A/N: I'm baaack – whether you want it or not! (grins) This chappy was fast to scetch, but it took ages before it'd found its final shape. But now it's finally here! (beams) Hooray?

First off… MAN, thank you so much for those absolutely incredible reviews you've left for this story – you can't even imagine how much they'd warmed my heart! (beams again, and HUGGLES) You guys really are precious. (Oh crap, I sound like Gollum…) THANK YOU! Responses to those I couldn't PM can be found from underneath the chappy, as usual. (grins)

Awkay, because I bet you want to get on with the story already… (rubs hands together) Let's roooll – I truly hope you'll enjoy the ride!

CHAPTER 3: The Melody And The Jarring

/ Naruto's only pleasant dream always started the same way.

He was sitting in a orange swing that moved almost violently, making him gasp loudly as he stared at the ground spreading what felt like a mile down, then grin widely as his eyes met the perfect blue sky.

And then he let go. Chuckling with childlike joy, he flew through the air with his arms folded – for a couple of deceitful moments actually believing that he could fly – then landed with his back first surprisingly softly to the ground.

Usually his dream ended there. During the past few nights, however, a little bit more had appeared to it.

His dream-self wasn't surprised at all when hearing another boy's voice. "We're both idiots, you know?" Turning his head, he saw a little boy – most likely not older than six or seven – with black hair and eyes lay on the grass right next to him, breathing hard and obviously fighting against smiling. The child then got up, shook away all grass from his clothes and started to walk away. "Now c'mon, dobe. The asshole's gonna kill us if we're late."


Feeling somewhat disappointed although he couldn't understand why, he also bounced up and dashed after the raven. "Hey, Sasuke, wait up!" /

And then Naruto's eyes flew open as he bounced into a sitting position, his eyes impossibly wide and his heart thumping violently. "Can't be…", he muttered to himself, although it took several seconds until he realized what he was talking about. "How could I have…?" His words faded from his mouth and mind as fast as they'd appeared, leaving behind only a slightly shaky exhale.

For almost five minutes he sat absolutely still in his bed, shivering and thoughts bouncing around his skull, until he finally came to a conclusion that he wouldn't be getting any sleep that night. His legs weak and still trembling a little, he hauled his unusually heavy body out of the bed and started to make his way out of the room, then into the hallway.

Quite soon after he'd left the room, his ears perked up to the sounds of a TV. He quirked an eyebrow, slightly surprised.

Iruka rarely watched television. What was going on?

Confused as well as tired, he yawned and started to saunter towards the living room. "Iruka? 'You still awake?"

What he found when stepping into the room made him smile just a little, although some voice inside him screamed out a warning.

The TV was indeed open, showing some movie he couldn't recognize. On the couch lay Iruka, fast asleep and his cheeks slightly flushed. The slight, wheezing sound that came as the man breathed made him wonder if his foster father was coming down with a cold or something.

At first he thought that he wouldn't have the heart to wake the man up, but then he figured that Iruka would be extremely sore in the morning if he'd sleep on the couch. Therefore he walked slowly to the man and shook his shoulder gently. "Hey, 'Ruka, wake up."

The man merely frowned at first, as though unwilling to wake up, then – very slowly – opened his eyes slowly and frowned again. "'Ruto? What are you still doing up?"

"What are you doing sleeping there?" he asked back. He then felt a tiny tremor of worry. "What's wrong?"

Iruka merely shook his head, creating a tiny smile while rubbing his face with one hand. "Things… have just been a bit hectic at work lately, that's all. You have no need to worry."

Most likely more out of exhaustion than anything else, he snorted. "How am I supposed to know that?" He looked away, feeling between embarrassed and hurt. "You never talk to me anymore."

"Neither do you." Iruka's voice was the same calm one that'd always soothed him. He felt the man looking at him. "I can tell there's something on your mind."

