Reality

Chapter Four: The Midnight Reunion

By

Hibiki

All rights to characters and places in this story belong to one Masashi Kishimoto.

"Sakura..." There she was standing before him uncertain and shifting uneasily. "Um... Come on in. Sorry for the mess." He allowed her in, waiting as she undid her sandals and left them at the door. The apartment, such as it was, was actually far more clear of debris and filth than she would have thought, and certainly more than he seemed to be thinking it. "Would you like something to drink? I... I don't have much since I just got back from the mission."

"I'm fine. Thank you." He nodded and the two stood there a moment, her nervous and him aloof. Finally, the silence got to the blonde and he rose to look outside upon his balcony. It was still easily within earshot of the girl, given the size of the meager apartment.

"What brings you here, Sakura?" He finally asked as his patience in waiting for her to speak ended.

"I was worried." That brought Naruto up short.

"Why?" He didn't want to sound embittered but frankly this Sakura, and his up until Gaara's rescue mission had treated him with almost contempt. For her to be worried meant something had changed further than he had thought.

"You scared Ino when you ran into her at the hospital, she said you looked angry and... lost." He refrained from any action other than looking at her with a confused expression. In his mind he cursed at being so obvious in front of his... No she wasn't his wife. But a warmth at the thought Ino could still read him, even way back at this point brought a faint smile to him. It must had been confusing as Sakura watched the multitudes of emotion pass over his face. "It made me worried too, because as long as I have been your teammate you've never acted like that. Ever."

"Sorry I was just annoyed. Teme and I got beaten up by his brother before we found Baa-chan... Er The Hokage." He supplied at her look when he mentioned a 'Baa-chan' "Then Orochimaru and Kabuto nearly killed me when Ero-sennin and her fought them. I managed to kill Kabuto but not before I was hit" Through the backlash of his own Jutsu this time, but she didn't need to know that.

"Oh..." She looked a little stricken as she realized just how close he had come to death in such a short time. "I didn't know." It was true, she originally only found out about them during his time away with Jiraiya, and having no one to turn to had let it fester until shortly before she died.

"It made me realize that all three of us need to get stronger. I know what I need to do. But you need to find a way to get stronger, Sakura-chan." She took offense at that

"I'm plenty strong enough! Even if I'm not I have you and Sasuke-kun to help me." His hands clenched and he ground his teeth a moment before fixing her in place with a stare unlike any she had seen from him before outside of their near fatal C turned A ranked mission.

"No, you need to understand this Sakura. Now. Before something happens and it's too late to..." Sakura watched a moment confused why he would give such an odd look coupled with that snort. "redo past mistakes." There was humor in his voice then, but it felt darker than it looked and brought a pang of something inside her. He began talking again bringing her out of her musings too early to understand the sensation. "There will be people who won't care we're kids. They won't stop. They might even enjoy it because we are what we are. To them, all we are is someone standing in their way. These people will do things, horrible things. Even if you quit, it won't matter to them that you are unarmed, a civilian, because in the end, they will KILL you. And that's not mentioning whatever they decide to do to you first." The seriousness in his voice, the fact his stormy eyes seem to look straight through her brought an uneasiness to her. "You need to be ready to fight them off."

"That's a horribly jaded view of the world Naruto." She rubbed her bare arms as if someone had slide across her grave from the look he gave her. But then that smile of his she knew so well came up hiding the man behind it.

"Maybe." He looked to the stars from his balcony again. "Maybe it is. But you are important to me. More important than you could possibly know." The last sentence barely reached her ears but the intensity that could be drawn from it left her breathless and rather flustered. Naruto, ever since he had come back with the newest Hokage had seemed so very different, he seemed filled with an intensity she could not comprehend outside of say Kakashi or the Hokage. Coupled with Sasuke's at first indifference, then outright hostility towards her, it had made Naruto's sudden change all the more glaring.

"You've changed." She said abruptly, and his shoulders jumped. "I... I mean in a good way!" She fumbled with her words, she never would have before but this Naruto before her felt like a completely different person than the one who had left to find Tsunade-sama. In many ways it actually stung her by loosing that happy carefree child, but in an odd sense the mature trend he was following was actually rather, interesting. Suddenly he laughed, it started off small, then loudly as he griped his railing.

"R-really? I feel like ever since I got back I've been more depressing than even the Teme and then you say you like me like this." He laughed a little more as she huffed before turning a slightly more serious expression, though the humor was still present as he grinned to remove any sting his words would bring. "If that's what it takes to win you're heart, then no thanks, Sakura." Sakura's face turned almost her hair color as she stared at him bug-eyed.

"W-w-what?" He shrugged off her question.

