Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, belongs to Kishimoto-sensei.

Chapter 5

Naruto kept his distance when they walked into the inn, across the dimly lit lobby and up the stairs at the back of the lobby. He still hadn't released Sasuke's hand, but Sasuke didn't take the time to notice or complain about it. They stopped at the last door on the right and Naruto took out the key to the room. He unlocked it and opened the door.

The rest happened in a blur, one moment he was standing in the hallway, the next moment he found himself against the closed door to their room with Naruto kissing him again. The amount of calm he'd acquired on the walk back to the inn was shot now.

He could hardly think to react to the demanding kiss or Naruto's rough, callused hand pulling his shirt up even as he had him pressed against the door. He wasn't shy to what Naruto was doing, he wasn't accustomed to the intense effect of Naruto being the one kissing him and touching him.

Sasuke's mind finally shouted at him that they needed to slow down when Naruto's thumb ran over his hip beneath the hem of his pants and boxers to brush his skin. Sasuke broke the kiss and said hoarsely, "Wait . . . Naruto . . . Nghh . . . s-stop . . . "

Naruto had latched onto that over sensitive, especially from their ealier actions, spot on his neck. Naruto had pulled away at that last word and kept his gaze averted as he tried to catch his breath for the second time that night.

Naruto pulled away completely when he saw that Sasuke had paled and tensed suddenly as the haze of lust faded from their minds. Sasuke leaned heavily against the door and Naruto reached forward turning his face to look Sasuke in the eyes. He saw the uncertainty, and a hidden fear and demon trying to be pushed back. It had taken the war for him to really understand the look in those onyx eyes.

Naruto whispered softly, "What's wrong Sasuke?"

Sasuke flinched and turned his face away from Naruto's gaze and moved away from the door and over to sit on the edge of the bed across the room. He sat with his hands in his long hair and slouched over, something that brought a pang to Naruto's heart. He wasn't used to seeing the proud Uchiha slouching, he appeared defeating on some level Naruto couldn't grasp or begin to categorize, even if he was there in the same room.

It was driving him crazy, he'd seen the changes in so many people after the war, but it hurt more than any of that to see Sasuke so defeated. He walked over to the bed after taking a deep breath and knelt down in front of Sasuke. It drove him crazy to touch him and hold back, to be so close to him wasn't any easier. He'd longed to see him, so much it hurt, for so long.

"Sasuke, talk to me, come on."

Sasuke sighed, "You should have gotten my scrolls from my apartment."

Naruto sighed, "You can't always rely on scrolls, sometimes its good to have someone you trust to talk to about what's bothering you."

"How would you know?"

Naruto fought back the urge to growl, Sasuke was always saying things like that, and the somewhat arrogant tone in his voice quickly irritated him. Naruto managed to keep his voice calm, "I just do."

Sasuke scoffed, "You would, you have this knack for changing people."

Naruto scratched the back of his neck, "Yeah, it seems that way."

"Dobe, how long did it take you to notice?"

"Until I read your journals."

Sasuke flinched, "Did you actually . . ."

Naruto nodded when Sasuke looked up at him and put his hands on his knees. Naruto smiled softly, "I didn't know you cared that much teme, if I would have known that, I would have totally kicked your ass that day."

Sasuke chuckled, "Not in a million years dobe."

Naruto took on a more serious tone, he wasn't going to let Sasuke avoid the conversation. He'd had enough of Sasuke running from him, enough of chasing him down. This time he would make certain Sasuke stayed, and he would get Sasuke to open up to him, he wanted to know Sasuke without having to read all those scrolls.

"Sasuke, after I read both of those scrolls, I did as you asked, kind of. I wouldn't hand your scrolls over to anyone. Itachi . . . " Sasuke flinched and Naruto placed his hand over his, "his name was cleared. He has a place on the memorial stone, Tsunade-baa-chan carved it herself. But I just couldn't . . . I didn't want someone else to read yours . . ."

Sasuke offered a smile that lasted for a flash and was gone. It made Naruto's heart skip a beat for that flashing moment. Naruto licked his dry lips and smirked when he saw Sasuke's gaze fall to his tongue.

Naruto squeezed Sasuke's hand, "You gave me those scrolls, it felt like you were letting me into your life, and I realized why after I read them. I am not going to let you fade, and there's no way that what is bothering you right now is going to keep me from giving you a reason to live. I'm not going to leave you behind, I refuse to let it happen Sasuke. After I figured out what I was feeling for you was so damn strong, I let the hopes of seeing you again and having the one thing I don't have in my life be what drove me to live through that stupid war."

