"These are the plans for the sword?"
"Yes," Sasuke grits out, cursing the motherfucking Senjus once again because he has a perfectly serviceable sword that was stolen from him, damn them, "can you make it?" He'd go retrieve his own sword but, on the minuscule chance that he fucks up and the Senju recapture him, he doesn't want to cause Naruto anymore stress. Not with the Hyūga Clan making their way here and due any day now.
Maybe after they've secured those fuckers for their Konoha.
The blacksmith that Naruto had enticed back to the village with a promise of steady customers and loyal clients willing to defend his shop from would-be-thieves frowns. Though his shop is little more than a shack (like every other building here), he's already began selling kunai after a day of reviewing the ones Naruto had on her when they tumbled back from the future. He'd been able to almost perfectly replicate them and, given these are kunai made a hundred years in the future, this made them better than anything in the present.
The Akimichi and Naras had already put their orders in with the astounded man and there's an impatient looking Yamanaka in the line behind Sasuke who's probably here for the same thing.
"I- yeah. I could do this now that I've got me some apprentices," the man grumbles, one hand rubbing at the stubbly beard that brackets his jaw. "Might take a few days though."
"I don't have plans to use it yet." Nor does he need to; he could take down anyone in this era without a sword (though he would be pushed to manage Hashirama or Madara… maybe. How good are they as old teenagers anyway? Probably not better than Sasuke is now. Certainly not better than Naruto).
"Better to have and not need then to need and not have, right, Lad?" The blacksmith chuckles to himself, inspecting his weathered, wrinkled hands. "It's on the house, what with your pretty girl being the one to bring me such a boost in business." Tch, as far as Sasuke had heard it, Naruto'd had to lure the man here with the promise of looking at her 'amazing kunai and shuriken yes you can copy the design if you make them for us'. Still, a free sword is a free sword, so it is begrudgingly that Sasuke thanks the other. Associated as tightly to Naruto as he is, not using his manners would reflect poorly on her for the company she keeps so it's with a stiff upper lip that Sasuke doesn't tear into everyone and anyone that pisses him off now. Just the people that aren't officially part of Konoha.
And the Yamanaka heir. The fucker's dad has clearly talked Naruto up to him and now he stares at her with big puppy eyes. Sasuke's not bothered by it, not really. Naruto's loyal as fuck and for some obscure reason, she wants him.
He's not worthy, but he'll greedily hog all the love she offers him anyway.
He'd ask how he got so lucky but, with how his life has been up until this point, it's about fucking time he got some good luck for a change.
.
Striding down the 'street' (little more than a steadily wearing path across the grass with the slightest slips of exposed mud) Sasuke offers a nod to the two Naras that greet him, ignores the fluttering lashes of an Akimichi and the civilian she's hanging out with. He follows the pull of that deliciously warm and ferocious chakra, taking a left, then a right, then another left until he's at the 'Hokage's Office'.
It's not an office, can only pass as a building if you squint and try not to focus too much on the actual shape of it. But Naruto had told her clones that the homes of families came first, so the crappy lean-to against the cliff-face stands as their office.
That she's painted a whacking great big leaf on the outside is the only indication that this is the place she's working out of. Hell, she barely even uses it half the time, he's pretty sure the only time she goes inside is to store paperwork in there so it doesn't get wet when it rains or blown away in a particularly strong gust of wind.
Right now, the love of his life is sat up to table (the same table at which they'd hammered their agreement with the three clans out a week ago) with the usual three, though Nara seems to have brought his daughter along. Now that one, Sasuke doesn't mind. She's sensible, smart and, most importantly, already engaged. She hasn't even looked his way other than to assess his capabilities in working out the laws they'll be laying down for Konoha.
Now, Sasuke hadn't been the most dedicated student when it came to the ins and outs of Konoha (too busy becoming a 'strong' ninja to avenge his clan), but laws? His father had been the Chief of the Force; Sasuke sure as fuck knows his laws. More importantly, he knows the ones that works, the ones that don't, and the ones that were just plain stupid. He knows all that shit and Naruto's got the moral compass. They'll get this cracked… soon enough.
"Sasuke-san," the Akimichi acknowledges him with a dip of his head and Sasuke returns it, taking his customary seat beside Naruto. Proving just how touched starved she is, she crawls right into his lap. He wraps his arms around her body as she jams her feet under the table. And, proving how easily adaptable good ninja are, none of the others sitting before them so much as blink. Well, they have been exposed to Naruto's antics for over a week now. If Sasuke were to guess, he'd say the tipping point was when the Nine Tails went full sized to clean a patch of forest for the rest of the village and Naruto had done nothing but coo (and not get her head bitten off for it).
"What are we focusing on today?"
"Criminal law, geared more towards the civilians we're expecting to populate the village now."
Gee, what fun.
.
"Urgh, my brain is like mush! Mush I say!" Naruto rests her cheek on his shoulder once the clan leaders have buggered off to report back home. Nana Shikana follows them a moment after, but not before she sent Naruto a wink.
"Didn't realise there was a brain in there to turn to mush, Idiot," Sasuke all but purrs, eyes closed so he can just focus on the sensation of Naruto in his lap, all warm and smelling like herbal shampoo. She must have cut a deal with the Yamanaka's for some of their hair care products. Sasuke doesn't mind, though he does miss the usually overpowering aura of ramen. Speaking of-
"I've got a guy arriving in two days that I enticed away from another village," he mutters, chin atop her head, arms around her waist and just basking. This. This is what he wants from life, time to just sit and exist with Naruto, to know the most important thing in the world is safe and well and happy. And she's gonna be happy.
