Full Summary: Growing up in Konoha, Sasuke and his elder brother Itachi had always been fiercely loyal to one another, best friends living with one another. Alongside them was Itachi's closest friend, Naruto Uzumaki. After two years apart from the Uchiha's, Naruto is back, but his return brings new feelings and circumstances that the trio never saw coming in their new year.

Chapter One: Awaited

Sasuke waited at the front gate of Konoha for Naruto. He had sent a falcon with a chicken-scratched letter saying that he'd be coming home that afternoon. Typical Naruto; he couldn't say a specific time or hour that he'd be back. Sasuke had spent his morning staring into a bowl of cereal, trying to divine some meaning from his letter. He had read it and reread it until he had memorized, and then he reread it again. He had nothing to show for his efforts.

With some amount of disgust in himself, Sasuke had first left his house at quarter to noon, knowing very well that Naruto wouldn't be there. He had put on his nice pullover, ran a brush through his unkempt hair, and brought some scrolls to shift through as he waited for the next four hours. While he knew Naruto was taunting and unpredictable, he also knew that the blonde couldn't consider anything after four pm as 'the afternoon'.

For hours Sasuke sat on a stone bench watching the faces go by, a scroll in his hand at the ready, in case anyone tried to interact with him. He told the Naruto that lived in his mind that he hated him for not being specific with a time, but even in that fantasy land he felt guilty for lying to him like that. Even there, under the full control of Sasuke's will, Naruto was mysterious and confusing, but unable to be hated by the Uchiha.

It was one of Sasuke's subconscious' past times to attempt to process Naruto's behavior and thoughts in the safety of his own mind. But Naruto was like sand running between his fingers: impossible to stop long enough to inspect. He lingered on everything the male did or said, taking his words too seriously and watching his actions too closely, even long after Naruto forgot about them. In that sense, he figured he knew Naruto better than Naruto knew himself. The silver lining of Naruto having been away for two years was this: Sasuke was free to rearrange memories and words and add and subtract things, making the Naruto in his mind much more malleable and amenable. He made Naruto his own in his head. The caveat was that he could never seem to remember his face. Sasuke knew exactly what it looked like and where everything was, where each freckle was and where each strand of golden hair fell, but he could never picture it in total. Sure, he had photos to look back on, but even in pictures Naruto was never justified in full.

Naruto had missed two years in Konoha.

Sasuke couldn't imagine staying away from Konoha for that long, but that was because he loved his village. He had friends here and family here, where Naruto wasn't held down by anything; he had no roots keeping him in Konoha and while he had friends who loved him dearly, his lack of a family made it easy for him to leave and wander away to explore - at least, that's what Sasuke suspected. By any means, though, Naruto had skipped two years of Sasuke's life. And those two years flew by slowly and wastefully. The memories were boring and anticipated. The feelings were in flight, and never lasted. Nothing new happened. There was nothing new in sitting on this bench waiting for Naruto - Sasuke was always waiting for him, always anticipating that there come a day when Naruto returned.

Some of Sasuke's parents' friends stopped by to say hello. He saw genin teams heading out on their missions, all excited about their mission of finding a missing house pet or pruning trees for the elders who couldn't lift a blade anymore. Absentmindedly, Sasuke watched people pass by, all who's faces he recognized but didn't know the names of. He felt the cold, winter wind brisk by him, his cheeks chaffing with dry, frigid air. The sun was high in the sky, but it would be dark by four - the edge of Naruto's time limit - that is, if he stayed true to his word. Sasuke was partially preparing himself for disappointment, for Naruto to never show up that afternoon, for Naruto to disappear for another two, long years.

Hours passed and Sasuke's seating position changed multiple times, from sitting, to pacing, to laying, to lounging, to sitting, to walking around in circles. When it came to waiting, he was always alone. When it came to waiting, Itachi always found something better to be doing.

Itachi and Naruto were best friends. They were joined at the hip ever since Sasuke could remember. Sasuke knew that Itachi missed Naruto too, but he hated waiting. Sasuke hated waiting too but he was the younger brother and he didn't get a say in things like that. Growing up as the younger sibling meant that you didn't not do things just because you hated them - that was a luxury saved for the first borns and the only children, such as Itachi and Naruto respectively.

