I got this idea while listening to Gotta Be Somebody by Nickelback and Hold My Hand by Michael Jackson feat. Akon. This will be a Naruto/Tayuya fic. Rated M for Mature content: Blood, Gore, Sex, Alcohol usage, Vulgar Language...basically all the good shit. Please read and enjoy.

All chapter titles can be linked together, you just gotta find the link.

Chapter 1: Maybe by Sick Puppies

Disclaimer: I did it! I own Naruto! Wait, what? ...What do you mean that was a TYPO? That's it, in the name of the all-powerful Gods of business Trump and McMahon, Mr. Lawyer...You're FIRED!

~Konoha Hospital, 5 days after failed Sasuke Retrieval Mission~

"Tsunade-sama! Tsunade-sama!" a nurse called as she ran towards a busty blonde wearing a green jacket. The blonde turned at the calling of her voice.

"Yes?" she asked, slightly irritated. Honestly, Tsunade had been up for perhaps twenty-eight hours without a single drink of sake. All she wanted was to sit down and relax with a nice, large bottle of sake.

"Tsunade-sama, the special case in room 212, something's wrong," the nurse said in a nervous tone. Tsunade racked her brain as to who would be in room 212 that the nurse would come to her and not a normal doctor. Every physician in the hospital knew that she didn't take any patient, even if they were special cases. In fact, the only ones she was marked as head physician were the members of the Sasuke Retrieval Squad...

Tsunade's eyes widened and she ran past the nurse. She didn't have to shove anyone out of her way, because they practically glued themselves to the wall when they heard the loud clacking of her heels hitting the tiled floor. She dashed down a hallway and made silent prayers to Kami.

Please not again. Please Kami, just this once. Don't take him...I can't lose him! He's all I have left, she begged in her mind. Tsunade shoved a moronic intern out of her way and made a right to the hallway the patient's room was in. She skidded to a stop in front of Room 212 and kicked the door open to see a spikey haired blonde clutching his eyes and screaming in pain. That might have worried her for a moment, but the being before her absolutely made her blood boil.

"What have you done to him, Uchiha?" Tsunade growled to the raven haired man in the black cloak. He turned to her with his Sharingan eyes and blinked, a single tear of blood rolling down his cheek.

"I gave him his gift," the traitorous Uchiha said icily, "I also sent the nurse to gather you in an effort to make sure he stabilizes."

"What the hell are you even doing here?" Tsunade growled again, taking another step forward and glancing around the room for his partner, Kisame. The fish man was nowhere to be found, apparently.

"He isn't here," Itachi said stoically, "Not even my master knows I'm here or what I'm doing. This is my last duty as an ANBU captain to Konoha. I am preserving the village through the suffering of one. Besides, it is only right that I make amends for what my foolish brother did."

"What are you saying?" Tsunade asked, inching her way towards the sobbing blonde that occasionally whimpered in pain. Itachi's eyes flashed back to normal before turning into Sharingan again.

"There is only one way to defeat the Akatsuki and Orochimaru," Itachi said, "I just gave Naruto-kun the ability to do so. He now contains something even the Sage of Six Paths feared."

"And that is?" Tsunade asked carefully. She was a step away from Naruto's sobbing form. His vitals were fine, as the monitors said. Something was very wrong with the blonde though, if his sobbing didn't show it, his bleeding eyes did.

"It has no name that I'm aware of," Itachi said, "But it is said to be the most powerful dojutsu in our world. It's rumored to be stronger than the Renningan. Good luck, Tsunade-sama. You're going to need it."

With that, Itachi burst into several ravens and flew out the open window just as Shizune and Jiraiya ran into the room. Tsunade ignored them and closed the gap between herself and Naruto. She hugged him tightly while he sobbed. Tsunade felt Naruto hug her back and mumble through his muffled tears.

The buxom blonde pulled away and looked down at the young boy, "What did you say, Naruto?"

Naruto looked up at Tsunade with pale purple eyes, tears mixed with blood flowing down his cheeks, "again...I can't...I CAN'T SEE!"

Shizune and Jiraiya were surrounding the two blondes as Tsunade tried to console Naruto while he sobbed. She looked up at Jiraiya and Shizune, her attention locking on her apprentice after a second.

"Go research everything you can about the Sage of Six Paths," Tsunade ordered the younger woman. Shizune blinked in confusion.

