Okay, here's the sixth chapter of For Naruto, Whenever I May Find Him. This one's a little bit longer, to make up for that last, shorter chapter. I'm sorry it's a little late, too. Anyway, thank you to all of those who reviewed, and now on with the chapter!

6. I Am a Rock, I Am an Island

Sasuke Uchiha awoke the next morning filled with an undying hatred for the world. He had only caught a few hours of sleep that night, the rest of it devoted to constant tossing and turning; at least, that's what Sasuke assumed from the navy sheets and pillows that were strewn across the floor. It also didn't help that the first sound he heard that day was that of "Sunshine, Lollipops, and Rainbows" blaring right next to his ear. Of course, this sound was quickly silenced, as Sasuke yanked his alarm clock from the wall and tossed it against the wall was all his groggy might.

Fucking radio…

With that pleasant thought, Sasuke rolled out of bed and wandered across the hallway to the bathroom, where he took a quick glance at his reflection in the mirror. To put it lightly, he was not pleased with what he saw: heavy bags under his eyes, jet-black hair that stood up rather awkwardly on one side, and his bare chest covered with the impressions of his tangled sheets. Truly, he was a mess, and the Uchiha could only hope that a shower would help somewhat in restoring his image.

Thus, with a disgruntled sigh, Sasuke dropped his dark, blue boxers to the ground and hopped into the shower, where he let the hot water rush over his body. For a minute he simply stood there beneath the showerhead and watched as the water ran in little streams off his hair, his mind swimming with thoughts. He knew perfectly well why he had not been able to sleep the night before, and it was something that he could not simply ignore.

Naruto Uzumaki… I avoided you yesterday. I didn't talk to you. I didn't even see you… so why the hell can't I stop thinking about you. Is there something wrong with me? I've lived for sixteen years not knowing the slightest bit about him, so why, all of a sudden, do I need to know everything about him? What is so damn interesting!

Sasuke found the whole ordeal to be quite frustrating, but knew that he couldn't dwell on the matter forever and reached for the soap. As he lathered up, the Uchiha's mind continued to drift in spite of himself back to the subject of the blond. Every few moments the angsty teen shook the thoughts from his mind, but he found the attempts to be futile.

After all, Sasuke was not used to having someone bother him like this. It was almost an obsession, really, this need to understand just who Naruto was. How much of the blond's personality was just a carefully calculated act, a façade that he put on for the rest of the world? He knew there was something more to the blond, some deeply sensitive side of which he had only scratched the surface.

Of course, even if Sasuke acknowledged his interest in Naruto, the question remained why he had such a strong curiosity to begin with. Did he really feel such a strong connection with him just because of their tortured pasts? It was possible, Sasuke knew, but somehow it didn't seem sufficient. Whatever the case, though, the Uchiha knew he would simply have to avoid Naruto at all costs. Out of sight, out of mind, as the saying goes.

Thus, as he washed the foaming shampoo out of his raven-hair, Sasuke felt a renewed determination to keep the blond out of his life. Hopefully, with a bit of effort, he would be able to move past this little obstacle and return to his simple existence. Shutting the water off, Sasuke then stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around his waist before starting for his bedroom. With drops of water forming a small, dark spot on his sapphire carpet, the Uchiha quickly dried off and walked over to his dresser, where he dug around for something that screamed, "stay the hell away."

Alright… black ought to do. All black. No… that's a bit extreme. Just nothing orange…

Ultimately, Sasuke threw on a simple black tee and stepped into some blue jeans; hopefully he could blend in with such an unassuming ensemble. Feeling adequately prepared for the day, the raven-haired boy made his way downstairs to the kitchen, where he poured himself a bowl Cheerios. He munched on these for a while at the table and, still feeling somewhat groggy, did not immediately notice his brother staring at him with a satisfied smirk.

"So, Sasuke, are you going to see your boyfriend again today?" Itachi asked, his eyes narrowing with sadistic pleasure.

"What?" the young Uchiha asked, looking up from his cereal. "What are you talking about?"

