A/N: Okay guys, this story takes place between chapter 699 and 700 and it's on-going. I think. I guess it depends on how much love it receives. If there is no real interest in this, I don't think I'll write anymore since I do have other fics I should be working on. But to be very honest, I fell in love with this plot and it's pretty consistent in my head. I just want these two to end up together in spite of kids and wives and whatever the hell got in their way. So… we'll see how it's received, yes?

Next part will be coming soon since it's almost finished. But the text was too big to put in a single chapter.

It'll be M rated, and NC-17 further down the road.

This is SasuNaru/NaruSasu. There will also be a bit of SasuSaku and NaruHina. Sorry about that.

Betaed by the lovely SNlalalandNHreality! Thank you so much, you rock!

Naruto and co. belong to Kishimoto Masashi.

Enjoy!

From Which We'll Rise

Part I: Oblivious Me

Sasuke looked out the window of the hospital room. From his sitting position on the bed, he could see the sky perfectly as well as the top of a few healthy trees. The weather was beautiful outside, and everything was as peaceful as it could ever be. It seemed impossible that just a few days previously the world had been surrounded by the shadows of a hellish war.

Many still mourned and wept, he knew. The village was still under construction after a brutal attack by Akatsuki's Pein, or so he had heard from Naruto. Still, these things didn't really matter to him. In fact, he didn't care about a past that wasn't experienced by him at all.

He turned his eyes away from the window and looked down where, with his head lying on the mattress next to his thigh, Naruto slept soundly. The idiot was quite the snorer, Sasuke considered. He frowned a bit as a few memories from their childhood assaulted his mind ; memories of when they'd been forced to sleep together while on missions and Sasuke had had to deal with that horrible noise all night long.

It was funny how vividly he recalled his days in team 7 and by Naruto's side. Those memories he had tried so hard to repress seemed to be a constant now that he was back in Konoha. While away, he had avoided them at all costs because they hurt him by reminding him of what he had once had that he had almost lost. They reminded him of how alone he had become.

Naruto's right hand squeezed his left one tightly in his sleep, and he snored a bit louder, muttering something under his breath. Features softening, Sasuke looked at his slumbering face.

They had been confined to the hospital bed for five days already. The damage they had done to each other had been far worse than either had imagined, and it seemed like it would take a long time before either could use chakra again or even make any kind of serious efforts. Although it seemed at least that Naruto himself was healing pretty fast since most of the bruises on his face had already vanished.

Sasuke heaved a sigh, allowing himself to squeeze Naruto's hand back carefully so as to not wake him up. How someone could be so naïvely simple and so disturbingly complex at the same time he didn't know.

Naruto held his hand a lot, oblivious to Sasuke's awareness of it since he always did it when he was supposedly asleep. Like now, he would sit on the chair next to Sasuke's bed and hold his hand until he fell asleep.

Sasuke pretended he didn't notice. Sometimes he wondered if Naruto himself was aware of the endless minutes Sasuke spent sitting on that same chair, body turned towards his friend's bed instead, simply staring at him. They both did weird things while thinking the other was asleep, it seemed.

Sasuke wasn't like him – touching like that wasn't an option in his book. So he just stared. Sometimes his mind would be lost in thought, while other times, it would be as blank as a sheet of paper.

In moments like those, he would often feel thankful. When he didn't feel thankful, he felt terrified. And sometimes, he just felt… empty.

Because Naruto was his only friend, and he had almost lost him. He almost lost the only bond he had and his last chance of ever finding some semblance of peace in his life.

And yet, in spite of Naruto's outburst about 'friendship' and 'pain' and 'bonds'… his friend was still out of his reach.

This was painful for him because he and Naruto weren't on the same page yet – maybe they never would be. They had once lived in the same world, but now they lived in different dimensions altogether.

Biting his lip, Sasuke closed his eyes.

'Friendship', huh?

What exactly did that mean to Naruto? Woul Naruto's understanding of him allow him to perceive that Sasuke wasn't 'home'? That Konoha made him feel trapped and unsafe and just… detached?

