The usual gang was together for the lunch break. Karin's persistence on eating healthy was finally working off, they all had their homemade meals brought in a lunch box. Also for a change, they were eating in one of the larger corridors where it was quieter compared to the cafeteria. Windowsills were wide and low enough to comfortably sit on, and Hinata was squeezed together with Sakura while Karin was occupying the remainder of the space.

From out the window, Naruto could see Konohamaru, Lee, and Udon play basketball.

"Now that Naruto's got his ass out of detention, we can do a movie night this week," Karin recommended. The color of the sandwich bread she ate was a peculiar brown.

"No way. Do it without me if you must, but I think we should all be studying," Sakura said.

Kiba was watching Naruto, and he picked up what Naruto might be looking at unexpectedly fast. "Dude. His leg's healed by now."

"Yeah. I'm not worried about that." Naruto shook his head. For some reason, thinking about basketball made him sick right now. He'd apologized to Konohamaru about a hundred times, and Konohamaru seemed to have forgiven him. But he couldn't forgive himself for what he had done. Going violent on someone because he felt like shit… that was so messed up. Was he a terrible person for that, or was he a normal teenager for discharging his anger on someone?

Sakura sighed, putting her lunchbox aside and getting up to her feet. "Are we going to talk about it or ignore it like we did last week?"

Hinata went along with Sakura. "I honestly thought they were mistaking Naruto for someone else when I heard it. I mean… I can't imagine him beating someone up."

"It was a mistake, okay?" said Naruto sharply. "Talking about it won't change anything."

"True," Neji shrugged. "But you still look like you want to beat someone up."

"Bullshit."

Karin wiped her mouth with a napkin. "Is this about Sakura and Kimimaro?"

"What?" Naruto asked, taken by surprise. "You guys are datin' now?"

Sakura hummed in thought. "No. We went on a date last week. I'm not really sure yet if I like him romantically. But he's a charming guy. I've never flirted with a boy who wears makeup before."

"You should go on another date after all this test crap is over," was Karin's opinion.

"And you should start concerning yourself more with your own love life instead of others," Sakura half-seriously said. "Will you admit you're dating Kabuto already? The entire school knows."

Hinata sweetly offered Karin a compliment. "You two fit each other so well."

Kiba nodded in approval. Karin rolled her eyes with an unsuccessfully suppressed smile.

Sakura's attention was back on Naruto. "So, it's not about me?"

"What?" Naruto dumbly stared at her. "No? Why would you think that?" He then realized he had never officially revealed to them that he was over Sakura. But how exactly would that even happen? It wasn't like he could go up to her and say hey, I'm over you, just so you know. Sakura was his close friend and confidant, so it was only natural he had interest in the occurrences, but he had no hard feelings. No jealousy.

Luckily, nobody made a remark about it, not even Kiba. They were probably all relieved.

"Uh. Anyway." Kiba yawned, putting an arm around Hinata's shoulder. "We can do movie night after Christmas if that's okay with everyone."

"I'm down," Karin said. She was up a moment later, dusting off her skirt, but she suddenly jumped with a startle. "Fuck! Jesus!"

"Calm down," someone said from the back. It was Suigetsu, and his hand was on Karin's back. He pulled it away to stop Karin's oncoming slap. "Sheesh."

"Suigetsu," Naruto greeted him. "What's up?"

Suigetsu grinned. "Sorry to interrupt. I need to borrow you for a while if that's okay. There's someone who wants to talk to you."

Kiba gave a sleazy snicker. "Someone's gonna confess?"

"No. It's just Iruka."

Kiba's enthusiasm died down in under a second. "Why didn't you say so, bro."

Karin was still looking at Suigetsu like she wanted to stab him in the eye. "If you're looking for him, then why the hell would you touch me?"

"Because you're in the way?" Suigetsu raised a brow. "Geez. Stop with that look, will ya. I'm just the messenger. Anyway, I'm outta here."

"Bye," Naruto mumbled behind him.

"Pff. I'm heading to the classroom," Kiba said. "You guys comin'?"

Neji pushed himself away from the wall he'd been leaning against. "I'm going out for a smoke."

