Hello all! I know I haven't published anything in a long time, so hopefully I'm not too rusty (and that anyone that liked my writing before will like it now).

Standard disclaimers apply: I don't own any of the characters in this story, or the franchise itself. Male/male romance, so if that's not your bag, then feel free to leave. I'm rating it M for brief nudity and a lot of drunken and sober swearing, but if you feel it's justified as T, let me know.

Please review to let me know how my writing is now. Fair warning: this story takes place in an AU, technically in Japan, but with some US tones added in. I can't help it, I'm American and I've never lived in Japan, so I write what I know. Enjoy.

Things I Learned From You

"Class, we have a new student joining us today. Naruto, please introduce yourself."

The seven-years-old blond boy in question looked up from the ground at his new teacher. He had been introduced to Iruka-sensei the day before. The man was kind and friendly and had taken him out for ramen, which Naruto loved. But most important to Naruto was that Iruka-sensei stopped asking him how he was feeling.

Of course, he had asked when they were talking. Every adult did. But Iruka-sensei also talked about the class, and what Naruto had learned at his old school, and he asked Naruto what his favorite animal was. All the other adults talked to him about were if he was sad, if he missed his parents, and was he sure he was okay? And they never, ever stopped, which just made Naruto angry. Iruka-sensei was a hundred times better than all of those adults.

Right now he was giving Naruto a smile. Not a 'don't-make-the-kid-with-no-parents-sad' smile all the other adults he had met the past month gave him, but the kind of smile he had given to the waitress at the ramen stand and everyone else on the street. Naruto wanted to hug him for giving him that smile, but instead he repaid it by doing what Iruka-sensei wanted.

Naruto turned to the kids sitting in the desks in the classroom. They were all staring straight at him. Naruto had practiced his introduction last night in the mirror. He took a deep breath and began.

First, say hello. "Hello." Give your name. "My name is Uzumaki Naruto." Tell them something about yourself. "I'm living with a friend of my Dad's. He's a writer." Finish and bow. "Thank you for having me."

"Well, alright then. Now I know some of you probably have questions for Naruto—"

"Hey, why aren't you living with your Mom and Dad?" a brown-haired boy in the second row asked while raising his hand.

Iruka-sensei didn't say anything; he just made a couple of "um" and "uh" noises. Naruto didn't want to answer, but now all of the other kids were staring at him and waiting. "They…they're gone," he answered, looking down at the floor again.

"Well, I think that's enough questions for—"

"Whattaya mean gone?" the brown-haired boy asked him. Now Iruka-sensei looked kinda mad, but the boy went on anyways. "They didn't want you anymore or something?" Now Iruka-sensei looked really mad. He was going to say something.

Naruto didn't let him. "That's not true! My Mom and Dad DO love me! THEY DO!" he shouted at the brown-haired boy. Naruto wanted to punch him for saying that. It was because they loved them that they were…gone.

"Okay, okay. Geez, you don't have to get all pissy about it."

"That's enough, Kiba!" Now Iruka-sensei looked really, really mad. "You know better than to use that kind of language, and to call out in class like that. We'll talk about this after class."

Kiba grumbled and leaned back in his chair. Iruka-sensei turned to Naruto, giving him the bad smile that all the other adults gave him. "Naruto," he said, "why don't you sit at the empty desk over there?"

Naruto nodded and walked to the desk, his head down. As he walked past the desks, he heard the other kids giggling. Someone whispered, "Weirdo."

From this, Naruto learned that kids were cruel.

"Alright. Kiba, I'll talk to you first," the principal said, opening her door and waiting.

The brown-haired ten-year-old leaped off his chair outside the principal's office and started walking. He glared at Naruto as he passed the chair the blond boy was sitting in. He was trying to look scary, but the black eye Naruto gave him made him look funny. Naruto smirked at Kiba's face, even though it kind of hurt with his own bloody lip.

Kiba walked into the principal's office. The principal gave a Naruto a look that said 'you're next' and closed the door.

Naruto spent his time staring at the clock across the room, counting the seconds in boredom. He was scared of the principal, like all the kids in his class were. In fact, it was the only thing that he agreed on with the rest of his class. If Naruto was really lucky, though, the Principal would spend the rest of the day scolding Kiba, and Naruto could just go home. Naruto hoped that was what happened. The bully deserved it.

Naruto got bored of counting time after half a minute, but soon after, Ebisu-sensei walked into the office, holding Sasuke's hand. Naruto had heard his classmates talk about Sasuke, about the big fire that had burned down the huge Uchiha house and took almost the whole family. They talked about how horrible it was, and gasped at Naruto when he said that Sasuke was lucky 'cause at least he still had his big brother to take care of him.

