Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

IMPORTANT: If everyone who reads this chap leaves a review, be it just to say hi, I swear to god I'll give you another JLH update tomorrow or the next day. And BELIEVE ME, the next chapter will throw you for a loop XD If there's over 100, who knows... there might be a love confession? Haha, I like to bribe XD

So. Much. Stress. :Cries: I had to give up writing Plastic Cafe for a while so I could finish this and KWSC up... but I feel so bad!

But... at least I'm making you guys happy, right?

Sasuke rolled over in his bed and opened his eyes, the heat of his room finally getting to him. Sitting up, he stripped himself of his black t-shirt and climbed out of bed, trudging to the hallway where the air conditioning dial was. As he walked through the shadows, he felt as if someone was watching him, the hair on the back of his neck standing up.

He didn't believe in ghosts or spirits, so he brushed the feeling off like it was nothing and proceded to turn the air on. He scratched his shoulder and turned to go back into his room, but stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Sanji-sensei standing in the doorway, his outline illuminated by the aquarium in Sasuke's bedroom.

The raven stepped back and slowly blinked his eyes, knowing that the man really wasn't there. He used to have hallucinations of him all the time and this time wasn't any different. He schooled his face into a blank expression, hoping that his delusion would just take a hint and leave. He wanted to forget his old lover, let him know that he'd moved on, that he no longer cared.

But have I moved on?

"Otouto?"

Sasuke glanced away from his illusion to see Itachi standing in his own bedroom doorway in a pair of long black, silky boxers. The weasal pushed himself forward when he saw the tired and frustrated look in his younger brother's eyes. He saw that expression many times before.

Sasuke looked back at his doorway and Sanji-sensei was gone, the only thing there being the reflection of himself in the mirror across the room.

xXxXx

Itachi lowered a plate of pancakes in front of his brother, smiling down at him like he so rarely did. Every time Sasuke was upset or confused, Itachi would make a batch of pancakes; it was a tradition of theirs, you could say. Sitting in the chair beside Sasuke, he watched as the younger male wolfed down the food.

Not many saw beyond Sasuke's sophisticated demeanor; saw how human he really was.

"You saw him in your room again, yes?" he sat his chin atop his laced fingers.

Sasuke stopped his eating long enough to nod his head and swallow. "I... I'm in love with Naruto, so why do I still see Sanji-sensei? It's not guilt, so--"

"There's one last thing you must do before you can completely move on," Itachi replied quickly, pouring himself a cup of coffee. "Think about what else needs to be done."

Sasuke furrowed his brows and finished up his meal. "Needs to be done? But..." his eyes widened suddenly and the memory of Sanji-sensei's wife driving in a different direction that day came to his mind. He clutched his fork and stared at his reflection on Itachi's glazed coffee mug. "His wife..."

Itachi leaned back in his chair. "She's still alive. I think you should see her and clear things up. Maybe you should even take Naruto-kun? To embrace such a problem with him would be a huge step in your recovery."

Sasuke let a smirk slip onto his face. "So you're a psychologist now, Aniki?"

"An older brother must always be prepared for any situation," the weasal mused.

"Weasal-saaaaann!" Hidan called from the depths of Itachi's bedroom. "Where'd ya go?.!"

Itachi sighed.

xXxXx

"You want me to what?" Naruto cried in disbelief, mouth agape. He'd been asked to do a lot of things during his life, but being invited to go along with his friend to visit a dead man's wife was sort of different from most favors asked of him. He almost choked on the rice he was eating.

"I want you to accompany me to Sanji-san's home today. I need to speak to her about Sanji-sensei's death. She has a right to know who I am," the raven said as he picked at his own bowl of rice. He wasn't too hungry since he's just had a pile of fattening pancakes five hours earlier. "It's alright if you don't want to go, Dobe."

Naruto snapped his mouth shut, looked up in thought, then began speaking. "I'm just suprised that you're asking me, of all people. Why not Itachi? Or even Kakashi? You've known them longer."

"If you don't want to go, then--"

"No, no, I wanna go!" Naruto sat his bowl of rice down. "So... today?"

Sasuke nodded and placed his own bowl on the table next to the blond's. "The premeire's tomorrow, so I need to do this today."

Naruto laughed. "Who puts up posters and starts commercials the day before a movie comes out?"

