Heavy Violence: The damage is done, can there be repairs?
OV: What happens now that Naruto and Sasuke have met up again?
AN: Soz about that cliff hanger…I really couldn't keep writing, because the chapter was done… Soo.. I'll pick up where I left off.
(Okay typed after I wrote, Angst chapter…Sasuke really has emotions! Who knew?)
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Sasuke listened to the words play over and over in his mind, "So tell me. I want to know everything; why you are back, what you expect now, why I shouldn't simply take you back to that cell and forget I ever saw you there." What could he say? What should he say?
He looked at his former teammate, noticed a seriousness around the eyes, a set to the jaw that would have been out of place on the old Naruto. Now, though, it fitted him. He looked like a man not to be trifled with; one who knew himself inside and out and was very comfortable in his own skin.
Sasuke thought how he was the complete opposite. He didn't know who he was anymore, where he was going, or even what he had left to live for. He looked into those blue eyes, those damn blue eyes that he found himself forgetting everything in. How many times had he seen those blue eyes in his waking moments when sleep is still lingering, yet the mind is breaking into a new day. How many times had he wondered if he had made the right choices? How many times had he heard the words of his brother play in his mind as he relived the entire battle at Shuumatsu no Tani (Valley of the End). He had killed his closest friend, more than once in that fight, yet he had refused to die. Sasuke was glad Naruto had lived, but he'd not activated the dreaded Mangekyou Sharingan. He'd vowed to do it on his own, and eventually he had. He rationalized he had gained power over his brother in that way.
Naruto had watched Sasuke through his lashes, not moving, just breathing slowly; a rhythmic pattern, a deep breath in and slowly let it out. He wondered if Sasuke realized his face was an open book as Naruto saw emotion pass over it then shift and flow into another. He wondered what was going through the mind of the saturnine man sitting before him to cause such a display of emotion to reveal itself. He waited, enjoying the ebb and flow of Sasuke's face. He'd never realized how expressive Sasuke really was. He tried to remember if Sasuke was always this way, or if it was something new. He could recall many episodes of that typical scowl, the devilish smirk, glares galore, yet he could also now recall the crestfallen expression of defeat, the ecstasy of fighting all out and winning, the awe of things greater than him, sullen looks, sadness, that serious set of jaw that only Sasuke had perfected, but only rarely could Naruto pull up the memory of any smile.
He reckoned Sasuke had always shown what he felt on his face. Even when he'd tried to cover it up with that impassive expression Naruto could remember how Sasuke's eyes revealed the truth beneath the façade. How is it he could never notice this when they were younger, yet he could recall it perfectly now?
Now they sat both lost in their own thoughts; Naruto seeing Sasuke for the first time as an empathetic person, Sasuke looking past his own limitations to see the real Naruto. Finally Sasuke broke the silence, "Why did you follow me to Shuumatsu no Tani? Why did you fight me with everything you had? Even when I mortally wounded you… you refused to give up. You want to know why you shouldn't just forget me now, yet I can't truly understand why you didn't just forget me then." His head drooped with the weight of the charged atmosphere in the room.
Naruto closed his eyes. He sighed deeply, "Do you really not know…" he opened his eyes, those deepest pools of cerulean boring into the Cimmerian depths of onyx, "Sasuke?" That one word, that name carrying more meaning in it than anything else could. The voice it was proffered in full of dire sadness mingled with sentiment and something so deep it hit the foundations of their association with each other.
Sasuke jerked his head up, had Naruto been pondering the same things as he had? He studied the blonde before him again, looking for what he had missed. There was no smile on Naruto's face, he was dead serious; but that wasn't all. There was something in his eyes now, like the waves of a storm tossed sea. Sasuke was drowned in the realization of what he had done to the man who sat with him. He tried to pull his usual trick of retreating inside himself, but the feeling of guilt and betrayal were coming from within, there was nowhere for him to hide. He looked at Naruto desperately seeking a lifeline to pull him out of the despair he was sinking into.
Naruto saw how his words had affected Sasuke. His face softened, "So do you understand now what it means when I say you were my first friend?" Sasuke nodded, that lost look still showing in his eyes. "Do you understand why I had to go after you, why I never gave up, why I have you sitting here in front of me now…why I still don't understand why you had to leave?" Naruto's voice cut off short; he'd almost added 'me' at the end of that statement. Why did he care personally if Sasuke left, did it really affect him?