He wondered how Naruto would react to his feelings this time. Somehow there were so many things between them that they still couldn't agree on, and surely, this would be one of them.

But he couldn't help it. He no longer had his house, and if the buzzing around the hospital was any indication, he would never be considered a normal shinobi of Konoha again. He suspected the only reason why he hadn't been put out of his misery yet was because Tsunade had given up on her position as Hokage, passing it on to Kakashi.

Being inside the walls of Konoha made him feel restless and powerless. There was still so much he had to cope with, so many things within himself that he had to fix and to analyze. He felt strangely at peace now that he had allowed himself to let go of his revenge and his ideals of revolution, and yet, it was as if he was filled with all sorts of regrets and felt many weights upon his shoulders. The sins inside of him were tearing him apart, and he knew he needed to purge them or he'd go insane.

He and Naruto hadn't really talked yet. Or better, Naruto himself had talked his mouth off; continuously telling Sasuke of what he'd been doing and the adventures he had lived while they were apart – words Sasuke assimilated automatically but didn't pay much attention to. He didn't tell Naruto about his past though. It wasn't like there was much to tell that his friend didn't already know, and quite frankly, Sasuke felt like there were things better left untouched, buried forever.

Sasuke bit his lip, feeling his eyes sting as he looked at Naruto's incomplete bandaged arm. They had both lost their arms in that fight. Naruto had gone so far, just for him.

That was something Sasuke knew he could never repay. Those feelings that Naruto forced onto him… he wondered if Naruto himself understood them. He wondered if Naruto understood exactly what they meant to Sasuke. Maybe he didn't. No, for sure he was as stupid and as oblivious as always.

Still, those feelings lived inside of him, and they were hard to deal with. He didn't know what to do with them or how to change them so that they'd have a different meaning and represented less of a burden to him.

Until he found a way to handle them, he didn't think he could ever be the kind of friend Naruto wanted him to be.

Taking a deep breath, Sasuke leaned back on his pillows and closed his eyes. The wound where his left arm had been destroyed was starting to hurt again. Usually he avoided painkillers at all costs, but Sakura forced them on him anyway because she knew he didn't complain out of self-punishment. So right now he was thankful that she wasn't around so he could feel that pain properly – the pain that reminded him of what he had almost lost. The arm was nothing when he thought about how he could have been without light, happiness, and the most important bond in his life. He had almost lost Naruto. He realized now that without Naruto, his loneliness would've killed him sooner or later.

And even if he and Naruto's paths were not fated to keep meeting, as long as Naruto was alive, he knew he'd never be alone. Because in the past he had endured everything, thinking that he was by himself. But deep down, there had always been something that told him that his blond teammate was looking out for him. And he knew that it would always be like that, so he had no doubt that he'd be just fine.

A year and a half later…

He could feel Sasuke's presence all around him, strong, alluring, and involving and he didn't really know how to respond to it. There was no particular direction that he could follow, which was new to him since his friend had always given him signals as to which way to go. Right now though, Naruto couldn't for the life of him tell what he was supposed to do.

Sasuke hadn't come home since he had left all those months ago, but once in a while during missions, he would feel him and make sure Sasuke would be able to feel him as well. Sometimes their paths crossed (briefly), and other times, Sasuke would – purposefully, he guessed – not go to him.

Sasuke leaving had been something Naruto had resented but understood all the same. Sasuke was running away again, but at the same time, how could he be strong enough to start a life anew if he didn't even know how to accept himself and cope with what he had done?

The moon was reflecting over the endless rice fields ahead of him, and he looked over them to see if he could spot any movement nearby. Apart from the rustling of leaves, the forest behind him was unusually quiet, but despite the ominous atmosphere, he wasn't worried. He knew Sasuke was around somewhere, but this was far from being something that made him feel threatened.

The weather had cooled down considerably now that November was close. A gush of wind ran past him unwarned, and Naruto only had time to tense in awareness before he felt something sharp poking at the spot between his shoulder blades, making him go still.

There was no denying who the strong, familiar chakra behind him belonged to. There was no denying that it was the tip of a katana that was pressed to his back, and yet he didn't feel threatened by it – if anything, a rush of adrenaline assaulted him, completely untamable. Sasuke had come.

