This is my first foray into the world of Naruto, and my first attempt at slash. Please be kind and honest when you review. I don't really mind bad reviews, just tell me what I need to do to improve. It doesn't help anybody if all you say is "It sucked and I hated it," now does it? I don't really know what else to say here other that I don't own Naruto... So... enjoy, I suppose!
He knew it was wrong. He knew it wasn't reciprocated. Hell, he knew that if the other man found out, he would probably be disgusted, and never talk to him again!
Naruto Uzumaki knew all of these things, and yet he still felt his heart beat quickly and erratically whenever Kakashi-sensei was around. He didn't really know why he felt the way he did, though.
Another training session sped by, as he sparred Sasuke-teme and Sakura-chan at the same time. He was advancing quickly enough in jutsu knowledge and body strength that now both teammates of his struggled to defeat him where originally it would only take Sasuke mere minutes to have him eating dirt. Sakura took it into stride, smiling at him even after the times that he did beat the both of them. Sasuke, on the other hand, turned it into another reason to brood.
Sometimes, when he and Sakura would win, though, he would take both of his teammates out to lunch. He would stare at Naruto while he ate with an odd expression on his face. Of course, the blond was oblivious to this.
This training session was one of those he was absolutely certain he and Sakura were going to win, if only for the fact that the dobe was distracted, glancing off to the side every so often to the place where Kakashi was perched in a tree, reading his smut. Sasuke scowled when he noticed this, and began to fight harder, bringing the dobe's attention completely back to the fight.
After about an hour, both sides were completely exhausted. They had fought their opponents to a standstill, and all three just collapsed on the ground, breathing heavily.
"Good job, Sasuke, Sakura, you're getting better! You guys can go!" Kakashi called from his perch, before disappearing. Naruto frowned. Even now, when he was almost more powerful than both of his friends combined, Kakashi still completely ignored him.
"Usual place?" Sasuke grunted, still in his prone position. Naruto made an affirmative sound, but before Sakura could agree as well, an alarm began going off from somewhere.
"Aah." Sakura groaned. She sat up and extracted something from her pocket, stared at it in resignation for a moment, and put it back with a sigh. "I'll have to get a rain check on that Sasuke-kun. Tsunade-sama is expecting me at the hospital." She announced with no little amount of regret.
"That's fine, Sakura-chan!" Naruto told her, making his way over to where the other two still sat on the ground. "We can all go to lunch together tomorrow."
Sakura smiled and jumped up, running over to gather her things. "Sure, Naruto. I'll see you guys later?" She called over her shoulder, even as she ran from the clearing where Team Kakashi trained.
"So, teme, just you and me!" Naruto grinned, turning to his best friend. The other boy grunted. "Great!" Naruto responded to the sound.
The oblivious blond then proceeded to do something Sasuke knew would haunt his dreams forever if he didn't ACT NOW! He pulled off his black undershirt and used to to wipe the sweat from his face, baring his torso for the world to see. Hungry black eyes trailed over the tanned flesh, from sun browned nipples to the sweat streaking down to his navel, and past, where fine blond hairs led down to uncharted waters.
He tried to hold himself in check, knowing any kind of advance would probably be unwelcome, but then Naruto shifted a little, and the raven could see the outline of the other boy's equipment through tight pants. His control snapped there, and he tackled Naruto, taking the other sixteen year old down.
"Sasuke! What the HELL!" Naruto shouted, but that was all he could say before pale lips were pressed against his. He fought off the other boy, though his muscles still trembled with the exertion of the sparring session, and managed to dump the black haired teen off his body before jumping to his feet.
His sky blue eyes were round in his shock, his now kissed bruised lips open slightly as he tried to gather enough thoughts to begin berating the Uchiha. But Sasuke beat him to it.
"Naruto," He breathed almost reverently. "I love you." He seemed almost as shocked at this confession as his counterpart, but recovered quickly and stared at the blond with earnest obsidian eyes.
