~ Denial, Denial, Denial ~
Summary of the chapter:
"This is literally one of the stupidest things I have ever heard."
"Shut up you witch."
. . .
Naruto is still reeling from the tremendously great shock of having been witness to an object speeding right through Sasuke, if his gaping mouth, wide open eyes and arms still protectively raised in front of himself are proof enough of it. He is not even aware of how much time goes by before he gets his bearings—or tries to—maybe it's only a second, maybe it's a whole ten minutes.
"You..." He fumbles through the words, gasping like a fish out of water, choking on thin air. "You're...you're not..." Before spluttering out all of a sudden. "...You're not corporeal!"
"Ooh, big word." Sasuke teases with a smirk. "Where did ya learn it?"
Naruto frowns in indignation. "I...I'm being serious right now!"
Sasuke nods. "So am I."
"This is...this is not...I–" He rakes a rough hand through his hair in disbelief, mostly, but slight outrage too. "And you have the guts to say you're not a ghost?!"
Sasuke arches a brow, tilting his head to the side in apparent confusion. "Technically, I just said the opposite. You're the one who said, and I quote–" He raises his voice a few octaves to imitate him, even if he goes way too high for it to even be similar to Naruto's voice, laughing through it. "'Ghosts don't exist.'"
"...That's true." Naruto mumbles, choosing to ignore the poorly executed imitation of himself, nodding so quickly his head might as well break off his neck and tumble to the ground. "That's true!" He repeats louder, as if to convince himself this is the only truth and even going as far as slapping his own cheeks, again, albeit lightly this time.
Sasuke turns his head away for a second, trying to cover up another bout of laughter he is holding back.
"What–" Naruto regards him with an exaggerated amount of suspicion and takes a cautious step back, gesturing wildly in his direction. "–What was...that?"
"I can't really be touched?" Sasuke shrugs, he shrugs, like this is somehow...not impossible. "Not that big of a deal, if you ask me."
"No that big of a deal–are you fucking kidding me right now?!" Naruto starts pacing back and forth and with the way he is shaking his head so fast someone might even consider him to be having spasms. "This is a big deal! This is a huge deal! This is–" He halts, only to stare so intensely one would think he just discovered the meaning of life.
Sasuke blinks at his abrupt pause, eyebrows furrowing in confusion. "...You good?"
"That's right!" Naruto exclaims out of the blue. "You...you're not Sasuke!" He yells out with the momentary rush of epiphany that seizes him.
Their conversation of that morning, thoughts of finding out just why Sasuke is here, everything, it all...gets thrown out the window. Because thinking that Sasuke might be a 'ghost' and actually seeing proof of it with his own eyes are two terribly different things, and Naruto...
Well, no one should berate him for freaking out a little now.
The problem is, when Naruto freaks out he sometimes tends to think, and overthink, and thoughts swirl around in his head until they aggregate into this unbelievable mess only he believes in...which happens thanks to denial, mostly. A fervid imagination helps too. And Naruto can use a great amount of denial when he wants to. Like right now, for example, when he decides to cling to it like a starved man, desperate to be right.
Sasuke raises his head to the sky, letting out a slow exhale. "This again? I thought we were past it already." And looks back at Naruto with just a hint of exasperation. "I am me. I don't know how else to put it for you, you need a certificate of authenticity to boot?"
Naruto pauses. "...Why? You have one on you?"
"Seriously?!"
"What? What? I need to trust my sources."
Sasuke deadpans.
"Nuh-uh. You don't get to give me that look, mister." Naruto tuts and clicks his tongue, shaking a finger in front of Sasuke's face as if dealing with a child. "You're not. But I know what you are, I figured it out. You're a–"
"Yo."
Naruto and Sasuke both spin around at the new voice joining in, only to find Kiba and Shino standing a few feet away.
"What are you doing here?" Naruto asks Kiba with a hint of annoyance.
"I could ask you the same." Kiba replies with the same hint of annoyance.
Naruto turns to Sasuke, then to Kiba, then back to Sasuke again.
"What are you–" But before Sasuke can even finish his question, the blond is already sprinting towards the newcomers.
