Spring time in Konoha

(Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto and T.V Tokyo do, please support the official release)

Chapter 1

It was a beautiful sunny morning in the village of Konoha and a certain resident of that had just begun to stir from his slumber. In a small, cheap apartment in the most crowded part of the village the elite jounin-level ninja known as Naruto Uzumaki had started to crawl his way out of bed. It was a Sunday, the ninja community was not obliged to inquire for missions on the weekend but Naruto was fiercely determined to arrive at the Hokage's building early everyday. It was still a mystery to his teammates as to why he did so.

He rummaged through his pantry looking for his favorite Breakfast food, instant ramen, while he waited for the kettle to boil he threw open all the windows to his apartment and stuck his torso out of one of them. He took a deep breath of the fresh spring air and tried to push aside any thought of taking the day off to enjoy this beautiful day. He heard the kettle start to whistle and quickly pulled himself inside and made his way to the kitchen. A little while later when he had finished his food he pulled on his usual attire. He zipped on his favorite black and orange jumpsuit and secured his hitai-ate, he admired himself in the mirror for a moment.

He had changed immensely over the years, he was once a short, slightly pudgy 10 year old but now he was 17 and things were very different. Thanks to his intense years of training and a growth spurt, Naruto was tall, lean and muscular. He had hoped that this would improve his chance with asking Sakura out, but once the pink haired medical-nin had started dating his friend Lee last year he completely lost interest in her. He ran his fingers over the 3 whisker-like marks on each side of his face and sighed lightly, no matter how much time passed, those would never change. He then glanced at the clock and hurried out the door.

Half way across the other side of the village Sasuke Uchiha was awakened by the piercing beeps from his alarm clock; he calmly rose from the bed and turned it off. He grabbed his robe that was hanging on a hook on the back of his door and made his way downstairs, his footsteps echoed eerily around the empty Uchiha mansion, all these years of being alone and Sasuke still had not gotten used to the silence. He found himself in the spacious and well equipped kitchen and despite the large variety of food that was available Sasuke just got himself a glass of water and then made his way back to the bedroom to get dressed.

After he was dressed he opened one of the windows in his room, a soft breeze rolled across his face and he took a deep breath of the spring air. After a few minutes of gazing out into the grounds he snapped the window shut and made his way down stairs. He would not let the fact that it was a day off or that it was such a nice day keep him from his duties. Just before he reached the front door he remembered his hitai-ate, he snatched it up from the small table near the door and stared at it for a moment. He hated this thing, if he had a choice he would throw it away, however, the ninja code insisted that he wore one. And he knew how much it would disappoint Naruto if he caught him not wearing it. He begrudgingly began to tie it around his forehead. When he was finished he stepped outside into the bright sunlight and started to walk.

Naruto sprinted up the stairs to the administration building and threw open the doors "Do not fear, for Naruto is here! Believe it!" he shouted to the room, it was relatively empty but the few occupants continued with what they were doing, completely undisturbed by the loud entrance. Naruto made his way to a desk at the centre of the room, seated there was a friendly looking man with a large scar across his nose and wearing a high pony tail. "Iruka sensei!" Naruto shouted happily "good morning!" The man known as Iruka lifted his eyes from the paper work on his desk and smiled fondly at the boy, he pushed himself away from his desk and stood up to stretch "Good morning Naruto" he yawned "let me guess…you want to see if there are any new missions right?". Naruto nodded then looked Iruka up and down in a concerned way, "Sensei, have you been working all night?" he asked in an anxious voice, Iruka chuckled and sat back down.

"You could say that" Iruka replied before returning to his work "Tsunade-sama is making sure that pretty much everyone is kept busy these days". Naruto scowled, "That old bag needs to appreciate everything you are doing for her", Iruka chuckled again but his smile suddenly fell as he looked over Naruto's shoulder. "Who are you calling an old bag you disrespectful little brat!" shrieked a voice from behind Naruto; he leapt about a foot in the air and then cowered behind Iruka's desk. There stood Tsunade, the Hokage herself, and she looked furious. "I…I apologize Hokage Sama!" Naruto spluttered and then sunk into a respectful bow, "Naruto Uzumaki reporting for duty ma'am". Tsunade sighed in a reproachful way "Uzumaki what are you doing here?" she asked "why do you keep showing up everyday? The only days that you are required to show up on were Monday to Friday, why have you been here every single day for the past 3 weeks?" she glared down at the boy, hoping to intimidate him into giving an honest answer this time.

Naruto fiddled with the zipper on his jacket nervously "Uhhh…ummm…you see Hokage Sama…it's kinda difficult to explain, can we go into your office?" he mumbled. Tsunade glanced at Iruka who nodded curtly "Fine, let's go" she answered gruffly and marched toward her office. Once she had locked the door and was seated at her desk her usually stern expression softened, despite how she acted, Tsunade legitimately cared for the boy. Naruto sat down then immediately started to explain. "Tsunade I need to keep busy I have so much more energy to burn, I just can't stand waiting around and doing nothing I get so…frustrated" Tsunade knew were this was going, "These feelings of "frustration" and all this extra energy…do you think it has something to do with the Kyuubi?" she queried.

Naruto shifted uncomfortably and ran a hand through his golden hair nervously; the demon fox spirit that was sealed inside him had always been a touchy subject to talk about. "It might be" he answered softly, Tsunade looked the boy over, his bright blue eyes had dark circles forming underneath them and he was starting to look a little thinner. She pulled a piece of paper from her desk and started writing furiously, "You are to take this directly to Iruka" she said, still focused on it " and you are not to look at it, understand?" she slid the paper into an envelope, sealed it then handed it to the boy. Naruto nodded, he was slightly confused but he quickly made his way out the door. Once he was out of sight Tsunade leapt to her feet and sprinted to the door and locking it, after all, he was not going to be happy once he found out what was in that letter.

As Sasuke made his way to the Hokage's administration building he heard giggling from one of the coffee shops that he had passed, two waitresses were standing together and blushing. One of them pointed in his direction and whispered in the others ear, the latter then giggled furiously. Sasuke rolled his eyes and continued walking; it was just a couple of his fan girls, over the years Sasuke had become used to groups of giggling girls (and the occasional boy) following him around. He quickened his pace slightly; no matter how often he told them to leave him alone they were still as persistent as they were when he was 12.

As he rounded a corner Sasuke saw the familiar Ichiraku Ramen restaurant, one of the most popular places for young ninjas to hang out and was also Naruto's favorite place to eat. Sasuke smirked a little, some things never change. After a little while he arrived at the administration building, no sooner than he had opened the door to enter, his ears were met with a deafening yell. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN STRESS LEAVE?" Sasuke recognized the voice and he stepped inside. There stood Naruto, looking red faced and furious gripping an exhausted looking Iruka by the collar. Iruka gently pried Naruto's fingers away then placed both of his hands on the boy's shoulders, looking him directly in the eyes. "Tsunade is concerned for your well being, she just thinks you are going to run yourself down by taking all these missions" he said this in a soft voice but Naruto still pushed him away quite forcefully, as if he himself had been yelled at.

Sasuke watched with interest "So" he thought "The dobe has finally bitten off more than he can chew. I've been wondering when Tsunade would step in". Naruto paced around the room franticly, "You don't understand sensei, I need to keep busy, I can't just stop" he whined, Iruka returned to his desk, refusing to look at the pleading boy. "It is just for a few weeks, I'm sure you can keep yourself busy, you are just prohibited from doing any missions" he said in a more serious tone. Hearing this Naruto groaned loudly and sunk to his knees, Sasuke took this as a sign that the discussion was over and purposely refusing to acknowledge the boy on the floor, walked up to Iruka's desk.

