Author's Notes: I'm back!! I was on vacation and then laziness took over. I know that isn't an excuse, but please forgive me!

I only have a few things to say: 1) I thank all those who've given positive/constructive reviews to Naru, My Love. Your unwavering support warms my heart. 2) Thank you Falcon-Rider for showing me the light. You were right, readers don't deserve to get excited about an update only to find out it's actually a response. As you can see, I've removed my responses and I give you full credit for that decision. 3) To my diligent and future flamers I apologize now, because I really don't have the patience, or the time to respond to any more of your comments. I've already responded to another flame privately, making it a total of four responses I've written in all. Personally, I think that's enough. Therefore, I'm not going to argue anymore. If you like what you read, critique. If you don't like, then please leave and don't flame. No point wasting each other's time.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

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Tension

The next morning found a sore and insomniac Naruto groaning at the blaring sound of his alarm clock. He had spent an entire sleepless night tossing and turning, all because of a certain dark-haired shinobi and his haunting words. It hadn't helped matters one bit that he was still aching from Madame Butterfly's 'passionate' dance lessons. They'd stayed up late last night, learning several Latin dances and would have gone into the wee hours of the morning had Naruto not told Butterfly he looked haggard. Butterfly had immediately ended the session then and rushed home to attend to his sagging looks. Naruto had also gone home and crawled happily into bed, thinking he could get some shut eye before training the next day. However, rather than sleeping, he'd laid in bed fretting over Sasuke's words, wondering if they were, indeed, true.

He was plagued by the memory of Sasuke's face as he'd struggled to express himself. He was haunted by the admiration in his dark eyes and more than anything else he was troubled by his compliment. Now that Naruto had time to asses it, it made him wonder. Although he didn't doubt its sincerity, he did doubt who it was intended for. Who was Sasuke actually complimenting? Who was he actually admiring back there? Who did he really think was beautiful? The obnoxious, loudmouth Naruto? Or the perfect, beautiful Naru?

Naruto groaned; such thoughts were getting him nowhere. Turning his alarm clock off, Naruto reluctantly got out of bed and made his way to the bathroom. Once his morning toiletry was completed, Naruto tossed on his favorite jumper and headed out for the training grounds.

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That morning also found a nervous Sasuke waiting with bated breath for the arrival of a certain blonde. Although he appeared the perfect image of calm and serenity, there was no denying the tenseness in Sasuke's movements. This tension only increased when Naruto finally made his appearance, an appearance that lacked its usual cheerfulness. The greeting he gave Sakura, although warm and pleasant, was without its regular flair, while the customary taunt he normally bestowed Sasuke wasn't even given.

Sakura observed all this with a critical eye, noting Sasuke's intense gaze on the kyuubi and the kyuubi's complete avoidance of said gaze. For once their roles were reversed, the taller shinobi now the seeker of attention, whereas the shorter one was reserved and quiet.

Sasuke had expected wrath, but what he hadn't expected was complete indifference. Outwardly, Naruto appeared neither upset, nor elated by the event of last night, his neutral demeanor troubling Sasuke more than his anger ever could. Sasuke desperately wanted to apologize for spying, but the kitsune's refusal to talk to him rendered all attempts useless. Despite the strained atmosphere the morning passed quickly enough, bringing with its conclusion the arrival of their notoriously late sensei.

Kakashi strolled purposely into the clearing with his head inclined and the start of an excuse fresh on his lips. But the usual "You're late!" were never spoken from either of his more talkative students. Kakashi frowned beneath his mask, taking in Naru's eyes on the grass, Sasuke's eyes on Naru and Sakura's eyes on them both. Seeing how high-strung they were, Kakashi decided to give them an early lunch break.

An hour later he clapped his hands to capture their attention. His students got to their feet and faced him. The jounin did not miss the heavy tension simmering in the air. He'd thought the early break would have dispelled some of it, but left with nothing to distract them, the tension had only mounted. Kakashi frowned, wondering how he could get these two stubborn fools to cease their 'cold war'. Perhaps the best way would be to pit them against one another one. It had always worked before, serving to either resolve their quarrels...or have them yelling at one another. Either outcome, Kakashi felt, was better than this aggravating silence.

"You've been doing a lot of individual training lately," he finally said, "and I think it's time to see how far it's taken you. I want to know if there are any improvements. And the best way to test this is to have you three fight. Naru, you and Sasuke start."

Naruto mumbled something derogative underneath his breath, but took his position opposite Sasuke nevertheless. This would be his first time sparring with the older ninja after his transformation and he was nervous. From his personal training in the last few weeks he knew his usual strength and endurance have declined. He could only hope to hold his own for the duration of the spar. Hopefully, God would prove merciful and he wouldn't make a complete fool of himself.

Please, lord, please, don't let me lose to that arrogant prick, he prayed as he charged forward.

Alas, God was being his usual sadist self and didn't answer the boy's prayers.

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Weakness

The humiliating battle had ended with Sasuke punching the shorter boy in the stomach. Normally, the punch wouldn't have deterred the blonde, but experienced by his feminine body, it'd proven to be too much. Naruto'd doubled over in pain and Kakashi had ended the spar then, immediately assigning Sakura to be Sasuke's opponent. Naruto knew this was done to spare him from further humiliation, but the very thought that he'd needed the jounin to maintain his dignity was humiliating in itself.

It was only with sheer pride that he'd remained for the rest of their training. But the moment Kakashi'd dismissed them, Naruto had ran. He now sat miserable and alone on his favorite perch, which happened to be the Fourth Hokage's monument. Looking over the village like this with an orange sun setting before him, he could almost forget all his worries.

