A/N – thank you thank you for all the reviews! I read and appreciated all of them! You guys rule =) I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while… but here's the newest oneshot.
Disclaimer – I don't own Naruto or Sasuke
Warning – copious amounts of emo-ing, angsting, fluff and OOC-ness. But whatever…
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"Damnit," Naruto choked, doubling over as he pressed his hands to the gaping wound in his stomach, warm blood seeping through his fingertips, running down in crimson rivulets across his skin.
He waited for a few moments, waited for the familiar tingling feeling, as the Kyuubi's chakra would inadvertently heal his wounds, as usual, leaving the skin untainted and unharmed.
Nothing happen. The agonizing, searing pain continued, blood continuing to flow out unchecked, staining his orange jumpsuit.
It had been like that for a while. Ever since he'd released the old seal, and locked the Kyuubi into the confines of his mind with his mother's aid, it had been like this. Though Naruto was now able to suppress and control the demon from breaking out, the Kyuubi was understandably furious at being incarcerated. His rage fueled pure sadism, and the Kyuubi has stopped healing Naruto's wounds. This was partially because Naruto had greater difficulty drawing upon the Kyuubi chakra – it didn't come flowing out to heal him naturally as it had when he'd been injured before. He had to call for it forcefully – and even if he managed that, Naruto had no clue how to heal anything himself. He'd never been one for medical ninjutsu. And the Kyuubi, bitter with resentment, preferred not to heal Naruto himself, preferring to allow the boy hours, and sometimes even days of agony. As long as the injury didn't kill Naruto, the Kyuubi couldn't have cared less for the well-being of its host. Not after Naruto had recently joined up with his mother against the Kyuubi in a ferocious mental battle, an act the legendary fox considered absolute treachery.
You stupid fox! Naruto screeched mentally, do something! I can't fight like this!
Endure the pain, you foolish brat, the beast snarled back, it's voice rumbling with hatred, Endure it like I have endured my condition. Do not think you can bend me to your will anymore! Maybe if you and that little vamp, Kushina, hadn't encaged me like this, the situation would have been different!
But Naruto couldn't do anything. They were in the middle of a war, and there was no medic in sight. Sakura was somewhere, undoubtedly smashing deep crevices and craters into the ground, and Tsunade was away as well.
There had been no medic assigned to stay near him, for a few reasons. Firstly, any fight Naruto engaged in would be too dangerous and it was preferably any other shinobi stayed a good distance away from the flying balls of whirling chakra which he had a propensity towards creating. Secondly, they had assumed that though the Kyuubi was locked, Naruto had retained his self-healing tendencies and hence needed no medic.
They had been mistaken, as Naruto soon discovered to his great horror. He was covered with scratches and gashes, from errant kunai, or other attacks. But nothing had been this serious before – blood was literally gushing out of the wound at his stomach, and to Naruto, who had been unaccustomed to prolonged pain from flesh wounds, it was debilitating.
Still, he had to focus. His opponent this time was particularly skilled, and being a skilled medic-nin himself, obviously surmised Naruto's knew weakness.
Kabuto chuckled, the sword slipping into the snake's gaping mouth, which soon retracted into his own. Naruto had been caught off guards, not expecting one of Orochimaru's attacks from him.
"I see your body isn't healing as you've grown accustomed to, Naruto-kun," he goaded, his voice tinged with malice, "How sad. It seems with your constant healing, you thought you were resistant to prolonged injury. Now you finally know what it's like, fighting while being constantly weighed down by it…"
"That's not true," Naruto gasped, righting himself back up and creating a few shadow clones.
It was unfortunate that his training with Killer Bee had been called off, and he'd been forced to enter the war. But it had been an emergency. Konoha had been taken off guard by the reemergence of Edo-Tensei'd Akatsuki members and the new alliance between Kabuto/Orochimaru (no one knew which it was really) and Madara. However, this meant that Naruto hadn't completed his training and wasn't fully able to control his fox, and the powers it had to offer him. He'd relied almost instinctively on the Kyuubi's chakra to back him up automatically, but now that system was gone. He had to handle the chakra himself, direct it and manipulate it himself. It was a new concept for Naruto, being able to grasp and control such gargantuan amounts of chakra, and hence he was relatively disadvantaged, at least in front of opponents like Kabuto, who had precise chakra control.
The clones charged forward in attack, while Naruto reeled from blood loss; he never appreciated how difficult and dangerous battles had always been for average shinobi thanks to his Kyuubi-induced immortality. Wounds which he'd once considered trivial were now becoming life-threatening.
Kabuto soon got past the clones, summoning dozens of giant snakes, which began to slither menacingly towards Naruto.
Natuto cursed again, as he struggled to form a Rasengan, which was proving slightly more challenging than usual due to the overflow of chakra in his system. He finally managed, though it was larger than he'd intended (not really a problem), a tightly condensed mass of spinning blue and orange chakra. He hurled it towards the snakes, obliterating them all as the wind sliced through their slick bodies, scattering blood and scales everywhere. Naruto continued on, charging at Kabuto, who smirked.
"You're still trying the same tricks, huh? Didn't you learn from last time, that won't work on me…" he said superciliously.
"We'll see about that!" Naruto growled, charging at him with a loud cry of 'Rasengan!'
It connected, but before it did, Kabuto emitted glowing green chakra, protecting his body from most of the damage, healing the skin as the wind began to cut through it.
Naruto fell to the ground, coughing up more blood, his chest throbbing. That jutsu had taken a toll on him – a toll it never should have. This injury was affecting him far too badly.
Kabuto smirked, and more snakes emerged from his sleeves, hissing as they struck out at him. Naruto managed to slash them away with a kunai, clenching his teeth as his stomach gave another agonizing jolt.
He would not succumb. He was powerful, for stronger than this! He was the future Hokage of Konoha! There was no way he was losing out now, believe it!
But there was nothing he could do, not when he was injured this badly. Kabuto's tongue extended out again, followed by a snake and a gleaming sword, pointing straight at him as Kabuto lunged forward.
