Happy New Year!
I hope that you have all enjoyed the holidays and are ready to start yet another, hopefully rewarding, year! My gift to you all is an extra long chapter. Enjoy!
I've been very surprised by the reaction to this story. Thank you all so much for reviewing, adding the story to your favorites and/or C2s, and especially for recommending it. My goal is to entertain, so the more people to read it the better.
Warnings: mainly language in this chapter, nothing major.
As always, I apologize in advance for spelling, grammar, and other errors you might find. I never manage to get them all. Enjoy!
Posted 1/1/07
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Chapter 5: Unfinished Business
Stepping into what used to be the proud Uchiha neighborhood was like stepping into a reality devoid of sound and warmth. Chills raced up and down Sasuke's body, and it took everything he had not to rub his arms. He risked a glance beside him and saw that Jiraiya was experiencing a similar reaction, if the slight shudder that went through the man was any indication.
"There are a lot of ghosts in this place," Jiraiya said.
Irritation rushed through Sasuke at Jiraiya's comment and a response immediately came to mind and was out of his mouth before he had even acknowledged it.
"Stating the obvious again, Jiraiya? Read more so you'll have something intelligent to say."
Sasuke's mouth snapped shut as Jiraiya turned to face him, shock clearly written across the elder ninja's features.
"Where did you hear that?" Jiraiya asked.
The man's face had gone almost as pale as his hair and his hands had clenched into fists at his sides. He was looking at Sasuke with an intensity that kept the young man rooted to his spot.
Sasuke didn't have a reply, because the comment had caught him as much by surprise as it had Jiraiya. The response had simply been in his head, and it had felt natural to say it, as if he'd said it thousands of times before. It felt as natural as when he'd called Naruto an idiot or a moron when they were teammates.
"Answer me, Sasuke," Jiraiya insisted. He grabbed Sasuke's shoulders and shook them.
"I don't know," Sasuke finally said. "I just…"
He trailed off, and Jiraiya's grip on his shoulders increased, making the young man wince.
"Orochimaru used to say that to me," Jiraiya finally said.
Sasuke's body went rigid at Jiraiya's comment. His surroundings melted away until he was no longer seeing Jiraiya as Sasuke knew him, but instead was looking at a much younger and much shorter version of the man.
"Stating the obvious again, Jiraiya? Read more so you'll have something intelligent to say."
Sasuke heard himself say the words, but it was not his voice that emerged. Instead, the voice was one that he was well acquainted with, even if it was higher pitched and much more childish than Sasuke remembered.
Jiraiya's eyes narrowed in anger as he got closer to Sasuke. "Why don't you try being less of a prick?" Jiraiya countered.
"Your opinion of me is unimportant," Sasuke said. "Really, Jiraiya, how do you expect to become a respectable ninja with your current level of intelligence?"
Jiraiya's face turned red and he rushed Sasuke, who easily dodged the punch aimed at his face. He grabbed the fist and twisted it behind Jiraiya, causing the white haired teenager to grunt and lean forward to take the pressure off his arm.
"See?" Sasuke said. "Brute strength will get you nowhere if you don't have the cunning to go with it."
Jiraiya's foot connected with Sasuke's shin, which startled him enough to let go of Jiraiya's arm. Jiraiya immediately turned around and threw another punch, but Sasuke dodged this one as well. As Jiraiya's momentum brought him past Sasuke, he struck the teenager in the lower back, causing Jiraiya to lose his balance and fall flat on his face.
"Jiraiya, Orochimaru, stop fighting!"
Sasuke turned towards the voice and found a very young, and very angry, Tsunade making her way towards them. By the time she reached them, Jiraiya had picked himself up and was standing well away from Sasuke.
"Stop acting like children," Tsunade chided. "We're a team; we're supposed to be working together, not fighting each other."
"He started it," Jiraiya said.
"You didn't have to finish it," Tsunade countered. "You are way too old to be acting like this."
Jiraiya sent Sasuke a glare. "You can preach all you want about us being a team, Tsunade, but we both know that Orochimaru would rather be on his own," Jiraiya said. "If it weren't for the fact that he's Sarutobi-sensei's favorite, he would have already been put somewhere else."
Sasuke watched as Jiraiya continued to ramble and Tsunade attempted to calm him down, and felt nothing for either of them. They were his teammates, which made them a necessary burden fort the moment. He watched their backs, not because he felt the need to, but because it was his job to make sure that everyone returned from their missions in one piece. They were both useless and would one day meet the death they deserved, but not yet. Once he convinced Sarutobi-sensei that he was better off on his own, pursuing his own interests, he wouldn't have to tolerate them anymore. Until then, he would pass the time by making sure that Jiraiya understood his place on the team.
"Sasuke?"
Sasuke blinked a few times until reality took shape around him once again. He felt lightheaded, and if Jiraiya hadn't been holding on to him, Sasuke had a feeling that he would have ended up in a heap on the ground.
Orochimaru's blatant disregard for his teammates and his single minded determination to fulfill his own goals hit way too close to home and made Sasuke sick to his stomach. The memory had made it painfully clear that he was no different than Orochimaru had been at his age. What right did he have to feel superior to the man he had called 'teacher' for three years when, if Orochimaru hadn't needed his body as a container, it was very likely that Sasuke would have ended up as twisted and as power hungry as Orochimaru had been?
Everything he had endured in Oto, from the rigorous training and abuse to ending up a prisoner in his own body, was all his own doing. No one forced him to leave. If anything, Sakura and Naruto both tried to get him to stay, but he'd been so set on his own agenda that he'd walked into the snake's nest on his own two feet. Sasuke had already betrayed his teammates, his teacher, and his village once because of his selfishness and his desire for power. What was to say that he wouldn't do it again if something important enough came up?
