"If this place were deep inside the earth, I would not yearn for a sun I never knew."
-Son Goku, Genso Maden Saiyuki
Naruto stood frozen, one foot halfway out the door, staring up at the woman before him.
He rarely ever saw Sakura's mother, who spent most of her time either locked away in her room with a bottle of wine, or out shopping or gambling with her 'friends.'
It was especially rare for her to be in the house on a weekend.
The Lady Haruno was a beautiful woman, in her own way, despite her heavy perfume and immaculate make-up. Naruto wasn't an expert on other households, but he's pretty sure wearing expensive furs and jewelry around the house wasn't normal. Today, she wore a lilac gown that shimmered with her movement. She would be lovelier, Naruto thought privately, if there wasn't a permanent look of distaste on her face.
"Excuse me." Naruto murmured, eyes downcast. "I was just leaving."
"Make us a pot of tea, if you would." She said disinterestedly. "We have a guest."
"Yes, ma'am."
Naruto slunk back into the kitchen and reached for the Haruno's best china, picking out the latest batch of tealeaves. As he waited for the water to boil, he wondered what kind of guests the Lady Haruno had that she would order tea. Usually, she'd break out the whiskey or yet another bottle of wine and Naruto would have to wait until they were all passed out in the living room before he could go to bed himself. He shuddered at the thought as he viciously capped the teapot. Tea was good.
Quickly, he reached the Lounge where the Harunos usually received guests, remembering to knock before entering the room. He nearly dropped the tray in shock, however, when he recognized Uchiha Sasuke, sitting on the frankly ugly settee, across Sakura and her mother, chatting like it was perfectly ordinary.
He inched into the room, eyes darting towards Sasuke who acknowledged him with a brief nod. Naruto then glanced nervously at Sakura, who had put on a cool expression. Okay, then. Best behavior in front of mother? Naruto could work with that.
"Have you met Naruto? He goes to Konoha Academy as well." Lady Haruno said lightly, accepting a cup from him.
"Yes, we're in the same class, and in the same Soccer team." Sasuke replied and Sakura couldn't help the slight frown on her face then.
"Are you?" Lady Haruno glanced at her. "Sakura hasn't mentioned that."
"We're in the same lab group, us three." Sasuke added pleasantly. "And perhaps it's because of our names—Uchiha, Uzumaki, but we often get paired up for class work."
"That must be hard on you, Uchiha-kun." She took a dainty sip from her cup.
"Sasuke, please. And yes, I do struggle a bit. He isn't the easiest to partner with."
Naruto forced his grip on the teapot to relax as he handed over Sakura's cup. He could feel his cheeks burning as a myriad of emotions swirled inside him.
"I'm at the top of the class. And captain of my team." Sasuke continued. "And I prefer to stay on top. Naruto here seems to hate staying behind for some after-school work. Please put in a stern word for me."
"Of course." Lady Haruno agreed amiably. "And you are welcome to come over as much as you like. I'm sure Sakura could use your guidance as well."
"Your offer is kind, but I prefer to work at school. And what with the winter training camp coming up for the Team… You won't dare miss that, will you?" Sasuke suddenly turned to address Naruto, who was just handing him his cup with shaking hands. "Coach will be furious."
"Uh," Naruto stammered.
"I'll personally make sure he attends it." Lady Haruno waved a dismissive hand. "No worries."
"You are truly kind." Sasuke smiled, accepting his cup and taking a sip, eyes flicking over to Naruto who was rooted to his spot on the floor.
Outside, the phone began to ring and Lady Haruno excused herself to answer it.
"It was a pleasure meeting you, Uchiha Sasuke." She smiled, all dimples and fake eyelashes. "Take care of my Sakura for me."
And with a whiff of perfume, she left the room.
Naruto let out a gust of air as he slumped against the floor.
"Might as well sit down, since we're all chumming up and becoming such good friends." Sakura crossed her legs and leaned back.
"Your mother is lovely." Sasuke replied calmly, setting down his tea. "I wonder where you got your charming disposition. Your father, perhaps?"
Sakura narrowed her eyes.
"You're a pretty shrewd person, Sasuke-kun, involving my mother like that."
"I wasn't really expecting to meet her, to be honest." Sasuke replied easily. "But it was a nice coincidence all the same."
Sakura smiled grimly down at Naruto, who was watching their exchange with wide eyes.
"What a shame our mothers couldn't all be present. They'd have a wonderful time, having tea together on the porch."
Sasuke's expression darkened even as Naruto let out a sigh, getting to his feet and collecting Lady Haruno's abandoned cup.
