. . . hi. I have a bunch of good reasons to give for my absence including RL and computer troubles, but why don't I just give you all a hella long chapter instead? It's the longest so far at 12,000 words. I say so far and I mean so far.

This probably won't be what any of you are wanting/expecting, but it got out of hand. Top, middle, and bottom parts are very different too. Oh well.

Many thanks go out to you awesome reviewers!

crimson11116, The Shifting, Allykrau, Doroki, guest (05/06/15), PirateDragons121, The Neo Productions, guest (05/07/15), The Keeper of Worlds, guest (05/18/15), JonJon1492, an (05/24/15), and all-American-heroine! Extra love for S. Eve and WDW for their long reviews, they seriously made my day to read!

Chapter 4: Emotion

As Luffy and he exit the building, Sasuke covertly glances upwards and to the left, and sees the predictable sight of Hinata standing in the shadows of the trees. Forty degrees to her right, Sasuke senses Snake following her example, and taking to the high ground. Sasuke's lip curls a little. He already knew the Anbu would be pinned to him for likely his entire stay here, but it's Tsunade's choice to have them be where he can sense them that irks him. It's a very conspicuous nonverbal way of saying "I'M WATCHING YOU SO DON'T TRY ANYTHING."

Then again, Tsunade never was one for subtlety.

"Where's the hospital?" Luffy asks. Now mostly healed, his little brother's eyes dart all around the area, taking in the mountain and buildings eagerly.

"To be honest, I could really just do with some food and rest."

"But you're hurt," Luffy protests.

"Scrapes, mostly. Those'll go away fast enough after I eat something. Aren't you hungry?" Sasuke asks. Sure that might be an underestimation of the extent to his wounds and cracked ribs, but at the very mention of food, his brother's stomach makes a noticeable growl. Sasuke smiles. "I thought as much. Come on, follow me. Let's go to the grocery store."

"Okay . . . but we're getting bandages too."

"Alright," Sasuke agrees easily. He'll need to re-tape Luffy's hands in the morning anyways. Pulling out the wad of cash Tsunade so 'generously' threw his way, Sasuke starts flipping through the bills. Holding the currency again is . . . strange. The bills are so bizarrely similar to beris that he feels disoriented for a moment. He quickly shakes it from his mind as he finishes his tally. Thankfully the Hokage didn't skimp on the money. He has enough to keep him and Luffy fed for at least a week. He should be grateful, but all he feels is dry amusement and distain. This is probably her allotted money for her daily gambling. Hokage or no, it's kind of pathetic.

But at the moment, Tsunade is his best ally. He's preparing for the worst case scenario— being here for an extended period of time. Sooner or later he'll have to face the clan heads, and he'll need her on his side if he wants to succeed in adopting Luffy into the clan. He'll put off the introductions as long as possible though.

The brothers stop in front of the same grocery store Sasuke used to regularly visit all those years ago. The difference in the passage of time is more than unsettling, just as standing here as a different, yet the same person, is ridiculously bizarre.

"So much food!" Luffy crows. Sasuke grabs the back of his brother's shirt before he can run in and just start eating the produce.

"We're getting a cart. And don't eat anything until we've paid. Sanji must've had this conversation with you."

"Yeah . . ." Luffy reluctantly admits before smiling. "I'll wait!"

Sasuke pauses. "One more thing— don't show anyone your Devil's Fruit powers."

"What?" Luffy furrows his brow. "Why?"

"They don't have anything like it in this world. It'll be the quickest way to tip people off that we aren't from around here. We should try and pass ourselves off as new move-ins until Tsunade makes her announcement." Sasuke wishes he could always just coast below the radar, but knows better. For now, he'll enjoy anonymity while it lasts.

With a firm hand, he steers his brother around the store and fills their combined cart. Everything is so familiar and so dissonant at the same time, it's hard for him to fully grasp it all. Luffy's tired, though still excitable enough to be chatty, and it's exactly the consistent distraction that Sasuke needs to keep himself preoccupied.

Driven by extreme hunger, they manage the task in record time and reach the front of the checkout line.

The lady at the front is middle-aged, with her hair pulled back into a tight, serious bun. Despite that there are lines around her mouth and eyes from smiling and laughing, so although her expression is stern as she looks over their disheveled appearances, she greets them with a mild smile. Sasuke remembers her well. She's the owner of the store. After everything with his family . . . well, she refused to accept payment for groceries for at least the first year.

"Find everything alright?" she asks as she begins ringing up their massive pile of supplies.

Unsurprisingly, she doesn't recognize Sasuke.

"Well enough." Sasuke gives her a small smile.

"I haven't seen you around here before," she comments.

"I've never been here before," Luffy pipes in, eyes tracing her hands as she deftly bags each food item.

"New arrivals? Well I'm sure you won't regret coming here. Konohagakure is a wonderful village."

"I've been here before, it's just been a while."

"I see. Is there a reason why you left?" she questions mildly.

"Yes." Sasuke shrugs. A reason more complicated than he ever wants to get into.

"Well, hopefully you'll stay around this time Konoha is a wonderful place."

"Hopefully not. Thank you," he says quickly, eager to get out from under her eyes. She blinks at his response but nods all the same and gives him a small departing bow before turning to the next customer. Sasuke quickly grabs seven of the bags, leaving the other six for his brother to grab. Though they aren't heavy for him, they are awkward, and it takes some skill to move gracefully with all the extra mass. Luffy has no such qualms, swinging his bag-laden arms freely and clumsily as he walks down the streets.

Sasuke takes his time walking, absorbing in the small changes that have happened in the village since he was gone, and reacquainting himself with a terrain he hasn't seen in over 18 years. Too soon, they reach the compound.

Sasuke feels . . . incredibly ambivalent to be standing before the old Uchiha gates once more. On one hand, it reminds him of everything he's lost. On the other, Luffy's warm, completely real presence at his side reminds him that he still has so much. Letting out a small sigh, Sasuke extends his awareness down the streets to see if anyone unsavory is there to witness this.

There's no one but the snake Anbu and Hinata. Stepping forward, Sasuke places his hand on the wood frame of the gate in the center of the clan symbol, and lets out a small pulse of chakra. The gate gives a small click and they're in. Sasuke rolls the gate open and ushers Luffy in. He grants his two Anbu glares in warning not to enter the compound.

Not that he has the strength to enforce it at the moment, but he ignores that very unhelpful thought for the moment, instead leading his brother through the compound.

Luffy glances around curiously at all the buildings, and Sasuke's just waiting for him to start asking questions, 'What is this place?' 'Where is everyone?' 'Why are there dark stains on the ground?' Thankfully, either due to extreme weariness, or the uncanny sense of perception Luffy possesses, the younger teen keeps his mouth shut.

Without much thought, Sasuke ends up in front of his old house. So many painful memories are plastered into the walls. The happy remembrances hurt just as much as Itachi and his incredible loneliness, sometimes the combination of the three seemed too much for a seven-year-old or preteen to bear— he shakes his head to forcibly disrupt the memories. He doesn't want to be remembering this now. Sasuke needs to focus on taking care of Luffy. Shoving the disturbing thoughts to the far corner of his mind, he opens the door by undoing another chakra lock.

