Disclaimer: Naruto and all its characters are the properties of Masashi Kishimoto. No profit is made off of this fan-fiction story. Any additional original characters located in this story are designated at such and belong to the author, Jae (Dirtyangel).

A/N: I fell into an abyss of things... However, thankfully, I have notes (and a pretty strict personal timeline).

So, onward!

—.&.&.—

XIII.

What's Needed

It was mid-morning and the street they walked along was already bustling with people. By comparison, it was nothing like the big city he'd once visited with his father; but Kanaye had determined it was busy enough.

His eyes wandered from the people around him to the tall, imposing figure that walked a few steps ahead. Since his appearance that morning, Uchiha-san hadn't spoken a word to him. It was weird and more than a little uncomfortable to be around someone so standoffish, yet his father insisted that Uchiha-san was a good person. Kanaye supposed he'd have to be satisfied with that, even if his instincts told him to stay far away from someone like him.

He pulled his gaze from Uchiha-san's back to peer over at his father. The older blond walked alongside him—also watching Uchiha-san's back. A strange expression contorted his face. His brows were wrinkled by an intense stare and his mouth was set in a grim line. Kanaye didn't like it; though, what could he do? A lot of things were happening that he didn't like, but all the adults were doing as they pleased—like always. At least his father wasn't sending him away. That would've been something Kanaye hated. No matter what his father said, he couldn't understand why the man thought it was for the best.

Thinking about it, it was clear that something big was happening as a result of them coming to Konoha. He wasn't sure if it was really something bad, but Kanaye knew it wasn't anything good. And if it wasn't anything good, why would his father not want him around to help? The older blond often told him to never be afraid to help others, or even ask for help himself. So, why wasn't his father taking his own advice?

Besides, he was curious about his father being a ninja. Before coming here, all Kanaye knew about the ninja was that they were strange fighters that lived in mysterious villages. He'd never seen one in person or heard much about them back home. It was only until he and his father began visiting larger cities and towns that he heard more mention of them in passing conversations, or in the games some of the older kids played.

What he hadn't expected was for those "mysterious villages" to be so normal looking; and he definitely hadn't expected there to be ninja like Sakura-oneesan. She seemed more like a doctor than anything else.

Suddenly, Uchiha-san stopped walking and turned around—which made Kanaye flinch.

He couldn't have heard his thoughts, could he?

"We're going to be hitting up the market district soon, so it'd be faster traveling the rest of the way by rooftop. You think you can handle that with the kid?"

Uchiha-san still wouldn't look at him.

"I'm not that out of practice, you know," Kanaye's father replied. His expression wasn't grim anymore, but it remained strange.

The other man responded with a noncommittal sound before he motioned for them to follow him into a wide alleyway off the main avenue. A guiding hand was placed on Kanaye's shoulder as his father shifted him in that direction.

"Are you opposed to me using a clone? I can split the carrying weight and secure Kanaye better that way."

"That's fine, but the one carrying the kid keeps pace with me at all times."

Their interaction was making Kanaye feel awkward. It was obvious that Uchiha-san didn't like them, and his father's tone kept wavering between tired and annoyed. He just didn't get why they even had to go through this.

"Where are you taking us?" Kanaye blurted out. His voice seemed to jar both adults out of their weird stare down.

For the first time that day, Uchiha-san's dark eyes settled on him.

He felt himself tense up under the scrutiny. The older man's irises were so deeply colored that his pupils appeared nonexistent; it was intimidating.

Kanaye swallowed nervously.

Uchiha-san's cold expression made him feel like the smallest thing in the world—like he was just an ant about to be stepped on by an uncaring passerby.

"Someplace that's not an inn."

His response sounded bored, and when his gaze shifted away, it was as if Kanaye's presence was no longer important to him. This had Kanaye gritting his teeth in anger. The longer he spent time around Uchiha-san, the more he disliked him.

"Do me a favor and save the dickish behavior for just me, Sasuke. You don't need to be an asshole to my son," his father said sternly.

