Part 9:
"Sai!"
"Hello Naruto," Sai said with a smile. He then turned to Sasuke and, without even bothering to hide the malicious edge on his voice added, "hello Sasuke."
Sasuke's eyes narrowed, then he smirked.
"I remember you." Sai's expression didn't flicker but Naruto, as well as Sakura, both looked nervous. "My replacement."
Sai didn't say anything so Sasuke went on, looking thoughtful as he said sarcastically,
"Let's see… where did I meet you? Orochimaru's hideout, I think. You kept going on about Naruto and next thing I knew, Naruto was there too."
"It seems you are as much of an asshole now as you were then." Sai said flatly.
"Sai!" Sakura stepped forward quickly though Sasuke hadn't even moved. "Don't take what Sai says to heart, Sasuke, he doesn't mean it sometimes."
Neither Sasuke nor Sai said anything more, but they stared at each other for a while with plain dislike written on both of their faces. Naruto interrupted their staring contest by quietly asking Sai in a slightly nervous voice,
"Sai, w- why are you here? You didn't abandon the village too, did you?"
Sai turned to him and looked down, shaking his head. When he looked back up he was smiling.
"No, I'm here on a mission."
"A mission?" Naruto repeated with surprise.
"I'm supposed to bring you back."
Naruto and the others could scarcely react to this statement before Sai pulled a roll of paper from the backpack he was wearing and handed it to Naruto, who unrolled it so quickly it was a mystery how it didn't tear. He stared reading aloud in a confused voice,
"Naruto, after serious consideration, the Hokage and her council have decided that banishment was too severe a punishment. The Leaf village needs you, as well as your accomplices, Sakura Haruno and Kakashi Hatake. After much discussion, a compromise has been decided upon. We would like… you… to…" his voice began to slow down and trail off as he read the next few sentences to himself with wide eyes. He gulped and frowned, then closed his eyes as though in pain.
Sasuke didn't like that look and was glad when Sakura grabbed the paper from him and read the next few lines aloud, although what they said didn't make him feel much better.
"We would like you to- oh my gosh, Naruto -we would like you to become the next Hokage upon your return to the Leaf Village with the- the assurance that you have cut all ties with Sasuke Uchiha!"
Sakura dropped the paper and stared at Naruto pityingly.
"Hokage, Naruto… They want you to be Hokage. It's your dream."
Sasuke saw Naruto's fists clench tightly and he closed his eyes. Was all that happiness a moment ago the only happiness they would ever have? Why did this Sai guy have to show up right now? It wasn't fair!
Sai then spoke up quietly, speaking mostly to Naruto as he said,
"The village wasn't the same without you. Everyone was in an uproar about what happened. The Hokage didn't believe Shikamaru at first. She didn't think you would leave the village that willingly."
Naruto flinched and Sasuke understood better than anyone what that flinch meant. It hadn't been so easy to leave the village. In fact, it had been horribly difficult. And it wasn't that it was willingly… he'd just had no choice.
"When she found out Sakura had left too she broke her desk in half. When she found out Kakashi had followed after you guys a few days later she threw the new desk out the window. Lady Hokage wasn't the only one that was upset either…"
Flashback:
The news travelled around the Leaf village quickly. From the moment the battle wearied rookie nine returned to the front gates it seemed people already knew what happened, or at least that something had happened. All ten of them, not counting Akamaru, trouped through the village straight to the Hokage tower where Tsunade sat at her desk, impatiently waiting for them. Shikamaru wasted no time. He knelt to one knee and tried to keep the exhaustion from seeping into his voice as he spoke,
"Lady Hokage, I must apologize for attempting a dangerous mission like this one without your approval first, especially considering the way it turned out."
"What exactly happened?" She was trying to keep her cool but was obviously nervous from not knowing the details yet. She was looking around and counting heads to make sure no one was missing… but there were two missing, and she frowned as Shikamaru began retelling the story from the moment he heard Sasuke Uchiha was in close range to The village.
When he reached the part where Naruto announced that he would leave the village if it meant saving Sasuke, she stood from her desk and cursed loudly, making nearly everyone in the room flinch.