"Oh, but maybe we shouldn't invite Naruto's mother. She'd ruin the mood, maybe even get us all killed. After all, they run with the wrong sort."
Naruto shot her a glare, fingers clenching against the teacup.
"That's enough, Sakura."
"No, no. Sasuke would want to hear." Sakura replied lightly, examining her nails. After all, that's what he came here for today, hm? To get to know us all a little bit better."
Sasuke glanced at the blond who gave him a pained look.
"Do you know how he ended up here, with us?" Sakura continued. "He was abandoned, you know. By his good-for-nothing parents. His father was a bully, threatened my father into accepting another mouth to feed or he'd burn our house to the ground."
"Shut up." Naruto whispered, pale as the china he held in his trembling grip.
He felt like he was drowning. Sakura had never spoken about his parents before. These were all ugly, twisted lies and they dug into him like knives.
Lies!
"And then, what? They get themselves killed in a car-crash." She threw her head back and laughed. "Ah, how things turn out."
"You're lying!"
Naruto shook with emotion, and—he recognized, rage.
"How dare—you don't know shit about my parents. Don't you fucking talk about them that way—"
"Oh?" Sakura unwound her legs, sitting up. "And you would know better, would you? Defending the very same people who abandoned you on our doorstep with barely a coin to your name—"
In a spark of anger, Naruto seized the white-china teacup and raised it above his head with every intention of throwing it at Sakura's ugly, smug face.
"See how the apple falls!" Sakura burst out angrily. "Apparently, they were hunted by the law. Criminals! Dirty, stinking, worthless criminals!"
With a cry of rage, Naruto hurled the cup onto the wall. It broke into pieces with a sharp sound. Not satisfied, he turned and upended the entire table. He did not wait for it to crash to the ground before turning tail and fleeing.
Left behind, Sakura rose half-way from her chair, fists clenched and breathing sharply. Wordlessly, Sasuke stood as well, slowly reaching down and picking up the lone unblemished teacup among the broken mess, and placed it delicately on Sakura's armrest.
"See how the apple falls, indeed." He murmured, before moving away.
Sakura gazed, expressionless, at Sasuke's retreating back. When he disappeared through the door, her eyes fell towards the cup balanced on the arm of her chair. It stood innocently, the dull gleam of china reflecting her face, as if mocking her.
Mindlessly, her hand came up to touch the cup, stroking the delicate pattern there.
A mockery.
She lashed out and stared down at the broken pieces on the ground, still gleaming despite lying in the shadows. Nana Saya burst into the room, exclaiming and cursing and ushering her out of the room before she cut herself.
She made sure to crush the china under her foot on her way out.
Sasuke finally found him an hour later.
The sun was on its way down, setting the whole playground ablaze with warm gold. The trees were beginning to give from the chill in the air, a few stray leaves fluttering down, catching against the sunlight. No children played here, the abandoned playground rusty, old and run-down.
Naruto sat on one of the swings, staring glumly at the sand, his hair lit up like the sun. Sasuke paused in the shadow of the trees, taking a moment to simply watch him, eyes grazing over the fading bruises on his skin, the scars on his cheeks, the exhausted slump of his shoulders.
He emerged slowly, allowing the branches under his feet to alert his presence to the blond, who didn't even bother to look up. With even movements, he approached, moving to sit on the swing next to the blond and simply joining him in silence.
There were no birds here. Either that, or they did not feel like singing in such a place. But the crickets were obnoxious, and Sasuke took that as an excuse to glance towards the blond, noting the blood on the fingers clutching the swing handles.
"You should have been more careful." Sasuke commented lightly, reaching out to take Naruto's hand and examine them. He frowned when he noticed the embedded glass shards. "If you were going to break the glass, you should have at least broken it on her face."
"Go away." Naruto mumbled.
"Is that how you talk to the one who secured you a way out of that shithole?"
"I didn't ask you to do that." Naruto rasped, staring at the ground. "I didn't ask you to… You had no right. You…"
Naruto took in a shuddering breath and wrenched his hand back.
"…why are you here, Sasuke?"
Sasuke glanced up at him.
"…you finally said my name."
"Beside the point, you bastard—" Naruto caught himself, and then closed his eyes, as if counting to ten.
"You should go."
"This is a public space, I have every right to be here—"
"Haven't you humiliated me enough?" Naruto whispered, fists clenching against the swing, causing the bleeding to start again.
Sasuke fell silent, the witty retorts dying like ash in his mouth. Even the crickets seemed to catch on, judging the silence stretching between them with a low buzz.
"…I'm sorry."
Naruto sat, unblinking, unmoving, and Sasuke wondered if he heard what he said at all.