Now, Ebisu-sensei was having Sasuke sit in a chair and gave him a smile that Naruto remembered all too well from when he lost his own parents. He walked up to the lady at the desk and told her quietly (Naruto didn't know why; if he could hear him, so could Sasuke) that Sasuke had refused to play with anyone at recess and that he was worried. Both of them looked at Sasuke and give him more of those stupid smiles. The lady wrote something down and Ebisu-sensei walked out of the office, patting Sasuke on the shoulder on his way out.

Sasuke didn't seem to notice. As soon as he had gotten into his chair, he had done nothing but stare at his shoes.

Naruto rolled his eyes. Ebisu-sensei was an idiot. How had he ever managed to become a teacher? Iruka-sensei was a hundred times better than him. Heck, Naruto was a hundred times better than him. Acting all concerned and saying that you were sorry when you didn't know a thing just made a kid feel even worse.

Naruto made up his mind. He got out of seat and marched across the room. The lady behind the desk looked like she wanted to say something, but froze as Naruto approached Sasuke. Naruto pushed himself onto the seat next to him, and just sat there, swinging his legs. Neither boy made a sound, with only the ticking clock for company.

After around forty ticks, Sasuke finally spoke. "You want to ask me something to?" Sasuke's voice sounded completely numb.

Naruto just looked forward. "Nope."

Sasuke finally looked up at him, his eyes wide. Naruto still didn't react. Almost as fast as he looked up, Sasuke looked back down at the floor. After only four more ticks, he mumbled out, "…thanks."

Naruto grinned. For some reason, smiling didn't hurt his lip nearly as much now.

From this, Naruto learned how to make a friend.

Naruto laughed louder than anyone as Kiba returned to the party, still buck naked. He laughed even more when Kiba realized that his clothes were no longer by the door, but instead on the couch in Sakura's living room. Kiba was already blushing from his run around the house, but after realizing that everyone at the party was going to get a full view of his bare butt, his cheeks turned as red as the stupid trianges he painted on his face because he thought they made him look cool.

Kiba walked through the house, glaring at Naruto as he passed. The blond thirteen-year-old tried to look offended, but he sucked at it. He was the one that moved Kiba's clothes, after all.

Naruto bumped fists with Sasuke as they made their way back to the rest of the group. His best friend just smirked and shook his head, but Naruto knew he liked his little add-on to Kiba's run. How could he not? Naruto was the one who came up with it, and he was a comic genius.

The two of them helped reform the circle as Kiba pulled his hoodie back on. He picked up the glass bottle up off the floor and placed it carefully at the center of the room. He gave it a spin before he took his own seat. The entire room watched the bottle spin and slowly slow down, waiting to find out whom the next victim would be. The bottle began to spin slower and slower and slower until it finally stopped.

Aw, crap. Naruto stared at the mouth of the bottle that stared back of him. The entire room let out a small gasp while Kiba grinned madly. Sasuke even furrowed his brow. Naruto, however, refused give anything away. Rule number one: never let them see you sweat.

Naruto sat still until Kiba spoke. "Alright, Naruto," he said, his voice full of cheer, "Truth, or Dare?"

Naruto grinned back. Like Kiba really needed to ask. "Dare, dog breath."

Kiba pressed his index finger to his chin, making a show of thinking really hard. Naruto rolled his eyes after he began making "Hmmmm" sounds. "C'mon, mutt mouth, we don't have all night!" Kiba growled, but then his eyes lit up, and he gave that mad grin again.

"Naruto, I dare you to…" Naruto stared Kiba down. "…kiss Sasuke…" Naruto blinked. "…on the lips…" Naruto paled. "…for five full seconds." Naruto felt sick.

He and everyone else in the room turned to stare at Sasuke. To his credit, Sasuke had only raised an eyebrow. Naruto felt horrible. He did NOT want to kiss Sasuke, he did not want his first kiss to become some sort of party favor, and he did not want to drag his best friend into this. "Oh come on, Kiba! Leave Sasuke out of this. It isn't even his turn."

Kiba wasn't going to help. "What's the matter, Naruto? Can't handle the dare?"

Naruto puffed up. No way was he going to back down, especially from Kiba. He stood up, and walked the short distance to Sasuke. He got as far as pulling Sasuke to his feet and grabbing both arms before he froze up. Naruto felt like he was going to vomit. He really didn't want to do this.

Sasuke looked down at him. The smug bastard looked more amused than anything. "Just do it, moron," he said.

Naruto frowned. "Jerk," he said. Then he pulled their mouths together.

Naruto saw fireworks. Sasuke's lips felt warm against his, and almost out of hormonal instinct, he began to open his own mouth. Although he didn't know why, the movement had caused some sort of friction that felt wonderful, and Naruto wanted more. Sasuke had pulled him into his body while trying to regain his balance after Naruto had pulled his head down, and Naruto marveled how their bodies had pressed against each other. He placed his hand on Sasuke's shoulder, and—

Sasuke pulled away, smirking. "So, how much mouthwash are you going to use?" Sasuke laughed as he asked him.

