Warnings! Adult content. Sasunaru. Which means yaoi, people. If you have a problem with that, press the back button now.

If you don't have a problem with that, enjoy!

When Sasuke came back to Kohona, a lot of things had changed. He was escorted straight to the Hokage's office by Anbu, who were practically snarling at him. Tsunade peered at him over her desk, her head resting on her folded hands. "For what reasons have you returned?" she asked coldly. Sasuke blinked. He didn't even know himself why he had come back.

It was probably because he felt obliged; Naruto had always expected it. "I've completed my goal of killing Itachi." He replied simply. Tsunade glared.

"And you think that automatically gives you a right to be allowed back into this village, traitor?" she hissed.

Sasuke had been prepared for this; he knew he wouldn't exactly get a warm welcome. "I killed Orochimaru. Doesn't that prove where my loyalties lie, Hokage-sama?" he asked respectfully. Tsunade was not at all impressed. "No. It does not." she replied shortly. "Why have you come back?" she asked again. Sasuke paused, thinking. He decided with the truth. "For Naruto." He replied.

This was obviously not the right answer in the Hokage's eyes. She jumped up from her chair and slammed her fist angrily on his desk. The chair flew out of the window. Mission papers flew everywhere and Shizune jumped, Tonton leaping from her arms and scurrying out of the room to safety. "Do you have any idea just what you've put that boy through?" she snarled. "If you really gave a shit about him you would have come back years ago!"

Shizune, knowing what the Hokage was like when she got in a bad mood, decided to follow Tonton out of the room to safety. She also decided now was not the right time to chastise the Hokage about her language.

The last time Shizune had corrected Tsunade on her swearing, the Hokage just about destroyed everything in the room. "I know my actions were…unforgivable, but I just want to put things right now I don't have the memory of my brother looming over my future." He said.

"Damn right they were unforgivable." Tsunade hissed, her first time of agreeing with the Uchiha. She sat back down. Shizune arrived once more, with the pig safely tucked in her arms once again. "Tsunade-sama, Sakura is here." She announced. The female ninja burst into the room, her eyes locked on Sasuke. "Sasuke-kun!" she waited for an insult, or an answer that proved complete indifference to her presence.

"Hello, Sakura." Sasuke replied politely. She faltered; it had to be the first time Sasuke had ever been nice to her. "You…came back." She said quietly.

"Sakura, please wait outside with Shizune." Tsunade commanded.

"But, Tsunade-sama,-" Sakura's protest was ignored.

"Sakura, please." The Hokage repeated. Her voice showed she was not in the mood for a debate. Sakura obliged and left the room, followed closely by Shizune. "I'll let you stay with a full pardon," the Hokage began.

Sasuke knew there would be a 'but' coming next, another condition; there was no other explanation as to why he would be allowed off so lightly by a woman that obviously wanted to rip him limb from limb for leaving her 'son'. "But if you hurt Naruto once more I'll throw you out of this village so fast you wont know what hit you." She said in a low voice.

"Thank you, Hokage-sama." He said thankfully. With this chance, he really could make his absence up to Naruto. "There's something else. Perhaps you do care about Naruto; there was a good chance there could have been a death penalty waiting for you here for your treachery…yet you still came back. I need your help with something." She asked. "I think…something's wrong with Naruto. I want you to find out what. Stay close to him." She said. Sasuke agreed immediately.

As he walked out of the room, the Hokage spoke, her tone much lighter. "Oh, and Uchiha? If you even think about leaving Naruto again, I'll castrate you." She promised. Sasuke shuddered as he walked out. He had finally met someone more formidable than Orochimaru because he knew she was deadly serious.

Sakura was waiting for him outside. "Do you know where Naruto is?" he asked. Sakura nodded. "He should be with Sai." She replied.

"Sai?" Sasuke growled with distaste. Of course. His replacement. "Where will they be then?" Sakura thought for a moment.

"I'll take you there." She offered.

"Thank you." Sasuke replied. Sakura led Sasuke to Sai's house. She knocked on the door. "Sai-kun?" she called.

Naruto answered the door, his blue eyes widening in shock as he recognised the person stood next to Sakura. "S-Sasuke!" he threw himself at the raven. "I knew you'd come back to me, teme!" he mumbled into his shirt. Sasuke awkwardly put his arms around the blonde. He hadn't had this kind of contact…since his parents had been alive. It was then Sasuke noticed the blonde was shaking. He pulled Naruto forward. "You won't leave me again, right?" Naruto asked fearfully. Sasuke shook his head. "Never." Unless I want to be castrated, he added in his head.

