The Family Business
Tycho Kouros

"So I heard you pulled in some overtime last night." Sasuke looked up from his desk to find his silver-haired superior eying him with amusement.

"Shut up." Kakashi didn't show even the tiniest hint of being repelled – but after months of experiencing similar situations, Sasuke didn't expect he would. Kakashi only seemed to take the response as an invitation, walking into the office and sitting in a chair against the wall.

"You know, you're not doing much to help your reputation. Your midnight escapades are only fueling rumors that you're some kind of demonic entity that lurks the streets at night, looking for unsuspecting guards to terrorize, in between your huntings of small children to eat..."

"Hn."

"And the one last night is sending a brand new kind of gossip into the conversations by the water cooler..." Sasuke watched as Kakashi stood and closed the door quietly, turning around with an unusual seriousness in his eye. "They're saying you reprimanded guards to save a thief. What happened, Sasuke?" Sasuke returned to his work, only giving the conversation half of his attention.

"I did my job. They were neglecting their duties because they found it more amusing to beat up some guy. I went in and reminded them to be responsible and prioritize things better." Kakashi seemed unimpressed by his answer.

"You assaulted one of them for – "

"Questioning a superior officer. And I didn't 'assault' him. It was corporal punishment. Educational. He's lucky I didn't do worse, considering his actions were very close to being insubordinate. I gave him the benefit of the doubt."

"You gave him a fist to the gut." Sasuke shrugged his shoulders, unable to stop the sadistic smirk that crept across his lips. He looked into the man's eye, sudden seriousness tugging at him.

"Why are you here? I've beat up incompetent soldiers before, and you never said a word. Now suddenly you're here worrying about my 'reputation', or telling me that I was being reckless. What's this about, Kakashi?" The man didn't say much; he watched Sasuke closely, deep in thought.

"... you can't fool me, Sasuke." Kakashi said with a heavy sigh. "You did it to save the guy they were attacking. Don't try and tell me it was for any other reason." he said, cutting off Sasuke's defensive explanation. "I'm not going to tell you it was wrong, Sasuke. I, for one, find a certain amount of compassion during warfare to be the mark of a true soldier. Anyone can be reckless in their desire to kill, but it takes a strong man to be selective in his opinion of the enemy; to know the difference between a man with a gun and a child of no threat. But I've read the reports on the situation of the occupation, Sasuke, and the higher-ups are supporting that sort of activity. There's a resistance here. It's small, but it's there. And, because it's small, the men in charge believe that a constant pressure of attrition and frequent acts of oppression will destroy their spirit and make it too difficult for them to launch any sort of organized resistance."

"That kind of thought will only cause more resistance. If the people are oppressed or terrorized by cowardly acts of brutality, it will stir in them a desire to rid themselves of the ones causing them so much grief. That sort of thought will paint Nazi forces as weak and cowardly, and any resistance will grow strong from the belief that an army who busies itself assaulting petty thieves will be scared away by the exposure to "true" warfare. If what I saw last night is a widespread occurrence in the occupation forces, then I can't find myself to blame the French for trying to organize a resistance." Kakashi was quiet after he finished. Finally, he sighed.

"I worry about you, Sasuke."

"Hn." Kakashi smiled lightly, before leaving the office, closing the door behind him.

Sasuke had spent the entire day before visiting with his brother – catching up on lost time. Even with a hangover, Itachi seemed excited to talk about both of their lives since he'd left for France. Sasuke told him about all of his successes – in school, in the Schutzstaffel, though when he tried to think of any others he found himself coming up short. Itachi talked about his life – the small jobs to pay for food, bouncing from street to apartment numerous times... it made Sasuke's stomach sick. Itachi seemed to only wave it off, though, explaining that he was doing better than he had been when he'd first arrived in Paris. He then introduced Sasuke to Kisame – his boyfriend.

