IMPORTANT: New readers ignore this, but for those who were following this story before, the 3rd chapter is not the new contect. For that you need to go to the 19th chapter (= The Gaara Rescue Mission - part 1) I decided to split up the earlier two chapters, so I could post what I already have for the 3rd chapter instead of letting it languish on my laptop. If you can't immediately go to chapter 19, give it a few moments, it'll show up soon :)
For new readers, enjoy reading!
Sakura and Ino are here. This is unexpected.
"I thought you two were working," Sasuke says as he drops out of stealth besides them, definitely not smirking as Sakura drops into an offensive stance. You'd think she'd be used to it by now, but no. It keeps being ridiculously easy to catch her off guard.
Ino, on the other hand, skillfully turns her defensive reaction into a natural movement that makes it seem she knew he was here all along. The only thing that still betrayed her were the contraction of her slit pupils.
"I thought you were doing the same," Ino counters while Sakura halfheartedly tries to smack him for startling her. He leans out of the way of the hit, this time allowing his smirk to break free.
To no surprise, Sakura replies with another punch. This time it isn't a halfhearted one. He dodges the worst of it but she still grazes his arm hard enough to make him want to wince.
He doesn't of course. Wincing after goading her on would mean admitting defeat.
"You thought wrong. I was training," he says to Ino in a tone that implies she's a moron for assuming otherwise. She isn't, he was working and training at the same time, but it was work that Ino should know nothing about. Not that this has ever stopped her before.
Ino replies with an indulging look that tells him she's well aware he's spouting bullshit.
"Don't you ever get tired of being an asshole?" Sakura asks with more amusement than annoyance, the usual frustration caused by his surprise entrance already fading away.
"Don't you ever get tired of being so violent?" he returns.
Sakura puts her fist on her hip and lets out a haughty sniff. Telling him that him being unable to handle her awesomeness is his problem, not hers. He replies with a patronizing look. In that case, her crappy situational awareness is her problem, not his.
"Let's just agree that the both of you are walking disasters, shall we?" Ino says with a look that tells them she's clearly the only sane person present. He and Sakura grin, and it's enough to make Ino join in.
"Any idea why Tsunade-sama wanted us to meet here?" Ino asks, returning to the matter at hand.
"Wait, Master wanted us to meet?" Sakura asks, slow on the uptake as always. It'll never stop surprising him how she can be so brilliant in some ways and so oblivious in others.
"Yes and I have no idea," he answers Sakura and Ino respectively.
It's kind of worrying that he doesn't know what Tsunade-sama is planning. The random street she send them to doesn't reveal any clues either. Whatever Tsunade-sama is planning isn't bad, that much was clear from the amusement she showed when she ordered him to come here. Still, given Tsunade-sama's sense of humor, he feels perfectly justified in being worried. That's not even mentioning the fact that the universe has it out for him and Sakura.
"You didn't do anything to piss her off, did you?" Sakura demands, genuinely suspicious. He gives an unimpressed look. Why does she always assume it's his fault when people are angry? It doesn't happen that often.
"Don't give me that look, it's a valid question," Sakura says. "You can't help being an asshole."
"Remind me why I'm friends with her again?" he directs at Ino. Who doesn't even have the decency to hide how entertained she is by him getting roasted by Sakura. And they call him an asshole.
"She's good target practice."
Well, he can't argue with that.
Sakura hits Ino. Ino could have dodged the blow completely, Sakura wasn't aiming to hit her for certain, but he and Ino both know that the easiest way to mollify Sakura's temper is to let her hit you. He usually doesn't give her that satisfaction, but Ino does. She also doesn't contain her grimace when Sakura's fist grazes her arm. Sakura might make sure she never injures them, but she does make her hits hurt a little. Emphasis on a little.
Sakura, of course, celebrates her 'victory' with a smug smile.
"But seriously, you didn't do anything to annoy her?" she asks him because of course she does. He rolls his eyes, not amused by the repeated accusation. He hasn't done anything to annoy Tsunade-sama. He thinks. Is pretty sure at least.
"Did you?" he counters with a valid question of his own.
"Of course not," Sakura says like she doesn't regularly piss off Tsunade-sama herself.
"I don't think either of you did something. This time."
Given that Ino is usually right about these things, this is a relief to hear.
"Then why–"
"I'm baaack!"
The shout makes Sakura fall silent and Ino's eyes go wide and his own heart has skipped a beat because the voice was different, so much deeper than he's used to but he still recognizes it, all of them do despite the fact that is wasn't even that audible, coming from a distance away but it also came from within the village.
He takes off as fast he can, jumping onto the roofs and activating his Sharingan as he races in the direction that voice came from. Sakura is - excited, desperate, hopeful - right besides him while Ino follows in their wake, unable to keep up with their speed and normally he'd slow down so she can keep up but right now he can't because his heart is racing and a painful amount of hope is squeezing his heart and his eyes are darting around, desperately searching for...
