"Foolish Hearts"

'Chapter Eight'

It had only been about an hour and Sasuke found himself waking up again.

Once more the red formed a ring around his eyes and he shook the sleep from his limbs and mind. Quietly he rolled himself out of bed, groping the ground for pants, slipping them on and shakily making his way down the hall.

His body groggy with sleep, his movement not as graceful as they normally were. He was heading to the kitchen for a drink when he passed Naruto's office, noticing the kit inside. He looked in, dark eyes taking in the sight of the worried fox who was shuffling through papers like he misplaced something.

His brow furrowed and he slowly pushed open the door, "Naruto?" He asked, his tone laced with sleep, running a hand through his messy hair as he leaned heavily against the door frame.

Naruto jumped at the voice, he hadn't heard or felt Sasuke coming. Looking, wide eyed over to Sasuke the fox stopped shuffling papers around, "You scared me." He looked back outside before he started towards Sasuke, and gently guided the man back into the hall way, and closing his office door. "Food?" He asked, grabbing his zip up jacket on the way so he wouldn't be completely shirtless in front of Sasuke and the Anbu. He would have added a smart aleck comment about always being hungry after sex, but he couldn't risk it, not with the Anbu out there.

"What's wrong?" Sasuke asked after a moment as Naruto raced from his office to the kitchen, all but shutting the door in his face. He frowned, lazily trailing after the fox to the kitchen, no longer afraid of losing his mind.

Naruto…

Naruto was his, all of his.

Both sides of his broken psyche wouldn't harm to fox, now he just needed to worry about himself when other players might be added.

...like the other day with Sakura.

He took a seat at the table, his dark eyes still following the kitsune in his quick movements.

The fox closed the blinds and the window as he started making up some food. "Don't worry about it." He smiled trying to figure out how he was going to sort everything out. "Everything's under control at the moment." He felt a sharp pain in his hand as he accidently set his free hand down on the open burner and cursed quietly under his breath, jerking his hand away before setting the tea pot down.

So much for a good start of his day.

"You like green tea, yea?" Naruto asked turning the water on, and acting as if he was just washing his hands, "I'll get some going."

Sasuke could feel something was off with the fox, and it had started from their romp in the morning. He looked down at the table, propping his head up with a free hand, feeling a little awkward. Something was bothering Naruto and he couldn't place what it was. He let out a sigh, "Tea is fine."

The fox nodded and continued moving about the kitchen in almost a skittish manner. His eyes landed on the pill bottle and he cursed once more; What if Sakura told someone about the pills? That Sasuke had taken too many and had almost died? What would they do? Would they re-admit him to the hospital? Or would they just take him away?

Reaching for the phone, his nimble fingers quickly started to dial the girl's number. Walking out of the room to the formal dining room, the kit closed the door and listened as the phone rang.

Where was she?

Hearing the familiar sounds of the answering machine the fox growled and rubbed his eyes, "Hey, it's me. Give me a call when you get home. I have to ask you something really important." Hanging up the phone he rested it on the table, and sighed.

All these ideas and scenarios were going to make his head explode it was already giving him a headache…

"Damn it." Pushing the door back open, he walked into the kitchen and rested the phone on the carrier, before leaning against the counter, his arms crossing, his face set in a pout.

"Are you going to tell me what's wrong?" Sasuke asked evenly, his face a frown as his black-red eyes regarded the pouting fox. "Or just continue to ignore me?" Sasuke murmured, it was irritating him, everything was. He hated that Naruto knew something he didn't, he hated not knowing.

What if it was him?

What if Naruto was upset about him?

He had never felt this before; he had never cared like this before. Especially with his sharingan he would normally just fall into his mind when things got bad. But now he couldn't -- both pieces of himself were focused on the fox, his whole self feeling a little rejected and confused.

What was going on?

"Don't worry about it." He shook his head again, and let it rest against the cabinet, "You shouldn't be worrying about anything right now." Tossing the pill bottle over to Sasuke he gave the man a look, "Only one." His voice held a bit of a stern note in it, but he still seemed relaxed.

He pushed off the counter and gathered the tea, bringing the cup back to the table, he held his own and set Sasuke's down, "I've have some work I have to do, I'll be in my office if you need me.."

