Author's note: Ok, so I wrote this actually several weeks ago, and decided that it wasn't finished. Then, today, I looked at it again...and really liked it. (0.o) I don't understand my muse, but there you go.

Anyway! Sorry about the late post, but I'm getting a much firmer idea of where I want to go with this story. You may see more AU's from me in this vein: Naruto and Kyuubi being one and the same. I'm actually thinking of at least one set in a Princess Mononoke-type universe.

And just fyi, I'm currently in Japan, hahaha. If you want updates on what's going on while I'm here in this crazy country, as well as more info on what might delay a post, you can find me at: http (colon slash slash) akaitsume (dot) livejournal (dot) com to y'all there! Enjoy.

"Eeeeeeeeeggs, eggs, eeeeeggs, you break 'em and you cook 'em, eeeeeggs…"

Grunting, Sasuke rolled over in bed as an irritating, singing voice poked its large butt into his dreams and startled him awake. Eyes still shut, he reached out a hand to the space next to him, expecting to find that warm, comforting presence he'd felt all night.

His sheets were still warm, but no body could be found.

"Eggs! Add a little sugar, add a little milk. Whip 'em up, flip 'em over! Eeeeeeeggs…"

Oh sweet god.

"I waaaaaant to cook an omelet! Omelet omelets! With eeeeeeggs…"

Groaning loudly, Sasuke peeled his eyes open and tossed his sheets away from him. He sat up grouchily, raven hair poking out in every direction. Muttering, Sasuke rose to his feet and staggered out of his bedroom. Odd scents came wafting down the hallway, and the unmistakable sound of sizzling food buzzed in his tired ears. Yawning, Sasuke gripped the doorjamb for the kitchen and leaned against it, peering into the room. He blinked.

Gone was his stove, his microwave, and his toaster oven. In their stead stood an odd contraption that certainly looked like his stove, were it not for the wood stand that was holding up a large, metal pot that Sasuke was certain he didn't own. Flames appeared to shoot up from nowhere, heating the bottom of the pot. In front of the monstrosity stood Naruto, who was not only singing to himself as he stirred the contents of the metal container, but dancing as well.

And the whole room smelled of eggs.

"Naruto…what are you doing?" Sasuke asked tiredly. The other man paused, then glanced over his shoulder.

"Making breakfast! I hope you like eggs." Flashing the confused Uchiha a grin, he turned back to his cooking. Slowly, Sasuke approached the table and sat.

"What did you do to my stove?"

"…What's a stove?"

Closing his eyes, Sasuke gestured towards the transformed hunk of metal before the blond. "That was my stove. The thing with three burners for the sole purpose of cooking stuff?"

"Is that what they were? I did wonder what all of those weird knobs and things were." When Sasuke opened his eyes, he caught the blond shrugging his broad shoulders. "I couldn't quite figure them out, so I traded them for stuff I could use. You don't mind, do you?"

Sasuke pinched the bridge of his nose. "Of course not. Why would I mind?" he asked sarcastically. "You managed to ruin my kitchen twice in the space of twenty four hours. I'm impressed."

At that, Naruto glanced over his shoulder again, eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean, 'ruined'? I'll change it all back when I'm done."

"Can you even do that, if you don't know what you changed in the first place?"

Those blue eyes went wide. "…Uhm…"

Sasuke sighed. Heavily. "Never mind."

To his surprise, Naruto's cheeks pinked slightly. Frowning, the blond turned back to his meal. "I'll fix it, alright? Just trying to do something nice for once…"

The muttered comments made Sasuke raise his eyebrows. "Why on earth would you try to do something nice for me? You hate me. You said so yourself."

"Just because I hate your guts doesn't mean I can't be…" The blond's shoulders hunched. "…Grateful."

