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 as such and belong to the author, Jae (Dae T. Angel).
A/N: Y'all, I'm getting goosebumps at how close we are to the end! You have no idea how this fic has haunted me over the years, haha. I literally learned to be a better storyteller because of this story. So, wild. Thank you all for being here for this. Five more chapters to go. Enjoy!
—.&.&.—
XVIII.
Imperfection
Sasuke had not needed the visual cue of vibrant red bleeding into Naruto's irises to notice a distinct shift in the other man's persona. Rather, the change was signaled by the subtle straightening of the blond's shoulders and the steady creep of a self-assured smile across his face. Sharp vermillion eyes fitted Sasuke with an amused leer, immediately setting him on edge.
"Hello again, Uchiha," Naruto's soft baritone was metered at a slightly lower pitch where it projected deeper from his chest.
Sasuke narrowed his eyes and pursed his lips into a faint grimace.
"What do you want, fox?" he said without preamble.
Internally, he debated the value of activating his Sharingan to subdue the creature and interrogate it under his own terms. Though Naruto had noted the Kyuubi's desire to speak with him, Sasuke was not fully sold on the idea. But his initial query of dissent had been cut short by the sudden change in demeanor from the other man, leaving him teetering between trusting Naruto's instincts and following his own.
"I can see the gears turning in your head from here," the Kyuubi drawled. "Don't be stupid and thwart all the effort the brat has already put forth?"
Sasuke leveled it with an unimpressed glare.
"Just speak your piece already," he said.
The Kyuubi's smirk hitched higher before its expression fell into a more sobered appearance.
"I'll try to make this brief," it began. "Before you attempt to traverse Naruto's mind, I must warn you that it is in more of a disjointed state than he realizes. I have been shielding him from this fact for years, but the truth is I am what keeps this current persona of his from being overshadowed by another."
Sasuke frowned in confusion as he stared at the Kyuubi.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"I know you're smart enough to understand what I'm telling you, Uchiha, so listen carefully," the Kyuubi said in a brusque tone. "What I'm saying is that there's a part of himself the brat has disassociated from. He's terrified of it, yet he's mostly unaware of its existence. You helping him regain his memories runs the risk of a confrontation with this other version of himself."
Eyebrows burrowing deeper into the crease of his frown, Sasuke responded, "Are you telling me that Naruto has another personality?"
"Something like that, yes," the Kyuubi answered with a smirk, seemingly pleased with Sasuke's deduction.
"How?" Sasuke pushed. His thoughts harkened back to what he had witnessed while in Naruto's mind; the sight of the two Narutos suddenly took on a new meaning.
The Kyuubi shrugged Naruto's borrowed shoulders and propped an elbow on the table so it could rest the blond's chin in his palm.
"Who knows, really. It could be the effect of any number of unaddressed traumas he's experienced, and the brat is also notorious for tamping down many of his unsavory feelings. I haven't ventured deep enough into those aspects of his psyche to identify the cause of this. Besides, you'd be surprised at how complex this one's inner workings are."
A wistful look passed over the Kyuubi's face. "I will say, however, that he's remarkably resilient. It's a wonder that his mind has adapted to my safeguards as well and for as long as it has. They were set up rather haphazardly at the time."
Sasuke stared, digesting this information as it bore down on him like an unyielding pressure. There was a battle being waged inside him between his sensibilities as a trained ninja and the feelings he held for Naruto. This was not the first time within the last two hours he had had to face this dilemma, but that did not mean each occurrence was made any easier.
He drew in a deep breath while he continued to observe the strange guise of the Kyuubi masked in Naruto's features. The creature's unnatural eyes were the only physical change that had superimposed onto the other man, but they did offset the whisker-like birthmarks that emblazoned the skin of Naruto's cheeks. These marks were less pronounced than they used to be when Naruto's face had held more of the roundness of adolescence, and in turn, they made Sasuke think back on their childhood when Naruto had spent most of his energy being a boisterous prankster. The blond had never failed to draw the ire of most of the villagers back then, but that had not seemed to matter. Naruto had thrived off of the attention.
A pang of guilt bit into Sasuke as he thought more on the reasons why that was and even how ambivalent he had been toward Naruto when their fledgling friendship had begun to manifest. It was not until after the incident at the Valley of the End that he had started to care in earnest about Naruto's feelings.
"Do you know if this was part of the real reason why he left?" Sasuke asked, turning his focus back to the Kyuubi.