"Sasuke?" Jiraiya tried a second time.
Sasuke pulled himself out of the mental hole he'd slowly been sinking into and pushed Jiraiya's hands off his shoulders. He inwardly cringed when he saw that his hands were shaking.
"You don't need to be here, Jiraiya," Sasuke finally said, his voice calm despite his inner turmoil. "This place is my responsibility and I will take care of it on my own. I don't need you or anyone else to get in the way."
Jiraiya's eyes bored into Sasuke's, as if the man could read Sasuke's soul if he only stared hard enough. Sasuke had to turn his back on the legendary ninja in order to keep him from seeing anything else.
"You're not going to answer my question, are you?" Jiraiya finally asked.
"I already answered it," Sasuke said.
Sasuke resumed the walk towards his former home, acutely aware of Jiraiya's every movement behind him. Now that the floodgates of the memories Orochimaru had left behind had been opened, Sasuke knew things about Jiraiya that he shouldn't know. The contempt and disdain Orochimaru had felt for Jiraiya now flowed through Sasuke as if they were his own. What disturbed him the most was that those feelings were no different than what he'd once felt towards Naruto.
Jiraiya could never know that Sasuke had Orochimaru's memories. The earlier slip, while unconscious on his part, had been dangerous. Sasuke could not allow that to happen again. Contrary to Orochimaru's belief, Sasuke did not think that Jiraiya was unintelligent. Sasuke was sure that his comment earlier had prickled Jiraiya's suspicion already, and if that suspicion was confirmed, Jiraiya would no doubt tell the Hokage, and if that happened…
Sasuke cut off the train of thought before it could spiral out of control. He would just have to make sure that the incident never happened again. He returned his attention to his surroundings and was surprised to find that he'd reached what used to be his home. The house was in a state of complete disrepair, which suddenly made the years that he'd been gone very apparent to Sasuke. The once proud structure bore the effects of neglect: faded paint, broken doors and windows, holes in the walls from storms or vandals that hadn't been repaired, and a general sense of abandonment. The proud Uchiha fans that had once adorned the walls of the estate were now faded and barely distinguishable. It was fitting for a clan with only one remaining survivor.
"This place has seen better days," Jiraiya commented.
"What gave you that idea?" Sasuke muttered under his breath, not bothering to hide the sarcasm.
Without waiting for Jiraiya, Saskue walked through the broken front door and into the house he'd left six years before, and had to stop a second time. For a moment as he'd walked inside, he had seen his mother standing in front of him, smiling, holding out his slippers for him to put on. He'd blinked and the image disappeared, but the pang of loss, which he hadn't allowed himself to feel for more than half of his life, remained.
"Is there something wrong, Sasuke?" Jiraiya asked.
In response, Sasuke took off his shoes and walked deeper into the house. The floor was dusty and full of debris that had made their way inside through the broken windows. Walking barefoot was probably not a good idea, but he couldn't bring himself to put on his shoes. What little furniture remained in the living room was dusty, dirty, and strewn about as if the owner hadn't been able to make up his mind about where each piece should go. The inside walls, thankfully, were still whole. He'd have to go up to the roof to see in what condition that was in once he'd taken a look at the entire inside of the house.
There was still enough sunlight to see by, so he made his way around the house quickly. Jiraiya chose to remain in the living room, which Sasuke was thankful for. The bedrooms were mainly untouched, since they were in the inner part of the house. His parent's and Itachi's rooms still had their furniture covered in plastic, as it had been since the massacre. His own room was dustier and would require a lot of cleaning before he could move into it again, but it wasn't impossible. The only room he avoided, as he had ever since the massacre, was the dojo where Itachi had murdered his parents. He had never been inside that room since that night and had no desire to change that now.
Once his assessment of the living area had been made, Sasuke made his way to the kitchen. It, like the living room, was littered with debris and had the one window in the room completely broken. Sasuke could see where rain had gotten inside and rotted the wooden floor closest to the window. Sasuke ignored Jiraiya, who was leaning against the kitchen sink, and went to the pantry instead. There, he found candles and cleaning supplies, both of which he'd need very soon. He took the broom out of the pantry and turned to regard his companion.
"What?" Jiraiya asked as he noticed Sasuke's stare.
"What are you still doing here?" Sasuke asked. "You've seen that the house is livable, so don't you have something to go tell the Hokage now?"
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow at Sasuke but remained quiet. The man's eyes drifted around the kitchen before finally settling on Sasuke.
"You think this place is livable?" he asked.
Sasuke's grip around the handle of the broom tightened.
"This house is an absolute mess," Jiraiya continued. "It's filthy, full of insects and other vermin, full of holes, without running water or electricity, I assume, and you think it's livable?"
The wood of the handle began to crack, and Sasuke released it before he ruined one of the few cleaning tools he possessed.
"I can clean it and get rid of the vermin," Sasuke said, his voice calm despite the anger that was welling up at Jiraiya's comments. "As far as running water or electricity, I can take care of that later when I have some kind of income." Sasuke took a deep breath and reluctantly said his next words. "Besides, I don't have any other choice but to make it livable."
"True," Jiraiya said, "but Tsunade didn't say that you had to move in here right away."
The man's attitude was grating on Sasuke's nerves. How had Naruto put up with him during their training?
"I don't know if you've noticed, Jiraiya, but I don't have anywhere else to go."
Jiraiya laughed, and Sasuke had to clench his teeth to keep from reacting.
"I can think of a few places where you can go," the man said, and it took Sasuke a moment to realize that he hadn't meant it as an insult, simply as a statement of fact.
"Oh, and where would that be?" Sasuke asked despite himself.
"You've been staying at Naruto's so far. I don't see why that can't continue," Jiraiya said.
