It was only when Naruko and Sasuke were in front of her door after they'd finished shopping that Naruko realized she forgot something crucial.
Itachi fucking Uchiha was in her apartment
"Fuuuck" she groaned in her mind. "What am I supposed to do? Sasuke can't see Itachi! He'll go ballistic" she bites her lip as she pretends to look for her key in her purse. "But then again, maybe not? Maybe I've completely erased all his hatred for his brother, he seemed to have taken it quite well when I told him I met with his brother in my apartment back at the forest of death"
"Naruko?" Sasuke peeked over her shoulder. The blonde giggles awkwardly before pulling her hand out of her purse. "I uh can't find my key"
Sasuke raised a brow before twisting the door knob and opening the door a crack. He gave Naruko a disapproving look. "You left without locking your door? That's irresponsible, what if someone tries to steal from you?"
"Oh, I didn't lock the door? Must have slipped my mind. And besides I don't have anything worth stealing, all my stuff came from the garbage, or hand me downs from Iruka and lord third" Naruko said with a shrug.
She opened the door fully and entered, but stopped Sasuke when he was about to follow her inside. "Wait! Uh, give me ten minutes to clean my place up" she said. Sasuke raised a brow "I've already seen your place Naruko, it's messy but not that bad. I'll help"
"No! I mean, no need. Just wait here for ten minutes, okay? Okay!" She slammed the door shut to his face and looked around her small apartment.
She saw Itachi's discarded shirt, mesh armor, and cloak, but no signs of Itachi anywhere. Did he already leave? That would be disappointing, but also for the better. "No he hasn't left yet, his stuff is still here"
Shaking her head she gathered Itachi's items and hid them in her closet. She folded the futon and shoved it under her bed, and shoved the garbage from last night in the trash bag.
Her bathroom door opened and out stepped the man she was looking for. "Itachi! You're still here" Naruko gave an exasperated laugh.
"Naruko, you look a bit flustered, is something the matter?" Itachi asked, watching as she ran around the place kicking laundry under her bed and throwing junk out the window.
"It's Sasuke, I invited him over for breakfast but I forgot you're still here. You need to stay out of sight until he leaves" Naruko explained. "Which is a shame, I was hoping to have breakfast with you too" she sighed.
Itachi smiled. "Maybe some other time Naru" he said. This cheered Naruko up, she smiled back at the Uchiha "Right. Anyway, maybe you should hide in the bathroom until Sasuke leaves, just ..don't make any noise" she pushes him back inside the bathroom, blushing slightly as her hands pressed against his firm abs.
"Be quiet!" She said before closing the door.
She then hurried over to let Sasuke in. "Okay I'm done cleaning up! Just sit down and I'll make us breakfast" she said with a wide smile, pulling Sasuke inside.
Sasuke placed the groceries on the table. "I think you should just sit down Naruko, I'll cook breakfast" he said, taking out the eggs, instant noodle cups, and other assortment of vegetables. He didn't know why but he had this powerful feeling of a need to provide for Naruko. Subconsciously he scratched the mark again.
"Oh, that's okay Sas, I'll do it. After all I'm the one who invited you here" Naruko said, standing by the bathroom door praying that Sasuke wouldn't use it.
"I bet you only know how to cook noodle related food. Just leave the kitchen to me, I'll conjure up something new for you" Sasuke stubbornly said.
Naruko frowned and huffed. She knows how to cook other food besides noodles! She can cook fried eggs and fried chicken! And her evenings spent cooking with Kakashi helped her with other delicacies too! But whatever. If Sasuke wants to show off his cooking prowess she'll let him be, she won't be impressed with whatever he comes up with.
"Don't be petty, idiot. He's acting on instincts as a good mate" Kurama growled in her head. "What are you talking about?"
"His instincts are telling him to provide for you. I could sense back at the grocery store he wanted to hunt an animal in the forest, skin it, cook it and present it to you, but he settled for simply shopping at that store with you instead. Must be because your mark on him is incomplete"
"Okay okay wait, you're saying his mark is incomplete? What's gonna happen when it's completed?"
"I think you already know the answer to that. He becomes your mate for life"
"And might I ask, just how I complete my mark on him?" Naruko remained expressionless on the outside, but on the inside she was feeling giddy.
"Simple. Mate with him. When he releases inside you, you bite the seal and release your chakra into his system"
"Hang on don't I also have to mate with Gaara?"
"Of course you do! Don't think I forget"
"So what?! You expect me to mate with two people?!"
"Or three, maybe four. There is also the Hatake and older Uchiha, but they'll have to wait at least two or three years before they could mate with you. At most you could simply bite their necks and ensure their devotion to you like you did with Sasuke in the beginning. And when you turn fifteen or sixteen, you'll have four mates at your beck and call"
"Kurama! This doesn't feel right! You expect me to mate with Sasuke, Gaara, Kakashi, and Itachi together?! You're a perverted old fox!" She screamed in her mind.
"Don't be whiny. Did I tell you to mate with them all at the same time? No. I'm merely telling you that you'll have more than one mate, it's purely your decision on what you shall do with them" Kurama left out the part where he knows she'll round them all up and have them kissing her feet and hands.
"I-I'm not that kind of girl Kurama" Naruko blushes darkly.
Kurama didn't respond back to her anymore, instead retreating back to the darkest corner of her mind.
"Sasuke, how much longer? I'm starving" Naruko complained. Sasuke sighed "Give me a few more minutes Dobe, I'm almost done" he said.
Naruko smiled. This feels almost domestic. Sasuke with her, cooking them breakfast. He was even wearing an apron!
She wondered, what would it be like if they lived together?
"Naruko"
"Hm? What is it? Breakfast ready at last?" She practically salivated. Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Nope but almost" he said. "I wanted to ask you something, and you can say no to it, because this is sudden, and I just thought about it this morning" Sasuke said.
"Yeah? What is it?"
"I was wondering what you think of the idea of us living together" there, he finally said it. "I mean, I wanted to know if you want to come live with me, at the Uchiha district. In my house"
Naruko blinked, surprised. He was thinking of the same thing she was wondering about. "You want me...to live with you at your house?" She asked slowly.
Sasuke's cheeks and ears turned even pinker. "I mean yeah, my place has a lot of space. And your apartment is...a little cramped, and kind of old. No offense" he quickly added, hoping not to offend her. "There are benefits to living with me"
"Oh yeah?" Naruko teased. "Like?"
"I'll get to see you every morning, noon, and night" Sasuke thought. "Better living conditions. A wide space, we can split the electricity and water bills, we don't have to buy vegetables and fruits as often because I have a garden and we can grow the vegetables and fruits there" Sasuke listed off. "And I'll let you have access to the training grounds"
"Hmmm, sounds pretty tempting" Naruko hums. She didn't need to be told twice, she already accepted Sasuke's offer as soon as he asked. But she couldn't help teasing him.
"You don't have to give me an answer now. It was just a suggestion"
"Okay, let's live together" Naruko said. Sasuke looked at her in surprise. "Huh?"
"I said I want to live with you. The landlord recently increased the monthly pay, and we haven't had any good missions lately. Plus, I've always wanted to move out of this dump, always wanted to move into a better neighborhood with less horrible neighbors" she said with a gentle smile. "And having you as a roommate? Just a bonus"
Sasuke felt immense relief, and pride, that she agreed.
"You can move in today, I'll help you pack your stuff" Sasuke said.
"Sasuke"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks" she beamed at him. "But uhh, seriously is breakfast ready yet? Because I'm reaaaaally starving!"