Title: Parallels
Authors: Questofdreams and Lazuli
Rated: R
Comments: Huge thanks to our beta, proud snapist.
Disclaimer: Yep, they apply.

Chapter 4

"Get dressed boys, playtime is over." The Yondaime ignored the twin glares directed his way, already used to this by now, and besides, this was more important.

Naruto groaned and collapsed on Sasuke's chest, eyes closing. He didn't want to be dragged away this time. "Fuck," he muttered. "What is it?"

The Yondaime grinned. "I think I figured out what's going on."

Ok, Naruto conceded. That was an acceptable reason to disrupt. He rolled off of Sasuke and quickly shrugged on his pants. He wanted to know what was going on, he reminded his body, which wasn't quite cooperating just yet. He looked over at Sasuke and the tent in the front of his pants. He quickly looked away. He squeezed his eyes shut and forced himself to remember the time he'd caught Ero-sennin and Tsunade-bachan making out...he grimaced.

Unfortunately, thinking about them kissing inevitably lead to thinking about kissing in general, and his mind supplied him a much nicer and more pleasurable image of him kissing Sasuke and how it could continue... He groaned and wanted to melt into the floor, especially considering the amused look the Yondaime was giving him.

Sasuke was still lying in bed, disinclined to move. "So? Are you going to tell us?" Sasuke asked impatiently, his voice gruff with pent up frustration.

"Well," he began, giving his son a cheeky grin at how Naruto was hunching his shoulders, as if curling in on himself would make his current state any less noticeable. "I remembered something I read a long time ago when Naruto mentioned feeling like there were two completely different worlds."

Sasuke finally sat up and quirked an eyebrow. "Go on," he said, curiosity piqued.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Naruto interrupted. "I wasn't serious."

The Yondaime thwacked him on the head lightly. "Hush, your father is speaking," he said, the grin stretching across his features, his eyes crinkling up. "And I was thinking that the jutsu that Naruto got hit with created a sort of parallel... " He paused as Naruto's face turned chalk-white.

"What is it, Naruto?" he asked softly, eyes immediately concerned again.

Naruto waved him off, forcing a smile on his face. "Something I ate," he muttered. "I want to hear the rest."

"Well if it's something you ate then my cooking must not be as good as I thought," he said with an amused grin.

Sasuke made an impatient gesture. "Keep going!"

"Alright, alright. Well, maybe it didn't necessarily create a parallel so much as it...opened the way."

Naruto swallowed and tried to look as calm as possible. "So I really don't belong here?" he asked quietly.

He managed a smile at the Yondaime, but it hurt--it hurt so badly to even joke about it, because if the Yondaime believed he was right in this theory, if Sasuke believed him--they wouldn't want him around--they'd face hell to get their Naruto back.

"Naruto," the Yondaime said softly, a reassuring smile on his painfully familiar face. "That thing I read--it talked about the possibility for a soul to sort of...create a shadow of itself. Do you understand what I'm saying? The same soul existing along parallel tracks." He moved forward. Naruto stepped back. He sighed, blue eyes pleading for his son to
understand. "You're still my son, Naruto."

"How can I be?" he shot back. Being around the Yondaime made his barriers crack far too often and he reached out for anything stable to help him out. "I never knew you. I'm... I'm not the same person you raised. God, even Sasuke doesn't give a shit about me in that way!" He hunched his shoulders in on himself, eyes closing for a moment. "Someone would have told me if the Yondaime was my father."

The Yondaime's gentle smile slipped and in his eyes was reflected the sadness Naruto had felt every day of his life. "I'm not so sure," he murmured. "If I had died that day, I don't think I would have wanted you growing up with that burden."

"What burden? That my father died using his own son as a vessel for the kyuubi? It's a hell of a lot better than to have never known my father at all."

Naruto felt bad for making that sadness in the older man's eyes appear, for having anyone take a piece of the loneliness that was such a part of him that he didn't think about it anymore. He reached out, expression tentative. "Hey, I was always... proud that I was chosen," he whispered. "I used to pretend that you could be my father." His voice cracked. "And I always thought how brave it would have been to choose your own son to save the village."

He snorted and looked down at his hands. And then I woke up and told myself to stop dreaming, that I was just some baby nearby, whose parents died during the fight.

He slowly fisted his hands and looked up again. "But I grew up strong for it. I'm a damn good shinobi and the old hag is even considering me for the Rokudaime. I've never given up on my goals. So you see, I've been doing fine on my own." He put as much conviction into his words as possible, having always believed that success, as much as failure, was not the result of fate or circumstance, but of one's own personal strength.

Sasuke hadn't said anything at this point, just absorbed both the Yondaime and Naruto's words. He snorted and gestured to the two of them. "How could you not tell that you were at least related?" he asked, trying for logic when it felt like his world was getting twisted. It wasn't that he believed in parallel worlds or souls or whatever bullshit they were spouting, but offered his own thoughts on what Naruto was saying. "You're practically twins."

