and dash across the open forest floor. Though his view was soon obstructed by the trees around him, Naruto could hear Sasuke’s feet crunching through the Kudzu as he tried to move to a safe location.
  Naruto clung to his perch, catching his breath for two seconds after his rapid climb, and then moved quickly to chase after Sasuke, ignoring the hanging strings of Kudzu tickling his face. It didn’t matter what noise he made now, Sasuke knew exactly where he was. But what Sasuke didn’t know was that they were headed right toward one of his clones. All he had to do now was continue to flush him in that direction and then the clone could ambush him. Naruto smiled.
  He followed the noise of his running teammate, trying to keep him in his sight although he lost him when Sasuke dove into a thick mass of tangled plants. Naruto froze in a tree almost directly above his rival, willing the Kudzu around him to be silent as he watched the hiding place intently.
  The bulbous mass of plants wasn’t that large, and there was no cover if Sasuke tried to move out of it. Naruto considered his options, the minutes ticking by with neither of them taking action, and the heat trapped inside all the Kudzu causing sweat to slowly drip down his neck.
  He knew vaguely which direction his clones were, but didn’t hear them moving anymore. He could throw his weapons at Sasuke, but he really didn’t want to risk hurting him too badly. He crouched on his tree branch, waiting as calmly as he could for something to happen.
  The mass of Kudzu below him rustled. He held his breath—Sasuke was going to do something!
  The Kudzu rustled again, and this time he could actually see the top of Sasuke’s ink-black head poke out of the leaves. It turned from side to side, like he was scanning the forest around him to make sure it was safe, then started to slip slowly and silently—how the hell did he do it?—from the tangle of plants.
  Naruto’s heartbeat sped up as he watched Sasuke’s lithe form emerge from hiding and creep slowly into the open. He clenched his fist, it had to be now!
  He wound his fingers in the Kudzu vines hanging near to him and dove backwards off the branch he was standing on. The vines peeled from the branch just like he’d expected, and he swung his body so that he could dismount directly behind his teammate. In almost slow motion Sasuke was turning to look over his shoulder, his expression one of total surprise.
  Naruto landed on the ground right behind him and he instantly wrapped his arms around Sasuke’s chest and held him tight so that he couldn’t get away again.
  He moved his lips close to Sasuke’s ear, saying, “Gotcha.”
  He had one glorious moment of holding Sasuke in his arms, their bodies pressed tightly together, before Sasuke disappeared in a little poof of smoke.
  Naruto stood there—completely shocked—his arms still in the air in disbelief. The Kudzu rustled behind him; heart sinking, he turned to look over his shoulder just as the real Sasuke leapt into the air and threw several shuriken directly at him.
  It was like being in a horror movie—Naruto felt a twinge of utter panic as the shuriken whizzed in his direction. It happened so quickly he could only manage to raise his forearms to protect his head and neck. He closed his eyes tight, his mind not able to fully understand that he was about to get hit, and he braced himself for the sickening thuds of the weapons striking his body.
  Naruto could hear the change in trajectory when the shuriken suddenly angled to avoid his frozen form, circling around him in identical speeds. The next thing he knew a mass of ninja wires wrapped tightly around his torso from his upper chest to his narrow hips, though there was something… odd… pressing into him in places.
  He felt a pang of relief when he realized that Sasuke was only using the shuriken as a way to bind him. Although again, it didn’t seem right—the wires only went around his torso; his arms and legs were free. The Shuriken made a last pass before returning to Sasuke, who pulled the wires he held in his hands taut with a flick of his wrists. Naruto slowly lowered his forearms and raised his chin to look at his longtime rival.
  Sasuke was fifteen feet away from him, holding three shuriken between the knuckles of one hand, the nearly invisible wires stretched between them. Naruto couldn’t take his eyes off of him even if he’d wanted to.
  Sasuke stood with an amused smirk on his face, his free hand resting casually on his hip. He was in a black ninja jumpsuit, the wrappings under his kunai holster the only element that broke the sleek lines of his body other than the creamy skin that showed at knee and elbow. Naruto bit the inside of his cheek to keep from wobbling.
  This is how it was to train with Uchiha Sasuke; so beautiful, so cunning, so… aggravating!
  Naruto’s gut clenched with desire, erasing his fear of being wounded but not quite replacing the earlier disappointment of only holding his rival for half a second. No, not Sasuke—just a Kage Bunshin. Kuso!
  Naruto dropped his clenched fists to his sides, but something on his body got in the way. He looked down, and boggled in confusion at what he saw. There, tied to the ninja wire—and now also roped around his body—were at least fifty ripe, round, red strawberries.
