© 2006 FastForward
Disclaimer- :The author is unavailable to post a disclaimer due to the fact that K. Masashi's Itachi has chased her away for not wanting him. She is currently in hiding, although it is undetermined whether or not Itachi has found her:
A/N: HAPPY CANADA DAY TO ALL CANADIANS OUT THERE! WOOT!
PS: Thanks a lot for all the reviews, guys. Honestly, they make me really happy and show that my daily updates aren't a waste of my time. So, thanks. I try hard to respond to them, but sometimes there's just no way for me to, and I apologize for that. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and again, HAPPY CANADA DAY (to those of you who are Canadian and reading this, lol. I know there's at least three of you!)
Sasuke stepped off the bus and followed the other boys to the corner, waiting beside a light for it to change. He looked around, trying to see if he recognized anything. Nothing seemed familiar, so he just sighed and crossed his arms, waiting for the light to change.
Once it did, the group of six boys crossed the street and entered a building with the words 'Konoha Karate' emblazoned on the top. Sasuke followed them as they walked before they stopped at the entrance and began to remove their shoes.
"Hey, Iruka!" Naruto called as he waved. Sasuke leaned to the side slightly to see who Naruto was waving at.
A man with a brown ponytail and a scar across the bridge of his nose turned and smiled at the group before heading towards them. Sasuke frowned, recognition flashing across his face. He didn't remember this person, per se, but he knew he'd seen him before somewhere.
That was when it hit him. Both Naruto and Kakashi had a picture of this man in their rooms. Was there a reason for this?
"Hey, it's Sasuke." The raven snapped out of his thoughts as the man stood before him, smiling. "I'm glad you're awake. My name is Iruka Umino. I taught you karate last year. I hope you enjoy it as much this time around as last time." Then, he walked away.
Sasuke was stunned. He was the first person who hadn't asked whether or not the raven remembered him, and he didn't insist his memory would come back eventually. I like this guy!
"The rest of you have been doing well, so I'm going to start you on weapons today, but I think Sasuke should start from scratch again, just in case."
"I'll spar with him." Naruto offered with a shrug.
"Okay. Get into your uniform, then."
The six boys headed for the back and changed, Sasuke still owning the karate outfit due to last year. They re-emerged and Iruka motioned for Shino, Chouji, Kiba and Shikamaru to follow him. Naruto and Sasuke watched as they moved across the large room. Nobody else was there, probably because it was a Thursday at two in the afternoon.
"Is it okay if we watch them for a bit?" Sasuke whispered to Naruto, motioning the other four boys.
"Of course. But let's not move closer." Naruto smiled. Sasuke laughed, shaking his head.
The raven loved how comfortable he felt with Naruto. It was weird for him, since he was aware of the fact that he knew hardly anything about Naruto, yet deep down, he recognized the bond they used to share. He didn't remember the blond, but until he did, he was going to try and act as similar as possible. The other him had valued his friendship with Naruto, and the current him also valued it. He wouldn't do anything to jeopardize that friendship.
"All right, gentlemen." Iruka slapped his hands together. "We're going to start with easy weapons first—and the least destructive. Therefore, we are going to be using Sais."
Naruto groaned and covered his face. "Even when he's not here, I can't escape him."
Sasuke was pretty sure the blond was referring to the fact that the name of the weapon was the same as the name of an annoying roommate of theirs.
"I don't like Sais." Kiba said thoughtfully. "They're like big forks. They remind me of forks. And then, I think of food. And then—I get hungry." Shino raised an eyebrow before motioning his sparring partner.
"Can I hurt him if I have to?"
"I suppose." Iruka shrugged. Shino hit Kiba across the back of the head.
"Ow! I thought you said only if you had to!"
"I had to." the other boy replied. "You were being an idiot."
"Come on." Naruto poked Sasuke. "Let's spar."
"Okay." The raven turned and the two of them walked across the room before bowing to one another and getting ready to fight. "Go easy on me, will you?"
"Not a chance." Naruto smirked before lunging at him.
The two of them fought for a bit, and Naruto was disappointed to find out that Sasuke wasn't nearly as impressive as he was before he lost his memory. He wasn't necessarily bad, but Naruto found too many openings and more than once, he could've taken the other boy down. Last year, Naruto was always the one to be taken down.
After a few more minutes, Naruto was seeing too many openings, so he just took one, tackling the raven. Sasuke landed on his back, a whoosh of air escaping from his mouth as Naruto landed on top of him, straddling his stomach and holding both hands above his head.
"You're leaving too many openings." the blond said, his lips dangerously close to Sasuke's.