Naruto's mouth opened and closed repeatedly, before he finally said the thing that made the most sense to him. "W-what?"
"I love you, dammit!" This time the whisper was gone, replace by a passionate yell.
"B-but you never... I can't... you just... What?" Naruto couldn't seem to decide on what exactly to say, and Sasuke smirked to himself, knowing he could use that to his advantage.
"I love you so bad it hurts." He said matter-of-factly, meeting confused blue eyes. "But I know you don't love me. You love Kakashi." He sneered at the last word, saying it like one would a despicable curse.
"How... w-when... I don't... What?" The other boy seemed to be going on a pattern here. Sometimes Sasuke wondered how he could love something so completely idiotic. But then he looked at the tan skin still bared to his sight, and was reminded.
"But he doesn't love you, does he? Hell, he doesn't even seem to like you much. I love you, and would do anything to make you happy. You could become my lover, and can, in time, learn to love me as well." Sasuke got up and dusted the dirt off of his clothes.
"B-but I couldn't do that to you, Sasuke... It wouldn't be right..." Finally, something other than a stuttered response. The raven could see the blond wavering, his desperate need for love of any kind warring with his sense of right and wrong.
"But don't you see, Naruto, I don't care about that, because I know that with time you'll feel for me as I do for you." Sasuke whispered, hoping the other boy hadn't seen the movie he had taken these particular lines from. Then again, the dobe hated sitting still long enough to watch one TV show, much less the mushy chick-flick Sakura had dragged Sasuke to when they were younger.
Apparently, he was right about Naruto not having seen the movie, because the blond sighed, and looked at him through dark lashes. "O-okay... I guess I could try..."
Sasuke had to repress the urge to holler.
OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO
That had been nine months ago, and Naruto still blushed at the memory. He and Sasuke had fallen into a comfortable relationship. They would wake up together and Naruto would make breakfast while the Sasuke showered. Then they would eat together, Sasuke leering at his blond over the table, making the other boy blush fetchingly.
They would then leave together, to meet Sakura down at the training ground. They hadn't told anyone of their relationship yet, excusing Naruto's moving in with Sasuke by saying the blond's apartment had flooded. No one really questioned it anymore.
They would spar, Naruto now winning more often than not, and then usually leave together to find a secluded spot to make out.
Something was different today, though. Sasuke asked Naruto to head on home, and left the confused blond to stare after him. Having no reason to be suspicious, Naruto just shrugged and turned to leave, almost running straight into Kakashi-sensei.
His heart still fluttered when he was near the silver-haired man, and he quickly backed up to look in the man's lone showing eye. He shouldn't still feel this way. He was with Sasuke now!
"O-oh, hi sensei!" He grinned brightly, hoping to Kami-sama he was blushing.
"Hello, Naruto. Great job today." Kakashi said, smiling. At least, Naruto thought he smiled.
The blond's eyes widened, and he really did blush. This was the first time the older man had complimented him, after all. "Thanks, sensei!" He blusstered, smiling so widely he felt his face would crack.
They stood awkwardly together, each waiting for the other to say something, before they both did.
"Well sensei-"
"Say, Naruto-"
They both looked slightly confused.
"What?"
"What?"
"Sensei." Naruto sighed with a wry grin. "This isn't going to work. How about you go first?"
The man laughed lightly, though it sounded slightly nervous to the most keen observer. "Yes, well, I was just wondering, Naruto... what is your relationship with Sasuke?"
"Oh. OH!" Once again, Naruto turned a brilliant shade of red. "Well... um... you can't tell anyone, sensei, please." He looked up at Kakashi with pleading blue eyes. The silver haired man sucked in a breath, but nodded. "Well... we're kind of seeing each other..."
"Well, Naruto, congratulations!" Kakashi-sensei eye-smiled again. Naruto smiled shyly.
"Thank you sensei. We're planning to tell everyone on our first anniversary."
"And when is that?" The man sounded honestly interested.