"I don't believe it. He agreed that easily?"
Shikamaru nodded and she cursed again then began pacing as Shikamaru went on. When he reached the part of the story where Sakura agreed to go along with Naruto if Naruto was determined not to let Sasuke die, she interrupted.
"She went with him?" She asked, making sure she'd heard right.
Shikamaru hesitated, and then nodded curtly, his face grave.
A deep growl rose in her throat and without warning, her fist came crashing down onto her desk, splitting it clear in half.
"Two of our best shinobi… banished." She mumbled more to herself than to any of the others in the room.
"I know the situation isn't the best, Lady Tsunade, but I don't believe I was wrong to banish them. Naruto chose the man who abandoned the Leaf village over his Leaf village comrades, and Sakura chose to go with him. Sasuke Uchiha has a death warrant out from the land of fire. I know it was wrong to go searching for him, but I was, we were doing it for the village. We were doing it for Naruto, and he betrayed us. The best option in that situation was banishment."
Tsunade stared at him thoughtfully for a while then closed her eyes and rubbed her temples.
"All of this could have been avoided if you'd have just left the Uchiha kid alone!"
"With all due respect, Lady Tsunade, we wanted to rid not only the village of Sasuke Uchiha, but Naruto as well. Without Sasuke to hold him back, I believe Naruto has the potential to be the greatest Hokage there ever was!"
"But look how it turned out!" She spat, and Shikamaru dropped his head. "But you aren't wrong… I've never liked how dependent Naruto was on Sasuke. I can't believe, after all these years, Naruto would still give up his home for Sasuke…"
All of the sudden the door to the room was busted open and in came Iruka, shouting at the top of his lungs,
"IS IT TRUE? HAS NARUTO BEEN BANISHED?"
"That's right, Iruka, and you have Nara here to blame."
"It's Naruto's fault!" Shikamaru exploded suddenly, his head towards the floor and his fists clench in anger. "He didn't have to- to fucking ruin everything! He wasn't supposed to defend Sasuke like that. I thought he would listen! I thought he would listen to reason, but he didn't! FUCK! This is all screwed up…"
Neither Ino nor Choji had ever seen Shikamaru freak out like this. He was always so cool and calculating. He obviously never imagined that Naruto would react the way he did.
"We- you're going to repeal his banishment, right Lady Hokage?" Iruka asked tentatively.
Tsunade slowly shook her head then started rubbing her temples to try and keep the headache that was threatening to overpower her from doing so.
"No," she replied quietly. "As much as I regret saying it, Shikamaru made the right decision in banishing Naruto. He'll never be hokage unless he cuts all ties with Uchiha and if you had let him go, Naruto wouldn't have rested until he talked us into letting Sasuke come back to the village. You know how single-minded he can get when it comes to Sasuke, or anything for that matter, but especially Sasuke. Maybe… maybe if we just wait this out, Naruto will come back on his own."
"How do you figure?" Iruka asked skeptically.
"We don't even know what they're thinking right now, or what Sasuke's thinking. He might try to leave them as soon as possible and then they'll come back here with their tails between their legs, finally over their delusions about Sasuke. Or they could get into a fight. I know things must be tense between the three of them, with everything Sasuke's done to them. I don't know how it would happen, but something might happen to nock some sense into Naruto's thick skull, and when it does, he'll come back on his own, and then we'll repeal his banishment and everything will work out the way we want."
"But what if that doesn't happen?" Shikamaru asked, staring ahead with determination. He seemed much more confident than he had a moment ago, now completely onboard with Tsunade's thoughts. He had actually been thinking along the same lines when he banished Naruto to begin with, but hearing her say it gave him more certainty.
"We need to make sure that happens. We can't let them get comfortable. The more problems they face, the greater the chances of them fighting. Shizune!"
Shizune, who had been standing in a corner of the hokage tower, nervously watching the scene going on before her, suddenly jumped up and ran over to Tsunade, bowing her head dutifully.
"Yes, Lady Tsunade?"
