A/N: Welcome to another new story! It's been so long that I'm not too sure what this really feels like anymore- though hopefully I'll have the willpower to keep this rolling with frequent updates. Reviews would really help with that motivation -wink wonk-

This will initially start out as a SasuNaru/NaruSasu story. However, I am playing around with the idea of making it into an ItaNaruSasu threesome, if that appeals to anyone. Yes, that will mean Uchihacest at some point down the road if it's voted in favor. For now, please enjoy the first chapter!

Disclaimer:I do not own the Naruto franchise. Please refrain from suing me for my pocket lint.

The title of his newest creation was 'Darkness'. Not that there was any other appropriate name for a bunch of raw graphite lines zig zagging and squiggling on a page in a random fashion. His marks had been hard and angry, no doubt leaving indents in the page below the one he had been hating on so profusely. The artist let out an exasperated sigh, his hands running through blonde locks with almost as much anger as they had on the page below him.

Four years it had been, since he signed his soul away. Since he lost all sense of independence in himself. He had spent the past ten years before that being nothing but independent, fighting his way through school and proudly working to make it all on his own. Sure, he had friends. He had a guardian to take care of him after his parents died in a freak car accident at just the young age of ten years old. But he just knew things wouldn't get done unless he did them himself.

Dull blue eyes looked up at a picture frame that hung in his little office. Oh, how he remembered the day well. It hadn't always been like this, oh no. They had at one point been happy. He liked to think that in some ways, they still were. But it hadn't been the same, not in a long time.

"Do you, Sakura Haruno, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

"Of course I do!"

Naruto snorted. She had always been enthusiastic, perhaps to the point of being over the top. But that was what he loved about her. Aside from the occasional thwack on the head, she was practically his best friend, and some days he wouldn't have it any other way. But this particular day wasn't one of them.

"Naruto, you're pathetic! I can't believe I'm actually married to you!" Came the echo of words that were spoken only hours prior. He knew she had every right to be upset at him, yet it still stung like a bitch. Somehow, somewhere along the way of this magical ride called marriage, Naruto had landed himself in a deep depression.

He had to wonder when exactly his slow yet steady descent started. It could have easily been when he had quit his job at the ramen shop to follow his passion in art. Sakura was making plenty of money by that point to keep them afloat for a while, working as a registered nurse. Between Naruto's lack of income and their combined spending habits, it wasn't long until they were in a financial crunch, which only aided in the strain on their relationship.

No, Naruto knew better. His descent had started much earlier, showing in the form of his artwork dulling in comparison to his works from high school. He would argue that his descent started before they had even gotten married.

Particularly, in the beginning. Naruto had always tossed around the thought of whether or not he was going to wait until marriage to do the deed, and oh he had wanted Sakura so badly back then. She felt that she needed to wait though, if nothing else for her very religious family. Naruto decided to let her have her wish, and they waited. He frowned when he remembered how painful and awkward the first time had been for both of them, and ever since there had been an obvious wall when it came to anything revolving around sex.

He would argue even still that his depression started even earlier than that. Maybe it was because he never truly had the opportunity to mourn over his parents before he was thrusted back into reality. Or maybe it was because of something more trivial, like graduating high school and not having any sort of direction to go from there.

Truthfully, it didn't matter. By that point it was as if he had completely given up on everything, handing it all over to Sakura on a silver platter for her to take care of. He absolutely hated how powerless he felt; with no job and no family aside from her he felt as though everything he had revolved around her. It wasn't right. It was tearing on what little fibers of their relationship still remained.

'Darkness' seemed to be an appropriate thing to draw in this hour of pure hopelessness.

His pink-haired wife would likely be gone until late into the night, leaving Naruto to do as he pleased, which wasn't much. There were clothes scattered all around the floor, laundry screaming that it needed to be done. The trash needed to be taken out and the dishes were piled seemingly to the ceiling, but the thought of it all only served to overwhelm the blonde even more.

He let out a low growl and crumbled up the piece of paper angrily. He hadn't even wanted to draw that much, but he forced himself to try. He needed to do something. He wanted to change his life, to make the horrible feelings go away, and to hopefully fix his frail relationship with Sakura. He just didn't know how.

Staying in the house was only bound to make it worse.

