𝚎𝚌𝚕𝚒𝚙𝚜𝚎

locker room brawl

A/N: ok I forgot

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Naruto knew he had to escape from his friends.

He thought it very possible. The crowd was large enough to conceal any disappearances on his part. It was also dark, and he sat near the end of the group.

If Naruto got up first, while everyone was still talking, he might could melt into the clusters of hybrid folk.

His mission: give his friends the slip.

His objective: the mysterious side entrance to the arena, and likely where the raven boy had disappeared to.

His obstacle, most directly: Kiba, who sat to Naruto's left.

Challenge: accepted!

As the group stood, Naruto trod slower than the rest, managing to secure a space at the end of their line through the crowd. As soon as Kiba turned away from him, Naruto slipped behind a group of taller hybrids, and began his journey into the unknown.

Alright, he knew this was a stupid idea.

But Naruto was determined to discover something of his own this time, without anyone's help.

The blonde youth stood a bit taller on his tiptoes, scanning the arena from within the densely populated crowd. To the right of the ring, blue eyes located the fighter's entrance to the underground.

Spectators were all filing out into various tunnels to exit. Naruto needed to get down there quick, or he'd stick out from the swiftly dispersing hybrids.

He took steps down two at a time, descending the levels and working against the tide. He heard his pal Lee's voice, distantly. "You guys! Where is Naruto?"

Curse his good-natured and observant friends.

Naruto moved faster, taking a right through a row of seats. He aimed to disappear around the corner of the raised fighting ring.

As he neared the concrete structure, the teen saw Deidara, slowly standing and brushing the dirt and debris from his clothes. The upperclassman's face lifted in Naruto's direction, and he prayed that he wasn't seen as he dove behind the ring's wall.

Woah. Naruto reflected for once. This feels sort of illegal.

But he was finally in front of his objective.

Across from the tan boy was an arched entryway. Whatever lie behind it was concealed in darkness. Naruto had to duck under the roped line-entry, which really added to the aesthetic of committing a crime. He also committed to near-crawling through the winding line of ropes and fence, which were much like an amusement park attraction waiting area.

Once Naruto was directly in front of the archway, he felt the inane urge to take a deep breath in to see what he could smell of the murky hallway. Not as much as Kiba could, he was sure.

He was also, oddly enough, nervous. More sensible thoughts than escaping from his friends-his only familiarities in the place-flooded his mind. What if I get lost? What if I get expelled? Also...

What if he's in there?

Naruto steeled himself, and began trekking down the unknown passage.

The journey through the tunnel was longer than Naruto had expected. In addition, as soon as he stepped through the initial arch, it was as if he passed through an illusion, and whatever was concealed behind that entrance was now revealed.

Torches lined the hallway, however, they grew dimmer and darker as the blonde made his way through the passage. He guessed that when walking into a fight, there was nothing like the growing intensity of the flames to rev you up. The blue flames Naruto saw presently comforted him. He followed their diminishing light with the matching color of his eyes.