Disclaimer: Naruto and its concepts and characters belong to their rightful owner. I'm just messing around for a little while.
Warnings: Yaoi (male x male), swearing, angst and some violence. Although really, if you've gotten this far into the story and still haven't been turned off it, I don't image you will be by anything in this chapter.
Author's Note: This was quite a tricky chapter to write, which is why it took so long to complete. We're nearing the end of this journey now but there should be around 5 more chapters left? (I say that because I haven't gotten anything actually written out yet.)
Just as a side note, I had someone point out to me that Naruto's dad's name is actually Minato and I feel the need to let you good folks know that when I started this story, no one knew what his dad's name was, so I made it up! (I honestly can't remember where I got the name from, but I liked it so it stuck). You may also be pleased to hear that I'm currently working on the soundtrack to this fic. I'm not sure whether or not I'm just going to post a list of the songs or put it on a file sharing site (I have no idea how to do this – I would appreciate some help though, so if you do know how to do this, please let me know!)
Onto the fic, and I hope you enjoy!
Chapter 28: Broken Vow
Lord you just dropped me here by the side of this road
Out here's too cold and I don't want to walk it alone
I got a bottle of your blood inside me
And an old begger's prayer on the tip of my tongue
Beggar's Pray by Emiliana Torrini
The Uchiha family sure knew how to look after their own, Naruto thought as he gazed around his hotel room in wonder.
Huge floor to ceiling windows adorned the three bedroom apartment he'd been given. The bedroom had double doors leading out into the main room, which was pure luxury. Huge couches and arm chairs, an ornate fireplace and a massive television set dominated the room. The bed was a king size double. The bathroom was three times the size of his room back home.
For a moment, Naruto stared at his surroundings in awe, before he managed to shake himself out of it.
It was very late; Kakashi had shaken him awake half an hour ago and informed him that they had arrived and that he should go upstairs and get some rest. He had sleepily protested, wanting to help settle the horses but Kakashi had been insistent.
With reluctance and sleepiness tugging at his bones, he had done as he was told. His friends were spread out between his own floor and the one below, but he didn't know if they had to share rooms or not. He couldn't imagine Sasuke giving him preferential treatment, especially when in such a large crowd.
"Hey Naruto!" Kiba burst into the room behind him. "Holy shit, your room's even bigger than mine!"
Kiba was practically bouncing with excess energy and excitement, and Naruto couldn't help but smile.
"Wow!" Sakura came in behind Kiba. "The Uchiha's sure know how to live in style."
"That's just what I was thinking," Naruto smiled at her, hefting his bag higher on his shoulder and taking it through to the bedroom.
He didn't mind them barging in as they had; when you lived with a lot of people, compromise was a necessity of life, and he had long since learned not to let it get to him.
Kiba bounded into the bedroom and threw himself onto the bed, flopping onto his back and stretching out his arms with an explosive sigh.
"Man, I hate long journeys! It feels so good to stretch out again."
"Idiot," Sakura marched into the room and kicked at Kiba's foot. "You have your own room. Why don't you go back there instead of messing up Naruto's?"
Kiba rolled onto his stomach and grinned at him. He finished putting his toiletries bag in the bathroom and stowed his luggage in the wardrobe.
"Naruto doesn't mind, right?"
He smiled at Kiba as he shrugged out of his jacket.
"Of course not."
"Well of course he wouldn't," Sakura huffed as she took a seat on the edge of his bed. "He's not the type."
Naruto was slightly uncomfortable with himself being the topic of discussion.
"Where are you guys staying?"
"I'm on the floor below you," Kiba announced, grinning at him.
"And I'm a couple of rooms down" Sakura put in. "So don't go making a lot of noise, Kiba, or you'll regret it."
"Pffft. As if," he scoffed. "I'm not afraid of you, woman."
Sakura slapped him over the head with a scowl. Naruto smiled at their antics and also sat down on the edge of his bed to take off his boots.
"You two should get some rest," he said. "It's a big few days ahead of us."
"You're probably right," Kiba groaned, rolling onto his side. "Man, I'm not looking forward to living in those stuck up princes' pockets for the next few days."
"Sasuke-sama's staying here?" Sakura perked up at that, and Naruto shifted uncomfortably where he sat.
He hated them talked about Sasuke as if they knew him, when all they saw was the face that Sasuke presented to the world. They had no idea what kind of person he was underneath it all, and he disliked people making judgments without knowing a person.