Sasuke blinked in surprise. "Grateful? What do you mean, grate—"

"Right, food's on." Without further announcement, the blond flipped the egg concoction onto a waiting plate and set it pointedly in front of his master. As Sasuke stared at the plate, a bowl of rice, a pair of chopsticks, a plate of fish, and a glass of orange juice materialized in succession next to it. He looked up at the blond, who simply folded his arms over his chest and…pouted. "Eat."

The Uchiha heir gazed at the food apprehensively. It wasn't like Naruto could actually poison him, so the food was probably edible, but…this new attitude was disturbing him. An irritating, deliberately annoying, and defiant fox demon he could deal with, but a kind, grateful one? Sasuke shuddered.

"Oh for chrissakes, just eat the damn food will you? It's not poisoned, I swear." Naruto scowled. "I'll even promise not to cook for you anymore."

Sasuke swiveled in his chair, narrowing his eyes suspiciously at the blond. "You're not reading my mind, are you?"

Naruto threw his hands up into the air. "Yes, Sasuke. I'm so in tune with you that I'm reading your every brainwave, as a proper master and genie should. Of course I can't read your mind."

"Well, how am I supposed to know? You never tell me anything about you," Sasuke grumbled, turning back to his meal and stabbing the eggs warily with his chopsticks.

"Excuse me? What about my whole confession series last night?" Clearly disgruntled, Naruto turned to storm out of the kitchen. "If you don't understand the rules, you shouldn't have released me in the first place. Eat your damn food."

Sasuke watched the fox demon disappear into his living room. "Don't 'trade' anything in there that you don't understand!!"

The answering groan almost made Sasuke smile. Making sure he couldn't see Naruto from the table—and in return, couldn't be seen by him—Sasuke leaned in and gently inhaled the scent of real homemade food. It might have been made by way of demon magic, but…it was still the first food that he hadn't been forced to cook himself in thirteen years. Despite himself, he smiled slightly as he lifted a bit of fluffy eggs and placed them in his mouth.

Oh…god. Sasuke's eyes shut. Flavors exploded in his mouth, dancing merrily along his tongue. He didn't know what the fox had done to them, but the eggs had come out tasting…exotic, with spices his tongue couldn't quite recognize. Swallowing, he gazed down at the spread and frowned. Why would the demon go to this much trouble? Had the whole "punishment" mishap really bothered him that much?

Probably, Sasuke mused, continuing to eat. Even if I didn't mean it, Naruto almost bled to death because of me. Guilt slowed his movements slightly. He probably cooked for me just to prevent me from getting mad again.

Hesitating, Sasuke looked down at his half-eaten omelet and fish. On the one hand, an eager-to-please genie would be easier to live with, but…for some reason, it just seemed wrong. Gritting his teeth, Sasuke glowered at the table. Only a half-assed Uchiha like me would consider a pleasant servant a bad thing. No wonder Itachi didn't even bother to kill me with the rest of our family.

At the thought, a strange sensation erupted in his chest—it felt like a small flame was burning just beneath his heart, stretching out to envelop his entire chest—

"DOOOOUMOOOOOO! WELCOME TO MECHA ANIME WEEKDAY!! I'M KOJIMA YOSHIO, AND WE HAVE A GREEEEEEAT LINEUP FOR YOU TODAY!!!"

"AAAAAAAH!!!"

Sasuke nearly choked at the sudden blare of noise erupting from the living room, followed by a blood-curdling scream. Tossing down his chopsticks, he dashed into the room. The TV was flashing colors hectically and blasting music at full volume. Sasuke's fox demon, however, was nowhere to be seen. Swiping the remote, which was laying in the center of the floor, Sasuke turned the volume down and looked around.

"…Naruto?" No response. "Kyuubi?"

A light whimpering emanated from behind the couch. Lips twitching, Sasuke walked towards it. "Kyuubi?"

A pair of giant, furry paws slowly rose to clasp the back of the chair. After a moment, a large pair of twitching fox ears poked up from behind the couch, followed by a blond head with huge red eyes. Naruto's whisker marks had disappeared, replaced by actual whiskers standing straight out from his cheeks. The half fox glared at the television.

