For: sn_exchange
From: dreamclaw
Title: Complications
Rating: PG-15 - For language and suggestive themes
Summary: Naruto had predicted they would both die, but Sasuke was still one step ahead. But what with Naruto in the throws of death in front of his eyes, his victory is less than he had envisioned. What will he do now?
Warnings: Slight language use, suggestive themes.
A/N: I had so many writers blocks while doing this so some of the parts may be a little sketchy. I apologize in advance, and I really do hope you like it!
Mod note: Reminder for the author/artist of this submission, please do not reply to comments signed in, if you want to reply anon commenting is enabled.
Chapter 1. The Fight.
Sasuke had no explanation for this feeling in his chest. It hurt, but felt numb at the same time. A slow aching that seemed to spread across his whole body that only intensified every time he looked down… down at…
”You dobe…”
Naruto was hurt, and hurt badly. His eyes were closed, but didn’t have the look of peace the idiot normally had when he was asleep. It was more one of pain, the kind that hit physically and mentally.
Sasuke looked at his hands. They were battered and bruised, and they felt heavy. Of course, he was a trained ninja. One of the best, so it didn’t hurt. Once his hands healed, they’d be even tougher. But all the training in the world hadn’t prepared him for this.
“You held back. All that talk and you still held back…” He pounded his fist against a near by tree, and then fell against it, his legs seeming to fail under his weight. He felt like he couldn’t breath, and it infuriated him. He finally beat his biggest rival, right? Now nothing stood in his way, he could destroy Kohana without a hitch.
There was a sickening crack, and Naruto groaned in pain. Sasuke looked up just as the blond boy’s feet fell from under him. He was holding his ribs, and breathing heavily. Using the tree as support, Sasuke stood back up.
“Didn’t… hold back… you bas… bastard.” Naruto breathed heavily. He wiped away the blood that matted his hair and dripped down into his eyes. The look in his eyes wasn’t of pure hate, the thing that had been driving Sasuke this whole time. Determination flared in Naruto’s eyes, but determination to what?
“I will… take you down!” He growled, picking himself back up.
“Stay down, there’s no way you’ll win in that condition.” Sasuke replied, a cool and placid expression easily sliding onto his face. “You’ll only succeed in killing yourself.”
The blonde’s eyes quickly transitioned into a deadly shade of red. Naruto grunted and groaned, then got to his feet. The chakara he was generating didn’t have the malicious and murderous feel to it that normally came when Naruto used the Kyuubi’s power.
“So you can control that demon’s power?” Sasuke said softly, more to himself than asking.
“Scared yet? It’s far from over… Sasuke…” Naruto growled. Using his index and middle finger, he made a cross. An all too familiar hand sign to Sasuke.
“MULTI SHADOW CLONE NO JUTSU!”
There were only two others. Clearly Naruto’s chakara was running out. If the cornucopia of chakara was running out, that meant that Sasuke had little to spare. He braced himself for whatever came next. But nothing came. The other two shadow clones turned to smoke almost immediately.
“Dammit!” Naruto huffed, even with the Kyuubi’s power, it seemed that his chakara was spent.
In the next instant, Naruto was attack with his kunai. Slashing away with an angry rage that had no direct thought process planning out the next move. However…
“Fight back, dammit fight back!” Naruto yelled, kunai’s clashing, but Sasuke merely dodged and blocked.
“I don’t need to, dobe.” Sasuke replied coolly, bringing his katana quickly to eye level and blocking a swipe to the face.
“Attack me!” He shouted, just as the kunai was thrown from his hand. Sasuke dropped his.
“I don’t want to.” Sasuke narrowed his eyes, knowing that he was far from giving up.
Fists were flying, Naruto clearly the underdog in hand-to-hand combat, but Sasuke not acting upon it. Again, Naruto was the only one attacking.
“Why not?” He was screaming now, ramming his fists wildly only to have them knocked away from the desired target, which only infuriated him more.
“Idiot…” Sasuke growled, “Because I care about you!”
Naruto froze, but only for an instant.
An instant too long.
What was intended to block the next blow, ended up striking Naruto. Hard. The blonde went flying, cracking his skull against the tree. Naruto’s world went black.
Chapter 2. The Hideout.
Hours? Days? Longer than that? Sasuke couldn’t tell. It seemed like an eternity had passed, and Naruto still hadn’t woken up.
That sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach had grown ever since.
Sasuke had almost killed Naruto.
He still remembered that horrifying moment, the blonde boy lying deadly still, propped up by the sturdy tree. Because his jacket masked the faint rise and fall of his breathing, Sasuke honestly thought he had killed him. Everything after that moment was a blur, and somehow he had taken his badly injured comrade back to one of Orochimaru’s scattered, abandoned hideouts.
