A/N: Hi guys! I was happy to see the positive response to this sort of story and want to give it a shot! (At least for this chapter.) Your comments have been very inspiring; keep them coming, and so will the chapters! Enjoy chapter one!
In another life
Chapter one.
Naruto came to slowly.
It took a long while before he began to grow aware of himself. He could feel his body waking up slowly, his senses noting the weight of his legs, his hands, and his position of lying on his back.
His head was no longer pounding, and his lungs easily took in plenty amounts of air without any difficulty. His heart had a slow and steady rhythm.
His facial muscles started to wake up, his brows and nose twitching slightly as he was pulled from his slumber. He was warm, but pleasantly so, and he grew aware of the fact that he was lying on something comfortable and soft.
There were no traces of the agony that had had him twisting before he'd lost consciousness, the poison seeming to thankfully have left his body during his rest. He felt fine, and the realisation brought on a wave of relief.
Even though he felt content where he was, Naruto knew that he had to wake up fully. It was no time to relax. He had to get up and send word to his team that he was alive and well, and that he was able to proceed with the mission. His sudden disappearance must've troubled them, and he didn't want them to worry for any longer.
Now feeling the full strength of his awoken body, Naruto took one last breath before opening his eyes.
It took a minute for them to adjust, and when they did, he found himself staring at a white ceiling.
His brows furrowed. What?
He blinked once, but when he opened his eyes a second time, the same ceiling remained. Suddenly he recognized that the comfortable soft thing he was lying on was actually a bed, and with that realisation he shot up from his position.
Now sitting in the double-sized bed, Naruto's blue eyes took in the sight of the room he was currently in.
It was a rather small, but not tiny room that besides from the bed held a wardrobe, a tiny desk with a foreign, block-like object on top of it*, as well as many scattered papers and books. Two bedside tables stood on each side of the bed, simple lamps adorning their surfaces. Clothes lay scattered around the room, some on the floor, a few hanging over the back of the chair in front of the desk, and some lying carelessly thrown in a basket which Naruto assumed to be a laundry-basket.
The walls were painted a creamy white, bordering towards yellow, and a distinct smell lingered in the air – one that was very familiar, but one Naruto couldn't quite pinpoint.
A small clock ticked comfortingly somewhere in the tiny bedroom, filling the silence.
A million thoughts and questions raced through Naruto's mind.
Where was he? What had happened? Where was this? Whose room was this? Why was he here? How had he gotten here?
What was going on?
He knew he'd gotten himself to a small cavern the previous night, even though he'd been in such a horrible state. It had been secluded and hidden, a good spot where he could have rested and regained his strenght after the effect of the poison would have let up. This was not that place.
His mind instantly jumped between different scenarios, trying to figure out what had happened. Could someone have found him? Was it the enemy? Had they taken him hostage?
No… That didn't make sense, he concluded. If the enemy had found him in his weakened state, they would've gotten rid of him. It didn't make any sense – not to mention that it was stupid – that they would have passed up the opportunity to make rid of him.
And if they had, and had instead taken him hostage, why was he in a bed? Why were there no chains or bars or chakra-subduing charms on his person? He wasn't as naïve to think any of the small countries treated their prisoners well and would allow them a nice nights rest in a comfortable bed without anyone to keep watch.
He doubted the enemy finding him was what had happened.
Then what had? Had someone saved him?
Had someone happened to come upon him in the cave, brought him to his or her livingquarters and tended to him? Upon checking his body closer, he easily found some of the still fresh cuts from the fight the night before on his skin underneath the white T-shirt he was wearing. If someone had helped him, why had they not tended to his wounds?
It seemed too improbable.
He highly doubted someone could have coincidentally stumbled upon him. He had picked a cavern that was difficult to spot so that no one would find him, unless that someone was a shinobi with very good sensing abilities.
Which brought him back to the kidnapping scenario that was even less likely.
None of the explanations he came up with were realistic, and a seed of worry had started to grow within the blonde.
So what had happened?
His eyes searched the small room for his clothes but he didn't spot his uniform or weapons anywhere.
He had to have gotten there somehow, and unless he'd changed clothes in his sleep, someone would've had to have done it for him. But who? And where was he?
The room told him nothing valuable information-wise to answer his questions. He couldn't sense any traps or ill intent, so he deemed it safe to move about. He would have to leave the room and hopefully find out where he was and how he'd gotten there.