"Of course I do," the fox scoffed as if Sasuke had asked it a stupid question. It lifted Naruto's head from his hand and frowned. "Naruto's other self has grown tired of existing in the backdrop of their mind. He wants to be the one in control; to assert himself in ways he believes Naruto is too much of a coward to do. Noboru, as I've named him, had begun to subvert the brat's dominance months before Naruto had ever considered leaving. When Naruto finally realized what was happening, he got scared and fled. That's ultimately what the last decade boils down to—Naruto is afraid of himself."
"If that's so, why didn't you help him?" Sasuke found himself saying as his hand moved from the table to clench into a fist on his lap. His wariness of the fox was rolling into a wave of eristic anger.
The Kyuubi looked at him with a dubiously raised brow.
"Why would I have?" it asked. "Uchiha, you don't seem to fully appreciate the evolution of the brat's and my relationship. Prior to certain events, I didn't care what happened to him. I relished watching him suffer. I am, arguably, the most powerful of all my siblings, yet I had been reduced and trapped within a child, like an admonished pet. If Naruto's conflicted mental state meant the possibility of freedom, then I was not going to stop it. In some cases, I even encouraged Noboru in his shrewdness. And you, the way you disregarded his feelings during that time was the perfect fuel for stoking the chaos."
Sasuke flinched; his features tightening with more guilt.
Leaving no room for dwelling, the fox waved a dismissive hand. "The point is, I was not a fan of the brat back then. But we've since developed an understanding—a friendship, even," it finished.
In the face of the Kyuubi's dismissal, Sasuke recovered his composure so he could stow his anger and regret. He allowed his more rational mind to slot back into place as he folded his arms and glared.
"Fine. If you're both on such good terms, why continue to keep Naruto in the dark about what's going on with him? You have a better advantage at helping reintegrate this separate personality since you know Naruto's mind."
The Kyuubi gave Sasuke an exasperated look before glancing away to grumble under its breath: "These mortals are such a pain in the ass."
Lowering Naruto's arm to the table, it looked back at him. "One, the process is far more complicated than that. Both personalities need to want to be integrated. Two, I am still trapped in that damn prison and the part of me that was released is spread too thin. My essence acts as a placeholder for where I had expelled Noboru from Naruto's conscious mind. In addition to that, I find myself not only a warden for the memories he had me take but also other mechanisms outside of myself that were left behind to protect him from me. Finally, what you and the brat need to get through your skulls is that there is a reason why Naruto bargained with me to take his damn memories in the first place. He needs to address that issue if he plans on effectively reassimilating Noboru. If not, Noboru will fight him, win, and you will have an entirely new problem on your hands."
The Kyuubi ended its diatribe with the steady drum of Naruto's fingers on the table and a bland look.
"Naruto is not ready for me to just give him back his memories," it continued. "I had already tried that on a smaller scale and Noboru took advantage of it. Naruto is also filled with too much fear, uncertainty, and a nauseating amount of sadness. If you care about him as much as you say you do, then help him through that. I can say with confidence that both personas have an attachment to you, so you can use that in your favor."
The fox narrowed its eyes, "All that said, I need you to handle this, Uchiha. I have realized I'm limited in my effectiveness in solving this problem on my own. At this rate, I will either have to force Naruto into another coma to delay Noboru's efforts or find a way to usurp control from the both of them until this matter is resolved. Neither option is ideal, especially for Kanaye's sake, but I will do what I must, if I must, in order to keep this family safe. Do you understand?"
Its thinly veiled threat caused Sasuke to tilt his head thoughtfully as he assessed the enigma the fox was proving itself to be. He narrowed his eyes.
"You care about the both of them," he said—it wasn't a question.
The Kyuubi's expression evened out into a thin-lipped grimace while it stared back at him. It said nothing.
Sasuke smirked at the accuracy of his remark. He unfolded his arms and rested them on the table.
"I meant what I said when I told Naruto I loved him," he affirmed. "I don't make a habit of speaking those words lightly. So, if he needs my help to make himself better, then he has it."
The Kyuubi eyed him, gauging. The look it offered was filled with less of the loftiness it had before; though, it felt significantly more distant.
"We'll see," it said plainly. "As far as I'm concerned, you still have to prove you're worth all the care he invests in you."
Not waiting for Sasuke's reaction, the red in Naruto's eyes receded and his posture relaxed. The Kyuubi's presence was gone.
Naruto blinked, settling Sasuke with an uncertain gaze.
