damned_institute | Day 35: Bus 3 (Return Trip)

Naruto quickly moved to block Sasuke's punch, grabbing his arm tightly. He wasn't going to let him hurt Jiraiya, again, just because he'd tried to help him, again. His eyes narrowed and he glared, hissing.

"What the hell is your problem?!" He glanced at Itachi, unsettled by his presence, but decided to, for now, ignore him. Sasuke was the immediate problem, throwing punches and stabbing people when they were only trying to lend a hand.

"I didn't think you could be an even bigger bastard, but apparently being blind does the trick," he snarled, almost regretting instantly. But he couldn't take the little of Sasuke he'd seen already -- so angry at himself that he was angry at everyone else around him, no matter who they were. At least, that's what he saw. He didn't let go of Sasuke's arm, his grip almost painful. He had to admit that some of the remnant anger from last night was making him angry now, and Itachi's presence upsetting him further, all this on top of the fact that he was stuck here in the first place, and still hadn't quite grasped that.

Someone intercepted the blow intended for the orderly, which was surprising enough that Sasuke didn't try to break the hold for a moment, eyes widening. It wasn't until Itachi spoke that he tried to break free again: "I'm not your puppet! I'm not just --"

And then there was the voice of the person who had just stopped him. Just as familiar, just as infuriating.

Today was just designed to be frustrating, wasn't it?

Naruto sounded exactly the same as the last time Sasuke had heard him, if angrier and more vehement. Still surprised that Sasuke didn't care what was in the way, would destroy anything that was in his path -- still stupid. And still in the damn way.

"What the hell is your problem? Why the hell are you back?!" The focus of his anger whirled on Naruto with barely a pause, fists still clenched tightly even though his arms were restrained. With his balance still compromised, that left precious few options, although --

It was hardly graceful, but grace was hardly something Sasuke cared about. With a low, furious sort of noise, he tensed his muscles and attempted to headbutt Naruto with as much strength as he could manage from this angle.

Sasuke was apparently completely incapable of evaluating his own priorities in a logical manner. Itachi would make a comment about how it was in Sasuke's own interests to calm down, but as long as the three of them were involved and Itachi was left out of it, he had little reason to care. Besides, he couldn't get a word in between Sasuke's angry outbursts.

He really did not understand Naruto-kun, nor his relationship with Sasuke -- why Naruto cared, and why he would act so rudely to Sasuke if he cared. But it was Sasuke that made him narrow his eyes. Itachi thought Sasuke had officially detached himself from his former bonds, but Sasuke was too angry with Naruto for that. He should not even care enough to be angry. Though being restrained might have something to do with that, but Sasuke should be able to break away if he wanted to. Seeing the two of them interact was. . . something to consider.

Seeing Sasuke try to headbutt Naruto in such a ridiculous manner was something to make him deny all involvement in this.

At least one nurse was headed in their direction, Jiraiya realized. If they didn't manage to calm Sasuke down in the next minute or so, they'd be in trouble with the staff, and that's something Jiraiya didn't want. And then, his attention was caught by a sudden move from Sasuke.

"Oh, no you don't!" Jiraiya growled out as he saw Sasuke preparing for a head butt; he was getting really damn tired of Sasuke trying to injure people.

He jerked Sasuke back, trying to lessen Sasuke's momentum before their heads collided. But it wasn't quite enough, and their heads still came together, but at a different angle--a very different angle--and without the force Sasuke had tried for a moment before.

[OOC: Yesh, it's planned! ♥]

All Naruto could do was stand there, frozen for a split second. He had definitely not expected that, and he'd moved his head slightly to try and dodge Sasuke's attack at the time, which had only caused this to happen now.

Something that was oddly reminiscent of another moment a couple of years ago.

Sasuke froze much the same way Naruto did at first.

At least until he realised that doing so meant that they were stuck like that and jerked back sharply enough to give himself whiplash, sputtering furiously. It was -- not only was it something that should never, ever happen, but it was something should never, ever have happened and had just happened again.

And it was something that reminded Sasuke of a part of his past he usually did his damnedest to keep in the past.

Spitting furiously to the side -- so maybe it was immature, but it was necessary -- Sasuke forwent indignation at Naruto for being in the way and instead whipped around to try and jab his elbow at whomever it was who had just interfered. Because it was that bastard's fault.

