Warning: Adult language in this chapter, unsuitable for readers 17+.

I want to apologize for not pumping these chapters out faster. I keep losing motivation and the words don't flow from my fingers as freely as I would like sometimes. I promise not to leave you all hanging. I will absolutely finish this story, and I think there is going to be a sequel after we're finished here! I look forward to writing the rest of this story, as it is truly fun to mold the story as I go. Let me know if you find any discrepancies, as I've gone through the entire thing again and tried to fill in my notes on where I left off on different places.

I hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoy writing it!

Ja ne!~

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters therein- they all belong to Masashi Kishimoto. However, this story is entirely my own.

After lying in bed awake all night every night overthinking my relationship with Naruto and his feelings for me, I'm fucking exhausted.

I also can't sleep well anymore unless he is next to me. That was a fucking discovery.

He has refused to touch me or sit very close to me at all since we finished breakfast the morning after our confrontation. It is really getting under my skin. It's only been three days, and maybe I'm feeling irrationally cranky... but even if we aren't lovers and it makes Naruto somewhat uncomfortable to be in this predicament; we are still best friends and having him avoid physical contact with me just because things got a little awkward is not cutting it.

When we boarded the ship, I followed Naruto out onto the quarterdeck where we leaned against the rails and watched the docks be swallowed by the water as we finally left port.

Naruto POV

As we stood at the front of the ship with the wind gently ruffling our hair and our clothing, I was a little taken aback since Sasuke had so suddenly and adamantly jumped into my personal space and made himself comfortable seemingly out of nowhere. We have just spent three incredibly tense and incredibly long days of me trying to distance myself from Sasuke at the resort where we were supposed to be relaxing.

The irony, huh?

All the tension left Sasuke's body in a rush as he slumped against me. I flinched at the contact, wanting to distance us so that it would be easier to keep my boner away (since all I can think about when Sasuke is near is the really vivid dream I recently had...), but when I look down it is just too cute.

Sasuke looks exhausted and at this moment he is out cold as he leans against the railing and myself for support.

I wrap my arms around his unconscious form and gently lower us to the floor, placing his head in my lap and taking deep breaths to calm myself. Honestly, I love it that he trusts me so much that he can fall asleep on his feet and rely on me to take care of him. If I were anyone else, I know he would've disappeared to get a decent nap on an actual bed somewhere.

So badly, I once again wish I could tell him how I feel.

I wish I could show him what I want.

I'm sure I could go out on a limb and say that I'm as close as Sasuke has ever gotten to loving anyone since he lost his family at the age of seven... 'Even with me being his closest... (and basically his only) friend, and even with his tactless offer of blowing off steam with me in the way I was looking for with those guys- the fact still remains that even if Sasuke ever got brave enough and tried to top me, he would still never fall for me. Why should he? There's no way he could be happy in a relationship with me.'

'I may not be as loud and obnoxious as I used to, but I ain't the perfect boyfriend type either. Sasuke shouldn't be with anyone who he can't feel proud of walking down the streets of Konoha.'

My lip gets trapped between my teeth unconsciously as I frown, tracing his cheek bones with my eyes and the veins on his hands with my curious fingers.

I wish I could just stop dreaming about the day our relationship escalates into something real and tangible.

'Dammit! I don't want to dream about coming home from long missions to a happy Sasuke in the kitchen pouring over a book and his face lighting up with a grin as I close the door behind me. I'm tired of fantasizing about the day I become Hokage and he congratulates me with flowers and the sweetest kiss we could ever share that makes my knees buckle. I'm tired of waking up from dreams where Sasuke effortlessly robs me of breath and floods my mind and body with so much passion I can't fully process it all at once. I'm tired of pining for the day our eyes meet and I see an endless depth of love reflected n those handsome black eyes that match the intensity of my own.'

But I can't bring myself to be angry about it. I just feel somewhat hollow and morose. It's strange to look upon his beautiful face like this and not have to wear my mask. It's a relief too, because he would never understand, and I could never get the words out of my mouth. I guess I'm not strong enough.

Even though it's hell on my back after sleeping on a hard wood floor with no pallet for the last few evenings, I sit there like that for awhile. I really don't want to leave this position. Anyhow, it's still early yet and three or four hours of sleep now shouldn't offset Sasuke's sleep pattern tonight.