"Just one guy, that's all? You're gonna have to step up your recruitment efforts, Bastard."
He smirks, one thumb wiggling under the hem of her shirt to begin drawing lazy circles on the tanned flesh beneath.
"Just one guy," Sasuke confirms, smug, "and is name is Ichiraku Ruiga."
He's suddenly pinned to the floor, Naruto sitting on his lap, hands on his shoulders and seemingly one push away from shaking the answers out of him.
"Old man Teuchi's ancestor?! But, I thought Teuchi was the first in the family to do the ramen business! Ichiraku's only opened thirty-four years before we came back."
"Tch, turns out his ancestor had tried the ramen business before; he was about a month from going out of business from no steady income when I found him yesterday. Promised him a steady stream of customers."
"He must have passed his recipes down the family line," Naruto concludes, still sitting atop him with stars in her eyes, as if he's just hung the moon, the sun and everything else that was needed to get the world spinning. Like she can't believe her luck.
Sasuke certainly hadn't been able to believe his luck when he'd found the man the day before.
"I love you, ya know?" Naruto breathes, still looking utterly enchanted by the gift he's given her. His hot palms rest on her legs, fingernails scraping back and forth along the rough material.
"Tch. Maybe you'll say that someday without the promise of ramen." He's got more to say on the subject, is more than ready to confess his own love, but Naruto kisses him and, yeah, that's an acceptable distraction.
.
The Hyūga and Ichiraku Ruiga arrive at the same time. He can see that it all but devastates Naruto to not give the man the reception he deserves (in her eyes anyway), but she needs to show the Hyūga a modicum of respect. It's a problem swiftly solved by a Naruto clone, but it doesn't change the fact that it won't be the actual Naruto settling the man in; that much is evident on the original's face.
Sasuke scoops up her hand, weaving his fingers through hers, so well-practiced with the different motions he half expects to start forming hand seals with her. Huh. There's an idea.
"Are you Uzumaki Naruto?" It's a branch member that speaks. Yeah, he might have had a lot of shit going on when he was in the Chunin Exams, but he focused enough to pay attention to Neji's spiral of 'woe is me'. Naruto could have one-upped him on tragic backstory alone, but she didn't. Just kicked his ass instead. He appreciates that about her.
"Huh? Yeah, that's me! Which one of you is in charge?"
Hand, meet forehead. Sasuke draws in a long, deep breath, reminding himself that Naruto's an orphan. She didn't have any of the training in making nice like other clan children will have done. Now, Sasuke himself could do this, if push came to shove and it meant the world to Naruto. But, she's always been able to get people onside before. Even those who had been blatantly antagonistic towards her. So, he'll sit back and enjoy.
The branch member is frowning, a nervous tilt to his eyes and Sasuke hides the smirk he wants to show behind his high collar.
And so it begins.
.
To begin with, negotiations seem to be going well. The Hyūga agree to the teaching aspect, the concept of the academy and sharing some knowledge to improve future generations. They agree to mixed teams, only humming over the concept of outsiders to the clan being able to dictate what level a ninja is at. But they agree. Everything is going well, right up until the seal thing comes up.
Naruto puts her foot down, very sternly informing the Hyūga that they stop branding each other or she doesn't want them in Konoha. The Hyūga leader, one Hyūga Hideki, scoffs at her. Right up until Naruto nods, stands up, and then begins walking away. Sasuke stays put for a second longer, just to enjoy the sheer outrage that spreads across the man's face. He doesn't say anything, doesn't call out to Naruto. Probably assuming that it's a scare tactic, that she's expecting him to fold. That, or he's expecting her to turn around, realise he's not going to budge, and accept their practice.
He doesn't know Naruto, no one in this time period does. No one but Sasuke.
Getting to his feet himself, he stretches, shoulders rolling and already well aware that they'll be sitting down at whatever shack Ichiraku Ruiga has occupied for a dinner Naruto's managed to weasel out of him. He meets the Hyūga Head's eyes, utterly unbothered by the Byakuran veins that have been bulging around his temples since they met at the village's 'entrance' (if the start of a dirt path could be classified as such.
"Once you drop the branding practice, you know where to find us. If you're still around by nightfall with no intentions of joining, we'll assume your intentions are malicious and respond in kind."
Just as he finishes speaking, just as the Hyūga opens his mouth to retort with some kind of uppity, 'I am far more important than you, whelp, show me some respect', the Nine Tails crashes through the undergrowth. He's settled on a form about the size of a grown man when standing on all fours (Sasuke hasn't missed that the bastard fox is a half-foot taller than him), but with the chakra he refuses to tone down, it's still wet-your-fucking-pants-in-fear overwhelming. You know, if you aren't used to his presence like Sasuke begrudgingly is.
"Uchiha," he snarls, burning eyes slits, furry brow heavy. "For some god-forsaken reason, Naruto expects you to join her for dinner."
"Yeah, I'm coming."
"Or don't. Then perhaps she'll finally recognise that your bloodline brings nothing but despair and devastation."
"There's a reason I've not gone crawling to the Uchiha Clan."
"Because you're a fucking idiot who is in love with Naruto." Well, he wouldn't exactly call himself a fucking idiot, but Sasuke cannot disagree with the rest of that statement.
He leaves the clearing, Hyūga Clan all but forgotten, too busy fending off the Nine Tails' attempts to weasel Naruto away from him. Like fuck is he giving her up. He's learnt to recognise a good thing when he's got it, even if it's taken him years. And what he's got with Naruto? Yeah, that's good.