"What the hell is that thing??" he growled through sharpened teeth. The ears folded back on his head. "It's…it's…horrible!"

Sasuke's shoulders were shaking. One hand placed over his mouth, he weakly gestured for Naruto to come out from behind the couch.

"It's…not going to hurt you, Naruto," he managed, voice wobbling tellingly. Those red eyes swept in his direction and narrowed.

"Are you laughing at me?" The words "you asshole" went unsaid, but were heard anyway.

"N-no. Not at all." Taking a deep breath, Sasuke managed to control his trembling lips. "Just…come out from behind the couch."

Glaring at Sasuke warily, Naruto stood and stepped out from behind his makeshift shelter. A large, red, fluffy tail was tucked firmly between his legs.

Sasuke lost it.

Scowling, Naruto glared mutinously as his master doubled over with laughter. The normally reserved man was practically crying, his face red from his current inability to breathe properly. Naruto's ears twitched angrily.

"You know, if you expire on the floor, it's going to cause me a lot of trouble," he pointed out irritably. The Uchiha simply shook his head, pointing at the fox demon.

"You…you!" he gasped helpfully before succumbing to laughter yet again. Naruto's scowl deepened.

"Me, what?" Glancing down at himself, he finally took note of his giant paws and tail. His cheeks turned red. How was he supposed to know that in his panic, he'd only transformed halfway? That…monstrosity in front of him was certainly outlandish enough to warrant panic! The noises it made, and…it looked like it had tiny people trapped inside! Naruto shuddered. What were they doing to people in this day and age? Was it magic? Surely humans couldn't have figured out of to shrink people…

As he thought, Naruto retracted his tail and ears, and his hands returned to human shape. This appeared to be enough to allow Sasuke to regain his sanity.

"Are you done yet?" Naruto questioned grumpily as his master straightened, swiping at his black eyes weakly. He'd never actually seen an Uchiha lose it like that, laughing like someone had attacked him with a thousand feathers. To be honest, he hadn't even thought them capable until now. Despite himself, his features softened a little. Sasuke was usually so strict and dour that it was easy to forget how young he was. Naruto sighed.

I suppose losing your family is enough to turn any child into an adult.

Shrugging away the strange tight feeling that appeared in his chest at the thought, Naruto cautiously approached the strange, flashing box.

"So, now that you're done laughing, what exactly is this thing?" He distinctly wished that he still had his fox ears, because his human ones refused to flatten. Sasuke handed him a long, black…thing with bumps all over it, humor still written all over his face.

"It's a television, Naruto. You can watch shows and news on it," Sasuke said, as if that explained anything. "You can use the remote to change the channel."

Peeling his eyes away from the "terribishion," Naruto glared at Sasuke. "What the hell is a channel?"

The bastard's lips started twitching again. "It's…um. Well, different companies own their own…um, pieces of television programming, and they pick what to show on their channel."

Sasuke's words had started to float around in Naruto's brain, and he began to stare blankly at the "remote." "…Right. That makes sense." Hesitantly, he pressed one of the buttons on the remote. The picture changed, showing a woman dancing and singing as a metal box with wheels spun on a platform. She stepped inside the box by opening a door, and the giant box rolled off-screen.

"That was a car commercial," Sasuke supplied unhelpfully. A superior tone was creeping back into the creep's voice, causing Naruto's non-existent hackles to rise. Scowling, he pressed the button again. This time, two people—or rather, their heads—were staring longingly at each other. Naruto's nose wrinkled.

"How do they fit all these people into this box? Humans haven't learned sorcery, have they?" The very idea disturbed him. Humans were unpredictable enough with just their natural talents to deal with. Gods forbid any of them figured out how to wield magic.