But he couldn't help but love Kiba and Sakura as well. They had both become a part of the support structure which had gotten him through the last couple of years, and he didn't think he would have been able to do that without them.
It was an uncomfortable position to be in, being tugged in both directions as he was, and while he was all too aware that it was his own doing, he could see no way to resolve the issue.
"Yeah, they are..." Kiba was frowning as he looked at Naruto. "Hey Naruto. What's that on your arm?"
Naruto froze. He'd forgotten that he'd only pulled on a short sleeved shirt when he'd dressed in a hurry earlier. He'd forgotten about the horrible scars on his wrists when he'd taken off his jacket.
He hurriedly hid them, but the damage had been done. Both Sakura and Kiba were staring at him, and Naruto couldn't bring himself to look them in the eye.
"Naruto..."Sakura whispered, and he swallowed convulsively as he looked away, out the darkened windows.
"It's nothing to worry about," he murmured, forcing the words out. "It was a long time ago now."
There was a long silence that made him more uncomfortable with each passing second. He opened his mouth to say something to break the horrible, gaping quiet that had come over them when Sakura pushed herself off the bed.
"Well, I don't know about you guys but I'm beat. I'm gonna hit the hay," she said with false cheer as she stretched.
Naruto couldn't help but feel relieved at the easy way she had offered him out and he offered her a shaky smile as thanks. She whacked Kiba once more before waving at them both and heading out the door.
Kiba was quiet behind him and Naruto was starting to wonder how he could get him to leave without offending his friend, but Kiba made it easy for him by rolling into a sitting position.
"Mah...I think Sakura's got the right idea for once," he yawned. "Guess I should hit the sack as well. It's been an interesting day."
"Hey, Kiba..."
"Hn?"
"You don't...I'm not that person anymore," Naruto said hesitantly. "I don't...I mean, I left all of that behind me a long time ago and I hope you don't...think less of me because of it."
He turned where he was sitting to see Kiba sitting on the other side of the bed, his head hanging as he thought about Naruto had said.
After a moment, he turned to look at Naruto over his shoulder, a smile on his face.
"The way I figure it, we've all got things in our past that we're not so proud of. I'm not going to judge you because you've had a hard time. Hell, I went off the rails myself for a little bit. If it wasn't for my mum and my sister putting me back in line I probably would have ended up in a juvenile detention centre or worse. So I'm not one to judge," Kiba told him before getting to his feet. "Get some rest, man. You look like you could use it."
He headed for the door at his usual, lazy pace with his hands shoved deep in his pockets. The warmth spreading in Naruto's chest from those simple words made his smile involuntarily.
"Thanks, Kiba."
"Yeah yeah," Kiba yawned, withdrawing a hand to wave at him.
Naruto listened to the main door of his rooms close before he flopped onto his back to stare at the ceiling.
He had the best friends.
Sora nudged him impatiently and Naruto grinned to himself as he got back to his task of grooming her. It was early evening, and the preparations for the show were almost completed. He was giving her a last thorough grooming for the show the next day.
Sora had never been more beautiful, of that he was sure. Her coat was as glossy as the page of a magazine and felt as fine as silk to touch. Her mane and tail were neatly trimmed, ready for braiding the next day and she had been polished and buffed along with all of her tack.
It had been a long day and he was pleasantly tired. Strangely, he was feeling rather elated and excited about the next day. The nerves hadn't hit him yet, and he wasn't looking forward to when they did, but he couldn't wait to show off just how far Sora had come since he'd first met her.
Not only that, but Sasuke would be arriving soon. He wanted to go and greet him, but he had decided to keep his distance for fear of someone getting suspicious.
He knew it was rather sappy but he had missed Sasuke. Naruto had grown used to seeing him every day, and his days never felt complete until he saw him.
"You're going to be great," he told her as he threw her cotton rug over her back. "Tomorrow we'll show all those people who said you weren't good enough just how great you really are."
She snorted and shook her head as she shifted impatiently under his hands.
"That's the spirit. We'll be fine, you wait and see," he continued, not sure if he was talking to himself or her. "We'll do it together, just you and me."
He finished buckling the straps that held the rug in place before moving to her head. Naruto caressed her soft coat, running his hands over her face. She had come to be the very embodiment of his dreams, and his future. He had great plans for her.
"We should get some rest if we're going to do well tomorrow, eh?"