"In about three months!" Naruto announced happily. He missed the slight shock and pain that flashed in the teacher's visible eye. "Anyway, sensei, I should get going. I have to go make dinner."
"Yes, of course, well... see you tomorrow, Naruto." And with that, Kakashi-sensei disapeared in a whirl of leaves.
"I've got to ask him how he does that." Naruto murmured to himself, before turning and making his way home.
OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO
Hours later, Sasuke still had not gotten home, and his dinner sat on the table under a jutsu to keep it warm while his lover paced nervously. It wasn't like Sasuke to be late, even by a bit. He glanced at the clock before resuming his pacing.
"Sasuke, where are you?" He whispered, and jumped when a voice by the doorway answered.
"Right here, dobe." Sasuke slurred. He stumbled the rest of the way into the room, his boyfriend darting to his side instantly, thinking someone had hurt Sasuke.
Then a familiar scent filled his sensitive nose, and he froze, looking over the other teen. Sasuke had scratch marks on his face, and bite marks on his neck. Naruto would almost think his lover had been attacked by a wild animal, but the distinctive smell of sex tipped him off.
"Sasuke, what... happened?" He asked, astonished. Below the cloying scent of passion, he could also identify the bite of alcohol.
"Well, Naruto, I fucked Kiba. Damn he's an animal." Sasuke said without qualm. His off hand way of putting it threw the blond off balance.
"B-but, why?"
"Well, you see Naruto, every once in a while I get these... cravings. Yeah, cravings." The raven plopped down into one of their living room chairs, though when made by him, the move looked graceful and practiced. "And I have to satiate them in any way possible. I've been holding off thus far while I was with you, but I couldn't anymore." Apparently alcohol addled Sasuke's mind enough for him to put such a hurtful thing so bluntly. And loosened his tongue enough that he'd actually say it.
"But I though you were happy with me..." Naruto felt the tears welling up in his eyes. He didn't cry often, but when he did, it was absolutely heartbreaking for those observing it. Sasuke seemed to realize what his boyfriend was about to do, and leaped to prevent it.
"Of course I am! But you can't expect me to ignore my instincts. I still love you, Naruto, but Kiba was just what I needed today! It'll never happen again, I promise!" The raven proclaimed. His boyfriend sniffled. His lashes were wet, but the tears had yet to fall.
Naruto felt he had to forgive the other boy for this transgression. He had made one of his own today. He had all but drooled over their sensei. Sasuke, at least, hadn't betrayed him in the worst way, by transferring his love to another. Naruto truly felt that was the ultimate betrayal.
"Y-you promise, Sasuke?" He whispered. The raven nodded emphatically.
And Naruto forgave him.
OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO
It was now their second anniversary. Naruto had rushed home from his job as a rookie ANBU to make dinner for his lover. Today was special for them, after all! A year ago that day, they had come out together to the village.
First the other rookies their age. Kiba had seemed baffled, and after the group had dispersed, he had started to make his way to the happy blond, who was accepting the congratulations of others, before Sasuke had headed him off.
The village found out next, though the two boys never really told any of the villagers. They seemed to be unsure how to act at first, until they appeared to all decide at one time to go on with business as usual.
Now, a year later, and Sasuke had seemed to keep his promise of not cheating on his blond, who felt he had finally fallen in love with the other boy. He no longer had to deal with Kakashi directly, so the feelings he had for the other man seemed to fade.
Humming a cheery tune while he danced around the kitchen, Naruto felt that life couldn't get any better than it was now. He had a perfect, devoted boyfriend (who he thought might propose tonight!), a great new sensei in the ANBU corps, and was being considered as the next Hokage!
Too bad his happy bubble had to burst.
It had been hours since he had made dinner, and refused to eat it alone. He sat on the couch, frowning deeply at the screen of the television, which was off. He knew Sasuke wasn't on a mission with his own jounin team. So what was keeping the other man?
Once again, insecure thoughts bubbled up from the depths of his insecurity. It was almost exactly like that time with Kiba.