Sasuke snorted. "Of course not. It's all done with electronics. They use cameras to record the shows, and then they broadcast them through satellites and cables to…" The Uchiha finally trailed off at the murderous glare the fox was sending him. Irritatingly, the little punk smirked. "I guess that's just going straight over your head, isn't it?"

"Jerk," Naruto muttered. "Ask me about history."

He changed the channel.

The first ten minutes of watching a millennium-old fox demon playing with his TV was amusing. After three hours of drooling amazement, it was annoying.

"Naruto, come on. If we don't check in with Tsunade soon, she'll have my head." The fox gave no sign of having heard him, perched as he was on the couch with his feet tucked under him and the remote held before him like a sacred relic. He continued to change channels with absolute fascination, much as he'd been doing for the last several hours.

"They just keep changing!" Naruto muttered for the 187th time that morning. Sasuke groaned.

"Naruto! I order you to put down that remote and come here!"

The demon visibly stiffened, then slowly lowered the remote to the couch and stood. He glared at Sasuke with a mutinous expression as he shuffled over.

"You didn't have to order me, you know," he grouched. "I would have come over anyway."

"Yeah, in three years. Now let's go!" With that, he grabbed the demon's arm and began dragging him towards the front door, ignoring the resulting whine.

"But I wanted to see if Emiko was really going to marry Ichirou! They didn't look well suited for each other at all! And Yuuichi is a much better man for her!"

"Oh, god, don't tell me you've gotten hooked on soap operas. Please." Wincing, Sasuke shoved him out the door, followed and shut it behind himself.

"But Yuuichi loves her!!!"

Someone save me.

Naruto sat on the cool table, watching as Tsunade poked and prodded at his bare chest. He didn't particularly mind, seeing as one: she was a beautiful woman running her hands all over him, and two: the fact that she kept bending over gave him an eyeful of cleavage every few minutes. Naruto smiled.

"You can wipe that grin off your face, you little twerp. I know what you're thinking." Tsunade straightened abruptly, glared at him, and smacked him upside the head. The force of her blow snapped his head down to his chest.

"Owww!" Rubbing the back of his head, Naruto glared at her. "Aren't you supposed to be nice to me?? I'm your patient!"

"Doesn't mean you have to be a little pervert. If I didn't know better, I'd think you knew that old man." Muttering to herself, she continued to scan his unblemished back. "Now, for the last time, how on earth did you manage to heal yourself during the two minutes you and Sasuke were alone together?"

The tone of her voice (and the continued throbbing of his head) convinced Naruto that she wasn't going to be put off any longer. He thought fast.

"It's a family condition of mine," he stated at last. "I'm allergic to other people's healing chakra. I could accept Sasuke's because we're related."

She looked him over suspiciously. "I thought you were eighth cousins."

"We may be distant relatives, but we're still relatives," Naruto lied firmly. "It has to be from blood."

"Hmmm. I've never heard of anything like that before." After a long, intense moment of silence, the woman sighed. "But I can't find any scars or remains of your wounds, so I guess you have to be telling the truth."

Naruto grinned, jumping off the table and snagging his shirt—he'd stolen one from Sasuke's closet when he woke up, as well as pants—from the floor. He tugged it on, giving her an impish smile.

"I think you just wanted to run your hands all over me." Another flying smack to the back of his head. "OW!"

"Stop hitting on me. I'm too old for you." Her lips twitched as she said it, though. Naruto thought briefly of letting her know that she couldn't possibly be too old for him, but he thought better of it. Sasuke would kill him anyway.

As he thought of the Uchiha, he glanced out of the small window on the examination room door. Sasuke was still glowering to himself in the middle of the hallway, arms folded over his slim chest. Naruto watched him thoughtfully. The entire trip to the Hokage's tower had been uncomfortable and silent, all of the tension emanating from the abruptly sullen Uchiha beside him. It made Naruto wonder if his master was really so upset over having hurt him, but such a novel idea was hard to wrap his mind around. He wasn't used to the idea of his masters not wanted to hurt and humiliate him.