"Ah, I guess Kurama spoke to you?" he asked tentatively.
Sasuke observed the blond as he thought about how he wanted to answer this question. The Kyuubi's warning about Naruto's mental state forced him to consider the pros and cons of being completely forthcoming with the other man. If he was to believe everything the fox had said, Sasuke was curious to know if Naruto's malignant personality had awareness of the things Naruto knew. The Kyuubi had already implied that there was no real awareness from Naruto's point of view. Perhaps this imbalance of knowledge was another reason why the fox kept Naruto in the dark about what was happening.
He let out a silent sigh.
Sasuke's grasp of psychology was rooted in profiling an individual so that he could manipulate them as he deemed necessary, even some aspects of his bloodline limit allowed him to navigate a person's mind to retrieve or remove the information he wanted. The help Naruto needed from him was beyond anything he had done in the past. He had to strategize.
"Yes," Sasuke finally supplied. He glanced down at his cooling tea, deciding to drink it. When he looked back at Naruto, the other man seemed disquieted by his response and had opened his mouth to reply.
"It's fine, Naruto," Sasuke assured him gently, placing his cup back down. His eyes roamed the contours of Naruto's face, glad for the absence of the Kyuubi's influence on them.
Naruto's irises reflected a deep cerulean in the light of the midday sun filtering into the house, and the flyaway edges of his shaggy blond hair glowed in the plume of the light's aura. Sasuke allowed himself the thought that Naruto had grown into a handsome man. There was no reason for him to continue callously shunning the notion.
He reached up to brush aside a few strands of Naruto's hair from his face, an action that caused the blond to go still. As he watched Naruto, Sasuke turned over the events of the last few hours in his head. He had admitted to Naruto that he loved him. That was not something he had anticipated himself ever saying—to anyone who was still living. Yet, he had said it to Naruto and meant it.
Briefly, Sasuke thought about what that meant. What did loving Naruto mean? Naruto had left and found someone who had given him a family, both old and new. Outside of helping him get better, or even a renewed friendship, what could Sasuke offer him?
Sasuke keenly set these musings aside in favor of placing a soft kiss on Naruto's lips. He would have to figure out the answer to that question later. Right now, he would focus on helping Naruto overcome this hurdle.
—.o.—
The skin between his brows knitted together in concentration as Kanaye thought hard on envisioning his chakra flow.
"You look weird with your face like that," Chiyo giggled from her place beside him.
Kanaye made a face, then closed his eyes tighter in an attempt to focus while he ignored her.
"Now you just look like you have to go to the bathroom."
Letting out a loud groan, Kanaye abandoned his endeavor at chakra visualization and gave his friend a disgruntled look.
"I could've had it if you'd just been quiet!" he said, pointing an accusatory finger at the dark-haired, pale-eyed girl sitting to his left.
Unfazed, Chiyo giggled again. "No, you wouldn't have," she said simply.
She played with one of her braided pigtails as she used her other hand to easily brush Kanaye's finger aside and poked him in the center of his forehead.
Kanaye's frown transformed into an affronted look and he exclaimed: "Hey!"
"You're thinking too hard, silly. Papa says chakra is like a leaf floating in the wind. It takes time and patience to be able to grasp it," Chiyo offered with a smile.
Kanaye pouted, rubbing his forehead. "That'll take forever. I wanna be able to do the cool stuff that 'tousan and Uchiha-san do sooner than that."
Chiyo was the one to give him a displeased look when she stopped touching her hair and lashed out with a lightning-fast poke to Kanaye's side. The boy folded over with a squawk of indignation, shuffling backward so he could be out of striking range.
"Don't you dare be lazy, Uzumaki Kanaye," Chiyo admonished. "I won't help you if you are."
"Who says I'm being lazy!"
They bickered for several minutes before a familiar figure strode over to them and smiled down at their antics.
"Little bird, are you teasing your new friend already?" Chiyo's father asked softly.
"I'm not teasing, Papa," Chiyo looked up at the man with a stern look. "I'm just telling him about discipline. You always say that's important."
"And indeed it is," the older man said, his good-natured smile unaffected by his daughter's serious expression.
His opal eyes shifted to Kanaye, making the boy sit a little straighter under the scrutiny. Though Kanaye thought the Hyuuga family's weird eyes were cool, they also intimidated him at the same time.
"Your father has called, Kanaye. I believe he wants to know if you'd like to stay over the night," Chiyo's father said while holding up a slim mobile phone that had been hidden at his side.
