The twin kunai looked comical lying next to the bouquet of flowers. Perfectly harmless. Perfectly stupid, more like. Who would give something so fragile to someone so dangerous?
The mission he needed to finish. The way everyone was avoiding him. The dead silence that welcomed him when he came home. And now this bouquet of flowers? It was all different. For once, this sudden change was worrying him. Assassinate his brother? How is that possible when he's already dead? Last time he checked, Itachi was still buried ten feet under the ground. And Kami-sama help him if the persistent bastard somehow resurrected himself.
And when his… friends avoided him. Sure, he wasn't that fun to be around, he knew. But that was no reason to turn around in the middle of the road when he was coming. The least they could do was try to be sly about it.
Silence, he was used to, but not this kind. It was like the house was holding its breath, disgusted at what walked in. Rejected by his own house? He really had hit rock bottom.
But… he picked up the flowers. The plastic wrap shimmered in the light as he twisted them in his hand. The bright yellow was a stark contrast to the dark shades of his house. It looked… actually kind of nice. There was no card stating who it was from, only a sticker attached to the side. 'Mr. Uchiha,' it read, bringing a small smile to his lips.
A knock on the door wiped it off. He wasn't in the mood for any company right now. Not ever, really. Maybe he could just hide behind the couch and pretend he wasn't home.
"Hey, teme! I know you're home!"
And that plan deflated. Maybe he could try evade the idiot by going through the back window.
"I can see you! Let me in!"
Or he could just pretend that there was no one there. Like his house was silent and empty once again.
"If you don't let me in I'm going to break down this door!"
Wouldn't want that. He could have him arrested since it was technically breaking and entering, but it was too much effort. His phone still needed to get hooked up, anyway.
His thoughts were interrupted by the smashing of glass. That idiot. He saw a hand waving through the window on the door, trying to find the lock.
"You idiot."
"I knew you were home! Let me in!"
"There's no lock on the door. The Hokage made me take it off. You were there."
"Oh! Right!"
The door opened in a flourish, revealing a smiling blonde. "Hey! I came to take you- What are those…?"
Sasuke followed Naruto's sight, landing on the bouquet in his hands. It hid quickly behind his back with a quick, "Nothing. It's just… my groceries. I just came back from shopping. My fridge is empty."
"Why did you hide it so quick?"
"What were you trying to say before?" Yeah. Change the subject. It worked better than Sasuke hoped; the blond shinobi's eyes lit up and he knew he got away.
"I wanted to take you to-… Ah… Somewhere! It's especially for you!"
Sasuke pursed his lips. His thoughts turned back to the flowers. Maybe if he stayed home long enough the person would come back and he could catch them. But the dobe kept staring at him, eyes all hopeful and sparkling and Sasuke knew there was no way to get rid of him so easily.
"Alright, dobe. But I'm not going to stay out long."
There was a long moment of silence when Sasuke wondered if he had to repeat himself, but then Naruto let out the most high-pitched squeal. It hurt. It really did.
"You know, for that, I think I might just stay home."
"No! NO! I was just so, like, happy that you actually agreed that I couldn't help myself… I mean, if you weren't going to come, then I would've spent all that time on nothing and…" He trailed off, eyes widening.
It took Sasuke a moment, but he narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "What do you mean, 'All that time'?"
Naruto waved his hands as if he was shooing the words away. "I meant all that time coming here and getting you, yeah!"
It wasn't a satisfying answer, but Sasuke dismissed it in favour of getting the whole affair over with. As he grabbed his jacket, he shot a glance in Naruto's direction. The idiot was acting strange. But, since it would be a hassle, Sasuke kept his thoughts to himself.
"Are we leaving anytime soon?"
