Three times when Sasuke lied, and one time when he told the truth

A/N: I wasn't planning to update so soon, but the lovely reviews were inspiring. Thank you all. And as always, double thanks go to my beta extraordinaire Kantayra.

The teacher dismissed the class, and chatter erupted at once. The two students in the row in front of Sasuke were planning a game with their other classmates. The two girls in the row behind him were looking at him with big eyes and giggling behind their hands. Paying attention to none of them, Sasuke gathered his pencils and notebooks and slipped them into his bag, already thinking about the rest of his day. He wanted to train at using the Katon Goukakyu no Jutsu. He always had to find a deserted place to do so; adults seemed to get nervous when they saw him practicing this jutsu on his own.

Lost in his thoughts, he started for the door, stopping only when he heard his name. He turned to the teacher and waited for him to say what he wanted.

"Sasuke-chan, I've been meaning to ask…"

Kind eyes and a gentle smile… Sasuke knew where this was going. He'd heard the same question from a dozen well-meaning people in the past month. Every other day, it seemed, someone would ask how he was, offer him help, invite him to dinner.

"I'm fine," he said blankly. "I don't need anything."

The eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "Sasuke, it's all right to ask if you need—"

"I don't need anything," he repeated. "Can I go now?"

The teacher nodded slowly. "All right. I'll see you tomorrow."

Sasuke turned away, hoisting the straps of his backpack higher as he stepped out of the classroom. He winced when the strap pressed on a bruise on his shoulder but kept on walking. He was late for his training.

"I chose to spare your life on a whim."

Emotions passed freely over Naruto's face – disbelief and pain, though Sasuke couldn't have said which was greater. He didn't know whether to be relieved or annoyed that Naruto didn't believe his words. They tasted like ashes, but they were necessary.

Those bonds his replacement touted without seeming to understand them, those bonds Sasuke had just claimed he had severed, those bonds he couldn't afford to keep… they all revolved around Naruto. Every hesitation Sasuke still felt at training with Orochimaru, every buried but still living dream of returning to Konoha, every moment of loneliness…

Harsh words and lies were weapons. When the attack fell though – when he was sure Naruto didn't believe him – he jumped forward and tried not to think about his next lie, the one he would tell himself after he killed Naruto.

"One goal. The complete and utter destruction of the Leaf."

Sasuke's newly renamed team looked at him with various degrees of interest. Hawk didn't care one way or the other about Konoha. To them, he supposed it was the same whether the goal was to kill his brother, destroy his village, or perform a perfect routine in a karaoke bar. Suitgetsu followed him for his stupid swords, Juugo to learn to control himself better, and Karin… He grimaced at the thought of why Karin might be following him. As long as he led them onward, he was certain they would follow.

Did any of them wonder, even for a second, whether he truly intended to destroy Konoha? He hoped they didn't. He hoped he had convinced them – and convinced Madara as well. Later, when the time was right, when he had worked out the details of his plan to perfection, he would tell Hawk of their true goal, tell them how they would help him achieve it. But Madara… He looked at him from the corner of his eye. He still wasn't sure how much of what Madara had said was the truth, and how much was self-serving lies. He would find out, but until he did, he needed Madara to think Sasuke believed him fully.

He looked up at the full moon again. He didn't know how many more moons would rise before he returned home, but the day was coming closer. That, at least, was no lie.

Naruto wondered what it would look like to Sai when he jumped out of the window and started running, followed by a Sasuke that called out apologies at him. Sai would probably think they'd had an argument. Naruto grimaced as the pair left the room. He was becoming just as bad as Sasuke where dissimulation was concerned.

He turned to the real Sasuke, and couldn't manage to feel amused at the bewildered look in his eyes. He crossed his arms and stared at him hard.

"Now," he said coldly, "enough games. Why did you come back?"

Sasuke's expression smoothed out into perfect blankness. In the bright light of the bathroom, he seemed even paler than usual. He crossed his arms, mirroring Naruto, and said defiantly, "You beat me."

Naruto gritted his teeth. He'd never claimed to be a genius, but sometimes he got tired of people acting as though he was an idiot. "Right. You kicked my ass every time before, and beat me when we sparred today, but you lost to me this one time. That makes so much sense. You weren't even seriously hurt when you gave up. How hard did you really fight, Sasuke? Or had you decided you'd lose before we even started fighting?"

Seconds trickled by. Sasuke didn't break eye contact, but he didn't answer Naruto's question either. Naruto felt a sharp pang when he realized he had been right.

"I see," he said, his voice cracking a little. "And then you just came back with me, no arguments, no stabbing me while I slept, no trying to run off alone." He shook his head at the memory. One of the happiest moments of his life, now spoiled forever. "I was so happy… I didn't even think for a second that you might be playing me. And then I take you here and…" Anger rose inside him and he had to take a second to calm himself. "What an idiot. I should have known it was all too good to be true."

Sasuke leaned back against the wall, arms still crossed over his chest. His fists were now clenched. "Naruto," he said, enunciating each syllable with crisp precision. "There wasn't a word I have said to you since my return that was anything but the truth."

For a moment, Naruto mulled over that. What had he said before his return that hadn't been the entire truth? Was he even telling the truth now? Naruto couldn't tell anymore. He didn't dare trust his judgment or feelings where Sasuke was concerned. He was just too biased.

"What about what you did not say to me?" he asked at last.