He couldn't slip into Sage Mode – there was no need for Sage Mode anymore, for Naruto already had overwhelming amounts of chakra thanks to the Kyuubi. But the problem was, unlike Sage Chakra, he couldn't control it yet. And slipping into Sage Mode now was too dangerous – the sheer amount of chakra he would gathered, combined with the Kyuubi's and his already vast reserves would tear him apart form the inside. The toads had warned him against it.
Naruto created a few clones, and a split second later, an enormous Rasenrengan was whirling in his hands. He aimed it and fired, but Kabuto managed to summon another giant snake to absorb the attack. Naruto cringed as the giant reptile was shredded to pieces – what a waste of chakra…
And then Kabuto was right there, the sword inches away from piercing into his flesh, inches away from causing what would certainly be a fatal wound…
And then, there was a sudden blur of white and indigo, and Kabuto was knocked aside, his sword missing Naruto by a hair's length. There was a gleaming flash of silver, and a sickening splattering sound, as Kabuto's head toppled to the floor.
He wasn't dead – the immortal could not be killed so easily, and Orochimaru certainly would return in some way or the other – but Naruto didn't care, as he stared ahead, his blue eyes wide, his stomach lurching, not because of the pain, but because of the painfully familiar chakra that had flooded over his senses, numbing his mind.
His savior sheathed his katana, not even bothering to wipe the blood off the blade first, standing in front of Naruto almost protectively.
Naruto recognized him – the confident, proud, stall stance, the icy cold chakra, the spiky black hairstyle, the red and white fan embroidered on the cloth at the base of his neck.
The figure turned around, midnight black eyes locking with Naruto's own, and Naruto felt his heart leap, the way it always had when his starved eyes caught a glimpse of the boy – or, was he a man now? They were both eighteen after all.
"Sa-Sasuke?" he croaked, trembling slightly.
Sasuke's dark eyes narrowed, his face as hard and indifferent as ever.
His gaze bored into Naruto's, and the two boys stared at each other for a few moments, slanted black eyes boring into wide blue ones.
Naruto felt an odd, fluttering feeling in his stomach – that injury was really troubling him…
And then, the corners of Sasuke's lips twitched, forming his usually ubiquitous, arrogant smirk.
Naruto almost expected a derogatory scoff, or a pejorative 'Dobe' at that moment, the expression was so familiar.
The last time they'd met, Sasuke had just glared at him, his face hard, not smirking even once (though he had laughed rather maniacally, which had been disturbing). Naruto thought his eyes had saddened towards the end of their debacle, but it had probably been just wishful thinking. Naruto had always hoped and wished when it came to Sasuke, ever since they were kids.
But Sasuke said nothing, his gaze sliding down from Naruto's face to the blood pooling at his stomach, black eyebrows furrowing slightly. It was almost a frown. Naruto guessed he was surprised that he hadn't healed yet. Sasuke wouldn't know about the Kyuubi.
The dark eyes then flickered around the battlefield, before their owner seemed to come to some sort of decision, his lips tightening into a straight line. He leaned forward, and Naruto expected some kind of an attack. Sasuke would never willingly come close to him otherwise.
But he was shocked, as Sasuke grabbed his upper arm with what would have been bruising strength for any lesser shinobi but Naruto, his dark eyes bleeding over into a star-shaped pattern, and Naruto suddenly found himself being teleported away.
The world spun around him, making him feel unbelievably nauseous, the pain in his stomach doubling, until he suddenly landed on something hard.
"Ugh," was all Naruto said, steadying himself, feeling rather disoriented as he surveyed his surroundings.
They were in a cave of some sorts – far away from the battle field, as Naruto could hear no battle cries or clashes of metal. A few rays of light penetrated the dark interiors from a small opening, and Naruto could here the rushing roar of what was unmistakably water.
He knew the jutsu – Kakashi had used it on him before. The time-space warping jutsu unique to Mangekyou Sharingan users.
Sasuke stood up, his back to Naruto, and both boys were silent.
Why the hell has he bought me here? Probably to finish off our fight somewhere we can't be disturbed – but why isn't he attacking?
There was silence for a few more moments, and Sasuke made no move to attack. Naruto wondered what the hell was wrong with him. He also felt slightly – excited? No – thrilled… no – tense? Naruto couldn't quite place what it was, but for some reason the prospect of being alone with Sasuke, after all these years – was enthralling.
Naruto finally deigned it necessary for him to speak, as Sasuke continued to stand with his back to him, attempting to ignore his existence, something which he'd usually specialized in.
"Why are we here?" Naruto asked, not bothering to keep the curiosity out of his voice. "Wait, no - where are we?"
Sasuke turned to him, and Naruto's heart gave another funny leap which he proceeded to ignore, as the dark eyes met his own.
It was that same feeling he'd felt the last time he'd seen Sasuke, and the time before. It was the same feeling that had intensified when Sasuke had pressed his hard, muscular body against Naruto, katana at his neck, Sasuke's husky voice whispering in his ear.
Naruto hadn't realised what the feeling was. He was slightly dense that way, as poor Hinata Hyuuga had experienced. Even if this was Sasuke, Naruto hadn't quite been enlightened over his emotions about the Uchiha, even if the rest of Konoha found it odd how much he longed Sasuke's company, how long he'd chase relentlessly after him, even when he had the beautiful Hyuuga heiress ready to die for him, literally.
"You haven't realized yet?" Sasuke asked, his tone flat.
It struck Naruto odd, that Sasuke seemed to be – having a conversation with him. Without attempting to murder him. The usual homicidal glint wasn't present in those dark eyes. Sasuke almost looked – relaxed.
"No, I haven't," Naruto said, growing slightly impatient for answers.
They had been in the middle of a war. And then Sasuke had suddenly leapt in and saved him. The thought gave Naruto a rising feeling of hope – why would Sasuke save him if he hated him and wanted to kill him? It didn't make sense – that meant Sasuke cared, right? Unless he had a more selfish motive, like wanting to kill Naruto himself. That would be a bastardly, but rather Sasuke-ish thing to do. However, when it came to Sasuke, as usual, Naruto refused to think badly of him.