"You!" Naruto puts an arm around Kiba's shoulders as he leans in conspiratorially and, going against himself and his best interest, finally asks. "Tell me...how many people are you seeing right now? Beside you and me here?"
"Yesterday was not proof enough for you? What about today? Like I've told you already, they can't see me." Sasuke practically sing-songs, but Naruto ignores him.
"...Question: Is that a trick question?" Kiba regards his friend warily, but mostly with bafflement since a single glance is enough to show there are people all around them going on with their day. "Or have you finally lost your mind?"
In response Naruto decides to take it a step further. He pinches his arm.
"Ow!" Kiba yelps, rubbing at the sore spot as he takes a step back. "What was that for?!"
"...I knew it. This isn't really a dream." Naruto tells himself. "But I had to be absolutely sure."
Sasuke rolls his eyes.
Kiba yelps again after another pinch. "Hey! Stop pinching me!"
Naruto innocuously shrugs, but under his breath he utters. "...Not gonna lie, it was for personal satisfaction this time around."
Sasuke snorts when Naruto ducks down to avoid a swat from Kiba, but the blond has certainly more pressing matters to tackle than having to deal with an idiot.
"Oi! I heard that!" Kiba exclaims as he tries to swing another hit. "You're the only idiot here!"
Oops, sometimes Naruto thinks out loud. But, whatever.
"I knew it, you're useless." Naruto continues to berate him, as if for some unexplainable reason this mess is all Kiba's fault.
"Excuse me!?" Said boy exclaims, offended."You're–"
Naruto scoffs. "Shhh, we don't have time for your foolishness today."
"What did you just say? You little–"
"I know what this is." Naruto interrupts Kiba, continuing to ignore him, and, once again, decides to focus his every ounce of attention on Sasuke... like this is anything new.
What is new, however, is his change of attitude towards the whole ordeal, because what he says next is—
"I've been cursed."
Sasuke has a hand on his forehead already, as if waiting to face-palm. "...Aaand he's lost it."
"You–you're not really here!" Naruto goes on to explicate his brilliant theory. "No, you're hiding somewhere, watching. And I bet you're laughing at this too, huh? Thinking it's driving me crazy!" His voice raises as the exhilaration of his new 'discovery' grows, and the heads of a few people turn for a moment, thinking him to be actually crazy, though he ignores everyone and everything else in favor to point at Sasuke with newfound determination. "But that's where you're wrong!"
"..."
"..."
"..."
Kiba feels only slightly more weirded out than before while Shino, as usual, is silently observing the scene.
"'Cause you won't beat me this time! You hear me?!" Naruto all but screams, staring up at the sky as if the 'real' Sasuke might be hiding behind a cloud.
"...That's the opposite of what is going on here, I can tell you as much." Sasuke mutters, his expression as perfunctory as his words.
But he goes unheard, given that Naruto's fervid imagination is already bubbling with a hundred scenarios, mostly ones involving Sasuke in an alcove, concealing himself with a dark cloak that covers him head to toe, cackling evilly—in that exaggerated way villains tend to do—all the while hissing something sinister to a crystal sphere as he brews a potion or two, that he will later instruct 'fake Sasuke' to give to him.
"Alright, that might literally be one of the stupidest things I have ever heard." Sasuke says flatly.
But it escapes Naruto's notice how this time he has not uttered one word of this particular scenario out loud, which is why he doesn't stop to ask just how Sasuke knew what he had been thinking, which would probably be in his best interest to do.
Instead, Naruto decides to deal the last blow, voice lowering accordingly to match the impact of such a great realization.
"Because you...you're a witch!"
"..."
"..."
"..."
"You know, when people say, 'never underestimate the power of denial'... yeah, now I get what they mean by that." Sasuke nods to himself, as if he has just made a new discovery himself.
Having just witnessed Naruto talking crazy to himself, even Kiba is past the limit of being weirded out. "Dude, the hell?"
Naruto's pointer finger, still in the air, changes direction towards him. "You shut up, moron!"
"Who are you calling moron, huh?! You little shi–!"
"If I may interject."
Shino, who had been silent all along, quietly and politely interrupts. His two friends instantly cease their bickering.
Naruto tilts his head to the side, staring puzzled but a little curious. "What is it?"
