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

Chapter 12

Naruto shifted nervously on his feet as he waited in the training yard for his father to arrive. They wouldn't have a great deal of time, and there were other matters for the Yondaime to attend to before this, but Naruto was still a little antsy. This was his only chance to train, not just with the legendary Yondaime but with his father.

Sasuke sat with his back to a tree several yards behind where Naruto was standing, tapping his forefinger against his thigh absently. He glanced toward the Hokage tower, squinting as if imagining he could see the blond blur of the Yondaime making his way towards them.

"Hey boys!"

The Yondaime suddenly appeared before Naruto. Sasuke just caught himself from startling. It was unnerving how fast Naruto's father was. Even with Kyuubi's enhanced abilities, he wasn't sure Naruto would be able to keep up.

Naruto's eyes widened in brief shock. "Whoa, Ero-Sennin wasn't lying when he said you were fast." His gaze was nothing but pure admiration. "That's really awesome."

The Yondaime grinned widely at that, puffing up over the praise. Everyone knew how fast he was, and as disturbing as it was to have the observation and compliment come from his son, it was nice to hear.

"Konoha's Yellow Flash is what everyone called him before he became Hokage," Sasuke said, the amusement in his voice carrying over to the two blonds.

The Hokage shrugged, not at all embarrassed by the nickname. "Well then, let's see what you've got."

Naruto nodded and took several steps back, fists clenching and unclenching.

His father's grin had faded and suddenly, the man before him was no longer the cheerful, spirited Hokage, but a very dangerous opponent.

Sasuke didn't know the full extent of the Yondaime's strength but the man was Hokage for a reason and, judging by the demonstration that Naruto had given the other night, the younger man could be almost as dangerous. He positioned himself far enough away where he wouldn't be in the way.

Naruto's own smile faded as he faced his father. "What do you want me to start off with?" he asked calmly. "Or is this an actual spar?"

The Yondaime's blank expression was both inscrutable and daunting. "Come at me with what you think is most effective," he said, wondering what Naruto would do.

Naruto shrugged. "Okay." He formed a seal, muttered his jutsu, and six Naruto's appeared beside him. Chakra flared around all the clones, their eyes glowing red.

Off in the trees, Sasuke activated his sharingan so he could keep track of the real Naruto.

The Yondaime smiled faintly, not quite as caught off guard as he would have thought by the fact that his son could do Kage Bunshin and implement the Kyuubi's chakra in each one of them.

"Not bad," he murmured. "Now what are you going to do with them? Especially since you are down one already." While he was speaking he had already moved and destroyed one of the clones.

Naruto growled at the speed at which his father moved and immediately leapt into action. Three Narutos charged the Yondaime.

The older man crossed his arms to block an aerial attack, rolling his shoulder forward and knocking the clone aside with his elbow, before turning smoothly to fend off the next attack. He dropped to the ground, foot striking out to slam into the stomach of another clone, which disappeared with a soft poof.

Sasuke watched in amazement as a hand reached out of the earth, latched onto the Yondaime's ankle and yanked the older man down.

Naruto was obviously surprised as well--that was the move that Kakashi had pulled on Sasuke when they were first genin. He hadn't thought it was possible that the Yondaime would fall for something like that.

When the log appeared buried in the dirt instead of the Yondaime, Naruto knew it had been too easy.

A blond blur whizzed past another Naruto, metal flashing, and the clone disappeared with another soft poof.

Sasuke smirked as he realized the real Naruto wasn't even fighting. He was hiding somewhere as his remaining clones fought his father.

The Yondaime blurred past another clone, but as this one disappeared with another poof, another Naruto flashed from the other side, a shimmering ball of chakra cupped in his hand.

Sasuke's eyes widened. He was using rasengan on his father?

Naruto took a deep breath and kept the rasengan on the lowest level. Using it against someone he cared about brought back some painful memories, but he pushed them to the back of his mind so they wouldn't distract him.

