The morning came too soon for the Kyuubi vessel. The dreams had, for once, been peaceful and he was enjoying himself until the twittering of birds filled his ears and his body and mind awakened. Groaning, Naruto opened blue eyes and looked around the dimly lit home. Everything was in order, as it should have been. Getting to his feet, he inspected the bedroom and found Sasuke still sleeping. The early morning light streamed across the raven's pale face and caused dark hair to have a blue tint. Sharp features were intensified, making the Uchiha dangerously handsome. Naruto swallowed hard and then turned away, walking into the kitchen to prepare the morning meal. As if by clockwork, footsteps thumped up his porch steps and wood banged against wood as his door was pushed open. "What's for breakfast, sensei? I'm starved!" Takara exclaimed as she settled into a seat at the small table.
Naruto sighed softly, "The usual." His tone of voice gave the impression he was annoyed, but when he glanced at his students, his blue eyes were full of laughter. It amazed him how much happiness his students brought to his otherwise boring life. He cared for the villagers and they returned such feelings, but with the twins, a deeper bond was present. Smiling slightly, Naruto ruffled their hair before returning to his cooking. Rustling from the bedroom alerted him to Sasuke's awakened state. "I thought you would have gotten rid of the stranger by now, Hisoka-sensei! Though, I'd understand if you didn't want to..." Naruto rolled his eyes as he kept his back turned to the others in the room. He could hear the soft padding of Sasuke's feet as the other walked to the table to join the others. The creaking of wood told him that Sasuke had settled into a chair.
Takara babbled to Sasuke until the meal was ready, but she was the only person who spoke. When he placed the food on the table, Naruto was lightly amused by the expression Sasuke wore. It would have been virtually invisible to others, but Naruto could tell that Sasuke was annoyed a great deal by the insistent chirping. The ever so slight quirk of the eyebrows and tightening of facial muscles was all Naruto needed to see to know what Sasuke was feeling. Just like the old days; guess some things have not changed...
Naruto told his female student to shut her trap before asking Akinori to pass the butter. Takara whimpered about her sensei being cruel, but after her whining quieted, the rest of the meal was quiet. There were a few requests for certain items, but no conversation. Naruto enjoyed the silence, even as it grew a bit awkward. Once the meal was over, Naruto mentioned training to his students and they immediately brightened. He glanced at Sasuke and then invited the man to join them. Sasuke seemed surprised, but agreed. Leading the group to the training grounds was more fun than usual for Naruto, as it let him see Sasuke's growth in the eight years since he had last seen him.
Naruto smiled to himself as the raven stayed close behind him as they wove through the natural obstacle course that led to the training grounds. His students were not far behind, but he told them to hurry nonetheless. He glanced at the other man and sighed. Running through the trees with Sasuke reminded him too much of the olden days; days that he wanted to forget. As they stopped in the clearing, Naruto took ahold of Sasuke's arm and spoke to him, "You can watch, but do not intervene in their training. I will not have them hurt by your hand." Naruto made sure his voice held threats of death. Takara giggled in the background and Akinori sighed.
"Alright, let's get to training. Now, show me how you have improved!" Naruto backed up a few paces and crossed his arms as his students got into battle stances and faced each other. "Begin!" The two figures clashed fiercely with every intention to kill. Naruto shouted instructions and corrections occasionally to both of the twins, but kept quiet when words were not needed. He settled on the ground beneath his favorite tree as his students continued in their mock battle. Sasuke moved to sit beside him and Naruto kept his eyes trained on his students. He did not want to acknowledge the other man, but was forced to when the raven spoke, "They are using jutsu."
"They have chakra control and rather solid control at that. It was a rare discovery that I was proud to make. If they lived in a land with a ninja village, they would have become well-respected young ninja." Naruto replied, still watching his students. "She showed you her blind spot, Akinori! Use that to your advantage. Takara, he could have taken you out in a second, guard your left with caution!"
"You are oddly familiar with shinobi training." Naruto stiffened as the calm words echoed into his ears. The statement was a simple one, but clearly had an underlying question. Naruto glanced at Sasuke and then returned his gaze to the fight. "I was trained as a shinobi, once upon a time." He kept emotion out of his words and tried to relax his tense posture.
"Missing nin?" Naruto paused and then shook his head, "Not exactly, though I am hunted." He leaned against the tree trunk and then shouted out more instructions. "Blind spot, Aki, blind spot! If you are going to use taijutsu, Takara, put more effort into your hits!"
Idiot, you are giving him what he needs to figure out your true identity.
No, I am not. He's an idiot, he can't tell a frog from a toad! He won't be able to figure out that Hisoka is Naruto. He inwardly glared at his demon, who replied with a flick of his ten tails. "Moon Country is an odd place for a shinobi."
