Chapter Ten

The residual laughter in his head had faded to an acceptable hum, along with the headache, enough that Naruto managed to lift his head from the floor and turn his body over, for he had spent the night staring at the wall in his corner. The room was empty; Sasuke had spent the evening downstairs, leaving him with Them as his sole company, and often times he wondered which was worse. He hated it when Sasuke laughed, hated it the way he hated everything else, because when the dark haired boy showed such delight, it meant that he had things planned for him, things he knew he didn't want to be a part of but had no choice.

He sat up, his whole body burning, like his very veins were on fire, and he groaned as he slowly got to his feet, pulling on a sweater. Despite his pain and misery, he knew that things had to be clean- couldn't leave the house until things were done the way they should be, and so he limped down the stairs and into the kitchen, which smelled strongly of coffee. Sasuke was sitting at the table, pale face staring at the newspapered window in silent contemplation, a mug sitting comfortably in his left hand. The right side of his face sported bruising from cheek to chin, and there were cuts along his hands, but beyond that, he seemed fine. The table had been replaced by another- most likely a old spare judging by the chipped edges. Moving to the sink, he pulled his cleansers out of the cabinet and got to work, all the while feeling Sasuke's eyes on him.

When he finished his cleaning, which took him even longer due to his aching body and lack of bunshin to help, he took a shower, sluggish mind rolling over what had happened yesterday. They, had given him Their chakra- or more like, Kyuubi had, as he understood it. He'd never been given anything from Them before- but he knew that Kyuubi had such chakra, and it was the first time it had rushed through his chakra coils- it had burned...

Naruto put on a fresh sweater and pants, glancing at himself in the mirror before quickly averting his eyes. He didn't like mirrors. He returned to the kitchen and was dismayed to see a bowl of soup at his spot, like it usually was. He really didn't feel like eating something so heavy today, but he knew Sasuke would be adamant that he eat. Sitting down at the table, he slowly slurped the soup, and for the first time, he contemplated the state of his own mind. He had never put much thought into Them- They had simply existed from day one. But now, after the incident from yesterday, he was left to wonder, was Kyuubi the only one in his head- or were there truly others residing within his cranium? It had always been 'we' and 'us', but what if it was really just 'I' and 'me?' What if all the other voices were just a figment of his imagination, and only Kyuubi was real? What...what if Kyuubi was making him think there was more inside him than there really was?

Naruto carefully placed the spoon on the table, his hands sporting a fine tremor as he slowly pushed the bowl away from him. He shouldn't be surprised really- its not like he expected anyone to be nice to him or anything, and yet his eyes clouded with tears.

"What is it?" Sasuke's voice startled him, and he looked up to see that his companion was looking about the kitchen from his spot at the table. "Is it my mother? Is she here?" Sasuke's dark eyes turned on him with such intensity that he flinched, wiping his eyes as he sent a nervous glance around the kitchen, shaking his head.

Sasuke slowly put the coffee mug down on the table and leaned back into the chair, his eyes surveying the blond. "Ok, so tell me, are there dead people around here?"

Naruto swallowed nervously. He didn't want to talk of such things, didn't like to share his private piece of hell with Sasuke, but the other boy looked like he would start to threaten if he said nothing, so he nodded minutely, wishing that this would satisfy the Uchiha. But he was sorely mistaken. Instead, Sasuke looked more intrigued as he stood up.

"Okay, show me." He gestured for him to follow as he headed for the door, sporting a slight limp. Naruto sighed and followed the Uchiha outside, smoothing down his hood and squinting into the sunlight. Sasuke stood on the porch, arms crossed, eyes darting around the compound. "Where are they?"

There were several of them out, the woman with the baby, one man hobbling on a porch, and several others, all were staring at them. Naruto pointed in their direction, and Sasuke's eyes zeroed in on them. But his face showed no horror. He turned his head and looked at him, and Naruto blinked back.

"What do they look like?"