Naruto blinked, his cheeks red hot. He became aware of the cheers and catcalls around him. Kiba was laughing like a hyena. Sasuke just stood there, his smirk suddenly turning into a frown. "Hey Naruto, you okay? It wasn't that bad, was it?" Apparently, whatever Sasuke had felt during the kiss, it wasn't anything close to what Naruto had experienced.

Naruto gave his head a quick shake. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine," he answered. He quickly turned and reached for the bottle. "So, let's see who's next."

From this, Naruto learned that he liked boys.

Practice late. Head out w o me.

Naruto sighed as he flipped his phone shut. For freshmen, "late practice" was code for doing the jobs no one else wanted to until it was fucking dark. The literature club had just gotten out, and as much as Naruto liked Sasuke, he wasn't going to wait for two hours while his best friend was forced to scrub the field or whatever.

Naruto tugged the scarf tighter around his neck. He walked out of one of Konoha High's side doors and headed around the building toward the front gate. Apparently, lit club was so obscure it got buried in the far reaches of the school. Another complaint to throw at the old perv when he got home. Naruto may have enjoyed the club, but like Hell was he going to admit that to Jiraiya after he'd been forced to join it. Stupid old man would never let it go.

Naruto stopped when he heard a sob. A male sob. That didn't happen often in this school. He turned the corner and found the source. The black slacks confirmed that it was a guy. The school uniform confirmed that he was a student. The red triangle that he still insisted on paining on his face told him it was Inuzuka Kiba.

Naruto almost turned around right then. He already knew why Kiba was sitting here crying, and he certainly didn't owe the bastard anything. He stayed instead. He told himself it was because the meat head never cried, and that he had to commit this to memory. A small part of him admitted that it might have been because he felt bad for Kiba.

Feeling awkward just watching, Naruto cleared his throat. Kiba looked up and wiped away his tears to glare at him. He hadn't done a very good job. "What do you want, fag?"

Naruto scowled. "I was going to ask why you're crying like a baby, but when you put it that way…"

"Fuck you, Uzumaki. I don't need your fucking pity."

Naruto shrugged and continued towards the front gate. He made it about three steps away from Kiba before he heard another sob. Naruto sighed in defeat and turned back around. "Okay, explain this to me. I get that you loved him and all, and yeah it's sad that he's gone, but it's a fucking dog, Kiba, not your mother. And it's not like he got hit by a truck. He was thirteen, not three. He couldn't even walk anymore."

Kiba was livid. "Fuck you, Uzumaki," he snarled. "Fuck you, and the teachers, and everyone else in this shitty school. I've had Akamaru since I was fucking two. He was like my brother, you piece of shit. He was my brother and I had to take him to the vet to kill him! He was always with me, and now he's…now he's…" Once again, Kiba broke down into tears again.

Naruto walked towards him. Even if he didn't like Kiba, he knew what he was going to do. He laid his back against the building and let himself slide to the ground next to Kiba. He ignored the bewildered look Kiba gave him. "Tell me about him," he said.

"Huh?"

"Akamaru. Tell me about him."

"Don't wanna," Kiba whined.

Naruto sighed. "Fine," he said, "I'll go first. My dad was always super-serious. He was that guy that stays behind in the office for four hours because he just wasn't done yet. But when he came home and relaxed, he suddenly had this smile that lit up everything. It was like the fucking sun. And my mom, she was always singing. Cooking, cleaning, even while watching TV. She was best at lullabies, though. Some nights I pretended to be just about to fall asleep so I could get one more out of her before bed."

Kiba just stared at him. His eyes were red, but at least he wasn't crying. Naruto continued. "I don't really remember my folks anymore, Kiba. I was seven when they died. Half the time, I can't even remember what they look like without a photograph. But I do remember what I tell Sasuke and the old perv and anyone else that I talk to about them. And when I talk about them, even if it's only a little bit, I can see their faces and hear their voices again. So tell me about Akamaru. Tell me what you remember about him."

For a long time, Kiba didn't say anything. Naruto was about to give up when he suddenly started talking. "I don't remember a time when I didn't have Akamaru. I do know that he was the runt of my mom's dog's litter, and they decided to let me have him instead. I remember when I was four and we got mud all over the carpet. My mom carried me outside to clean up, and I swear that Kuromaru—his mom—had lifted him by the neck and did the same. I remember him being so small, he just sat on my head all day when I walked around town, and laughed and called him the laziest dog in the word."

Both boys laughed at that. Naruto continued to listen to Kiba as he described what was quite possibly the most interesting dog in recorded history.

From this, Naruto learned that Kiba was, in fact, human.

"Look, I know you don't want to hear it, but I told you when you graduated that there was a good chance it wouldn't work out."

"I didn't say that it wasn't working."

"Yeah, and that's why your calling me at eight at night on a Saturday." Naruto could see Sasuke's eyes rolling.

"What happened to 'I hope he makes you happy and let me know if there's anything I can do'?"

