Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, or any of its associated characters!
Summary: COMPLETE (new chapter up everyday - total of 29 chapters!). Some people are assholes. Some people are kind. It's when those are the same person that things get real confusing. Minor character death. A fic about grief, healing, and hope. Modern AU (office AU), Sasunaru/Narusasu.
A/N: I'm so happy you guys liked the eulogy. It was this big thing looming over me the whole time I was writing the fic haha - I knew I'd have to get to it eventually, but it was definitely intimidating. Super happy it's gotten such a positive response :)
A bit of a shorter one, but this chapter is one of my favourite bits. I hope you like it!
Something Good
Chapter 26: Bleeding Hearts
"I didn't expect it to be so...loud."
Sasuke raised an eyebrow at him.
"Expected a man with a shovel, did you?"
Naruto only leaned further against him. He hadn't let go of Sasuke's hand since Sasuke had offered it to him.
"Asshole." He paused. "...Okay, yeah, fine, I did."
Sasuke laughed softly. Naruto squeezed his hand in response.
"Are we staying until—"
"Yeah," Naruto said, "hang on. There's something I wanted to show you in the meantime."
Sasuke blinked, but let Naruto pull him forwards all the same. They were alone now, as far as Sasuke could tell—once the machines had started up, bits of the group had parted piece by piece. Naruto seemed content to wait, although Sasuke didn't know for how long...
They weaved through the stones. The path had few flowers growing alongside it—Sasuke could see some bouquets, here and there, and some candles, too, but they were few and far in between. It was difficult, he knew, to visit as often as they should.
"Up here."
Sasuke sucked in a breath.
Minato and Kushina Uzumaki.
In a large, single headstone, buried together, just as Sasuke's own parents lay.
"Hey mom," Naruto said, "hey dad. This is Sasuke."
Oh good lord. Oh good god. Sasuke's heart twisted and turned and dove straight down into his stomach—
"Should I have warned you?" Naruto said, tilting his head back to look at him. "I guess it's kinda bad etiquette to make you meet the parents so soon, huh?"
Sasuke let go of his hand to whack at the side of his head.
"Idiot," Sasuke told him, and it was met with a soft, stifled laugh.
"Yeah, yeah," Naruto said, "I know. But I was thinking, um, well I—"
Naruto knelt down.
"I planted some bleeding hearts here a little while ago. I mean, not a little while—years. Years ago now. But the pink ones did pretty well—see?"
Naruto gently lifted some petals with his fingertips. Sasuke leaned in closer to get a better look at the flowers. How aptly named. And fitting, Sasuke thought, for the place they were in—and doing very well, almost like several bushes, now—Sasuke wondered how large they had been when Naruto planted them.
"I, um," Naruto continued, "brought some water—and some other plants, I don't think you saw them. They're all in the trunk—in my car, I mean. I thought that we could maybe, um, plant a few around, here and then, um, once it's all...I mean, you don't have to stay, obviously, we'll probably get all dirty and—"
"What kind of a priss do you think I am?" Sasuke cut him off. "A bit of dirt? Give me your keys."
And Naruto ducked forward to laugh again, but he ended it standing up instead—
"Dickhead," Naruto told him, "I'm coming with you. You'll have no clue what you're looking at."
"Wow," Sasuke said, following him, "watch your language in front of your mother."
Naruto slapped the back of his hand into Sasuke's shoulder.
Sasuke caught it and pulled him until they stood side by side.
"You're such a softie," Naruto muttered, smiling at the floor.
"I'm no such thing. Exactly how much are we carrying?"
Naruto laughed.
"Lose the blazer, pretty boy."
"You have too many plants," Sasuke muttered, patting the dirt down further.
Naruto laughed at him. He hadn't bothered with gloves or anything, which just left them knee-deep in soil, sleeves rolled up to their elbows, and Naruto had already managed to splash water all over the both of them—
"You don't have enough," Naruto insisted nonetheless. Not all of these would survive—he was messy, the soil wasn't perfect and neither was the light—but some of them would.
And that would be enough to make it worth it.
"Romantic."
Naruto laughed and slapped Sasuke's forearm—he left a dirty handprint behind.
"Ugh," Sasuke said.
Naruto laughed harder.
"You're pathetic! What happened to not being a priss?"
"I didn't exactly come dressed for gardening," Sasuke shot back, helplessly looking around himself for something to wipe his hands on.
"You can wipe your hands on my shirt," Naruto offered. "I'm a mess anyway."
Sasuke stared at him for two more moments before his face broke out into a small, incredulous smile.
"You're so stupid," he muttered, turning his smile down to the dirt.
"Aw, come on," Naruto pulled at the bottom of his shirt, "here—this bit is clean. Come on."
Sasuke, dutifully but reluctantly, used the bottom of Naruto's nice clean dress shirt as a towel.