However, being underground meant telling time was impossible.
Sasuke sighed, wringing out a fresh washcloth and replacing the old one on Naruto’s fore head. The sudden fever hadn’t surprised him. In fact, it came as a relief. It meant, even if it was on a biological level, Naruto was still fighting for life.
His stomach grumbled, proclaiming its impatience. With slight irritation, Sasuke stood up. Food was the last thing the young Uchiha wanted to think about, but the rational part of his mind told him to cut the moody crap and eat. Rational won.
What little food the mice hadn’t stolen was stale or rotten. Nevertheless, Sasuke wasn’t going to risk leaving just for a food trip. He grabbed something that looked somewhat edible, and choked it down as he retraced his steps back to the room.
He took his place at the foot of the bed, the stone floor feeling almost uncomfortably cold. Sasuke again allowed his mind to drift into idle thoughts.
Kohana was probably nervous about Naruto’s disappearance. After all, there were only two Jinchuuriki left that weren’t under the Akatsuki’s, Tobi’s control. Without a body, their only conclusion would be that he had been stripped of his demon. Security over the Eight-tails would be tight now, getting to him wouldn’t be an easy task.
His thoughts seemed to trail off there. Sasuke smiled sarcastically.
“My mind’s still on task,” He looked at his hands. They seemed to have not desire to act upon said task. “But my body just won’t cooperate.”
He tried focusing on a different subject matter. Tobi. He was probably furious. His little space-time trick wouldn’t work on any of Orochimaru’s hideout, so manually searching every one would take plenty of time. If he moved every couple of days to a different hideout, it should throw off his trail.
But how long could he keep it up? When would his luck run out, and Tobi finally caught up with him? More importantly…
How as he going to deal with Naruto when he finally woke up? That was going to be one awkward conversation, to say the very least.
It could escalate quickly into fighting, if he said anything wrong. Naruto’s condition was still pitiful, anything could make it so much worse. Or worse yet, he could die for real. Sasuke would have to find some way to restrain him.
But then what? After Naruto heals, he would just return. Possibly stronger, but it would start the process all over again, until one of them died. How long could they keep that up? Not just the physical, but also the mental strain would take their toll on the both of them.
“What choices does that leave me with, dobe?” Sasuke mused aloud. “I either kill you, allow you to kill me, or…”
He trailed off again.
‘Or’ required too much hope. Hope always came back to bitch slap you.
Always.
Chapter 3. The Awakening.
Naruto groaned. His head throbbed painfully at the noise. He tried pulling himself into a sitting position, but something tight across his chest holding him down. He felt no strength in his body to struggle against the bindings either, only the searing pain in his head. Everywhere else felt numb.
He looked up. Which looked the same as left. Which looked the same as right. Everything, everywhere, was black. Inky darkness was all that he could see.
“You’re awake,” The words surprised him. They sounded, relieved and even a little sad.
“Who’s there?” Naruto croaked. He heard the rustle of clothes, and a blinding light stabbed his eyes as a candle was lit up.
Sasuke’s face was instantly illuminated. So close to his. His hand reached out.
“St-stay back!” Naruto said, trying defiantly against whatever held him down to back away. He shut his eyes tight, as if it would block out what happened next.
Fingers brushed away the hair in his face, feeling his forehead. Naruto opened his eye, just a crack, as Sasuke placed his own forehead against his.
“Your fever’s gone down.” He said casually, and leaned back. “But your injuries are still sever.”
“What?” Naruto said incredulously, feeling the shock on his face.
“I said your injuries are still sever. I suspect you had a concussion, you were out for quite a while.”
The information sank in slowly, allowing the candle to get significantly smaller.
“You… saved me?” Naruto said at last.
“Yeah. I meant what I said, idiot.”
The last moments before the darkness fell; Naruto had assumed it to be a dream. Or at the very least, a diversionary tactic.
Idiot, because I care about you!
The silence wasn’t as awkward as it was painful as Naruto struggled for something to say.
“Why?” He whispered finally, “Why now? You had three years, Sasuke. Everyone wanted you to come home. A home you tried to destroy.”
Sasuke looked at the base of the candle with an expression on his face, a mixture of remorse and pain.
“Nothing I say would excuse it, though,” He replied. “Would anything I say to that make you forget it? I was so blindly driven in my rage and quest for vengeance, making that my soul purpose. Then when that purpose was gone, I was lost. Even if for only an instant, I suppose if you had gotten to me before Tobi, Kohana wouldn’t have been attacked. At least without me doing the attacking.”