Sasuke was so caught up in the immediate shock of the moment that he actually forgot that Itachi was there -- the man's silent reaction did nothing to contribute to reminding him.

Itachi stared. And stared. Well, that was. . . the only thing Itachi could really think was that he hadn't known his brother was interested in that sort of thing. Because it wasn't possible that they were stupid enough for that to be 100% accidental.

. . . Which didn't explain the jerking away and spitting. Itachi was utterly lost. Nevertheless, he had least understood that Sasuke wasn't as free of bonds as he proclaimed himself to be. Whatever kind of bonds those might be. Itachi's eyes hardened with irritation.

He was resolutely ignoring the inexplicable wave of fury that had crashed over him. He didn't understand it, couldn't place it, and it certainly shouldn't exist, so he would dismiss it. Except that he was the only one who was supposed to hold sway over Sasuke's life. Sasuke had been teammates, friends, whatever you will with Naruto, but he had broken those bonds for the sake of his bond with Itachi, the only one he could have. This wasn't supposed to -- why did he care? Why did he care? Sasuke was nothing to him in this place, useless and unnecessary. Itachi's brows lowered almost imperceptibly.

"Would all of you," he cut in over Sasuke's flailing, with a voice no longer cool but low and intense, "sit down. You're already attracting attention." Was he the only one with any self-control, Jiraiya notwithstanding? Because he could control this inexplicable anger, he could.

Except they were that stupid. They were teenagers.

They were two teenage boys that had just... Jiraiya stared. Had that seriously happened? Had that seriously happened to his poor student?!

And then part of Jiraiya's brain murmured back through the static coursing through his mind, At least Sasuke is pretty enough to almost be a girl. It could be worse.

Wait, could be worse?! This situation was already horrible! What if no woman would ever get interested in his student because he kissed a man?! What if Naruto never married because of this?! What if Naruto ended up--

Sasuke's elbow in his side brought Jiraiya back to reality. His grip must have slackened in his horror, for Sasuke to have pulled it off. Jiraiya narrowed his eyes, but refused to let Sasuke go.

"Either you calm down and sit down, Uchiha, or I'll sit on you!" Jiraiya growled, silently agreeing with Itachi--they were going to get in trouble very, very soon if Sasuke didn't stop being so damn stupid.

"AUGH!"

Naruto pulled away from Sasuke sharply just as Sasuke was doing the same, bringing his arm to his lips to rub at them madly. He shot Jiraiya a quick glare, seeming to think it had all been his fault. Honestly, he'd rather have been headbutted by Sasuke than...kissed. Again. He couldn't help a slightly flush as he looked everywhere but at Sasuke, eyes narrowed, rubbing a last time hard at his mouth. His glare softened when he noticed the nurse giving them all a look.

It was annoying that the only times he'd ever kissed anyone had been not only accidental, but with his rival-best-friend-enemy-important-bond-person. As if things weren't complicated enough as they were.

He tried not to look too annoyed; they were attracting enough attention as it was, and he suddenly hoped the entire bus hadn't witnessed the scene in detail.

His hand went to the back of his neck and he rubbed it absent-mindedly, shoving the previous instant aside as if it had never happened. It was better this way, for his own sanity and, he suspected, Sasuke's as well. He was about to ask if they should sit when Jiraiya growled at Sasuke, having been distracted by his own thoughts and not seen the elbow jab. A small amused smirk crossed his lips and he raised an eyebrow at Sasuke.

"When he talks to you like that, I suggest you listen to him."

Sasuke did have an advantage over the other three, and it was that he was already sedated. The worst that could happen was that he was stuck with another dose of the stuff, which -- since this was out in the open and daytime -- Sasuke doubted the nurses would do. He could quite easily continue causing a commotion, attract more attention, get everyone involved drugged.

Except Itachi's voice was as calm as ever (always perfect never a single flaw), and if one of the nurses did arrive he was the least likely to be sedated. There was no point.

He'd have to wait until Nightshift started, in the commotion -- Sasuke knew what to expect, but with any luck Itachi wouldn't. At least there would be an element of surprise.

It went against everything Sasuke had ever been to back down and sit when Itachi was virtually in front of him -- and it definitely went against his pride that it appeared as if he was obeying some Konoha-nin or other. What Naruto said Sasuke ignored entirely: found a seat without speaking and felt out briefly with a hand. When the space turned out to be empty he slid into it.

