Disclaimer: Yea, I don't own Naruto.
Thanks to all of my reviewers. Sorry for slow updates again……..This chapter was a rough one for me-So please tell me what you think. More hurt/comfort in this chapter, less action. As always, review please.
The Way Things Are
Chapter 12
"RASENGAN!" A swirling mass of blue chakra ripped at the gnarled tree that stood before Naruto. Splintering foliage flew past the blonde's face and body in throngs.
Sakura stood with her back against one the larger trees in the grove that Naruto had not attempted to obliterate. "That's at least got to be the sixth tree that he destroyed today." Sakura was concerned about her teammate. "He can be such an idiot…….He's gonna wear himself out if he doesn't sto-"
"RASENGAN!" Sakura's thoughts were interrupted by Naruto's stentorian attack cry.
"Idiot." The kunoichi muttered to herself as she crossed her arms. She appeared from behind the tree and stood facing Naruto. "Hey, Naruto! What are you doing?" Sakura asked with a hint of irritation hidden in her tone.
"Sakura?" Naruto asked between exhausted breaths. He was still unsure of how to talk to Sakura after their last conversation. "I hope she still doesn't hate me." Naruto slumped his shoulders and released his body from its attack stance.
"You've been at this for three days, Naruto!" Sakura yelled while shaking her powerful fist. "This isn't even training! You're just being reckless!" Naruto was taken aback by Sakura's normal behavior. "I guess she's not mad anymore."
"Uhh……..Yea. Haha I guess I'm just letting off a little steam." Naruto said with a smile. Sakura flung her hand in a flourish at the number of eradicated tree.
"That's not healthy. You're gonna rip your chakra system to shreds." Sakura closed her eyes. Naruto had noticed that sometimes she had begun to sound just like Tsunade.
"Sorry we all can't cry for two days like you to get ourselves calmed down." Naruto muttered to himself quietly. He hardly wanted to deal with Sakura's anger so he kept his mocking insults to a whisper.
"What was that?" Sakura asked with a tilt of her head. Naruto jumped a little and looked at Sakura nervously.
"N-Nothing." Naruto returned his voice to its usual volume. Sakura let out a slow sigh. She walked over to Naruto.
"Shouldn't you be working on your wind chakra?" Sakura asked lightly from behind her blonde friend. Naruto's head bobbed downward.
"I-I guess I'm just not in the mood." Naruto refused to bring Sasuke into the conversation.
"Oh….." Sakura said; Naruto couldn't tell if she disappointed or confused. "Both of us have to get out of this slump, Naruto." Sakura faced Naruto; the blonde raised his head. "I'm sorry about how upset I was. I shouldn't have taken it out on you." Sakura gave her teammate a weak smile. "Now, can you just forgive me already? It makes me upset to see you so depressed. It's not like you, Naruto."
"It's not that, Sakura. You don't need to apologize. I was never mad at you." Naruto looked away. He didn't want to cry in front of Sakura. "I don't know what's wrong with me." Naruto scoffed quietly. "He really did a number on me this time." Naruto mentally cursed himself for mentioning Sasuke. "Sakura-I…"
Naruto was stopped by the feeling of warm arms wrapping themselves around his body. The blonde looked down and saw that Sakura's head was near his neck. "Is she hugging me!? Actually hugging me!?
"S-Sakura!? What are y-you……Why…." Naruto stammered in confusion. Sakura giggled and almost blushed.
"You looked like you needed one of these." Sakura said sweetly. Naruto exhaled very slowly in relief. He placed one of his arms back around Sakura and returned the hug.
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The biting wind thrashed madly around Sasuke's battle bruised figure. The Uchiha hadn't stopped moving for a moment in the last two days. Orochimaru had attempted to destroy the few things in Sasuke's life that kept him alive. The piercing screams of the sanin's genjutsu filled the dark caverns of the Uchiha's mind yet again. "No escape from them……." Naruto's lifeless body sat in a heap, surrounded by crimson, cold blood. The images Sasuke had witnessed while he was within the void Orochimaru's corrosive insides flooded through his memory in a downpour.