Naruto was stunned. Sasuke was right about one thing though. Nothing that he said would make a difference. Kohana would never allow him to return as if nothing had happened. Never.
“Then fighting you, I felt that blind driving rage again,” Sasuke continued. “I thought it was because you were getting in my way. I don’t even know what I was angry at anymore. But I almost killed you.” He laughed bitterly. “That should have been easy, not this damned difficult. Why does that thought hurt so badly?”
Sasuke didn’t give him time to answer. At that point he left the room, leaving the candle behind.
Time seemed to move rapidly, burning the candle down into the crippling darkness.
Chapter 4. The Warning
Not a word of conversation passed between them since. Naruto could see Sasuke was getting edge about something, but couldn’t quite find the courage to ask what. It was only after the next couple of… whatever time placement they were keeping, sleep cycles? Only after a couple of sleep cycles did the binds that held him down were finally removed. His stay was almost… comfortable.
However there was no way he could stay. He desperately longed for home, missing everyone terribly.
Naruto swung his legs over the side of the bed; the biting cold of the stone floor seemed to sting his feet. Testing his balance first, which actually turned out to be a good idea, as he fell backwards back onto the bed.
Slowly this time, he stood up, testing each muscle by flexing it.
“Sore, but everything seems to be fine…” He muttered to himself. Even with one arm in a sling, a makeshift cast holding the bone in place. Lady Tsunade would be furious at the patch job, probably would have to re-brake several bones in order to correct the way it healed over.
“You seem to be feeling better.” Sasuke said, leaning against the doorway. Blocking the only exit.
“Yeah, thanks for all your help.” Naruto replied, keeping his face composed at all times. Though it was nothing compared to the unreadable expression on Sasuke’s face. The blank void in his eyes was almost something to admire. “But I need to leave.”
Sasuke didn’t budge. Not one inch.
“I can’t stay here.”
No answer.
“Sasuke…”
“Yes?”
“Move.”
Sasuke stared at Naruto, straight in his eyes. His intense look was unnerving, but Naruto refused to back down.
“You can’t leave.” Sasuke said finally, keeping up with the stare down. “Too dangerous.”
“To dangerous?” Naruto scoffed, glaring now. “What in the world could be more dangerous than staying here?”
“The Akatsuki.” The answer was so casual, it almost sounded like even a five year old would have known how to answer. “You’re injured, and if they even catch the briefest hint of where you are, you’re done for.” Naruto remained silent. “And you’re in no position to defend yourself. You can hardly stand.”
Naruto became aware of how badly his legs were shaking under his own weight. An angry shame washed over him. Sasuke was utterly right. Though the thought of relying on his enemy sickened him, Naruto was left with little choice but to stay.
Sasuke turned away, obviously leaving.
“I won’t stand in your way if you want go.” He said, “But I just felt you needed to be warned first.”
“Wait, Sasuke!” Naruto shouted, starting forward, but his legs failing him. He closed his eyes, waiting for the impact. Instead, strong hands caught his shoulders, then picked him up.
“Idiot,” Sasuke muttered. “I just said you could hardly stand. Walking too much for you as well?”
Naruto was dropped on the bed without much regard. With that, Sasuke left. In physical presence he was gone, but still somehow he still lingered. Naruto dropped his head to the pillow with a frustrated groan.
He touched his forehead with the tips of his fingers, glowering at the ceiling in the darkness.
Chapter 5 The Pledge
Sasuke made up his mind. Naruto just couldn’t stay, it would be too complicated. The moment he deemed the dobe well enough to leave, Sasuke would be gone. It would be easier that way, instead of having to make up awkward good byes, or worse yet, complex plans to somehow stay, even a few hours longer.
That’s what he kept telling himself anyway. Easier. The harder part was accepting it.
Unfortunately, it would all have to end soon. Naruto’s injuries were healing rather rapidly, probably thanks to the Kyuubi’s chakara.
Sasuke cracked open the door. Naruto was sitting up, used bandages littered the floor. More recent ones scattered the bed. He seemed to be flexing his hands, checking everywhere. More over, there wasn’t a scratch on him.
The finality of his resolve came crashing over him. It was now, or never. And never was a long time.
“Sasuke?” Naruto said, looking up. “Where are you going?”
It was the moment of truth. Leave now, or risk absolutely everything. Standing outside the doorway, just out of sight, made making the actual decision all the harder.
Something grabbed his hand.
Sasuke whipped around, ready to defend himself, but a pair of concerned eyes were staring at him.
“Sasuke, you’re not leaving, are you?” Naruto replied, his voice soft, but cracked several times.
“What makes you think that?” Sasuke replied, his face easily slipping to his trademarked blankness.