"You know, that blond who stopped by the other day. He is your boyfriend, isn't he?"

"No," Sasuke snapped, stuffing a spoonful of cereal into his mouth. "Now shut up."

"Oh, a little touchy this morning, aren't we?" Itachi continued, his smile seemingly glued to his face. "I just assumed that you went to visit him the other night when you came home so late."

"Well, you were wrong, all right?"

"Hm, maybe… but that was who you were with, wasn't it?" the elder Uchiha said, titling his head to the side.

Sasuke sighed, knowing that his brother would not get off his case unless he gave a straight answer. "Yeah, I bought him dinner, but I was just apologizing to him. Now, can I finish my breakfast, or aren't you done being an asshole?"

"Ah, I get it now. You two aren't official yet. Be sure to keep me updated."

Sasuke did not bother to argue with Itachi, but instead turned his attention back to his Cheerios, scooping them into his mouth with an almost robotic monotony. He knew that Itachi was just trying to get a reaction out of his little brother, bringing up Naruto like that; after all, just a few days before Itachi had attributed Sasuke's nosebleed to a pretty girl. In spite of this, though, the young Uchiha could not help but feel a bit perturbed by his brother's words. It had never occurred to Sasuke that his feelings for Naruto might go beyond a simple friendly interest, and as much as he tried, he could not deny that the possibility existed.

Even though Sasuke had never had a romantic interest in his past, his raging, teenage hormones and the wonders of the internet had revealed long ago that he was, in fact, gay. He had accepted this about himself; not that it made much of a difference, since he never planned to get close enough to anyone for such things to matter. Of course, he didn't exactly announce it to the world, either. As far as Sasuke was concerned, they had no need to know, and telling them would only needlessly complicate things.

Shikamaru was probably the only one Sasuke could think of who might possibly know about his homosexuality, but even then it had never really been discussed. If the lazy genius knew at all, it was through his own intuition, and he never bothered to ask about it.

Probably too "troublesome" a subject…

The fact that Sasuke rarely thought about love, then, made Itachi's accusation all the more jarring for the young Uchiha. It was such a drastic jump from a simple friendship, which was bad enough, that Sasuke momentarily panicked.

There's no way it can be true… I only just met him the other day. I can't be in love with him. No… it's just Itachi; no need to take him seriously. Just stick to the plan: avoid Naruto.

"Well, are you coming then, Sasuke?"

Hearing his brother's voice, Sasuke snapped out of his thoughts and realized that he had been sitting at the table, staring at his empty bowl for roughly five minutes. Itachi was waiting by the door, spinning the car keys on his finger impatiently.

"You did still want a ride to school, right?" Itachi asked, seemingly satisfied at his brother's spaciness.

Sasuke made no response, but instead slid out of his chair and grabbed his backpack before joining the elder Uchiha by the door. With a soft chuckle, Itachi started out the door, locking it behind him, and alongside his brother started for the sleek, silver Lamborghini parked in the driveway. With the press of a button, the doors were unlocked and Sasuke hopped into the backseat. He knew better than to call shotgun, since Itachi would have to pick up his coworker, Kisame Hoshigaki, on the way.

Thus, the Uchiha brothers drove on in silence, Sasuke resting his head against the window while Itachi focused on the road. Before long, they arrived at a somewhat smaller mansion, where an eerie, blue-skinned man stood waiting. They stopped for only a moment to pick up the passenger, who looked over his shoulder at Sasuke with a full smile.

"Hey, short-stuff," the new arrival said with a throaty laugh.

"Tsk–" came Sasuke's curt reply, not even bothering to avert his eyes from the window.

Indeed, Sasuke did not particularly care for Kisame. To be fair, his only experience with the man came from these five minute drives to school, but the young Uchiha felt that it was enough to make a proper assessment. From the blue skin to the gill-like marks on his face, Kisame was simply disturbing to look at, and from what Sasuke heard his personality was not much better. Ever abrasive, the shark-man was quick to pick a fight, which only grew worse when he was drunk. It was this last detail that resulted in this carpool to begin with, as Kisame had one too many DUIs under his belt.

