The light slanted pleasantly through the openings in the blind. Naruto stretched lazily and looked around him. He had made decent progress on the apartment. There weren't as many boxes as before, and while things were still cluttered and disorderly, it was improving. He cracked his back as he sat up. He'd purchased a bed each for Himawari and Boruto, but he had resisted purchasing any other furniture. He, himself had slept on an old, traditional shikibuton that he and Hinata had kept for when her parents visited.

He stumbled into the kitchenette, happy that he'd had the foresight to unpack the coffee pot the night before. He yawned and started the coffee. He knew that once the warm aroma of brewing coffee permeated the apartment he'd feel more human. Maybe even more at home.

He poured himself a cup before the entire pot had brewed, not caring that the water hissed on the hotplate as he poured his cup. His phone rang well before the caffeine began to kick in. He grabbed it sluggishly, irritable at the intrusion, and recognized Hinata's number.

"Hey, Hina, what's up?" he asked, trying to fend off the nausea that bloomed in his gut at the sound of her voice. The few miles between them felt like an unbridgeable chasm.

"Naruto," her voice came softy. "Naruto, Boruto told me that he got in trouble yesterday at school."

Naruto took a drink of his coffee before replying. "Yeah, he did. Decided to make a well-earned statement on my portrait."

Hinata was silent for so long Naruto thought that the call had been dropped.

"You can't make excuses for him, Naruto," Hinata said. "He has to learn some discipline."

Naruto felt so far away, so very far away from his children and from his old life. Worse than the distance was the feeling that he didn't know if he wanted to lengthen that distance, just to keep from fucking things up worse than he already had, or clasp Himawari and Boruto to his chest and never let them go.

"Hinata, I know what you're saying. But he has a right to call an asshole an asshole."

Hinata's sigh came through the line like a hiss. "Naruto, you're still his father, and he still needs to respect you."

Naruto scraped his toe over the carpet, watching it change tones and relishing the friction. "I don't believe in people being respected without earning it, Hinata. You know that." She began to protest, but he cut her off. "I know our culture—we are supposed to respect our elders no matter what, and honor them, and blah, blah, blah. But I also know that you and I have both been fucked over by that belief. By people who demanded our respect when they had no problem picking on a little kid and expecting us to just trail along behind them because we were smaller. I am not gonna ask Boruto to be like that."

"I have always supported you as a father, Naruto," Hinata said, her gentleness fraying with exasperation, "but this is different, and you know it. You haven't been unkind to Boruto, nor have you left him behind. I know you feel guilty about the divorce, but you have to be less permissive with him."

Naruto grit his teeth. "I punished him, Hinata. Even Shikamaru was pleased. I still think the kid has the right to be mad at me."

"I'm glad you punished him. Do not let him guilt-trip you into letting it go, Naruto," Hinata warned.

"I won't, Hinata. I promise."

The silence lapsed between them, a beat too long for comfort. "Hinata," Naruto finally said, "I want to be better with Boruto. I really do. I want to earn his respect. Fuck if I know how, but I want to."

"Oh, Naruto..." she said sadly. "Just love him."

"Yeah. Whatever. Hey, thanks. I appreciate you calling, Hinata."

There wasn't even a click when the conversation ended. Just… nothing. Just Naruto alone in his apartment with its off-white walls and beige carpet, an in-between place where countless others had stopped over on their way to somewhere more permanent. He gulped down the rest of his cooling coffee and strode off to the shower to wash away the feeling of being a man without a country.

The sky was an unusually bright and cheerful shade of blue that day. He had wandered downtown on foot, thoughts of Boruto swirling in his mind. He desperately wanted Boruto to grow up knowing the comfort of having two parents who loved and cared for him unconditionally. He knew he couldn't undo the years of distance, but they had some years left; perhaps with some discernment and effort, he could set things aright with his son.

Naruto's characteristic optimism, which had carried him through so many difficulties into so many achievements, resurrected within him and gave him new power as he walked beyond the downtown shops and towards the edge of the city limits.

As he neared the railroad tracks that demarcated the end of the village, he looked around. He seldom came to this side of town; the school was situated almost squarely in the town center. His old home had been on the far side of town in the opposite direction. He decided he liked the atmosphere. There were, here and there, a few buildings with the old-fashioned tiled roofs. Most of the older buildings had balconies, and Naruto could imagine, in days long gone by, immigrant housewives hanging their families' shikibutons and kakebutons over the railings to sun.

One storefront in particular caught his eye. The logo was reminiscent of a mon from one of the ancient Japanese clans, three comma-like shapes arranged in a triangular fashion in red. "Tomoe Books and Artifacts," the shingle read beneath. An ikebana arrangement in the wide window completed the effect. Naruto wondered if this shop had always been here. He smiled; Boruto liked reading about Japanese feudal history. It felt fortuitous to have found it just as he'd been thinking of his son.