He didn't want to admit how deeply it did affect him, how if Sasuke said the wrong thing right now it would affect him again.
Sasuke tried to speak several times, but whatever he wanted to say died on his lips. Finally he looked into those cobalt pools where the pain he now felt and understood was reflected back at him. He hadn't realized he'd been crying until he felt a tear slip off his jaw and looked down to where it had landed and noticed there was a patch of fabric on his pants that was darker than the surrounding dry material.
At last he said the only thing he could, and although he knew it wasn't enough it was all he had to offer. "Naruto, I really am sorry. I never thought…" he tried to express himself but it wasn't right. He tried again, "I didn't realize how you felt. I was so self-centered and set on attaining power. You were getting so strong, every time we were placed in a life threatening situation, it was you who came through and saved us. I…I could never do anything." His face fell, his voice cracked, his teeth ground together in a grimace, yet he continued. "You had this power inside you and you were always there, you always came through. In those situations; like when you were up against Gaara when he was turned into that monster. You only flinched once, and then you made those Kage Bunshins, how you could make so many. Even when Gaara had you in that sand cocoon, you summoned that huge frog. When I saw that transformation, with the frog…into the fox, I realized just how powerful you'd become. I was weak, I could only lie there and rely on someone else to fight for me. It hurt more than I can ever convey to you that it was you who rescued us."
Sasuke paused to take a breath, he was shaking, and Naruto could feel the anger behind his words even now. It was as if now that he'd started speaking Sasuke needed to get it all out, and he continued to pour out all the things he'd been holding deep within his heart, all the things that had made Orochimaru seem the best choice for his future, the only choice for him to become powerful enough; as powerful as he felt he needed to be. Naruto sat still and listened as Sasuke recounted events he'd long since forgotten. The fights, the battles, the feats of strength, cunning, or skill that Sasuke had perceived proved Naruto had become more powerful and made him feel he was lacking.
When Sasuke had spent his energy and had exhausted everything that was tainting his heart he felt a curious feeling of relief. It was as if some burden he didn't know he'd even been carrying had been suddenly lifted from his shoulders. He felt like that clear azure day after the storm has passed, where the sky is so crystal clear everything seems brighter and clearer than it ever had been before, when the sun shining casts a glow of rebirth and life over everything. When he looked into Naruto's face he felt this infinitely moreover than ever he'd felt it before. Naruto's sapphire orbs were peering into him with such intensity he felt as if he could see clear through him. They reflected that image of sky, and his blonde locks would give the hottest sun a run for its money in brightness.
Now it was Naruto's turn to feel dumbstruck. He'd never had a clue Sasuke felt so strongly. He guessed everyone must have been right when they called him inobservant, and told him he couldn't notice things that were so obvious as to be right in front of his face. "Sasuke, I never meant to make you feel that way. You were always top in everything; I had to work so hard to even approach your level. When I finally felt I caught up to you, you refused to acknowledge me. When we fought on the hospital roof that day, when I came back from the trip to bring Baa-chan back to become Hokage; you refused to put on your forehead protector. Remember? I ask you to put it on and said it meant we were fighting as equals. You wouldn't deign to lower your nose to admit I might have reached your level, you arrogantly stated that I wouldn't even be able to put a scratch on your forehead. Later when we fought at Shuumatsu no Tani I scratched your forehead protector." He remembered reaching out, trying to touch the smooth metal with the engraving of Konoha's leaf symbol. When he'd finally left the scratch all the fight had gone out of him.
"I didn't want to fight anymore; I'd achieved all I set out to do which was proving you wrong. I only wanted to be your friend and you became my fiercest rival. I only wanted you to acknowledge that I was your equal. It was what drove me to get stronger. I never wanted to surpass you, only have you notice me." His gaze fell over the ebony hair, the dark eyes whose depths he'd only began to fathom, the smooth pale face. "I guess you noticed after all…" he finished with a weak chuckle.
Both men felt as if they'd just been through one of the toughest battles of their lives. Neither had ever considered that waging an emotional and mental battle could be so fierce and leave you so drained.
Naruto laughed outright; as ever he was quick to recover that insuppressible optimism that had carried him through so much. Sasuke grinned in spite of himself; Naruto's cheerfulness was definitely contagious. "Dobe." He sniggered, only to be retaliated with the expected, "Teme."