Sasuke didn't speak, looking at Naruto expectantly. It was odd, how after all that separation, they still knew each other eerily well. Sasuke knew Naruto was about to begin some sort of long, drawn-out rant, and had seen in futile to speak, instead waiting for the blonde to continue.
"And I don't care where we are! Why'd you drag me here? There's a battle going on, you know! I should be fighting! And – it's weird that you'd suddenly show up and save me – not that I needed saving or anything. I could've beaten that snake myself, dattebayo! Not that I don't appreciate it, 'cause I do. So thanks! But – I – why would you do that? I thought you hated me – and – we're supposed to fight! And I'm dragging your ass back to Konoha, you bastard! How could you – ugh! My body refuses to heal and I don't understand what the hell is going on!"
Sasuke smirked as Naruto rambled on, his fury and confusion melding into a rather amusingly loquacious speech.
"You can't fight, you're injured," Sasuke finally said matter-of-factly, his voice and face not revealing a trace of emotion. "And I had to step in. He would have killed you otherwise."
"But – but – but –" Naruto blubbered, flailing one arm as the other attempting to unsuccessfully stem the blow of blood, "Why – why would you – I thought we were rivals! I thought – you hated me! And I could have beaten him, I didn't need you!"
Sasuke's eyes flicked to his injury.
"Shut up," Sasuke said sharply, suddenly kneeling down at his side. Naruto froze, as his pale fingers made their way to the zipper at the neck of his jumpsuit collar.
"Wh-what're you doing?" Naruto screeched, shocked at his actions, as Sasuke began to tug the zipper downwards.
He felt another wild, hot feeling surge through his body, mingled with disbelief. The last thing he'd expected, after being reunited with Sasuke, was for his rival to – undress him, if that was what he was doing – it was too insane to even think about!
"Stop talking," Sasuke said shortly, as Naruto felt his face heat up at the sudden proximity of his raven-haired – bestfriendenemyrivalbond whatever – and the fact that said person had completely unzipped his jumpsuit, and was now fingering the bottom edge of his black fishnet t-shirt.
"But-"
"You're injured, moron," Sasuke snarled, and Naruto smiled painfully at the familiarity in his tone. He almost relished the fact that Sasuke was insulting him again – it gave him a sense of nostalgia. But that didn't quite resolve the fact that Sasuke's hands were at his shoulders, easing his jacket off.
"Someone has to heal this wound before it gets infected or you pass out from blood loss," Sasuke informed him, and the cutting edge of his voice made it sound like an insult, as if he were ridiculing Naruto for his idiocy at not noticing this fact earlier. In reality, he was.
"Oh," was all Naruto managed to say, feeling rather light-headed at Sasuke's fingers slipped under his shirt, brushing against the skin of his stomach. He felt an electric shock at that moment – it was almost as if Sasuke had used chidori on him – but even Naruto knew it wasn't that.
He wondered why he was allowing Sasuke to do this – if it was even necessary, or even appropriate – and how he'd managed to land himself in such a situation with Sasuke of all people, and why Sasuke was even bothering. Still, Naruto had never wanted anything more than to have Sasuke pay attention to him. And Sasuke was paying attention to him now, albeit in a completely different way, as he carefully lifted up the sticky, wet material of Naruto's t-shirt. So Naruto wasn't about to protest; after all, he could barely move, let alone heal that damn injury. So if Sasuke suddenly was overcome by charity and wanted to help him, Naruto would let him, no matter how uncharacteristic it was.
Probably his way of making up for all the crap he put me through, Naruto thought.
"Raise your arms," Sasuke commanded, and Naruto flushed horribly.
"Wh-what?"
"Raise your arms," Sasuke repeated, rolling his eyes – again, the familiarity of his tone at that moment send a stab of pain through Naruto. It was almost as if they were teammates again, Sasuke helping him out of some idiotic mess he'd landed himself into. But they weren't – and yet, Sasuke was helping him.
"Naruto, we need to get this shirt off so I can have a look at your wound," Sasuke snapped impatiently, and Naruto obediently raised his arms, allowing Sasuke to pull his shirt off.
Though he may be dense, Naruto wasn't completely stupid. He knew what it would look like, if someone walked in one them at that moment. He'd had enough training with the King of Perverts, his dear Ero-Sannin to know that.
The shirt was off, and Naruto blushed furiously, as he sat bare-chested in front of Sasuke, who was gazing at his stomach with narrow eyes. Naruto thanked all that rigorous physical training Jiraiya had put him through. At least his torso was now tanned and muscular to Sasuke's sight. Though Naruto wondered why Sasuke seeing his body should have even bothered him. They'd been to hot springs before when they'd been genin together, though that had been years ago.
It's only 'cause I don't want him to have a better body than me, Naruto assured himself, Nothing else. Why would I care what that teme thinks? I bet my body is better than his, though his is probably really hot too… wait, why I am I thinking about this? Kami-sama, Ero-Sannin has turned me into a pervert! I don't want to see Sasuke's hot naked bod – ugh NO! Stop right there! Stop, you stupid stupid mind! Kyuubi, this is your fault! You've done something! I can't be having thoughts like that on Sasuke! Nooo! That's gross!
While Naruto engaged his mind in a rather furious altercation, his cheeks reddening, Sasuke had ripped a strip of fabric from his shirt, and was gently wiping away the excess blood.
"OW!" Naruto yelped, hips jerking forward when Sasuke accidentally brushed his open wound.
"Control yourself," Sasuke hissed, but he continued, his dark head bowed slightly, eyes narrowed in concentration. One hand moved down to grip Naruto's hip tightly, preventing him from moving again, and the other continued to dab gently around his stomach.
Naruto felt heat build up within him, pooling to a rather inconvenient location.
No! Not that now! I don't need Sasuke to see it!
He couldn't help it though – Sasuke's hand was warm against his hip – it was a rather intimate position – and he was being so gentle – Naruto had never expected Sasuke to ever be gentle, especially with him.