Uchiha-san's icy glare shot daggers at the other man.

"You're hardly in any position to be telling me what to do, Uzumaki. So, get over it and let's get going."

Kanaye's father looked as if he wanted to respond with his own mean remark, but instead, he pursed his lips into a thin line. Again, a familiar look of frustration was on his face. Anger welled up in Kanaye's chest like boiling water. It wasn't fair for Uchiha-san to be a big jerk like this!

"You're jus—"

"Not now, Kanaye," his father said, cutting him off mid-shout.

Teeming with anger, Kanaye turned to him to ask 'why.' However, the moment he saw the look in the older blond's eyes, he felt himself falter. Aggravation washed over him as he wrestled with the urge to continue shouting and not wanting to be the added cause of his father's ire. In the end, he resolved himself to turning away from them in a big huff.

Behind him, his father sighed and shifted around. Though, Kanaye stubbornly ignored this as he waited for them to do whatever it was that they were going to do.

A minute later, someone was tapping him on the shoulder.

Glancing up, he found his father standing over him with an outstretched hand, and a few steps behind him, was an identical version of the man. This new person's only differing feature was the pack his father had been wearing.

Kanaye's mouth fell open in surprise.

"C'mon, I'll explain later. Pass me your pack and hop on," the version closest to him said, kneeling down and presenting his back.

Kanaye could do nothing but comply in an awed stupor.

His father—or maybe this was the clone he'd mentioned—stood up smoothly while offering the bag to his other self. Once they were certain that Kanaye was holding on tightly, both men turned to Uchiha-san in unison.

"Ready when you are."

The combined sound of their voices was the strangest thing Kanaye had ever experienced.

It seemed their confirmation was all Uchiha-san needed before he leapt up and disappeared onto the roof of one of the buildings. Kanaye's awe grew further as he saw this; however, he had no time to process what happened when he felt the jostling motion of his father vaulting upward. As quickly as they'd moved, a steady stream of air was already rushing past his face. He hung on tighter, suddenly reminded of how they'd raced through the treetops that first day when they'd tried to leave Konoha.

It made him wonder if this was one of the things you could do as a ninja—run so fast in high places that it almost felt like you were flying.

He kept his eyes firmly shut before finally deciding to brave the rush of the wind. Cautiously, he peeked over the length of his arm.

It was…amazing!

He'd already seen views of Konoha's skyline from their inn room and once from Sakura-oneesan's office. But there was something indescribably cool about seeing it like this. There were so many buildings and trees. It really did feel like he was flying.

A flutter of black hair on the edge of his vision caught his attention, and he found himself looking over at Uchiha-san. With the wind sweeping the older man's hair away from his face, Kanaye could see how feminine Uchiha-san kind of looked. The longer he stared, the more he pondered about what the man would look like if he didn't scowl all the time. If he wore a lady's kimono, he could definitely be mistaken for a woman.

Well, maybe a broad-shouldered woman.

The idea of Uchiha-san wearing a woman's kimono like the innkeeper's wife made Kanaye snicker. Considering the type of personality Uchiha-san had, that would be the funniest thing to see.

Further images of Uchiha-san in all kinds of dresses and too much makeup had Kanaye laughing hysterically. Even when the man glanced over at him with a skeptical look, Kanaye couldn't stop. After some time, he buried his face into the mess of his father's hair, so he couldn't look at Uchiha-san anymore.

"Apparently, your son shares the same penchant for simpleness that you had," came Uchiha-san's deep voice over the wind.

"Tch. Whatever, teme. You're just jealous that at least one of us can get some joy out of today."

A satisfied grin on his face, Kanaye hugged his father closer.

—.o.—

Naruto didn't know what exactly he was expecting when they finally reached the Uchiha compound. An odd sort of reverence came over him once they'd left the side streets of an old residential neighborhood and stepped onto the boundaries of the property. The exterior walls were vine-ridden and grimy from years of neglect, and the shingles of the awnings were in various forms of disrepair. The doors of the compound entrance were stalwart and solid, however. The impressive display of the Uchiha family crest on their aged panels must have been what contributed to his mood.