Besides, he thought reasonably, this was the Yondaime. It wasn't likely Naruto was about to defeat him with his own technique. And, naturally, he was right.

The two blond blurs whirled around each other as the Yondaime sidestepped Naruto, his hand lightly clasping Naruto's wrist in his own chakra so Naruto couldn't pull away, and guided the hand forward toward empty space. His rasengan spiraled forward, blasting into the trunk of a tree and plowing clear through the bark.

Sasuke jumped to a higher branch, scowling down at the both of them. "Try not to destroy the forest," he shouted.

Naruto made a face up at him. "Ah, you're just touchy because I almost took down the tree you're perched in." His smile was almost feral. "Scared, Uchiha?"

"You wish, Uzumaki." And then, sounding much more smug, he said, "I'm not the one about to get my ass kicked."

Naruto ducked, dodging his father's fist and then gasped when something smashed into his back, knocking him forward. He rolled and blinked when he was suddenly being held down by two pairs of arms. He looked up at the two Yondaime's restraining him.

"You seem to think you're the only one who knows Kage Bunshin," one of his father's clones said.

A poof of smoke surrounded Naruto and the Yondaime was left holding a log. Naruto smirked at him from several feet away. "And it's not the only trick I know."

His clone disappeared as the Yondaime narrowed his eyes. Mist curled around his feet and rose into the darkening sky. "Ah," he said softly, "clever, Naruto. I need to see where I'm going in order to use my speed."

He felt chakra pulse behind him and he turned, blocking a punch before Naruto abruptly disappeared back into the mist, which was now so thick he could barely see a foot in front of him.

Naruto snickered and pondered his next move. It wasn't terribly effective anymore to most of the adults in Konoha, and one that he hadn't used in years, but... he whispered his own, modified jutsu and popped up in front of his father.

The Yondaime frowned as the mist began to clear and he blinked at what appeared before him.

Naruto's lips twitched madly as he suppressed the urge to fall over laughing. His father's eyes had widened momentarily before twisting into the most peculiar expression Naruto had ever seen him don. He looked like he was going to be sick.

"NARUTO!" he bellowed. He turned green and abruptly spun on his heel. "You're my son! Change back right now!"

Naruto gave in and fell over, feminine giggles filling the air and horrifying his father further.

Sasuke dropped from his perch and stalked over to Naruto, prepared to smack the idiot upside the head.

"You--what the hell are you doing, Naruto?" he demanded. "This is supposed to be a serious fight." Sasuke shook his head and closed his eyes in disgust.

Naruto made a face and released the jutsu. "Hey, it worked, didn't it?" he asked crossly.

Sasuke crossed his arms as Naruto jumped back to his feet, a last chuckle escaping him when his father sneaked a glance back to make sure his son was a man again. The Yondaime straightened, trying hard to look stern, but failing miserably.

Naruto smirked. "Not bad, eh?" He grinned widely. "Effective, isn't it?"

Sasuke groaned and covered his face with his hand, unable to believe that the idiot had used his sexy no jutsu on his father.

"That was the last thing I expected," the Yondaime said, sounding a little hoarse. The shock of seeing his son as a naked woman was slow to wear off.

Naruto snickered and grinned. "Expect the unexpected!" he said with a grin. "Even Ero-sennin was impressed."

His father rolled his eyes. "I can just imagine."

"Hey!" Naruto shouted, excited now that he had gotten the better of his father, even if it was with a rather ridiculous jutsu. "Want me to summon Gamabunta?"

The Yondaime gave him a strained smile. Naruto had mentioned being able to summon the frog boss the other day, but the Yondaime had no desire to see his son prove it if it meant having to face Gamabunta's ire. "Shouldn't you know by now he doesn't like being summoned pointlessly?"

Naruto's shoulders sagged. "Well, yeah, but...oh fine."

The Yondaime crossed his arms over his chest. "How would you like to learn something that I've never taught anyone before?"