As soon as Sasuke had finished with Orochimaru, he left the hideout. He hadn't even bothered searching for Kabuto. He'd believed that if the medical ninja was ever even worth killing, he'd wait for the coward to come to him. He was far too preoccupied with the driving thought in his mind to bother with Orochimaru's subordinates. A single name was the only thing that kept Sasuke's body moving without collapsing in pure exhaustion.
"Naruto……..Just…have to see him alive…can't rest….not until I know he's alive." Orochimaru's wicked mind games had finally had some effect on the Uchiha. Sasuke hadn't even thought about how the sanin tried to take control of his body. His revenge had barely surfaced in his mind either. All he could think about was what Orochimaru planned to do to Naruto if he had succeeded in taking host of Sasuke's body. "No one will ever touch him…... Except me……If death is the only solution in protecting Naruto…Then I'll be the one to kill him." Sasuke closed his eyes. "But I hope……I hope it never comes to that."
As Konoha approached on the horizon, Sasuke slowed his pace slightly. The blazing glow of the high sun blinded the Uchiha temporarily when he approached a clearing in the forest. "This place……..This is the grove Naruto and I were in when I attacked him." Sasuke opened his eyes; His gaze was still blurred with an aggravating mass of specks of bright light. He relied on his ears for a brief moment.
"It's not that, Sakura. You don't need to apologize. I was never mad at you." The sound caused an instantaneous feeling of success and relief in Sasuke's mind. "Naruto…. He's here." Sasuke's eyes broke open in desperation as he searched for any sign of the blonde. "Where?...There." Sasuke leapt to another tree branch reflexively at the sight of Naruto. He stealthily placed his back to a tree and peered down at his former teammate.
"Teammates." Sasuke's mind corrected itself. Saskura was standing before Naruto. "Damn it. She always has to be in the way, doesn't she-" Sasuke's eyes widened slightly as he took in the sight before him.
Sakura had wrapped her arms around Naruto. Sasuke felt himself grunt a little as he watched Naruto return the embrace. "What…..What is this?" Sasuke gulped worriedly. He felt something strange overcome his mind and body. His throat began to tighten. The embrace still hadn't ceased. His two former teammates only succeeded in tightening their grasps around each other. Sasuke watched dejectedly as a tear spilled from Naruto's eye.
"No………" Sasuke clutched at a tree branch.
"Naruto." Sakura spoke as she just barely backed away from the blonde. "There's another reason I came. Tsunade-sama wants to see you and I." Naruto narrowed his eyes.
"What about?" Naruto asked curiously. Sakura looked away worriedly. He pink bangs covered her eyes enigmatically.
"I don't know much. But, from what I've heard…….." Naruto nodded his head in an attempt to make the girl continue. "Orochimaru." Naruto felt a shiver at the sound of the sanin's name. "He's dead."
"H-How?" Naruto asked nervously as he prepared himself to hear about what Sasuke had done. "When Sasuke left……he told me that he wouldn't come back until they were gone……does that mean…..Does it mean that Sasuke killed Orochimaru?" Naruto mused. "And what about Itachi?"
"I don't know much, Naruto." Sakura continued. "That perverted sanin……..Jiraiya….He found Orochimaru's remains….What little was left of him anyway." Naruto looked downward. Sakura placed a comforting hand on Naruto's shoulders.
"SNAP!" The sound of a cracking tree branch resounded through the grove. Naruto and Sakura watched behind them as the limb of a tree flew swiftly toward the ground.
"Shit." Sasuke thought angrily. He had just barely avoided his former teammates gaze by leaping away as soon as he had realized he had broken the tree branch. Naruto clenched his jaw and turned toward Sakura.