"Send a hawk to all villages, particularly Sand and Cloud, stating that any village that assists Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke will be penalized by the Leaf village. I have a feeling Naruto will try to go to Sand first because of Gaara."
"Yes Ma'am!" Shizune nodded and rushed out the door to send the hawks as Tsunade continued speaking, mostly to herself.
"We cannot allow Gaara to take them in, they might become loyal to Sand and decide to stay there permanently. I don't think it should be a problem though. I've spoken to the Kazekage about Naruto and he agrees whole-heartedly that Sasuke is nothing but a problem for not just Naruto, but the entire ninja world."
She looked thoughtfully out of the window for a moment then cursed again and muttered angrily.
"Naruto… what are you thinking?"
She seemed to drift off into her own thoughts and Neji had to clear his throat to get her attention as he held up a wounded Hinata by the shoulders. Tsunade looked up when he cleared his throat and he said impatiently,
"Lady Tsunade, if everything is finished here, can the rest of us visit the infirmary for our wounds then go home?"
Tsunade seemed to notice how tired the rest of the rookie nine looked for the first time since they entered and she nodded curtly, feeling a bit sorry that she hadn't noticed it before then. They all filed out quickly, Sai leaving last, closing the door behind him in an unmotivated daze.
As the others paired off to either go to the infirmary with Neji and Hinata or to their separate homes, Sai slouched out of the hokage tower and down the dusty dirt road without really looking where he was going. It still morning and the air was cool. The people of the village were beginning their day by opening their shops and venders and sending their kids off to school. Sai saw none of that. He barely saw the road in front of him as he walked. All he saw was Naruto's determined face as he stared at each and every one of his friends, lastly at Sai, then looked away, just like that.
Sai balled his fists tightly in his pockets and shook his head. He tried telling himself he was right to not follow after Naruto, but for a moment he'd really wanted to.
But no, it was Naruto he wanted to go with, not Sasuke. And if he'd gone he would have had to suffer through being second string to Sasuke because he knew what he was to Naruto. He was a replacement. Naruto had a lot of friends. He was just another friend, but that wasn't what he wanted to be. Sai wanted to be Naruto's best friend!
But that space was already taken. By Sasuke.
From within his own mind, Sai faintly heard someone calling his name. He focused in on it until his vision cleared Naruto's face from his mind and he saw Kakashi and Yamato walking towards him from the road. They looked anxious, and Yamato's first question told him why.
"Sai, is it true? Has Naruto been banished? Everyone in the village is talking about it."
"Yes," Sai replied, glad to have some company, though he knew his fellow shinobi were only worried about Naruto. "He decided to leave with Sasuke instead of let us kill him."
"That sounds like Naruto." Kakashi said with a sigh. His one gray eye looked Sai up and down then he placed a hand on Sai's shoulder gently.
"Are you okay?"
"Yes, thank you for worrying, but it has just been a long night."
"What are they going to do about Naruto?" Yamato asked, though he noticed the same things about Sai that Kakashi had.
"The Hokage has decided to wait things out. She's hoping Naruto will come back on his own, without Sasuke."
Kakashi gave a sarcastic laugh. "I hate to say it but that's quite an unrealistic idea."
"I agree," Sai added monotonously, his fatigue catching up with him and making the emotions Naruto had cultivated in him vanish. "But the Hokage has decided."
"Yeah," Kakashi said and gave Sai another friendly pat on the shoulder. "Well you look like you're about to drop dead on your feet. You'd better get home and get some rest. See you around, Sai."
"Bye Kakashi, Yamato." Sai said as he began to walk away. Though he didn't see it, Kakashi quickly jabbed Yamato in his ribs so Yamato called back to Sai from a few feet away.
"S- Sai!" Sai turned around as Yamato said loudly over the hustle and bustle that had begun to flow into the streets, "If you ever wanna talk, I'm here!"
Sai smiled and waved to show he heard then turned around and headed towards his apartment. How he made it there he wasn't quiet sure, but the second he entered his room he collapsed onto his bed and fell instantly asleep.
