Disclaimer: Naruto and all its characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

Summary: He was so pretty. Naruto had never ever seen someone that pretty before. But was it possible for him to fall in love with a human?

Or: Naruto is a merman who got separated from his pack. He finds Sasuke sitting on a beach and falls in love.

Warnings: Narusasu/Sasunaru, boy's love, fantasy tropes, merpeople.

Notes: Is someone still reading this? Does someone still remember this story? Oops.

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Conch shell

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Part 3

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The kiss was dizzying, even more intoxicating than Naruto had imagined. It didn't last long, though. A couple of seconds after joining their lips, a hand rested on his shoulder and gently pushed him away.

The blond opened his eyes, but Sasuke was facing away from him, sighing deeply.

"I see…" he muttered in a low voice, resting his arms on his knees. "You're being careless, Naruto."

"Wha-"

"What are you expecting to gain from this?" the raven continued, this time turning his face to bore his eyes into Naruto's. "Are you truly stupid enough to not understand that what you're seeking for is pointless? Can't you see you don't belong here? You'll soon have to go, even if you don't want to, so why are you doing this?"

Naruto kept quiet, his tail swishing slightly, barely touching the warm sand under it. His heart squeezed in his chest, and he felt this… sadness, rushing over him like waves pushed by the sea. He could see the loneliness in Sasuke's eyes, and the burning annoyance, probably directed at him, along with something else, something Naruto couldn't quite identify.

It was like Sasuke was hiding something. Or, well, not really hiding it, since he technically didn't owe Naruto anything and they barely knew each other. But there was this thing… Something that told him Sasuke really needed someone to rely on, and Naruto found out he wanted to be that someone. Or at least try to. Sasuke was all alone here, just like Naruto was. And the blond had this feeling that Sasuke was way more lonely than he wanted to let on.

"Don't you wanna be my friend?" Naruto asked instead.

The human merely raised an eyebrow. "Friend?" he repeated ironically. "I don't think friends go around kissing each other."

Naruto promptly reddened and started to cough, like something had stuck in his throat.

"Fine! I really like you," the merman confessed straightforwardly. "And I really do think of you as a friend, too. Why is that so bad? I want to get to know you better, and I think you're really beautiful, and maybe if we spend more time together we won't be as lonely anymore."

Sasuke just stared at him and opened his mouth like he wanted to retaliate, but no words came out of his lips. The determination of those blue eyes seemed to take him aback. That creature in front of him was confident in everything he was saying, no trace of doubt tinting his voice or face. And if Sasuke were just a tiny bit more naive, if the world hadn't been so cruel to him before, then he might have let himself believe in his words and be embraced by this sweet fantasy.

But he knew the truth behind it all, and all he felt was bitterness and disappointment.

"What you're feeling isn't real," he told the blond, his voice flat and cold, distant. "Go home, to your family, where you belong."

"Why are you telling me this?" Naruto asked in a low voice, clearly hurt.

"Because that's what's best for…"

"No! Why are you saying my feelings aren't real? I get it if you don't like me that way, or if you really don't wanna be friends with me, but why tell me that? Don't belittle my feelings by saying they're not real!"

"But they aren't!" Sasuke bursted out and stood on his feet, clearly fed up with the situation. Naruto tried to imitate him, straightening his back and using his arms as support as much as he could. His eyes were fire, one as strong and stubborn as the one reflected in Sasuke's eyes. "Let me guess. You saw me here on this beach, thought I was 'beautiful', as you say, and suddenly you fell in love with me. That's what happened, right?" he said, agitated, and Naruto was left flabbergasted. Because that was really what had happened, wasn't it? He had seen Sasuke that day and he'd been instantly enamored with him. But how did Sasuke know? How could he have guessed what happened just like that?

"And now because you think you are actually in love with me, you don't want to leave, and are condemning yourself to a miserable and lonely life," Sasuke finished, sounding far too tired of this and kind of resigned.

"I don't… I don't understand," Naruto said, confused. "How do you…? Hey!" he suddenly yelled when Sasuke turned around on his feet and started walking away from him. "Hey! Where the heck are you going?!"

"Go away and back to where you belong!" was the last thing Sasuke said before disappearing from his sight.

Naruto's tail slapped against the sand violently, showing just how frustrated he felt. He yelled at Sasuke to come back, and even tried to crawl on the sand a little bit, but it was useless. He was gone, leaving him with a broken heart and tons of questions.

He stayed there, in the middle of the beach, not making a move to return to the water until his scales began to itch. So he crawled back to the ocean, wondering what was going on in Sasuke's mind, and if they were ever going to see each other again.

Sasuke didn't come back the next day, but that much was expected. Surprisingly, however, he did come back to the beach about four days later, and sat down closer to the shore than he had ever been before.

Naruto was secretly watching him from behind a rock, not too close to the burning sand, hoping Sasuke wouldn't spot him from his hiding place.

But, even if he couldn't see him, Sasuke knew he was there, and it wasn't too long until the human got bored of being stared at and called him out. "Hey, just come out already."