Shaking off the thoughts, Naruto stood and strode over to the door. He decided to look for his boyfriend.
The hospital was his first stop. Sakura had the late shift tonight, and he knew she would know if Sasuke had been injured in a training session. He asked the receptionist where the pinkette was, and the bored woman directed him to an empty room where Sakura usually took her breaks.
Smiling wryly at his friend's predictability, the man strode down the corridors quickly. He wasn't really worried. If Sasuke had been seriously injured he would have gotten a notice of some kind, right?
He was almost outside the room when he heard moaning. Quirking a brow, he inched closer to the room where Sakura supposedly was. Apparently the young woman had company. Deciding to leave her alone, he turned to leave when a name floated to him through to door.
"Oh! SASUKE!"
No. No no no. That couldn't be right. Maybe he misheard. Neither of his old teammates would betray him like that, right?
He shuffled back to the door, and inched it open slightly. And almost barfed at what he saw.
Sakura was laid out naked on the bed, arching up into the touch of a man Naruto found all too familiar.
The blond pushed open the door all the way, making it open with a bang, and the bed's two occupants turned to him with shocked eyes.
Naruto's anguish was washed away in the fury that swept through him.
"How could you?" He thundered as the two sprung apart like guilty teenagers. Which they were.
"Naruto, I-" Sakura began, holding up a beseeching hand.
"How could you betray me like this?" He ignored the girl, his flashing blue eyes boring into his boyfriend's.
He stayed silent long enough for Sasuke to gather a response. "Naruto, I told you before about my cravings-" He only got that far before the other young man exploded.
"Cravings? CRAVINGS? What was it for this time? Boobs and a vagina?" He now turned his attention to the pinkette, who was crying on the bed. "And you! I trusted you! You knew we were together!" He shouted. She started sobbing harder.
"H-he told me that y-you broke up! And t-that he loved me!" The girl gasped. Her own tears dried up, and she too felt anger. "H-he was lying." She whispered.
Sasuke had a really bad feeling about this. "Naruto, love, you know I-" But the blond cut him off.
"Stuff it, you manwhore. I bet you told Kiba something similar to get into his pants, though you could omit the us breaking up part. I bet you rejoiced that I didn't want to tell anyone. Is that why you were so reluctant when I finally suggested we come out? I don't know why I forgave you. I'm such an idiot." He didn't allow the other young man to answer, turning instead to Sakura. "You're just as much a victim in this as I am, aren't you, Sakura-chan?" He asked. The woman nodded angrily as she yanked her clothes back on.
The blond smirked. "How about we keep anyone else from being used by this horny bastard. Do you know the gelding jutsu."
Sasuke backed away slowly when Sakura mimicked her friends smirk, and nodded again, a sadistic glint in her eye.
Sasuke had a REALLY bad feeling about this.
OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO
Hours later found Naruto atop his favorite place to think. He hadn't had time to visit the Hokage Monument in years, and smiled sadly when he looked down on the same view he saw when he was twelve.
The Hokage momument seemed to be the one constant in his life, while evrything else was changing. He and Sasuke had been together long enough that Naruto felt bereft and unsure now that he had broken up rather violently with the man. (He had held his ex down while Sakura performed the jutsu. Sasuke was now sobbing in a hospital bed, being tended by snickering nurses and doctors, who had the sense to save some of his sperm from his now decimated testicles and penis so as to continue the Uchiha lineage through artificial incimination, at least.)
Naruto perched on the Sandaime's head and stared out unseeingly into the sky. He seemed to be completely oblivious to his surroundings.
That illusion was destroyed when someone appeared right beside him and found a kunai pressed to their neck. He wasn't an ANBU rookie for nothing, after all.
The other person held up empty hands as a sign of surrender, and the blond squinted through the darkness to make out who the other person was, and immediately put his weapon away when he recognized them.
"Kakashi-sensei." He smiled at the man, though it wasn't his usual face splitting grin.
"Yo, Naruto. You know you don't have to call me sensei anymore, right?" The older man replied.
