Perfect Vision
Disclaimer: Copyright goes to Kishimoto, artistic license to me.
-ooo-
chapter 03: promise, sealed
-ooo-
"This is the bathhouse," Sasuke said, sliding open a bamboo door. "You can wash up here."
"Uh...thanks," Naruto said, not knowing what else to say. He peeked over his shoulder, frowning at the trail of orange on the wooden floors. "Hey, the paint..."
"I'll take care of it," Sasuke said flatly. "You're still washing off the gates."
"But orange is aweso—"
"No." Sasuke's tone was final. "You've vandalized clan property, a crime in itself. As an Uchiha, I have every legal right to decide your punishment."
The blond opened and closed his mouth a few times. Naruto didn't understand most of the words Sasuke said, but he knew a threat when he heard it.
"It'll take time to clean up everything," Sasuke continued. "So you can stay for dinner."
"Eh?" Naruto blinked. Did he hear correctly? Sasuke was letting him eat at his house?
"I'll leave a towel and change of clothes outside," Sasuke said, before turning away and walking out of sight.
'Cool.' Naruto grinned as he entered the bathhouse.
"Whoa, this place is huge," he muttered under his breath. And funny-looking, too, compared to his own bathroom. The floors and walls were made of stone, and there was something that looked like a giant wooden tub on the side. Naruto zeroed in on a hose attached to a corner faucet as he pulled off his stained clothes.
'Man, Sasuke is a weird guy,' Naruto thought as he turned on the water. Most people he pranked either yelled or laughed at him. Some, like that black-haired lady, were simply speechless.
But Sasuke didn't seem to care either way. Sure, he poured paint on Naruto, but Sasuke wasn't mad when he did it. Or maybe he was just really, really good at hiding his feelings.
He'd even invited Naruto to dinner. Not even Shikamaru or Chouji had done that before. It was...kind of nice.
Still, it confused the heck out of Naruto. With pranks, he could trade insults with the ones who got mad, laugh with the ones who laughed back, and make fun of the ones too shocked to react. Pulling pranks was cool like that—in the end, prankster and victim always had a moment where they were equals—a minute or two where the villagers stopped ignoring him and started treating him like...well, like someone worth their attention. Even if they were yelling their heads off at him.
So what were you supposed to do when the person you tricked acted like no big deal had happened? Bother them about it? Pull an even bigger prank?
Naruto frowned. Nah. It was no fun if your target didn't react. He was better off saving his hard-earned paint for bigger projects...like the Hokage monument.
Yeah, that was DEFINITELY on his to-do list before graduation.
-ooo-
It only took Sasuke a few more turns to reach the guest bedrooms, where he proceeded to rummage through the closets to dig out a towel and a change of clothes small enough to fit Naruto. Once his load was secured, he headed out-and met Nemoto-san coming the same way, hair still splotched with orange.
"Are the spare towels in here?" she asked him, smiling blandly.
Sasuke replied with an affirmative grunt.
"I see. Thank you, Sasuke-kun."
He shrugged and walked past her, thinking to himself that her civilian disguise was really pushing it for a ninja. What kind of normal caretaker smiled like a wooden puppet? Or cooked like someone who burned off her taste buds? At least get the basics right! Did they think he'd be that oblivious, even for an eight-year-old?
He stopped walking as he remembered something. Turning around, he was just in time to see Nemoto-san stepping into the guestrooms.
"Hey."
The woman faced him with a smile.
"Uzumaki's staying for dinner." Sasuke announced. He didn't bother to register her reaction. It wasn't worth his time.
-ooo-
"How was Sasuke-kun today?" Nemoto-san asked.
She was sitting on the porch of a building by the front doors, hair freshly washed and carefuly plaited atop her head. A few feet away stood Iruka, leaning against a pillar as he watched Naruto.
"Fine," Iruka replied, eyes intent on the blond hosing down the gates. Sasuke stood by the other boy, supervising with folded arms. "Quieter than usual, but that's to be expected."
"I see. That's good." Nemoto-san smiled—a bland one, as per her usual. "Did you know he invited his friend to dinner?"
"Sasuke did?" Iruka's voice rose in surprise.
"Yes. In return for cleaning up the paint." Nemoto-san continued. "They're close friends, I suppose?"
"Not that I know of," Iruka admitted. "Sasuke's always kept to himself at school. And Naruto—" He stopped abruptly. It was no secret that Uzumaki Naruto was highly unpopular with most of the civilian population. And this Nemoto-san...
"What about Naruto-kun?" Nemoto-san asked, still smiling blandly.
Iruka looked carefully at her face as he spoke his next words. "Uzumaki Naruto has a bit of a reputation with his peers. Mostly due to his pranking."
The smile held. "My, my, he sounds like an interesting character."
"Yeah. But the kid's got a good heart." Inwardly, Iruka was relieved. The woman didn't seem care who Naruto was—or if she did, was professional enough to accept him beyond his status as a demon vessel. "He's the type that grows on you."
"Mm."
"All right! I'm done!" Naruto announced. He was dressed in one of Sasuke's spare shorts and a blue shirt without the Uchiha logo. It was new to see the blond wearing sober colors for once. "And now...take this for bossing me around, Sasuke!"