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Don't—"

"You know what, Sasuke?" Naruto cut in at once. "You're in my house. In my village. Don't tell me what I can or cannot do."

Eyes flashing red for just a second, Sasuke pushed away from the wall and crossed the short distance that separated him from Naruto until they were only inches apart.

"Damn you, why do you have to make things so complicated?"

Naruto glared right back at him. "Me? You're the one—"

"I'm trying to protect you, all right?" Sasuke practically growled the words. "You want to be Hokage."

Taken aback by the abrupt change of subject, Naruto blinked. "What does that have to do with anything?"

Sasuke considered him for long seconds, clearly hesitating. Finally, his body shifted in a minute way, almost but not quite relaxing. He sighed, then pulled away again until his back hit the wall and slid down to sit on the floor.

"Someone," he said, speaking very slowly as though choosing each word carefully, "told me a story. About why Itachi… did what he did. I didn't want to believe him, but at the same time… it would have been nice to think my brother didn't do it all on his own, that he was ordered to do these horrible things and…" He shrugged. "And if that was true, then I've been pursuing a scapegoat all these years while the people who were responsible kept their power. The Elders, and someone involved in ANBU called Danzou. They supposedly ordered the destruction of my clan."

Turning the words over in his head, Naruto did not answer. Sasuke sounded sincere, but he could have been lied to. He didn't even sound totally sure of what he was saying.

"That's what Sakura is looking up for me," Sasuke finished, his reluctance obvious. "She has access to archives. If they kept a record of it, she said she'd find it. I need to know if it's true."

His last words were so cold that a shiver ran down Naruto's spine. He had heard Sasuke use that tone before – always when he had talked of his vengeance. Naruto's shoulders slumped. Sasuke had just confirmed his fears.

"And if it is?" Naruto asked, bitterness coloring his voice. "You'll kill them, won't you? The Elders, Danzou, the Hokage—"

"I have no quarrel with Tsunade," Sasuke cut in. "But if the others really ordered my brother to kill everyone… Our parents… Even me…"

He didn't finish. The fire in his gaze was enough. Feeling drained, Naruto let his knees buckle beneath him and sat on the floor like Sasuke, leaning back against the door.

"Is that why you wanted to know if you can control the Kyuubi, then?" His voice broke on the last word. "To get your revenge?"

Sasuke frowned and leaned forward. "What? No. The fox got it wrong. I wanted to know—"

But Naruto had had enough. "Why should I believe you, Sasuke? Why should I believe a single word?"

As much as he wanted to believe his friend, he knew to what lengths Sasuke was willing to go to get what he wanted. Using the Kyuubi didn't seem too much of a stretch. And hadn't Itachi warned Naruto? Hadn't he hinted that Sasuke might try to destroy Konoha?

Again, Sasuke's eyes burned. His lips twitched in a not-quite smile. "You trust me."

It was the confidence in his voice more than what he said that shook Naruto out of his torpor. "Do I?" he murmured.

Naruto's clone dispelled in a cloud of smoke.

On the edge of the cliff of the Hokage mountain, the clone Naruto had made of Sasuke disappeared as well. Naruto closed his eyes, taking in the information the clone he had left with the real Sasuke had gathered. His desire to get away from Sasuke for a while had been just as strong as his need to understand what was going on in Sasuke's thick head. He felt a bit like a coward for leaving a clone in his place, but he was also glad he had. What would he have been doing, now, if he had been with Sasuke?

When he opened his eyes again, Sai was sitting next to him, his legs dangling over the cliff.

"Clever trick," Sai said, an edge of annoyance making his words sharper. "But foolish. I'll have to report that, you know."

Naruto nodded, his mind still buzzing with fears and disappointment. "Do you know Danzou?" he asked, pushing the question past his tight throat. "I think he works with ANBU."

He hadn't been sure that Sai would answer this, and so his silence didn't surprise him. However, after almost two minutes had passed, Sai took off his mask and laid it between them.

"I do know him," he said very quietly.

Naruto turned sideways to look at him. In the rising moon, Sai seemed as pale, as expressionless as Sasuke so often was.

"Do you think… do you think he's capable of ordering someone who's barely more than a child to…" He gulped. "To massacre an entire clan?"

Sai turned his face to him, an eyebrow raised. "Do you consider me a child?"

Naruto frowned, his heart tightening painfully. "Did he order you…" He couldn't even finish.

"Never an entire clan, no."

He didn't add anything, but Naruto could read between the lines. Sai might not be willing to say it in so many words, but yes, he did believe Danzou capable of doing something like that. It wouldn't be long before Sasuke found him guilty, one way or the other. And then…

And then what? Would Naruto have to fight him, yet again? Would he be able to protect Konoha and Sasuke at the same time? Would he even be able to fight Sasuke, now that their relationship had taken a new turn? The simple thought of hurting him turned his stomach. How could he hope to fight against him?

"Sasuke's alone," he said, again needing to force the words out. "At my apartment I think. Shouldn't you keep an eye on him?"

Sai put his mask back in place, but not before Naruto could see his slight frown. He looked torn, and the reason for his discomfort was obvious.

"I'm going to see Tsunade anyway," Naruto said, pushing a faint smile to his lips. "I promise."

Sai nodded then stood. Naruto waited until he had left before standing as well, his fists closed tight at his sides. Sasuke had been an idiot to hide all this from him, and he was even worse if he thought Naruto would just stand to the side and let him ruin his life again.

But if Naruto couldn't step aside, what could he do?