"Good morning Sasuke" Iruka said as Sasuke approached his desk "same as usual?" Sasuke nodded and held out his hand to receive his orders for the day. A lot of arrangements had been made when Sasuke had first returned to Konoha; after all, murderers and traitors were not welcomed back to the village with open arms. He had gone to many lengths just to prove that he could be trusted, and fighting alongside Naruto to defeat the Akatsuki was one of them. He still had to spend a month or so under strict surveillance when he first arrived back and he was still not allowed to leave the village without special permission and a qualified jounin to escort him. He quickly read the paper that informed him of his mission and handed it back to Iruka. "When is the Hokage going to trust me with a more serious mission?" he asked the man. Iruka shrugged "When she thinks you are ready" he replied, and then motioned for him to leave. Sasuke turned on his heel and stormed outside.

From his spot on the floor Naruto watched Sasuke leave "The ice prince of Konoha they used to call him" he thought to himself "Man has that changed, he looked really pissed off!" His eyes slid over to Iruka, who was once again immersed in his paperwork, "Now what am I going to do to burn off all this extra energy?" Naruto thought as he got up, suddenly his brain found a loop hole. The form said he was not allowed to accept any of the missions assigned to him for the next 2 weeks…but it said nothing about helping others with their missions! Naruto suppressed an evil grin and headed for the door, "Naruto!" Iruka shouted from his desk, "what are your plans for today?" he shot at him. Naruto stuffed his hands in his pockets to hide his crossed fingers, "oh, you know. I might train for a bit then I might head down to Ichiraku's…I've got nothing to do today anyway" he then sighed heavily to make it sound as if he was disappointed.

Iruka looked satisfied with this response, "ok then, see you later Naruto" Naruto bid him farewell then walked outside, once he was around the corner from the building he broke into a run. He only knew of one person that had a mission so far today and that was Sasuke, he had briefly seen his mission paper and he had been able to catch the words "hospital" and "burn ward" on it. He didn't care if Sasuke refused his help; he needed to do something useful with his day, even if it meant spending time with the guy who seemed to hate him. As he ran along, Naruto caught sight of a person with jet black, spiky hair and very pale skin in the crowd and he skidded to a halt.

He made his way over to the person and once he was right behind them he decided to announce himself "Oi teme, turn around!" he shouted, Sasuke stopped abruptly and turned to face the boy. Naruto grinned widely "Sasuke! It's good to see you, why didn't you say hi to me back at the admin building?" Sasuke nodded politely then responded calmly "You seemed as if you were considerably distraught, I thought it best to give you a moment to calm down" he lied smoothly. The real reason he had not greeted the boy was because he still felt uncomfortable talking to the person he would consider the person he was closest to in front of one of the people who had been judging him since the day he returned to the village.

Naruto punched him in the arm goodheartedly "Please cut it out with the super formal language teme, there is no one here you need to impress" Sasuke inwardly face palmed, the idiot had no idea how hard he tried to impress him every time they met. Sasuke then continued to walk in the direction of the hospital but was slightly surprised when the energetic blonde stayed right by his side and after a few minutes he assumed that the boy was heading for the hospital too. "So what exactly did I walk in on with the shouting match between you and Iruka sensei this morning? I only caught the tail end of it" Sasuke pried, Naruto ignored this question and instead drew Sasuke's attention that they were very close to the hospital. Sasuke sighed and made a mental note to ask about it later.

It was only once they were both inside the building that Sasuke asked what Naruto's business was at the hospital. Naruto laughed nervously "well you see, I kinda am on stress leave and not supposed to take any missions…" Sasuke literally face palmed this time."…But Iruka never said anything about helping other people with THEIR jobs" Naruto then looked directly at Sasuke, "So what are your jobs for today Sasuke? Can I help? Huh?" Sasuke should have known that it was only a matter of time before the dobe would be tagging along with him on his 'missions', but he was not going to let him help, especially if the guy was supposed to be on stress leave. "No, I don't want any help, you should go home and rest" he shot at the blonde.

Naruto pouted and crossed his arms in a very childish way "Sasuke, the original stick in the mud" he grumbled, Sasuke turned to leave but Naruto suddenly pounced on him, grabbing him by the legs. "Pleeeeease Sasuke" Naruto whined, gazing up at him, tears welling in his big blue eyes "Can't you help out a friend just this once?" Sasuke tried to avoid looking at the boy who was trying to use his puppy eyes to get his way. He kept walking up to the secretary's desk, dragging Naruto along the ground, the girl at the desk surveyed the two curiously before asking what they needed. "I'm here to see Sakura Haruno, I'm here to assist her today" Sasuke said smoothly, despite the boy clinging to his leg. The girl riffled through some papers on a clip board "Sasuke Uchiha to assist Sakura Haruno-burn ward" she read out loud from it "Ok then, you are free to go there now if you wish" she said pleasantly. Her eyes then shifted down to Naruto "…Do you wish to leave your…'baggage' with me sir" she asked in the same polite tone.

Naruto stuck his tongue out at her then gazed up at Sasuke with big pleading eyes, silently mouthing "please, please, please, please". Sasuke caved, he still owed this guy heaps and admittedly, the puppy eyes were getting to him, he looked back to the girl " no thank you, he is coming with me", hearing this Naruto jumped in the air and did a little victory dance, then the two boys then proceeded down a corridor leading to the burn ward.

Iruka slowly progressed with his work but in the back of his mind the Hokage's letter was stirring, eventually he gave in to his boredom and picked it up to check again, just to make sure he didn't misunderstand anything. It read;

Iruka

You are one of the people who know Naruto best, as you helped raise the boy so I thought that it would be wisest to inform you of his…'unique' situation first. The third Hokage wanted very few people to know about the kyuubi sealed within the boy, so when medical treatment was needed he confided only in me. After a few years of treating the boy I began to realize a pattern developing. It appeared that every spring for about a month the kyuubi would become unusually active and energetic; this caused Naruto to also become highly energetic.

He does not know and I hope that I never need tell him that the reason for the kyuubi acting in this way is because at this time of year, it is its kinds mating season. In the past I have recommended he train more frequently to burn off the energy but nowadays he is no longer challenged by training and refuses to take this advice and insists of completing mission after mission. It is helping in burning off the excess energy but he also gets himself injured more frequently due to his hastiness, which only stirs up the kyuubi further ,please keep all the information I have mentioned above to yourself. I have decided to give him a few weeks of 'stress leave' this should keep him out of trouble for a while. I hope that you can inform him of his leave without too much hassle.

Sincerely Tsunade

Iruka sighed, "Poor Naruto" he muttered to himself "What are we going to do with you?" He then rummaged through one of his drawers and pulled out a box of matches, He threw the Hokage's letter into his metal bin, lit a match and threw it in too. "This is the last thing the boy needs on his mind right now" he thought as he watched the paper crumble and burn, when every trace of the letter was gone he doused the last few embers with some water from the vase on his desk. He then returned to his work, trying not to think about the elephant in the room, which had been weighing on his mind since he had read the letter…how was Naruto going to get rid of his excess energy now?

Naruto paced around the burn ward, he had been waiting for 10 minutes now while Sasuke and Sakura caught up, he glanced at the clock again then back to them. Sakura was talking animatedly to Sasuke, who was wearing his "i-don't-want-to-hear-another-story-about-you-and-your-boyfriend-and-all-the-other-happy-couples-but-i-need-to-act-civil-to-you-stupid-girl" face and Naruto felt a little pity for him. For many years the pink haired girl had been a Sasuke fan girl and even at one point, told him that she 'loved' him. But after he had left the village she felt so heart broken that she proclaimed she would never love anyone again. But her attitude changed dramatically when Rock Lee showed up.

Naruto giggled softly, sure the guy was unattractive with his massive eyebrows, dodgy hair do, green body suit and large, freaky eyes but you could never know a nicer guy. He cared for Sakura so much and every time that he saw her in the first few months after Sasuke had left he tried harder than anyone else to make her smile. They became close friends and soon after they began to date, it was only then that Naruto realized that the feelings he thought he had for Sakura were just protective almost brotherly feelings. And he had never minded the two of them dating; they were perfect for one another. He began to muse on the other happy couples that had sprung up around him.