Sasuke was silent for a while before he finally said, "Why, why do you try so damn hard to save me when no one else does?"

Naruto grabbed both of Sasuke's hands and replied instantly, "Teme, that's what this is, that's what how we feel results in."

Sasuke shook his head, Naruto was purposely avoiding saying the word love, he didn't care much for the word itself because it was a sour spot for him. But he did know one thing, love was what they had, what they felt for one another. So not saying it was grating on his nerves, "Is it really love if you can't even say the word?"

Naruto smirked at him and sat up on his heels to lean towards him, his face a breath away from his. Sasuke refused to back away from him, but he sat up straighter. Sasuke could see the challenging gleam in Naruto's eyes as he spoke, "Could you even say all three?"

Sasuke smirked, that challenging look in Naruto's eyes brought back a lot of the founder memories. He never cried, neither of them did really, and they never used their pain as excuses for anything. For both of them the pain they had endured pushed them forward to try and find a way to end it, to soften it or justify it.

'A mistake on my part, one I didn't realize until it was too late. But really, we are more alike than I ever noticed when were in Team Seven together.'

"I could, but can you?"

Naruto laughed, "No way teme, I asked you first. I can say the 'love'*~* word. So I can definitely say the other two to you, but you have to say it first."

Sasuke actually did let a short laugh escape him and the raised eyebrow he got from Naruto made him laugh again. When Sasuke recovered he cleared his throat and looked at Naruto, "You never change do you?"

Naruto gave him his shit-eating grin, "Nope, why should the great Uzumaki Naruto change anyway?"

Sasuke sighed, "Thank you . . . "

Now Naruto really was shocked, he looked questioningly at Sasuke, "You really must be sick now, a chuckle, a smile, a genuine smile at that, laughing, and now a thank you?" Naruto released his hands and reached up with one hand to touch Sasuke's forehead. Sasuke backed away, "I'm not sick dobe."

Naruto relaxed at the nickname, "Oh, there you are, you had me worried there teme. I have been meaning to ask you something."

It was Sasuke's turn to raise an eyebrow and look at him questioningly, "What?"

Naruto moved and sat down on the bed next to him and Sasuke tensed as the atmosphere suddenly became serious again. He swallowed as Naruto worked up the nerve to ask his question.

Naruto turned to him on the bed and locked eyes with him, "Did you read his journal?"

Sasuke felt a lump in his throat and his mouth go dry, he swallowed again and let out a shuddering breath. He shook his head once and averted his eyes. Naruto sighed, "Why not?"

Sasuke drew his lips into a thin line, feeling the pain from what Madara had told him about Itachi rise up in him. He turned away from Naruto and got to his feet, every step he took away from him felt heavy and the emptiness felt like it was returning again.

He ran his hand through his hair and jumped when he felt Naruto's warm hand grab his wrist as he brought it back to his side. Naruto turned him around and held his wrist level with his shoulder and then he seized Sasuke's chin and made him look at him, "Why not Sasuke?"

Sasuke huffed and closed his eyes, Naruto tightened his hold on his chin a bit and he opened his eyes in frustration and finally said in his cold, empty tone, "It hurt too much, I didn't . . . I didn't want to feel the full brunt of the pain . . . "

Naruto released his chin and sighed, "You have to stop this Sasuke, this isn't like you. You're strong, proud, arrogant, and a bastard. Why are you running from your past now when you let it drive you for so long? Why are you running away?"

Sasuke clenched his fist and glared at Naruto, "I'm not running, it's the past, there's nothing I can do to change it. You don't know what . . . "

Naruto growled and tightened his hold on his wrist, "Don't start that petty bullshit again teme! I do know what it's like to loose a family, I do know how it feels to loose someone you looked up to! I may have lived a life of loneliness for a long time, but that doesn't mean I didn't gain a family in all this time. I had a mom and dad that I got to learn everything about, but that I never got to know. You think it doesn't hurt just as much! How do you think I felt when J-Jaraiya-sama died?"

Sasuke felt a tremble pass through him and he would have fallen to his knees if Naruto hadn't of suddenly embraced him as he let go of his wrist. Naruto held him tightly, "You have to let down your guard around someone. You've been carrying all this pain inside and I knew you would eventually reach a breaking point, everyone has one."