  Naruto gaped, not knowing what question to ask first.
  Sasuke inclined his head, black eyes twinkling an answer. His purring voice made Naruto’s belly squirm—
  “Gotcha.”

   

  ♦

   

  Sasuke held the shuriken tightly, keeping the wire stretched taut between him and his teammate.
  Naruto was gaping at him, totally at a loss for words, and his confusion was too adorable. If Naruto only knew what the sight of him—where did he get that utterly sexy shirt?—was doing to him, even covered in fruit, he’d just be more confused.
  Sasuke’s mind flashed to the sight of Naruto hugging his clone, and he felt things in his abdomen tighten. He was almost disappointed that he hadn’t been the one caught, though he tried to console himself with Phase II of his training plans.
  “I see we have some work to do on avoiding traps,” he taunted, coiling up the wires as he moved closer to the blond.
  “Hey!” Naruto argued, “At least I got out of them this time!”
  “Hn,” Sasuke replied, “You did. But your clones didn’t.”
  “NANI!”
  Sasuke made his way forward, knotting the wires together across Naruto’s stomach and using a kunai to snap off the excess. He tucked the remaining wire into one of his pouches. He motioned for Naruto to follow him, walking casually through the shady Kudzu as if they were sightseeing. Naruto grumbled behind him.
  They moved further into the Kudzu forest, coming upon an enormous tree trunk, and Sasuke smirked to himself. ‘Naruto should be able to hear his clone squirming about now.’ Sasuke circled the tree, and sure enough, Naruto passed him in a hurry, impatient to see what had become of his clone. Sasuke paused when Naruto froze.
  “What the hell? You! Why…why are you so…so…ugh!” Naruto spluttered, pointing at his clone which was tied securely against the tree, mouth covered in tape and legs kicking furiously at a ninety-degree angle. Its eyes shone dark blue with murderous intent.
  “Do you want me to show you the other one?” Sasuke asked, crossing his arms over his chest and posing in his usual bored, superior way.
  Naruto growled in frustration as he made a hand seal to release his jutsu. The clone popped with a poof of smoke, leaving the ninja wire slack around the tree. Naruto whipped around to face him.
  “Teme! What the hell!” He gestured to the tree, then to his body, wrapped in wires and strawberries, looking for the right words to express the emotions swirling across his face. He shook his fist in the air, settling for, “Are you INSANE?”
  Sasuke narrowed his eyes, “Tch. I believe you said you wanted to win the Golden Kunai, yes?”
  Naruto gestured impatiently, “Of course!”
  “Do you really think your competition isn’t going to use traps?”
  Naruto seemed to consider this. He tried to cross his arms, but couldn’t because of the strawberries. He put his hands on his hips instead.
  “So what?”
  “So I’m telling you. This is going to be a hard competition.”
  “Hmph,” Naruto replied.
  Sasuke snorted, indignant. Why didn’t Naruto ever take things seriously?
  “Listen. First, you’re going to have to search for some type of object, in an unknown area of Konoha forest. Why do you think I picked this location today?” He gestured to the dense Kudzu coating every available surface.
  Naruto rolled his eyes, “Because it would be harder to find you.”
  Sasuke nodded, “Exactly. Even without opponents, it’s going to be hard to find the hidden objects.” Naruto seemed to be thinking about that. Good.
  “Second,” Sasuke continued, “You also have to carry and protect the objects you find.” He indicated the strawberries.
  “You mean these?” Naruto twisted to regard the strings of red fruit dotting his body.
  “Aa,” Sasuke nodded. “And that’s not even counting how your opponents are going to try to steal them, or how you’re going to steal from your opponents, or how you’re going to make it through multiple hours with many shinobi battling at once.”
  Naruto looked back at him, his blue eyes steady and calculating. “So ka,” he muttered. “You’ve really thought about this, ne, Sasuke.”
  Sasuke fought the butterflies in his tummy, knowing how much he really had thought about it. And how much he thought about Naruto. He felt his cheeks start to turn pink, and he turned away.
  He waved it off. “It’s just… not going to be like when we take bells from Kakashi-sensei.”
  Naruto grinned at him, chuckling. “Yeah, Kakashi always loses when the two of us work together!”
  “Aa.” Sasuke smirked, fondly remembering the last time they’d hoodwinked their teacher.
  Naruto started to fidget impatiently. “All right, Sasuke, I see what you’re saying. But…” he gestured vaguely at the strawberries. “What am I supposed to do with these?”
