A/N: Thanks for all the awesome reviews! I spend a lot of time on these chapters (hours actually) because I hate hate hate how in fanfiction personalities get super warped, especially in my favorite fandom. Sasuke is the playboy, ridiculously domineering super-seme, and Naruto is the feminine, ridiculously innocent super-uke that is ALWAYS attracting the wrong guy (or all of them). I know as an avid fan for 6+ years that they are NOT one-dimensional characters and I hope to portray them with as much complexity as the manga goes. Nonetheless, this is a slow build romance, personally my favorite kind. Thanks for joining me in this journey!

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Chapter Three: Lonely

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"Dinner is served," Naruto plopped the cup ramen on the table, taking a seat next to the other man. He felt quite proud of himself in that moment, providing for another person's needs. Now that he thought about it, he had never really done much of that before. This apartment had always been so very empty.

"Too early for dinner," Sasuke gestured with his head to the window, where the afternoon sun had just begin to fade. Then he smirked, shifting his arms which were still cuffed "And I can't eat."

Naruto grimaced, hoping Sasuke would have somehow come up with some way to manage by now. He was a ninja after all.

"Well," Naruto started, unable to stop the slight blush on his face. Had he no dignity left?!

"Well…" Sasuke echoed, turning to him, face turning to stone "You are indebted from my preventing your hunger. From that day."

And Naruto instantly remembered the moment, the day Kakashi had given them their first challenge as ninja. He remembered as if it had been that very afternoon. The bells…

"That wasn't you." Naruto mumbled, remembering the innocence of those days. He turned away and grabbed the ramen and wooden chopsticks, breaking them apart hastily "It was Sakura that fed me."

"It was my idea." Sasuke said "You would've been a burden to us all, stomach grumbling like an idiot."

"It's funny," Naruto scooped up some ramen, talking almost to himself "That day, I was the one who was imprisoned…"

And now…

He couldn't finish the sentence, instead raising the chopsticks with a bite full of noodles and receiving a look of barely concealed rage. It wasn't as if Sasuke hadn't heard about it enough. His future in this village was an unknown, and his only chance at living for the immediate future due to the defense from Naruto himself. Naruto bit his lip, feeling suddenly struck by how often he had seen such secret sadness in the other man's eyes in all his years of knowing him. Even now it continued, with everything…settled? The word didn't seem to fit with this state Sasuke was in now. What was he now? Rescued? Safe? Back to normal?

He stared into the man's eyes, recalling the day Sasuke was brought back to Konoha in shame. The war had just ended and the streets were lined with celebrating villagers. The rebuilding was well on its way to completion, and everyone's spirits had also been very nearly repaired. Upon entering the village gates from near the back of the company, Naruto's heart filled with lightness, seeing similar looks of fondness from his comrades. Home.

But Naruto felt a tenseness in the air as Sasuke was brought into the village, flanked by two guards at his sides. He limped along with his tattered bloody clothes, occasionally so exhausted that he collapsed entirely, dragged like a hunted animal. His eyes were bloody from using genjutsu, his body covered with cuts and bruises. The festivities quieted as their hearts filled with rage, glaring daggers at the traitor.

It wasn't long before a particularly upset man threw a rotting fruit at Sasuke, landing it squarely between his shoulders on the already bloodstained Uchiha symbol. A few more bold men followed, yelling as if generations of blood had been spilled by the hand of Sasuke alone. Some small children joined in, yelling angrily and throwing sticks.

And soon the entire crowd was roaring, knowing the battle-worn youth was captured, and too weak to defend himself. But what really enraged Naruto in that moment was that Sasuke hadn't reacted. It was as if he was already dead, the empty eyes of a mask staring into the abyss. From far away Naruto watched as twigs scratched at his already bruised arms, the slippery fruit melting off him like lava. Tears filled in his eyes as he witnessed the cruelty.

Naruto remembered yelling out, being restrained by Sakura and Shikamaru momentarily, continuing to make himself heard. His eyes blazed, vision blurred, as he ran ahead from the back to where Sasuke was.

"STOP!" Naruto sprinted to the front and stood his ground in front of the Uchiha, who was breathing heavily but otherwise impassive. The guards stopped abruptly, and Sasuke's head rose a little if only in reflex. Naruto was also covered in grime from the recent end of the war, tired and scraped up like the rest, but continued to stand solidly until the whole company had stopped and the crowd quieted.