"Careless as usual," a voice that was dangerously low and almost seductive said behind him. "You never learn, do you, Naruto."

Heaving a small sigh, Naruto smiled but didn't dare to turn around to face him. "I knew it was you," he said confidently.

"So you simply let your guard down?" Sasuke inquired, in a mocking tone. "How foolish. Never let your guard down, not even in front of me."

"Or else what?" Naruto couldn't help but tease, a defiant tone to his voice. "You're going to kill me?"

Sasuke didn't hesitate. "I could."

In spite of himself, Naruto rolled his eyes. He could swear he knew his friend like he knew the back of his hand, and yet sometimes he wasn't sure where some things came from.

"Sasuke..." He made a move to turn around but found the tip of the blade pressing harder to his back. The blade didn't have enough force to pierce, but it definitely had enough to be threatening, so he stayed where he was.

"Don't fucking move," Sasuke said imposingly. "What are doing here?"

"Your chakra summoned me," Naruto mumbled with a frown, looking over his shoulder at his friend.

"I could just be messing with you," came the easy reply.

Well, never in a million years would Naruto even consider that Sasuke might not show up after he had summoned him, and yes it was rather arrogant of him to assume that Sasuke wouldn't do something like that. Maybe he was taking the Uchiha for granted, but in his mind he liked to believe that Sasuke wanted to see him just as much as he wanted to see Sasuke.

"Clearly you weren't," he said defiantly.

The other didn't reply for a while. Then, the pressure on Naruto's shoulder blades was gone. "Sometimes you do piss me off," Sasuke said smoothly.

Naruto turned around, taking in Sasuke's appearance. Compared to the last time they had seen each other, his friend's clothes were considerably more worn out. He still couldn't wrap his mind around the poncho and the beads around his neck. He didn't like it that, clearly, Sasuke was leading the life of a traveler. Probably going through many trials and lacking many things, he still seemed surprisingly healthy, so it was obvious that he was pulling this journey off rather well.

"You look well," Naruto observed, offering his friend a small smile as Sasuke sheathed his katana behind his back with a graceful gesture, dark eyes never leaving his. "Although, that poncho thing is really awful. You look like an old lady."

"Speaks the guy with the worst fashion sense I've ever met," Sasuke said, also eyeing him up and down, looking unimpressed. "Your outfit just keeps getting worse the older you get. And your hair is ridiculous."

"Your face is ridiculous," Naruto countered, his smile fading to be replaced by an offended glare. To his surprise, Sasuke gave him a small lopsided smirk.

"Sakura and Sai are around," he stated, changing the subject.

"Yeah, they're in an inn at a village not too far from here, sleeping, I hope," Naruto muttered, with a half-hearted pout. "I just felt your presence and thought I could come and see you."

Sasuke nodded. "Your arm looks functional."

Uncrossing his arms, Naruto raised his bandaged right one for Sasuke to see as he opened and closed his fist proudly. "Yeah, it took forever, but the muscles are becoming pretty strong and the nerves are already responding nicely," he explained, smiling again. "I still can't feel much, though. You should definitely get your own arm as soon as you can because the healing process is a bitch."

"Yeah," Sasuke said, black eyes softening. He looked around briefly and pointed to a large tree nearby. "Let's sit there for a while."

Agreeing, Naruto followed the taller male, and they sat underneath the tree, him Indian-style with his back to the tree, Sasuke in front of him, on his knees, his back very straight. The ground was grassy and filled with dry leaves and sticks.

Naruto eyed his friend for a bit, wondering about the simple, peaceful aura he could feel emanating from the other. It felt different. Sasuke himself felt different for some reason and even in worn out clothes, in the moonlight, there was a strange eeriness about him that made him look respectful and still more handsome than any other person Naruto had ever met. This made him strangely happy.

"So... what have you been up to?" he asked, a little sheepishly as he toyed with a string in his pants.

"Just travelling," Sasuke answered, with a small, elegant shrug. "I was on my way to Konoha actually."