" Quit smoking , my ass. You're still smoking like a chimney, Neji." He turned to Naruto. "Nards, find us later, 'kay?"

By the time Naruto separated from them and made it to Iruka's room, his hands were a little clammy, mostly because he had no idea why Iruka had suddenly called for him. Was it about last week's talk, or maybe he was going to be given more detention hours?

It was unusually quiet since there were no classrooms on that floor. The door to Iruka's office was ajar, and Naruto knocked out of courtesy before pushing it open. Iruka was at his seat, typing on the desktop computer.

"Naruto?"

He nervously rubbed the back of his neck. "Suigetsu said you wanted to talk to me?"

Iruka appeared confused. "You? I told him to tell Karin Uzumaki to visit me if he saw her. Guess he only heard the second half."

"Oh. I thought I was in trouble for a second," he confessed with a relieved chuckle. "Is she in trouble?"

"No, nothing like that. I just want to talk to her about her Math grades. Kakashi's been worried about her."

"Mhmm. Is that so." It was the first time Naruto heard Kakashi was worried about anything, much less his students.

Iruka's fingers were resting on the keyboard, but not pressing any keys. "How are you holding up? Things clearer in your head after last week?"

"Yeah. I think so. I might pay a visit later if I get in over my head again."

"I'd be glad," he replied.

"Well then. I'll leave you be."

"See you later, Naruto. Would you pass my message to Karin?"

"Sure."

It was definitely a relief that he was not in trouble or anything. He shut Iruka's door and started walking in the direction of the stairs.

As he passed by the door to the teacher's lounge, he spotted Itachi's unmistakably dark hair, and then Sasuke's. They appeared to be arguing – not an entirely unfamiliar sight, though they did it rather quietly. Even their fights had an elegance to them. Naruto watched them for a few seconds, but he couldn't risk being spotted. He wasn't exactly keen on talking to Sasuke at the moment.

But his thoughts were broken up with a vulgar voice. "Hey, you're here."

It was Suigetsu again, and he startled Naruto as much as he'd startled Karin, making an embarrassing yelp escape his mouth. This guy had no sound in his footsteps.

"Yeah. It wasn't me who he was looking for, you misheard it. It was Karin," Naruto said after he came back to his senses.

Their exchange seemed to have interrupted the Uchiha brothers', which was to be expected as their voices reverberated in the half-empty corridor.

"Is that so. Huh. I thought maybe he wanted to talk to you 'bout detention."

Itachi inaudibly said one last thing to Sasuke before he went in through the door to his right. It was only Sasuke, Suigetsu, and Naruto on the entire corridor.

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke called out. Naruto wasn't able to tell if it was directed toward him or Suigetsu, and just by that he felt his hands start to sweat again.

Suigetsu saved him from fretting further by replying. "Juugo said you'd be here. Geez, I had to climb these goddamn stairs twice. You done with your talk?"

"Yes." Sasuke came from across the corridor to their side.

It was an awkward moment again for Naruto because he had no business there. Sasuke seemed to think the same. "Naruto?"

"I'm only here because Suigetsu said Iruka called for me. Which was a misunderstanding, by the way." He wasn't sure why he'd gotten all defensive all of a sudden.

Sasuke did not react to it. "You two know each other?"

"We're detention buddies," Suigetsu said.

"Hmm." Sasuke pushed his hands into his pockets, eyes calculating. "Suigetsu, can you give us a moment?"

He looked confused but didn't question it. "Should I wait?"

"Don't bother."

"Suit yourself. We're in the usual spot."

Suigetsu soundlessly descended the stairs and disappeared out of sight. Sasuke's gaze intensified on Naruto. "Detention buddies? So you actually were in a fistfight."

"That… happened. Yeah."

"I thought it was a false rumor."

"You could've asked."

Sasuke looked down. "We didn't get to talk. Who attacked you?"

"It was me who attacked, actually," Naruto clarified. "But I've learned my lesson."

Unlike Naruto, Sasuke definitely had a thing he wanted to say after that. He was looking up at Naruto and down at his shoes again. Patiently, Naruto waited, but it didn't seem like anything was coming out of it, so he cleared his throat as a distraction. "Well. I'm gonna—"

"Won't you come over for dinner this Friday?"