"But it's sort of like a nickname now." Naruto remarked.
Kakashi studyied the blond, who was short enough he could tuck him comfortably under his chin. Ignoring that thought, the jounin tryed to decipher what was wrong. The younger man looked sad, for some reason, though Kakashi could see the residues of anger in Naruto's eyes. "What's up?" No need to rush it, though.
"You know, same old, same old." He could tell the blond was trying to be offhand.
"Really? Then why are you here instead of at home? Isn't today yours and Sasuke's anniversary?" Kakashi had to fight to keep the resentment out of his voice, and raised an eyebrow when Naruto growled lowly.
"Don't talk about that bastard. If I never see him again, it'll be too soon!" Naruto announced, huffing angrily.
The older man tried to keep the hope out of his voice when he asked, "Oh, really, what happened?"
The blond sat back down with a huff, and looked at Kakashi meaningfully until the other man joined him. As he sat, he realized the blond was turned away from him.
"Well, other than finding out that he's a cheating bastard, and helping Sakura castrate him, nothing much." Naruto muttered, and Kakashi had to supress a bark of laughter. That was one way to break up with a cheating boyfriend. Then he caught on something.
"Why was Sakura there?" He asked, honestly curious. Naruto shrugged.
"Well, she was the one he was fucking when I found him. But don't worry, she's just as much a victim here as me. He told her we broke up. That man whore." That last part obviously wasn't meant for Kakashi's ears, so he ignored it.
"You've had quite the interesting night, haven't you Naruto?" He said instead. Something on the wind caught his attention as Naruto shrugged again. The smell of salt and water. The blond was crying. Apparently he had mastered the art of sounding completely normal while breaking down.
As if sensing that Kakashi had figured it out, Naruto's breath hitched at that instant and he turned to his former teacher. "I-i don't know what I'm going to do, Kakashi-sensei. I can't live with him anymore, and my old apartment has been destroyed. Where am I going to live? And we'll see each other from time to time, I know we will. How will I face him?"
Kakashi really didn't know how to respond, so instead he opened his arms in invitation, and the young man dove in, clinging to his flak jacket and letting go.
The silver haired jounin had no idea how long he sat there and listened to the heart wrenching sobs of the blond, but finally, just before dawn, Naruto seemed to peter off and stop completely, but still didn't say anything.
It took ten minutes for Kakashi to realize the blond had cried himself to sleep. Sighing, and picking up his former student bridal style, he made a quick decision, and disappeared.
OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO
Naruto woke around noon, his head was pounding, and his eyes felt swollen. He sent out a pulse of chakra much like a bat using echolocation, and when it came back with unfamiliar territory, he rolled out of the bed and onto his feet, reaching for the kunai he kept in his waist band.
He almost hyperventilated when he realized it wasn't there. And that he could feel another chakra signature moving down what he assumed was a hallway outside the door, heading for this room. He frantically threw up a jutsu that rendered him seemingly invisible (though he was really just bending natural chakra around him) and spotted his weapons on a chair by the door.
When the person that the chakra signature belonged to opened the door, he once again found himself held at kunai point.
"We really should stop meeting like this, Naruto." Kakashi drawled, and the blond let out a sigh of relief. He lowered his weapon, but still looked around the room suspiciously.
"Kakashi-sensei. Where are we?" He asked.
"The guest bedroom in my apartment. Sorry about the dust. I don't get many guests." His former teacher shot him a familiar eye-smile, and Naruto felt old feelings well up inside him, though they were now tempered by the caution of someone who had recently had a broken heart.
"Oh, well, okay then." Feeling slightly awkward, Naruto glanced at what the man was carrying just as his stomach growled. Kakashi laughed lightly and offered him the platter of food.
"I thought you might be hungry. I wasn't sure what to make you, so I kind of went a little wild..." Kakashi laughed again, handing Naruto the over full platter. The young man accepted it with a smile and a quiet 'thank you.'