At first he hesitated, not sure if he wanted to burden Iruka even further, but in the end the words forced themselves out. "There's… this patient I've been thinking about a lot. I think I've hurt him somehow, though I have no idea how." He rubbed his face with both hands. "He's even come to my dreams, and I don't know what to do."

"Have you tried talking to him?"

He wanted to wince. "It's… not like we could have an actual conversation."

"Then you do the talking." Iruka smiled a little at him. "You've always been good at talking, and I doubt anyone could stay mad at you for long, especially without a reason. Everything will work out."

For the first time in a long while a grin of relief found its way to his face. "Thanks." He then frowned once yet again noticing how pale Iruka was. "Are you sure you're okay?"

The man gave him a look that affectively halted any possible further questions, and ruffled his hair. "Yeah, I'm fine." The brunet then winced when looking at the clock. "Now let's go to bed – it's way too late and we've both gotta wake up early in the morning."

He nodded, not knowing what to say.

He couldn't help wondering what was really going on – and if he even wanted to know.

The next morning – which marked his fifth shift in Tengoku – Naruto found new determination from his steps as he entered the ward he worked in, only to practically run into Tsunade.

The woman frowned when looking at him. "Are you alright? You look like you haven't slept at all last night."

He barely even heard – all his concentration was elsewhere. "Is Sasuke in his room?"

Tsunade nodded slowly, something extremely sad flashing in her eyes for a moment. "He had another episode last night. He's not at his most coherent."

He felt cold all over, but managed to keep himself focused. "Can I… talk to him for a moment, before I join the others?" Seeing the woman's sceptical look he went on. "Maybe I can help him, or something."

At first he was sure Tsunade would say 'no', but in the end something clearly made her change her mind. "I'll see you in half an hour."

Barely managing to control his enthusiasm, he nodded and started to dash away.

-

Watching the blond go, Tsunade gave a deep sigh.

She'd made her fair share of mistakes when it came to patients. She hoped dearly pushing these two broken souls closer to each other wouldn't turn out to be one of them.

-

At firt Naruto stood behind the door for several seconds as though not knowing what to do, or perhaps not daring to do what he should've. Then, with a deep breath, he knocked and pushed the door open. As he'd expected, Sasuke lay on a bed, staring at the roof with vacant eyes. The boy wouldn't look his way although he must've heard him coming, and it hurt him more than it should've.

Bracing himself bravely, he took some more steps, eventually slumping to the chair placed only a step away from the bed. He couldn't look at the Uchiha as he spoke. "Look… Lately, I've had these dreams, and…" He sighed heavily, and ran a frustrated hand through his hair. To think that he of all people was having difficulties with finding words…! "I don't know what I've done wrong, but I'm sorry, okay?" His eyes were stinging all of a sudden. "I… I wish I could remember you – I'd want to remember you, because it'd obviously mean a lot to you, but I just can't. Hell, I'm not even sure if I believe there's something to be remembered." He grit his teeth, bracing himself once more. "But… If you won't be anywhere near me, we can't make any new memories, either. And… And I'd want to know you. So…" He grit his teeth. "This… This is stupid, okay?" His lips moved, but no words came. Maybe everything necessary had been said already.

For the longest time nothing happened. Then, so suddenly that he blinked with surprise, Sasuke handed him a note with an expression he couldn't read. Curious as always, he folded the paper open and took a look.

'My name is Sasuke.'

At first he could only stare at the paper. Then, very slowly, a huge smile made its way to his face. Maybe there was still hope, after all.

His eyes all but shining and a grin still on his face, he looked at the raven. Onyx eyes looked back at him with a mixture of emotions he couldn't identify. Without giving it much of a thought – and most likely pushing his luck – he held out a hand for the boy. "C'mon, Sasuke. We're going." When a frown of confusion appeared to the teen's face he went on. "You've been sitting here all alone far too long – you can't keep isolating yourself forever. Today, we'll both join the others."