Sasuke let a smile cross his lips when he heard the beautiful sound. Oh, he had it bad. "Apparently my aniki. Now, come on, it's a two hour drive to her home and I have to be back before dinner."

"WHAT? We're leaving now?" The blond groaned. "But I have to pick Silo up from school today!"

"I'll call Kakashi and tell him to do it for you. Now, come on."

"You sure are pushy today," Naruto grumbled and let himself be taken out of the building. He didn't even know why he was going along, he had more important things to do.

xXxXx

Well, for someone who hadn't wanted to go, Naruto sure was having a fun time. He'd taken the liberty to drive, meaning he got to control Sasuke's kick ass red Lotus car and grin to all the drivers they passed, acting as if the automobile was his. The raven found it amusing and just let the idiot make a fool out of himself, admitting to himself that he was actually very fond of the blond's stupidity.

"Let's listen to some music, huh? There's going to be a lot of drama once we get there, so why not have some fun beforehand! Dattebayo!" Naruto yanked his ipod out of his side pocket (he'd bought it the other day), and hooked it up to the radio with a special cord he had in his other pocket. Sasuke stared, surprised that Naruto kept that thing with him.

"Don't put on anything vulgar," Sasuke snorted, crossing his arms and closing his eyes as the air conditioning washed over his warm face.

"Oooh, this was my favorite song a few months back!" Naruto swired his finger around the sensitive pad of his device and pushed play, grinning like a moron as a little beat started. He twisted the volume knob and blasted the base, apparently wanting to give Sasuke a heart attack before he could reach Sanji-san's home.

Sasuke rolled his eyes and unconsciously clutched his chest, having always hated the Japanese gangstas who would drive by him in the evenings, blaring their overbearingly loud American rap music. The loud bass always made it feel like his heart was going to explode.

Naruto rolled down the windows, bothering the raven even more.

"I've been denied all the best ultrasex!" the blond crooned loudly.

The young Uchiha glared out of his window, wiping at his dry eyes and watching passing cars.

"How can ya'll bring a muthafucka somethin' so good he couldn't say no? You nailed me hard. I love 'em when they don't give a motherfuckin' shit!" Naruto sang further, his words as fast as the singers, making them a bit blurred and not audible to Sasuke. The raven did hear, though, the "you nailed me hard" part and glanced over at his friend.

"Dig me now and fuck me later! And sing it to the tune of faggot! Faggot! Faggot!(1)"

Sasuke bent forward and snatched the ipod away from Naruto, deciding to search through and find a more decent song to play. Naruto pouted like a child when his song was turned off and he whined like a kicked puppy.

"Why'd you turn it off? I liked that song, Teme!"

"It was vulgar and I found it very offensive. You should know better than to play a song about faggots when you're with on, Dobe."

Naruto laughed heartily. "Aww, come on, Sasuke! You're not seriosuly saying that bothered you, right? Plus, you're not a faggot in my eyes, you're a good friend who acts very straight but likes cock!"

Sasuke scowled. "Thanks," he picked a song and when the music started, Naruto actually blinked and smiled.

"Wow, I didn't peg you as the romantic type. You know... this is the song I promised myself I'd play for my someone special," he grinned. "After Sunako left, I just sort of... didn't want to date anymore. But I let myself see a few people, wanting to find Silo a good mom," the opening music still played. "I might act like a flirt, but I only do it so Silo can still recognize me. He knew me as the flirt, and I want to stay that way so he knows I'll never change," his smile was small, but brilliant. "But now's not the time to talk about this stuff!"

Sasuke was actually speechless. So he's not really a flirt...

"You're waiting for that special someone," the raven smirked. "How sweet of you, Dobe."

Naruto laughed. "Yeah, I'm stupid, aren't I? You said it yourself once, that no one could like me, right?"

"..." Sasuke frowned, hating himself more than ever at that moment for ever telling the blond that those many months ago. "I was only joking."

Naruto ignored him and began singing along with the song as the vocals started in., his eyes a bit distant. Sasuke felt as thought that maybe, just maybe, his words had affected the male. It made him feel guilty, but it also made his chest clench, as he realized his words had made such an impact.

xXxXx

During the rest of the two hour drive, they both had talked about things and Sasuke finally convinced Naruto to believe him when he said he was only joking all that time ago, that he was just jealous of his good looks, etc. Of course, he was lying, but it was better to have a blond with in inflated ego than a blond who seemed distant and depressed.

