Dream Lover
As soon as the darkness faded and the sun rose, Sasuke packed his weapons and clothes back in his bag and got ready to leave the Village of Stone. Naruto knew he was there, so he had to find somewhere else to live for the time being. Where he would go, he wasn't sure, just as long as it was away from the boy.
Sasuke stumbled his was through the apartment and creaked open the door quietly. "Goodbye, 666," he muttered.
"See ya," replied a gruff voice behind Sasuke.
Sasuke turned his head and smiled. Haru was standing outside his bedroom, his red hair disheveled and his navy blue pajamas hanging loosely off his body. He saluted.
"Good luck, Uchiha."
Sasuke nodded and returned the informal salute before stepping over the threshold and closing the door to the apartment behind him, shielding Haru and his demonic room from his view. He crept through the building until he was outside of the glass double-doors and looked into the distance at the rising sun.
"Can't seem to get a break, can I?"
He ran down the silent and empty streets of the village and jumped over the large stone wall, landing on the other side as gracefully as a cat. By now, the fingers of dawn had reached out to the entire sky and light was spreading everywhere, waking up the sleeping world. Sasuke rubbed his tired eyes and began down the long dirt path away from the village.
The lone boy walked all day and it was after noon by the time he had found a place to rest at a small tea house on the side of the road. His neck was sunburned and red, his feet were killing him, his throat was dry, and his patience was waning.
Sasuke walked into the cool, refreshing shade of the tea house, with its' rustic, old-time décor and wide windows, and was met almost immediately by a hyper-active blonde-haired girl who couldn't have been more than twelve. Her pink kimono was stained with dirt and other stains and her sandals were nearly falling off her feet.
"Hiya! Welcome to my family's tea house! Enjoy your stay! Hey, you're cute, wanna go on a date?"
Sasuke was taken aback by how fast the girl said all this. "N-No thanks, I just want something to drink."
The girl bowed and dragged him to one of the small tables by a window. "Here ya go! I'll be right back!"
She ran off, her kimono flying every which way. Sasuke sighed, contented, and stared out the wood-paneled window. A small garden sat outside the tea house. The flowers were in full bloom, the water in the koi pond was gently splashing with every movement of the fish, and the lush plants hid the refuge from public view. Beyond the garden, maybe about five or six miles away from the tea house, Sasuke spotted a towering, red cliff.
"I'm…BACK!"
Sasuke jumped as the girl ran up to the table and slammed down a small cup of green tea, causing the hot liquid to pour all over the wooden table top. The girl grinned at him, obviously very pleased with herself.
"Thanks," Sasuke muttered, running his fingers in circles in the small pools of tea.
The girl nodded. "Yup! Hey…" She leaned closer to Sasuke and squinted. "My parents told me to look out for some guy with dark hair."
"Oh really?" Sasuke said mildly and lifted his cup of tea.
"Yeah…" The girl scratched her chin. "Some guy came here just a few hours ago and said to tell some dark-haired guy that if he didn't say he loved him, he'd go and jump off the cliff a little ways from here." She looked at the ceiling. "His name was…what was it? Naku…Naru-"
The cup tumbled out of Sasuke's hands and the rest of tea sloshed onto the tatami mats on the floor. "Naruto!"
The girl's eyes widened and she snapped her fingers. "Yeah, that was his name!"
Sasuke quickly stood up and grabbed her by her shoulders. "He-He's going to commit suicide? On that cliff? Over there?"
The smile dissolved off the girl's face and was replaced by a look of nervousness. "Uh…yeah," she said timidly. "Can you please let me go?"
Sasuke shoved the girl away and pulled his hair. "Goddamn that idiot!"
He grabbed his bag and ran out of the tea house, leaving the girl at the wet table. She sighed and shook her head.
"There goes another free-loader. Oka-san is gonna have my pigtails for this."
Sasuke ran down the road, ignoring his tired body's pleas for rest and relaxation. He didn't love Naruto, but he sure as hell wouldn't let one of his teammates die because of such a stupid reason. As Shikamaru would've said, how goddamn troublesome.