When he awoke, Sai felt a crushing feeling of loss. He didn't know what to do now. He reached for a book to read but the words just didn't flow into his mind like usual. He was lost. He wanted to talk to Naruto, but he knew Naruto wasn't there.
He wished he knew where Naruto was. What he was doing. How he felt.
He took a long shower and got dressed in fresh clothes, deciding he might as well leave his apartment and work on a drawing he hadn't finished yet of the tree down the road from his house. As soon as he stepped outside he was shocked out of his skin because he heard Naruto's name shouted loudly from the other end of the road.
"NARUTO DID WHAT!"
He turned his head quickly in the direction of the voice and saw Konohamaru staring unbelievingly at Iruka. Sai sighed and walked down the road, not really wanting to start another conversation about what Naruto did. He'd heard it enough. But Konohamaru and Iruka's voices carried as he walked by them and they were hard to ignore.
"He's been banished because he chose to defend Sasuke."
"Why would they banish him over something like that? He's just being a good friend, isn't he?"
No, Sai thought angrily, because Sasuke doesn't deserve it.
"You'll understand when you're older, Konohamaru. Shikamaru and Lady Tsunade made a decision for Naruto's own benefit."
"His own benefit? But he's BANISHED! How could that be for his own benefit? Come on, Iruka-sensei, you don't really agree with this either, do you?"
Iruka shuffled his feet nervously then shook his head.
"No. I don't. But it's the Hokage's decision, not mine, and we have to follow it."
"Bullshit!" Konohamaru said loudly again. Sai noticed how much of Naruto was in Konohamaru and it just made him see Naruto's face clear in his mind again. He shook his head to clear it as Iruka smacked Konohamaru over the head for cursing.
"I'm serious, Iruka-sensei! I'm not gonna follow this! I'm gonna do something about it! If Naruto's banished he can't become the next hokage!"
"What exactly are you going to do?" Iruka asked scoffingly.
Sai saw a familiar sneaky glint in the corner of Konohamaru's eyes, familiar because he's seen the same glint in Naruto's eyes many times, then Konohamaru vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving Iruka to shake his head silently to himself.
Sai finally walked away and found the tree he'd been drawing, flipping to the page in his sketchbook and taking out his pencil. He started to draw but didn't get very far because he realized that he wasn't concentrating nearly hard enough and it was showing in his work.
Frustrated, he closed his sketchbook and put it back in his backpack, standing up and walking down the road, heading in no particular direction. He couldn't focus in on anything. He was too annoyed. He still couldn't believe Naruto had chosen Sasuke over the leaf. Over his friends.
Over him.
Sai hated how much it hurt. He wanted the feeling of being thrown away to go away. He didn't care for feelings like this.
After some time he just began drifting along the road, not paying attention to anything. He didn't notice time passing until he came across Ino and she called out to him, pulling him out of his stupor.
"Sai! Hey Sai! Over here!"
He looked up and walked over to her. She was just outside her family's flower shop and gave him a pitying smile when he approached her.
"Are you upset about all this too?"
He nodded and she placed a hand on his shoulder just like Kakashi had done the day before. Was this some sort of sign of pity that people used when they were friends? Sai didn't know, but somehow it made him feel better.
"Shikamaru is all worked up. He's still trying to convince Lady Tsunade that killing Sasuke is the only way."
Sai's expression darkened and Ino sighed.
"So you agree with him, huh? Men, all you want to do is kill. But think about it for a minute; Naruto isn't dumb. He has to see something in Sasuke that we don't, otherwise he wouldn't be doing all this, ya know?"
"I guess." Sai said slowly, not entirely agreeing. He kind of thought Naruto was just an idiot.
All of the sudden a masked shinobi appeared beside them. Ino was surprised but Sai merely nodded as a greeting.
"Sai, the Hokage would like to speak with you. She is expecting you in ten minutes."
Sai nodded and the shinobi vanished. After saying goodbye to Ino, Sai headed towards the hokage tower, arriving just on time. He entered the hokage's room and saw that Yamato was also there. He knelt on one knee, waiting for Tsunade to speak.