"But shouldn't I check Naruto-kun's-?" The apprentice nurse asked before Tsunade cut her off.

"I said GO, Shizune!" the Godaime Hokage barked. The apprentice nodded and bolted out the door towards the library. Jiraiya looked back at Tsunade.

"What happened?" the white haired man asked. Naruto's head shot up as he looked in the direction Jiraiya's voice came from.

"Ero-sennin?" he asked, his eyes looking just past Jiraiya's left shoulder. Jiraiya's eyes widened and he immediately bit down on his thumb. Performing a few hand seals, Jiraiya didn't skip a beat when Tsunade looked like she was going to shout at him.

"I need a second opinion," Jiraiya said sternly. Tsunade reluctantly let him perform the summoning technique and the old green toad known as Fukasaku appeared before them all. He hopped onto Jiraiya's shoulder and bopped the Sanin on the head with his cane.

"What'd ya go and summon me for, ya dope?" the old frog asked, irritation in his voice. Jiraiya pointed at Naruto's darting eyes.

"That." The Toad Sage said simply. Fukasaku followed his gaze and his jaw dropped.

"Fuck me up the arse and call me a salamander," the toad said, "Those be the Uzugan. I'd never thought I'd see them again in my lifetime!"

"Baa-chan? Who is that? What's he talking about?" a frantic sounding Naruto asked, his eyes still darting around. Fukasaku jumped onto the blonde's lap and grabbed his face. When Naruto instinctively went to smack the webbed hands away, Fukasaku spoke.

"Easy there, boyo," the old toad said, "Let me get a good look at them peepers...Hmm...Yes, yes...These be the Uzugan, the swirling eyes from the Uzu no Kuni. And here I thought the Uzumaki clan that carried these eyes died out millennia ago."

Naruto blinked, "I...I have a clan?"

"Aye, ya do, boyo. Or rather, ya did," the toad said, releasing his face, "The Uzumaki that had the Toad clan's summoning contract died out during the Uzu Civil War nearly three centuries ago. The Renningan Uzumaki took full claim over the name and banished the Toad clan from Uzu no Kuni. We migrated to Hi no Kuni and the rest be history. But here ya are, a single pure heir to the Uzumaki name...ain't got the red hair though...looks more like..."

Jiraiya slapped a hand around the toad's mouth before he could leak out any important information. Naruto seemed confused from the lack of sound coming from the toad.

"Where'd the old toad go? Ero-sennin, did you dismiss him?" Naruto asked. The older toad bit the white haired man's hand causing the man to scream like a girl in pain. The toad sent a glare at Jiraiya.

"He deserves ta know his heritage, Jiraiya-boyo," Fukasaku said quietly with slight anger in his voice. Naruto's mouth popped open as his slightly enhanced hearing caught what the toad said.

"Y-You know my pa-parents?" Naruto said. Jiraiya glared at the old toad.

"He isn't ready," the Toad Sage said, "Maybe once he masters this...Uzugan as you call it, but not now, Fukasaku-san."

"Feh, you just wait until I tell Ma. Your head'll be on a platter faster than you can say 'dig in'. If you'll excuse me, I must tell the prophet about this," Fukasaku said before turning back to Naruto, "Nice meeting you boyo, hope to see ya at the mountain soon. Good luck with them peepers, you'll need it."

Naruto blinked before he heard a puff of smoke and glared in the direction he thought Jiraiya was at. Jiraiya glared back at the boy who was only looking away from his face by a few centimeters.

"Like I told the old toad," Jiraiya said, "You are not ready, gaki. You have a while to go if your eyes are what I think they are. Now, you wanna know who your parents were, right?"

Naruto nodded, the glare vanishing and being replaced with a small look of hope. Tsunade and Jiraiya felt their throats tighten at the desperation that was behind it. The poor boy looked like he'd do anything, despite his lack of sight, in order to discover who his parents were.

"I'll tell you," Jiraiya said, "If you can master your new kekkei genkai in three years."

"Three? I can do it in one!" Naruto said; determination and confidence in his voice. Tsunade smiled at it and ruffled his hair, earning an annoyed grunt from the blonde.

"You'll have three to figure everything out about it," Jiraiya said, "Because in a few months, I'm taking you away for three years."

"What?" Naruto asked, "Why? Why can't I train here, Ero-sennin?"

A fist was implanted on the blonde's skull and Jiraiya scowled, "Show some respect, brat. The reason I'm taking you with me is because I'm going to make you my apprentice."