On his guard, but determined, the blonde got out of the bed. First he had to find out where he was, and then he had to send word to his captain. Those were his goals.
With practised silence, he moved to the door of the room and tested the handle. It turned easily and the blonde pulled it open, looking on the other side.
He came face to face with a wall. Carefully leaning his upper body out of the room, Naruto stuck his head out and looked both ways down a small, narrow corridor.
To his left side there was a single door at the close end of the small corridor, the signature two-lettered sign telling Naruto that it was the toilet. Looking to his right, his eyes took in part of what he assumed to be a living room, seeming to expand to the left around the corner from where he was viewing. He could spot a two-seated, red couch, a monitor of sorts standing across from it* on a small cupboard, and half of a bookcase standing beside that.
Straight down, on the wall facing him, was another door. Naruto pinpointed it as the front door, seeing the jackets hanging from hooks on the wall and the small shoe-stand beside it.
On the same side of the wall as the bedroom door, but further down facing the living room, there was a third door in the form of an arched opening leading into a room of which nature the blonde couldn't tell yet.
It seemed he was in an apartment of sorts. It was bigger than his own, but not by much, and so, there couldn't be more than two people living there, telling Naruto a little about what he wished to find out.
It was a bit odd, though. Something about the apartment was noticeable different from his own. It did not resemble the traditional built he was used to seeing in and around Konoha, and some tiny details looked out of place to him. The big black screen in front of the sofa was one of them. It was too thin to be a monitor, but it wasn't glass or a mirror either. So what could it be?
The sound of a plate coming into contact with a surface came from the room of the arched door, instantly pulling Naruto's attention. He was able to hear someone moving about, and his heart sped up.
There was someone in the apartment.
Judging by the sounds coming from the room, Naruto concluded it to be the kitchen.
His hand tightened around the door-handle of the bedroom and he steeled himself. He would have to walk into the living room and then turn to the kitchen where he would come face to face with an unknown person whom hopefully would be able to tell him what had happened and where he was.
Suddenly he wished he had his weapons on him.
He took a sharp breath of air through his nose and gathered courage.
He still sneaked out of the small bedroom, making the decision to leave the door ajar in suspicion that it might make a sound if he attempted to close it, and slowly crept towards the opening.
More of the living room came into view as he closed in, a few shelves and two windows alongside the left-most wall appearing in the line of his vision. From the light he could tell it was well into the day. It must've been a powerful poison to have him unconscious for so many hours.
His attention snapped back towards the opening he was nearing as he caught quiet humming drifting to his ears from within. The smell of something cooking also reached his nose, affirming his belief of the room being the kitchen.
The distinctive, familiar smell from within the bedroom was also detectable in the whole apartment, and in the back of his head, Naruto tried to place from where he knew it.
He was almost at the door now.
He'd get answers. Where was he? How did he get here? That's what he'd ask the person first.
Completely silent, he sneaked to the opening and looked into the room. His eyes instantly found the person standing on the opposite side of the room with his back to the door, making something over the stove. Naruto's heart missed a beat and his breath stuck in his throat. His eyes widened as he took in the familiar back of the man he'd known since he was little.
As if sensing his eyes upon him, the raven-haired male turned to look at him over his shoulder, onyx eyes meeting blue. Naruto froze up at the spot, finding himself unable to move or make a sound.
The raven smiled upon seeing him – a smile so soft and unlike anything Naruto had ever seen appear on the other's face before. The warmth in the familiar voice when the man spoke sent a shiver down his spine.
"Morning, sleepy-head."
The smile turned into an all too familiar smirk, and the teasing tone was one Naruto had often heard in his younger years, but hadn't for a while.
When he finally recollected himself a bit from the shock, Naruto mentally cursed his own voice for coming out as shaky as it did when the other's name left his lips in a breath.
He couldn't believe it.
In front of him, in this strange apartment, he'd found the person he'd least expected.
"Sasuke…" He breathed, his eyes glued to mentioned male across from him.
Naruto felt like shit.
That was the first thought that went through his mind as he started to come to. His head was pounding and his chest ached as if he'd run a marathon without any breaks.
The sharp pain in his head had him hiss between his teeth and scrunch his face. How much had he drunk last night? This was by far the worst headache he'd ever had while hungover.
His throat felt dry and itchy, forcing him to cough and double in on himself, his body shaking as he coughed, lying in a fetal position. Once he could breathe properly again – he still took very raspy breaths, but he was able to breathe – he took more note of his body.