Naruto sighed. Clearly Sasuke wasn't going to let this go, and he mourned his weakness in screaming about Sasuke's mother. "The...man on the porch is missing a leg and arm- he is there all the time. The woman is holding her baby," he pointed to the hedge were she sat. "She is crying."

Sasuke stared at the hedge, eyes empty of emotion, then looked back at him. "My mother? She say anything to me?"

Naruto blanched and took a step away from him. "She roars- she roars and weeps."

Sasuke took a step forward, eyes burning. "And my father?"

Naruto shook his head rapidly and averted his eyes, but Sasuke knew him too well.

"You've seen him?" he grabbed Naruto's arm. "Where is he? Which part of the ho-" Sasuke's eyes darkened until they nearly looked black, and he marched into the house, dragging Naruto along with him, heading towards that room- the room he never entered. Terror grew in him- he did not want to see that man again, and he latched his arm onto a doorway, jerking Sasuke and his arm to a stop. Sasuke turned to him, eyes seeming on fire, and he bodily yanked Naruto from the doorway and pushed him toward the room.

"No Sasuke!" he cried, trying to dart away from the Uchiha, but Sasuke threw him back toward the door.

"When were you going to tell me that you see my family, huh?!" Sasuke looked downright murderous. He grabbed Naruto's arm with a bruising grip as his other hand began to slide open the door. "Sometimes Naruto," he hissed, lips pulled back with a snarl. "Sometimes you remind me of him." The door slammed opened, and the musty smell of an unused room assaulted their noses. Sasuke pulled him into the room, and they stood before the blood stain smeared across the floor, and Naruto stared in dread at the man sitting there, dark, cold eyes focused on Sasuke. "Is he in here, Naruto? Do you see him?" Sasuke's voice had a breathy quality to it, but it was nothing compared to Naruto, who was trying hard not to hyperventilate. "Tell me the truth, Naruto." Sasuke shook him by the arm. "Is he here?"

Naruto nodded, eyes moving toward the man, and Sasuke followed his line of vision.

"Father?"

The man blinked once, a slow blink, and his eyes seemed almost colder than before.

"You were always a disappointment, boy." His tone was laced with disdain, purple and brown puffs escaping with his words, and Naruto felt a wave of nausea run through him.

"Did he say something?" Sasuke demanded eagerly, and Naruto nodded. "What did he say?"

"H-he said he's counting on you to avenge the clan," Naruto looked directly at Sasuke, swallowing thickly. "He said you're the last member, and that you have a duty." He could see that Sasuke was eating up his words like a starving man, and his arm was going numb from his grip. "Can we go now please? This is a bad place, let's just go-we have missions to do."

Sasuke turned to the man, his eyes looking through him, and bowed respectively. "Of course father. I will not rest until Itachi is dead."

The man's lip curled in disgust, and his eyes turned on Naruto. "You're a filthy creature, demon. You weave your lies like a master, and no doubt you have this fool wrapped around your clawed fingers. Take him from my sight."

"He looks satisfied," Naruto breathed quickly, trying to pull himself from the room- Sasuke was still bowing. "Sasuke, lets go!"

Sasuke straightened from his bow and proceeded to leave, releasing him, and as Naruto jumped from the room, was horrified when he came face to chest with Sasuke's mother. Her dark eyes were wide and swollen with tears, and as her mouth opened, that black cavern, Naruto gave a shriek and dashed around her and out of the house, heart pounding in his ears, breath coming wild. He stood on the road, breathing hard as the Uchiha that milled about turned and stared at him.

And for quite some time, he hated Sasuke.

--------------

Kakashi leaned against the railing of the bridge, book open as he surveyed the area. It had been a while since Sasuke and Naruto had been late, and he wondered what could be keeping them. He glanced at Sakura, who was combing her fingers through her hair, but staring down at the cobbled ground with a pensive look on her face.

He shut the book and stuffed it in his back pocket just as he sighted the boys approaching. "What is it, Sakura? Something bothering you?"