I spend the time alternately playing with his hair when I can't sit still and just resting my hands on my abdomen, watching his chest rise and fall as I hope his dreams are pleasant.

I briefly wonder what the family will be like as I train my eyes on the horizon. Sasuke had said that there was most likely a small family in Getsugakure; that one of his contacts had discovered an orphaned Uzumaki girl about the age of sixteen who had been reported missing. Apparently she abandoned an uptight surrogate family in the middle of the night. They eventually put out a reward for her, but that was ten years ago and she was rumored to have gone into hiding on this random island we're headed to.

Sasuke had suspicions that maybe she had found connections to other survivors of our shared Uzumaki lineage and was trying to keep both of our hopes high about the outcome of this endeavor.

I wonder what she'll be like. Would my mom have been like her? If I had a sister, would they have gotten along and had sleepovers, maybe causing mischief if they were anything like me...?

It would've been wonderful to have known my original family before I lost them. Sas is both blessed and cursed on that aspect...

Old man Sarutobi told me once that he wasn't sure who my parents were, and I think that was an outright lie. 'Maybe when we get back to Konoha, Grandma Tsunade will look around for records or some kind of Konoha family tree records for the clans in Konoha. I know one exists for almost every prominent clan because Sasuke and I talked about it once in regards to the loss of his family...'

'It would've been nice to carry on the Uzumaki line. Or even just my last name, if not my blood. At this point though, I don't see myself with any man who would willingly accept that we couldn't have natural children together. And someday taking in a child dealing with a bad situation, maybe a child without a family like me... now that doesn't sound so bad.'

'But Is it really fair to bring a young kid into a home without two loving parents?'

Well, I would've counted myself lucky to have even one parental figure.

Will Sasuke still be around then? Maybe he will have some cute kids of his own... and the kids I'll take care of could play with them.

I chuckled at the thought. 'Lord knows if he ever woke up returning my feelings, he'd eventually be crushed not to have baby Uchiha's running around to resurrect the clan. I think that would crush me to watch him forfeit that dream.'

Just as my thoughts practically ran full circle, I felt Sasuke shift on my lap as he was waking up.

"Getting enough beauty sleep there, princess?"

Sasuke blinked up at me as I hunched over his prone figure and giggled silently, earning a grunt and a swift punch to the front of my shoulder, the retaliation making us even.

At this moment, I realized that my fear about getting a random boner at any moment just because Sasuke was near me was kinda unfounded.

I mean, I am a teenager and I have hormones that are through the roof sometimes; but that doesn't mean I can't control it even if my libido does make an appearance. For now though, I was just relieved that Naruto Jr. was not thinking about the sexy Sasuke from that dream while the man himself has been knocked out on my lap.

Sasuke gets up and finds something else to do for awhile.

I on the other hand, just have so much energy to burn that being cooped up like this is not doing me any favors! Seeing as how it's only day one, that's probably not a good sign.

I spent a lot of time walking back and forth on the ship in slight frustration. Right before I dropped to the ground and started doing suicides for fun, Sasuke came over and instigated a couple rounds of taijutsu, which I was endlessly thankful for.

We skipped out on genjutsu, because while I definitely needed practice on even the basics in that department, that would wouldn't burn enough energy for me at the moment and we agreed that I would cease sitting still in the middle of the lesson. Also, ninjutsu would end with us completely destroying the ship we were currently riding on if we were to seriously spar here.

Sasuke practiced his kicks and I worked on my speed and evasion, keeping my arms in front of me to block and keeping light on my feet to dodge the blows. This really isn't so bad to be in such close proximity since Sasuke and I are relatively at ease again.

Eventually, someone called politely over the speakers that dinner was ready and being served in the deck below. A buffet was in place to feed the crew and guests and by then it was getting pretty late.

Some girls flirted with me during the meal, trying to share their desserts and steal the shrimp from my plate. I didn't think I was being that nice, but I couldn't bring myself to shut down their advances completely as they touched my biceps and shoulders and giggled, complimenting my appearance.

It made me annoyed that after the hotsprings fluke, I couldn't even think about what I'd normally do in this situation without feeling like it would be a betrayal to Sasuke. (And that is definitely not fair since we aren't even together!) But what got to me the most, was that Sasuke looked annoyed that these immature girls were all over me- even though he himself had never claimed interest. So, I spent an hour trading stories with them until my raven haired beauty of a friend looked like he was going to gag and finally delivered me from my predicament. Sasuke brought me something to drink as an excuse to interrupt us and stated that it was time for the two of us to go climb in bed, literally glaring the girls down as if to stake a claim over me. Pssh. What claim?