The blond aimed the hose at the Uchiha, who simply stepped out of the way, leaving the water to spray onto an unsuspecting Iruka.
"...whoops?"
"NARUTO!"
"Eh, Iruka-sensei! It's not my fault you can't duck!"
"GET BACK HERE! AND LET GO OF THAT HOSE!"
-ooo-
"Are you sure you won't stay for dinner, Umino-san?" Nemoto-san asked.
"No, it's quite all right," Iruka smiled, though it was a bit forced. "I wouldn't want to trouble you—and there's someone I'm meeting later as well."
"Well, if it's a prior appointment, don't let us keep you," Nemoto-san said. "Here, let me take that before you leave."
"My thanks." Iruka handed over the sopping towel he'd used to dry off his hair. Luckily, Naruto had aimed high, so most of his clothing had been spared.
In truth, Iruka wouldn't have minded hanging around the Uchiha Complex a bit longer. It was rare to see Naruto making friends so quickly. At first he'd worried that Naruto would be a nuisance, but Sasuke was amazingly tolerant of the boy and Nemoto-san seemed willing to treat him civilly. In short, they accepted him, obnoxious pranks and all.
With that fact, Iruka felt better about leaving the blond behind. There was also another minor detail: Sasuke had clearly invited Naruto to dinner—and only Naruto. Iruka didn't want to push himself into the Uchiha's company until the boy made the first move. The state of things still seemed too fragile to try anything extreme. Besides, he really did have to meet someone—once he found him, that is.
"Naruto, Sasuke!" Iruka called from the doorway. The two boys were sitting in a corner. "I've got to go now. Be good and listen to Nemoto-san, all right?"
"Yeah, yeah, Iruka-sensei," Naruto said, dismissing him with a wave. Sasuke didn't even look up.
Iruka sighed and scratched his head. He could only trust his choice was for the best.
-ooo-
When the adults were gone, Sasuke turned to Naruto, who was fiddling with his fingers and muttering under his breath after a recent Iruka-sensei lecture.
"Hey."
The blond looked up briefly. "Hm?"
"Why are you here?" Sasuke asked.
"Eh?" Naruto gave him a blank face. "You feelin' okay, Sasuke? You told me to stay for dinner-"
"I don't mean that," Sasuke cut in. "Why are you here in Konoha, going to the ninja academy everyday?"
"Uhh…learnin'. To be awesome."
"Are you really learning?"
"Yeah!"
"What can you do?"
"I can use kunai, I can beat people up, I can do the Replacement Technique-"
"Useless." Sasuke said, and raised a hand when Naruto started to protest. "Your kunai barely hit their targets, you've never beaten anyone in class with proper taijutsu, and you only use the Replacement Technique to escape from your pranks."
Naruto's face turned red as he puffed up. "So what? When I get to be Hokage-"
"How will you become Hokage?"
"I-I'm gonna…"
"Ask the Sandaime to make you one? I doubt he'd agree so easily." Sasuke said. "Even if he did, how would you face your enemies? Replace yourself with a log? Throw some kunai? I doubt they'd be impressed."
Naruto scowled. "I'll blast 'em with a jutsu!"
"What kind of jutsu?"
"Somethin' cool!"
"Like what?"
"Somethin' really, really awesome!"
"Such as?"
Naruto screwed up his face and muttered something that sounded like: "Somereallyawesomecoolan'awesomekickbutt…technique!"
"Uzumaki. You're an idiot."
That was the last straw. Sure, not many people took his dream seriously-even Iruka-sensei chuckled lightly whenever Naruto brought it up, and reminded him to pay more attention in class. Most people just laughed at him, (or in Kiba's case, insulted him outright). Naruto didn't care, because he was sure he'd show them all some day. Except…
…except that Sasuke had just asked him a bunch of confusing questions that made his future as Hokage a lot less sure. Who cares about enemies when you're the boss? Everyone would bow to his awesomeness by then, so there was nothing to worry about, right? Sasuke was just…he was just…
"You're the idiot, Sasuke," Naruto shot back, folding his arms in what he thought was smug superiority. "When I'm Hokage, you'll be sorry you crossed me."
'Take that, stupid Sasuke! Did I just sound cool or what?' Naruto gloated mentally.
The next second, he doubled over as Sasuke kicked him in the stomach.
"O-OW!" Naruto winced, "HEY! What was that for?"
"I refuse to accept such an idiotic Hokage." Sasuke said flatly. "If you want the title, you better be able to defend it."
"Oh yeah?" Naruto growled, aiming a punch at Sasuke. It missed, and Naruto staggered a few steps forward before a well-placed strike on the back sent him crashing to the floor.
"Is that it?" Sasuke asked as a watery-eyed Naruto sat up, gingerly rubbing his nose. The blond clenched his teeth and got to his feet. This. Meant. War.
He charged again at Sasuke, who swerved out of the way, using a foot to trip Naruto in the process. But the blond broke his fall with a forward roll, and recovered his senses enough to launch a low kick at the Uchiha, who dodged and returned with a kick aimed at Naruto's jaw.