"Sakura……Go back to the Hokage tower. Tell Grandma that I'll be there soon." Naruto stared sternly at Sakura.
"Naruto?" Sakura narrowed her eyes. "What's going on?" Naruto put on the best smile he could pull off.
"Aw, its just that I want to work on my technique a little longer. I need to practice in private. Then I'll probably go back to my house and wash up." Naruto said while scratching the back of his head casually.
"Naruto." Sakura sneered. "I'm not stupid. Stop treating me like a child-" Naruto cut the girl off and returned to his previous demeanor.
"Sakura……Just do this for me…..Please." Naruto kept a stern tone but pleaded with his friend. Sakura looked around cautiously. In a frantic search for an answer, her mind deciphered the situation.
"Don't take long." Sakura stated firmly. She turned her back on Naruto and left the grove in a flash of speed.
Naruto turned around slowly and faced the tree that the branch had fallen from. His blue eyes scanned the forest carefully. He took another slow step forward. The blonde's lower lip began to quiver slightly. Naruto, rather than showing any weakness, bit the trembling muscle firmly. "It couldn't be….." Naruto opened his mouth.
"Teme?" Naruto almost whispered. Naruto heard footsteps approaching from his right. He turned quickly, a kunai was already held tightly in his hand. "If he wants a repeat of last time…….."
"Hey! What's wrong with you, Naruto!?" A familiar voice asked. "Bad timing, Kiba. Bad timing." Naruto thought sourly. He'd already been interrupted once today. He was hardly in the mood for someone to interrupt a second time; Especially now.
"Kiba? Were you just training? In the trees?" Naruto asked. It seemed more like an interrogation to the other boy. Kiba placed his hands in front of him and shook them violently.
"Whoa! What's with you? You're still on edge." Kiba grunted. Naruto noticed his behavior and gasped silently. He dropped the kunai and smiled.
"Sorry, Kiba. It's just that I think I need a little alone time right now." Naruto hoped that Kiba would get the hint to leave. However, Naruto realized he would have to be a little blunter when he noticed his words only made the other boy chuckle. Kiba moved around behind Naruto and placed both his hands on the blonde's shoulders.
"Relax, Naruto. I mean ease up a little. It's only me." Kiba began gently massaging Naruto's shoulders. Naruto groaned lightly. "I heard you've been training out here for almost three days. Holy shit, your shoulders are like one giant knot." Every nerve in Naruto's upper body felt instant relief from the friendly massage. Nevertheless, Naruto really needed Kiba to go. "Someone else is here…" Naruto successfully suppressed a moan. "Damn he really knows what he's doing."
"I appreciate this Kiba…….ahh…..Really I do……..aww…..but seriously Kiba…..would you mind leaving me alone?" The sound of a zipper buzzed in Naruto's ears. Kiba was removing Naruto's orange jacket. "Kiba?" Naruto asked a bit uncomfortably.
"This thing is way too bulky. Why do you wear it? I can't get any of your rough spots while it's on." Kiba scoffed. "And boy do you have a lot of them." The blonde cleared his throat.
"Chill, Naruto…….We're both guys, I'm just trying to help you out." The orange jacket slid from Naruto's body, leaving the blonde in one of his black undershirts. "There, now I can work on your knots." Naruto cooed like a dog when Kiba reapplied his hands. Kiba was half expecting to see Naruto's leg twitch uncontrollably like Akamaru's always did when Kiba gave him a rub down.
"CRACK!" A second branch snapped in Sasuke's grasp. He'd never taken his eyes off of Naruto for a second. "What the fuck!? Naruto and Kiba!? Naruto and Sakura!? The fucking dobe has a thing for that mutt! He may even have a thing for Sakura!" Sasuke was unsure if he was jealous. "No, this has to be jealousy. How can Naruto do that? I thought……..he and I had….." Sasuke felt his eyes sear and a knot formed uncomfortably in his throat. "This…..watching this….I feel sick….It hurts." Sasuke grabbed another branch and clenched his fingers around it. His chest heaved outward as he inhaled shakily.