"I think I might have a solution for your...'witch' problem." Shino continues without batting an eyelid. Not that they could see even if he did so behind the dark lenses, but still.
Naruto's eyes practically sparkle at the new piece of information as he throws himself at Shino, only to shake him back and forth like a rag doll. "Really?!"
Kiba also turns to stare at his best friend, but not nearly as enthusiastic as the blond. In fact, he is mostly confused as he repeats weary, "...Really?"
When Naruto finally stops shaking him, Shino nods calmly. "Someone from my family used to deal with a similar issue, which was solved with the help of another family member."
"Who?" Kiba asks, curiously.
"My grandmother's cousin's husband's aunt's sister's neighbour's grandfather's uncle's brother's friend." Shino replies with no rush even if he says it all in one breath, almost as if he has rehearsed it.
Naruto and Kiba exchange looks and whispers.
"...What did he just say?"
"...I got lost at someone's cousin?"
"Whatever." Naruto goes back to shaking him again like his life depends on it. "Tell me who that is! Who can help me?!"
"I can't say his name." Shino's voice is still bland when he answers, as if his brain isn't currently trying to jump out of his head from Naruto's current treatment. Lowering his tone almost dramatically, he adds, "...because he goes by no name."
"Oooh." Naruto gapes a little, intrigued. "Is he a witch too?"
Shino slightly frowns, confused. "...Technically, that would make him a wizard. But I don't suppose that is the case–"
"Who cares, as long as he knows how to deal with this...black magic, or white magic, or red magic, or whatever kinda magic this is, I'll take the chance! Where can I find this guy?!"
As soon as Shino tells him what he wants to know, Naruto wastes no time in setting to find this stranger who might be the solution to all of his problems. In his hurry, he throws an excited, and just slightly crazed, grin at Sasuke. "Ah-ha! Start counting your hours now 'cause they're numbered!"
"...I can't believe you can even believe something like this." Sasuke mutters as he begrudgingly follows after him.
Kiba and Shino are left behind, starting after their running friend.
"Should we go after him?" Shino asks after a minute.
Kiba hums quietly, before stretching out his arms. "Nah, he looks fine enough to be out on his own today. Besides..." He thoughtfully looks up at the sky, only for a moment, before scratching the back of his head with the hint of a smile. "...doesn't he look better than he's been in weeks? Something good must've happened."
Shino nods in agreement.
Kiba throws an arm around his best friend's shoulders as they keep walking. "Man, let me tell you, you've got a weird kind of family."
"Thank you." Shino replies in a monotone.
"That wasn't meant as a compliment."
In the late afternoon, they arrive at the designated place.
Naruto grins like he has just found the secret recipe to a new delicious version of ramen.
Sasuke stares blankly, still unimpressed.
In front of the two stands what appears to be an almost hidden shack amid the thick foliage of the forest. It's rusty, with grey and unevenly sized stones that make up the windowless walls, and vines grow up the archway. Dirt and moss cling to the sagging roof that juts out, the wooden door barely hangs on its hinges at a jaunty angle and the grass grows long and unkempt around it.
And if not for the thin trail of smoke curling out of the crooked chimney the shack would look uninhabited.
Sasuke puts his hands in his pockets, sighing with an almost wistful shake of the head. "And here I was, hoping you'd bring me somewhere more fun and lively after this morning."
"Oh, you're going somewhere fun, all right. Because you're going back to where the hell you came from, you evil spirit!" Naruto shouts in a bout of excitement, still somewhat starstruck in his fantasies.
"You're really stubborn, I have to give you that." Sasuke smiles at him in amusement. "But this won't work~"
"Heh, you're only saying that 'cause you're scared now." Naruto taunts.
"Scared of...what?" The boy pauses, raising an eyebrow in disbelief. "Being sent away by a lunatic who thinks he's related to Shino in some way?"
"Listen." Naruto leans closer and whispers in the same way Ino does when she's gossiping. "I've heard that Shino has some strange relatives."
Sasuke clicks his tongue and waves a dismissive hand in the air in the same way Sakura does when she's gossiping. "That's not the point right now."
"You're right." Naruto nods, self-assured. "The point is, whatever you–" And points at him, yet again, then stares up at the sky, again. "–are doing right now isn't gonna work on me! You hear me Sasuke?! I know you're listening!"
