I dont own Naruto! Start!
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So after all's said and done, the only thing missing is the reason for this set up, the man of the party himself, Naruto. As usual, he's late to report in, some things will never change even for the future Hokage.
Sasuke rolled his eyes; sometimes he questioned how he's next in line to run the whole village. Dope.
'Is he back yet?' Sasuke turned to look at the pink haired speaker, a friend and teammate of both his and Naruto's, she was doing a last one over for the party.
"No, not yet"
"That idiot, he better hurry up!"
Sasuke turned away and headed out of the ramen shop. He started towards the gate to the village, thinking to see if he was on his way in.
Arriving at the gate, he stood there a minute. The guard waved at him. Curious, he walked over.
"What you doing away from the party? Bored already?" the guard asked
"Hn, Naruto is late."
"He hasn't shown up yet? He's been in the village for almost an hour! Does he know to go to Ichiraku?"
"He's back?" why didn't he come to the shop? I told him I'd treat him to ramen the moment he came back. Naruto never passes up free ramen.
"yea, like I said, about an hour ago, he was in a -"
"Which way?"
"uh, home? He was running that-."
Sasuke was already walking away, well more like fast walking.
'That Usuratonkachi, what's going on? He never passes a chance to blow up the village with the shouts of being back. Maybe he's hurt. Did he fail his mission? He's not one to mope about it though...'
By then Sasuke had arrived at Naruto rundown apt. The sun was low in the sky but there where no lights on in the windows.
'Did he already leave for the party? That dope, if I wasted all this time searching for him I'm going to chidori him all the way to Fire country.'
He walked up the porch an knocked on the faded, chipped door.
No answer. He knocked again, harder.
"Dope! You there?"
He heard shuffling on the other side of the door.
"Sasuke?"
Something definitely wasn't right; Naruto never spoke in such a broken voice.
"Open up Dope"
Sasuke listened to the chain lock be pulled back and watched as a mop of blonde peeked abound the frame of the cracked door.
He wasn't ready for what he saw.
Naruto looked half dead. His usually bright gold hair was faded and messier then normal. His sun bronzed skin had lost its glow.
"Hey Sasuke"
Even his voice sounded worn.
"Usuratonkachi, what happened?"
"what do you mean? I'm fine, just tried is all" Naruto try a smile, it came out more of a grimiest.
"don't lie to me dope. You could be on your death bed and still drag yourself to get ramen. Now what's really wrong?"
Finally Naruto showed a spark of himself. Sasuke knew that if he poked him enough he couldn't hold back the need to fight with him.
"Damn it Sasuke! I said I'm fine! Can't you just leave me alone? I just-"
He died back down with a sigh. "Tell everyone I'm sorry I can't come, maybe we can do it tomorrow, I'm turning in early." He pulled back and started to close the door but a hand shot out and pushed it hard, knocking it back open.
"Sasuke! I said I-"
"Shut up Naruto."
Using his real name made him do just that. Sasuke walked passed him and into his kitchen. Confused, Naruto shut and locked the door then followed.
As he walked towards the kitchen, he heard cupboards and pots slam. Looking in, he saw Sasuke putting ramen on the counter.
Without turning around Sasuke said
"I'm guessing you haven't eaten yet"
"no, guess I forgot" Naruto mumbled with a weary smile, scratching his head as his stomach rumbled at the idea of food.
"Can't even listen to your own body..." The dark haired boy mumbled as he put the pot on the stove.
"Shut up bastard."
After 5 minutes, Sasuke put a bowl in front of Naruto and sat down with his own. As he started to eat he studied his blond companion. So much was not right about him. He's normal lack of table manners were nowhere to be found and he was picking at him ramen when he'd usually be inhaling it. It much have been a really bad mission to shake him up this much.
What the hell happened?
"So, how'd your mission go?"
Naruto flinched. Sasuke, ever straight to the point.
"Was a success." He piled a mountain of ramen into his mouth in hopes of not being asked another question about it.
"And?" Of course that wouldn't stop Sasuke...
"And what?"
"What happened idiot." Not even a question; it was a demand to know.
"Can you just leave it alone?! I obviously don't want to talk to you about it!" If avoiding the answer didn't work, maybe throwing a fit would.
"I'm tired and I don't want to be fucking hassled right when I finally get home! Leave me alone!" with that, Naruto smacked him chopsticks onto the table, got up and stormed out of the kitchen.
He got as far as the hallway before he was pushed hard against the wall. "Fucking let go Sasuke!" He struggled but he had pushed up flush against him, pressing him flat against the wall.
"Not till you tell me what happened."
"Why the hell are you pushing this? You don't even care!" Naruto yelled into his face and struggled harder. He could feel the unwelcome sting of hot tears and wanted to get away before Sasuke saw him break.
That smiling face he always wore had been traded for a broken mask and all Sasuke could think was that he had to fix whatever caused Naruto to look so defeated.
"Naruto, I care, or I wouldn't be pushing it." he said it softly, and given his Uchiha pride, it's a surprise he said it at all but when it came to this blond fox, all his self-rules didn't exist.
That was all it took to break the dame. Hot tears poured down his whiskered cheeks and his breath started to come in heaves. He locked his arms around the ravens neck and cried. Sasuke wrapped his arms around the boys waist and after a moment of Naruto hanging his wight on him, lowered them to sit on the floor, Naruto half on his lap, leaning against the wall.
"Shhh, shh, it's ok" the raven said, rubbing soothing patterns on the sobbing boys back and got a hard sob and squeeze in return. He went to move his arms to readjust his legs when Naruto wrapped himself more around him.
"Please, don't let go!" he gasped out before he returned to crying.
"I'm not, Naru, I've got you." And went back to rubbing his back. What the hell got him so bad? And Naru? What the fuck?
They stayed like that till the sobs turned to heaves, then to gasps and shivers.
"You ok?"
He got a nod from the head tucked in his shoulder before he heard the deep breaths of sleep take over.
Saskue sighed and shifted so he could get his feet under himself and pulled Naruto closer as he stood. He got a mumbled grown in protest from his sleeping blond but he didn't wake.
The raven moved further down the hall to the bedroom and laid his snoring passenger on the queen sized bed. He pulled at the arms locked around his neck but Naruto wouldn't let go.
'Stand like this till he wakes up, wake him up, or clime in?' Sasuke went through the options and after what the blond went through, he didn't want to wake him so he nudged him over a little and lay down beside him. Naruto twisted and threw his leg over the ravens' and snuggled into him before settling again.
'Not expecting that...' but he left him alone and closed his eyes.