The entrance hall is quiet, empty, just as he remembers it being. The thin coat of dust covering . . . everything is a little new. Six years is a rather long time to be away. Sasuke silently toes off his shoes. Glancing over at the slippers lined up against the wall, he knows his own will no longer fit him. The next best choice would be Itachi's— Sasuke shakes his head and steps onto the wooden floors barefoot. From behind him, he hears Luffy following his lead. His little brother carelessly kicks off his sandals and starts staring around the house with wide eyes.

Sasuke heads straight to the similarly dust-covered kitchen, and deposits their groceries on the countertop. Opening the fridge, he frowns. The light is off and the inside's not a degree cooler. Come to think of it, Sasuke hasn't tried turning on the lights in the room. In the past he rarely turned them on when he was home unless he needed to read. Something about the muted emptiness in the house fit better with slight shadows contouring every shape. Flicking the kitchen light switch gets no effect, as he predicted.

"Lu, why don't you dust for a moment while I go flip the breaker?"

Luffy nods and smiles, but his posture unusually stiff. Sasuke knows his brother is trying to mask his exhaustion, but Sasuke knows better. Luffy won't be back at full strength until he eats something and sleeps. With that thought in mind, Sasuke slips back on his slipper shoes and heads outside into the rapidly darkening night to find the breaker box. As he walks to the main energy circuit on the compound, Sasuke sends a small, discreet probe of chakra into the air. He immediately gets feedback from four signals in the area. Hinata's he knows, and one of the four is the new Anbu from this afternoon. The other two are vaguely familiar, but nothing he can put his finger on. No doubt the newest two are here to replace Hinata and the snake Anbu in their task of spying on Sasuke and Luffy. In fact they're probably being filled in on what's already happened at this very moment. Sasuke barely resists a derisive snort.

Sasuke was uncharacteristically 100% genuine when he spoke with Tsunade earlier. He's really just here for the library, and is more than willing to get out of her hair the moment he can. Hopefully, with as minimal of interactions with his old teammates as is humanly possible. Thankfully, it seems Tsunade supports him, at least in that capacity. Sakura is one thing, but Sasuke could really go without seeing his other obnoxious teammate again.

Sasuke sighs. He'll deal with that if he comes to it, he supposes. As he reaches the circuits, Sasuke draws a flame into his palm to examine the tiny writing made more inscrutable by the coming night. He senses a small pause in his four observers' chakra flow, and knows they're likely observing his every move. What? In case he burns down the compound? With a dry snort, Sasuke finds the correct switch and flips it off and on. He's rewarded by a sudden surge of artificial light pouring out of the kitchen window of his home, and a muted gasp of surprise from his brother. Sasuke shakes his head, and wonders if there will be any food left by the time he gets back.

Deciding not to leave it too much to chance, Sasuke heads back, dismissing the flame from his palm. As he removes his shoes again and enters the kitchen, he's greeted by the unpleasant surprise of Luffy staring at one of the only photos Sasuke really really loathes, zeroing in on it after being in the house for less than ten minutes. But as it's nosy, unapologetic Luffy, Sasuke doesn't know why it's a surprise.

Sasuke approaches quietly, and snatches the frame from his hands. His brother makes a startled utterance before pouting. The expression is quickly trumped by curiosity of course.

"Was that you?" Luffy asks.

Sasuke sets the image face down on one of the coffee tables. Not like he needs to look at it. The image is ingrained into his mind. He, Naruto, and Sakura arranged in front of their subtly smiling jonin sensei. Sasuke recalls the perfect look of indifference on his face, completely contrasted on different spectrums by Sakura's obvious joy, and Naruto's anger. It's an image he tries to rarely think of. Hell, he wouldn't even have a copy of it if Kakashi hadn't put it in his home (without Sasuke's awareness or permission).

"When I was twelve," Sasuke answers eventually, before turning his attention back to the groceries. The fridge is humming quietly in the background, and though it'll take a while to fully become chilled, Sasuke starts putting some of their perishables onto the shelves.

"You were so white!" Luffy laughs. "Did you not go outside?"

Sasuke smiles a little. Because of course, of all the things Luffy could ask, he comments on that.

"I went outside. I just didn't live outside," Sasuke informs him as he places a carton of milk inside the door. He doesn't really feel like explaining the prideful tendencies the Uchiha had about paleness, or what they would have called generations of good breeding.

"You were whiter than Sabo used to be!"

Sasuke falters for a moment, but chuckles nonetheless. Luffy has no idea. He never saw Sabo when he first left his parents. The blond absolutely burned in the sun, peeling repeatedly under the heat of Grey-Terminal only to reveal whiter skin. It took a good two months for Sabo's skin to stop peeling and actually build up some facsimile of a tan. It never did compare to the natural glow he and Luffy both sported.

"Definitely," Sasuke agrees, grinning faintly as he remembered the times.

"Sabo had an excuse though. He was a noble and his parents didn't let him outside."

"Well, the Uchiha are sort of a noble family here in Konohagakure," Sasuke says idly while he tries to remember if peanut butter needs to be kept refrigerated. It's one of the little things that they simply never had back in his and Luffy's world. And after almost twenty years, Sasuke's memory is a little blurry on some aspects of this life. He pauses in his ponderings because his brother is being very suspiciously quiet. Sasuke turns and glances at his brother, who is trying (and failing) to keep what Sasuke is sure is a bellowing laugh from escaping his lips. When Sasuke's stoic eyes meet his, Luffy loses it.

"You were a noble?!" Luffy guffaws.

"So?" Sasuke asks.

"You hated the nobles on Goa! Remember all the pranks and stuff we pulled?"

Sasuke smirks and shakes his head before putting the peanut butter on the kitchen counter. He won't have to wonder if it needs to be refrigerated or not if he and Luffy eat it all tonight.

"Ninja nobles are very different than the nobles at Goa," Sasuke explains, grabbing three loaves of bread and some cold cut meat from the grocery bags. A variety of sandwiches should do tonight since Sasuke really isn't up to cooking anything.

"Eh?" Luffy tilts his head.

"Noble ninja clans like the Uchiha are renowned for both their illustrious family history and their fighting skills. Generally the clans all have special techniques called 'jutsu' passed down from one clan member to another."

"Do you have one?" Luffy asks absently. His eyes are now tracing Sasuke's hands as they prepare simple assortment of sandwiches.

"Do you remember my eyes from earlier?" Sasuke asks as he smacks a wandering rubber hand away.

"The stars!"

Sasuke chuckles. "Kaleidoscope copy-wheel eye, Luffy. That's what the name means, Magekyou Sharingan."

"That's so cool!" Luffy says, eyes glittering with amazement.

Sasuke rolls his eyes slightly. "You think everything's cool."

Luffy frowns. "Nu-uh! People who betray their nakama aren't cool!"

"Of course," Sasuke says, grinning. His expression falters minutely and one hand drift to his cargo pants. Speaking of his clan, he almost forgot. He needs to make sure Luffy signs the paperwork inducting him into the clan. The thought is tainted with unusual hesitation. Because there's always a chance that his brash little brother will resist it. Sasuke would understand why. He'll be entering a clan he knows nothing about, in addition to giving up his surname. Sasuke would hate doing that. Especially because he only has a few things left from his mother, Rogue; his life, last name, and freckles. He never asked for the first one— His thoughts are disrupted by his brother's grabby hands, which he quickly blocks.

Sasuke smirks and lifts one of the three plates of sandwiches he made and settles down at the table. His brother is quick to copy and soon they're up to their elbows in sandwiches. Luffy's mouth goes slack when he bites into one with peanut butter, making the elder smile. Sasuke managed to use all the peanut butter in a rather impressive amount of combinations, including bananas, honey, jelly, celery, and raisins. His brother eagerly starts trying all of them, eyes wide with delight at the new taste and texture.