Naruto's jaw went through the bed and onto the floor. Become Jiraiya's apprentice? It'd definitely be the chance of a lifetime, and his hero the Yondaime Hokage trained under Jiraiya's guidance, him in turn having trained his lazy sensei Kakashi. Naruto beamed.

"I'll do it!" Naruto said with a grin, "This is going to be awesome! I'll get stronger and I have a kekkei genkai! When I get back, I can definitely get Sasuke-teme to return–"

"That's another thing," Jiraiya interrupted, "You have to give up on getting Sasuke back. He's nothing more than a traitor...you have to accept that he's not going to come back."

Naruto's smile faltered and the determined look returned once again, "Then I'll take him home, even if I have to break every bone in his body."

"It's not that simple, Naruto," Tsunade said, "What Sasuke did...it's unforgivable. It's punishable by death. If you bring him here, I'll have no choice but to put him on the chopping block."

Naruto frowned and looked down before raising his head, "Then I'll just have to end it in battle. I think he'd rather go down fighting than being executed...man, how am I going to explain that to Sakura-chan?"

"This isn't important right now, brat," Jiraiya said getting a small glare from the blonde, "Look, all I'm saying is–"

"Tsunade-sama!" Shizune cried, barging in through the door, "We have a survivor from the Oto squad that was sent to retrieve Sasuke. She's critical! We need your help!"

Tsunade stood up and rushed from the door, talking with Shizune over the situation of the patient. Naruto sighed and rubbed his eyes, feeling a warm wet substance on his cheek. He pulled his hand away before rolling the substance between his fingers. He lifted the tip of his finger to his nose and sniffed it before tasting it with the tip of his tongue. His eyes widened in the realization that it was blood.

"Ero-sennin?" Naruto said, earning the white haired man's attention. Jiraiya was writing note in his book as seeing his student gave him an idea for a blind boy who would be pitied by many women and would show his gratitude in bed. His perverted grin was unseen by Naruto and thus he ignored the boy before he resumed writing.

Naruto's left eye twitched in annoyance, "I can hear your giggles, Ero-sennin. Stop ignoring me before I maim you."

"And how are you going to do that?" Jiraiya asked with a smirk, "You can't even see me, how can you hope to-Shit!"

Jiraiya just barely dodged before a kunai imbedded itself in the wall behind him. He looked back at the blind blonde and stuttered. Naruto shrugged with a grin.

"I gotta get used to fighting blind sooner or later. Outcomes in battle are not always a one-hundred percent thing," the blonde said, "I'll work on my aim first. Now, just keep talking so I can find you."

Jiraiya grinned as he realized his student couldn't hit him if he couldn't hear him. He simply put his perverted nature under control before he resumed writing. A tingling in the back of his head alerted him to a flying utensil approaching him at a high speed and he dodged to the right this time. He looked behind him to see a fork imbedded in the wall, parallel as to where his heart used to be. Jiraiya looked back at Naruto with wide eyes. The blonde had a small smile.

"Chakra enhanced hearing," Naruto said, "If I'm correct, the last sentence you were writing was, 'Make the hero blonde or brunette?' or something along those lines."

"Kid that's deadly," Jiraiya said with wide eyes before a perverted grin covered his face, "Do you know how useful that could be for my research? We could find out what women like in bed! The possibilities are endless!"

A spoon found itself lodged in the wall parallel to where Jiraiya's head used to be before he ducked. The white haired man grinned, "Ah...a blush? So my student is one of us!"

The food tray beside Naruto's bed grazed Jiraiya's ear and he grinned again, "That's not a no, gaki."

"Ugh...what...Kidomaru?" a red haired girl groaned as she blinked and looked up at a fuzzy outline of someone with a pineapple-like hairstyle.

"Troublesome," a familiar, yet unwanted, voice muttered. The red-headed girl blinked and rubbed her eyes before glaring at the pineapple haired boy.

"You son of a bitch!" she roared, reaching for the boy's neck, "You and your fucking Suna whore broke my flute! I'll fucking kill you, you shit eating motherfucking bastard!"

"Lie down," Tsunade ordered, forcing the red-headed girl to lie down with a well-placed shove on her shoulder, "You've just woken up from a five day coma and your left leg is broken."

The girl growled before looking at the one who spoke and she paled, "Y-You're...You're Tsunade..."

Tsunade grinned, "I am. I'm also your doctor. Now, lie back down and shut up."

