Chapter 7: Minato

It had been nearly a week and Sasuke seemed to be avoiding Naruto like the plague. Even at work, every time Naruto would try to interact with him, he'd suddenly be busy even on the slowest night. Naruto had finally had enough. He knew Sasuke was in his room studying. It was the perfect timing to confront the other man. He walked into Sasuke's room, not bothering to knock. "Sasuke, we need to talk," he spoke, surprising the other man.

Sasuke looked up at him with wide eyes as the blond shut the door behind him. He had been so engrossed in his studying that he hadn't even noticed the door open. He sat back in his desk chair, trying to act nonchalant when all he wanted to do was run. He knew he probably looked horrible, having been unable to sleep. Every time he closed his eyes there was a new nightmare about what could happen if Minato stayed in his life.

Naruto stayed directly in front of the door, leaving no way for Sasuke to escape. He was surprised by Naruto's appearance. The other man was trying to hold himself together, but there was a sense of sadness in his eyes. "What do you want?" Sasuke asked, trying to sound cold, trying not to let Naruto's expression affect him.

Part of him wished he'd never read the letter. His mind had been a mess ever since he'd read his brother's words. He didn't know who to trust anymore. He had never suspected Naruto, but after reading the letter his mind had been running wild with possibilities. It made him wonder if anything that had happened between them was real or just a ploy to gain his trust. It had felt real, but he couldn't help but doubt it. No one had ever showed any interest in him since his father was arrested, why would Naruto be any different?

"What's going on with you?" Naruto asked, pulling Sasuke from his thoughts. "Was it the kiss? Did that scare you off?" he was worried that he had scared Sasuke away. "I'm sorry if I was moving too fast, but to be fair you initiated it."

Sasuke could tell that Naruto was genuinely worried that he had somehow messed up. "Trust me, it's not that," Sasuke assured him, trying not to think about what had happened against the desk he was currently sitting in front of. "I read the letter," he admitted, not wanting to lie to the blond. He remembered how his father had told him to always follow his instincts and his instincts told him he could trust the other man. He really hoped that he was right.

"So?" Naruto asked, hoping for an explanation. "What'd it say?"

"I don't know what to think," Sasuke told him honestly. "And I don't think I should tell you what it says," he let out a sigh, wishing for a way to get out of the conversation. He didn't know exactly what was going on, so he didn't know what to tell the other man without making things worse.

"You're still suspicious of my father," Naruto deduced. It was obvious that the letter had said something about his father, but he didn't understand why Sasuke was avoiding him.

"I'm suspicious of everyone," he looked at him, unsure what else to say. He didn't want to tell him that his brother warned him about getting close to him.

Naruto frowned, "Does that include me?" Sasuke looked away so Naruto stepped closer, gently grabbing his face to make Sasuke look at him, "Think whatever you want about my dad, but don't doubt me."

Sasuke leaned away from the blond, causing the other man to let go. He didn't want to make Sasuke more uncomfortable so he took a step back. "You don't understand," Sasuke told him quietly. He'd been on his own for so long. Even when his mother was alive it wasn't like she was really there. It had just been a shell of herself. "Why do you and your father have different last names?" Sasuke suddenly asked.

Naruto had been asked the question multiple times throughout his life and he always gave the same answer, "I don't know, I guess he wanted to honor my mom's memory since she died during childbirth." He'd never thought much about it, having no reason to think his father had some sinister reason.

"How sure are you that, that's all there is to it?" he asked.

"What are you trying to say? That my dad is a bad person?" Naruto responded defensively. He never wanted to think the worst of his father. He had looked up to his father and even tried to be like him in some ways. He always thought his father was a kind man, it was one of the things about him that he looked up to and wanted to be like. He couldn't always be as kind he thought his father was, but he tried his best. Now Sasuke was making him question everything he thought he knew.

Sasuke looked at Naruto, "I'm not saying that your dad is a bad father. In fact, I'm saying the opposite."

"You think he's trying to protect me?" the blond asked, wondering even more what had been in that letter. It would make sense, but he'd rather believe that his father had named him after his mother to honor her memory, not because he was some criminal.

Sasuke nodded, "I think he's a good enough father to want to." It was the scenario he hoped for the most. He hope that Naruto was truly out of the loop and his father wasn't a bad person. He hoped Minato was just a guy in over his head. A pawn in someone else's game. No matter what, he knew he couldn't trust Minato, but at least me might be able to trust Naruto if that were the case.

