To Reach A Person
Chapter Five
Naruto followed Sasuke as he was being led to the dungeons. He couldn't help it, he was his best friend! BFFs for life! He probably should be studying on how to become a hokage someday, but there were more important things, dammit! Things like Sasuke were first priorities in his book. Swiftly, he hid himself as Tsunade tied Sasuke up again and shoved him into small prison cell. She locked it behind him.
"There. You won't be able to see for awhile because your Sharingan and Rinnegan are restrained. Should you try to fight it, well..." she paused, "you'll go permanently blind. So, you better not screw around with me, Uchiha." she scolds, "it's also dark, so you won't be as sensitive to light. Goodbye, Sasuke. For now." She walks away and Naruto steps out of the shadows. Sasuke, without the ability to see anything, turns to him.
Uh oh.
"I know you're there, Naruto. Don't hide from me. I can sense you even without your chakra...or my eyes." He points out, and Naruto curses himself for being so careless.
"Yeah, yeah," he mumbles, despite himself, "so what? It's not like you can do anything when your corpse is gonna rot in that cell." He points out, but Sasuke doesn't take the hint. He opens the door and locks it behind him, sitting next to his lifetime rival.
"Why're you here? Shouldn't you be with Hinata? Or Sakura?" Sasuke asks, shaking a little from the cold.
"Nah, not now. Not when you're hurt." Naruto says, putting a hand on his thigh. Sasuke flinches. "You OK, bastard? I don't want you to kill yourself after our battle."
"Hmph. You're hurt, too. Don't act like I'm the only one." Sasuke snarls, yanking his hand away and inching at least a foot away from Naruto. The blonde growls, and says defensively,
"S - shut up! I - I...I care, OK? When you were alone, I helped you because I wanted to! You mean the world to me, even if you are a bastard. You're MY bastard!" he says, without meaning to say the last part. Too late, now. Sasuke turns red in the face and looks away, angrily.
"What're you getting at, dobe? Wasting your time on me is pointless. I'm not worth it." he says quietly.
Silence.
Hoping to cheer the atmosphere, Naruto says, "Don't be so down in the dumps! I'm just saying that...you know. You're my best friend. If you weren't, well...I wouldn't be with you right now." Of course. Only Naruto would say something like that. His friend-zones are getting old really quickly. Sasuke can practically feel it spreading all around; suffocating him. "...Dobe. I've tried killing you a multitude of times. And yet, you still want to save me?
Why?"
He croaked the last words, wondering why someone like Naruto, so innocent, so full of life, would protect a traitor like him with his life. "Hey, what are friends for!" Naruto replies halfheartedly, "Once upon a time we were a team. We work together no matter how old we are. It doesn't matter if we're so old we can't move! I'll still be there for you anyways!" Sasuke laughs again. He wished he could be so carefree about the world. Wishing, but not wanting. "I admit, that's sort of...cute." he says, blushing, "What about your wife? Your children?" he asks, wondering himself what Naruto would do in that kind of situation.
"I told you already! I'm not gonna worry about that kind of stuff until I become hokage!" Naruto responds, with a fox-like grin.
Oh, that's right.
'Should I really be brooding over if the dobe is married or not? Or is it because I want it to be me, not just some woman?' Sasuke thinks, reflecting on their previous conversation.
'Who am I kidding, I should be repopulating my clan, not living with the deadlast. MY dobe.'
"...Goodbye, Naruto. You can see me tomorrow. Knowing you, you probably will, idiot." he says with a smirk, and Naruto closes the door behind him. But not without a wave and a wink.
Once Naruto's left the dungeon, he's bombarded with questions from yours truly (Sakura).
"How is he? Is he OK? Is he-" Sakura asks, shaking him desperately.
"He's fine, Sakura," he says, narrowing his eyes. "Bet you didn't even wonder how I felt. How I felt when he punched me with a chidori. How I felt when I almost lost a teammate of mine?" Sakura's eyes widen in realization.
"I - I'm so sorry, I-!"
"If you were sorry, you wouldn't have confessed your fake love to me in the first place," he growls, his teeth sharpening, his cheeks digging deeper into his cheeks.
"I ThOuGht wE wERe fRiEnDs!" he roars in Kyuubi's voice. Sakura shivers under his grip.
He realized he shouldn't have bashed her. Heck, she was there with him when Sasuke left. But, that was only BECAUSE he left. She wouldn't have bothered teaming up with him willingly otherwise. The thought makes him feel bittersweet.
"Naruto, that's enough!" Kakashi says, standing between him and her. Naruto calms down, willing the Kyuubi away from his body. No, he can't go berserk again. He's still human, he just has to show it. So, he smiles. His bangs shadows his eyes and he slumps against the wall. "Sorry, sensei, Sakura. I-I'd better get going," finding an excuse and running away from them.