Sasuke let the words wash over him, and he leaned into the embrace. He had always felt like he could trust Naruto, he'd noticed the loneliness in Naruto, even if it had taken him a while to stop looking down on him. He did hate the way he'd treated Naruto when they were part of Team Seven. He was still aggravated that Naruto could always get a rise out of him, and then that Naruto had told him the reason he did so was because he just wanted Sasuke to 'react' to 'something'.

Sasuke felt like crying, but the tears wouldn't come. He did feel safe in Naruto's arms, the only person he felt safe with at all was Naruto. But after spending eleven years not crying, not really showing much emotion at all, it wasn't as though he could cry when he wanted to. Naruto had brought feeling back to his life, but there were some things that would take more than just Naruto's presence to accomplish.

Sasuke took calming breaths and pulled out of the embrace when he felt like he could stand on his own again. Naruto watched him as he sighed and went back to sit on the bed. He let out a sigh himself, they'd started out pretty well, and were getting somewhere, but Sasuke had to ruin the moment. Not that he really didn't mean what he'd said or anything, but still. He had a sex drive and with a depressed and unusually emotional, though not unusual considering how unstable, potential lover, his hopes for anything more than laying in the same bed as they slept were completely shot.

He shoved all thoughts of sexual intimacy down as he sat down next to Sasuke. He looked at him, "Sasuke, look . . . I know you have a lot on your mind, but it can help if you talk it out. I don't want to sound pushy, but I really am still pretty damn impatient, so the silent treatment is going to grate my nerves fast."

Sasuke looked at him and huffed, "At least you managed some finesse in all this time."

Naruto laughed, he remembered Kakashi talking to Inari back in the Land of Mist. But that memory also reminded him of how it had felt to think Sasuke had died, how much it had hurt even back then when they were nothing more than rivals. Their relationship had changed since then, they were actually teammates back then, always trying to outdo the other, but that really hadn't changed too much. They still tried to best the other, but now the areas of rivalry were more adverse.

"Yeah, well I had to pick it up eventually you know."

Sasuke smirked, "I really did use to hate you."

Naruto nodded and folded his arms behind his head and fell back on the bed to stare up at the ceiling with his legs over the edge of the bed, "Yeah I know."

Sasuke focused his gaze on the floor, "It's funny that it turned to this, that it changed so much after that one battle together."

"You really didn't change all that much on the outside, you were still an arrogant bastard."

Sasuke sighed, "Yeah s-s . . . "

Naruto cut him off, "Don't you dare, you've freaked me out enough for one night teme. If you apologize I am going to kick your ass."

Sasuke huffed, "Whatever dobe."

Naruto shifted to rest his head on his palm and lean on his left elbow as he turned to his side and looked at Sasuke. "It did kinda suck that the two of them died."

Sasuke turned and looked at Naruto, "Why is that, they were shinobi, they died the shinobi way."

Naruto sighed, "Yeah, the shinobi way to a then fucked up village. It has changed somewhat there."

"I know, I was there for a short time."

"Yeah, I heard about that. You know that shark asshole that was traveling with you?"

Sasuke looked away, "Yeah, I know about him. Wasn't that sister of the Kazekage the one that killed him?"

Naruto gave a short nod, "Yeah, but he was lucky she did."

Sasuke looked back at Naruto having heard the bitter sound of his voice, "I wasn't there long enough . . . I heard he'd killed some civilians and left him behind . . ."

Naruto nodded, "Yeah, he killed Inari and his family and a few others."

Sasuke faced Naruto fully, "Naruto . . . "

Naruto smiled sadly at him, "It's over and done with now teme. But I knew about your reputation by then, why you'd left that shark behind. He was a pale imitation of the blue shark dude though."

Sasuke chuckled again and let out a short cry when Naruto suddenly pulled him down to lay on the bad next to him. Sasuke turned his head to look at Naruto, "What . . ."

Naruto grinned, "Stop doing that, you almost gave us all heart attacks the first time," Sasuke sighed at the playful tone of Naruto's voice. Naruto changed the subject, "Well, things have settled down since the war and we have more allies, but now we have definite enemies as well. We still aren't within Konoha borders yet so we should get some sleep."

Sasuke nodded and moved to get up, Naruto pulled him around his waist to rest with his back against his chest again. He rested his chin on his shoulder, "You aren't going anywhere teme."

