So a giant thanks to Five Months of Peace for reviewing chapter 3, I'm really glad you liked it c: As of right now I'm in the process of establishing my AO3 (Archive of Our Own) account and I operate under the same penname DenaHoshigaki. If you for some reason find this story or any other fanfictions removed from this site they're being posted on AO3 as well with the exact same title as . The same goes if for some random reason I was removed from , I'll simply be over on AO3 doing my thing. While I haven't run into any problems thus far, I've heard of some authors running into troubles with a group I will not be naming for reasons of avoiding troubles with said group. Honestly, I don't expect to do anything that sparks their harshness, I've heard some authors who have had run-ins say they're kind of mean and are the reason why some stories and authors have been removed from this site. Because I work extremely hard on my fanfictions (even if they're not great works) I don't want them deleted because a group doesn't like them or has a few problems with what I've written. Pretty much if you ever come acrossed someone named DenaHoshigaki on any other site it's more than likely me since I'm big on consistency so I don't change my name a lot when I have the free time to explore other sites.

After leaving Kohana to herself at the school, Sai slowly made his way home. It occurred to him that having shown up to school over an hour early that morning had been stupid, he should have just walked to school. But then again, he still would have had to leave early anyways to make sure the city bus got him there on time. Besides, riding in his mom's car was much cleaner and less cramped than public transportation.

Once he was aboard the bus, he pulled out his sketchbook that his brother had given to him years before and began to trace idly to pass the time. He knew he needed to pester his mom about borrowing some money, wondering if Naruto would really expect him to pay for his meal. Sai's eyes rose from his drawing and shifted to the window, watching the scenery fly by as one large blur. His mother struggled every month to pay the bills, so just the idea of asking her for money bothered him. But Sai hadn't even imagined revealing that tidbit of his personal life to Kohana, despite the fact that even if she wanted to she couldn't tell anyone. Even though Sai wasn't very socially knowledgeable he knew enough that it was considered embarrassing to come from a poorer lifestyle.

Predictably, the second Sai entered his humble, one bedroom house he shared with his mother, Sai was met with silence. 'She's probably still at work' he mentally thought to himself in regards to his mother's absence. His obsidian hues darted to the round clock with its hands hovering between the five and six and over the three to tell him it was 5:15 p.m.; the clock was the only solitary wall hanging they had up in the house. His mom had this weird thing about wall ornaments, hell he recalled she even got shaky at the very thought of pinning his sketches on the fridge as a child. The only reason she consented to the clock was to conceal a hole his father had put his fist through in a fit of rage when he was a child. The man had since been absence in their lives and even though his mom said he was overseas fighting in the war, Sai was wise enough to tell that he'd decided to be gone for good after receiving a call from his mistress with an announcement that she was pregnant with his child. Okay, perhaps it wasn't wisdom that told Sai his father had knocked up another woman and skipped town to avoid dealing with the child support of not one infant but two other sons once his mother was sure to kick him out at the discovery of his infidelity, but instead the overheard conversation of him answering his cell one afternoon. After all, one of his sons had proved expensive enough in medical bills, and perhaps the stress of all the money is what made him grow sick of it all.

Many people found his mother peculiar, but to him she was constant and the rest of the world was an unstable mess. You couldn't blame him really, Sai was raised far from normal and his illness couldn't be entirely blamed either. Along with his mother's aversion to any form of decorum, the woman detested the idea of taking pictures or even displaying those that existed. She also insisted on every room in the house being painted a stark white which matched their sterile white furniture to a tee.

While other children were afforded the luxury of toys and playing outside, Sai could frequently be found sitting at his desk with pen and paper with strict orders to rest. Even Shin had a tad bit more of a normal childhood than he, but it was nothing Sai ever felt green about. How could one be jealous of something they didn't know existed?

"You're home late," Came a voice Sai hadn't heard in a good year. Sai blinked in surprise as he shifted his gaze from the living room wall to behind him He stepped back during his turn to catch a glimpse of his brother.