He was lying on something very hard and irregular, plenty of sharp points and edges poking into his side that caused him to ache in discomfort. It was disturbing. Wasn't he in bed? No, this was way too hard to be his bed. It felt more like solid ground. Rock, even.
He groaned as he shifted slightly, his bones complaining loudly when he did. He failed to find any comfortable position, and came to the conclusion that he was definitely lying on rock.
But why?
Suddenly completely awake, Naruto's blue eyes shot open. They took a few seconds to adjust, but then he stared at rock. A rocky ceiling, he realised. Where the heck was he?
With his heart racing in his chest, Naruto hastily flew into sitting position, noting the ache in his muscles from the uncomfortable underlay on which he'd been lying. His eyes quickly darted around and took in what seemed to be a small cave with a small opening on one side, partly covered by a bush or tree of some sort, small streams of sunlight seeping through and providing the little light that aided his sight.
Where the fuck was he? Why the fuck was he in a cave?
Panic started to take hold of him as frightened questions exploded in his mind. He had no idea where he was, why he was there, or even how he'd gotten there.
The sudden rush of emotion had his breath escape him in quick huffs, the sound echoing between the rocky walls of the tiny cave. The panic and the many questions suddenly clouding his mind did no good for his already unbearable headache and his face scrunched in agony. He brought a hand up to press against his forehead, squeezing his eyes shut.
Shit. Fuck. He needed to calm down. He had to breathe slowly.
Forcing himself to take deep breaths through his nose and breathing out through his mouth, Naruto willed his heart to calm down. Eventually the pounding in his chest wasn't as rapid and he'd been able to calm down a little. Unfortunately, it had done nothing for his massive headache.
Peering his eyes open, Naruto slowly looked around the cave once more.
Okay. He had to take it slow. He was already feeling extremely horrible, and he wanted to avoid making it worse.
Where was he? Why was he here? How had he gotten here?
His brows furrowed as he focused on keeping his breath steady.
The last thing he remembered was getting home to the apartment. He'd almost tripped over his own feet as he'd tried to shake off all of his clothes on his way to the bedroom without properly removing his shoes first. He remembered laughing a lot, and how soft and heavenly the bed had felt when he'd finally reached it. He remembered being talked to, but not what had been said, as he'd been way too distracted with burying his face in his own pillow to listen.
And then he remembered the warmth of Sasuke's body as he had snuggled close to his raven-haired lover's side once he'd joined him in the bed, the smell of Sasuke, and the feel of his soft lips against his before they'd fallen asleep in each other's arms.
Naruto's heart stopped for a moment. Then his head snapped up, his eyes wide and alert as the thought hit him.
Where was Sasuke?
They'd been together last night, he was certain. He was also certain they'd fallen asleep together – at home, in their bed. So why was he in a cave? How had he gotten there?
And where was Sasuke?
Grabbed by another wave of panic Naruto forced himself to his feet. He ignored the burn of his complaining muscles and the strong nausea that almost made him stagger, and stumbled out of the cave.
The branches of the bush at the opening scratched his arms and face, but he ignored it, overcome by a strong desperation to find his lover.
He shut his eyes tightly to protect them from the bright sunlight outside. He had to pause for a few seconds, but then forced his eyes open again, as he was too impatient to let them adjust gradually.
The sunlight stung his eyes greatly and they watered as he attempted to look at his surroundings.
The fear that held his heart only grew from what he saw.
As far as he could see, there was nothing but nature. A huge forest spread out in front of him, going far and wide in every direction. He was currently at the side of a cliff, and he could spot mountains towering in the distance as well as around his side of the forest, the cavern he had stepped out from lying partly concealed beneath a pointy cliff of the mountain behind him.
A lump of dread had formed in his stomach and Naruto felt his panic increase.
He had no idea where he was. He had no way of finding out where he was. He was in the middle of freaking nowhere, and he didn't know where Sasuke was. He didn't know anything.
His heart was pounding almost painfully against his ribcage now, his hands shaking as he stared up at the mountain towering above him.
He didn't understand. How the fuck had he ended up where he was?
More importantly…
What was he going to do?
He had nowhere to go, no place where he could search for help. He was in the middle of nowhere and he didn't know what to do.
And with every throbbing heartbeat, all he could think about was Sasuke's face.
He had to find Sasuke.
With some sort of purpose, Naruto slowly turned back around and looked out over the many trees.
… But where did he begin?
