A/N: What's up guys? So people who follow me on Y have read this entire story to completion but since I can post on here again without the shame of FTL hanging over me, those of you not on Y can see what I've been doing for the past... -counts- five? years :D Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Did you know that being at the Canadian Embassy in Japan still counts as Canadian soil and the Japanese police cannot arrest me for kidnapping Kiba on Kishimoto Masashi's orders? Because I sure did, and now as long as I don't move from this location, he is ALL mine!

Sasuke Says.

July 12th, 22:48

"Excuse me?"

"This is the only way, I fail to see why I need to repeat myself."

"I've done a lot of things for you, but I'm not doing this. You can't force me to help you do something like this."

"I don't recall giving you an option, little brother. When we succeed in this, we'll have regained everything we've lost. We'll return to living how we were in the past."

"You've never asked me to do something illegal before. I'm not going to get arrested because of your own personal vendetta."

"You act as if we're going to get caught. You should know me better, little brother. I've wanted revenge on him for a long time for what he did to our family. To us."

"I lived through this, I understand that, and I'm willing to get revenge, but not on his kid. Not like this. There are other ways, you taught me that."

"This is going to happen, whether you want it to or not. And you willhelp me."

"Whether I want to or not, right?"

"You don't have a choice. I need a partner, and you're it."

"I'm only agreeing because you promised the kid wouldn't get hurt. And you have no self-restraint so I know he will if I'm not there to stop you."

"You think you're a nicer person than me? If that'll make you feel better. But I'm glad you've come to your senses. Come on, little brother, we have a lot of planning to do."

September 14th, 07:02

A large tanned hand twitched slightly at the foreign noise when it made its way into the teen's unconscious mind. When no other sound was heard, the body which had been preparing itself to awaken slowly eased itself back into a comfortable dreamworld. And then, the black, inky darkness of sleep was viciously interrupted when bright light suddenly erupted from nowhere, slicing through a set of eyelids almost painfully.

A loud groan broke the silence of the room, Naruto Uzumaki reaching out for one of his many extra pillows to pull it over his head in an attempt to block out the bright light now streaming in through his window.

"Get up, brat."

"No," the blond whined, pulling the pillow closer to himself. "Go bug someone else."

"Naruto, get up. It's already past seven."

"No it's not," he whined again.

"The clock says it is."

"The clock is a dirty, dirty liar."

"What?!" the maid demanded from across the room, obviously still standing beside his windows after having wrenched open his dark blue curtains. "Are you sure? What do you mean the clock is lying?! Do you mean to tell me that I woke your father early?! This is an outrage! He'll beat me, then fire me, and then I'll live out the rest of my life poor and alone drinking myself into a stupor and selling my body for mo—"

The woman smirked at Naruto after having caught the pillow he'd thrown at her head. The blond just scowled at her, both hands over his ears.

"Dammit, I don't need to hear that shit! That's nasty!" The blond's sheet had slipped down to his waist when he'd sat up, the material just barely passing the hem of his silk boxers, but one hand reached down when it was clear Tsunade was finished and pulled it back up a little bit. "Seriously, always with the dramatics."

"Sometimes, drama is the only thing that works on you," Tsunade Sannin informed him, moving to another set of windows and continuing to pull open the curtains until not a single inch of Naruto's room was lacking in sunlight.

The blond grunted, rubbing at his eyes with one hand, the other still holding the sheet in place as if it would expose him if he let it slide further. He was wearing boxers, so that was obviously not a possibility, but Naruto wasn't big on being partly naked around people, no matter who they were.

"I'm up, hag, now get out of my room." The blond scowled at the woman who'd raised him before turning his head away and yawning into his hand. He promptly got hit in the back of the head with his own pillow, letting out an indignant shout and turning to his bedroom door, which was already closing behind her.

Once it had, he grabbed his pillow, pulled it over his head again, and got himself comfortable under his sheet once more, having yanked it back up to his neck.

"Naruto."

The blond slowly pulled the pillow off his head and turned to look at the door, wondering if Tsunade could possibly have X-ray vision.

"If you go back to sleep, I'll take pictures of you while you're unconscious and sell them to your fangirls. I'm sure I could afford to quit this job with the amount of money I'd make off those."

"Shit, Tsunade," Naruto groaned loudly, rolling around on his bed. "You're so evil!" he shouted at the door.

"Get up, brat, don't make me tell you again."