“Because your things are packed.” Naruto sounded annoyed. “I’m not dumb. Its in the next room over.”
“Well what’s it to you?” Sasuke replied, getting defensive.
“Because you’re running away, and that’s just not like you!” The truth was like a biting edge, cutting to the core of the issue.
Running away was exactly what he had been doing the whole time. First the whole Leaf Village, then the reality of Itachi’s death, from Tobi, and now…
“Dammit, you’re so thick headed!” Naruto snarled, pounding his fist into the wall. “Why can’t you just give up and accept some help?”
“Help?” Sasuke repeated, his placid mask breaking, showing the confusion on his face. “What help can you give?”
“I…” He went silent. His words seeming to fail him. It was a long time before he spoke again. “Sasuke, I won’t leave you. I was hard to accept at first, but… I care about you too.”
“What?” Shock colored his voice. Sasuke couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
“Don’t make me repeat myself.” He sounded nervous. Or embarrassed. Or both. It was hard to tell. “Its hard enough saying it once.
Once the shock wore off, Sasuke slammed Naruto into the wall, hands on either side of his face. His resolve to leave had been stripped away, leaving empty space for the new, strange feeling swelling inside of him.
“Are you prepared to back up that claim?” Sasuke replied, smirking in a way he hadn’t felt himself do since he left Kohana. “Because, I may not let you take it back.”
Naruto turned a furious shade of red. To say the least, it was quite amusing to see Kohana’s number one Knuckle Headed Ninja beside himself. It wasn’t like him at all, but it seemed to suit him just right.
“Well?”
“Alright, alright! Yeah, what ever it takes to prove it to- Mmph!”
Naruto’s words were silenced with a kiss. Rough, and uneven, both clearly didn’t know what they were doing, but seemed to enjoy it with a passion anyway.
Naruto broke it off first, gasping for air.
“Dammit, warn me first!” He growled, trying very hard to be angry.
“You said whatever it takes.”
“You cut me off before I could finish!”
Sasuke shrugged, closing the few inches of space between himself, Naruto, and the wall. “What you implied is still in effect. And I think I’ll take you up on that offer.”
Chapter 6 The Questions
Naruto rolled over, folding his arms across Sasuke’s chest. The blanket was tossed aside, unwanted. Body warmth felt better, anyway.
“You’re horrible, infuriating, and manipulative.” He mumbled.
“You’re annoying, shut up.”
“…”
“Don’t do that.” Sasuke scowled, shaking his head.
“Do what? I only shut up like you asked.” The mock innocence in his voice was maddening.
“Unbelievable…” Sasuke muttered, rolling his eyes.
“Hey, I’ve got one question though…” His voice was softer, quieter, and more serious. Naruto didn’t even wait for acknowledgement. “What made you change your mind? You were dead set on killing me.” He at least remained quiet while he waited for Sasuke to absorb the question.
“I’m not sure…” Sasuke said at last. “The thought of you dead and you… actually lying still…” He paused, finding the right words that fit. “It didn’t hit me until you were laying there, still and unconscious. Seemingly, at least. It was unbearable.”
“Why me?”
“Idiot, I’m not going to explain everything in one, mushy sitting.”
Naruto chuckled, not pressing the issue. The two lingered together, entwined with each other for quite some time.
“My turn.”
“Hmm?” Naruto looked up, tilting his head curiously.
“What made you change your mind?” Sasuke asked, carelessly running his fingers through blond tuffs of hair.
“Easy. My mind never changed.” That trade mark grin of his. The easy-going, carefree, melt-your-heart, smile of his. “You’re rough, bitter, angsty, angry, very self-oriented. But you’re also very driven, you were my first friend, I even called you my brother in a way. I never, not for one moment, gave up on you.”
“You’re a dobe.” Sasuke grinned.
“And you’re mine.”
Chapter 7 The End.
Kohana was still a sorry sight to see, and it was weird being home after all this time.
Obviously, Sasuke had to face the wrath of the villagers; willingly returning home was not quite enough in their eyes.
“You can’t just waltz back into my village like nothing ever happened!” Lady Tsunade had ranted and raved. Though with Naruto, Sakura, and even Kakashi pleading on his behalf, Sasuke was allowed back. Under intense and indefinite probation. That left his life as a ninja utterly out of the question.
Naruto squeezed his hand reassuringly.
“I’m just glad you’re back.” Sakura smiled wistfully as she passed by.
“Now I can observe this ‘bond’ Naruto wanted to protect so badly.” Sai had said, his detached face rivaling that of his own.
“It’ll be alright.” He whispered encouragingly, “You’re home and that’s all that matters.”