Clenching his fists, Naruto repeated the breathing exercise for calming one's nerves he'd seen on the TV once. If he was going to do anything, he had to get his emotions under control.
He didn't know how he'd gotten there, or what had happened, but he had to find Sasuke. Maybe he too had woken up somewhere, afraid, and alone, and if so, Naruto had to find him. He had to find Sasuke, and then they could find a way to get home together. The most important thing was for them to be together. Together they were strong.
He made up his mind. His blue eyes swam with determination and only a tiny bit of fear as he looked at the forest he was about to venture into. He felt lost and scared, but the desperation to find Sasuke was stronger than both of those feelings.
And so, with much difficulty because of his awful condition, Naruto started to make his way down the small cliff and towards the woods.
Once he'd climbed the short way down to the ground, he was forced to pause. It was strangely difficult to move. Exhausting in an unnatural way. His entire body hurt – probably from him having slept on solid rock all night – but it wasn't something he couldn't handle. What was painful was his pounding head, the nausea that resided within him, and his hurting chest.
Something was wrong with him, he realised with fright. It was very unlike any regular hangover he'd ever had before in his life, and it scared him.
But he didn't have time to be scared. He had to focus and just bear with the pain for now.
He hadn't realised when he'd awoken, but he was wearing strange clothes. A pair of dark, plain slacks, as well as a matching, long-armed shirt adorned his body, but what weirded him out was the green, somewhat heavy vest wrapped around his upper body. It had many strange pockets and seemed to be some sort of military-styled armour.
As if his circumstances didn't confuse him enough already.
He decided to just focus all of the little energy he had on walking forwards. Hopefully he'd find Sasuke sooner rather than later.
His entire person ached with the need to find his lover, and he let those feeling fuel him as he forced his nausea away and pushed onwards.
He found that supporting himself against the trees as he walked aided him a lot, and he managed to find a steady pace. It was still slow, but it was steady.
As he walked he grew more used to the pounding of his head. The throbbing wasn't subsiding, but it wasn't getting worse either, which Naruto was grateful for.
Because of the amount of concentration he had to put on just moving his body forwards, it was a long time before the blonde started to take note of the fact that something was out of place. When he finally noticed, his brow furrowed as he tried to figure out what it was.
For such a dense forest, the air was unusually crisp, but there was also something about it that made the hair on Naruto's arms stand on edge. What was it? What was it that was out of place?
He'd paused, the feeling of worry appearing in his stomach forcing him to a halt. He pressed his palm more firmly against the trunk of the tree that he had stopped beside and swallowed. His eyes scanned the woods around him but found nothing strange within sight. What was it?
Then he realised what was causing his strong feeling of unease.
Even though the bushes were many and the trees tall with thick crowns, there were no sounds. The area was beyond inviting for all wildlife – birds, foxes, rodents, crickets, everything – but there was nothing indicating any sign of life. Nothing.
The dense woods were eerily quiet, and not even the sound of leaves rustling in a breeze reached Naruto's ears.
The blonde got a sudden, very strong, foreboding feeling.
The unnatural silence had his legs paralysed and he found himself frozen to the spot. He felt that if he moved too much, he'd disrupt the still air around him and set off an explosion. So instead of turning around or moving about, his eyes nervously darted between the trees and plants within his vision, his sense of dread growing with every passing second.
His heart had sped up inside his chest, and his body had broken out in a nervous sweat.
Then he thought of Sasuke.
Something definitely wasn't right, but he had to find Sasuke.
He licked his dry lips and swallowed. Forcing himself to ignore the strong feeling of his gut telling him to remain still, Naruto took one shaky step forwards.
Suddenly there was a scream and something heavy collided with his body, sending him flying into the dirt.
Coughing and fighting to regain his breath, Naruto realised that what had hit him seemed to be another human being. Hands grabbed after his neck and knees pressed uncomfortably into his abdomen. Panic-struck by the sudden tackle, Naruto began struggling against the hold. Limbs flailed, and while he couldn't see his attacker, Naruto could hear the other's harsh breath and feel the waves of ill intent washing off the other's body as they fought on the ground.
Shit. This was bad, he realised. He was in danger. This person was out to hurt him. If he didn't break free, the other would –
Just as suddenly as he'd been pushed down, the weight was lifted and thrown off him. His eyes flying open, wide and alert, Naruto hastily scurried away from the spot where he'd been pinned.
He heard a sickening noise and something sounding like a strangled gurgle from behind him, and then something heavy fell to the ground with a thud.