Naruto heard her footsteps retreating down the corridor, but knew she would return eventually and go through with her threat if he wasn't out of bed. She was sadistic like that, and knowing her, she'd magically enlist Naruto's best friend's help, and that was the lastthing he needed. The blond shuddered at the thought of his fangirls with pictures of him sleeping. That would be horrifying.

So, with a sigh, he grabbed the robe sitting on the chair beside his bed and stood quickly, wrapping it around himself. Tying it off, he made sure the flap was closed properly, and then made his way towards his bathroom, grumbling angrily about Tsunade and her evil mind.

He knew his attitude probably didn't show it, but Naruto loved Tsunade, and viewed her as a mother. The blond's real mother had died when he was very young, he didn't remember her at all, and his father was always working. The closest thing to a parent Naruto had ever had was Tsunade. She had been employed long before Naruto had ever been born, and had taken on the job of nanny when Kushina had passed away, so he'd pretty much grown up with her. He felt the most comfortable with her, and even if he knew she was the hired help, he treated her as much more than a maid.

And unfortunately for him, that meant she knew him like the back of her hand.

"No bath!"

"Aw, come on!" Naruto insisted, having just plugged the tub.

"You'll be late! Get in the shower, now! If I don't hear that water running in one minute..." She let the threat hang there and the blond cursed.

"You're no fun," he groused, standing up from the edge of his jacuzzi-sized bathtub and stalking over to his shower instead.

Pulling back the frosted glass door, he stepped inside after one last look at his tub, and then shut the door. Grabbing a small towel off the hook beside the taps, Naruto pulled open his robe and wrapped it around his waist over his boxers. Once it was secured, he removed them from beneath the material, and then tossed them over the top of the shower door. Then he slid the robe off his shoulders, and threw that over the door as well before stepping under the showerhead and turning on the water.

Hot water beat down on his skin, and the blond let out a deep sigh, his head rolling backwards to allow more surface area for the heated liquid. The towel around his waist began to sag from the added weight of being wet and he reached down to quickly tug it back up, tightening it around his waist.

Naruto hated that he had to have the towel, it was a hindrance, in all honesty, but unfortunately for him, the blond had a psychological problem with exposing himself, even while alone. Because no one was ever truly alone, were they? Someone could break in, someone could not know he was in there, someone could open the door by accident, and so on and so forth. So no matter where he was, or what he was doing, he had to be covered, and he hated the motherfucker who'd done this to him.

When he'd been younger, around five or six—he didn't remember which anymore—Tsunade's brother Jiraiya had gotten really sick, and she'd had to take a leave of absence from work. Of course, with Kushina gone and Minato always working, Naruto had no one to look after him, so his father had asked around about someone he could call to babysit his son until Tsunade got back.

He'd found someone, though he probably should have done more research rather than just choose someone due to convenience. It turned out the man was a pedophile, just one of those lucky ones who hadn't gotten caught. Not until entering the Namikaze household, anyway. Naruto didn't really remember what had happened to him, all he knew was that things hadhappened, and he remembered the man standing over him, holding his dick with scissors in his other hand.

Ever since then, Naruto had had problems with his cock. Tsunade had always reassured him that he'd grow out of it, that it wouldn't happen again and that the man who'd done this was in jail, but it didn't help. Subconsciously, Naruto would never forget about it, and it made it impossible for him to expose himself. To anyone.

He and Tsunade joked every now and then about how he was going to have sex, but truthfully, it was a hard topic for him because he honestly didn't know how he was going to pull it off. He just hoped the trauma would disappear before his life got that far.

Naruto emerged from the bathroom a few minutes later, water soaking the collar of his robe and a new, dry towel around his waist over a new pair of boxers. Yawning while walking towards his bed, where Tsunade had laid out his uniform, he grabbed the dark grey uniform pants and pulled them on. He threw his towel onto the bed once they were around his waist, and finished doing them up before grabbing the white button-down shirt and grey tie.

The tie was promptly shoved into his pocket while the shirt was pulled over his shoulders, the buttons being done up while he headed for his dresser to grab a pair of socks. Then, he turned to exit his room, still finishing up on the buttons.

"Why do I bother ironing things for you?" Tsunade demanded, appearing behind him and tucking his shirt in while they both headed for the stairs. She pulled his tie from his pocket once he was done and started tying it for him, peeking over his shoulder to make sure she was doing it right.

Not that he ever said this to her, but Naruto had always been impressed with what the woman could do while they were both walking.

"There," she said when they'd reached the stairs and Naruto had taken a seat on the top one to put on his socks. "You actually look like a real boy, now," she teased.