Temari and Shikamaru, TenTen and Neji, Gaara and Hinata, Ino and Kiba, hell! Even Shino had managed to find himself a nice girl! This started to upset Naruto, was he the only one who wasn't in a relationship? He then remembered that Sai still didn't have a girlfriend…that cheered him up just a little. The conversation between the two ended and Sasuke made his way back to an annoyed Naruto, "Well dobe, our instructions for today are pretty basic" Sasuke said in a dull tone. "We just need to organize the storage room, buy some medicinal herbs and water the garden, after that we can leave".

Naruto grinned widely and punched the air "Don't worry Sasuke, we will have these jobs done in no time, Believe it!" They quickly got started on organizing the storage room; they were surprised at how much junk they had to sort through in this dusty and cramped room and were not looking forward to how long it would take. After the first hour of throwing out moldy hospital gowns, putting the medicine in alphabetical order and dusting all the shelves you could tell they were getting sick of it. Sasuke at last broke the silence with a smirk and said, "Still want to tag along with me today Naruto? Are you having fun yet?" Naruto was about to snap back at the other boy but before he did, he remembered that he could be back at home, bored out of his mind so he held his tongue.

The lack of space was getting to Sasuke; he was not used to having someone being so close to him and in such a cramped place so obviously he was taking it out on the nearest person. After a little while, Sakura came in to check on their progress, she was very pleased with how the store room looked so she gave them the money and list of medicinal herbs and sent them on their way. Glad to be out of the stuffy storage room, Naruto stretched his arms above his head and took deep breaths of the dust free air, "Isn't it strange Sasuke? I thought that once you had returned to the village we would be spending loads of time together, but when you think about it, we barely see each other". He had tried to sound carefree but Sasuke could hear the disappointment in the boys voice, Sasuke had realized this too, but was more angry than disappointed.

One of the major reasons he had returned to the village was because of Naruto, Naruto had made him realize that there was always a chance for redemption, even for a missing Nin who had committed the act of murder more than once. He made Sasuke realize that there was a future for him back in Konoha and that there were people that cared for him there. But that stupid Hokage was determined to make his return as difficult as possible, He was sure that she was the reason that Sasuke and Naruto barely saw each other due to their clashing schedules not to mention the time he had spent in prison and she had forbidden anyone from visiting him. Sasuke stopped his inner rant and replied to Naruto's statement "Yeah it is strange, perhaps it is a good thing that you had to go on stress leave, we might be able to spend more time together". Naruto's eyes lit up at this suggestion.

"That would be so awesome!" he shouted happily "Perhaps you're not as much of a teme as you used to be". Sasuke punched him in the arm good heartedly. After the ice had been broken, the two boys found it much easier to talk to each other, "So from what I've heard" Sasuke started "Rock Lee and Sakura have been together for a while now, when did that happen?" Naruto shrugged "Ages ago, I don't really remember the exact date, I've got better things to think about". Sasuke picked up a little stiffness in those words and decided to press the matter, "Are you jealous? Because I remember when you used to have a massive crush on her…" He said slyly. Naruto spluttered and laughed loudly, causing a few fellow pedestrians to look his way.

"Good one Sasuke, me being jealous of Lee, classic" he chuckled "Yeah I used to have a crush on her, but that was way back when I was a kid, anyway she is more like a sister to me these days". Sasuke didn't know why, but hearing that Naruto no longer had feelings for that girl lightened his mood a bit, "It's just because you don't like having to share, especially not people, especially not your only friend" he told himself. They arrived at the herbalist sooner than they thought and quickly bought all the herbs on the list Sakura gave them, on the way back to the hospital Naruto commented on how many of their friends had ended up together.

"I mean it was always bound to happen with Temari and Shikamaru" he said "But I never imagined Gaara and Hinata would end up dating". "Actually I think it makes perfect sense" Sasuke said "Gaara is the kind of guy that needs someone to take care of him, to heal him, he's been through a lot and Hinata is such a loving person who really gives her all for the people she cares about". Naruto thought about it for a moment "wow that actually makes a lot of sense; you should be a relationship therapist Sasuke" said Naruto. Sasuke smiled, 'to be a relationship therapist you have to be able to have a successful relationship yourself' he thought, 'well that's one career I won't ever pursue'.

After they had delivered the herbs to Sakura she reminded them that they still had to water the garden, pointed to the pile of buckets by the doorway, then pranced off. "Man she is ungrateful" Naruto hissed once she was out of sight, and then proceeded to remove his jacket. "What on earth are you doing?" Sasuke spluttered as Naruto began to remove the shirt that was underneath. Naruto rolled his eyes "Teme, it is the middle of the day! And it is million degrees out there in case you didn't notice" Sasuke then realize that he had been so preoccupied talking to Naruto on the way back that he never noticed that the day was fairly warm and he had already started to sweat. Naruto then proceeded to roll his pants up to the knees "Excuse me for not wanting to die of a heatstroke" he joked then grabbed a few buckets "You coming Sasuke?"

Sasuke snapped out of the trance he had been in for a couple of seconds, he had never really seen Naruto without a shirt and he was surprised. The guy had really toned up over the years; he had killer abs, his arms looked great and his natural tan added to the blonde's overall attractiveness…wait what? He shook those thoughts from his head and turned away. "Yeah I'm coming…" Sasuke mumbled in response and started to remove his own tops. When Sasuke turned back to Naruto he noticed that Naruto had been looking him up and down, "Wow Sasuke, still pale as ever, you really need to get outside" the blonde noted with a smirk.

Sasuke just sent a glare in his general direction and grabbed a few buckets. They walked over to a tap at the side of the building and started to fill the many buckets, once all the buckets were filled the two started to tip the contents over the flowerbeds. After a while, the heat was starting to make both boys sweat, dumping the water on the flowers and bushes was proving to be a little harder than expected. They had no idea how large the hospitals grounds were until now, the sunlight beat down on them harshly and the air started to feel a little humid. Sasuke turned to Naruto to ask what time thought it was but got a little distracted. Naruto was perspiring as heavily as him and was panting slightly because of the muggy air, Sasuke swallowed heavily, 'how the hell does this guy not have a fan group following him around? Look at the guy, he is pretty hot!' Naruto didn't notice Sasuke staring openly at his body and picked up another bucket, but instead of emptying it over garden, he lifted it above his head and tipped the water onto himself.

Sasuke's jaw dropped, his eyes glued to the incredible sight before him, the water ran over the boys strong shoulders then began to trickle down his stomach. His golden hair was now flattened against his forehead and over his eyes, while he pushed the hair out of his face Sasuke tore his eyes from his soaked friend. "Can you blame me? It's so hot out here I just couldn't help it" Naruto laughed airily, he didn't notice Sasuke trying to contain a nose bleed and they continued with their task, once the two had finished watering the garden they trudged inside. Sakura met them just inside the door way, "Good job you two, everything is done so that means you are free to go" she said as she handed them back their shirts. As they walked out the hospital's front doors Naruto grabbed Sasuke's arm suddenly, "Do you want to grab some ramen with me? I mean, it's not like either of us have anything better to do, please Sasuke, we really need to catch up". Sasuke shrugged "why not, I am kinda hungry", Naruto whooped happily and they set off in the direction of Ichiraku's Ramen.

Chapter 2

Not too far away, a ninja known as Kiba Inuzuka was making his way to his friend Gaara's house, with his loyal dog Akamaru by his side, they hadn't hung out for a while, and unfortunately when you dated someone like Ino friends had to come second. He approached the front door and knocked loudly, soon a red headed boy with dark circles around his eyes answered the door, "Hey Kiba, hey Akamaru' he said, Kiba grinned and Akamaru barked, "Sup Gaara, you ready to go?" Kiba asked. Gaara nodded and shut the door behind him; the two were on their way to Ichiraku's Ramen, the favorite haunt of most Konoha teenagers, "so Naruto wasn't at his place? Gaara asked. Kiba shook his head "I checked just to make sure but he must be out on a mission…again" he sighed "We used to all be so tight, like a family, but then that goddamn Sasuke came back". Gaara unconsciously scratched at the tattoo on his forehead, "Do you think that Sasuke is the reason he has been taking so many missions?" Kiba shrugged "I can't think of any other reason, can you?"

