Thanks again to all my reviewers!

I want to clarify things… but I'm afraid of giving away the plot. Anyways, keep asking questions! They help me think and everyone knows that thinking is a good thing.

Chapter 9: Rude Awakening

Sasuke was starting on his second bowl when someone knocked on the door. Hard. Thump, thump, thump…Like a monster demanding to be let in. He paused in his meal to grit his teeth in dread and anger. He had a feeling he knew who was at the door.

His parents looked at each other in surprise.

"Now who do you think that would be?" his mother exclaimed, "Banging on our door like that!"

"Must be the Hokage," his father said knowingly, "He said he was coming to see me."

"Yeah, right," his mother snorted.

"I'm telling the truth. Why don't you ever believe me?"

"The Hokage wouldn't be so rude," his mother said decisively, rising to answer the obnoxious knocks.

A second later, and Sasuke found himself joined by a familiar stranger.

"Oy, Sasuke!" Blonde hair popped into view from around the hallway, followed by a pair of devious, blue eyes. The shadow plopped himself in the extra chair, looked at the full table, and grinned, "Enjoying a nice, hot meal without me?"

His father looked curiously at the newcomer, "Now who is this?"

"Nobody important," Sasuke said quickly before delivering a curt order to the shadow, "Get out of here."

"But Sasuke! I'm your best friend!" 'Naruto' pretended to look horrified, "Some food and you've already forgotten about me? Don't tell me you're going to forsake our friendship over a bowl of rice!" He added as an afterthought, "It does look good though…"

His mother, who had returned by this time, offered politely, "Would you like some?"

"Don't mind if I do!" the shadow said cheerfully, picking up chopsticks while she scooped a bowlful.

His father lifted an eyebrow, amused, "He's your friend, Sasuke? Rather spunky."

"Yep, I'm quite spunky!" 'Naruto' beamed, "The name's Naruto."

His father's courteous grin became an uneasy frown. "Naruto…" the name was pronounced slowly with some hesitation, "It sounds distinctly familiar…"

"Here you go, Naruto-kun," his mother offered, holding out a filled bowl.

It leaned eagerly toward her, "Why thank you, ma'am—"

Sasuke stood up and forcefully knocked his hand away. His parents froze, startled.

The shadow's face changed instantly from friendly to furious. 'Naruto' glared at him, hissing with venom, "What the hell was that for?"

"Get out."

His voice was cold and heated at the same time. Cold, because it was his nature to be so when he was angry. And heated because rage was driving him and as he had done so many times before, he was giving himself over to it.

"Fuckin' bastard, who do you think you—"

Sasuke picked up a knife from the table. Though he could feel his blood rushing and his pulse accelerating from fury, he managed to speak calmly, "I won't tolerate such… filth in this house. Not here. Not now. I won't have you sit at the same table with them. Not you. You don't deserve to sit with them."

There was a pause and then, with biting conviction, "You're not Naruto."

The shadow eyed the blade warily. It was only a regular cutting knife but the boy seemed absolutely livid as if the shadow had violated something religious. Psh. Foolish boy. Don't fool yourself into living a fantasy. In any case, though, the boy was dangerous now. His temper colored his every feature and action. A wrong step and those dark eyes promised nothing but that it would regret it.

The shadow decided to back away. With a quick glance at the adults, it said before disappearing into the hallway, "Gomen. It seems as if I'm not welcome here."

Sasuke growled and followed. He wasn't done. He wanted to make one more thing clear.

"If you ever come back, I'll kill you."

The shadow stopped in his tracks. Then slowly, deliberately, it turned around to reveal a hideous grin.

"That's an interesting threat, coming from you. Where do you think you are?" 'Naruto' gestured with a chuckle to the surroundings, "In case you've forgotten, let me remind you. You're in the Land of the Dead—

"Shut up!"

"--where everything and everyone is nothing more than a memory or a corpse in the real world—"

"SHUT UP!" Sasuke could not understand why he was suddenly so scared.