"As opposed to one made of wood?" the blond asked back with a snort, looking up at her while pulling on his second sock and standing.

"If you were made of wood, I'd sand you down a little bit around the edges so they weren't so sharp," she shot back.

Naruto snorted and rolled his eyes, getting to his feet and starting down the stairs. "Is this still about me not having a girlfriend? 'Cause we've talked about that."

"I talked, you just daydreamed," she accused, following after him.

"Yeah, yeah." He grinned over his shoulder and then walked into the large dining room, where the grin promptly disappeared from his face.

His father was sitting at the head of the large oak table, a coffee held in one hand and the newspaper in front of him, frown on his face. The cup was up near his lips, as if he'd been about to take a sip before he'd gotten distracted by something. With Naruto's dad, that was an easy thing to do.

"Stock's falling," the older man informed him, as if Naruto even cared.

"Oh, boo hoo, let me go find my violin," he breathed under his breath, taking a seat beside his father. He pressed his lips together when Minato's eyes shot in his direction, obviously having heard him.

"You'd be surprised, Naruto, how much harder your life would be without my money. No more yacht trips, no more playstation and Xbox, no more luxurious and spacious cars..."

"However would I manage?" Naruto asked with mock horror before snorting and taking a bite of his toast.

"Don't get smart with me, Naruto, your life would be miserable without my money," Minato Namikaze informed him with narrowed eyes.

Naruto dropped his barely touched toast onto his plate and stood. "I'm done. Always a pleasure." He turned around and walked out of the room before his father could say anything to him.

He hated how the older man relied on money, as if Naruto would have long since died without the luxuries and wealth around him. Which was ridiculous, of course, since he'd only ever been on the yacht once, he didn't use the consoles, and he hated all the cars in their garage except the 2008 Honda Civic his father never let him touch because it was "such a piece of crap car, why would such a thing have been bought."

His father always said Naruto would be miserable without money, but truthfully, Naruto felt he'd be less miserable without it. He didn't think he could possibly getany more miserable than he already was, and he knew that his father's bank account was the cause.

Naruto knew his father didn't understand that money didn't buy happiness. Hopefully, the older man would realize that it wasn't the most important thing in the world. There was much more out there that couldn't be bought, like friendship, and honour, and... well... And love?

The blond frowned at the thought. He supposed love could be bought sometimes, but real love wasn't for sale. Which pretty much explained why Naruto hated his father, and had kept his mother's maiden name, despite Minato's constant insistence that he change it legally to Namikaze.

"He's trying, you know," a voice said quietly, Naruto looking up from tying his black, polishable shoes. "He just wants you to appreciate what he does for you. What he gives you."

Tsunade held his bag out for him and he snatched it from her hand angrily, knowing he was directing his rage at the wrong person, but unable to help it.

"I'd appreciate having a fucking dad," Naruto snapped, ignoring the look he got for his swearing. "He doesn't get it. He'll waste all his money buying shit for me when all I really want is to have five uninterrupted minutes of his time a day. But no, he's all, 'Oh, I missed Naruto's birthday? No problem, I'll just buy him a new car. Oh, I missed his big game? No problem, I'll just buy him a new yacht. Oh, I missed his wedding? I'll just buy him a new house, or a country, or a planet!'" Naruto shouted, flailing his arms slightly, bag still held in one hand. "Money can't buy everything, and it certainlycan't buy me!"

Wrenching open the door, Naruto started to stalk out before remembering Tsunade hadn't done anything. Turning slightly, he mumbled, "Have a good day," before exiting the house.

"You, too." Tsunade's voice was quiet, and he knew she was watching him walk down the stairs towards where the car was parked.

Naruto slammed on the brakes when he reached the bottom of the stairs and saw the driver standing at the back door of the limo. He'd assumed the limo was for his father, as per usual, and his car was parked behind it, but the car behind the limo was another limo. And the driver standing in front of him now was his own.

"Something wrong, sir?" Kotetsu Hagane inquired, holding open the back door awkwardly.

"Where's the Mercedes?" Naruto asked, trying to calm himself down since he didn't want to take his anger out on a second person who didn't deserve it.

"Your father requested a new limousine for you." Kotetsu shifted uncomfortably. "He asked for me to drive you to school in it. If you like, I can—I'm sure the Mercedes can be pulled out of the garage quickly."

Deflating slightly, Naruto sighed and tossed his bag into the back seat. "No, it's okay," he said, mostly because he could tell his anger was making Kotetsu uncomfortable. "Don't worry about it, it's not your fault."

