Disclaimer: Naruto and all its characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

Summary: He was so pretty. Naruto had never ever seen someone that pretty before. But was it possible for him to fall in love with a human?

Or: Naruto is a merman who got separated from his pack. He finds Sasuke sitting on a beach and falls in love.

Warnings: Narusasu/Sasunaru, boy's love, fantasy tropes, merpeople.

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Conch shell

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Part 2

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"お前は誰か？" he heard the black-haired boy say but didn't understand shit. His voice was deep, and it fitted him quite well actually. "答えろ," the human demanded, but Naruto just stared at him wide eyed, baffled. "言っていること、分からないな," the boy deadpanned.

Naruto didn't move, too shocked at being discovered to even react. The human was even more stunning this close. The bangs framing his face, his sharp but elegant features, his rosy lips, his deep dark eyes… He was like a vision, a mirage.

For some reason, though, the human didn't look scared by him. Not even surprised nor confused at seeing someone who wasn't human like him. He just watched Naruto with a blank expression, his hands on his hips.

The young merman opened his mouth to say something, but no sound actually left his lips.

"なぜここにいるのか？" it sounded like a question; Naruto could understand that much. Still, he had no idea what the human was asking him.

"Huh… I don't understand what you're saying," he replied lamely.

"… ウスラトンカチだな、お前は," was the last thing the raven said before turning around, starting to walk away.

"Wait, don't go!" the blond pleaded. "I'm not dangerous, I swear!" he said, even though he was sure the human wasn't afraid of him.

"海に帰れ。人魚にとって、人間の地域は危ないだから."

Naruto stood there, watching him disappear not too long after he spoke those last words to him. He felt absolutely devastated for some reason. It wasn't like they had been able to comprehend each other, but still. The boy just left, not trying to communicate with him in some other way. He hadn't even had the chance to tell him his name and ask for the human's in return.

Pressing his lips together into a thin line, he picked the shell from the sand and took it with him back to the ocean.

He waited to see if the human would come back, but he didn't. The sun set down that day, and Naruto watched it alone, his hair coloring in red and orange tones along with the sky. The next day, it was the same. For the next week, he didn't catch a glimpse of the human, not even a small one.

Maybe he just wasn't coming back, and Naruto was just holding hope like a fool? Yeah, that was probably it. He decided not to leave the beach yet, though. Not until he was sure the boy wouldn't ever come back. So, he spent his days swimming around, just killing time, playing with some of the fish that lived in the area.

Fish were usually very friendly towards merpeople. Of course, that depended on their personality, but in general they were fun to hang out with. Not like Naruto could communicate with them, though. They didn't talk, and he wasn't too sure if they could understand him, but they still liked the company and he guessed he kind of needed it too.

A few days later, his patience paid off. Again, just an hour or so before sunset, the black-haired human appeared again.

This time, Naruto didn't stay hidden. He reached the shore quietly and, when his face was out of the water, just peeking from the surface, the boy sitting on the sand turned his head to him.

"まだ帰らないのか？" the human frowned. "帰れと言ってた."

Ignoring the raven's not too friendly demeanors, the merman grinned.

"Hey! So, I know you don't really understand what I'm saying, and I don't understand you either, but think we can be friends?"

The human shot up an eyebrow and looked at him like he had grown a second head. This didn't deterred Naruto, though. He started to crawl on the beach, just enough to get out of the water, and sat some feet away from him.

"I'm Naruto," he introduced himself, pointing at his face with his index finger. "Na-ru-to," he repeated slowly so the other could understand him. "What's your name?" he asked, now pointing at the human.

Said human rolled his eyes, but didn't answer.

After a while of awkward silence, Naruto started trying to do small talk.

"So, you really like the sunset, huh?" and, of course, the human didn't say anything in return. In fact, it seemed like he was purposely ignoring him.

Naruto kept talking about random things, the boy just sitting there watching the sunset. When it was starting to get dark, the raven stood on his feet and walked away. Again.

This time, though, he returned the next day, like his usual routine. The blond took the chance and tried to talk to him again, but the black-haired human kept ignoring him.

This went on for days that turned into weeks. For some reason, Naruto really didn't want to give up on befriending the human. He talked and talked about random stuff, about the ocean, about his pack, about literally anything, and the boy just sat there until the sun went to sleep and then he was off.