For someone who seemed to be mulling his words over a second ago, Sasuke said it very hastily. Naruto had to take a moment to scrutinize the meaning in his head.

"Friday? Ahh."

"You have other plans?"

Apart from their usual plan of eating out and chatting together, he wasn't particularly busy. Not at all. "No, um. We usually eat together Friday after school."

"I see."

The disappointment apparent on Sasuke's face pulled a string at Naruto's heart. He wasn't even sure if they would do it this week - Sakura would most likely call it off. Even if not, he could always tell them he was invited somewhere. Neji always missed their meetings because he was at family dinners.

He had to make a quick decision, and they were bound to talk about what had happened eventually. "I can make it, though. They won't die if I bail once," he neutrally said.

Sasuke's eyes lit up. "Are you sure that's okay?"

"Yeah. Totally." He bobbed his head in consensus. "Does Itachi know?"

"He's cool with it. He's free Friday after school."

"That's good, then. I owed him dinner, after all."

Sasuke's lips were tugged down ever so slightly. "Hn."

It wasn't like this was the first time they had a falling-out, but it definitely was the first one where he had absolutely no clue how to resolve. They basically hadn't exchanged a single word after eating out together last week, and that was weird because they always spoke, or at least texted. Also, Naruto sent Sasuke memes, which had also stopped. The more they talked, the better he felt about the awkwardness between them, but it was still there. The elephant in the room.

"Don't keep your friends waiting, Sasuke," he said. He needed time to think and prepare what he wanted to say so there was no usefulness in dragging out the conversation longer than needed. "I'll meet you at your place on Friday."

"I'm looking forward to that."

The full meaning behind that was unclear to Naruto, but he managed to nod nonetheless.

Sakura was nice enough to help Naruto study for his tests regardless of the fact that she was busy with her own schoolwork. Naruto had taken Iruka's advice and was determined to get high scores for the time being, and that took most of his time, so much that he had forgotten about dinner at Sasuke's until Sasuke had asked if it was still on to confirm on Thursday.

Friday, after the last period, Sakura and Naruto were at the library again. Sakura had mastered the art of talking in a whisper-like voice so that she wouldn't disturb anybody while she reviewed a topic from World History out loud.

"Naruto?"

"Mhm?"

He was watching Sakura take small notes and trace the texts she was reading, but his mind was somewhere else.

"I asked you a question. Were you listening?" Her eyes were probing.

"Yes. Sorry. I zoned out for a second. What was the question again?"

"The changes in Germany after World War I."

"Oh." His eyes wandered over the open page. "Um…"

"I've been talking about this for the last twenty minutes," she said in discontent. "You seem a little tired. Maybe we should call it a day."

"I'm sorry, Sakura," Naruto reclined back. "I really appreciate what you're doin' for me. I'll study this to the smallest details, I promise."

Sakura gave a half-smile. "You're awfully diligent lately. I'm proud of you."

"Hah! I am, aren't I?"

"Shhh. Lower your voice." She wrapped a lock of hair around her finger, eyes following it. "How am I going to find the time to visit the salon? My dye's overdue."

Even then Sakura could think of such a thing. Naruto didn't really understand why girls cared that much about their appearance. To him, Sakura looked pretty enough as she was right now.

"You want coffee? Vending machine coffee sucks, but we'll make do."

Sakura shrugged. "Why not."

Naruto grabbed some loose change (there was no way he'd let Sakura pay after tutoring him all week) and they left the study area after putting their coats on. The floor planning of the library sucked, and they had to walk all the way to the entrance door for the vending machines since the built-in cafeteria was ridiculously overpriced.

After getting their drinks, they went out in the fresh air. They sat in one of the benches placed adjacent to the building. The view wasn't that nice, but that was all they could get for a ten-minute study break.

"I forgot to congratulate you. For going out with Kimimaro, I mean."

Sakura laughed, cheekbones catching the light and glowing thanks to her makeup. "There's nothing to congratulate. We've only been on one date."

"It's an accomplishment to me. You're moving on. Isn't that what life is all about?" Naruto uttered.