Naruto's eyes lit up. "Seriously?!"

The Yondaime smiled tenderly at Naruto, who sounded like he was a boy again. "Yep. It's the technique that got me my nickname."

"This should be interesting," Sasuke said.

"Don't even think about copying it, Uchiha!" Naruto cried petulantly, glaring at Sasuke.

Sasuke gave him a flat look. "Copying a technique of the Hokage's level would take more than just my sharingan, moron."

Naruto stuck his tongue out at Sasuke. "Hmph," he muttered, realizing how childish he sounded. His eyes went back to his father. "You think I can do this?" he asked. "Really?"

His father smiled encouragingly. "If you can master the highest level of rasengan, I have little doubt you could probably pick this up with practice."

Naruto, ignoring Sasuke's presence, returned the smile. If his father believed he could do it, then he could.

The Yondaime ruffled his hair again. "Of course, Naruto. I can't hang around all day so I'll just show you the basics and," he winked, "then I'll leave you to practice it."

Naruto nodded, not at all opposed to the idea of having to master it alone, as he had done all his high-level jutsus.

His father pulled out a peculiar looking kunai, different from the ones Naruto carried in his weapons holster. As his father demonstrated how to begin the technique, Naruto took in everything with interest, eyes that intense shade of blue as he processed the seals that would create a marker or seal of sorts that would be combined with his unique chakra signature.

Naruto tried to do it, practicing under the experienced eye of his father, but something was missing.

After a good hour, the Yondaime stood from where he'd settled himself to observe his son's progress. The younger man had successfully created the marker that would be used in combination with the body flicker technique. Unfortunately, Naruto had never been any good at that particular basic technique. He smiled at Naruto's attempts. "Keep practicing."

"Let me just make sure I'm doing this right again. So," Naruto said, face screwed up in concentration to form his chakra properly. "This marker has my chakra signature on it and the seals I have to perform to make it work...uh...allows me to, in essence, summon myself to its location?"

The Yondaime tilted his head thoughtfully. "That's one way to say it."

Naruto smirked. "Oi, Sasuke! Get over here; I want to see if I can make this work properly." He brushed sweat soaked bangs out of his eyes and unaware of how he looked to Sasuke. "Let me stick something to you so I can get to you faster."

Sasuke gave Naruo a bemused expression. "If you ask nicely, I'll let you stick--"

"Hey! Not while I'm in earshot!" the Yondaime protested loudly.

Sasuke smirked. "I was kidding."

Naruto grinned up at his father. "But you encourage us so nicely," he said innocently, before turning back to Sasuke. "And I'm talking about my chakra marker. It might be easier to hone in on it if it's stuck on something larger than a kunai."

Sasuke gave him a look that made Naruto roll his eyes. "As if I'd let you anywhere near me with uncertain chakra. Look what happened to you because of uncontrolled chakra and a jutsu improperly performed."

Naruto stiffened at that, turning his back on Sasuke and looking back to his father. "Can I just stick it to you?"

The Yondaime laughed. "I wouldn't mind except I have to get going."

Naruto wrinkled his nose and turned to Sasuke again. Before he could open his mouth, Sasuke firmly said, "Forget it."

"Ugh! Help me out here, will you?" He scowled and then tackled Sasuke to the ground, chakra flaring unseen for a moment. "You just don't want me all over you with my father watching."

He got up as Sasuke gave him an outraged look for that remark. The Yondaime had spotted the whole thing and waited to see if Naruto could pull it off.

Sasuke stood, brushing himself off. Naruto smirked as Sasuke failed to sense the lingering chakra on him. It was rather weak, of course, but at least it was something. As Sasuke stalked off, Naruto formed a seal and closed his eyes.

Nothing happened.

Naruto growled and the intense need to be there and knock that stubborn idiot's face into the ground overwhelmed him and he felt something spark along his senses.