"Really?" Kanaye sprung to his feet, instantly interested. When the man offered the device to him, he took it and held it to his ear with both hands. "Hello? 'Tousan?"
"Hey, kiddo. You being good?"
A grin broke out across Kanaye's face as he nodded, "Yup. Me and Chiyo are just practicing chakra stuff."
Kanaye heard his father laugh on the other end of the line.
"Chakra stuff, huh? All right. Well, in that case, I asked Neji-san if you could stay the night. Would you like that?"
He turned to Chiyo's father, bouncing excitedly on the balls of his feet. The man gave him a gentle smile in return.
"Yeah, yeah! Then maybe Chiyo can come to visit us and stay the night too, right?"
There was a pause before his father sighed and said, "Let's see how this works out first, okay?"
Kanaye pouted but decided not to argue. "Okay, 'tousan."
"Thank you for understanding, Na-chan. If you're good, then you can ask Sasuke about having Chiyo over to visit."
"Do you think Uchiha-san will be okay with it?"
"Maybe, but we won't know until we see how this turns out, right?"
"Right," Kanaye confirmed with a nod.
"Good." Another pause. "I love you, kiddo."
"Love you too, 'tousan."
With that, Kanaye handed the phone back to Chiyo's father. Once he took the device from Kanaye, the boy rounded back on Chiyo, pumping triumphant fists in the air.
"Hey, hey, guess what," he started, then he proceeded to tell her the good news.
—.o.—
"I hope you and Sasuke understand that once you allow my daughter to visit the Uchiha estate, our polite standoff is over," Neji's voice came through the line a moment after Kanaye's.
Naruto frowned as he continued to hold Sasuke's phone to his ear. He turned to glance over his shoulder to peer back into the house; he stood alone in the threshold of the deck entrance's doorway. Sasuke had stepped away to his bedroom.
"I'm not following," Naruto said.
"I, along with the others, have known about your release into Uchiha's custody since before our little encounter a few weeks ago. Hokage-sama had sent out a memo to a few of us and her assistant had been kind enough to let us know that you would be staying at the Uchiha compound."
Narrowing his eyes, Naruto asked, "Are you telling me that you planned us bumping into each other? Now it makes sense why Sasuke kept giving you those dirty looks."
"I can't take all the credit," Neji chuckled. "Hinata had been the one to suggest I have my daughter with me."
Naruto was speechless.
"None of us were sure how receptive Sasuke would be to having visitors show up at the compound, given its history. So, Hinata and I were chosen as envoys because of our proximity."
"I really hope your kid isn't hanging out with my kid just because you told her to," Naruto said seriously, finding his voice again.
"I assure you that's not the case," Neji's tone was placating. "My little bird isn't like that and I'm sure she would chastise me if I ever recommended such a thing."
Naruto hummed a mildly displeased sound before he accepted Neji's answer. He leaned against the doorframe and crossed one arm against the other. Absently, he thought about who else would be a part of this ploy to corner him. Though, it might not be fair to think of what Neji and the others were doing as "cornering" him. It had been over a decade since he had last seen most of them. He was sure they had questions.
"I—I appreciate the sentiment, Neji, but I don't think I'm ready for a big reunion just yet. A lot's going on and I still need to sort my head out about a few things."
Neji was quiet for a few moments before his calm voice spoke again, "That's fair, Naruto, and I understand. However, we do hope that you don't continue to make a habit of avoiding friends. Eleven years is a long time to be away."
Naruto's gaze shifted downward, then off to the side. "I know," he said quietly.
.—.
By the time Sasuke returned to the common area, Naruto had finished his conversation with Neji and was perched on the lip of the panel door, staring out at the cloudless sky and empty houses. Behind him, he heard Sasuke's quiet footsteps approaching.
"How did things go?" Sasuke asked.
Naruto looked up at him with a small smile. "Fairly well. Kanaye was pretty stoked by the idea of staying over and Neji was gracious about it."
He shifted, picked up Sasuke's cellphone from its place beside him, and presented it. Dark eyes watched him for several beats before Sasuke crouched down to sit as well. The other man took the phone and tucked it away in his utility pouch.
"Something's on your mind," Sasuke said. "It's obvious from your body language."
A skeptical look in place, Naruto responded; "That's not a hard observation to make. You'd be better off asking what's not on my mind, but the answer to that is a few years' worth of shit. So, the point is moot." He could not help the bitter sarcasm that bled into his voice.