The blonde grit his teeth. He didn't want to go outside, feeling the awkward gazes of strangers. He had put on some weight and gotten pale due to staying inside most of the time, among a myriad of other self-image problems he saw within himself. He had scars on his face and his hair was always disheveled, sleepless nights noticeable by the bags under his eyes. He knew that in reality it wasn't as bad as what he believed it to be in his head, but it was still enough to give him more than a little social anxiety.

With a breath, Naruto got up off the floor and grabbed his keys before he could even give himself time to think any more of it. Staying inside was only going to make him feel more miserable. With that in mind he grabbed his discarded sketchpad and a few pencils, dropped them carelessly into his bag and walked out the door of the shared apartment.

He regretted it almost immediately after shutting and locking the door behind him, feeling more open and exposed than he wished to be. It only helped to confirm what he already knew though as he briskly walked down the two flights of stairs their apartment had to get to the main road.

Naruto had a problem. A big problem.

A problem that would never be solved cooped up inside his house, so away he went. He wasn't exactly sure where he was going nor where he would stop, but anywhere was better than there for the time being.

He fished around in his bag for Gama-chan, pulling out the toad shape wallet and counted the cash that he had. There was enough in there for a bus fare, and everything else could be paid for on his credit card if the need became apparent. He bit his lip and shoved the wallet back in his bag after pulling out a couple of bucks for the bus. This trip was supposed to be for inspiration for his well-being, not inspiration for something that would only make him happy in the moment.

There was a bus stop conveniently located near his apartment complex, so he walked to it. He knew the route that the bus took pretty well, but with no actual place in mind to stop he figured he would just see how far he went that day. For all he knew, he would just ride around on the bus a couple of times before walking home, though he figured that would defeat the purpose.

"You never get anything done around here! I can't do this on my own anymore!"

Yet another memory from a few hours in the past. No, Naruto needed to stop somewhere, anywhere that might give him a sense of purpose.

The bus came to a screeching halt in front of him, the large vehicle lowering to make it easy for him to walk on in. He sucked in a breath of air and fed the money to the machine, taking his ticket that the machine spat out before nodding to the driver politely. Instead of opting to sit in the very back like he normally would, he forced himself to sit in one of the middle seats by the window, casually looking for a place that stuck out to him.

Idly, he fiddled with the phone and earbuds in his pocket. Part of him wanted to check to see if Sakura had sent him any messages- not that he had been expecting it. Mostly he was just looking for an excuse to drown himself in something, be it music or some form of social media. He resisted the urge though, baby blue eyes that matched the clear skies outside trained on the buildings passing by.

He had almost given up as they pulled into the third to final stop of the route. He sighed and furrowed his blonde brows in exasperation, looking twice as hard as before. In the distance was a tan building that didn't particularly stick out in any particular way, save for the red sign with black swirls adorning the front. Naruto blinked, reading the sign to himself silently. Amaterasu café.

It was a cheesy name, there was no doubt about that. He supposed that it added to the charm the little place seemed to have, and it was definitely something far from a regular Starbucks. Thinking the place to be as good as any, Naruto pulled the thin yellow cord, signaling his desire to exit the bus at the next stop. He had a bit to walk since technically the café was closer to the last stop he had been at, but Naruto didn't mind.

It only took around fifteen minutes more for him to walk the rest of the way, an elegant pair of red Spanish doors in front of him. He almost lost his nerve to go in, but with a shaky hand he managed to pull the door open.

Again, he immediately regretted his decision. It was obvious right away that the place was fancy- fancier than what he probably had the money for. Sure it was small, but the place was well furnished. There were rosewood round tables and matching chairs lining the floor in an elegant and tactful manner, the floor below him only a few shades lighter in contrast. Each table had its own mini chandelier, the light surrounded by red glass which gave it a more modern feel to it. Along the lone wall that had no windows was a row of booths instead of tables, rows of charging stations sticking out casually for anyone who wanted to sit and work.

One of the oddest differences though was the lack of a cash register and large menu board. Instead there was a simple sign by the door with equally simple instructions. 'Please seat yourself.' It said, and with a shrug the travelling blonde did just that.

"Just get out! Get out, get out!"