"What is this?" Luffy asks through a mouth of food.

"It's called peanut butter." Sasuke takes a bite of a celery and peanut butter sandwich. Even after the first few bites, he already feels better with food in his stomach. The two plow through most of the sandwiches in minutes.

"I gotta get Sanji to make this for me," Luffy says after a while as he struggles to swallow a large glob of chewed food.

Sasuke's hands hesitate on the way to his mouth. "About that . . . Luffy I don't know how much you understand about everything that's happened."

Luffy furrows his brow and slows his eating pace. "Uhm, you sent us here on accident. And you need help to get us back? From that mean lady?"

"Almost, but not quite." Sasuke finishes his last sandwich and runs a hand through his messy hair. "I explained about techniques and clan techniques, right? Well there is only one known technique that can traverse space and time, and it's the Mangekyou Sharingan."

Luffy nods to show he's following along, even if he doesn't know where his brother is going with this.

"So to get back we have to use the Mangekyou. The problem is that I've never used this technique before coming here, so I have no clue how it works."

"Oh, so we need to find someone else who has it!" Luffy grins. It falters when the look in his brother's eyes grows complicated.

"Luffy," Sasuke says slowly. He sighs before continuing. "I'm the only one left from my clan. There is no one else who has the ability." Not the entire truth, but true enough.

Luffy's eyes go comically wide. "Did they die waiting for you to come back?!"

Sasuke snaps forward and smacks his brother over the head before exclaiming with shark teeth. "You idiot, that isn't how it works! Clans don't go extinct like that, they aren't cats! Besides, how long do you think I've been gone?!"

"Ahh . . ." Luffy makes a short sound of understanding, and Sasuke just resists facepalming.

"Alright, look, the rest of the Uchiha were killed a long time ago." Sasuke exhales.

Luffy's eyes go wide and sober at the information, before he can say anything else, Sasuke continues.

"What this means though, is that I have to study the books in the clan library. If we want to go home, I need to figure this out."

"Reading."

"Basically."

Luffy frowns, but nods.

"The only reason I have access to any protection offered by the village from other villages— uh." At Luffy's bemused look, he pauses. "Well, there are multiple other major villages. The relationships between them are pretty unstable and they tend to battle a lot unless there are treaties, and even then there's still a competition going on. It's . . . it's kind of like different pirate ships. They aren't always against each other, but if there's an opportunity to show another crew up, they'll take it." Completely simplified explanation of the very complex socio-economic relationships between the villages. So basically, perfect for Luffy.

"Okay."

"I'm protected because I'm a member of a noble clan. I need this protection and stability so I have time to figure out a way back. And I . . ."

Luffy blinks, waiting for him to get to the point. Sasuke sighs inwardly, before laying it out on the table.

"I want to induct you into the Uchiha clan. That way you can gain the same rights I have. Which are important for keeping us alive and well here while I figure this out."

Luffy's face is twisted, like he's thinking especially hard about something.

"I understand if you aren't entirely sold on this, Luffy, but please consider it. For your own safety, I—"

"So this means we'd be brothers. Like officially officially?"

Sasuke blinks. He hadn't necessarily thought of it that way. But knowing Luffy as he does, his brother's interpretation isn't so startling. The Uchiha nods.

Luffy breaks out into a wide grin. "Cool! It'll be like exchanging another cup of sake! Except with words and paper and stuff."

Sasuke smiles, slowly, softly, wondering why he worried in the first place. Pulling out the folded papers from his shorts, he carefully flattens them out on the table, out of the way of the crumbs left over from their meal. After rummaging through one of the kitchen drawers for a moment, Sasuke finds a black pen. He passes it to his brother who eagerly pulls the papers forward. Typical of him, he skips all the small print and goes straight for the blank spaces. Before the tip of the pen finds the paper, Sasuke clears his throat.

With a meaningful glance from his brother, Luffy sighs and starts penning in the answers in his best handwriting that Sasuke spent months drilling into him when they were children. The elder of the pair is glad to see that the clean lines remain, despite the time that's passed since Luffy wrote like this (maybe since he last wrote at all. Seeing as he has a navigator who's just bossy enough to take the job of writing the logs into her own hands. He may well not be doing any of the pen work).

"What do I put for my home village? And why do they want to know my parents' names?"

"Ah." Sasuke forgot that Luffy is still a minor by civilian law. His origin story isn't going to fit neatly on the paper anyways.

"You can put my name as your guardian." Considering that he practically raised Luffy, it isn't even a stretch of the truth. "You can put whatever you want for your home village. We can leave details like that for Tsunade to work out." His brother starts, only for Sasuke to cut him off again. "Wait, Luffy, put 'Sasuke' instead of 'Ace.' I don't know what Tsunade intends to do about our background story, but it's probably safer this way."

Luffy nods and proceeds. Once all the spaces are filled, Luffy lets out a small cheer. "Alright! Officially officially brothers! Break out the rum."

Sasuke snorts and ruffles his brother's hair. "It won't be official until we file it and get a meeting with the rest of the clan heads."

Luffy frowns and crosses his arms.

"Besides, I think both of us are too tired to party right now."

At the mere mention of it, the younger brother yawns widely. Sasuke smiles. After placing the dishes in the sink to do tomorrow, he guides his brother to his old room. Both of them ignore the dust that's settled in after however many years it's been. After quickly shaking it off the blankets on the bed, both he and Luffy fall under the covers.

He knows they'll have to change the sheets tomorrow, once they're clean. But for now, the soft springs of the mattress are all he's really concerned with. That and his brother, who rolls over so he's pressed against Sasuke's side. The elder lifts his arm, inviting the younger closer, trying to ignore the pain in his ribs. Predictably Luffy seizes the chance immediately, burrowing his head into Sasuke's shoulder.

Sasuke is just about to fall asleep, when soft words break the silence.

"I'm so glad Ace is alive."

And he feels dampness on his chest. Sasuke just clutches his brother tighter to him.

"I'm glad you're alive too." His tone turns more serious. "Never, ever, ever do something that reckless again." Because fuck, things were too close.

Sasuke waits for a response, but instead he receives snores. With a slight smile and a sigh, Sasuke surrenders himself to his exhaustion and slips away into dreams that are blessedly blank.

Sasuke wakes up slowly. The sun isn't up yet, but that isn't what wakes him. It's the unsettling stillness and quiet of the area. There's no steady rocking of the Moby Dick like he's used to, or the sounds of his nakama manning the ship, or even the ocean which is impossible to escape. He eventually opens his eyes, and is greeted by the sight of his little brother curled up against his side. Over his head he sees white sheets and a blue duvet. He's confused for a moment because he can't remember the last time he slept in a legitimate bed. Everything comes back to him. Sasuke closes his eyes and wishes he could go back to sleep for the next few weeks. Now that he's awake though, all the thing he needs to take care of fill his mind and won't leave him alone. So reluctantly, he slowly gets out of bed, careful not to wake his brother. After everything Luffy's been through in the past 48 hours, it won't surprise Sasuke if he sleeps for the next few days even. As he stands fully and the aches set in, he remembers that he hasn't had the easiest time either. They weren't remotely caring of emphatic in Impel Down, and Sasuke has his own bruises and pain to consider.