For his reasoning, he received an annoyed glare from Naruto. "It's not like the stone face is incredibly accurate, you know, and that's the only image I ever saw of him until I was a genin." Naruto shook off his irritation and heaved a sigh. "I don't want to get into an argument with you." Especially since they had been just wrestling tongues a moment before.

"Ok, boys, calm down," the Yondaime said, lifting his hands in supplication, a grin on his face. "Naruto, you're still you. Everything about you is nearly the same as the Naruto I've known for eighteen years."

Naruto blinked at him, eyes wide with surprise. "I guess that I'm much happier here. People... people actually like me and ..." He frowned and indicated Sasuke. "How do you explain the fact that the Sasuke I know hates me most of the time, and this one is the exact opposite?"

The Yondaime shrugged. "Maybe it doesn't work both ways, or maybe he really does like you and you don't know it--there are a number of explanations." He sighed. "It comes down to you're still the same person, Naruto. You're my son, whether or not you think otherwise."

Naruto glanced over at Sasuke. "I'm the same person. I guess I have to admit that...despite the...intimacy" --he ruthlessly squashed the urge to blush-- "you're pretty much the same person too. You're a little nicer than he is, actually, but that's reasonable considering our circumstances." Maybe, he thought, somewhere inside the Sasuke I know...is the ability to feel as openly as this Sasuke. He almost smiled as he imagined himself with a shovel shouting, "start digging because it'll take a hell of a long time!"

Sasuke's brow rose at that. "So you really don't remember us?" he questioned. "Or... if you really are a parallel Naruto, then we don't have a relationship?"

Naruto nodded, rather matter of fact. "Well, yeah, you can barely stand me for all that we're best friends." He was nervous at the lack of reaction from the both of them. He was waiting for Sasuke to shake him and demand he bring his Naruto back.

Sasuke gazed down at his lap, his expression contemplative. "Well if he's me, then he has to feel something for you. I told you when we first decided to be together that I had wanted you for a long time...I just never said anything. Maybe..."

"Uh, sorry to interrupt but can you two continue this conversation later when I'm far, far away?" the Yondaime asked with a grimace. "Right now, let me look at your seal, Naruto. I have a feeling kyuubi has something to do with this."

Naruto gave the Yondaime a suspicious look. "Kyuubi doesn't like you too much," he said with a faint grin. He learned that when he fought Sasuke, when the fox compared him to the Yondaime and... Ah, shit, that stupid fox was dropping hints that time I 'visited' him at his cage. It wasn't a moment he wanted to remember—since Kyuubi had wanted to kill Sasuke—but—stupid fox. He finally relented, standing up and shucking off his shirt. Concentrating his chakra enough to make the seal appear, he waited.

The Yondaime dropped to his knees in front of Naruto, his fingers poking lightly at the marks. He closed his eyes, fingertips lightly glowing as his chakra penetrated deeper into the barrier of the seal.

Naruto stiffened as he felt the kyuubi's chakra flare at the invasion of its cell.

The Yondaime frowned and stood up after a few moments, brow furrowed. "Well, he's not the sole reason for this... but he's a part of it. I can feel the lingering jutsu all around his cage." He snorted. "Stupid fox," he muttered.

Naruto retrieved his shirt and watched him warily. "So, what next?" he asked. "I'm sure you want things to go back to normal as soon as possible."

He stared at the floor. Not really, Naruto thought, answering his own question. In all honesty, he could be happy here; he had everything he'd always wanted. But. "Actually, I'm sure the Naruto you know must be having it worse than me, in a world where his father is dead and he's alone." Naruto took a breath and smiled brightly, even though it hurt to do so. "And I'm sure you're anxious to get him back."

Sasuke and the Yondaime both looked startled at that, and Naruto stood up, keeping his smile pasted to his face. "We should figure out what happened as soon as possible," he said calmly, fingers wanting to clench, eyes smarting with suppressed tears. "I mean, he has to deal with bastard Sasuke and.... " He shrugged. "Like I said, you... you need your son back. I'm used to being alone. He isn't."

"Naruto," the Yondaime said, putting his hand on Naruto's shoulder. "I already told you. You're still you. The same soul means the same person."

Naruto shrugged his hand away, not wanting to get anymore attached to this person, this kind of life.

"You know, Naruto, I didn't think of it before but you...as in, the other part of you...used to have nightmares as a child. You dreamt about how I had died and you were alone. Do you think he might have been reaching out and glimpsing into your own world?"

