Tsunade walked up the short path to the doorway. It had been a long day, and it was only half over. Naruto hadn't been at school and it worried her, but she knew if he weren't there, he'd be safe at home. Or as safe as he could be with his mother still recovering from the trauma, even now.

She didn't like the woman all that much anymore. They had been friends long before she, Yumi, had married Arashi. Tsunade knew how much her friend had wanted a little girl, but thought replacing Naruto with a female version of himself was a bit extreme, even if it helped her cope with the loss. She wanted Naruto to be what he wanted to be, and not have to play whatever illusion his mother wanted him to play. She would have talked about it to Yumi already, but she could tell the woman was still fragile. And the frangibility of the woman was also what drew the line of sanity around her mind. She was sure she didn't want to find out what that woman would do to Naruto now, and ever since she learned that Snake was back…

She clenched her fists and frowned as she stopped in front of the door. The moment she learned this information, one question had been running through her mind. How the hell is he still alive?

Yumi would have to know about the killer's return, of course. It frightened her a little to know she couldn't predict Yumi's reaction to the news. Anxiously she knocked on the door, knowing that the woman didn't leave the house much anyway. She waited, tapping her foot until the door opened slightly, revealing a fraction of Yumi's face and body. She smiled at blonde, but didn't open it any further.

"Hello Tsunade-chan. What brings you here? I thought you had work today," she said.

"School's over for the day. It's already after 3:00. Is Naruto-kun here?" Tsunade asked, the boy's real name slipping off her tongue all too easily. Yumi stiffened and her eyes became wide.

"Who?" she breathed.

"Ah, sorry. I meant Naruko-chan, Yumi-san. Is she here?" Tsunade asked. "I wanted to spend some time with her today."

"No…she can't come out today. She's sick. I'm sorry Tsunade-chan," Yumi replied. "Maybe another time."

They stared at each other for a while. The blonde knew she wouldn't get anything else from the woman. Naruto had seemed fine yesterday, but maybe some built up stress had given him a cold over night…

"…Alright. I hope she gets better soon," she said. "Bye Yumi-san."

"Thank you for visiting. Good bye for now," the woman replied, closing the door. It never once opened more than that crack the entire conversation. Tsunade walked back to her car with a troubled mind. Hopefully Naruto was really just sick like Yumi had said.

Deidara sighed as he stood before the door of his the Uchiha household. He'd come all this way, determined to make up with the man, but couldn't find the courage to knock. The moment he'd been able to see the house his confidence drained out of him until nearly none was left. It took almost all he had not to just run away for another day. He had to do this. He needed to.

The blonde took in a quivering breath to calm himself before finally raising his hand to knock on the door. Unexpectedly, when he expected to hear the sharp rapping of wood and feel the hard surface he was tapping with his knuckles, the impact of his fist was on the softer material of a strong chest covered in clothing. He gasped and blue eyes met cool crimson. They held each other's gaze and Deidara bit his lip hard, trying his best not to fling himself upon the man and cry out his apologies.

"I…" Itachi said, stopping himself abruptly. He searched the blonde's face before looking away and stepping to the side. "Make yourself comfortable. I have something I need to finish so do not bother me."

"Ah…yeah. Thanks," Deidara replied nervously. He slipped in past the taller man and removed his shoes. Itachi moved into the study and Deidara followed with his eyes never leaving the man, only because he was afraid that if he looked away, his last nerve to do this would be lost. He hadn't turned him out, so maybe he wasn't too angry.

The raven took his seat at the desk again, returning immediately to the files that lay open upon it. He looked at them intently, though his mind would not focus. He had wanted to take a break from his work, but this seemed as good an excuse as any to be near the blonde again if he was willing to stay.

Deidara fidgeted in the armchair across the room as his eyes glanced around the room. He still hadn't exactly gotten a tour of the home, and so took the moment of awkward silence to take in his surroundings. The small room looked as though it had been turned into a library with bookcases covering almost all-available wall space. In the middle of the wall behind Itachi was a large portrait of the Uchiha family. In it, Itachi was still young and Sasuke was younger still. Itachi smiled more easily then and would tease his brother as much as possible in affectionate gestures. Sasuke was forcing a smile in it. Deidara could tell the younger boy was suppressing a glare directed at Itachi for the hand that had ruffled his hair the second before the portrait was taken. He smiled at the image causing the older male to glance at him.

"What's that for?" he asked gruffly, trying his best to sound uncaring and distant. This knocked the blonde from his thoughts and brought his vision to Itachi. He gave an apologetic, melancholic smile and his gaze softened as their eyes met once again.

"I was just thinking about before," Deidara said, turning back to the portrait. "You used to smile so much easier then."

"…" Another silence passed between them, though not as long this time.

