-After the Chapter 6 Incident: Sasuke-
He rolled his shoulders as he faced the demolished training ground.
He had surrendered to the burning urge to work off some steam. Training never really did the trick anyway (it always made him feel inferior- the fire wasn't as hot as His flame, wasn't as large as His fireball...) but he would always exhaust himself, chakra drained every single time, muscles on the verge of tearing and he would collapse unconscious.
On bad days, he would do this and relish at how his reserves widened slightly.
"Why are you crying?"
Today though, he trained so harshly- his knuckles scraped raw, a layer of shimmering red on his skin and his lungs were scorched, burns littering across his body- yet he still felt an emotion that he couldn't fight away.
"Tch. You bastard." Naruto scoffed (it sounded like a sob) after a long and tense silence. The icy blues of his eyes were hardened into an iron wall.
The tears hadn't stopped though. They fell with every blink of his lashes. There was a warm droplet on the back of his hand.
Naruto was crying. But his face was motionless.
(It feels like something sharp had been driven into his chest. Like a kunai. Twisting and wrenching. He had to resist the urge to rub the feeling away.)
"Don't say that like you didn't know it was always like this."
Sasuke couldn't really respond to that.
(Those iron walls had broken as soon as he had absentmindedly squeezed his hand.)
He laid on his back, staring up at the slowly darkening sky. He would usually feel alarmed by the alerted movements of the shinobi but at the moment, he couldn't really bring himself to care.
His heartbeat was thunderous and he started to feel lightheaded as his adrenaline slowly leaked away.
No matter how he looked at it, things just weren't right.
Sunflower petals were yellow. Naruto was ignored. Summer skies were blue. Naruto was 'that boy'. Orange was an obnoxious colour. Naruto was avoided.
It was a fact.
Naruto was hated.
There was a hoarse laugh as all the walls Naruto had built visibly broke down.
All from a single caring touch.
"What are you-"
What had he done?
Uchiha Sasuke only had one ambition and everything else would get in his way.
Avenge. Kill. Restore the Uchiha clan.
He had built five years of his life to avoid sentiment and weak emotions. He had built five years of his life to dedicate himself to hatred.
Why would he bother to comfort? Why does he bother to care? Why did he just let himself destroy those five years worth of effort?
(But Sasuke couldn't ignore this. How could he?)
Naruto was like a furnace in how he radiated with warmth.
Sasuke had noticed long ago though, when they had shoved their faces against each other in stubborn arguments, when he had pushed and grappled and wrestled the bull-headed idiot of a boy.
To an onlooker, it must've painted a strange scene. Two young boys glaring at each other in the middle of the forest, knees dirtied on the ground. Neither of them touching each other at all bar the white-knuckled grasp of their interlinked hands.
Naruto was stiff, his body expression incredibly scared for a boy who acted so touchy-feely.
That's the thing: 'acted'. Naruto was always acting.
The anger returned in a bitter tone. (Sentiment is weak.)
"You wanted them to acknowledge you, right? You're a real idiot." Sasuke decided to go with brutal honesty. Fuck it all. "The others are even bigger idiots."
He heaved an exhale.
"You aren't a traitor. You aren't a monster. You are Naruto- a complete Dobe- and not 'that boy' or 'that brat'- they're clearly just pea-brained civilians who are uncreative in insults. Don't get lost up in those stupid stares and whispers, ok? Tsunade-hime sees you." He didn't waver. "I see you. They don't know you and they don't matter compared to Tsunade-hime, ok? They don't matter compared to people who care. They don't know anything- anything."
(That sounded personal, Sasuke. Just who are you trying to comfort?)
He swallowed, the action slightly painful with the lump in his throat. (Sentiment is weak.)
"You heard the Sannin- she's going to take you as a student and you'll get stronger and then more people will 'acknowledge' you so don't... hide from it. Don't hide from them."
Naruto hunched in more tightly. The protective anger rose. (Weak. How will you kill Him like this?)
"Don't-" Sasuke released Naruto's hand, in lieu, he grabbed his shoulders.
"Don't do that." He snapped, desperation tinging his voice. "It makes you look like a coward."
No matter how tight he squeezed his shoulders, Naruto did not look up. Where was the stupid, prideful, all bark no bite (courageous, grinning, warm) Naruto?
Sasuke released an aggravated exhale and cupped Naruto's face with both hands, pulling him towards his own. Naruto's hands instinctively dropped to the ground to brace himself from the unbalance of the sudden tug. A harsh noise tore out of Sasuke's throat-
"Look at me!"
Naruto's eyes were blown wide in shock, flinching at his cold, pale fingers.
Sasuke felt himself flushing in embarrassment; he hadn't registered the close proximity of their faces at that time.
Naruto's skin was warm, really warm under his hands.
His cheeks had a round and squishiness to them from baby fat. (Which was ridiculous because he was eleven he should've outgrown his chubbiness from infancy.)