That lasted until the day Naruto was already waiting for him on the beach before the human even showed up. This time, the raven didn't sit down, but padded closer to Naruto instead.

"You just aren't going to leave, are you?" he asked with his arms crossed. But what really confused was the fact he spoke in the same language as Naruto.

"You can understand me?!" he shouted, shocked as hell. His eyes were probably opened wide in a funny way.

"Clearly, I can," the human replied calmly, looking down at him.

But that made no sense! If he could speak the same language as him from the beginning, why pretend they weren't able to really communicate? Why just sit there, ignoring him like that was his life purpose?

"Then why didn't you say so before?" he demanded to know urgently, his body leaning forwards with his arms supporting his weight.

"I was hoping you'd leave if you thought I couldn't understand you, but apparently you're a stubborn idiot."

"What? Why?" the blond asked confused, deciding to pay no mind to the insult. He was far more interested in getting answers than initiating a fight, after all.

"Human territory isn't safe for your kind," he said simply.

"But there's no one here," Naruto furrowed his eyebrows, pouting lightly.

The human arched an eyebrow elegantly. The merman blinked.

"I mean, you're obviously not dangerous, right?"

"You can't know that."

"Well, you're warning me about the dangers of being here instead of cutting my tail off."

They looked into each other's eyes in silence for a while, like they were analyzing one another.

"You're an idiot," the raven declared like it was a fact.

"You said that already," Naruto couldn't help but grin, feeling like he was the one winning their unspoken competition.

The black-haired boy sighed and started retreating his steps, seemingly ready to leave Naruto there on his own, but Naruto would have none of it.

"Wait, at least tell me your name, you bastard!"

The human turned just enough for Naruto to be able to see the side of his face. His eyes bored into him, feeling like they were examining his very soul. His tail swifted unwillingly, and the blond felt himself small at the intensity of that stare.

"It's Sasuke," and, as easily as that, the human –Sasuke– resumed his march, leaving Naruto behind with the only company of his own thoughts.

The next day, Naruto was already waiting for Sasuke to arrive once again. He sat on the warm sand, his bright colored tail playing mindlessly with the little water that sometimes reached him. His blond hair was dry, spikes of golden sunshine being caressed by the wind. The smell of salt coming from the ocean was quite strong, but Naruto was already used to it so he didn't mind.

He was just discovering he really liked the air. Even if he was technically stuck at the bottom, not being able to move around air like he could around water, it felt lighter, it felt nice against his skin. Well, maybe the scales on his tail weren't as appreciative, because they sometimes felt a little itchy, but he still liked the feeling so different from the one he was used to.

When Sasuke arrived, he sat on his usual spot. There was no greeting, no sign of acknowledgment, but that didn't discourage him at all.

"Hey, Sasuke," he grinned, showing all his teeth. The boy looked at him briefly before returning his gaze to the sky. "So, I have a question for you," he turned around to face him completely, even though they were still some feet away from each other. "Why weren't you even a little tiny bit surprised at seeing someone like me yesterday?"

Sasuke stayed quiet for a while, but Naruto patiently waited. Some minutes later, the answer came. "I've seen many things."

"Things like what?" the blond inquired curiously.

"None of your business," Sasuke stated sharply and Naruto grimaced.

"You're just not a typical human, are you?" he didn't say it in an accusative way, but there was indeed something not so common about Sasuke.

For a start, the boy understood him perfectly and spoke his language without any difficulty. He also was sure of what Naruto was. He knew he was a merman; he knew merpeople existed, and he knew it could be dangerous for him, being here.

Had he met others like him before?

That would made sense, Naruto supposed. Maybe he had met another merman or mermaid before, had befriended them, and they had taught him their language. Seemed reasonable.

But there were still things that Naruto deemed were weird about Sasuke's behavior. Like, the fact that even though he came to the beach every day, he never got near the water. That was strange, right? Or was Naruto just overthinking things? It wouldn't be out of character for him to do so. Maybe Sasuke just didn't like the water. He only came to watch the sunset, after all.

"Maybe I'm not," Sasuke replied mysteriously.

The days kept passing, and Naruto was considering if he should give Sasuke the pretty conch shell he had wanted to gift him with the day they officially met, or if it was better to wait for a bit.