Sasuke sighs and places a hand on his forehead, again, as if ready to face-palm, again. "Will you stop that? It's not like someone is hiding in the trees and waiting for a chance to jump-scare you, you know."
"So you're hiding behind a bush?" Naruto asks instead, perking up a little as he goes to inspect a few of the bushes surrounding them, actually expecting for Sasuke to be hiding behind one and waiting for the opportunity to jump-scare him.
And Sasuke lets out another exasperated sigh. "...God, you're dense sometimes. Well, most of the time, actually."
"Hey!" Naruto leans away from one of the more 'suspicious' bushes, thinking he might find the 'real' Sasuke among them, to practically glower at him. "I'm not 'dense', I'm very bright!"
"You're in denial and that's an undeniable fact." Sasuke states, crossing his arms over his chest almost stubbornly as he narrows his eyes at the other—definitely stubborn—teen. "Why can't you just accept that I'm here–"
A low creak catches the boys by surprise, making them both turn to see the door rattling in its efforts to open. The wood squeaks and it almost seems like it will splinter off its grip any second as it finally gives in, opening up a sliver.
The only sight that greets them from the other side is darkness.
"And you say this isn't magic?" Naruto comes to stand beside him, voice taking on a new pitch of wonder as he looks at the door.
Sasuke sends him a skeptical glance. "Someone just opened it, obviously. What kind of magic would you even need to open a door?"
The blond shakes his head, almost disappointed. "You know, for someone who's made out of magic you definitely underestimate its power."
"There's no 'power of magic' involved here!" The dark haired boy counters around a frustrated huff.
"Whatever you say." Naruto tells him a bit insolently, before narrowing his eyes in distrust and uttering under his breath. "Liar."
Sasuke's eyebrow ticks in slight irritation, but before either of them can add any more, the door opens further, reminding the blond why they are here in the first place.
"Ha! We'll see who laughs last now!" Naruto exclaims over his shoulder and all but runs inside.
Sasuke is left to gape, a bit flabbergasted. "I didn't even laugh in the first place!" But follows anyway.
What is noticeable right away is that the inside is definitely colder, and darker too. In fact if it weren't for the natural light filtering in, the place would be shrouded in pitch black darkness.
The space is almost squared-sized, but fairly large, and on closer inspection the room appears to be overflowing with layers of dust, cobwebs strewn all over. There is a row of tables with the most imaginable and unimaginable contents on top, and the shelves are stocked full of jars filled with different kinds of herbs and ingredients. To be fair, more than a living space it appears to be a storage of some sort.
Naruto is moving in cautious but eager steps, keeping his guard up as he takes everything in. He grows excited, wondering if there is some sort of secret to this mystery shack, a concealed passageway that perhaps leads to somewhere even more mysterious. He quietly gasps, drawing Sasuke's attention too, when his gaze lands on a large cauldron by the corner of the room.
"...What is this, the Harry Potter world." Sasuke says dryly.
Naruto ignores him.
But out of nowhere, they hear a loud thump. And then a shout of, "Who's there!?"
Startled, Naruto stumbles a few steps back. The wall behind him thankfully breaks his fall. It takes a second for his eyes to adjust to the surroundings, but when they do he finds...there is someone in front of him. It's a short man with gray hair and a grayer beard, clothed in a dark sort of robe and holding with both hands what appears to be a spear of some kind, which is pointed right at him.
"Still thinking this is the solution to all of your problems?" Sasuke is the one to taunt this time.
Naruto sends him a glare, but otherwise ignores him in favor of returning to glare at the stranger. "You scared me, Oji-chan!" He accuses, regaining his footing and proceeding to pat himself down of no doubt the dust his clothes collected. He barely holds back a sneeze.
"Who are you calling an old man you brat?!" The old man grumbles for a bit at first, still holding up his weapon. "Who sends you here?"
"Shin–"
Before he can even finish, the old man is already nodding and lowering down the spear. "Ah, yes, yes. My grandson's grandmother's cousin's husband's aunt's sister's neighbour's grandfather's uncle's brother's friend."