"I'm…sorry," Deidara started hesitantly. He looked down at his lap, and didn't notice the raven stand and walk to him. "I shouldn't have yelled at you. I shouldn't have even said anything about it. Damn it…I'm so stupid…"

The blonde gasped as Itachi pulled him up into an embrace. Tears that had been held back now spilled over and flowed freely down his cheeks. He clutched the fabric of the man's shirt and buried his face into his shoulder, chanting his apologies over and over. Itachi squeezed the blonde tighter, rubbing his back soothingly and whispered forgiveness softly in his ear. He saw the dark circles under the blonde's eyes and knew how much this troubled him. He deserved nothing less than forgiveness, no matter if he had done anything wrong or not. The sobbing slowed gradually until he only hiccupped slightly. Itachi rested his forehead against Deidara's, their lips only centimeters from each other's.

"You are forgiven," he said slowly. He closed the small distance between them and captured Deidara's lips before he could rant even more unnecessary apologies. It was soft and sweet, and Itachi had pulled away before Deidara knew it. "There is no reason you shouldn't be. I've been under a lot of stress lately, so you'll have to excuse me for snapping so rudely."

He wiped the tears from the blonde's face. Deidara knew that was the closest he'd get Itachi to saying he was sorry, and reveled in the caring words.

"I know. I've been such a burden by giving you more stress than you need. I'm really sorry, un," he said, slipping his childish phrase in to show his sincerity. "Just don't push me away anymore. It hurts to be away from you, when you won't tell me things."

"I won't. I promise I'd rather have you by my side than away from me," Itachi replied. Deidara felt so relieved now that he was near Itachi again. Hearing this made him smile.

"Good. Then can I ask you something?" he said.

"Other than the question you asked just now, yes you may," Itachi replied with a playful smirk.

"Can we do it?" asked Deidara. Itachi raised an eyebrow. Blunt as ever I see.

"If you want. I think I can spare the time," he answered. Deidara giggled, seeming as though he hadn't just cried his eyes out earlier. Itachi walked past him and started to lead the way to the bedroom. Before he could exit the study, Deidara had him in another hug from behind.

"Aishiteru 'Tachi-kun," he whispered into the man's back. Itachi intertwined his fingers with his lover's and continued to lead him to the bedroom.

"Aishiteru," he replied over his shoulder. The blonde smiled, a blush dancing across his cheeks. Things were better now. They'd finally made up, and he was with Itachi again. He hoped they wouldn't fight again, but every couple fights occasionally. For now he wouldn't think of the future. He was happy with the present, and he would try to keep things this way as long as he could.

Sasuke was early, as usual, to avoid the rabid fangirls that normally flocked to him. He never understood them, and didn't really want to take the time to. So he just avoided them as much as possible. The classroom eventually filled with students, the bell rang, and class began. Everything seemed right, but Sasuke knew something was missing. It'd been too quiet for the past week, and he hadn't taken much thought about it until today. He saw Umino-sensei's concerned looks being thrown at the seat near him, and then he knew. It was because Naruko wasn't there.

Thinking back, he hadn't seen the annoying girl since last Thursday maybe. But it's not like it was something that important. Maybe the dobe had finally dropped out, or been suspended, or something of the like. She didn't seem like she was doing very well in her classes anyway, and she always looked ready for a fight. He didn't know, but then again, why should he care?

Periods passed, and lunch came. He sat in his usual spot at a table in the far corner. He nodded to the red haired boy who was already there, as always, reading a book and eating his own lunch.

"Subaku," he said.

"Uchiha," the other responded, nodding back. The two had come to tolerate each other, accepting the other's presence and silence. There was a third one, Neji, who sat with them at times, but spent most of his time working with the student council. For the most part they only acknowledged each other's presence and then went on their merry way. They didn't say 'hello' to each other outside of the cafeteria, nor did they ever initiate conversations. Or at least they didn't with Sasuke. Neji and Gaara would talk sometimes, but never for too long. And it was the same today as any other day. Or so Sasuke thought.

He ate his lunch as usual, packed and made by Deidara, seeing as he was staying over enough now to do so. He was glad Itachi was with the happy blonde again, but that didn't mean he was paying any more attention to his little brother. He was nearly done when he noticed Gaara looking at him. The boy had stopped eating and had a contemplative look on his face.

"Uchiha," he spoke suddenly.

"Yes?"

"Uzumaki is in your class correct?" he asked. Sasuke nodded, not seeing where this was going. He didn't know the annoying dobe talked to the quiet emo kid he sat with. "Has she not come back yet?"

"I haven't seen her for a while. I don't know what happened," Sasuke replied. Gaara nodded and snapped his book shut before standing.