"Fucking bossy old hag," the girl cursed under her breath, earning a harsh glare from the Hokage, before doing as she was told.

Tsunade then turned to Shikamaru, "What's her name?"

"Oi! I can answer myself," the girl said before earning a glare from the blonde woman.

"Rest. Now," Tsunade ordered before looked back at the Nara heir expectantly.

"She said her name was Tayuya," Shikamaru said lazily, "She's easily high chunin, low jonin level and she's a genjutsu specialist. Her ability to create elaborate strategies is troublesome; she had me fooled every now and again. With her curse seal activated, I'd say she has the skill of a seasoned jonin. She lacks in close range combat and her defensive techniques are low in number."

"Is she a threat to us now?" Tsunade asked him, further irking Tayuya with the fact that she wasn't allowed to answer questions based on herself. Shikamaru shook his head.

"I don't think so," the lazy chunin said, "If anything, she's about as harmless as a butterfly. She may be quite useful if we can manage to turn her to our side, although, you won't catch any of the Retrieval Squad backing your decision. Myself included."

"Like hell I will!" Tayuya shouted, "If you think for once that I'm going to betray Orochimaru–"

"Take a look at where you are, girl," Tsunade interrupted her, "You're in Konoha with the Godaime Hokage as your physician. Orochimaru left you for dead under a destroyed forest of trees. I'd say your best decision would be to provide information with us and stay alive. We'll even grant you protection from a Konoha shinobi. I know just who to give the job to, too."

Tayuya was speechless. To be free from Orochimaru's hold...it was a dream come true. Despite popular belief, Orochimaru was not above taking advantage of his subordinates. Taking advantage meaning, dragging them kicking and screaming into his private chambers to indulge in his S&M fantasies. It was a horror Tayuya risked every time she failed a mission. She had been close to death after one session and Kabuto had barely been able to stabilize her. But betraying Orochimaru and leaving his village meant death to registered Otogakure shinobi, which she was, and being one of his personal guards...her death would not be quick or painless.

Tayuya looked up at the Hokage and put her mask of anger on her face, "Fine. I'll be your fucking snitch. But you'd better keep your word about that bodyguard!"

-Next Day-

"And you want me to be a bodyguard...why?" The blinded Naruto asked Tsunade without looking at her. He was currently exploring the use of brail written scrolls, trying to make heads and tails of the language. He had dark blue scrubs on and his headband was hanging loosely around his neck.

"From what Jiraiya said, you're much more skilled at detecting threats than you ever were when you could see," Tsunade said, "Besides, without seeing her, you might be more obligated to guard her."

"And I need to guard her because...?" Naruto asked. Tsunade felt a vein throbbing as Naruto replied in a smart ass manner again. He really became quite bitter since the (hopefully temporary) loss of his sight.

"I'm not going to lie to you," Tsunade said restraining her anger, "She's one of the Sound Four that assisted Sasuke in his escape."

Naruto's teeth clicked in agitation when she mentioned Sasuke's name. He had forgiven Sasuke for the outcome of their battle, but he hadn't forgiven him for betraying the friendship they had. It hurt. It hurt a lot to come to terms with having your best friend being labeled a nuke-nin. He understood how Jiraiya felt now, why the old man had such a disappointment when he was informed of the curse mark on Sasuke's neck. Naruto rolled the scroll up before 'looking' at Tsunade, slightly creeping the Hokage out with the accuracy of his gaze, perhaps only being off her eyes by mere millimeters.

"Who is she?" he asked. Tsunade smiled slightly as she realized Naruto was coming to terms with what happened and was moving on.

"Her name is Tayuya," the Hokage said and at his raised eyebrow she elaborated, "She was the flute playing redhead."

Naruto dipped his head in thought, not bothering to close his eyes before looking back up at Tsunade, "I remember her. Shikamaru fought her. Had a hard time if I remember what he said to me a few days ago. She was quite the looker last I saw...You didn't hear me say that."

"Noted," Tsunade said, agitated that Jiraiya had planted seeds in Naruto's head already. She rubbed her temples and looked at the blonde before finally asking, "How are you so good at being blind?"

"You would be too if this was your third time," Naruto muttered, shocking the Hokage. He turned and stood wobbly on the floor before walking to the door and righting himself using the doorknob. The blonde looked back at his 'grandmother' and said, "If you want more information on it, ask Dr. Ken Ishi. He was my doctor Jiji assigned to me when I was seven, he knows all about my past medical records. Please just take me to this girl's room, Baa-chan."