"God…..ahh….Kiba you're gonna put me asleep." Naruto's words seeped into Sasuke's already confused and distraught mind. Sasuke felt a silent sob arise in his throat. He choked it back with his anger. "I can't watch anymore..." Disgust and anguish flowed into Sasuke's anger. His emotions mixed violently into an unhealthy concoction. Then again, Sasuke's control of his emotions had always been a bit unhealthy. "Why!? Do I deserve this!?" Sasuke felt his face tighten as he let out a weak grunt. "Whether I deserve it or not……I can't just sit here and watch……I need to talk to the dobe……I'll kill Kiba if he touches Naruto again."
Sasuke summoned a small snake from his sleeve. He watched it wind down his arm in way that attracted Sasuke's eyes. Its dark, scaly skin contracted along the Uchiha's pale limb. It wrapped itself around the tree and smoothly twisted down to the ground. It weaved in the high grass, giving it even more stealth than it required.
"Ow. Fuck!" Kiba bit his lip and looked down at his ankle.
"POOF!" The sound echoed in Naruto's ears. Light smoke wisped from the ground in deadly curls. The smell was easily recognizable in Kiba's sensitive nose.
"Naruto? Did you see what bit me? It smells like the kind of smoke from a summoning juts-" Kiba's eyes turned a ghostly white as his pupils receded into the back of his head. The boy dropped to the ground instantaneously in a heap. Naruto stood up instinctively and yelled into the trees.
"Stop it!" The blonde waited for Sasuke to emerge. "Stop it, Sasuke! Come out of there!" Naruto peered cautiously at his side. He watched as someone's foot casually pushed Kiba aside. Naruto closed his eyes.
"So Orochimaru is dead?" The question was obviously rhetorical. Sasuke didn't need a reason to answer.
"What the hell is this, Naruto?" Sasuke gestured toward the fallen boy. "Kiba? And Sakura?"
"What did you do to him?" Naruto's teeth were already grinding.
"Hn. So you're worried about this mutt, huh? It's just a poison that induces sleep." Sasuke heard Naruto sigh in relief. "Why him?" Sasuke asked with a hint of genuine curiosity. Naruto turned and faced the Uchiha. He scrunched his brow to show his irritation.
"He's my friend, Sasuke. Nothing more. He was just there……I wasn't going to object to a massage." Naruto tried lightening the mood a little.
"Hn. He was just there. Like when I was just there, right?" The Uchiha's tone was covered with disgust. Naruto snarled angrily. He knew Sasuke had no right to say what he was saying.
"And then you weren't there!" Naruto took a step forward and clenched his fist. "You left me, Sasuke! It's not the other way around. You left me! I don't owe you anything!" Crimson colors swarmed into the blonde's eyes. The Kyuubi had sensed Naruto's primal fury. The demon fed it like a blazing fire. "Where do you get off judging me!? When were we ever actually anything!?" A clawed fist soared vengefully toward the Uchiha. Sasuke hurled the fist aside. He retaliated with more corrosive words.
"I see you're as mature as ever, dobe!" Sarcasm flooded through Sasuke's speech. "Really mature, Naruto! I hurt you and you hurt me back!"
"No! The mature thing to do, Sasuke, is for you to spend your whole life hiding and suppressing your emotions! The mature thing to do, Sasuke, is for you to hurt and abandon everyone who ever cared about you or loved you so that you can fuel your life with revenge! The mature thing to do is to hunger and search for power so that no one will realize that you are nothing but a scared, insecure little boy!" Sasuke stood completely stunned for a second. His rage hesitated briefly. Naruto turned and began to walk away.
"Nar…..Naruto stop!" Sasuke felt his strength return. "Naruto…wait."