  Sasuke cocked an eyebrow at him. Did he need more of a hint? He moved towards his teammate, and lightning fast shoved the heel of his right hand into one of the strawberries on his stomach, just hard enough to squish it to a pulp.
  “Keep me from doing that,” he said, challenging, watching Naruto skip back a few feet and turn almost as red as the stain spreading on his shirt, from indignation or fury, or maybe both.
  Naruto growled angrily at him, and Sasuke fought off the shiver of desire that tap-danced down his spine. He gave his teammate a minute to get a bit riled up, then sprinted across the short distance between them to attack.
  Naruto’s fist came swinging at his chin, and he ducked, dodging the blow and smashing a strawberry just above his hip bone. He twisted behind and almost got one on Naruto’s kidney, but Naruto kicked out at him and he was forced to skid out of the way. Naruto’s blue eyes were ringed with fire, and Sasuke’s heart skipped a beat—he must’ve really touched a nerve somehow for his rival to be this furious.
  Sasuke considered his next attacks as they faced off, circling through the Kudzu slowly. Naruto suddenly charged at him—Baka!—and Sasuke caught his raised fist with his left hand and turned into his arm to throw him. Naruto grabbed the back of his shoulder with his other arm and kicked his feet around to land solidly on the ground in front of him.
  The fist Sasuke was holding in his hand opened and grabbed his wrist, and Sasuke felt Naruto shift their momentum to try and shove him onto the ground. Sasuke braced his right hand on Naruto’s chest, destroying another strawberry, and tipped them backwards. He fell onto his back into the leafy Kudzu, and before the blond could make any countermoves, he brought both feet up into his stomach and caught his weight, then rolled his hips upward and pushed with his legs, throwing Naruto off of him and over his head.
  Sasuke used the motion of the throw to flip himself upright, pushing off the ground with his hands as his feet found purchase in the vine-covered floor. He whipped around, seeing that Naruto had avoided landing flat on his back, but had partly skidded in the Kudzu leaving green stains along one leg of his shorts, and a red smear of one pulverized strawberry along his waistband.
  Naruto turned towards him with a look of absolute rage, and Sasuke saw that the underside of his sandals had made tiny red ridges in the stains of the two strawberries that had been squished. He might have thought it was funny, except that his teammate was charging at him again.
  “Aaaaaargh!” Naruto yelled, coming at him with a flurry of jabs and kicks and forcing him into defensive mode again.
  Sasuke’s eyes narrowed in annoyance. What was he thinking, coming at him like that? He was supposed to be protecting the strawberries, not rushing into a close-combat situation! Baka!
  Sasuke blocked Naruto’s attacks with forearms, wrists and knees. Naruto might be slightly more powerful, but he didn’t have quite the same speed. Sasuke’s eyes bled strawberry red as he increased his movements enough to avoid the attacks and slip within Naruto’s guard, destroying three more fruits on his back. Naruto was working hard to keep up, and he did a fair job of it, finally keeping Sasuke from adding to the count of red smears for several minutes. Sasuke soon felt his body protesting the furious pace of their fight and considered ways of ending it quickly.
  Sasuke tilted his head to the left, dodging a punch and in turn punching his left arm towards the blond. Naruto twisted away from it, retracting his arm and then trying to shove his elbow at Sasuke’s head instead. Sasuke dropped onto his left hand, and tried to sweep Naruto’s legs out from under him with his own, but the blond pulled his knees up in a jump and avoided it. Sasuke was twisting his body back around to get up, but to his surprise, Naruto had turned the jump into a kamikaze dive and drove both hands into Sasuke’s right shoulder.
  Sasuke grunted as Naruto’s weight pounded his shoulder and chest into the ground, his left arm bending under their combined force, and his legs entangled by both the Kudzu and his teammate’s feet. Naruto’s torso fell flush against his back, and for a second after landing, all he could hear was their equally rapid breathing.
  Sasuke immediately started to struggle underneath him, but Naruto held him fast. Then, he began to feel the juice from the twelve or so strawberries that had been intact only moments ago start to seep into the black cotton of his own shirt.
  “Usuratonkachi!” He seethed, wriggling furiously, his mind caught between annoyance at Naruto’s disregard for the premise of the exercise, and the enjoyment of Naruto’s warm body covering his back.
  “You asshole!” Naruto shouted near his ear, pressing his chest even harder against his back. “Let’s see how much you like having a sticky shirt!”
  Sasuke widened his eyes in disbelief, “Baka! We can wash our shirts later, but you can’t replace those strawberries!”