His heart racing and his breathing harsh, Naruto forced himself to move as fast as he could in his disorienting condition. Still on the ground, he turned around to look in the direction of where the sounds had come.
His wide eyes quickly found something, and when he took in the sight of the person, his breath caught in his throat.
In front of him stood no one other than Sasuke.
The raven stood with his back towards the blonde, but Naruto recognized his lover instantly. He didn't see the body heaped by the other's feet, or paid any attention to the sword in his lover's hand – all he could see was Sasuke.
Sasuke.
Sasuke was fine. Sasuke was alive. Sasuke was there.
Feeling his throat knit, Naruto fought the oncoming tears of relief about to flood his eyes. His heart soared and the fear that had held him since the moment he'd woken up disappeared completely. Swallowing a sniff, Naruto's eyes remained glued to his lover's back.
Sasuke was there.
Desperate to touch his other half – embrace, kiss, cry, laugh, or all of those things at once – Naruto made haste of wiping his watery eyes on his sleeve and was just about to stand when two feet were suddenly stood in front of him.
Startled, the blonde jumped slightly and looked up at his lover. He'd moved so quickly that the blonde hadn't even caught it.
With relief and happiness shining in his eyes, Naruto looked at the familiar face of his beloved boyfriend.
"Sasu –!"
His voice died in his throat as he met the raven's gaze. The onyx eyes were narrowed and hard, darkened as they glared at him with venom. Sasuke's face was twisted in a frightening scowl, and clear animosity rolled off his body in waves, causing Naruto to stop mid-sentence.
Never had he seen such an intimidating expression on his lover's face before.
Thrown off by the glare, Naruto yelped when a hand unexpectedly grabbed his collar and forcefully pulled him to his feet. Stumbling, he tried to find his footing, but the shock had rendered his legs useless. He managed not to fall mostly thanks to the raven's harsh hold.
Sasuke's grip on his vest was hard, uncomfortable and tight, and Naruto's heart jumped nervously when he was pulled close to the other's disheartening face. He could feel his body trembling under the other's sharp gaze.
"What the fuck are you doing?"
The forceful hiss from Sasuke's lips shook the blonde. The venom lacing his lover's voice was alien to his ears and made his heart sink within his chest. Sasuke was acting strange, and it was scaring him.
His mouth opened to speak, but he couldn't find his voice. Why was Sasuke so angry? Why was he looking at Naruto like that? What did he mean? Wasn't he as relieved to see the blonde, as the blonde was to see him?
Except for his jumbling thoughts, Naruto could feel the pain of the tackle catching up to him. The fall had worsened his headache and he felt extremely dizzy and found it difficult to breathe.
His mind raced. He didn't understand.
Sasuke's eyes were burning with fury.
What was going on?
Naruto didn't believe his eyes.
He'd woken up in a strange place, in an unknown apartment, and standing inside the kitchen – cooking, of all things – was Sasuke.
Sasuke, the boy whose back he'd looked at when he was a kid. Sasuke, his rival whom he'd quarrelled with, laughed, and fought alongside in a three-man team as teens. Sasuke, the one he'd desperately chased after and had yearned to be acknowledged by for years. Sasuke, the one he'd seen in his worst state, whom he'd fought, and forcefully dragged back to their village.
Sasuke, the same one that hadn't spoken to him for two months.
He couldn't believe that the Sasuke standing in front of him, smiling so sweetly was real.
Unaware of the blonde's inner turmoil, the raven tilted his head to the side, bemused by the other's troubled expression.
"What's with the look?" He asked conversationally before turning back towards the stove where he was preparing scrambled eggs, his easy smile never leaving his lips.
"I'm making breakfast. Or rather, brunch, considering how late you slept. Although, I'm not surprised." The light chuckle baffled the blonde. Had Sasuke just laughed?
"You were really drunk last night, you know. I had to pretty much carry you home."
There it was again, the familiar smirk. Sasuke sent him a look over his shoulder, his eyes gleaming in a way Naruto hadn't known they were able to. He looked almost… playful.
The raven turned back and lifted the pan from the stove, shutting it off and started to move about the kitchen, opening cabinets and pulling out drawers, taking out the necessary utensils and preparing for their meal.
Meanwhile the blonde watched in silent shock, frozen to his spot by the kitchen entrance.
What the hell was going on?