"How many times do I have to tell you, Sai? This isn't root and I'm not Danzo. There's no need to kneel. "
"I apologize." Sai said as he stood to his feet. "May I ask why you've called me here, Lady Hokage? Has something been heard about Naruto?"
Tsunade smiled kindly at him, which threw Sai off.
"I'm afraid not. Actually, I called you here because I would like to give you a few days to collect yourself before giving you any new missions."
"To collect myself?" Sai asked. "I'm not sure I understand. Have I done something wrong?"
"No, Sai, you haven't. We're given all of those who went on the secret mission to kill Sasuke Uchiha a few days to recuperate. You had a leg injury, from what I've heard, and you still haven't gotten it checked out.
Sai's eyes widened. He'd completely forgotten about it. It had stopped bleeding as soon as they started back to the Leaf and it hadn't even bothered him once since then.
"I'm fine. The wound on my leg is nothing. I would be happy to continue going on missions, Lady Hokage."
She smiled again.
"I'm giving you a paid vacation, don't argue with me! We will inform you if there is any news regarding Naruto's actions. Just go home and rest. I know this has been an emotional ordeal for you."
Sai wanted to argue with her, but something in her eyes made him realize it wasn't going to get him anywhere. He dropped his gaze and nodded.
"Yes, Lady Tsunade."
As he walked silently out the door he saw Yamato smile at him and he tried to smile back but nothing came. It seemed his depression over Naruto abandoning him was growing. For the next few days he didn't hear anything unless it related to Naruto.
He was upset when he heard they had made it to Sand. According to Shikamaru, who had spoken to Temari, Naruto was even more determined to stick with Sasuke than before. He'd even yelled at Gaara for not taking them into Sand.
Sai spent most of his time walking aimlessly along the streets of the Leaf with his hands in his pockets and his mind back in the clearing where they had had their battle with Sasuke. He just couldn't get Naruto's face out of his head. He barely even realized he was being called to at first when he heard a voice coming from the side of the road in his direction.
"Hey you, Kid! Yeah, with the glum expression and the pale skin!"
Sai looked up from the street and over to the familiar ramen stand Naruto always wanted to go to. The owner was calling him over cheerfully.
"You're friends with Naruto, aren't you? You came here with him to eat a few times. I remember."
Sai nodded, wondering what this man wanted from him.
"I was wondering if you've seen him recently. He usually comes by today but he hasn't been here yet. He's not on another mission is he?"
"You haven't heard?" Sai asked curiously.
"Heard what?" The man asked as his daughter leaned in to hear what Sai was going to say. She'd been worried about their favorite customer's absence as well.
"Naruto has been banished." Sai said flatly.
Their reactions were instantaneous.
She gasped and he frowned angrily.
"No," he said slowly. "That can't be right. Not Naruto. He's supposed to be Hokage someday."
Sai frowned. See what you did, Naruto? Everyone believes in you and you just threw it away for that fucking asshole Sasuke. Why are you such a moron?
"Naruto went against Leaf shinobi and was banished for it. Sakura was banished along with him. The girl with the pink hair Naruto always used to flirt with."
Both Teuchi, the owner of Ichiraku, and Ayame, his daughter, continued to talk in a panicked way about their best customer, leaving Sai with nothing else to do but walk away. It annoyed him to see yet another person who cared about Naruto worrying about him when he knew Naruto probably didn't even realize what his leaving meant to everyone.
The next day Sai discovered that Kakashi had abandoned the village to join Naruto and Sakura. He wasn't the only one who was angry. He met up with Yamato who said that he "couldn't believe Kakashi would do something like this."
Mostly, Kakashi's actions made Sai think harder about leaving to join Naruto as well. He thought that maybe if he did that, the feelings of betrayal would go away.
He started walking towards the front gate of the Leaf nearly every day. At first he never made it all the way there, but turned around halfway and became angry with himself for even thinking of abandoning the village. And yet the next day he walked the same path, and got closer every time he tried.