Sasuke looked around, unable to hide his surprise that Naruto had acquired this sort of power over the masses.

"We cannot treat him like this." Naruto spoke to the crowd, who seemed suddenly conflicted by their actions. He spoke not with anger, but with pure confidence and faith in his words "Sasuke is a hero. Everyone who fought today knows that, that he sacrificed his life for us all. From the actions of Sasuke, of everyone here, we have secured peace."

The crowd was silent, soaking in the guilt the words had stung them with. The man who had thrown the rotten fruit looked particularly ashamed, and Tsunade came up beside Naruto to simply nod at him before declaring:

"We have won. Let us continue this peace, and let no more blood be shed in vain. I thank you all!"

The crowd rejoiced, and Naruto turned to smile at Sasuke, but found the man still emotionless and stoic as usual. His bloodied eyes emptied of what little emotion they had just carried, he began to walk forward again. Naruto looked confused, jogging up to him.

"Leave it, Naruto." His voice was torn and tired "I deserve all their rage. Let them unleash it upon me."

"Sasuke," Naruto turned to him, edging around the left guard "You don't deserve-"

"Stop defending me." The man's rage bubbled up to the surface, and the guards grew uneasy "I don't deserve anything."

"Sasuke," Naruto remained patient as the man walked past him, his heart as torn from the man's words as his own clothes were torn. He faintly remembered what Gaara had told him, back in the snow when things seemed so very different "I have to do what's right, as your friend."

He kept walking, possibly ignoring him. Then he turned slightly, enough for Naruto to see a sliver of his face.

"I defend my friends with my life, Sasuke. Don't forget."

Naruto blinked, returning to the reality where he was holding a pair of ramen-laden chopsticks in front of Sasuke's face. He realized his eyes were a little wet, and Sasuke's unreadable.

"Sorry," His hand was shaking, and he had dripped ramen on the table "I just…remembered."

Sasuke stared at him, sitting on the stool like the immobile boulder he had been all afternoon. But he stared.

"The day the war ended." Naruto laughed a little, feeling the lightness that confession brought. He took a spare towel and wiped down the table, then grabbed another bite with the chopsticks and brought them to Sasuke's unmoving lips "But all that aside, itadakimasu."

How Sasuke managed to tilt forward just enough to take the first bite was beyond Naruto. His eyes were anywhere but on Naruto, with the intensity of genjutsu. In all honesty, Naruto had never seen a more dignified illustration of being fed ramen, but in any case this was the first.

They finished up and Sasuke stayed silent as Naruto gorged himself. The sun was setting, and Sasuke left to choose a seat by the bedroom window which was consequently on Naruto's bed. Naruto watched him go and didn't mind; he was in such a good mood that he decided against the usual banter.

Humming to himself, he didn't even mind the tidying up. Yes, things were going to be all right! Suddenly, it hit him. He had never lived with another human being, never in his life, in any sort of permanent way. The excitement of having another person, even Sasuke, as a constant presence to stave off all this bitter loneliness –

"Oi, Sasuke-" He didn't want to waste a moment, running to the bedroom. Sasuke had been so alone too, for so many years…

He ran in, but stopped suddenly. The room was empty.

Eyes widening, he darted to the window and saw Sasuke walking calmly up the side of the building using the chakra in his feet. Even with arms bound, he retained composure.

"Sasuke!"

But he had already disappeared from view.

Crap! Naruto followed after him, scaling the wall in no time. He panted, panicking as he briefly registered the apprehension of the ANBU. Please, don't do anything to him.

But Sasuke was seated on the roof, hair fluttering in the wind watching the sun set, and Naruto sighed.

"Baka…" He muttered, still jittery, taking a seat next to the other man "What are you doing? The ANBU are-"

"The sunset." He said, as if that explained everything. Naruto paused, almost annoyed because his tone said nothing, and then realized that Sasuke had probably not seen daylight for many days. Let alone a sunset.

The simplicity of the moment made Naruto's heart fill with joy. Sasuke had been alone too. So maybe, just maybe, he wanted something more from the world. He was still inside, fighting for a better life. He smiled brightly, feeling that this would not be as hard as it seemed at first.

And he didn't just mean the feeding part.