Hello readers, I am still alive. XD Damn homework and preparing for finals almost killed me, but I pulled through! Now just two more weeks until finals and then I shall try to post faster. If my computer lives, that is. Today I went on a serious writing spree, re-writing what I had lost in my computers previous crashing and chapters for my other stories. I feel like I have accomplished something and that will make up for me not getting to play miniature golf in Zama this weekend. Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day to you all! Here is your chapter!
Disclaimer: I own not Naruto. I only own the extra characters which I invented.
Chapter Three: I Think I Love You
Kakashi watched the ongoing argument between Sasuke and Naruto with interest. And when Naruto ran off without warning, the jounin did nothing to try and stop him. For one, it would do no good to drag him back if he wasn't going to be calm enough to finish the mission--he would just end up pulling more flowers than weeds--and for another thing, he didn't want to be on the recieving end of any punches Naruto might throw in his anger. Yes, Kakashi had sparred enough with the fox boy to know that his hardest punches were thrown in anger. He knew this because he had, er, trifled with the boy more times than once. So instead of risking harm to himself, he allowed the mission to go on in silence. Sakura was oblivious, so involved was she in her work. Kakashi chocked back a bit of a glare, knowing that even when Sakura noticed that her teammate was gone, she would not question it. Instead, she would only try to come closer to Sasuke. 'Poor girl...'
When the three had finished, and their customer had finished thanking them, Kakashi had insisted that Sasuke and Sakura spar for a while. He leaned against a tree while they fought. But while Sakura was emmencily enjoying herself--after all, she got to fight with Sasuke--Sasuke himself was suffering beyond words. He always prefered fighting with Naruto because the boy would not hold back on him, like Sakura would. That, and Naruto always took on a cuteness all his own when he was fighting. After several parries, dodges, and punches landed by Sasuke, Kakashi took pity on his poor student and decided that it was time for him to stop the fight. He had to tell them about tomorrow, anyways.
"Oy, you two!"
"Huh?"
Sasuke turned and Sakura--who thought he would dodge her--continued on with her attack. Wham! She shrieked as her blow landed perfectly and Sasuke went flying. Kakashi stifled a laugh as the Uchiha glared at the ground, then at him.
"We have a mission tomorrow. We're escorting one of Shibuki's men back to the village of Mist."
"Shibuki-san?" Sakura asked after apologizing to her precious Sasuke and helping him up. "The scaredy cat?"
"Aah. Sasuke, make sure you tell Naruto," Kakashi pulled him close and whispered. "Don't forget to kiss and make up."
At that, said Uchiha stomped off towards the village, leaving Sakura confused and his sensei hiding a knowing smile. His first stop was Ichiraku Ramen, where he ordered a large miso ramen to go for the kitsune; it would act as his white flag. He didn't know how long Naruto could hold a grudge and he didn't ant to know. Hopefully the ramen and his most sincere apology would be enough. Naruto's apartment came into view and Sasuke--had he not been carrying ramen--was ready to bolt towards it. Clacking up the stiars, he kicked the door open with ease and entered, looking for his teammate. 'Oh...' There he was, asleep on the couch. Smirking, Sasuke waved the ramen bowl in front of him, setting it aside before Naruto could pounce. But alas, the tiniest bit of broth flicked up onto his face and when the kitsune attacked, he zeroed in on the bit of broth and licked it from Sasuke's face. And then he woke up. With a yell to raise the dead he scrambled back towards the wall.
"What the hell--!" Naruto yelled. "What are you doing, Sasuke?"
"I...I just came to apologize for today. I brought you some ramen. Look, maybe we should stay away from each other. Stuff tends to happen when we're together," he took a breath, a deep flush covering his face. "And we have an escort mission tomorrow."
Naruto gave a short laugh, "And you want us to 'stay away from each other.'"
Sasuke's flush grew deeper. Naruto, remembering that he had ramen, grabbed for a pair of chopsticks and began slurping down the food. A content look settled on his face and Sasuke knew he'd done good. He stared down at his hands while Naruto finished and as he uttered the traditional 'it was delicious' the Uchiha felt it was time. So, he apologized. It truly did hurt, as he continued with it, for he felt that he had not been in the wrong. But he had to do it. When he finished Naruto just sat and stared, as if he couldn't believe that the Uchiha Sasuke had apologized to him, the village outcast.
"Tomorrow at seven, be at the bridge," Sasuke walked up to him and, taking Kakashi's advice, kissed his cheek. Naruto was unfazed; he was used to it now.
They smiled at each other and Sasuke exited the house, heading back to his own and feeling as though a great burden had been lifted off his shoulders.
-0-0-
Sakura could feel the bloodlust eminating between Naruto and Sasuke even before they were in sight. They came towards the bridge in a silence that was so scary she wished they would start yelling at each other. 'Oh, Kakashi-sensei hurry up and get here!' She prayed he was doing something useful--like picking up their charge!--instead of lounging about somewhere. Her teammates came into view then, with Naruto waving at her and Sasuke... Sasuke was smiling. Nearly dying from the sight of it--however beautiful it was--she immediately sensed that something was wrong. The bloodlust was still there, yes, but was it really bloodlust? As they came closer it seemed as though it was really...really...well, she couldn't place a name on it but it wasn't unfriendly. She wondered what was going on.