Sakura glanced up at him, her green eyes wary, but she shrugged. "It's nothing. I'm just tired of doing D..." he voice trailed off as her eyes fell on the approaching boys, and her face blanched, causing Kakashi to turn and look at them. He raised his brows in alarmed surprise.

Sasuke, was sporting a slightly swollen bruise on the right side of his face, his eyes were shadowed as if he hadn't slept, and he was walking with a clear limp. But it was Naruto that was most alarming. The boy's skin was almost ghostly white, which made the deep angry bruising coloring his mouth and cheeks to look extra ugly. The closer he got, the nastier it looked, until he was close enough that Kakashi realized that it wasn't just regular bruising, but there was actually bleeding beneath his skin, coloring his lips, part of of his chin, and most of his cheeks, red and purple. He too was limping, in a frail, almost weak way, and the expression on his face- he looked like he was about to be ill.

Both boys stopped before them, and Naruto's hand lifted and smoothed down his hood, and he caught a glimpse of Naruto fingers- and they too sported the bruising.

"What happened?" Sakura sounded aghast, her eyes darting between both boys like they had grown extra heads. Naruto only sniffed in reply, and Sasuke looked embarrassed.

"Training went a little too far," he shrugged, and looked over into the river, purposely avoiding their gazes. Kakashi looked at Naruto, who was staring sickly at the ground. He looked back at Sasuke suspiciously- he didn't know what kind of training they were doing, but if this was the result, apparently they needed supervision. But he didn't believe that these were training wounds- this was something else, and it was clear that whatever had gone on between the two of them, Naruto had come out the worst of it.

"You guys are going to have to be more careful, or you won't be in any condition to do missions," he admonished, but he knew he would be keeping a closer eye on the two from now on.

They headed to the Tower, and both boys garnered alarmed looks from people passing by, and he noticed that Sakura walked closer to him than the boys, shooting them wary, contemplative looks. Ninja stared as they headed to receive a mission from the Hokage, and both he and Umino-san looked rather stunned by the boys' appearance. For a moment there was an awkward silence, and then Umino-san sputtered, "N-Naruto! What happened to your face?"

Naruto, who had been staring at the floor, darted his eyes up at the man, then down at the floor. "Training," he muttered, and his voice was barely a rasp, broken and barely completing the word, and Kakashi knew voices that sounded like that. Victims of torture, people who had screamed until their vocal cords gave out and their throats bled. His eyes narrowed, along with Umino-sans and the Hokage's. Their eyes darted to Sasuke, who scowled.

"He screwed up with the Kage Bunshin is all," he snapped, and at this Naruto nodded. Sandaime raised his brows in surprise.

"Who taught him that?" he looked at Kakashi as he waved his hand lazily, then scratched his ear.

"It's really been useful to him," he said, but frowned at the boys, "though I don't know what he could have done to harm himself that bad." his frown let Sasuke know that he didn't entirely believe his words. From his side, Sakura watched them all with wide green eyes, taking everyone's reaction in.

"I see," and the Hokage seemed to understand his meaning. He sifted through the stacks of paper, pulling out a mission.

"We're tired of doing D missions," Sasuke blurted out suddenly, his eyes moving to Sakura, who nodded quickly and turned beseeching eyes on the Hokage. "Can't we get a higher mission?"

Sandaime puffed on his pipe, eyes surveying the Team, then glancing at Kakashi, who shrugged. "Alright, I suppose I may have one for you," he sorted through the papers and pulled one out. "An escort mission to Wave Country," he handed the scroll to Kakashi, who opened it and looked it over. "You're to escort a bridge builder back home, and keep him safe from possible threats such a bandits." He leaned over and requested that Umino-san bring the man.

Moments later, an elderly man about sixty-ish entered, reeking of alcohol and dirt. He scratched his scraggly goatee and stared at his Team.

"Are you serious?" his voice grumbled. "They're going to protect me?" He looked at the Hokage incredulously as the man nodded. "These are babies! And one of them looks like he needs to be hospitalized! They can't protect me!" Both Sasuke and Sakura glared at him- Naruto was playing deaf and continued to stared at the floor.