"I suppose it is, but I prefer this place to any other. Life here is simple, quiet, and peaceful." Naruto quietly replied, choosing his words carefully. He did not want to give anything away. He shut his eyes for a moment and rested his head against the cool bark of the tree.
"Quiet is not the way of the shinobi." The words floated into his ear and he opened one eye to glance at the raven beside him. "True, but I never fit in with the world of the shinobi. I have my own rules and my way of life."
You're doing it again. How does that not sound like the old you? "Own rules and way of life" Yeah, not suspicious at all!
Naruto held back a growl and took a deep breath to calm his annoyance. He wanted to throttle the demon and launch into a full-out argument, but knew there was a time and place for such a thing and now was not it. Opening his eyes completely, Naruto watched his students again and was pleased to find that they were following his instructions.
"You..." Naruto felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up and he turned to Sasuke, swallowing hard. He had a bad feeling about what the other man was going to say. "...remind me of someone."
Naruto chuckled nervously, "Interesting." He wondered why he was unable to hide the nervousness and fear from his own voice and eyes. He had a good hold on such emotions usually. Sasuke had a strange effect on me when we were younger, maybe that has not changed.
"Obnoxious hair like the sun, cerulean eyes, and those marks on your cheeks, you could be the spitting image of him, if you didn't have red and black in your hair." Sasuke seemed to be studying him with an almost wishful gaze, but that mattered little to Naruto. What mattered to him was that the raven had mentioned whisker marks. How can he see the marks? I hide them with a genjutsu spell that was such a low-level that it shouldn't be able to be detected! I have yet to see Sasuke use Sharingan, so how can he see them?It must have showed on his face that he was startled because Sasuke raised an eyebrow slightly and tilted his head. "Something wrong?"
Naruto snapped back to reality and shook his head, "No. I was only surprised. Someone like that came to this village almost three years ago. He matched your description very well." He paused, taking in the wishful look that came into Sasuke's eyes again. A horrible sensation bubbled in the pit of his stomach as he spoke. "I apologize for not thinking of this earlier...but...If that man was your friend...He is dead. I am sorry."
The raven's face froze and then the man looked to the ground. There was a long, awkward pause before Sasuke spoke in a tight voice. "What happened?"
Naruto felt like he was going to throw up as he replied, "The man was killed by raiders when they attacked this village. He fought bravely, but was taken down while trying to protect a group of children." Naruto stopped, but then decided to continue. "Your friend's name...Was it Naruto?"
Sasuke nodded slightly and Naruto felt his heart clench as he watched the other man sit there in silence with his head bowed, taking in the supposed death of Naruto Uzumaki, who was in fact sitting before him very much alive. Turning his gaze back to his students, Naruto lost himself in thought. This is for his own good. He cannot know that Naruto Uzumaki is alive and that he is me. I don't care if he is looking for me, "his friend". Thinking that I am dead is the best thing I can do for him. If he knew I was alive, it would put him in danger.
Is it just me or does it sound like Naruto Uzumaki has yet to get over a certain Uchiha?
Shut up, you damn fox! That was in the past. I am merely looking out for him. He was my friend, after all.
He meant more than that to you, once upon a time.
Once upon a time, Kyuubi. I moved on a long time ago.
If you say so, though denial is not good for anyone, messes with their brain, and let's face it, your brain is already fried.
There are times I dislike talking to you...
Naruto rubbed his temples and then stood up, walking to his students. He asked them to go back to the village and bring back lunch. After listening to complaints from Takara, Naruto went back to the tree. Sasuke had his head up now and his facial expression was blank. "Where is his grave?"
Naruto raised an eyebrow and then replied, "Nearby. I can show you." He turned on his heel and then ran towards the burial grounds, going from tree to tree, Sasuke on his heels. When they reached the burial plot, Naruto stopped in front of the large stone that served as a grave marker. "We burn our dead after a raid or sickness. Their ashes are spread here."
Naruto stood by and watched as Sasuke approached the stone and rested a hand upon it. He respectively turned his head away until Sasuke stepped back from the grave. Naruto spoke then, wanting to completely convince the raven with his lie. "I was new to this town when Naruto arrived. He had been traveling for some time and had decided to stop in this village. Most do not remember him, as they assumed he was I when they saw him. He stayed with me for the few months he resided here. He told me many things about the Village Hidden In the Leaves."
Watching Sasuke stare at the stone reminded him of how he used to stare at the Valley of the End. Naruto felt sick again and a part of him wanted to tell Sasuke the truth; that he wasn't dead and was, in fact, standing there with him. He silently reprimanded himself for such thoughts. There was no changing it now. What was done was done.