He felt a strange pull, a gust of wind and he opened his eyes, disoriented and fearing for half a second that he had switched worlds again. But he was still staring at Sasuke's retreating back. Only... he looked back at his father who was suddenly standing farther away than he had before and was looking at him with eyebrows raised and a small smile.

"Did I...?"

The Yondaime's mouth twitched with the hint of a smile. "Well, you're getting there." He said, eyes brightening. "But the key is to get to the enemy's side, not where you tackled him in the grass."

Naruto didn't care though that he had only moved a few feet. He jumped and pumped his fist into the air, shouting and whooping at his progress.

Sasuke turned to glare at him. "Has your brain finally broken from over-exertion?" he asked, leaning on his left foot and crossing his arms.

Naruto smirked at Sasuke. "Heh! You didn't see me, Sasuke! I got halfway!" He swayed on his feet and then crashed into the ground, fast asleep.

Sasuke blinked, startled by the sudden collapse. He quickly dropped to Naruto's side, nudging him gently.

"Oh, he'll be alright. Just over-exhausting his chakra, I think," the Yondaime said, leaning over the two men. He smiled endearingly down at his son. "Naruto."

Naruto, however, was out cold.

The Yondaime sighed. "Tell him I had to get back, ok?"

Sasuke nodded as he worked his arm under Naruto's neck. "And tell him I'm very impressed with his abilities."

Sasuke's smile softened at that, lifting Naruto into his arms. "I think he'll be glad to hear that." He sounded vaguely amused. "It's like he doesn't get enough of that."

"I don't think he does," the Yondaime said. "And don't forget about patrol duty today." He grinned as Sasuke's expression turned flat with distaste. Then he gave his son a last fond look before turning and disappearing in a blond whirl.

Sasuke lifted Naruto in his arms and gave the dozing man an exasperated look.

"Overworking yourself as usual, idiot," he muttered, not wanting to carry Naruto all the way to the house. He finally settled against one of the trees, his eyes already half-shut. "Just don't do it too often."

Letting Naruto's head fall onto his shoulder, he closed his own eyes. He had slept little the night before, but not for lack of comfort. Having Naruto beside was usually enough to lull him to sleep, but he had continued to mull over their argument and his mind, which had refused to relax, had kept him awake for hours.

Naruto pulled him closer in sleep, face relaxing. "Don't go, Sasuke," he murmured. "...don't want Sasuke to go."

Sasuke turned to look down at him, a rare tender smile curling his lips. He touched Naruto's face. "Don't worry, Naruto. I'm not going anywhere." And it was true. Here or Naruto's real world, he knew that he would always be there. If the other him had returned from being a missing nin for Naruto, which was what Sasuke suspected, then there was little chance he'd be running off again any time soon.

Naruto's face scrunched up at that and he snuggled closer to Sasuke. "Stay," he repeated softly, rubbing his face into Sasuke's chest.

Sasuke stroked his whiskered cheek reassuringly and wrapped his arm tighter around Naruto. "Rest, Naruto. I'll still be here when you wake up."

"You better," Naruto mumbled before letting out a soft snore, indicating he was deep asleep again.

Sasuke rolled his eyes, somewhat amazed that he had fallen for such an idiot. "I will, Naruto," he murmured, even though Naruto couldn't hear him anymore. "I promise."

Sasuke ran his hand absently through Naruto's hair as he closed his eyes and felt completely at ease for the first time that day. He had decided to liken Naruto's switching worlds to merely switching personalities. Even if this Naruto was from a whole different parallel universe, to Sasuke, it simply appeared as if Naruto had dual personalities. And in the end, he still believed that deep inside, Naruto was still Naruto.

With another tired smile, he slumped against Naruto and relaxed into sleep. Patrol could wait at least another hour or so.

***

Naruto was grumbling about being awoken for something that would just put him to sleep again anyway as he and Sasuke walked along the outer wall of the village.

"I can't believe my father gave us patrol duty," Naruto muttered, rubbing his eyes.