After clearing everything up, they'd enjoyed the rest of the ride in silence, Naruto occasionally starting up a song and forcing Sasuke to sing along, too. They'd sang a Justin Timberlake song, much to Sasuke's displeasure, a few kid songs that Naruto said Silo used to sing to him when he was a toddler, and even the Teen Titan's theme. Naruto was amazed that Sasuke knew it.

Then they'd reached the gated community that Sanji-sensei's wife lived in and all happiness and joy was sucked out of the car like a twister sucking people out from under a bridge (2). Pulling up to the guard's booth, Naruto popped his head out of the window and gave him a cocky smile.

"Yo!" he greeted the chubby man.

Said man only grunted and scooted closer to the glass on his rolling chair. "ID please."

Naruto handed him his driver's license. "We're here visiting a friend. Um..."

"Sanji Nanao-san," Sasuke helped, leaning forward in his seat and unbuckling his belt.

The officer nodded and opened the gate.

Sitting back in his seat and rolling up the windows, Naruto drove off into the community, looking at the street signs. "What street was it again? I think it started with in 'H' or something..." he slowed the vehicle down.

"Hyakumangoku," Sasuke supplied, pointing to the next street on the left. "Her home is the third on the right," they pulled into the driveway, a small black car already parked in the open garage.

"What're you going to say to her?" Naruto asked, the both of them climbing out of the car and walking up the cobblestone pathway. He shoved his hands in his pockets, surprised that despite it being summer, it was quite chilly out. He yanked his hood over his head, which covered most of his face, and rung the doorbell, a soft "one moment" coming from inside.

Sasuke held his breath for a moment, afraid that he would see an old bitter woman worn down and aged by her depression over the loss of her husband. That was something he wouldn't be able to stand, but what greeted them as the door opened was so completely different from his thoughts.

A young-looking woman with long, soft brown hair in a messy, but stylish, ponytail blinked at them, her chocolate eyes warm and welcoming. She had on a white summer dress and had no shoes on, a light blue anklet around her thin ankle, just above what Naruto thought to be a birthmark.

Huh, it's sort of shaped like a vacuum cleaner...

"How may I help you?" her voice was like a melody drifting through the wind. Sasuke thought that there could ever be such a... perfect person. He somewhat hoped her personality wasn't as lovely, or he'd feel even more terrible for making the beautiful woman a widow.

"I need to speak to you about your... late husband," Sasuke's voice dropped an octave against his will and he cleared his throat.

The woman, Nanao, stiffened and averted her eyes, wringing her hands together. "Yuichirou-kun...? Alright, please come in and take a seat in the dining room. I'll get us some tea..." an aura of sadness suddenly appeared around her as she left the door open for them to come in.

Both men walked inside and Naruto closed the door behind him, his sense being attacked by the smell of gingerbread and chocolate. They made there way to the dining room (which was visable from the door) and sat down, the blond glancing arond at all of the paintings. He pulled down his hood and messed his hair around a bit to keep it from looking flat.

Nanao came in a few moments later, carrying a tray of snacks and tea. But she stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Naruto for the first time without his hood on. "Yuichirou-kun..." she blinked softly and flushed in embarrassment at the mistake. "A-ah, gomen. I thought you were my husband for a second... you two look very similar... blond hair and blue eyes," she smiled sweetly and sat the tray down in front of them, taking her own seat beside them

Sasuke definitely understood what she meant.

"So what is it that you need to speak to me about?" her voice was just barely above a whisper.

The raven coughed into his hand and was surprised to find his mind at a blank. He'd always known how to go about things, but this one moment was shattering that little fact. He thought on it for a few seconds, then started speaking, trying to say his words as soft as possible, so as not to startle the gorgeous woman.

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke and... well, I saw your husband die in that car accident," he watched her expression change from curious to confused. "I was chasing after his car and... I suppose you could say his death was my fault," his smile was strained and sad. "If I hadn't have went after him down that road, then he wouldn't have run the red light..."

Nanao dropped her frail hands to her lap and just stared at Sasuke as if she was telling him he'd just murdered her entire family. "Uchiha Sasuke, was it? Then you must be... that boy Yuichirou-kun was having an affair with, yes?"

Naruto watched the conversation go on, knowing he had no right to add his two cents.