Down the road Sasuke ran, never stopping even when the stitch in his side was searing with pain. Within half an hour, he was jumping up the steep red cliff, not slipping or tripping once on the loose rocks. His hands became blistered and his throat was parched, but he didn't care: Naruto was what mattered most at the moment.
Panting, Sasuke jumped up to the top of the cliff. The view was breathtaking: the roads below wound around the area like big brown snakes, the trees rustled in the breeze, and it seemed as though you could touch the sky. Standing ten feet from Sasuke, at the other edge of the cliff, was the back of the other boy.
"So you came, huh?" Naruto mumbled, looking off into the distance.
Sasuke growled and clenched his fists. "What is your fucking problem? Stop being such a drama queen and go back to Konoha!"
Naruto glanced over his shoulder. "I thought that when someone asked you to marry them, they loved you."
Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Dobe, I was drunk, alright?"
Naruto shook his head. "That didn't matter. It just felt so good to be loved."
Sasuke took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. "Look, Naruto, just-"
"Hey Sasuke…" Naruto looked over the edge of the cliff. "What would you do if I jumped?"
"What would I…wait, what?"
Naruto leaned over farther until his toes were just barely on the edge. "You wouldn't care, huh? You'd be happy if I died, right?"
Sasuke grimaced. What was this guy thinking? Though Sasuke didn't like to admit it, Naruto was strong both physically and emotionally, and it seemed so unlike him to just want to throw his life away over something so trivial. Damn, was love really all that complex?
Sasuke took a step towards Naruto. "Naruto, I'm not going to let you kill yourself, so just stop, okay?"
Naruto faced Sasuke once again with a small smile on his face. "Goodbye, Sasuke. The feeling you gave me was nice while it lasted."
Naruto crouched down and prepared to jump. Sasuke yelled, ran to Naruto, and caught him around the waist, teetering a mile above the ground. The boy squirmed and kicked, but Sasuke tightened his grip, not daring to let go even for a second.
"Sasuke!" Naruto screamed, digging his nails into his arms. "Let…me…go!"
"N-No!" Sasuke gasped. "I don't want to be responsible for the death of someone I care about!"
Naruto's mouth hung loose and he stopped struggling. Before he could start squirming again, Sasuke stepped backward away from the edge of the cliff with Naruto still clamped tightly in his arms. He set Naruto down and shook him by the shoulders, gasping for breath.
"N-Naruto! God damn, you almost killed yourself!"
Naruto didn't seem to be paying attention to what he was saying. He was staring at Sasuke straight in the eye with a glazed-over look. Sasuke frowned, angry, and slammed Naruto down on the hard, rocky surface. So this was a pretty suggestive position to be in, but it was the best way to get Naruto's attention.
Sasuke closed his eyes and sighed. "Naruto," he whispered. "You had me really worried."
He looked down at the boy lying under him and, to his horror, felt himself blush. Shit, why did he have to be so…cute, with those wide blue eyes staring up at him in surprise, the thin little whisker-marks on his cheeks, the tussled sunshine-blonde hair flying in the breeze…
"Sasuke," Naruto muttered, smirking. "You're blushing."
Sasuke turned even redder and pushed himself off of Naruto. "No I'm not!"
Naruto laughed. "Haha, Sasuke-teme! You're getting a crush on me!"
Sasuke made a vomiting gesture. It was good to see Naruto back in his childish mood, but all the same, it was annoying. Jeeze, he was such an idiot.
"Naruto, shut up."
"Whatever you say, honey."
As hard as it was, Sasuke ignored the nickname and held his hand to Naruto. "I'm tired. Let's go back to Konoha."
Naruto stared at out held hand "You-you wanna go back home…with me?"
Sasuke gritted his teeth. "Hurry up before I change my mind."
Naruto quickly grabbed his hand and was lifted off the ground. The two boys simply stared at one another, their hands still clasped, as though they had a silent understanding. Sasuke realized that they were still holding hands and immediately let go.
"Come on, Dobe, we'll find a place to get some ramen. My treat."
Naruto jumped three times. "Yay! The thing I love most: free ramen! Well, besides you, of course."
"You're pushing it, Naruto," Sasuke muttered. "Shut up or you really will be flying off the edge of the cliff."