Every muscle was tense with the wrongness of turning away from fighting Itachi. He just had to focus on something else for now and wait -- he'd waited long enough, after all.

What had happened just now, Sasuke decided to simply forget. As if it had never happened, much like the first time that had never happened.

To take his mind off of that -- and off the fact of Itachi sitting bare steps away -- he turned towards the voice he couldn't identify, narrowed his eyes. "Identify yourself."

Sasuke actually sat down. That was surprising; perhaps he had matured more than Itachi had thought. He certainly had not shown any tendency towards restraint up to this point.

It eased Itachi's mind somewhat that Sasuke had, unbelievably, backed off. He would no longer have to put up with a challenge he didn't need right now. And he certainly did not need it. Though part of him still wondered how Sasuke would fight unsedated, that would not happen now. In fact, it would not happen at any point while they were still in the Institution, because it could only obstruct Itachi's path at this point.

Itachi felt himself calm down slightly. This was a much better scenario. He had little interest in the others' conversation, but as he sat silently, his eyes never once left Sasuke.

"Jiraiya," the older man replied, sitting down as well and trying not to sound too relieved that Sasuke had finally seen reason. "Naruto's my apprentice."

Sasuke must have heard about him, so Jiraiya didn't need to give more than his name. It was a testament to the seriousness of the situation that Jiraiya forwent a more elaborate introduction such as the ones he had subjected Naruto to many years ago.

Besides, Sasuke couldn't appreciate the full effect of their beauty, being blind.

"He'd told me a lot about you," Jiraiya added after a moment of deliberation, watching Sasuke's expression carefully.

Naruto took the left over free seat, which was, fortunately or unfortunately (he wasn't sure) the one next to Sasuke. He'd pushed the previous moment far away enough already that it was barely a distant memory. What wasn't so distant, however, was the memories of last night. He glanced at Sasuke, who looked like he was trying to shoot daggers with his eyes, and opened his mouth to ask him what he thought he was doing then, fighting a monster like that on his own without his eyesight. He knew Sasuke was proud, but it had been downright stupid.

He didn't get a chance to speak, however, as Jiraiya spoke and his eyes widened slightly. He felt panicky, suddenly, like Sasuke wasn't supposed to know that and he absolutely had to deny it or his pride would take a blow.

"I -- I didn't!" He said, a little too desperate for it to sound in any way truthful.

Jiraiya of the Sannin, huh? Sasuke had long ceased to doubt Landel's ability to abduct whomever the hell he chose, but first Uchiha Itachi and then a member of the Legendary Three ...

It was certainly a strong reminder of how much power they were dealing with here. But Landel was no longer Sasuke's priority, and he had yet to firmly judge how much strength Itachi had retained in this place. Last time had hardly been ideal for logical assessment.

This time would be better. Had to be. Sasuke memorised the exact location he'd last heard Itachi's voice and forced himself to turn to other business.

Judging by the distance of the voice, the Sannin had chosen to sit next to Itachi, which meant that Naruto had to be next to Sasuke. Annoying, but even Sasuke had to admit that it was a better arrangement than most other possibilities.

Sasuke didn't have to admit, however, that he'd let Naruto get to him earlier. In fact, he didn't have to admit that Naruto was there at all. Ignoring anything said about Naruto -- and anything he might have said -- was perhaps immature, but Sasuke had no intention to deal with whatever the useless idiot might have to say right now.

"At what point in time were you taken?" The question was obviously addressed to Jiraiya.

Itachi had tensed the barest amount when Jiraiya sat next to him, eyes briefly flickering from Sasuke back to the Sannin. He watched Jiraiya with a calculating gaze; he was sure Jiraiya was too smart to start anything, but nevertheless he remained hyper-aware of the older man's every movement. These close quarters, where he would not even be able to stand up, were not the most ideal place to defend oneself from a famously talented ninja.

He continued to follow the conversation with little interest, until Sasuke said something that caught his attention. Point in time. . . Itachi had no idea what he was talking about, but it sounded like something of note. He had no intention of conveying that he had less information than his little brother, however, so for now he would sit silently and see if he could glean more from the conversation.

