Summary: Set in the Shippuuden except Naruto is a bit older. Sasuke still isn't back and it's been getting harder and harder to force his mask into fooling the others. Will an S class mission change everything? Or are the severed bonds frayed too thin already..?

Pairings: SasuNaru One sided GaaNaru/SaiNaru

Warnings: Yaoi people turn back now if you don't like!! Mentions of Suicide attempts, and cutting

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, if I did Sasuke would have taken Naruto to sound with him xD, or Gaara would have ravished Naru-chan too death!

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The sky was a mixture of grey and navy swirling together in stew of angry rain clouds that painted across the evening dusk of Konoha hidden village of the leaf.

Shop keepers were sweeping away the last bits of dust on they're doorsteps, flipping over the open sign to closed. While the few children outside were herded toward they're houses by doting mothers and protective fathers or siblings.

Soft pit pats of rain began to drizzle down upon the remaining people outdoors driving them under awnings. Well except for one, a lone teenage boy, roughly around the age of seventeen.

Adorning his head were thick tendrils of spun gold tresses dampening with the collecting water droplets that fell. Being born with an olive tan skin color that had accents of goldish brown he was a sight to behold. He was known for wearing extremely bright colored outfits, and pulling pranks around the village.

On first glance you wouldn't expect to find out that this smiling happy faced teen had a bakamono curled inside his belly. A youkai who slew countless and held no sympathy or mercy for humanity in anyway.

Even looking at the poor boy a second time would you even think to look past his forced smile that never reaches his sapphire orbs? No I wouldn't think you would.

Thoroughly drenched, his thin hands stuffed within his orange and black pockets Naruto walked silently down the now deserted street. A foxy smile did not touch his lips; no cheerful laugh escaped him. He didn't have the strength to fake it at the moment.

Thunder claps rocked the clouds over head making the lightning try even harder to dance after the booming crackles. It didn't really matter where he ended up as long as he was numb by the time he got there.

I mean did he really have anything to look forward to? Missions were just distractions of the obvious, that when he got home there would be no, "Okaeri-Nasai Naruto!" No gentle hugs or kisses showing him he was loved or missed in his absence.

His sapphire eyes watched as toad hopped across the path in front of him. A bitter smile quirked his chapped lips upward in the ghost of a happy reaction. He always preached to people about his precious people. But secretly, he knew that it was useless to grasp so tightly at the people who seemed to show any interest in his wellbeing.

Who was he kidding, he couldn't even hold onto his most precious person. What right did he have now to look at everything so enthusiastically?

Smiles became harder to force, and laughter was even harder to accomplish. He looked up at the now glowering glitter of the black clouds and repeated icy raindrops that flew down at him in the hundreds.

If anyone were to see him, they would perhaps even be curious if it were just the rain or real tears spilling down his tanned whiskered cheeks. Is it even worth it anymore he wondered…

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Translations:

Bakamono: Monster

Youkai: Demon

Okaeri-Nasai: Welcome Home