Sakura's cries had cut deep into him, making his frown worsen as he remembered more and more of their argument. Sure, he had defended himself like anyone would, but he had also tried to tell her that she had been right. He just didn't feel like he could change on his own anymore, and part of him wondered if she even cared enough to try and help him through this. He brushed the idea aside and finally took a seat in one of the booths, finally feeling satisfied enough to pull out the device in his pocket. He wasn't shocked to see there were no messages.

"What can I get you?" Came a powerful voice that made Naruto visibly jump and slam down his phone on the square table in front of him. He looked up at the intruder only to find a dark, slender eyebrow cocked in partial question and amusement. Naruto swallowed thickly, trying to pelt down the urge to just run away from the far too gorgeous man in front of him and back home to his comfort zone. Wait- where the hell did that thought come from?

"E-erm I dunno what you guys serve here." Naruto said lamely, frown still on his face as he shifted uncomfortably under the waiter's gaze. Somehow Naruto had managed to see even more amusement flicker through extremely dark orbs.

"Well this is a café. I hope that you're smart enough to know that means we serve coffee." The waiter said, and Naruto's frown turned into more of a thin line of annoyance, wondering briefly if it was going to win out over his social anxiety. Unfortunately, it didn't.

"Coffee it is, then. Whatever you have with a lot of sugar." Naruto said, turning his attention back to the little device in his hands. He tried to ignore the other man's presence, who seemed to be looking for some kind of other response from the blonde that never came.

Eventually the waiter let out a noise that sounded strangely like a 'hn', the sound of feet treading off being music to Naruto's ears. It was better if he was left alone to his thoughts, left alone in his own little world where nobody could touch him.

"You really think I care about what happens to you!?"

Naruto gritted his teeth and put away his phone, opting to pull out his sketchbook instead. No, he wasn't there so that he could hide away inside of a machine. He was there for change, and change meant finding a muse or making a friend. Anything that could change the way his life was heading in that moment.

He tapped the pencil against the paper with almost an equal frustration to the one he had that morning. There was nothing that he really felt like drawing in his current view, and even the smell of the coffee shop wasn't enough to set his mind ablaze. He sighed and started drawing as he had that morning, deciding to form ovals instead of jagged lines this time. Perhaps it would eventually turn into something once the piping hot cup of java was sitting in front of his nose.

"One cup of sugar with a shot of coffee, as requested." The voice from earlier said, which thankfully didn't shock Naruto a second time. He looked over from the paper to the coffee, which was thankfully what looked like a chocolate Frappuccino in a pretty glass instead of an actual cup of sugar with a splash of coffee on top. Somehow, he didn't put it past the well-dressed waiter to pull some sort of shit like that.

"Are you always this charming?" Naruto deadpanned, taking a sip of the sugary drink nonetheless. He took the time to take in what the server was wearing, eyeing him up and down in partial suspicion. He had on a black bowtie with a matching vest, clean white button up underneath with long sleeves. He also wore black slacks and a white apron covering down to his knees, and if the outfit wasn't ridiculous enough he had a silver platter wedged between his soft-looking fingers.

"Only to cute, distressed looking customers." The man answered, causing Naruto's eye to twitch as he looked back down at the drawing, sucking down his drink quickly through the straw provided as he began coloring in circles he made inside of the ovals. They had to be eyes.

"In case you didn't notice, I'm a man. A married man, and men are not 'cute'." He said with a huff. He just wanted to get his muse and be done with it, but it didn't look like fate was going to let him have his way that easily.

He hadn't expected the waiter to actually take the seat in front of him, much less as casually as he did. Blue orbs looked up to see onyx ones, somehow now portraying a mixture of boredom and curiosity in those deep pools of ink he had.

"Fine, handsome then. Sorry I offended your miserable ass." He said, his tone more bored then actually apprehensive.

"So, what's got you down anyway? Kinda surprised that a dobe like you would be here alone and miserable if you're married." He asked, and Naruto ended up bouncing his pen against the paper in aggravation. He dared to look up at those dark orbs, his own blue ones practically overflowing with irritation at the man.

"That's none of your damn business. Don't you have a job to do or somethin'?" He said, finally getting riled up enough to snap. It was at that point he saw the orbs change again, back to the amusement that had been there when he first sat down at the table.