Pain exploded in Naruto's head as he crashed to the ground again. But the next second his legs had locked themselves around one of Sasuke's ankles, and he gave a terrific jerk that sent the Uchiha falling to the ground. Or so he thought. Instead, Sasuke twisted his body mid-fall so that he body-slammed elbow-first into Naruto's ribs, knocking the wind out of him. Before Naruto had a chance to recover, Sasuke had pinned him down with a kunai against his neck.
Blue eyes darted furiously to meet black ones, as Naruto choked out, "Are you crazy, Sas-"
His words died in his throat. The steel pressing against his skin was mercilessly cold, but that was nothing compared to the dead, icy stare that Sasuke was leveling at him. Somewhere in the back of his mind, a voice was screaming at him to get away, and get away fast because this guy was not messin' around and he was going to die, he just knew because he saw it in those eyes and-
-the next second, it was all over. Sasuke had withdrawn his weapon, rolled to one side, and was offering a hand to help Naruto up. The blond, still dazed, lay there stupidly until Sasuke forcibly hauled him to his feet.
Naruto flinched at the contact before he angrily slapped Sasuke's hand away, stumbling back in the process.
"W-what was that all about?!" he demanded, still shaky from the experience.
"A test." Sasuke said. "You failed." Sloppy moves, hot-headed temper, resolve that melted even under the barest hint of killing intent-the Naruto now was a mess, nothing at all like the his future self, wielder of the perfected Rasengan and destroyer of entire armies.
"That's not fair!" Naruto immediately shouted. "I wasn't ready-"
"Uzumaki."
It was just one word, but it shut the blond up. He stared suspiciously at Sasuke. "What?"
"On the count of three, I'm going to attack you with a kunai. Defend yourself."
"Wha—"
"One."
Naruto snapped his mouth shut and started looking around the room. No weapons in sight-had Sasuke picked an empty room on purpose? Then where-
"Two."
-what the heck! Three seconds was barely enough time for anything! That was it, Sasuke was nuts and he was gonna get out of here as fast as he could-there was the door-
"Three."
Before he had taken one step, Sasuke was already rushing towards him with blinding speed, kunai in hand. Naruto only just managed to swerve out of the way, but still got nicked in the process.
"Was that warning enough?" Sasuke asked from the other side of the room. "Or should I give you a ten-second head start next time?"
"You…" Naruto touched his face with his fingers, blanching at the sight of blood. "You're nuts!"
"And you're weak. What are you going to do about it?"
Naruto's answer was to head for the door. Too bad Sasuke got there first.
"Move it," Naruto hissed, glaring at the kunai in the other boy's hand.
"Answer my question." Sasuke was completely calm.
"Like heck I will! You're a-a crazy person!" Naruto sputtered. "Whad'ya mean, tryin' to cut me up and givin' me 'tests' and stuff like that?! I thought-" 'I thought we were going to be friends!' "-anyways, you're nuts and I'm going home!"
Mustering his will, he pushed Sasuke to the side and stormed past him. Getting invited to dinner wasn't worth getting nearly killed over. He was going to need some extra ramen to make up for this, that's for sure.
"Are you just going to run away, Uzumaki?"
Naruto bristled at those words. "I'm not runnin' away!"
"You are. You're getting farther away from your dream of being Hokage with every step."
There it was again! Sasuke mocking his goal just like everyone else! And he said everything so calmly, too, like it was a given that he wouldn't succeed! What was his problem? Naruto turned on his heel and marched straight back.
"Say that again, you crazy outta-your-mind-kunai-eating nut-head guy!"
He expected Sasuke to attack him. Relished the thought, even, because his jaw was throbbing, his pride was wounded and Naruto had never felt such an urge to hurt somebody for all his humiliation.
"Uzumaki Naruto." Sasuke began. "I will…"
'Squish you like a bug? Cut you up so bad nobody'll know you at class tomorrow?' Naruto's mind filled in the blanks as he cracked his knuckles.
"...make you Hokage."
'Oh yeah? Well, I'll just paint your underwear orange after I-wait a minute...'
"You...what?" Naruto asked. He must have heard wrong. Did Sasuke just say-
"I will make you Hokage," Sasuke repeated. "If you let me train you."
'Huh?'
-ooo-
At the gate to the Uchiha Compound, Iruka paused to look at his escort. The woman seemed harmless and unassuming, but there was more than met the eyes here.
"Ah…Nemoto-san, was it? Did you know Sasuke's family?" He supposed he was probing, but Sasuke was his student. Anyone appointed to guard the Last Uchiha had to be somebody exceptional.
Dark eyes flickered back to the house, before meeting Iruka's squarely. "I have no personal relations with the Uchiha. My mission was granted by Hokage-sama, to be continued until he sees fit."
Iruka swore he felt the temperature drop a couple degrees, but Nemoto-san still kept her usual bland expression. She was a ninja, of course. That explained her lack of hostility towards Naruto. Most of Konoha's ninja population respected, if not accepted, the fact that their Fourth Hokage had sealed the demon in Naruto for the greater good.