  He couldn’t see it from his position, but he could tell Naruto was fuming. “Who cares? Do you know how long it took me to pick out this shirt? And it’s probably ruined! Kuso!”
  What the hell did he mean? He actually spent time picking out a shirt?
  “It isn’t ruined, moron, you just have to pre-wash it with the right stain remover! It isn’t that hard!”
  He felt Naruto go still, like he was thinking things through. Sasuke squirmed a little bit harder, impatiently, and felt Naruto’s weight rise off him, too slow.
  “You could’ve told me not to wear my best shirt, jerk.”
  Sasuke slithered out from under his teammate and knelt in the Kudzu in front of him, reaching a hand around to touch the places his shirt was sticking uncomfortably to his back.
  This is what it was like to train with Naruto—so fierce, so strong, so… aggravating!
  When was he ever going to grasp the point? Sasuke supposed he shouldn’t be surprised any more, nothing involving the loud Dobe ever went quite as planned—he truly was #1 at the unexpected. Naruto’s eyes weren’t so livid now, which was a small comfort, although the Phase II exercise had been a complete disaster.
  As he looked at Naruto, he had to agree that it really was a nice shirt, and it really did look good on him.
  “I didn’t think you’d let so many of them get crushed,” Sasuke taunted him pointedly. Naruto scowled, using his fingers to scrape off some of the larger bits of fruit from the mesh shirt.
  Sasuke sighed, “I see we’re going to have to try this again; you destroyed most of the strawberries on your own.”
  Naruto glared, then chuckled, “Yeah. I forgot what I was supposed to be doing after you got that first strawberry.”
  Naruto raised a hand to touch the back of his neck, his smile becoming a grin and the gesture revealing a long line of his muscular midsection, splotched with strawberry juice and pulp. Sasuke licked his lips subconsciously, thinking he looked quite tasty.
  “Hn.”
  Sasuke got to his feet and brushed the dirt of the forest off his clothes, seeing it cling to the juice on his hands in dismay. Looking at Naruto’s smiling face, he found it hard to be too annoyed with him. He held a hand out to his rival, who clasped it in his own equally dirty one, and let himself be pulled him up to his feet. Sasuke looked him over, the mesh shirt dripping with red juice. He turned to go, looking over his shoulder at his teammate.
  “Come on. I’ll let you use my shower.”
  They made it quickly to the house, not talking, and Naruto obediently followed him up the steps. Sasuke felt a thrill at the idea of Naruto using his shower… naked and soapy and… naked… but tried not to show his thoughts. He didn’t want to scare him off; things were already kind of tense.
  It was clear they were sort of testing each other, seeing what they could get away with, while trying to act like nothing was changing.
  Once in his room, Sasuke went over to the armoire and took out a neatly folded pair of black shorts, and a black shirt with a wide collar and an Uchiha fan on the back. Naruto was looking around, examining his scrolls, and Sasuke let him be, moving to the bathroom and taking out a towel from the closet there. He set everything on the marble sink and then joined Naruto by the sofa.
  “I put a towel and some clothes in there for you. Go help yourself.”
  Naruto smiled sheepishly, “Uh… did you want to use it first? It’s your shower…”
  What Sasuke wanted was to go in there with him and use his hands and tongue to clean every inch of Naruto’s body. On impulse, he reached up his right hand to Naruto’s blond hair and ran his fingers through it, flicking off some strawberry bits. ‘Would it be so bad if he suggested it—if he made a move?’
  Naruto wasn’t moving away, permitting Sasuke’s fingers to comb through his wild hair, which seemed promising, especially since Naruto had kissed his cheek just last night. Sasuke considered his options, his lightning fast brain forming a strategy in mere milliseconds.
  They were both still alert from fighting, so if Naruto tried to punch him, he was reasonably sure he could block it. Naruto was in his house as his guest, which might make him a little less inclined to start a ruckus. Even if he didn’t respond well… he’d probably get over it pretty soon anyhow; Naruto didn’t usually hold grudges too long.
  And at least then, he’d know what Naruto really thought. Sasuke decided he could probably only get away with a small move, a little gesture to say he was interested…to see if Naruto was interested too…
  Looking into those blue eyes, he curled his hand over the back of Naruto’s head and rested his palm against the nape of his neck, steadying his body. Heart hammering in his chest, Sasuke leaned forward, and with a lazy, deliberate slide of his tongue, he licked a strawberry morsel from the inner edge of Naruto’s collarbone, and then the one above it on the side of his neck.