Kiba moodily kicked a stone on the ground, "Well at least we know that Naruto would never ditch us for him" he growled Gaara nodded "Naruto is very loyal to his friends, I don't think you need to worry about him avoiding us" he added. They decided to change topic and instead talk about the other aspects of their lives, Kiba bitched about Ino and how he practically had to beg her so that he could hang with his friends for a couple of hours. Gaara mentioned that Temari was moving out and decided to live with Shikamaru; Kiba gave a low whistle "How did you and your brother take that?" Gaara smiled, "I was ok with it but Kankuro said that if he made her cry in any way he would skin him alive and use it for a puppet…you know, the same thing he said when they first started dating". The two boys laughed and continued walking.

Both Sasuke and Naruto had noticed the change in mood the minute they had entered the restaurant, usually Ichiraku's was a lively place but now it was eerily quiet and half the room was looking at Sasuke. They both approached the counter, trying to ignore the staring. "Hey Teuchi!" Naruto greeted happily "What's happening?" The man behind the counter smiled and walked up to them, "Well if it isn't my favorite customer, the usual Naruto?" Naruto nodded and then turned to Sasuke "What about you Sasuke?" Sasuke looked at the menu quickly "Uhh, I'll have the pork ramen soup thank you". The man named Teuchi wrote down their orders and walked back to the kitchen.

Naruto and Sasuke sat down at the bench; Sasuke was still feeling uncomfortable about the amount of people stating at him, it was obvious that they all shared the Hokage's opinion of him…that he was a murderous traitor that could never be trusted. Naruto noticed Sasuke's shifty eyes and tried to cheer him up, "Oh cheer up Sasuke, the only reason they are staring at you is because you are with the great and powerful Naruto" he said in a positive voice. Sasuke smiled a little, trust the dobe to still act this immature even after all this time. The amount of talk began to build up again and soon no one was staring at him, he turned to Naruto to thank him and he now saw that Naruto had removed his jacket and hung it on the back of his chair. Soon the image of Naruto shirtless and dripping wet made its way into Sasuke's mind…he really had to stop fantasizing about that. He tried to shake the thought away

Just as the food arrived (two bowls for Naruto, one for Sasuke) Sasuke turned to Naruto "Hey Naruto…can I ask you something…personal?" Naruto took a big slurp from his bowl and nodded, "Mrph sure can S'ke, you know me 'slurp' you can ask me anything mmmrph" he said through a mouthful of food. "Have you ever felt attracted to guys?" Sasuke asked bluntly, half of what was in Naruto's mouth went flying as he choked and coughed in surprise. Sasuke waited calmly for him to stop. Naruto then looked Sasuke dead in the eyes "You don't just ask that kinda thing so casually! And you sure don't say it in such a public place where everyone could hear!" Naruto spluttered, Sasuke rolled his eyes, "you still haven't answered the question…" Naruto was going red in the face "W…well…you see…I…I" "NARUTO!" someone shouted from the entrance to the restaurant, cutting him off mid sentence.

There stood Gaara and Kiba both waving and making their way towards the blonde, Sasuke inwardly cursed, he finally had some time alone with Naruto and then those two came barging in! Kiba squeezed between Sasuke and Naruto, cutting off their conversation and Gaara sat on the other side of the blonde. "We didn't know you were taking a day off for once!" Kiba said happily, smacking Naruto on the back, Gaara peered between his friends and saw a disgruntled looking Sasuke glaring at the two of them.

"Hey Sasuke" Gaara said loudly, kicking Kiba's leg under the table, Kiba winced then turned to greet Sasuke "Oh, sup Uchiha, how's it going?" Sasuke nodded politely then turned to eat his food, soon after, Naruto was completely distracted by Gaara and Kiba as they chatted loudly, eventually ordering food and then proceeded chatting. Sasuke was furious, not only had they shown up uninvited but they had cut him out of the conversation completely, he considered just paying and leaving but the moment he stood up, so did Naruto. "It's been great hanging out again guys, but I promised Sasuke that we would hang out, so I gotta go" Naruto gushed, he paid Teuchi, said good bye to his friends then grabbed Sasuke and left.

Outside the restaurant Naruto began to apologize profusely, "I am so sorry man, I didn't know that they were going to show up". Sasuke stayed silent, "Sasuke, are you mad at me?" Naruto asked, his eyes growing sad. Sasuke sighed, why did he have to use that puppy face? "I'm not mad at you Naruto, just your…friends" Sasuke grumbled. Naruto hung his head, "I really am sorry Sasuke, did you want to go somewhere else?" Sasuke shrugged, "we could just go for a walk" he said, at this suggestion Naruto looked up and smiled again. "That sounds great!" he said, and then the two started off again.

It was around 5:30 when Sasuke arrived back home, he took his shoes off at the front door and silently made his way to his bedroom, the second he saw his bed he collapsed on it , man what a day! He honestly wasn't expecting Naruto to show up anytime soon but the moment that the blonde ball of energy had shown up he had never felt happier, it had been ages since he had had a decent conversation with any one, and their was Naruto, so cheerful and friendly just showing up out of the blue. Sasuke knew that one of the reasons he had been so happy to hang out with Naruto was because he was attracted to him, he rolled onto his side, remembering how confusing and scary it had been when he first realized that he was attracted to guys.

He had never liked girls, in fact, he almost despised them. People had always been at a loss to why he constantly rejected the advances of countless girls even from a young age, but it was only after he had been training with Orochimaru that he began to question his sexuality. He had noticed how Kabuto would complain about not having a girlfriend or about not getting laid in ages, but he himself had never felt that way about any female. He had never really thought about it, as he had always been too focused on training, he tried to think about girls in a sexual way, but he found that he was just not interested.

One day he approached Kabuto and asked if it was strange to not be attracted to girls, to which he got the reply "Either you're gay, asexual or just boring". He had stewed on this answer for a while, could he be gay? That night as he lay in bed, trying to get some peace of mind he tried imagining guys in a sexual way…long story short…it worked. Originally he had felt ashamed of himself, jerking off to guys but in a way it made a lot of sense. After a few weeks he had finally admitted to himself that he was gay, he felt a little unstable at first, and after all, he had never known any other ninja that was openly gay. But eventually he came to the conclusion that honestly, he didn't care what people thought about him anymore, and it was mostly thanks to the support he had received from Kakashi when he had been serving his prison time.

In the years that he had been away from the village, he had found himself thinking about Naruto constantly, he thought about his magnetic and optimistic personality that he always maintained despite the amount of pain in his life. He thought about his courage and persistence, his loyalty and his compassion. He also found himself thinking about his physical features, his bright blonde hair, his big blue eyes, his mischievous smile, his whisker like scars on his cheeks. He was almost obsessed with the guy, when he finally saw him after all that time he was not disappointed, he had matured in his face and grown tall and muscular.

Sasuke had been overjoyed when he found out that Naruto had been chasing him for so long, next to hunting down Itachi, winning Naruto's love had been one of his highest priorities. Sasuke sighed loudly as he reminisced, but many things had changed, he had found and killed Itachi, now he regretted it above anything else, he wondered if he pursued Naruto if he would regret it just as much. He thought about the day he had returned to the village, the day before they had thrown him in prison…he could still remember their conversation.

*They stood opposite one another, on different sides of the room in the Hokage's office. After all this time, all this effort, Naruto had finally managed to bring Sasuke back to Konoha. They stood silently as Tsunade read out Sasuke's sentence, as soon as the word prison was mentioned Naruto objected "Tsunade-sama NO! You can't do that, Sasuke came back! He helped us defeat the Akatsuki he's change, you can't just lock him up like a criminal!" he shouted. Tsunade was unaffected by the words and calmly replied, "Naruto, there is nothing you or I can do, this is his punishment…seeing as you objected so profusely to the death sentence" Naruto shut his mouth and Tsunade could see the tears beginning to form in the boy's eyes. She stood up and walked towards the door "I will give you two some time alone, fifteen minutes…I will be back" and she left.