Sasuke's eyes flashed dangerously, and for a while he was actually afraid of a violent response. In the end, however, the Uchiha only withdrew from him slightly.

But he wasn't discouraged quite that easily. His eyes flashing a little, he took Sasuke's hand and squeezed comfortingly. "I promise you, it won't be as bad as you think. And we'll go there together." He swallowed thickly. "Please, do this – for me."

For the longest time Sasuke remained utterly stiff and unmoving, merely stared at his hand with almost furious eyes. Then, very slowly, the boy got up with such force that it almost shook him off balance. Words weren't needed when onyx orbs found his. 'Fine, I'll do this. But if it all goes wrong it's your damn fault.'

He laughed a little. "Stop looking like that. It can't be that bad."

Sasuke rolled his eyes in response.

Naruto had no idea what was happening to him as they walked out of the room side by side, but he did know one thing. His heart had never been thumping the way it did then. And he could only wonder what it meant.

They never remembered to let go of each other's hand.

Sasuke hated being the centre of attention more than anything else. And that's why he absolutely froze – his face stiffening to a mask of coldness – when the art-room's door was opened, and everyone's eyes turned towards him.

Juugo gave something that sounded like a grunt of happiness or approval, Gaara nodded at him before focusing on painting, Hinata looked towards him and then away with a bright blush, and Haku smiled warmly at him.

Sakura grinned brightly, a shine he'd never seen before appearing to her eyes. "Hey! And welcome to finally join us!"

When Tsunade approached him, only Naruto's firm hold kept him from spinning around and dashing away. In the end she was so close that only he heard. "Hey Sasuke." For a few more moments he remained as stiff as an animal that was about run from its predator, but then something about the woman's expression made him relax slowly. "You don't have to paint if you don't want to – this is your first time here, so you're free to choose what you want to do. But the supplies here are all at your disposal, okay? And you're allowed to wander around and observe."

He nodded slowly, then – even more slowly – took one step forward, then another. No one was looking at him anymore and Naruto was beside him, blabbering something he couldn't focus on. He felt safe, and that was something he'd been missing for a long time.

Careful not to show any emotions – after all, they were a sign of weakness, weren't they? – he walked up to a windowsill and climbed to sit on it. It was the highest spot in the entire room, from which he could see everything. No one would be able to surprise him there, no one would be able to threaten him anymore.

For a moment his eyes rested on Sakura's chillingly beautiful painting – which represented a dead bird – then he found his eyes straying to how Haku's slow, calm movements painted an amazing wintry landscape.

Most of the time, however – no matter how hard he tried to stop himself – his gaze strayed to Naruto, although he felt a painful tug inside with every single glance. His eyes narrowed a little while he brought his knees to his chest and wrapped his arms around them.

You weren't supposed to forget, Naruto. You told me you wouldn't leave. He looked towards the window, barely noticed how sun was shining outside, so bright that it almost blinded him. Why the hell do you keep making me want to trust you?

-

Naruto had never felt as confused as he did that day, while sneaking constant glances towards Sasuke, who had the scarred side of his face towards him while sitting rather high above.

He'd never found it easy to truly connect with people, although he was social and always kind. Some annoying shrink Iruka had told he should meet had even suggested his smile was some sort of a wall against the rest of the world. It was because of his childhood, it'd been explained. It'd taken his friends and Neji several years of hard work to sneak through his barriers.

But now… He'd already bared himself for Sasuke to see, allowed the boy closer than he'd ever been supposed to. He'd done the exact thing Tsunade had warned him about, let a patient too close – and surprisingly enough it made him feel relieved.

Just then he noticed something that certainly caught his attention. Moving as smoothly as if nothing had been going on, Juugo walked on and sat cross-legged right below Sasuke's seat. The raven gave the taller teen a mistrusting glance, but once they'd looked at each other for a second they seemed to accept the other's presence. The two remained in a comfortable silence while Juugo painted and Sasuke sat deep in thought.

