A/N – Alright, this is going to be a relatively short multi-chapter story (3 chapters, at most). I was going to make this a one-shot, but I feel like it'll make more sense as a multi-chap… that, and I just really wanted to submit this. :D The pairing is SasuNaru, and I promise there will be some shonen-ai (maybe some – dare I say it? – YAOI) in the next chapter. :D
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Naruto Uzumaki closed his eyes and breathed in the smoke from the cigarette in his hands. Slowly, he exhaled, and his eyes slid lazily open, lips twitching into a relaxed smile around the white cylinder in his mouth. Finally, he thought, I haven't had a chance to unwind in ages…
Lightly clasping the cigarette between his middle and index fingers, the blonde shinobi shifted himself so that he was more comfortably perched on the wooden pole at the training grounds. He looked down at his impromptu seat fondly as he brought the cigarette back up to his lips and continued to inhale and exhale deeply. This is the pole Kakashi-sensei tied me to when I couldn't get a bell from him a few years ago, Naruto thought, reminiscing. Heh, and then Sasuke and Sakura fed me, since I couldn't do it myself! His bright blue eyes, dimmed a bit by nostalgia, glanced up to watch the smoke from his cigarette float up, dancing away in the slight breeze of the crisp autumn day. Closing his eyes once more, Naruto sat, relishing the taste of the nicotine on his tongue, the slight weight of the cigarette in his hand, the gentle rustling of the forest leaves in the caressing breeze. Inhale, exhale. Inhale, exhale… This… this is perfect, Naruto thought. This moment. So peaceful…
Naruto's moment of bliss, however, was interrupted by the sound of a dry orange leaf being crushed underfoot. Quickly, he put out his cigarette, stubbing it against the wood of the training post and then hopping off, sliding the butt into his pocket. He knew that his friends and comrades would not approve of his habit, and had gone to great lengths to try and keep it a secret. Normally it wouldn't be such a problem, a shinobi who smoked – after all, Asuma-sensei had smoked like a chimney and no one had given him too much of a hard time. Then again, Asuma had been an adult. Naruto, however, was still only seventeen; technically, it was illegal for him to smoke in Konoha. With a friendly smile that revealed none of the sudden panic he felt in his gut, Naruto turned to greet the newcomer.
To his surprise, Naruto found himself meeting the shocked stares of Sakura, Sasuke, and Kakashi-sensei. True, he had put his cigarette out quickly, but he could tell by the shocked looks on their faces that he had not reacted fast enough. Damnit! Naruto cursed, I shouldn't have been so careless! Well, I'm still not sure how much they saw, might as well fake innocence for the time being… Smile still in place, Naruto raised his hand in a casual greeting. "Hey there, Sakura-chan, Sasuke-teme, Kakashi-sensei! What's up?"
An uncomfortable silence followed during which Sasuke and Kakashi exchanged wide-eyed looks behind Sakura's back, while the kunoichi continued to stare at Naruto. Sakura was the first of the three to recover from her momentary speechlessness. "What… What's up?" she roared. "What do you mean, WHAT'S UP?"
Fake it, fake it, fake it… Naruto stepped back in response to the aggressively approaching kunoichi, hands held up as if to calm the pink-haired medic-nin down. "Sakura-chan? What's the matter, dattebayo?"
At this, Sakura exploded. "WHAT'S THE MATTER? Are you STUPID OR SOMETHING? WE JUST CAUGHT YOU SMOKING, THAT'S THE MATTER!" she shrieked.
At this accusation, Naruto's cheeks tinged slightly pink. "Wha-wha'd you mean?"
"Tch!" At this, the previously silent Uchiha finally responded. "Don't even deny it, we can smell it on you, Dobe!" Sasuke spat, a look of revulsion crossing his pale features. "You smell like an ashtray!"
"And besides… we've been watching for a while, anyway" Kakashi revealed in a low voice, his one visible eye staring intensely at his former student.
"WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?" Sakura finished, driving her annoyance home with a punch that sent Naruto flying backwards.
After he landed, sprawled out on the leaf-coated grass, Naruto looked up dazedly into the disapproving faces of his three comrades. Sakura's angry glare, Kakashi's frowning eye, and… and Sasuke's condescending, hateful sneer. Naruto blinked hurriedly as tears burned behind his eyelids, threatening to spill over at any second. His head bowed forward, concealing the normally bright and happy face with bright yellow hair. Chuckling emptily under his breath, he looked at the three of them, muttering, "Well wouldn't you like to know…" Before any of them could react, Naruto raced off, leaving only the stale smell of cigarette smoke and a lone tear which landed on Sasuke's cheek in his wake.
With a disbelieving expression on his normally passive face, Sasuke slowly reached up and touched the wetness left on his cheek, almost as if to confirm its existence. Exchanging a confused look with Kakashi and a shocked one with Sakura, Sasuke slowly turned to look in the direction Naruto had run. "Na-Naruto?" he breathed.