AN: Hello! Anybody there :Looks around at the empty space and shrugs: Oh well. I've decided to make my first post to the Naruto fandom, in the hopes that my muse will shut up and let me work on my other fics and prepare for finals. So, I picked the finished one I liked best, and here you go.
WARNINGS: (It's not my fault if you skip this part). This might be shonen-ai if you squint, but it doesn't have to be. Also, I realize the idea is not truly original. Deal with it. Oh, and the repetition is entirely deliberate, so don't call me on that, either.
Please do give me feedback. If you hate it, fine, but tell me why. I'll never improve, otherwise.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto, the color orange, or ramen, nor any combination thereof. Hm…now that's an intriguing notion…orange-flavored ramen…
Naruto likes orange. It's the color of the sunset he can see from his window that tells him dark is falling, so he can go outside unnoticed. As sunset, all the other kids he can't play with go home, and he can sit on the swing for hours. He proclaims his love of orange by wearing it all the time. But he doesn't really like orange all that much, because it makes people treat him with contempt, and it's not really a ninja color.
Naruto likes ramen. It costs hardly anything, and it still tastes okay if it's been crushed or sitting in the cupboard for awhile, and it comes in almost every flavor. Plus, the man at the ramen bar is nice to him. He proclaims his love of ramen at every opportunity. But he doesn't really like ramen all that much, because it's always the same, and it takes a lot to fill him up.
Naruto likes pranks. Pranks give him a reason to laugh, and pranks make people notice him. They have to see him when he plays pranks. Then he doesn't feel invisible. He proclaims his love of pranks by playing them often. But he doesn't really like pranks all that much, because no one else laughs with him.
Naruto likes learning to be a ninja. Once he is a ninja, he can protect people. He can make it so nobody else has to live like he did. He proclaims his love of the art of the ninja by training diligently. But he doesn't really like the art of the ninja that much, because ninjas kill people, and he doesn't want to kill.
Naruto likes Sakura. She is pretty and smart. She makes him think of flowers and food and smiles. He proclaims his love of Sakura by asking her to do something with him. But he doesn't really like Sakura all that much, because she always pushes him away and tries to hurt him.
Naruto likes Sasuke most of all. Sasuke sees him. Sasuke treats him exactly the same as everybody else. He is a rival and a friend. Naruto has never had one of either before. Sasuke knows what it is like to have no family, to be lonely. But Naruto does not proclaim his love of Sasuke. That is not how they work. They argue, and spar, and insult one another instead. But that's okay, because Sasuke knows, and that's what matters. So he pretends that he doesn't like Sasuke all that much, because he is so used to pretending that he has to pretend to like what he doesn't like and not like what he actually likes.
Because in his world, smiles cover tears and tears cover smiles; laughs cover sobs and silence covers screams; orange covers black and blue; and dislike covers like. That's just the way he lives.