He'd even cooked the young man breakfast as a bit of an olive branch, though the ungrateful bastard had barely seemed to appreciate it. Many of his masters had enjoyed his cooking—though perhaps not the first, when he was still figuring out how to cook. Sasuke had simply appeared disturbed.

What does he want from me? Naruto frowned. No master ever released him without having an agenda. If he had to hazard a guess, he'd say that the Uchiha desired power…but then, why hadn't he made requests of Naruto? Could he honestly have no idea how powerful Kyuubi was? Even if the world seemed to have forgotten him as a genie, the least it could do was remember how strong he was! The nerve!

"So what's really going on between you two, then?"

The sudden question jolted him out of his musings. Turning, he saw that Tsunade had come up beside him, watching him carefully. Inexplicably, Naruto blushed.

"What are you talking about?" he asked gruffly, rubbing at the back of his neck. "There's nothing going on between us."

"Hmm." She said nothing for a while, looking out the window herself. "You know, Sasuke was seen with a little fox friend right before you showed up. I wonder what happened to the little fellow."

Unbidden, Naruto's heart started to pound in his chest. "Well, you know foxes. Easy come, easy go. I think I've seen it wandering around the Uchiha complex, but I haven't gotten a good look."

"Ah. Well, make sure to leave out a fish or two, will you? It wouldn't do for the fox to start eating the villager's chickens." She gave him an odd little smile. Naruto responded with a weak one of his own.

"Right. Thanks for the check-up, Tsunade-baachan." He raced out the doorway, ignoring the enraged, "HEY!" that followed him. Skidding to a stop before Sasuke, he grabbed the other man's arm and dragged him down the hallway. Sasuke spluttered entertainingly.

"What the hell? What are you doing?" The Uchiha ripped his arm away, scowling menacingly. "Don't manhandle me like that!"

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. I just thought you might want to leave before the old hag gets suspicious."

Sasuke blinked at him in surprise. " 'Old hag'?"

Grinning, Naruto bumped shoulders with him. "She told me she was too old for me."

Before he could catch himself, Sasuke smiled. Recovering quickly, he turned it into a smirk and lifted an eyebrow at the blond beside him.

"Out of curiosity, then, how old are you, Naruto?"

The fox demon's smile faded slightly. "Sometimes, it feels like I'm as old as the world itself." A split second later, the familiar, impish grin was back. "But for the record, we'll say I'm a few hundred years old."

"Ah. That young, hmm? It's a wonder you're out of nappies."

"Oh, shut up."

They walked companionably out of the tower, both lost in thought. Tsunade's cryptic, knowing words put Naruto a little on edge. Things never went well when people outside of the Uchiha family knew of his existence. With his previous masters, Kyuubi had been squirreled away in some dark room somewhere until he was called upon, and rarely allowed to venture outside of the compound walls. His master was also rarely allowed out, lest the Uchiha family secret be revealed.

It was so wonderful to actually get to roam through the streets, smell the air from a breeze rather than a barred window…

Beside him, Sasuke cleared his throat. "Naruto, I've been wondering. Last night, when I told you to stay home, you said that you would, even though you clearly planned to follow me. Isn't that a violation of the rules?"

Shaking his dreary thoughts away, Naruto rolled his eyes. "Ah, that. Well, until I got caught by you, I was planning to just help out and sneak back before you returned so that you'd 'find me still there'."

"And the bit about staying?" Sasuke's voice had taken on a bit of suspicion, as though he knew what was coming next.

Naruto grinned at him. "Well, I am staying at your house." Sasuke narrowed his eyes.

"Staying…as in living with me?"

"Bingo!"

Groaning, Sasuke covered his face with his hand. "So, basically, you're telling me that I ordered you to live with me."

"Yup."