The blond plopped down on the bed to enjoy the meal, the older man joining him in a more dignified manner.
"So this is your house?" Naruto asked, once his mouth was free of food. Sasuke (the ball-less man whore) had broken him of the habit of talking with his mouth full.
"Yeah, I inherited it a while ago." Kakashi seemed a little embarrassed of the fact.
Naruto smiled. "It's nice. Well, this room is, anyway. Why'd you bring me here?"
Kakashi shrugged self consciously. He felt like a nervous teen again with those big blue eyes trained on him. "I didn't have much choice after that once you fell asleep last night." He pointed out. It was then Naruto's turn to laugh self consciously.
"Yeah, sorry about that, didn't mean to dump all of my problems on you, sensei."
Neither really knew what to say after that, so they sat in awkward silence, occasionally glancing at each other out of the corner of their eyes.
Naruto finished his meal and set the tray aside, standing up to stretch. He didn't notice the way his shirt rose with the movement, and how his former teacher's eyes were trained on the strip of skin that bared itself.
"I guess I have to go, Kakashi-sensei. I need to pack my stuff and get out of that house before they release the dick less wonder from the hospital." The blond said, turning back to the older man.
"Where will you go, Naruto?" Kakashi asked, genuinely concerned. The younger male shrugged helplessly.
"The ANBU barracks, I guess. The old hag will probably let me keep a room there for a while, until I can get my own apartment again." The blond answered, sighing. They both knew that the ANBU barracks was the place those members of the black-ops lived when it was the very last option. The futons were hard and uncomfortable (and mostly still smelled of thhe last person that used them), there was no privacy because the rooms were all communal, and they were required to wear their masks and uniform the whole time they lived there, to keep themselves from being recognized by members of other teams. That particular rule was a dinosaur from the times when each team was usually made up of people from the different clans at the beginning of the village's life.
Both men winced slightly.
Kakashi glanced around the room they were sitting in. "Well... Naruto..." He began, but cut himself off when curious blue eyes peeked at him over a slender shoulder. Steeling himself, he continued. "As you see, this room is normally empty. If you want, you could rent it from me. Until you find your own apartment, at least." Hell, he would have let the blond live there for free, but knew Naruto would perceive that as a handout due to pity and would opt to live at the ANBU barracks out of a misplaced sense of pride.
Naruto turned to his former teacher, hope shining in his captivating eyes. "Really sensei? You'd let me do that?" He practically breathed. Kakashi swallowed harshly, before nodding resolutely.
He didn't expect to end up with a lap of thankful, exuberant young man. "Oh, thank you thank you, Kakashi-sensei! I really would have lived at the barracks, but we both know how horrible that would be! You won't regret this! You'll see, I'll cook the meals, and do some chores, and we can go shopping together and-" Kakashi coughed to interrupt the hyper teen.
"Shouldn't you get going to go get your things? I'll stay around here and clean this room up, and make it habitable by humans." He said, and Naruto jumped up, nodding. His relieved smile was real, but there was still sadness lingering in his eyes. He formed a handseal, and disappeared in an intricate swirl of fire.
'Great,' Kakashi thought, staring at the spot the young man had vanished from. 'I'll be living with the boy I've had inappropriate feelings for. Who just had his heart broken. Fantastic, Kakashi.'
Sighing, Kakashi gathered the dishes left by Naruto's meal, and made his way to the kitchen. He didn't regret asking his former student to live with him. The only question was, could he control himself and keep from pouncing on the younger man long enough for the blond to recover? He really hoped so. He didn't want to run the blond off.
OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO
Naruto smiled softly at the man stretched out on the couch, fast asleep. He and Kakashi-sensei had been living together for right around six months, and the feelings the blond hadn't wanted to acknowledge when he was younger had returned, though they were now stronger and deeper... and somehow softer. All he knew was that he never felt this way about the Uchiha (who apparently retired from shinobi duty, and now lived outside village limits in solitude).