He climbed into the car and the door was shut behind him, Kotetu hurrying for the front so he could climb into the driver's seat.

"Nice try buying my love, dad," the blond muttered, crossing his arms and glaring out the window.

September 14th, 07:57

"Naruto!" a familiar voice screamed loudly across the quad.

Naruto didn't even bother turning around. The blond instantly leapt to the side, slamming himself against the closest tree just in time to avoid being tackled from behind, his idiotic best friend stumbling and windmilling his arms in an attempt to stop from faceplanting when the body he'd expected to break his fall suddenly disappeared.

It was a normal occurrence, Kiba Inuzuka trying to tackle Naruto, so nobody really paid any attention to it. Naruto was so used to it that the second he heard Kiba coming he immediately dived to the side. He still didn't know whythe moron insisted on tackling him as a greeting, but it had been close to a year since he'd actually succeeded. One would think he'd have stopped trying. Or at least would have stopped announcing himself beforehand.

"You look like you just rolled outta bed," Naruto commented with a grin, slapping his friend in the back and heading for the front of the school with him.

The other boy laughed and ran his hand through his unruly brown hair, allowing for Naruto to take inventory of his appearance. His shirt was wrinkled and untucked, the top button undone. His tie was barely tied around his neck, and his shoes had scuff marks on them. Not to mention his pants didn't look on right and his hair was a complete mess.

For a weekend, this was typical Kiba. It was also typical Naruto, if he was going to be honest. But for school... their principal was pretty strict, and he knew if Kiba didn't clean up before a teacher saw him, he was going to get sent off to see him again.

"Better not let Ibiki see you like that," he commented.

"Man, Ibiki's fuckin' lucky I even gothere, dude," Kiba insisted with a laugh, his hands in his pockets now and his single-strap shoulder bag bumping against his ass with every step. "I fell asleep again after my alarm went off. Kurenai came in to lay out my uniform and almost had a heart attack. I just yanked on whatever my fingers found and bolted out the door." He laughed again, shaking his head.

Naruto laughed, too. "Whatever, you're lucky for the added sleep time. Tsunade's always on my ass, she knows me like the back of her hand."

"Eh, at least you get to eat breakfast before school." Kiba wrapped his arm around Naruto's shoulders, the two of them walking into the building together.

Laughter instantly echoed down the corridor, high-pitched giggles and whispered gasps permeating the air.

"Hey, look, it's your fanbase," the brunet said with a grin.

"Fuck!" Naruto ducked beneath Kiba's arm and grabbed the other's shirt, hiding behind him and peeking over his shoulder to see if he'd been spotted. So far, the girls were too busy chit chatting to notice Kiba was there. Usually, it wasn't until they saw his blond hair that they attacked, so as long as they reached the first corridor before anyone noticed the brunet heading towards them was Kiba, Naruto was home free.

"Man, how come youhave an entire school of girls falling at your feet?" Kiba muttered, looking wistfully in the girls' direction, Naruto pushing him around the corner so he could disappear. "Some people get all the luck."

In Naruto's case, it was true. The blond wasridiculously lucky, further proved by him reaching his classroom without being spotted, despite how painfully obvious he could be sometimes. Hiding behind someone who was the same height as him wasn't always easy.

Heaving a relieved sigh once they'd entered the classroom, Naruto headed for the very end of the front row so he could take a seat beside the window. Kiba walked up a step so he could sit behind him, since both of them had learned a long time ago there was no point in fighting for the window seat when they could just as easily pass notes sitting in the same column.

Their classroom was set up similarly to how Naruto pictured Harvard must look. The seats were all arranged on a rising platform, just like a movie theatre, so that even the students at the back had a good view of the board. Instead of individual desks, there was only one desk that ran the length of the room from one side to the other, with chairs interspersed throughout the middle. Naruto always chose the seat closest to the window in the first row. If there was no window, he always took an end seat.

He didn't like being in the middle, it made him feel boxed in, not to mention it meant he'd have fangirls on either side of him. At least with this seating, he only ever risked having one. He wouldn't have to worry at all if his best friend wasn't a fucking sun-lover like him.

"You know," Kiba said, leaning forward on his desk, "I would kill to be you."

Naruto snorted, not turning to look at him. "That's because you aren't."

"Dude, you must be the only billionaire's son in existence who hates that he's rich," Kiba informed him, leaning back in his seat again. "I mean, I don't get you sometimes. The girls in this school are rich, so it's not like they're after your money or anything."

