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Naruto: The Art of Deception 14
🕑 Added 2025-03-11 14:51:04 +0000 UTCChapter 14: The Beating
He ate slowly, letting the taste settle on his tongue. A man enjoying his meal, letting the world pass him by.
But his ears were working.
A chair scraped roughly against the floor. Someone muttered a curse.
In the corner, a group of men sat huddled around a low table. Their jackets hung loosely off their shoulders, half-dressed, sleeves rolled up, casual in a way that suggested confidence. Drunk. Or at least well on their way.
One of them slammed his cup down. “I’m telling you, it’s not just some tradition.” His voice was loud, cutting through the murmur of the bar. “The old man’s been locking himself up in that damn shrine for weeks. You think that’s normal?”
His companion snorted. “Who gives a shit? He wants to sit in the dark all day, let him. Not like he lets us in on anything important anyway.”
Naruto lifted his cup, taking another sip. Interesting.
Another voice joined in. “It’s not just him. The seals around the shrine got reinforced last night. I saw it myself.” A pause. “They don’t do that for ceremonies. That’s something else.”
A scoff. “So? What’s the worst that could happen? Someone sneaks in and steals the ghost?”
Laughter.
Ghost.
Naruto filed it away, letting his expression remain the same.
But then the laughter took a different turn.
“Oi.”
Naruto didn’t look up immediately. He knew that tone. The kind of slow drawl that came from a man who had just picked his next target.
He finished chewing, then glanced to his left.
One of the shinobi from the corner table had gotten up, weaving slightly as he stepped closer. Short, broad-shouldered, with a face that had seen its fair share of fights.
“Don’t think I’ve seen you around before.”
Naruto’s smile was easy. “That’s because I haven’t been.”
The man squinted at him, like trying to decide whether that answer was too clever for his liking. His friends were watching now, leaning back, waiting to see where this would go.
Naruto picked up another bite of food, popping it into his mouth like he had all the time in the world.
The man sat down heavily on the stool next to him, knocking into his shoulder just slightly. “You travel alone?”
Naruto took another sip of sake. “Most of the time.”
The shinobi snorted. “Brave.”
Naruto only hummed.
There was a pause, just long enough to be noticeable.
Then the man’s hand clamped down on his shoulder. Tight.
“Bravery’s a funny thing,” the man muttered, his breath thick with alcohol. “There’s a fine line between that and being too damn stupid for your own good.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah. And you look like a guy who doesn’t know the difference.”
Naruto hummed thoughtfully, tapping his fingers against the table like he was considering something.
“Look, man, I get it.” He reached for his drink, swirled it lazily. “Long day, too much sake, looking for someone to take it out on.” He took a slow sip. “But I’m not in the mood. Go find someone else to disappoint your ancestors.”
The laughter at the surrounding tables was quiet but immediate. Quick snickers, the shuffle of a chair as someone turned to watch.
A second later, the punch landed.
Naruto’s head snapped to the side, pain exploding across his jaw. His drink wobbled, sloshing over the rim, but he didn’t move. Just let the impact carry through, let his body absorb the hit like dead weight.
The man cracked his knuckles. “Not so funny now, huh?”
Naruto blinked slowly, rolling his jaw. Copper flooded his tongue where his cheek had split against his teeth. He swallowed the taste.
Still, he didn’t react. Just reached for his drink again, calmly wiping a stray drop of sake from the rim with his thumb.
That was what did it.
The sheer lack of response. The utter indifference.
The man growled, grabbed him by the front of his vest, and yanked him up, chair scraping violently against the floor.
“You mocking me?”
“Wouldn’t dream of it.”
Another fist. This time to the stomach.
It drove the air from his lungs in a sharp, forced exhale, his body curling slightly from the impact. He doubled over, but his feet never left the ground. His fingers barely gripped the edge of the bar, a lifeline he didn’t actually need.
Another hit—his ribs this time. A follow-up to the same spot, then a third for good measure. Naruto let his body react naturally, let himself sag slightly, head tilted down, breathing uneven.
“Had enough?”
Naruto let out a short, breathless chuckle. “You’re asking me?”
The man’s expression twisted. Another punch snapped Naruto’s head back.
More chairs scraped. Someone muttered a quiet “shit” under their breath. The bartender’s expression stayed neutral, but the way his fingers tapped against the bar suggested he was two seconds away from stepping in.
Then another voice cut through.
“That’s enough.”
Feminine. Not a shout, but loud enough to cut the tension.
Naruto barely turned his head, vision still slightly blurred.
The man in front of him tensed.
“Walk away, Yusei,” the voice continued. “Or I’ll make you.”
Yusei’s jaw tightened.
“Rei,” he muttered. “You don’t get to tell me what to do.”
She crossed her arms, weight shifting slightly to one hip. “Sure, I do. All I have to do is tell my father what you’ve been up to, and let’s be honest…” She tilted her head, eyes gleaming. “We both know how that ends for you.”
A muscle jumped in Yusei’s jaw. His fingers curled into fists at his sides.
Then, without warning, he spat.
The glob of spit landed across her cheek.
A few people in the bar sucked in sharp breaths. A couple of them turned away entirely, suddenly very interested in their drinks.
Rei didn’t move.
“You really wonder why he keeps you out of everything?” Yusei sneered. “You don’t belong in this world. Everyone knows it. Even your own father.”
Naruto, still slumped against the bar, watched her carefully.
For a second, just a second, she was perfectly still.
Then her fingers twitched.
Yusei must’ve noticed, because he scoffed and stepped back. “Tch. Not worth it.”
His glare snapped back to Naruto, dark and full of something ugly.
“This ain’t over.”
With that, he turned sharply on his heel and stormed out, his heavy boots stomping against the wooden floor. The tension in the bar didn’t fade immediately, but the moment he was gone, a few people exhaled. Conversations picked back up in quiet murmurs.
Slowly, Naruto straightened, rubbing his sore jaw as he studied her.
Interesting.
Rei wiped the spit off her cheek, exhaling slowly before turning back to him. “You good?”
Naruto sniffed, rubbing the blood from his nose. His jaw ached, ribs a little sore, but nothing worth complaining about.
“Yeah. Just your standard warm welcome.”
She rolled her eyes. “Drunk morons looking for a fight. Don’t take it personally.”
He hummed in response, but his mind was already somewhere else. Now that he wasn’t dodging punches, he was really looking at her.
She was hot.
Her black hair was tied back in a loose ponytail, a few strands damp with sweat clinging to her cheek. Dark eyes, sharp and piercing, constantly watching, like she was waiting for someone to piss her off. Her lips, full and slightly parted, glistened for just a second as her tongue flicked out to wet them.
Goddamn.
Her tits weren’t massive, but they were perfect, full and perky, sitting high on her chest, the kind that bounced just right when she moved. Just enough weight to tease, to grab, to fit perfectly in a man’s hands. And that sleeveless top clung in all the right places, hugging those curves, hinting at the tightness underneath. The fabric stretched just enough to make him wonder what she looked like without it, to imagine the smooth skin beneath, the way she’d arch if he traced his fingers down..
Naruto dragged his eyes lower, biting back a smirk.
Because then there was that ass.
Round, high, the kind that made a man’s hands itch to grab it. Not just soft, but firm, built, the kind sculpted from years of sprinting, climbing, fighting. A real shinobi’s ass, tight enough to ride but thick enough to make it worth it. And those thighs… Thick, toned muscle, the kind that could wrap around a man’s head and squeeze until he forgot his own name.
Yeah.
Definitely trouble.