"I'm sorry." Sasuke repeated, more clearly. "I… It was not my intention to… to hurt you. Or get you hurt. And… what I mean to say is…"
The apology felt awkward and wrong in his mouth, as Sasuke was not used to apologizing. But finally, just as Sasuke was beginning to really hate himself, the blond let out a sigh. And at once, Sasuke knew that it was going to be okay.
"I never knew my parents." Naruto murmured slowly, gazing at the elongated shadows on the ground. "I don't… remember their faces. I don't know their names."
Sasuke kept still, waiting for the blond to continue, not wanting to spook him into clamming up.
"I don't… I don't really know them, but… They weren't bad people." Naruto looked up at him almost desperately. "I just know it."
"Don't listen to a word that crazy bitch said." Sasuke insisted.
"You don't understand how it felt—when she insulted them, and called them criminals—I was so angry—" More blood pooled from his hands, dripping down his arms. "I wanted to hit her so bad."
Sasuke stood and knelt before the shaking blond, reaching out and gently taking the bleeding hands into his own. Carefully, Sasuke folded open his fingers, picking out the worst of the shattered glass embedded into the flesh.
"We need to get this cleaned up, or you're going to need stitches." Sasuke murmured.
Naruto's hands tensed against him. "No."
"Dobe," Sasuke sighed.
"I'm not going back there." Naruto said stubbornly. "I'd rather bleed myself dry first."
"Where will you go?" Sasuke pointed out.
"Gaara's." Naruto replied. "He'll take me in. He'll—"
He didn't notice the way Sasuke's jaw tightened.
"Fine, then. Go. Get some help, god knows you need it."
Naruto shot him a dirty look but got to his feet. He raised his nose in the air and tried to hobble forward, but ended up falling back to the ground, clutching his ankle.
"I don't believe it—did you sprain something?" Sasuke didn't even realize he was there until he was clutching the blond by the arm.
"Fuck you, too." Naruto hissed.
"How the heck did you possibly—"
"I fell, okay? It's not like I do this on purpose, you bastard."
With a huff, Sasuke turned and offered his back to the blond.
"Get on."
"Are you making fun of me?"
"Get on, before I drag you by the hair, so help me god."
Naruto bit back a scathing retort, face purpling with the effort. He glared suspiciously at Sasuke's back and considered kicking him and making the smug bastard land flat on his face. But his ankle was throbbing and his fingers were still bleeding, and honestly, when did the universe ever take into consideration his personal feelings anyway?
Slowly, begrudgingly, Naruto climbed onto his back, arms hanging uselessly over Sasuke's shoulders. Face flaming with embarrassment, he didn't make a sound as Sasuke stood, adjusting his weight, forcing Naruto's face to settle onto the point where Sasuke's neck and shoulder met.
"Don't make me go back." Naruto said weakly.
"Do you really think I'm an idiot?" Sasuke sighed, making his way out of the playground. "You're coming with me, dobe. You need something for that hand before you bleed to death."
"No hospitals."
Sasuke rolled his eyes. "No hospitals."
The air was really settling into coolness, but the sun was warm on his back and Sasuke was a furnace underneath him. For such bony features and a slim build, Sasuke was surprisingly comfortable, and soon enough, Naruto was fighting to keep his eyes open.
"…won't your parents mind?" He murmured, the gentle rocking motion lulling him deeper into drowsiness.
Sasuke pondered the comfortable weight of the blond against his back.
"My parents are dead."
He finally said it out loud.
"Mm," Naruto sighed, and Sasuke felt it brush against his hair. "M'too…"
Sasuke did not reply to that, knowing the exact moment the blond fell asleep when his head rolled closer towards his face. If Sasuke tilted his head just a bit, they would be touching foreheads, and the intimacy and show of trust left Sasuke with a warmth in his chest.
And if he took the slightly longer way home, well… none would be the wiser.
Gaara sat by his usual spot overlooking the fish pond.
The Koi pond had been empty of fish for a long time, but the water stayed clear, devoid of decay. Gaara had spared a moment to wonder who would have enough time on their hands to carefully maintain an empty fish pond. At some point, it became his favorite spot to think.
Weekends were terrible.
Gaara had not appreciated being uprooted from his home in Suna; nor did he relish being placed in the middle of a school full of juvenile children, who moaned and bitched in their little world; and everything was so fucking petty it made him want to scream.
Home was a desert, full of sand and heat and the angry gaze of his people… but it was home. It was where he belonged. Here, in Konoha, everything was green and clean, and no one looked at him like he was the scum of the world.
But they feared him.
And he hated them.
And he resented his father for banishing him here.