Naruto's grin grew at the Uchiha's second groan. "Don't worry, Sasuke. I'm an excellent housemate."

"I'm sure." Pausing on the mostly deserted road, Sasuke gave Naruto a calculating look. "So, since you've been serving Uchihas for a while, I'm guessing that you have a significant number of jutsu under your belt."

"Hmm, I do know one or two." The blond turned to look at him, eyebrows furrowed. "Why?"

"I think you should spar with me." An unholy gleam had entered those black eyes. "See where I measure up again a long line of Uchihas."

That proposition made Naruto distinctly uncomfortable. He nervously rubbed the back of his neck.

"I don't know if that's such a good idea, Sasuke…"

"Relax." Sasuke waved a dismissive hand. "If it's against your rules, I'll just order you to do it."

Anger spiking within him, Naruto grit his teeth. "It's not so simple as all that—"

"Nonsense. It'll be fine. Come on."

Fists clenched, Naruto followed an increasingly eager Sasuke off the road and deep into the surrounding woods. When they reached a clearing, Sasuke planted his hands on his hips and nodded.

"This should do just fine." Walking towards the center of the clearing, he raised his arms and stepped into a battle stance. "Come at me."

Frowning, Naruto stepped reluctantly towards his master. "Look, Sasuke, this really isn't a good idea."

"What, are you really afraid that I'm going to punish you again? The big, bad demon, strung out by his thumbs like a bad little boy?" the Uchiha taunted.

Even knowing that Sasuke was most likely just saying that to get what he wanted—or to hide the fact that he'd been concerned earlier—just hearing those words was enough to sharpen his teeth and turn his fingernails into claws.

"It's not a joke, Sasuke," he growled. The infuriating Uchiha smirked.

"Perhaps not. Maybe you're just afraid of getting beaten by a mere human. Is that it, Naruto-kun?"

Digging his claws into his palms, Kyuubi let his eyes burn red. "Don't tempt me, Uchiha. I may not be able to kill you, but debilitating you is certainly allowable."

"Hah. You can't even sleep without snuggling up next to me." Kyuubi began to growl. "Show me what you're made of."

Against his better judgment, Kyuubi nodded.

"Fine."

Sasuke firmly ignored the guilt that rose in him as he mentioned the previous night's turmoil so flippantly. Despite whatever emotional attachment he might form with the fox demon, he couldn't let himself forget that Naruto—that Kyuubi—was just that. A demon. His genie. A tool that he was supposed to use, dammit.

And it was past time he found out just how powerful his new tool was.

His opponent glared at him through blood red eyes, his hair wild with anger. At every taunt from the Uchiha, the other man had seemed to grow a little bigger. It made Sasuke wonder what the upper limits to the demon's power were. Twitching his fingers, Sasuke summoned some of his chakra into his fingertips.

Let's see what this demon is made of.

Without warning, Sasuke shot forward. Snapping a blade into his hand, he struck out at the blond's neck. For a moment, it looked like the blade would strike, and Sasuke felt a crushing disappointment.

Then Naruto disappeared.

Grinding to a halt, Sasuke used his Sharingan to follow the faint wisps of chakra left behind by the demon. He barely had a half second of warning before dashing to the side—and the ground he was standing upon moments before detonated. Ignoring the debris, he dashed around the small crater and hurled himself at the demon standing only a few feet away. Focusing his energy, he teleported himself behind his opponent while leaving a double in his stead.

Red eyes swiveled around to glare at him. A foot struck out at the real Sasuke just as another Kyuubi—a very convincing clone—dispatched Sasuke's double. Dodging, Sasuke smirked.

"Not bad, Naruto," he called out. "But let's see how you fare against our best techniques."

The anger faded immediately from the demon's eyes, leaving only two widened red orbs behind. He raised his hands, palms out.

"Wait, Sasuke, you really don't want to—"

"Mangekyou!"