He gave her one last pat and kissed her forehead before leaving her stall and bolting it closed. She would do fine tomorrow. It was himself he wasn't sure about.
As he passed Taira's stable, he stopped. The large, menacing horse moved over to him when he appeared, and Naruto smiled as he reached up to scratch behind his ears.
"You look after Sasuke, tomorrow, okay?" he whispered. "No funny stuff and no tricks. Keep him safe."
Making his way up to his room, Naruto felt the first stirrings of apprehension. His father had been an excellent showman, and he had competed in many competitions that Naruto had witnessed throughout his childhood. Uzamaki Arashi had carried himself with a confidence and ease that had been the envy of many and Naruto could only hope to live up to his reputation and make him proud.
It wasn't the first time he had felt daunted by his father's reputation. People expected things from him that he just wasn't sure he was capable of delivering.
But tomorrow would be different, he told himself as he rode the elevator up to his floor. Tomorrow he'd have the support of Sasuke and his friends, and he wasn't going to let them down or embarrass them if he could help it.
Tomorrow was another day, and he'd deal with it when it happened. With that thought firmly planted in his mind, he went to his room and went about his nightly ritual of getting ready for bed. It was too early to go to sleep, but there was a book waiting for him and his father's journal to peruse.
Having showered and brushed his teeth, Naruto settled back against the mountain of pillows on the bed and opened his father's battered book. He spent a few minutes looking at the photos that were stuck in randomly throughout the book before flipping idly through the pages.
His father's handwriting had always been hard to read, scrawled untidily across the pages as random and as fleeting as the thoughts that had preoccupied him.
As he read snippets of text, it became apparent that his dad had been as much of a dreamer as Naruto was. One particular entry caught his eye.
June 29th
We're heading towards the next town, where a friend of Jiraiya's has a position open for me. Naruto doesn't seem to mind moving again, even though he made some good friends at his school.
It occurs to me that he is afflicted with the same condition of wandering feet as I am. I can't help but wonder if it would be better to settle down and build a home of our own for once. Maybe it's time to start planning that Horse Rehabilitation program I've been thinking about for awhile now.
Naruto blinked in surprise. His dad had never mentioned anything like that to him. But then, he had been a kid back then, and adults didn't tend to let kids know what they were planning unless it involved them somehow.
He was startled out of his thoughts by the ringing of the phone beside the bed. He frowned at it in confusion for a moment before picking it up.
"Hello?" he answered hesitantly.
"I was beginning to think you'd forgotten me," a familiar voice came over the line.
Naruto smiled to himself.
"I didn't think you wanted me bothering you as soon as you arrived," he replied. "How did you get this number anyway?"
"Please," Sasuke snorted. "This is me you're talking to, remember? They'd give me the password to the safe if I asked for it."
"Right," Naruto was still smiling goofily as he carefully closed his father's book.
"Besides, I wanted to talk to someone who's actually sane for a change. A whole day of listening to Ino's chattering is more than enough for me, and Neji isn't exactly a sparkling conversationalist."
"I'm not sure I'm much better," Naruto told him ruefully.
"Bullshit.," Sasuke scoffed. "What are you doing now?"
"I was just reading in bed."
"You're thinking too much again, aren't you?" Sasuke said shrewdly. There was a rustling sound in the background that sounded like pages turning.
"No," Naruto denied immediately.
"Liar. Come up to my room," Sasuke told him. "If you're going to brood you may as well do it with me."
"I'm not brooding," Naruto protested weakly.
"Well I will be if I don't talk to someone whose head isn't shoved up their ass. I'm three floors up in room 612. Think you can make it or do you want me to come get you?"
"I can make it," Naruto said quickly, not wanting anyone to see Sasuke at his door and assume the worst. "I'll be there in a minute."
"Good."
Sasuke promptly hung up on him, and Naruto couldn't help but smile to himself once more. Sasuke had an odd sort of charm about him that took people completely by surprise sometimes. He could probably charm the pants off just about anyone if he put his mind to it, but most of the time he kept this startling power of his under lock and key.
Still, he couldn't deny his eagerness to see Sasuke so he tucked his dad's journal into the table beside the bed before throwing back the covers. He was clad in soft, grey pajama pants and a loose white tank top but there was a chilly bite to the air so he slipped on his dressing gown and picked up his room key before slipping out into the deserted corridor and closing the door behind himself.
It wasn't hard to find Sasuke's room and he was there within minutes, knocking softly on the door.
