Bad idea, the voice in the back of his mind cautioned. But Naruto reasoned he never really listened to that voice anyway. It always sounded scarily like Sasuke.
Speaking of which… He told himself not to grin. He half wanted to. Just as he half wanted to take a more obscure route and show up behind Sasuke and beat the bastard’s head in before he had the chance to notice Naruto.
Only this was Sasuke and that… generally didn’t seem to work with him.
He considered clones. He considered leaving a note in case something went wrong which, yeah; it did do sometimes with him. He considered that both the old hag and the pervert would kill him if they found out. And then he alighted on a low branch, crouching for balance- the chakra was instinctive now- and Naruto did not consider much of anything for a moment.
It caught him still. That Sasuke had grown too. Somehow he always forgot that detail.
"Dobe." He didn't turn to look at Naruto. "Faster than I thought."
Slowly, he rose and turned to face his former teammate, face carefully blank and bored.
A lifetime ago, he would have asked how Naruto was. Nothing overly concerned, perhaps a 'not dead yet?' or something like that. But things like that didn't occur to him now, because they were useless and meaningless precursors to what he wanted.
It was expected but it still left a sting. The eyes. The face. The indifference.
Of course he had been spotted.
He had let it faze him the last time. The apathy. The I-don’t-give-a-crap attitude. But Naruto was nothing if not a learner. And he knew how to put on a smile more convincing than Sai could ever hope to manage.
So he dropped from the branch and straightening, he gave Sasuke a grin. He made it as real and as bright as the conviction behind him.
Stretching his hands behind his head, Naruto raised his eyebrows expectantly.
He looked at Naruto for a long while, without saying anything. The bright smile and the mock-expectation of a hug almost made his lips twitch. Almost. Sasuke had far more discipline than that.
But all the discipline in the world couldn't stop him from wishing sometimes that things has turned out differently.
His eyebrows knitted together briefly. "I didn't come here to hold a free hugs campaign," he said. "What do you know about Itachi?"
Comments 47
Speaking of which… He told himself not to grin. He half wanted to. Just as he half wanted to take a more obscure route and show up behind Sasuke and beat the bastard’s head in before he had the chance to notice Naruto.
Only this was Sasuke and that… generally didn’t seem to work with him.
He considered clones. He considered leaving a note in case something went wrong which, yeah; it did do sometimes with him. He considered that both the old hag and the pervert would kill him if they found out. And then he alighted on a low branch, crouching for balance- the chakra was instinctive now- and Naruto did not consider much of anything for a moment.
It caught him still. That Sasuke had grown too. Somehow he always forgot that detail.
Reply
Slowly, he rose and turned to face his former teammate, face carefully blank and bored.
A lifetime ago, he would have asked how Naruto was. Nothing overly concerned, perhaps a 'not dead yet?' or something like that. But things like that didn't occur to him now, because they were useless and meaningless precursors to what he wanted.
"What do you know about Itachi?"
Reply
Of course he had been spotted.
He had let it faze him the last time. The apathy. The I-don’t-give-a-crap attitude. But Naruto was nothing if not a learner. And he knew how to put on a smile more convincing than Sai could ever hope to manage.
So he dropped from the branch and straightening, he gave Sasuke a grin. He made it as real and as bright as the conviction behind him.
Stretching his hands behind his head, Naruto raised his eyebrows expectantly.
”What?” he asked, “No hug?”
Reply
But all the discipline in the world couldn't stop him from wishing sometimes that things has turned out differently.
His eyebrows knitted together briefly. "I didn't come here to hold a free hugs campaign," he said. "What do you know about Itachi?"
Reply
Reply
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