Beyond the Darkness
Sasuke descends into blindness and refuses Naruto's help. What he doesn't know is that Naruto is always beside him, helping him with the things he does. After all, it's the little things in life that count.
A/N: Just a little short story inspired by the Youtube video Blind Devotion. Set in an AU, where Sasuke and Naruto are teenagers, but none of the war stuff happened, and Sasuke never left the village. They are still ninjas. I hope you enjoy!
Naruto was there when Sasuke began missing the target. He'd throw kunai after kunai alongside the blonde, aiming for the wooden block 50 meters away. He had always been spot-on, hitting the bullseye every time and earning an aggravated groan from Naruto. However, that day he started missing the target completely, the knives falling to the ground some distance behind with a pathetic thud. Sasuke blamed it on his training yesterday.
Naruto was there when Sasuke fell from a tree. The team had been chasing after a small group of bandits through the forest, and the Uchiha misjudged where the next branch was. Kakashi had to pursuit the criminals while Naruto and Sakura helped him to his feet. Sasuke insisted he wasn't feeling well and waved it off.
Naruto was there when the Hokage ordered Sasuke to live with him. He was deemed unfit to live on his own after several instances of trouble with his vision. Though Naruto was silently thankful for her demands, Sasuke argued with her for hours, furious that she would treat him like a child that needed to be watched. His protests were futile as the Hokage threatened punishment for disobedience.
Naruto was there when Sasuke packed up his things. He would stare at things for long periods of time to figure out what they were. He would rub his eyes in frustration as he tried to distinguish the colors of his clothes. He would prick his fingers with the weapons he tried to pack. Naruto tried to help, but Sasuke pushed him away. He blamed it on his fury with the Hokage's orders.
Naruto was there when Sasuke tipped over his glass of water. He had been sitting on the couch, listening to Naruto babble about his previous solo missions, and decided to clear his head with a drink the blonde had brought him. His fingertips knocked the glass to the ground, shattering it to pieces. He cursed and went to pick it up, but Naruto had already beat him to it. He tried to listen to his teammate's speech about how worried he was, but he could only focus on the blinding blur in his vision. For once, he had no excuse to give Naruto.
"Blindness."
The Hokage gave it to him straight. He was an Uchiha after all. They both knew there was no sugarcoating things for him.
"I'm not sure what's causing it, but I believe it is linked with your Sharingan. It must be a disease that manifests from it's use. From what I can tell, it is rapidly progressing, and soon there will be nothing left of your vision."
Sasuke was silent. Any feelings he had about it were masked behind his stoic expression. Uchiha's don't show emotion.
"You will be staying permanently at Naruto's house with him, and will be going through extensive therapy to help you with…" Tsunade continued, but Sasuke zoned out to her, only able to concentrate on what he was just told.
Rapidly progressing blindness… nothing left of my vision….
Naruto will be taking care of me…
The simple idea of the blonde caring for him infuriated him. An Uchiha did not need to be babied. Blind or not, he would do things on his own. He would not be a burden to anyone.
"Hey Sasuke, how did your meeting with Grandma Tsunade go?" Naruto asked as Sasuke stumbled through the door.
He wanted nothing more than to collapse to the ground and sob. He wanted to let out his fears and find comfort in the blonde, but his pride would never allow it.
His emotional mind begged him to tell Naruto about the blinding light in his vision that made him stumble as he walked, or the narrowing vision that caused him to run into an older man on the street.
He said nothing as he made his way to their shared bedroom, which would now be a permanent thing. He heard Naruto calling his name as he walked into the connected bathroom and locked the door behind him. He immediately turned the shower all the way on the hottest it would go, and lowered his head as he slipped off his clothes. He wouldn't be bothered by anyone.
"Sasuke?" He heard Naruto's worried voice from behind the door. He said nothing as he looked back up into the blurry mirror, unable to see the silent tears that rolled down his cheeks.
~ Naruto's POV ~
Sasuke is blind.
It has only been two months since he came to live with me, and a month since he's seen anything. It's been an emotional roller coaster for the two of us, but everything has settled now. We've become closer than ever before, although he still insists on doing everything on his own.
It's always the same with him, too prideful to ask for help with anything. He presses to do everything by himself. He cooks by himself, walks to his therapy lessons by himself, and even trains by himself. He demands I never get in the way of him doing it on his own.
So I do it in secret.
I learned his routine. He wakes up and puts his clothes on the end of the bed and goes to shower. When he comes out he gropes around the bed for his pile of clothes.
Sometimes I push them slightly over in his direction.
Next he always begins making himself breakfast. He usually just makes himself buttered toast in the morning. He reaches around the counters for the food he needs.
Sometimes I nudge the bread towards him.
Therapy lessons began at noon. As my teammate and best friend, I worry about him wandering through the village on his own while blind, so I'd ask if he has everything he needs and yell a goodbye to him as he began to walk. I'd watch him go for a couple seconds before shutting the door.
And I'd follow him all the way there.
The villagers all know of my secret, so no one tells Sasuke about me following him. He'll never know about everything I do for him, but I don't want him to. He doesn't want to feel like a burden, so I take care of him in a way that tells him he'll never be one to me.
And at night, when we lay in bed together, telling each other how our days went, I let him know how much I care about him, hoping one day it will no longer have to be a secret. And although he still denies help, I can always go to bed with a smile on my face, because I know deep down that I will always love and care for him. After all, it's the little things in life that count.
End. Hope you enjoyed, and sorry it feels so short! I tried to make it seem longer but I struggled with it! T_T
If enough people like this enough and I get enough reviews, I might consider making this a two-shot. So please let me know if you enjoyed.
If you liked this, please be sure to check out Blind Devotion by Jubilee Project!
Until next time~
~SasukeUchihasGuardian