Huh. So Sasuke was completely ignoring Naruto, then. Trying to pretend Naruto wasn't even there. Trying to act as if he hadn't of reacted to Naruto earlier. Maybe it was the embarrassment of the kiss, or maybe it was something else entirely. Either way, it was an interesting reaction. (And it meant that he was ignoring what Jiraiya said about Naruto, so there was no more reason to press it further.)

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow for a moment at Sasuke's question before shooting Naruto a look that said 'don't elaborate on this' as he answered, ".. I was spying on the leader of Akatsuki."

He refused to give more information around Itachi, lest Itachi learn that he found out Pain's secret. Or that he had fought Pain. Or who had won. But, at the same time.. he wanted to gauge both Itachi's and Sasuke's reaction to that news.

Naruto had to admit to being annoyed by Sasuke's reaction. As if ignoring Jiraiya's statement and the fact that Naruto was right there next to him was going to make him disappear. He glared slightly at him, further annoyed that he wouldn't even be able to see it. There was no point in glaring if the other person couldn't notice and glare back -- his train of thought confused him slightly, since he wasn't sure he was supposed to want someone's glare on him.

But he did want Sasuke's attention. And he wanted to see just how much Sasuke was trying to deny he was sitting next to him. He waited for Jiraiya to answer, noting the look and nodding briefly.

Then, Naruto yawned, stretching his arms above his head, and when he brought them back down, he made sure that one of them "accidentally" hit Sasuke one the head.

"Whoops, sorry!"

Spying on Akatsuki? It was difficult to suppress the immediate flash of irritation, Konoha treading on my turf -- but logically, Sasuke should have expected Konoha to have sent its best after Akatsuki sooner rather than later. Really, it was something of a surprise that it hadn't earlier.

... although if Sasuke remembered correctly, there hadn't been word of Jiraiya having somehow gotten into contact with Akatsuki. Of course, the man did imply secrecy by saying he'd been spying, but neither Jiraiya nor Akatsuki were exactly low-profile, and Sound had certainly had spies in place.

Sasuke was about to ask what Jiraiya had managed to learn -- as unlikely as it was that the man would actually share his information, especially since there was a member of Akatsuki present (something Sasuke was still working hard at trying to ignore) -- when there was movement to his side. He had just decided to ignore it when Naruto's arm smacked against his head.

On instinct, Sasuke's arm snapped up, hand aiming to grab Naruto's wrist. No shinobi should have been that clumsy; it had to be deliberate. The damn moron --

"And you?" He snapped abruptly, not bothering to turn his gaze towards Naruto. "What point are you from?"

Change of tactic: there was probably no way to avoid Naruto. Sasuke might as well get what he needed to know while he could. If Sasuke was being somewhat temperamental, he was pretending not to notice. Itachi's presence was nagging at the back of his mind like the worst kind of throbbing headache, and the sedative was doing nothing for his decision-making abilities.

Try as he might not to show his surprise, Itachi's eyes widened at Jiraiya's answer. He hadn't heard -- had Jiraiya really been, or had he said that to have some sort of effect on Itachi?

And what, exactly, did Jiraiya know? It was vital to determine this, but not here, in front of Sasuke and Naruto. It was also crucial not to give anything away in questioning Jiraiya, which could very well be Jiraiya's purpose. But the Sannin was a formidable opponent. This situation would require some finesse.

Itachi had learned something already, though. It really did sound as if people could be taken from different times as well as different worlds. The power of the Institution was rather astonishing, though of course nothing that could not be dealt with. Different times. . . it was fascinating to comprehend. Did any of the other shinobi know a future version of himself, know things that might happen to him in the future? What time did Sasuke come from? It was crucial information, but once again, Itachi would not directly ask. This was not the time.

Jiraiya almost smirked when Itachi's eyes widened at his answer. Which meant the elder brother hadn't known about it. Which meant that Itachi was from an earlier time, or his leader hadn't let the others know about the battle. Which meant that the older Uchiha would undoubtedly want to question him.

And that was exact what Jiraiya wanted. He nodded to Itachi--just barely--as Naruto yawned to indicate he might be interested in trading information (although Jiraiya would have to think hard about what, if any, he'd want to trade with the man). Jiraiya had a few questions of his own that he wanted answered, and Itachi would be the most likely to know the truth.