Sasuke cringed. "I knew that you had found out back then..."

Nanao let out a breath of laughter. "My husband was quite the messy one, never organizing anything... I suppose that was his downfall. I found a letter written to him in his document folder that had fallen from his desk... I never wanted to read it because I believed in him having his own personal things, but there was one line on there that said... I love you."

Sasuke looked away, remembering the time he'd written that letter.

"I thought that maybe it was a note from another silly fangirl, but... it wasn't a female's handwriting. So I took a look at it... and that's when I realized Yuichirou-kun was cheating on me with one of his male students," her eyes were moist, but she was nowhere near the verge of tears. Years of sadness must have dried them. "But Uchiha-kun, know that I don't resent you at all!" her voice suddenly became loud, yet still kind. "Our marriage was already breaking apart... and I somewhat thank you for making him happy."

"You're... thanking me?" Sasuke was amazed.

Nanao nodded and smiled a bit. "We were going to have a divorce, but at the last moment, he said he wanted to move away with me. Maybe he felt guilty for doing such a thing, but... then that was the day he died. Uchiha-kun, I've never been angry with you and I never will. You can't help who you fall in love with, even if it's a married man."

"...You're so kind!" Naruto's eyes were watery and he wiped at them with the back of sleeve. "How could that jerk notlove you?.! You're so sweet, pretty, and understanding!"

Nanao laughed and poured them each a cup of tea and gave them a light peach plate with a gingerbread man on them. "Thank you for the compliment, ahh..."

"Uzumaki Naruto!" the blond grinned.

"Then thank you for the compliment, Uzumaki-kun. Here, I made these for my children, but they're still outside playing with their friends, so eat them quickly. Then they'll never know I took them," she smiled.

Sasuke felt relief flood him. He hadn't expected her to understand... he hadn't even expected hearing of Sanji-sensei not loving his wife.

"Do you not like sweets, Uchiha-kun?" the woman asked curiosuly, nibbling on her own cookie with her pearly white teeth. "I could bring you something else, if you'd like...?"

"No, thank you. I'm fine," he began eating the cookie, now feeling like he could move on with his life for good.

xXxXx

On the way back, Naruto and Sasuke were a bit more cheerful than on the way to Nanao's house, listening and singing along to music (mostly Naruto), dancing around like morons (mostly Naruto), and acting out stupid dramas (mostly Naruto). Ok, so Sasuke wasn't going much of anything except listening, but he was in a pleasant mood.

"You know what I just realized?" the blond asked.

Sasuke glanced over at him. "What?"

"I've been hungry since we left this morning, but I completely forgot."

Sasuke rolled his eyes and chuckled. "How do you forget something like that, Dobe?"

Naruto went down the exit that led to his house (Sasuke was going to stay the night) and decided that instead of driving another forty minutes to get there, he'd drop by a cafe and get a bite to eat. Silo had begged him to get him a vanilla latte for the past two days, anyway. Driving into the small parking lot, they both exited the vehicle and went inside, both startled by what they saw.

"Hey! It's you!"

Gaara turned his head to the side, pulling the cigarette from his peach lips. His face remained impassive as he crushed the cancer stick out in a flower shaped ash tray and took a sip from his sake.

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke asked the red-head.

"Eh? You know him?" Naruto blinked.

"He's a friend of mine," Sasuke replied.

"EH?.? You have friends?.!"

The raven glared at him and the blond just laughed and waved his hands around. "I was joking. But Gaara, do you mind if we sit with you? It looks pretty packed in here. I guess it's always like these during sumo tournaments. It's like football games back in the U.S."

Gaara nodded and took another swig of his sake. "Sure, I don't mind."

"Good! I'll go order our food, Teme. Same as usual?"

Sasuke nodded and took a seat next to Gaara, leaning forward and crossing his arms over the purple tablecloth. "I'm sure it isn't a coincidence we've met you here."

Gaara stared blankly at the Uchiha and took a bite of his sushi.

"Oto is now on the move."

(1) Faggot by Mindless Self Indulgence. XD

(2) Hah, people say it's safe to go under a bridge when there's tornado. Pft, that only makes it worse. Being under the bridge makes it like a vacuum for the twister. Stupid white people and their theories XD

Next Chapter: The premeire, Orochimaru moves, and a life might be lost. DUN DUN DUN!