"Excuse me, I have business," he said, walking away to leave the raven by himself. A few girls looked over hopefully at whether or not they could take the red head's place. He glared at them and they backed off a little. None approached, but he knew they wanted to. He turned back to his lunch with little interest in finishing the remains. Why was everyone so concerned about that annoying girl?

"Hn. Whatever."

"Hey Hinata-chan," Sakura said as she walked through the doors leading to the roof. Said girl was leaning against the railing, greeting her with a smile.

"Konichiwa S-Sakura-chan," she said. She was learning to control her stuttering more around the girl as she became more comfortable being near the pinkette. Sakura sat beside her, stretching her arms above her head and letting out a large yawn.

"Man, that project took a lot out of me. Plus all the studying I've been doing for all my other classes," she commented. "I wish there were more hours in a day. Maybe then I could get more work done…"

"D-don't push yourself too hard Sakura-chan. You'll catch a cold if you put too much stress on yourself," Hinata said. Sakura smiled.

"True," she said, and then frowned. "By the way, where do you suppose Naruko-chan is? I haven't seen her for maybe a week or so now."

"I don't know. M-maybe she has the flu," replied the other girl.

"That's what I was thinking…but I've tried calling her cell, and she won't pick up. Same with her house phone," Sakura said. "Her mom picked up and said Naruko-chan wasn't able to answer the phone."

"T-then she probably is sick, Sakura-chan," Hinata told her.

"I don't know…" Sakura said. She frowned. "Maybe she's out with that Ino-pig! That would explain why she isn't here! Because Ino-pig told her not to talk to me, or something like that! You know how gullible Naruko-chan can be."

"But y-you said you all have gym t-together, right? Wouldn't you have seen her there?" Hinata asked.

"Ah…right. You're right, I would have seen her there."

"B-besides," Hinata continued, "I don't think N-Naruko-chan is the type of person to abandon one of her friends in favor of another j-just because one says she should." Sakura let her head fall back against the railing, looking up at the blue sky above.

"I guess you're right. I'm still worried about her though," she said. "I guess I'll try calling her again today after school." She glanced at Hinata and gave her a small smile, which the blue-haired girl returned.

"Let's eat, okay?" Sakura said, breaking the tension. Hinata nodded in agreement.

His mom was out, and he'd been kicking at the door for a while now. The damn thing just wouldn't open! He couldn't even pick the lock either. He didn't quite know how long he'd been there since he was sleeping at odd intervals now, but he was guessing at least a week. Sure he had a bathroom connected to his room, and his mom sent him food when he wasn't awake or he was in the bathroom, but he felt so claustrophobic now. The situation reminded him so much of being held hostage by Snake now, that he was ready to have his own panic attacks.

When he was tied to that chair in Snake's hiding place, the room had no windows. Most of the time he was kept in the dark anyway. At least his room had a window, and he could turn the lights on at anytime. That helped him stay calmer than he would have been without them.

Even so, he needed to get out of there. He couldn't stand staying in here much longer. So far he hadn't gotten to talk to his mom very much, so he never had a chance to ask her to let him out. He didn't even have anything near his window to climb out on! Someone had to unlock his door for him to get out. His room didn't have a phone, and his cell phone was in the living room unfortunately, so he wasn't able to call anyone to help him out. Naruto turned around and slid to the ground with his back against the door. He sighed heavily and looked around his room lethargically. What could he do if he couldn't do anything?

A faint 'thump' came from inside the house and made Naruto freeze. His mom shouldn't be home yet, so…who could be in the house? Holding his breath, he pressed his ear against the door in hopes of hearing better. Footsteps came up the stairs and he could hear the coming closer and closer to his door. This was seriously freaking him out now. His mom should have locked the door when she left…

"Naruto."

The blonde's eyes widened, recognizing the voice immediately. "Tsunade-obaasan!" he said, surprised. "Wha…How'd you get in?"

"I know where your extra keys are, brat," the woman replied. "Now just wait a second and I'll have the door unlocked."

Naruto moved away from the door, and soon enough it opened like she said. Naruto hugged her tightly, and she hugged him back. "Come on. Get dressed and we'll go out. You seem like you need some fresh air."

Naruto grinned and nodded. He pulled on a pair of jeans, a bra (out of sheer habit), a light blue blouse, and a pair of sneakers. He looked just like the girl he usually did, though he pulled his hair into a single ponytail today. Tsunade gave a small smile and Naruto shrugged, returning the smile. They were going out, and he was used to dressing this way when he went out.

A/N: Sorry this took a lot longer than before. A bit of writer's block plus schoolwork kept me from writing this. I don't really have much to say except that I really hope everyone likes this. I don't, but then again, I never really do…I can say that it's getting more fun to write though. More stuffs going to start happening, and I'm going to love writing it. Anyway, please review. Flames are accepted and once again used as a way to burn homework…or make s'mores.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto...still not worthy enough...