When he was younger, he'd gone here attempting to escape the villagers' cold glares. At this height he could not see their scowls, their disapproving frowns, their hateful eyes. He could only see the respectful looks they tossed at the Fourth, the sometimes melancholic expression they donned whenever they remembered his sacrifice. As a child he'd naively believed these looks were directed at him. It was one of the many reasons behind his dream of becoming Hokage, the longing to garner that look of respect and awe.

But as he grew older he found himself coming here for another reason altogether. More often than not, he found himself yearning for their sadden looks. Because every time he caught a glimpse of this, it reminded him that they were, indeed, human, that they were caring and compassionate, that they were a group of people who did feel strongly for one another. And, perhaps because of this very reason, were unable to see past the demon in him. For if they did, they would be forsaking the memories of those who'd died in the monster's hands.

Seeing things through this perspective had always helped him to endure a little longer, to have a little more strength. But today it did nothing to ease the shame and sadness in him.

"Why am I so weak?" he whispered.

"It's not fair. Where has all my strength gone?!" he yelled to an indifferent sky.

"Strength isn't measured by how physically strong you are, Naru."

"Sensei!" Naruto cried in surprise as Kakashi appeared suddenly by his side. Kakashi sat down by the blonde and crossed his legs. He looked out at the setting sun.

"How do you feel?" Kakashi asked after a while.

"Weak. I didn't even last five minutes," Naruto admitted with shame. "Everyone thinks I'm a loser and I've just proven them right."

"Naru, I can't help you feel better about how others see you," Kakashi said, "but I can help you feel better about your capabilities as a ninja."

"How?"

"I'll teach you to work around your limitations. If you can't be physically strong as you once were, then you must train yourself in other areas. We can work on your speed and agility."

"That won't be enough to defeat Sasuke," Naruto murmured quietly.

"Naru, a ninja's greatest ability is his power to deceive. Sasuke may be stronger and faster, but that doesn't mean you can't defeat him. You simply have to know his weaknesses."

"The arrogant bastard doesn't have any!"

"Everyone has a weakness. Sasuke is not an exception. He has one and you know it better than anyone else. In fact, you stated his weakness just now."

"When?!" cried Naruto. "All I said was that the arrogant bastard didn't have any."

"What did you just call him?"

"Arrogant bastard," mumbled Naruto.

"What? He is an arrogant bastard!" he cried at the amused look Kakashi gave him.

"Well, there you have it," laughed Kakashi standing up. "Now that you know his weakness, the rest is simply a matter of training."

"What?" asked Naruto as he got up to follow Kakashi. "I don't understand."

"Naru," Kakashi sighed exasperatedly, "a ninja's greatest weakness is his overconfidence. He is weakest when he believes himself strongest, when he underestimates his opponent."

"You mean Sasuke's too confident for his own good?"

"Yes...hence your endearing nickname for the boy. However, getting him to believe that you're not worthy of his time is not enough. It's going to take a lot more to beat Sasuke."

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Distancing

It was three days after his private conversation with Kakashi and Naruto was currently working on his ninjustsu in an isolated clearing. Team seven had disbanded earlier after a successful D-ranked mission and Naruto had gone to the forest to practice on his own. He had to admit that his private training sessions with Kakashi were proving quite effective. His speed, dexterity and chakra control had all improved. Of course, he wasn't naïve enough to believe this alone would defeat Sasuke. After all, Kakashi had said it would take a lot to bring down the avenger. He wasn't going to acquire Sasuke's weakness by being arrogant himself.

Walking towards a birdcage set on the ground, Naruto bent down and released its latch. Immediately the sparrows locked within flew out the opened door. Naruto leaped after them, using his chakra to project himself into the air. From the fingertips of his hands chakra nets formed, ensnaring the birds as he caught them one by one.

As Naruto darted back and forth from tree to tree, he was no more than an orange blur in the sky. Soon his nets were full and Naruto landed smoothly on the ground. He gently placed the birds back in their cage, ensuring as he did that he hadn't hurt them during their release. While examining their bodies, he slowly counted off the number of birds he'd caught.

"...17, 18, 19...what? Only 19? Where's the last one?" he asked as he turned to look for the missing bird. Just as he was beginning to worry, a small sparrow landed on his shoulder and nipped teasingly at his ear.

"There you are!" cried Naruto happily as he petted the bird's head with his index finger.

"You were always the quickest of the lot. Maybe I'll have better luck next time," he said good-humouredly as he placed the bird back in its cage.

"Naruto?"

The blonde stiffened at the sound of Sasuke's voice, but concealed his nervousness well. He continued to speak to his birds quietly as he fed them through the bars of the cage.

"So this is where you've been spending your time...out here feeding birds," Sasuke said, his words coming out harsher than he intended.

The baka had been avoiding him after since their last spar, completely ignoring his presence. It bothered him that he'd lost the blonde's attention. They've never had a talkative relationship, but they'd always had a mutual understanding, a close connection that he feared was being severed due to Naruto's pride.

"What do you want, Sasuke?" a weary Naruto asked as he lifted his birdcage and began to walk away.

Sasuke wanted nothing more than to mend their friendship. Instead he found himself yelling at Naruto's retreating back: "I want to challenge you to a fight!"

The blonde did not falter in his steps.

"Unless, of course, you're afraid," Sasuke hastily added, frantic to deter Naruto by any means. It worked. Naruto stopped dead in his tracks at the taunt.

"I'm not afraid of you," he said, whirling around. "You want a fight? Fine. Meet me here tomorrow at 7:00pm and I'll show you a fight."

With that said the blonde left in a huff. Sasuke sighed as he sunk to the ground. He hadn't meant to challenge the kitsune. He'd wanted to apologize, he'd wanted to talk to the blonde, get them back to their previous state of easy comradeship. But, of course, with his usual tactfulness he'd only succeeded in distancing them further.

TBC