What was even more mysterious about this passenger, however, was the fact that he was one of the co-owners of the greatest weapons manufacturing company in the world. Sasuke wouldn't have believed it himself if it weren't for the black business suit, bearing the distinct Akatsuki Corp. red cloud insignia on the lapel. Regardless, the young Uchiha found everything about Kisame to be a bit "fishy."

"Sasuke's in a particularly sour mood this morning, isn't he?" Kisame asked, glancing over at the elder Uchiha.

"He's just sexually frustrated about his new boyfriend. You know how those teenage hormones are."

"Is that so? Who's the lucky guy, Sasuke?"

"Fuck off," Sasuke muttered, shooting the fish-man an icy glare.

"I think you hit the nail on the head, Itachi," Kisame said with a broad grin.

"What can I say? I know how my little brother thinks."

Sasuke tried his best to ignore the duo, but he found that it was difficult when they were teaming up on him like this. Thus, when he saw Konoha High approaching on the right, he did not even wait for the car to come to a complete stop, but tumbled out with backpack in hand. Just before he could get out of earshot, though, he heard Itachi shout one final taunt.

"Say hi to your boy-toy for me!"

With that, the Lamborghini sped off into the distance, leaving Sasuke to storm off to class, narrowing his eyes in dangerous frustration. For a few seconds he was prepared to kill any living being that got in his way, running through his mind all of the ways he would like to deal with his beloved brother.

Right in the throat… that's the spot. See how many smart-ass comments you can make then, Itachi…

By the time he had reached his world history class with Kurenai Yuhi, though, Sasuke's burning rage had diminished, for shortly after taking his seat his attention shifted to a certain blond sitting across the room. Sasuke didn't dare to actually look in that direction, but he could feel Naruto's presence there, could feel his eyes boring a hole in the back of his head, and it was physically irritating. Every second he sat during that lecture, he felt this itching desire to turn towards the blond, just to see if he was actually watching him, or if it was all a figment of Sasuke's imagination.

The Uchiha was able to resist this urge, however, overwhelming his desires with sheer willpower, so that to anyone else he appeared to simply be bored with class. Sasuke was actually quite pleased with his act, as he was even able to answer a question about the Mongols when asked, all without breaking a sweat.

Maybe forgetting about Naruto won't be so hard after all…

As the day wore on, though, Sasuke realized that he was only kidding himself. He was fortunate that his next class, statistics with Asuma Sarutobi, was Naruto-free, and all he had to do was sprint to keep away from the blond in PE with Maito Gai. At lunch, though, things did not go so smoothly. Despite surrounding himself with his screeching fanclub, Sasuke found that he could still pick out Naruto's voice over the din. He tried to actually focus on Sakura and Ino's discussion, but his mind would drift back to the blond's animated discussion across the room. It was incredibly annoying, and it eventually got to the point where the Uchiha was forced to leave the room, throwing his half-eaten lunch into the trash.

"Dammit," Sasuke muttered, taking a seat on the floor beside his locker. "This wasn't supposed to be this hard…"

For a moment, Sasuke considered analyzing what he was feeling so that he might understand how to better tackle the situation. It wasn't a bad idea, really, but to prospect of what the raven-haired boy might discover scared him. Thus, Sasuke simply rose from the floor just as the school bell rang, giving him five minutes to reach his next class.

The next two classes were quite painful for the Uchiha, for even though Naruto was not present, Sasuke was anxious for his final obstacle: English with Kakashi. It was the last class of the day, and he knew that Naruto would be there, sitting right beside him, with Kakashi studying them all the while.

There's no way to hide it from him… Kakashi will know that something's up with me and Naruto. He'll see it right away, and he won't just let it go either. Maybe I can just skip it…

He knew it wasn't really an option, and as Ebisu lectured on about the inner workings of government, Sasuke tried to mentally prepare himself for what was bound to be the hardest part of his day. If he gave up now, he would be admitting that Naruto had a hold on him, and Sasuke had no intention of letting that happen. He could deal with Kakashi; it would be annoying, granted, but he could do it. It wouldn't be the first time the teacher tried to force a relationship down his throat, and it certainly wouldn't be the last. As long as he could make it through the next class without looking at the blond, he would be free.