'Calm your desires, Naruto. You're reading too much into commonplace situations... Sasuke just really can't stand girls.' I tried to school myself and not blush as I followed him back to our cabin.

'Damn asshole sending mixed signals. Baka! I wish you'd open up about your personal desires with me...'

While it is a relief that we have separate beds and I don't have to worry about Sasuke accidentally touching my morning wood when we sleep side by side... or causing it because he sleeps as close to naked as a guy can get, I am already missing the closeness we've shared as I lay down quietly by myself in a bed just wide enough to allow a foot of space on either side of my shoulders.

That dream the other night really was so intense, I can't bring myself to regret the lost chance at having a threesome with those random strangers at the hot springs resort. Neither of them could measure up to Sasuke himself anyhow.

"Hey, Naruto?" Sasuke mumbles.

"Hmm?"

"These beds are too big... The blankets suck ass and it's freezing on this side. Can I sleep over there with you?"

Warily, I start to rebuke him, "Sas-" but I am immediately cut off by the cute raven in his underwear and socks as he kneels on his bed and stares at me expectantly.

'Sasuke that's not a good idea..' I think, but I keep my mouth shut as he speaks over the words I wanted to say.

"I'm not going to jump you. I've just gotten used to sleeping together and it's cold when I'm by myself..." The Uchiha phrases it to sound like the most logical thing in the world.

I sigh and pull back the covers.

'I'm so whipped.'

Instead of making an attempt to stay at least a breath apart, Sasuke crawls under the sheets and lays on his front- dragging the blankets higher around our shoulders and draping one arm and shoulder over me as he wiggles in to get comfortable.

I want to groan and scream simultaneously.

'Why do you do this shit to me? Do you know how hard it is not to lean down and steal your kisses? To sweet talk my way into taking your innocence? Trading my dignity for some resemblance of temporary love from you? You do this shit and it doesn't mean near as much as it should- coming from you- and that is what hurts so much. And yet it feels so damn good, I want so much more than one arm draped haphazardly across my torso, you blind, arrogant and assuming bastard...'

"Naruto?"

"H- hmm..?"

The noise sounds strangled and I have to really force out the response since I'm slightly choked up and completely at a loss.

Sasuke POV

I've figured out that I'm attracted to Naruto. It's more than intrigue with his body or the thrilling potential of broaching a new dimension in our friendship-slash-relationship.

I've definitely got feelings for Naruto that go beyond Uchiha possessiveness. I do realize that Nar doesn't belong to me. It's more than just wanting to keep him closest to me out of some narcissistic belief that maybe I'm better than anyone else and he is better off staying with/ choosing me in turn.

For awhile I was concerned that I was being irrational in my attachment to him, but it's not as if I feel like he is some prize to win.

I really do care about him and I want him by my side because I trust him with my life.

He is the only one.

I'm really happy when we are together and I want to make him happy too. I want to see him smile and help him in all that he does so that his life will be nothing but prosperous and successful. I desperately want to be the one he turns to in his lowest moments and the one that supports him in all his glory as he does great things in this life. There is no way this beautiful boy was not meant for great and amazing things.

I want to show him that I care. For him to know that I want and desire him in return. I am honestly kind of nervous the more I think about consummating any possible relationship, since Naruto is experienced and I'm probably going to seem like a bumbling idiot if he ever opens up on his own and gives me the chance.

Wanting to be closer to this amazing guy that I can't stop thinking about, I make up some lame excuse about being cold (which is totally true, even though I've been putting up with it for years because I'm not a sissy), and try to convince him to let me share his body heat.

I love sleeping next to him. I used to wake up from recurring night terrors, but when Naruto is around, I feel safe... as if I'll never have another one so long as he is by my side.

I know he has feelings for me and I'm not sure how to tell him they aren't one sided... so, I try to settle for the closest thing I know to cuddling. I stretch out next to him until my chin nearly rests against his shoulder and my arm is draped across him and it feels so great to be this close to Naruto.

A stray thought crosses my mind and suddenly I'm thinking about Naruto's morning wood. It's like clockwork; the moment dawn arrives, he is awake and slinking off somewhere to take care of himself. How the hell am I supposed to show him I'm serious about all this if he never gives me any openings?