And those whisker marks upon closer look, appeared to be like scars. Three thin lines, a dark colour, tracing down on each side of his face. But they looked too straight to be scars from fights.
And his...
His eyelashes were blonde.
His eyes were a blue like the summer sky, clear like the Naka river, shimmering with the tears that Sasuke had never expected to see.
He was like a sunflower that had wilted.
(Sasuke didn't like that.)
"Look. At. Me."
Sasuke growled again, low and commanding.
He willed the idiot to understand, willed that something in his eyes would comfort reassure remind him that Sasuke had always been with him.
"Do you understand? Next time, don't hide. Never hide, Naruto." His lips twisted wryly, his voice was forceful. "Stand up and scream back in their faces." His mouth turned dry as he uttered the honest words he never thought he'd ever say.
"You're strong, Naruto. Because my rival could be no less."
(Sentiment is weak.)
Naruto made a strangled sound. And when the pale, light lashes blink for the second time, droplets of scalding hot tears touch his hand.
Sasuke felt as though he was meant to lower his hands. He felt as though he had done enough.
(He wanted to chase after Naruto's light and Naruto's radiance, so he did not leave. Not yet.)
"Naruto." Sasuke gritted out, the harsh sound betrayed by the wavering of his voice.
'Look at me. Listen to me. Talk to me.'
The warmth of his tan skin was welcoming and he wanted to lean forward like how he had once burrowed into His arms when he was but a cherub trying to comfort his crying older brother and Sasuke ignored it. He narrowed his eyes at the boy in front of him. Sasuke didn't need Naruto's light or warmth though, he just wanted it and Sasuke never got what he wanted.
"Tell me you understand."
Sasuke just wanted to be assured that once he was on his own path, Naruto would never stumble from something as insignificant as a civilian remark.
(Sentiment is weak.)
Sometime then, thinking of all his past regrets and failures, Sasuke passes out, falling into a quiet deep sleep.
"Ok," The voice was shaky but it wasn't like the dark, monotonous and cold scoff he had first heard. And to Sasuke, that was good enough. "Ok, I... I understand."
Sasuke's hands drop slowly, twitching slightly at the sudden emptiness in his hands. (Pathetic.)
He rose smoothly to his feet and smoothed out his features. Sasuke's lips tilted the slightest bit up as he casted a small, grim smile down at the boy. "Then that's good enough for me." No, it wasn't.
He had then left the area.
But he stopped only a few seconds later, leaning against a high branch just a couple trees away from Naruto. A hand bracing himself, Sasuke had to hold himself back from running back. (Pathetic. So, so pathetic.)
Five years of his life dedicated to remaining in emotionless, cold hatred. A single tear of the sunshine boy had him stopping and chasing.
"Foolish little brother, if you wish to kill me, then hate me, detest me, curse me, and survive in an unsightly way. Run... run and cling to your pitiful life."
What was Sasuke doing? With comforting and caring?
There's a sting in his eyes and he once again cursed his own weakness. How vulnerable. (How utterly, utterly pathetic.)
His eyes track the movement of a hand that quaked as it carded through Naruto's already mussed up blonde hair- 'Stop looking!' He reprimanded himself. Sasuke swivelled back around as he caught himself staring from afar, yet again, at his sole weakness. His sole obstacle in his path along hatred.
He heard Naruto's cries beginning, soft but raw and childlike. It only showed how long it had been suppressed. Sasuke just inhaled deeply, biting his lip in equal parts of anger and sadness. The very idea that the boy was an obstacle hurtled itself out of a metaphorical window.
(Weak. Sasuke is weak.)
The blonde's shoulders raised and shuddered, his fingers curled into fists as sobs stumbled out messily.
It was disgusting and unbecoming and gross. (Sasuke's heart mourned within him. He yearned to be unburdened from his own identity.) Disgraceful. Humiliating. Bothersome.
(Sasuke was talking about himself by then.)
There was a hitch in his cries and Sasuke wrinkles his nose in disgust. "Weak." He muttered aloud, the lie didn't do anything to ground him.
Weak. He tried to convince himself. Weak.
Naruto hiccupped again and Sasuke thudded his head backwards onto the tree trunk.
Disgusting. He chanted to himself. Unbecoming and gross. Disgraceful, humiliating and bothersome. Pathetic, ridiculous, weak...
(It made the feeling in his chest ten times more painful. It made the desire to hold onto the boy ten times stronger.)
Sasuke hadn't left the area until Naruto had stopped crying.
"Weak..." Sasuke muttered as he furrowed his brows in his sleep. "Uh'm too... w-"
It was horrible because Sasuke wanted to be comforted as well. (Sasuke never got what he wanted.)
The dull click of heels entered the clearing as the Uchiha became dead to the world.
A red-eyed sleek crow silently takes off to the air.
-Tsunade-
Giving a soft sigh, she rearranged the passed out form of Uchiha Sasuke.
"You'll get joint pain if you sleep like this." She grumbled to herself, fingers pausing to heal up the bruises and burns. "Stupid brats are all the same."