But why hire a ninja to babysit Sasuke? As far as Iruka knew, Naruto's tenant posed the greater security risk-yet the Hokage had never sent a ninja to act as nanny for him. Was it to protect Sasuke, when the village was already on high alert, in case Itachi returned to finish the job? Or…thinking back to the ANBU that asked him for Sasuke's files…was it to watch Sasuke, so that he didn't make the same mistake as his brother?
Still, no matter how he looked at her…
"You're not acting the part," Iruka said slowly. "Your smiles, the way you talk…it's not quite right. Wouldn't Sasuke suspect?"
Nemoto-san's expression didn't change. "I was given explicit commands not to act the part."
An imperfect disguise? For Kami's sake, why? To see if Sasuke would notice? And then...? Iruka was stumped, but his questions were cut off as the woman spoke.
"As a fellow shinobi, I will expect your silence and cooperation in this matter, Umino Iruka," Nemoto-san continued, still with a bland smile. "Uchiha Sasuke's situation is still quite…delicate. Please report to me if anything unusual happens regarding my charge."
There was finality in her tone that gave Iruka no choice but to nod in assent.
As the chuunin disappeared from sight, Nemoto-san turned to the trees. She whistled a certain signal before waiting expectantly. Seconds later, two shadows landed on the ground by her feet.
"Bear. Raccoon." She identified the pair. "Which one's on tailing duty?" Also known as follow-the-Nine-tails-brat-around-duty.
Bear raised a hand in affirmative, before muttering, "You…you're Cat?"
Nemoto gave the slightest of nods. "This is an official mission, and I will tolerate no interference, understood?" When Bear made to speak, she raised a hand. "I don't think your target's going to stay the night, so expect him out in a few hours."
She then faced the second shadow. "Raccoon. What are you here for?"
"Captain, just a surveillance mission," Raccoon reported.
"Target?" Nemoto-san asked.
"I'm not authorized to say," Raccoon admitted, though the answer was obvious enough.
Nemoto-san thought so too. "I wasn't aware the Hokage assigned two masks(1) to monitor Remnant(2)."
Raccoon hesitated, before shaking his head. He didn't.
Nemoto-san frowned slightly. "If it's just surveillance, then I can't argue." Don't overstep Hokage-sama's boundaries. He put me here for a reason.
Raccoon nodded. Even though Cat had been appointed ANBU Captain just a few days after Itachi's defection, her authority was absolute. Ibiki was his temporary boss at best-and besides, Cat was answering to the Hokage. ANBU didn't cross their superiors.
"Dismissed." Two shadows vanished in the blink of an eye as Nemoto-san returned to the Uchiha Compound.
-ooo-
"Wha…what do you mean?" Naruto asked.
"I don't like repeating myself." Sasuke said. "Will you let me teach you, or not?"
Naruto opened and shut his mouth, at a loss for an answer. "I…"
"Don't know a thing," Sasuke finished. Though his early memories of the academy were fuzzy, he was certain Naruto had been dead last since the beginning.
Predictably, Naruto did not take that statement well. "Well, you're not Iruka-sensei! What would you know?"
"Enough to beat you." Sasuke deadpanned. "And I'll say this now: if you refuse, then there's no need for us to keep talking. You can do whatever you want, but don't expect me to stick around and watch." 'Dead-last, if you dare refuse, I'm going to beat you within an inch of your life and Sharingan you into agreeing anyways.'
Naruto was stuck. On the one hand, someone was actually kind-of taking his dream seriously, and offering to help him out. On the other hand, that someone thought he was a big fat good-for-nothing failure. Did he really want a guy like that putting him down all the time? Or trying to kill him when he least expected it? Or, maybe even accidentally succeeding one day? The thought made him shudder. He couldn't die before becoming genin! That'd be so...uncool.
And he wouldn't, Naruto decided right then and there. He could refuse and walk away right now, and Sasuke wouldn't even 'stick around to watch', as he put it. It's not like they knew each other before or anything. 'Sides, even if Sasuke stopped talking to him, he still had plenty of friends to hang out with. Chouji was great for eatin' chips with, and Shika was pretty cool once he stopped lookin' at clouds, and Kiba would get over his dog sooner or later, right? Plus, there was Sakura-chan, whom he still had to marry one day...
Thinking about Sakura-chan naturally made Naruto dissolve into a series of improbable daydreams involving love confessions with neon orange sparkles, undying vows of loyalty, and endless bowls of ramen.
"Hey. Don't space out," Sasuke said as Naruto's eyes glazed over. "That woman's back."
Woman? Oh, the lady he splashed paint on today, Naruto remembered, just as Nemoto-san came strolling onto the scene. She glanced at the boys, taking in the bruised jaw, bloody cheek, and disheveled appearances-Sasuke had put away his kunai already.
"We sparred," Sasuke spoke before she asked any questions. "I know where the bandages are. See you at dinner." Grabbing Naruto by the wrist, he made a quick exit.
Nemoto-san watched them leave in silence, smiling blandly.
'How very interesting.'
-ooo-
Sasuke was rummaging through the medicine cabinet of the nearest bathroom while Naruto stood to one side, making faces at the mirror.
"Ne, Sasuke, you know...I don't need any bandages."
"Did your cut heal already?" Sasuke asked without looking.