"Yeah, he...uh, mentioned that." Naruto shoots him a weirded out look, before quickly shaking his head to rid it of every other useless thought, putting his maximum focus on the problem at hand. "Anyway, I really need your help Oji-chan!"
"Hey, hey, hey! Who are you calling old man?!"
"You?" He asks rhetorically.
"I'll have you know I am wise beyond my years, kid!" The man hollers angrily in an almost rehearsed way, as if he always has to repeat the same thing to whoever he meets. Then, more subdued, he adds. "And I am still young in spirit."
Naruto raises a skeptical brow. "Whatever you say, Oji-chan."
"You brat–"
"Okay, this is definitely not going to work." Sasuke speaks over the angry little old man.
Naruto scowls at him. "You shut up!"
"What did you just say!?" The old man exclaims in outrage.
"Ah, no–not you!" Naruto waves quick hands in the air, before pointing to his side. "I was talking to him."
The old man blinks. "..."
Naruto lets out a long sigh, suffering (and exasperated), and rubs at the back of his neck with only slight hesitation before he speaks again. "Er, you see, it's the reason why I'm here..."
At that, the old man composes himself and they sit down in a more secluded area of the shack where he can finally explain what is going on.
.
.
.
And Naruto does explain what is going on, in details, trying to think of anything relevant that might help this stranger in getting rid of this 'ghost' once and for all. But of course he has to add in his own theories, too.
"–and this is all an elaborate curse I was hit with!" The blond ninja finally ends his long and detailed (and delusional) explanation.
"..."
"..."
"..."
After a few moments of silence, in which the old man carefully ponders over what he just listened to, he nods, appearing intrigued. "And you say you know this...person?"
"Yeah, he's a–" Naruto halts all of a sudden. This is the only detail he has refrained from revealing, as there is only one word that comes to mind for him to say—friend. He tries to find a roundabout way to describe Sasuke...but in the end settles for a very simplified version of the complexity of their relationship. "...an old acquaintance."
Sasuke winces. "Wow. Feels like I have just been demoted from best friend to simple 'acquaintance.'"
Naruto frowns at him, scoffing. "We were never 'best friends.'"
Sasuke appears positively scandalized. "Excuse me? Yes, we were. We are." And now he is the one who sounds accusing, as if he can't just accept the fact that Naruto wouldn't throw their friendship in his face at every chance he gets. A bit childishly, he fires back. "You are the first who said we were, actually."
Naruto bristles, trying to deny anything and everything. "I–I did no such thing!"
Sasuke deadpans, like Naruto is bullshitting him. "Liar." He says under his breath, in the same exact why the blond did a while ago.
Their conversation gets promptly interrupted by a quiet cough. "Should I leave?" The old man asks, as if this one-sided conversation became private all of a sudden.
Naruto turns to gape at the one who is supposed to solve his 'ghostly' problems. "What? No! Of course not! Just–" He waves his hand in a whoosh towards Sasuke. "–make him disappear! C'mon!"
But, as if crowned the new voice of reason, Shino's strange relative (or he says to be) assumes a serious tone. "It seems you and your...invisible acquaintance here have some issues you might want to work through between the two of you, before you take any reckless decision."
"Someone finally gets it!" Sasuke exclaims happily. "It's what I've been trying to tell you since I got here!"
"Shut up!" Naruto slams both palms on the wooden table, making a few of the trinkets rattle slightly on the surface. "Both of you!" When met with nothing but silence, he closes his eyes and takes a deep breath in, only to open them narrowed intently at the man in front of him. "Look, all I want is to get rid of this witch's curse."
The old man stares back pointedly. "You mean 'wizard?'"
Naruto waves a dismissive hand in the air. "Details." Only to stop himself, leaning back on the legs of the chair as he faces the ceiling, looking to be in deep contemplation. "I don't know how long he's been one, maybe...he's a witch in training?"
The legs of the chair screech against the floorboards when he resumes his previous position, now leaning in with his elbows on the table and lowering his voice, as if revealing confidential information.
"You know, between you and me, I've always thought Orochimaru was involved in some voodoo kinda stuff. I mean, have you gotten a good look at the guy? He probably practices some black magic on the side, or whatever other colored magic there is. That's where Sasuke must have gotten it from, I bet he's casting these 'spells' all over the place to train. Tch, stupid witches and their ego, always thinking they can get away with anything." Naruto finishes, shaking his head in disgust as if he has a personal vendetta against witches or something.
