[Thread] That's three, three ninjas
Characters: AU!Naruto, AU!Sasuke, AU!Shikamaru, OU!Mercury (PGSM) and AU!Watanuki
Where: The commons
When: Immediately after Shikamaru's arrival in Econtra
Summary: Shikamaru's injured, Naruto goes to help and drags Sasuke with him, and Kimi comes too!
Warnings: Swearing I imagine
( And a cook )
Where: The commons
When: Immediately after Shikamaru's arrival in Econtra
Summary: Shikamaru's injured, Naruto goes to help and drags Sasuke with him, and Kimi comes too!
Warnings: Swearing I imagine
( And a cook )
"Leaving, Uchiha Sasuke?" she asked blandly, lips quirking upward. Having deduced the blond was not that boy, that left the black-haired one.
"Another five minutes and you can take him to the Infirmary." She let either boy who felt like it react to that, or both. There was no reason to detain Sasuke. Her questions, too, could be asked later: What had happened in this man's world do cause these injuries (it seemed highly unlikely they could have been gained in Econtra, given the cuffs; he was probably a very recent arrival) and why had Sasuke called her when he seemed to have little interest?
Would he do it for a stranger? He usually kept to himself too much for her to think that. Then, he knew this person enough to prefer him alive but not enough to expend much energy or emotion on the matter. Someone useful, then.
Meanwhile, the blond was still fretting and worrying, relaxing only a little and only now that it was clear the man was out of danger. He should have had more confidence in her abilities. After another moment, she decided to concede that he couldn't, not knowing them.
"And you're...?" she asked him.
Stitching. Ironic. Every act of kindness she did try seemed to involve sewing. You being alone like that...somehow, I don't like it. But as per her usual, the stitches were neat, orderly, and tight. They would be removed at the Infirmary - eventually. Not for awhile, not with injuries like these.
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Then he looked away and made the mistake of looking down. That was a great big mess. He hardly recognized it as a part of his body. Definitely the worst injury he'd ever gotten, and that was without considering the damage to the rest of his body.
Goddamn Sasuke.
Feeling considerably sick now, Shikamaru tried to focus on something else. The woman was talking to Naruto so he looked toward the Hokage. He felt like shit but Naruto was always a bundle of optimism so maybe it would spread. Maybe. Probably not.
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"Great." The blonde nodded to Mercury. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto," he informed her with a more sincere smile this time round, being told he could take him to the infirmary was a positive sign and should mean he wasn't going to be dying anytime soon.
"Thanks for helping." Even if Naruto hadn't been the one to ask her here, he was glad she had turned up and as always would make his appreciation known.
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"It would seem so, yes," was his answer-- a cold stare at the leaf nin glaring at him.
Stay out of my way; continue being useful. You wont have any problems. It wasn't like he honestly cared enough about Shikamaru to dedicate his time and thought into getting rid of him. That was a little egotistical of the man to consider. Now that he thought about it.
Sasuke mused, "pleasure meeting you, Mercury."
He could be humble, sometimes, when it was worth it (which was rarely). Even if there was still a mildly sarcastic tone to that deep voice. With that the footsteps continued forward gradually fading the body away in an invisible flame.
(( and he's out. Tag away. ))
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The glares were quick to come to her notice. Tension, even though Sasuke was responsible for her being here? How interesting! This could be entertaining, watching to see how that developed. She made a quiet internal note of it.
Shortly after, the stitches were finished. "He can be moved in that state now," she told Uzumaki Naruto.
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Still feeling queasy and not all that certain he should be moving yet, he shifted away from the wall and planted his hands on the ground, preparing to push himself up, but... No, he'd definitely need Naruto for this.
"Hey Naruto, you can make yourself useful now," he snapped, reaching up for the blonde to take his arm.
"Oh, and, uh..." Shikamaru glanced at the blue-haired healer again. Complainer though he was, he was capable of gratitude. "Thanks."
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Certain he'd get an affirmative Naruto took a breath and hoisted Shikamaru up, good thing for him the blonde had never grown particuarly tall, so it wasn't awkward for him to support the ANBU's weight.
Right now the infirmary was... er, that way. Naruto took a moment, reassured himself (hey he'd never been there before!) and nodded, "This way."
The blonde gave Mercury a curious look, wondering if she'd be coming with them or not.
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That was just the setup. The clincher was what came next: "You owe Sasuke a lot!"
Already well aware of the tensions - although admittedly not the reasons for them - Mercury was glancing closely at both men to gauge their reactions.
She fell into step with them as they began moving towards the Infirmary.
"Now I have questions, and I think Naruto does, too, so there's less for you to do if you tell us both at once. What happened anyway?"
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Shit, what was this woman's deal?
"I don't owe that asshole anything," Shikamaru snapped, and then winced because he'd jerked his body as he looked at her.
It was way too soon for him to be telling this story. He'd been hoping for a nap first, and some dinner, and then maybe he would have put it off for a few days, or a few months since there was no rush, really. Sasuke wasn't doing anything, was he? So there was no need to go bringing it up.
But now this woman had ruined that plan so all Shikamaru could do was roll his head back and sigh. It would probably have been more pleasant to die than to admit to hunting down the Hokage's best friend in secret. "...Sasuke's the one that did it."
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The blonde might've even snapped back on his friends behalf if he hadn't been so overwhelmingly curious about the answer himself. So instead he just carried on the slow careful pace, walking slowly with Shikamaru towards the infirmary, ears perked and waiting for his reply to Mercury's question.