And yet, if Gaara had to choose between the mundanity of school and the oppressing silence of the house, then Gaara would rather throw himself into the chaos and noise of Konoha Academy.
Silence was blessed, but only in his head. In the silence of this house, the demons in his head came knocking; and one day, Gaara was certain that he'd give in.
Besides, recently, things weren't so terrible. He couldn't help the snort that escaped his mouth as a flash of blond hair and wide grin flashed in his mind.
Gaara was snapped out of his musing as he heard footsteps approaching. He glanced up in time to see Temari's dark head rounding the corner.
"Gaara," she called out, walking brusquely towards him.
She attended university in Konoha, as his official chaperone, and though Gaara knew she also missed the Sand, he also knew that she was not as concerned about leaving it. As the lone girl in the family, she oftentimes felt estranged. Perhaps Konoha was a good chance for her to be a little free from that.
"I'm glad I caught you." She cocked her head to the side. "I heard you made front line of the Soccer team. Congratulations."
Gaara rolled his eyes.
"Make nice with the Uchiha boy." She coaxed. "You know what happened to their family. We can afford to be a little nice to him, don't you think?"
"He wouldn't know what to do with it."
"Well, you're probably right." Awkward silence fell between them. Friendly chit-chat was never a strong point in their family. "I'll be going now."
She began to move away.
"Temari," Gaara hesitated. "Can I… invite someone over?"
Temari paused, trying not to show how taken aback she was.
"Who?"
Gaara looked like he was chewing on the word.
"A friend," he finally said. "A nakama."
"From which family?" Temari asked, curious despite herself. Gaara? Her brother, Gaara? Had a friend?
"He's not like that—" Gaara paused, a little frustrated. "He's… he's safe. He doesn't know."
"We're not supposed to bring outsiders in." Temari said slowly.
"I know." Gaara scowled, glaring at his shoes.
"…but you've already brought him in, haven't you?"
Gaara refused to react, keeping his head bowed and holding his tongue. Temari sighed.
"I know about that, and no, I haven't told Father. But I've been meaning to ask you. Do you know what you're doing?"
No reply.
"…is he really worth all the trouble?"
Finally, Gaara gave a small nod.
Temari watched him for a few more seconds before nodding to herself.
"Okay, then."
Gaara slowly dared to look at her.
"…okay?"
"Okay." Temari agreed. "Bring him over. Let's meet this mystery friend of yours. Does he like sushi?"
"…are you going to kill him, if he doesn't?"
"I won't, if you don't." She grinned.
Despite himself, Gaara smiled back.
He dreamt of a car crash. Or at least, that's what it sounded like. In dreams, one was never sure what they were seeing, but it all made sense in his head.
All in his head.
Because now the world was underwater, the sound muffled and distorted, and even though there was fire, it was not hot. Everything was cold, and supple, almost elastic. And maybe that was a woman's scream, or a screech of tire, but Naruto was too busy clutching at the wealth of dark hair in his hand.
Yes, that was his name. Who was calling him?
It was deep. The voice was soft, almost a whisper, but it was deep.
Don't forget.
Don't forget.
Wait. Don't go. Who are you? Naruto felt the silky strands slipping through his fingers, like the dream that was fading away. He struggled to open his eyes. Dark hair, pale face, and eyes, red like fire.
Red like blood.
"Wake up."
Naruto blinked up blearily, finally recognizing Sasuke's face looming over him. Dark hair, pale face. He took a second to make sure he still wasn't dreaming, and then slapped the face in front of him to double check.
"Ow!"
Naruto sat up, snapping awake as the warm weight lifted off him with an explosion of curses.
"Sasuke?" Naruto rubbed his eyes.
And then it all came back. The playground. The teacup. Haruno Sakura.
"Ugh, no wonder I had crazy dreams." Naruto sighed, digging at his eyes.
"Crazy dreams for the crazy idiot." Sasuke rubbed his cheek and scowled from where he stood over him, and Naruto realized he was lying on a couch. A very comfy couch he'd never seen before.
"Where am I?"
He looked around curiously and noted the wide, high-ceiling living area of what looked like an apartment. An apartment?
"You're in my house."
"No way, really?" Naruto looked more carefully, cataloguing the smooth, wooden floors and heavy dark curtains. There was hardly any color in the house, and it was kind of… well, it was kind of…
"Dark." Naruto decided, sitting up more fully.
"Better than your place." Sasuke shot back, padding away towards the kitchen.
Naruto could not argue with that.