Althoug the sight warmed Naruto's heart – it felt good to see Sasuke accept people close to him – it also awoke something dark and unpleasant in his chest and stomach. Something he'd never experienced before that brought a frown to his face with its intensity.

What the heck was wrong with him?!

"If you don't stop gawking at him soon Tsunade will notice." Sakura's mischevious voice brought him back to awareness. She gave him a glance before focusing on her painting. "You two are very cute."

He scoffed. "It's… It's nothing like that", he barely managed to sputter.

Sakura responded with rolling her eyes.

"Don't let her tease you." Haku's soft voice and smile had a soothing affect on his body that'd been tensed up to its extreme all day. The boy's eyes remained on his painting as he spoke. "I think it's wonderful that you have a precious person, Naruto, someone you care about like that. It's not often people find such from a place like this – you're lucky."

At that moment it was deviously easy to forget about the several vivid, painfully deep scars he could see clearly on both of Haku's wrists as the boy's shirt-sleeve moved. He smiled.

Maybe these teenagers weren't as badly messed up as he'd first thought, after all. Perhaps they all had hope – including Sasuke. He found such a thought encouraging.

The following two hours went by rather smoothly, with him not quite managing to keep his eyes away from Sasuke while he kept chatting with Sakura and Haku and watched their artworks progress – as the bird Sakura was painting gained even more shape, and how Haku's dreamy landscape became half-buried by snow. Gaara and Juugo wouldn't have let him anywhere near them, and he didn't want to cause Hinata any further discomfort, so he stayed away from them.

But then he noticed that all of a sudden, after taking a look towards Hinata's painting, Sasuke bounced down from his sitting place and – much to Juugo's dismay – marched out of the room. It took only seconds before his feet moved as well. "I've gotta go to the toilet. I'll be back in a sec, 'k?"

He really wished he only imagined seeing the side of Sakura's mouth twitch. "Knock yourself out and take your time."

Trying his hardest to ignore her words, he spun around and took a step – only to crash straight at Gaara, who was on his way to get some paint. A pair of hazardous eyes met his, making him gulp thickly. "Eh… Sorry."

Gaara merely growled something incoherent.

Figuring that a fast escape was the smartest choice, he started to dash off – only to be stopped by Gaara's voice that surprised him so badly he jumped a little. "You dropped this."

He turned around with a blink, and blinked again when seeing that the boy was a handing a pendant towards him – it was a gray number-plate he'd gotten from the orphanage. 7285 had been his number.

He gave the redhead a somewhat shaky grin while accepting the offering. "Thanks."

"Hn", was the other boy's soul response before he walked off.

"Hey!" He'd been so deep in thought that Sakura's voice managed to startle him. She was looking at his pendant. "Sasuke has a necklace like that, too."

A cold shiver crossed his whole being, and as hard as he tried he couldn't tell what it meant. "He… does?"

Did that mean… that Sasuke had been right all along? That they'd really met before, in that hellhole? It would explain why he hadn't recognized the boy; he couldn't remember a thing about the years he'd spent in that place.

What the hell had happened?

His head was so filled with chaotic thoughts that it wasn't until Hinata ran past him – almost knocking him down – he noticed something was wrong. He didn't even manage to take a proper look at her before she was already out of the room.

Quite slowly – his mind still stiff and slow – he turned his gaze towards where Tsunade was looking at the painting Hinata had been working on. He'd never seen the woman as pale, nearly shocked, as she was then. Her eyes carried several emotions when turning towards a nurse named Rin. "Call Hiashi, and contact Ibiki", she muttered so quietly that he had to strain his ears to catch it.

Rin nodded solemnly and rushed away without a single look around her.

Naruto almost shivered as he watched how Tsunade hurriedly covered the painting, the frown that'd appeared never leaving her face.

Feeling cold all over, he folded his arms.

So it wasn't enough that Neji had lied about Hinata. Now there seemed to be something shady going on, and he had a feeling it was connected to the Hyuuga family. How many and how big skeletons were there in his boyfriend's closet?