The wind whistled in reply.
"I'm getting too nice for my own good." She muttered as she watched the last of the boy's injuries melt away.
"It'll be a while since you'll see Naruto 'n I again." Tsunade brushed the dark fringe out of the boy's face.
She smiled cynically, "Funny how the two kids I wanna take with me are the only two I'm not allowed to."
-Sasuke-
His consciousness stirred and judging from the amount of light filtering through his eyelids, it must've only been an hour or so. Sasuke could feel a presence approaching him. Usually, he'd jump to attention to confront whoever it was but with this nice tingly feeling in his strangely unharmed limbs, he couldn't muster the strength or the drive to do so.
"Hey Teme." Naruto's voice came out and- Ok. It was Naruto. He immediately tried to force himself back into deep slumber.
Sasuke sensed the boy plopping down on the scorched grass just a bit from his head. Sasuke still stayed motionless, his previous unconsciousness making his head heavy and groggy.
"I know your pathetic butt is probably exhausted from training even though it's only, like, 4pm and you're a weakling who can't do nothing... but imma just tellin' you that I'm leaving-"
What? Good... good riddance?
"-with that Tsunade-baachan lady. Like, right now. I have my bag and every thing. It's kinda funny how you were right- she really wasn't joking-ttebayo. But now-... I don't know. You know, Mizuki-sensei was a traitor?"
Excuse me? No, Sasuke very vehemently did not know.
"And he told me a bunch of shit about why I was hated 'n everything." A pause. "I think you'd prolly hate me if ya found out about it so I'll just say this before I leave and hope no one ever tells you."
Another pause. "It wasn't like I wanted to come see your annoying pretty face before I left but my body just did it, dattebayo. Don't blame me." Naruto amended hastily as if it was humiliating to say.
"...Thank you."
Sasuke laid motionless as he listened to the voice washing over him.
"I have a feeling that you're awake-"
The only reason why he didn't stiffen was because of the fatigue in his limbs.
"-but you wouldn't ever feel comfortable pretending to be asleep while I'm talking my head off, right-ttebayo?" Naruto's voice halted as he considered his sentence, "If you are awake and actin' like a creep by listening to me, then ya better appreciate what I'm bouta say, dattebayo."
Sasuke had to hold back his lips from curling into a smile when the boy started to ramble.
"Before I regret sounding like a stupid fangirl, I'm just saying thanks for... for being... uhhh... Thanks for being you, I guess? It don't really make sense cuz you're an absolute asshole, ya know? I'm crap at this cuz I've never really had to say 'thank you' to anyone 'cept Teuchi-jii and Hokage-jiji and those Nee-chans and I didn't think it'd be you who I'd say it to so it's kinda awkward haha... So yeah, you're kinda a bastard so I don't think I'm meant to say thank you for being nice, I mean, you were kindaaaa nice even though you kept insulting me like the asshole you are and this is totally not going anywhere but-"
A sigh.
"But yeah, believe it. Uzumaki Naruto officially gives his thanks to the Teme for... being a nice Teme. That doesn't make any sense, dattebayo but your sleeping weak-ass will just have to take it."
A pause.
"I know ya said you don't know about me but you said an awful lot, ya know that-ttebayo? I'm not a traitor, I'm not a monster, I'm Naruto. I think that's quite a lot, dattebayo. It's more than anyone else has told me."
A hand brushed his bangs and Sasuke was really surprised when he didn't get his knee-jerk reaction of flipping the assailant over himself. He then tried not to twitch as he physically felt eyes searing into his face.
"I hope I don't get the fangirl cooties but I hafta admit that they're a tinyyyy bit right coz you do look a tinyyyy bit not-very-very-veryyyyy-ugly when you're not frowning like a bastard-ttebayo. And you're always a bastard, dattebayo. Which means you totally aren't not-ugly-ttebayo. Cuz you're always a bastard...dattebayo."
So many 'dattebayo's. So many grammar errors. That didn't even make sense.
Dobe. Sasuke reflexively thought. An idiot like always.
"And that's what you are, believe it! Even if you were being nice for a tiny second, I still think that you're a nasty, smug, totally-not-cool bastard whose... whose definitely- definitely a bastard!"
So bad at insulting people. Sasuke inwardly smirked.
"But... I'll maybe-just-a-tiny-bit miss you."
Sasuke had to hold himself back from chasing after the warmth of his hand as he reeled in shock. Naruto stood up and brushed his clothes.
"...Ew that sounded so nice."
He just had to get the last jab in.
Sasuke blearily cracked an eye open, cracking his head just enough to see Naruto leap away into the trees, a holler echoing throughout the charred training ground.
"You're still a big, stinkin' Teme! I toooootally won't miss you-ttebayo!"
"Dobe." Sasuke scoffed, a hand raising to shield his eyes as the sun beamed through the thick clouds. Why was it so bright if it was already late afternoon? "Dobe." He repeated with a smile.
Not that Naruto could hear him.