Sasuke crossed his arms as they stopped to scan the forest beyond the walls of the city. "It was either this or a list of d-rank missions, remember? I'd rather do this than walk someone's dog."

Naruto snorted. "Or weed someone's garden or haul in fish." He shuddered as he remembered the list of genin missions he'd been given when he was younger. "Although I suppose it's better than being at war," he said softly, eyes trained out to the forest. "Peacetime isn't very exciting, but at least people are safer."

Sasuke nodded in silent agreement. "Let's move on," he said.

They continued on, passing over the west gates and the jounin posted there. It was boring and hard to stay focused at times, but Naruto let his eyes watch while his mind wondered about the jutsu. In only one more day, he wouldn't have a father again, but his other self would have his back. In another day, Sasuke might not want to be close to him, people would hate him again. He swallowed harshly and tried to block the thoughts.

"What's on your mind?" Sasuke asked, catching the fleeting look on Naruto's face.

Naruto shook his head, indicating it was nothing important. Sasuke, of course, knew better and reached out to touch Naruto's arm. They stopped, facing out towards the forest again.

"Are you going to tell me or do I have to beat it out of you?"

Naruto gave Sasuke a look that said, 'I'd like to see you try.'

Sasuke smirked at that. "I suppose dumping the unconscious body of a Konoha ninja would be a rather bad example of how we appreciate our shinobi, so I'll wait until we're off duty."

Naruto snorted. "Like you ever could." He raised an eyebrow at Sasuke before returning his eyes back to the empty forest. A faint smile touched his lips when he saw a group of genin on the outskirts of it, recalling one of the first happy moments in his life. "I was just thinking about how we're going to perform the jutsu." Not quite a lie, but not the entire truth, either.

"I'll practice it after we finish here," Sasuke said. "I won't send you off into a whole different world, Naruto. Or at least, I'll try not to."

Naruto snorted in laughter and bumped his shoulder against Sasuke's. "Thanks, I appreciate it."

"Will you be ok?"

Naruto angled a curious look at his companion, lifting a pale eyebrow at the concern in Sasuke's dark eyes, although Sasuke wasn't looking at him.

"I'll be fine," he said. "I think you're the one that's going to have to take time to recover. I mean, my other self had to deal with the bastard version of you for almost a week now. I'm sure he's going to try and make up for it." Naruto smirked. "I think you're going to have to bottom for a while."

Sasuke might have laughed if he was of the sort to do such things. Instead he smirked and said, "He'll just need reminding that your Sasuke's type of aggression can be channeled into more productive activities—which I'll, of course, show him."

Naruto, who was of the sort, pushed Sasuke playfully and burst out laughing. "I should try saying that to Sasuke. See how he takes it."

"I think the other you tried it already and Sasuke nearly put him through a wall 'cause he didn't know what was going on."

Naruto's eyes were bright with laughter. "A flustered Sasuke isn't a happy Sasuke. A Sasuke being touched is even less happy." His smile never faltered, and only because Sasuke knew Naruto so well was he able to distinguish the change in mood. "I'll have to see if that changes after I get back."

"You kissed and that was something you never thought would happen so give him... me...a little more credit, hm?" Sasuke said, gaze briefly flickering from the trees to Naruto.

Naruto shrugged. "It'll take some time, I think, but I have hopes that things will be ok." His wide grin faded into a small but genuine one. Sasuke had said he wouldn't hesitate anymore—deliberate and act.

He wasn't sure if Sasuke would still want him, but if he did, Naruto knew that he wouldn't have to wait long to find out. At the very least, Sasuke would still be his friend. He would always be there for Naruto.

"Hey, what do you think of the idea of me becoming Hokage?" he asked, changing the subject.

"You seriously want my opinion?" Sasuke asked, amused. Naruto had always made boasts about becoming Hokage one day but he'd never asked anyone's thoughts on it other than his father. Knowing Sasuke's tendency to provoke Naruto into anger, it surprised him now that Naruto would ask.