"Yep. Stopped bleedin' an' everything," Naruto grinned proudly. "I get well real fast."
Sasuke finally found the first aid kit and turned around. Naruto had rubbed off the blood from the place where he'd been nicked, and the skin beneath was flawless and unbroken. He knew the Nine-tails gave Naruto frighteningly fast regenerative powers, but didn't expect the demon to fuss over small cuts and scrapes, too. Its attentions were almost motherly. Almost.
Come to think of it, he'd never remember seeing Naruto wearing bandages in the past. Not even on that disastrous mission to Wave, or during the Chuunin Exams, or after the first invasion of Konoha. There were a few instances later on, when prolonged war and struggles between the ninja villages proved to tax even Naruto's stamina. But most of his memories of the blond had seen him cut, bloody, bruised, or limping-yet still bandage-free.(3)
It was such an obvious clue to Naruto's uniqueness that Sasuke wanted to hit himself for never noticing sooner. How many times had he seen other ninja nursing broken bones or arms in slings while Naruto waltzed by, hands behind his head and whistling? And no one else had found it strange that the blond always took a beating in academy sparring sessions, but had no scars to show for it?
Back then, he'd brushed it off as some weird bloodline ability, never guessing its darker implications. Ninja who didn't know anything would assume the same. Still, it was a detail that attracted attention-and the last thing Sasuke needed were extra eyes watching his every step, especially if he was going to stick with the blond.
"You should wash your face," Sasuke said, preparing a strip of bandage.
"But it's not bedtime yet," Naruto pointed out.
"It's for dinner. I don't want you getting blood on the plates."
That made sense, so Naruto complied while Sasuke tried not to feel like a babysitter. When the blond was finished, Sasuke stuck a piece of bandage on his face.
Naruto blinked, but to his credit, didn't rip it off immediately. "I told ya, Sasuke, I don't need bandages."
"Keep it on."
"How come? I look stupid." Naruto scowled at the white strip on his face.
"For practice."
"Practice?"
"Practice acting injured," Sasuke said. "You don't need to tell everyone you heal fast. It's better if you don't. You'll surprise more enemies."
"Like...a prank?" Naruto asked, touching his bandage with more interest.
"Like a prank." Sasuke echoed.
"Oh. Cool. How do you know all this stuff?"
"Ninja basics." Sasuke said simply.
Naruto shuffled on his feet and gave Sasuke a sidelong glance. Thoughts were racing through his mind-muddled ones, because Naruto wasn't used to thinking methodically, but Sasuke was too...different...to not think about.
Sasuke knew ninja basics. Sasuke invited him to dinner. Sasuke lived even though his family didn't. (Just by looking at his house, Sasuke's family musta' been really big. Maybe he even had an extra set of parents or somethin'...) Sasuke didn't like orange. Sasuke beat him up-but! Sasuke said he was gonna make him was...no, he had to be...
...some secret super-duper Hokage training ninja who was too awesome to die.
"Hey, Sasuke," Naruto said, eyes squinting. "You know a lotta stuff, don'cha?"
"Mm." Sasuke raised an eyebrow.
"Are you really, really strong?"
"Hn."
"Stronger than Chouji? Than-than Kiba, even?"
"Hnn."
More sidelong glances. A moment of intense concentration that made Naruto look constipated, and then the final question:
"Are you really gonna make me Hokage?"
"If you're good enough," Sasuke replied, "Then you'll make it even without my help."
Naruto positively glowed until Sasuke's next words.
"If you're don't, then I'llkill you."
To anyone else, it sounded like a death threat. But Naruto heard a challenge-and everyone knew that Uzumaki Naruto always accepted challenges.
"Ha! You're on, Sasuke! I'm gonna be the bestest Hokage ever!"
Sasuke held out his hand. Naruto blinked, before giving his to the Uchiha, who shook it firmly. "It's a deal." 'Don't break your end of it, dead-last.'
Naruto beamed. "Heck no, Sasuke! It's a promise! 'Cause I never break my promises!"
Sasuke just smirked and reveled in the rightness of the entire thing.
It was a refreshing feeling.
-ooo-
Afterwards, the two of them made their way to the kitchen, where Nemoto-san had set up dinner on the table. It looked normal enough-rice, vegetables, meat and soup-but Sasuke had enough experience with her cooking to be wary. He slid himself into an empty seat, Naruto copying the movement, and Nemoto-san joined them after bringing in a stack of napkins for the table.
"Everything okay?" Nemoto-san asked, glancing at Naruto.
"What? Oh, this thing?" Naruto touched his cheek. "Yeah, it's just a-I mean, s'all right." He quickly amended, shooting a furtive glance at Sasuke.
'Not subtle at all,' Sasuke mused, but at least Naruto hadn't blabbed outright that the bandage was a decoy exercise. "Itadakimasu(4)," he said absently, raising his chopsticks.
Naruto immediately did the same thing. Sasuke picked up a piece of meat to put in his bowl, and the blond copied his movements. Nemoto-san went for the vegetables first. For a few minutes, there was nothing but the sound of chopsticks clinking against porcelain as the three of them ate in silence.