He fought the urge to groan as his head started to hurt.

Since when had everything been such a mess?!

About an hour and a half later – still slightly dazed by the events and revelations of that day – Naruto was walking towards the lunchroom when he suddenly heard noises that made him freeze to the spot. At first he couldn't – or perhaps didn't want to – recognize the voices speaking, but quite soon everything was far too clear.

"… painting made Tsunade call Hiashi!" Neji's voice was a hiss, it was impossible to tell what emotions it covered. "Do you have any idea how much trouble you may have gotten us in to?! You've gotta stop making those!"

It sounded like Hinata had been sobbing. "I… I'm sorry, N-Neji. But… But the d-dreams won't l-leave me alone. I… I still k-keep seeing h-him, I can't…" Her voice faded to what sounded like hysterical crying.

There was a small, tense pause. "Just… Just don't ever make a painting like that again, understood? Unless you want us both to pay the price, stop digging the past already."

He wished he could've moved – run away, dash into the room – or at least screamed, but his body was completely paralyzed. And then Neji was stood before him.

For the longest time – too long – they simply stared at each other as though they'd never met before, something terrifyingly powerfull spinning around between them. "I… thought you weren't supposed to be in a morning shift", was what Neji managed to get out in the end.

His throat felt impossibly tight as he stared at his boyfriend, who suddenly looked like a total stranger. Coldness seeped into his whole body. "Neji… What the hell is going on? Why didn't you tell me about her?"

For a couple of moments a look of something beyond horror appeared to Neji's eyes, and the boy took a step backwards. Then, so quickly that it startled him, all signs of emotions disappeared, leaving his boyfriend's face completely stoic. "Honestly, Naruto… You shouldn't ask when you don't want to hear the answer." So saying the boy turned around and started to walk away from him without glancing backwards. "Now, I need to talk to Tsunade. Do us both a favor and forget that you ever saw me here." And so the conversation was closed.

His head was utterly blank as he stared at the boy's distancing back, completely paralyzed.

He'd never felt as betrayed in his entire life.

Much later that evening, Naruto met with Shikamaru, Ino, Kiba and Sai in a park nearby his home. Since Iruka was once again working late, his friends were a good option for listening to him pouring his heart out although they were Neji's friends as well. In one very confusing flood he told about his dreams, about a patient he wanted so desperately to remember, and lastly about Neji and the wall of secrets that'd appeared out of nowhere.

Once he was finished Kiba – who was sitting on the bench next to him, stroking his dog's Akamaru's head – stared at him with somewhat wide eyes. "Wow", was what the boy got out in the end.

Ino, who was sitting on a swing in Shikamaru's lap, gave a growl, her eyes narrowing. "That damn moron…! How can he be keeping secrets from you after all the time you've known each other?! You've always told him everything, even all that…!" She squeezed her lips to a thin line when seeing his expression.

Shikamaru took a tighter hold of Ino – as though to make sure she wouldn't attack someone – and groaned. "This is definitely troublesome."

Sai, who was also sitting on his own swing, sneaking constant glances towards the couple, focused on him. "What are you going to do?"

He groaned, burying his face into his hands. He found it very uncomfortable to talk about his life and emotions like this; even after all the years he'd had friends he hadn't gotten used to this aspect of bonding. "Honestly? I have no idea." His head was already starting to hurt from far too much thinking. Confusing flashes danced by his vision faster than he could process them. "I just… I thought he'd be honest with me." He swallowed laboriously. "How do I know how many secrets he's been keeping from me?"

A sullen silence fell as they all sank into their thoughts. A hand he recognized as Kiba's appeared to his shoulder and squeezed comfortingly.

After a long while of silence Kiba spoke. "You know what?" Even without looking he sensed the boy's grin. "There's no use in dwelling in misery out here – it's too damn cold. This calls for some strong coffee at Ichiraku's."