The apartment was a fusion of traditional Japanese and modern style. The couch he sat on was a luxurious monster of a thing, made of white leather and god knows what. The lamp and the TV were all very modern too. But the floor was the traditional polished wood, and the blinds were made of bamboo. The space was large enough to comfortably house a family, but it didn't feel like a family lived here.
He stood up, making his way around the living room, a circular area that connected the open kitchen and a hallway that disappeared around the corner.
He took in the details like they could give him clues about Sasuke. About his life.
Why did he want to know?
Naruto ignored the voice in his head, stopping in front of a large portrait towards the far end of the room. It was almost hidden in the shadows, as if on purpose. Naruto stepped closer, eyeing the crest of a red fan blooming at the bottom of the ornate frame. It was a family of four, all proud and severe looking, staring straight ahead. Naruto's eyes widened as he realized who they were.
"That's my family."
Naruto whipped around and stared at Sasuke, who was looking up at the portrait with an unreadable look in his eyes.
"Come, we need to treat your hand."
Naruto wordlessly trailed after Sasuke, sneaking one last look at the portrait as it melted back into the shadows. He had a million questions dancing on the edge of his tongue, but he held them back, allowing the Uchiha to push him back onto the couch and tend to his fingers.
The bleeding had stopped, but the wounds on his hands were ugly, dirty and swollen. Naruto winced as Sasuke placed a steaming towel over his hand, carefully wiping off the dried blood there. He set to work with a pair of tweezers, taking out as much barbed glass as he could.
"Go see Tsunade about this, first thing." Sasuke murmured, digging deeper for a stubborn shard.
Naruto simply nodded, watching Sasuke work. He was so gentle, it barely hurt, and Naruto felt himself soften even more for this bastard who, for reasons unfathomable, was looking out for him.
"What happened to your family?" Naruto murmured.
Sasuke did not answer for a while, and Naruto decided not to press the issue. After all, he wasn't like Sasuke-the-bastard. He didn't press for unwanted details when the other party obviously didn't want to give it—
"They died when I was eight."
Naruto carefully swallowed back the breath that he had choked on. He gazed at the top of Sasuke's head, waiting for him to continue.
"It wasn't just my parents. My uncles. My cousins. The entire Uchiha bloodline."
Naruto's eyes widened at the implication.
"How did they die?" He asked carefully, almost afraid of what he'd hear.
"Murdered." Sasuke gave a bitter laugh. "Massacred. Throats slit open, left to choke on their own blood. Women, children, no one spared."
Except for me.
Naruto's watched as Sasuke swathed his hand with disinfectant. He barely felt the sting, he was too wrapped up in the emotions Sasuke's words evoked. He wanted to ask so many things.
Why were you spared?
Did they catch whoever did it?
How did it feel to lose everyone you loved?
But the words were stuck in his throat, like peanut butter, and Naruto didn't know what to do, just that he needed to do something—to comfort Sasuke who was obviously hurting.
Sasuke was now wrapping his fingers, and Naruto caught his hands between his, clutching at them, trying to convey what he desperately wanted Sasuke to understand.
He felt for him. He was sorry.
He wished the hurt would go away.
Maybe Sasuke understood him, because he did not push him away. He simply looked up and met Naruto's gaze, and Naruto marveled at the darkness of his eyes, how different they seemed now, when once before, they bore into him like cold, cold fire.
Unbidden, Naruto's fingers rose to touch the face before him, smoothing over pale cheeks and thinking, absently, how long Sasuke's lashes were.
They were so close, and it was a simple matter for Sasuke to lean in, and touch their lips together.
Sasuke's lips were cool, like drops of rain on his lips, and when they moved apart, warmth spread inside him like answering ripples. It was strange, like they were floating in a dream.
Sasuke bumped their foreheads gently before rising to return the medicine kit. The silence between them should have been awkward, but Naruto simply settled deeper into the couch as Sasuke turned his attentions to their dinner.
The pensive silence between them continued as they ate their simple meal, only the sound of wooden chopsticks and the clinking of glass disturbing the air. They glanced at each other over their bowls, sharing a small smile when their eyes met.
Naruto blamed it on the drowsiness returning as night fell in earnest.
It was strangely peaceful; Naruto slumped on the couch, watching TV, with the muted sounds of Sasuke washing the dishes from behind. He must have fallen asleep at one point because he remembered opening his eyes to Sasuke carrying him to the bedroom and depositing him gently on wonderfully cool sheets.
It took almost nothing for him to sleepily make room as Sasuke moved to join him. The thought that this was strangely effortless might have crossed his mind at one point, but the night had a hazy, dream-like quality to it, and Naruto was already falling back asleep when he felt the press of warm lips on the back of his neck.
What else was there to do but to sigh and surrender into dreams?