Title: Complications
Rating: PG-15 - For language and suggestive themes
Summary: Naruto had predicted they would both die, but Sasuke was still one step ahead. But what with Naruto in the throws of death in front of his eyes, his victory is less than he had envisioned. What will he do now?
Warnings: Slight language use, suggestive themes.
A/N: I had so many writers blocks while doing this so some of the parts may be a little sketchy. I apologize in advance, and I really do hope you like it!
Mod note: Reminder for the author/artist of this submission, please do not reply to comments signed in, if you want to reply anon commenting is enabled.
Chapter 1. The Fight.
Sasuke had no explanation for this feeling in his chest. It hurt, but felt numb at the same time. A slow aching that seemed to spread across his whole body that only intensified every time he looked down… down at…
”You dobe…”
Naruto was hurt, and hurt badly. His eyes were closed, but didn’t have the look of peace the idiot normally had when he was asleep. It was more one of pain, the kind that hit physically and mentally.
Sasuke looked at his hands. They were battered and bruised, and they felt heavy. Of course, he was a trained ninja. One of the best, so it didn’t hurt. Once his hands healed, they’d be even tougher. But all the training in the world hadn’t prepared him for this.
“You held back. All that talk and you still held back…” He pounded his fist against a near by tree, and then fell against it, his legs seeming to fail under his weight. He felt like he couldn’t breath, and it infuriated him. He finally beat his biggest rival, right? Now nothing stood in his way, he could destroy Kohana without a hitch.
There was a sickening crack, and Naruto groaned in pain. Sasuke looked up just as the blond boy’s feet fell from under him. He was holding his ribs, and breathing heavily. Using the tree as support, Sasuke stood back up.
“Didn’t… hold back… you bas… bastard.” Naruto breathed heavily. He wiped away the blood that matted his hair and dripped down into his eyes. The look in his eyes wasn’t of pure hate, the thing that had been driving Sasuke this whole time. Determination flared in Naruto’s eyes, but determination to what?
“I will… take you down!” He growled, picking himself back up.
“Stay down, there’s no way you’ll win in that condition.” Sasuke replied, a cool and placid expression easily sliding onto his face. “You’ll only succeed in killing yourself.”
The blonde’s eyes quickly transitioned into a deadly shade of red. Naruto grunted and groaned, then got to his feet. The chakara he was generating didn’t have the malicious and murderous feel to it that normally came when Naruto used the Kyuubi’s power.
“So you can control that demon’s power?” Sasuke said softly, more to himself than asking.
“Scared yet? It’s far from over… Sasuke…” Naruto growled. Using his index and middle finger, he made a cross. An all too familiar hand sign to Sasuke.
“MULTI SHADOW CLONE NO JUTSU!”
There were only two others. Clearly Naruto’s chakara was running out. If the cornucopia of chakara was running out, that meant that Sasuke had little to spare. He braced himself for whatever came next. But nothing came. The other two shadow clones turned to smoke almost immediately.
“Dammit!” Naruto huffed, even with the Kyuubi’s power, it seemed that his chakara was spent.
In the next instant, Naruto was attack with his kunai. Slashing away with an angry rage that had no direct thought process planning out the next move. However…
“Fight back, dammit fight back!” Naruto yelled, kunai’s clashing, but Sasuke merely dodged and blocked.
“I don’t need to, dobe.” Sasuke replied coolly, bringing his katana quickly to eye level and blocking a swipe to the face.
“Attack me!” He shouted, just as the kunai was thrown from his hand. Sasuke dropped his.
“I don’t want to.” Sasuke narrowed his eyes, knowing that he was far from giving up.
Fists were flying, Naruto clearly the underdog in hand-to-hand combat, but Sasuke not acting upon it. Again, Naruto was the only one attacking.
“Why not?” He was screaming now, ramming his fists wildly only to have them knocked away from the desired target, which only infuriated him more.
“Idiot…” Sasuke growled, “Because I care about you!”
Naruto froze, but only for an instant.
An instant too long.
What was intended to block the next blow, ended up striking Naruto. Hard. The blonde went flying, cracking his skull against the tree. Naruto’s world went black.
Chapter 2. The Hideout.
Hours? Days? Longer than that? Sasuke couldn’t tell. It seemed like an eternity had passed, and Naruto still hadn’t woken up.
That sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach had grown ever since.
Sasuke had almost killed Naruto.
He still remembered that horrifying moment, the blonde boy lying deadly still, propped up by the sturdy tree. Because his jacket masked the faint rise and fall of his breathing, Sasuke honestly thought he had killed him. Everything after that moment was a blur, and somehow he had taken his badly injured comrade back to one of Orochimaru’s scattered, abandoned hideouts.