Naruto's tail splashed soundly against the surface of the water when he dipped down and resurfaced in front of the spot Sasuke was sitting on. The merman looked at him with slightly narrowed eyes, his hair wet and plastered to his forehead.

"You came back," he said, his tone between wary and excited. He wasn't mad at Sasuke or anything. Well, maybe a little bit, but not knowing what turmoiled inside Sasuke's head left Naruto feeling like he really couldn't know what to expect from him.

"Wasn't really planning to," Sasuke replied.

"So why did you?"

The human sighed, stretching his legs on the sand, not minding the small particles prickling at his skin and stucking on his clothes.

"You called me a bastard."

Naruto blinked, bemused. Yeah, he was completely lost, wasn't he? Did he miss some piece of this conversion somehow?

Sasuke saw his confounded face and rolled his eyes. "A couple of days after we met, you called me a bastard."

"Uh, well, yeah. What of it?" Naruto was as lost as before. Clearly him calling Sasuke a bastard had some kind of meaning to the human, one Naruto couldn't figure out. Maybe he was offended by it? But that didn't make sense, he would have reacted the instant he called him that the first time.

"You're not supposed to call me that." Sasuke mumbled, more to himself than to Naruto.

"What'cha mean? I'll call you however I want!"

"No, I mean… Why did you call me that?"

"Cuz you are?"

"Care to elaborate?"

Naruto crossed his arms over his chest and started swimming around on his back, pretending to think his answer over.

"Well, for starters, you let me believe you couldn't understand me, and then basically ordered me to leave, and made assumptions about my feelings, and…"

"Okay, I get it. But you still like me anyway?"

"I mean… yeah, even if you're kind of a jerk."

Sasuke looked at him almost too intensely, which made Naruto stop in his movements and squirm his tail uncomfortably. The human was looking at him like he was the answer to many secret questions, questions he himself couldn't understand. He looked at him like Naruto was a mystery, which made no sense to the blond. The only thing Sasuke could have been amazed by was him being a merman, but if that didn't happen when they met, it just made zero sense for it to happen now.

When Sasuke didn't say anything else, Naruto grew a little worried and swam closer to the shore, starting to crawl when the water turned too shallow.

"Hey, you okay?"

Sasuke blinked then, watching as Naruto pulled himself along, reducing the distance between them. His beautiful, bright tail was being gently bathed by the waves, like they were caressing it, and there was some seaweed tangled in his hair, which the blond hadn't seemed to notice.

"I'm fine," the raven finally said, eyes dropping to the ground before breathing out soundly.

Closing the remaining space between them, Naruto sat in front of Sasuke, half of his body now covered in dry sand. His orange scales shone golden in the sunlight, reminding Sasuke of something he didn't dare say aloud.

"Y'know, if you need to talk, I'm a good listener," Naruto tried to get him to speak.

"You just want some answers," Sasuke replied dryly.

"Well, yeah, answers would be good," the blond shrugged. "But I still meant what I said."

"That you'll listen?"

"Yeah," Naruto smiled, the tip of a fang barely peeking from his lips, reminding Sasuke of his true nature, of their differences.

And maybe it was that easy. Maybe Naruto could be the friend Sasuke needed, show him that he didn't have to be all alone. Maybe Naruto could be the one to understand him, as he was stubbornly trying to. Maybe… there was a chance for him, after all.

And if Naruto decided he couldn't handle his truth, then that would make him go away like Sasuke had been urging him to do. He would find his family sooner or later and things would be as they were once again. There was nothing to lose, really. Except for the last bit of hope blooming in his chest.

"It's a long story," Sasuke muttered in a low voice, looking at him directly in the eye.

"I've got time."

Sasuke watched how the colors of the sunset slowly painted Naruto's hair and scales a warm red-purplish color. The light made the scenery look like it was an oil painting, so detailed, so delicate and beautiful. Naruto's light irises were focused on him, waiting patiently for Sasuke to start talking.

So he did.

"You once told me I didn't seem like a typical human to you, remember?"

"Hmmm, I do, yeah," Naruto answered curiously, drawing his tail to his chest to hug it and rest his chin on it, the fin fluttering almost unnoticeable.

"That's because I'm not human. Or, at least, I wasn't born like one."

Naruto's eyes grew wide, flabbergasted. Granted, he had thought Sasuke was kind of a little weird before, but never had he pondered the idea that he was no human at all. It made no sense to him, because you can't just change species, and Sasuke looked pretty human to him. Not that he had seen many humans in his life, but still!

"You and I being able to speak the same language is not a coincidence. I was born in the depths of the ocean, alongside the rest of my family."

"So you're a merman too? Or, well, you used to be?" Naruto leaned forwards, interested and amazed at the same time.

"Not really, no. I guess we are kind of similar, but I'm not the same as you, Naruto," dark eyes flicked to the sea for a second, admiring the tiny sparkles of light reflected on it. "Merpeople and my kind never really got along well, actually."

"Wait, really? Why?"