"I said that I hope it works out for you to and that I'll always be on your side. Naruto, I like him too, and I'm not saying it couldn't have worked. I'm not even saying it's anyone's fault. But long-distance relationships are hard, and right now it sounds like you two are still together just because you're both stubborn."

The waitress came back with his drink, providing Naruto a perfect opportunity to not talk to Sasuke for a few minutes. He ordered the roasted chicken with pasta and got back on his phone. "Sorry about that. Had to order food."

"Right. You know, many people see talking on your phone at a restaurant as rude."

"Akamichi's has sidewalk seating now. There are allowances."

"Seriously? They have sidewalk seating now? What happened to 'We ain't gonna chase that trendy crap?'"

"If it makes you feel any better, the food looks like it's as totally unhealthy as ever."

"It does, actually. So how's the apartment coming along? Find any good porn?"

Naruto sighed. "Define 'good.' I've cleaned out Jiraiya place already. I'm just taking a dinner break before I start sorting the old perv's stuff for what to keep and what to get rid of. And what to burn for the sake of humanity."

Sasuke laughed through the phone. "Well, I need to get back to work. Let me know what you end up incinerating."

Naruto looked at his phone. If it was eight here, what time was it where Gaara was? He tried to call him, but all he got were three rings and then his voicemail. Naruto didn't bother leaving a message. He hung up and put his phone on the table. He glared at it like his relationship problems were its entire fault.

As much as hated to admit it, Sasuke could be right. Promising to stay together no matter how far apart they were had sounded so much simpler in college. Now that Gaara was clear on the other side of the world, they barely talked anymore. Naruto loved him, he had since their sophomore year, but they were becoming less like partners and more like pen pals.

A dog barked nearby. Then it barked again, only louder. Then again, and suddenly a huge german shepherd was standing was standing next to his table, apparently looking for table scraps. Fortunately, his food still hadn't arrived, so instead Naruto and the dog just stared at each other.

"Well I'll be. Look who's back."

Naruto looked up from the dog to a man reaching for its leash. Kiba's hair was still the spiky brown mess it had always been, and he still had those weird red fang things on his face. His voice was deeper now, but Naruto still remembered it from high school. Now, Kiba had a lot more muscle on him, and the tight dark t-shirt he wore displayed it in detail. His belt had a shiny golden badge dangled off of his belt, and his shirt had "Konoha PD" sown over his heart.

Naruto wasn't sure what to say. Aside from a moment they had shared their first year of high school, he and Kiba had never been anything that resembled friends. Kiba looked happy to see him, and he hadn't done anything but smile, so Naruto had no reason to be hostile to him. He decided to try to act natural. "Hey, Kiba. You're still living here?"

Kiba's grin bloomed. "Yep. Konoha may not be a huge city like you went off to, but it keeps me pretty happy. Mind if I sit?"

Naruto shrugged. It was rude to make him stand there. "So," Naruto began, "you're a cop now?"

"Damn straight I am. Officer Inuzuka Kiba, narcotics. And my partner Hayate here," Kiba rubbed the german shepherd's head. Hayate responded by licking his hand. "…is our newest search dog."

Naruto let himself smile. "You just can't get away from dogs, huh Kiba?"

Kiba laughed. "Why the hell would I want to? So, you here for your old man?" Naruto nodded. "Let me know when the funeral is, okay? Jiraiya may have been our sole source of harassment complaints, but he was like everyone's uncle around here. We're all gonna miss the guy."

Naruto must have made some sort of face, because Kiba suddenly stopped smiling. "Shit, man, sorry. I forgot that you're actually kinda related to him. You holding up okay?"

Naruto nodded. "Yeah, yeah I'm alright. Jiraiya was…well, he was a jerk and a creep sometimes, but he always took care of me in his own way. I do miss him, but it's nice to know he…left when he should have, you know?"

"Yeah…" Kiba just trailed off. Now he was blushing like crazy, apparently from embarrassment, and maybe not wanting to bring up Naruto's actual parents, who died well before their time. Naruto tried to think of something to put him at ease, but the waitress had come back with his meal. She looked startled upon finding someone else at the table, and just looked at Kiba as she set down Naruto's plate.

"Oh! Uhh, damn," Kiba cursed as he looked around him. He grabbed a menu from an adjacent table and quickly scanned through it. "I'll, uhh, I'll just have the sirloin and a beer, thanks." He grinned and placed the menu back on the table he had stolen it from.

The waitress rolled her eyes as she headed back to the kitchen. Naruto glared at Kiba. "I thought cops couldn't drink on the job," he said.

"Eh, no worries. I'm off-duty. Listen, dinner's on me tonight. Think of it as a 'welcome home' present." Hayate barked. "Don't worry, boy, you'll get some steak too."

Naruto watched Kiba pet his very happy looking dog. He shrugged and took a bite of his chicken. If Kiba was willing to pay, Naruto certainly wasn't going to say no.

From this, Naruto learned that people can change.