It was an unconscious sign of deep trust that Kakashi stayed asleep when Naruto was in the room. As ninjas, they had trained themselves to wake up at the slightest movement in their immediate vicinity.
"Kakashi-sensei," Naruto murmured, reaching out to gently nudge the older man's shoulder. The mission the jounin had just gotten back from must have been exhausting if he hadn't even made it to his bedroom.
The often revealed silvery eye opened to a slit, though the sharingan eye remained shut. "Naruto?" Kakashi muttered sleepily. His pale pink lips curved softly.
"You managed to take off your mask and headband, but not make it to your room?" Naruto teased, one eyebrow raised in amusement.
The first time Kakashi had decided that he knew Naruto well enough to forgo the mask in the other man's presence, Naruto had spent the wek afterwards blushing and spaced out.
The older man grinned and sat up. "Who's to say I didn't do it on purpose, to make you fall in love with me?" He asked.
That was their relationship now. Joke and tease about what they both wanted, but never actually do anything about it (because neither had any idea the other wanted it just as badly).
"Oh Kakashi," Naruto sighed dramatically, bringing his hand up to lay the back of it across his bare forehead, "Every time I come upon you drooling on the couch, it just gives me the vapors!" He proclaimed in a highly faked accent he got from a movie they had watched together.
The two snickered, and Kakashi pulled himself from the couch and stretched, sniffing the air. Turning to the other man, he asked "You made dinner? But isn't it my night?"
The blond shrugged and smiled sheepishly, "Well, you just got back from a mission... and you were sleeping so peacefully on the couch... so..." His ears turned pink in embarrassment, and he twisted the hem of his grey shirt nervously. All in all, he practically looked just as edible as the dinner he was preparing.
Kakashi felt the urge to hug the shorter man, but fought it off. He still had no idea about how well that would be recieved. Of course, he knew the other man was gay, but he didn't know if Naruto had anyone in mind as his 'special someone'.
"Well, then, I'll just have too cook tomorrow, nope, no buts!" He held up a hand when it looked like the teen wanted to argue, "Anyway, I'm going to go take a shower." He made his way past the other man.
Naruto turned around and called to his retreating back, "I made miso soup and curry rice! It should be done once you get out."
Kakashi raised a hand in acknowledgement before disappearing into his room.
Twenety minutes later, Naruto and a considerably more pleasant smelling Kakashi sat down to eat together. "We'll have to go shopping tomorrow." Naruto told his companion about halfway into the meal. The two didn't talk much while eating, content just to sit and enjoy the food and each other's company.
Kakashi nodded vaguely, taking another bite of the miso soup. It was prepared exactly the way he liked it, and the delicate flavor danced over his taste buds pleasantly. Every time the younger man prepared this for them, he was half tempted to beg the blond to marry him. He managed to control himself, though. Barely.
"I actually think I found the perfect apartment for me to move into." Naruto told him. Kakashi actually looked up at that.
"Really?" He asked with feigned interest, though his thoughts were filled with panic. He knew that Naruto had been halfheartedly looking for a place to live, but he thought he'd have enough time to tell the younger man how he felt, and that he had no need to move out. Now it seemed he was running out of time.
"Yeah, but somebody else is looking at it too... I don't know if I'll get it..." Naruto continued, unaware of his companion's inner turmoil.
'Alright, I guess this is the time to tell him!' Kakashi thought, and said"Well, you know you can live with me as long as you like." 'Dammit! That's not what I meant to say!'
Naruto smiled at the older man. "Thanks, Kakashi-sensei, that really means a lot to me."
The two finished their meal in silence, and made their way to their respective rooms after bidding each other good night.
OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO
The next day the two men weaved in and out of the various stalls at the market. They often followed the strategy of 'divide and conquer' splitting most of the grocery list. But at the end they were walking together to grab one last thing before going home.
"Dobe." A familiar voice said, and Naruto froze in dread, Kakashi stopping a few feet after and looking back at his companion/friend/hopefully-future-lover. Naruto had turned around and was staring coldly at the young man who had come up unnoticed on the two shoppers.