Naruto perked up immediately. "Oh, we're going home in two days!" he said excitedly. "We could all go together!"

"I'm still going to make a detour," Sasuke explained, an apologetic tone in his voice that made Naruto feel disappointed.

"You suck…" he grunted, leaning his back on the tree trunk. "Well, how's the journey going?"

"It's alright," Sasuke's dark eyes were stuck to his, calm but inscrutable. "I've been meditating, seeing things, and meeting people. I've been involved with religion to a certain extent. But mostly I've been doing a lot of thinking."

"How's that working out for you?" Naruto couldn't help but tease. "Did you manage to figure yourself out?"

"You could say that," Sasuke smirked, indulging him. "I am learning how to… accept and cope with certain things about myself. How about you?"

"Ah, nothing new has been happening." Naruto scratched the back of his head. "The village is still being rebuilt and all that. Kakashi-sensei is doing great as Hokage, and with the other countries' help, the place has been growing quite a lot."

"That's good," Sasuke said, nodding approvingly.

Silence settled between them while Sasuke looked to the side and seemed to contemplate some stones on the ground. It was dark, but the moon painted the scenario around them in cold tones of silver.

"You seem strangely thoughtful," Naruto noted carefully.

"I've been thinking about my life and my future," Sasuke admitted, with a small frown. He looked back at Naruto. "Do you ever do that, Naruto? Think about how your future will be?"

The question was unexpected to the blond. "Well… I know I want to be Hokage," he replied. He could feel the mood changing but couldn't tell why. "It's going to take a while, but I'm working hard. I don't really think about the future. I just live one day at the time, I guess."

Again, it took a while for Sasuke to talk, but when he did, the words coming out of his mouth weren't exactly what Naruto had expected to hear. "I've been thinking that maybe I won't go back to Konoha for good."

Shivering in shock, Naruto straightened up. "What do you mean?"

That couldn't be good. He had feared that Sasuke might make such a decision, and yet he had hoped that this journey of redemption of his would be enough to make him realize where his home was and where he belonged to.

"I'm no longer a shinobi of Konoha, so I will never be able to take ranking exams again, or work directly for or inside the village as such," Sasuke explained, using his right hand to rub absently at his upper left arm, an action Naruto didn't miss. "These last few months have been enlightening for me. I feel like I should be out here seeing the world and making sure I understand what it takes to change it. I want to be doing good things and helping people out as much as I can. I will go back to the village once in a while, but it's not like I'll stick around for long."

"I… Konoha is your home, Sasuke," Naruto whispered, his heart sinking. "Are you really just going to leave only to be seen once every year or so?"

"It's what makes sense to me," the Uchiha stated, still with his calm expression. "And my home is no longer there. I have nothing except you and my brother's will to bond me to that place."

They didn't talk for a few seconds. Naruto could only gape, unsure of what exactly he was feeling. He wanted to yell at Sasuke; to tell him he was a complicated asshole and put some sense in his head, again . But at the same time, he couldn't help but understand where his friend was coming from. After everything that had happened to him; after what Konoha had done to him and his clan, even if the village meant something to him thanks to Itachi's legacy, it made sense that Sasuke would still feel misplaced and resentful. But that didn't mean Naruto had to accept it or even like it.

It was one thing giving Sasuke space to sort himself out, but it was another thing altogether to know that the gap between them – that he had been sure would be closed soon – would still exist after all that time.

"Don't make that face," Sasuke said with a frown, perceptive to his mood.

"I don't even know what to think. I'm just pissed off," Naruto hissed, clenching his fists around the fabric of his pants. "Asshole."

But he couldn't really find the heart to make the insult sound serious. To him it was meaningless to have Sasuke around 24/7 if he wasn't happy, but that didn't mean he wanted Sasuke to be a wanderer for the rest of his life.

"Do you ever think about us?" Sasuke asked out of the blue, his voice as smooth as silk. "About how you want our relationship to be? As in, do you ever imagine us getting along? Doing things together like sparring, having lunch together and stuff like that?"

Naruto made a face.

"Well, of course." Blue eyes blinked confusedly at intense grey ones. "I always did. I hoped it would be like that once you were home, but then you left and..."