The scene in front of him was bizarre, unbelievable, and unreal. He couldn't wrap his head around what he was watching. Sasuke would never act like this – it couldn't be real.
It wasn't real, he realised.
The apartment, the furniture, the strange situation to which he'd awoken, or the raven making the small table in front of him; none of it was real. It was genjutsu.
Once it hit him, it became obvious to the blonde what he had to do.
Concentrating and taking control of his chakra, Naruto closed his eyes with determination. His hands formed the seal and he focused on the chakra flow in his head, furrowing his brows as he concentrated more deeply.
He took a deep breath before he proceeded, reversing his chakra flow to break free from the illusion with force.
Now!
"Kai!" He shouted and held his breath.
It was silent.
Expecting to find himself imprisoned by rouges, Naruto carefully peeled his eyes open again.
What he was met by was the same kitchen he had tried to leave with a confused raven giving him a weird look from the middle of the room.
Naruto's heart sank, discouraged. Then it sped up, pumping quickly as he became concerned.
Why hadn't it worked? He'd done all the necessary steps, and practised very hard to be able to break out of most genjutus' – it was impossible that he had failed. So why hadn't it worked? What was going on? He wasn't in a genjutsu then? How could that be? Nothing around him made sense, which made the explanation of it being an illusion make perfect sense.
So why?
"Are you still drunk?"
Sasuke's voice pulled him from his pondering and his head snapped up as his eyes met onyx. The unfamiliar concern in the dark orbs made Naruto's heart skip a beat.
"Uh…" He said nervously, unused to the raven looking so intently at him and unsure about the whole situation he was in. What was going on?
The questions in his head were many and too difficult for him to solve at the moment, so instead he did what was the easier option and answered the other male's question.
"I've never had a drink in my entire life." He said truthfully, confused as to why Sasuke was wondering if he was drunk.
The raven rolled his eyes in an annoyed gesture – the sight reminding Naruto of how Sasuke had used to act when they were twelve – but was still smiling that stupid smile he'd had ever since Naruto had stepped into the room.
"Uh-huh, sure you haven't." He said. Then he got a juice carton from the fridge to Naruto's right and placed it on the table. Once again the onyx eyes met Naruto's blue as Sasuke looked to him.
"Let's eat. Some food will do you good, I think."
Naruto was still standing dumbstruck in the entrance of the kitchen, his thoughts swirling and his confusion great. He couldn't understand what was going on at all, and he felt conflicted about what to do.
Even so, the raven's words rung true to his ears. Eating would do him good. He'd regain some energy, and maybe afterwards, he would be able to think more clearly.
Looking at the scrambled eggs, toasts and vegetables neatly placed on top of the table, Naruto could feel his appetite tug at him. He was hungry, he admitted. Figuring everything out would have to wait until after he'd eaten.
Hesitantly, he nodded and approached the table, keeping his eyes on the raven as he quietly took the seat opposite from him.
Even though it appeared he wasn't in a genjutsu, the man across from him couldn't be Sasuke.
He shyly studied the raven who had begun to eat the food on his plate while reading a paper with care.
Everything about the other looked exactly like Sasuke. The bridge of his nose, his cheekbones, the dark strands of hair messily resting over his forhead, the elegant movements of his wrists as he lifted another fork of scrambled eggs to his mouth, his lips, his eyes – even the lashes were identical to the raven Naruto knew so well.
The one thing that was different so far was his attitude. The Sasuke across from him had smiled and talked easily with him, like it was natural. He had laughed, and his eyes had held none of the dark and heavy emotions Naruto was used to seeing in them. The entire air surrounding the man across from him was light and somewhat warm.
No, this Sasuke looked identical to the Sasuke he knew, but this Sasuke was nothing like the real Sasuke at all.
The other took note of his not-so-discreet staring and suddenly Naruto found the dark eyes looking straight back at him.
"Are you not eating?" Sasuke asked, his brow furrowing slightly. Naruto jumped, feeling his cheeks flush from having being caught staring at the other. He quickly grabbed the fork lying beside his plate.
"Y-yeah!" He stuttered, feeling awkward and uncertain of how he should act towards the Sasuke-yet-not-Sasuke in front of him. Thankfully, the raven shrugged off his strange behaviour and continued to read his paper and eat his food in a content silence.
Naruto brought the food to his lips and took his first bite. It was good, he decided.
He'd never eaten anything Sasuke had cooked – nor had he ever seen the raven cook – before, but he didn't find the food the raven in front of him had prepared distasteful.