"I was unconscious, Jiraiya," Sasuke pointed out. "It's different. Besides, I don't want to inconvenience Naruto any more."
"I doubt that it'll be an inconvenience," Jiraiya said. "If you don't want to stay with Naruto, Sakura has a spare bedroom in her house."
Sasuke didn't even bother to dignify that comment with a response. He was not going to inconvenience Sakura either.
"Judging from your lack of response, I take it that's a 'no'," Jiraiya said and Sasuke was so very tempted to throw something at the man to knock that stupid grin off of his face.
"There's also Kakashi," Jiraiya continued, ignoring Sasuke's glare. "He's got a small apartment, but I'm sure that the two of you could make it work."
"There's also the forest surrounding the training grounds," Sasuke added. "I'm sure that the trees would be very comfortable as well."
Jiriaya shrugged. "If that's your idea of a comfortable night's rest, I'm sure it'd be fine. The ANBU guarding you could sleep in the tree next to yours."
Sasuke didn't feel like dealing with Jiraiya's cryptic remarks so he took the broom and headed for the living room, hoping that the man would take the hint and leave.
Jiraiya followed him to the living room.
"You're not very hospitable, are you?"
"I asked you to leave," Sasuke replied. "I'm short on hospitality these days."
Jiraiya muttered something Sasuke didn't quite understand but could probably guess the meaning of. He passed Sasuke and paused when he got to the front door.
"Fine, if you want to be alone with your ghosts, it's your call, kid. Happy cleaning."
With that, the ninja disappeared.
Sasuke took a breath and forced his tense shoulders to relax. Now that Jiraiya was gone, the emptiness of the house began to close in on him. He'd forgotten how quiet and cold the house had been. When he'd lived in it as a kid, he'd gotten used to the complete lack of life in it. Now that he'd been away, it felt as if he was starting all over again, as if he'd just recently lost his entire family and had to get used to being alone again.
Shrugging the all too familiar feeling of loneliness off, Sasuke began to clean.
&&&&
"So, that's pretty much it," Sakura finished explaining the circumstances of Sasuke's return to her captive audience.
They had finished dinner about an hour ago but had remained around the dinner table while they'd peppered Sakura with questions and then finally gave her a chance to tell her story. Shikamaru could tell that she had left a lot of it out, especially about how they'd come up with the seals that they'd used on Sasuke. Shikamaru hadn't gotten a chance to speak with Naruto about the ordeal yet, but he could definitely see wholes in the story and wondered why Sakura was being so vague. No one else seemed to notice, or if they did, they hadn't mentioned it.
"How long are you suspended for?" Lee asked.
"I don't know," Sakura replied. "The Hokage said that it was 'until further notice', so it could be a week or a year, we don't know."
They were quiet for a moment pondering what it would mean for Sakura and Naruto not to work while they were suspended. It was Kumiko that broke the silence a few minutes later.
"So how long did it take to work out the plan," she asked.
"Um, we worked on it for about a year and a half," Sakura replied.
"You started planning your strategy after Oto attacked?" Lee asked.
Sakura nodded. "Seeing Sasuke again when Orochimaru attacked really had an effect on both of us and we decided that we had to do something."
"Wow, that's amazing loyalty to a teammate," Akira commented. "I'm glad that it worked out."
"Is Orochimaru really dead?"
Kumiko finally asked the question that had been on all of their minds since they'd walked into Sakura's house. Shikamaru sat a little straighter in his chair, as eager as the rest of them for the answer.
Sakura smiled widely, her eyes shinning with victory and relief. "Yes, he is. Sasuke is himself again."
"It's not going to be easy to be here," Lee said, "the villager's don't quickly forget wrongs done to them."
Sakura shrugged. "It is going to be hard, Lee, but it's better than being where he was. At least here, he can be himself."
"What happened to him?" Kumiko asked. "Why did he leave the village in the first place?"
Sakura's smile faded and Shikamaru had to remind himself that Kumiko came to the village after Sasuke had already left and had only heard of him through her association with Lee. Sakura's mouth opened and closed several times, as if she couldn't decide what to say, and Shikamaru decided to buy her a little time. He pushed back from the table and picked up his used dishes.
"Thanks for dinner, Sakura, but I need to leave," he said.
Sakura gave him a grateful smile and got up herself. "If I pack you some of the leftovers, can you take them over to Naruto?" she asked.
Shikamaru frowned. "What makes you think I'm going to Naruto's?" he asked.
"You're his best friend, Shikamaru. After hearing the story from me, it's natural to want to hear his version of it as well," Sakura replied, a teasing tone to her voice.
Shikamaru shrugged as he left his dishes by the sink. "Okay, you got me. I'll take him the food."
Ten minutes later after goodbyes and instructions from Sakura to tell Naruto to share the food with Sasuke, Shikamaru was on his way to Naruto's apartment. It was true that he wanted to ask Naruto about what happened in Oto, but there were other things he needed to talk to the jounin about as well. Being ANBU had is privileges, but the one Shikamaru liked the most was the almost limitless information available to him. He had heard some rumors that he was sure his friend would appreciate.
He and Naruto's relationship had evolved from just schoolmates to friends and often sparring partners. Naruto kicked his butt in flat out combat half of the time, but Naruto had yet to come up with a strategy that Shikamaru couldn't see through. Over the years, they had both learned from each other and had gotten better because of it.