The weekly drinking nights with Kiba started about a week after Naruto's official breakup with Gaara. As usual, Sasuke had been right, but it had taken Gaara actually making time for a talk over the phone for both of them to admit that they weren't getting anywhere like this, and while they still cared, it wasn't enough to keep them together anymore. So after reminiscing about their time in college, they said their final goodbyes. Naruto wasn't sure if he was supposed to delete his phone number or not, so he still had it.

Naruto wasn't…bitter, exactly. He hadn't done anything wrong, and Gaara wasn't to blame either. It was really no one's fault, but it still made Naruto feel like shit. He had tried so hard to make it work, and in the end it had all been for nothing. All he had was a lot of sorrow and resentment, and nothing to target it with.

Sasuke was there for him, but only over the phone. He had his own life now, and Naruto couldn't nor did he want to take up all of his time. In the end, Kiba was the only one actually on hand for comfort.

Kiba's approach had been alcohol. His next night off, he showed up on Naruto's doorstep with five bottles of sake. After giving him some grief about living in his childhood home (now a novelist himself, Naruto didn't have to live anywhere in particular, and Jiraiya had left him the apartment), Kiba poured them both a glass and forced Naruto to down the drink.

Naruto only resisted the intrusion into his home until the third glass of sake, and then began to pour his heart out. He told Kiba about Gaara, about their first date, first kiss, meeting Gaara's siblings when they came to visit. Naruto wasn't entirely sure (he was very drunk that night, after all), but he might have told Kiba a few more intimate details about their nights as well. If he did, Kiba never showed his discomfort, which Naruto was grateful. He had cried more than a bit that night, and Kiba had done nothing much more than listen and pet his head as he passed out from drinking.

The next week, Kiba decided that Naruto was still moping around his apartment too much. This time, he dragged Naruto into his favorite bar to interact with people. Naruto drank less this time, because he was at least less depressed now and would need to eventually get back home. Kiba had tried to get them to flirt with some of the girls at the bar, but Naruto had to explain to him that being gay meant no interest in female genitalia. Undeterred, Kiba demanded that Naruto be his wingman instead, and Naruto proceeded to laugh as his cop friend demonstrated his absolute lack of game. At the end of the night, Kiba grumbled at the numbers Naruto had gotten as he walked him home.

After that, the nights out became a tradition for them, one Naruto came to enjoy. Sometimes, when Sasuke had the time, he'd join them, and sometimes the met up with a few friends of Kiba at the bar. Sometimes they just bought a few bottles and drank at Naruto's apartment or Kiba's place, even though Naruto disapproved when Kiba let Hayate have a few sips.

It was one of those nights when it happened. They were in Naruto's apartment, and Kiba had the next day off. They celebrated it by trying to get completely shit-faced.

"So, how do ya do it, anyway?" Kiba slurred out around…Naruto had absolutely no fucking clue what time it was.

"'It?' What's 'it?'" Naruto was drunk, but not nearly as much as Kiba.

"Ya know…'it.'" Kiba started making hand motions that Naruto couldn't figure out. ""Stickin' it in, an all dat."

Ah. That 'it.' "You know how that fucking works, dumbass!"

"Course I know. But don't ya think it's gross? I mean, ya shit outta there man!"

Naruto laughed. "Ask your fucking dog. He sticks his nose in butts all the time. Probably licks himself too."

"Hey, dun make funna m'dog. Hayate ain't like that. He's manly."

"Oh so I'm not manly?"

"Not like me you not. I'm much more manly." Kiba burst out laughing. "M'bigger, too," he added, pointing to his crotch.

"You fucking wish, dog breath. My dick makes yours look like a fucking wet noodle."

"Oh, yeah? Let's see abut dat!" Kiba whipped off his belt and dropped his pants.

"Hey, what are you—" Naruto didn't get to finish before Kiba tackled him, naked from the waist down. Naruto tried to throw him off, but drunk or not, Kiba was still a cop and much better trained. He had Naruto's fly open and boxers pulled down before Naruto could even get an arm off of him.

Kiba frowned as he looked down at their waists. "Aw, we're the same," he whined.

"Congratulations, we're fucking dick twins. Now get the fuck off me before I get hard. Unless you wanna take care of it."

Kiba didn't move right away. He just stared down at Naruto for a good minute, his face flushed with alcohol. When he did move, it wasn't off. He lowered himself onto his friend, and Naruto felt a hardness that wasn't his own dig into his thigh.

A voice in the back of his head screamed "BAD IDEA! BAD IDEA!" through his skull. Naruto tried to say it himself to Kiba, but before he could Kiba attached his mouth to Naruto's neck. That blissful feeling on his throat along with the sake drowned out the voice and just rode along for the party. The voice was lost for the rest of the night as they continued.

It returned when Naruto woke up the next morning. He woke up with all the bad aches from his hangover, along with all the good aches from a night of sex. Then he remembered who gave him those aches, and looked around for Kiba.