Sasuke slowly, slowly turns to stare at him, wearing the flattest expression. "...Let me reiterate. This is literally one of the stupidest things I have ever heard."
"Shut up you witch."
Sasuke rolls his eyes again, putting his head in his hands as he lets out a muffled sort of groan, looking like he has given up on life and like he wants to choke Naruto, simultaneously.
"That makes perfect sense." The old man says instead, also leaning in conspiratorially. "But who's this Orochimaru fella?"
Naruto blinks, mouth slightly agape. "...You don't go out much, do you?"
"I live surrounded by nature." The host opens up his arms, gesturing at his home. "I am out."
Naruto glances down at a patch of moss-y grass growing through the floor...if it can even be called a floor. "...Yeah, I see your point." He quickly shakes his head, looking back at the old man with almost murderous determination. "Now, can you get rid of him or what?"
The man sighs and folds his arms, he mumbles something, almost as if having a silent conversation with himself, but in the end agrees. "Alright, alright, let's try. But don't you come cryin' to me when you'll regret it."
Naruto laughs loud and boisterous, and a bit forced. "Trust me, this is the best decision I've probably ever taken!"
And all there is left to do is for him to (im)patiently wait, very much so, as the old man—'I heard that! I'm very much young in spirit!'—rummages through...well, whatever he owns. It feels like an eternity, but in truth is only a few minutes of wait when his 'savior' returns with a vial containing a strange, vivid red liquid that he gives him.
"Drink that."
Eyeing the vial in his hand, Naruto feels a bit of uncertainty creeping in.
"Seriously?" Sasuke asks in astonishment. "You're willing to drink that concoction just to have me disappear?"
"I...yes!" Naruto replies stubbornly and all traces of hesitation are gone, as if Sasuke's words have awoken the 'spoken and unspoken' competition between them. He won't lose against him!
With stubbornness that fills him down to his every cell, he brings the unknown brew up to his lips and drinks it all in one go. He keeps his eyes closed, waiting for something, although he is not sure what to expect. But after counting to ten in his head, he slowly peeks from one eye and then the other.
"This is... kinda sweet." He comments as the strange liquid hits his taste buds.
"So?" The old man prompts, eager to know if his 'solution' has worked.
With his heart almost slamming in his chest, Naruto risks a glance beside him and...deadpans. "...No. He's still here."
With his chin resting on his palm and still looking distinctly unimpressed, Sasuke scoffs. "Of course I'm still here, moron."
"How dare you call me that!"
But before more bickering can take place, Naruto is already being offered another 'potion.' "Let's try...this one!"
And so it goes, with the strange drinks flowing...
"No."
"Nuh-uh."
"Nothing."
"Nada."
"Not even this one."
"Nope, he's still here."
...and Sasuke not disappearing.
No matter how many Naruto tries, the 'curse of the witch', as he has come to refer to, doesn't seem to lift from him. And after the fiftieth drink two things appear painfully clear.
1. Ghosts, or witches, depends on your point of view, can be very stubborn and refuse to leave, even when one drinks a crazy amount of 'magic' drinks to make them do so.
2. This man could definitely open up a successful business with his strange but tasty drinks, but as a ghost or witch 'chaser' however...he should probably reconsider his career choice.
"Let's stop this already." Sasuke complains, as if tired of sitting there and doing nothing. "Do you seriously think this old man has any clue about what's even going on here? I mean, no offense but the guy lives in the middle of the woods, surrounded by crazy stuff, not to mention his weird concept of 'relatives'. Clearly, he's a fraud. And a loser."
"Hey!" Naruto hisses, still drinking from the last vial he was given. "Don't be rude."
The old man curiously looks from the boy to the vacant spot beside him. "What did he say?"
With a bit of regret, he informs him. "He says you're an old man." Even if Naruto is literally the first who referred to him as 'Oji-chan'. "And a fraud. Oh, he also called you a loser."
"What?! I'll show you who's old you brat!" The old man almost gives a war cry as he throws himself in the general direction of where Sasuke might be.
Naruto tries to suppress a snort and wonders why this man is more sensitive about being called old rather than a fraud or a loser.