Naruto said no more though, and there was an awkward silence in the cave for a few moments. Naruto stared at Sasuke's face – he had a handsome face, his chiseled features almost perfect, his skin fair and unblemished, his eyes dark with a startling intensity – seeing that face morphed into a look of concentration, having those intense eyes focused on him – it was an exhilarating feeling, and Naruto suddenly felt rather tight in his pants.
Damnit! No, no, no! I can't let him realize!
Luckily, Sasuke was far too occupied with Naruto's injury. Once he finished cleaning it, he released Naruto's hip, placing both his hands over the wound, not quite touching it, but hovering over it. There was a glow of bluish chakra, and Naruto felt a familiar warm feeling spread through his stomach.
"Sasuke!" he gasped, "How can you –"
"I was around that creep, Kabuto, for three years," Sasuke responded before Naruto could finish his question. "He taught me the basics of medical ninjutsu."
"Cool," Naruto said weakly, not knowing what else to see. One question still resounded in his head – why was Sasuke doing this and not killing him, like he'd vowed to?
Sasuke didn't say anything in reply, concentrating on the healing. He managed to patch up most of Naruto's skin, though it was still reddish in color and inflamed.
"That's the best I can do," he said curtly, pulling his hands away, "The skin is still weak. You'll have to see a proper medic when we get back."
"Th-thank you," Naruto stuttered, watching as Sasuke shrugged back on long white sleeve, and began unwrapping white bandages from around his arm.
"What're you doing?" Naruto asked, trying not to admire the lean muscles of Sasuke's arm – that loose shirt covered too much, though it was becoming obvious to Naruto that Orochimaru and Madara had obviously trained Sasuke hard as well.
"Wrapping it up," Sasuke said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, as he pulled off the long white bandages. His hands were at Naruto's waist again, his fingertips brushing against Naruto's bare skin as he began to wrap around the wound. He had to bend slightly forward to access Naruto's back, bringing his face slightly closer to Naruto's own.
Naruto felt his own heart rate speed up, as he gazed at Sasuke's face, which was dangerously close, the dark eyes half-obscured by spikes of dark hair that had fallen over his face. Sasuke's hair was the same, though slightly longer. Naruto though it looked better this way, without a forehead protector restraining it – though he still wished Sasuke wore the forehead protector all the same.
The very same forehead protector which was in the breast pocket in the inner lining of his orange jumpsuit… Naruto had always kept it there, feeling almost reassured when he felt the hard metal against his chest as he leapt through tree branches on missions. It was almost like a bit of Sasuke, right with him, close to his heart.
It was slightly pathetic, but it was the most he could get.
But now, he had the real Sasuke. A living, breathing Sasuke, who was sososo close, and it was better than just cold metal.
"Why're you helping me?" Naruto finally asked, his voice choked.
Sasuke paused in the wrapping process, his hands resting at Naruto's back and looked up, his eyes almost level with Naruto, though slightly higher. It irked Naruto – Sasuke had always been an inch or so taller then him. Over the years, despite their growth spurts, this trait had continued.
Sasuke gazed at him from underneath dark lashes. Naruto had never admired how beautiful those lashes really were – wait, what was he thinking?
"I don't really know," Sasuke admitted softly, and Naruto's heart fluttered yet again at his tone.
No wonder all those girls were all over him… I think I can understand why Sakura-chan and Ino like him so much… wait, NO! NO NO NO! Bad thoughts! Bad thoughts!
"It's just – I saw him attacking you – and I had to jump in. My body just – moved," Sasuke said, echoing his own words from what felt like a different life.
Naruto smiled reminiscently. It had been the same excuse years ago, when Sasuke had jumped in to save him from Haku. He felt his eyes water, and his heart swell – he'd never expected that, not after all the hatred Sasuke had fostered.
"Again?" Naruto asked, his lips quirking upwards, "That means you do care, right?"
"Don't be ridiculous," Sasuke scoffed, though Naruto noticed it lacked his usual venom. "I don't care about you, Naruto. I told you, I've severed my bonds."
His hands still rested at Naruto's side, and his face was so close. Naruto could have leaned in and kissed him, at their proximity, though he wouldn't have dared even if the thought did cross his mind.
Somehow, their position took the meaning out of words which would have stabbed at Naruto's heart earlier when he'd said them, his voice acerbic, his comments slashing through Naruto liked giant fuuma shuriken.
"Then why did you save me? Why are you going out of the way to help me right now, when there's a war going on?" Naruto persisted, his voice unusually soft.
It was weird – he usually yelled out these proclamations. And Sasuke shouted right back at him. But right now, both of them were speaking in unusually dulcet tones.
"I have to kill you myself, remember?" Sasuke said, his lips twisting into some sort of grimace.
Naruto felt a sinking feeling inside of him – he should have expected that. But it was still odd, with the way Sasuke was treating him.
"Don't lie, Sasuke," Naruto pressed, his voice rising slightly, "Stop deluding yourself. If you hated me as much as you say you do, why don't you just kill me right now, when I'm weakened? You have your chance – you had it years ago, at the Valley of the End."
"You know why I spared you then," Sasuke hissed, "It was a whim. I didn't want to satisfy Itachi at the time. And right now – I can't fight you in such a pathetic state. I have some dignity, Naruto."
The way he said his name made Naruto shiver. Somehow, the way Sasuke said his name, in a low, breathy voice – it made him feel hot and bothered.
"I don't believe you," Naruto shot back, his blue eyes narrowing, "You keep saying all that, but you never actually hurt me. Just admit it, Sasuke! Why can't you tell me the truth, for once! You still care about Konoha, you still care about Kakashi, you still care about Sakura, you still care about me!"
"No," Sasuke retorted immediately, his hands leaving Naruto's sides. Naruto found himself missing the warmth.
Sasuke's eyes flashed.
"I don't care about that god-forsaken village. And I certainly don't care about Kakashi. I don't care about Sakura either – I would've killed her if you hadn't interfered!" he snarled.