Sasuke opened it after a minute and smiled at him, his eyes warm as Naruto stepped inside. The door was barely closed before he was pulled into a hug.
He relaxed instantly and closed his eyes as he slipped his arms around Sasuke's warm body and inhaled his familiar scent.
After a few long minutes Sasuke pulled back and ducked his head to press his mouth to Naruto's. A warm flush started and warmed his entire body within seconds and he parted his lips willingly to taste Sasuke and kissed him back.
The Uchiha drew back and pressed another kiss to his forehead before leading him over to his bed.
If anything Sasuke's rooms were even bigger and more extravagant than his own, though he really shouldn't have been surprised. Uchiha's never did anything by halves.
Sasuke pushed aside the mess of paper and folders scattered across the massive bed and collapsed onto it in a similar fashion to how Kiba had earlier. Naruto paused for a moment before joining him, lying down on the bed beside Sasuke and staring up at the ceiling.
"What's all this?" he asked absently as he shifted a few papers to make room.
"Paperwork my father wanted me to look over," Sasuke muttered, draping an arm over his eyes. "I swear, I need a holiday from my holiday already."
Naruto smiled as he shifted to get comfortable. He wouldn't know what it was like to go to university and study. School had been such a long time ago, and it had never really been of great importance to him, even before his father had died.
He had been too much of a day dreamer to do that well, and after his father had died he had kind of lost any ambition that he might have possessed. He hadn't much of an attention span in the first place, unless it was horses or reading.
Sasuke rolled over suddenly so he was leaning over Naruto resting on his elbows. Naruto tucked an arm behind his head and studied Sasuke's face, taking in his dark eyes, his creamy skin and the strong line of his jaw. Black hair framed his face in an inky cascade, and Naruto did his best to memorize everything about him, down to the calculating and thoughtful look in his dark eyes to the way his skin seemed incandescent in the soft lighting of the room.
"Are you nervous about tomorrow?" Sasuke asked him.
Naruto shook his head. "Oddly enough, I'm not. Well, not yet anyway," he amended. "I'm sure I will be tomorrow."
"You don't need to be," Sasuke told him as he threaded his fingers into Naruto's hair. "You're going to do just fine."
"I guess we'll have to wait and see," Naruto replied, reluctant to raise Sasuke's hopes any higher.
"No," Sasuke's fingers tightened in his hair slightly, his tone stubborn. "You're the best rider I've ever met and you have no need to doubt your skills when you're better than just about everybody else."
"Sasuke, I don't want you to be disappointed when I don't do well," Naruto told him carefully. "I've never ridden in competition before. I have no idea what to expect, or how things are going to turn out..."
"I have faith in you," Sasuke interrupted, his voice softening slightly. "I really wish you didn't doubt yourself so much."
"I'm sorry," Naruto said simply.
"You don't need to be," Sasuke replied, sounding frustrated. "I know you, and I know you're going to do your best because that's what you always do. You could never disappoint me, Naruto."
Naruto smiled at him, though on the inside he had his doubts. He didn't want to look him in the eye when he the day came that he did disappoint him. He hated people expecting things of him, because in the end he always let them down some way or another.
"I know you have doubts," Sasuke continued as if he were reading Naruto's mind. "And one day I'm going to prove to you that there's really no need for your lack of self-confidence."
Naruto didn't know how much more of it he could take. He had never been good at talking about himself, or his feelings. He just seemed to be unable to properly vocalize the depth of his emotions about anything.
It was at times like that that he wished he was the carefree, confident and bold boy he had been in his childhood. But that boy was long gone and he knew he'd never see him again, no matter how much he strived to.
Instead of formulating a response, he leaned up and kissed Sasuke, closing his eyes against the bittersweet pang in his chest.
When Sasuke buried his other hand in Naruto's hair and opened his mouth to him, Naruto got that shivery, heated feeling in the pit of his belly.
The kiss ended slowly, and Sasuke rested his forehead against Naruto's.
"That's a nice distraction technique you've got there," he murmured and Naruto winced.
"Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining. I'm more than willing to let myself be distracted," Sasuke said as he moved his lips down to Naruto's neck and pressed slow kisses to his skin there.
"Why don't you show me how else you can distract me?" Sasuke whispered, smiling against his skin.
Naruto couldn't help the smile that threatened as he pushed Sasuke onto his back and straddled him carefully. He ducked his head and pressed his face to his neck, feeling Sasuke's hands coming to rest on his hips.