He starts doing a few stretches to soothe some of the knots in his muscles. Sasuke knows time will be the best healer, so he heads to the kitchen for a little breakfast. Toast and fruit should do for now. Maybe he'll make a proper breakfast tomorrow. At the moment he just wants to get things somewhat arranged. After putting the bread in the toaster, Sasuke grabs one of the large watermelon from their supply and cuts it evenly in half. He takes one of the halves for himself before covering the other and placing it in the fridge. As he eats, he looks outside the window. The sun is just rising now, but Sasuke is aware that the ninja population of the town have already been up for several hours. He can sense he still has two little tag-alongs, crouched in the trees. Whatever. He doesn't care what they do. If they want to waste their time on him, they're free to. As long as they don't do anything to Luffy.

Breakfast is pretty small, but he's planning on having a much bigger lunch later on. He wonders if Luffy will be up by then. Probably not.

Sasuke sighs and runs a hand through his messy dark hair before he pauses. He can shower. He can take a shower now however long he wants and as often as he wants. It's been a long time since he's had that luxury. He has a proper ofuro, but a shower sounds just about right at the moment.

With that in mind, he taps on his shoes and heads out to one of the other houses in the compound. No point in showering if he's just going to change back into his same dirty clothes. With that in mind, he heads to Michiru and Hotaka's house. They had two kids around Sasuke and Luffy's ages. After gathering up some clan attire for later on and plenty of plain black tees and shorts for now, he heads back to his temporary living space and hangs them in the closet, throwing his old clothes that are way too small to the side.

Grabbing a tee-shirt, a pair of black cargo shorts and boxers, he heads to the bathroom. He mentally crosses his fingers as he turns on the faucet. He's rewarded by a rush of cold water, which slowly begins to heat up. After eagerly stripping, he ducks under the showerhead and lets the hot water warm his back.

He stays under the shower for hours, long after the hot water runs out. By that point, he just heats up his skin, making the cold water droplets evaporate on impact.

Four hours pass before he finally gets out of the shower. After drying himself with his Devil's Fruit, Sasuke pulls on the plain black clothes, knowing the clan clothes are off limits for the moment in case anyone sees him. Besides, he's unexpectedly ambivalent towards wearing his clan symbol again . . . he has a new symbol for his family. With that in mind, he pulls off the black shirt he put on a few moments ago and leaves it on the bathroom sink. His pauses when he exits the steamy bathroom because he senses Luffy in the kitchen. Evidently awake and eating.

"Luffy, you're awake," he remarks with no small surprise. His brother is sitting at the table, facing him and stuffing his face with fruit.

"Luffy?"

No reply. His brother doesn't even jerk. It's then that Sasuke realizes that Luffy's eyes are closed. Could he be . . .

Sasuke waves a hand in front of his face. No response. "Sleep eating," he utters aloud before shaking his head. "You're one of a kind, Lu."

Curiously, Sasuke goes to the fridge and pulls out the other watermelon half and then retrieves a spoon from his drawer. He catches one of his brother's hands on its way to snagging another apple, and places the spoon in it, before placing the watermelon in front of him. Without a single hitch in the movement, Luffy attacks the watermelon with relish. Sparing a smile, Sasuke sits with his brother for a little while, watching the little idiot eat. Partially to make sure he doesn't choke, and also because he still can't believe both he and Luffy survived that massacre. Considering where they ended up though, well, it came at a price. His little brother living is worth the massive headache being back in Konohagakure brings. Spending time with his brother is enough to soothe his mind for a while, even if the younger isn't conscious.

Eventually, Luffy slows his eating before stopping all together. Sasuke decides to guide him back to the bed to continue sleeping.

Finally, with Luffy fed and sleeping beneath the duvet, and his own basic needs sated, Sasuke decides to head to the clan library and see what he can uncover about the Mangekyou. The stone walls lining the stairs down are familiar. He came down here hundreds of times when he was younger, pouring over the books and scrolls to find a jutsu strong enough to kill—

He shakes the thoughts away, but faintly appreciates the irony that he's now down here to save a different brother.

The stairs deposit him at the entrance of the Uchiha library, a medium cavernous room with shelves and scroll chambers lining the walls. Sasuke knows this place like the back of his hand so he heads straight to the far corner of the room. With a thought, fire ignites the hanging lanterns and candles in the room, sending shadows scattering across the floor. When he reaches the closed doors of the special cupboards on the wall, it feels like a strange out of body experience. When Sasuke was seven, he could never imagine getting old enough to open these doors. He anticipated getting strong enough to challenge Itachi by the time he was also 14, and then likely dying in the battle. It didn't matter. He just wanted to (prove he was worth the effort) avenge his clan. Years later, after he left the village, he never saw himself coming back to this place that held such bad memories. It would be the ultimate admission of weakness for him to return to the village; it would mean that he hadn't given up his vengeance. Now here he stood, years away from both of those people. He knows neither of them could ever have imagined any of what he had become— cheerful, protective, self-sacrificing, and downright friendly.

Luffy will do that to a person.

Lifting his thumb to his mouth, Sasuke bites off a bit of skin. Blood immediately wells up, and he spreads it over the clan seal on the door in a single motion. Then, he places his hand on top of the line of blood and puts a little chakra into it. A clicking sound rewards his efforts and the two doors slowly open.

Sasuke doesn't know whether to be relieved or exhausted to find so much material in there. The majority are thick, detailed journals. Sasuke remembers how long it took to pour through tomes and scrolls like these in the past. Hopefully it won't be so slow going this time now that he's older. . . but there are several dozen books and manuscripts, and he knows the language will only become tougher and more elaborate. His planning for the long term will likely pay off by the looks of things. It may be more than a few months until he and Luffy find a way home, until they find their ways back to their crews. Doubt and worry gnaws at his mind for his nakama. So many were dying when he left. His sudden disappearance, probably had an even worse effect. If only he had ignored Akainu! If he hadn't turned around, none of this—

He— he can't afford to consider that at the moment. One thing at a time, Sasuke reminds himself, as he gathers a medium stack of books and goes towards one of the lanterns to read.

Sasuke feels a combination of amusement and exasperation as he examines his selections. Some of these readings are from centuries ago, back when the Uchiha clan was still a wandering, mercenary group. The Uchiha's collection of such dated material is astonishing to Sasuke.

Thankfully, this does mean he has several accounts to read throughout history. More importantly, many seem to be written during the wars with the Senju clan. That messier version of life, unlike the peaceful era that ensued after they formed Konohagakure, is more conducive to the Mangekyou. Though it was an absolute rarity, it did still happen during Sasuke's lifetime. In missions, sometimes shinobi had to choose to let their best friend or comrade die. In addition, there were infiltration or spying missions in disguise that went wrong. Some a ninja were unable to defend themselves against unsavory people and their advances for the sake of keeping their cover— No, it wasn't impossible, but possessing the Mangekyou was looked down on just as much as it was envied. In the warring era, there was less shame about gaining the eyes. He read a journal about one individual who killed his best friends during a raid just to obtain the eyes. Sasuke wishes he could call that man sick and twisted, but he remembers that sensation (and there was a particular sensation for it) of preparing oneself to kill their best friend, needing to, wanting to . . . But that doesn't apply to Sasuke anymore. He isn't that person. Though the repetition of that theme does wear on him as time goes on.