"In any case, you should take my advice, I'll even point you in the right direction." She had to backtrack through those rather embarrassing moments before she realized what he was saying.

"Naruto... How come you never mentioned, Sasuke?" Another shock, she didn't add Sasuke's normal honorific. The more he thought about it the more likely she was worried he would become upset and not reply. No he was too old and too callous to really care.

"Because he's probably itching to go to Orochimaru." He pressed on after he gasp. "The snake gave Sasuke the almost perfect way to get stronger and defeat his brother, given what he was saying when we ran into him." A lie, but she didn't need to know how he knew it. Not yet. "Given this last defeat by Itachi, I cannot see him doing anything but-" He was cut off as Sakura cried out.

"NO!" She had clenched her eyes and was holding her fists against her heart as if to keep the truth he was saying from ripping it out. "That can't be true! Sasuke would never leave us! We're a team!"

"Yes we are. But he's never been the same since his family was killed. He's only now just coming out of that shell he hid himself in, but Itachi did something to him. Him and Kakashi-sensei both. It affected their minds, and while sensei has experience and people to back him up, Sasuke..." He trailed off letting her think what she wanted. The silence returned but he wouldn't break it. He knew what had to be done, it was her who needed to think.

"What do I need to do become stronger? So I can keep him from leaving us." She virtually demanded. He nodded, giving her that smile that made her scratch at an nervous itch upon her cheek then twirl her short hair with the same finger a moment later at both her deceleration and his acceptance of it.

"You have the best control I have seen outside of someone with a bloodline, meaning you'd be perfect for both illusions and Medical jutsu... But I can see you being a healer, more than anything. I'd bet you could even get Baa-cha..." He paused at her look. "Fine. Hokage-sama, to teach you some things."

"You really think I could be a medic?"

"Sakura-chan, I have no doubt you could become the best medic-nin in the entire elemental countries." The surge of worth in herself could only come from that smile and pure confidence which all but radiated from his words.

Maybe she should go and talk with Hokage tomorrow. It wasn't like Sasuke would be running off tonight, right?

It was just shy of midnight when Sakura left, a clone walking her home to keep her from being attacked and more to the point, away from the west gate. He himself was there, waiting. Things had changed. He couldn't be certain if the Sound Four had reached Sasuke or not yet.

"Naruto." Naruto stopped, baulked at the voice, then turned to find Ino standing before him, her hands on her hips. Just what in the hell did he change that made not one but BOTH Ino and Sakura show up before him. He turned to her fully, giving a hello that for some reason made her frown further.

"isn't it pretty late for you to be out Ino?" She ignored his greeting with a slightly furious sounding demand.

"Why do you know that sign?" Naruto froze. Oh shit. He hadn't, had he?

"I... I dunno what you mean." His mask was up and in full force, deflecting her question with an idiot grin and a dopey scratch at his neck.

"Drop the act. NOW." The smile drooped then fell leaving him uncertain. "That sign you keep giving me, that's something no one, NO. ONE. Should know about outside my family. Who are you? Who are you really?"

Damn, that meant he had been. It was the simple sign that meant the person who was in control of the body or the person before them was in fact a Yamanaka. It was developed as a sneaky way to keep from killing one another by accident should the event arise that needed it. He had spent many years with Ino doing the sign whenever they greeted one another. Due to her family being wiped out in the 4th war, it had become their gesture, and theirs alone, a sign of love. It was a tie to her past she was unwilling to let go, and him unwilling to take from her. So he made the sign when he greeted her, always. To the point he did it instinctively. Apparently he learned it only too well and old dogs can't stop doing tricks. For once, he was at a loss, what the hell was he suppose to say or do to keep her from either killing him, freaking out, or both.

"It's really me, Naruto, Ino-chan." He felt drained, and it must had come through his voice because the edge of her attitude seemed to falter. "I can explain... but. It's going to sound insane."

"Try me." The edge back. So was someone else.

"Yamanaka. Dobe." Oh, for crying out loud! The two turned to find Sasuke, a backpack upon his back and a cold look in his eyes.

"Sasuke?" Ino questioned alarmed.

Next Chapter: The More Things Change...

I really really really wanted to keep from Ino finding out about Naruto's past, but the fact that the thought of a sign that he would do unconsciously came to the surface as I wrote and was so much better than just him and Sasuke squaring off before the gate, I just couldn't resist. Not to mention it will give a reason for Naruto to do what he will in chappy 5.

I've been working on a few things but for some reason I cannot get more than three paragraphs of Memories 13 going. Actually other than this, I have bits here and there of many fictions but nothing concrete. Though some may as well be made of stone from their progression.

As the usual sayings go, please read and review. The more reviews the better I seem to get at these things because I realize people are interested in reading them.

Until then: See ya!