"That's right," 'Naruto' smirked, "None of this exists in the real world. Those people you love so much? I'm sorry to break it you, but they're dead. And what you have now is just some sick, twisted version of life. Some sad, little orphan's dream of a home and dead parents."

"They're NOT…" Sasuke began angrily before coming to a sudden halt as he realized that he was trying to deny the truth. For one horrible moment, as he fumbled for words, he saw his own denial and his own desperate lie. What had he been thinking? Had he honestly thought that they were anything but what Itachi had done to them?

Everything, like a bad movie, rushed back to him.

That night under the full moon… The bodies laying out in the courtyard… His parents, not smiling, not talking, just lying there… So, horribly, horribly still… And the person responsible, covered in shadows, turning to look at him with empty, red eyes…

…Itachi… How could I have forgotten?

The burden returned. He felt as heavy as he had in the dark water, as if all the strength had drained out of him.

"Oh, come on. Who are you fooling? I know you're smart. You know the outcome of your little fantasy, just as well as I do. Believe me, something unnatural like this… It won't last. But go on. Keep living your little dream, boy. I won't stop you, but just remember, you're going to have to wake up sometime. And when you do, it's gonna hurt."

The shadow paused. The knife was at its throat, quivering, barely restrained.

The boy was breathing hard, eyes filled with the light of an unwanted awakening that this shadow was the cause of. "They're not…" he repeated but there was no terrifying threat, no certainty in that face anymore. It had been replaced by a mix of pain and doubt.

And then there was only pain.

"Sasuke."

It was his mother. He couldn't shed blood in front of her. He stepped backward automatically.

The shadow began to laugh.

But even if it was Naruto's face, it wasn't Naruto's laugh. It wasn't honest and funny, if a bit idiotic. It was a cruel, taunting, "I-know-something-that-can-break-you" laugh. Clenching the blade until it cut into his skin and red blood rushed down his palm, Sasuke realized that he hated this evil thing before him.

Smirking, the shadow gave him a little wave before exiting out the door, knowing exactly what kind of destruction it had just caused, "Goodbye, Sasuke-kun…"

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The door shut with an air of finality. She knew now that the thing she had let in had not been a friend. A part of her wanted to chase after it and destroy it before it caused more harm elsewhere. She could feel a subtle fury radiating from her husband and knew that he felt the same way.

But her main focus remained on her son.

He said nothing.

Instead, he stood there, for a long time, simply gazing at the puddle of blood at his feet.

The silence was hard to take.

She didn't have to wonder what he was thinking because that knowledge was a mother's intuition. The urge to embrace him came again and she fought it with foolish reasoning. A man would reject a silly hug.

But she had never seen a man who looked as her son did. She had never seen a man so broken and so utterly tired. The longer she stared, the more she felt that her logic was wrong. It was as if her eyes were connecting her to the hidden emotions of her son, hidden because for some reason, his actions and words had become so much harder to read since she had last seen him. But in the silence…. where his mouth was slightly open and every line of his face etched with shock because he hadn't realized the truth until now… Well, the silence told her everything.

Hadn't he known? she thought desperately, But even if he did know, why was he still hurting?

And he was hurting so much… more than he could take, she knew that even if she didn't know the reason… but it was…more than she could take as well… like her heart was being torn right out of her chest, leaving a giant, gaping hole of nothing…

"Sasuke…" Unable to keep silent any longer, his mother choked out his name.

It was the way she said his name, tortured, that caught his attention.

He looked up, but the expression in his eyes was blank, as if he was seeing through them, as if he could no longer bear to be human and had decided on something else.

She covered her mouth in anguish for the lack of recognition hurt her more than the silence. And his tears, oh gods, was he crying without realizing it, hurt her more than anything in the world, living or dead. Death, torture, hunger… She could bear anything but this sad, little boy who wept, wide-eyed and soundlessly, for nothing and for everything… this little boy who was her son…

With a sob, she moved forward to embrace him, repeating his name over and over again, "Sasuke… Sasuke… oh Sasuke, what happened to you… ?"

But he did not speak, could not speak, and the tears continued to fall like rain and the question, more felt than voiced, lingered like a ghost.