Ta-Da! I had the sudden urge to write another story. Crazy, I know. I am already having enough issues remembering to write chapters for the other two, but I will manage! (I hope...)

Anyways, this story is a bit...dark, descriptive, hence the rating. Also, it is yaoi. SasuNaru will be the main pairing and I may decide to add others later.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor any of the characters from the series. All such things belong to the genius behind it all.

Now, please enjoy!

The sky was barely starting to lighten when blue eyes flickered open and glanced around the dark room in fear. The blond-haired owner of the eyes rolled off his bed and limped across the room, picking up discarded clothing along the way. The torn and bloodied clothing was quickly discarded in a black plastic bag in the corner and he rummaged through his dresser for fresh, rip-free clothing. Once his arms were full of his outfit choice for the day, he set his hand on the doorknob and took a deep breath. After listening for any movement in the house and hearing nothing, the boy opened the door slowly and then moved as quickly as he could across the hall into the bathroom.

Slinging his backpack over his shoulder, he swiftly left the bathroom minutes later. He hurriedly tip-toed down the steps and grabbed the pre-packed lunch from the kitchen counter. The blond boy made it to the door just in time to hear someone curse in a room above. His eyes widened and he quietly slipped outside, shutting the door silently behind him. He went down the porch steps and walked to the sidewalk, where he turned and stared at the peaceful home behind him. To the outside world, the house seemed like a haven, but to the inhabitants, it was hell.

Clenching his jaw, he turned away and made his way down the sidewalk. The limp that he had before he left the house was gone and he walked smoothly across the concrete. His expression was blank and gave no clues to how he truly felt. With each step, his nerves alerted his brain of the intense pain coming from his left leg, right shoulder, and abdomen. It took 20,000 steps to reach his destination. 20,000 steps that he took each school day.

As he approached the closed school gates, a goofy grin came to his face. He stood in front of the gates and waited for a teacher to appear and let him in. Ten minutes later, one of the front doors creaked open and a brown-haired man walked out. The boy raised a hand in greeting and shouted, "Iruka-sensei!"

The teacher smiled and quickly came to the gate, opening it for the blond student. "Here early as usual, Naruto. How are you today?" The boy's grin grew wider, "Ready to learn and pummel Uchiha at English." Iruka laughed and ushered the boy into the school. The boy laughed along with the older man and joked all the way to Iruka's classroom, where he settled into a chair next to the window as Iruka prepared for the day.

Naruto, as the boy was called, gazed at the sky for a moment. The sunshine burned his retinas, but the blond didn't care. Today was another day in hell, but the sun had never caused him any harm, so he paid its rays no mind. Letting a gentle sigh slip past his lips, Naruto opened his backpack and took out a tattered book. Opening it to page 125 as if it was a precious artifact, he began to read. He slipped into the world of a Russian prisoner and easily ignored the sounds of students arriving. The gates outside creaked open, the front doors and lockers were slammed open and closed, people chattered away, but Naruto ignored it all. Only when other students started to file into the room did Naruto leave the world his mind was in and slip the book into his bag. He folded his hands on top of his desk and waited for the bell to ring, signaling the beginning of the school day.

He replied to Iruka's question of attendance with an exuberant, "Naruto Uzumaki, in the flesh!" The classroom filled with laughter and groans before the day continued on. He talked with his supposed friends like there wasn't a care in the world besides eating ramen for every meal and beating the Uchiha, pretending he cared about such things. He laughed at Lee's jokes, he smiled at Sakura's comments, and he showed off his orange clothing with a grin, pretending that he meant it. Naruto complained with his friends about how Kakashi-sensei was always late for everything, even his own class, pretending that he didn't want the teacher to be late so it would make the day be longer. He arm-wrestled with Kiba, using his right arm, pretending it didn't hurt. He raced to beat Kiba to science class, pretending he could use his leg just fine. He punched Kiba in the arm, using his right fist, because the dog boy was being a jerk, Naruto pretending he was tough. He took a beating from Sakura when he flirted shamelessly with her during lunch, pretending that it didn't scare him when a fist came at him. He ran to English to get there before the Uchiha, and he succeeded. He passed his assignment with flying colors and stuck his tongue out at the Uchiha in triumph. He laughed at the glare he received and tried to keep the smile off his lips.

Naruto left last period with Kiba, Lee, Shikamaru, Choji, and Sakura, grinning like a mad man. "I beat that teme soundly today!" He said proudly. His friends rolled their eyes and a few laughed.

"Of course you did, Naruto. You are a whiz at English, unlike dog boy over there who can't tell the difference between a period and a comma." Sakura replied, giggling as Kiba's face reddened. "That is not true! I CAN tell the difference!"