"No, just my last name," Naruto said dryly, turning to regard Kiba, who was trying to balance his pencil on his nose. And failing. "None of the girls in this school know me, or anything about me. They can't want my money because they have their own, so they're either after my last name—"

"By that, you mean Namikaze and not Uzumaki, right?"

"—or my looks," Naruto continued, ignoring Kiba's comment since it was common knowledge he refused to change his last name. "That's not cool with me. If someone's gonna like me, they should like me no matter what I look like or who my father is."

"Dude, you just need to get laid," was the brunet's reply, giving up on the pencil balancing and putting it down on his desk, crossing his arms in front of himself. "Come on, get yourself a honey and let the snake outta its cage for once. You'll feel much better," he teased, waggling his eyebrows.

"Or I could punch you in the face," Naruto said with a shrug, and then grinned. His best friend snorted at him, rolling his eyes, but said nothing. "I don't need to get laid, Kiba. Contrary to what you believe, getting laid is not the solution to every problem. I don't wanna get laid, and I don't wanna be rich." The blond turned to face forward again and let out a sigh, leaning back in his chair. "I wish something important to my dad suddenly ceased to exist. Like his company. Just... the most important thing in the world to him ups and vanishes. Maybe he'd give a damn about more than just his money then."

"Careful what you wish for, Naruto," Kiba insisted.

September 14th, 14:45

Sasuke Uchiha sat perched on the edge of the back of a van, the trunk door open and his feet resting on the asphalt beneath them. He was leaning forward with his elbows on his knees, and one cigarette held lazily between two fingers up by his lips. Every time he exhaled, the smoke obscured his vision briefly while his eyes remained locked thoughtfully on the ground beneath him. He wasn't staring at anything in particular, he was just trying not to think about what he was doing sitting in a van in the parking lot of a condemned building.

His thoughts continued to drift back to the conversation he'd had with his brother months ago, a quiet sigh escaping his lips. He brought the cigarette closer to his lips to take another drag when it was snatched from his hand by another, the skin just as pale as his own.

Dark eyes glared upwards at his brother, Itachi having appeared in front of him. He inhaled deeply before his left eyebrow twitched and he handed the smoke back over to Sasuke.

"Menthol?" he asked, his voice lacking in tone. He exhaled slowly, Sasuke watching the smoke spiral upwards. "Have I taught you nothing?"

Sasuke just snorted. "If you don't like them, then don't steal them." He brought it back to his lips and took another drag, his brother staring at him intently.

"You remember your part?"

Sasuke's eyes rolled upwards once more, the raven glaring at his older brother through his bangs. "I'm not a moron, Itachi. I barely do anything."

"That isn't what I asked." This time, the tone was present, and it was very clear.

The brothers stared at one another for a few seconds before Sasuke averted his gaze. He'd never won a staring match against his brother, why would that change now?

"I remember," he informed him before Itachi had the chance to say anything else.

Itachi didn't say anything to that. He merely checked his watch and looked out towards the street. "His driver should be on his way. I'll get him at the intersection down the street." He looked back at his brother. "Where's your mask?"

"I'll have it on when you get back," Sasuke snapped. "I told you I remembered the plan, didn't I?" He flicked his spent cigarette away, and it hit Itachi's pantleg before falling to the ground at his feet. The older Uchiha stepped forward onto it, his eyes burning into Sasuke's before he reached out and grabbed the younger teen's jaw painfully.

Sasuke winced, but tried to hide it quickly, Itachi's thumb and fingers digging painfully into either cheek. He just stared straight into his brother's eyes, seeing the promise of pain in them.

"Do not disappoint me, little brother," he warned. His tone made it clear there would be consequences.

"I won't," Sasuke promised, mostly for his own sake.

Itachi released him, and then wordlessly ran his fingers through his brother's hair, as if smoothing it over for him. "Don't let them see your face."

Sasuke felt repeating that he already knew everything wouldn't help, so he merely nodded, which displaced Itachi's fingers, forcing them to fall back to the older man's side. "I'll go around back," he said in a low voice, standing up and moving out from under the trunk, reaching up to slam it shut.

"Be ready when I arrive. We won't have much time."

Those were Itachi's parting words to him. Not even a goodbye followed the other's footsteps heading towards the street.