Akamaru barked in agreement.

For a moment Naruto almost agreed, but in the end surprised himself with shaking his head. Something that felt like determination flowed through him. "Nah, thanks, but maybe some other time. There's something I need to do."

When sneaking into Tengoku, which was eerily dark and quiet with some of the kids asleep and evening shift having taken over, Naruto was beyond relieved to notice that no one saw him. The last thing he needed was questions – even he didn't know what exactly he was doing.

His feet, on the other hand, held no hesitation. And in a moment he found himself right outside the door of a common space, from which the torturously and comfortingly familiar melody he'd heard Sasuke play flowed. His heart jumped a little as he took a step forward.

Inside, the Uchiha was indeed playing, his fingers moving in a heated speed. Naruto had never experienced the kind of reactions his body gave as he stood there listening – the sensations were almost enough to scare him, but he couldn't walk away.

Unable to hold himself back he approached. "Hey. Nice to see you playing again." He wished he would've managed to come up with something more intelligent, but his head just wouldn't work right.

Sasuke gave him a look of slight surprise and some mistrust, but didn't move away. A note was handed to him.

'What are you doing here this late?'

He tried to grin a little, but it didn't come out right. "I… was nearby, that's all." He then glanced towards the piano. "I've always wanted to learn to play that thing." He looked at Sasuke, who seemed to be drifting in a world of his own. The melody the boy had been playing still swirled everywhere inside him, sizzling in his mouth and tingling his skin. "Could you teach me?"

At first the Uchiha turned his gaze and looked at him with amusement, as though he'd dropped there from some another planet. Then, slowly and with great caution, the boy moved a little to give him room.

His heart jumped a little although he couldn't understand why as he slid to the seat. They both tensed up when his hand brushed the raven's while his fingers ghosted above the keys. "Sorry…", he muttered, although it was slightly unclear for what he was apologizing. He swallowed thickly, unable to turn his gaze towards the other. "I… guess we'll have to take this thing from the scratch, huh?"

Sasuke didn't respond, didn't even look towards him. Instead the boy's fingers started to move – first so fast that his eyes barely managed to follow them, then much more slowly, barely traceably making sure he was able to follow the lead.

A tiny smile tugged the corners of his lips. So the Uchiha was too proud to help him openly.

He was disappointed to discover that the melody they practiced wasn't the one Sasuke played – this one was much simpler, one meant for beginners. But surprisingly enough he didn't manage to feel down for long; apparently playing this song with the Uchiha gave him the same thrill.

Quite willingly he allowed himself to sink into the combination of sensations – the music, the keys underneath his fingers, the way Sasuke's fingers moved, the Uchiha's soft scent, the strange and very pleasant taste that lingered in his mouth for some reason.

At the moment everything was perfect – no secrets, lies and worries existed. All he could focus on was Sasuke. It felt incredibly good to feel that there was no place in world where he would've rather been, and Sasuke didn't seem to be in any sort of a hurry to leave, either.

In some other situation he might've smirked with amusement. He should've known that two people as messed up as they shared a melody.

He barely even noticed how they leaned slightly closer to each other.

-

Tsunade yawned rather loudly and grumpily while entering the building and stomping through the hallways. One glance towards her old wrist-watch confirmed her darkest assumptions.

It was almost eleven. She hoped for both their sake that Shizune had one hell of a reason to call her when she'd for once fallen asleep before the little hours.

She wasn't exactly ecstatic when finding her employee stood by the door of one of the building's common spaces. "Now what?"

Shizune had a strange expression on her face she didn't quite manage to read; the woman seemed excited and terrified at the same time. "I really think you should see this."

Her curiosity awakening, she peered into the room – and barely managed to believe her eyes. Inside Naruto and Sasuke sat playing a piano, the raven leading and the blond following rather clumsily yet keenly. Together their fingers created a bizarre dance of some sort.