And there he is. Standing on top of a power pole, all but glowing to his enhanced sight. Bright hair, back covered in sealing scrolls, clothes that would look fine if not for the eye searing orange it contains, and a smile that outshines the sun itself.
"Naruto!"
Sakura's yell makes Naruto's head snap towards her with - joy, delight, love - recognition, before he braces for impact as he registers just how fast she's moving.
Naruto is just in time to keep from being knocked off the pole when Sakura slams into him with a hug. Moving with the impact, Naruto - can't believe he's holding Sakura again - embraces her and spins her around, wonderfully familiar laughter filling the air.
"Sakura-chan!"
Sasuke realizes that he's stopped moving when Ino halts besides him. He's unable to do anything but drink in the sight of his best friend.
Naruto has - grown 7,28 inches - gotten taller. Which is a ridiculous thing to focus on, of course he's gotten taller. It's been two years, seven months and three days since he last saw the idiot. Even so, his height is what trips up Sasuke the most out of all the changes there are. And there are many changes. Naruto's chakra reserves have actually gotten even more enormous, making him literally glow to his Sharingan, and his have gotten cheeks leaner, the baby fat gone. His jaw has gotten stronger, his hair is longer, his shoulders are broader, his muscles are more defined, he has calluses he didn't have before, and so much more. His Sharingan picks up every single change and compares it to the last image Sasuke captured of him, when he went away on his training trip with Jiraiya. That image is still as clear as when he first took it, the memory preserved for all eternity.
This memory will forever be preserved as well.
He watches as Naruto stops spinning around and beams up at Sakura, his arms still holding her close. A weight Sasuke hadn't even noticed was so heavy falls away.
He's missed the idiot so much.
"I've missed you!" Naruto yells, loud as ever even with the changed voice. It's beautiful to hear. "How are you? Did you finish the thing? Oh, and you'll never guess what happened! I..."
Naruto trails off with - confusion, realization, appreciation - rising awe, and his eyes rapidly flicker over Sakura's face as he consciously processes her changed appearance for the first time. Then Naruto blushes. It's not just any blush, oh no. The dilation of his pupils, the way his pulse speeds up, the tensing of his muscles as he suddenly becomes excruciatingly aware of all the places Sakura's body is touching his. The involuntary glance he gives her shoulders and cleavage.
Naruto thinks that Sakura is hot. This is perfect. Even better, Sakura is starting to blush as well! She's actually flustered by Naruto's reaction to her!
From the corner of his vision, he sees Ino's - joy, excitement, love - warm smile transform into a delighted grin. A mirror to the one he's gained himself. They're going to have so much fun with this.
"Sakura-chan... you look really pretty."
"Are you saying I wasn't pretty before?" Sakura quips. Even without his Sharingan, he would have been able to pick up on the fact that she actually feels bashful. A normal reaction if this were a stranger complimenting her, a not at all normal response when it's Naruto doing the complimenting.
Naruto's awe is drowned out by - denial, embarrassment, worry - alarm as he realizes what he just implied.
"No, you were! You've always been pretty! I just didn't notice anymore, mostly didn't notice because I still thought you were pretty but you were always pretty so it was normal and now it's not–"
Naruto stops digging a hole to crawl into, his blush now caused by embarrassment as much as arousal. Sakura herself is watching him with a soft smile, basking in the babbling she hasn't heard in years. Sasuke and Ino are doing the same.
"You look really pretty, Sakura-chan," Naruto finishes lamely before he gains a wry smile. Well aware of how awkward he sounded and mostly at peace with it.
Sakura, however, doesn't think he sounds awkward at all. The opposite. She's flustered all over again by Naruto's appreciation of her looks.
"You look pretty handsome yourself, Naruto," she says, her own words making her observe Naruto in a way she didn't before. The - dilation of her pupils, parting of her lips, tensing of her body - physical response she has reveals that her words are completely sincere. She genuinely thinks that Naruto looks hot, in a way she never has before.
This just keeps getting better.
Naruto turns into a tomato, hilariously stunned and flustered at having his appreciation returned. Sasuke is so happy he's going to remember this forever.
"She's right," Ino says, and her voice makes Naruto and Sakura remember that there exists a world beyond the two of them. "You've gotten hot, Naruto."
It's true, he has. Weird to think of the idiot as hot, but that doesn't change the fact that he is.
"Ino!" Naruto cheers and it's all the encouragement Ino needs to leap forward. Naruto and Sakura quickly adjust their position so Sakura can be held steady with one arm, allowing Naruto to catch Ino with his other. Ino hugs Naruto as - desperately - tightly as his long absence warrants.
"I've missed you," Ino breathes into his ear. Naruto hugs her back, just as overwhelmed.
"I've missed you too," he returns, choked up in a way he wasn't before. It makes Sasuke's own throat tighten because Naruto is really here. The loud, hyperactive idiot he calls his best friend is finally back.
He's finally home.