Sasuke had begun that morning expecting to be interrogated, tortured, harassed, and any number of other unpleasantries. He was pleasantly surprised to instead be sitting in the Hokage's office feeling as if he'd found that lifeline he so desperately needed.
Naruto's face took on that overcast of seriousness. He asked Sasuke once again, "Why are you here?"
Sasuke honestly replied, "I had news that Itachi was going to try to capture you, yet again, during the Inauguration and festival. I knew this was as good a chance as any to catch up to him, and defeat him once and for all." His face suddenly got red as he realized he'd been about to add how he was finally strong enough to defend his most precious person. Instead he explained further, "I knew if I could I had to stop him, and prove to him as well as myself that I was the stronger one."
Another dark cloud passed over Sasuke's face. He found himself relating some of the things Itachi had said to him as he stood there about to die at his little brother's hand. How Itachi said he'd rescued Sasuke from the Uchia's, and most importantly from his own father. He sat there brooding. Naruto looked at his long time acquaintance; he couldn't understand how two brothers could hate each other so much. He wondered why Itachi had said those things to Sasuke. Most of all, he found he was enraged at Itachi for hurting Sasuke yet again.
Sasuke looked over at Naruto and drew in a quick breath at the anger etched on the blonde man's face. The snarl of fury sent an icy finger of fear down Sasuke's spine. "Naruto?"
Naruto turned his head to divine what his companion wanted. His visage softened at the look of concern tinged with anxiety. "It just makes me so angry how your brother ruined your life. I never had any family; they were all taken from me at my birth. Your family was taken from you at a young age, and even worse, the only surviving relative you have was the cause, and he then tried everything to ruin your life further by feeding you with hatred."
Sasuke was shocked at the concern he could clearly see on Naruto's face. Suddenly, as a tornado switching direction, Naruto brightened and smiled one of his dazzling grins. "I found out who my father is though, and I feel good to know that much."
Sasuke was dumbfounded at this tidbit of information. "You found out who your father is?" he asked amazed.
"Yeah, he was the Yondaime Hokage." Naruto admitted offhandedly.
Sasuke nearly fell out of his chair, he was thunderstruck. Suddenly a lot of things became clear to him, not why he was mistreated for so many years though. Sasuke realized Naruto was practically royalty in Konoha, no one had ever known it though. It was an easy leap to see why the elders would have consented to allow Naruto to finally become Hokage once they found out. He wondered who had known and finally come forward with the information, and furthermore why they had kept it hidden for so long. For once, Sasuke wasn't angered about something concerning Naruto. No, he was genuinely happy for his blonde.
Wait, my blonde? I mean for the blonde, the dobe. He tried to explain away his mistake of thought. He was glad he hadn't said that out loud!
Naruto searched Sasuke's face; it really was enjoyable to watch emotions flutter across his features. He tried to name them as they passed: consternation, then mild humor, approval, and finally relief. Naruto thought he could come to like this game, he decided to call it name that expression.
Sasuke noticed the look of great amusement on Naruto's face and was momentarily concerned that he had actually said it out loud. When Naruto noticed Sasuke was looking at him a pink blush spread across his tan cheeks. This caused Sasuke to groan inwardly, he was now sure he must have said it out loud.
While he pondered what to do about this awkward situation, Naruto turned his attention to the door. "Enter," he said before Sasuke even realized anyone had approached.
Shikamaru stuck his head in and reported, "Kakashi and Tsunade are coming up the walk, and they look like they're headed for you."
Naruto raised his eyebrows and muttered, "Oh? Okay, thanks Shika."
Sasuke appreciated the distraction; maybe Naruto would forget what he'd apparently accidentally thought out loud.
Shikamaru's head retreated from the doorway, and he slipped the door shut. Naruto looked at Sasuke, "I've decided you may stay in Konoha, although I think you still have a lot of explaining to do. I will have to decide just what to do later, here they come."
He once again appraised his closed door, "Come!" he called through the solidness. "Kakashi-sensei, Granny Tsunade! What a surprise." Naruto greeted cheerfully.
Kakashi looked not at Naruto, but at the caliginous man who was actually smiling. Kakashi's one eyebrow shot upward, what had these two men been discussing while they were alone, he pondered.