Sasuke sighed and pulled out of Naruto's hold and got up from the bed, "I need a shower," Naruto moved to stand and Sasuke shoved him onto the bed by his shoulder.

"Alone, dobe."

Naruto pouted, fully pouted, puppy dog eyes, sniffed as if he was going to cry, and even his lips pouted.

"AWW! TEME!"

Sasuke walked away from him with a scoff, "No Naruto," he briskly headed to the bathroom and closed and locked the door behind him just as Naruto had jumped from the bed and leapt at the door. Sasuke shook his head as Naruto banged on the door, "TEME! Come on!"

Sasuke walked over to the shower and turned on the water and quickly undressed when the water was set to the right temperature. He languidly washed his hair and body and rinsed the soap away, he really detested the soap at inns. This particular inn had some lavender scented soap, but it was better than nothing.

He turned off the water and stepped out of the shower. He then quickly dried off, dressed in his already worn clothes and ran his fingers through his damp hair working out the tangles as he unlocked the door and opened it. Naruto was in front of him before he could step out of the bathroom.

He sniffed the air and grinned wickedly at Sasuke, Sasuke sighed, "Dobe," he said in a warning voice. Naruto grinned wider, "You smell like a g-gi . . . OW!"

Sasuke cuffed him upside the head and shoved him out of the way so he could exit the bathroom. Naruto turned around as he rubbed his head, "Teme, why did you have to hit me?"

Sasuke glared at him over his shoulder and threw his towel at him, "Shower dobe, there's no way I am sleeping in the same bed as you when you smell like you just crawled out of a trashcan."

Naruto pulled the towel off his face with a glare. He then proceeded to raised his arm and sniff his armpit and scrunched up his nose then he glared at Sasuke, huffed, turned to the bathroom and walked inside it slamming the door behind him. Sasuke finished working the tangles out of his hair and declared that he would get a hair cut when they got back to Konoha.

He felt himself shudder at the thought, 'Back to Konoha, back to that eerie district full of nothing but nightmares.' He walked over to the bed and pulled the sheet and blanket back before settling in the bed, it was a blur having removed his shoes, but he'd been doing it for so long before entering a room or home that he never had to think about it. He pulled the sheet and blanket around him and faced the small window at the back of the room. He had decided to sleep on the right side of the bed, the one closest to the window.

He closed his eyes and managed to drift into a light sleep before Naruto stalked out of the bathroom. Sasuke scowled and looked over his shoulder at Naruto, his longer blond hair dripping wet and clinging to his face. He felt heat rush to his cheeks at the sight of Naruto shirtless. The definition in his chest and abs, the scars he saw there made him scowl and think, 'Who would dare scar . . . ' he stopped his thought before it could finish and turned his head away.

Naruto smirked, he'd noticed the possessive look in Sasuke's eyes when they'd settled on the scar in the middle of his chest. He quickly dried his hair, turned off the bathroom light, closed the door after snatching his shirts and vest from the sink, then turned off the other light and put his clothes, neatly folded on the nightstand. He also placed his satchel of kunai and shuriken on the nightstand, his pack sat on the floor next to it. He took his hitai-ate from his pocket and put it on top of his clothes.

Sasuke heard him, could sense every move he made, but he kept himself relaxed and let out a breath he wasn't aware he was holding when Naruto sat down on the bed. Naruto laid down and tugged at the blanket and sheet, "Teme, don't hog the covers."

Sasuke sighed and shifted to release some of the blanket and sheet. Naruto pulled them more and Sasuke shifted closer to him to make sure he would still have some of the blanket and sheet. Naruto scoffed and Sasuke jumped when an arm wrapped around his waist and pulled him across the bed and his back was once again up against Naruto's chest.

The warmth of Naruto's bare skin paled in comparison to the warmth his clothed heat possessed. Sasuke felt his breath hitch in his throat and he took a deep breath and had to tell himself to relax in Naruto's hold. Naruto kissed his neck, "Don't worry Sasuke, I'm not going to do anything."

Sasuke relaxed even more and finally leaned back against Naruto and let himself fall back into a light sleep. He fell into a deep sleep when Naruto's even, calm, breathing signaled that he was asleep, the feeling of his chest moving against his back, the arm around his waist possessively, and the light breath on his neck helping to sooth any rising nightmares that normally plaqued him at night.