Tsunade made a note of the doctor's name before nodding and walking over to the blonde, placing her hand on his shoulder and leading him out of the door and down the hall. Naruto seemed completely calm despite being in utter pain the day before. He seemed to come to terms with being blind...and apparently it wasn't the first time. She led Naruto past the food court and the blonde covered his nose, earning a confused look from the Hokage.

"I'm enhancing my other senses with chakra," Naruto elaborated, "It's really loud and the smell is overbearing."

Tsunade knocked on Tayuya's hospital door and called into it, "You're not indisposed are you, girl?"

"No you fucking old hag," the girl's voice called back, "I can barely fucking walk! How the Hell am I supposed to be 'indisposed' if I can't fucking walk to the fucking bathroom to take a fucking shit?"

"Well she seems friendly," Naruto muttered. Tsunade smirked and opened the door, revealing a pissed off looking Tayuya. She looked at the blonde boy in question as he seemed to be staring at her.

"What the fuck are you staring at, shithead?" she asked with a sneer. Naruto smirked with a prankish twinkle in his eye.

"Nothing," he said, not moving his eyes. Tayuya scowled.

"Bullshit," she said, "Stop staring at me dammit!"

"I'm not staring at you."

"You fucking are so! Now knock it off before I chop your balls off and shove em down your throat!"

"I'm not staring."

"Don't play like you aren't you fucking prick!"

"But I'm not."

"You say you're not fucking staring one more fucking time and I swear to Kami I'll fucking castrate you!"

Naruto shrugged, "Ok. I'm not staring. It's impossible to stare when you can't see."

Tayuya was about to retort when she heard him say he wasn't staring again when his last sentence ran through her mind. She looked at Tsunade who was trying not to burst out in laughter.

"What the fuck's the idea?" Tayuya asked with a glare, "Giving me a blind bodyguard? You call yourself a Kage? Do you know how fucking retarded that sounds?"

Tsunade looked at Naruto and said, "I think you two will get along splendidly. I've got some paperwork to do, so good luck. Don't kill her."

"Whatever Baa-chan," Naruto said, walking into the room, "Just send someone here with a bowl of Ayame-nee-chan's miso ramen and I'll be fine."

"If you say so brat," Tsunade said as she walked away. Naruto turned and shut the door before turning in the direction Tayuya was said to be.

"So what now?" He asked the redheaded girl. Tayuya's eye twitched.

"She's fucking serious? Oh that's fucking great," Tayuya groaned as her head flopped back onto the pillow, "A fucking handicapped shithead is going to be my bodyguard. And me, I'm a fucking cripple so if anyone truly wanted to, they could kill me easily. Just fucking great."

Naruto's teeth clicked in irritation, "You want to see how useful I am? Fine. Give me your fork you aren't using. It's on your left."

"I know where it...How did you know where it was?" Tayuya asked with narrowed eyes. Naruto pinched his nose in irritation.

"I know because I've been in this hospital for a good portion of my life," the blonde grumbled, "Please just give me the damn fork. I'm NOT in the mood."

Tayuya smirked at the vulgarity snuck into his sentence and tossed the fork to him, "Now what Shithead? Gonna throw the fork at the wall? Ooo...careful that you don't throw it out the window!"

Her mocking laughter was cut off when she heard a 'twang' and saw the fork imbedded to the right of her head. She looked back to see that the blonde had a smirk on his face. Tayuya narrowed her eyes.

"So you try and kill me already, eh?" she said, "Well I'm not going down without a fight!"

Before she could even try to get up, Naruto had a hand on her shoulder, "Whoa easy there, killer. I was just trying to prove a point. You don't have to worry about me killing you. Baa-chan says you're going to give us information on Orochimaru-teme's village, so I have a reason to keep you alive."

"And when there isn't a reason? You gonna kill me cuz I helped that faggy Uchiha leave?" Tayuya challenged. The blonde snorted before walking over to a chair, using a wall as a guide, and returned to the redhead's side. He sat down on her right and looked at her, unknowingly shocking her with his accuracy.

Tayuya felt her heartbeat quicken when she looked into the pale purple eyes that had swirling lines in the irises. The redhead swallowed hard under the gaze that seemed to hold back several hidden emotions along with a sincere look hidden behind it. She mentally berated herself for feeling such a way with a boy, who was most likely a few years younger than her, looking at her. Especially after what happened in Tsuchi no Kuni.