It was a tough pill for Sasuke to swallow. He'd spent years persecuting homosexuals, enforcing the government's stance on the perversion of sexuality. He threw away all of the mixed feelings and opinions he'd been taught to feel about homosexuals, though, when Itachi sensed his discomfort and began to backtrack. Seeing his brother be ashamed of himself simply for his sake made him open his mind to it all. He even admitted that he'd be lying if the thought of himself ever having such tendencies weren't slightly true – in his dedication to success, he'd let his social and romantic life go neglected. And, without having had a single girlfriend in his entire life, nor any desire to pursue one, the thought of having an interest in certain other persuasions had crept into his mind as a possibility. He'd chalked it up to asexuality, however, and explained to Itachi that, given the atmosphere of his career, any relationship – gay or otherwise, and especially the decision of his sexuality that would come with it – was simply not something he had the time or energy for.

Following Itachi's introduction, Kisame and Sasuke had made it no secret that they were sizing each other up. Kisame seemed to be civil for Itachi's sake, though was quick to point out Sasuke's employment by a brutal and inhuman establishment, particularly one that had thrown his brother aside to die on the streets of Paris. Sasuke, in turn, was quick to hit below the belt by bringing up the environment that Kisame provided for Itachi to live in. Itachi knew it was best to let the two have their time to prove themselves, and, sure enough, Sasuke and Kisame had come to the mutual understanding that each had a deep love for the elder Uchiha brother.

After becoming sure of the man's genuine intentions, Sasuke found himself coming to like Kisame. He worked as a mechanic at the fishing docks, fixing boat engines and dock equipment. The apartment belonged to him, and after the two had met, Itachi, who had been on the streets at the time, moved in with him. Apparently they'd been together for a year and a half, and things were going well. Sasuke would admit – if they'd met anywhere else, he wouldn't have noticed some of the better qualities in him. But he loved his brother – they had that in common – and he seemed to take care of Itachi almost as good as Sasuke ever would. He seemed like the type who would keep Itachi safe from any kind of danger – even from soldiers.

Sasuke's thoughts drifted to the blond from the night before. As much as he hated to admit it, Kakashi was right – the blond made all the difference. Had he not seemed so helpless, laying on the ground in a ball trying to survive each kick... it was disgusting how they could find something like that entertaining. They deserved what they got, and more. Had he not been tired from a day of catching up with Itachi, their night would have been much worse than it was.

He couldn't help himself from wondering how the blond he'd saved was. The look he'd seen on the other's face wouldn't seem to leave the back of his mind. It was so full of... hope? Innocence? Sasuke wasn't sure, but he knew he wanted to see it again. He decided to pay them a visit after he was done with his work – but a quick look at the stack of papers he still had to go through made him realize just how long that would be.

It took Sasuke hours to finish his work – it was already dark by the time he managed to escape his office. And just as he was turning to walk towards the area of town his brother and object of interest lived, he heard a sound that made his gut wrench:

"Sasuke!" He walked a little faster, hoping Kakashi would be too lazy to follow. He was, as always, unlucky – and the man was by his side before he could put any kind of distance between the two.

"Go away, Kakashi." he ground out, but the silver-haired superior only smiled, showing no signs of leaving.

"Don't be like that, Sasuke! I've decided to walk with you."

"I'm not going back to the hotel." Sasuke turned to gauge the man's reaction, only to find he was staring down the raven with out of the corner of his eye, a knowing smile hidden by his mask.

"I didn't assume you were. The way I see it, it's my job – as your superior –" he added, "to be aware of any persons or objects that might distract you from your duties. Including the thief from last night." Sasuke stopped mid-step, staring at Kakashi in disbelief. Kakashi seemed to revel in the reaction.

"You were going to visit him, weren't you?" Sasuke choked for an answer, but, in lack of any decent response, instead chose to continue walking, a glare fixed on his face as he stared at the sidewalk in front of him. Silence passed between the two as Sasuke tried to remember the way – the streets of Paris were still unfamiliar to him. He finally seemed to get his bearings, when suddenly Kakashi offered a suggestion.

"Why not take him a gift?"

"Like what?" Kakashi thought for a moment, tapping his chin.

"I don't know, food or something." he said with a shrug.