  Naruto’s skin was so warm—warm under his palm, warm beneath his lips, warm from the heat trapped within the Kudzu cocoon all afternoon, warm from the physical battle they’d had. Sasuke memorized that warmth and let it wash over him from the half-second they had skin contact, and fought not to move away too suddenly, though he still had a mild fear that his teammate would take a swing at him.
  Despite the lust pulsing in his body, Sasuke somehow managed to pull back and let go as if he hadn’t done anything unusual at all, tasting the heady combination of strawberry and Naruto’s bold fighting spirit on his tongue.
  For a second time, he felt an invitation to shower together race up his throat and attempt to burst from his lips, but he bit it back, shrugging and saying instead, “I’ll go after you.”
  He glanced into Naruto’s blue eyes, trying to capture his reaction, and caught a glimpse of something that made his stomach drop before the blond looked away, his lips still curved in a half smile. He saw a flush spread across Naruto’s cheeks, and Sasuke quickly looked elsewhere, feeling the stirrings of a much stronger, lower reaction of his own.
  Naruto glanced back at him and smiled, “Thanks.” He made his way into the bathroom and closed the door behind him.
  Sasuke let out the breath he’d been holding, and sat down on the sofa, wondering how he’d make it past the next few minutes having to listen to an ungodly sexy blond take a shower twenty feet from him. He sighed, leaning his head forward into this hands and trying not to imagine the scene on the other side of the door—he wondered desperately how long it would take to cross that barrier, instead of tiptoeing near it, since for now it unfortunately meant he had to use considerable personal discipline to keep his hands to himself.
  In the end, Sasuke left his room and went down into the kitchen to make some tea, hoping that some physical distance might quell his overactive imagination. He thought wryly that this must be what Kakashi-sensei had been talking about—Naruto in general was almost too much for Sasuke’s nerves, especially lately, not to mention a Naruto dripping with sweet strawberry juice or taking a shower in Sasuke’s own bathroom.
  The minutes ticked by, and Sasuke leaned his elbows on the kitchen island, looking out the window to the front courtyard and willing his mind to focus on finalizing a strategy for the Hunt. Soon he heard the water stop, and not long after that he heard Naruto’s footsteps coming down the stairs. When they rounded the corner into the kitchen, Sasuke turned his head and felt his heart seize up.
  He was going to have to modify his earlier statements: Naruto, freshly showered and wearing Sasuke’s own clothes, was damn near the sexiest thing he’d ever seen.
  His blond hair when damp was like old gold, falling around his head in irregular chunks. The black clothing was a little tight—Sasuke definitely had a slimmer build—but it didn’t seem to bother Naruto’s movements one bit. His blue eyes stood out in hypnotic allure, shining from their background of black and gold. Sasuke was very glad that he was already being held up by the counter and didn’t have to rely on his own limbs to keep upright.
  “Maaa, Sasuke,” Naruto said, a little hesitantly. He turned halfway around, showing his teammate the back of the shirt. “Are you sure I can borrow this? It’s got your crest and everything…”
  Sasuke felt the inner growling of an Alpha-male instinct that insisted Naruto should always wear his crest, and caged the feeling away for future contemplation.
  “Daijobu,” he answered, waving it off. He stood up, passing Naruto a mug of tea.
  Naruto nodded thanks, and leaned against the island counter to sip it. He held up his strawberry covered clothes in his other hand, “Uh, do you have something I can put these in?”
  Sasuke took the bundle wordlessly and disappeared behind the kitchen somewhere with them. When he returned, he said only, “I’ll take care of it. The strawberries were my idea.”
  After a few minutes of slightly awkward, but companionable silence, Naruto offered a tidbit of information.
  “I saw Tsunade-baa chan this morning. She says she’s giving a speech about the Hunt tomorrow night.”
  Sasuke raised an eyebrow, interest piqued. “So, ka.” He mirrored his rival, facing him and leaning a hip against the counter. “Did she tell you what she’s got planned?”
  “No,” Naruto grumbled in annoyance.
  Sasuke sipped his tea. “I found out some interesting things from Kakashi-sensei.”
  “Nani-nani?” Naruto asked in typical enthusiasm, his blue eyes sparkling.
  Sasuke shrugged, pleased to have valuable information to share. “Anko’s off the list as a possible opponent. Kakashi says she’ll be stuck on a mission.”
  “Good,” Naruto said with relief, “She’s got too many weird jutsus she learned from—” He suddenly flushed, not needing to say the name of that man.
