Rated: T

Pairing: Hints of SasuNaru here and there.

Genre: Angst/Friendship

Summary: Because, I believe, with all my heart, I'll get him back, one day. Hints of SasuNaru, Prompt challenge.

Unbeta'd & Oneshot

(Prompt challenge by CharlatanQuintessence, prompts will be underlined.)

Wish,

A Prompt Challenge Oneshot,


I will not deny, my favourite time of the day is when the sun sets.

Technically, you would call it a sunset, then, wouldn't you?

Watching different hues of orange, red and yellow, maybe even a bit of vermillion spilling over each other in a fervent attempt to become one, mixing together where one cannot determine a beginning and an end; the simplistic beauty of it.

And sometimes I wonder, how, others would see this scene. Not through my perspective, but their own. I used to ponder over the fact that even he seemed to like this peaceful time of the day. I still remember slinging my arm over his shoulder and laughing, while his face twitched with annoyance. But, I will not say otherwise, he looked flawless as he did that.

Heck, he looked flawless in everything he did.

Does, I mean. Everything he does.

Nah, he's not dead. Only lost in 'darkness', at least that's how Neji puts it. To me, I think he's too wrapped up in revenge and can't even notice how much Konoha misses him. How much the senseis miss him. How much our friends miss him. How much Sakura-chan misses him.

How much I miss him.

Shush, I'm stroking his ego and he doesn't even know it, but I think he can sense it.

Scratch that, he knows it.

The wind is blowing strongly today, and the glows of the sun's rays are bathing my skin in their light. I wonder, quite curiously, if he can see it too, wherever he is right now.

But then a sudden realisation hits me, and I know for a fact he is probably cooped up in some shit place, in the dark, 'training' with that snake pedofag. Right, he's getting stronger, but that doesn't mean I am not!

At least I don't have to resort to weird methods like hiding out from the sun. I mean, have you seen how pale the Sound Village people are? You know why? Because they have this phobia from the sun or something - frankly speaking it's retarded.

If you're afraid of a little sunburn, then put on sunblock!

I mean, obvious thing to do.

In the first place, if you don't have some life threatening disease, then why should you be afraid of the sun? It's the natural light source of the world, according to…wherever I read that from.

Basically, the sun is like one big giant banana that gives off light and nurturing to the whole world. Its yellow, its bright, sometimes it's annoying – no you cannot question the annoying factors of a banana, it just is – but most of the time its' acceptable.

But, I'm getting off topic, apologies.

Don't get me wrong, I still want to punch the heck out of him for leaving and payback for leaving me half dead in the rain at that place. But I want him back more. I want the original Team 7 back, not the freaky-smiling Sai as his 'replacement'.

Truthfully, I'd rather hear him call me dobe a million times then be called dickless. It's insulting, plus, how would he know?

Actually, I'd rather not know.

I don't know what he's thinking. After he kills Itachi, where will he go? Is he planning to kill himself when he kills Itachi as well? So many questions, but only he can answer them, and he's not here - where he belongs - but no, it doesn't matter if I have his headband. His headband is his and will always be his, one day he'll take it back with a grin on his face and say I'm a downright emotional idiot, but instead of yelling at him I'll just laugh.

Because it is true, right? Maybe I really am.

Sakura-chan says I'm tearing myself over and over again looking for him, but I mean, I gotta do what I gotta do to save him. I'll do whatever it takes to get him back.

A sparrow flies overhead, wings dipped in the essence of clouds and swirling them around in the sky. Does he know what he's missing? To spend so long, cooped up in darkness, has he forgotten the feeling of freedom?

I don't know what he's thinking. So what if Itachi killed his whole family. He must have had his reasons, right? In the end they are still brothers, still family. He's the only one Sasuke has left.

And his goal is to kill him.

At least the teme had a family. I never had one. Always saw those on the streets, but never had any to call my own.

But right now, it's enough to have friends and teachers who accept me for who I am, they are my family now.

I understand his anger. His older brother killed his whole family. He has a reason to be angry. But what I don't understand is why they can't just talk it out. Then again, the Uchiha I know is mostly moody and quiet most of the time.

I used to know, at any rate.

You may think I feel hatred towards Itachi. But I don't. I'm only curious as to why he left him alive. Why torment him like that? Sure, I'm grateful he is still alive, but I can imagine the pain he went through. Still goes through.

He probably hasn't changed much. Grew taller, grew handsomer according to Sakura-chan. Is it some new fashion to fall for every guy who has pale skin, pineapple spiky hair and onyx eyes? Oh, let's not forget the fact that the guy leaves his village behind, causes a fellow teammate to cry her eyes out and almost kills his 'so-called' best friend.

Handsome my bloody foot – I'd beat him any day, regardless of what others say.