"What do I need to do to make you trust me?" Naruto asked. He missed hanging out with Sasuke. He had thought they were going somewhere before the letter fiasco.

"Don't tell your father if we hang out," he told him. "Don't tell him what we talk about or where I am."

"That's it?" Naruto asked. "Consider it done."

"One more thing," he sighed. "I'm looking for a new job and place to live, don't try to convince me otherwise."

Naruto stepped closer again, putting what he hoped was a comforting hand on the other man's shoulder. "I told you I wouldn't try to control you," he reminded him, making Sasuke smile a little. "I meant it."

Sasuke bit his lip before standing up so they were eye to eye. "Thank you," his voice was just above a whisper. He moved a hand up to the back of Naruto's head, his fingers tangled in his hair as his thumb gently brushed against his cheek. Naruto's hand moved to Sasuke's waist, pulling him closer. Neither were sure who moved first as they kissed. It was gentle, as if whatever was happening between them would break if they pushed it any further.

Sasuke broke the kiss, but made no move to leave, "I'm not ready for whatever we are to be more than friends."

Naruto didn't like it, but he nodded. He understood Sasuke's reasons. The dark haired man didn't need to explain himself. "I get it, you're going through a lot," trying to show that he truly understood and wouldn't push for more if Sasuke want't ready.

"Just, let me move out first at least. Maybe figure out what is going on. I don't want to drag you into something that could get you hurt," he told him. It was true, he didn't want to put Naruto into a bad situation. Maybe once he figured out what Minato was up to then they'd have a chance. Once he didn't need Orochimaru's protection anymore.

Naruto frowned, "You and I both know that there could always be someone after you after what your father did."

Sasuke knew he was right. Someone would always have a grudge against his father. There could always be someone looking to hurt him for his father's wrongdoings. "You're right," he agreed. "At least let me figure out what's going on with your father first and how it relates to me."

"Okay," Naruto stepped away, removing his hand from Sasuke's waist. "After that you'll give us a try?" he asked.

Sasuke nodded, wishing he was still touching Naruto but knowing it was better that they waited. "Yeah, just give me a little bit of time."

"It's going to be hard not to kiss you," Naruto pouted a little, trying to lighten the mood.

Sasuke just smiled a little, "I think you'll survive."

"Debatable," Naruto smiled back. "When are you telling my dad that you're moving out?" he hesitantly asked.

"Actually, I think it might be better that you do it," Sasuke told him. "Give him some information so he doesn't think you're hiding things from him," he explained. "If you feel comfortable with that."

Naruto thought for a moment, trying to decide what to do. "I could make it really dramatic, you know how I am," Naruto suggested. "I think it's time for us to have a fight," he suggested.

"A fight?" Sasuke asked, wondering what was going on in the blonde's mind.

"Just follow my lead," he told him.

Sasuke was a little worried about what Naruto was going to do, "Do I have any other choice?"

"Not if you don't want my father to know we're hanging out. We're going to need some kind of falling out that we can explain," he told him. "So just follow my lead." Before Sasuke could say anything Naruto was pulling his door open harshly. "Fine do whatever you fucking want," he yelled, surprisingly convincing.

"You're so dramatic," Sasuke huffed loudly enough for Minato to walk into the hallway to see what was going on.

"You don't even have a good reason," Naruto argued. "You just randomly decide you want to move out for no fucking reason. You've been avoiding me all week and now you're just ditching out. I thought we were friends."

"You thought wrong," Sasuke glared, crossing his arms. He thought they were being pretty convincing if the look on Minato's face was any indication.

"Boys, what's going on?" Minato cuts in, looking between the two younger men.

"Sasuke wants to move out and find a different job," Naruto huffed, pretending to be upset with the situation. If he were honest, it helped that he was a little frustrated, just for a completely different reason. "He won't even tell me why," he told his father.

"I told you, I need to figure things out on my own. I can't always have someone taking care of me," Sasuke argued. "What don't you get about that?"

"You have it great here, why wouldn't you want somewhere to live for free while going to school? And a different job? That makes no sense," Naruto yelled, pretending to be angry with the other man. It wasn't exactly how he'd act when he was truly upset, but it seemed to be close enough because Minato was clearly buying it.

"Sasuke, you really should think this through," Minato told him calmly, though the look on his face made it clear he was scared at the thought of Sasuke really leaving. "You can make it on your own once you're done with school, it's a great opportunity for you to save money right now," he tried to reason with him.

"Just let me make my own decisions," Sasuke turned and slammed his door shut.