  Sasuke touched his neck involuntarily, fingering the place that used to be marked with the seal of Heaven, but was now just pale, unblemished creamy skin. He continued, not wanting to linger on the subject.
  “Hinata and Shino, as well as Shino’s dad will all be back in time though, so we’ll have to consider how to handle them, assuming they enter the Hunt.”
  Naruto nodded, “Yeah, and we know Kiba’s competing.”
  “Aa,” Sasuke agreed. “Kakashi also told me something interesting about the Feudal Lords.”
  “Feudal Lords? Isn’t this a ninja festival?” Naruto scratched his head, then brushed some of his dripping hair out of his face.
  “Yes, but it’s still a big chance for them to come see our village, and bet heavily on the outcome of the Hunt.” Sasuke sipped more tea, watching Naruto draw his own conclusions.
  “You mean they’re coming to gamble on us, like during the Chuunin exams?” Naruto asked.
  “Aa. Except it’s only the Lords from Fire Country, so there are no other countries to lose to. The friendlier atmosphere, the festival going on and everyone in good spirits; it’s a given that they will bet more freely. You know Tsunade-sama won’t miss out on gambling with her peers.” Sasuke said.
  Naruto shook his head, muttering, “Tsunade no Baka.”
  Sasuke had to agree; it was too bad that their Hokage wasn’t known as the Legendary Lucky Winner, instead of the Legendary Foolish Loser.
  “Anyways, once we know who we’re up against, we can come up with a strategy so you can beat them,” Sasuke told him, the gears of his mind furiously whirring.
  “And we need to find out exactly what this Hunt is for, and where it’s going to take place,” Naruto added.
  “Tsunade-sama said she’s giving a speech?” Sasuke questioned, brows creasing.
  “Yeah, at the Opening Ceremony,” Naruto confirmed.
  Sasuke thought for a moment, wondering how much she could really say in a formal speech at the festival, when Naruto’s voice interjected, “Are you going? Tomorrow night?”
  Sasuke’s ears flattened against his head in slight alarm, remembering Kakashi’s drawling voice and perverted hints about dark corners and blonds. He felt his cheeks grow hot and hoped it wasn’t visible. He raised his tea mug just in case, sipping quickly and blocking the view.
  “…Probably.”
  “Me too,” Naruto added, looking like he wanted to ask him to go, but was unsure of how to do it.
  Sasuke quickly decided to ease the tension, “I’m sure I’ll see you there.”
  He wasn’t so sure they were ready to go together to a very public, very romantic setting, if Kakashi could be believed. Naruto’s smile faltered, but he soon wiped it off.
  “Yeah, I’ll see you there.” He drank the rest of his tea, gulping, and then set his mug down on the counter. He ran a hand through his blond hair.
  “Sasuke?”
  Sasuke raised an eyebrow, “Nanda?”
  Naruto paused like he was debating how to express what was on his mind. “Why are you helping me?”
  His blue eyes held even more questions in their gaze, and Sasuke felt his heart flutter as he searched for an answer that was accurate, while not telling too much. He shifted against the counter subconsciously before answering.
  “We’re teammates,” he said simply, hoping it would be enough. He sipped his tea to hide his nervousness.
  Naruto grinned at him, his blue eyes dancing. “Thanks, Sasuke,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck again as Sasuke shrugged demurely to play down the sentiment. Then, impulsively, Naruto stepped towards him and planted a quick peck on his right cheek.
  Sasuke stood absolutely still with shock, seeing Naruto grin at him for a moment before turning and quickly rushing out of the kitchen and around the corner to put on his sandals. His voice floated back over to Sasuke.
  “Ja! See you tomorrow night!” And then Sasuke heard the door open and close, signaling his teammate’s departure.
  A few minutes later, blushing shyly in his own kitchen, Sasuke was finally able to respond: “Mochiron.”

   

  ♦

   

  Iruka left the mission office quickly, hurrying on his errand and thankful for a few moments to himself.
  The day had been a steady stream of one thing or another, all festival related, and at this point in the evening he felt his nerves were just about shot. He couldn’t believe his good luck at drawing the short straw and being sent on a food run, even if it meant none of them working that night at the mission office would get an actual dinner break.
  He hurried through the village, his stomach demanding Ichiraku’s Ramen with incessant rumbling growls. He barely noticed the strings of lanterns lighting the streets, or the colorful decorations that were spreading from building to building, he was so focused on his goal. He rounded the corner, and lifted the curtain of his favorite Ramen shop.