Naruto's heart leapt at the one omission, the one statement Sasuke had failed to deny.
He grabbed Sasuke's collar, wrenching him close, so close that he could feel Sasuke's breath on his lips.
Sasuke seemed to realize this.
"Don't kiss me again, dobe, it was traumatizing enough the first time," he said, his voice dripping with arrogance.
Naruto winced at his tone, remembering the rather compromising incident, but didn't move his face away, not caring how suggestive his actions may have seemed.
"Shut up," Naruto snarled, "Just shut the fuck up! You didn't deny it."
"What the hell are you talking about?"
Naruto's voice was heavy with emotion when he spoke next.
"You didn't deny that you cared about me – you said it about them – but you didn't deny it – you've never hurt me either, never attacked unless you knew I'd be able to fight back – you still care Sasuke, somewhere within you! I know you do!"
Naruto shook him, but Sasuke pulled away, glaring at him, Sharingan spinning in his eyes. He was silent for a moment, before sighing.
"Alright," Sasuke said dully, "Fine. You're right. I do care about you. I never hated you. Why would I? You were my best friend – I had no reason to."
"I – what?" Naruto whispered, reeling in shock, feeling warmer and happier than he had in years. Hearing it from Sasuke's lips – was just staggering.
"I care about you," Sasuke repeated tonelessly, "But only you. Not Sakura, not Kakashi, not Konoha. But it doesn't matter, does it. It's like we're destined to be rivals, destined to fight."
"You – you care about me," Naruto said, his voice dazed, but Sasuke grabbed him by the shoulders, shaking him roughly.
"It doesn't matter, Naruto!" Sasuke said, his voice almost desperate, "It doesn't change things! Don't get your hopes up!"
"But," Naruto continued, his blue eyes bright as they met Sasuke's, "Would you – would you come back for me then? If you – if you really do care? Would you, Sasuke?"
Sasuke looked away, and Naruto saw a flash of pain cross his face. His own stomach sank, realizing the response before Sasuke even provided it.
"Sasuke, please-"
"I won't Naruto," Sasuke said, looking and sounding genuinely regretful, "But I told you – don't get your hopes up. I'm not coming back."
"Why, Sasuke?" Naruto cried, "Why not? We all want you back, Sakura, Kakashi and I! You'd be forgiven, for everything! I know what happened with Itachi, but Sasuke – we really care about you too!"
"I still won't," Sasuke repeated, looking melancholic, "I almost wish I could bring myself to. But I can't. And I will not. So please, drop it, for your sake as well as mine. And I told you, I don't care about Kakashi and Sakura, so don't-"
"What about me then?" Naruto whispered, impulsively grabbing Sasuke's hands, "Won't you come back for me? I really – miss you – Sasuke. I've – wanted nothing more – over the last few years than – to bring you back. Without you – it's like –" Naruto's voice cracked, eyes tearing up as he continued, "Without you it's like – a part of me is missing. I can't – take it any longer! Please come back, if just for me!"
Sasuke's eyes were bright, and he bit his lip, shaking his head, clenching his fingers, his nails digging into Naruto's hand.
"I wish I could, Naruto," Sasuke said softly, "I wish I could, just for you. But I can't. I'm sorry. That's why I've tried to hate you all these years, to make it easier for both of us. But now I've admitted it, and yet my choice remains the same. No matter what you say, I won't change my mind."
"Why?" Naruto asked, tears now leaking out of his eyes, "Why won't you? Konoha's done nothing to wrong you! The Itachi incident was a mistake, but Tsunade would never, ever –"
"Drop it, Naruto," Sasuke said gently, but firmly, "You'd never leave Konoha for your life. Same way, I'd never come back. This is why I didn't want to tell you before. It's better I just let you hate me, then-"
"I'd never hate you!" Naruto declared passionately, "No matter how much of a bastard you are, no matter how many times you try to kill me! I could never hate you, Sasuke! You were my first friend, the first person to acknowledge me, my first –"
"Not the bond speech, Naruto," Sasuke said, sounding rather weary, "I can't take that right now."
"But Sasuke, I-"
"I could never hate you either, Naruto. No matter how much you annoyed me, no matter how many times you tried to force me to go against my goals – I could never hate you. Pathetic, right, the both of us?"
It was more emotion than Sasuke had ever shown, and Naruto felt his heart crack, tears streaming down his face.
"Stop crying like a girl," Sasuke muttered, pulling his hands away from Naruto's grip, "You're wasting your tears on me, Naruto. Just let me go, and fulfill your impossible dream…"
"That's not my dream anymore," Naruto sniffled, "My dream – is getting – you – even if I have to die for you, die by your hand, die with you-"
"Why Naruto?" Sasuke yelled, his voice rising suddenly, "I asked you then, and I'm asking you now. Why do you go so far for me? Why the fuck do you care about me so much? I'm not going to change, Naruto. Why are you wasting your life, when you know, in the end I'll be left with no choice but to kill you?"
"You know why. You made your choice, not to come back," Naruto said, his voice suddenly steely as he glared at Sasuke, "I've made mine. It sucks that we'll probably end up killing each other, but hey, at least we'll be together after that, right teme?"
Sasuke glowered back at him, moving away and leaning across the opposite wall, his arms crossed. Naruto shot him an equally dirty glower.
"You're such a stubborn asshole, y'know?" Naruto muttered after a few minutes.
"Hn," Sasuke grunted, scowling at him.
More time lapsed, in perfect silence, before Naruto sighed and finally struggled up, crawling towards where Sasuke was, and plopping himself down next to him.
Sasuke raised an elegant eyebrow questioningly.
"Well," Naruto said glumly, "At least for as long as we're here – how long is that, by the way – we may as well – talk…"
"I'm leaving in a few hours," Sasuke stated, "I'm not needed in this battle, not yet."
From what Naruto could tell judging by the light that streamed through the cave's opening, and the time that had passed, it was evening.
"Oh," he said, resolving to stay for as long as Sasuke did, and spend every possible moment with his – best friend.