They stood there awkwardly for a moment then Naruto flung himself at Sasuke, hugging him tightly. Naruto hadn't been expecting it but Sasuke began to hug him back, they held that position for about 2 minutes until Naruto broke away to wipe the tears from his eyes. "I'm sorry" he sobbed "but I came so close to losing you, it just hurts to even think about them giving you the death sentence", Sasuke patted his shoulder in a comforting way. "Why?" he asked simply, Naruto turned to him and grabbed him by the front of his shirt, "Because I love you" he said simply. Sasuke forgot to breath, did Naruto just say…he loved him? "You are the most important friend I have ever had, I love you and I wont let you die" Naruto continued, Sasuke's heart broke, oh…he loved him as a friend…damn. Sasuke pushed the pain down and forced a smile, "I feel the same way about you" he said firmly and pulled Naruto into another hug.*

Sasuke cringed at this memory; it reminded him of how hard he would need to work to get Naruto to understand his feelings but it was a good one too, it was his first hug from Naruto in years. He ran his fingers through his hair and checked the clock, damn, he had just been laying there and thinking for a good 30minutes, he got up and headed for the shower.

Naruto burst through the door to his apartment and strutted inside, what an awesome day! He thought, admittedly he was pretty annoyed about the stress leave, but that mean he could spend more time with Sasuke. He jumped up and down in excitement, and then headed to the kitchen; it was only when he lifted his hand to open a cupboard door that he noticed that he was shaking. His whole body started to tremble and he fell on his hands and knees. "Hey Kit" a hauntingly familiar voice growled in the back of his mind, Naruto tried to push the voice away but it just chuckled "You know it's that time again don't you?"

Naruto shook his head violently "Stupid fox!" He hissed, "Why do you do this to me?" The Kyuubi chuckled in a more sinister tone "Do you think I like doing this?I can't help it Kit, every spring, it just happens. And you don't really suffer, do you?" Naruto shook his head, "No", but I hate it, being so unbearably horny for a month… and not being able to do any thing about it…it sucks". The Kyuubi was silent for a moment "I think you can do something about it" Naruto stopped "What can I do? Please help me out" Naruto begged. The Kyubbi snickered "Well…what about that Uchiha boy?The handsome one that you think about all the time, he could be a good way to relieve some of this tension". "No way!" Naruto shouted, "I am not having sex with Sasuke just because of this".

"Fine" the Kyuubi grumbled, "But sooner or later you are going to have to do something…or someone to get rid of this problem you know?" and the voice faded away. Naruto lay panting and sweating on the floor, damn that fox was persistent, he then got to his feet, but he promised himself he would never give into his desires when the Kyuubi was like this…who knows what could happen? He continued making his instant ramen; maybe he should tell Tsunade about this? I mean she was his doctor…no…it would be too awkward. And besides, I doubt she suspects anything. He started to eat; he would just have to deal with it the usual way, lots and lots of training and missions!

Sasuke awoke the next morning wondering why he felt so…light…positive. Then he remembered the day before, he smiled a little and got out of bed. He dressed a little faster than usual and he also ate something for breakfast, something he had been neglecting to do for a few months. He left his house and took a deep breath of the fresh spring air, what a beautiful day. He walked off to the Hokage's office with a new spring in his step; he was going to have Naruto all to himself for the next two weeks! He was just approaching the admin building when he heard shouting; he looked around and saw Naruto in a heated argument with a pale, dark haired boy wearing a midriff. Sasuke sped up, this could be interesting.

As he got closer he began to make out the conversation, "Gahh Sai! Don't be so creepy, you know I don't swing that way!" the pale boy placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder "Don't flatter yourself Uzumaki, you aren't my type anyway" Naruto shuddered and pulled the hand off his shoulder then continued to shout. "Then why do you insist on grabbing my ass every time we meet?" Sai chuckled and Sasuke frowned, he had never liked Sai, and he liked him even less when he started touch his Naruto. Sasuke cleared his throat "Good morning" he said politely "Is something the matter?" Naruto jumped when he heard Sasuke's voice then shook his head "Hahahaha nah it's all good, just Sai being a creep again" he sent Sai a glare which Sai returned with a sweet smile. Sai then turned his attention to Sasuke "Good morning Sasuke" he said in his emotionless voice "Getting a little protective of Naruto now are we? Acting possessive is a special talent of yours" Naruto started spluttering in the background.

Soon after, Sai left the two boys and Sasuke headed inside the admin building. A little while later, Sasuke returned to Naruto, who had been waiting impatiently outside as he received his orders. The plan for today was to clean the shinobi training grounds, help out at the florist then they would go get some ramen. Both boys' then headed off, little did they know, that their every move was being watched. A grey haired man with a mask covering his mouth was crouching on the top of Hokage tower; he watched the two of them head in the direction of the shinobi training grounds. He sighed and stood up, "might as well keep an eye on both them, seems like Naruto's going to be sticking around for a while" he said and he leapt to the ground.

This man was Hatake Kakashi, both of the boys' former sensei. Under orders from the Hokage, he had been monitoring Sasuke for a while now and was surprised at the sudden change in the boy's routine. He walked briskly behind them but still far away enough not to be noticed, as long as he kept the patch of blonde hair in is vision he wouldn't lose them. Kakashi started to reminisce about the days when he had been training team seven, my how things had changed since then! He started to think about the first week that Sasuke had returned to Konoha after all those years…those memories would stick forever.

*Kakashi had been calmly reading his Icha Icha Paradise book until Gai sensei came bursting through his door, "Kakashi, the Hokage says that you must leave for the prison immediately" he said very quickly, Kakashi sighed and placed his book on the table "Is it about…him?" he asked, Gai nodded "you did promise to try and talk to him" he nagged the grey haired man. Kakashi nodded then left quickly, a few days prior, Tsunade had asked him to try and get Sasuke to open up, he had been silent since the day he was imprisoned and I was beginning to worry her. When he had entered Sasuke's cell he was greeted with the famous Uchiha death glare, which he ignored and began to talk, for the first week Kakashi made polite small talk with the guy, discussing old friends, missions, the weather and pretty much every other useless topic.

By the second week the talks became more serious, Sasuke talked about his growing anger for the village, his depression after his brother's death, how he wanted revenge on Madara and…"what about Naruto?" Kakashi had asked one day. Sasuke's face had softened immediately after the boy's name had been mentioned. "You love him don't you?" Kakashi pried, Sasuke's eye twitched involuntarily "I don't know" he mumbled "I don't really know what love feels like" he then seemed to become more serious "but I don't like him that way, I'm not a fag". It was now Kakashi's turn to twitch "Don't use that word" he snapped.

"Why are YOU so offended?" Sasuke sneered, Kakashi sat up a little straighter, and in a far more serious tone he replied very simply "Because I happen to be gay and those kind of derogatory labels really piss me off" Sasuke sunk down in his chair, "I'm sorry, I…I didn't mean to…" Kakashi waved a hand carelessly to stop him talking "its fine Sasuke, I know you are having a hard time figuring out your feelings, it's understandable that you may feel confused and angry". Sasuke smiled, a rare sight and not soon after, began to pour his soul out to the masked man. After a month of regular sessions with the boy, Tsunade noticed Sasuke's dramatic change in mood and congratulated Kakashi on the progress he had made with the rehabilitation.*

Even since his release, Sasuke still made regular visits to Kakashi, just to keep him informed on how he was doing. One time it had been very awkward, Sasuke had arrived at his house at the same time as Iruka was leaving…in a very flustered state. It took Kakashi a while to explain that he and Iruka had been in a relationship for quite a few years now and he kindly asked if Sasuke could keep it a secret. Now as Kakashi tailed the two boys, he felt as if it were his duty to keep the fact that Naruto was helping out Sasuke a secret from the Hokage. He drew a little closer the two boys and saw that Sasuke was giving Naruto his fullest attention when he talked; he was even wearing a soft expression…the one he only wore for Naruto.