3:45 pm rolled around before Sasuke's hope began to take flight. He stood up, arching his stiff back and looked at the sun waning below the horizon, giving it's last few minutes of light to Konoha. And through the orange sun beams, Sasuke saw a silhouette take shape, making it's way towards the front gates of the village.

Sasuke scrunched his fingers through his thick, tangly hair and down his clammy face. He felt his cheeks flushing despite the bitter nipping of late December wind biting at his nose. His neck was stuffed into a tight, wool turtleneck and he wished there was enough room for his whole head in there. He wanted Naruto to see none of him, along with all of him. His foot tapped and his arms were wrapped around his waist self-consciously.

"Hmm, you were here when I left for my lunch break, Sasuke," he heard the Chunin gate keeper call from behind him. He turned to face the male. "Are you waiting for someone?"

"No," Sasuke lied awkwardly. It was a simple, casual question, but Sasuke felt exposed and uncomfortable and the friendliness made him feel humiliated and undermined. The guy wandered off in a slighted fashion and went back to his post. Sasuke swallowed hard as his clear eyes watched the male climb back into his small, red stall on the side of the gates and resume his position.

The Chunnin was as familiar to Sasuke as a shuriken was, but he didn't know his name. He knew it was either Izumo or Kotetsu, but he could never tell the two apart. He was in his late twenties or early thirties and was the gatekeeper every other day of the week. Other information about him wasn't necessary for Sasuke to know; he was younger, and anyone older than him would see him as a child, not responsible for knowing such extraneous information. Besides, Sasuke hailed from the Uchiha Clan. Everyone knew who he was, and just because he could recognize any of his fellow villagers in a heartbeat didn't mean he knew their name, or was even required to.

Konoha was a small village in a big country, but one of the bigger military villages through the Five Great Nations. It was home to many hierarchies of important clans, and Sasuke had the fortune of being the second born son to the Head of the Uchiha Clan, the top clan in Konoha. His name was credit that got him free food and drinks and recognition throughout the land. The downside to being famous in a small town was that everyone knew your business; he couldn't go grocery shopping with his mother without someone stopping by to say hi, while subtly judging everything in their cart. He couldn't buy clothes without a pack of raging girls giggling and whispering in a stealthy cluster behind him. Everyone knew when his Sharingan activated and that his brother was the pride of the clan. The downside of being famous in a small town was that he was forced to live his life more openly. Who he was waiting for. Who he brushed his hair for. Who he chose to wait four hours for.

He couldn't look at the nearing silhouette. He sat back down on the bench, his back to the front gate. He wanted Naruto to see him first, not the other way around. He had always been like that: he always wanted Naruto to acknowledge him before he acknowledged Naruto. Maybe it was because he never knew where he stood with him. Or maybe it was because he suspected that Naruto already knew he was acknowledged by Sasuke and couldn't care less either way, which startled him. Either way, he didn't want to be the first to say hello this time. He had done the waiting, two years and four hours of waiting in fact, and now he should be met halfway with the greeting. Somehow that seemed like too much to ask of the Uzumaki. He knew that Naruto couldn't care less about being acknowledged by Sasuke, which only fueled the Uchiha's desire to be attended to.

Sasuke heard the footsteps within the front gate of Konoha now. He was well within full eyesight. He could turn his head, and decipher every bit and piece of his long-awaited friend. He could finally remember his face.

-NSNSNSNS-

Naruto dug his hands further and further into his pockets. His jacket was zipped all the way up to his chin, his jaw chattering with gritted teeth under the cold weather. Oh how he was missing the warm Kumogakure air right about now. The moist, heated air breezing through his hair. It was dusk and if he were still in Kumogakure, he'd be getting out of an important meeting right now, heading out to a bar for dinner with his buddy Killer Bee. He would be wearing his jacket around his waist with a fruity beverage in his hand. He forgot that Konoha experienced much harsher winters than Kumogakure did. He was beginning to wonder why he chose to return in December.