"I suppose so. Then I should congratulate you as well."

"Why?"

She cautiously took a sip from her coffee. "For the same reason."

"Mm. So you noticed."

"It was Neji who said it first, actually. A while back. But it makes sense. I'm really happy. I mean, don't get me wrong. It's really flattering that you liked me and all," she casually said. "But you're also my dear friend and I don't like seeing you suffer."

Naruto silently nodded, not able to find the strength within to crack a joke about it. He watched the white smoke rise from his coffee, then a group of students walking inside.

"Thanks for buying, by the way."

"No worries," he said before facing Sakura and smiling. It faltered soon. "I wanna ask you somethin'. I don't wanna sound weird. But it's kind of important."

Sakura looked suspicious but shrugged it away. "I'm used to your quirky talks anyway. What is it?"

"Don't get me wrong. This is entirely hypothetical, but" he cleared his throat, rubbing his empty hand on his jeans. "Have you ever kissed a girl?"

"Ha?" Her tone got Naruto alert and scared that he'd get punched, but Sakura looked baffled rather than furious. "Yeah. I have. Why?"

"Wait—" He had not anticipated that. "Seriously?"

"Yup."

"Okay. Awesome. Wait, I mean. Uhh. How did it… feel?"

She took long sips from her paper cup before she spoke. "It's not going to feel the same for you if that's why you're asking."

"That's not it. Think of it as a survey."

"If you really want to know. It was back when I was about eight. I kissed my best friend because we were both curious about what kissing was like. I remember it felt warm. And nice."

"…That's it? Did you feel anxious at all?"

"As far as I remember, no," she said. "Why are you asking again?"

Head hung low, Naruto exhaled sharply. "Can you keep a secret?"

He felt Sakura's hand on his back, rubbing soothingly. "You know I can."

"Sakura, I think I'm gay." He quickly added, with a desperate edge to his voice. "Please don't tell anyone. Please ."

She was entirely taken aback, eyes wide and mouth agape. "What do you mean you're gay?"

"I mean exactly what it implies. Gay. Homosexual."

"Naruto. You're not gay. Why do you-" she cut off herself and took a long, hard look into Naruto's face before she stood up, her arms crossed tightly. "God. You're serious."

Naruto watched her pace back and forth for a while. He wasn't surprised it made no sense to Sakura when it didn't make sense to himself.

Finally, Sakura stopped, stomping the ground with her boot. "Alright. Start from the beginning. What makes you think that?"

"Well, there's not much to tell apart than I had a moment with someone. Like, our faces were super close, and it made my heart beat so fast I thought it was gonna burst out of my chest."

"Who's this someone?"

He was skeptical about whether he should say it or not. Eventually, he had been planning on telling her that he knew Sasuke was gay, but the context right now was far from anything he had pictured.

Sakura was impatient. Her brows were furrowed. "Naruto?"

Naruto hung his head low and shut his eyes until he gathered up some courage. "Sasuke. It was Sasuke."

Sakura simply gawked at him, just like the way she had done when the topic of Sasuke's sexuality was brought up. Penetrating. "You knew after all. That Sasuke is gay. And you kept it from me."

"It's not like that. I found out shortly before Neji said it. I was gonna tell you, but I had no idea how."

"It was so obvious that you knew something that day. Well, I guess it doesn't matter now."

"I'm really sorry. I didn't wanna hurt your feelings. It was kind of a relief when Neji put it out." He could only hope Sakura would understand. "Neji needs to stop monitoring people like that."

"Probably." She looked up at the sky. "When did it happen?"

"Sometime last week."

"Figures. You've been acting strange ever since. I knew something was up, but."

"It's not like someone admits something like this every day, huh."

"Okay, let's see," she heaved out a resolute sigh. "Can you maybe… describe it a little? How did it happen?"

"Well." Naruto scratched his cheek, trying to recall the specifics that he'd desperately tried to erase from his memory. "We were just talking. Then… uh. His face was very close."

"So, he initiated it."

"Obviously."

"What did you do?"

