Title: All You Need is Love
Word count: 660
Pairing: SasuNaru
Warning(s): Angst, mention of rape and attempted murder of a child.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or related persons.
Naruto knew love was a weapon. Knew it like he knew that ramen was good, and that all adults were perverts. He loved Konoha, his parents (whoever they were), Old Man Sarutobi… and Sasuke. He didn't love Sakura-chan, or Kakashi-sensei, or even Iruka-sensei (at least, not like that, not that all-consuming fire). He liked them well enough, he supposed, but love was supposed to hurt. When the villagers mocked him and kicked him and raped him (tore him open) and hated him… he hurt, but it made him want to be better, because he knew that there was potential for greatness (somewhere somewhere please?). And that was love. When he cried out for a mother and father who weren't there, and his aloof nurse muffled him with a pillow until he fell asleep… he felt the hole gaping in his chest (was he dead? Should he be dead?). And that was love. When the Old Man who was nice to him and gave him candy couldn't do anything for him but pay for his shiny new apartment, and the bitter disappointment made him want to puke all the candy up… then he was deadgonenevercomingback. And that was love.
Then Sasuke. With his smirk and almost smile and training hours on end and lonely eyes (just like yours) and nearly dying for you and keeping secrets from you and hatinghatinghating you… That was a love like poison; you didn't know you were dying until you were already dead.
Love was something you gave to the people you cared enough about to let them hurt you below everything. So of course the one time he said it (because you never spoke about it, nevernevernever), it was as he was in a fight to the death.
The rushing of the waterfall was barely making it past the pounding in his ears, but somehow every word he said was crystal clear.
"Do you think you can even compete with me? I'll kill you without a scratch on my forehead."
"He," he brushed some blood of his chin, "I love you, Sasuke-teme."
Sasuke knew love was power. He had too many fangirls to put much stock in the words "I love you," Too many times they had uttered the phrase without enough emotion to hold it afloat, and it drowned until it alone was meaningless. But the actual emotion, that was supposed to by the words? He knew its power, the one that could push to such highs and lows. It was the words of mother to her child, and it could be the last thing she ever saysfeels. It was the mourning of a boy for his older brother, waking up from a nightmare he caused. It was the driving force behind a Hokage saving his village from a demon fox, or the sole survivor of a clan plotting revenge.
It was the too sharp catch in his throat because he has the same eyes as me. Because he's not like all the others. Because he keeps up with me. Because I nearly died for him. Because he was too thin under that jumpsuit and his tan was glorious under that sweat when he took his shirt off in training and his hair was sun-gold in the day and moon-bleached at night and wasn't that just like his personality? And because of his blue blue eyes that turned stormy on the days when he flinched from every touch but glittered so brilliantly too.
That was love. But as brilliant as it was it could be twisted and turned and corrupted so easily…
Sasuke blinked at the declaration of feelings, confusion cutting through the haze of madness. Naruto… had a feral grin, smeared blood across his chin, and the look of an injured (but pissed) cat. Or fox, or something.
Sasuke said nothing back, but put every depth of the love he felt into his next attack.
"CHIDORI!"
They knew love. And it wasn't enough.