"I thought there was food rationing. I don't have any food tickets. And I don't feel like threatening some coward store clerk just for a loaf of bread." Sasuke watched Kakashi out of the corner of his eye.

"We can stop by the supply depot. If I remember correctly, there should be one somewhere along the way." Sasuke stopped, beginning to get angry.

"How the hell do you know what the 'way' is!" Kakashi only offered the smile that annoyed Sasuke so much, before he continued walking. Sasuke clenched his teeth, and began walking as well. Sure enough, it wasn't much further before they came to a small military supply depot. With the two still in uniform, it wasn't any trouble for them to gain access. Kakashi stood by the gate while Sasuke looked over the boxes filled with various items – guns, ammunition, flour, sugar... finally, he found a box filled with soup. After checking the contents, he found a can of chicken soup. He remembered that when he was sick, his mother would make him chicken soup.

Showing the supply clerk the soup, he was given instruction on filling out various papers. Finally, after filling out and signing three different papers – all for a single can of chicken soup – he made his way once again to the neighborhood his brother, and the blond from the night before, lived. Down various streets, around numerous corners, finally the two uniformed men began entering what Sasuke remembered as the neighborhood. Trash and rubble lined the streets. Large areas of blood stained the walls – most likely from executions. Neither of the men commented on the signs of military occupation.

After finding the spot where he'd rescued the blond, he walked the same course he'd taken to get to the apartment building. Along the way, Sasuke pulled his hat down further, to shield his eyes from the flickering street lights. As they approached the building, the sound of gunshots echoed in the distance. The two entered the building without a word.

Finding the apartment, Sasuke knocked on the door. It was a few seconds before they could hear footsteps, and the man from the night before slowly opened the door. Sasuke, in his rush to get the blond comfortable, hadn't noticed that the man wore his hair in a ponytail. Nor had he noticed the pink scar that ran across the bridge of his nose. The man peered through the wide crack in the door.

"Can I help you?" he asked, and it was only then that Sasuke realized how it must seem to a civilian to be answering his door to two soldiers in the middle of the night. He pulled off his hat, hoping the man would recognize him. He seemed to, with a mumbled sound of recognition behind the door as he closed it and removed the latch, before opening the door all the way and allowing the two into the apartment.

"I'm sorry, I just didn't recognize you at first. I didn't know you were a..." he seemed to stumble on the choice of words, before finally settling on, "soldier." The man seemed to eye the two. Sasuke was used to people looking at him in fear. What caught him off guard, however, was the sudden charisma of Kakashi, as he stepped forward and began introducing himself to the man.

"Yes, my name is Colonel Hatake, but please – call me Kakashi." he said, before finally adding, "Oh, and this is Lieutenant Uchiha." Sasuke glared at the man who'd introduced him dismissively.

"Sasuke." he added with a nod.

"Ah..." the man let out. "My name is Iruka Umino, it's nice to meet you. I take it you've come to see Naruto?" Before Sasuke could even open his mouth to respond, the can of soup he'd forgotten he was holding was wrenched out of his grip.

"We've brought soup." Kakashi stated, his eyes squinting slightly from the width of his smile. Sasuke only stared at him in disbelief. Iruka smiled, taking the offered can.

"Thank you, it's much appreciated. Naruto is in the bedroom, through that door." Sasuke knew which door – he'd brought the blond into and put him there – but before he could make a move, Kakashi had stepped to his side and shoved him in the general direction.

"Take your time, Sasuke, I'll be here talking with – Iruka, was it?" Disgusted by the actions of his superior, he quietly entered the bedroom, closing the door to the sounds of the Kakashi's rambling, idle chatter. He looked to see the one he'd been thinking of underneath thing covers, his body trembling . He walked to the side of the bed – as he got closer, he noticed bruises all over the blond's neck and face, the split lip, though cleaned of the dried blood, looked awful. Each breath brought more trembling; the chest rising and falling unsteadily in an uneasy, uncomfortable sleep. Looking down at the cheeks, he noticed scars – lines, three on each side, almost like whiskers. They looked old. Sasuke couldn't help reaching down to trace his thumb along them.