Naruto paused to breathe in Sasuke's scent, an alluring mix of sandalwood and something spicy and earthy. He pressed a reverent kiss to the pale skin beneath him and felt the way Sasuke relaxed minutely beneath him.
Slowly he unbuttoned Sasuke's shirt and pushed it out of the way to reveal the broad, muscled expanse of his chest. He moved his mouth down to his collarbone as he ran his hands over the smooth skin, tracing the lines and ridges of muscle and feeling the goose bumps that raised on the flesh following his touch.
It was gratifying to experience the way Sasuke responded to his touch and to know that his own desires were returned.
He ran his fingers over one dusky nipple and felt Sasuke's breath hitch as he trailed feather light kisses down the middle of his chest.
One hand ran up his back to bury itself in Naruto's hair once more as he licked at the nipple slowly.
"How am I doing so far?" he asked, trying to hide his need for reassurance.
"Very well," Sasuke replied, his voice slightly roughened.
Naruto could feel the effect his actions were having pressed against his stomach, and he decided not to tease his lover. He had missed Sasuke, and he had missed being able to touch him.
It had taken a few long weeks for Sasuke to teach him that he was allowed to touch, as much as he wanted and whenever he liked. He had been hesitant at first, but that had slowly faded as he had allowed his fascination and his raw desire to explore Sasuke's body to take over.
They had come a long way in the few short weeks since they had started their physical relationship, he thought to himself as he continued pressing kisses down Sasuke's abdomen and over his stomach.
Early morning sunlight filtering in through the windows woke Naruto from his restless sleep. He stared up at the unfamiliar ceiling for a few minutes before turning his head to look at Sasuke, who was sprawled on his stomach with his head turned away from Naruto.
His skin seemed to glow in the early morning sun, and Naruto reached out a hand just to touch the inky black hair spread across the pillow in silky disarray.
He was so peaceful in sleep and he seemed so much younger. His face was free from its usual masks and the constant frown lines smoothed away to reveal a person that seemed free from burdens and responsibilities. It was his favorite version of Sasuke, and one that made Naruto ache with the love he felt for the man.
If only he could get him to look that way when he was awake, Naruto would die happy. But he wasn't allowed to be the person who made that happen, he knew. It wasn't his privilege to be with Sasuke forever, nor was it his right to claim Sasuke as his own.
Sasuke would always be able to have a freedom that Naruto would never be able to possess, and that was the freedom to be with whomever he chose. He had a bright future ahead of him. Sasuke was more intelligent that he let on, some would even say gifted in more ways than one, and Naruto couldn't help but feel he was tainting Sasuke somehow.
Still, it didn't hurt anyone to dream, he thought as he watched Sasuke sleep for a few minutes longer.
But the peace that encased their room couldn't last forever. The big day had finally arrived, and Naruto needed to leave before anyone was awake to see him leave.
Carefully, he slipped from the bed naked and quietly pulled on his pajamas from the night before. He was reluctant to rouse Sasuke from his dreams. At least he could be free there, if he wasn't in reality, and Naruto was hardly one to begrudge him that small measure of freedom.
He couldn't help but pause at the foot of the bed as he was leaving, watching Sasuke in his slumber. The sheets covered his lower half, but the expanse of his back was bare, one of his arms curled under his pillow and the over outstretched towards where Naruto had been, as if even in sleep he was seeking him.
Hurrying silently to his side, Naruto bent over and pressed a feather soft kiss to Sasuke's hair before leaving just as silently, closing the door as softly as possible behind him.
Thankfully the hallways were quiet as he slipped back to his room and into his bathroom. There was much to do before the competition and he needed to shower. He could smell Sasuke's scent rising from his skin.
Kakashi had booked a small room for a breakfast meeting before the competition, and almost everyone was there when Naruto slipped in. He had dressed in his riding trousers and boots, but had slipped on a shirt with the Uchiha Stables crest on it instead of his compeition shirt and jacket.
Genma yawned and waved at him over coffee and Naruto gave him a smile as he made up a small breakfast of fruit, toast and tea.
He could feel the nerves building in his stomach already, knotting into an unpleasant lump that almost made him feel nauseous. But he knew he needed to eat, because feeling lightheaded from hunger wouldn't make the day any easier.
Kiba was half asleep on the table, and he too was cradling a cup of coffee. Raidou was talking to Genma quietly. Neither Kakashi nor Sakura were there yet, and Naruto took his cup of tea over to the window.