It was...awkward. Sasuke could sense that the blond was nervous, hesitant, even. Most likely this was Naruto's first time eating with anyone other than Iruka or the old man at his favorite ramen shop. Judging by the reactions he'd saw from the villagers yesterday to the blond, he wasn't popular dinner company. And Nemoto-san-well, who knew what she thought of him? Naruto had no reason to be sure that she didn't hate him as much as anyone else, even if she wasn't outright hostile.
The woman seemed to be focused on her bowl, but Sasuke suspected that she was paying attention to everything happening at the table. Che. An ANBU scout outside the Compound, and (most likely) a ninja spy inside it as well? He really was being spoiled by attention. Did the Hokage do this in his original past, too? He couldn't be sure-his previous nannies had switched every few weeks, when he'd lost patience with them or scared them away-until the Hokage had finally conceded to leave him alone in peace. But all of them felt too inconsistent, clumsy, or timid to have been ninja in disguise.
"Have some vegetables," Nemoto-san offered, using her chopsticks to portion a dish into Naruto's plate. The blond looked up suddenly, half-disbelieving the gesture, but nodded mutely and slightly-ever so slightly-cracked a tiny, uncertain smile.
A tiny action like that showed acceptance, and Naruto was overwhelmed by it, even as Sasuke mentally frowned. Nemoto-san was too...bland. Balanced, poised, unfailingly blasé in her interactions. She acted too polished to pass for a civilian, too easily accepted Naruto-and all adult residents of Konoha knew who Naruto was, if they had lived here long enough. Not many liked him. But the Hokage wouldn't randomly assign some clueless, newly immigrated resident he didn't trust (civilian or otherwise) to babysit Sasuke.
Which left two questions: who was she really, and what was she doing here?
He suspected that his post-coma talk with the Sandaime had raised more suspicions that he intended. That was...annoying. And now that he had actively gone out of his way to seek and befriend Naruto, resident demon-container...well, that would definitely cement some extra attention from the leader of Konoha.
So he had been placed under a watch of sorts, to monitor his movements and activities-a watch that he could see being extended, now that he'd taken Naruto under his wing.
Well, let them watch all they want. He was going to blaze a new future, and nothing was going to stop that. Especially when he was just as capable, if not better, at watching them.
"Enjoying your food, boys?" Nemoto-san asked.
Naruto nodded his head vigorously (it wasn't as good as ramen and some parts tasted funny but hey! Somebody had taken the time to make something for him and that was pretty awesome!), while Sasuke shot her a level look. "Too much salt."
"I'll make a note of that," Nemoto-san said mildly. Sasuke doubted it'd help.
After that, things started to pick up. While Sasuke stayed silent, Nemoto-san would subtly probe Naruto with random questions about his life, hobbies, and dislikes. The blond, once he got over the fact that there were other Konoha adults who could talk to him without snarling or flinching, was very willing to share.
He lived by himself-that Sasuke knew already-but he got lunches made by the landlord's wife everyday, though they were a lot less tasty than Nemoto-neesan's cooking-but oh, that was okay because the landlord's wife was probably too busy to flavor things anyways, and he always had ramen on hand when things got too predictable.
'Too busy or unwilling?' Sasuke wondered, eyes narrowing.
Naruto was surprisingly mature for an eight-year-old. He looked after his apartment, cooked his own breakfasts and dinners, had a trio of potted plants (with names) on the window ledge, and a monthly orphan stipend-plus bonuses, on account of his age-to support himself. The Hokage visited him personally (a fact that Naruto was immensely proud of) and took him out to Ichiraku's whenever he had the time, which was every couple of months. Naruto was full of praise bordering on reverence for Teuchi-san and his ramen. Other times, he spent training, pranking, or occasionally hanging out with Iruka-sensei. Sometimes he'd play with his friends too, like Kiba or Chouji, but most of the time he was on his own.
He seemed happy, but Sasuke couldn't help thinking how much time Naruto spent alone, or how he glossed over certain parts in his narrative that hinted at less-than-friendly encounters with local civilians. It had to be lonely-and boring. No wonder the blond spent so much time on attention-grabbing pranks.
By the time they had finished eating and Nemoto-san was clearing up the plates, Sasuke had a pretty good profile of his blond teammate's life and habits. Which-as he glanced at Nemoto-san-was probably exactly what the woman was aiming for. Observe your target by learning more about them-and if they were stubbornly mute like Sasuke, then through the people they stuck around with.
When Nemoto-san went to wash the dishes, declining all offers of help with a plastered smile, Naruto was left standing awkwardly in the middle of the kitchen, wondering what to do next. He glanced at Sasuke, who had been quiet all through the meal, and shifted on his feet.
"So, uh...thank you. For dinner, I mean." The blond rubbed the back of his head. "It...ah, it was nice."
Sasuke shrugged. "Hn. How's your accuracy?"
"Huh?" Naruto blinked. He'd been saying that a lot.
"It's still early," Sasuke explained. "We can work on target practice in my dojo. Unless you're busy."
Naruto's smile was bright enough to eclipse the sun.
-ooo-
After exiting the Uchiha Compound, Iruka made a beeline for the academy. With all this business of ninja nannies and sudden friendship with Naruto, it'd be helpful to understand Sasuke better. With his class notes off at who-knows-where, and the boy himself loath to speak, his sources were severely limited.