Sasuke noticed immediately that something was wrong. Despite the fact that his Mangekyou was not as powerful or refined as his brother's, he'd always been able to pull his victim, especially a non-Uchiha, into a dream world of his own making.

This was not of his own making.

Sasuke found himself trapped in a tremendous darkened sewer, a barred door preventing him from entering the murky hallway. He could hear the steady sound of water dripping outside the cell he was trapped in, and in a sudden burst of panic, he raced toward the tremendous bars and tugged at them uselessly.

"UCHIHA SASUKE."

Freezing, Sasuke felt his heart begin pounding fitfully as a terrible voice thundered through him. Swallowing hard, he slowly turned around. A low, rumbling growl reverberated through the cell, shaking even the mighty bars behind him. Against his will, Sasuke took a step back.

"YOU…FOOL!!" A pair of gigantic red eyes, each larger than Sasuke himself, pierced through the darkness. "HAVE YOU NO IDEA WHAT POWER YOU TOY WITH??"

Searing hot air came screaming through the darkness, throwing Sasuke bodily against the bars. Gasping, he dropped heavily to the ground. He started shaking uncontrollably.

"It's just Naruto," he tried to remind himself. "He can't kill me. It's just—"

"I AM KYUUBI NO KITSUNE, YOU IGNORANT FOOL!! I AM THE MOST POWERFUL OF ALL THE DEMONS TO WALK THIS EARTH!!"

Abruptly, the darkness was washed away, replaced by a being of swirling fire so immense that Sasuke found himself crumpling to the ground in fear. Kyuubi towered over him, not even wreathed in flames so much as one with them, and a mighty roar shook the cell. Hands up defensively, Sasuke tried vainly to ward off the fire that lapped at him. Nine tails, each longer than the street Sasuke lived on, pounded furiously at the ground. Unbidden, Sasuke felt screams torn helplessly from his throat as he tried to scramble backwards out of the cell.

"YOU IGNORE MY WARNINGS, YOU SUMMON ME WITHOUT ANY REGARD FOR MY SKILL OR POWER. HOW DARE YOU, YOU INSIGNIFICANT LITTLE RODENT!!"

One fiery hand closed about him, searing him through to the bone. Still screaming mindlessly, Sasuke felt himself get lifted high, higher, impossibly high until he was looking the terrible demon in the eyes. Kyuubi roared again.

"I SHOULD DESTROY YOU HERE AND NOW! LEAVE YOU LITTLE MORE THAN A MINDLESS SHELL!"

At some point, Sasuke became aware that he was shouting mindless pleas and apologies between his incessant screams, but the pain screaming throughout him blotted out any further sense. The fiery being, the god, continued to glare at him through those horrid red eyes. Tears were streaming down Sasuke's cheeks as he desperately struggled, unable to bear the monster's heat nor his gaze.

And then, abruptly, the eyes turned blue.

"SASUKE." A loud, windy sigh echoed throughout the chamber. "I'M SORRY."

And, as suddenly as he arrived there, Sasuke was cast out of that terrifying world.

"…'asuke. Sasuke!"

Someone was shaking him.

"Oh god… Sasuke! C'mon, open your eyes! Please? Sasuke!"

Groaning heavily, Sasuke lifted a weak hand to bat away the hands that were so forcefully shaking his shoulders. They clasped said hand immediately.

"Sasuke! Are you awake? Are you alright?? Talk to me!"

"For god's sake, Naruto, shut up!" Sasuke rasped unthinkingly. He peeled his eyes open, slowly focusing on the blue eyes before him.

And panicked.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!!" he heard himself shout, hauling his mostly uncooperative body several paces away from the demon. "STAY BACK!!"

Even through his sudden, all-consuming fear, he could make out the crushed expression on Naruto—Kyuubi—Naruto's face. The demon slowly reached out towards him, palms up.

"Sasuke, it's okay. I'm not…I'm not going to hurt you." He paused when Sasuke struggled to move further away. The broad shoulders slumped. "You're terrified of me," he stated in a glum voice.