"Good luck," Sasuke called after him half-heartedly with a snort. As much hatred as he had for his brother, he was the only thing he had left. He didn't want anything to happen to him. Itachi was family, as much of a jerk as he was. He'd taken after their father. Sasuke wished he had, too. He'd had the misfortune of taking after his mother.

The younger teen climbed into the driver's seat and slammed the door, gripping the steering wheel hard and staring down at his hands. He took a second to organize his thoughts, and compose himself before starting the car and easing it around the side of the building to the back parking lot, where it would be hidden from unwelcome eyes.

Sasuke wasn't happy with what they were doing. He didn't agree with it, and he definitely didn't like it. It had nothing to do with the fact that it was illegal, it was mostly because Naruto didn't deserve this. He didn't know the kid, so this wasn't personal to him, but he just knew what it was like to be preyed upon for something he didn't do. They were angry at his father, of course, but Naruto had never wronged them, and Sasuke felt this was a mistake.

He'd seen a lot of Naruto over the past few months, both in person when he and Itachi followed him, and also in newspapers and magazines. Sasuke had learned a lot about him, and the most important thing was that despite how much Naruto smiled, the Uchiha had noticed that his eyes were dead.

Naruto was a very unhappy person. He gave off the impression of someone who was very emotionally distraught but hid it well, and Sasuke didn't like that they would be adding to the blond's instability. Especially since he and Itachi were going to be keeping him for an entire month.

According to Itachi, it was the perfect plan. Sasuke disagreed in many respects, but his brother was a certified genius, so it was hard to argue with him.

If Uchiha Corp suddenly shot back up in the business world, there would be questions and their methods of gaining the amount of money needed to rebuild their company would eventually be exposed. So, Itachi had devised a plan. The idea was to ask Minato for a group of payments at various intervals, around every three or four days. It ensured that, not only would they not just have all the money at once, but it meant safety for the person doing the pick-up since Naruto's life could easily be threatened if anything were to happen to him. If Itachi made the pick-up, and got caught, Sasuke blew Naruto's brains out.

Though they were going to be living together in the same house with the blond, Itachi was going to tell Minato he, the person picking up the money, was staying somewhere different. That way, there would be no need to follow him because it would be assumed he wouldn't ever lead anyone to Naruto. On top of that, they weren't going to tell Minato anything about how long his son was going to be gone, or when the last drop was going to be. If they decided October ninth would be the last drop, that day would obviously have the largest police presence. If they just kept collecting money and then dumped Naruto on his own doorstep one day, they were essentially scot-free.

Itachi had decided that the money collected would be split between himself and Sasuke, and the two of them would keep it in their actual house for about a month after Naruto's return. Then, once a month after that, they would slowly start putting a small fraction of the money into their accounts, alternating between the two of them. They would slowly work Uchiha Corp back up, and once it was doing decently well, they would add in the rest of the kidnapping money with the business money rolling in.

It was the perfect kidnapping. In Itachi's opinion anyway and, again, he was the genius, so there was no room for argument.

"Still," Sasuke muttered to himself, sitting back in his seat and lighting another cigarette, "I don't like this."

September 14th, 15:29

Naruto was out of his seat the second the bell rang, hands quickly packing everything away and ignoring the teacher who was trying to yell out their homework over the student's chattering. He knew they wouldn't be expected to hand anything in tomorrow, because there was no guarantee the homework had been heard. Which was why the last class of the day was always amazing, in his opinion.

Swinging his bag onto his shoulder, he felt Kiba's hands fall onto them and squeeze, the brunet following him towards the door and leaning closer to his face. "So you thought about who you're taking to the Halloween dance?" he asked with a grin, finally pulling away from Naruto to walk alongside him down the corridor.

"That's over a month away, I'm pretty sure I have time to find an excuse not to go," Naruto informed him, turning to flash a grin at him.

"Oh, come on, man! If you don't go, then I can't go, and I wanna go!"

"So go, what's stopping you?" Naruto snorted.

"I can't go without a wingman! Come on, dude, please?"

"No," was the immediate reply.

"Dude, you're gonna get to the end of senior year and wonder what you did in high school. You've never been to a dance, you've never joined any clubs, the only sport you've ever done is basketball, you still haven't gotten laid, and the list goes on! You've only got the rest of this year, and next year, and then you'll be done forever. If you don't do at least something, you're gonna be a loserin university."

"There's no such thing as losers in university, Kiba," Naruto informed him with a sigh. "People stop caring about that shit after high school." He gave him a look before pushing out the front doors of the school, Kiba right on his heels.

"Fine, then you'll have nothing to talk about with anyone."

