Title: Hell Is the Other

Summary: Tsunade was holding their hands, "After all, you'd be spending every second with each other for sixty-five days." She tied a red string around Naruto's wrist and tied its other end around Sasuke's.

Important:

This is a SasuNaru.

Chapter 2: The Agreement

"Come on, dobe. We have to get home."

"That's what I'm doing!"

"But my house is THAT way."

"Who says we're going to your house, teme?"

"I'd rather sleep in a house rather than a pigsty!"

"What did you say?" Sasuke has grown used to seeing Naruto's incredible rage, so this once wouldn't affect him. Since most of the time, that said rage was always directed at him.

"Look Naruto, I'm also not thrilled in this revolting situation." Reflecting on this tragic event, Sasuke stared at the evil string that kept them together, stretching between their wrists for only about a foot. It looked like a normal red string. Nothing suspicious and certainly nothing like a chakra-forged string. How the hell did the Godaime come up with this? "So, we have to cooperate, alright?"

Contrary to what everyone thought, Naruto and Sasuke actually listen to each other when they're in their 'non-aggressive mode'. It's a time when one of them would drop the angry tone for a while and actually speak civilly with the other. But Sasuke thought that this only happened about three percent of the time they're together.

All right, maybe about five percent..

Eventually, Naruto agreed to sleep in Sasuke's house for the meantime. It was annoying for Naruto to accept Sasuke's choice here, but still he was quite thankful that he won't have Sasuke sleeping in his very tiny and dirty apartment. He didn't want anymore mockery from the Uchiha. Besides, if Sasuke did agree to stay at Naruto's apartment, the blonde might have a problem on where they will sleep. Naruto's bed was small enough for his seventeen year old self. They would have trouble in sleeping in the same bed (Naruto was shocked he considered having Sasuke sleep in the same bed), unless Sasuke would agree on sleeping on the floor.

And knowing Sasuke… nah..

But if Naruto will sleep in Sasuke's house, he will need a change of clothes. That was why these two rivals were seen headed to Naruto's apartment.

Along the way, the two kept their silence, knowing fully well that if they talk with each other, it would start an argument again. Even if they weren't getting tired of bickering, they didn't want to call anymore attention to them.

A few years ago, people usually stared at Sasuke because of admiration, and people always stared at Naruto out of hate. Now, they were getting stared at because people simply couldn't believe that they were in such proximity and yet, not even arguing or throwing death glares at each other.

At least the stares were not because of their hate for the Kyuubi. After the Kakashi team had returned with the original three, Sasuke learned that people had started to accept the Kyuubi's host. Not everybody in the village, but most people finally realized that the Kyuubi was different from the blonde boy who tamed it.

It was also after his return to Konoha that people started to feel a little awkward and suspicious of the youngest Uchiha. Why had he returned? Didn't he abandon Konoha already? Hadn't he severed his ties? Even Sasuke's own friends were quite cold to him at first. Of course, he had tried killing Naruto…many times before.

Sasuke glared back dangerously at a young lady who staring a little too hard at them. Good thing she averted her eyes immediately or Sasuke would have taken pleasure in removing her eyes out of their sockets. He was feeling particularly pissed right now.

"I'll just let you borrow my clothes. I can't stand all these people staring." Sasuke muttered. Since they left the hokage tower, they have been constantly stared at. The Uchiha kept hearing questions being whispered about as people 'discreetly' pointed at the unlikely pair.

"You oughta be used to those stares by now Sasuke," Naruto pulled his right arm to signal to Sasuke that they would turn on the next block, "You have been getting ogled ever since you were eight."

"You were too."

"No, I didn't get stared at…I was hated and … " Naruto paused. Sasuke slightly looked at his rival, waiting for him to continue. "…well you know. Doesn't matter since it doesn't happen as frequent anymore."

Sasuke wanted to smirk as he thought of the latest news which he accidentally overheard Sakura and Ino talking about, "Oh really, I heard that there's a small Uzumaki Naruto fan club ever since we returned."

Naruto grimaced as Sasuke reminded him, "That's just a rumor, teme."