Cleaning up the shinobi training grounds would have taken a lot less time, had Naruto not gotten distracted and decided to do some target practice on the dummies. But after the last of the kunai's had been gathered and stored away they finally headed for the florist. After a few minutes of walking and talking Sasuke decided to bring up the topic he had tried to discuss yesterday. "You never answered my question yesterday dobe" he said in a nonchalant way, "which one?" Naruto asked, oblivious to the trap Sasuke was setting. "If you had ever felt attracted to guys" Sasuke said bluntly, once again Naruto started stuttering and coughing, Sasuke waited patiently for him to calm down enough to talk.

"W…what do you mean? Where did you hear that I was?…but I'm not…I mean…What?" Naruto said very quickly. Sasuke chuckled and the flustered and worried expression on the boy's face, "I mean" Sasuke continued "If you have ever felt attracted to guys in a 'more than friends way', it's not that hard to answer". Naruto shoved his hands in his pockets and looked down at his shoes "Well…have you?" he mumbled. Sasuke held his head high, "yes, and I think it's time that I told you…I'm gay…and I have been for a few years now". Naruto stopped walking, his face was frozen, Sasuke waved a hand in front of the boy's eyes, "uh…Naruto? Hello?" he was frozen for a few more seconds then snapped back to reality with a loud outburst. "WHAT THE HELL DUDE? WE HAVE BEEN FRIENDS FOR YEARS AND ONLY NOW YOU DECIDE TO TELL ME?" Sasuke breathed a sigh of relief, he thought that Naruto had frozen in fear or disgust, but he was just angry for not knowing about it.

Naruto continued his rant but he started to storm along the road as he spoke, "did you think you couldn't trust me? Geeze Sasuke, who else knows? Am I the last to know? Why didn't you tell me earlier? Sasuke laughed "well…I found out after I had been training with Orochimaru for a while…Not like that!" he added quickly after seeing Naruto's disgusted face. As they walked he told his story, it didn't take him very long and by the time he had finished they had arrived at the florist. Naruto had been paying Sasuke his complete attention the entire time and didn't notice they were there, but instead placed a hand on his shoulder and said in a strong voice "I totally support you Sasuke, and I'm glad you finally decided to tell me". Sasuke smiled "I'm gonna start telling more people now and your free to help me if you want".

Just as he finished speaking a loud squeal came from the window of the florists, out rushed a tall girl with her long, hair in a ponytail. "Hiiiii Sasuke" she said in a flirty voice, Sasuke nodded, "Good morning Ino" one of her hands then quickly whipped up to fix her hair and she giggled "so what brings you here Sasuke kun?" Sasuke shrugged "Just doing my duties, do you work here or something?" Ino nodded happily "uh huh, and if you want I can give you a discount" Sasuke raised an eyebrow "why?" Ino giggled again "oh anything for you Sasuke Kun" she said, batting her eyelashes. Naruto then began to jump up and down "hey! I'm here too you know!" he shouted. Ino flipped her hair over her shoulder and glanced at Naruto "oh…hey Naruto kun, what's up?" she sent him a wink "still looking good I see" and she looked him up and down.

Naruto scowled "I'm just running some errands with Sasuke" then it hit Ino, "Oh! Sasuke, are you the one they sent to help me this morning?" Sasuke nodded "and Naruto is helping out too". She clapped her hands happily "that is so awesome" she then grabbed Sasuke's arm and hugged it "I'm sure you will be a great help Sasuke Kun". Naruto then cleared his throat, "and Naruto too" she added with a smile. Naruto then tapped her on the shoulder "Not to be a wet blanket or anything but I thought you had a boyfriend Ino". She pouted and stuck her tongue out at him. "Kiba flirts with other girls so why can't I flirt with other guys?" she whined

But never the less she let go of Sasuke's arm and backed off a bit, "ok you two, all you really need to do is make some deliveries and you are free to go, but I'd be more than happy If you chose to stay" she winked very pointedly at the two of them, who ignored it. They spent the rest of the morning running around the village and delivering flowers to people, most of them women, receiving the flowers with exited faces. By the time they got back it was nearly lunch time, Ino waved them off with a glum expression "come back any time!" she shouted and trudged back inside the shop. "Stupid whore" Sasuke growled and Naruto burst out laughing.

It was late afternoon and Kakashi was preparing dinner for himself and Iruka, he was about to slice up some fish when he heard a knock at the door. "Our date doesn't start for an hour!" He shouted "go away, I'm in the zone!" "Oh wow Kakashi, I never knew you were going through all this effort for me" a voice shouted back…it wasn't Iruka's. "Oh crap" Kakashi hissed then ripped his flowery apron off and headed for the door, "I'm so sorry Sasuke" he gushed as Sasuke walked in "It's fine, just be thankful that it wasn't Tsunade" Kakashi chuckled and walked back to the Kitchen, with the Uchiha following. "What's the occasion?" Sasuke asked as he saw all the food being prepared, Kakashi put his apron back on "Anniversary, we've been dating for five years now".

Sasuke leant against the wall, "I know you were tailing me today" he said calmly "why?" Kakashi sighed "Hokage's orders I'm afraid" he continued slicing up the fish "But don't worry, your secret is safe with me" he looked up at the boy, he was smiling…he had been doing that more often these days. They chatted for a little while and when Sasuke informed Kakashi that Naruto now knew a bout his 'preferences' Kakashi clapped happily. "Good boy Sasuke!" he congratulated "I knew you had the guts" he than paused "you should throw a party". Sasuke snorted "why?, Kakashi checked on how the rice was cooking "well, you barely socialize with those kids anymore so it would be good for you and It would be an excuse for you and Naruto to spend more time together".

Sasuke thought about it for a minute "well…it might help convince Tsunade to give me more freedom if I start acting 'normal'…ok; it's not a bad idea". Kakashi patted the boy on the head "Good on you, this has been a good talk but you need to get out now, Iruka will be here in fifteen minutes so scoot!" Sasuke thanked him for his time and left, Kakashi couldn't help but notice the new spring in the boy's step.

Hinata Hyuga was walking along the road that led to her house when she heard someone shouting her name, she turned around and saw that it was Naruto; she waved at the blonde as he ran towards her. "Sup Hinata" he said as he pulled up beside her, she smiled "Good afternoon Naruto, what seems to be the problem? You were running so wildly". Naruto laughed in a nervous way "man Hinata you would not believe the day I've had". Concern filled her white eyes "is everything ok?" she whispered and placed a hand on his shoulder, Naruto laughed again, this time it was a cheerful one "Ok? Things are better than ok Hinata, things are great!" and he threw his arms around the girl, hugging her tightly. "Better not let Gaara see you doing that, he might bury you alive" she joked…but there were times when she thought he might actually do that.

Naruto let go and then grinned widely, "I've got so much to tell you!" he and Hinata continued walking in the direction of her house, He and Hinata had been close friends for a number of years now and he trusted her with everything, like the way she trusted him back. He had been the first one she told when she started dating Gaara and she had been the first one he had told when he first started to think he was gay. He quickly revealed what had happened that morning; she wasn't as shocked as he thought she would be. "Sorry to break it to you Naruto, but… I think that lots of people suspect that he may be…on that side of the fence…" Naruto gaped at her, "WHAT? HOW COME I AM ALWAYS THE LAST ONE TO KNOW?" Hinata giggled and the two kept walking along the road.

Chapter 3

Sasuke walked down Konoha's main road and occasionally he would stop and stick up a poster. He had gone to the copy place after seeing and made about 30 posters. He decided to stick them up all around the village; he was trying to get as many people to come as possible, so this seemed like the best method to get people's attention. He decided to just put the basics on it "Saturday, 7:00-12:30, Uchiha residence, byo if you want" it was simple and to the point, just the way he liked it. Once he had finished he headed back home. He arrived home fairly quickly but no sooner had he walked through his door he heard someone running up behind him. He turned and saw Kiba and Akamaru.