Naruto gave him a bland look, shaking his head. "I'm sure everyone has dreams about that. With you being the Yondaime, I'm sure the fears were doubled." He wasn't going to give in, he couldn't give in. "I used to dream that I had a father and was loved." He crossed his arms over his chest. "Dreams aren't real, they can't become real." Except that they did. You have a father, you have Sasuke's love. "I don't even act like your son, you said."

"It's not that you don't act like him," the Yondaime said. "You're just a little more solemn than he is. But everything else is there. Last night at the dinner table, when we were all laughing, you were you then, Naruto."

Naruto shook his head. "I was just pretending."

Sasuke abruptly stood and stalked over to him, dark angry gaze startling Naruto. "Like hell you were. You were happy, Naruto. I know you too well."

"You don't know me at all!" Naruto countered, his own anger rising.

"How about before?" Sasuke asked, his arm gesturing to the bed. "Was that pretending too?"

Naruto's face flushed a dark red at that, ignoring the Yondaime's amused look. "That was real," he muttered. "But... I've... for a long time, I've loved Sasuke." His fingers fisted into the cloth of his pants. "He... well, we're friends. We understand each other; we've been there for each other...." His eyes stared at the floor. "I... I just want this to be real." His voice cracked. "It's like... having your dreams handed to you, but you don't know the price of them."

"It is real, Naruto. Look at me; I'm real, your father's real."

"But it's not real for me!" Naruto shouted, not having meant for the words to come out so loudly. He gestured wildly to the room. "This! This room, this house, this entire world, it isn't real for me."

Sasuke grabbed Naruto's shoulders and lightly shook him. "Look, moron, even though he's..." he gave the Yondaime an apologetic look "dead in your...world or whatever...if the whole same soul thing is true, then this place is as much a part of you as the one you've always known. You're not alone."

"Nobody wanted me alive," he hissed. "Don't you get it? Do you have any idea of how hard it is for me to grasp the fact that I have a father? It would be like... like someone coming up to you and going, 'I'm sorry, your family really wasn't killed, it was all a joke, haha.'" His eyes blurred with tears and he wished that his heart would stop hurting. "How can it be a part of me when I was never here?"

Sasuke's hands dropped from his shoulders and he stepped back, a harsh look in his eyes at the mention of his family. "I see," he said quietly.

Naruto regretted his words but he had to make Sasuke understand. "Look, we should try to figure out how to set things right again regardless of everything," he said, straightening his spine and trying to imagine himself on a mission. Stay objective, he thought, and everything will be fine.

The Yondaime was at a loss for how to deal with Naruto. He was still his son and everything that made him who he was, and it hurt to see him struggling like this, to be in so much pain that he couldn't even smile. "Naruto." He reached out for him, clasping one shoulder and giving a mental sigh of relief when Naruto didn't pull away this time.

"Let's try to sleep on all of this, hm? Maybe tomorrow things will be a little clearer for you and we can start to find out how to..." He didn't exactly want to say "fix things." He didn't want Naruto to feel any more alienated than he already did.

But Naruto understood what he was saying and nodded faintly. "Yeah. I think I just want to sleep." There's still that slim chance I may wake up in my own apartment.

The Yondaime gave him a measuring look. "I'm going to do some more research. In the meantime, I'm going to make sure no missions come either your or Sasuke's ways." At Naruto's protest, he held up a hand. "We can't predict this, and what would happen if whatever is going on here activated during a mission? There would be extreme confusion." He looked over at Sasuke. "Take care of him, would you?"

Sasuke nodded solemnly.

The Yondaime returned the nod, satisfied. "Well then, good-night, boys. Don't stay up too late." He gave them a wink before turning and shutting the door behind him.

Naruto looked over at Sasuke. "If you think I'm going to jump back in bed with you, you're...hey, what are you doing?" he asked, his voice rising in alarm.

Sasuke had stood and was now shrugging off his pants.

Naruto backed away, eyes wary. "Hey, it's like... I don't know... cheating on me or something." That sounded weird, even to his own ears and the look that Sasuke gave him helped confirm the thought.

Sasuke tugged at Naruto's pants next. Naruto yelped and jumped back, away from Sasuke's searching fingers.

"Look, if you're still you then I don't see what the problem is," Sasuke said, his voice impatient.

Naruto scowled at him. But hadn't he just been thinking the same thing before the Yondaime had burst into their room? This was still Sasuke, regardless of the differences that separated him from the Sasuke he was familiar with.

"Yeah.. well... but... I mean..." Naruto made a frustrated sound and ducked under Sasuke's arms, trying to stall him until he could actually justify himself. It wasn't that he didn't want it--he wanted it quite badly--but it was the fact that for some odd reason, it didn't seem fair. The Naruto that was supposed to be here was where he was supposed to be, and while it was nice that at least one version of himself had a happy life, it didn't seem quite fair to take that happiness for himself... even if it was himself...His head hurt.