Sasuke's eyes were darker now, the cup of tea before him. He kept his frown, not responding to the fox anymore, looking to his cup but he didn't make a move towards it until the kitsune left the room again.

He ignored the pills.

He would let his eyes bleed, to mask a piece of him; he didn't feel like being here right now. He ran a hand through his hair, lifting the tea and taking a slow tentative sip.

--

The fox spent a majority of the day in his office, shuffling through Sasuke's file, trying for the life of him to find the security papers on his house.

He was tired, he was hungry, and he was angry.

Naruto growled and fell back in his chair, before he roughly kicked his desk. His headache still hadn't gone away, and he groaned pitifully, pressing his thumb to the side of his face, to try and alleviate the pain.

Sakura hadn't called him back, which worried him, and made him panic a bit. He couldn't leave the house either. There were no chakra bounds on him, but the fox leaving was a signal that Sasuke was out of control and needed to be taken from the house permanently, that much he remembered.

Looking at the mess he called his desk he let out a sigh and finally stood up. He was giving up for the day.

Shuffling out to the living room, he saw the sliding door to the back yard was open, and Sasuke was missing from the house. Letting out a sigh, the fox fell face first on to the couch, and buried his head beneath the pillow, trying to block out the light and think back to the meeting just before going to the hospital -- He had to remember every single detail.

Sasuke had been outside for a long while. His body was tense, his mind still trying to ignore the fact that Naruto knew something he didn't.

He had smashed the tea cup, a while back, and a few other things in the kitchen -- not that Naruto seemed to have noticed yet.

When the kit did, he could find porcelain shards everywhere.

Sasuke had cut his feet, not that he felt it, as he paced in and out of the kitchen and living room before he found himself outside. He tried to breathe in the fresh air, but his mind was still wavering. He growled in his throat, his blood colored eyes flashing as he picked up a rock and threw it as far as he could -- it smashed into a tree a few yards from the property. He stalked back into the house, slamming the screen shut, eyes taking notice of the blood stains on the floor as he wandered back inside trying to tame his mood.

Then he noticed the kit on the couch, his eyes calculating as he surveyed the kitsune.

Naruto jumped as the door slammed shut, the pillow falling off his head, his head snapping up at the noise. He caught sight of Sasuke, not exactly glaring at him, but not happy with him either. Lying his head back down, the fox sighed, "I'm sorry, I haven't been the best host lately...and it's only been two days."

Sasuke looked to him a moment before he left the room -- retreating into the kitchen. In his normally crazed mind, he could have demanded the fox tell him everything -- he hated not knowing anything.

He would have used force.

But, he couldn't now.

His damn fucking heart.

He kept his quiet frown, leaving the room before he decided to destroy something else. The porcelain bit at his feet as he shuffled into the kitchen, replacing himself back at the table, his fingers toying with a shard of the tea cup just sitting, watching the piece of debris twirl in his deft fingers.

Naruto blinked curiously as the sound of shards shuffling on the floor caught his attention. Pushing himself up from the couch he started to the kitchen and froze at what he saw...

There were porcelain shards everywhere, and blood.

Looking back on the floor, he followed the trail to Sasuke.

Perfect.

Grabbing the towel that was sitting on the counter, he carefully walked through the kitchen and to Sasuke. He froze at the sight of the porcelain pieces on the table, and being turned about in the deadly fingers, "Sasuke, put the shard down." Kneeling down next to the man he kept his eyes on the broken glass.

That could hurt if he wasn't careful...

Sasuke's lips twisted into a smirk at the kit's voice, his dark eyes holding that same fleeting madness. "Scared?" Sasuke murmured, tilting his head, hair favoring one-side of his face as he sat there continuing to play with the shards, the pieces big enough to throw -- could be substituted for shuriken given the situation.

"I don't need to listen to you." Sasuke lowered his eyes, his smirk slowly falling back into a frown, his mood once again changing. "Just leave." He said, a little quieter this time, his tone deep.

Naruto narrowed his eyes at the words. "Put the fucking shard down." The fox's voice was serious leaving no room for jokes or fear. He wasn't going to leave the room. Hell Sasuke could throw the damn shard into him for all he cared; he just wanted to clean up the glass and the blood. "You're bleeding; I just want to clean it up."