"They've been like that for three hours." Shizune glanced towards her. "Do you think we should send them to bed already?"

For a long moment she simply looked at the boys, then nodded very slowly. A rare smile danced on her lips. "Let them play. It's good to see that they've finally had enough of silence." She then stretched and allowed herself a yawn. "I'm going back to my bed now, okay? Call me if they start ripping each other's hair out or something as unpleasant." It'd be nice to fall asleep with that sight on her mind.

Naruto had absolutely no clue how long he'd been playing with Sasuke, until he heard a voice that immediately chilled him to the bone. "Why is that trainee still here – and why isn't the patient in his room?"

He could almost hear how Shizune grit her teeht. "Danzo, Tsunade…!"

"…often doesn't know what she's doing." The room's temperature suddenly dropped significantly. "You're just a nurse, I'm a doctor. So stop questioning my authority and get the medication before I've officially had enough with you."

The music they'd been playing stopped abruptly as Sasuke tensed up completely. If he would've dared to, Naruto would've placed his hand above the raven's. He wasn't feeling much better himsef. He knew he was doing something more or less forbidden at the moment; he might be getting into a lot of trouble.

"You." Turning towards the menacing voice, he met a rather old man who had one of his chilling eyes covered. The visible eye was glaring straight at him. "If you value your job here, get out right now. You have no business hanging around patients after working hours."

He gulped somewhat thickly, subconsciously moving so that he was covering Sasuke the best as he could. "We… were just playing, okay?"

The man's face didn't soften. "It doesn't matter what you were doing. You're leaving, now – it's high time the patient gets his medication for the night."

Just then Shizune appeared with clearly apparent reluctance, carrying a needle. Naruto could tell both she and he felt just as helpless when watching how the man grabbed the needle – almost hurting Shizune while doing so – and plunged it to Sasuke's arm so that the teen jolted visibly.

At that moment Naruto couldn't hold himself back any longer. "What the hell are you doing to him?!" he shrieked while fighting not to just rip Sasuke from the man's reach.

"I have no need to explain my deeds to some summer-worker", the man growled, then grabbed Sasuke's shoulder, pulled the teen up and all but glared at the boy. "I need you to look at me so I can make sure the medication is taking affect. Do you understand?"

Instead of the man, Sasuke's slightly hazy, yet flaming eyes found his. For a couple of moments he saw emotions he couldn't understand in Sasuke's eyes, until the onyx orbs turned completely cloudy and unfocused as the drug kicked in. The raven fell against Danzo without a will, damp black locks falling to hide his face.

Naruto opened his mouth, wanting to say something – anything – to help Sasuke, but in the end he didn't have the words.

And so he merely brushed Sasuke's limp hand once more and sent a sharp glare towards Danzo. "I'll tell Tsunade about this."

The man's expression didn't weaver. "You do that, and you'll never see your little friend again. Now beat it."

-

Sasuke didn't have the strength or desire to lift his head as Naruto's steps distanced, eventually fading away completely. He felt sick to his stomach all of a sudden, and covered it with a grimace. In years he hadn't been as close to screaming.

This couldn't be happening again…

He barely heard what was going on around him as someone entered the room.

"Is the nurse out of the picture?" Danzo inquired in a tense voice.

The arrival sounded annoyed. "Yes – I made sure she had business elsewhere."

"Good. Did you bring it?"

There was a grunt of disapproval. "Of course I did. How amateur do you think I am."

Danzo snorted. "I'm not even going to answer that one."

He refused to move or open his eyes when someone approached and whispered to his ear. "You know the thrill – hold absolutely still and this will hurt much less."

He didn't even flinch when a needle pierced the skin of his neck, the searing liquid sending his head spinning.

As soon as Naruto made it home, he was alarmed when finding the house dark and empty.

Yes, Iruka sometimes worked very late. But never this late.

Swallowing thickly, he stepped inside and closed the door, his hand trembling a little. "Iruka?" His voice didn't sound familiar.