Shikamaru had also learned that Naruto was genuine, easy going, and extremely loyal. That loyalty had surprised Shikamaru the first time it had manifested itself with respect to him. When he'd been a jounin and Naruto had just made chunin, they'd been sent on a rescue mission to the outskirts of Suna. The information they'd been given had been horribly flawed and had resulted in them walking straight into an ambush. Shikamaru had been badly injured and had ordered Naruto to take the little girl they'd rescued to Suna and complete the mission. Naruto had done as ordered, and Shikamaru had expected to bleed to death from the slice to the stomach he'd received from the ninja that had attacked him. Naruto had surprised Shikamaru not only by taking the little girl home, but by coming back for Shikamaru, carrying him all the way to Suna, and insisting that the Kazekage have his best medical ninja treat him. Shikamaru had seen first hand what pull Naruto had in Suna when the Kazekage had immediately ordered his best to take care of Shikamaru.
They'd remained in Suna for the two weeks it took Shikamaru to heal and it had been during those two weeks that the two had really gotten to know each other. Naruto, it turns out, was also a worrier and spent a lot of his time in Shikamaru's room. When they returned to Konoha, Shikamaru had made it a point to talk to Naruto more often and it had become a regular thing to get together once a week to drink and just hang out. Naruto was one of the few people in Konoha, despite his otherwise loud disposition, that Shikamaru could just hang around with without talking or doing anything.
Having reached Naruto's apartment building, Shikamaru stopped walking up the stairs when he had a sudden thought. Sasuke was more than likely staying with Naruto for the time being and Shikamaru didn't want to have to talk to Naruto with Sasuke in the same apartment. Shikamaru's feelings on Sasuke were probably the least volatile out of the whole village, but he couldn't deny the fact that looking at Sasuke brought back memories of the attempted invasion of Konoha. Orochimaru had worn Sasuke's face then, and Shikamaru had a feeling that no matter how much time passed, it would never be enough to get that out of his, or anyone else's, head. He had no doubt that Naruto, Sakura, and Kakashi saw the same thing he did, but they'd invested so much time and effort into bringing Sasuke back that they wouldn't react to those feelings, not consciously, at least.
Sighing, Shikamaru continued up the stairs. If Sasuke was with Naruto, he'd just have to take Naruto to the nearest bar so they could talk in peace. Before he could even knock on the door, a voice from inside beckoned him.
"Come in, it's open."
Shikamaru pushed open the door to find an empty, but well lit and cluttered living room. The coffee table was pushed aside, as if someone had been in a hurry to get somewhere, and Shikamaru had a feeling there was a story behind it.
"I could be an enemy ninja coming to kill you," Shikamaru said as he walked into the small kitchen and set the food on the table. He relaxed his tense shoulders when he only felt Naruto's presence in the apartment.
"An enemy ninja wouldn't bring me Sakura's cooking," Naruto's voice floated in from the bedroom.
Shikamaru shook his head in amusement. When it came to food, Naruto's nose was second to none. He opened the refrigerator and grinned when he saw the full bottle of sake. He took it and two cups to the living room and plopped himself on the floor beside the coffee table and waited for Naruto to come out of his room. It didn't take long for Naruto to walk out in a pair of shorts and no shirt, his hair still wet from the shower he'd just taken.
"You're rather casual. Did you forget I was coming?"
Naruto grinned. "Are you kidding? I was counting on it. Except that you're a little early and I didn't have enough time to shower and change after my work day and dinner with Iruka."
Shikamaru shrugged. "The people at Sakura's were getting annoying," he said.
"Let me guess, your team and Lee's team?" Naruto said.
"How did you know?"
Naruto shrugged. "I saw Lee earlier, but I didn't get a chance to talk to him. I figured he'd go to Sakura first."
"Well, we came here first, but we didn't find you. Then they dragged me to Sakura's. She sent you food and instructed me to tell you to share it with Sasuke. She'd apparently been cooking for you two when we showed up."
Naruto sighed and settled down on the floor beside Shikamaru. He opened the sake bottle and poured them both a drink. Without waiting for Shikamaru, Naruto downed the whole drink in one gulp and then poured himself another.
"Rough day?" Shikamaru asked.
Naruto winced. "Rough week," he said.
The two friends drank in silence, until Shikamaru's curiosity got the better of him.
"So where is he?" he asked.
"Where is who?" Naruto asked, frowning.
"Sasuke."
Naruto shrugged again. "I don't know. I haven't seen him since we went our separate ways after lunch."
Shikamaru poured himself a second drink. "He shouldn't be around wondering the village alone," he said.
"The ANBU are with him," Naruto said. "Besides, Sasuke can take care of himself. I think he's earned the right to a little freedom after spending the last three years as a prisoner in his own mind."
Shikamaru did not comment. Whatever his feelings on the matter, he respected Naruto's desire and commitment to bringing back his friend. Naruto's loyalty to his friends and comrades had saved his life once and Shikamaru wasn't about to criticize it.
"I take it you've heard the story from Sakura?" Naruto asked.
Shikamaru nodded. "She wasn't there, though. She doesn't know what happened in Oto."
Naruto chuckled, but the sound contained no humor. "I don't know half of what happened either. All I remember is Orochimaru."
Naruto broke off. He took his eyes off of Shikamaru and looked down into the sake in his cup instead as if willing the liquid to give him the memories he was missing.
"What happened?" Shikamaru asked. He put down his now empty cup and looked at his friend.
It was a long while before Naruto spoke, and when he did, his voice was eerily calm and detached, as if describing something he'd heard or seen, not something he'd experienced.
"He almost had me," Naruto finally said. "That damn Sharingan has already seen how I fight and he had that going for him. He was just a fraction of a second faster than me and before I knew it he had a Chidori in my chest. It was just like the Valley of the End all over again."
Naruto drained his cup and poured another, his third, with a shaky hand. Shikamaru did the same, letting the burn of the liquid remind him where he was and what he was listening to.
"What the bastard didn't count on was that I needed him to get close enough for me to touch him so that I could perform the seal. Once I had him within my grasp, he didn't stand a chance."
"A Chidori to the chest isn't exactly a small thing," Shikamaru said. "I'm surprised you didn't drop dead from it right then and there."