He opened the door and reflexively removed his shoes before remembering that he was not, in fact, entering a Japanese home and put them back on hastily. The shop was well-ordered and minimally furnished, with low bookcases lining the walls and creating aisles in the center of the floor. To the rear of the room was a very shallow tokonoma with another ikebana arrangement and a scroll with the script for Amaterasu, the goddess of the sun, hanging on the wall behind. This pleased Naruto's sense of serendipity even more; he had a similar scroll with the script for Tsukuyomi, the god of the moon, hanging in his new apartment. One of the few items he had held onto since his childhood, he had hung it in the living room before he had unpacked anything else.

There were books on Japanese art, architecture, and history, as well as a decent selection of Japanese and Japanese-American literature. He wasn't sure what Boruto had read and what era of Japanese history he was now engrossed in.

Shoulda paid more attention, eh?

Naruto growled softly to himself. He would not allow his self-doubt to divert his attention from his mission, now.

"Is there anything in particular you are looking for?"

Naruto startled at the sound of a rich, deep, familiar voice. He hadn't noticed anyone come onto the sales floor. He whipped around and found himself face-to-face with Sasuke, his black eyes shining and making Naruto wish more than anything that he could disappear into the floor.

"Uh. Hey, Sasuke. I didn't know this was your shop." Naruto willed his voice to drop an octave and stop shaking.

Sasuke's lips quirked upwards briefly. "Hello, Naruto," he said politely. Once again, Naruto felt as if the syllables of his name, as pronounced by Sasuke, had invisible fingers to run up and down his spine. He hoped he wasn't blushing. He knew he probably was.

"I am looking for something for my son," Naruto said as he scratched the back of his neck. "He likes Japanese history. But I really don't know what era he's into right now."

"Your son is about 11." Sasuke said. Naruto was impressed that he'd remembered. "And you're sure he'd prefer a history book?"

"Yeah, he's a good student," Naruto said. "He used to be fascinated with samurai, but I am not really sure, anymore, what he's enthusiastic about."

"Hn." Sasuke frowned a little in thought as he turned. "If he hasn't read Hagakure, he might appreciate it. I have a decent translation here. Don't let the translator's Western name fool you."

"Ah, yeah, he's tried with Hagakure before and found it a little… heavy and difficult."

"A good translation can make a difference, but personally, I find it a silly and irrelevant work."

Naruto frowned. "Why? It was how samurai lived their lives. It was supposed to define what it meant to be a samurai in the first place."

Sasuke scoffed. "More precisely, it defines how a samurai was supposed to die. A samurai wasn't even supposed to consider himself alive, if you believe Hagakure, until he'd accomplished the will of his lord." Sasuke's eyes bored into him, and Naruto wanted to keep goading him, just to keep those eyes focused on him.

"It was the time period. Historically, it could be helpful," he argued.

"Sure. It puts into perspective why feudal society rightfully died out and why all vestiges of it should be trampled in the dust."

"Says the man whose store logo looks like a feudal symbol."

Sasuke actually smiled, and Naruto felt a little thrill of triumph.

"I find it brings all the slow-minded, nostalgic types in. Good for business."

Naruto chuckled, at himself as much as at Sasuke's riposte. He found that he was both irritated by Sasuke's fast retorts and impressed by them. Naruto had many close friends. Even in the midst of the divorce, he had known that he could send out a distress call and have it answered by a dozen people immediately. Sparring verbally with Sasuke, though, made him feel as if he'd been missing something.

Makes you wonder how it'd be to spar physically with him, doesn't it? His inner voice taunted. Naruto knew for a fact that he was blushing, now. From the way Sasuke smirked and looked away, he knew it, too.

Sasuke's voice broke into his discomfort. "I have an idea."

"What idea is that? Being polite to your customers instead of insulting their children's taste in history?" Naruto grinned to see Sasuke smile again.

"No, that option remains on the table. It's one of the perks of self-employment. I have an idea for your choice of reading materials for your son," he said. "Come this way."

Naruto trailed after Sasuke, taking in his tall, lean form. He wore grey, woolen trousers and a dark blue sateen shirt this time. Naruto appreciated the way the trousers fit his hips. An unwanted heat formed in his veins. He had never leered at anyone before. Sure, he'd taken a second glance at a well-toned model in a perfume ad, or pay a little too much attention to a soccer player on tv. Never, though, had he stared after a person he knew like this. He shook his head to clear his thoughts. The corpse of his marriage was still slightly warm, and he was leering at other people, already.

I never figured you had this inside of you, his inner voice chuckled.

Sasuke had led them to a doorway Naruto hadn't noticed during his initial survey of the store. He watched as Sasuke bent and removed his shoes, and he followed suit. A noren parted to lead them into a traditional, tatami-floored room. Swords of all kinds hung on the walls, along with staves and fans.

"Wow," Naruto breathed appreciatively. "Do you know Iaido?"