"Shin," He stated flatly, a faint crack of a smile working its way on his lips but not quite reaching his eyes. "What are you doing home?" He questioned, pleased by this surprise visit from his brother, though he was smart enough to know there was a reason behind it. Shin worked religiously at his job at the FBI and rarely had time off to visit his family. Initially, when Shin first moved out of state to take his job, Sai really missed his elder brother and it bothered him being left along with his neurotic mother. Not that he saw his mom much anyways, the woman was always at work leaving him to be isolated in his room with only his sketches to keep him company.

"I came to town to work on a case," He explained casually. "I wish it was a pleasure trip or I'd suggest we go away for a few days."

"What case?" Sai prodded, ignoring the second part of Shin's statement. It must have been something he didn't want to discuss to attempt to distract him with such a petty topic.

The elder frowned, "Even you know by now I can't divulge that information."

Sai shrugged, he'd guessed that he'd get that sort of response; his eyes deciding to travel, looking everywhere but his elder brother. There was no shame in trying right?

Finally Sai made the first move, walking past his brother without another word and down the hallway to the single bedroom. There he knelt down to tuck his schoolbag beneath his mother's bed as he did every other day to keep it out of the way, knowing how anxious his mother got when things weren't in their right place. From there he went to the bathroom to change from his school uniform to his casual clothes consisting of a black traditional gakuran(1) unlike the more westernized uniform of black slacks, a white shirt, with a black tie and blazer to go with it the school required he wear.

"I'm going," Shin called to Sai seconds before he walked out the door, leaving Sai to his solitude.

Sai's mother arrived home 45 minutes after Shin's departure. An amount of time that allotted the boy to finish his homework and still have time to sit on his mother's bed and listen to the radio. That was another quirk of his mother's, most of their appliances were, to put lightly, outdated. In fact, the only television they owned was an old fat one that was made before the invention of color television; it was indeed so old that it only receive one signal, three on a clear day. His eyes closed as he leaned his back against the wall with his feet jutting over the edge of the other side of the bed. But, with the arrival of his mom, the teen hopped off the bed, straightened up the sheets, and switched the radio off in time to hear her call, "I'm home!"

Sai stepped out of the single bedroom and smiled at his mother if only faintly. "Sai," His mother called exhaustedly as she spotted him round the corner of their bedroom. She reached her hand out, beckoning for Sai to come to her.

"Mother," He replied approaching the worn out woman, stopping only when he stood directly in front of her. She smiled, her hand resting on the top of his head while she stooped to press her lips to his forehead lovingly.

"May I have some money?" Sai questioned, wasting no time in making his request known. The apathetic teen never knew how to handle things like this. Was he expected to thank her? Was he supposed to kiss her back? Was he supposed to smile happily and gush about how much he missed her as if he were some dog that she was coming home to?

"Going somewhere?" She questioned, retracting her hand to grasp her purse she'd set down to take her shoes off moments before. She fished for her wallet in the offending bag while her eyes remained on her son with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm taking Naruto to Ichiraku Ramen for dinner," He explained as if he expected his mother to know just who Naruto was. As if it was perfectly normal at that for him to go anywhere much less going somewhere with someone.

Danita frowned disapprovingly and offered him a single ten dollar bill, "Sai, you're not supposed to eat noodles."

"I know, I'm not that hungry. But friends invite friends out for dinner right?" He pointed out, leaving his mother no other choice but to agree. Though she had to admit, she was surprised Sai had made at least one friend.

"Very well, just don't stay out too late. It's a school night," She lectured as Sai pocketed the money quickly. "Thanks," He replied neutrally and stepped past the woman. Sai sat down, tugging on his shoes while he tried to ignore his mother's inquisitive stare burning a hole in his back.

"Did you take your medication?" The woman prodded needlessly. She knew she didn't need to ask him this, Sai was responsible enough to remember his medicine but she wanted to talk to him. It seemed her son took after her when it came to social awkwardness, neither knew how to carry functional conversations. Dani also knew Sai wouldn't answer her, she was his age once and she hated polluting the air with answers to stupid questions, and she wondered if when he reached her age he would be facing the same difficulties she had with his children. Her eyes softened as she stared down at her son, she could really only hope he landed in the hands of someone who would be able to deal with his silent personality. Someone who could read his unvoiced words, her arms crossed as he stood slowly and glanced at the aging woman. "Don't wait up," He muttered before walking out of the door without ever having answered her question.

