Naruto slides to a steady halt, one hand dropping as he crouches, fingers digging into sand and stone. He sniffs.

He cannot recall when he started using his nose as much as his eyes but-

There it is.

Blood.

Carrion and blood.

Turning his head to catch the scent a little better- because there is no wind out here now, and everything suddenly is too still for Naruto- he guesses that it’s the same spot. The same place he fought before. He has no landmarks to go by. And his memory might be the slightest bit cloudy on the details of the day. But he remembers going to and coming from there pretty clearly.

Naruto inhales deeply because riding on the scent of old death is the scent of new death and fresh blood and he should not feel curious. But he is. Curious and troubled.

What he should do now, he knows is skirt around the problem area, move beyond it, and relocate himself as soon as possible. In fact, immediately would be a good idea. That’s what he should do.

What he does though is exactly the opposite.

And a little voice in his head that sounds somewhere between Tsunade and Sakura berates him for it.

Yeahyeah, I know I’m a dumbass. Shut up already.



So I RP Naruto with *TheDyeIsCast, yes? <3 And this is my version of said Naruto. @.@;

I keep wanting to call this ‘Sabaku no Naruto’ still. <.<;

Naruto is 18 both in the RP and in this pic. He’s missing his scarf in this pic, he usually has one because of the desert winds. … yeah, he’s been hiding/training on the borders of Wind Country (yay for Gaara’s friendship and trust. Eh?) for the last few years, in the wake of a horrid loss of control in which Naruto almost killed Jiraiya. (Oh noez~! ;0; )

This is also Kyuubi!merged Naruto, hence the pronounced marks on his face. And due to the sun, he’s gotten a deep tan, and as any blond would know, sun also bleaches blond hair. =3 Giving Naruto this look.

The solitude and the premise of this RP has left Naruto a little less naïve, a little more bitter and his humor can turn slightly more cynical than it used to, but he’s essentially the same guy. >.> Really. =3

Not going to babble anymore than that. X.x;

Uzumaki Naruto is © Masashi Kishimoto
This pic is about 7 weeks old. @o; Painter 7 & Wacom tablet.