Sasuke must cook, though, right? After all, he had been an orphan, just like the blonde, and so he would've had to feed himself somehow. Imagining the damaged Uchiha cooking in front of a stove was weird to Naruto. The only thing that was weirder was that he just a moment ago had seen the raven sitting across from him do just that.
He didn't understand.
He appeared somewhat collected on the outside, eating his food in silence while sitting at the small, white table across from the other. But inside his head, Naruto's thoughts were reeling.
What the hell was going on? He was eating breakfast that Sasuke had prepared – the fake Sasuke, who had greeted him with a smile and talked to him with ease – after he had woken up and found himself in a strange bed, in a foreign apartment.
He'd gotten up to find out where he was and how he'd gotten there, but then he'd met Sasuke and found himself in his current prediction instead.
He'd already tried breaking a genjutsu, but nothing had happened, which only confused him even more. Did that mean that this was real? How could it be?
…No, that was impossible.
There was no reality where Sasuke's eyes could shine so brightly.
But then how did he explain the presence of the man in front of him? A henge? No, even the tiniest details were too accurate and close to the real deal for it to be someone else in disguise. This Sasuke was even using his left hand as he ate, a detail not many knew of if they hadn't spent some time with the raven in person.
So far, the only thing he'd succeeded with was making himself even more confused.
What was he going to do?
Naruto slowly lowered his fork, the worry brought forth by his pondering making him lose his appetite. He had to get himself together.
Glancing at the male across from him he decided to try to find answers to the questions he had originally considered. Whoever this "Sasuke" was, he might be able to help him.
He took a breath and steeled himself.
"Uhm…" He started. The Sasuke across from him looked up from his paper and shifted his attention to the blonde with a questioning look. Looking into the raven's eyes, Naruto's heart sped up and he anxiously began to bounce his leg underneath the table.
However, he was determined to find out what was going on, and so he swallowed and voiced his question.
"Where… is this?"
The rage in the raven's expression didn't falter in the least as he glared at Naruto. The blonde could feel the other's knuckles grazing his throat, the collar of his shirt painfully digging into the back of his neck. He brought his hands up and closed them around his lover's wrist, hoping to make him loosen the hold in which he held him a little.
"What the fuck are you doing?" Sasuke's question came back to him.
Swallowing, he nervously parted his dry lips.
"Wha…" His voice was raspy and he coughed weakly, trying to clear his throat. "What do you m-mean?"
Never before had he stuttered when he'd talked to Sasuke, but the strange animus air around his lover had his heart pound nervously. He didn't understand. Why was Sasuke so pissed? Naruto couldn't remember a single time Sasuke's eyes had been burning with such venom and anger directed towards him like they were now. Not even during the early years of their relationship when they'd shouted at each other and ended up in a brawl almost every time they ran into each other.
In honesty, his lover's current demeanour frightened Naruto.
Ignoring the blonde's question, Sasuke let up his hold of the other's collar much to Naruto's relief.
However, before Naruto was able to react, a palm pressed against his chest, roughly shoving him. A whoosh of air escaped his lungs at the forceful impact, and he stumbled backwards, struggling to keep his footing. Since when had Sasuke possessed such monstrous strength?
His eyes desperately tried to find his lover's gaze, hoping to find some sort of hint or explanation as to why he was acting this way, but the raven had already turned away from him.
Fear seized Naruto's heart when he realised the other was leaving.
"We're going to the others."
Before the blonde was able to register the sharp words, the raven set off, disappearing in between the trees and leaving the other male behind.
"W-wait!"
Naruto shouted, a jolt of panic shooting through his body and forcing him into action, sending him stumbling after the other.
His heart pounded loudly in his ears and his chest constricted tightly from the sudden dash. His head spun and his lungs found it extremely difficult to take in enough air. His throat dried up and as he forced his trembling legs to run he could feel a hand wrap around his stomach and twist it, sending a wave of nausea through his body. With every heartbeat, a sharp pain shot through his skull, and with very step, moving became more and more difficult.
Naruto didn't understand why he felt so seriously sick. His headache had worsened when he'd fell, or was pushed, before, but since he'd laid eyes on Sasuke he hadn't taken note of his body's bad condition. But now as he stumbled between the trees, trying to catch up to the raven, the senses hit him full force.
He tried to ignore the agony coursing through his system, but he couldn't ignore his swimming vision. He had to catch up to Sasuke. He had to find him. He had to –!