However, being underground meant telling time was impossible.
Sasuke sighed, wringing out a fresh washcloth and replacing the old one on Naruto’s fore head. The sudden fever hadn’t surprised him. In fact, it came as a relief. It meant, even if it was on a biological level, Naruto was still fighting for life.
His stomach grumbled, proclaiming its impatience. With slight irritation, Sasuke stood up. Food was the last thing the young Uchiha wanted to think about, but the rational part of his mind told him to cut the moody crap and eat. Rational won.
What little food the mice hadn’t stolen was stale or rotten. Nevertheless, Sasuke wasn’t going to risk leaving just for a food trip. He grabbed something that looked somewhat edible, and choked it down as he retraced his steps back to the room.
He took his place at the foot of the bed, the stone floor feeling almost uncomfortably cold. Sasuke again allowed his mind to drift into idle thoughts.
Kohana was probably nervous about Naruto’s disappearance. After all, there were only two Jinchuuriki left that weren’t under the Akatsuki’s, Tobi’s control. Without a body, their only conclusion would be that he had been stripped of his demon. Security over the Eight-tails would be tight now, getting to him wouldn’t be an easy task.
His thoughts seemed to trail off there. Sasuke smiled sarcastically.
“My mind’s still on task,” He looked at his hands. They seemed to have not desire to act upon said task. “But my body just won’t cooperate.”
He tried focusing on a different subject matter. Tobi. He was probably furious. His little space-time trick wouldn’t work on any of Orochimaru’s hideout, so manually searching every one would take plenty of time. If he moved every couple of days to a different hideout, it should throw off his trail.
But how long could he keep it up? When would his luck run out, and Tobi finally caught up with him? More importantly…
How as he going to deal with Naruto when he finally woke up? That was going to be one awkward conversation, to say the very least.
It could escalate quickly into fighting, if he said anything wrong. Naruto’s condition was still pitiful, anything could make it so much worse. Or worse yet, he could die for real. Sasuke would have to find some way to restrain him.
But then what? After Naruto heals, he would just return. Possibly stronger, but it would start the process all over again, until one of them died. How long could they keep that up? Not just the physical, but also the mental strain would take their toll on the both of them.
“What choices does that leave me with, dobe?” Sasuke mused aloud. “I either kill you, allow you to kill me, or…”
He trailed off again.
‘Or’ required too much hope. Hope always came back to bitch slap you.
Always.
Chapter 3. The Awakening.
Naruto groaned. His head throbbed painfully at the noise. He tried pulling himself into a sitting position, but something tight across his chest holding him down. He felt no strength in his body to struggle against the bindings either, only the searing pain in his head. Everywhere else felt numb.
He looked up. Which looked the same as left. Which looked the same as right. Everything, everywhere, was black. Inky darkness was all that he could see.
“You’re awake,” The words surprised him. They sounded, relieved and even a little sad.
“Who’s there?” Naruto croaked. He heard the rustle of clothes, and a blinding light stabbed his eyes as a candle was lit up.
Sasuke’s face was instantly illuminated. So close to his. His hand reached out.
“St-stay back!” Naruto said, trying defiantly against whatever held him down to back away. He shut his eyes tight, as if it would block out what happened next.
Fingers brushed away the hair in his face, feeling his forehead. Naruto opened his eye, just a crack, as Sasuke placed his own forehead against his.
“Your fever’s gone down.” He said casually, and leaned back. “But your injuries are still sever.”
“What?” Naruto said incredulously, feeling the shock on his face.
“I said your injuries are still sever. I suspect you had a concussion, you were out for quite a while.”
The information sank in slowly, allowing the candle to get significantly smaller.
“You… saved me?” Naruto said at last.
“Yeah. I meant what I said, idiot.”
The last moments before the darkness fell; Naruto had assumed it to be a dream. Or at the very least, a diversionary tactic.
Idiot, because I care about you!
The silence wasn’t as awkward as it was painful as Naruto struggled for something to say.
“Why?” He whispered finally, “Why now? You had three years, Sasuke. Everyone wanted you to come home. A home you tried to destroy.”
Sasuke looked at the base of the candle with an expression on his face, a mixture of remorse and pain.
“Nothing I say would excuse it, though,” He replied. “Would anything I say to that make you forget it? I was so blindly driven in my rage and quest for vengeance, making that my soul purpose. Then when that purpose was gone, I was lost. Even if for only an instant, I suppose if you had gotten to me before Tobi, Kohana wouldn’t have been attacked. At least without me doing the attacking.”