Was his foster father already asleep? He then shook his head at that thought. No – the man wouldn't have gone to bed before he was home.

He was just about to call out again when he finally realized that their phone had been ringing. He managed to take one step before the answering machine snapped to life. In moments a male-voice he didn't recognize floated into the house, filling absolutely everything. "Naruto, I hope you'll get this message soon. This is doctor Hatake Kakashi from Konoha's general hospital. I'm calling about Iruka Umino – your name was the only one we could find from his papers." The man sighed heavily. "You should come to the hospital as soon as possible."

While the rest of Tengoku slept more or less peacefully, Sasuke's world was anything but silent and calm. His whole body shook and his eyes were squeezed tightly shut while he sat in a corner of his room, his hands – which were pressed tightly to his ears – working as his only shield against the menacing whispers inside.

'How pathetic. He doesn't even remember you and still he's filling your head.'

His lips opened, but the words just wouldn't come. How were they supposed to when he couldn't even bring himself to believe in them?

'He got scarred because of you once. Do you honestly think he wants to face it all again – just because of you? He will never care about you.'

He gasped faintly as the little strength he'd had faded away, leaving him weaker than he ever remembered being. His eyes opened halfway, then narrowed. He was too fucking tired for this.

'It's about time you face the truth – you're no child anymore. You're all alone, Sasuke-kun, and that's the way you'll always be. He isn't going to save you.'

Slowly yet surely, his body numbed to accept that harsh reality. He winced at the bitter taste in his mouth, and wondered vaguely if he'd thrown up.

'I'm the only one you've got. You did try to send me away, but that's alright – after all, this way I'm even closer to you. It's such a pleasure to marvel your face from here. No matter what I did, you're still a very, very pretty boy.'

His eyes flashed with such disgust that shouldn't have fit to any human standards.

So that bastard still thought he was beautiful? In that case, there was only one thing he could still do to fight back.

He got up valiantly although his legs barely supported his weight, and made his way to the mirror someone had left hanging on the room's wall. He was beyond relieved it was so dark that he could only see his own silhuette.

He'd make damn sure he'd be no pleasure to that monster's eyes anymore. He'd prove that he was no one's toy.

With one, mighty blow his fist shattered the huge mirror to tens of sharp little pieces.

TBC, no?

A/N: Awww man… (winces) The cliffies are back, and just as mean as ever. (screams and runs from thrown weapons)

Eh… Somehow I've got a feeling that I should run for my life, but first… PLEASE, do leave a review to let me know what you thought about this one! It'd seriously make my day, ya know? And I've got some cookies here… (wink, wink)

IN THE NEXT ONE: Several scars need healing as past and future both show their claws. Tears and heartbreak are bound occur, but there's also a scream of hope. (WOW! Now that was cryptic…)

Until next time, folks – 'hope I'll see a lot of familiar faces then!

Be good!

sylvir: I hope you don't mind me responding this way. I just really wanted to thank you for the review and I couldn't PM you, so… (grins sheepishly)

My GOSH, how happy your review made me! (beams, and hugs) I TRIED TO choose characters to the gang who could've easily had mental issues in the anime (a process which I had a lot of fun with, too). I'm so glad to hear you think I've at least somewhat succeeded! (grins) And I'm thrilled to hear you enjoyed that 'interaction scene' (for the lack of a better way to call it); I had a lot of fun writing it.

And now we've got a whole bunch of mysteries and secrets. (shudders) 'Wonder what'll have when all skeletons come crashing down from their closets…

Monumental thank yous for the fabulous review!

I really hope you'll be staying tuned and still excited for more.

ps: Heh, I HATE discontinuing stories, so I try my hardest to work my stories all the way through (for the sake of readers, and my sanity). I'm flattered to hear you appreciate that. (grins) And no worries! With the spur of inspiration and all the ideas I have at the moment, this story will definitely be completed as well unless readers want it to be torn down. (nod, nod)