The cold air blew at his thickened, ruddy face and he shivered loudly, thinking of Sasuke. He imagined him kicking his heel against the foot of the table the way he used to when they all went out to eat dinner. He pictured him anchoring various hand weapons in his mouth as Naruto would scold him, telling him that one day he's going to accidentally cut up his face like that. He remembered that Sasuke never listened to him. He bet Sasuke still did that, still held kunai and senbon in his mouth instead of his hands. If Sasuke was still Sasuke he did. If Sasuke was still Sasuke, he'd tap his heel against the table at dinner. If Sasuke was still Sasuke, he'd be waiting for him at the front gate, too. If Itachi was still Itachi, he'd be returning home from training by himself, completely unaware that Naruto was even arriving today, despite the fact Naruto wrote him a letter that same morning and used his fastest messenger bird to courier it to him. In a way, he regretted sending the letter. He almost wanted to sneak up on Itachi. He wanted to surprise his best friend because he knew how difficult of a task that was. But he couldn't do that to Sasuke. Not after all of this time apart. Itachi could handle isolation and surprises, but he figured Sasuke would die like that.

The first sight Naruto caught a glimpse of was the Hokage Monument. And then the grand, red, paint-chipped front gates of the village appeared. He always openly complained about how they needed to repaint the gates. In truth, though, he would've been mad if someone had done that while he was away. It was a landmark in his memories. He had been picturing those old gates every night for the whole week before his return. Had that landmark been altered, Naruto would have been very upset - near-heartbroken, although secretly.

The sweeter, more personal view of the village took shape and buildings and awnings and trees began to take shape. Luckily, there was no snow on the ground. Going from the tropical Kumogakure weather to snow would have been too drastic of a change for him and he would have fled on sight. Nonetheless, he saw no snow in his path.

The shapes of the buildings and the gates and the trees began to look more clearly. He felt the cold sweet of his armpits and he scrunched up his shoulders, knitting his lumpy, old backpack onto his back for support.

Naruto instantly began scanning the faces of everyone near the gate. He saw Kotetsu settling into the gatekeeper box and he saw a few passersby, all recognizable, but nameless all the same. He tried not to scrutinize too carefully on any individual - could his hair look like that now? Would Sasuke have gotten that tall? Could his shape have morphed into that? No, he hoped, although his more rational side said it was an obvious no. Naruto realized he was within the gates now and his feet came to a cessation. He hadn't given himself the O.K to halt movement, but it happened instinctively.

"Well, well, well," he heard Kotetsu say coyly. "Look who's back." Naruto smiled deviously and waved. His last going-away party was at Kotetsu's apartment. Not much was to be remembered, but enough was remembered to bind them together in a forever-type of "don't ask, don't tell" kind of friendship.

Naruto took a few steps forward to get away from Kotetsu. As friendly as they were, he didn't feel like talking to him right now. He saw more faces, but none of them being the face he wanted to see. And then from the distance he was at, he noticed the curled up posture of someone sitting with their back turned to him. Naruto had half a mind to pretend he didn't see him and walk past him out of a spasmodic fear.

What if he was different now? What if Naruto couldn't keep the same idea of Sasuke anymore? What if he had changed? Well, no, he couldn't just walk by him. As much as he would have loved to, he knew that his body wouldn't let him walk any further than where he was sitting. And as he felt his feet make way, an overload of memories came rushing back in, warming his thawed limbs and allowing in tingling feelings that he would have preferred to keep out.

"Hey, you."

Sasuke hugged him out of a need to not look at him any longer. He tried thinking of a time they hugged before then, but he couldn't. The two separated quickly and Sasuke wondered if Naruto could feel his heart pounding.

They started walking back into the main streets of the village. Sasuke studied Naruto's rosy nose and cheeks from his profile. He was bundled up in a thick coat and even put socks on, which was unheard of for ninja, especially Naruto, who'd generally wear shorts and a t-shirt up until November. Sasuke was wearing a simple dark gray pull over that hid an amused smile; it was clear Naruto wasn't used to winter anymore, as this had been the warmest winter Konoha had experienced in almost a decade. He wanted to taunt him affectionately for it, but did they do things like that anymore? He refrained, not knowing the answer. Had Naruto tried doing it to him, he would have been mortified. Naruto used to tease him relentlessly when they were children, but if he did it now, Sasuke would die.

"That's all you packed for two years?" he asked suddenly, eyeing the simple backpack Naruto was carrying.

"This is it," he said. He wanted to look over and scan Sasuke's face for new differences, but he was staring at him so he couldn't. He couldn't shake the feeling. What was wrong with him? It was just Sasuke. Nothing new, and yet, nothing the same, either. He was a completely familiar stranger, more personal than the back of his hand and yet farther away than Kumogakure was to him right now.