Despite his derisive tone, Sasuke smirked.
"You said it, not me," he replied.
Naruto blinked, then let out a short laugh.
"Asshole," he said with a chuckle.
The smile on Sasuke's face did not wane and Naruto felt his stomach flutter at the sight of it. A tingling heat also made its way into his cheeks.
Discreetly, he looked away; wanting to spare himself any other puerile reactions.
A small part of him contemplated why Sasuke still affected him this way after so many years. Yes, the other man was attractive, but somehow, Sasuke made him feel a plethora of things outside of physical interest. Kaiya had made him feel safe, and loved, and wanted. Yet, Sasuke inspired a kind of passion in him that transcended an array of feelings. Whenever Naruto thought all they could ever do was clash, Sasuke blindsided him with an unexpected understanding and compassion. The concept of Sasuke sharing the same reciprocal space of caring that Kaiya had occupied in his life scared him a little. Naruto knew that if this thing that had been unearthed between Sasuke and himself were to grow and then disappear, he would be a lost cause to anyone else.
"Joking aside, it's okay to take a moment for yourself, you know," Sasuke's voice broke through Naruto's thoughts.
The blond looked back at him, confused.
"You don't have to feel guilty about wanting Kanaye away for one night, or not being able to solve your memory problem right away," Sasuke clarified.
Naruto frowned. "Who said I was feeling guilty about those things?"
"No one. You sitting here silently staring off into the distance did," Sasuke said.
Pursing his lips into a thin line, Naruto turned away again. His heart was beginning to constrict uncomfortably in his chest.
"I … don't know what to do here," he admitted. "I know we had that moment about our feelings for each other, but the longer it sinks in, the more I don't know if I'm excited or scared by it. I keep wondering why you're capable of showing so much empathy while still having the capacity to be a frigid prick." Naruto shook his head. "I—the last time I allowed myself to sit in these feelings for you, you broke my heart, Sasuke. I'm not sure you're not going to do the same thing again this time 'round."
Naruto could not bring himself to look at the man beside him.
There was a long pause before the sound of Sasuke drawing in a deep breath filled the space between them.
"I'm not … perfect, Naruto, but I care about you a lot and that's what is pushing me to be better with you. I can't promise you that I'll be great at it all the time, but I can promise you that I will never intentionally hurt you like that again."
Glancing back at Sasuke, Naruto found him watching him—expression open and earnest. The feeling in his chest constricted a little more, and when Naruto tried to voice a response, he could not think of one. Instead, he closed his eyes and bit his bottom lip; willing speech back to his tongue.
He sighed.
"The way you make me feel isn't fair, you know," Naruto said softly. He could still feel Sasuke's gaze on him, even with his eyes closed.
"What makes you think I can't say the same for you?" The low, steady sound of the other man's voice slunk along Naruto's senses; causing a small shudder to pass through him.
He reopened his eyes.
Sasuke had leaned in closer; the crest of his shoulder barely brushing against Naruto's.
"What you don't know is that since you've been back, I've spent a great deal of time trying not to think about you," Sasuke confessed.
Naruto held his stare, lips parting slightly.
"This moment reminds me a bit of this morning," he said, voice hushed.
"How so?" Sasuke asked, looking amused.
"Us, in this doorway, and me thinking about how much I wanted to touch you," Naruto answered.
Sasuke smirked and tilted his head to the side. He huffed out a laugh.
"Really? So what's stopping you from acting on it?"
"Where I want to touch you, and me deciding whether I want to stop once I get started."
The way Sasuke's eyes widened, then slowly hooded over triggered a chain reaction between them. He leaned in closer while Naruto turned to face him a little more. Sasuke's fingers brushed Naruto's thigh as the blond reached up and placed a guiding hand against his neck so he could pull Sasuke the rest of the way into a searing kiss. Sasuke's other hand reached up to press against Naruto's chest, roughly shoving him back into the doorframe. Naruto's grunt of surprise was cut off by the way the other man followed his movement and deepened their kiss. He moaned, pulling Sasuke closer.
"I'm not a woman and I'm not sixteen anymore, Naruto," Sasuke whispered between the moments their lips parted only to meet again. "If you want to touch me in the ways you're thinking about, I hope you understand what you're getting into."
Naruto smirked and nipped at the flesh of Sasuke's bottom lip. "Teme, I only got married. That didn't mean my preferences changed. You know I can handle both avenues just fine."