"You and I manage fine."

The brunet threw his arms in the air in defeat. "Whatever, man, just keep note of the fact that I said you'll regret it one day."

"Noted," Naruto replied.

"Asshole," Kiba muttered, shoving his hands in his pockets. Naruto just grinned at him, and earned himself a grin in return, plus a light punch to the arm. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Unless I die sometime between now and then, always." Naruto punched him back. "Call you later, okay?"

The two of them broke apart, waving, and headed for their respective cars. Naruto could see Kotetsu standing awkwardly near the driver's side door. He was wincing, and his face was pale, one hand tapping against his thigh, as if he were nervous. Naruto cocked an eyebrow when he neared him.

"Kotetsu, if you're still worried about the limo, it's cool. I know it's dad's fault."

The driver winced, and gave him a slight nod. Then he winced again and grit his teeth. "I've... I've hurt my leg, sir. I'm afraid I can't move to open your door for you."

"That's okay," Naruto replied with a snort, heading for the back of the limo and grinning at him. "Shockingly, I know how to open a door." He pulled it open and started to climb in when Kotetsu called out to him again, making him pause.

"Uh, would you not—I think Mr. Inuzuka is hailing you. Perhaps he would like you to spend the day at his place?"

"Nah, he's in one of his moods. Just pretend you don't see him," Naruto insisted with another grin, throwing his bag into the back and starting to bend down again when Kotetsu stopped him for a second time.

"Sir! Maybe you should walk. Home. Today. It's a beautiful day, after all."

"Um, it's a bit far..." Naruto insisted, confused.

"You could use the exercise."

The blond's head snapped back, shocked. "Am I... Am I getting fat?" he asked, suddenly concerned. Maybe he hadn't been hitting the gym enough. Not that he cared so much about his looks, but he didcare about his health. Still, walking home would take him over an hour, and he'd rather not be in his uniform while doing it.

"Well, no," Kotetsu amended, giving Naruto another wince. "It's just, the air will do you good. And you'll build muscle."

"Maybe some other day," Naruto said with a smile to show there were no hard feelings. He appreciated Kotetsu being honest. "I'm not really feeling so hot, so I'd rather go home and get some sleep. But thanks."

Smiling at his driver, the blond climbed into the back and shut the door behind himself. He put his bag on the ground so it wouldn't slide around on the seat, and buckled himself in before looking out the window.

Now Naruto wasn't stupid. He was actually incredibly smart; third in his class, in fact. It had just never really occurred to him that Kotetsu may have been trying to warn him against getting into the car. Nothing had ever happened to him before, so he'd never assumed anything wouldhappen to him. The idea that "it will never happen to me" kicking in until finally, one day, it does.

The car started and moved smoothly out of the parking lot, Naruto hearing the locks click. He just kept his gaze locked on the scenery, not in much of a chatty mood, but at the same time feeling bad that Kotetsu was worried he would be angry. After all, it wasn't the driver's fault his father was a fucking asshole.

When they turned onto an unfamiliar street, Naruto frowned and opened his mouth to ask Kotetsu where they were going when he noticed the partition was up. The dark glass was never up when he was in a limo, because Naruto always liked talking to his driver during the ride. Figuring Kotetsu had put it up because he thought maybe the blond wanted privacy, Naruto reached over to roll it down.

He hit the button, but nothing happened. Frowning and jabbing at it, it still didn't budge, and he snorted. "Great. Dad buys me a limo, and it's fucking dysfunctional."

Unbuckling his seat belt, the blond walked to the seat closest to the window and sat again, knocking on the glass to get Kotetsu's attention, and hoping he could hear him. He didn't know if they were soundproof, too, considering he'd never had it up before.

"Hey, Kotetsu? It won't come down from my side, I think it's broken," he called loudly, listening hard. "Are we taking a new route home or something? Or are you bringing me to dad's office?" He really hoped not, he wasn't in the mood to see his father.

He leaned back a little when the partition began to lower, realizing maybe only his side was broken, but the second his eyes saw the gun aimed at his driver's head, Naruto lurched back down the length of seating, moving away from the front of the car.

"Hello, Naruto."

Naruto didn't recognize the voice. The man sitting beside his driver was wearing a black ski mask, and there were gloves on his hands. What he could see of his clothing was black, and when the other's dark eyes focussed on him, the blond felt chills race down his spine.

"I'm sorry, sir, he was going to shoot you if I didn't start driving," Kotetsu whispered from the front, which earned him getting the barrel of the gun pressed harshly against his temple.