"I froze. I wanted to push him away. I did, actually, but it took me long enough. Longer than it should've. I don't know how to describe it. There was something wrong with me. It was like I'd been hypnotized. I barely managed to get away."

Sakura was back to her pacing. "It sounds out of the ordinary. But it doesn't make you gay."

"I tried the same with Kiba. I pushed my face close to his. A few more inches and we'd be making out. And nothing happened with either of us. It was pretty gross."

"God, I don't want to imagine that," Sakura said in repulse. "I respect your exploratory spirit. Just don't try it with someone else, you'll get punched."

"At this point I'm willing to get punched if it means finding some answers." He had a hand in his hair, pulling at it again and again as it would turn on a secret switch.

"Don't worry, we'll figure this out. I hope." She slurred toward the last part. "Let's just try to evaluate the situation. You were... stimulated . Because he was physically close."

"Sakura – don't put it like that!" He cried. "I'm already thrown off by it as it is."

She flopped down back on the bench; hands joined. "I don't know. Sorry, Naruto. It doesn't add up in my head. I honestly don't think you're gay. But maybe you should ask someone else."

"Someone else? Who?!" He felt so uncomfortable. "Iruka? My mom? Grandpa?"

"I mean, well. It sounded better in my head." She was restlessly fumbling with her skirt. "Was it the first time you felt that?"

"No?" Naruto swallowed. "Maybe. It was never… intense like that. You know how they romanticize shit like this in movies. Butterflies in your stomach. Forgetting about the rest of the world. That's the type of thing I felt, and it makes zero sense."

"Could it be that you're somehow misjudging what you felt?"

"I doubt it." He rubbed his hands on his face. "I'm gonna have dinner with 'em tonight. I don't want it to be awkward. But there's no fuckin' way that's gonna happen with me feeling like this."

"Dinner. Huh." She had a distressed expression on her face all of a sudden.

The predicament was already bad enough, he knew, but Sakura going quiet was a severe red flag. He trusted her judgement. "You think I shouldn't go?"

"No, you shouldn't cancel."

"It's too late for that, yeah. The thing is, I wanna go. But we barely talked after that day. He must be as disturbed as me about dinner." As strange as it was, it was the first time he'd thought of that. He was confused because he didn't know what to make of either the status quo or his emotional state, but then there were Sasuke's sentiments.

Why had he tried to kiss Naruto in the first place, dammit? And what did he feel after the rejection? That night when they had grabbed a bite together, he'd maintained a poker face. He had a first-class poker face, a fact Naruto often forgot because when they were together, he seldom saw it, if at all.

He hissed. "Why the heck did he even invite me to dinner?"

"That's what I was wondering. It's possible he wants to patch things up. More importantly, why did you say yes?"

"I just did, I don't know. I felt compelled?"

"You sure?" As expected, Sakura saw right through it.

"I also wanna make up. I've never had a problem burying the hatchet in the past but seems like this one will be a bit tricky." He felt a blush creeping up his cheeks as he talked. "Sasuke's precious to me. I don't wanna lose him over this. But the entire thing is a hot mess right now."

It was too late, Sakura was giggling.

"Sakura!"

"Sorry, gosh, you're so cute!"

"Ha ha. Laugh all you want. I'm not ashamed of my feelings." He gazed at the gentle, apologetic squeeze Sakura gave to her hand. "I should probably talk to someone else like you've said. I have reservations about Sai, but I think Deidara could give me useful advice about how to handle this. What do you think?"

"That's a good idea," Sakura agreed. "For tonight, I'd say act naturally. You're having dinner with his family, right? It's not a date or anything."

"It's gonna be him and Itachi. I think." He wasn't sure if Sasuke's father would be home, but he didn't think so.

"Right. Itachi. It can't go bad, then. Just go through tonight. If he wants to talk about it, don't evade it. Though the Sasuke I know wouldn't, but you never know."

Naruto leaned his head, his forehead against Sakura's shoulder. He felt his throat well up. "Thank you, Sakura. Truly."

She patted his head. "No need to thank me. Just don't vent your anger by beating up innocent kids, that's enough."

With a rustle, Naruto lifted his head up. "Sounds like you're gonna hold that against me forever."