"Naru-kun?" Sasuke bristled immediately. What the hell was with that nickname? He though angrily. Sai stepped outside, pulling Naruto away from Sasuke, his arm wrapping around the blonde's waist protectively.

He kissed Naruto. Sasuke was ready to kill something, (preferably Sai), as he watched Naruto blush, the colour spreading across the blonde's face at an alarming rate.

"What the fuck is going on?" he exploded, glaring at Sai with such intensity that no one would be surprised if Sai combusted at any moment. Naruto looked a little upset. "Sasuke, what's wrong?" he asked.

Sasuke's eyes were locked on Sai's wandering hands, which were all over the blonde. "Why the hell is he touching you like that? You let that bastard kiss you!" Sasuke snarled.

"Don't call Sai that!" Naruto snapped back angrily. He turned to Sakura, hoping to get some sense from her. "What's going on?" he asked again.

"I love Sai, and if you have a problem with that just leave!" Naruto replied hotly. Sasuke stopped dead. Naruto loved Sai? Naruto was gay? Loved Sai?

"Y-you can't!" he spluttered. Sai's smile widened and he held the blonde closer. Naruto frowned. "What does that mean?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke mentally cursed himself for his outburst. "He betrayed Konoha!" Sasuke said. He then realised how stupid that sounded. He wasn't exactly innocent. "Yes, he did, but unlike you he made up for that!" Naruto shot back. "He was there for me every time that you weren't." he said quietly. Sasuke had never hated Sai so much.

"You mean he was the person that looked the most like me. The closest replacement you could possibly find." Sasuke hissed. The blonde turned away and buried his face in Sai's neck. He didn't want to fight with Sasuke, not after just getting him back home.

"That was a cruel thing to say, Sasuke-kun." Sai said. Naruto didn't so much as look at Sasuke as he turned and ran back into the house, but Sasuke caught a glance of the blonde's face; he was crying.

"I think you should leave," Sai said in a deadly whisper. It wasn't a suggestion; Sai stepped backwards and closed the door in Sasuke's face. "Are they living together?" Sasuke snarled. Sakura sighed.

"Yes. They have been for some time now." She stared at Sasuke, who was still burning holes with his eyes at the closed door, silently fuming.

"Sasuke…why are you so bothered by the fact that Naruto and Sai are in a relationship?" she asked. She stared at him for a moment. "Sasuke-kun, your jealous, aren't you?"

"What? Of course not! Jealous of what?" Sasuke snapped quickly. Sakura began walking, and Sasuke followed. "Sasuke, I think you should leave Naruto for a while. You really upset him by saying what you did." She said. Sasuke sighed.

"I didn't mean to. I just didn't think he'd be affected by it so much. I'm going to talk to him later." He mumbled.

"Is that such a good idea?" she asked him. Sasuke shrugged.

"I don't know why I acted the way I did. I suppose it was…a shock. That things had changed so much. Look, I know Sai. He doesn't love Naruto. He'll hurt him." Sasuke insisted.

"I don't think anyone could hurt Naruto as much as you did when you left him." She said. Sasuke didn't seem bothered by what she said; he was thinking about something else. "I made him cry," he said quietly. "Your right. All I seem to do is hurt him. Perhaps I shouldn't have come back." He admitted softly.

"No, Sasuke, staying away was the worst thing you could have done. At least now your back you can make amends with Naruto for the past. Naruto needs you," she insisted. Sasuke stopped walking.

"I'm going back to apologize." He said confidently. Sakura decided to let Sasuke go alone; just hoping he didn't make a bigger mess of things than he already had.

Sasuke and emotion wasn't a good combination.

When Sasuke arrived back on Sai's doorstep, Sai wasn't pleased to see the raven again for the second time that day. "What do you want?" he asked coldly, hoping to make this conversation between them as brief as possible. "I want to see Naruto." Sasuke replied. Sai frowned. "Don't you think you've upset him enough for one day?" Sai asked him. Sasuke sighed.

"I just want to talk to him." Sasuke growled, his sharingan flickering. Sai seemed to sense the oncoming danger. He called for the blonde.

"Naru-kun?" he shouted into the house. The nickname made Sasuke grit his teeth angrily. The blonde appeared behind Sai, eyeing Sasuke warily. "Sasuke-kun wants to speak with you. You don't have to, you know. You could tell him to leave." he suggested. Naruto shook his head slowly and stepped forward. Sasuke wished Sai would shut up and allow Naruto to speak for himself. "I'll be just in there if you need me," Sai told Naruto. Sasuke's sharingan began flickering again.