  The proprietor, Teuchi-san, turned halfway from his cooking and smiled, “Welcome!” Then he realized it was one of his best customers, and greeted him more warmly.
  “Ah! Iruka-sensei! Back again so soon, I see!”
  Iruka flushed a little at the teasing, agreeing with him, “Hai, hai!”
  He ordered on behalf of the mission office and Hokage office combined as he sat down on a free stool, swinging his legs around to sit squarely. His sandals touched something that rustled, and he looked down, seeing a large white shopping bag and turning to apologize to the person next to him.
  Iruka straightened up in surprise.
  “Sasuke-kun!” he said, at a loss for words, not expecting to run into his former student that night, nevermind at a Ramen stand.
  Sasuke looked surprised as well, but mostly acted like his usual cool self as he nodded a greeting, setting down his chopsticks. Iruka felt sweat break out on his palms; this was the first time he’d seen the Uchiha since Naruto had come running to his office a few days ago and confessed about their little… encounter at the river.
  It was actually rather shocking to see him, knowing that he and Naruto could one day soon be a secret couple. Iruka couldn’t help but look at the boy’s face, trying to see if he was wearing make-up or something to hide where Naruto had hit him. Or wait, would he have been healed by now? ‘Oh yeah, he was supposed to train with Naruto today, I wonder how it went…’
  “I didn’t know you liked Ramen, Iruka-sensei.”
  Iruka froze at the sound of his name, heartbeat pounding in his ears—he instantly knew who the voice belonged to but wasn’t sure he really wanted to look. Sasuke was watching him steadily, and Iruka swallowed, then leaned towards the counter to peek around Sasuke to see a silver haired devil on the teen’s other side.
  Iruka laughed nervously, “Ha, ha, ha! There’s a lot you don’t know about me, Kakashi-sensei!”
  He smiled in what he hoped was a professionally friendly way, even though he suddenly felt like he was walking through a mine field. He’d been around Kakashi and Sasuke loads of times, but not since Naruto had told him his side of the story, or worse—since he’d accidentally slipped to Naruto about the real deal going on with him and Kakashi.
  At once, Iruka became only too aware of how many secrets were stretching between the three of them, maybe even the four of them, and the web could break at any moment. Especially if Sasuke and Naruto were about to begin their own relationship—Naruto might even have already told Sasuke!
  Iruka inhaled slowly through his nose, and exhaled through his mouth. This was nothing to worry about. No big deal. No. Big. Deal.
  Iruka cleared his throat, “What brings you two to Ichiraku’s? I don’t see either of you here very often.”
  He shifted on his stool a bit. Why was Sasuke still staring at him? He ran a hand over his ponytail self-consciously.
  Kakashi chuckled, “Oh, we were out shopping and got a little hungry.” He held up his large white shopping bag that matched Sasuke’s. “We bought new Yukata for tomorrow night.”
  “Oh,” Iruka commented, “For the Opening Ceremony?”
  Kakashi nodded, “Aa. It should be loads of fun. Are you going, Iruka-sensei?”
  Iruka flushed, looking away. Damn! He hadn’t had a chance before now to tell Kakashi about how he’d switched his shift and was meeting up with Naruto. He’d originally been hoping to meet up with his lover for the fireworks at least, but it was too strange to be talking to him with Sasuke there, and his nerves didn’t feel up to trying to make plans with him in secret code. He and Kakashi hardly ever crossed paths outside of their apartments–unless Kakashi was playing some lewd game–but they did have some code phrases that wouldn’t sound like anything unusual to the casual listener.
  Iruka sighed, he was too tired for this. He’d just answer the question, and talk with Kakashi about it later.
  “I was supposed to work tomorrow night at the mission office, but I got Mozuku to cover my shift. So I’m meeting up with Naruto to go the festival.”
  Iruka didn’t miss Sasuke’s twitch of surprise at this news, nor did he overlook Kakashi’s little smile, the kind that usually preceded something perverted.
  Sure enough, Kakashi leaned forward with too much excitement. “Well, why don’t we all go together? Sasuke and I were going to go, and you and Naruto have plans–the more the merrier. Ne?”
  Iruka gaped. Did he not understand how… awkward that would be? What was he thinking?
  Iruka looked at Sasuke, and found that he’d finally stopped staring at him and was now facing Kakashi. He couldn’t tell from the back, but he wouldn’t be surprised if Sasuke was glaring. He looked back at Kakashi, who was clearly enjoying himself.
  Iruka narrowed his eyes, “I wouldn’t want to intrude, Kakashi-sensei,” he deferred the invitation modestly, hoping his voice would convey his feelings.