Naruto chuckled again. "I would have, except the fox is very particular about keeping its host alive. He wouldn't let me die."
Shikamaru's eyebrows shot up in surprise at the same time that he felt Naruto's chakra flare. The sound of glass breaking startled Shikamaru and he looked down to find that Naruto had broken the porcelain cup he'd been holding. Blood dripped from his fingers as he clenched his hand.
"Geez, Naruto," Shikamaru said. He made a move to get up, but Naruto shook his head.
"Don't bother," he said, looking at his bleeding hand. "It'll heal in a few minutes."
Naruto finally looked at Shikamaru, and the look in his eyes showed resignation and a little fear. He held his hand out to Shikamaru.
"Look closely at the cuts; they're already closing."
Shikamaru did as instructed and gasped in surprise as the cuts quickly closed, leaving the skin unmarred. Naruto wiped his hand on his shorts and held it out to Shikamaru once again.
"All better," he said in that dead voice he'd acquired after he'd mentioned the fox.
Something suddenly clicked in Shikamaru and he glanced at his friend, who was staring at him. Naruto's cheeks were flushed from the alcohol, but his eyes were clear and full of dread. A whole lot of things about Naruto suddenly made sense, and he could almost hear the thoughts going on in Naruto's head. He was probably expecting Shikamaru to treat him like most of the villagers still treated him, but the truth was that knowing what he knew didn't change anything for Shikamaru. Now he just had to make sure Naruto understood that.
"The fourth sealed the nine-tailed fox into you."
Naruto didn't confirm or deny the statement, but it wasn't necessary. The fact that Naruto had suddenly closed himself off was ample confirmation. Now he understood why Sakura hadn't mentioned the seals they'd performed or how they'd come about them. They were probably derived from the seal used to trap the fox into Naruto.
Shikamaru downed the remainder of his drink and coughed when a bit of it went the wrong way.
"Okay, so the fox kept you alive long enough to perform the seals, then what?" Shikamaru asked.
Naruto gaped at Shikamaru. "Is that all you're going to say?" he asked.
"What else is there to say?" Shikamaru replied. "It certainly explains a lot of things about you, but it doesn't change my opinion of you."
Naruto's face showed the disbelief he was feeling, and Shikamaru gave his friend a smile. "Come on, Naruto, how long have we been friends? You don't expect something like that to change that, do you?"
Naruto released the breath he'd been holding and let out a small, nervous laugh. "I've been afraid to tell anyone because of the reaction the nine-tailed fox usually garners. I wasn't sure if you'd react the same way."
"Who knows?" Shikamaru said. "Besides the adults, because I can tell that they know by the way they treat you."
"Sakura and Sasuke know, and now you do too." Naruto replied. "It's just a small, but special, number of people."
Shikamaru smirked. "Well, I wish you'd told me sooner, but now that I know, I'm glad I do. So, are you going to tell me what else happened with Orochimaru?"
Naruto stared at Shikamaru for a moment longer, flashed a small grin, and continued his tale.
"Once he was close enough to touch, I performed the first seal, which pushed Orochimaru out of Sasuke's body and sealed it, so that Orochimaru would not be able to enter it again. When that was done, I performed the second seal, which destroyed Orochimaru's soul."
Shikamaru stared, wide-eyed, at his friend. He was speaking so casually of defeating Konoha's deadliest enemy, which was strange enough since Naruto liked to boast. Naruto had come so close to dying, fox or no fox, that it was no wonder Naruto was keeping a low profile on this one. Shikamaru could clearly see the toll the incident had taken on his friend by the shadows that now resided in his blue eyes. Naruto's body may be immune from battle scars, but his mind was not.
"You did it," Shikamaru finally said. "You and Sakura finally brought down Orochimaru." Sasuke paused for a moment as another thought struck him. "Does Sasuke remember any of this?"
"He says that he doesn't," Naruto said.
"You don't believe him?" Shikamaru asked.
Naruto didn't immediately answer. "I don't know, Shikamaru, but I'm not sure I would admit to remembering if I were him."
They lapsed into silence for a moment, and Shikamaru decided that this was as far as he wanted to take this. He suddenly remembered the other reason he'd come to see his friend and decided that this was as good a time as any to bring it up.
"I heard something you might be interested in while on my mission," Shikamaru said. "Kirigakure has been sending out small, covert teams of ninja into Land of Fire to get as close to Konoha as possible."
"Interesting," Naruto said, but he didn't seem surprised by the news. "I've heard from Tsunade that there have been reports that Kirigakure is preparing for something, but it wouldn't make sense for them to invade Land of Fire. Their hidden village is too far away, and it's hard for them to invade covertly when they have an entire ocean between our countries. We'd easily see them."
"That's true, but I also heard that they might have an ally," Shikamaru added.
Naruto frowned. "Well, that would make it easier for them, if someone already in or around Land of Fire was willing to help. They don't have many options."
"Neither Land of Grass or Land of the Waterfall, or their hidden villages, has an official treaty with Land of Fire or Konoha, so who is to say that they haven't been persuaded to aid them."
Naruto nodded. "At least we don't have to worry about Oto anymore," he said. "There is no one left there to form an alliance with anyone."
The conversation was interrupted by a sudden loud clap, like thunder. When the smoke cleared, Jiraiya was standing in front of the door staring at the two of them.
"Don't you know how to knock?" Naruto asked.
"Well pardon me," Jiraiya said with no trace of regret in his voice. He opened the door, stepped outside and knocked.
"Funny, ero-sennin," Naruto muttered. "What do you want?"
"I need your help with Sasuke," Jiraiya finally said.
"What were you doing with Sasuke?" Shikamaru asked, curious despite his better judgment.