"He'll be fine." The raven snarled, watching as Sai finally left them alone.

"What?" Naruto asked quietly.

"Naruto, I'm sorry about…upsetting you. It was just a shock for me seeing you and that bas- erm, Sai together like that." He explained. Naruto stared at him sadly.

"Do you have a problem with that fact that I like Sai? Or is it more the fact that it's a guy I like?" Naruto asked. Sasuke sighed.

"I don't have a problem with any of that, dobe. I'm just worried for you. I know what Sai's like and I know he's no good for you!"

"It is Sai you have a problem with!" Naruto snapped. "Why? What's wrong with him? He's been there for me every time you weren't. He's fixed messes that you've made countless times. And I love him." Naruto finished. Sasuke clenched his fists.

"Don't say that!" Sasuke hissed. "How can you love him?" he gestured into the house, where Sai was probably lurking around. Naruto opened his mouth, a hurt expression on his face. Sasuke hurriedly cut him off. "No, I'm sorry. I didn't mean that. Look, I'm glad you've found someone, even if it is someone I don't completely get along with, and I'm happy for you. Can we still be friends?" Sasuke asked. The blonde smiled that amazingly beautiful smile that only Naruto could pull off. "Thanks, Sasuke." He said happily, hugging the raven. Sasuke could almost feel the happiness radiating from the blonde. This time, he didn't want to let go of Naruto. "Naru-kun?"

"Oh, Sai! Sasuke apologised." He said and, much to Sasuke anguish, pulled away and kissed Sai. "That's nice." Sai replied. Naruto didn't quite catch the sarcasm that was dripping from his words.

"Dobe, I was wondering if you wanted to go for some ramen tomorrow. My treat. We can…catch up." Sasuke said. He knew Naruto wouldn't refuse free ramen; he never could. Naruto's face lit up. "That'd be great!" he said happily. Sasuke smirked at Sai. "I'll come round and pick you up tomorrow, dobe." Sasuke told the blonde. Sai was already planning revenge, and stabbing an imaginary Sasuke over and over in his head.

The next day Sasuke came to pick up Naruto as he had promised. He knocked over and over, but he didn't seem to get an answer. He wondered if Sai had persuaded Naruto to go out somewhere so the blonde missed his call. Or perhaps Sai had already taken Naruto to Ichiraku, being the good little replacement that he was. "I'm coming!" came a slightly flustered voice from the other side. When Naruto opened the door, Sasuke's jaw dropped.

The blonde was panting a little, with only a red silk bed sheet wrapped low around his hips. There were several love bites marking Naruto's neck. Naruto blushed furiously. "S-Sasuke, I-I what are you doing here?" he asked.

"We…were going to Ichiraku, remember?" Sasuke said slowly. His mouth was a little dry. Naruto was completely perfect. Obviously Naruto didn't remember. Unless this encounter had been planned by Sai. He had seduced the blonde, knowing he was coming to pick him up. It was a display of power Sai so obviously thought he had over Naruto, and Sasuke knew it.

"Oh! Right, I'll just…put some clothes on and…follow me," Naruto mumbled. Sasuke followed Naruto into the flat. The hallway was adorned with large pictures that Sai had obviously drawn. Naruto caught him looking. "Ah, their great, aren't they?" the blonde gushed. "Sai's a brilliant artist. He drew that one for me," the blonde said happily, pointing at a large fox painted on the wall. "It lacks colour." Sasuke grumbled at the black and white painting.

The blonde led Sasuke into the living room. "Right, you stay there. I'll be back in five minutes." He said quickly.

When Naruto came back, he had Sai attached to him by the neck. "Hey, I'm back." The blonde announced. Sasuke stared at Sai distastefully, who was hugging Naruto from behind. "Are you ready to go?" Sasuke asked. Naruto pulled away from Sai and kissed him gently before leaving with Sasuke.

When Sasuke brought Naruto his ramen, his eyes were fixed on the blonde's neck. He was staring at a particularly prominent love bite. Was Sakura right? Was he jealous? "Sasuke…you're staring!" Naruto said awkwardly. Sasuke shook his head.

"Sorry." He mumbled. "It's just good to be back. With you." Sasuke said. Naruto shot him that winning smile again. "Yeah, it is." He agreed.

They talked for hours. Sasuke had never known so much about Naruto. Sasuke also explained why he came back. The blonde choked on his ramen. "W-what?" he spluttered. Sasuke laughed. "I'm not lying. I really did come back for you." He said. "You were the one who never gave up on me."

"I thought that you came back for Sakura." Naruto said. Sasuke frowned.

"Why would I come back for her?" he asked.