"Sasuke……..just….. go away." Naruto couldn't believe what he was saying. He had vowed to get Sasuke back, and now he was dismissing his old friend without batting an eye.
"I'm…..I'm sorry." Sasuke spoke softly. Although, Naruto couldn't hear Sasuke that well, he swore he had never heard the Uchiha sound so sincere. "I'm sorry for everything…for everything I put you through." Naruto wished he could accept the apology. Still, in the end, Naruto's anger won.
"Thank you." Naruto said with more sarcasm than Sasuke could muster. "All better now. Thank goodness you told me in time." Sasuke felt his rage fester yet again. Rather than making the situation worse, Sasuke remained calm.
"Stop, Naruto. It's not like that. You don't understand." Sasuke said a bit disdainfully. "I care about you dobe…….I love you." Sasuke gulped.
"Really? Well, you could have fooled me." Naruto quipped back; the blonde kept walking. Sasuke looked at the ground. He refused to close his eyes in fear of having Naruto disappear out of sight completely.
"Are you going to tell the Hokage that I'm here?" Sasuke asked; He knew the question was unimportant. However, he asked it simply to stop the blonde from leaving.
"No."
"Why not?"
"You know why." Naruto turned to face Sasuke. The Uchiha noticed the streaming tears that were sliding helplessly from Naruto's gleaming, cyan eyes.
"Sasuke……Sasuke I-I…want to trust you…..I want it so bad that it hur-no, it does more than hurt…..You've really torn me apart Sasuke…..Will you ever let me trust you….trust you enough to love you…..I want to love you….I already do.. But, it just doesn't Without trust….Love is nothing but a passionate fire…The craving is there…and the lust…but without trust…It just burns and consumes……until there's nothing left." A desperate choke stopped Naruto from continuing. The blonde sat in the dirt. Sasuke was taken aback by Naruto's use of poetic sounding words. "He must have thought a lot about this." The Uchiha mused.
"Love like that doesn't last." Sasuke finished for the gasping blonde. "I'm so sorry, Naruto. I'm so sorry." Cautious steps led the Uchiha behind Naruto. Sasuke fell to his knees and faced Naruto's back. He stretched his hand warily toward the blonde.
"C-Can I?" Sasuke asked sincerely.
"Please." Naruto answered back almost silently.
Sasuke wrapped on of arms around Naruto's waist. The other laid itself tenderly down the blonde's torso. Naruto leaned backward and allowed Sasuke to hold him. He placed his head on Sasuke's chest and snuggled against him slightly. The Uchiha readjusted himself as well. He spread his legs, allowing Naruto to lay his own legs between them.
Sasuke felt the blonde shake violently against him. Naruto quivered in Sasuke's grasp and he began to sweat.
"Dobe? You're burning up. Should I……" Sasuke asked.
"I-I can't stop shaking." A sharp shudder caused Naruto to cough. "I feel like I'm gonna be sick." Both boys hesitated. Sasuke was about to ask why, but, Naruto spoke first. "It's all just a little too much to take in at once."
"What Should I do? Do you want me to go?" Sasuke whispers were filled with concern.
"No……Don't….just….hold me a little tighter, and don't let go." Naruto closed his eyes.
"Yea." Sasuke responded tenderly by pulling the blonde closer to him. The shaking began to subside after a few moments. Sasuke had almost thought that Naruto had fallen asleep.
"Sasuke? I'm sorry if I was a little too confrontational a second ago…..I just…well after the way you left me last time…I was mad." Naruto chuckled. "No I was more than mad…You really pissed me off…..I can hardly believe I'm letting you touch me like this after what you did to me…..Why did you do that?" Naruto's head tilted backward; he gazed into Sasuke's dark, mysterious eyes.
"I understand why you're angry…..I was half expecting you turn into that fox and eat me when I came back today. I shouldn't have said the things I said either…I was out of line… It's just that seeing you with Sakura and Kiba……It hurt. You didn't owe me anything…You were right. I treated you like shit when I left last time." Sasuke warily stroked Naruto's blonde hairline.