Naruto was stunned. Sasuke was right about one thing though. Nothing that he said would make a difference. Kohana would never allow him to return as if nothing had happened. Never.
“Then fighting you, I felt that blind driving rage again,” Sasuke continued. “I thought it was because you were getting in my way. I don’t even know what I was angry at anymore. But I almost killed you.” He laughed bitterly. “That should have been easy, not this damned difficult. Why does that thought hurt so badly?”
Sasuke didn’t give him time to answer. At that point he left the room, leaving the candle behind.
Time seemed to move rapidly, burning the candle down into the crippling darkness.
Chapter 4. The Warning
Not a word of conversation passed between them since. Naruto could see Sasuke was getting edge about something, but couldn’t quite find the courage to ask what. It was only after the next couple of… whatever time placement they were keeping, sleep cycles? Only after a couple of sleep cycles did the binds that held him down were finally removed. His stay was almost… comfortable.
However there was no way he could stay. He desperately longed for home, missing everyone terribly.
Naruto swung his legs over the side of the bed; the biting cold of the stone floor seemed to sting his feet. Testing his balance first, which actually turned out to be a good idea, as he fell backwards back onto the bed.
Slowly this time, he stood up, testing each muscle by flexing it.
“Sore, but everything seems to be fine…” He muttered to himself. Even with one arm in a sling, a makeshift cast holding the bone in place. Lady Tsunade would be furious at the patch job, probably would have to re-brake several bones in order to correct the way it healed over.
“You seem to be feeling better.” Sasuke said, leaning against the doorway. Blocking the only exit.
“Yeah, thanks for all your help.” Naruto replied, keeping his face composed at all times. Though it was nothing compared to the unreadable expression on Sasuke’s face. The blank void in his eyes was almost something to admire. “But I need to leave.”
Sasuke didn’t budge. Not one inch.
“I can’t stay here.”
No answer.
“Sasuke…”
“Yes?”
“Move.”
Sasuke stared at Naruto, straight in his eyes. His intense look was unnerving, but Naruto refused to back down.
“You can’t leave.” Sasuke said finally, keeping up with the stare down. “Too dangerous.”
“To dangerous?” Naruto scoffed, glaring now. “What in the world could be more dangerous than staying here?”
“The Akatsuki.” The answer was so casual, it almost sounded like even a five year old would have known how to answer. “You’re injured, and if they even catch the briefest hint of where you are, you’re done for.” Naruto remained silent. “And you’re in no position to defend yourself. You can hardly stand.”
Naruto became aware of how badly his legs were shaking under his own weight. An angry shame washed over him. Sasuke was utterly right. Though the thought of relying on his enemy sickened him, Naruto was left with little choice but to stay.
Sasuke turned away, obviously leaving.
“I won’t stand in your way if you want go.” He said, “But I just felt you needed to be warned first.”
“Wait, Sasuke!” Naruto shouted, starting forward, but his legs failing him. He closed his eyes, waiting for the impact. Instead, strong hands caught his shoulders, then picked him up.
“Idiot,” Sasuke muttered. “I just said you could hardly stand. Walking too much for you as well?”
Naruto was dropped on the bed without much regard. With that, Sasuke left. In physical presence he was gone, but still somehow he still lingered. Naruto dropped his head to the pillow with a frustrated groan.
He touched his forehead with the tips of his fingers, glowering at the ceiling in the darkness.
Chapter 5 The Pledge
Sasuke made up his mind. Naruto just couldn’t stay, it would be too complicated. The moment he deemed the dobe well enough to leave, Sasuke would be gone. It would be easier that way, instead of having to make up awkward good byes, or worse yet, complex plans to somehow stay, even a few hours longer.
That’s what he kept telling himself anyway. Easier. The harder part was accepting it.
Unfortunately, it would all have to end soon. Naruto’s injuries were healing rather rapidly, probably thanks to the Kyuubi’s chakara.
Sasuke cracked open the door. Naruto was sitting up, used bandages littered the floor. More recent ones scattered the bed. He seemed to be flexing his hands, checking everywhere. More over, there wasn’t a scratch on him.
The finality of his resolve came crashing over him. It was now, or never. And never was a long time.
“Sasuke?” Naruto said, looking up. “Where are you going?”
It was the moment of truth. Leave now, or risk absolutely everything. Standing outside the doorway, just out of sight, made making the actual decision all the harder.
Something grabbed his hand.
Sasuke whipped around, ready to defend himself, but a pair of concerned eyes were staring at him.
“Sasuke, you’re not leaving, are you?” Naruto replied, his voice soft, but cracked several times.
“What makes you think that?” Sasuke replied, his face easily slipping to his trademarked blankness.