"Don't you…like her?" Naruto asked.

"Of course I like her! I- oh, not like that. I've never liked Sakura that way, you know that! Ever since we were kids I only liked her as a friend." Sasuke explained. "Besides, I'm gay too, so it was never a possibility." He admitted to Naruto. The blonde promptly began choking on his food again. "What?"

"Didn't you ever guess? I never had a girlfriend, did I?" Sasuke asked him. "I never showed any interest in Sakura, unlike you." He said. The blonde shrugged.

"I just thought you didn't have time, what with all your revenge." Naruto teased. Sasuke didn't laugh at the joke.

"I was stupid. I never made time for the things that were most important to me. Like you, dobe." Sasuke didn't miss the brilliant blush that spread across Naruto's face. "You got that right, teme." He mumbled into his ramen. It was then Sasuke admitted to himself that, yes, he was jealous of Sai. "You've changed, Sasuke." Naruto said.

"Is that good?" Sasuke asked. Naruto nodded.

"Yeah. You talk more. You never used to give me more than one or two syllables, and that was if I was lucky. I feel like I've connected with you now more than I ever had when we were younger. Besides, I like listening to you talk." The blonde said. "Your voice is calming." He added. You hear that, Sai-bastard? Calming voice! So fuck you! Sasuke thought happily.

"So…when did you find out you liked guys?" Sasuke asked.

"I realised when you left, and joined Orochimaru." Naruto told him quietly. Sasuke laughed. "How would that make you realise you were gay?" he asked lightly. The blonde wasn't laughing with him. He chewed on his lip, his eyes fixed on his ramen bowl. "When we were younger, I really liked you, Sasuke. When you left it made me realise that…I'd been in love with you all along." He murmured.

"What? Why the hell didn't you tell me?" Sasuke demanded. Naruto sighed.

"What was I supposed to say? Don't kill me, I love you? Somehow I don't think you would have believed me. Besides, I don't think I could have handled your rejection then, and our friendship was a little precarious. I didn't want to ruin it." Naruto laughed, but it was a little empty.

"Don't worry, Sasuke, I've moved on since then. I had to let you go. Then I met Sai." If only he had come back earlier; Naruto wouldn't have fallen for Sai. He could have had the real thing, not some stupid replacement.

He'd missed his chance. "Naruto, are you happy with Sai?" Sasuke asked. Naruto looked a little shocked. "Of course I am! What makes you ask that?" the blonde asked. Sasuke shook his head.

"Nothing…" for once, he would do the right thing. If Naruto was happy, he would let him go. He'd already caused enough trouble for Naruto, without messing with his relationship with Sai. "You should probably get back to Sai. He'll be waiting for you." Sasuke said, masking his misery.

"Oh, right!" Naruto jumped off his stool.

"Thanks for the ramen, Sasuke. Do you want to come over tomorrow?" he asked.

"Yeah, alright. See you, then." Sasuke replied emptily, his eyes fixed, once more, on the biggest of Naruto's love bites. He watched as Naruto bounded off. All he wanted to do was pull him back and promise him the love the blonde once longed for.

Naruto was in a great mood. Sasuke had been so understanding about the feelings he had once had and didn't let them ruin their friendship. Naruto had expected Sasuke to be weird about it. But gladly he had been wrong. They could now start all over again, and Sasuke would be free to be himself.

He opened the door and closed it behind him. "Sai, I'm home!" he called happily into the house. "Sai?" the blonde frowned; Sai was normally right there, waiting to greet him. "Ah!" Sai appeared in front of him, pinning Naruto roughly against the wall by his neck. "S-Sai! You're hurting me," the raven simply gripped harder.

"Don't act all innocent." He snarled. "I saw you with him, telling him that you loved him!"

"N-no, I loved him years ago. I'm w-with you now," he croaked. Sai grabbed a fistful of Naruto's blonde hair and slammed his head against the doorframe. "Why would you do this to me, Naruto? After everything I've done for you." He released Naruto and let him slump down the wall.

The blonde looked up at his lover, dazed. "S-Sai, I'm sorry…" he whimpered, blood trickling down his face. "Please don't hate me," Naruto begged. He couldn't lose Sai. They had been through so much together. He stood up shakily, only to fall against Sai.

He clutched onto the raven for support. "Fine. I'll forgive you." Sai said shortly. Naruto let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you." He murmured gratefully. "I don't know what I'd do if I lost you." He said shakily.

Sai smirked. He truly had Naruto under his control.

A/N: Next chapter coming very soon! If you have the time, please review! Your comments will be much appreciated.

Whippasnappa x