The raven's eyes locked onto Naruto's lips and he unconsciously licked his own. All he'd have to do was move up just a little bit. Just a few inches, as he could brush his lips against the blond's, and pass it off as an accident.
Just as Sasuke leaned up to do just that, Naruto was wrenched off Sasuke. "Naruto! How've you been?"
Sasuke scowled as he propped himself up on his elbows, glaring at the man who'd stolen his one chance. Who knew when he'd have this kind of opportunity again!
"What are you doing here?" Naruto squeaked as he pulled free from Genma's grasp, the professor letting him go.
"We came by to see Iruka. Yo, 'Ruka!" Genma wandered towards the Karate instructor as Raidou sighed, both hands in his pockets.
"How have things been?" Raidou asked Naruto, glancing at Sasuke. The raven blushed, because he suspected maybe Raidou was aware of what he'd been about to do. He just hoped he didn't tell Naruto.
"Not too bad. He's been remembering a few things in his sleep." Naruto nodded. "Like Shizune said, it was mostly the big things, but he's remembered a few little things. He remembers a bit of our prank war."
"Who won that, by the way?" Sasuke inquired.
"Draw." Raidou and Naruto both replied.
"Oh."
The door suddenly opened, admitting another person into the room, and Sasuke was stunned to see his Chemistry professor walk in. He looked around before nodding to Iruka, the Karate instructor nodding back.
"Hey, I know you!" Genma pointed at him. "You're the new Chemistry professor!"
"That'd be me." Aoba replied as he shoved his hands in his pockets, looking over at Naruto, Raidou and Sasuke. "Yo in mah class, right?"
"Yes." Sasuke replied. "I like it, although I have to admit, I sometimes have a hard time understanding you."
"I get tha a lot." Aoba shrugged.
"Raidou! Raidou, look!" Genma ran up to Aoba, motioning him. "He's a young person, but he's legal! Are you gay?"
Raidou slapped himself in the forehead. "Why me?"
"You chose him." Naruto patted his shoulder.
"No, seriously, are you gay?" Genma repeated before turning to Raidou, his arm around Aoba's shoulder. "Raidou! We should introduce him to Kakashi! Maybe the bastard can finally get laid!"
"I beg your pardon!" Iruka snapped angrily. Genma turned to him and paled.
"I-I was just—"
"Genma doesn't understand the meaning of one boyfriend, Iruka." Raidou said with a smirk. "But don't worry, Kakashi does."
"Is Kakashi gay?" Sasuke asked, hope rising in his throat. Maybe he could get a few answers!
Everyone in the room froze before looking at Sasuke, Aoba shifting uncomfortably because of the tension he suddenly felt. He still wasn't sure how he'd walked into this.
"I don't think we should answer that." Naruto said, rubbing the back of his head.
"Well, with an answer like that, it's obvious." Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Damn, is everyone I know gay?"
"No!" Kiba hollered. "I'm dating Hinata!"
"I'm not gay, either." Shikamaru replied lazily as he flicked something off his shoulder.
"Nor are Chouji and I. However, yes, most of the people you know are gay."
Naruto was doing a cutting motion behind Sasuke before miming that he was going to beat the shit out of Shino. The other boy just smiled, but he didn't say any more.
"I think I'm done for the day." Sasuke said, turning to look at Naruto, who promptly pretended to be stretching. "Can you bring me back?"
"Sure." Naruto shrugged. "Anything in particular you want to do?"
"Yes. I want to talk to Kakashi."
Kakashi let out a soft snore as he lay asleep on his couch, an open copy of Icha Icha Paradise resting on his stomach. He let out a soft grunt before shifting, settling down again and continuing to sleep. His precious dark oblivion was shattered by what he at first thought was some sort of alarm. He jerked up worriedly, the book falling onto the floor and effectively losing his page. He looked around, confused, and the sound came again. This time, as the fog lifted from his brain, he recognized it as a doorbell.
Standing up with a small growl, he walked towards the door, deciding if it was anyone other than Iruka, they were going to get a piece of his mind. He threw open the door, ready to yell, when it died in his throat. Not necessarily because of who was on the other side of said door, but because the person had pushed past him into his home.
Wow, it's like last year all over again, Kakashi thought with a smile as he closed the door and shoved his hands in his pockets, walking into the living room. He was startled to see Sasuke sitting the same way he had on one of his visits last year. He was sitting on the couch, his hands clasped together and resting under his chin, a frown on his face.
"I found out you were gay today."
"Does this bother you?" Kakashi asked as he pulled his hands out of his pockets and crossed his arms instead, leaning back against the wall.
"No, it actually helps me." Kakashi perked up at this, straightening slightly.