“Because your things are packed.” Naruto sounded annoyed. “I’m not dumb. Its in the next room over.”
“Well what’s it to you?” Sasuke replied, getting defensive.
“Because you’re running away, and that’s just not like you!” The truth was like a biting edge, cutting to the core of the issue.
Running away was exactly what he had been doing the whole time. First the whole Leaf Village, then the reality of Itachi’s death, from Tobi, and now…
“Dammit, you’re so thick headed!” Naruto snarled, pounding his fist into the wall. “Why can’t you just give up and accept some help?”
“Help?” Sasuke repeated, his placid mask breaking, showing the confusion on his face. “What help can you give?”
“I…” He went silent. His words seeming to fail him. It was a long time before he spoke again. “Sasuke, I won’t leave you. I was hard to accept at first, but… I care about you too.”
“What?” Shock colored his voice. Sasuke couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
“Don’t make me repeat myself.” He sounded nervous. Or embarrassed. Or both. It was hard to tell. “Its hard enough saying it once.
Once the shock wore off, Sasuke slammed Naruto into the wall, hands on either side of his face. His resolve to leave had been stripped away, leaving empty space for the new, strange feeling swelling inside of him.
“Are you prepared to back up that claim?” Sasuke replied, smirking in a way he hadn’t felt himself do since he left Kohana. “Because, I may not let you take it back.”
Naruto turned a furious shade of red. To say the least, it was quite amusing to see Kohana’s number one Knuckle Headed Ninja beside himself. It wasn’t like him at all, but it seemed to suit him just right.
“Well?”
“Alright, alright! Yeah, what ever it takes to prove it to- Mmph!”
Naruto’s words were silenced with a kiss. Rough, and uneven, both clearly didn’t know what they were doing, but seemed to enjoy it with a passion anyway.
Naruto broke it off first, gasping for air.
“Dammit, warn me first!” He growled, trying very hard to be angry.
“You said whatever it takes.”
“You cut me off before I could finish!”
Sasuke shrugged, closing the few inches of space between himself, Naruto, and the wall. “What you implied is still in effect. And I think I’ll take you up on that offer.”
Chapter 6 The Questions
Naruto rolled over, folding his arms across Sasuke’s chest. The blanket was tossed aside, unwanted. Body warmth felt better, anyway.
“You’re horrible, infuriating, and manipulative.” He mumbled.
“You’re annoying, shut up.”
“…”
“Don’t do that.” Sasuke scowled, shaking his head.
“Do what? I only shut up like you asked.” The mock innocence in his voice was maddening.
“Unbelievable…” Sasuke muttered, rolling his eyes.
“Hey, I’ve got one question though…” His voice was softer, quieter, and more serious. Naruto didn’t even wait for acknowledgement. “What made you change your mind? You were dead set on killing me.” He at least remained quiet while he waited for Sasuke to absorb the question.
“I’m not sure…” Sasuke said at last. “The thought of you dead and you… actually lying still…” He paused, finding the right words that fit. “It didn’t hit me until you were laying there, still and unconscious. Seemingly, at least. It was unbearable.”
“Why me?”
“Idiot, I’m not going to explain everything in one, mushy sitting.”
Naruto chuckled, not pressing the issue. The two lingered together, entwined with each other for quite some time.
“My turn.”
“Hmm?” Naruto looked up, tilting his head curiously.
“What made you change your mind?” Sasuke asked, carelessly running his fingers through blond tuffs of hair.
“Easy. My mind never changed.” That trade mark grin of his. The easy-going, carefree, melt-your-heart, smile of his. “You’re rough, bitter, angsty, angry, very self-oriented. But you’re also very driven, you were my first friend, I even called you my brother in a way. I never, not for one moment, gave up on you.”
“You’re a dobe.” Sasuke grinned.
“And you’re mine.”
Chapter 7 The End.
Kohana was still a sorry sight to see, and it was weird being home after all this time.
Obviously, Sasuke had to face the wrath of the villagers; willingly returning home was not quite enough in their eyes.
“You can’t just waltz back into my village like nothing ever happened!” Lady Tsunade had ranted and raved. Though with Naruto, Sakura, and even Kakashi pleading on his behalf, Sasuke was allowed back. Under intense and indefinite probation. That left his life as a ninja utterly out of the question.
Naruto squeezed his hand reassuringly.
“I’m just glad you’re back.” Sakura smiled wistfully as she passed by.
“Now I can observe this ‘bond’ Naruto wanted to protect so badly.” Sai had said, his detached face rivaling that of his own.
“It’ll be alright.” He whispered encouragingly, “You’re home and that’s all that matters.”