In the older texts, there are a moderate amount of diaries with details about a member gaining their Sharingan. The main focus of all those manuscripts tends to be on how the member obtained the Mangekyou. As mean as it is to say, Sasuke doesn't really care about their trauma, about who killed who, and which member fucked and betrayed the other. He does acknowledge that this information should be kept under an age seal. Shinobi or no, twelve year olds can't understand the reoccurring themes of sex and death— and how often they coincide.

Though he has plenty of examples of how they gain the special ability, none of the journals he's read say anything about travelling dimensions, which is one of the main facets of the Mangekyou Sharingan. Sasuke supposes not many go dimension-hopping like he does . . . or they did and could never get back to finish their journal— That's an unpleasant and unproductive thought, so he pushes it to the side.

While skimming a rather uninformative account about twin brothers who were both in love with the same woman, something comes over Sasuke. His hair stands on end and his body tenses. He knows this feeling all too well— it's the familial sixth sense he developed after the bear attack all those years ago. Sasuke's brotherly awareness is sending alarms through his mind. Sure enough, he hears a cry from above the library, followed by loud, violent smashing.

"Ace!"

Dropping the book immediately, Sasuke jumps to his feet and dashes up the stairs.

"Luffy?" he calls, looking around for the source of the noises. Shinobi can't be attacking, can they? How can any of his enemies know he's returned? Unless Tsunade sold them out, but that isn't a logical choice for her to make! Unless she's made some misconception about him, or he hurt Sakura or Naruto— well, then she'd be here shouting and fighting, but he doesn't hear her angry words. So what is happening?! Multiple scenarios go through his mind, but as he's running about the house, through a window he catches a glance of his brother in the backyard area. In moments, he's slamming the sliding door open and entering the yard.

Debris from what were once at least half a dozen of old, large trees are scattered around the area. Their stumps have jagged edges, like the trunks were ripped off in a single, harsh motion. Large craters litter the once perfectly green grass, and Sasuke is searching for enemies, for something! What he finds is worse though. His brother is kneeling on the ground, slamming his head against the dirt beneath him. His hands are bloody and the bandages are torn up and Sasuke understands the awful truth of what happened to the yard.

A few meters away from the brothers, Sasuke spies a dog Anbu and one wearing a deer mask with kunai pulled up protectively. He wants to tell them off, to break their chests in for intruding on him and his brother, but he wants Luffy to stop hurting himself more. Sasuke's heart is breaking.

"Go away! Go away," Luffy pleads as smashes his abused head on the ground again. "Stop remembering! Stop remembering!"

"Luffy, stop!" He nearly slams into his brother he's going so fast. Sasuke grabs Luffy by the forearms and drags him up and away from the ground.

"A—Ace." As Luffy makes eye-contact with him, Sasuke can see the wide-eyed expression of shock, utter relief, and anxiety on his face. "I— I thought you died."

"Shh, shh," Sasuke immediately grabs his brother and hugs him, one hand automatically going towards his head so he can pet his hair. The second commander curses himself fervently even as terrible anxiety and self-loathing try to swallow him. He shouldn't have left his brother to wake up alone. Even if the research needs to be done, he should've made sure Luffy was okay first, instead of abandoning him to wake up alone in a strange new place after witnessing a war and several near-death experiences. "I'm alright, Lu. I'm right here."

His brother doesn't seem to hear him, and pulls away to stare at him with blatant disbelief. "I saw you die. Akainu got you. Your beads . . ." Luffy grasps the red necklace with a dazed expression. "Your necklace broke, and beads were falling everywhere. They rolled all over the place. In your blood—It was everywhere— All over my hands—"

"Stop talking like that," Sasuke says, more urgently this time. Luffy is frightening him.

"Your vivre card disappeared. It went up in ashes and I— I couldn't do anything." The haunted expression on his face is startlingly genuine. Sasuke might believe his brother is reliving an actual event if he didn't know better.

"Luffy, I'm here, we're fine. We escaped. We're— we're going to find a way out of here and get back to our crews, our nakama." He grips his brother so tightly, he's sure bruises will form, but he needs Luffy to wake up.

"Yeah, right . . ." Luffy murmurs, losing his feverish energy. His eyes slowly refocus on the present, but solemnity takes root in his eyes instead and the return to stability doesn't comfort the older teen as much as he wishes it did.

When Sasuke feels comfortable that his brother won't start hurting himself again, he removes his hands from Luffy's shoulders and slides them gently down to his hands. The bandages Tsunade so expertly applied the previous day are in shreds. New scrapes cover the already damaged appendages, and blood slowly drips down the length of his fingers in an unpleasant and irregular pattern. Sasuke turns his brother's wrists over with concern. His hands were pretty bad before, even with the treatment Tsunade gave his brother. Now Sasuke suspects it may be a while until his brother regains full usage again. He wants to scold Luffy for doing this to himself, because he's such an idiot— but his brother is still too solemn. And Sasuke doesn't know if he can really blame Luffy for a nightmare he never intended to have. He still shouldn't have hurt himself though. That's the concerning part for Sasuke.

He needs to talk with his brother, but before that . . .

His black eyes flicker up to the two Anbu who, while they have relaxed their posture, still watch the brothers with their impassive masks.

"Go. Away."

"Uchiha-san." Deer takes the lead, stepping forward slightly. "We were merely investigating."

"Good job. Now leave."

Both of them remain planted, making Sasuke's ire rankle.

"Are you deaf? Or maybe just stupid?" Sasuke snarls. "Considering you were assigned to baby-sitting duty, I imagine I'm looking at the bottom of the barrel."

The dog Anbu bristles. It's not obvious by any stretch of the imagination, most ninja wouldn't even notice. Sasuke isn't most ninja, and his eyes and analytical abilities have always been his greatest attribute. It seems the dog Anbu doesn't possess his partner's control, but beyond that, the reaction to the insult tells Sasuke that he's standing in front of at least one of his former classmates. Combining the reaction to his jab, the spiky brown hair, and the give-away Anbu mask, the answer is pretty clear.

"Kiba." Sasuke lets his lip curl. His words earn him the slightest of stiffening in surprise from the dog Anbu. "You are so obvious. I can't believe you haven't been assassinated yet."

"Y—" The dog Anbu gets ahold of himself quickly enough, but the flare in his chakra confirms what Sasuke already knows.

"Everything's fine now. Go back to crouching in the trees, or better yet, find something better to waste your time on, like training. You need it, Kiba."

Still, they remain where they are.

Sasuke's about to rip into them again, maybe physically (he doesn't know), but a nin-dog appears on the branch beside Kiba. Though he's considerably larger than Sasuke remembers, the white fur and similar markings let him know that the animal is unquestionably Akamaru. The dog barks something unintelligible to Sasuke, but it makes Kiba nod. Deer catches the signal and speaks.

"Uchiha-san, the Hokage wishes to see you and your brother at the moment."

"No."

"The Hokage is requesting your presence," Kiba says with an undercurrent of a threat.

Sasuke levels him with narrow eyes. "You're welcome to try and force me, Kiba. But if you or Akamaru try to attack me or my brother, I'll burn all your fur off."

"Uchiha-san." Deer interjects before communications can deteriorate any further. "Lady Hokage wishes to treat his wounds personally. She realizes that she doesn't want either of you going to the public hospitals for the moment. Besides, if you don't get him excellent treatment as quickly as possible his hands may be irreparably damaged. You don't want to risk that."

Like Kiba, this puzzle isn't hard.

"Shikamaru."