"They're a very good Team," Kakashi assured the man, "And I'll also be protecting you. You have nothing to fear."

The man looked at him suspiciously before sighing. "Alright- but I'm leaving in two hours!" He stalked toward the door. "Meet me at the west gate." Kakashi nodded and turned to his Team as the man exited.

"Go home and pack up- it's going to take us some time to get to Wave, especially at that man's pace. Bring what you will."

Both nodded, and quickly exited the room, Naruto following after at a sluggish, clearly reluctant pace.

They watched as he disappeared out of the room before turning to each other.

"Do you believe him?" the Hokage asked, eyes stern. Kakashi sighed and scratched his scalp.

"Yes...and no." he looked at Umino-san, whose eyes were trained on the doorway. "What do you think Umino-san?"

The man looked at him and sighed. "Sasuke really looked out for Naruto back in the Academy, and I've seen Naruto inflict harm upon himself, twice. But I'm going to have to agree with you, I believe Sasuke, but only to a certain extent. I don't think its safe for them to be alone together."

"You said there was a regression in Sasuke after he had taken up with Naruto," Kakashi prompted, and the chuunin nodded.

"I was worried from the get-go about Sasuke once he returned to the Academy after the Massacre, but...being with Naruto," Umino frowned and shook his head. "It's strange- and I can't quite explain it, but it seemed as if everyone stopped existing for the boy. Like I wrote in my assessment, they both seemed to exist in their own world." His eyes had a distant cast to them, as if he were remembering their time at the Academy. "I swear, sometimes when he looked at me when I spoke to him, it was like I wasn't really there to him...there was always a delay before he would respond." he sighed. "And Naruto never spoke or looked at me at all." He shrugged and looked at the Hokage, who had leaned back in his chair, smoking his pipe and looking very thoughtful. Umino looked back at him. "How was their interaction with Yoshina?"

Kakashi sighed. "They...tolerated her. They weren't rude, and they didn't exclude her, but then, you stuck three very antisocial kids together. Not much happened."

"And Sakura?"

"Sakura's very social, and its clear she's getting on their nerves some, but its working out better than I thought. This mission may do some good- or it may not."

The Hokage sighed. "Have I made a mistake? Or perhaps this is the lesser of two bad outcomes..?"

----

They returned to the compound, Sasuke looking eager and excited as he entered the house and headed for the room, pulling out their packs and stuffing a change of clothing, a first aid kit, and then headed down into the kitchen for food. Naruto slowly filled his pack, putting in clothing and wipes, because he knew he wouldn't be taking a shower anytime soon- the mere thought of walking around for days and being dirty made him nauseous. When he went downstairs, Sasuke had the kunai and shuriken laid out across the table, and he gestured for Naruto to take some.

They geared up, and he was relieved to see that Sasuke had packed his candy bars for him- the idea of eating anything else was making him break into a sweat. As they were strapping the katana to their backs, Sasuke's head suddenly snapped up, and his eyes took on that intense look again. "Who taught you how to use the katana?"

Naruto rubbed his eyes as a headache bloomed. "Nabeshin."

Sasuke's eyes deepened as he seemed to try to remember who Nabeshin was, but apparently failing to, judging by the look of frustration on his face. "Show me where he is." They finished up, locked the house, and Sasuke followed him as he went to the building Nabeshin tended to wander about. The ghost was not there, however, and he simply stood there, staring emptily at the building. Sasuke frowned. "Is he here?"

Naruto shook his head. Sasuke stared at the building for a moment, then spoke. "This used to be the infirmary, for when we got sick, or injured, and didn't want to go to the village hospital." A look of wariness passed over his face. "I never liked this place." Naruto made no reply, settling for staring at the building and wondering when they would be leaving.

