A/N:

Sup! Finished with finals and ready to start the new semester. I hope that for those who have school are also passing their exams!

Also, sorry for not really updating. Inspiration hits at random times. Sorry...

STILL! ENJOY!

Warning! Grammars, as always...

Pairing: Not sure. Maybe implied ones?

Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN NARUTO! Oh! This is something I've been meaning to ask. So, I know that a lot of authors put their disclaimers as, "I do not own Naruto," and there was something about plagiarism. Like, just because you say you don't own it doesn't mean you didn't plagiarized it, kind of thing. Cause I was scrolling through fanfiction and where an author made aware that somebody had been plagiarizing other writers' stories saying that it wasn't his/her story but never gave credit where it was actually due nor did she asked permission for it and there was a lot of controversial debate about it. Like fanfiction and disclaimers and stuff.

My point is: is it alright that my disclaimer says, "I do not own Naruto?" Or should more be added to show that the Naruto world really isn't mine? Like, does this mean that I'm also plagiarizing or something?

Leaving Behind

Chapter EXTRA!

Against his own will, Sasuke had been observing Naruto for awhile. It started right after they become a team. He'd been furious that he was saddled with two of the most annoying people to ever grace his life, but he'd dealt with it because he knew that it was crucial to getting stronger. Then they'd did the whole introduction with Kakashi and it was brief, but he thought he saw a flash of pain corrode those beautiful eyes of his blonde teammate. He'd shaken it off as a trick of the light, but he still looked every so often in case it wasn't just his imagination.

He didn't know why he was so curious. The blonde was a complete nuisance. He talked too loudly, ate messily, got under people's skin, and was a total and complete idiot. But Sasuke's eyes just wouldn't stray. It was as if he was in some kind of trance.

The first time that he met the blonde outside of team meetings was before their first C-rank mission. He'd just been wandering. He'd felt restless and nothing had calmed him down so, he had just let his feet do the walking while his mind glossed over everything else. If he'd been trailed or attacked at that moment, he wouldn't have even known. That was how distracted he'd been. Somewhere along the way, he'd caught onto an enticing smell and mindlessly followed it.

It led him to the poorer districts but he hadn't cared. With the delicious scent guiding him, he walked up the stairs, determined to find the owner. He was surprised to find that it was Naruto that greeted him at the door. That moment was when he'd made a conscious effort to observe Naruto.

The blonde boy was completely different from how he'd first perceived him to be. Instead of a boisterous, happy-go-lucky person, this one was a muted person that was gentle and understanding. Honestly, he'd been in shock. He didn't even register that the blonde could cook or that his food tasted like heaven. Better than anything his own mother made for him. Better than anything he'd ever tasted in his life.

The days after that, he was able to pick up on things he would've normally dismissed. Like how the blonde's eyes narrowed slightly at the puddle that was later revealed to be an enemy nin then acting boisterous again. Sometimes he'd catch a pinched expression the boy that he would've normally written off as the idiot thinking, but it wasn't till he sacrificed himself for the blonde that he recognized the expression as pain.

Then they'd come back to Konoha and the blonde went missing for three days, but he was distant way before that. The whole team went into a panic. Everything was canceled. Meetings, missions, trainings. Everything. The first place Sasuke had checked was the cramped apartment that belonged to the blue eyed boy.

It was empty.

They'd checked many places after that. Together and apart. Naruto was nowhere to be found. It was as if the blonde had never existed. There was not a single trace of the boy and for the first time since the massacre, Sasuke felt fear. He felt it so keenly that he had to take a moment to calm his nerves.

Naruto, the raven realized, was his pillar. Even though the blonde did nothing to warrant the irrational dependent feeling, Sasuke acknowledged that his consciousness picked the blonde as his support. For whatever reason, Sasuke wasn't sure. He just knew that without his support, he felt abandoned, weak, vulnerable, and very much scared. Of what, he wasn't sure.

Was it normal to depend so much on a person that going crazy was the only other option if the person was gone? Sasuke had never felt such an intense feeling like this before. It easily triumphed his anger and need for revenge. Even when Itachi left and betrayed him the worse way possible, Sasuke didn't feel even close to an ounce of what he was currently feeling.