Sasuke kissed him twice more before leaning back.
"That wasn't my point," he said huskily. "What you remember and what you've had are different from what you'll experience."
Heat sizzled beneath Naruto's skin at Sasuke's words. It traveled up his arms, into his face, and down between his legs. Naruto's free hand came up to brush aside Sasuke's long bangs and joined his other in cradling Sasuke's face.
"That's still not a problem," he replied.
Sasuke's eyes watched him intently before he slid closer to Naruto, grasping the blond's right leg and maneuvering it up around his waist so he could slot neatly between Naruto's legs. The action forced Naruto further against the doorframe.
"Are you sure? The fact that I'm also your team leader isn't exactly ethical." Though Sasuke voiced this, he still leaned in to kiss the line of Naruto's jaw.
Naruto grinned and allowed his hands to slip into Sasuke's hair. The texture was just as he had imagined it would be—luxurious.
"You're so full of shit, Uchiha," he laughed.
Sasuke smiled against his cheek.
The hand on Naruto's chest slipped down to his stomach, fingers flexing against his abdomen through the fabric of his shirt. It had been a long while since Naruto had interacted with another man this way. The undertone of strength and aggression in each of Sasuke's touches galvanized the desire building up within him. He fisted his hands in Sasuke's hair and pulled him into an open-mouthed kiss.
This was all Sasuke needed to drop any pretenses and lower his hand further to palm the bulge tenting the crotch of Naruto's pants.
Naruto groaned into Sasuke's mouth as he rocked into his hand. The hands buried in Sasuke's hair kneaded their way down to the man's shoulders; one settled around his neck while the other migrated to Sasuke's waist, drawing him closer and tugging his shirt from the restraints of his pants.
Sasuke shifted, moving one leg to kneel on the interior side of the threshold and pulling Naruto's other leg over his thigh so the blond was partially seated in his lap.
"Naruto…" Sasuke's tongue was on his neck. Naruto bit his bottom lip and closed his eyes. Sasuke moved from palming him to tugging the button of his pants loose and drawing the zipper down. Meanwhile, Naruto was already yanking the clasps of Sasuke's utility pouch open. He pushed the bag aside and made quick work of unzipping Sasuke's pants so he could shove an eager hand down the man's boxers.
"Damn, it feels good to touch you like this again," Naruto whispered, starting to slowly stroke Sasuke's erection.
Sasuke's hand was around him now, beginning his own steady coaxing of Naruto's cock. The slightly rough push and pull of Sasuke's calloused hand had Naruto groaning in pleasure. He kept pace with his own rhythm, taking cues from the way Sasuke sucked on his neck and dragged his tongue along his jawline. His shirt was pushed up so Sasuke's thumb could brush against his nipple. The sensation was amplified by the absence of visual feedback coming from his closed eyes. Sasuke repeated the action a few more times, then ran the pad of his other thumb just below the head of his dick and up over its moistened slit.
Naruto swore as he shivered.
When he opened his eyes, Sasuke was staring at him; gaze lust-filled but tinted with mirth.
"You enjoying yourself, Naruto?" he asked, smirking.
Naruto smirked back and replied, "Yes, Uchiha-sensei. I'll enjoy it even more when I'm able to come all over you, and hopefully in you, at some point today."
Sasuke's eyes were always the most expressive thing about him whenever he was turned on, and his reaction to Naruto's teasing was no different. His pupils dilated, making his deep, dark brown eyes appear black.
Naruto's smile widened.
"Come here, Sasuke. Let me jerk us both off while you figure out how ethical it is for me to fuck you if you're so concerned about the reverse," Naruto purred.
A blush stained Sasuke's cheeks as he licked his lips and slid closer. He used his position to leverage Naruto further into his lap.
"You are," he began, lips hovering over Naruto's, "shameless."
—.&.o.&.—
A/N: The answer to your question is, yes. More sexiness is forthcoming, heh. But now, a special little endnote:
Although this story goes with a more fantastical representation of it, mental health is something I advocate for. Having had to come to terms with anxiety issues at one point in my life, I can't stress enough the importance of education, acceptance, and empathy when talking about mental health. Trauma is a deeply personal thing that affects everyone in so many different ways and one person's experience is no less valid than another's. Especially in these times (I'm looking at you 2020). If you're interested in learning more about disassociative disorders (properly and not just from fanfic or a show) I recommend checking out the American Psychiatric Association website: /patients-families/dissociative-disorders/what-are-dissociative-disorders