Unlike Kiba, his other classmate doesn't so much as twitch.

"Let the Godaime help your brother. The Hokage is the only one qualified to fix this damage, and the only one who will help you without any proper identification."

Sasuke grits his teeth. Shikamaru is as unwaveringly logical as he recalls. The Nara heir was one of the few peers he could bear as an academy student, and Sasuke— well, it wasn't admiration, but he appreciated and respected the other shinobi's mental prowess (though Shikamaru rarely applied it). From the looks of it he made Anbu, so it seems he grew out of some of his lazier habits. Then again, if Kiba got in, who knows how lax the standards have gotten. Still, Shikamaru does have a point.

"Fine."

"Can you shunshin?" the Nara heir asks.

Sasuke hesitates, before reluctantly shaking his head. "I'm out of practice."

"Then you'll side-shunshin like your brother."

How irritating. Sasuke could run to the tower and make it there in decent time, but he doesn't want his brother alone with the Anbu longer than he has to be.

"Luffy, go with Shikamaru. He's the one with the deer mask." He gestures to the Anbu.

His little brother gives him a torn look. "Ace—"

"I'll be right there. Go," he says in his no-argument, older-brother voice. Even if Luffy seems uncertain, he goes to Shikamaru's side.

"I suppose I should be honored you've chosen me, Uchiha-san," Kiba utters with a sneer.

"I'd rather Luffy get treatment as quickly as possible. I'm not entirely sure you can get us there in one shot." And while it's true he doesn't trust Kiba's shinobi skills as much as Shikamaru's (Kiba was next to dead last, making him only better than his blond teammate, which isn't saying much at all), but Kiba's already proven he holds a grudge against Sasuke. While not unfathomable as to why, he'd rather trust his brother to the level-headed Shikamaru. After taking Luffy's arm, Shikamaru makes a hand sign and they disappear

"I should take my time just to spite you," Kiba mutters as he reluctantly grabs Sasuke's elbow.

"That wouldn't be very professional for an Anbu."

Sasuke smothers a small smile, maintaining his impeccably cool façade even though he can practically feel Kiba's glare through the dog mask. With a hand sign, they appear in front of the Hokage's office door where Luffy and Shikamaru are already waiting. After stepping away from Kiba his brother immediately gravitates to Sasuke's side, eyes still blank and solemn.

Shikamaru taps the door once.

"Enter," comes from inside the office.

After Shikamaru opens the door and all of them filter in, Kiba enters last and closes off their exit behind him. Seriously, Sasuke knows what their situation is already. He's their prisoner, he's only here because they're letting him, he has no rights, blah, blah, blah. He doesn't even want to be here in the office right now, but Shikamaru has a point. Sasuke doesn't doubt Luffy's ridiculously resilient constitution, but his body isn't really in the best shape altogether at the moment. After the poison and whatever treatment this 'Iva-chan' gave his brother, his body is recovering from multiple extreme afflictions all at once.

Tsunade is seated behind her desk which, as usual, is covered with loose papers and a couple sake bottles. Thankfully, Sakura is not by her sensei's side like last time, which is a huge relief for Sasuke. He knows she'll confront him eventually, but he'd rather his teammate stay out of his business as much as possible.

The Hokage's eyes scan over Luffy and Sasuke impassively before she sighs and waves her hand in dismissal.

"Leave us," Tsunade orders. Shikamaru and Kiba vanish from sight, though not out of Sasuke's range of senses. "Come over, and let me take a look at you."

After glancing over at Sasuke, Luffy walks up slowly to Tsunade, with a frankly unexcited look on his face. Clearly he hasn't forgotten or forgiven Tsunade's violence, and her little threat of execution. Oh well, Sasuke will just have to explain that while distrust of the leader is both acceptable and wise, she's still their biggest supporter at the moment. They'll need her backing and clout in the long run. Sasuke smiles a little faintly. He trusts Luffy to get under her skin eventually though. Which is good, because Sasuke doubts there's anything he can personally do to endear her to them.

Tsunade makes a short sound of displeasure as she gives the younger brother a once over.

"How did you manage to do this?" she asks, but Luffy remains stubbornly silent.

Sasuke hedges. "He had a bad dream and . . . reacted badly."

"Badly isn't quite how I'd describe it," Tsunade says bluntly, her hands reaching for Luffy's head. As she tilts it side to side carefully, her sharp eyes take in every dirty scrape and shallow cut. "Deer and Dog reported through Akamaru that he was rather violent."

"If you already knew, why did you ask?" Sasuke asks, torn between irritation and weariness.

"I wanted to hear how you'd describe it."

"Does it matter?"

"Yes," she says, and explains nothing further. After applying some antiseptic and a couple jutsu, Luffy's head is clean and clear of injury.

"I'd be grateful your brother's made of rubber. He'd have severe cranial damage otherwise, or, in the best case scenario, a serious concussion.

"You have no idea," Sasuke murmurs, earning him the smallest of grins from the Hokage. Luffy pouts, but the expression reassures Sasuke more than it irks him. Too soon, the look drops from Luffy's face as Tsunade starts working on his hands. He bites his lip to keep quiet as she starts cleaning the area with antiseptic.

"How are his hands?" Sasuke asks, not quite able to keep the worry from his voice.

Tsunade turns her face away from the green glow of her jutsu. "Well, he undid all my work from yesterday."

"Will he regain his mobility?"

"So long as he doesn't do this kind of damage again while he's still in this fragile state, he should achieve full-use."

"I see." Relief is the only feeling in his body. If his brother lost his hands because he rescued Sasuke, the older teen doesn't know how he'd bear it. He sharpens his gaze and stares intently at his brother. "Do you understand, Luffy? Don't do something like this again ever, don't hurt yours—" Sasuke pauses. "I'll be there so you won't wake up like that again, but when I'm not, please don't."

"I wasn't trying to," Luffy mumbles, visibly uncomfortable. His eyes roam all over the room, but studiously avoid Sasuke's gaze. "I saw you die, and it wouldn't leave my mind. I was just trying to get it to shut up."

"I'm here, Luffy. I haven't left. I'm still here."

"But it was so close. It seemed like they were gonna kill you and I was too far away when it was happening, and again, and again, and I was worried that it would be this time, the next time, and I still wasn't close! And I had the key, and then the key broke. It was—"

Too aware of their audience, Sasuke grabs his brother's chin and makes Luffy face him.

"I'm here. It's alright, Luffy," he says seriously, intently. Water gathers on the edges of his brother's eyes

"I know that." Luffy tears his gaze away and wipes his face. "Sorry. I know, men don't cry."

"It's okay," Sasuke says softly. Thankfully, Tsunade has the good grace to merely continue working on Luffy's hands, despite the drama happening above her head. Sasuke releases his brother's face, and stands back and waits.

After working on his palms and fingers for a long while, all of which is spent in silence, she wraps his hands again with more bandages this time. She stands and returns to her desk. Sasuke is about to excuse the two of them and attempt to forget this whole terrible event when the Hokage speaks.

"Sasuke, as your brother's temporary physician, I recommend that he sees a psychologist while he's here."

Sasuke gives Tsunade a stunned look.

"What?" he utters, unusually ineloquent.

"What's a cyclopsigist?"

Tsunade looks like she wants to examine Luffy's head again and Sasuke would normally be amused, but he's still stuck on the leader's words.

"Psychologist," he corrects eventually. "They're people you tell your problems to. They give you advice."