So it was that Iruka found himself heading for Funeno Daikoku's(5) office at six o'clock in the evening. Like all of the other ninja, Daikoku had been subject to performance evaluations after the Uchiha Massacre, but his evaluation had only ended recently. The poor guy had been stuck at the office for the past few days, catching up on missed lesson plans, and tonight was no exception.
Iruka knocked on the door and was greeted by a gruff "Come in!" He entered. Daikoku, absorbed in paperwork, didn't even bother looking up from his desk.
"Whatever it is, make it short," the man barked. "I've got tons of crap to do and precious little time to do it."
"I'm guessing you haven't had dinner yet," Iruka said mildly.
"No." A snort, before Daikoku glanced up. "Umino." He didn't sound surprised.
"Looks like you could use a break," Iruka observed. "Why don't we go out to eat? My treat."
Daikoku's expression darkened. "Oh no, Umino. I've been eating cup noodles for the past three days. Not everyone loves ramen as much as you do."
"I didn't say we had to go to Ichiraku's," Iruka frowned. Was his obsession with ramen that exaggerated? Naruto easily ate three times as much in single sitting! "You can pick the place."
Daikoku raised an eyebrow, but finally conceded as he looked at the discouraging pile of paperwork. "Fine."
-ooo-
Some time later, when the two of were seated at a table sipping Shushuya's famous sake, Daikoku broke the silence.
"All right, Umino. Spill it," the harried instructor growled. "What do you want?"
Iruka carefully set down his cup. "Information. On one of your former students."
Daikoku cursed. "That brat out of the hospital yet?"
"Just came back to class today," Iruka replied.
Daikoku cursed some more, before fixing Iruka with a glare. "Look Umino, I swear-if this is some sort of setup by the Council, I ain't playing along, you got it? Just because I taught a Uchiha doesn't mean I knew what was going on in his head-"
He stopped speaking to regard Iruka with a suspicious look.
"I am just concerned about the wellbeing of my student," Iruka said calmly. He felt sorry for Daikoku. The poor guy had probably been harassed within an inch of his life for being Itachi's former academy teacher. He had an inkling of T & I's methods-investigating every possible link was standard protocol.
When Daikoku still didn't reply, Iruka continued speaking. "Sasuke's only eight, Funeno-san, and he's lost everything that's ever mattered to him. I can't make him talk, but I can try to understand him. And you're the only link I've got to his family."
"I never asked for it," Daikoku snarled, then softer, "I never wanted things to turn out…like this."
Daikoku had always been fiercely proud of Itachi, even if he didn't say it outright, and the Uchiha's betrayal was an obvious sore spot for the man.
"Neither did any of us," Iruka spoke, noting the strong smell of liquor on the man's breath. If Daikoku wasn't drunk yet, he was getting close after downing cup after cup of alcohol since they entered the restaurant. "None of us could have known-"
Bang!
Iruka paused as Daikoku slammed his fist on the table. Never mind. The man was already drunk.
"Don't fool with me." Daikoku's face was a livid red, and his goatee shook with every word. Iruka chanced a glance around-luckily, they were in a corner, and it was too early for most of Shushuya's customers to show up yet, but if Daikoku got too loud…well, Iruka really wasn't in the mood to lug back an knocked-out man nearly twice his weight.
"You're all idiots…putting your freakin' geniuses on a pedestal…" Daikoku slurred, staring at a section of wall next to Iruka's head. "Like they don't have feelings or brains of their own…he's only 13, for Kami's sake…making him part of ANBU…what could he say? What could he do? There was nowhere else…nobody else? Haha…heh...don't screw with me… "
"Funeno-san," Iruka began again.
"Shut up," Daikoku snapped. "You…listen to me. He was a good kid. Cold….genius…whatever you bastards label your weapons…he was. A. Good. Kid. If Itachi killed the wrong people…it's because you idiots killed him first… Itachi, he-he never would have…"
The words trailed off into nothingness as Daikoku's head met the table with a sound thwack. Iruka waited, but the silence continued. The academy teacher was out cold. Looks like he'd have to drag the man home after all.
But more importantly, he'd heard enough things to raise questions in his head. Uchiha Itachi, mass murderer and…a 'good kid'? He didn't know much about Daikoku, but he knew the man had a knack for analyzing students. His predictions about Sasuke's brilliance had been spot-on, and he'd helped quite a few failures in academy history to become competent ninja by overcoming personal problems. (Though Iruka had qualms about Daikoku's latest project-it involved some kid who couldn't even mold chakra properly(6), but Daikoku was thinking of finding him a special teacher before the massacre disrupted things.)
Heck, Iruka would have introduced Naruto to the man if not for the fact that Daikoku nursed a stubborn grudge against the Nine-tails for killing his wife and child. The man didn't blame Naruto personally, but seeing the blond kid just made him wince inside. And Iruka didn't know him well enough to force the issue.
Well, whatever the case, it looked like he'd just have to ask Daikoku more questions after he was sober.
"Sir, more sake?" a waitress asked as she came around with a bottle.