"Not forever. Maybe until we graduate." She scrunched up her nose when Naruto poked his tongue out in response.

"I should go back to studying," said Sakura, taking Naruto's empty cup and putting it into hers to discard later. "Not all of us have a date with not one, but two Uchihas today."

"I'm not mentally resilient enough to imagine that." They hurried inside. "I'm gonna see what Mom's up to before I take off. I forgot to tell her about dinner."

"Okay. Does she mind?"

"Nah, she goes out on Fridays anyway. I'll be back in ten to pick my things up."

As Sakura headed straight for the study zone again, Naruto started making his way to the second floor to find Kushina.

After having a talk with Kushina, he went home. He wasn't given a specific hour for dinner, so he figured he'd go around six. To pass the time he took a shower, put music on and lazed around. Choosing a proper outfit vexed him, but he ended up putting on a casual knit sweater and jeans. It wasn't like there was anyone he wanted to impress as both brothers saw him in sweatshirts and bed hair all the time. For a change, though, he decided to wear his father's watch as well.

It wasn't like he lost the track of time, but it was way past six by the time he made it there. He rang the doorbell and waited for someone to answer, biting on the skin of his cheek on the inside.

It was Sasuke who welcomed him. "Hey."

Naruto didn't know if it was a good thing (it probably was), but Sasuke was acting as he would on a day-to-day basis. There were none of the nervous ticks Naruto would have shown if he were in the other's shoes. He let Naruto in and closed the door behind them.

"How're you doin'?" He took off his coat and unwrapped the scarf around his neck.

Sasuke took them to hang up. "That's mine, isn't it?"

"Yeah - I totally forgot about it. Should've returned it long ago. Heh." It was a bold-faced lie that he hoped Sasuke wouldn't catch. He didn't even know why he told it. "Am I late, by the way?"

"It's fine. Itachi's just started setting the table."

"Cool." The last time he had stood upon that spot before the front door, he'd been bothered about entirely different reasons.

It was not like he was all of a sudden at peace about the whole thing because Sasuke acted normal, but it sort of helped. Had Sasuke been edgy from minute one, there was no doubt Naruto wouldn't make it out of there with a healthy psyche tonight.

The main room was just how he remembered it. These people probably didn't do many changes around. Naruto was frequently asked by his mother to move some furniture because she was bored with how they were, so he was used to modifications in environments he went into.

"Itachi!" He saluted upon seeing him, back facing his way.

Itachi was in a pair of comfortable-looking khaki pants and an untailored shirt instead of a button-up, and it made him seem like an entirely different person. He turned around to speak to his guest. "I'm glad you could make it. You're just on time - I forgot to ask. My bad. Do you have any food allergies?"

"Nope. And I'm not picky either. Don't worry 'bout anything."

The man was visibly comforted to hear that. "That's good to hear. Sit down if you want. We don't have to eat right away, although noodles will get soggy if we wait too long."

"We can eat. I haven't had anything since lunch."

"Perfect."

"So, what are we eatin'?"

Sasuke had the audacity to scoff at that. Naruto gave him a look, but it was lost on Sasuke as he was busy making sure everything was placed correctly on the table. "Ever had Japanese?"

"Sushi. It was only once."

Itachi was running between the kitchen and the room to complete the missing items. "Did you like it?"

Naruto shrugged. "I didn't care for it much. Are we having sushi?"

"No. Rāmen. And Tempura. Sasuke was insistent on making soup, but these two are already filling enough."

"I don't know what they are, but I'm excited to try out. Mind if I wash my hands first?"

Sasuke glimpsed up to give directions. "Second door on the left."

Once he was back from the bathroom, they were ready to start eating. The dinner table was long, but the plates were only on one side of it, two seats across each other, and one at the end. Itachi was already seated in it, though, so Naruto had to sit facing Sasuke directly. No matter how hard he tried to assure himself there was no need to freak, whenever he felt Sasuke's eyes on himself he got a little flustered, so he distracted himself with the food.

"Does it taste like cup noodles? 'cause I love those," he declared as he studied the bowl in front of him. It smelled appetizing enough, and it was nicely garnished with green onions and meat.

"Much better."