"No, he's not there."
"Nuh-uh."
"A little more to your right?"
"Oh, no, to your left now."
Of course Naruto for his part even goes as far as giving directions, watching as the man tries to take hold of Sasuke, who keeps getting away even if there is no need for him to move at all.
And finally, he nods. "Yeah, you're right in front of him now."
"Do I need to spell it out for you? He's crazy." Sasuke drawls, just out of reach from the man's grasp. "Don't get me wrong though, I like him, he's a funny little old man. Just crazy."
Naruto grumbles to himself, suddenly recharged with new willpower to get rid of him. "Oji-chan, give me another one!"
"What is it with the disrespectful youth today!?"
.
.
.
"This is spicy." Naruto concludes after the last sip of the newest drink, somehow more focused on the taste than the reason why he came here in the first place. "Is there...did you put pepper inside this one?"
"Look, kiddo, who's the expert here?"
"...You are." Naruto mumbles.
"Exactly." The old man nods with unwavering confidence. "Which also makes me the pepper expert."
"But does that really–"
"Shhh! Let the magic do its work!"
Naruto wants to rebuke, but in the end lets it slide and lets the 'magic do its work', readying himself for the latest failed attempt. What he is not ready for, however, is how this drink seems to be...yielding certain effects.
Sasuke stands up, startling him as he starts pacing back and forth, almost maniacally so, before just as abruptly coming to a stop. He raises both hands to his neck all of a sudden, giving the impression he can't take a breath.
Naruto gasps, almost letting the empty vial fall from his now loose grasp.
"What, what is it?" The old man asks after he sees his expression changing.
"I...I think it's...working..." Naruto gets up too, so fast the chair falls back with a dull thud. But he ignores it in favor of taking a step towards Sasuke.
Their eyes meet. Sasuke looks at him, only for the split of a second, before letting out a silent and stifled groan, then falling to his knees, barely breathing. With a final gasp, he curls in on himself and...
...disappears. Just like that.
"...Oh." Naruto's eyes are as wide as saucers when he turns to the now only other occupant of the shack.
A heavy silence settles over them, until...
"It worked!" Naruto shouts with an almost scary amount of euphoria. "It really worked!"
For someone so confident in his 'line of work', the old man appears to be as surprised as he feels. "It...it did?"
"Yes!" Naruto engulfs him in a bear hug and suddenly they are jumping up and down in celebration. "Oji-chan, you did it!"
"I did it–! Hey! Stop calling me that you inconsiderate brat!"
.
.
.
With a new rush of optimism coursing through him, Naruto thinks he can finally go back to his life as it was, with no ghosts and witches of old acquaintances to disrupt it! He is so happy about this new turn of events he even paid the old man far more than what was required for his 'job', but it was definitely well earned. He is now walking back with light steps, arms crossed behind his head, chin up and grinning at the evening sky.
"...Thinkin' 'bout it, the old man might be the real witch after all." He mumbles to himself, shrugging.
His mind starts working overtime, thoughts ranging from what mission he would be carrying out tomorrow to what he should eat for dinner tonight, oh, maybe he could settle for a nice bowl of—
"Boo."
Naruto stops on his tracks, one foot still raised a few inches off the ground.
He clenches his eyes shut, telling himself that after everything that has happened lately it's simply his imagination right now, but...he can feel this is the wrong answer. "...No. No, no, no." He quietly whispers to himself, as if pleading with a higher force. "...Oh, c'mon. Don't do this to me right now."
But when, slowly, oh so painfully slowly, he cranes his neck back to look behind him...
He finds Sasuke leaning against a nearby tree.
"So, missed me in these last...five minutes we haven't seen each other?" Sasuke asks with an arrogant smirk, even jokingly wiggling his eyebrows.
Naruto curses under his breath, stomping a foot on the ground. "...Shit."
"Speaking of shit–" Sasuke continues just as eloquently. "I told you from the beginning that shit wasn't going to work. I'm not a 'witch'–" He raises a pointed eyebrow at that. "–or a spawn of the devil, or anything else you can think of that can be sent away with...whatever the hell was in those drinks."
"...This is not happening." Naruto tries to tell himself with every last ounce of denial and despair he can cling to.