The trek to Ichiraku didn't take long and predictably nothing of interest nor importance took place. It was just Sai and his thoughts, just the way he liked it to be. Nobody there to bother him with questions nor antagonize him about his awkwardness. By the time he managed to step into the ramen restaurant the sun was beginning to dip below the horizon and the splitting afternoon heat had cooled to a faint humid level. His eyes roamed the room in search for Naruto, but he didn't expect to see the male so soon as he'd arrived earlier than their agreed time. But, it seemed the obnoxious blond was out to surprise him today as he spotted the teen not only sitting at a table in the far corner of the room but he was already tucking into his second bowl of ramen at that.

Naruto only finally noticed Sai's presence once the introvert had approached the table and began to take his seat. "Hey Sai! I hope you don't mind I started without you! I was starving," The blond loudly exclaimed his voice resonating through the entire restaurant, catching the attention of seemingly everyone. The male even had to refrain from wincing at the volume of his voice, already as irritating as a mosquito's buzz in his ear.

Sai sighed and rested his palms on the table, pressing them flat against the surface. "It's fine Naruto. I'm not very hungry," He offered, his pale hand finally raising in a 'stop' motion at the waitress who was already heading to the table to undoubtedly tend to his non-existent order.

"You invited me to dinner when you're not hungry?" Naruto queried off-handedly, though it was obvious he didn't put much thought in his question and it made Sai question if Naruto was really expecting a reply. Sai was a standoff-ish guy and, Naruto reasoned, doing weird things like this was to be expected.

"Isn't that what friends do? Go to dinner with one another?" Naruto paused mid-chew, his azure eyes lifting to eye Sai. Sure Naruto was a friendly guy, but he wouldn't exactly use friend in the same sentence as him and Sai.

Setting his cutlery down to focus on the male, he nodded hesitantly. "Well… Yeah… They do."

"Then eat up," Sai finished, another one of his humorless smiles crossing his lips.

Their meal passed in relative silence from that point onwards. With Sai sitting patiently in hs chair, hands folded together and resting on the table as Naruto ravenously downed his ramen. After his fifth or sixth bowl, Sai began to grow anxious. How was he supposed to afford all this food Naruto was devouring? Surely if it was common courtesy to pay for your guest, but didn't guests have limitations too? Surely there were social rules about not costing your host a small fortune in food alone.

Finally, after what seemed to be an unbearable eternity, Naruto ceases eating. By this time, the clock in the restaurant was pushing on eight p.m.

"Hey Sai," Naruto spoke up as he wiped off his face with a napkin.

"Hn?"

"Sakura was telling me something this weekend," He added, ceasing only as the waitress interrupted the pair and demanded their attention.

"Should I add this to your tab Naruto?" She offered sweetly just as Sai reached for his pocket to pay her. Naruto nodded and scratched the back of his head sheepishly, "Yeah Ayame, I kind of forgot my wallet again."

"Teuchi's going to stop letting us serve you if you keep forgetting it," She taunted the male lightly, only furthering the blushing building up on Naruto's cheeks. The now named Ayame began to clear off some of the bowls from the table and left the two alone once more.

Sai blinked in confusion at Naruto's actions. "It's okay Sai, I won't make you pay," He promised.

While Sai didn't know why Naruto didn't follow what Kohana told him was typical for a social setting like this, he wasn't going to argue. Sai really didn't have the money to pay for all of his food to begin with.

Naruto was the first one of the pair to stand and smile. "I'll walk a little ways with you home, I'd like to talk to you about something." He suggested in a friendly manner. With a slight nod of his head, Sai stood and followed Naruto to the exit.

As they stepped out, the warm air made Sai semi-wish they'd had a car to drive home or a bus to ride. But at least it wasn't as hot as it was earlier, Sai told himself. Naruto glanced over at the male and frowned, "Aren't you hot?" He wondered as Sai shrugged, "You're wearing an orange jumpsuit. Isn't that hot?" He parried.

Naruto merely shrugged and rubbed the back of his head, the man had a point. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

Their walk to Sai's house began in awkward silence, both males waiting for the other to talk to start up a conversation.