Of course, that was when the gravity of what they were about to embark on hit him. They were leaving the village! His face paled. He had never imagined leaving these walls, never dreamt of a place outside of his apartment, and never cared to for that matter, so the very thought- the idea, that they would be going out into a world without walls, suddenly terrified him.

"I'm sorry," Sasuke's hushed voice jolted him from his fears, and he looked at the dark haired boy, who was staring at the building, his hands stuffed in his pockets. The Uchiha darted a glance at him from the corner of his eyes, then quickly looked away. "I'm sorry...about shoving you and stuff..." his face flushed slightly in embarrassment. "I was just...mad." He looked at him then, and Naruto stared back at him, his face empty of his thoughts. Sasuke shrugged and moved away from the building. "Come on, let's go."

Naruto followed him through the village, breaking out into a sweat, eyes moving to all the people that passed them by, the walls looming closer and closer. He really didn't want to leave, and yet, They began to stir, he could feel Their excitement, like acid running through his veins. They were eager to leave, to be free of Konoha.

They arrived at the gates, where a trickle of people wandered in and out, showing passes and goods before entering or exiting. Sakura was standing next to the old man, a slight grimace on her face, a pack on her back and several kunai strapped to her legs. She smiled at them when they approached, but the smile didn't have that vapid infatuation he was used to seeing when it was directed Sasuke's way. It was more reserved now, definitely more wary.

The man, Tazuna, scowled at him. "What happened to your face?"

"None of your business," Sasuke snapped, and the man turned a glare on him.

"I wasn't talking to you," he growled.

Sasuke's lip curled up in disdain, much like his father's, Naruto thought. "When you have something to say to him, you speak to me. Don't talk to him." Both Sakura and the man looked incredulous at the Uchiha's words.

Tazuna turned to him. "That the way you like things, little boy?"

Naruto smoothed his hood down and stared at the looming walls. Actually, that was the way he liked things- he much preferred not to speak to people at all, and if Sasuke was willing to do all the talking for him, then for once, things were actually going his way.

The man glared at Sasuke for a while before growling, "Where's that jounin of yours?"

Sakura looked up at him. "He's usually late, though I didn't think he would be late for this."

They lapsed into silence for thirty more minutes before Kakashi-sensei showed up, moving at a sedate pace and reading that orange book. His eye surveyed them and he gave a cheerful smile.

"We're all here? Yes?" he handed the mission scroll to the chuunin guarding the gate, who looked it over, made a copy, then handed it back with a few words of good luck. "Okay then, let's go."

One by one they followed the jounin out of the gates, and out of the village, Kakashi-sensei at the fore, Sakura and Tazuna in the middle, and Sasuke and Naruto at the back. They were less than half a mile from the walls when They stirred, unfurled within his mind like a beast.

AT LASSST, They breathed, and a wave of pure ecstasy rushed through him, all his aches and pains vanished, the air suddenly burst with flavors and scents, and his knees went weak. He felt someone grab his arm, and he realized he was bent over, staring at the ground.

"Not now, not now," someone was whispering in his left ear, and his swimming eyes looked up to see Sasuke at his side, gripping his arm and holding him from collapsing to the ground. Ahead, he could see that the others were still walking, not noticing what was happening behind them. Naruto straightened his legs, and took a few steps forward, the sensation fading. "Why are you smiling?" Sasuke's question startled him completely, and he realized that his face was split into a smile- how strange, and as he noticed this, his muscles released, and the smile was gone. Sasuke still had him by the arm as they quickened their pace to catch up to the others, and his face was twisted in a concerned frown. Only moments later, did he release his grip on him, instead dropping his hand down to rest on his katana, which rested at their hips instead of on their backs because of the traveling packs.

"If an enemy comes, aim to kill," he murmured, looking Naruto in the eye. "Don't even think about incapacitation because I doubt they'll show you the same courtesy," he sent him a knowing look, and Naruto's eyes widened. "We won't give them a chance. Right?"

Naruto's eyes fluttered as They murmured Their agreement, and he smoothed down his hood while nodding.

"Right."