Sasuke's face morphs in a perfect picture of confusion as he has a look around the forest, as if searching for something, before lifting both shoulders in a shrug as he looks back at him. "Would you look at that, it seems like this is happening. Shocker." He can barely hold back on his smirk.
Naruto rubs furious hands all over his face, as if this is just a dream he will wake up from. "You–you disappeared! I saw it with my own eyes!"
"Oh, that?" Sasuke chuckles. "I thought I'd just humor you for a while. Plus, I'm a great actor, if I do say so myself."
"...What the fuck." Naruto maffles into his palms, letting his head drop down in a defeated sigh. "...I can't believe this."
Sasuke exhales quietly. In a few and slow strides he comes to stand next to him. "Look, I know the situation is not..." His face pinches slightly, as if he's looking for the right word. "Ideal." He leans a bit closer, searching for his eyes even if Naruto still has his hands over his face. "But we'll figure something out."
"I don't want to figure anything out!" Naruto screams in frustration, kicking at a rock as he yanks his hands away from his eyes, scowling down to the ground (even if his scowl looks a bit more of a pout). He starts walking again, far less enthusiastically than before, grumbling to himself. "...just when I thought I'd found a way to get rid of you..." He completely smothers down the tiniest pang of guilt he feels at the admittance.
Sasuke lets out another sigh, but an amused one this time and, smirking softly, he keeps following after him.
Once back in his apartment Naruto hastily kicks off his sandals and takes off his jumpsuit, falling back on his bed with his feet touching the cold floor, only to have his vision fill with the almost invisible cracks running through the dull whiteness of the ceiling. The drapes are still half drawn from the morning, even if the night is now looming in.
Almost as an afterthought he decided to turn on the small lamp on his bedside table, that envelopes the room in a flickering, artificial light. Because he doesn't want to be surrounded by darkness any more than he has to, he is already creeped out enough as it is.
Silently, he asks the universe what the hell is going on with his life.
Unfortunately for him the universe doesn't answer back.
"...This is the worst." He concludes, and he doesn't know if he is pissed off at the universe, at Sasuke, or maybe even at himself.
"Doesn't mean you can't still make the best of it." Sasuke says back to him as he takes a seat on the foot of his bed.
With all the energy he has left, Naruto pathetically drags himself into a sitting position, though he is still slouching, aiming a weak glare in his direction. "...You saying you're gettin' something out of my misery?"
Sasuke's features scrunch up in a frown. "What? No, wait, I meant something like pulling a best experience out of a worst case scenario? At least I think I heard someone say this once, or was it a proverb? Huh, you know what, scratch that for now, I'll check and get back to you on that."
Naruto rolls his eyes and heaves another exhale- honestly, what else can he do at this point? It's not like there is much denial left to hold on to.
"Hey, look at me."
Naruto's downcast head slowly lifts, eyes flitting to him almost unconsciously because Sasuke's voice has gotten quieter and far less amused now, and it sounds like something too important to be skipping out on.
When he finally chances a look at his face, the somberness he finds makes a weight drop inside him, feeling its heaviness spreading down to his every limb. It almost feels as if someone froze the moment in time, froze him in place so he won't be able to escape, so he won't be able to spare himself from something he doesn't even want to think about dealing with.
And then Sasuke is talking again.
"I'm not going anywhere, Naruto."
He barely needs to utter it in a whisper, the room is so painfully quiet that the words sound deafeningly loud, drowning out the hopes Naruto built in his head, that this would only be another nightmare to wake out of...just like everything else.
But the reality is terrifyingly starting to trickle in through his strongest defenses.
Sasuke dares a smile, it's a small one, it's sympathetic, and so careful. But his smile has a rueful edge to it (as if he knows). And it makes him feel so much worse.
"Not this time."
The distinct finalty in his words has the panic inside him increase tenfold. The heaviness seizing Naruto is enough to freeze the breath in his lungs. Enough to make him avert his eyes, because there is an unpleasantly familiar sting that distorts his vision, and he grits his teeth, lowering his head to hide it.
This can't be happening.
Not now.
...Not when Naruto was finally relieved to have him gone; not when Sasuke's betrayal had finally stopped hurting.