"So what did you want to talk about?" Sasuke asked finally, his voice sounding rather uninterested.
Naruto ignored his tone, shrugging.
"Dunno… this is kinda weird – um – how has your training been going?" he offered, not quite comprehending that he was having such a conversation with Sasuke at such a time.
"Well enough," Sasuke said, smirking slightly before adding, "Far better than yours at any rate."
Naruto smiled, allowing himself to be taken by the easy bait.
"Yeah right," he scoffed, "I've become so awesome! I can totally kick you ass now, you bastard!"
"Tch. As if."
"Seriously!" Naruto yelled, get far too involved in the argument, like he always had, "I know some really cool jutsu!"
"Too bad medical jutsu isn't one of them," Sasuke retorted, and Naruto blushed.
"Hehe," he laughed sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head, "Well I always had the fox and Sakura-chan for that, so – um…"
"The fox?" Sasuke asked, looking puzzled, "You still have that – don't you?"
"Why d'you ask, so you can try and control it?" Naruto joked, recalling the last time Sasuke had done exactly that.
Sasuke shot him a death glare, and Naruto hastily backtracked.
"Nah, the bugger's still there, he's just – locked up better. I broke the seal, and then re-trapped him with a stronger one."
"Ah."
"Yeah. It's good because I don't have to worry about freaking out and him controlling me though. The downside is that I don't heal automatically anymore – but – well – that's when you came in, right?" Naruto blushed slightly, feeling rather shy as he looked at Sasuke.
"That's when I came in," Sasuke nodded, either not noticing, or choosing not to comment on Naruto's odd behaviour. "I was wondering why you were bleeding so much. Now it makes sense."
"I kinda took him for granted, you know. I'd never fought with an injury for so long, 'cause it usually healed before it could really hinder me in battle. And I wasn't able to train properly and learn to harness his chakra. That's why I was struggling against Kabuto – I could've easily beaten him if I was normal," Naruto went on, feeling rather embarrassed that Sasuke had caught him when his skills were relatively – off. He felt it necessary to explain to the other boy. For some reason, he didn't like the idea of looking bad in Sasuke's eyes.
"Are you trying to justify your failure in battle to me, dobe? Because I'll let you know, I'm not convinced," Sasuke teased, sounding amused.
"Shut up, you bastard! Like I'd ever have to justify anything to you!" Naruto shouted, mortified that Sasuke had been able to surmise his intentions so accurately – Sasuke hadn't noticed anything else, had he?
"Of course not," Sasuke scoffed, rolling his eyes.
They bantered for a while more, bickering like eleven-year olds, before Naruto opened another rather sensitive topic, one which he hadn't spoken to anyone else about.
"Hey, Sasuke," he said, scooting slightly closer to the raven-haired shinobi, "Should I tell you a secret?"
"…" Sasuke said nothing, staring ahead and waiting for him to continue.
"When I was – fighting off the Kyuubi in my mind – I met my mom."
"Hn."
"Yeah – it was great," Naruto said, his voice growing thick, "We talked for ages. It was kinda cool since I've never seen her before. She was like, in my mind, you know."
"Naruto," Sasuke began, almost believingly, but Naruto cut him off.
"I'm not making this up, okay! It actually happened. She was in my mind. Anyways, you know what she told me? Your mom and her, they used to be like, best friends! Isn't that cool?"
"Indeed," Sasuke said blandly, though Naruto could tell he was interested.
"Yeah! They really wanted us – to become best friends too…" Naruto said, trailing off and looking at Sasuke expectantly.
"What?" Sasuke asked, turning his head to meet Naruto's bright blue eyes.
"Well, um –" Naruto dropped his gaze, suddenly fidgeting with his fingers, seeming unusually shy.
"What is it, Naruto?" Sasuke asked impatiently.
"Well – d'you think that happened? Do you think – that we are best friends?" Naruto asked hesitatingly.
"I don't know," Sasuke said thoughtfully, "I – told you that years ago, didn't I?"
"Yeah," Naruto admitted, blushing, "But that was – years ago…"
"I said I cared about you, right?"
"It's – different," Naruto persisted, looking up, "So – are we, Sasuke?"
"Best friends?"
"Yeah…"
"Do best friends try to kill each other often?" Sasuke asked, his lips quirking.
"That wasn't funny!" Naruto shouted, suddenly angry, "Just – answer the question, damnit! Are we still?"
"I don't understand why you care so much about this," Sasuke sighed, but Naruto looked rather hurt, so he hastily continued.
"I'm not exactly – fond of anyone else – there is no one, really. But – I suppose – if you leave out the fact that we're kind of rivals who've sworn to – kill each other – then yes. We're best friends, Naruto."
Naruto beamed at this, his face brightening almost instantaneously, and even Sasuke found himself smiling back, one of his first genuine smiles.
"That's awesome," Naruto was saying, "I told my mom we were. She understood!"
"…"
"I've always wanted that, you know."
"Wanted what?"
"Wanted to hear it from you, to hear you admit it. It feels great, doesn't it?" Naruto continued cheerfully.
"Hn."
"Hey Sasuke – um – even though you're a total bastard at times – you're really nice too, you know?"
"Don't get all emotional on me again," Sasuke said warningly, but Naruto paid him no heed.
"I'd never tell you all this, but seeing this is the only chance I might get to be with you, now I'm like, what the hell. I really like spending time with you, Sasuke. It's kinda cool…" Naruto rambled on, obviously pouring his heart out.
"Me too," Sasuke admitted after a while, his cold heart warming up ever so slightly at the delighted grin Naruto flashed at him.
"I wish things were different, y'know," Naruto said, "I wish we could just – hang out like this more often…"
"Hn," Sasuke gave a non-committal shrug, not knowing what to say.
"Right now, I can just pretend that there is no war, and that you're back in Konoha, and we're on some mission, you know – just – hanging out – on a mission – like – teammates-" Naruto's voice trembled at the last part, his eyes watering again.