Sasuke shrugged, but didn't answer his question. He leaned backwards, supporting his weight on his arms and drifting his sight to the sky.

"Some say we're cursed, and I'm inclined to believe so myself. Because that's the only reasonable explanation for what happened to my family," Sasuke said, his voice flat and monotone. His posture was tense, though, proof that he actually felt affected by his own words.

"Sasuke? What happened?" Naruto reached forwards, his fingers brushing a pale heel. Sasuke allowed him the touch.

"They were killed by some humans who claimed we were demons. My brother and I managed to escape, but he was seriously hurt, and died a couple of days later."

"Oh, shit. Sasuke, I'm so sorry," was all Naruto could say. There weren't any words that seemed appropriate for the situation. He was at a loss of words.

Sasuke's family had all been murdered? That was so horrible! And by humans, oh god. But then, shouldn't Sasuke hate humans? Why was he living as one of them?

"There was this old creep, Orochimaru." Sasuke startled him when he kept talking. "He found me after I had lost my family and took me in, but his intentions weren't as kind as they seemed. He wanted to possess my body, his words. Use the special abilities of my species for his own wicked plans. When I refused, he cursed me. Gave me these two legs and forced me to come here, to live amongst the same humans responsible for my family's death. He said some stupid shit about the only way to regain my old body was giving in to his wishes, so here I am," the raven sighed, and the sound was tired and resigned.

Naruto was silent for a little bit, waiting to see if Sasuke was going to say something else, but when he didn't, he decided to ask: "And what happened to that Orochimaru guy at the end? Did he leave you alone after all?"

"It's been a few years since I last heard from him. I was thirteen when that happened. Living as a human isn't that bad, though. It isn't like I have someone to get back to, so I didn't mind staying. I haven't got into the water again, though. I know if I do, he'll find me, so I always stay away from the tide."

"That's…" Naruto breathed in, filling his lungs with the unfamiliar feeling of air. "I don't even know what to say, to be honest."

"Hn… It's fine."

"Wha- No! It's not fine! Sasuke, fuck, that's so awful. What happened to you- shit! It's just- It's just…"

"The day we met, I came here earlier to see where all those things that were appearing on the beach came from," Sasuke interrupted him, this time finding Naruto's gaze. His blue eyes, now darker thanks to the limited light, were full of despair, like he was hurting the same way Sasuke had. "I wasn't expecting to find you here, leaving more stuff. I told you to leave because human lands aren't safe for people like us. Humans are afraid of what they don't know, and that fear is dangerous. Nobody usually comes to this beach, but you can never be sure when someone will show up. You might not have the faculties my kind has, but the longer you stay, the more dangerous it becomes for you. Did you know humans believe mermaid flesh can cure all illnesses and grant immortality?"

"Wait, really?!" Naruto asked, horrified.

Sasuke nodded in response.

"That's insane, though. So they think eating us will make them immortal? We don't even live that long!"

"But they don't know that. You see why you should leave and never come back?"

"You sure you're not just trying to scare me?"

"Would that make you leave?"

"Probably not."

To Naruto's surprise, Sasuke chuckled. It was a low, barely audible sound, but it had happened nonetheless. It made him smile, and knowing Sasuke was trying to open up to him made him giddy, even though the conversation they'd just had was kind of heavy.

Still, even though he had gotten some answers, there were still many unclear things. Like, if Sasuke wasn't human, or well, not really, and he wasn't a merman either, then what kind of creature was him? Would it be okay for Naruto to ask?

Night had fallen upon them, and now the only thing illuminating this quiet beach was the moon, a pretty silver color bathing them both. Naruto's eyes were fixated on Sasuke, mesmerized at how the moonshine made him look kind of ethereal, like he came from out of this world. So captivated he was, that he forgot he still had questions, and only remembered about them when Sasuke stood up, shaking the sand off his shorts.

"It's late, I'm heading back," he said nonchalantly. "Since you're too much of an idiot, I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"Hey, I take offense to that!" the merman complained, tail splashing some water on the rising tide.

Sasuke sneered at him before turning around and starting walking. Naruto yelled at him some more, but the raven merely waved his hand goodbye and soon his silhouette was no longer spotable.

Naruto stayed and watched the waves reach him, wetting his lower body, rising until, some time later, the water covered everything under his waist. He didn't return to the ocean yet, but was content stealing glances at the moon, wondering if, like Sasuke, it also kept secrets.

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A/N: Hi, people!

So… Updating this took me a while, huh? Hehe. My apologies. But at least now you know this is certainly not abandoned.

I tried my best with this chapter, even if I feel like the descriptions were a little off. But, oh well. My goal is to improve my English speaking skill while doing something I enjoy, so I hope I can improve with time.

Next chapter will be mainly from Sasuke's POV, I think. If everything goes as planned, the chapter count won't change and this will be finished sometime soon. (Cross your fingers).

Also, since we're talking about Sasuke, any ideas of what kind of creature he originally was? I wanna hear speculations lol

Anyway, thanks for reading!