Six Years Too Long

Chapter 33

Third person pov

Fuck.

"They said you have 'the fox' in you." Shikamaru noted drily as they tromped through the brush back towards what Naruto hoped was civilization. "They wouldn't happen to be talking about the Nine Tailed Fox, would they? Red eyes, orange, angry chakra? The very same one your dad sealed in a baby six years ago on your birthday?"

Fuuuuck.

"What? I have no idea what you're talking about. Foxes only have one tail, Shikamaru, so don't even try to convince me there's one out there with nine of them." Naruto averted his gaze, sweat beading his brow. The blood he was covered in was not helping his case.

With Kurama's help, escape had been a breeze. Almost comically so. In fact, it had been so easy that Naruto was rightfully suspicious of the entire thing. The whole thing, beyond the fact that it was a literal kidnapping, just felt off.

He's an abduction veteran, okay? He's been there, done that, got the anniversary coin and complimentary t-shirt. He knows they were supposedly after Sasuke, and that's all well and good since Naruto loves to blame him for shit, but the whole thing just... doesn't quite click the right way.

Maybe it's because he wasn't the target for once, and that spices things up. Maybe he's becoming paranoid now that he's entered such a domestic and peaceful life. Granted, said domestic and peaceful life had ended up with him nabbed by some snake maniac and his crinkly-faced companion and he'd almost fucking died, but you know. Whatever. It was the principal of the thing. 

"You know. I wouldn't tell anyone about you having the fox if that were the case." Shikamaru said in a strangely conversational tone that did not suit him like, even slightly. "Even if it is troublesome."

Naruto side-eyed him. Shikamaru side-eyed him back. Overhead, more thunder cracked, bringing with it another flash of blanketing rain.

"Right." Naruto slogged through a puddle, not even trying to go around it. The more water he got on him, the more likely this blood was to come off. Then maybe his parents wouldn't flip so hard. "Hypothetically what if the fox were actually like, a really cool dude though? Like, what if we were friends? Then how would you react?"

Shikamaru squinted at him. He looked odd with his normally-spikey ponytail all weighed down by the rain. The drizzle they'd first stepped out into was quickly becoming something stronger, and it was making it hard to figure out where they were and where they were going. 

Shikamaru was smarter than Naruto was, and he had a better sense of direction too. They at the very least probably weren't going in circles, then. But Naruto's assumption that they were still in the village? Sorely incorrect. Very obviously sorely incorrect.

He had no idea where they were. Shikamaru had shrugged and told Naruto that they were still in the country, which told him just about nothing. It was better than nothing though. Naruto, at this point, didn't care where they were heading. So long as it was away from their kidnappers and any allies they may have.

If they wanted Sasuke, maybe they wouldn't be so inclined to follow them. He had no idea if the three they'd slipped away from were dead or not. He'd sort of slashed first and then didn't ask questions later. They sucked, wanted Sasuke-- that was all he needed to know. Though, he probably should've made an effort to figure out for whom they were working.

Priorities, priorities. Kurama felt like he was trying to burn an actual hole in Naruto's stomach lining, so he hadn't really wanted to hang around and play interrogator. He'd gotten Shikamaru and they'd done what kidnapped kids do and they'd booked it like the place was an orphanage on fire. Cest la vie-- or whatever it is that Biscuit says before getting dunked in the bathtub against his will.