Do I open my mouth and ask him if he wants to go all the way, because I'm entirely certain that he is the only thing in life that matters to me and I probably love him?

Do I kiss him suddenly and hope he understands that we could work out as a couple?

Oh hell. What the fuck do I know? The closest thing to a relationship I have aside from Naruto is a wasted four years of promising to kill my big brother who loves me so much he made a deal to spare my life. What the hell do I know about how relationships work?

Just going with how we normally act together, I try to keep my heartbeat steady and to not come across as uncool.

"Naruto?"

He jumps at the sound of my voice, his own cracks and I smirk- assuming it was simple nerves because he was so close to the object of his affections.

I wish I could kiss him because that noise was kind of adorable, but that would probably ruin everything and just confuse the blonde at this point.

"If you don't stop getting up at the asscrack of dawn, I will kill you. There is no way that you can't manage yourself for another hour or two instead of waking my tired ass up so that you can take care of your issues."

"Wh- what! Sasuke, it's not my fault if I gotta take a whiz in the mornings while you prefer to sleep in..."

I sigh gently, but internally I am doing a victory dance complete with confetti because he sounds like he's been caught and we both know that nine times out of ten, Naruto's morning erection isn't because he drank water before bed.

I caught him one time, when I couldn't understand what took him forever to get back to the room and I wanted to talk about the mission since he was the reason I was awake anyhow.

He wasn't in the bathroom and he had been gone for over fifteen minutes... and I found the idiot on top of the building with his hand in his pants.

I was surprised, to say the least.

Something about the display intrigued me. It made me want to see if his blush would deepen and what noises he would make when he climaxed.

Eventually, Naruto relaxes against me in the bed. Even though I'm exhausted, and with my most important person finally next to me again my consciousness is slowly fading out, I still feel it when Naruto strokes my arm in slow, comforting movements as if to warm me up.

Naruto POV

'He's selfish and doesnt want to be woken up in the mornings. But, oh man it's cute.'

His jade eyes are closed but his head is turned toward me; his chin practically resting on my shoulder as his breath fans my skin. I watch him with a silent longing that I can't quite conceal. All he'd have to do is open his eyes to see the storm of emotions parading through my heart and across my facial features.

At the same time however, I am thoroughly satisfied with the turn of events.

'I wish this could be for real. It's too bad he sees us as just really close friends. I wonder if we will stay this close, even when we go back to Konoha?' My thoughts trail off as I rub Sasuke's arm, and he doesn't remove the limb from it's apparent new residency across my body.

As our breathing evens out and we are both on the verge of sleep, Sasuke moves in closer and our legs rub together as he readjusts his head on my chest.

I blame my bad judgement on sleepiness, because instead of leaving it be, I gave into temptation and wrapped an arm around him before placing a featherlight kiss on the crown of his head. My heart was beating so fast that I couldn't tell if he was still awake or not, but he didn't yell at me or move in any way to indicate he noticed a change and within minutes I was asleep. I completely missed the adorable upward curl of Sasuke's lips as they stretched into a happy smile that even crinkled his eyes at the corners as he tried hard to calm his heartbeat and relax into the grasp of sleep instead of gushing like a girl the way he was inclined to do.

We spent a week on that ship where we settled fairly quickly into a steady pace of studying the principles on genjutsu and looking over the information we'd gathered on finding some old Uzumaki scrolls.

Sasuke POV

When it came to teaching the dobe genjutsu, I would set a goal for Naruto and the blonde prodigy would usually surpass it. I was really happy to be able to help him learn at least the basics and I hoped it would stick. In battle, sometimes you need to utilize every technique at your disposal and Naruto knowing a solid variety could only tip the odds more in his favor.

It became a habit to share my routine with the dobe. Usually I would shower first, then Naruto, and we would brush our teeth together because it was faster and also it was hilarious to get him in the ribs and watch him drip frothy spit on his night shirts, making him sleep deliciously topless after a short argument.

In the mornings, I would make the bed and turn down the covers on both sides so that when we both got in it wouldn't feel weird. I made a point of welcoming myself into his bed and a few nights in, we both accepted it as a certain thing.

After that first night, I didn't consciously try to cuddle with Naruto and get him flustered because I was hoping that he would make a move on his own.