"Naruto, let's not go there," Sasuke groaned, rubbing his temples.
"I'm sorry!" Naruto sniveled, "It's just – whenever I get close to you – you're gone again!"
"You knew that would happen, Naruto."
"Yeah but – hey, um – Sasuke – could you – do me a favor?"
Sasuke turned to him, flicking a few strands of ebony hair out of his eyes.
"What?" he asked, eyes narrowing suspiciously.
Naruto fumbled for a few moments, wondering if he dared to ask.
He's going in a few hours. He'll be gone and you'll never be able to speak to him again, except until battle, when he's trying to kill you. Worst thing, he'll try and kill you now. You have nothing to lose, he told himself.
"Could you – uh – give me a hug?" Naruto asked feebly, feeling incredibly foolish.
Sasuke stared at him, eyebrows high, obviously stunned by the request.
"Sorry?" he asked after a few moments, blinking.
"I asked," Naruto repeated, his face growing redder and redder, "If you could give me a hug! I know it's stupid – but – but – could you?"
It sounded pathetic to his own ears. But Naruto had been craving it, craving physical contact with Sasuke, and he couldn't help but blurting it out.
Sasuke would definitely deny him. And probably scoff at him – worse, Sasuke would laugh at him.
"Why?" Sasuke demanded, looking rather confused.
Naruto couldn't blame him – it was a rather random, whimsical request.
He struggled to come up with a response.
"Because – that's what friends do, okay!" he finally shouted out.
Sasuke continued to stare at him like he'd morphed into the Kyuubi itself.
Naruto felt his heart sink – of course, he hadn't expected much more, but it still hurt.
Suddenly he grew stiff, his stomach somersaulting, making him vaguely wonder if he'd summoned his toads within his own body, as Sasuke leaned forward, wrapping an arm around Naruto's shoulder, his other arm curling around Naruto's front, pulling the boy towards his chest.
Naruto felt warmth spreading throughout his body, as he felt the feeling of Sasuke's strong arms around him, the planes of his hard chest pressing into his back. Sasuke chin was at his shoulders, and his breath tickled Naruto's ear, causing a funny feeling to run down his spine, pooling near his lower regions.
"Happy?" Sasuke asked, his voice sounding rather resigned.
"Um – yeah," Naruto mumbled, blushing heavily.
"Why're you so tense?" Sasuke murmured, his voice low, and, in Naruto's opinion, orgasm-inducing.
"H-huh?" Naruto almost squeaked.
"You're stiff – and uncomfortable," Sasuke said, sounding annoyed, "You asked me for this, you know. Should I stop?"
"N-no!" Naruto said immediately, his voice unnaturally shrill, "You – just – stay right where you are!"
"O-kay," Sasuke sounded amused, almost as if he were humoring him, but Naruto didn't care.
He was grateful Sasuke was even granting his request, and he relaxed in Sasuke's arms, leaning back into Sasuke's chest and feeling his steady heartbeat. They'd never been this intimate, not even when they'd shared that first accidental kiss, which had actually been just a mashing of lips.
Naruto didn't care any longer what Sasuke would think of him, that Sasuke would probably discover his emotions, and the rather noticeable bulge in his pants. All he cared was that Sasuke was holding him – and it was pure bliss.
He could feel Sasuke's muscles rippling beneath the cloth that separated them. He'd known Sasuke was toned – he'd seen the muscular chest before, when Sasuke had been romping around in the gear Orochimaru had provided him with – but Sasuke had taken to more covering clothes now, and Naruto hadn't felt him so close before. It made him dizzy, and Naruto had a sudden vision of him and Sasuke, legs entangled and lips crashing together, as they tore one another's clothes off, fingers scraping and clawing at smooth, bare skin.
No. No way. Don't even go there, he warned his perverted mind, which was currently imagining up a rather explicit scene, worthy of Icha Icha.
"You know, no one's ever held me like this before," Naruto said aloud.
"…"
"I – never really had any family – so it's – kinda nice," he admitted.
His mouth had obviously decided to commence speaking on it's own, not listening to a word of advice from his brain. Naruto realized it didn't even matter, not with Sasuke.
"Me neither," Sasuke said after a while, his breath warm in Naruto's ear, "Not for twelve years, at least."
"We'd be awesome if we were together you know," Naruto said, "Like, if they made us an ANBU team together. I bet we'd have done that if you'd stayed."
"Possibly," Sasuke replied after a moment, before adding, "Aren't you still a genin?"
"Yeah well, so are you," Naruto retorted, "But you know both of us could kick any Jounin or ANBU's ass, believe it!"
"Hn."
"It's be awesome. I'd be like a – fox. Yeah. And my codename would be – Ramen!"
"Ramen?" Sasuke laughed, and Naruto nearly melted at the sound. He'd never heard Sasuke laugh before.
"I didn't know you were still that obsessed with noodles and soup," Sasuke said mockingly.
"Hey!" Naruto snapped, "Don't diss the Ramen! It's awesome!"
"Somehow, despite the numerous times you used to drag me to go eat it, I never quite realized that," Sasuke said sarcastically.
"Screw you! Your tastes obviously suck!"
"Not as much as you'd think," Sasuke muttered, shifting his hold on Naruto slightly.
"Huh?"
"Nothing," Sasuke said dismissively, quickly changing the topic, "Your ANBU codename, like your mask, is supposed to conceal your identity. I don't quite think Ramen, being the ludicrous name that it is, does that. Only an idiot like you would choose it. Far too obvious."
"Hey! Shut up! It's an awesome name – and I've never really been one for – concealing my identity!"
"I could tell…"
"How?"
"Orange, Naruto, orange," Sasuke said, shaking his head. His bangs brushed against Naruto's cheek.
"What's wrong with orange?" Naruto demanded.
"It's the loudest, most ostentatious color ever! It doesn't exactly blend with the surroundings as ninja garb is supposed to," Sasuke pointed out.
"Well, I don't need to blend in!"
"You don't even try. Screaming your arrival to all our enemies on missions like some sort of a retarded announcer-"
"I never did that!"