Eventually he stopped and stared at the large gate for hours, debating within himself what he should do. He did this for more days than he even remembered, but he could never bring himself to go through that gate. He didn't know what he would do if Naruto told him to go back.
Finally he was called into the Hokage tower once again, and this time Tsunade looked serious. Shikamaru was there too, as well as a few other shinobi Sai didn't recognize. Tsunade told him they had had enough waiting around for Naruto. He was too valuable to the village for him to be gone so long.
"The situation is getting out of hand," Tsunade said with her fingers pressed against her forehead in frustration. "People come barging in my office once a day to tell me they want Naruto back. Random citizens along with shinobi! Why a ramen shop owner cares so much I don't know but that's not even the worst of it. That little brat Konohamaru has set booby traps all over the tower and is trying to put together a strike until Naruto comes back. I can't have a shinobi strike on my hands along with everything else."
Sai nodded his understanding then Shikamaru stepped forward to describe the mission in detail.
They explained that he would have to find Naruto and deliver a message stating that they wanted him to return, they would even make him Hokage- if he came back with only Sakura and Kakashi.
Hoping dearly that it would work, Sai set out through those big gates without thinking twice, now that he had a purpose for going through them, a mission; to bring Naruto back.
End Flashback.
"…The Leaf... isn't the Leaf without you, Naruto. You have to come home."
Naruto stared down at the paper on the floor sadly then he frowned and shook his head, looking back up at Sai angrier than anything else.
"No," he said firmly. "They want to make me Hokage? That's a joke! It's a bribe, that's all it is. If I accept it now I wouldn't have earned it! It's out of the question anyway," he added morosely, looking away again in no particular direction, though he caught Sasuke's eye momentarily when he did. "I can't give them what they're asking for."
Naruto was looking away so thankfully he didn't see the hurt in Sai's eyes that mimicked the hurt that had been there when Naruto left the first time. All of the sudden he became very angry.
"Why can't you?" he screamed at Naruto, making the blonde flinch back in guilt. "Because of him?" He shook his hand in Sasuke's direction and although Sakura looked awfully nervous at the scene unfolding before her, Sasuke didn't make a move. He looked as though he barely even saw Sai.
Kakashi stepped in suddenly and addressed Killer Bee with an uncomfortable smile.
"Er, Bee, would you like a drink out on the porch? I've still got some sake left over from the jar you gave us the other day."
"I'm afraid I don't drink, but I like the way you think." He quickly followed Kakashi out onto the porch, glad to be out of the middle of whatever was going on between the three men inside. When they left, Sai shook his head and seemed to not have forgotten where he had been heading before Kakashi interrupted.
"I don't understand this, Naruto! I don't understand you! Haven't you had enough yet? This faggot asshole doesn't care about you, so why should you care about him?"
"Sai, no!" Sakura gasped, looking back and forth between Sai and Sasuke, the tension in the room making the air buzz even if Sasuke stayed completely still, unfazed.
"Dammit, Naruto!" Sai cursed, his hair flying in his face as anger consumed him. "Fucking, defend yourself! Why can't you leave this guy alone? He left you and the village years ago! He obviously doesn't care! But you have friends and people who love you that do care, and they are in the Leaf where you belong! Don't make up some bullshit about friendship because there is a limit, and Sasuke passed that limit when he decided to kill everyone from the Leaf."
Naruto looked as though he wanted to put his hands over his ears and curl into a ball. Sasuke wasn't sure what to do so he just remained standing still. He knew when to step in if the need arose. He was just waiting for a chance to go at this guy who was daring to question him and his feelings for Naruto. This guy didn't even know him. How dare he bring up the past when he had no idea what Sasuke had been through? Naruto was the only one who was allowed to talk about his past because Naruto understood. Naruto was special.
Sai didn't appreciate that Naruto wasn't even bothering to reply. His anger just grew to the point where he couldn't even stop himself. He didn't think he was even capable of feeling so much rage, but it just kept coming and coming from somewhere deep in his gut until screams came flying from his mouth, aimed at everyone, everyone who was making him so angry.
"YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO HATE HIM! THINK ABOUT EVERYTHING HE'S DONE! ARE YOU FUCKING STUPID, NARUTO? STOP BEING A MORON AND A COWARD AND MAN THE FUCK-"
"Don't you dare," the time had finally come for Sasuke to intervene. Naruto's blue eyes shot open wide when he stepped between him and Sai, glaring with his lips pressed tightly together until he spoke with a menacing growl,
"You can say anything you want about me. I could give a damn. But do not, do not, say things about Naruto that are untrue. Only I am allowed to call him a moron, and no one is allowed to call Naruto Uzumaki a coward."
Sai was taken aback for a moment but regained his composer much faster than anyone expected. He stared right back into Sasuke's face and replied,
"Bold words coming from you. You, the reason Naruto's been banished from his home, separated from him friends, and been made to give up his only dream. You, who have done nothing, nothing but hurt him and tear him down. The reason half the village is in an uproar and people are striking and complaining and crying over Naruto's banishment is you."
Finally something broke through to Naruto. He looked around Sasuke, anguish written clear on his face.
"Striking? Crying? Are people really-"
"Of course they are, Naruto!" Sai yelled, suddenly realizing this angle was the best way to make Naruto listen, to make him understand. "You're one of the most important people in the Leaf village! Everyone misses you, Naruto! You have to come back! Do you get it now?"
Slowly, Naruto shook his head, backing away towards the front door.
"No, no, no, no, no, no…"
"Naruto!" Sakura reached out to him, but he moved away, closer to the door.
"I need to think!" he said before exiting the house in a bright orange flash. "I need to think alone!"
The room after Naruto left was silent. Sakura thought someone had taken a vacuum and sucked all the air out of the room so no sound could penetrate. She was upset. Sai's appearance had been the last straw. She was still reeling from the discovery she'd made that morning and now this! She didn't know what to do, what to say. At least Sasuke was keeping his cool, though it was a bit unlike him.
The problem was, she could see Sai's point of view, but she knew Naruto's as well. It wasn't as simple as Sai tried to make it seem. She understood that now. She understood now why Naruto had protected Sasuke in the first place.
She just wasn't sure Sai would be as understanding. And Sai wasn't even the real worry. Her biggest fear was how the village would react.
She really wanted to go back. Seeing Sai had given her hope that maybe they could return. That hope had now faded, but it was still there. Naruto would think of the right thing to do, she told herself. He always did.
But right now she would leave the tough part up to him, she had to figure out a way to stay in the same room with Sai and Sasuke who, quite obviously, did not like each other very much. She felt herself leaning more towards Sai's side, mostly because it was nice to see a friendly face, but also because she still wasn't ready to forgive Sasuke, or trust him for that matter. Still, she just wanted to keep things civil and away from violence, so it didn't really matter whose side she was on, as long as no side started a fight.
Unfortunately, the other two didn't have the same goal.
"You think you know Naruto?" Sasuke asked, his condescending tone not masked in the slightest for Sai's benefit, though it didn't seem to bother Sai, because he replied in a similar tone with an unmasked smirk to boot.
"I know him better than you do. You've been gone and I, the 'replacement,' have been by his side."
Sasuke glowered, then turned to Sakura with a much more reserved expression and said calmly,
"Sakura, there's no need to babysit us. We aren't kids. You can go join the old men on the back porch."
"I don't think that's a very good idea." She replied firmly, rolling her eyes at his attempt. But then when Sai spoke up too, her determination wavered.
"Go on, Sakura. He won't do anything. Looked to me like Naruto got him trained like a dog. What did he use, some sort of fag control jutsu?"
A wide smile broke out across Sasuke's face. If being trained like a dog included some of the things Naruto had done to him a few moments before back in the forest, he wouldn't mind being trained like a dog every day of his life. He glanced at Sakura again and nodded towards the door, signaling for her to leave.
Sakura wasn't quite sure why, but she followed his silent command. Maybe it was just from memory. When she was younger she'd always been ready and willing to follow any command Sasuke gave her. All she knew was that she cautiously turned to leave and step through the glass doors onto the porch, turning back to make sure she still had the two men in her eyesight in case something did actually happen. After being sure she could see them through the glass door, she closed it behind her and sat down beside Kakashi on the table outside.