Sasuke kept coming as per usual. Naruto now waited for him every day near the shore and, as soon as he spotted him, he crawled onto the beach to get near him and talk to him, like he did before. He told him about silly stuff, about things he'd seen, about the ocean, about anything.

Sasuke listened to him quietly, but luckily he wasn't directly ignoring him anymore. He sometimes participated in the conversation too. Naruto thought they were slowly but surely making progress, becoming friends. So now, the blond merman started to sit closer and closer to the human. It took some effort to move around land when his body was designed to swim surrounded by water, but it was worth it.

Today, they were sitting side by side, their bodies almost touching. Naruto had sand glued to literally every part of his body, while Sasuke just had a little of it on his clothes. They were watching the sunset when Naruto suddenly asked, "Is there a reason you come here to watch the sunset every day?"

Sasuke didn't respond at first, his eyes focused on the orangish, reddish tones that painted the sky.

"It reminds me of my family."

There was something in the way the human mouthed those words… Something akin to longing, yearning, but also pain washing those words.

"I'm sorry," he muttered in a low voice, for once deciding it was best not to ask about it just yet. "You miss them a lot, huh?"

"I guess I do," Sasuke murmured quietly, his gaze locked into the horizon, where the sky met the ocean.

Naruto looked down, sighing melancholically. "I miss my family too, y'know. I got separated from them and have no idea where they are, or if I'll ever find them again."

"Is that why you're here?" Sasuke turned his head to look at him, his expression unreadable.

"Yeah. I mean, at least here I have you. If I were to leave, I'd be on my own."

"I haven't exactly been the friendly type to you, why would you consider staying just because I'm here?" and there was honest confusion in his voice, like he really couldn't understand why Naruto wanted to be here, with him.

"Because we're friends!" Naruto smiled genuinely, but the boy narrowed his eyes and eyed him cryptically.

"Sooner or later, you'll have to leave, and we won't see each other again. Why bother wanting to be friends with a human?"

Naruto scratched his neck nervously, his cheeks turning pink. He couldn't exactly tell Sasuke he wanted to befriend him because he thought he was beautiful, right? He had been even trying to court him without him noticing, damn it. Kinda dumb, now that he thought about it, but still.

Now that he had gotten to know the human a little better, he found out that he really enjoyed his company. He wanted to know him better, know him more. He felt all fuzzy inside every time his eyes fell on him, every time he talked to him, every time he was near him… He was utterly screwed, wasn't he?

"Why not?" Naruto asked in response.

"That's not an answer."

There was suddenly a lump in his throat, preventing him from speaking. He didn't even have the shell with him at the moment, he left it at his nest, deep under the waves. How could he say anything, how could he confess?

Would Sasuke freak out if he told him? Would he be willing to give him a chance?

He was so close… If he reached out his arm, he'd touch him. And he looked so beautiful in the purplish light reflected on the sky now that the sun had finally set. Those two ebony eyes never left his, but Naruto's gaze couldn't help but fall to his lips. He didn't even realize he was leaning in, closer to the human, until his warm breath caressed his face.

He looked into Sasuke intense eyes, dazed, warmth spreading in his cheeks. He was hypnotized, all the alarm bells ringing in his head pushed to a corner as his eyelids fluttered shut, a pair of soft, cool lips finally meeting his own.

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A/N: Hi, people!

If my Japanese knowledge of the last 5 years or so doesn't fail me, these are the translations of the things Sasuke said to Naruto:

お前は誰か？ – Who are you?

答えろ – Answer me.

言っていること、分からないな – You don't understand what I'm saying, right?

なぜここにいるのか？– Why are you here?

ウスラトンカチだな、お前は – You're an usuratonkachi, aren't you?

海に帰れ。人魚にとって、人間の地域は危ないだから – Go back to the sea. The land of humans is dangerous for mermen.

まだ帰らないのか？ – You're still here? (not lit. translation but it seemed better to me lol)

帰れと言ってた – I told you to go back.

I decided not to put the translations directly on the story so it wouldn't look messy and so you would be as lost as Naruto was lol Although, if someone here speaks Japanese then it was a lost cause.

And I also wanted to say this story will have one or two more chapters. This one would've been way to long otherwise lol

See you in the next chapter!