It was a little funny to see somebody who used to crave for so much attention, actually get embarrassed after learning that he had his own fan club. "Not used to so much attention eh, dobe?"

"Shut up, teme."

They stopped in front of Naruto's apartment and Sasuke remembered that this wasn't his first time here. The last time he saw Naruto's apartment was when he was frantically searching for the blonde. That time, he just found out from the jounins that Itachi had come back to Konoha and he was looking for Naruto. "Say dobe, do you lock your apartment when you leave?" He asked.

Using his left hand, Naruto pulled a few keys with a Pakkun keychain (1) dangling on it from his pocket and showed them to Sasuke. "Yep, why?"

"Do you give Sakura your keys?"

"Well, not that I remember of. Again … why?" Naruto stopped in front of green door. It's just as how Sasuke remembered it.

Sasuke continued while the blonde was unlocking his door. He had to raise his left hand slightly because Naruto was right handed. "I see. A few years ago, I remember knocking on your door and Sakura was the one who answered it." (2)

"Can't remember. But anyway," Naruto opened the door and pulled Sasuke with him. (no, not the yaoi-way…not yet). "Well, this is my apartment." The blonde said simply before dragging Sasuke to one of the corners of the room.

There were a lot of dirty clothes, scrolls, weapons ('doesn't he keep them somewhere safe?'), others Sasuke couldn't even name … scattered on the floor. He effortlessly walked past them as Naruto continued to walk near his drawers.

"I'll just grab a few clothes and some stuff, alright. Make yourself comfortable." Naruto told Sasuke as the blonde opened his cabinets and piled some clothes on his right arm.

"I would, but I can't cut the string."

Despite the situation, Naruto only grinned at him, "Just kidding Sasuke. Come on, lighten up and help me carry some of my clothes." Naruto grabbed his clean pair of pajamas, a few shirts and some underwear. The shirts he handed over to Sasuke who looked at them with distaste.

Sasuke held out one of Naruto's overly bright t-shirt. "You're not planning to blind me with all these orange, are you?"

"Who said that you need to stare at me all the time, teme?"

Sasuke was suddenly taken aback by that insinuation. Even if he knew Naruto was only kidding, he was surprised that the blonde boy could even deliver that smoothly. So, that's the way he wanted it, eh? Sasuke made a mental note on this and giving Naruto the dirtiest look he had, decided to stay quiet for now.

Naruto just laughed and piled some clothes on Sasuke's arm and his.

My night-cap, tooth-brush…

Oh, my pillow…

The blonde was holding his pillow already when Sasuke spoke beside him, "You won't need that. I have a lot at home."

As expected, Sasuke must have had so many soft and fluffy pillows at home. He had to, what else would he place on his big bed? Placing back the pillow on his own small bed, Naruto nodded at Sasuke. "Well, I guess this is it."

The two took the room one last look around and were about to head out when Naruto suddenly turned back. The sudden action made Sasuke almost lose his balance again.

Naruto reached for the picture frame on top of the bedside drawer. It was the picture of the young team seven, when they were still 12 year old children. "Look Sasuke, you were still cute and grumpy here!" Naruto waved the picture in front of Sasuke. Since Sasuke had left, Naruto thought that Sasuke must have burned all of his friends' pictures that were at Uchiha residence. So, there probably wouldn't be any photographs to remind the youngest Uchiha of the old days.

The picture was already secured in Naruto's 'stuff to bring', when Sasuke told him in a quiet voice, "You don't need to bring that either. I …" Sasuke stared at Naruto's bright orange clothes instead, "…still have one in my room."

For a moment, Naruto was surprised. But he smiled anyway as he placed back his own team 7 picture frame on his desk. "That's good, because it will probably be worth millions one day!"

"Hn."

Before leaving the apartment, Naruto made sure to lock his door. Then they headed for the direction of the Uchiha residence.

Naruto thought for awhile that he still haven't seen where Sasuke-bastard had lived. When they were kids, Sasuke never invited them over to his house, so not even Sakura-chan knew where Sasuke stayed.

The blonde was now wondering how Sasuke had survived his childhood. Sure, they were both alone as kids, but at least Naruto had Iruka-sensei check on him at times and feed him ramen for breakfast in the mornings. So somebody was looking after Naruto even before Kakashi became his official teacher.