Jiraiya walked over to them and sat down. He produced a cup from somewhere on his person and poured himself some sake. He didn't answer Shikamaru's question until he'd drained his cup.
"Tsunade decided that I should be responsible for the little punk," Jiraiya said. He grabbed the sake bottle and made as if to pour himself another drink, but cursed when he realized it was empty. "He's so much trouble already."
"What happened, Jiraiya?" Naruto asked.
Jiraiya just shook his head. "That's up to Sasuke to tell you if he wishes. For now, I need your help."
"Okay, so what do you need my help for," Naruto asked.
Jiraiya looked from Naruto to Shikamaru. "How do you feel about having Sasuke back in the village?" he asked out of the blue.
"He's here," Shikamaru replied. "What else is there to feel?"
Jiraiya continued to look at Shikamaru for a long moment, before nodding. "Good, I may need your help as well."
"Naruto, Sasuke is convinced that he can spend the night at his house."
Naruto frowned. "Isn't that what Tsunade told him to do?"
"Well, yes, but she didn't say he had to start today. The house is a complete mess," Jiraiya said and shuddered, "no one needs to spend the night there until it's been properly cleaned and sanitized."
Naruto's nose scrunched up in distaste. "Yeah, now that I think about it, the last time I went by there it was pretty bad."
"You make it a regular habit of visiting the Uchiha neighborhood?" Shikamaru asked.
"It's close by, it's empty and they have some nice training grounds. I've cleaned them up and use them from time to time," Naruto explained.
"Well then, it's settled," Jiraiya cut in. "You'll go over there and convince Sasuke to spend the night here instead."
"Easier said than done," Naruto muttered.
"Well, good luck to both of you," Jiraiya said as he stood up and headed for the door. "I'll leave the situation in your capable hands."
And with those parting words and another loud clap, he was gone.
Shikamaru stood up, picked up the now empty bottle, his cup, and the shards of the cup Naruto had broken and took them into the kitchen.
"I'm going to head home now," he said when he returned to the living room. "I'll lave Sasuke to you."
Naruto walked him to the door. "Thanks for not freaking out about the fox," he said.
Shikamaru clapped Naruto on the shoulder. "Don't worry about it," he said. "Just make sure that if there is ever anything this big again, you tell me, okay?"
"Okay," Naruto said.
With one last wave, Shikamaru left the apartment and headed home.
&&&&
Naruto grumbled his way to Sasuke's house, taking turns cursing Jiraiya's laziness and Sasuke's stubbornness. When he wasn't thinking ill of two of the most important people in his life, Naruto found himself going over the conversation he'd just had with Shikamaru. He couldn't decide whether to be angry at himself for letting the sake get to him and allow him to make that stupid slip or be relieved that Shikamaru now new his biggest secret and had taken the news in stride. He supposed that being angry would be a waste of time, because there was nothing he could do to undo what happened. Naruto smiled at Shikamaru's reaction to the news. Leave it to his friend to approach everything logically and with a level head.
When Naruto reached Sasuke's house, he was surprised to find that half of the furniture was sitting right outside the house on what had once been the main road through the Uchiha neighborhood. Naruto looked it over and grimaced at all of the dust and mold that had accumulated on it. He was doubtful that anything short of bleach would clean the couch or chairs, while the wooden furniture looked as if something had taken chunks out of it as a snack. It would do more good as firewood than as furniture.
"No wonder Jiraiya was concerned," Naruto muttered as he approached the front door. "Hey Sasuke, are you in here?"
His query was met with silence. He poked his head inside and saw the dim glow of candlelight not too far from where he was standing. He followed the light until he found himself in the empty living room. He looked around and shuddered. This was the first time Naruto had actually been inside the house and he found it cold and unwelcoming. There was an aura of tragedy and unfinished business around it that was so thick he could almost touch it. It was as if the house itself knew that what had taken place inside it was wrong and wished for revenge on the family's behalf.
Naruto walked deeper into the house and poked his head into the kitchen, which was just as empty and cold as the living room. He could see the stairs that led to the other part of the house, but he was not going to venture any further.
"Sasuke?"
Again, there was no response. Naruto cast out his senses and found no trace of Sasuke's chakra in the house, but he did pick up a trace of it somewhere in the Uchiha neighborhood. Naruto gave the cold and uninviting house one last look before making his way outside to find Sasuke.
He followed the trace of Sasuke's chakra to a part of the neighborhood Naruto had never been to before, and as soon as he saw the temple looming in front of him in the moonlight, it dawned on him where Sasuke had gone. Sure enough, Naruto found the Uchiha family graveyard behind the temple. It was a substantial plot of land and Naruto wondered if the place had always been this big or if it had to be expanded when Itachi had killed everyone at once. This place, just like the house, had an oppressive, almost suffocating, atmosphere about it. Naruto shivered slightly as he reached the entrance and debated with himself whether he had any right to go into the cemetery at all. He could wait for Sasuke to leave the cemetery, but Naruto didn't think that he'd be able to stand out here by himself for however long it would take Sasuke to finish his business. No, if he had to be in this place, he was going to do it with company.
Naruto took a deep breath, expelled it, and quickly made his way into the maze of graves in search of his friend. The breeze had started to blow a little harder since he'd entered and Naruto had to remind himself that the shadows he saw were simply the trees, and not restless ghosts crying out for revenge.
He'd been walking for about five minutes when a soft voice carried to him. The words were not yet decipherable, but the soft, almost regretful tone, pulled a string in Naruto's heart that made his eyes water. He slowed his pace a bit and his keen ears continued to hear the voice, until the words were as clear as if he was standing next to the person speaking them.