"Naruto, stop thinking so much. We'll have enough shit to sort through tomorrow. For now," Sasuke said, finally managing to snake an arm around Naruto's waist before Naruto could dance out of reach, "just let it go."

Sasuke brought his lips down on the Naruto's neck, tongue sliding out to dampen the skin, sucking gently on the muscle there.

"Nnn...Sasuke," Naruto protested weakly. He found it was rather difficult to remain adamant about justification when Sasuke was so...persuasive.

He couldn't help picturing the Sasuke he knew with guarded black eyes spread out before him, calling him an idiot but his hand outstretched in invitation. The Yondaime's words still rang at the back of his head, but he stubbornly ignored them, afraid that if he thought too hard, everything would come crashing down on him.

It was Sasuke's voice, rough with emotion, Sasuke's hands moving over him...

He told himself that it was fair, that it was his world, too. Sasuke was with him; Sasuke was holding him. It didn't seem strange anymore, it felt so right that it almost hurt. He wanted to keep this and cherish this... and some part of his brain wondered if the other him had actually succeeded in jumping the Sasuke he knew, and what would happen if he did succeed.

That would mean, if...when he returned to his own world, Sasuke might actually look at him as more than just the friend to match skills with, the rival to overcome.

No, he thought. Even though the other Naruto was supposed to be him, he couldn't let him...himself, whatever, win over the other Sasuke too. It would be just like this, he thought, a little sadly, picking up where the other me had left off...

His lips curled into a slight smirk as he turned his mouth to the curve of Sasuke's neck, imagining what would happen when he went back if he decided to molest Sasuke like this one had tackled him. To have that surety of feeling, to know that it would be returned.

Afterwards, Ssuke led Naruto down the dark hallway to the bathroom, locking the door behind them just in case Naruto's father was still in the house and decided to take a bathroom break. Naruto turned the water on and stepped into the shower, Sasuke following.

Neither said much as they cleaned each other with gentle hands and stray kisses. Nothing really needed to be said.

Naruto wasn't sure how to react anymore, but he did know that it didn't do any harm to be with Sasuke. It actually healed something inside of him, a temporary kind of salve to soothe the worst of the hurts that had built up over the years.

After they were clean, Sasuke led the way back to Naruto's room. He didn't bother with the lights, leaving the room in that dim glow only moonlight could emit, as he shut the door after Naruto and climbed into the bed, pulling Naruto close.

"You ok?" he asked quietly, hands smoothing down Naruto's back to gently massage a firm backside.

Naruto smiled and pressed his face into Sasuke's shoulder. He stared into the shadows of the room, his mind turning over and examining that question. It wasn't a simple yes or no... and he somehow owed it to Sasuke to give an honest answer.

"I'm... better," he finally said. "But confused." He propped himself up enough to look down at Sasuke, blue eyes meeting black. "You... I've loved you for a long time, Sasuke, but the other you doesn't treat me that way. We've gone through a lot more... hurt, than you and the other me have, I think." His hands traced over Sasuke's face. "Shouldn't I feel guiltier?" he asked softly.

Sasuke's hands rose to cup Naruto's cheeks. Naruto made a small grunt of disgust. "You were just touching my butt," he muttered, shaking away Sasuke's hands.

Sasuke chuckled and held on tighter. "You're clean; stop acting like an idiot. And to be honest, Naruto, I'm not so sure about the whole different worlds thing because I just can't imagine you...not being the you I've always known." He shook his head, aware of how ridiculous he sounded and frowning briefly at Naruto for being the cause of his lack of proper articulation.

Naruto snorted. "Well, it's easier for me, because you sure as hell don't act like the Sasuke I've always known." He sighed and lay down again, resting his face in the crook of Sasuke's neck. "I think we have to talk to my... father... in the morning." It was hard for him to say it, because he'd never actually used the word in conjunction with himself before. "Maybe he figured something out."

"Maybe," Sasuke murmured. "I'm sorry you and this other me had so much more discord than you and I do, but if what your father says is true, then I'm still me and you're still you, which means...maybe if you try, he---er, I will open up to you too."

Naruto smiled at Sasuke's attempt at offering consolation. The Sasuke he knew would have probably choked on the word "sorry." But if Sasuke really was innately Sasuke, then it offered Naruto some hope. He smiled.

Sasuke hit him on the head lightly. "Now, stop being stupid and get some sleep." He yawned and pulled Naruto closer to him. "We'll probably have a lot to deal with tomorrow and it's been a long day already." He couldn't help but smirk. "And I'm sure you're tired from earlier."

On impulse, he opened his mouth to argue. But he closed it quickly. After a while, he had gotten tired of constantly arguing with Sasuke and begun wanting something more. Conflict had always been a part of their relationship and he admitted some amusement, even pleasure, in the abrasive remarks they often tossed at each other...but sometimes, like right then, their rivalry could be set aside for something more.