She was snapped from her thoughts before they could turn dark by the blonde's voice, "Baa-chan said that if you cooperated and proved you would be a loyal asset to the village, she might consider making you an honorary Konoha shinobi. And with our loss of shinobi during the Oto-Suna invasion, I figure we could use any and all recruits we can find."

Tayuya pondered this for a moment before asking a question that came to mind, "And if I don't pass her retarded shinobi standards? What happens to me then, shithead?"

The face on the blonde's face was priceless to the redhead when she referred to him as shithead again, "You're not even going to ask me for my name are you? You're just going to let me go on and on about Baa-chan's plans?"

"Bet your damn ass I am," Tayuya replied with a grin, "I don't give a fuck who you are, I just wanna know what the old bitch has in mind."

"Well since you asked oh-so-nicely," Naruto said sarcastically, "My name is Uzumaki Naruto. Baa-chan said she'd seal off your chakra coils and make you impossible to become a threat to our village if you didn't pass her requirements. Happy?"

"She can't fucking do that!" Roared the obviously upset redhead, "What gives that bitch the fucking right to–?"

"Tayuya, be quiet," the blonde ordered in a calm voice. She glared at him and was met with an intense glare of his own.

How the Hell can he even glare back at me if he's blind? Tayuya thought. She shut her mouth and bit back several insults as Naruto's blind glare seemed to promise immense unpleasant scenarios if she spoke again.

"Good," the blonde said, lightening his glare before speaking again, "First, don't call baa-chan a bitch. Old hag is fine. Second, she's the Hokage, and just because I can disrespect her, does NOT mean you can."

"Fuck you, shithead!" Tayuya growled, "I'll do what I damn want whenever the fuck I feel like it, and if I want to call that hag a bitch, I will!"

"You won't," Naruto growled back, the swirls in his eyes spinning slowly as his eyes narrowed, "Not in this village. Orochimaru probably didn't care what you said about him behind his back, but that's because he doesn't care about any of you and in turn none of you cared for him. You all feared him, with good reason. But if you go around disrespecting the Hokage in Konoha, the villagers and shinobi will not take too kindly to it. And as your bodyguard, I can't let you take that risk. Get me?"

Tayuya clenched her teeth and gritted out, "Fine, shithead."

"Good," Naruto said, his whole demeanor relaxing before he smiled at her, "Now if you'll excuse me, I have some well-deserved rest I have to work on. The door is shut and I'll know if it opens. If I don't wake up in twenty minutes or if you need something, wake me up."

"Whatever Shithead," Tayuya grumbled as she lied back down and turned away from him. His eyes were definitely something to get used to. Light snores from behind her alerted her that the blonde had fallen asleep. Her curiosity getting the better of her, Tayuya rolled over once again to get a good look at her bodyguard.

The bandages evident under his scrubs meant he just returned from battle. The small cuts on his arms seemed to be stitching themselves up slowly much to the girl's amazement, and her more girlish side noticed he was well toned. He was muscular, but he had a more wiry build than what she had seen in Oto. Then again, for all she knew, beneath his scrubs he could have hidden a gut. Tayuya shook those thoughts and looked back up at the blonde's face.

She noticed the way the blonde hair fell in front of his eyes, giving them a slightly shadowed look and making him seem even more mysterious than he already was. Tayuya looked down at his cheeks and studied the weird whisker marks that were hard to miss. They seemed to be scars of some kind, or perhaps even a birthmark. The specs on Konoha said there was a clan that used animals in their attacks, so maybe he was from there. Or perhaps they were just décor he used to frighten his opponents in battle.

That last suggested thought made Tayuya bite back a snicker. For those marks to cause fear within other warriors they'd have to be thicker and he'd have to be less...childlike. The marks did give him a somewhat cute look. Had she been a normal teenage civilian, she might have thought he was rather cute.

Tayuya turned bright red before she turned away and resumed facing the wall. Her thoughts were jumbled and she bit her lip in an effort to get them sorted out without gaining a massive headache. Eventually, the light snores emitting from the blonde soothed Tayuya enough to relax her and even allow her to fall asleep. The final thoughts in her mind revolving around the blind blonde shinobi called Uzumaki Naruto.