"Why would I do that?!" Luffy asks, completely bemused.

"That's my question," Sasuke says with narrow eyes.

"It's ridiculous that you're asking me that." Tsunade stares down at him with a hard gaze. "Isn't is obvious? Your brother is suffering from PTSD."

There's a long beat of silence.

"What?" the younger brother asks.

"Luffy, leave the room." Sasuke is barely keeping his tone under control. How dare she presume to know anything about them, about their lives! She has no clue, no right to say something like that about Luffy. He's— he'll be okay soon. It's natural after everything they went through with the war—

. . . He just needs some time to adjust.

The younger teen pauses for a moment before shaking his head. "No."

"This is not the time to argue with me, Luffy!" he snaps.

"No," Luffy states again, stronger, more forcefully. "I won't leave. This is about me, right? So I should be in the room."

"Luffy, you don't understand what—"

"Exactly. I don't understand. Which is why I need to be in here," Luffy says firmly and simply. Sasuke opens his mouth, but his little brother cuts him off. "Ace. If I'm old enough to go out into the world and make a name for myself, I'm old enough to listen to what the mean lady has to say about me. "

"That's Lady Tsunade or Hokage-sama to you, brat." Her brow twitches tetchily.

"I—" Sasuke sometimes forgets that his brother is a captain in his own right. "Alright."

"Good," Luffy says. "So what's PS3D?"

"PTSD," Tsunade corrects, shaking her head. "It stands for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder."

"What's that?"

"It's a mental affliction triggered by overwhelming and distressing events," the Hokage begins. Sasuke cuts her off. She'll lose Luffy in five seconds if she carries on like that.

"When something really traumatic —really bad happens— sometimes people have extreme anxiety about it afterward. They might have flashbacks about the event, or have panic attacks. Sometimes they dream about the event."

"But that's normal, right?" Luffy asks, bemused. "It happens to all of my nakama sometimes when bad stuff happens."

Sasuke's eyes narrow on the Hokage. "It is normal, especially after some very distressing events."

"Then what's the problem?"

"The problem, Luffy," Tsunade says. "Is that you are at high risk for developing PTSD. I admit that you perhaps don't have the full disorder yet, but it's only a matter of time."

"What makes you so sure?" Sasuke asks darkly.

"War." Tsunade doesn't look pleased even as Sasuke winces minutely. "You said you both came from a war. That's enough distress for one event, but to have a total change of setting, to virtually enter another world, is enough to tip anyone over the edge. Without familiarity, the road to mental stability is difficult to say the least."

Sasuke . . . Sasuke didn't consider the implications them coming here might have on Luffy's healing psyche.

Tsunade starts putting away the remaining bandages and antiseptic into her desk drawer as she talks. "Beyond that, he's separated from his . . . nakama, was it?"

Luffy's lips purse unhappily at her words.

"Cut off from everything familiar plus exiting a war zone? That is a breeding ground for an anxiety disorder."

"He's dealt with stuff like this before."

"I seriously doubt he's dealt with war," Tsunade challenges, shutting the desk drawer with a click. "I know soldiers when I see them. Your brother is a civilian, Sasuke, his mind isn't equipped to deal with those kinds of stressors."

"But I am," Sasuke counters. "I know how to deal with shell-shock, I can help him work through it naturally."

"You were in denial of it five minutes ago." Tsunade laces her fingers and glares. "You downplayed and minimized the severity of what happened at the compound when I asked you. You don't want this to be a problem."

"Maybe I don't want you to get into our business," he growls. "I intended to talk to him about it."

"Do you think your little brother will feel comfortable opening up all of his problems with you? Do you think he'll want to worry his older brother?"

"Better to worry me this way that worry me with the fact that someone is going to try and extort him for knowledge about out world!" Does she think he's an idiot?

"What am I going to do with that knowledge? It isn't like I can go there and try to invade!" she points out sarcastically. "You're arguments don't stand up."

That isn't the point at all. "It isn't your business! It's between Luffy and I, end of story!"

Tsunade looks about ready to break all the furniture in the room. "Sasuke, you can't help. You're already stressed enough for the both of you!"

Luffy looks incredibly guilty and Sasuke wants to shake him because that doesn't mean he still can't be here for Luffy. He's stressed but it's okay for him to be stressed. Not Luffy. It can't be Luffy.

"It isn't as serious as you're making it out to be. I can help him manage it!"

"The moment Luffy seems well enough, you'll let it go." Her expression turns from heated to frosty cold. "Because if he's messed up, it means you've failed."

Sasuke flinches and pales, barely holding back the squall of emotions roiling in his body. She's poking into his wounds with her long finger nails, and she knows it.

"War. Do you really understand what that means? You should be trying to get your brother as much help as possible just in case. But no, you're stewing in denial," Tsunade accuses.

"I can help him," Sasuke tries again.

"If this conversation shows anything, it's your inability to do just that, and your incredible selfishness. You're denying your brother treatment he needs because your ego can't handle it." She glares at him imperiously." You're poison. You are poison, Sasuke. Even when you try to help you just hurt. Your prolonged exposure will only do more damage. It's the exact same as before! You haven't changed at all! It's the same way you hurt Sakura and Na—"

"Shut up!"

Tsunade and Sasuke both stare at the youngest teen with surprise.

Luffy's arms are trembling, and his eyes are filled with raw emotion.

"Shut up! You don't know what you're saying! He's the best sibling ever! You don't know what it is to be a good big brother—"

"How dare you assume!" Tsunade thunders. "I had a younger brother. I understand being an older sibling better than you will ever know!" Instead of cowing the sixteen-year-old, it brings new fire to his eyes.

"Then you know how much you're hurting him!" Luffy practically screeches. "You're saying all this stuff, and if you're a sibling, then you understand, you understand that it hurts. You know how it's gotta be making him feel! And you don't need to say stuff like this to make your point, but you are. You're saying it on purpose. So you're saying it just to hurt him? Why are you doing this?! You— You— You're so mean. You're just." Luffy takes deep gasping breaths. "So mean."

There's a long pause before Luffy speaks again, quieter.

"Don't use our bond to hurt him because you're hurt. It's cruel, you mean lady."

Tsunade falls back into her chair with a look so complex Sasuke can barely fathom it, and frankly he doesn't want to try. All he feels is a wave of love and affection for his brother. He immediately goes behind his little brother and hugs him. Then he positions his head over Luffy's shoulder to stare at the Hokage. He's silently challenging her, telling her to try and separate them, try and hurt them. They won't let her. They just won't let her.

He'll protect Luffy to the ends of the earth. And it's an older brother's duty, that's all there is to it. But Luffy has the capacity to protect him in ways he never previously thought he needed protection for. When it comes down to it, Luffy protects his mind and heart just as much as Sasuke protects him.

He wishes he could stay in this place of warmth and acceptance, but as he reflects on the entire conversation that led up to this wonderful moment, Sasuke sighs and releases his brother.

Frankly, this entire meeting has pretty much gone to shit. Sasuke thinks it's for the best if they leave without saying anything else. All of them have been hurt today, he thinks. Even Tsunade.

He takes Luffy's hand. Before he can pull his brother to the exit, Tsunade breaks the silence.

"I can see him on Wednesdays or Thursdays."

Sasuke and Luffy give her matching looks of incredulity.

"You seriously think I want to have therapy with you?" the younger brother asks in utter disbelief.