Sasuke's eyes flashed to the fox and in an instant he threw the piece of porcelain at the fox -- not caring where it hit, it wasn't aimed but power was behind it, it was a blur as it flew through the air. He got to his feet, his body tense, dark eyes glaring at the fox, another piece in his hand.

"Ow!" The fox grabbed his shoulder and felt the trickle of blood over his hand. "What is your problem?!" He threw the towel down and pushed himself to stand up, looking down at Sasuke. "I'm just trying to help! Why are you freaking out?" He snapped, letting his shoulder go, the blood hardly seen through the black jacket.

"I don't want your help!" He growled, his eyes flashing. He tossed the remaining piece of the cup between them, his dark eyes in a glare. He stood there, just glaring at the fox a long while before he finally stalked out of the room -- trailing blood further in the house. His shoulders were tense, but he didn't turn, continuing on his path nowhere.

"Chicken shit!" Naruto yelled after the man, "You just going to run from everything when the going gets tough?" He glared at the man's back. "Fine, you know what, do what you want." Naruto took a step back ignoring the shards on the ground, but walking on them none the less, "You want out of here, just say so."

"Just don't come crawling back to me when they throw you in the fucking jail cell and Ibiki's tearing apart what's left of your mind!" Naruto growled at the Uchiha. He continued until he was outside, and by his pond. Pushing through the bushes he hid himself among the foliage, in the heart of his frogs' home. He glared at the house through the green leaves, and ignored the little ones that tried to comfort him.

Sasuke took Naruto's words, having replaced himself on the couch, holding his head trying desperately to keep himself together. He clenched his eyes shut, forcing himself to bite down the rage, forcing himself not to take Naruto's words to heart.

Damn it!

Sasuke growled deep in his throat, he wasn't a coward, he wasn't running! He was trying not to let his anger free, trying not to take a shard to the kit's throat and end all this torment that was going on inside of him.

He hated this.

He yelled at nothing, a feral yell as he stood from the couch, his blood colored eyes flashing. His red eyes looked to the windows, noticing each area of escape.

He could leave.

He could run and run until his heart stopped beating, hit the barrier and drop dead.

Sasuke ran a hand through his hair, trying to calm himself, biting down his suicidal thoughts -- his anger. Quietly he walked down the hall to the backyard, "Naruto." He knew the kitsune was somewhere, even if he couldn't see him. "I want out." He said evenly, taking a deep breath, checking all his emotions. "I don't fucking care what happens." He said, "I don't want to be stuck here with you." Talking from his previous rejection, from his fear of not knowing, from his uncertainty and his upset. His red eyes scanned the property just waiting.

The fox froze at the words.

He never should have suggested that...Not when Sasuke was angry.

Staying still in the foliage, he watched Sasuke carefully.

His heart clenched and he tried not to make a noise.

The frogs continued to croak, as if nothing were wrong.

He didn't want Sasuke to go...

"I know you're here." He said evenly, his previous anger ebbing away. He crossed his arms, his eyes locking on Naruto's hiding spot, having a feeling the kit was there -- there was no other spots to really hide out here. He took deliberate steps to the mess of greenery, stopping a few feet away, his red eyes piercing through the leaves seeing a flash of blue; Naruto's eyes. "Answer me."

The fox's eyes were wounded at the tone of Sasuke's voice, at his demand to be let go, to give up. He didn't move, only averted his eyes, gazing at the water. There was only one koi left now the other he had found dead that morning after he came to his retreat, that one had been his Sasuke; and the other, the one that was swimming alone, was Naruto.

Was this some sick twist of fate?

He gently stroked the almost dry scales of the dead fish that rested on the rock next to him.

He didn't want to let Sasuke go…

Sasuke kneeled before the kitsune, noticing his distant eyes, his own eyes surveying the kit's slack features. "What's wrong now?" He murmured, his tone firm, confusion underlying it. "I thought you wanted me to go." He said after a moment, his tone soft, his head tilting to survey the man in the bushes.

He trailed his eyes to the fish, then to Naruto as confused as ever. "What's wrong?"

Silence.