Minato looked at Naruto, "Do you really think he'll move out?"

"Doesn't matter to me, I'm not going to be friends with a liar. He's clearly hiding something. Should have known with who his father is that he's hiding something," Naruto lied. He felt bad lying to his dad, but thought it was for the best for all of them. Naruto wanted the truth and this might be the only way he could find it. If his dad dropped the issue, then he'd believe that he had nothing to hide. On the other hand, if he kept pressing for him and Sasuke to get close, then he'd wonder if his father had other motives. Either way, he had to know.

"Just go calm down," his father directed. "We'll talk about this in the morning. I'm sure it's all just a misunderstanding and once we clear it up then he'll stay," he tried to assure his son, though he didn't even seem convinced.

"Why does it even matter?" Naruto asked, seeing if his father would give anything away.

Minato just shrugged, "You saw how he was when I found him. He's a good kid, I don't want the same thing to happen to him again." He was acting as if he was just being a good samaritan, but Naruto was having his doubts.

"Why do you care?" he asked, wishing he could just get an honest answer. "He's not a kid, he's an adult perfectly capable of making his own decisions."

"I know he is," Minato sighed. "But, he's an adult that had no direction as a child. He needs someone to help guide him. To show him there's more to life," he explained, but Naruto could tell he was lying.

"Whatever," Naruto shook his head, walking to his room and shutting the door. He collapsed onto his bed, wondering what his father could have possibly gotten himself into.

A few hours later Sasuke finally opened his door again. He looked around to see if anyone was around and was happy to find the house quiet. He made his way to the kitchen, hungry from having skipped dinner. He hadn't wanted to deal with Minato trying to convince him to stay while eating. He stopped in his tracks when he heard Minato talking to someone on the phone. It was clear that he was trying to be quiet about it, but just loud enough to hear.

"I know you need the information," Minato said, frustrated with whoever was on the other end of the call. "I don't know what you want me to do, he says he's moving out and got in a fight with my son."

Sasuke's eyes widened, realizing he was talking to whoever it was that made him dangerous, as Itachi had described him in his letter. He moved quietly towards the other room, trying to get closer so he could hear better. In his time living in the house he had come to know it fairly well. His father always told him to know his surroundings. Know where the floors would make a sound, what could possibly fall or make a noise if he ran into it, really anything that would make his presence known. He realized it was for situations such as this. Situations he'd planned to put Sasuke in at some point.

"I'm trying to get him to open up. I've even used my son to get close to him thinking he'd share what he knows with him. If he said something incriminating my son would have told me," he explained.

Sasuke rolled his eyes, wondering if Minato ever expected his son would lie to him like he was right now. He found it amusing that the man didn't really seem to know his son at all. Naruto loved his father, but he was the kind of person that wanted to know the truth. He hated being lied to, even if it was lying by omission. It made Sasuke feel a little guilty for not telling him about Orochimaru. He figured he'd tell him one day once the whole mess was over, hoping he'd understand that he kept it from him to keep him safe.

"Look, I'm going to talk to him in the morning, I'm sure I can clear it up," he paused, listening to whoever was on the phone. "Yes, I'm sure and if he leaves, well, I guess I'll need my son's help. But I'm not telling him what's going on. I'll get them to be friends and he'll willingly give me the information you need without even realizing it. He tells me about his day, I'm sure his time with Sasuke would be no different." A few moments later he hangs up.

Sasuke let out a sigh of relief knowing that Naruto wasn't part of it. He decided it was time to make his presence known. He waits a few moments before walking into the kitchen where Minato was still standing.

"Sasuke, when did you come in?" he asked, trying to feel out if the younger man had heard anything.

"Just now," it wasn't really a lie. He hadn't been in the kitchen until that moment. "Just came to get something to eat," he told him, which also technically wasn't a lie.

"Are you sure you want to move out?" he asked, seeing if he could find out what was going on in Sasuke's mind.

Sasuke nodded, "I've never been so sure of anything in my life."

"I see," Minato responded. He could sense that Sasuke knew something. "Well, there are leftovers in the fridge if you want to heat them up," he suggested before walking out of the room.

Sasuke watched as he left. He wondered if he should tell Naruto about what he'd overheard and if Naruto would even believe him if he did. The blond wanted to believe his father was a good man and Sasuke wasn't so sure that was the case. A person could try to be a good father and still be a bad person in other ways. "Fuck," he cursed, no longer hungry as he made his way back to his room without bothering to eat. He didn't know what he was going to do. All he knew what that he had a lot to think about.