With this determination, Sasuke left Ebisu's class and started down the hall, pausing for a moment outside of Kakashi's room. He took a deep, soothing breath, and then burst into the room, starting straight for his seat. There was a brief flash of yellow to his right, but he did not let his eyes rest upon it and instead stared intently at the blank blackboard.

Naruto's here… this is it…

Indeed, as this thought crossed his mind, Sasuke was startled as the classroom door swung open once again as a tall, silver-haired man entered the room. He had his face buried in what was clearly a hentai novel, a mask covering his mouth, and a scar running vertically through his left eye that gave him a certain enigmatic quality. Sasuke did not need to look up to know who this new arrival was, however, for a simple glance at his watch told him that the man was a good ten minutes late.

It's Kakashi all right…

Indeed, Mr. Hatake had arrived, and all conversation dwindled to a few murmurs as he clapped his book shut and shoved the dirty novel into his back pocket. He scanned the class briefly, a hint of a smile showing through his mask.

"Sorry I'm late, class. I got a little lost on the road of life."

The class groaned in unison, having heard Kakashi's infamous excuses several times in the past, and simply pulled out their notebooks as they prepared for their lecture. Satisfied with this, the eccentric teacher picked up his chalk and began to scribble notes on the board regarding various parts of speech. Sasuke was familiar with all of these, and did not even bother to take out his notes, but instead glared at the back of Kakashi's head.

He hasn't noticed anything yet… I can do this…

Fifteen minutes went surprisingly quickly, as Sasuke was able to focus on his resentment of Kakashi and ignore the blond to his immediate right. Around this point, though, the teacher turned and faced the class, reading a passage from "Tintern Abbey," forcing Sasuke to hide his glower and the bitterness that went with it. At this point, he suddenly became painfully aware of a certain set of eyes fixed upon him. It was the moment he had been dreading, and Sasuke tried to focus on Kakashi's words, feigning interest as much as he possibly could.

"That best portion of a good man's life, His little nameless…" dammit, Naruto. Turn around or something!

Sasuke knew that Naruto wasn't actually staring at him, per se; he also had to pay attention to Kakashi's lecture, after all. But he knew that, every few minutes, the blond's gaze would drift to the side, almost as if he was studying Sasuke intently. It was horribly distracting, and the Uchiha suddenly felt somewhat feverish, knowing that there was nothing he could do about it. He glanced at his watch, hoping that he only had to endure this torture for a few more minutes, but found that it was only 2:35. Sighing, Sasuke turned his head to the left and scratched the back of his head, still struggling to take Naruto off his mind.

Why is he staring at me? Is he just trying to drive me crazy?

This inner debate continued for a few minutes, with Sasuke catching glimpses of the blond in his peripheral vision. Each time, Naruto was casting him a sideways glance as he pretended to follow along with the poem.

Then it happened: Sasuke snapped. He could not take it any longer, and finally turned his head to the right, and locked eyes with Naruto. They stared at each other for a moment, both startled by the sudden act, when the vulpine boy's eyes widened in realization. Sasuke in no way liked this change, but was unable to consider its meaning for long, as Kakashi had apparently noticed the two teens' exchange.

"Naruto, Sasuke, can I have you two pay attention, please? You can go back to ogling each other later," Kakashi said, much to the amusement of the class.

Sasuke shot a nasty look at the teacher as he went back to reading, while Naruto blushed profusely in his seat. This altered complexion only added to the young Uchiha's worries, and as the final bell rang, he knew that he would need some help with this predicament. Shikamaru wouldn't do, but Sasuke did have one other confidant that he knew would be of service.

I think it's time to talk to O…

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Well, there you have it. Be sure to review, and stay tuned for the next chapter.