He wasn't great with chopsticks, but there was a thoughtfully placed fork for him, so he didn't need to worry about that. He knew a little about the eating manners of the Japanese, thanks to Itachi's classes, so he knew what to say before they started.

" Itadakimasu! "

The first cautious bite he took from rāmen was followed by huge mouthfuls of noodles and soup. "My God," he said between chews. "This is the best thing that's ever entered my mouth."

Both brothers shared a look that Naruto didn't catch entirely as he was too busy eating. Content with the compliment, Itachi offered Naruto the plate full of deep-fried vegetables. "Try these as well."

Naruto took one, but he placed it on the side of his plate instead of trying. "I will once I'm done with this. Saying that actually pains me. I want it to last forever."

Sasuke dipped his chopsticks in his bowl. "We were worried you wouldn't like some of the dishes. But rāmen's popular in here, and it suits a Westerner's palate."

"It's popular? I've never heard of it before," Naruto said in awe. He was attempting not to act impolite as he ate. "You've made a perfect choice. I could eat this every day. Who cooked it?"

"Itachi."

"Mhm. I didn't know you could cook so well, teach."

At the way he addressed him, Itachi gave him a look, but he didn't say anything. "I learned it from my mother."

Sasuke was scowling at his plate, but he made conversation. "For someone who grew up in an exceptionally patriarchal society, she was very open-minded. Made sure we learned how to do house chores, cooking. Even sewing."

"You can sew, Sasuke?"

Sasuke took a gulp from his water before he spoke. "To a certain level."

"Wow. I can cook, but I can't even sew a popped-off button."

"It's pretty simple. I'm sure you'd get the hang of it in a matter of minutes if you tried," Itachi said. "I wonder if you're still enjoying the Japanese class?"

"Oh yeah. I don't know if you talked to Tsunade at all, but she's really good. A different character than you entirely, but we manage. Right, Sasuke?"

Sasuke didn't have a big opinion on the matter. "Hn."

Itachi chuckled. "I hope Sasuke's not making as much trouble anymore."

"… Nii-san."

It made Naruto giggle when Sasuke suddenly switched to Japanese. He could watch the two interact all day and being a spectator wouldn't bore him at all. Sasuke's reactions to Itachi's teasing were extremely entertaining. Itachi could get intimidating when the roles were reversed, but it was still interesting enough. Enough to keep him distracted.

"Do you guys have any plans for the holidays, by the way?" he asked.

"Nothing special, I guess," Sasuke mused. He was eating slowly, or maybe it was Naruto who ate too fast. "Why?"

"I was just wondering if you celebrate Christmas. Or New Year's."

Itachi's long fingers were lightly tapping the surface of the table. "We used to celebrate New Year's when our mother was alive."

Sasuke nodded. "We didn't throw a huge party or anything, but my uncle visited from Japan. It's just Itachi and me now. Father's usually away on a business trip around that time."

"Can't he take a single day off, for crying out loud? Jesus. I don't understand adults." He sniffled. "No offense, Itachi."

"None taken."

"I'm used to it, really." He swirled his spoon in the bowl for a while. "It felt like a nuisance when Itachi cooked something special to carry on the family tradition. I thought it was useless. He even put on a movie and decorated a tree – and had me decorating along with him. But I started to appreciate it the older I got."

Itachi winked at Naruto. "He's really talented at decorating trees. Not so talented at choosing an appropriate Christmas movie."

Laughing, Naruto took another piece of tempura. "You should send me a picture when you put the tree out. What about your uncle though? He won't visit anymore?"

"No," Sasuke shook his head. "Not around this time of the year. Uncle Madara is one of my rare relatives that I like."

Itachi gave a hum of agreement.

"He's passionate and always has tons of stories to tell. A wise man."

"Indeed. Uncle Madara has a soft heart, but he's toughened up over the years. Happens to the best of us."

"He went through a lot," Sasuke elucidated.

"I'm sure he'd like Naruto if you'd met."

Naruto smiled in appreciation. "I hope I meet him someday."

Leaning back, Sasuke went quiet.