Blue eyes, dulled by pain, shot open – Sasuke pulled his hand back. The two stared at each other for a moment; Sasuke watched as the blue eyes, probably brilliant when not tired and cloudy, blinked and squinted, before finally Sasuke heard a gasp, and watched as the eyes widened, painted with fear.

"You!" Sasuke offered a nervous smile. "You're a... Nazi?"

Sasuke wasn't the most patriotic person – his loyalty to his country and to the Third Reich was mostly born out of familial duty. But his stomach knotted – his heart sank – at the blond's reaction. For the first time in years, the awful, sickening feelings of guilt and shame crept through his chest, filling his head with a fog. He broke his eye contact with the blue eyes, instead drilling a hole into the thin blanket covering the small, trembling form.

"Yeah..." was all he offered, before he finally attempted to change the subject. "I came to see how you were feeling." The eyes became muddled with emotion – confusion, nervousness, happiness, fear... the body shifted uncomfortably, before cringing in pain.

"Hurts... but, better I guess." Sasuke nodded, a sadness still lingering in him from the other's reaction. "Hey, look. Uhhh... thanks, you know? For saving me." Sasuke forced a gentle smile – at least, he hoped it was a smile. He found facial expressions to be an area of difficulty for him.

"You're welcome."

"Why did you do it, though?" Blue eyes watched carefully, waiting for an answer. Sasuke thought for a moment, unsure how to answer. It didn't take long for him to realize that he didn't have one; he didn't even have an answer that would pass as flimsy. Instead, he settled for shrugging.

"I don't know." It was the truth. He didn't know. "Someone had to." he added after a moment. Some of the fear, the smallest of amounts, seemed to fade from the blue eyes at his added comment. Then, spikes of blond hair whipped around as the head shook.

"No. No one's ever done anything like that for me before. Most people just walk by and pretend not to look. And I can't believe it was... another kraut, you know?" Sasuke flinched inside at the familiar term. "I mean, I remember them calling you 'Sir', but it's just... I guess I knew. But it's different. When you were just normal, it was one thing. But seeing you in uniform..." he trailed off, awkwardness clear on his face. When the renewed feelings of shame lightened, a thought suddenly shot through his mind.

"You mean that kind of thing's happened before?" The other scoffed.

"That kind of thing happens all the time." Sasuke's stared off, deep in thought. The blond added, "And I mean, usually the soldiers stick together, you know? If a patrol comes along when it's happening, they just walk by. Sometimes they've joined in though..."

"You must be different." Sasuke was surprised, and was greeted with an uncomfortable, but genuine, smile. "And, you must be strong too! That was a really good punch! And you were strong enough to carry me all the way here! I couldn't have done that!" Warmth spread through his chest at the compliments.

"I... brought you some soup." he said. The face seemed to brighten.

"Thanks! We were getting a little low on food..." he said, becoming quiet from his own words.

"What about your food tickets?" Blue eyes looked up at him, surprised, but then looked down again.

"Iruka has enough of those to feed the entire neighborhood for a month. They don't help much when the stores don't have any food to use the tickets for. Iruka tried to find us something for tonight, but no one had anything. I'm glad you brought the soup, because no he won't be sad that he couldn't get us something for dinner!" Sasuke couldn't imagine living like it seemed the two Frenchmen did – scrambling for food day-to-day. A nervous habit, he checked his watch, noting that it was 10:30. Looking up, he noticed a sad look in the blue eyes – he couldn't seem to stop looking into them. They were so... deep. Like oceans.

"It's alright if you have to leave. It is getting kind of late, I guess." Sasuke realized what he must have thought when he saw him checking his watch, and quickly shook his head.

"No, it's not that. I was just checking the time." The bruised face seemed to brighten.

"So you can stay!" Sasuke nodded.

"Yeah, I can stay for a little while longer."

If you want...

"You... never told me your name. I asked you, but you didn't answer." Sasuke watched, and felt his breath seem to leave him when the eyes turned on him, watching, begging.

"My name is Sasuke – Sasuke Uchiha." Teeth flashed in a toothy grin.

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki!"