And when it came, naruto wondered if maybe he should have expected it more.
He came to a halt for a few seconds, bright blues staring off across the compound, at the infirmary ahead. Sasuke did it.... Sasuke had... Naruto grit his teeth, a sharp stinging pain suddenly ripping through his chest, not now, not now... a swallow and he took another step. And then another. Just keep walking, get Shikamaru to the infirmary.
"He told me you knew he was alive." Quiet, much quieter than Naruto's normal default volume. "He did't say you were one of the one's who went after him." Or that he fought you.
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Sasuke, the one who'd wanted this person dead, had been the one to save him in the end. A foolish act; he should have allowed his work to be finished. What had changed that? The blue-haired girl decided to find out later. Sasuke was someone who had probably had a reason.
There was a little smile growing on her lips as Naruto's reactions displayed themselves so clearly. She could tell everything he was thinking, feeling.
"Would you have expected Sasuke to tell you? Really?" she pointed out. "You should give him a little more credit. It would have been foolish."
There was only one possible outcome to doing it: the frustration and anger she was seeing in this blond boy right now. And while it wasn't exactly as though Naruto could really exact revenge in a place like this, that sort of annoyance was something she doubted Sasuke had wanted to expose himself to needlessly.
It also, of course, explained the black-haired boy's quick departure. There was a mental smirk for him, too.
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"It's not like I wanted to keep it secret from you," he said quietly, his hold on the blonde tightening subtly. "Sasuke's a criminal. The second we found out he was still alive, ANBU got the order to eliminate him, and Tsunade didn't see a point in telling you when he was just going to be dead soon anyway."
He avoided looking at Naruto's face and completely ignored the woman. "He was hosting Orochimaru in his body," Shikamaru continued weakly. "He was a danger to the village, and after everything... We couldn't risk someone like him, an Uchiha, not again... And you'd never let us go if you knew."
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The blonde shook his head. "Tch, shouldn't be surprised the old hag was in on it too." Right, right, so his best friend since Sasuke died and Sakura died lied to him, Tsunade had lied to him... except they hadn't. It wasn't really lying was it? They just hadn't told him.
Just keep on walking.
"I pulled Orochimaru out of him, here." It wouldn't affect things back in their world now, it was too late for that. if they forgot things when they left here then... the blonde glanced at Shikamaru's face. "No, I wouldn't have." That was the truth, if Naruto had known Sasuke was alive for sure...
He wasn't sure what he would have done, but let someone kill him? No, never.
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"So vehement!" she teased Naruto. "I like that!"
But Mercury did quiet herself to listen to the exchange between the two men.
The issues Sasuke had had in the past, they were the result of this Orochimaru. Was there a suggestion he had not always been an enemy, then? Was it strange or fitting the name 'Metalia' came to her own mind?
These people, however they were connected, had habits of secrecy even from each other. To protect each other. How quaint. It had been very different for her. She had not summoned help those times because help would not have come. She felt a brief resentment towards this man who would have had help, who would not have had to fight his biggest battle alone.
And this blond! This blond! Her eyes narrowed and the expression darkened just slightly without her even noticing. So like that girl!! I won't fight Ami-chan!
Sasuke owed Mercury a lot. Not for saving this other boy, who was nothing to her either way, but for exposing her to this blond boy, these emotions suddenly starting to trouble her.
"You should fight," she informed Naruto bluntly, brusquely, the teasing dropped now for seriousness to help her brush aside those other thoughts. "That's the only way to resolve it."
So the princess is this weak?
Resist a little more!
Don't lose focus!
You'd better not say you won't fight this time, Ok?
It should be a fight that would give satisfaction.
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But if Naruto said he did it, then he believed he did it. And if anyone could do it, it would be Naruto.
"I'm... glad you were able to, Naruto," Shikamaru said quietly. "That proves it, huh? I should've come to you. Then maybe I wouldn't..." Damn, there was no nice way to say it. Wouldn't be dying.
And then that horrible woman was talking some more. Why was she still here? Was it just her goal in life to upset as many people as possible every time she opened her mouth? "What are you saying?" Shikamaru snapped at her. "They've been fighting for years. One big stupid pointless battle because Sasuke's a selfish asshole and never-- once-- thought of Naru..."
Oops, too much. Shikamaru sucked in a gasp of pain and stopped. His knees felt weak and he tasted blood rising up in his mouth again.
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Why sas she so interested anyway? Just following them along to listen in on her conversation, okay so maybe they owed her for helping Shikamaru but this wasn't exactly the way he'd want to pay her back.
He'd done it, removed the snake, unlike Naruto and Kyuubi they weren't one, not then anyway, they'd been on their way to it, merging, but until that point they'd still been seperate. No Naruto had willingly stepped intot hat, to save everyone, that was why it could be reversed.
"I wish you had." Naruto grit his teeth and fought of that stinging sensation again, what good would that do? "Its... okay though, you were jsut doing what you had to... right?" For the good fo the village, for Konoha. Naruto had never thought reaching his dream of being Hokage could be so bitter in the end.
"Heh..." he couldn't help but feel a little amused. Fight? they always fought, if it weren't for the cuffs they might have beaten each other up a dozen times over by now instead of a few brief scuffles. "Whats the point, these stupid cuffs... it'd be over before it even started."
Naruto stopped at the pained gasp, "Shikmaru?" that did it, regardless of protests he stopped and picked Shikamaru up in his arms. He could deal with it the short distance left to the infirmary.
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