"I can never atone for what I have done," Sasuke said, his voice as raw and honest as Naruto had ever heard it. "I have disgraced myself, my family, my clan, and betrayed the village that my clan had sworn its allegiance to. For that, there is no forgiveness, nor do I seek any. I simply came to tell you that I will spend the remainder of my life making things right for the people that are still within my reach."
Naruto stopped dead in his tracks and felt warmth in his heart at the simple, but heartfelt, statement. He wondered why the words were so clear, until he realized that he was standing very close to where Sasuke knelt between two graves. Sasuke had set a candle in front of him, and the light danced on his features, making him look both vulnerable and deadly at the same time.
"Mother, Father, my wrongs to you can never be forgiven, and I will wait for my judgment when I join you in the afterlife," Sasuke said.
Sasuke bowed low so that his head was almost touching the ground and remained in that position for a while. Naruto's guilt for intruding on this very personal moment for Sasuke finally got the better of him and he began to slowly back away. Sasuke raised his head and turned to fix Naruto with a calm stare.
"You don't have to leave," Sasuke told Naruto. "Come closer, if you'd like."
Naruto shouldn't have been surprised at having been discovered. After all, Sasuke's senses had always been sharp and had to have gotten sharper during his stay with Orochimaru. Naruto swallowed the lump in his throat, but did as Sasuke suggested. When he got to Sasuke's side, he kneeled next to his friend.
"How long has it been since you've been here?" Naruto asked.
Sasuke didn't immediately reply. Instead, he put his hands together, closed his eyes, and said a small prayer. Naruto did the same, and when he was finished, found Sasuke's eyes on him.
"I haven't been here since they day they were buried," Sasuke replied. "I didn't see a need to come."
"Then why did you come now?" Naruto asked, and then felt bad about having asked.
"It was a regret I had when I thought I was never going to be able to come back here. Now that I'm here, I wanted to properly say goodbye," Sasuke said. He got to his feet and once again bowed to the graves of his parents, and then led the way out of the graveyard.
Naruto waited until they were well away from the graveyard before he spoke.
"When we fought at the Valley of the End, you said that I shouldn't assume that I knew how you felt, because I would never know what it was like to have everyone I loved taken away from me. Do you remember that?" Naruto asked.
Sasuke's eyes took on a faraway look for a moment, and Naruto could see his friend's jaw clench.
"I remember," Sasuke finally said and looked straight ahead.
Naruto paused for a moment to formulate what he wanted to say. This long buried memory had popped into his mind as he'd knelt in front of Sasuke's parent's grave and he now wasn't sure if he should have brought it up at all.
"I was so sure then that I understood you, that we were alike because we were both alone," Naruto finally said.
"And now?" Sasuke asked when Naruto didn't immediately say anything else.
"Now I know that I was wrong," Naruto replied. "I was always alone, from the day I was born, with only the Sandaime to check in on me every now and then. I will never know what it's like to have a mother, a father, aunts, or uncles. My loneliness could never compare to having all of that and then having it taken away from me."
They continued in silence, both lost in their own thoughts, until they reached Sasuke's house.
"I'm sorry for assuming that I could understand your pain, because I didn't, and I will never be able to," Naruto added.
Sasuke turned to Naruto and pierced him with his eyes. "You're fortunate," Sasuke said. "It's better to have always been alone than to have it forced upon you."
Sasuke turned away, and Naruto knew that they had reached the end of the conversation.
"You're not planning on living out here, are you?" Naruto asked, attempting to lighten the mood a little bit.
Sasuke shook his head. "The furniture needed to be aired out. I'll drag it back inside tomorrow."
"You're going to keep using this stuff? It's seen better days."
"In case you haven't noticed, everything I own is in this house. Until I get a job and make some money, I'm going to have to make do," Sasuke said.
The bitterness and anger in Sasuke's voice sounded strange to Naruto, and he couldn't figure out whether those emotions were directed at himself or at Naruto.
"What about your inheritance? Since you're the last Uchiha, shouldn't everything have gone to you?" Naruto asked.
Sasuke gave him a dark look. "I'm a traitor, Naruto. I barely escaped execution, and I'm still waiting for Morino Ibiki to come knocking on my door and demand my 'cooperation' while he questions me. Do you really think they'd be keeping everything safe until I came back?"
Naruto had to clench his teeth in order to smother the immediate, and rather scalding, reply that came to mind. He reminded himself that Sasuke was still adjusting and that anger was the one emotion he always hid behind, while fighting the urge to remind Sasuke that he'd brought all of this upon himself by leaving in the first place.
"The land is still here," Naruto finally said.
"That's because no one wants it," Sasuke replied.
The anger had left his voice and was now replaced by resignation. Sasuke sat on the chair he'd been standing next to and started coughing when he became surrounded by dust.
"Everyone thinks this place is haunted anyway, they wouldn't want it."
Naruto sighed. In a way, Sasuke was no different than he had been when he left. He was still easy to irritate and even easier to anger. In another way, the Sasuke sitting in front of him was so different that he was almost a stranger. Six years was a long time to be apart, and they'd both matured under very different environments. Could their small, fragile bond survive the pressures of getting to know one another once again, or would it be broken for good this time?
"You can't stay here," Naruto said, startling both of them out of their thoughts.
"Hokage's orders," was all Sasuke said.
Naruto frowned. Since when was Sasuke so hell bent on following every rule, ever order? He'd been more than willing to break them when he'd been younger, so why not now? The intensity in Sasuke's face and the rigidity of his body, however, made Naruto realize something. Where Sasuke came from, disobeying meant, if not death, then a very painful punishment. Obedience had been beaten, or worse, into him, and that thought made Naruto want to kill Orochimaru all over again.
"She didn't say that you had to start living here tonight. Come home with me, and I'll come back with you tomorrow and help you straighten this place out so you can move in," Naruto offered.