  “Nonsense!” Kakashi replied, “We would love to have you two join us! In fact, we insist—right Sasuke?” Iruka watched his lover turn to their student.
  Sasuke tried to intervene, clearing his throat before speaking up, “Iruka-sensei and Naruto might have made their own plans. We shouldn’t push them, Kakashi-sensei.”
  Iruka didn’t know what passed between them, but Sasuke rolled his eyes and turned back to his Ramen in a huff, lifting his chopsticks and taking a bite without spilling a drop of broth. Iruka would have stopped to wonder how he ate so neatly, but Kakashi was speaking again, and he turned his attention back to him.
  “Iruka-sensei, did you have something special planned?” Kakashi asked. Iruka hesitated too long, and Kakashi continued anyway. “No? It’s settled then. I’ll take care of the dinner reservations; don’t worry about a thing.”
  Kakashi’s visible eye crinkled in that disarming way of his, although Iruka was relieved that it didn’t seem to be working on him at the moment. He opened his mouth to protest, but the Jounin cut him off.
  “Where do you think we should meet?” Kakashi looked from Iruka to Sasuke and back to Iruka.
  “Er, well I…” Iruka didn’t know what to say; he felt totally furious. What he really wanted was to undo this whole thing when he had Kakashi alone—this kind of manipulation just wasn’t fair!
  Sasuke had finished his ramen and adopted his usual pose of pretentious boredom. Iruka was debating what the least awkward meeting place might be, seeking to head off whatever devious scheme his lover was composing, when Kakashi asked another question.
  “Iruka-sensei, where are you meeting Naruto?”
  Iruka crinkled his brow, “He’s coming to my place…”
  “Well then Sasuke and I could meet you there, too. Where do you live?” Kakashi grinned at him beneath the mask.
  “Uh,” Iruka glared, “Are you sure? My place isn’t that big… and it’s, er, way on the edge of all the festival stuff…”
  He tried to come up with any excuse, he did not want to have the four of them in his tiny living room. He didn’t want the four of them to be in any room, of any size really… it was just too absurd! His annoyance and fatigue was getting in the way of his brain.
  “Perfect! Then we have many choices about which part of the festival to try out first! Would you give us directions, please? Iruka-sensei?”
  Kakashi had made his voice buttery with persuasion, and Iruka couldn’t think of any way to refuse without seeming exceptionally rude to everyone around them, despite Kakashi’s shameless and impolite maneuvering.
  He sighed, trying not to sound too irritated since they were in public. He hated it when Kakashi got like this! He gave the directions, for Sasuke’s benefit, since he too was being manipulated by the Jounin.
  “It’s the third building on Hotarubi street, the one with a circular top floor and domed roof. I’m on the second floor, fifth door.”
  “Great!” Kakashi grinned, “We’ll be over, say…6:00pm? Things should just be getting underway around then, ne?”
  Defeated, he nodded, “Fine.” But then Iruka glared—it was not fine! It was far from fine!
  The happy-go-lucky voice of Teuchi-san interrupted Iruka’s train of thought, “Here you go, Iruka-sensei! Can you carry all that?”
  Iruka turned and looked at the four huge bags stuffed with to-go cartons of Ramen. He stood up, reassuring the Chef and thanking him for his quick work. Iruka turned to Sasuke and Kakashi, glaring a threat at the latter, and smiling warmly at the former.
  “I’m looking forward to seeing you tomorrow, Sasuke-kun.” The dark teen regarded him steadily, mouth quirking as he nodded his black head in matching sentiments. Iruka collected his bags of take-out, balancing them effortlessly, and bid them goodnight.
  “Ja-matane.”
  He ducked under the curtain in the doorway without waiting for a reply, making his way back to work with near-relief, which struck him as ironic considering how he’d felt heading to Ichiraku’s in the first place.
  “Tch,” he muttered, annoyed that he was going from one stressful situation to another, albeit for different reasons.
  Damn that Kakashi. Iruka’s brows creased severely. Why would he deliberately set up a situation like that? It wasn’t right to meddle; this wasn’t the time for one of his lewd games! Kami-sama, what would Naruto say when he found out? And how was he supposed tell him if he couldn’t undo the damage?
  In any case, there was one Special Jounin who certainly wasn’t getting any that night.
  …Probably.
  Iruka sighed, picking up the pace back to his hungry co-workers, the anxiety in his chest coiling heavier than the overstuffed bags of take-out Ramen.

   

  ♦

  to be continued... 

   

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