"God damn it!" He growled, his dark eyes glaring at the fox. He hated this, he hated not knowing! He hated this silence! "Tell me! Tell me what's wrong!" His tone was low, dangerous.

...he still cared.

No matter how deep he tried to originally bury his caring, it was still there. Bubbling to the surface from Naruto's sad, sad eyes.

The fox flinched slightly; He hated it when people yelled, It threw his mind back to his childhood, people calling him 'monster', 'demon', 'murderer'...

"Sasuke died..." He murmured, his voice quiet. "He left Naruto alone just like the real Sasuke left." He continued to run his fingers along the scales. "Now he wants to run again, and leave me alone." He still didn't look up at the angered Uchiha, he didn't want to see the red, flashing eyes.

"Naruto..." Sasuke was uncertain how to respond, how to venture forward. Naruto's eyes held something; something strange.

It was like…he was somewhere else.

"You want me to leave." He murmured, "You won't tell me anything." He said after a moment, "You don't want me here."

"Not true." He shook his head slightly, his eyes still on the koi. "Never wanted you to go in the first place."

"I hate being jerked around." He hated not knowing anything. He stood to his height, his red eyes regarding the property, looking to the boundary -- to the fence and beyond it. Without warning the man jumped to the fence, perching on top of it, looking to the bush Naruto was in, then to the world outside.

Anbu were in the trees, he could almost sense it.

His red eyes regarding the place around him, knowing eyes were on him, knowing they were waiting for him to do something. He grinned to himself, closing his eyes, tilting his head up to the sky, the sun feeling good on his cold skin. "I don't know what you want." He said softly, "But I know I want to be free."

Free from this cage, his mind once again tilting in the direction of insanity. Lowering his head, he turned, looking towards the expanse of fields. He wished he could just cut his heart out, cut Naruto's sunshine out of the void of himself. But…he couldn't.

He just sat there, precariously.

Naruto's eyes shot up to the fence, his body jerking out of the memories that his mind had thrown him in. "Don't, please, Sasuke." He stood up and backed away slightly, as if giving Sasuke space would help. "There's nothing out there for you."

Sasuke licked his lips, his eyes falling on the fox. "Nothing out there?" He murmured, letting out a deep breath a sort of sad smile on his face, "There's nothing in here for me either…Hokage-sama." He lowered his gaze, his red eyes not as sharp as before a hue of shadow settling in them.

"You had me didn't you?" The fox blurted out, his mind forgetting the Anbu that would certainly hear him. "How can you say there's nothing in here for you, when I'm standing right in front of you?" He stayed still, watching the Uchiha on the fence; he could feel the Anbu moving, getting ready to move if necessary. "Just, come down? Please?"

Sasuke hopped down from the fence with a fluid grace. He landed in front of the fox, his dark eyes regarding the kit. He raised a hand, ghosting over Naruto's cheek, down his neck. "You want me too?" He asked after a moment, a gentle blush on his face, feeling like a child.

He was used to taking, controlling, dominating.

But…this was the first time he needed permission…he wanted permission. Naruto was something else, something special.

It took him forever to see it, to come to terms with it.

He was laying himself open, shields down, his red eyes looking at the kit with an unguarded expression.

"Yes." The fox reached up and copied Sasuke's movements mirroring them on the pale skin. "Yes, I want you." He stepped closer to the man and wrapped his arms around Sasuke. "I've always wanted you." He closed his eyes, and just held Sasuke against him.

Sasuke slowly wrapped his arms in turn around the fox, letting all his worries fall away. He closed his eyes, cheek against the fox's neck, forehead on his shoulder, a faint smile on his lips.

He didn't care about the watching eyes.

He had finally been accepted.

A/N:

Kinda fluffy, kinda mushy gushy but I liked it. The next one shows another glimpse into Sasuke's crazy mind so I'm sure you'll enjoy it. This story is going to get very angsty; so I do hope you all continue to read.

Me and Kareian were working on this RP the other night; we're much further than these chapters, and we were both balling our eyes out! How lame are we? We know what happens next and yet we're crying like babies!

I'm not going to give anything away; but thank you to everyone who has came this far. Please continue to support us and the next chapter should be coming up soon. Thanks.