After the sunlight nearly burned out his eyes, Naruto found no trace of his bedmate. Kiba was gone, as well as his clothes both in Naruto's bedroom and the living room where they had started. Even the sake bottles Kiba had brought with him had vanished.

Naruto went back to bed (he was barely standing as it was) and tried to drown that empty feeling he felt with a sea of blankets.

From this, Naruto learned just how bad one-night stands could be.

The waiting area at the police station was a lot like one at an office. Not entirely, of course. A lot more people walked through it, both in and out of handcuffs, and there were bars on the windows. There were also tables with magazines from two years ago for people to read, and really bad framed paintings on the walls that were probably repossessed from a motel. And just like an office waiting room, the desk sergeant had told him he'd let Officer Inuzuka know that he was here, and to please take a seat. Naruto obliged, and grabbed a lonely Newsweek from last August to flip through.

After two hours, he had read through four more issues of Newsweek, two of Time, and even a Food & Wine. Hopefully, he'd be able to tell Kiba how absolutely ridiculous it was to have a cooking magazine in a police station. That would mean talking to Kiba, however, and lately that hadn't been happening.

Apparently, Kiba was experiencing some sort of gay panic ever since they'd gotten drunk and made a mess out of Naruto's bed. Naruto had been more than willing to forget it had ever happened and just move on. Kiba, however, had refused to even speak to him. He never came by for drinks anymore. He changed his drinking routine to avoid him at the bar, and ducked out in the event Naruto was there.

As odd as he found it, Kiba had become a close friend of his, and ill-advised sex or not, Naruto didn't have enough good friends that he was willing to give him up. Kiba could change his routine, but he still had the same hours on-duty, and this was his night off. Naruto would wait until the end of his shift if he had to; he and Kiba were going to talk.

Fortunately, Naruto didn't have to pick up a copy of Golfer's Digest. Kiba walked out and froze when he saw him sitting there. Then he promptly walked out of the station. Naruto got up and ran after him. Kiba apparently walked fast, because he was already at the end of the block when Naruto got outside.

Naruto chased after him. He caught up with him at the next block. "Kiba! Hey, Kiba, wait up!"

"Leave me alone Naruto. I don't want to talk right now."

"Yeah, then when? You're the one that's been avoiding me."

"I have not."

"Bullshit. You haven't been able to look at me since he mmph!"

Kiba had clamped his hand over Naruto's mouth almost instantly. "Let's get this straight," he hissed. "I am not a fag. That was all the sake and you were…you were…"

Naruto saw red at the word 'fag.' Suddenly the little bastard from grade school was back, and Naruto was going to finally give him a piece of his mind. "I was what, Kiba? You were the one that came onto me. I told you to get off, and you put your hand down my pants."

Kiba's eyes darted around for any hint that the other pedestrians were listening. He grabbed Naruto's wrist and pulled him into an alley. He pushed and held him against a wall, and Naruto wouldn't have minded if the situation was different. Unfortunately, Kiba was way too angry to be considering a kiss. "Okay, look, I do remember what I did, but that's it. Tell me what I said."

Naruto frowned. "You didn't say anything. One minute you're making me compare dick sizes, and the next you were screwing me all over my apartment."

Kiba ran a hand over his face. He took a moment before he spoke. "Look Naruto, I…I don't think I can hang out with you anymore."

Naruto blinked. "Are you serious? What, you have a drunken one-night stand and now you don't want to be seen with me anymore? And you know what; you seemed to be enjoying yourself just fine."

"I am not gay," Kiba growled out.

"I am! And you knew that! What, did you think there was some on-and-off switch? That I act straight when I'm around you, but then I suddenly have a lisp and paint my nails when you leave? Hate to break it to you, but I'm all gay, all the time, and if you can't handle that then you shouldn't have hung out with me in the first place!"

"Damn it, Naruto, that's not the problem!"

"Then what is?"

"I can't like you!" Kiba shouted. He looked like he was about to cry. "I couldn't like you when we were kids. I couldn't like you in high school. And I don't fucking care how good you look, I can't like you now! But that we actually…you-know-what…I can't look at you without seeing that!"

Naruto blinked. What was that? Did Kiba just say that he liked him? Since grade school?

Kiba didn't give him the time to confirm. "I…I need to go." Naruto watched him leave the alley, still a little shell-shocked.

From this, Naruto learned that maybe, just maybe, Kiba had a reason for treating him like crap for all those years.

Naruto took another swig from his bottle. He made sure to lean towards the (male) bartender as he paid for his drink. The tight jeans he wore tugged his ass as he leaned forward. "Keep the change, handsome," he practically purred. "I'm sure I'll be calling you over again."

Sasuke laughed as the bartender practically ran from them. "You did see the wedding ring, didn't you?"

Naruto grinned. "That's what makes it funny. And besides," he said, nodding his head back behind him, "he's not the one I'm showing off for."