He was slightly out of breath "Yo…Sasuke…just…wanna…ask…something…real…quick" he panted loudly between each word, "take your time, catch your breath Kiba" Sasuke said calmly. It took a couple of seconds then Kiba burst "so you are really throwing a party?" Sasuke nodded and Kiba laughed. "No offence man but…I really didn't picture you as the type to throw a party…this isn't some prank right?" Sasuke shook his head "of course not and anyone is welcome to come along". Kiba punched the air happily "Aww yeah! Did you hear that Akamaru? I'm finally getting to go to an awesome party again!" he then quickly said bye to Sasuke and ran off again. Sasuke walked back inside, he was glad Kiba found out, then there was no doubt that the entire village would know before Saturday.

The rest of the week passed fairly quickly for the two boys, after all, time flies when you are having fun. They had settled into a routine of doing their jobs in the morning and when they were finished, go to Ichiraku's for lunch. Kakashi was beginning to notice that the dark rings around both boys' eyes were disappearing and that Sasuke had started to eat again, he was now a healthy weight. He knew that they were good for each other and still did not breathe a word to Tsunade. By the time Saturday came, most of the people who were in their late teens or early twenties in Konoha were pumped for Sasuke's party, they decided to forget that he was a murderer and traitor but remembered that he was rich, had a massive house and no parents. Sasuke couldn't care less about the multitudes of people coming, he just wanted a chance to relax with Naruto, to show him that he was…normal.

By the time it was 7:00 Sasuke had everything perfect…he was an Uchiha after all. The DJ had showed up, he had tons of food, he had managed to get a hold of a shocking amount alcohol without causing too much suspicion and the place looked awesome. The first few people that showed up he knew, Shikamaru, Temari, Gaara, Hinata and Kankuro. But gradually the people who came through his door he recognized less and less, but he didn't care, because he still hadn't seen Naruto yet. By 8:30 he was worrying and the girls that were throwing themselves at him were starting to piss him off. He was just about to head out the front door when it burst open, there stood Rock Lee, with a clingy Sakura on his arm, a disgruntled looking Kiba accompanied by a sluttily dressed Ino and last but not least, Naruto. His Naruto. Sasuke quickly adjusted his grey shirt.

"Damn he looks good" Sasuke thought as he eyed the boy hungrily, Naruto was dressed in a dark blue shirt with about 4 buttons undone at the top, jeans and sneakers. His hair also looked like it had been styled, in a cute, ruffled way. Sasuke couldn't help but feel that Sakura must have been responsible for dressing him. "Hey Sasuke!" Naruto shouted happily and ran up and hugged him, the rest of the group came over, they complimented him on the music, the amount of people that had showed up but hen it became awkward, Sasuke could tell that they wanted to find other people. "I think I saw Gaara on the porch, he and Hinata looked kind of lonely, did you want to go find them?" Sasuke hinted, the group nodded happily and left, all except for Naruto.

They both grabbed drinks and sat down on the couch, Naruto chatted away happily and Sasuke basked in his good luck, he was waiting for the perfect moment to perhaps go somewhere more private. They chatted for a while and then Naruto mentioned that he was hungry, Sasuke raced off to get some food Just as Sasuke returned, he notice that his seat had been taken…by Sai. He had made himself quite comfortable in Sasuke's short absence and was presently flirting with Naruto, but Naruto, being naive, didn't notice. Sasuke cleared his throat; Sai turned around and stared into his eyes "just one second Sasuke, I was in the middle of something" flicked his hair, and then turned back to Naruto.

Anger boiled up inside Sasuke, "That son of a bitch!" his inner voice howled, it was taking all of his elf control not to rip that guy apart. He had really wanted to put on the poster "all are welcome, except for Sai" on those posters but seeing as he was one of Naruto's friends he restrained. Once Sai had finished talking, Sasuke handed a bowl of chips to Naruto, Naruto thanked him but he had no sooner lifted a chip to his mouth when Neji ran up to him and grabbed his arm. "Hey guys, the girls have gotten themselves into a drinking game and they are convince that they can do better than us" he said hurriedly "What!" Naruto shouted in mock outrage "I'm gonna go over there and show them how it's done" and he left with Neji, leaving Sasuke and Sai together.

Sasuke looked down at Sai and hissed "I know what you are up to, STOP IT" he said the last bit with a bit more venom. Sai chuckled and began to inspect his nails "well Sasuke if you know what I'm up to then you should also know that it is none of your damn business" he stood up and walked away, leaving Sasuke more pissed off than before.

Sai smoothly made his way through the crowd until he found Naruto, sitting at a table across from Ino, surrounded by a large group of people who were cheering and placing bets. "Give it up Ino" he laughed and placed an empty shot glass on the table "this is to big for you to handle" Ino swished her blonde hair angrily and took another shot. "Trust me Naruto, I know how to handle big things, I'm dating Kiba right?" she giggled furiously. Naruto snorted and took another shot "anytime Ino" he said in a condescending voice but Ino was now resting her head on her arms "Screw you Uzumaki! We will finish this another time but tight now I need a…rest…" he then dragged herself away from the table, the people who had bet on Naruto cheered and high-fived him Naruto celebrated with them for a little while but then mad his way out of the crowd,

Sai saw his chance to pounce "Hey Naruto" he purred and put an arm around Naruto's shoulder "wanna get some fresh air?" Naruto nodded happily "Sounds good" then they mad their way outside. Sai found a nice secluded spot and they sat down next to each other. Perfect.

Sasuke was looking everywhere for Naruto, he had managed to find Neji, the last person he had seen Naruto with. Neji was dancing with TenTen and it took Sasuke about 5 minutes to get them to part and talk to him. "I think I saw him with Sai, they were heading out the back" then they left quickly. "Crap, they left him with Sai! This is not good" Sasuke mumble to himself as he headed for the back door.

Poor Naruto, one second he had been chatting quite comfortably with Sai…until he felt Sai's hand on his leg, he looked down at it then back to Sai. "What the hell are you doing dude?" He asked in a rude tone, Sai paid no attention to this comment and began to run his hand up and down Naruto's thigh. Naruto jumped to his feet, "What the hell dude? Don't try any of that creepy stuff on me!" Sai smiled and also got to his feet, "I apologize Naruto, I didn't mean to alarm you so greatly" Sai said in his emotionless voice. "Then what were you trying to do?" Naruto hissed, but no sooner had he finished this sentence Sai had grabbed Naruto by the shoulders and pushed his back into the nearest tree. Sai then put his mouth close to Naruto's ear and whispered "I was trying to seduce you, idiot" and then he lightly kissed the blonde's neck.

Naruto shouted loudly in alarm and tried to push Sai away, "SAI! Cut it out, this isn't funny any more, STOP! Come on man be serious!" Sai then moved to Naruto's ear and began to nibble lightly on it, "but I am serious" he mumbled "I doubt you could just call this a joke" he then began to press his lips over Naruto's neck again and also started to run one of his hands over Naruto's chest. Naruto squirmed and pushed, trying to get Sai off him, "this is just great" he thought to himself miserably "I come to this party to hit it off with Sasuke and I end up getting felt up by a different gay friend, just wonderful". He heard the sound of someone walking by and jumped at the opportunity, "Somebody help me! My seedy friend is drunk and is trying to put the moves on me!" he heard the person quicken their pace and approach the two of them.

Naruto's first emotion was relief when he heard someone coming to rescue him, but when some light from one of the windows landed on his hero his next emotion was embarrassment, total and viscous embarrassment, the kind that made you want to curl into a ball a disappear out of existence. The person who had answered his plea for help was none other than Sasuke Uchiha himself. All he could see was pure rage etched upon the boy's face, then a second later he felt the weight of Sai ripped from him, he looked to where Sai ha been thrown . There stood Sasuke; with his Sharingan eyes activated standing over a terrified looking Sai, he tried to get to his feet but Sasuke grabbed him by the collar and held him a foot above the ground. "If I EVER see you touch him again, you will pay!" Sasuke shouted, Sai was having difficulty breathing and was trying to pry the Uchiha's fingers off his collar, "Sasuke, you need to let go" Naruto said quickly, noticing Sai's struggle. "How can you just tell me to let it go? This pervert was practically molesting you!" Sasuke shouted, Naruto walked over to the boys and bean to pull on Sasuke's arm, "No! I meant you should let go of his shirt before he suffocates" Naruto said with his voice a little louder.