Naruto shook his head from side to side. Sasuke should know these things. What was with the useless questions? "I missed you during this year and a half, Sasuke. It's never easy when you're not around. It never was."

"Yes, that's why you chased me around for three years," the other male replied, with an ironic chuckle. Brushing his fringe away from his eyes, Sasuke looked down again, his expression serious once more as his fingers toyed with a bit of grass next to his thigh. "I wonder if you realize that there are other options for us."

For some reason this made Naruto's heart beat faster. He couldn't understand the surge of emotions assaulting him at all, but he couldn't look away from Sasuke's face. "Huh?" was all he could say, confused and helpless.

"Usuratonkachi…" Sasuke mumbled, gazing at him from the corner of his eyes before looking down at the grass again. "I'm not like you. I can't make friends the way you do, and I don't like people. Surely you understand the depth of our bond."

"Well, yeah, I do; but that doesn't mean I buy your lonely bastard bullshit," Naruto couldn't help but reply, annoyed. "Because that's what you're doing right now. You just want to close yourself up to everything again and be alone. I don't want you to be alone. I already told you…"

"What if there are other options, Naruto?" Sasuke interrupted, again, now with something Naruto hadn't been expecting at all. "What if, more than being Hokage, you could find things that fulfilled you just as much instead?"

What is he getting at?

Naruto swallowed hard, feeling uneasy all of a sudden. He didn't really understand what was going on, but he felt like he was missing something important and couldn't for the life of him perceive what it was. "I'm… not following you."

Sasuke seemed to be choosing his words carefully. "I have wishes for my future that aren't related to that village, or to whatever it is that you idealize," he explained, his eyes hardening as they narrowed at him. "In my mind I want to do the right thing. To me, that means helping people and seeing how I can change the world with my own hands. When it comes to you , it means that I want you to have everything I know you deserve: friends, a family, recognition… I know you need it, and I alone cannot give you that."

"But I always wanted you by my side!" Naruto yelled, quickly moving so that he was on his hands and knees in front of him. "I indulged your wish to be alone for a while to get your shit together, but I want you to come home and finally…"

"Shut up and let me talk," Sasuke snapped, startling him. "That's not going to happen, and you know it as well as I do." As if realizing how he had spoken, he cleared his throat and forced his voice to remain even. "I know you belong there. You should do everything in your power to become Hokage, and you should allow yourself to be loved by some girl who will be able to give you a real family."

"Sasuke…"

"But I can't help but wonder… how would it feel for you to have other options? To know you could take another path, different from that one even you, surely, have idealized for yourself."

Sasuke seemed to be watching him intently now. "As in… maybe you could join me, and we could see the world together. There are things you don't know that I think you should see. There are many other ways of creating a revolution that go way beyond what a simple Kage can do, and I think that together we could achieve it. In a way, but differently this time, like Madara and Hashirama did. And we'd still contribute to Konoha, of course."

And this is where Naruto lost the ability to breathe.

"What are you saying?" he managed to breathe out.

"I'm saying you have two options, that's all." Sasuke raised his hand and grabbed for a leaf that had apparently been stuck to Naruto's hair. Then, he observed it as if it was the most fascinating thing he had ever come across. "Imagine you have me on one hand,and Konoha on the other. I would never make you choose, but in the end, it comes down to it because your vision of team 7's happy ever after won't happen. As I said, I will never stick around long enough for it."

Moved by a sudden surge of panic, or anger – he couldn't tell – Naruto got on his knees and grabbed for Sasuke's shoulders before glaring at him, teeth clenched, while the other simply eyed him back challengingly.

"Why do you have to be like this?" he hissed, his voice shaking a bit, barely controlled feelings he couldn't understand making his hands tremble. "Why can't you just… try to find something else for yourself? Make friends and find a job, even if not as a shinobi?" Naruto's hands slid over the rough fabric of Sasuke's cream colored poncho, over his arms as if unconsciously caressing them, and when he reached Sasuke's right elbow and found that his right hand couldn't find the other one, he felt the familiar pang of sadness and frustration strike him. It also upset him that he had the perception of grabbing something but not of actually feeling it. He couldn't feel Sasuke with that hand. His voice softened. "It doesn't always have to be black and white, you know?"