-Weeks Later-

"You can't go in," a blonde teen in scrubs said while standing in front of a door with his eyes shut, "The boss has a bodyguard mission and Baa-chan doesn't want anyone to bug them until she finishes her surgeries for the day."

"Aw come on," a pink haired girl said while standing next to a platinum blonde girl her age, "Let us pass, baka. Tsunade-sama said you could have visitors!"

"The boss could four days ago when his assignment was in surgery," the clone corrected, keeping his eyes shut and his tone being slightly annoyed, "Now please leave, Sakura-chan, Ino. Boss is sleeping."

"The hell with this," the pinkette muttered before smashing her fist into the clone's face, dispelling it with a poof of smoke. The platinum blonde, Ino, looked at her friend with a grin.

"Just had to go and use that freakish strength of yours, eh Forehead?" she asked. Sakura huffed.

"Well if he'd just let us pass..." Sakura said as she opened the door and walked in. She jumped back in fear when three kunai lodged themselves on her left. The pink haired girl looked at the standing blonde, his eyes being hidden by his hair and his hands holding several kunai.

"Na-ru-to!" Sakura growled, stepping forward to give her teammate a bash in the head, "What are you do-AH!"

She couldn't finish as three kunai embedded themselves a couple of inches from her feet. Ino stepped forward with her hands raised.

"Whoa, Naruto-baka!" the blonde said, "Calm down! Forehead isn't here to fight with you over not bringing Sasuke-kun back."

A growl emitted from the golden haired blonde and he lifted his head slightly as he sniffed the air. He slipped his drawn kunai back into his pouch before returning to his spot in the chair and forming the Tiger seal.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu," Naruto said quietly, forming three clones, all of their eyes shutting immediately and getting into a defensive stance. The original focused his gaze toward the stirring redhead in the bed.

"Shithead," The girl muttered sleepily as she started to rise, "What the fuck was that?"

"Nothing Tayuya," the blonde said, exhaustion slightly evident in his voice, "Just rest. You've got a surgery tomorrow."

"F-*yawn*-Fuck you, shithead," The redhead yawned as her tense form seemed to relax under Naruto's gaze. A few seconds later, her breathing steadied and Naruto turned to look at Ino and Sakura.

"Get out," he grunted, "Before I force you out."

Sakura and Ino felt their jaws drop. Naruto, the nicest guy in the world despite being a fashion-less loser, was threatening them! Sakura growled in fury before she was face to face with a clone, who's eyes were shut. She gasped at the dark lines beneath the blonde's shut eyes and looked back at the sitting original.

"Naruto...are you ok?" she asked. The clone grabbed her arm and pulled her towards the door.

"Just leave Sakura," the clone growled, "We aren't in the mood to talk about the mission for the traitor."

The clone was suddenly dispersed before Sakura could register its' words. Another clone grabbed both her arms and forced her out, with another clone forcing Ino out as well. The two clones then shut the door on the confused girls' faces before locking it and dispelling themselves. Naruto yawned and rubbed his eyes.

"Ugh...two and a half days without sleep is murder," he muttered. He opened his eyes and whistled lowly.

He had discovered a way to get his eyesight back, in a way. By increasing his chakra in his ears by three times the normal amount and sending some chakra to his eyes, he could make out the outlines of his surroundings, if there was sound. He only had to whistle once every twenty minutes before the sound dissipated and his newfound 'sight' stopped.

He had discovered this through a shouting match between himself and Tayuya a few weeks ago, who had been refusing any meals that a nurse brought them. She had thought they were poisoned, but when he tried to eat them, she'd bit his head off with curses and threats. Eventually the blonde had had enough and started shouting back. After a few rounds of insults, Tayuya crossed the line, calling him a blind motherless bastard, not knowing he actually was one. A flare of his chakra and an obscene run through of insults emitting from the blonde's mouth later, Naruto had discovered his cure to blindness.

He then thanked Tayuya, blood tears of joy coming from his eyes as he hugged her, much to her displeasure. After the thanking had finished, Naruto summoned Gamakichi, who had been informed of his blindness through other toads and expressed his anger towards the two Uchiha who caused his friend/summoner pain, and asked him to retrieve Jiraiya from whatever perverted thing he was doing. Gamakichi gladly accepted and vanished in a poof of smoke. Tayuya felt gob-smacked that the blonde that was her body guard could summon toads and demanded answers.

Flashback

"What the fuck was that, Shithead? A fucking Toad summon?" Tayuya asked in shock. Naruto groaned.