But, he thought reluctantly, Naruto really did look rather earnest so he considered setting aside the snide remarks for an honest answer.

Naruto frowned at him, gaze flicking towards him for a brief moment. "Yeah, I do," he said shortly, "If you're not inclined to give it, don't strain yourself." His mouth was drawn into an unhappy, tense line.

"Naruto, I think you need to stop boasting about how strong you are," Sasuke said flatly. Naruto looked like he was about to argue, but he cut Naruto off. "I'm not saying that because you aren't strong. I say it because you are and you don't need to keep shouting it into people's faces. That just annoys them and reminds them of the brat you used to be. If you stopped trying to announce it to the world then the villagers might actually stop long enough to realize that you've grown up."

Naruto opened his mouth, thought better of it, and smiled. "I actually don't do that as much as you think I do." His gaze was far away as he laced his hands together and leaned on the wall. "What else?" he asked softly. "Don't just look at who my father is. That won't matter when I go back. I want to protect everyone, Sasuke. That's the most important thing about becoming the Hokage. Realizing that everyone in the village is equally important and all looking to you."

"But you can't force them to look at you. Just keep doing what you need to do and those who are ready will see who you've become."

Naruto gave him a sidelong glance and said, "I never knew you were so full of wisdom, Sasuke." His lips twitched.

Sasuke gave him an exasperated look. "You asked my opinion, idiot. If you aren't going to take me seriously, then--"

"Okay, okay, sorry. Go on."

Sasuke sighed and shook his head. "Idiot," he muttered again, running a hand through his hair, making the spiky locks a little more mussed. "What did I tell you at the start? You're supposed to be subtle, not obvious. I'm sure the people that know you are aware of your dream."

"Of course they are. I told everyone who would listen when I was younger," Naruto said with a small smile.

"Yes, but they'll actually believe it," Sasuke clarified.

"Do you believe it?" Naruto asked quietly.

Sasuke paused, weighing his words carefully. "Let's just say...if you become Hokage someday, as a shinobi of Konoha, I'll be the first to pledge my loyalty to you."

Naruto turned to him and Sasuke pointedly ignored those wide blue eyes.

Naruto swallowed and reined in his emotions, keeping his face impassive, but there was a small smile on his lips as he looked out to the surrounding area again. "When I do become Hokage, I want your face to be the first one I see in the crowd of anbu."

Sasuke's silence was enough acknowledgment and Naruto sighed, content.

"You think it'll be long before they promote me?" Sasuke asked after a long silence.

"I like to think we'll both become anbu together," he said, still smiling.

"I've always wondered why their vests are white. It might be a higher rank but green is more practical," Sasuke said thoughtfully.

Naruto gave him a funny look. "Are you trying to sound gay?"

Sasuke sent him an exasperated glare. "I meant that white is such a conspicuous color. Idiot."

"It's so you know that you've completed the mission," Naruto said, deadpan. "Red on white, you know?" He sighed and shook his head. "Idiot. And you think that robes are any more practical for a Hokage? They'd get in the way and what have you. It's just a symbol of rank. A sign that you've aspired to something higher."

Sasuke didn't reply, merely sending Naruto a glare to let him know what he thought of the little explanation.

"Besides, even if it is conspicuous, an anbu will be able to remain hidden regardless."

"Abilities are enough to determine rank," Sasuke finally said, apparently still stuck on Naruto's previous comments.

Naruto rolled his eyes. "I'm not going to get into an argument with you over the clothes we wear, Sasuke."

"Considering you had no taste at all as a genin, I hardly think your opinion on clothing is a good one to go by," Sasuke said, eyes vaguely amused.

"But my father wore orange when he was a kid, too!" Naruto protested, expression indignant. "There's nothing wrong with it."

Sasuke stared at him in bewilderment for a moment. "How did you know that, Naruto?"