"Teme." He growled, though the word no longer held the affection it used to. It was now used as the insult it was meant to be, instead of a pet name.
The raven haired man glanced over his former lover's shoulder. "And Kakashi? Seems it didn't take you long to get over me, urastonkatchi, and here I haven't even kissed anyone since we ended."
"Not by choice, of course." Naruto said roughly, venom in his words. "No one would look at you twice if they knew how... lacking you were in the bedroom department. And besides, Kakashi-sensei and I aren't like that. He's just helping me out after we ended."
"Ah, but you wish you were like that, don't you, dobe? You always loved him, even when we were together. How does it feel to know that my body betrayed you twice, but your heart betrayed me countless times?" The brunette asked viciously. "Did you hear that, Kakashi? How does it feel knowing this monster has feelings of the less than innocent kind towards you?" He called to the other man. Kakashi's eyes widened behind his ever present porn book. He moved foreward towards Naruto.
Placing his hand on his roommate's shoulder, Kakashi said loud enough for Sasuke to hear, "Come on, Naruto. This Eunuch isn't worth our time." He murmured, his voice flat in his effort to hide the utter glee he felt. Naruto felt the same way towards him? And always had?
Naruto huffed, and sneered one more time at the man he had once considered friend, comrade, and soul mate. "Good bye, Sasuke." He said, with a hint of finality in his tone, before turning away, and striding from the scene with his former teacher at his side. His eyes were a cold ice blue as he ignored the calls from the brunette demanding he come back and face him like a man. At this point, out of those two, Naruto was the man, and didn't need to raise his fists to prove it.
OoOoOoOoOoOoOoO
Back at the Hatake compound, the two silently set their burdens down.
"I guess I'll go pack." Naruto said defeated, and Kakashi spun to face him.
"What?" He asked stupidly. His inner mind was still celebrating his fortune.
"I-I know you wouldn't want to live with your gay former student who fancies himself in love with you. I don't want to make you uncomfortable, Kakashi-sensei... You never have to hear from me again." The blond muttered, brushing past his former teacher intent on going to the room he had resided in for the past few months and packing.
Kakashi reacted half on instinct, and before the younger man knew it, he was yanked from his intended path and into strong arms, his face pressed against a broad, hard chest. "Now what gave you the idea that I wanted you gone, Naru-chan?" Kakashi murmured in his ear, and Naruto shivered as his breath brushed the sensitive area. His mind vaguely registered that the older man must have taken off his mask.
"But- but Sasuke told you..." The blond breathed unsurely. His only answer was a soft chuckle the reverberated into the chest he was leaning against.
"And didn't you wonder why I didn't respond?" Kakashi whispered, nuzzling into the cap of blond hair and reveling in the feel of the smaller man in his arms.
Naruto looked up until they were nose to nose. "I thought it was because you were too shocked and disgusted by what he said, by how I feel, that-" Naruto would have finished the sentence had he not been interrupted by a pair of soft, slightly chapped lips pressing against his.
A tongue swept over his bottom lip, and he opened his mouth to invite it in. The younger man moaned into the kiss as it heated up, and his body tingle with pleasure. It felt like only moments Kakashi was pulling away, and Naruto whimpered at the loss.
"I was too busy celebrating my good fortune that the young man I had been in love with for far too long, who could have had anyone he wanted if he tried, wanted me." Kakashi whispered, and Naruto gasped and blushed.
He opened his mouth to say something, but couldn't think of anything, so he promptly closed it.
"You're so cute when you're flustered." The older man said, before claiming his lips again in another searing, possessive kiss.
Naruto would still sometimes look back at his and Sasuke's relationship, but instead of the grimace of before, he would smile because even at its peak, it would never match his and Kakashi's love and devotion to each other.
The end. Seriously, yeah, that's it. No real hope for a sequel or anything. Well, review if you please, and good day to you all.
I have finished putting these thoughts into words,
Lionna