"Speaking of Kiba……" Naruto interjected.
"He's fine. I already said that all the snake did was put him to sleep. The poison will neutralize itself in his system after a while. He isn't in any danger." Sasuke sounded slightly irritated.
"Can I trust you? How do I know that you're not gonna leave like last time? How do I know that you won't let Kabuto try to kill me again?" Naruto started to pull away from Sasuke slightly.
"Naruto…just let me explain." Sasuke calmly pulled Naruto back to his chest. "I…I can't let you get involved with my……business. I couldn't let you follow me. I may have been blunt, but, you were being so damn persistent." Sasuke could almost feel the kyuubi's chakra boil within Naruto.
"That's hardly an excuse for what you did las-" Naruto's swelling anger was interrupted by Sasuke.
"Let me finish, dobe." Sasuke continued. "I didn't want to hurt you….But, I know that I ended up doing it anyway. I won't ever let anything like that happen to you again. I'll kill anyone who threatens you……Just like Orochimaru did." Sasuke trailed off.
"Sasuke……" Naruto whispered.
"But I can't let you get in my way either." Sasuke placed his chin lightly on top of Naruto's blonde locks. "We're both just going to have to wait. I have to finish my brother." Naruto felt Sasuke's body tense. "Don't think that I don't care about you……. I just can't be with you completely until he's dead. Can you understand?" Sasuke asked tentatively.
"Sasuke….You know that I can't let you go on alone. I can't let you do this to yourself. Kakashi……Sakura…None of us can ever completely stop following you." Truth flowed through Naruto's speech.
"You have to!" Sasuke's voice rose. "I have to do this, Naruto! And I need you to be alive when I've finished it. Naruto………Once he's dead….You're all….You're all that I'll have left." Naruto thought it was impossible for Sasuke to hold him tighter. Sasuke proved him wrong. "I need you dobe…..You're the only thing that will keep me alive when I complete my revenge." Sasuke mentally cursed his throat for forming another rigid knot.
"I want to help…..I just want to help you Sasuke….I'll do whatever I can." Naruto grabbed Sasuke's hand. Their fingers slowly laced around each other.
"Then stay out of my way." Sasuke's pleading voice cracked. "If you interfered and got hurt…..I could never forgive myself… or you. My brother is my burden…..he's mine alone to kill." The Uchiha waited for another argument to start.
"Ok…..Alright, I'll try." Naruto let out a weak whisper. Sasuke exhaled in relief.
"Thanks, dobe. Because someday……..Someday I want you by my side……forever." The boys sat in silence. The sun was beginning to fade in an ominous red and orange aura on the horizon.
"Sasuke….I don't want to sound like a hypocrite….." Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Naruto's confusing statement. " I mean its important for us to take this slow….and to see where we stand and stuff…..But…..You know that whole "rebuilding trust" conversation we should still be having?"
"Yea?" Sasuke asked; His heart skipped a beat, hoping that Naruto wanted the same thing he wanted at this point.
"Ummm…." Naruto felt his cheeks swell with heat. "Let's just forget about it for now, ok?" Naruto gave a large, nervous grin and turned to face Sasuke. "Maybe we should just…..….Break all this tension, you know?" Naruto's hands squirmed around each other nervously.
"Hn." Sasuke scoffed humorously at the blonde before him. "Sure, dobe. I think I know how we can do that."
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I had the hardest time making the decision to end the chapter there. In the end, I just had to……Sorry. However, the next chapter is almost done. It should be up very, VERY soon. Ha and I mean it this time. It will contain mostly lemonish events, and it will begin immediately where this chapter ended. ---By the way, sorry about the lengthy conversations in this chapter, I just figured that Sasuke and Naruto had A LOT to talk about after their last encounter. Anyway, let me know what you think.