The sun was breaking from behind the clouds, and it was promising to be a beautiful day. At least it wasn't raining.
The door opened abruptly behind him, and he turned to see Sakura standing there looking tense and wild eyed.
"Yo, Sakura," Genma grinned at her, seemingly oblivious to her dangerous mood. "Ready for the big day?"
"No," she snapped. Her eyes fell on Naruto and he froze when he saw the fury in her eyes. "You!"
He straightened with a pounding heart as she marched over to him. Hurriedly he set his tea down on the small table and looked up in time to be met with her fist as it slammed into his face.
Shocked, he stumbled back, raising a hand to his stinging jaw as he looked at her with wide eyed confusion.
"How could you, you asshole!" she shouted, oblivious to the others who had hurried over. Raidou had a restraining hand on her shoulder, and Genma was at Naruto's side in an instant, offering a napkin for his bleeding lip. Kiba was standing close by, watching in helpless silence.
"S-Sakura..." he stuttered, bewildered."What did I do?"
"What did you do?!" she screeched at him, burying one of her hands in his shirt and yanking him forward.
"Hey, hey!" Raidou forced them apart, and put himself between him and Sakura. "What the hell is going on here?"
"I could ask the same question," came Kakashi's lazy drawl from the doorway. "Someone mind explaining what the problem is?"
"Why don't you ask him?" Sakura shouted, gesturing at Naruto violently.
Naruto swallowed, his mouth going dry and his legs feeling funny. His heart was pounding a mile a minute in his chest, and his head was spinning with the suddenness of Sakura's violence towards him. There was only one explanation for her turning on him as she had.
She knew about Sasuke, and she was about to let everyone in on his secret.
"Naruto? Mind telling me what she's so mad about?" Kakashi asked slowly, and suddenly everyone's attention was focused on him.
Naruto suddenly couldn't breathe properly.
"I...I don't..." he whispered.
"He can't tell you because he's a lying coward!" Sakura snapped, glaring at him with such anger and hatred in her eyes that he had a sudden flashback to his days in the group home.
"Why don't you enlighten us then?" Kakashi asked a hint of impatience in his voice.
Sakura wrenched herself free of Raidou's hold.
"He's sleeping with Sasuke!" She shouted, tears tracking down her face.
In the stunned silence that followed, Naruto could feel all of them staring at him, and closed his eyes. The clenched feeling in his chest worsened, threatening to choke him and he couldn't bring himself to look any one of them in the eye.
"Naruto? Is that true?" Kakashi asked slowly.
Naruto opened his eyes to stare wordlessly at Kakashi in stricken fear, unable to speak.
"I saw him go to Sasuke's room last night," Sakura spat, tears still running down her face and vivid spots of color blooming on her cheeks. "And I saw him come back this morning. He lied to me about everything while he was whoring himself out..."
"That's enough of that," Kakashi said sharply, moving closer to Naruto. "I understand you're upset Sakura, but perhaps you should..."
"No!! He was supposed to be my friend. He knew how I felt about him and he stabbed me in the back," she shouted, flying at him once more, her hand raised to hit him again.
A hand caught her wrist in a firm grip, stopping her forward motion abruptly.
"Don't hit him again," Sasuke said coldly.
Naruto jumped, unaware that he was even in the room. He stared at Sasuke miserably, wondering how much worse the situation could possibly get. An uneasy silence settled over the room as all eyes watched Sasuke.
He released Sakura abruptly, and she sagged, seeming to crumble in on herself.
"What happens between me and Naruto is no one else's business but our own," Sasuke told them, his eyes moving to each of them in turn. "I won't have anyone persecuting him because of it either. If you have a problem, you come and see me. No one is to raise a hand to him again."
As he said this last bit, he looked at Sakura, his eyes hard. When he looked at Naruto again, his blank mask was back in place.
"Naruto, we have things we need to go over before the competition. Meet me in the stables in twenty minutes?"
Naruto nodded silently, and watched as Sasuke left the room.
"I guess that settled that then," Kakashi said slowly.
"N-naruto? What Sakura said, is it true?" Kiba asked. "You're sleeping with Sasuke?"
He turned his face away towards the window and nodded silently, holding back his tears. He felt as if one more word would break him and he would shatter into a thousand tiny pieces. He had just been exposed in the most horrible, embarrassing way. He had hurt one of his closest friends and probably driven her away for good. Now he had to face the disgust of the rest of his friends and colleagues, and he wasn't strong enough to face that kind of persecution from them.