"So-" "Sakura-" Both males began in unison, pausing immediately as they heard the other's voice. After a few split seconds of silence they both started in unison again, "Sorry." Silencing, they frowned and waited a few seconds politely before both started once more for the third time, "Go ahead." Both boys stopped walking and stared at each other at this point with a look of irritation now setting in.

Finally, Naruto made a move, his hand lifted and pressed over Sai's mouth to keep the other silent while he talked to prevent a speaking struggle for the fourth time. The position made Naruto realize how pale Sai really was in comparison to his own overly tanned palm and for a split second he pitied Sai; it was a physical appearance that both deterred females often and meant he was shut up with no friends a large portion of his life. "Sakura," He continued and released his grip on his classmate.

"She was telling me that Friday you were asking about Kohana," Sai blinked at Naruto's forwardness about it. Was there a reason he was bringing this up to him?

"Is there something wrong?"

"Why?" It was really a simple question, but to Sai he wasn't even sure how to begin to answer that. 'Oh yeah, well your dead buddy's been floating around the school talking to me and she asked me to'. Like that would go over smoothly.

"I thought she wa-"

"And don't try to say she was beautiful or whatever it was you told Sakura either. Kohana was okay looking, but she wasn't gorgeous enough to really look her up. She wore too much makeup, she had a farmers tan, and she had a gap in her front teeth where she needed braces." Naruto pointed out impatiently.

A frown creased Sai's lips as his dark hues shifted to eye the boy, "Maybe to you," He insisted. Naruto had to believe that load, there was no other appropriate excuse.

Naruto stared at Sai sternly for a few moments, his piercing cerulean gaze looking for any form of deceit. Pressing his tanned lips into a fine line, the blond male examined him sternly. After a few seconds, the blond male finally leaned back, his arms crossing in discontent. Naruto may be clueless at times but he wasn't dumb. There was a time he would have fallen for it daftly, but he'd like to believe that he was more mature to sense bull crap like this at this age.

"Fine," He agreed, his gaze turning elsewhere. "Just leave it alone okay? Sasuke doesn't like people bringing it up." He warned and Sai nodded.

"To be fair, you brought it up," Sai pointed out.

Naruto's eyes suddenly shifted back to the pale boy and the pair resumed walking once more. "Yeah, I know. It's just, I don't mind discussing these things with people. I can keep a secret, so if you need to ask me about anyone then talk to me about it first okay? What'd you want to find out about her anyways?"

"What was Sasuke to her?" Sai questioned, pouncing on the opportunity of Naruto handing him all his information versus him having to actually delve in it. "Why were they on the roof together?"

Naruto opened his mouth, preparing to answer his first question but the second threw him off greatly. "Eh? What do you mean the roof? Who said anything about them on the roof together?" He questioned, baffled. His eyes darkening in suspicion as he watched Sai guardedly.

"Isn't that how she died or something? I read something in a news article about the roof and him with her?" Sai excused, his own face clouding over in confusion, but not about the same topic that Naruto thought. Sai puzzled over it, wondering if Kohana had a faulty memory or something. What was with the memory that Kohana had if it was incorrect? Perhaps she had fallen off the roof at some point but that hadn't been her death blow?

With Sai's confused response, Naruto relaxed, accepting his excuse. The male frowned, his voice lowering as he explained the roof's importance to Sai. "Actually, Sasuke and her did sit on the roof together a lot, you probably read an article that detailed her life and that article talked about her relationship with Sasuke. Students aren't supposed to be on the roof, but her and Sasuke used to go up there all the time to get their "alone time" in. They used to sneak in at night too, it was a special site for them you know? That's where the two first started dating. Not that Sasuke really liked her, I mean, they were friends sure, but their parents were the ones who pushed them two to date. Sasuke's dad is the police chief and their family is pretty rich, so her parents always pushed for them to go out. And she used to volunteer in all these charities and whatnot, so the family wanted him to date her because she'd look like a good addition in the eyes of the public." Naruto explained as he carried on. "Kohana really liked Sasuke, but Sasuke just did whatever his dad told him. But the roof was where they first met, when he first asked her out, where they first held hands, kissed, you know that cheesy crap girls like? Sasuke played the role pretty good, but he never really liked her like that. Anyways, so that's the article you read about probably."

Sai inclined his head, a frown creasing on his lips, "So how did she die then?" He pried.