A strong wave of dizziness overwhelmed him and he was forced to his knees in a sudden halt, doubling over himself. One hand went to support his weight against the ground, saving him from face-planting into the dirt, and the other tightly pressed against his forhead as he fought the bile rising in his throat and struggled to keep himself in check.
The world was spinning around him and his vision blurred, the dirt beneath him seeming to move in front of his eyes.
Shit. Fuck. Something was definitely, severely wrong with him.
Naruto would've cursed himself for not minding his own state earlier, before he got himself into this situation, but everything his mind was able to focus on was the stressed thought of that he was going to loose Sasuke.
He'd just found him, and now he was going to loose him again. It was a thought he couldn't accept.
But no matter how much he struggled to, Naruto couldn't get up. He felt too sick. His body had broken out in a cold sweat, and his hand and legs were trembling as another shiver wrecked his body. All he could do was fight to not throw up.
Even through his clouded mind, Naruto's ears picked up on the small sound of a twig snapping behind him to his left.
He snapped his head around just in time to meet the eyes of another man jumping towards him. Naruto's blue eyes widened as they took in the sight of the man, time seeming to slow around them.
The other's hazel eyes were wild and crazy, the pupils small and the whites bloodshot. His face was twisted into a nasty, terrifying snarl, morphing his entire face into that of a monster. The sunbeams flitting through the treetops gave perfect light for Naruto to spot the dark, red stains randomly splattered across the other male's dark clothes and purple vest as the other's hands swung some sort of blade towards him in slow-motion. Some droplets of the red substance also adorned the other's face, and as Naruto realised what it was a sense of dread shot through him.
His heart beat, and with terror he realised that he was going to die.
And then time sped up again as something crashed into the other person mid-air, pushing him to the side and away from the blonde. Naruto remained on the ground, stunned by the sudden, rapid happenings, trying to comprehend what had just happened.
Then his blue eyes caught sight of the raven hair and his heart skipped a beat within his chest, a small gasp of relief escaping his lips.
Sasuke.
The man lying on the ground underneath the Uchiha took a few seconds to collect himself, and when he had he made an attempt to move. The raven swung his sword through the air with one fluid motion, cutting the man's throat with lethal accuracy before he was able to move more than an inch. The man's horrified scream quickly drowned in the blood pumping from the clean cut and was distorted into a sickening gurgling noise. Impatiently, the raven drove his sword through the other man's chest, thus silencing him completely.
With practised ease he pulled his sword from the other's chest, the body emitting a soft thud as it fell back onto the ground, blood seeping into the dirt and painting the grass in a hideous shade. The raven quickly wiped the blade clean with a dark cloth he had pulled from a pocket on his hip. The entire affair went down in less than seven seconds.
Naruto's eyes stared wide and horrified at the thick, red blood, his brain working in overdrive to comprehend the images it had just recorded. The hazel eyes of the man that had been shining madly only moments before were now blank and distant.
And Naruto realised what had happened.
He drew a sharp breath and the hairs on his entire body stood on end as utter shock mixed with horror pulsed through him.
Had he not been rendered paralysed by the sight and immobile due to his horrible condition, he would have thrown himself backwards and screamed.
Instead his eyes shook and his breathing came in harsh huffs as he stared, frozen, at the sickening display in front of him.
The realisation that Sasuke had killed someone – with such ease, too – made his blood run cold.
His heart throbbed, and the world twisted around him. He could feel his nausea surging and had to press his lips together so tightly to refrain from throwing up that they turned white. His head spun and he gasped for air.
This wasn't happening. This couldn't be happening!
One last look at the corpse sent Naruto toppling over the edge.
Just as the raven in front of him turned around, Naruto could feel himself slipping. He caught the livid expression on the raven's face quickly turning into one of slight puzzlement before everything tilted to the side and he was swallowed by darkness.
* A computer.
* A television.
I know there is some sort of technology in the Naruto Universe (As seen in Naruto Gaiden (Where it's already become very modern, indeed.)) but I like to believe that Ninja Naruto isn't all too aware of the technology of the Modern World.
A/N: Do you still think this will be an interesting story to explore? As I said at the top of this chapter, reviews help inspire me and also let's me know whether you are enjoying my work or not. If you are enjoying it, please let me know! And I'll keep writing :) Don't you want to know what happens next? Also, if you have any questions about it so far, or any ideas you'd like to suggest, I'd love to hear them!
Until next time! Hopefully ;P