This was the first time he'd ever set foot on these grounds. Even before, after having known Sasuke most of his life, the other man had never once entertained the thought of coming here. Admittedly, Naruto had assumed that it had been hidden away and buried within the annals of time—like a lot of unspoken things in Konoha. But here it stood, resilient.

Despite this initial feeling of wonder, Sasuke had brusquely led them through the grounds to a small, plain house not far from the large courtyard at the center of the compound. Unlike a lot of the boarded-up buildings they'd passed, this dwelling had a single level and was in an overall better state. It could've even been considered homey at some point.

Sasuke made quick work of showing them around.

"You two will be in here," he said, sliding the door open to a small room with nothing more than a folded futon, blankets, and a few pillows.

"I'll be in the room at the other end. Bathroom's in the middle. That's about as much privacy any of us will be getting for the next six months."

Naruto huffed out a small laugh at Sasuke's dry humor. It was a nice reprieve from the asshole-like attitude he'd been dealing with all morning.

"That works for me," he replied.

Sasuke nodded. "You can get settled in before we go over anything else."

The blond stepped aside as the other man retreated toward the second bedroom. His eyes followed Sasuke's movements for a while before he realized what he was doing; he quickly averted his gaze.

He needed to be better about that.

"You should talk to him about what you remember." The wistful sound of his own voice drew Naruto's attention.

He peered over at the clone he hadn't dispelled yet. It was standing by the open panel door at the back of the larger living space—watching Kanaye take in the weed-stricken yard from the deck outside.

"I don't know if I could handle that," Naruto answered softly, keeping their conversation discreet. It wasn't the healthiest behavior, but he'd forgotten how therapeutic it felt to talk to himself like this. "I've barely managed to keep things civil as it is. He really has it out for me."

"Doesn't matter. You still gotta do it before things get worse. Managing this probationary period and Kanaye will get stressful very quickly."

The clone glanced back at him briefly, then returned to watching Kanaye.

Naruto sighed, placing a hand on his forehead. He was just telling himself things he already knew.

I can do this, he thought. I can do this.

Straightening his shoulders, Naruto combed his fingers through his hair and looked down the hall. The door to the second bedroom was slightly ajar. He began walking toward it.

Sasuke was standing at the center of the room with his back facing the door. Through the opening, Naruto could see a large duffle bag and another folded futon laying by his feet. He must have brought these supplies over before meeting up with them at the inn.

Naruto knocked on the doorframe to announce himself.

Sasuke looked up from the papers he held in his hand; he'd been reading through the contents of a large plain envelope.

"Hey, do you mind if I talk to you about something?" Naruto asked.

One thin eyebrow quirked up in response to his question. Shuffling the papers back into their envelope, Sasuke approached the door.

"What is it?"

Naruto glanced back over at his clone; it nodded and stepped out onto the deck with Kanaye.

"Before we get into the thick of things, I was hoping we could talk about us?" he continued.

The suspicious leer Sasuke was giving him drifted into a skeptical expression.

"Us?" his tone demanded an explanation.

Naruto placed a hand on the doorframe as he leaned in a little closer. A part of him cautioned that he was placing himself well within striking distance if Sasuke got aggressive.

"Listen, it's obvious you're really pissed at me for leaving; but I feel..."—he paused for a moment— "...I feel a lot of that might have to do with how we were back then."

The subtle shift in Sasuke's features put Naruto on edge. He didn't want the other man to shut him down before he finished what he had to say.

"I know it can't make up for what happened, but I really am sorry, Sasuke. You mean a lot to me and I desperately want us to be good again. So, please, could you just give our friendship another chance?"