"But it is," Sasuke whispered back firmly, running his gaze over Naruto's features quickly. "Being a shinobi is who I am, Naruto. And I don't care about friends or spending my life doing the same routine over and over again. That would kill me, and I made a promise to you that I'd keep my will to live."

Naruto's hands slid upwards once more and he could almost swear that he felt his friend shiver slightly. Inhaling, Naruto tightened his hands on Sasuke's upper arms.

"I… Konoha is my home," he said, stuttering slightly. "I… I want to be with everybody, I want to protect it and keep struggling to become worthy of being Hokage. That is my dream and that's what I've been fighting for all this time." He knew he was pleading, but he didn't care. He understood Sasuke; he understood what was being asked of him, but at the same time, he needed him to know that he cared; that Sasuke not being around would always have an impact on him. "But Sasuke, I want you there as well! I told you! Don't be like this. Don't go away again. You know I need you around. You know I want…"

Sasuke put a hand on his chest to push him away a bit, looking baffled, but Naruto held on to him. "Did you not understand what I just said?"

"I DID! All I'm saying is…"

"No, you definitely didn't," Sasuke contradicted, with a clearly frustrated sigh. "It doesn't matter, Naruto. Let me go."

"No!" Naruto refused, shaking his head from side to side vigorously. "Just… come home with us. Let's see what we can do to make it better! We'll talk to Kakashi-sensei, he'll be able to…"

"I am home right now," Sasuke refused vehemently, looking pained. "I can't ask Kakashi to do more for me than what he has already done." He offered Naruto a small smile that looked defeated. "And it's funny. I knew your answer, and yet I thought you'd surprise me."

It felt like a slap across Naruto's face. He felt his hands loosening their grip as they slowly released his friend. Without another word, Sasuke got up and fixed his clothes, and while he watched him with his mouth open, Naruto was sure he had just missed something very important and that something had just been shattered between them. There was no mistaking it, yet he couldn't understand what had so obviously hurt Sasuke.

He hadn't meant to hurt him. He thought that Sasuke would understand his feelings like he understood Sasuke's. They were supposed to talk about it; talk about how they could manage things between them and how to make it so everybody compromised and benefited simultaneously. Sasuke knew what Konoha meant to him, just as he knew what it didn't mean to Sasuke.

Were their paths doomed to be so different after all? Even after everything they had gone through together and apart?

Even in spite of how deeply connected they were?

The sound of steps crushing dry leaves woke him up from his state of shock, making him get to his feet at once and turn to see that Sasuke was making his way to the forest, intent on leaving. "Where the hell are you going?" Naruto yelled after him, fists clenched and throat dry.

Sasuke stopped walking. "I'm leaving," he said simply, looking over his shoulder. "The only reason I came was because I wanted to talk to you about this."

"You can't just leave and not explain what the hell you meant!" Naruto hissed, frustrated. "I don't understand! You know how I feel! I didn't mean to hurt you, but you're so damned difficult all the fucking time, Sasuke!"

"I'm difficult?" Sasuke's low, deceivingly soft tone sounded bitter and suddenly angry.

"Why are you mad at me?" Naruto inquired, shoulders slumping helplessly. "Tell me so I can understand!"

Turning halfway towards him, Sasuke seemed to contemplate him with hard, cold eyes. Through them Naruto could see him fighting some sort of internal battle with himself.

Taking a sharp intake of breath through his nose, Sasuke made such a dangerous face Naruto would've taken a step back had that person not been his best friend.

"You know why I'm angry, Naruto?" Sasuke growled with poorly hidden fury. "Because you're so fucking oblivious you can't even understand what's right in front of you. And what's worse is that I could tell you things to your face, but you'd end up either freaking out or just not taking me seriously because you're the kind of dumb as fuck guy who needs to realize things for himself." Sasuke shook his head from side to side, fury fading to give place to sheer disappointment. "And you know what really pisses me off? Is that when the time comes when you do realize the poor choices you made and understand what you really want, it'll be too late to go back and fix it. And trust me… not even you can fix everything."