"Oh? Why's that?"
"I think I, uh..." Sasuke trailed off before clearing his throat. "IthinkImightbegay." he said hurriedly, hoping Kakashi wouldn't catch it.
"Good." Sasuke looked up at his guardian, stunned. Kakashi was smiling at him.
"Good?" Sasuke's eyes widened. "Oh my God, I was gay."
"Apparently, it doesn't matter what state of mind you're in." Kakashi smirked. "If you're gay again, it just goes to show this isn't a choice. It's something you can't help."
"Great." Sasuke groaned. "I live with a gay roommate who's trying to get with the guy I want to get with."
Kakashi frowned and crossed the room, sitting beside Sasuke. "What do you mean? Who's gay?"
"That Sai guy." Sasuke practically spat the name out. "He's been trying to get with Naruto, but Naruto doesn't seem interested. Actually, he seems disgusted. I don't think he's gay."
Kakashi groaned inwardly at the fact that he couldn't tell Sasuke anything about Naruto. And if he told Naruto about this, the blond might go overboard and just jump Sasuke. Kakashi couldn't have that happen. This is going to be the hardest thing in the world. Worse than when Naruto was actually straight and Sasuke liked him.
"You okay?"
"I'm fine." Kakashi sighed, shaking his head. Nothing is going right this year.
Naruto snuck silently towards the door, all the lights in the suite off. He glanced at his watch, noting he had ten minutes before Orochimaru would show up to pick him up. He opened the front door, and the second he was about to take a step, the hall light turned on.
"Naruto?" Sasuke asked with a yawn. The blond cursed as he spun around.
"Go back to sleep, Sasuke."
"Where are you going?" he asked sleepily, although it was evident he wanted an answer.
"I'm just going out to get some air."
"Don't lie." Sasuke sighed, shaking his head. "You're going to see him." Naruto winced. "Please, Naruto. Don't go."
The blond turned away from Sasuke, his fist tightening around the doorknob. "I have to."
"No, you don't! Naruto, please."
Naruto closed his eyes, hating the desperation in Sasuke's voice. The old Sasuke would've been pissed and ordered him not to go. This Sasuke was just begging him not to. Either way, though, Naruto had no choice.
"I'm sorry, Sasuke." He turned back to the raven. "I don't have control over this." He walked through the doorway and closed the door.
Sasuke stood staring at the door, letting out a sigh and rubbing his face. Naruto only had the bruises on his jaw right now, and they were light. He was willing to bet anything that when he returned, not only would the bruises be darker, but he'd also have more wounds.
Letting out an angry growl, Sasuke turned and stormed back to his room, but as he was about to turn down the corridor, he paused as he stared at Naruto's door. It was slightly ajar. Looking around to make sure Sai wasn't going to see him, Sasuke quietly snuck into Naruto's room and closed the door before turning on the light. His eyes fixed on the closet and he stood motionless for a long while.
Nodding to himself with determination, he walked towards the closet and opened it before pulling out the box stashed at the back. He sat down in front of it, running his hands up and down on either side of the box. He was psyching himself up. He knew he shouldn't, but he was curious. Why would Naruto have to hide all this stuff when it might help Sasuke get his memory back?
Taking a deep breath, Sasuke began to open the box.
"What are you doing?" The raven spun around, startled. He hadn't even heard the door open.
"What are you doing?" Sasuke narrowed his eyes. Sai didn't react, leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed. He shrugged.
"I wanted to talk to Naruto. Looks like he's not here."
"No, he's not." Sasuke spat.
"Where'd he go?"
"Why should I tell you?"
"He didn't tell you, did he?" Sai smirked. "That's okay, I'll just call him."
Sai pulled out his cell phone and flipped it open. Sasuke felt jealousy stab through him. "He gave you his number?"
"No, I took it off his phone. Not all of us are lucky, like you." Sai smiled sweetly as he put the phone to his ear.
"The number you have dialled exists only in your imagination." Naruto's voice said cheerily down the line, causing Sai to frown. It had gone straight to voicemail. "Please hang up, and don't call back. Psych!"
Sai just hung up. There was no point in leaving a message; he knew Naruto wouldn't call him back.
"Do you really like him, or do you just want him 'cause you can't have him?" Sai turned to Sasuke as the other boy asked this question.
"Why wouldn't I like him?" Sai inquired. "He's hot as hell, incredibly nice—to a select few, I guess—has a toned body, and a big—"
"I know!" Sasuke snapped. "I've seen it, too! Stop obsessing over it!"