Naruto allowed the last part of his plea to hang on a hushed note. He hoped that Sasuke would understand how much he didn't want them fighting like this. The scornful comments and frigid demeanor were exhausting, but the worse part was that he missed the old Sasuke. He missed the Sasuke that understood him implicitly; that saw past the façades he showed other people; that got into fist fights with him because neither of the them had been good at backing down. That Sasuke was kind, supportive, and empathetic even though he acted like he wasn't.

Memories of how they use to hold each other lurked among his thoughts. He'd loved that Sasuke because he'd made him want so much. Naruto had wanted to be better than him; to be his equal; to be his friend; to be his lover. He could have poured his whole self out and Sasuke would have been there to catch it.

The intensity of these past feelings forced Naruto to shift his gaze to the hand that gripped the doorframe. He couldn't look Sasuke in the eyes right then.

A long stretch of silence lingered after he'd spoken. It persisted so intently that Naruto worried if Sasuke had even heard him.

"Is that what you've been thinking?" The distance in Sasuke's voice wasn't a good sign. "You're really full of yourself, Uzumaki."

This statement made Naruto look back at him.

"I'm angry because you're a hypocrite. It has little to do with the fact that we use to sleep with each other."

Frustration was creeping in again.

"Really? All this venom is just because you think I'm a hypocrite?" Naruto said incredulously. "The fact that we were in a relationship for six months has nothing to do with it?"

"Don't embellish things, Naruto. We fucked around; we were not in a relationship," Sasuke spat back. "And who are you to even be bringing that up? Not only did you leave, but you got married and had a kid. Us having had sex is a non-issue.

"You're a hypocrite because you espoused these values that you never believed in. You chased after and ranted at me about family when I'd tried to accept Orochimaru's offer, then further waylaid me by saying you had feelings for me. You're an asshole for that, and you're an asshole for all the other sanctimonious bullshit you use to beat people over the head with. You're nothing but a coward."

Naruto's grip on the doorframe tightened as he tried not to let his frustration mutate into anger.

"Why do you always get like this?" he grated out. "Whenever you're upset there's no room for anything else, and things suddenly become black and white. I know I'm a coward, but that doesn't mean I didn't believe in the things I said! It means I'm flawed. You of all people should know that."

Sasuke suddenly looked like he wanted to hit him. The muscles in his jaw were clenched tightly and his shoulders were tense. There were a few anxious seconds of him narrowing his eyes at Naruto as the blond stared back at him. Finally, he took in a deep breath and all the emotion drained from his face.

This annoyed Naruto immensely. He knew this would happen; Sasuke was shutting him out.

"This conversation is done. If you're worried about my personal feelings getting in the way of your training, don't be. I'll do better about displaying more professional behavior. Does that help you?"

Naruto sighed heavily and resisted the urge to bang his fist against the wall.

"I can't—this has nothing to do with you being my superior. It's about you and me, and me wanting to reconcile with you. Why are you being so stubborn about it? Do you not want us to be friends again, is that it?"

"You should go dispel that clone and get your kid settled in. There's food in the fridge that should hold us for a few days. We can go over that stuff I gave you this morning later tonight."

Sasuke was already walking away, back toward the spot he'd been before. Naruto did his best to not reach out and grab his arm because it would only escalate things. Regardless, the conversation was officially at a dead end. Talking to Sasuke any further would be a waste of breath. But deep within him, Naruto craved the space to let out something he should have said a long time ago.

"I love you, Sasuke. I love you so much that it's stupid. I love you even though we fight, and you say horrible shit. I love you in spite of the fact you broke my heart the last time, and I'm the one apologizing. I don't know what else you want me to say or do in order to get it through your thick fucking skull that you mean the world to me. I left because I was scared, not because I didn't care about you; so fuck you for even implying that."

The words came rushing out of him like a deluge of raw emotion that he'd been holding back for an immeasurable amount of time. They drained him, leaving him empty and tired.

A migraine was beginning to pulse behind his eye.

Letting go of the doorframe, Naruto turned to leave. It didn't matter what Sasuke's reaction was. Right now, he just needed to walk away.

—.&.o.&.—