Ino keeps hugging Naruto a moment longer, before she pulls herself together and leans back so she can meet Naruto's gaze. She's wearing a smile that's way more happy than it is teasing. Naruto - feels no discomfort at having Ino's eyes so near - smiles back brightly.
"So, what about me?" Ino asks. She's - noticed Naruto's lack of discomfort over her eyes - even happier than before. "Am I still pretty as well?"
Naruto's smile turns - playful, mischievous, fond - foxy and the sight makes Sasuke even more choked up. He's missed the idiot so much. So has Sakura, watching Ino's and Sakura's reunion with misty eyes. His own eyes are starting to water as well but there's no way he's going to ruin this memory by blurring it with tears. He uses chakra to keep his tears down. He can cry later.
"Don't be silly, Ino, you aren't pretty. You're fabulous."
"And don't you forget it," Ino says with a flip of her hair, ever so pleased with the validation of how amazing she looks. She becomes even more pleased when Naruto looks her over with genuine appreciation, consciously processing the changes the past few years have brought. Though his appreciation is platonic in a way it wasn't with Sakura.
"You look even better than Rukia now," he says.
"Don't let her hear you say that," Ino says, before posing on his arm to show off her best angle. And to show off her distinctive grey coat. Naruto had already noticed it of course, but her pose draws his full attention to it. As Ino intended. She's as proud of her position in T&I as Sakura is of her own position in the hospital.
"I'm not an idiot," Naruto says and the opening is impossible to resist.
"You really are."
His words make Naruto focus on him. The way he lights up makes Sasuke feel ridiculously mushy.
"Sasuke! You're still a bastard!"
And Naruto couldn't be happier about this fact. The sheer - love - joy aimed his way makes Sasuke feel even mushier.
"He's gotten even worse since you left," Sakura happily informs him. Ino smirks with agreement.
"He's gotten more extra as well," Naruto says with a mischievousness he's waited so long to see again. "Seriously, the whole point of a shirt is to cover up your chest, not flaunt it."
"That's rich coming from a guy who still thinks orange is a good color to wear," he retorts with a grin he couldn't contain even if he wanted to. Naruto laughs, and Sasuke swears the world brightens even further than the Sharingan always causes.
"Well, bastard?" Naruto says with a cheekiness the years haven't changed one bit. "Aren't you going to give me a hug?"
If he insists.
Naruto's eyes widen with realization and he starts bracing himself. Sakura and Ino do the same.
All of them are too slow.
"Wait don't–"
Too late.
Sasuke slams into the three of them hard enough to make Naruto lose his balance, and he gets his arms around them fast enough to get a decent hold on all three. The benefits of the Sharingan.
They topple off the pole with satisfying yells from all three. It takes effort but he manages to prevent Naruto from recovering his balance, Ino from slithering out his grip, and he manages to keep Sakura trapped in his embrace as well.
They hit the roof with a glorious smack, the sound complimented the noises of his friends having the wind knocked out of them.
Sasuke, on the other hand, had his landing cushioned very nicely indeed. The three make for comfy pillows.
Naruto laughs and it's enough to make Sakura and Ino join in. Sasuke feels his grin grow even wider as he looks down at - blonde hair, blue eyes, whiskered cheeks. A smile more beautiful than any other - the idiot squashed beneath him, so happy he doesn't know what to do with it all.
"Welcome home, Naruto."
His words make Naruto beam up at him, and then the idiot crushes him, Sakura and Ino together in a hug. Sasuke isn't complaining.
"It's good to be home," Naruto says softly, showing a happiness that Sasuke is so grateful to engrave into his mind forever. Sasuke shifts his hold on Sakura and Ino so he can better include Naruto in his embrace, and Sasuke's breath hitches as he's overwhelmed by joy. He deactivates his Sharingan and allows his tears to fall. Two years, seven months and three days, but Naruto is finally back where he belongs. Two years, seven months and three days, but the four of them are finally back together.
Konoha better watch out. When the four of them are together, there's nothing in the world that can stand in their way.
There's nothing they can't do when they're together.
AN: Welcome! As you can see, this is a canon-divergence story, in which Sasuke somehow didn't defect to Orochimaru. Why did he not defect?
Because he had a stable home life after the massacre. A civilian took him in and actually helped him deal with his trauma. In a shocking turn of events, this had a huge impact. Who would have thought, right? You can find the details of how she helped Sasuke in my fic called A Stranger (the prequel to this story, but you don't have to read it for this to make sense) but fair warning, that story doesn't focus on Sasuke. It focuses on the civilian and a tiny Naruto. Sasuke only enters the story at a lage stage.
Fair warning, the civilian is an original character, and she will be making appearances in this story. Emphasis on appearances. This is a Sasuke-centric, Team 7 fluff fic first and foremost (+ bonus Ino!)
And for those who came here for the SasuHina, while Hinata is absolutely going to get lots of screen time (see for example: chapters 11 till 17. Literally, you can read those as a stand-alone SasuHina fic) this is a Team 7 fic first, SasuHina second.
Hope you enjoy!