"H-how could you do that to me Naruto? After everything, after all these years...?" Sakura was crying now, her anger seeming to have disappeared. "How could you? I l-love him."
I do too, Naruto thought to himself dully. He was not ashamed of his love for Sasuke, or of their relationship, but he wasn't proud of the lies he had told to protect himself. He wasn't proud of the way he had hurt Sakura.
"I'm sorry," he whispered, still fighting back tears.
"You're sorry?!" She cried.
"Okay, I think that's enough," Kakashi broke in once more. "Sakura, go with Raidou please. We don't have time for this now. Kiba, get yourself down to the stables and start getting things ready, okay?"
Raidou wrapped an arm around Sakura's shoulders, and led her out with one last unreadable glance at Naruto. Kiba followed silently, closing the door and leaving Naruto alone with Kakashi and Genma.
He sat down suddenly on the window seat when his legs seemed to give out on him and stared at his hands in shock, unsure what to do.
Kakashi crouched down next to him at the same time as Genma sat down beside him.
"Naruto," Kakashi touched his knee and tried to look him in the eye but he turned his head away and closed his eyes.
"We need to talk about this," Kakashi told him gently.
"I know," he whispered hoarsely.
"Sakura....she's upset. She didn't mean to hurt you," Genma said, carefully lifting his chin and dabbing at his split and bleeding lip.
"I'm not sure if I didn't deserve it," he laughed but it sounded more like a sob.
"What were you thinking, eh?" Kakashi sighed softly. "Getting involved with Sasuke would always end in trouble, you knew that."
Naruto nodded and raised his hand to scrub at the tears that had started to fall.
"Is it just the sex or is it more than that?" Kakashi asked after a moment.
Genma's arm slid around his shoulder, and Naruto was grateful for his warmth at the very least. It distracted him a little from the sick, miserable feeling in his gut. He found he couldn't bring himself to answer that question.
"Do you love him?"
Naruto looked into Kakashi's eyes and stared at him, still unable to answer his questions. He thought it was all written on his face though; he had been told more than once that he was like an open book with his emotions sometimes.
Kakashi sighed. "I thought so."
He didn't say anything else for a few minutes, but eventually, he reached up and laid his hand on Naruto's head before pressing a kiss to his hair.
"We really don't have time for this now, but we do need to talk about this later, okay?" Kakashi said as he stood up. "Let try and get today over with before we delve into this particular can of worms. Just...try and stay away from Sakura. I need to go and check on her. I'll see you down at the stables okay?"
Naruto nodded again, and watched as Kakashi left the room, leaving him alone with Genma.
"Quite the mess we find ourselves in, eh kitten?" Genma murmured.
"Are you disgusted with me, Genma?" Naruto asked weakly.
His tears had dried up, but the hollow, painful ache in his chest had only intensified.
"Of course not," Genma said sharply. "Why would you think that?"
Naruto shrugged helplessly, unable to look up. He was twisting the napkin around and around his fingers absently. His mouth was throbbing, and no doubt would bruise. He had always known that Sakura could pack a punch, but he had never been on the receiving end.
"I really screwed up this time, didn't I?" he whispered.
"Maybe just a little," Genma said, hugging him a little tighter. "But we all do at some point. That's life, kitten."
"Yeah well, I can never seem to make things work the way they're supposed to."
Genma sighed and rested his forehead against the top of Naruto's head.
"We're all entitled to making mistakes."
"So you think me and Sasuke are a mistake?" Naruto asked, burrowing a little into Genma's arms.
"I think that no one can help who they're attracted to, Naruto," Genma answered slowly. "We can't help who we love either. I don't think that you and Sasuke is a mistake, but there are many who will."
"I know."
"Still, we'll deal with that when the time comes, okay? Right now we have a show to get ready for," Genma released him and sat back, smiling at him. "So chin up Kitten. We'll figure something out."
Naruto managed a shaky smile at him.
"I'll meet you out there okay?"
Genma stood up, his eyes troubled as he looked at Naruto. "Are you sure?"
"Yeah. I just...I just need a minute to myself." Naruto managed another smile for him, though he could feel his mouth trembling.
Genma laid a hand on his head before nodding.
"Okay. I'll see you out there in five."
Naruto nodded and waiting until Genma had closed the door behind himself before dropping his head into his hands.
TBC