In truth, Naruto had run over to pick Sasuke up that morning and when the Uchiha answered the door--clad in his pajamas--Naruto had glomped him with all the force as if he'd just eaten a bowl of sugar. He gave Sasuke a morning kiss and told him that later he had to tell him something. Sasuke--having a good idea what he wanted to say--was thus put in an unusually good mood for the morning. Sakura stood between the two in silence, lest they start shouting at each other and she would have to intervene. She did not trust this unusual feeling that was going on, and she prayed all the more for Kakashi to hurry up and get his but to the bridge. Minutes later Kakashi came strolling towards the bridge with their charge, who so resembled Shibuki that for a moment the three thought it was the leader of the village of Mist that they were looking at.
"Ohyao, everyone."
"YOU'RE LATE!" Sakura and Naruto shouted, as usual.
"G...gomenasai," the boy behind Kakashi looked to be about their age, if not a few years older. "It was my fault. I held your sensei up."
Blink. Blink. "Well," Sakura eyed Kakashi suspiciously, but he just smiled at her, "all right, we're sorry. You just be happy you had a legitimate excuse this time!"
"I am."
"Sh...shall we go?" the boy whispered softly.
"Hai," Kakashi turned to his students. "This is Yuri, Shibuki's cousin. He's eighteen. He's a lot like Shibuki, too, so be nice."
"Eh? You mean the type of guy whose afraid of everything?" Naruto stared at Yuri with piercing eyes; both Sasuke and Sakura ribbed him with their elbows. "Ouch!"
The three stared at Yuri. He had hair like Sasuke's--dark, dark blue--and it fell to his shoulders softly. Tall and thin, he didn't have a lot of muscle and the three instantly assumed that he was more of an advisor to Shibuki than a field ninja. But then again, there was nothing wrong with that. His demeanor was, of course, much like Shibuki's, but his eyes were all his own. A soft brown, they pierced through the three of them with such power that they could not help but look away. He was a soft boy, no doubt sheltered from the world's evil by overprotective parents. Finished scrutinizing, they nodded to Kakashi who led them to the gates of town and out, down the familiar road which led to Yuri's village. It would be a peaceful trip for there had been no trouble from neighboring countries for the longest while, and there was no reason that trouble should start up now.
They walked for several hours, chatting about whatever could grasp their attention for the longest time. They learned more about Yuri; about how he had a twin brother waiting for his return and how his mother had tried hard to keep him from all the evil truths of the world. He laughed at this, telling them how upset she was when he told her he had decided to be Shibuki's advisor on war. He was shy and quiet, not really branching out or trying to reach people in his village. He was content with having a book to read and an apple to munch on a hot summers day beneath a shady tree. And the more Team 7 learned about Yuri, the more they liked him. He was not arrogant, nor did he try to impress them any, and he was an all around nice guy. He fit into the group immediately. When the five stopped to make camp, Naruto took Sasuke's hand and dragged him away from where prying eyes would be able to hear them. They ended up along the river they had been following all day, and as the sun was setting it looked very beautiful.
Naruto bounced eagerly on the balls of his feet, trying to put into words what he was trying to tell Sasuke. The older boy stood there patiently, heart pounding in his chest. He knew what Naruto was going to say, because he was going to say it too, but... It still scared him. When Naruto finally found his voice, he said the words that would make Sasuke both very happy and very miserable.
"Sasuke, I...I think I love you!"
A soft smile spread across his face as he pulled the blond close to him and kissed him, happy that he didn't need an excuse to do it anymore. Happy as he was to know that Naruto returned his feelings, he was scared. What would the villagers think about him if he and Naruto were to go public with their relationship? He could just hear them now. "Those last two Uchihas really are crazy." "One killed his entire family, and the other one is gay!" "In a relationship with the demon. His poor mother must be rolling in her grave." Sasuke clenched his fists. He didn't care what they said about him, but they could not insult his family.
"Sasuke...?"
"Hm? Oh, it's nothing," he smiled wider. "I...love you too, Naruto."
At that, Naruto's ocean blue eyes filled with so much happiness that for a moment, Sasuke was shocked. He was even more shocked when Naruto began to cry, and didn't know what to do to help him. 'Um...'
"There, there, Naruto--it's okay," Yuri appeared from behind the bushes and pulled Naruto into a hug. "It's okay."
What. The. Hell. As Sasuke struggled to understand why Yuri had been hiding in the bushes, Naruto appeared to be calming down due to the wonderful administrations of Yuri. He sent Naruto back to camp so he could talk with Sasuke, who was still confused as ever.
"I had a feeling you two were together," Yuri laughed quietly. "He's just happy because someone actually loves him. He's an orphan, right?"
"How did you--?"
"Kakashi told me about him on the way to the bridge. I think he knows about you, too."
"I'd rather date Sakura than have that be true," Sasuke blurted, unable to control himself.
Yuri gave another laugh, "Despite what you might think, your sensei does care about you two. I think he'll be happy to know he was right. Just know, though, that you've made Naruto really happy. But if you do something wrong, he's going to be so heartbroken he might just die."
"Hmph. How would you know this?" Sasuke scoffed.
"Well believe it or not, Sasuke, I'm pretty popular with the ladies," Yuri winked. "War advisory isn't the only thing I do."
Mulling it over on his way back to camp, Sasuke decided that Yuri was right. He would have to tread carefully with his relationship with Naruto, or things might unfold to become a living hell before his eyes, and he didn't want that.
Wow, that was shorter than I thought. o0 So, what do you think? That darn plot bunny had eluded me once more, and I just found the plot of the story three days ago! Time to break out the hunting gear again. With that said, I apologize if this story is just random until I can catch that stupid bunny. I'll think of something though, if I can't remember. Until next chapter, minna!