And then Naruto pulled a brat move and "accidentally" whacked Sasuke with one of his arms, distracting Jiraiya and making him snicker a little--subtle, Naruto was not. Sasuke had finally given up on ignoring his student, though, (having realized that it was physically impossible to ignore Naruto, probably), judging by how he questioned Naruto openly a moment after grabbing Naruto's arm. Sasuke was behaving himself for the most part, although that could change if Sasuke decided to tighten his grip on Naruto's arm...

Naruto briefly wondered if all Itachi ever did was sit there quietly looking mysterious and/or brooding, but then remembered he was an Uchiha, and it just seemed to run in the family. At least it made it easier for Naruto to ignore his presence, which he would rather do right now. He knew Jiraiya would take care of him if needed, but Naruto himself had no interest in speaking to him, or becoming allies.

He tensed at Sasuke's question, looking away. He'd almost, somehow, forgotten what had happened instants before he'd been taken here. The institute had distracted him enough that he'd only worried about the present, and less so about the past.

But now it all came back to him, and his eyes darkened slightly, closing off. It was suddenly incredibly difficult to have Sasuke sitting right next to him, but being unable to do what he wanted to; mainly, punching him in the face and yelling. Possibly a lot.

"Oh, I'm just from a few minutes after you tried to kill me a second time," he said, tugging harder on his arm.

Sasuke blinked once, and then narrowed his eyes. He'd certainly heard of this before -- the Yuffie he'd recently spoken with on the bulletin board had come from a point in her life significantly after the one that Sasuke had first met. Perhaps that was the pattern? People were returned, memories wiped, and then taken again later in their timelines?

He'd have to ask around later. For now, though, the fact that the Naruto here now know about their encounter in Sound was probably a good thing. He released Naruto's hand and noted that the Sannin had gone quiet. Doubtless watching in case his apprentice might be in danger.

Orochimaru had done something similar on occasion, although it had been much less concern for a student than watching over his future body.

"Good," he said, somewhat enigmatically. To Sasuke, it meant that that brought them up to date with each other, at the very least. To Naruto, it could mean whatever he wanted it to mean. "You're completely new to the Institute?"

Itachi's brows furrowed slightly at Jiraiya's nod. That was a direct challenge, as Itachi had suspected. But why announce it? Unless Jiraiya was expecting Itachi to willingly divulge information, instead of the two of them trying to manipulate things out of each other. Very direct, and possibly mistaken. Itachi would have to consider. Either way, he would confront Jiraiya as soon as possible and determine a course of action from there.

Though this was on a smaller scale, Itachi had to approve of the way Sasuke drew information from a Sannin while giving away very little about himself, especially if he was still slightly sedated. And he had raised an interesting point -- if Jiraiya and Naruto were still new, Itachi probably had a slight advantage over them with regard to information about their surroundings. He could use this against Jiraiya if necessary.

Good, Itachi would be likely to confront him, and he'd be able to work with that. Not that he expected Itachi to answer his question without wanting information of his own. But there was nothing to do until they actually had a chance to meet--privately.

"We are," Jiraiya answered for Naruto, deciding to cut off the boy instead of giving him a chance to retort, instead changing the subject. "What point in time were you taken?"

While he had to agree that Sasuke had been good at keeping information about himself secret, Jiraiya wanted to know more about when Sasuke was taken from. It would change the nature of things, at the very least.

He also needed to talk to Naruto, sometime soon. It sounded like that meeting with Sasuke had taken a lot out of him, as it had been obvious during their earlier conversion about it. He hadn't of asked Naruto for details back then, but he was considering asking for them now. Jiraiya wasn't sure if Sasuke had been serious about attempting to kill Naruto or not, and that would be his only way to guess at the truth...

Naruto glared viciously at Sasuke, mouth opening to retort something, but Jiraiya interrupted him. He brought his hand back to his side and clenched his fist, fighting his urge to turn and punch Sasuke in the face with all his might.

But he was curious about the time Sasuke had come from, so he bit his tongue and kept quiet. Not that he expected Sasuke to answer with great detail; he'd probably keep as much as he could to himself, as always. He guessed Sasuke had to be either from around the same point as him, or later, since he hadn't seemed surprised to hear about their second encounter. Unless Sai had told him all about it. Which, somehow, wouldn't be all that surprising.

Naruto crossed his arms, glancing at Itachi and narrowing his eyes at him before turning away from him slightly.

Day 35: Bus 3 (Return Trip)

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