Tsunade was, as usual to the point, "Before you determine his fate, you should consider the other prisoner."
Sasuke spoke out of turn with concern in his voice, "Will you be able to help Juugo?" he asked reservedly. He'd just begun feeling like he had something worth living for; and most of all that he had worth enough to live. In his emotional struggle with Naruto he'd forgotten his teammate. He felt ashamed all over again.
Tsunade explained how the task would be daunting, and dangerous. She told Sasuke what she'd explained to Juugo, and that he agreed to go forward with the purging ceremony. She was feeling generous, and so went on to explain her plan for the ceremony, and the Medic-Nin's she intended to use. Sasuke listened with rapt attention; he noted the confidence with which she spoke. He was relieved to know his comrade would be in such good hands.
"Thank you." He said simply and honestly to the former Hokage.
Tsunade looked taken aback at his words. "I haven't done anything yet!" she argued.
Sasuke contradicted her, "You have given Juugo hope. You have agreed to help him, and I thank you for that."
Tsunade studied the man she barely knew. She held reservations as to whether she liked him or not. She glanced at Kakashi to see how he was reacting to the conversation.
Kakashi was grinning. Tsunade saw this and was intrigued. He then queried what Sasuke's and Juugo's fates would be.
Naruto answered that he had decided to allow them to remain in Konoha. He had not as of that time decided their final fate, but for now they would be allowed to stay. He emphasized that Juugo should be contained in the cell he was already in until the ceremony could be performed. It was a matter of safety, and had nothing to do with Juugo himself. He would be required to undergo questioning to determine his safety following the procedure, and that would ultimately determine his fate. He would be watched by guard for some time to determine if the procedure had worked, but after that Naruto hadn't decided.
As for Sasuke, "I have decided to interrogate him further. I choose to do this personally, possibly relying on others to assist. Until I end my interrogations I won't know his direct fate either," Naruto offered.
Kakashi was glad his face was covered. He wouldn't want people thinking he'd gone soft of they saw the look of pride on his face. He was proud of Naruto, though, and of Sasuke. They had both faced a lot, and seemed to be finally able to surmount it and progress on. Naruto was making some just and sound decisions, and he was using logic rather than his emotions. Sasuke had finally learned the value of others. What more could he ask for?
As if in response to his unspoken question, a knock was heard. Sakura peeked her head into the room, Tsunade-sama, I was told you were here. Shizune is here with me also.
Tsunade nodded, and motioned her in. "We'll meet in the medic office tomorrow morning to prepare for the ceremony; I wanted to get Naruto's approval of the assembled team," she stated. Naruto nodded, he knew Sakura was good, and Shizune. He trusted Tsunade, and knew she'd put together a team that would be best suited to the task. Naruto wondered if this was more for Sasuke's benefit than his actual approval. Naruto assumed he had guessed right as he saw both Tsunade and Kakashi sneak glances at Sasuke before they dismissed the Medic-Nins.
Naruto made to dismiss Tsunade and Kakashi, but Kakashi offered that he needed a quick word with Naruto before departing. Tsunade shrugged and left to begin preparations for her dangerous ceremony.
Kakashi had only one question, "Where is he staying?" he queried gesturing to Sasuke with his head.
Naruto grinned and replied, "I thought I already made it clear. I want to interrogate him, and keep an eye on him. He'll be staying with me."
Both Sasuke and Kakashi seemed shocked by this revelation. Naruto merely grinned. "Come on Sasuke, I'll show you the Hokage's quarters and your room." He stood and motioned for Kakashi to lead them out of the room.
They parted, and Naruto and a wary Sasuke approached the guarded rooms of the Hokage's quarters.
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As I'm very tired, and have another busy day tomorrow I'm stopping here. I want to get this posted. Next chapter is Ultimate Secrets. Look for it soon as I can get it up! LOL
-Kneise
BTW…If I have any glaring errors or discrepancies or whatever would someone let me know?? Like I know I was misspelling Ichiraku's name (which I just learned his first name…)
'Kay Thanx!! Buh-bye and Good night!...or morning…Gah! I just remembered…daylight savings now…well in about 30 minutes. OH!! I found Manga Gel!!! Does a happy dance It's sooo cool!!! You can make six-inch spikes stand straight up!! (Yeah we tried, it works! )