Now that they were alone, the hatred bubbled into the air with now outlet to dim it or obstruct its tenacity. Sasuke took a step forward and said in the same tone as before,
"You don't know Naruto, and you don't know me. But I do know you, because I can see everything you are from your face, and you know what I see? You're jealous."
"Jealous?" Sai asked, his eyes narrowing dangerously in a fake smile.
"See," Sasuke said lightly, taking another step closer to Sai. "I have greater than 20/20 vision." To emphasize the greater, he activated his sharingan, and the cocky smile fell from his face. "And I can see exactly how you look at Naruto."
"How exactly do I look at Naruto?"
"Not in the friendly way," Sasuke said darkly. "In a very bad, dangerous way. And the reason it's bad and dangerous, is because you don't realize that Naruto already has someone to look at him that way."
"Who?" Sai asked, but he could feel his mouth going dry.
"Me." Sasuke whispered.
"What are you implying?" Sai muttered suspiciously. He wasn't very good at understanding innuendo, but he had an idea of what Sasuke was trying to say. He had an idea… and he didn't want to believe it.
Slowly, with a cruel smile, Sasuke pulled up his shirt and pulled down the waistband of his pants just enough to reveal blemishes on his skin in random places along his hipbone, all leading down farther into his pants.
Sai's eye's widened and he took a shaky step back, silently mouthing the word "no."
"Yes," Sasuke said monotonously, scowling to show his seriousness. He wanted to make sure this message got through to Sai. He would not tolerate anyone attempting to take Naruto away from him, especially not his replacement. "Naruto made these just before you got here. He did it of his own free will and he enjoyed it. He was holding onto my leg like if he let go, the world would disappear as he moved his mouth over my skin. Go on, picture it in your head, I know you want to. Naruto's lips kissing and sucking and licking and then going lower and lower until he was kissing and licking and sucking harder and faster and moaning out of that mouth of his."
And as Sasuke spoke, something was happening to Sai that Sasuke didn't realize. Sai really was picturing Naruto like that, with his head between his legs and his lips pressed against a place that was suddenly so hot, and never before had Sai cared to think about it, but right then, as he imagined it as Sasuke described it in that sickening voice of his, Sai understood something. He wanted Naruto. That was why he'd been heartbroken when Naruto had left. That was why he hated being Sasuke's replacement most of all, because he hated the way Naruto cared about Sasuke because he wanted to be the one Naruto cared about. And now he realized that he wanted more than just that. He wanted that body.
The sad thing, though, was that as soon as he figured out what it was that he wanted, he realized that his chances of having it had already been ripped away.
His eyes found the marks on Sasuke's abdomen again and he cringed, falling to his knees as pain and lust battled within him, burning together with a fierce hatred that threatened to take him over until suddenly, he had a thought. He looked up and smiled venomously, wanting revenge for everything Sasuke had just put him through, and for stealing Naruto before he'd even had a chance.
"You can't be with him." He said through gritted teeth. "Not forever."
A small frown formed on Sasuke's face, and Sai continued maliciously,
"He will go back to the village, and you can't come with him. He may think you've changed but you haven't. You're still a cruel, heartless bastard and he'll see that one-day, and he will hate you! He'll leave you, I can already see it."
What Sai said got through to Sasuke, and he dropped his hold on his shirt, bringing a hand up to cradle his head in. Sai wasn't wrong. Torturing Sai like he'd just done… Naruto would hate that. Sai was right. He hadn't changed. And if Naruto found out then he would leave him. For good. Naruto only had so much patience.
Sasuke shook his head. He wouldn't allow that to happen. All of the sudden he was struck with an idea. He backed out the front door, scowling thoughtfully as he murmured at Sai darkly,
"Not if I leave him first."
Oh dear God, not another cliffhanger! I am such a bitch to you guys sometimes… Sorry! XD
Hopefully I'll update soon and put you out of your misery. Hopefully.
KeikoPanda102