I've been reading Noragami, and it's soooooooooooooooooooo amazing!!! Yato, the main character, above.

They'd been walking around, hunting for food in dumpsters when Sasuke saw the blond-haired, blue-eyed kid. He was alone, no Sakura or Kakashi in sight.

Naruto spotted him at the same exact moment. He immediately glared, placing his hand on his katana.

Sasuke mirrored him and Kei drew his knife.

"Uchiha," Naruto said levelly. "You got yourself a new ally?"

"Pleased to meetcha!" Kei grinned, twirling his knife in his hand. "My name's Kei Hamasaki! You know, the guy who--"

"Shut up, Kei." Sasuke snapped. "Quit messing around. Keep on the lookout for anyone else. There may be others he's hiding."

"No," Naruto said. "I came alone. Tsunade-sama wouldn't give me clearance to go after you. But no one she sent out was making any progress, so I decided to take over for them. And what do you know, my first day out, and I've already found the guy they've spent weeks looking for. And you, you said you were Kei Hamasaki? The arsonist? Looks like I'll be killing two birds with one stone. The orders say to take you alive, Uchiha, but I think it's okay if I get rid of you. Besides, they'd only be trying you for something I already know you're guilty for."

"Done with the speech?" Sasuke questioned, drawing his blade.

Naruto scowled. "If you want to die quicker."

"I wouldn't count on that," Sasuke smirked. "I remember me grinding your face in the dirt the last time we fought. And this time, I've got another person with me. I'd say the odds are stacked against you, yeah?"

"Quit spouting nonsense and just die!" Naruto hissed, attacking.

Sasuke blocked and leapt away from him. "I didn't kill your mother, Uzumaki. I may have done a lot of other stuff, but I've never killed a person. I couldn't even do it when the person's life who I cared about most depended on it." He laughed bitterly.

"Enough lies!" Naruto roared. "I saw you with my own eyes!"

"No," Sasuke said, a slight trace of sadness in his voice. "You didn't see me. You saw..." He trailed off. How could he condemn Itachi, his brother? Itachi had been a truly good person. He'd also known something about the police force that the higher ups were hiding. Sasuke wished he knew what it was.

"Not going to finish, Uchiha?" Naruto growled. "Maybe because you know you're guilty!" He attacked viciously, pressing in harder.

Kei leapt into the fight, slashing back at Naruto with his knife. "No fair Sasuke! Let me in on the fun!"

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Just don't kill him."

Kei scowled. "Ya know, you're really soft for someone who lives underground! You gotta be willing to do this stuff sometimes!"

Sasuke ignored that. "Focus on the fight, Kei."

But Naruto used the brief moment of distraction to land a blow to Kei's stomach. "Arghh!" He immediately turned his back to him, staring murderously at Sasuke. "Your turn!"

Sasuke sighed, gripping his sword. "I don't want to fight you right now." Their scuffle would draw unwanted attention to themselves, which was the last thing Sasuke wanted.

"I'm not giving you a choice!" Naruto shouted. Kei was on the floor beside him, struggling to stand back up. Naruto delivered a swift kick to his head, and the boy slumped back down with a moan.

Sasuke shook his head. "No."

"Alright then," Naruto said slowly, a strange expression spreading across his face. He moved his sword tip to Kei's neck. Kei stopped struggling and stared at Sasuke, wide-eyed. "If you don't fight me...he dies. You WILL fight me. It's not enough for me to take you alive."

Sasuke stared at Naruto. He had a look on his face Sasuke had never seen him wear before. It was a desperate, hungry, sadistic look, mixed with anger and sorrow.

It was the kind of face that sent the message, 'I will do anything--anything--to achieve my goal.' Sasuke knew that look well. He'd worn it many times himself.

He would not let Kei die. Not like Kaydee. "Fine then," Sasuke said softly. "But...just because I won't kill you doesn't mean I won't hurt you." He closed his eyes, concentrating, willing his eyes to come out. Remember Kaydee. Itachi. Mother and Father. Orochimaru and Kabuto. Don't. Don't let them kill another person. DON'T!!!

His eyes pulsed violently, shaking him to his core, but he didn't care. Fueled with determination and something more, he felt his eyes bleed into red, growing warmer and sharper. Naruto's face grew in detail.

Naruto stared at him. "What in the world?"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "See something you don't like?"