"What is the difference?" Shikamaru muttered, staring at the boy with red tattoos on his cheeks. Even he could not stop himself from smiling slightly at the reply he received. Kiba sputtered, "T-There's...There's...A...Uh...Yeah...Um...Ah..." He scratched his head and went into deep thought, still sputtering.

Naruto patted his friend on the back, "Don't strain that brain of yours, Kiba. We wouldn't want you to hurt yourself." He winced when an elbow hit him in the abdomen and then started laughing along with Kiba and the others. As they descended the school steps and started for the gates, Naruto was aware of eyes watching him. He did not look for the owner of said eyes, thinking it was Iruka watching him leave, as the teacher often did. It was no secret that Naruto was Iruka's favorite student and the two had a close relationship, at least in other people's eyes. However, the eyes that were on Naruto today were not those of a teacher, but rather a raven-haired student.

Oblivious to this fact, Naruto and his friends left the school grounds, leaving a wave of laughter in their wake. Each went their own way and Naruto started his return trek of 20,000 steps. With each step, he could feel his mask slipping. The stress of putting his pained body through motion was making the pain worse. Clenching his teeth, Naruto continued going, knowing that if he stopped now, it would be twice as bad when he started moving again. Each time he saw someone, his mask would return in full force and any traces of pain that had slipped through disappeared. Each person smiled and greeted him kindly, and never questioned his seemingly truthful replies to how he was doing.

As he climbed the porch steps to hell, Naruto waved a neighbor with a smile and was not surprised to receive a kind response. He entered the home and walked up the steps to his room, where he locked himself in and collapsed on his bed. He fished inside his backpack until he found a bottle of pills and a water bottle. He took a few pain pills with some water before replacing the items safely in his bag. He heaved himself off the bed and changed into dreary clothing that consisted of a grey t-shirt and black pants. Any bright colors would make the demon angry.

Settling back on the bed, Naruto tried to get some sleep before his father came home. Today was a Monday and his father would come early. The anger would not start till later, if today was a good Monday, but the lashing out should not start until Friday, when work was over and the drinking began. Today would be a verbal day, not a physical day, most likely, unless...unless...As if on cue, Naruto heard the front door open and close, just before he heard the shouts. They went on for what seemed forever before he heard his mother cry and plead before she screamed. Naruto stared blankly at his door, knowing that soon, he would come through it. There was no stopping it and there was no way he could escape it.

As footsteps thudded up the steps, Naruto waited. 1...2...3...4...5...6...7...8...9... The door shot open on the count of ten and in the doorway, stood a very angry man. Naruto sat up and stared calmly at the man, though on the inside, he was shaking like a leaf. The man advanced and Naruto shut his eyes as the shouts filled the room. He picked off the bed by strong hands fisting his shirt. He was dropped on the ground with a thud and a boot was slammed into the same spot a table had been jammed against the night before. Naruto tried to bite back a cry, but failed and a scream left him as he felt what had to be his ribs cracking.

The beating continued, but Naruto only felt the numbing pain from his abdomen. When it was over and the furious demon had left his room, Naruto blinked slowly and tried to clear the fog gathering in his mind. His slow heart beat was all he could hear and he wondered vaguely if he was dying. The thought brought a faint smile to his lips, though it quickly faded as he slipped out of consciousness.

When he awoke, the sky was still dark and the glaring red numbers of the clock read 3:40am. Struggling to his feet while clutching his throbbing chest, Naruto muffled his cries by biting his lip hard enough to make it bleed. He barely managed to change his clothing without screaming and as he trudged down the steps, Naruto's vision swam. Clutching the railing, he stayed still until his head and vision cleared. Limping into the kitchen, Naruto grabbed the brown paper bag waiting for him on the edge of the counter and slipped it inside his backpack. He walked to the front door and then outside, all the while forcing himself to stay upright and not sway as he walked.

He paused at the end of the stone walkway that led to the front porch before he continued forward. He would not look back today, it hurt to move his body that way and he was not going to hurt himself to look back at the hell he was forced to call home. He grimaced and then took a shallow breath, finding it hard to breath deeply without searing pain. He wondered how much damage that boot had done, though he would never know, as he wasn't permitted to go to the hospital. He hated hospitals, so his father did not have to enforce the rule of no hospitals. Besides, if he went, they would...Naruto bit his lip, wincing at the tenderness. This was not the time to think about it. It was time to start his trek to school. Naruto stepped on the sidewalk and allowed himself to smile grimly. 10 miles is not that far, right?

If I have the energy, I shall write Chapter 2 within the month. Please Read and Review! Thank you. :)