I guess we had gotten used to being so close that in the night we both moved towards the center of the bed and as a result, we always woke up with limbs tangled and draped over each other.

I didn't know I would be a cuddler, but it wasn't a totally weird discovery for me...

Naruto POV

The first morning we woke up together on the ship, I was so surprised. I forgot temporarily that we actually fell asleep basically holding each other. It was nice to wake up with my favorite person in my arms of his own volition.

It became routine after that to wake up touching or with one of us using the other as a makeshift-pillow in our sleep.

I got a bit of shock a few mornings in, when I opened my eyes to see mine and Sasuke's foreheads and noses touching closely just like that morning we woke up by the waterfall; I felt a surge of shock, love and lust all at once and it was so overpowering that made me want to wake Sasuke with a torrent of kisses, but it also made me afraid of what Sasuke would do if I did.

Embarrassed and scared that I might actually go for it and wake Sasuke up with a kiss like I wanted to... which just might result in the Uchiha knocking my head off, I barely have time to think before a child-like squeak escapes my mouth and I tear myself away from the sleeping beauty; rolling to the edge of the mattress and plunking to the floor before I could get a grip on myself.

Sasuke stretched out his arms and legs dramatically, "Ayunnh!"

He grunted before sitting up, supporting himself on one arm as the other fisted the sleep out of his heavy-lidded eyes. The blanket slid down to expose his shirtless chest and stomach and lo-and-behold a fucking morning erection tenting both his boxers and the sheet!

There it is. Holy shit.

It's not my nine and a half inches but it has got to be at least seven or eight. At the moment, I don't have the presence of mind to feel bad for ogling my best friend as he just stares at me, curious.

"I'm sorry! Its just that we, ah-" I stumbled over my words trying to get them out, "It- it's just that when I woke up this morning, our lips were practically touching... again."

I quickly glance up at him and he looks nonplussed.

"You freaked out and woke me up because we almost kissed in our sleep? Seriously, you should have just moved your face or kissed me already and let it be."

The raven haired beauty flopped back on the bed and one arm was left dangling off. The index finger of that arm curled up a few times in a 'come here' motion before Sasuke spoke up. "You don't get to ruin my 'beauty sleep' and then keep me awake. Get back up here so that I can get some more shuteye, the sun isn't even fully out yet and I'm tired."

'Yeah? Fuck. Well, I'm hard as a rock.'

Obediently, but still with a bit of hesitation, I crawl back into bed and Sasuke turns away from me. I sigh in relief as our bodies don't touch and it makes it easier not to imagine myself trailing my fingers down his neck to play with his nipples and cup the hard member in Sasuke's pants that is so close to me right now...

I turn my back to him as well and fall into a fitful sleep where Sasuke was the one who'd had to slaughter his clan. He was banished from Konoha by the same elders who gave the order for the massacre, in effect, making my friend leave me for good.

As dream-Sasuke was telling me that I would become a great Hokage and that he would watch over me from afar as I created a better future and city for our people after getting rid of the toxins in our home, I cried. Hard.

I was so emotional that it roused Sasuke when my shoulders would heave and I would unconsciously whine in need and trepidation. He curled up behind me, putting his hands on either shoulderblade as he called my name.

Sasuke POV

"Naruto! Dobe, what's wrong?!"

Eventually, realizing he was still asleep I had to shake the blonde pretty hard to draw him into reality. The moment I managed to wake him he flipped around to stare at me and before I knew it, he was all over me.

His warmth was pinning me to the bed as his body shook and I knew he had a nightmare.

"You're alright now, Naruto. It's okay." I murmured, able to move my arms just enough to lightly stroke his tan back where his t-shirt had ridden up.

He choked out, "But It wasn't, Sasuke. You were gone-"

Knowing he was too emotional to think straight and wasn't thinking about how this is not what friends usually do, (and also knowing how he felt about me- which weighed out in the end), I hoped he wouldn't be offended by my gesture as I dragged my arms out from under him and threw them around his neck, holding him tightly in broad daylight. It was really nice to be the one to comfort him, and it shocked me somewhat to see this level of reaction from him due to a dream where I had to leave him for some reason.

It made a swell of protective instincts rise up within me and I wanted to fight away all the nightmares that had ever terrified Naruto in that moment.

"Shh. You're not alone," I chanted, calmly. "I'm right here, Naruto."

