"And then I snuck up onto the Hokage monument and painted it in the middle of the night, dattebayo! I gave the First Hokage a mustache and put yellow under jiji's nose, so it looked like it was running with snot. It was hilarious, dattebayo!"
Sasuke stirred the pot of bubbling curry, listening distractedly to the blonde's incessant chatter. The idiot was hiding something—he just didn't know what. He hadn't stopped talking since they left the store, and he was using his stupid verbal tic even more than usual.
It was so obvious that he was honestly surprised he hadn't noticed it before. He supposed it was because he hadn't cared back then. And he still didn't care, he reminded himself firmly. He didn't care about anything anymore.
"It's ready." He set the dish on the rinky-dink table, breathing in the aroma appreciatively. It certainly smelled better than Naruto's creation—and it looked better too. He took a small bite, chewing and swallowing with relish. It wasn't the same as the curry the Uchiha chef used to make, but it was delicious, nonetheless.
He looked at Naruto and smirked. "It looks like you can't beat me at anything, not even cooking."
"Shut up, jerk," Naruto scowled. "It's not that good."
"Right," he said sarcastically. "I suppose that's why you've practically inhaled half your bowl already."
"Shut up, ok?" the other boy muttered, turning beet red. "I could've made it like this too if I'd asked for help."
"Why didn't you?" he shot back.
"B-Because I just didn't feel like it, dattebayo!"
He crossed his arms, unimpressed. "Are you sure it's not because the shopkeepers treat you just like that lady with the boy and the teachers at the Academy?"
A look of panic entered Naruto's eyes. Bingo.
"It…It's not like that, dattebayo," he protested weakly.
He rolled his eyes. "I'm not an idiot, idiot. Why does everyone treat you like that? Did you do something?"
"I dunno, dattebayo! It's just always been like that, even at the orphanage…" Almost as
if a switch had been flipped, his expression changed, and he flashed his stupid grin. "But it doesn't matter because someday I'll be Hokage and everyone will acknowledge how awesome I am!"
Sasuke hummed thoughtfully. "Maybe it's because of your parents."
The grin faded. "I wouldn't know," the blonde shrugged. "They died when I was a baby."
Flashes of his parents lying in their own blood passed through his mind. "You're lucky you were too young to remember them," he said darkly.
Naruto looked at him, his eyes burning like blue fire. "You're wrong. I would give
anything to know what they were like—to even just remember their faces."
"You wouldn't if you know what it's like," he retorted angrily. "It's better to forget entirely than to live with the memory of their deaths. One day they're there, and then they're dead, and you're left alone and wishing you were too—anything to rid yourself of the pain."
He stood abruptly."It doesn't matter, you wouldn't understand anyway. I'm going to sleep."
That night, as they both lay in bed, Naruto's "goodnight" once again went unanswered.
Author's Note: Well...that escalated quickly. Thanks for reading and stay tuned for Chapter 10 tomorrow!