While he had no idea what his friend was going on about, it terrified Naruto that they would part, once more, in such dire terms. But his voice got stuck in his throat. His heart ached.

What am I missing? He thought, desperately.

What should I do?

"Sasuke…"

Even calling out his name hurt, and he didn't know why.

Sasuke sighed. "I'll see you when I get back," he said, with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Take care."

And Naruto could only watch him go, unable to shake off the sinking feeling that he had screwed up big time.

Ten months later…

"Ayame-san, today, it's on me!" Sakura said cheerfully upon arriving at the small restaurant, flashing Naruto a bright smile as she sat down on the high stool on his left.

"You sure are in a generous mood today, Sakura-chan!" Ayame said with a smile.

"I'll say," Naruto replied, blond eyebrows rising in surprise as Sakura beamed even more at him.

"The usual for both of you?" Ayame then asked, to which both of them nodded.

As the young cook turned her back to them to help her father, Teuchi-san, Naruto looked to the side again to find his female friend with her eyes closed and a steady smile still on her lips, her chin resting on one hand. The expression of pure contentment on her face was completely unknown to him, and for some reason it made him feel strangely uncomfortable.

"You look like you're in a good mood," he pointed out suspiciously. She opened her eyes and looked at him from the corner of them before chuckling.

"Well, that's probably because I am," she said easily, with a small shrug.

"Is it because we're finally on a date?" he asked her, finding that her good spirits allowed him to make the joke without the risk of being punched.
To his credit, she actually laughed. "Oh, stop it silly!" Sakura replied, slapping his arm lightly. "First of all, if it was a date, you'd definitely be the one to pay for our meal, and secondly, you have a girlfriend now; you can't go on dates with other girls."

Naruto crossed his arms over his chest, looking at the ceiling contemplatively. "Huh… I guess you're right."

Thinking about how he did have a girlfriend now was weird, he considered. It was something relatively recent, so for both him and Hinata it was a first in many things. He'd never been in a relationship before and the truth was he had no idea what being a good boyfriend meant at all. But Hinata seemed happy, so he guessed he was doing something right. But it still baffled him how foreign the concept felt to him for some reason.

He did like Hinata an awful lot, even if he couldn't quite place where or when the exact moment the feeling had surfaced inside of him the way it did. But having someone close like that felt good, even if some things were still a little awkward and embarrassing, but he guessed that it would improve as they grew together as a couple.

However… the notion of 'couple' sure was different from what he'd envisioned.

"How is Hinata-chan, by the way?" Sakura asked, seeming genuinely interested.

"She's fine," Naruto replied, with a small shrug and a smile. "But hey, I want to know what's gotten you so giddy!"

Her own smile grew as a slightly pinkish tone painted her cheeks. "That's a secret, Naruto!"

"I tell you everything, Sakura-chan!" Naruto complained, turning to her on his stool and grabbing her wrist with both hands, shaking it a bit. "Come on, tell meeee!"

"It's nothing special," she said, amused.

"I still want to know!" he whined.

"Oh, alright," Sakura said, rolling her eyes and shaking her wrist free from his grasp. "But you have to promise not to tell anyone for the time being!"

Naruto nodded excitedly. He loved it that over the years Sakura had learnt how to trust him, not only as a shinobi comrade, but also as a close friend.

"Pinky promise?" she said playfully, raising her hand with her pinky finger stretched out.

"Pinky promise," Naruto agreed, interlacing his own bandaged pinky with hers. She nodded her approval and then motioned him closer so they couldn't be heard. Curiously, Naruto leaned his head closer to hers and offered his ear so she could speak in it.

"I think that Sasuke-kun is finally noticing me," she whispered conspicuously.

He leaned away a bit, looking at her happy face with his eyes opened wide. "What do you mean?"

She merely blushed more. "I don't want to make a big deal out of it yet, that's why I don't want people to know about it. But he said some things, and… we've been spending more time together when he's around… not too much, but still, it feels like it's different now, you know?"