"Is that the last of them?" Naruto asked, letting out a breath. They'd planted everything he'd brought. Enough to fill in the gaps around his parents, and then to...start it all again at Jiraiya's.
Jiraiya's grave.
Naruto let out a low, long breath.
"I...think so," Sasuke said, pulling back. "Did you…"
He shook his head.
Naruto blinked.
"Did I what?"
"Nothing."
Naruto narrowed his eyes.
"I have half a watering can full of water in my hand," he warned, "and all the dirt I could ever want. Don't test me, Uchiha."
Sasuke met his eyes with his own for another long moment—before he rolled them.
"The—hearts. Near your parents. I was—wondering if you had...more."
Oh.
Naruto sat back on his heels.
"I—oh, oh, let's grab one."
Sasuke's head jerked up.
"We don't have to—"
"They're so hardy, Sasuke, I've got like a million babies to choose from. They'd do better replanted anyway." Naruto pushed himself up and attempted to pat off his knees. "C'mon."
Naruto held out a dirty, dirty hand.
Sasuke took it.
It was, in Sasuke's eyes, pretty obvious that they weren't driving to Naruto's place. He'd caught Naruto glancing between him and the plant tucked between his legs more than once.
Still, he hadn't said a word.
And even as Sasuke pulled into the cemetery, Naruto only breathed in.
Naruto couldn't speak.
He'd figured out where they were actually going somewhere between Sasuke's tender grip on the plant and faraway look back at the car. He'd been half-sure he was wrong, though, until Sasuke took wrong turn after wrong turn…
And now—
Fugaku and Mikoto Uchiha.
Naruto fell to his knees in front of the stone.
It didn't feel like enough.
"Tell me what to do," Sasuke said, pot in one hand and spade in the other.
And Naruto did.
At the end of it all, they were exhausted.
Naruto had insisted on driving, this time, citing something about how much Sasuke had already done, and Sasuke...hadn't had it in him to argue any more.
He'd ended up dozing off in the passenger seat. Just for a few scattered moments...Sasuke thought Naruto might have noticed from the soft, knowing smile on his face.
"Thanks for doing this with me," he said, catching Sasuke watching him yet again.
Sasuke shifted in his seat and let out a breath.
"Moron."
There was a soft pause.
"...The same to you," Sasuke said finally—just barely loud enough to know Naruto would hear it. He knew he did, though, even with his eyes closed—Naruto always made that noise when he smiled…
"'Course," said Naruto's voice. "...Hey, um, did Itachi ever call you?"
Sasuke's eyes snapped open.
"Sh—fuck. Hang on."
Naruto worriedly glanced to the side as Sasuke dug his phone out of his pocket. Sasuke hadn't even thought about the damn thing since Naruto had smiled in the center of a room full of memories and begun to talk—
'All good here, little brother. Did you manage to summon Susanoo?'
Sasuke let out a breath. It had been so many years since they'd brought up the "family password" that Sasuke had nearly forgotten it.
'My eyes haven't awakened yet. Rasengan at nine.'
"He's fine."
Naruto glanced at him again.
"Well, uh, I—y'know, I kinda expected that part. Did he say anything else?"
"No," Sasuke said, feeling his eyes grow heavy again, "and he won't in writing. He might tonight."
Naruto let out a breath, eyes glancing to the side again—
"Oh yeah...what time is it?"
Sasuke cracked an eye open to check his phone.
"Seve—"
"I knew it—that's me! You made me your phone ba—"
"You—keep your eyes on the road, moron," Sasuke hissed, pulling his phone to his chest.
Naruto laughed at him, one hand on the wheel and the other raised, as if he was reconsidering running it through his hair—
"Why," Naruto started, "the fuck did you make that stupid jumpsuit picture your phone background?"
"What," Sasuke said, shifting in his seat, "are you the only one allowed to do that?"
Naruto laughed again.
"Touché. Fine. I can't believe you—fine. You're crazy—did you say seven?" Naruto asked, smoothly turning the car with his still-dirtied hands. "I'm gonna pass the fuck out for an hour and a half."
"Not without a shower you're not," Sasuke deadpanned, eyes closed again.
Naruto let out a loud, exaggerated groan.
"Shower, sleep and manage to wake us both up in time," Sasuke said, rolling over with a sigh, "and I'll give you two more incentives."
There was a small pause.
"You're fucking on, Uchiha."
Naruto was decent enough to let Sasuke shower first. He even put out a set of clean clothes, although—
"Orange suits you!"
"Fuck off, Uzumaki," Sasuke fired back automatically, turning just as they passed each other. Naruto still looked dirty and scruffy and damn near a mess, but—
They both were...better, now.
"Don't take up the bed while I'm gone."
"I make no promises."
A/N: Early upload because I gotta run! What did you think? Let me know!
See you tomorrow,
- Kinomi