Naruto's features morphed into an expression of outrage. "Th-those eyes! I've seen them before! It was on that night! I knew it, you're the only freak with demon eyes. You literally just condemned yourself right now. That's it, Uchiha, no more lies! Don't deny what you've done!"

His hand shifted. In a millisecond, Sasuke predicted his next move.

As Naruto slashed down at his chest, Sasuke leapt back onto an overturned crate in the alley, then launched himself up into the air over his head. He landed behind Naruto, attempting to kick him in the back, but Naruto swung around and grabbed his foot. Yanking him off balance, Naruto tossed Sasuke into the dirt.

Sasuke looked up, surprised. Naruto's movements had gotten faster and more precise. Even with his Sharingan, it was proving difficult to keep up.

Naruto thrust his sword down at his heart, but Sasuke rolled out of the way, causing the blade to impale nothing but dust. He used that quick moment of incapacitation to his advantage, delivering a swift roundhouse kick to his head.

Naruto grunted, stumbling back a few feet. Scowling, he yanked his sword from the ground and advanced.

Sasuke focused, reading his movements. Naruto feinted to the left, expecting Sasuke to parry him from that angle, but instead switched quickly to his right side. Sasuke was ready.

Naruto looked shocked as their swords clanged against each other, but maintained the pressure in his arms as both strained against the opposing forces, struggling to bring the other down.

It was then that Sasuke heard a shout. Risking a peek to his left, he realized that several others were running towards them. Green vests, blue pants. Police.

Cursing, Sasuke turned his attention back to Naruto. He needed to get away. Kei was still on the floor, holding his head in his hands.

"Kei! Get up!" Sasuke shouted roughly. "Get out of here!"

Kei raised his head slightly to look at him. "Huh?"

"Get away from here, you won't make it out if you don't leave!"

Naruto glared, his teeth bared threateningly. "I don't think so." He released his sword from their standoff, leaping back as Sasuke's blade swung over his head in a deadly arc.

Grabbing a still disoriented Kei, he put his sword to his throat. "Give yourself up, Uchiha!"

Sasuke growled. The police men weren't far off now.

Kei made a small noise in his throat. Sasuke's eyes snapped to his, and in a second, he understood. Naruto looked down too, but he was a few seconds too late. Kei's concealed blade stabbed him in the thigh, hot blood spurting out.

Naruto gasped in pain, releasing Kei abruptly and clutching his leg. Kei immediately jerked free, spun around, and kicked the blond down onto the street. Sasuke grabbed his arm. "Let's go!"

The police men were practically on top of them. Two knelt down beside Naruto, who was struggling to his feet. The other three lunged for the two criminals, their hands gripping the fabrics of their shirts.

Kei instinctively kicked backwards, looking extremely pleased with himself when he heard the dull thud and the policeman release him with a cry.

Sasuke grabbed the man's neck, pulling him over his shoulder and throwing him to the ground. Kei was busily pounding the third man's face into the dust.

Yanking Kei up by his arm, Sasuke dragged him away as the remaining two men came for them. "Let's go!"

"Why?" Kei whined. "I was having fun! Besides, those guys are really weak!"

"They'll be sending reinforcements," Sasuke reminded him. "And we still need to get away from these two idiots."

"Rooftop?" Kei inquired.

"Yeah," Sasuke agreed. "The third one to our right. With the pipe attached."

"My right or yours?" Kei asked innocently.

"...they're the same thing."

Kei frowned, studying his hands. "Left makes an L, right makes a backwards L..."

"Shut up, Kei! C'mon!" Sasuke shouted, thoroughly exasperated.

The pair raced for the tall metal pipe. Sasuke reached it first, and began shimmying up expertly. Kei quickly followed suit.

"Hey! Stop!" One of the policemen shouted. They'd reached the bottom of the pole, and were helplessly staring up. "Put your hands in the air!"

Kei glanced down. "Okay." Unexpectedly, he let go of the pipe, falling feet first onto the face of the policeman below.

The man shrieked in pain as his nose flattened with a loud crunch. Grinning, Kei launched himself back up onto the pipe, using the man's face as leverage. Sasuke, already sitting on top, hauled him the rest of the way up. Grabbing his arm, they took off running across the rooftops, leaving the blubbering policeman and his flustered partner behind them.

Sasuke was gaping at him as they leapt to the next rooftop. "Do you have a death wish?"

Kei just grinned wickedly.

Rolling his eyes, the black haired boy mentally face palmed, still wondering how his partner was so idiotic, but had still managed to stay alive up to this point.