"You certainly did."
"Ugh – fine! But I'm still cooler than you. You know what your ANBU mask would've been? A snake! So there!"
"I'd prefer a hawk, thanks."
"Fine. And your name – would have been – ugh, can't think of one for you."
"…" Sasuke raised an eyebrow.
"Well to me you're just Sasuke. And Teme. Neither of which are appropriate nicknames."
"Why are we discussing this? It's never happening, you know."
"…yeah, I know," Naruto said reluctantly, "But it's – nice to dream, right?"
One of Sasuke's hands found their way into his hair, stroking softly, and Naruto found it oddly soothing.
"Don't stop," he mumbled, when Sasuke halted his ministrations, "Keep doing that – Sasuke…"
He continued, and Naruto began to feel rather sleepy. Sasuke noticed. It was already nighttime anyhow, a few shafts of silvery light permeating the cave.
"You can go to sleep," Sasukee said, "You're not going to be able to fight like this…"
"Yeah well," Naruto stifled a yawn, "I don't want to. If I do, then you'll leave. And I don't want to wake up to see you gone again. Maybe if you'd just stay…"
Sasuke pushed him away slightly, looking deep into his eyes.
"I can't, Naruto."
"I know," Naruto bit his lip, suddenly standing up as he walked over to the orange and black jacket Sasuke had taken off earlier when he'd healed him (the fishnet t-shirt had come back on).
He rummaged in the pockets of the jacket, feeling Sasuke's eyes on him, before he finally pulled out a long blue piece of cloth. There was a shiny metal plate attached to it, a jagged slash across the insignia carved into the metal.
Sasuke's old forehead protector.
Naruto walked over to Sasuke, sitting down next to him, placing the metal plate on his forehead.
"Naruto," Sasuke said, his voice tinged with exasperation, "What are you doing?"
"I just want to see," Naruto said, his hands reaching around Sasuke's head to tie the cloth ends together. Sasuke didn't bother resisting.
"There," Naruto said, smiling sadly as he finished.
It was an odd sight, seeing Sasuke in that forehead protector, his dark bangs framing his face, looking almost like he had years ago, when they'd been teammates. Naruto felt a lump in his throat, and a familiar sting in his eyes.
Sasuke smiled, almost apologetically, shaking his head.
Naruto grabbed the sides of his head, pulling him close, so that their foreheads rested together, the metal of one hitai-ite scraping against the other.
A single tear dripped down his whiskered cheek, and Sasuke reached up, gently brushing it away with his fingertips, before pulling away.
"I'm sorry, Naruto," he whispered in response to the unspoken plea, "But the answer is still no. I'm not coming back. Not now, not ever."
He then untied the cloth, and Naruto felt his heart break, yet again, as he did, the pale fingers moving deftly against the blue cloth. Sasuke placed it back in Naruto's lap, and Naruto realized his dark eyes were shimmering with unshed moisture as well.
"Keep it with you," Sasuke murmured, his voice sounding broken, an expression of utter pain across his normally stoic face. "It's better off with you…"
He then did something which surprised Naruto greatly, and send shivers running up and down his spine, the toads that seemed to be bouncing around in his stomach multiplying.
Sasuke reached up, tugging at the black band of Naruto's forehead protector. It came undone, and Sasuke pulled it off, before stowing it into some hidden pocket of his own.
He then gripped Naruto's shoulders, leaning forward, and brushing his lips across Naruto's bare forehead.
Naruto froze, his eyes wide for a few moments, as it registered in his mind that Sasuke Uchiha had just kissed him.
Sasuke's lips lingered there for a moment, and Naruto felt his hands squeezing on his shoulders once.
"I'm sorry, Naruto," he repeated, his voice cracking, and Naruto thought he felt something wet drip down onto his cheeks, melding with his own tears.
And then, before Naruto could even blink, before he could even call out his name, Sasuke was gone.
He disappeared, using his jutsu, leaving Naruto alone in the cave, clutching an old forehead protector, his head reeling and his heart thumping madly.
Naruto stood up wordlessly, a tempest of emotions inundated him, as he ran out of the cave, despite the fact that he knew he wouldn't be able to get him back.
He stopped at a sudden precipice, where the rock suddenly gave way, dropping steeply downward. The filling of roaring water filled his ears, and Naruto looked up at the star-studded sky, memories washing through him as he finally realized where they had been the entire time.
It was like an old wound that had been reopened, stabbed by a blunt kunai. But this time, the pain was less than he would have expected. Maybe it was because of Sasuke's actions earlier, and his words?
Naruto didn't feel as empty as he usually had when Sasuke had left him here the first time, at the Valley of the End, over six years ago.
He bought the hand clutching Sasuke's forehead protector to his lips, kissing the cold metal, imagining it to be an equally pair of cold lips instead.
He bought his other hand to his cheeks, wiping away his tears – Sasuke had been crying as well, before smiling slightly. Naruto touched his forehead, at the spot where Sasuke had kissed him, before wrapping the scratched forehead protector around it.
He wasn't a traitor. Tsunade would understand. And if people whispered about why he, Naruto, was wearing a missing-nin hitai-ite – well he'd just let them, letting the spiteful comments slide off him.
When we meet again, Sasuke, Naruto decided, I'm going to give it my all. I know you will, too, so I guess I'm looking forward to it.
…
…
…
A/N – crazy, insane plot, I know. And yeah, very unlikely scenario, obviously. Why would they randomly just escape the war to bond? I have no clue. OOC, yes. But it felt really nice to write, even though I know I went overboard with the romance and the mush and the angsting (especially on Naruto's part). I've also made him overly shy and Hinata-ish. Somehow it just flowed that way =P I hope I've remained loyal to at least a few facets of their personality.
I don't know what's with me and writing angsty SasuNaru. I don't usually do angst =P And sorry if you'd been wanting them to make out or something, but I just couldn't get myself to write it like that… I may continue this, or add a part 2 if you guys really want, so tell me if you do. But anyways, please drop a review, and thanks for reading!