The heavy and warm bundle in my arms eventually quit sniffling and for the first time since we started sharing a bed, he curled himself around me in the similar way that we always woke up together and laid his head on my chest. Feeling bold, I nuzzled his neck reassuringly as I dragged the sheets up higher around us.

After that, we exchanged smiles more often. Naruto was a little more physical; placing his hand on my shoulder and squeezing when he would walk by or ruffling my hair when I wasn't paying attention. He seemed happier after that incident, but he also quit rambling at the mouth like he had started doing again at the beginning of the mission. Now, he thinks before he speaks, and when he looks at me, he seems thoughtful.

I miss hearing his voice as he would go on and on when he got exited. This mature acting Naruto hasn't been doing that.

I frown at the thought.

'I can't seem to figure him out...'

Naruto POV

"The ship will have made it to Getsuga Island in a few hours time, Naruto. We need to go pack our stuff together and prepare to disembark."

I look up from where I'm sharpening my kunai to see Sasuke standing before me, hands in his pockets and looking a bit off.

"You okay, Teme?"

"Yeah." He kicked his foot out aimlessly, scuffing the wood.

"Just ready to get off this shit-ride. It took forever to get here... I miss solid ground." He confesses.

After going over our maps and trying to pinpoint exactly where this family lived, we decided to just ask around until someone pointed us in the general direction.

I made sure that we were the first passengers to set our feet on the docks leading into town.

It was hilarious to watch Sasuke stiffen for a minute and then break out into a huge grin at being off that damned "shit-ride".

"HELL YES!" He adorably exclaimed.

I chuckled quietly, clapping him on the shoulder. "Man, I'm famished. I could sure use some grub right now. Can we eat first, Sasuke-" My raven haired friend held up his hand to cut me off, probably thinking I was going to spend an hour overstuffing myself and feeling too lethargic afterwards to do much actual digging and thus be useless, 'Pssh. Please! Have you met me? When do I ever run out of energy?'

I continue, laying it on as thickly as I can. "No no no no! I swear, Teme- I won't slow us down at all, but I'm starving! You gotta feed me, You just gotta, Sasuke!"

"Calm down, Usuratonkatchi," He looked around us for a moment, annoyance crossing his features briefly. "I was going to tell you that If I'm paying then I'm picking the meals. Do those terms work for you?"

He lifted his eyebrows at me in mock of my childish outburst and I pouted the entire time we walked around, looking for a venue that stood out to our hungry and searching gazes.

Agreeing on a tiny restaurant that served grilled seafood over noodles, we bumped into a sweet young woman barely older than ourselves. She was maybe in her mid-twenties, with a long blonde braid trailing down her back. However, what struck me the most was the resemblance of her features and my own... 'Am I just seeing things, or did we just hit the jackpot less than an hour in?'

"Naruto?"

Sasuke POV

Naruto's jaw goes slack mid-sentance and he looks like he'd seen a ghost, his eyes are glued to the retreating figure of an early shopper holding her basket of purchases.

I called his name a few times, but the guy was so out of it that I don't even know if he heard me or not. I flicked him hard upside the head and started walking off, "You're not getting any lunch from me if you keep spacing off, Dobe!"

"Waaah! Wait up- and hey.. that hurt, jackass!"

Lunch was pretty uneventful, except when I asked for a bite of the blonde's food and he complained and blushed because I stole the bite from his chopsticks instead of choosing a piece with my own from the bowl he pushed towards me.

'So what if my tongue 'accidentally' touched his chopsticks? It wasn't worth losing his composure and excusing himself to the restroom all flustered. I mean, come on! It wasn't like I coerced him into an actual tongue kiss..'

'Actually, I wonder what it would be like to kiss Naruto like that? To kiss like adults and with a purpose... All of our other kisses were really just accidents with our faces smashed together more than anything. Would Naruto kiss me like that if I asked him to?' I mused.

I leaned back in my seat, interlacing my fingers together behind my head and stretching my legs out under the table. 'Nah, I can't ask Naruto something like that while knowing how he feels. Not until I can accurately tell him in so many words exactly what he means to me. Hell, he deserves at least that much for putting up with my sorry ass for all these years-'

"Ahem."

The knucklehead in question was leaning against the opposite chair, hip jutted out a bit provokingly and his bare, tanned ankles were crossed as he stared me down. "It's nice to know that without my company you'd fall into a coma out of boredom. Can we pick up the check and get out of here? I have a good idea on where we can get a lead."