Both of them looked behind them. Kiba was glaring at him across the room. Naruto waved at him, and Kiba looked away.

Sasuke just smirked. "Has he been looking at you like that long?"

Naruto turned back around. "Oh, yeah."

"Well, he definitely wants you. And he's still staring at your ass. Who'd have thought?"

"Yeah, well I wish he'd hurry up. I don't do this coy crap."

"You're pretty good at it, all things considering. I'd say LHF is a success, if only to actually get you flirting."

Now it was Naruto's turn to laugh. "I can't believe you actually said it," he said through chuckles.

Operation LHF was the name he had given the plan he and Sasuke had put together after Naruto had called him for help. It stood for Low Hanging Fruit. The goal was to both attract and punish Kiba for being such a pain in the ass. The plan was for Naruto to flirt and tease and generally be an available gay man. Fortunately, he actually got along with Kiba's friends before they stopped talking to each other, and they were all too happy to make sure Kiba was actually there to see. He was not, however, going to approach Kiba. Naruto was going to be the fruit, but kiba was going to have to pick it himself.

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Yes, yes, I used your stupid name. I still think it sounds like a ten-year-old thought it up," he said before taking a sip of his own drink.

Naruto thought for a second. "Hey, you aren't seeing anyone right now, right?"

"Yeah, why?"

Suddenly, naruto was very much in Sasuke's personal space. "Because then I don't feel so bad doing this," he whispered right into Sasuke's face. Naruto oh so slowly leaned into his friend's body. Sasuke looked scared he was going to kiss him. His lips were within a centimeter of Sasuke's, then he snatched the sake out of his hand took a gulp as he backed away.

Sasuke frowned. "You're lucky I actually like you, or I'd kick your ass."

Naruto shrugged. "I owe you."

"Apparently you do."

Naruto didn't get a chance to ask what he meant before he was yanked away from the bar. He was going to complain, but then he saw who it was. Apparently, Kiba had finally decided to pick the fruit. Naruto winked back at Sasuke. His friend waved to him as he was pulled out of the bar.

"What do you think you're doing?" Kiba demanded once they were outside.

Naruto ignored his glare and took another sip. "I don't know what you're talking about," he said.

"Like hell you don't! You start wearing shit like…that," he said, indicating Naruto's clothes, which were much tighter and more fashionable than he usually wore. "You're suddenly hanging out with Shino at the station. Hell, you flirted with my Captain!"

"That one was actually Sasuke's idea, and Kakashi-san didn't seem to mind that much. What's it matter to you, anyways? You're the one that decided that we suddenly couldn't be friends anymore."

"I told you, Naruto, I can't."

"Yeah, and why is that?" Naruto slammed his bottle on the ground. Now he was getting somewhere. It'd be great if Operation LHF ended with him and Kiba actually becoming something, but more than anything he wanted answers. "You know, you pretty much terrorized me since I first got to Konoha in the first grade, and now you're saying that it was some sort of repressed attraction? Seriously? What, you wrote me love poetry during recess?"

Both men stared each other down. Kiba broke eye contact first. He sighed and looked up at the night sky. "You remember that time after school? I was upset about losing Akamaru, and you sat there and listened to me talk until it got dark?"

Naruto wanted to joke that he remembered Kiba crying, but Kiba was finally talking and he didn't want to ruin it. "I remember."

"Yeah, well, that's when I knew. I think I liked you before then, maybe even back when you first showed up. I don't know, I was seven at the time. Who's in love when they're seven? But yeah, all through high school I didn't know if I wanted to kiss you or punch you, so I just went with punching you."

"But why?" Naruto asked. "I'm not saying I would have gone out with you after all the crap you put me through, but it's not like I would have hurt you over it."

Kiba shook his head. "Look, my family…well, it's big. I have an older sister, a little brother, and twelve cousins. Everyone in my family has kids. It's been like that since way before I met you. Hell, any time I see them, I always get asked why I don't have any yet. "

"So you don't want to be with me because your family won't approve?"

"My family didn't approve when I enrolled in the academy. They wouldn't care if I suddenly declared I was gay. It's…I want that too Naruto. I saw my parents and my family, and we were happy, and I wanted that. But I wanted you too, and I can't have both. And I wanted a family longer, so I went with that."

Naruto blinked. Both of them just stood there for about a minute, and then he spoke. "You're an idiot." Kiba looked like Naruto just sucker punched him, and Naruto supposed that he kind of did, but he continued before Kiba could say anything in response. "I mean, I get it. You want kids, and at some point that needs a woman. But you could have told me that. Forget the liking me part; if you thought that you might have been gay and still wanted kids, you could have asked me about it. I do know a thing or two about being gay, you know. I could have told you that you have options."

"Options?"

It was off-topic, but Naurto rolled with it. If this conversation was going to go where he thought it might, he'd need some time to build himself up. "Gay people can have kids too, dumbass. Adoption, surrogacy, in vitro. Hell, I had a contemporary lit professor who paid a guy just to screw her and get her pregnant. I'm not saying it's easy, and the kid might not be genetically yours, but it isn't impossible."