"Don't hurt him!" Naruto blurted out, eyes darting worriedly to his driver.

"I think you should be less concerned about him," the masked figure pressed the gun harder to Kotetsu's temple, "and more concerned about you."

"I don't care what happens to me," the blond admitted honestly. "Whatever this is, it has to do with my father, that much I know. Kotetsu has nothing to do with this. Just leave him alone, and I'll do whatever you want."

"Sir—" Kotetsu cut off when he was hit across the face with the gun, the limo swerving slightly before he managed to get it back under control.

"As the boy said, this doesn't concern you. I'd advise you to keep your mouth shut."

Naruto grit his teeth, eyes darting to the window when the car turned smoothly into a parking lot. It passed by a small, rundown building towards the back, where Naruto saw nothing but trees. Nobody would ever see them here.

There was only one other car present. A white, unmarked van with a figure sitting behind the wheel. When they approached, Naruto could see he was also wearing a mask, his gaze directed towards the front of the limo, obviously ensuring his partner was all right.

Naruto could feel sweat making its way down his spine and he looked back at the man in the front seat. It was obvious what this was. He wasn't stupid, he watched movies. He just felt like a complete idiot because Kotetsu had been trying to warn him, and he'd been too dumb to figure out what he was trying to tell him. And that pissed him off.

Though really, if he'd walked away, Kotetsu probably would have died, so Naruto was glad he'd been too stupid to understand what he'd been trying to tell him. Still, he didn't like this.

"Stop the car."

Kotetsu complied, the limo almost directly beside the van. "I'm sorry, sir," the driver whispered. Naruto could see blood at the corner of his mouth.

"It's not your fault," Naruto reassured him. He wasn't mad at Kotetsu, he'd tried to warn him. Honestly, he was pissed right the fuck off at his father. If he'd had his Mercedes instead of this new fucking gift, this wouldn't have been so easy to pull off. It probably wouldn't have happened at all.

"Naruto."

The blond's attention returned to the masked man in the front seat. He noticed the other man had moved to stand beside his door in his peripheral, but it was still locked for the moment.

"Get out of the car, and climb into the van. If you try anything, I'll shoot your driver."

"I don't trust you," Naruto informed him. "How do I know that once I'm in the van you won't just shoot him anyway?"

The man in the front seat gave him a long, hard look. Naruto kept his gaze, which earned him a scoff and finally the kidnapper broke eye contact, turning to look at Kotetsu.

"Inform his father he brought this on himself. We'll be in touch."

Naruto let out a shout, lurching forward when the gun was slammed hard across Kotetsu's head, the driver slumping forward against the wheel, the horn blaring loudly for a second before he was pulled back in his seat.

Stopping dead in his tracks when the gun was aimed at him, Naruto licked his lips and glanced at the back door of the car, where the other man was still standing. At least he knew Kotetsu was all right. He'd have a headache, but he was alive.

Which was more than Naruto felt he could say about himself right now.

"Essyu is going to take you to the van. If you run, I will shoot him." He motioned Kotetsu.

"I understand," Naruto grit out, hearing the doors unlock.

The second man, Essyu, opened it and climbed in slightly, grabbing Naruto's arm. The blond yanked it free defiantly, glaring, and climbed out of the car on his own. He was shoved forward a step, and he turned to glare at the other again, but stopped at the trunk of the van, refusing to get in.

"I'm not getting in until he's out of the front seat," Naruto insisted, jerking his chin at the limo.

"Ayuu," the second man called.

Naruto was somewhat startled to find that he didn't sound any older than him. Seventeen, eighteen at most. He tried not to let his shock show on his face, and just waited for the other man to climb out of the limo and slam the door.

Only then did Naruto climb into the back of the van—what else could he do? He didn't want Kotetsu to get killed—and sit down. He noticed the entire back had been prepared for this. It was separated from the front by a large board, which looked like it had been hot-glued around the edges. The floor had padding, and all the windows were one-way, so nobody would see him from the outside.

The first masked man, Ayuu, was back. He climbed into the van with Naruto, Essyu still standing out by the door, shifting his weight, obviously impatient to leave.

Grunting when he was roughly manhandled onto his stomach, he let out a cry when his arms were wrenched behind his back and bound tightly with something a little bit softer than rope. Once that was done, the man did the same to his ankles before rolling him onto his back.

"Welcome to hell, Naruto."

The blond saw the butt of the gun fly towards his face, then everything went black.