"No, I don't think you want to. I do think you need to," Tsunade clarifies.

"Why do you even want to?" Sasuke asks. "Why are you pushing this so hard?"

"Luffy's a risk to himself and the village. If he'd gotten out of the compound the Anbu would have been forced to take precautionary action. None of us want that."

Sasuke tenses. She's threatening him. But he also knows it is a fair point. Still, no one gets to threaten his brother like that, regardless of how they phrase it.

"Why you though? You're mean," Luffy utters petulantly. Tsunade actually flinches at the insult, and Sasuke knows it's taken on a much deeper implication for her than the simple insult suggests.

"Well, I am the single person in Konohagakure who knows the extent of your stories. If you want him to find a stranger whose motives you won't be able to anticipate and who will question his sanity the entire time, be my guest," she offers dryly, regaining herself.

Tsunade has a point. He doesn't have a grasp on the intentions of anyone else in the village who could help his brother. Shinobi could potentially hurt him, especially if they find out that he's Sasuke's little brother. He can't take a risk like that and send Luffy to just anyone. The only other person who comes to mind is Sakura, and that is something he'll vehemently refuse to his dying day.

The Hokage continues. "A civilian is an unwise choice because your brother can be rather violent at times, and the things he'll have to discuss won't be pleasant. Having seen him blow up like this, I really think I'm the only one around equipped to deal with it. Especially with how he 'reacts badly' to traumatic dreams and memories." Tsunade mocks his earlier words.

After a pause, her gaze softens minutely. "Besides, you should be trying to keep yourself together. You were in a war too. Let someone else help your brother, just for a while."

And it's painful to hear, because he thinks that she might possibly, maybe, potentially have a point. He isn't ready to hear Luffy's issues. Because what Tsunade doesn't understand is that every single facet of Luffy's problems are Sasuke's fault. His brother is suffering from PTSD because he came to rescue Sasuke. He's locked in a strange new land away from his important nakama because of Sasuke. And his brother was hurting himself earlier, all because of Sasuke. And if he thinks about it too hard his chest tightens and he thinks he might start hyperventilating.

because that's all you ever do is hurt and hurt those around you and no one can escape not even those who aren't close to you. you're a potent poison like snake venom. you can only dest—

"Ace." Luffy pulls on Sasuke's hand, drawing him away from the painful thoughts. His little brother is troubled. He probably doesn't know what thoughts are racing around and tearing into the corners of Sasuke's mind, but his incredible emotional intelligence lets him intuitively see that something is very wrong. It also lets him know not to say anything and to, instead, hug Sasuke. The older brother wraps his arms around Luffy desperately. Because Luffy is still alive. He hasn't totally failed Sabo, hasn't totally failed himself. And . . . it's his job to make it better, even if it hurts.

"Ace." His little brother looks up at him. "Do you think I should see a cyclopsigist?"

Sasuke heaves a deep sigh before nodding his head. "Yeah. I think that's a good idea for now."

He looks towards the Hokage who has been watching them the entire time with her piercing brown eyes. The look on her face is complex, and Sasuke doesn't even have the energy to decipher it. What is clear to him though is, that while her henge remains as flawless as ever, Tsunade looks like she's aged considerably since they've been in the room. Sasuke knows the feeling.

"Wednesdays will work," Sasuke eventually mutters.

"Then bring him by around at three in the afternoon." She's really looking at Luffy, who gives her a huffy look.

"Okay," he says eventually.

The Godaime nods, face still unhappy and troubled. Sasuke thinks that none of them are happy in the slightest with the set-up. But isn't that his entire story being here? He does what he must for Luffy.

He always does.

Both brothers leave the Hokage's office utterly emotionally exhausted. Neither of them enjoy being in this state of mind at all. With their recent rash of traumatic events, they've been forced into this mindframe more and more. It's incredibly hard for Sasuke to be so emotionally unstable. It makes it difficult to think and ignites forests of self-loathing and doubt. He can't operate like this. For Luffy it's even harder, Sasuke is sure. Because Luffy is naturally cheerful, naturally bright. To continually force his happy disposition down with hardship and pain leaves him drowning, desperately grasping for something to hold on to. Sasuke knows that, sadly, if Tsunade does administer the psychotherapy correctly, his brother will leave the building feeling like this very often.

And it isn't right at all. Recently, it seems like everything isn't right at all.

So Sasuke steps into what is usually Luffy's role.

"Let's spar when we get back," he says easily, guiding his brother away from the red tower and towards the compound.

"Huh?" Luffy starts from his thoughts. "Oh. Okay!" He smiles, but it isn't wide enough for Sasuke's liking.

"If you're strong enough to be a challenge, I may even use some of my ninja jutsu."

That does the trick. "Really?! What kind of mystery ninja power do you have? Can you shoot stars from your eyes?!"

Sasuke grins.

"I can breath fire—"

"You can already do that," Luffy points out.

Sasuke pauses, completely stymied. Half of his repertoire was fire jutsu. That limits the amount of techniques he has considerably. "I forgot for a moment. Fire jutsu were sort of my favorite, but I guess I don't really need to use them anymore. Huh. Well, I can also summon lightning in my hand, and walk on water."

"Oooh!" Luffy exclaims with excitement. "Can you do that teleportation stuff too?"

"I used to be able to with no trouble, but I'm out of practice, and the shunshin jutsu needs a lot of control." Sasuke looks up towards the blue sky. "I really need to practice that skill. If I have to side-shunshin with Kiba again I'm going to jump off a bridge."

"Hmm, teleportation stuff will be awesome!" Luffy says.

The older brother grins. "When I master it, I can take you with me too. We can travel anywhere in Konohagakure in seconds, Lu."

"That is so cool!" Luffy shouts, drawing eyes from everyone else in the street.

Sasuke loves anonymity. They need some anonymity. In any other situation, Sasuke might say something to calm his over excited brother to preserve their anonymity— But in this instance, quenching that excitement is the last thing he wants to do, regardless of the irritation and headaches it will likely bring later on. No, he doesn't want to dim the bright spark of his brother. So instead he says,

"I can summon snakes too."

"SERIOUSLY?!"

.

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Ahh, I couldn't help myself with the angst. I wanted a scene like this where Luffy freaks out like he did in canon after Ace's death. I have two other unposted OP fics that deal with that trauma in different ways. Since I will only ever write three, I had to put it in here. I kind of like it. The progression of events that lead them to Tsunade's office and the whole PTSD thing just sort of unraveled on their own. It all just seemed like the next logical steps. Idk. Also, S. Eve reminded me that Tsunade can be a prime character for Luffy interaction, so I want to implement her more into the story. Mm, and I'm not really a fan of Luffy just being okay so suddenly. In 3D2Y he definitely has PTSD dreams, so I feel like this is a canon reaction. The war really was fucking awful. Have you all read Warm Memories and Brotherly Bonds? The author writes out that scene and it's extremely realistic and painful. So you know, a rather dramatic scene above, but I feel not OOC.

Do you agree, or disagree? I'm curious to know.

On a non-angsty note, this also has my favorite funny bit of the fic so far, that being Luffy thinking the Uchiha died waiting for Sasuke to come back. It's so Luffy, I couldn't help myself.

Sasuke actually meets with other people and has awkwardly awesome conversations next time. So you know, stick around for that delightful discomfort.

Thanks for reading! Leave a review if you'd like! I'm very receptive to suggestions as a couple of you already know by this point!