"But it's appealing." Sai insisted with a pout. Sasuke ignored him, turning back to the box. "You've discovered you're gay, haven't you?" Sasuke clenched his fists, not answering. "You have. And now, you and I are going to have a lot of problems."
"I'm already ahead of the game." Sasuke smirked, a mirror image of his former self as he turned to Sai. "He spends an obscene amount of time with me, and even lets me sleep in the same bed as him when I don't want to be alone."
Sai's fake-smile faded and he glared darkly at Sasuke, the two of them trading daggers.
"You've slept with him?"
"Yes." Sasuke smirked. "Jealous?"
"I'll get him, Uchiha. Just give me time." Sai insisted.
"If you say so." Sasuke turned back to the box, staring at it.
Because of the conversation he'd just had with Sai, he couldn't do it. He couldn't open the box and look inside, not when Naruto trusted him. He couldn't betray Naruto's trust, or else, he'd be no better than Sai. So, the raven pushed the box back into the closet and stood up, closing it. He turned and brushed past Sai, headed down the corridor to his room.
Naruto fell onto his bed on his stomach, and then winced at his own stupidity as pain shot up his spine. He let out a small whimper before gingerly shifting to get more comfortable. Naruto wasn't sure what was worse anymore. The actual murders, or what happened afterwards.
When he'd left, the only injury he had was light bruises on his jaw. Now, he had fingernail scratches down his back, bruises along his jaw, cuts and bruises on the corners of his mouth, a black eye, and most of his lower back sent shocks of searing pain up his spine.
His door opened and he slit one eye open to see who it was. Sai walked into his room and Naruto cursed inwardly, but was too tired to do anything about it. He had to be up for classes in about two hours, and he hadn't had any sleep yet.
"What do you want?" Naruto whispered, turning his head away from Sai before the other boy turned on the light and freaked out.
Sai said nothing as he closed the door, the dawn light enough for him to see Naruto clearly. He walked towards the bed and stared down at Naruto's back where eight red lines were, the skin ripped right off the blond's back.
"What happened?" Sai demanded.
"Nothing." Naruto mumbled.
"You seem to say that a lot, and yet, you look like shit all the time."
"Thanks."
"You're worrying everyone." Sai snapped. "Me included."
"I'm in an incredibly large amount of pain right now, and I feel tired as all hell, so unless you have a good reason to be here, please just fuck off."
Sai turned and left the room, Naruto letting out a small sigh of relief as he settled down for sleep. He opened his eyes again and turned his head as he heard his own door open for a second time, Sai returning. He let out a groan and turned away again, wishing the other boy would just get the hint and leave him alone.
Naruto jerked up, startled, only to be pushed back down, his face buried in his pillow. Once the weight against his back left, he turned his head as much as he could.
"What are you doing?"
"These will take a long time to heal if you don't take care of them properly." Sai said as he continued to carefully rub cream onto the wounds.
Naruto lay on his stomach, not saying a word as Sai worked. Of course, Sai let his hands wander more than they really had a need to, but Naruto couldn't say anything. Sai was looking after him, it would just be rude of him—even if it did make him slightly uncomfortable.
Once Sai was finished covering all his wounds, he swung one leg over Naruto and straddled his hips. The blond shot up, arching his back and turning to look at Sai.
"What the fuck are you doing?!"
"Relax." Sai pushed him back down. "I'm going to massage you."
"No thank you." Naruto insisted.
Sai ignored him and began to knead his muscles, Naruto relaxing involuntarily. Sai smirked, impressed with himself for having found Naruto's weakness so early on in the game. The blond forgot everything when Sai was massaging him. He also lost track of everything going on around him, because he didn't notice that Sasuke had opened the door.
The raven stared at the scene before him, not trusting himself to say anything. Sai just turned to him and smirked, pushing hard on a particularly large knot, which caused Naruto to let out a moan. Sasuke's grip tightened on the doorknob and he turned, leaving the room.
Sai continued his massage for about twenty minutes until he realized the blond had fallen asleep. He threw the sheets over Naruto and picked up everything he'd brought into the room. As he exited it, Sasuke shoved him backwards into the wall.
"Stay away from him." the Uchiha hissed.
"And who's going to make me?" Sai smirked. "He didn't seem too upset a minute ago."
Sasuke clenched his fists angrily, forcing himself not to wipe that smug smirk right off Sai's face.
"The ball's in my court now, Uchiha. Let's play." Sai pushed past Sasuke, calling back over his shoulder. "If you want to start a war, you better be sure you'll be able to win. Right now, you're lagging behind." Sai disappeared into his room.
"Fuck!" Sasuke punched the wall beside Naruto's door.
© 2006 FastForward