Naruto could practically see the wheels turning in Kiba's brain. He wondered if all that information had actually broken Kiba. Naruto considered going back into the bar to give him time to process. Before he could, Kiba asked the question Naruto wasn't sure he wanted to answer. "And you'd be okay with that? Having kids, that is. With me."

Naruto looked away. Would he be okay with that? "…Maybe," he answered. "I mean, not right away. I'd like to actually date for a while before discussing stuff like children. But someday, yeah, I could be a dad. I'd just…want to take it slow, you know."

Kiba stepped closer. "I can do that," he said, nodding. "I could do slow. If…if you're interested, that is. I'd totally get it if you weren't after everything I put—"

Naruto cut him off with a kiss. Kiba didn't react at first, but his hands slowly lifted on to Naruto's shoulders. Kiba used them to hold him in place as he leaned in. He jumped when Naruto clutched his ass. Naruto laughed at his surprise, which changed into a glare as he pushed his tough into Naruto's mouth harder in retaliation.

When they finally separated, Kiba was out of breath. "So," he said panting, "you are interested, then?"

Naruto snorted. "You're a dumbass," he said as he pulled Kiba back in.

From this, Naruto learned that it really was important to talk out your problems instead of avoiding them.

Naruto wished that he had a landline instead of a cell phone so that he could slam it. His relationship with his editor was a lot like an abusive relationship. When they were getting along, they were the best of friends. When they argued, however, they were close to killing each other. One time, Naruto had opened his car door right into the man's face. It was an accident, of course, but Naruto still hadn't felt too bad about it.

Naruto rubbed his brow after he put down his phone so that he didn't end up throwing it against the wall. His editor had just read him the riot act about his latest chapters being behind on the deadline. Apparently, despite having, as the bastard put it, "a few added distractions," he was still expected to keep writing at the same pace as before.

Said distraction entered into the room softly. "Are you okay?" Kichiro asked him.

Naruto smiled at Kichiro. He probably looked like hell right now. "Yeah, I'm alright sweetie. I'm just…tired from work, is all."

Kichiro looked at him with those huge eyes of his, and ran out of Naruto's office. Naruto looked at the doorway he had left through, and listened for footsteps that got quieter, then louder as Kichiro returned. He came in holding the stuffed dog Naruto had gotten him for his birthday last year. Kichiro walked up to Naruto's chair and presented it to him.

"For me?" Kichiro nodded. Naruto smiled down at him. "Thanks, Kichi," he said as he accepted the white furry plushie. He made a show of hugging the dog. Admittedly, he did feel a little better, but that was probably because he had used the poor thing as a stress ball.

"You're welcome, oto-ni-san. And my name's Kichiro!"

Kichiro would have hated knowing it, but Naruto thought that his puffed up angry face was one of the cutest things he'd ever seen. "My apologies, Inuzuka Kichiro-san," he said dramatically. "It won't happen again. You ready for your first day of school tomorrow?"

Kichiro nodded, but he didn't look too enthusiastic. "Oto-ni-san…" the little boy said, "I'm scared."

"Scared of what?"

"Well, what if the other kids don't like me? Or what if sensei is really, really mean? Or what if I get lost and I never see you or oto-ichi-san again?"

Naruto laughed. "Okay, calm down. First of all, I know your teacher. Iruka-sensei is the nicest teacher in the world. And your oto-ichi-san is a police officer, and he and Chiko and I would all come and find you if you ever got lost."

"And the other kids?"

"Well…" Naruto hesitated. He wasn't going to tell Kichiro how his own first day in Konoha went. "There'll probably be a few kids that you don't get along with. But you know what? That'll be their loss. And the other kids that do like you will be so much better than the ones who don't."

Kichiro nodded. He looked a little less nervous, but there was still a little apprehension left. Well, it wouldn't be his first day if he wasn't a little scared. "I'll tell you what. After Oto-ichi-san gets home, why don't we all go out to Akamichi's?" Kichiro immediately brightened.

Almost on cue, they heard the front door open, accompanied by Chiko's barking. Kichiro ran out of the office to greet them. Naruto heard the shouts of "Oto-ichi-san!" from down the hall.

"Heya, Kichi. You been waiting long?"

"My name's Kichiro!"

Naruto smiled. Only after he glanced at his phone did he remember his earlier fight with his editor. Naruto made the very conscious decision to leave his phone in the office. He left to join Kiba and Kichiro at the door.

From moments like these, Naruto learned how lucky he really was.

Once again, please be so kind as to review. I think my writing style has probable changed since I last posted, perhaps enough so that you could consider it a different author. Also, please read my profile page for a few other announcements. If your reading this story about a year after it's been posted, ignore that last part since they'll no longer be announcements. Thank you for reading.