Naruto could only open and close his mouth stupidly. He knew that on his face all his friend could see was genuine astonishment, but deep inside he felt like someone had poured a bucket of frozen water over his head.

He couldn't place the feeling inside of him at the strange, unexpected news, but he knew that it didn't sit well with him.

It felt like his whole world was crumbling underneath his feet, and he was powerless to do anything about it.

Sasuke was… taking an interest in Sakura? Now ? Why? How? After everything he had said and done to her? After leaving the village over and over and over again, even after making peace with team 7?

He was never around. What was he even thinking ?

It didn't make sense at all.

And to Naruto it felt like suddenly invisible walls were closing in on him – walls he had no idea had been there in the first place. He felt sick.

And it made him feel horrible on Sakura's behalf because he was supposed to feel happy for them, wasn't he? He had brought Sasuke home for her, for himself. He had given up on his crush on her because he wanted her to stay faithful to her feelings for their teammate. Sakura deserved it for everything she had gone through and for never giving up on her feelings for him – even if she had hurt Naruto when she had lied and claimed that she loved him instead.

It made sense. In his head, he had believed that Sasuke should accept her feelings for him, and yet he had never given that possibility a second thought. in fact, during those two years and a half since the war, Naruto had learned to accept that maybe Sasuke wasn't cut out to be with people like that. Sasuke's focus didn't seem to be on dating or relationships in general. Sasuke was a difficult person, arrogant, cold, brutally honest and unhesitantly keeping people at arm's length. Naruto's own relationship with Sasuke was strained.

Although, if he had to be honest, he had to admit that things had become a lot more tense between them after that particular conversation they'd had a few months before back in Rice Country and even more so after he started dating Hinata.

Back then, Naruto had somehow understood what Sasuke had told him, and yet it had been difficult for him to perceive what had ticked Sasuke off so much. A lot of time had passed since then, but Sasuke was still obviously bitter about it. Sasuke just kept giving Naruto shit about how he wasn't like him and he couldn't accept other people, but he didn't even try to be around and be sociable; didn't even try to give Konoha, or the people inside of it, a chance. The way Sasuke thought wasn't something Naruto could simply accept and let go. This was Sasuke's happiness at stake. Their bond was strong, but it wasn't just about them or at least Naruto didn't make it all about them. Sasuke should be able to be happy around other people as well.

Suddenly, like a tidal wave, it hit him. He remembered their conversation well.

Everything Sasuke had said and done, everything he was doing, even with Sakura…

His eyes widened even more. Sasuke had… seriously wanted him to go with him. Because…

No… that couldn't be it… could it? The way Sasuke felt for him… the things he didn't say, but what he had suggested they did together, him constantly leaving…

Sasuke truly wasn't like him. And now he was fucking things up again. That damned bastard.

What the fuck do you think you're doing, Sasuke?

And to make matters worse… Naruto wasn't pleased on his own behalf, and he was very angry at himself. If Sasuke really did feel that way then he had been completely blind.

How could I have been so stupid?

"Naruto?" Sakura asked worriedly, since apparently he had been lost in thought for far too long.

Naruto shook his head from side to side, swallowing the lump in his throat down.

"Well…" he said, forcing the smile to return to his lips. "If you think it's like that, that's great, Sakura-chan. I hope things turn out well for the two of you."

He hated lying to her when all he wanted was to tell her to open her eyes and see what Sasuke was doing and how blind she was to everything he did – everything he had ever done – to her.

But the sparkle in her eyes and her genuine relief at his approval broke his heart. She seemed so happy he just couldn't find the will to question anything and shatter her fantasy.

The fantasy she had always had about the prince charming Sasuke would never be.

But then again, who was he to talk when, to him, Sasuke had always been better and above any other person in his world? Both he and Sakura shared an unmeasurable devotion towards Sasuke that no-one else could comprehend.

And that was sad, for the both of them.

But… in Sasuke's heart, Naruto knew, better than even, that he had a place Sakura would never have. But he couldn't something like this to her, could he?

"Thank you, Naruto," Sakura said softly, gratefulness filling her minty eyes. "That means a lot to me."

TBC...