Naruto Fanfic - Prisoner of Nightmare

Chapter Forty-Six[XLVI]: Red Waves - VII

   Uzukaze Naruto awoke enveloped by soft fur and the sound of deep breathing not coming from him, more sluggishly than he would like to admit his mind slowly remembered the events that rendered him unconscious in the first place. He grimaced with a barely contained flinch, feeling his stomach curing unpleasantly at the fresh memories that made him want to crawl out of his skin forever.

   He swallowed and opened his eyes slowly, greeted immediately by large, angry red eyes glaring at him. Naruto paused for a moment, finally remembering that he had, in fact, ran into Kurama's cage in all his panic. He slowly looked at his hands that were still gripping onto Kurama's fur like his life depended on it, which, if he was being honest, had. He let go and stood up from his curled in position, glancing at Kurama for a moment.

   Naruto contemplated his next move carefully. He couldn't run because Kurama would just catch him, he didn't really have any place to hide either, and he couldn't leave his mindscape until he was outside of the cage. He had tried. He looked around for a moment before narrowing his eyes at Kurama, who narrowed his right back, lips curled back into a vicious snarl that showed just how displeased Kurama was with Naruto cuddling up to him.

   Still, Naruto wasn't stupid. He knew that Kurama could kill him anytime he wished to and Naruto had no way of stopping it, hell, Kurama could have easily killed him in his sleep. But, he hadn't, and had instead chosen to wait for Naruto to wake up. Which, don't get him wrong, he appreciated, but it was still. . . odd, to say the least.

   With the initial shock of his memories gone, he could think clearly once again and vaguely remembered getting those sealed up memories slammed into him with no warning whatsoever. Presumably rendering him unconscious from the shock, it was all a blur to him. Well, he could always ask his teammates. He winced suddenly, how long had he been out? His teammates were probably worried, Kakashi most likely beside himself with it.

   Not to mention the fact that he was in the middle of an operation. Naruto groaned in dismay, rubbing the heels of his hands into his forehead. "Idiot, idiot, idiot. Stupid sentimental idiot," he said, which was completely unfair considering anyone in his position would have a reaction like that, but still. . . he was the ANBU Shochō for Kami-sama's sake.

   Naruto wouldn't deny the fact that he was still deeply uncomfortable in his own body and felt violated in a way he never could have conceived up until that point, that much was fact and it would take a great deal of effort for him not to flinch if anyone touched him, he knew that. He also knew that he was going to have a lengthy shower and scrub himself raw until he felt somewhat clean, and then probably have three more for good measure.

   "You are an idiot, brat," Kurama's gravelly voice suddenly boomed, bringing Naruto out of his thoughts. He looked up at those angry red and frowned. "Give me one reason not to kill you where you stand."

   He decided to push his luck a little and switched up his frown with an innocent smile that he knew didn't reach his eyes. "Because then you would have to go through the whole sealing process again and probably land in a host who's a lot meaner than I could ever be."

   Kurama exhaled a large plume of air from his nose, ruffling Naruto's hair and clothes. "Leave me, you insolent human. Get out."

   Naruto hesitated, short-lived smile slipping from his face and being replaced with a tight frown. He fidgeted a little, squirming like he couldn't get comfortable. Which, by all rights, he couldn't. "I--" he stopped, looking down at the sewer water which was back at its normal height, maybe a tiny bit higher. "Can I. . ." he paused once more, swallowing, "Can I stay. . . for a little longer?" His words got quieter and meeker as he finished, a tone that he almost didn't recognize.