Please, he had prayed, let Naruto be safe.

It was a relief when Naruto came back. He had almost collapsed on his knees. He swore that he'd keep as close to Naruto as acceptable, but he failed before he even started. Kakashi gave the blonde an impossible punishment that left Sasuke feeling empty and worried all over again.

A hundred laps around Konoha before three days ended, Kakashi had said. Sasuke knew that was an impossible task for a genin even if sometimes Naruto didn't act like one.

Sakura gave him a worried glance and Sasuke was tempted to knock their sensei senseless. He refrained.

Against his better judgement, he went and checked up on Naruto the second day. The sight was painful. The blonde's once radiant hair was damp with sweat and he looked ready to past out yet he kept on running. His bright eyes were dull and his expression was pinched. Unable to take it, Sasuke hurried home. The next morning, he left some water and food for the blonde to find and left again only to come back and find that nothing had been touched. He left dejectedly.

It wasn't even an hour into waking the next morning, when the raven heard the news of Naruto's capture. If the first time that Naruto disappeared was bad, this was worse. He was frozen stiff and was close to having a panic attack. He'd immediately blamed his sensei for the kidnapping. He didn't vocalize it, put Kakashi was observant enough to know that he was the target of Sasuke's ire during the five days that Naruto was gone. The Sandaime had refused to let Team Seven participate in finding Naruto. Nothing swayed the old man into saying yes. Five days without Naruto was torture and Sasuke could tell that it didn't just affect him. Sakura was just as affected by the kidnapping of Naruto.

The pinkette was quieter and more sullen and even though she tried to hide it, Sasuke knew that she felt guilty. When he'd been a part of the team, she hadn't treated him right. Not that Sasuke was any better in that department. Still, he wasn't that bad.

When Naruto escaped and came back to Konoha, Sasuke picked up on the changes immediately. Naruto had changed. The light had dimmed and the blonde looked like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. He was also much more serious, something that Sasuke thought he'd only see when they were together in private.

Call him selfish, but he felt jealous that the whole world was privy to what he thought was only shown to him. He caught the eye of the Hokage, who was staring straight at him and he saw pity in those aged eyes. The old man shifted his eyes to Naruto and Sasuke's own eyes widened at the Hokage's expression. He saw pain and sadness in those brown orbs. The old man looked like someone had ripped his heart and stepped on it without a care.

Sasuke followed the Sandaime's gaze to the blonde who was recounting the story of his escape with excitement that didn't quite match him. The raven's heart dropped painfully when he realized what the Hokage meant. Sasuke lowered his eyes before anyone else caught on, before rising it up to meet the Hokage's again. The pity was there as the old man realized that Sasuke caught on to what he was trying to express. The emotion reflected on the brown orbs were achingly familiar. If Sasuke had a mirror, he was pretty that his expression looked the exact same as the Hokage.

He turned away from the Hokage and looked at Naruto. The blonde was distant, Sasuke could see that now. There weren't ever any real feelings on the whiskered boy's expression. The raven had thought that Naruto was close to everybody, but he'd been fooled, just like the many others that thought they knew Naruto. He could see it now what he could never see before.

The blonde was a presence that no one could ignore. People gravitated to him likely moths to a flame. Never once did they realize that the blonde didn't feel the same. He kept a distance with everyone and they were none the wiser. Everyone thought that they had a piece of Naruto's heart—that blonde's heart was big enough to accommodate them. They were wrong. Naruto never once trusted them or put his belief on them. He'd never once considered them as friends or even acquaintances. Never once did he rely on them.

Oddly enough, it hurt Sasuke more than anything ever had to come to the realization that Naruto never even saw him as a rival, much less a comrade. He'd been so dependent on Naruto that he believed he'd go crazy if the blonde were to disappear from his life, yet if Sasuke disappeared, it would make no difference to Naruto.

A/N: I'm not happy with this but I couldn't tear it off either. So just consider it an extra that isn't really a part of the story. It's poorly written...

Watch out for GRAMMARS!

Still tell me what you think, though.