Sasuke stayed another hour talking – but it felt like it hadn't even been ten minutes. Sasuke listened to Naruto talk about his friends, about his various adventures over the past week, about his favorite food... ramen. Sasuke didn't talk much. He mentioned his brother, who Naruto seemed to know. The rest of the time was spent discussing Itachi. Apparently the two had met when Naruto had been scrounging for food, when Itachi offered to make him some food back in his apartment.

Sasuke found himself listening intently to all of the stories Naruto had of Itachi – brotherly pride swelled in his chest as he listened to all of the times Itachi had helped the people of the neighborhood. He often gave food to neighbors, helped find medical help for people with various wounds, or even helped find people thrown out of their homes places to stay – with people he knew, or finding them cheaper apartments they might be able to afford. Naruto had only good things to say about Itachi, and Kisame – who helped people of the neighborhood move furniture, or fix their cars. The two were well known by people in the area.

The two also talked about trivial things – favorite colors, favorite seasons, favorite weather... Sasuke avoided discussing his childhood for fear of it being too depressing to talk about. He wanted to make a good impression. And every time the conversation neared discussing Naruto's life, sadness would flash in his eyes, and Sasuke would quickly changed the subject. From what small pieces of information he picked up – Naruto had no parents, Iruka had been a teacher who had taken him in and raised him, and before he moved in with Iruka on a permanent basis, he'd spent time on the streets.

It was 11:30 when Sasuke could tell Naruto was beginning to fall asleep. He said goodbye, and stood to leave – but Naruto stopped him before he opened the door.

"Hey, Sasuke?" Sasuke turned his head. "Will I get to see you again soon?" Surprised at the question, he thought for a moment. Finally, he nodded his head.

"How about I come again tomorrow?" Naruto smiled.

"I'd like that..." Naruto yawned, and Sasuke chuckled at the sight.

"Goodnight, Naruto."

"Night, Sasuke."

Sasuke opened the door and walked out, closing the door before taking in the sight in front of him.

From their positions on the couch, Sasuke could tell they'd just pulled apart – Iruka sat blushing, head turned looking into the corner, as Kakashi sat with a look of complete contentment on his face, much like a wolf who'd just had a good meal.

"Did you have a good visit?" Sasuke scoffed in annoyance as Kakashi attempted to play innocence.

"I did. It seems you did as well." Sasuke made his way for the door untucking his hat from underneath his arm. He waited as Kakashi straightened his hair and shirt, which were apparently messed with during his "visit", and made his way towards the door.

"Thank you for the hospitality, Mr. Umino. If it's alright with you, I told Naruto I'd come visit him tomorrow?" Iruka smiled nervously, a blush still tinting his cheeks.

"If it's alright with Naruto, it's alright with me." Kakashi coughed.

"Yes, Iruka, thank you for your hospitality." he growled huskily. Sasuka glared at Kakashi, who didn't even notice – he was too busy focusing a heated leer on Iruka. "If you don't mind, I'd like to come with Sasuke to visit tomorrow. I very much enjoyed our... conversation. Your company is quite pleasant." Iruka's blush was a deep red, and he nodded quietly. Kakashi chuckled, before turning to open the door. Sasuke stepped out first. Kakashi threw one last comment over his shoulder before closing the door behind him:

"Until tomorrow, Iruka." Sasuke walked away, a gagging feeling in his throat at the sight. Kakashi caught up quickly.

"You know, I'm glad I came with you tonight. Some of the sights here in Paris are well worth the walk with a friend."

"You know, homosexuality is illegal." Kakashi wasn't fazed.

"Only if you're caught, Sasuke."

"Since when do you like men!" Kakashi sighed.

"Sasuke, it's not about 'men' or 'women' – pleasant company and a warm, fine piece of ass is something I enjoy wherever I find it." Sasuke let out a harsh breath.

"With all of that damn porn you read all the time, I can believe that."

"Icha Icha Paradise is not porn, Sasuke! It's adult literature." Sasuke waved his hand dismissively, a sign that he was about to tune out the impending defense of Kakashi's favorite hobby.