"Would it kill you to call me 'Naruto'?" the blonde asked. Tayuya smirked, which he could hear in her snarky response of, "Maybe."

The blonde picked a breadstick up from the food tray and bit into it. After a few moments of chewing and swallowing he said, "Well, food's safe. Unless you're asking for a five star meal, this won't kill ya. It's better than whatever I got when I came in here in the past."

Tayuya narrowed her eyes before hesitantly grabbing the fork and eating the noodles before her. She took a small bite and waited a few moments before starting to eat like her life depended on it. She paused in mid bite at the sound of a chuckle and looked at the blonde who was looking in her direction. He smirked.

"You look hungry," Naruto said, earning a blush from the redhead.

Tayuya swallowed her food before muttering, "Sh-Shut up, shithead. And answer my question, dammit!"

"Ok, Ok, relax, Tayuya," the blonde replied. He sat in his chair and took another bite of his breadstick. Unbeknownst to him, Tayuya looked at him expectantly as she took bites of her food.

"It was a Toad summon," Naruto said after swallowing his bite, "His name's Gamakichi and he's probably now the closest thing I have to a best friend."

"Seriously?" Tayuya asked with a smirk around a mouthful of food before swallowing, "That's fucking sad, Shithead."

"Shut up," Naruto shot back with a small smile, "Believe it or not, my first best friend was The Traitor."

Tayuya choked on her food before pointing at Naruto accusingly, "I KNEW you looked familiar! You were that annoying blonde idiot from that group that came after the fag!"

"Yeah, that was me," Naruto said chuckling, "I guess I have mellowed out after losing my eyesight. Maybe my kekkei genkai affected me in a way I haven't discovered yet."

"Kekkei genkai?" Tayuya asked, confused.

Naruto palmed himself in the face before smiling sheepishly, "Duh, I forgot to tell you why my eyes are purple with swirls within the irises. Well apparently I belong to an old clan called Uzumaki. I don't know whether I got it from my mother or my father, though."

"What are you, an orphan or some shit like that?" Tayuya asked. Naruto's smile faltered slightly.

"Yeah..."

Flashback end

Needless to say, their conversation ended there with Naruto not wanting to discuss anything else on the matter and Tayuya not knowing what to say.

Just as the blonde was going to resume his light rest, the redhead in bed rolled over to look at him.

"What's wrong, Tayuya?" the blonde asked quietly, seeing the slight frown on the girl's face. The redhead chewed on her lip for a minute before looking back at her bodyguard.

"This...is my last surgery, right?" she asked. Naruto nodded.

"Baa-chan thinks so," the blinded boy said, "The surgery will be the most dangerous one of the past four you've been in, but you're survival chances are extremely high, seeing as she's performing it herself. The recovery time will be quick too, so you'll be able to get back on your feet in about four weeks."

"Damn right!" Tayuya cheered before her mood turned somber again, "...Shithead?"

Naruto arched a brow, "Yes?"

"...Never mind Shithead," the redhead said turning away. Naruto heard her heartbeat quicken and he ruffled his brow before smiling as he figured out (at least he thought) what she was going to say.

"Don't worry Tayuya," Naruto said reaching over and patting her shoulder, "I'll still be your friend even after this mission is over. You might be our next genjutsu mistress, ne?"

The girl smiled slightly before turning it into a smirk, "Yeah...Fuck, are you sure I can't fucking eat? I'm starving!"

The blonde laughed, not knowing that the girl was smiling at his carefree, yet tired, laugh. The redhead had been studying the blonde for the past few weeks that they were stuck together. He seemed happy, but to one who wore a mask of anger and vulgarity to hide her feelings, Tayuya could tell the blonde was hiding more than she was. The fake smiles made her sick; they didn't look natural at all on his face. His eyes, albeit being a different color than when she first saw him, looked normal and happy to those who didn't know better, but Tayuya knew better. Behind the purple swirls was a saddened depth that even she herself didn't have.

I'll find out why you're worse off than I am, Shithead, Tayuya thought, And maybe I can do that if I become a, can't believe I'm even thinking about this, fucking kunoichi of this tree-fucker filled village.

AN: The first of my Tayuya/Naruto fic. Please Read and Review. Oh, and I would like to say a big thanks to all my Ame's jinchuriki readers. I'm going to officially work on chapter 17 right after this gets posted. PEACE!