"We'll let you know if he shows. Speaking of relatives, there's cousin Shisui. He was the one who came over last year. One of my closest friends," Itachi said. "But we don't get to meet more than once or at most twice a year."

By that time, Naruto was full. He sipped at his water. "That sucks. I can't imagine being that far away from my close friends. He's, like, on the other side of the world."

"In a way, it's for the best that we're here. Of course, I'm not saying this for Shisui. But we don't get along with everyone."

"Really?"

"Mixing business with family or friends usually ends up with a cycle of jealousy and revenge. I don't want to get too much into it, but basically not everyone's happy with my father handling the branch here, and it naturally affects us."

"I see." From the corner of his eye, he checked on Sasuke. He was watching the tablecloth. "Why don't you guys go visit your uncle and cousin?"

"You know it gets busy around this time of the year, and Sasuke has school, just like you. We visit sometimes in the summer, with father."

"Ugh." The revulsion radiating from Sasuke was nearly palpable. "Summer in Japan is the worst."

"It's not the best season, I admit."

"Either way you get to see them somehow. I envy that, y'know? I mean, I guess it's another cultural thing to be in touch with family, but it's nice."

Itachi was intrigued. "You're not in touch with your relatives?"

"Nah. We're not close at all. My aunt lives nearby. Karin's mother. She's great, but we don't get to see each other much because of her schedule. Other than her I have my grandpa, and that's about it. Though he's pretty much a nomad."

"What's he like?"

"Let's see," Naruto hummed, rubbing his hands on his arms. "He's actually quite the opposite of what Dad was like. Sort of… crazy? He wouldn't even mind me saying that, because it's true. But he's also super wise. Just like your uncle."

The corner of Itachi's eyes creased as he chuckled. "I can't say I was able to imagine him from that, but I trust you."

Sasuke had barely talked in a while. He gently stood up, grabbing two plates to carry to the kitchen. "Thanks for the meal."

"Yeah, thank you. To you both. I really enjoyed it," Naruto said, also getting up. "Let me help you with that, Sasuke."

Although Sasuke told him to sit down and make himself comfortable, Naruto helped them clear the table and put the dishes in the washer. Sitting like a guest didn't feel right to him, plus, he wanted to keep the banter going.

Half an hour later, they were sitting again, this time in the seating set. Naruto had informed Itachi a bit more about his personal life, about his mother, and sloppily about his conversation with Iruka, because he thought Itachi might have helpful ideas about it.

Every now and then, Sasuke grew away from the conversation. He was on his phone every couple of minutes, made them tea when Itachi told him to put it down and went to the kitchen to check on the dishwasher twice . Since when dishwashers needed to be regularly checked on when they were running? Sasuke sucked at finding a good excuse.

Itachi's presence really helped with the awkwardness that could arise any second, but it was bound to happen. It was a time bomb, ticking and ticking, waiting for its chance to detonate. Sasuke's face gave nothing away, but as time passed, Naruto became sure that his actions surely did. He was just as restless to be in the position. And if Naruto read it right – he was pretty sure he did – the way he conversed with Itachi so nonchalantly aggravated Sasuke even further.

The reason why Sasuke had invited him. Naruto knew Sasuke, he wouldn't do it just because Itachi asked him to. Or to be polite. So, he wanted Naruto here, but his actions said otherwise. Naruto felt horrible because Sasuke was in that situation. His own discomfort was subdued greatly, thanks to Itachi, but he realized one's cure could be one's poison. They really needed to talk it out with Sasuke and make the weirdness vanish somehow .

The phone on the coffee table started to vibrate, distracting Naruto entirely from the story Itachi was telling.

Itachi hunched forward to check the caller ID. His face fell as he snatched it. "I gotta take this. Sorry, it might take a while."

"No worries, I'm not going anywhere without saying goodbye."

Itachi left the room, and the door to the kitchen was closed. Inevitable silence fell once again. Naruto was painfully aware of even the whoosh coming out with his breathing pattern, and the gulp when he swallowed.

"Do you want to see my room? There's nothing to do here."

"Sure." He shrugged his shoulders and rose from his spot. It would certainly be more interesting to see what Sasuke's room was like than sit there and watch the floorboards until Itachi returned.

-TBC-