"Not really. You came in during the slowest part of the day, and everything else that needed to get done is done. So all I have left is to let you entertain me." He said with a smug smirk, his hand slipping off of his pale cheek to land silently on the table as he leaned in to see Naruto's drawing.

"Looks pretty good. Though you might just be good at eyes and bad at everything else." He said, further riling up the blonde he was seated in front of. Said blonde finished his drink, clinking the glass down on the table a bit harshly before pulling out his wallet, practically chucking a little silver card at the intruder.

"Just hurry up and ring up my drink bastard so I can leave!" Naruto shouted, closing his sketchbook and stuffed it in his bag as he grumbled to himself.

"Hn. Naruto Uzumaki, huh?" The waiter asked, seemingly unfazed by Naruto's little outburst as he moved to get up, leaving the frustrated patron.

He felt extremely stupid for coming out here. What was he thinking, that things would magically change for him if he made the effort? Yeah right. That's not how reality works.

The waiter came back and placed the card and the receipt on the table in front of him faced down. Naruto didn't give him the satisfaction of looking up to meet his smug face. "Name's Sasuke by the way, not bastard. Come back anytime." He said, turning with a little wave before leaving towards what had to be the kitchen. Naruto sighed and took his card and receipt.

He was stuffing the card back in his froggy wallet and was about to crumple up the stupid thin paper when he noticed a note scrawled out on the bottom. The blonde set down his wallet and squinted his eyes at the out-of-place note written in ink pen.

Cheer up, Dobe.

This one is on me.

Naruto blinked, check the card number on the receipt. Sure enough it was something different than the one on his own card. The absolute irritation he felt for the man almost instantly melted away. Not that he would allow himself to try and approach the man about it, opting to leave out the door he came in not even twenty minutes ago.

Sasuke, huh.

He shuffled rather slowly back to the bus stop, not all that thrilled to head back to the comfort of his apartment anymore. He let his thoughts wander to the waiter thoughtfully.

Sure, he was a bastard, that was something that Naruto was positive of. But he had been nothing but genuine to him, and in some strange way the blonde found it comforting. He couldn't remember the last time he allowed himself to be so open with a total stranger. Far too long, that's for sure.

He flashed the little ticket he'd gotten from the previous bus ride and sat down near the front, eager to pull out his sketchbook. He may not have realized it at the time, but he knew then that he had been drawing specific eyes at the time. Sasuke's eyes.

He opened the book and frowned at what he saw. They were lifeless, not at all like the amusement he saw in those perfect ink orbs. Shoving out the fact that he had just mentally called a stranger- a male stranger's- eyes perfect, he pulled out his graphite pencil and began to redo them from memory. A small smile formed on his face at the gleaming amusement staring back at him once he was done, grateful that he still had a ways to go before he hit his bus stop.

His cell phone went off and he fished it out of his pocket, his small smile becoming just a little brighter.

"Hey Sakura." He said into the receiver, glad that his wife had taken the time to call him during her break. It was a rare occurrence for her to talk to her at all after a fight where she had to work after.

"Hey. Naruto, I'm really sorry about earlier. I said some really nasty stuff." She told him over the phone. Vaguely the blonde wondered when her verbal abuse from earlier had stopped bothering him, but it didn't matter. He was just happy that they were talking. Absentmindedly he started filling out a face to go with the eyes in front of him, the bus jolting only somehow adding to the picture he had in mind.

"Nah, don't worry about it. You're right, I need to figure stuff out." He said in agreement, shading in what had to be dark hair that almost rivaled the darkness of the amused eyes. Naruto took extra care in making sure the long bangs framed the face in front of him, hair spiking out in the back. Naturally the lips he had drawn were in the shape of a smug smirk.

He continued to talk to Sakura until he was almost home, pulling on the cord absentmindedly as the view outside became more familiar.

"Are you actually outside?" Sakura asked, the shock in her voice evident.

"Yeah, but I'm almost home. Just had to go clear my mind a bit. I'll see ya tonight baby." He told her, clicking the red button on his phone and looked down at his work with pride. He didn't consider it much, but it was more than what he'd managed in a long time.

He decided to title the piece 'Darkness'.