Letting him direct us through the throngs of noontime shoppers, my mission partner quickly singled out a stand and it's merchant- who surprisingly seemed to know exactly who Naruto was asking about.

"Quite a firey one, that ole miss. She moved here about ten years ago; takes good care of the sick. She tended to my youngest when he broke his ribs fooling around where he shouldn't have been." The older man looked us over with a keen eye and was prepared to direct us to the clinic she usually worked in at this time of day and leave us to it. However, Naruto seemed certain that she wasn't working today.

Trying to be subtle and get what we needed from the man without divulging the entire Uzumaki clan history out loud, I slip the man into a genjutsu (because it would just draw an unwanted sympathetic crowd that would make Naruto uncomfortable.).

I leave everything going on the same in the genjutsu as it is in the real world. So, basically Naruto and his expressions, the background noise of workers dumping seafood onto fresh buckets of ice- keeping them chilled for display, and letting him think he was still continuing to serve customers as I quietly explained that we were here on the Hokage's orders to see if a prominent clan was truly on the brink of extinction or not.

The look in his eyes softened towards Naruto and he gave me the address that we wanted.

Seeing an opening as I felt the presence of a family approach, I lifted the genjutsu so that he could not tell the difference in his lag of customers and we were outta there.

I almost wish I hadn't bothered with the effort. Almost.

Naruto isn't stupid and he knew exactly what happened. The idiot kept alternately pinning me with sly glances and bouncing on the balls of his feet as we made our way out into the countryside.

"Aww. Sasuuuuuuke! You are such a softie! Look at you being sensitive to someone else's situation! Kawaii!"

'Dobe, if you only knew how right you actually are for once..'

One part of me regrets nothing and another equal part of me wants to either take it back or smash his face into the bark of a tree. Anything to cease his antics..

"Hey, I think this is it."

"Saaaasu-" he stopped mid-sentence for the second time today, looking down the slope to a homestead that looked oddly out of place.

"Oh, wow."

He looked at me uncertainly.

"Do you think they'll take kindly to being tracked down? Do... do you think they'll like me? What if they turn us down and think I messed up our legacy by being a jinchuuriki?"

"Naruto, no. You don't get to think like that today." I grab his large hand and squeeze gently. "Today is about happy reunions and the beginning of a prosperous future for your clan. This is about a solid chance to resurrect the Uzumaki lineage and they would be crazy to turn us away. Even if they don't feel inclined to divulge a lot about the history of Uzumaki scrolls and their techniques or if they don't want to come to Konoha and live in the village you will someday be the guardian of... you can still make bonds here. You are not the last of your people, and that in itself is amazing. You. Are. Amazing. So it's going to work out just fine. Got it?"

Naruto squeezed back infinitely tighter, while gazing at our destination with his pink bottom lip pulled between his teeth.

He finally let go of my hand and gave me a shy smile that made my breath catch.

"Yeah. Thank you, Sasuke." He said quietly.

We ventured across a large grassy clearing before we came across the large single story home. It was gorgeous up-close and looked like it was built not by carpenters from a hired company, but by the family themselves that lived there. There were huge rocks and boulders that were sanded and eroded down to fit perfectly together and a paste between them that felt like it was made with chakra woven in as some type of warding spell.

I was tempted to touch it, but I didn't want to test out the theory and startle the inhabitants. That would not get us off to a good start. In contrast to the grey outer walls, the roofing looked to be thatched from recycled reeds; likely covering some sort of support beams, as the roof was rounded out and quite high. On it's own, the roof looks to be a solid twelve feet or so.

The front of the house sported a large rounded door and to one side there was a small set of three long, horizontally connected windows- maybe chest height. They were gorgeous because of the tiny individual pieces of glass in different colors and shapes that were fitted together. I've heard of stained window glass before, but I'd never seen anything like it in person until now.

On the other side of the door was one large bay window. It was easily taller than me and spanned about seven feet across. From outside, the entire abode seemed a bit mix-matched, but it was still radiant nonetheless.

Together, we knocked on the door and waited to see if our effort would come to fruition.

Suddenly, a little redheaded boy about ten years old wearing a dirty outfit that looked to once be... green?- popped his head around the corner of the house. Looking right at us, he waved and hollered, "Da! C'mere a minute!"

To be continued... xXx