What about Sasuke? Who took care of Sasuke before they had formed team 7? He watched Sasuke from the corner of his eyes as the Uchiha silently walked with him. They were still getting the stares from some people, but the crowd was starting to get few. Naruto noted that it was because they were getting near the empty residence zones of the Uchihas.

The nearer they get to that area, the tenser Naruto became. He was so used to the habit of fighting when he was around Sasuke. Silence while with being him, on the other hand, was quite unimaginable. Besides, Naruto had been around Sasuke more than he had been with anyone else. That's why Naruto knew that this was a different kind of silence.

He knew because Naruto was Sasuke's closest friend after all. Sasuke said it himself and Naruto almost got killed because of it.

"Yo teme, you're being quiet…" Naruto corrected himself, "…quieter than usual."

"It just feels weird that we're ... just talking."

Naruto smiled and leered playfully at Sasuke, "What, you want something more to happen?"

"Dobe." The insult name didn't even sound like an insult after years of getting used to it. This time, it sounded endearing as Sasuke was trying not to lift the corners of his lips. "Yes, actually I can't wait to get you home so I could pound you on my bed."

Say… what?

"I'm kidding." Sasuke was finally participating in his little game. First one who got embarrassed would lose. Sasuke continued, more seriously this time. "Like I'd let something as orange as you on my bed. You're sleeping on the floor."

"Just do that and I'll pull you down on the floor with me." The blonde answered in the same tone, before adding in a playfully suggestive voice, "Then I'll be the one doing the pounding and not you."

A glare. "That's sweet dobe, but I don't want to do it on the floor."

"Right, so you'd better let me sleep on your bed. So you won't get splinters during foreplay." Naruto said back happily.

"I'm surprised you're even more perverted after your improved Oiroke no jutsu."

This time, Naruto did not hold back his amusement and chuckled. "Hah, try being with the Legendary Perverts for several years and it will grow on you." Even if Naruto wasn't really influenced by the two perverts' enthusiasm for Icha Icha paradise novels, Naruto was able to learn a lot of 'interesting' facts on sexuality and perversion because of that. There were times when Jiraiya would include him on his 'information gathering' and Naruto would stand there with his teacher, spying on women's bath.

But strangely, Naruto didn't feel … excited over that. Wonder why.

When he was with Kakashi, on the other hand, Naruto would sometimes peek in Kakashi's porn novels just out of curiosity. But he found them boring, so he gave up reading them.

"We're here."

It was in Sasuke's room where Naruto deposited some of his clothes unceremoniously. Sasuke told him to fold his clothes neatly and place it in one of the drawers … or Sasuke would burn them. Naruto commented that Sasuke just wanted to see him naked and that comment earned him a whack in the head.

A little later, after Sasuke had helped Naruto fold his clothes - much to Naruto's surprise – they were thinking of what to do next.

Sasuke moved to remove his black shirt, but stopped midway. "Dobe…" he said.

"What now, bastard?"

"I just realized that we won't be able to remove our clothes."

"…and why is that?"

WHACK!

"OW! Godammit Sasuke, what's wrong with you?!" Sasuke must be taking Sakura-chan lessons. He rubbed the spot that was still stinging and glared at the Uchiha standing beside him.

"See if you can remove your jacket if we have our hands tied!"

Naruto realized that he was right. They would have to cut their sleeves and ruin the clothes if they were going to take it off.

Oh no… that would mean that they … wouldn't be able to put on clothes anymore. Naruto wanted to strangle the old hag for this.

…to be continued.

1 In episode 20, Naruto was seen locking his apartment with his keys that had a Pakkun keychain dangling on it. :D

2 In episode …83? When Sasuke was searching for Naruto, he went over to Naruto's apartment. He was about to knock on the door but it was suddenly opened by Sakura. :D (She was supposed to give Naruto some pastries that day, but she later found out that Naruto wasn't there. :D

Updates of my Naruto fics and others shall be posted on my Blog. :D

http://rainliam. blogspot. com

Thank you everyone for your patience!