"You pack light then," Sasuke found himself saying.

"Yep."

Sasuke and he continued walking. The Uchiha wanted to give him the cold shoulder and seem more detached as punishment for him leaving for so long. How could he just go away like that? For two years? Did he think of Sasuke at all? He had spent the past two years angry that Naruto wasn't there, but now that the blonde was walking beside him, he couldn't find a bitter bone in his body. Sasuke had spent those few hours waiting, planning what he would say and what he would do. He wanted to appear grown up and unattainable. Now that Naruto was here, however, nothing could come to pass.

On their walk, they had passed Naruto's apartment. But they didn't stop. They walked through the market of Konoha. Sasuke kept his head down, knowing if he looked up he would have seen numerous known faces, all wanting to pull him aside and ask him how his day has been. Did these people recognize Naruto, too? As son of the late Fourth Hokage, he was just as much - if not more - well-known and loved by the villagers than Sasuke was as an Uchiha. But he was tan from the heavy, warm Kumogakure sun and wore a bristly five o'clock shadow on his covered-up, cold face. Maybe they didn't see enough of him to recognize.

Sasuke and Naruto wasted no time heading to the training fields. When they made it to the path leading up to the fenced in Field #4, Naruto dropped his backpack and stopped at the gateway in. He surveyed the surface area of the field before him, Sasuke trailing behind him. He had snatched his backpack up from the messy spot he left it, and placed it on the side of the fence so it wasn't in the way. He watched as Naruto raced into the training field. Sasuke stood at the gate with his hands in his pockets and watched.

Itachi had his back to him and was in a straight-laced stance. Sasuke could tell he was developing the same genjutsu he had been working on for days now. He knew that if anyone were to interrupt Itachi as he trained, they'd be met with defiance and a pair of Sharingan. But Naruto didn't care. Naruto wasn't afraid of Itachi's eyes.

Naruto ran up behind him and leapt up into the air. Before Itachi could turn around he shot down to the ground beside him, locking his arm around Itachi's shoulder with momentum dragging Itachi down to the ground with him.

"Hey buddy," he wrestled Itachi playfully before Itachi shoved him away, getting onto his knees.

"I was busy!" he shouted. "Asshole." Naruto sat on his legs waiting for Itachi's frown to turn into a face of approval. After a few seconds of being angry, Itachi grinned widely at his best friend and wrestled him down to the ground and lightly punched him in the jaw before leaping up to his feet.

Sasuke watched from a distance as the two friends reunited lovingly, beating each other up just as they did when they were six and ten and fourteen and twenty and, now, twenty-five. Five years younger, Sasuke looked on, wishing it was that easy for him to greet Naruto. That comfortable, carefree relationship his elder brother had with Naruto was missing from his relationship with the Uzumaki. It seemed as though Naruto believed that the more distance between he and Sasuke, the closer they were. It was the opposite of what he felt when he was with Itachi, whom he missed dearly and wrote to often while he was away for two years. He wrote to Sasuke too, but never in as much depth. Fortuntately, Itachi was the glue that bound them together.

Naruto leapt up onto his feet and was dragged back down instantly. It seemed as though their playful fighting turned into a true sparring match and the two shin obi bounced back a few feet from one another, weapons at the ready.

"Please don't kill one another his first day back," Sasuke complained loudly. His concerns fell on deaf ears, however, as Naruto whipped out his notorious Rasengan and charged at Itachi with full force. Itachi quickly maneuvered around the attack and sent crows flying towards Naruto in the forms of whirling shuriken. Naruto leapt up into the air and dodged the genjutsu front, landing on the ground like a dog. Itachi laughed at his stupid stance and looked over his shoulder at Sasuke.

"I guess Naruto's back!" he said with a smile.

Aaaaand Chapter One is DONE! Woohoo!

Well, as some of you may know, this is my second fanfic on this website right after Fate's Palette (another NS story) that I'm a few chapters away from finishing up. If you'd like to check it out here's the link that one:

s/10117898/1/Fate-s-Palette

Anyway, I'm very excited about this new fanfic I'm working on and I hope you all are too! Please interact with me and talk to me and let know what you like and dislike; your feedback, no matter how simple or intricate it may be, really does make my day.

Having said that, please review!

See you next time! :)