No, I do not have an obsession with the asshole.

Sai can say whatever he wants, but I won't listen. I just want him back, where he belongs. Is that such a crime?

I think he's insane really, taking pride in the fact that he looks so much like him.

But here's the thing, he can never replace him in my heart. I don't know what Sakura-chan thinks, but this is what I think, no, trust in.

To me, he's not some tragedy soaked prodigy.

I mean, everyone has their own fair share of sadness and misery, but it's what you make of the situation that puts you in control.

People didn't like me, didn't notice me.

I made them notice me. They came to like me of their own accord.

He's just him, stuck up proud idiot and all.

So others don't carry the Uchiha name, are we all so beyond hope?

No, we're not.

He's a puzzle I cannot really solve. Maybe I don't want to solve it in the first place. Sometimes I feel like all is hopeless, like I can never get him back, and he'll soon become pedofag's pet and after that, new vessel. Why am I literally killing myself over him?

Because he's like a brother to me, I need his acceptance, want it, heck, I crave it.

He's the person who's opinions matter most to me.

I'm not in love with him, not that way. I mean, I like Sakura-chan! Duh.

I love him as you would a close brother. Sure, we look nothing alike. Heck, we behave like opposite ends of a scale. I'm loud and totally optimistic. He, on the other hand, is quiet and totally pessimistic. Oh, I have to defeat my brother, oh, I'll sell my soul to the devil if I have to just to defeat my brother, oh, and Naruto is such a loser.

Despite all that, I'd give anything just to have him back here.

He can leave the pessimism behind though. No one really likes it.

I could lie and say I hate him. Most people would assume after getting beaten up and left for the almost dead, you'd think that all hatred would come in and be directed towards the former best friend. That's not the case for me. I tried to get him back; I failed because I was too weak. He was stronger, so he won and left.

It's my fault he was able to leave, I know. I broke the promise I made with Sakura-chan.

If this was some office duty I had to do and Sakura-chan was my boss, she would have fired me from the company long ago. I know how much he means a lot to her. Probably the half of her whole world, I'm the other half.

Okay, so I'm joking. But maybe I'm not. Ever since that idiot left us – no, abandoned us for that…thing – we've become closer. She keeps telling me not to over exert myself, and I see it in her eyes. Hope and admiration, pity even. I'm not that dense. She hates me getting hurt just because of him. She hates it that she used to be so useless and not be able to do anything.

She's changed, I've changed, so it's safe to assume he has changed as well.

We're Team 7, the original Team 7, and we'll always be Team 7. Even if he changes his name to something stupid like' Vegas Baby!', he'll still be him, still be an annoying downright stuck up brat of a brother to me. No one's going to take away those memories of the old days from me. We'll just make new ones when he returns, and maybe Sai can come along if he keeps his mouth shut.

Sai looks like him my foot. He's much cuter and more handsome.

But I never said that. It's only common knowledge.

I still have his headband. Actually, I carry it around with me almost everywhere I go. It's a reminder of him, and a reminder to me that I must try my best, work harder and harder so I can get him back. I've tried to fix the metal back to its original form. It's not supposed to be scratched like that as if he's a missing nin, because he's not. He's just…temporarily lost in darkness.

He's not a missing nin, he's not hated and he's definitely not not welcomed back here if he ever chooses to return of his own accord. Of course, that's just wishful thinking on my part.

He won't return without a fight, and I will fight him. This time I'll definitely win too, when the time comes. Then the great Uchiha prodigy will bow down before the awesome Uzumaki Naruto and beg for forgiveness! In my dreams, though. Knowing his pride, he won't do it. He'll probably just start twitching an eyebrow and reluctantly agree that he lost.

However, I'll take pity on him and just make him buy pork ramen. As many bowls as I want. Then it'll be like old times again, me eating, him shaking his head and rolling his eyes as he eats a tomato with grace (how he manages that, I don't know) and Sakura-chan smiling as she watches me eat.

The bonds are still there, I can feel it.

After all, if he's a puzzle, I'm the key to unlock him.

Right, Sasuke?

"To connect hearts, your feelings are understood by someone else, and that person's feelings reach you as well.

If you focus on it really hard, one day...One day it's sure to connect.

Then that person you're thinking about, will know where home is."

AN: CQ suddenly came up with this, so I owe her. Go read her story, it is brilliance. I know, Taken & Sleep are taking forever to come out, but I don't want to write when I am not in the mood to write. It'll just spoil the quality of the story, so deal with all these one shots for now.

The prompts, anywhoo, are : Sunset,Pork,Banana,Key,Puzzle,Pineapple,Sparrow,Perspective,Vegas and Boss.

Go figure.

-Skylovesyou (L)