"Terrified?!" Sasuke rasped out. "You're a…you're a…!"

"Demon?"

Sasuke froze. Of course. Oh, gods above, he was an idiot. What had he been thinking?? That because Naruto had an annoying little kid mentality, he wasn't as powerful as a demon by all rights should be? Sasuke shuddered, only to find that he couldn't quite stop shaking afterwards. No. Even considering the fact that Kyuubi was a demon, that insane level of power…was unreasonable. Unfathomable. Dear god.

What had he done?! Itachi must have known how powerful the demon was, and he had clearly been smart enough not to tamper with it. But no, Sasuke would never think that through, would he? He'd gone ahead and unleashed a monster so powerful that it could probably destroy him with a thought. Sasuke's shaking grew worse. How could he have ever imagined himself capable of controlling such a fantastic beast?? It couldn't be done!

"… 'suke! SASUKE! Dammit, snap out of it!"

The familiar, irritated voice broke through the Uchiha's haze, and he found himself focusing on the man before him. Naruto was pouting again, concern, anxiety, and a hint of anger on his features.

"I told you that sparring with me was a bad idea. I always tell you Uchihas that it's a bad idea. Not once have any of you listened to me."

Sasuke blinked at the demon's whine. Despite the clear, fresh memories of the monster in the cell, Naruto's childish tone slowly brought an end to Sasuke's uncontrolled trembling. Taking a deep breath, he looked at the blond man carefully.

Naruto said himself that he couldn't kill Sasuke because he'd be put back into confinement, but before they sparred, he'd said that there was no rule against harming Sasuke. The brunet shivered again. In short, Naruto, as Kyuubi no Kitsune, could have simply destroyed Sasuke's mind when the Uchiha had been so foolish as to enter his head. Sasuke's body would have lived on, and Naruto would have been essentially freed. The Uchiha swallowed with difficulty.

"Why didn't you?" he found himself asking. Understandably, Naruto's eyebrows puckered with confusion.

"Why didn't I what?"

"Destroy me? You could have…you could have wrecked my mind. You wouldn't even have to deal with me anymore. I handed you the perfect opportunity." Gathering himself, he managed to pin the other man with his gaze. "Why didn't you?"

Silence fell between them. Naruto lowered his eyes for a moment, then brought them back up, all seriousness in the blue depths.

"Because… Because you're different. You didn't take joy in hurting me, you haven't tried to lock me away like an animal. You're not like any master I've ever had." He looked away. "It wouldn't be right to repay such…kindness…with a betrayal."

When the blond looked at him again, Sasuke was floored to realize that in the demon's world, it really was as simple as that. Because Sasuke hadn't been cruel, he'd lived when his own stupidity should have seen him dead—at least mentally.

Swallowing hard, Sasuke nodded shortly. "Just…help me stand up, will you?"

Naruto nodded eagerly, moving forward to gingerly wrap one of Sasuke's arms over his shoulders. Slowly, he straightened, allowing the weary Uchiha to lean upon him when his legs refused to cooperate. Sasuke remained silent as Naruto muttered encouraging words, choosing to stare at his companion at close range. He certainly didn't look like a terrible, evil being capable of ripping Sasuke to shreds. Hell, he didn't even look like someone who'd been around for "a few hundred years." Even with the wild quality to Naruto's features, there was still something soft about his face, his manners, that Sasuke wasn't entirely sure could be faked. Frowning, he lowered his gaze.

So which one is real? The childish moron who's addicted to my television, or the monster in his head?

Shaking his head, Sasuke gave up on trying to decipher his companion. "Naruto…"

"Yes?"

"I wish we were home."

Blond hair tickled his face as Naruto turned to look at him. The demon's lips quirked into a small smile.

"Your wish is my command."

With a familiar zzzzZAP, they disappeared.