"She jumped off one of the cliffs on the edge of town, there are a lot of rocks at the bottom of it and they never really recovered her body, but they think she was eaten by a shark or something." Naruto explained slowly, his eyes shifting away from Sai sadly as he thought about his deceased friend.

"So how do they know that she killed herself there?" He pointed out, this was news to him, and he intended to have an interesting conversation with Kohana tomorrow.

"They uncovered a scrap of her clothing in the rocks and her hair barrette had fallen on the ground where she jumped." His eyes darted to the ground and he bit his lip. "We all felt awful after that, she'd been going through a lot and she tried to talk to us about it but we never really listened. We were all going through our own problems you know? We didn't have time for hers too," He explained.

Sai inclined his head, his lips parting to voice another question, intending on milking Naruto for every ounce of information that he had; but it seemed Naruto had other plans as he interjected before Sai could even begin. "Let's talk about something else. If you want to talk about anyone or anything then come to me okay? If it's a sensitive subject to people I'll warn you so you don't keep getting in trouble okay?" Naruto offered brightly, a grin splitting his lips open to reveal his pearly whites.

"But Naruto… Don't you frequently get beaten up by Sakura for offending her?" The male pointed out monotonously, silently agreeing to cease their previous conversation for the time being. Besides, he wasn't there just to talk about Kohana, Sai still had the task of fitting in that he was trying to complete.

"E-Eh?! W-Well… Yeah… But that's because Sakura's super sensitive when it comes to everyone as a whole ya'know?" Naruto pointed out rambunctiously.

Sai prepared to question how Sakura was sensitive but paused as he recalled how she nearly beat him to a pulp when he'd tried to create a nickname for her last week. "You have a point…" He trailed only to perk up once more. "Do you by any chance have a crush on Sakura though?" Sai offered.

Naruto's cheeks reddened as he turned his azure gaze away nervously, "Hehe, why would you think that?"

"Because you're always smiling when she's around and trying to get close to her."

Naruto's cheeks darkened but he said neither a denial nor an admittance to it, and instead tried to switch the topic on about Mr. Hatake's perverse books he read in class while the students were working. Sai felt a faint, somewhat genuine smile crossing his on lips at this, letting himself fall into a comfortable silence as he listened to Naruto talk his ear off.

When Sai had finally parted ways with Naruto and reached his own home, he stepped inside and knelt down to take off his shoes and put them away. But having an odd feeling of someone watching him, Sai rose his ebony eyes to be met with his brother's matching pair staring down at him. Sai pushed himself up as he finished pulling his shoes off and tucking them away. He stepped around the elder male, padding off to his room only to be stopped as his brother reached and grabbed his wrist quickly.

"Sai," He began and paused, unsure of how to continue his impending question.

Sai paused, turning to give Shin his attention. "Yes," he questioned patiently.

"Doctor Amachi," He faltered and watched his brother, a frown tugging at his lips. "Did Doctor Amachi ever say or do anything off to you?"

"Like what?" He inquired, his eyebrows pressing together in concern.

"Nevermind," Shin excused and turned around to head outside, his hand touching the door knob and twisting it.

"Does this have something to do with your case Shin?"

Shin glanced over his shoulder at his brother with a frown. "No, I've just been hearing some things about him is all. They aren't particularly pleasant, so I just wanted to touch base with you about it. Forget I said anything though, it was moronic of me to listen to a couple of gossiping women. I should have known better; go to bed, it's a little late for you to be up." Shin chided, the very last portion of his statement tilting towards affection.

Sai darted his gaze away from his brother, a slight brush of red darkening his cheeks. "I'm not a kid anymore, it's okay for me to stay up late now."

Shin smiled faintly, "Of course," He agreed before opening the door and stepping outside, closing the door behind him carefully so as not to disturb their sleeping mother.

1: A gakuran is a traditional Japanese boy's school uniform. As of late they're losing popularity because the school system's uniforms are beginning to shift. An example of a gakuran is:

Oh my god this chapter was so long to write! XD I hope you guys enjoy it I really do. Please forgive me for character OOCness *sobs* don't beat me please! There probably won't be an update until maybe next weekend or longer, I have two exams coming up and I'm so horridly behind in homework ;c