Iruka shook his head. "Actually, I'd just like the bill, please."
-ooo-
It was pretty dark by the time Naruto bid good-bye to Sasuke at the gates to the Uchiha Compound. Target practice had been helpful-he'd gotten two out of ten kunai to hit consistently, and one even got close to a bull's eye once!
'Course, Sasuke had managed to hit all of them consistently and gotten 'bout ten times as many bull's eyes as Naruto missed, but still...Sasuke was training him to be Hokage. He had to be good. 'Least, that was his thinking.
It was weird, but seeing Sasuke do better didn't frustrate Naruto than it would have if it was...say, Kiba doing the throwing. Sasuke was good, but he didn't brag about it, and gave Naruto plenty of pointers when he asked.
Not that he was all together nice. The one time Naruto had missed and nearly hit Sasuke's eye, the boy had immediately retaliated with three kunai to pin Naruto in place without batting an eyelash.
He scooted to increase the distance between them afterwards, just in case.
All in all, it had been a good evening, made even better by the fact that Nemoto-neesan had given him his own bento for tomorrow's lunch. A real bento-wrapped in pretty cloth an' everything. Orange cloth, even! Sasuke had given it a dubious glance, but Naruto had felt so warm and glad inside that he could've burst with happiness. Then Sasuke had asked him to come by tomorrow, if he had time-and Naruto really had burst, with an exclamation of certainty that was pure, concentrated joy.
-ooo-
As Sasuke watched Naruto skip towards home, he couldn't help but notice one of the two chakra signatures in the trees move to follow the blond. The other one waited until Sasuke entered the Uchiha Compound before disappearing-probably body flickered away to make a report. No sense watching a stationery target.
A hand came down onto his shoulder, and Sasuke twitched, before realizing it was Nemoto-san. The woman was looking at him with a too-cheerful smile.
"Naruto-kun seemed happy," she said. "Are you helping him train?"
'Nosy woman,' Sasuke inwardly grimaced, but recognized the need to clarify information before she made any assumptions. Avoiding a conversation would just be more suspicious. "Just giving pointers."
"That's very kind of you." 'What are you up to?'
'None of your business.' Sasuke shrugged. "I talk. He listens."
Nemoto-san made a 'hm' deep in her throat. "I hear that he wants to be the next Hokage. A big goal for an Academy student."
"It's not impossible."
"Perhaps not for you, Sasuke-kun. You're the top student. But Naruto-kun..."
"You don't think he can make it."
"It seems like it'd be very hard for him."
"You're naïve, then," Sasuke said, voice cold.
"You seem very confident in Naruto-kun."
"Che," Sasuke said, shaking off her hand. "I have work to make up." And he left her in the courtyard, staring after him with an unreadable expression.
'Uchiha Sasuke,' the woman called Nemoto-san mused to herself. 'What a puzzling subject you are.'
-ooo-
"Hokage-sama has assigned another ANBU to watch the target undercover."
Ibiki raised an eyebrow. "How deep undercover?" he asked.
"She is currently acting as a caretaker of the target." Raccoon replied. "I was advised not to interfere."
Was this what the Sandaime meant by saying he'd take care of things? Undoubtedly, having a pair of eyes inside the Compound would be far more helpful. Ibiki thought as he nodded. "I see. Keep to the parameters of your mission." That shouldn't interfere with anything the Sandaime had in mind.
Raccoon nodded and disappeared in a poof as Ibiki bent down to more Police Corp documents.
Kami, he really hated paperwork.
-ooo-
(1)'masks' - Just a codeword for ANBU. Ninjas don't go around parading their covers, even in their own village.
(2)'Remnant' – Codename for Sasuke, since he's the last remnant of the Uchiha clan. Bodyguards use codenames for their clients, so ANBU might as well too. XD
(3)'...yet still bandage-free' – Actually, Naruto did get tons of bandages after his fight with Sasuke at the Valley of the End...but canon!Sasuke didn't stick around to see, thus his conclusion here.
(4)'Itadakimau' – Gratutious Japanese. XP Traditionally said at the beginning of a meal, meaning "let's eat".
(5)Funeno Daikoku – Surname first, so his given name's Daikoku. Yes, he really exists in canon as Itachi's former academy teacher. Technically a minor character, but I love putting them in since you get to fiddle more with their thought processes/history/personality. Ha, maybe he'll be important later, maybe not. Who knows?
(6)'some kid who couldn't even mold chakra properly…' – Why yes, my astute reader, this is who you think it is. How else would he have stayed enrolled for so long without being expelled before ***-sensei discovered him? Still, Daikoku's interference is pure fanon on my part, just because I can. :p
A/N: Hey! It's been a little over a year, hasn't it? You guys still alive out there? Haha. Looks like in the time I've been gone, new things have overtaken the Naruto fanfiction-verse. Current trend seems to be revolving around Self-Insert fics-and some of them are pretty good too. (*cough* Dreaming of Sunshine by Silver Queen, *cough*) Something to read while you guys wait another year for the next chapter.
So...the plot inches forward (sort of), lots of people think a lot, and the day finally winds to a close. When are things finally going to start happening, you ask? They'll do when they do. In the meantime, just go with the flow.