Sasuke didn't immediately reply, and Naruto could see the battle going on in his mind as he decided whether or not he could do as Naruto proposed. Sasuke had to know that the house was in no condition to be moved into right now, and staying somewhere else until it was made sense. Unless…
"If you don't want to stay with me, you can stay with Sakura," Naruto added as it dawned on him that Sasuke might be hesitating because he didn't want to stay with Naruto. "She's got a house with a couple of extra rooms that will give you some more privacy than my apartment will."
Sasuke looked up at Naruto. "No, it's not that, I just don't…"
Whatever Sasuke was about to say was cut off with a shake of the head. Sasuke closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then released it. When he opened them, Naruto could see that he'd come to a decision.
"I accept your offer, Naruto," Sasuke said formally. "Thank you."
Naruto stared at his friend, wondering if he'd missed something. When had Sasuke ever been polite to him? Even more important than that, hadn't Sasuke been angry just a few minutes ago? Sasuke tended to hold on to his anger for quite a while, so it caught Naruto off guard to suddenly not see it anymore.
"You're welcome," Naruto said. "Come on, let's go."
"Wait, I need to get some clothes," Sasuke said.
"Your old clothes still fit you?" Naruto asked.
"No, but I found several boxes with my father's clothing. I'll wear those until I can purchase something else."
As Sasuke went inside the house to gather what he needed, Naruto realized that the clothes Sasuke wore to the meeting earlier that day had been his father's as well. They'd been loose on Sasuke, which now made sense. It was kind of creepy, considering that Sasuke's father was dead, but he also saw the logic in it. If there was a resource available, Sasuke might as well use it.
When Sasuke returned he was carrying a small bag. He and Naruto both took one more look at the empty house before making their way to Naruto's apartment. When they got to the apartment, Naruto immediately went into the kitchen.
"I heard your stomach growling on the way over here so I'm going to assume that you haven't eaten," Naruto called to Sasuke. "Shikamaru dropped off some food Sakura made for us, so I'm going to heat it up. You know your way around the apartment already, so make yourself at home."
Naruto heard Sasuke enter the bathroom and was glad to have something to do to keep himself occupied. Yesterday, when he'd first been able to talk to Sasuke, things seemed fine. Today, they seemed awkward and uncomfortable, as if neither knew how to act around the other. How time had changed them both.
By the time Sasuke left the bathroom, changed into a pair of sweats that had to be rolled up at the ankles so they wouldn't drag the ground, Naruto had the food laid out at the table.
"This smells delicious," Sasuke said as he took his seat and got some food on his plate. "I didn't know Sakura could cook."
"She's taken a liking to it," Naruto said as he took his own serving.
They ate in silence for a moment, until Sasuke spoke again.
"So, did Sakura ever…" Sasuke trailed off, but the guilt that flittered through his eyes as he said it filled in the blanks nicely for Naruto:
So, did Sakura ever get over me?
The old jealousy that Naruto had thought he'd buried when he was thirteen momentarily surfaced, reminding him that Sakura had chosen Sasuke over Naruto, even after Sasuke defected. He shook it off, reminding himself that he'd come to terms with his feelings for Sakura long ago, and that they were just friends now.
"It was hard for her to accept the fact that you chose revenge over what we had here, and over her, but she got over it."
His words were harsher than he'd intended, but they were true and it was too late to take them back now. Sasuke responded by setting his chopsticks down beside his plate and clasping his hands together.
"I took what I thought was the best course of action at the time. I don't owe you, or anyone else, an explanation."
Naruto put down his own chopsticks and pushed his plate away. "I'm not asking you to give me one," he said. "I'm just telling you that your actions had consequences for us too."
Sasuke looked away from Naruto and his hands clenched and unclenched on the table.
"Do you regret leaving?" Naruto asked. When Sasuke didn't reply, he spoke again. "Was it worth it, Sasuke?"
Sasuke turned back towards Naruto, and if looks could kill, Naruto would have dropped dead on the spot.
"This conversation is finished," Sasuke said.
He took his dishes to the sink and washed them, as Naruto stared at his back. When Sasuke had finished, he turned back to Naruto.
"Where will I be sleeping?" he asked in a voice that clearly said he was not in the mood for further conversation.
Naruto got up from the table, leaving his dishes where they were.
"The couch turns into a bed, so you can sleep there."
Without another word, Naruto went into his bedroom and slammed the door behind him. It was going to be a long night.
&&&&
He walked on what used to be the main road through a bustling hidden village as if in a trance. Every now and then, when he came upon the dead body of a former follower, he would stop, bend down, and confirm that the man or woman was, indeed, dead. A lot of the time he didn't even have to stop, because there wasn't enough of the body left for there to be the possibility of life.
It was marginally better out here than it had been in the main compound, which he'd just left. The close confines of the underground dwelling made the stench of death and decay ten times more noticeable. The fact that there were a lot more dead bodies in there didn't help, either. Everyone had rushed inside to protect their leader when their defenses had been breached, but that had just given the invader a chance to kill everyone at once.
The young man clenched his hands at the thought that one man, one boy, really, was responsible for the carnage he was seeing. He, himself had survived only by sheer luck. The possessed teenager that had invaded the village had encountered him first, but had been in such a hurry to reach the leader of the village that he'd left before making sure that his opponent was really dead. By the time the young man had healed himself enough and was able to descend towards his leader's room, everything had been over, and his leader had been taken.
The gray haired young man stood up from the latest lump of dead flesh he'd been examining and ran his hands down his bloodied and rumpled clothing. He had only one mission now: he had to find his kidnapped leader and bring him back to where he belonged.
The young man grinned as he resumed his walk towards the gates that led out of the village. Fortunately for him, he knew exactly where his leader had been taken.
&&&&
There you have it. Stay tuned for the next installment.