He felt Sasuke looking at him, analysing his response as he took in the room. He barely caught Sasuke's little ghost of a smile when he turned back to face him.

"I don't know that anyone can ever truly say they know it," Sasuke murmured. "I know more than the average person. Encyclopedias could be written with what I don't know, I'm sure."

Naruto cocked his head and peered at Sasuke. Surely, a man like Sasuke could rightfully be arrogant. He was not just handsome, but heartbreakingly beautiful. From the little bit of time Naruto had spent with him, he could tell that he was highly intelligent. Yet his words were not arrogant at all.

"I always wanted to learn more about Iaido," Naruto said softly, looking around again.

"I always do want to know more about it," Sasuke replied. "There is always more to learn. Maybe your son would enjoy learning about it, as well."

Naruto faced Sasuke excitedly. "You're a genius!" he enthused. "I know he would. He's excellent at both karate and judo, and with his interest in the samurai, iaido would be a natural fit."

"That's what I thought," Sasuke murmured thoughtfully. "Most of these books are from my own collection, but I've read them. Would you like me to choose a book that would teach him the beginning principles and history of the art?"

"Wow, Sasuke, that's awesome! Yeah, please do that," Naruto replied. "I'll pay whatever. I kinda owe him one. Or one hundred."

"Hn. No charge. Like I said, these are used books."

"No, no, no. I insist."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Don't be an idiot." He strode to the end of the tatami room and slid a screen aside to reveal a narrow cupboard filled with books. He looked for a while before finding two that he approved of.

He thrust the two books into Naruto's hands. "Take this one. And take the Hagakure translation, as well. I hope your son enjoys them."

Naruto looked down at the books and smiled. His fingers brushed Sasuke's as he took them into his own hands. The unintended contact made his fingertips tingle. He felt inordinately happy that Sasuke hadn't recoiled or moved away.

"Thank you, Sasuke. I know he will appreciate these."

"Hn." Sasuke's ghost smile appeared and reappeared again. Naruto wondered if Sasuke ever grinned with abandon. If so, he wanted to see it. More than that, he wanted to cause it.

The two men put on their shoes and returned to the storefront. Naruto resentfully noticed a few women gazing into the window curiously. He was embarrassed to realize that he didn't want to compete with them for Sasuke's attention, he realized.

"Naruto."

That voice…

"Please turn the "open" sign around," Sasuke asked him from the back of the store. All too triumphantly, Naruto strode to the door and flipped the sign around, smiling at the women who were preparing to enter Tomoe. He made a disingenuous expression of apology at them, and they turned around, obviously disappointed.

"Sorry if I've kept you past your closing time," Naruto said, turning back to face Sasuke.

"Not at all. I close at lunch time on Saturdays," Sasuke said as he locked up the till.

Naruto felt that the tenuous moment was about to leap from his hands like a shimmering trout he'd just barely managed to catch. He had thought of Sasuke more than once since first meeting him on Monday, and he couldn't believe his good luck at running into him again so soon. He didn't want to surrender that feeling just yet.

"Hey, Sasuke?"

"Hn."

"Do you want to get lunch? It's on me," Naruto asked nervously.

"That's fine," Sasuke muttered, preoccupied with shutting down the shop.

Naruto stood, stock still as if he were trying not to scare away a feral cat.

Aw. Look at you, all nervous. Afraid that pretty, pretty man is going to bolt and run?

He ground his teeth, trying to quell his inner doubts. Sasuke interrupted his internal dialogue.

"Where would you like to go?"

Naruto jumped. "Uh. Well, I dunno. What do you like to eat? You should choose."

Sasuke didn't answer right away. He walked to the door and held it open for Naruto. Naruto shifted from foot to foot uneasily in the midday sun in front of the store.

"Do you like Italian?" Sasuke asked.

"I like pretty much everything, especially if it's heavy on the salt and the fat," Naruto replied.

"Why did I have the feeling that would be the case?" Sasuke taunted.

"Shut up, asshole. Where is a good Italian place around here?"

"There's not one here, but if we drive just a little way out of town there's a place."

"I, uh, sorta walked here today," said Naruto.

"Then by default, I drive." Sasuke seemed to be amused by Naruto's unease. "Here we are."

Sasuke's car felt like an intimate little cloister. As Sasuke shifted gears, Naruto thought of how easy it would be to just reach across the console and brush his hand. It was a peculiar kind of torment, having the object of his attraction so close and yet not be able to touch him.

Puberty catches up to the best of us, kid.

Naruto laughed aloud at the thought. Sasuke glanced sidelong at him and smirked. "Care to share your joke with the rest of the class?"

"Nah. I'll keep this one to myself," Naruto responded, grinning. "It was stupid and irrelevant anyway."

"Do you know any other kind?" Sasuke goaded. Naruto laughed again.

Maybe he did feel awkward. He could take it, though.

Beats the hell outta half alive.

Naruto couldn't have agreed more.