After hearing this, Sasuke quickly let go of Sai, letting him fall to a heap on the ground, Sasuke let him catch his breath then turned away, "You should leave now" he said in a quiet and dangerous tone, "Before I do something that will get me exiled for sure". Sai nodded furiously then left the scene in a flash. After a moment of awkward silence Naruto walked up behind Sasuke and wrapped his arms around the other boy's waist, "Thank you for looking after me" Naruto mumbled into the back of Sasuke's T-shirt. "But you didn't need to half kill him to get your point across" he chuckled, Sasuke had barely paid any attention to these word, his mind had frozen the second that Naruto had started hugging him. Just then, a voice in his head started to slyly suggest that he should take advantage of the cuddly moment and start to make his own advances on the boy. But another voice told him that Naruto was probably feeling fragile and the last thing he needed was another person hitting on him, he cursed his conscience and pulled Naruto's arms off him.

"We should head inside" Sasuke mumbled blandly but then a white hot pain flashed across his face, he raised his hand to his cheek and when he inspected his hand… "Blood?" Naruto shouted "what happened?" this question was answered by a drunken Kiba who was standing at one of the windows "Whoops! Sorry Sasuke, crap aim y'know I was tryin to show off. My bad!" he shouted and then both boys saw the number of shuriken in his hand before stumbled off. Naruto grabbed Sasuke's hand and began to drag him inside, "what are you doing?" Sasuke asked as he was pulled towards the bath room, "we have to clean up that wound before it gets infected; you have a first aid kit in the bathroom right?" Sasuke nodded and was pulled into the room. Naruto motioned for him to sit down on the side of the bath while he rummaged through the cabinet over the sink.

Sasuke raised his hand to his cheek again and gasped softly in pain, the cut was deeper than he thought, Naruto was back and leaned closely to Sasuke, and Sasuke could feel the boy's hot breath on his face. "Will it need stitches?" Sasuke asked quickly, trying to distract himself from the fact that Naruto was so close. Naruto shook his head "Nope, I'll just clean it and put a couple of band aids on it then you should be fine" he then turned around to grab the disinfectant and a cotton swab, he tried to put the swab on the cut but Sasuke jerked his head away sharply. "Oh come on Sasuke! It hurts for a second then it is over" Naruto scolded, Sasuke just glared at him and shuffled away a little. Naruto rolled his eyes the struck like lightning, shoving Sasuke into the empty bath tub and then jumping in himself, he sat on the other boy's legs to stop him kicking and then with one hand, pined both of Sasuke's arms above his head. Sasuke shouted loudly and struggled to get out of Naruto's death grip but before he could, someone came bursting through the door, it was Sakura accompanied by Ino and Hinata.

They were all giggling and falling over each other but then they saw Naruto…on top of Sasuke…in the bath tub. They were silent for a moment as they realized what they were looking at, and then they all began to keel over in fits of laughter. "Sorry guys, we didn't mean to interrupt anything" Ino snorted, "please continue, just pretend we aren't here" Sakura said and she pulled a camera out of her handbag, at seeing the camera both boys jumped away from each other. Hinata giggled "M…maybe they are shy, we should go" she then tugged on Sakura's wrist, the girls whispered to themselves as they left the bathroom but just as Naruto was about to shut the door behind them Ino turned her head and shouted back to them "have fun you two! But be safe!" the group then erupted into giggles again.

Naruto locked the door this time and turned to see that Sasuke was now sitting on the edged of the bath again, "girls, I will never understand them" Naruto said laughing awkwardly, rubbing the back of his head, Sasuke smirked a little "Kind of makes you want to go off them all together hey?" Sasuke added slyly. Naruto blushed and then quickly grabbed the cotton ball and walked over to Sasuke, this time there was no struggled, Naruto sat on the edge of the bath next to him and gently dabbed the cut. Sasuke winced slightly but then relaxed as he felt Naruto gently rubbing the cotton ball against his cheek; Naruto turned and grabbed a tube of cream then squeezed a little onto his fingertips. Sasuke closed his eyes and enjoyed the feeling of Naruto gently applying the cream to his cut, soon all the cream was gone but Naruto kept softly stroking his cheek.

Sasuke didn't tell him to stop and let Naruto keep touching his face, after a little while though, Naruto came to his senses it seemed because he stopped abruptly and whipped his hand away from Sasuke's face. But Sasuke quickly grabbed Naruto's wrist and opened his eyes staring straight into Naruto's astonishing blue ones, he mumbled a simple request "don't stop" he said quietly. He heard Naruto's breathing pace quicken but regardless, he brought his hand up to Sasuke's cheek again and started stroking it, Sasuke closed his eyes again. Neither boys spoke, afraid that it would ruin the moment; Naruto started by gently running his index finger over the cut, then proceeded to trace Sasuke's jaw bone after that, he raised his other hand to stroke Sasuke's eyelashes.

Sasuke couldn't think, all that filled his mind was how good it felt to have Naruto caress his face and that he didn't want it to stop, he felt one of Naruto's fingers run across his bottom lip and his eyes flew open. Naruto was sitting closer than he was before, he was so close that their faces were almost touching; it occurred to Sasuke that perhaps he should do the same for the other boy and he lifted one of his hands to the side of Naruto's face. He felt Naruto tense up initially as his fingertips made contact with his cheeks but as he began to trace the whisker like scars gently Naruto began to relax. They didn't know how long they sat there, just stroking and touching each others faces but it ended suddenly when Sasuke began to stroke down Naruto's neck, to his collar when he reached the buttons of his shirt. He just finished undoing the first one when Naruto sprung away and his back made contact with the door, they looked at each other for a little while then Naruto quickly did up the button and mumbled "I'm not gay" to Sasuke then he ripped the door open and ran away.

Sasuke smacked himself in the face, what the hell had he done? He just had to push it didn't he? Finally was alone with Naruto, Finally having an intimate moment with him and he had to take it too far! He grabbed a band aid and stuck it over his cheek then marched out of the bathroom. He looked for the boy everywhere throughout his house, but he was nowhere to be found, it was 2 am before he had gotten rid of the last of the guests, he collapsed, face first onto his bed, man he had screwed up. He rolled onto his back and lifted his hand to the cut that was now hidden a band aid and sighed, how the hell was he going to explain his actions when he saw Naruto tomorrow? He closed his eyes and imagined all the possible scenarios that could occur, damn, they all ended badly.

Naruto opened his eyes, was it just him or did the morning sunlight seem a little more harsh than usual? It took him a moment to remember, he had gone to Sasuke's party last night, and all the memories came flooding back to him. First he had arrived with Lee, Kiba, Sakura and Ino, they left him with Sasuke for a while, then he was with Sai, then he had ended up in a drinking game with the girls, which he promptly won, soon after Kiba, Neji and Gaara went off to dance with their girlfriends. Then Sai and he had gone into the garden to get some air and he ended up getting felt up by the guy. Sasuke saved him and then Kiba had accidentally got Sasuke in the face with a poorly aimed shiruken, they went to the bathroom to fix his cut and… Naruto groaned as he remembered the events that unfolded in the bathroom.

Not that he didn't enjoy it, in fact he had really enjoyed it. But he couldn't…not with Sasuke at least. He had been crushing on Sasuke since the day he had seen him at Orochimaru's hide out after searching for him for 2 years, he couldn't help feeling a little happy at the memory. Of all the people Sasuke had ever know, he had never let anyone touch him like that! Naruto felt a warm fuzzy feeling in his chest. He threw the blankets off and got up quickly, he had a plan, he was going to find Sasuke and try and talk about what had happened last night, he opened his bedroom window, it was a chilly and overcast day. He looked over the roofs of the shabby buildings near-by, none of them could compare to Sasuke's house, in the same way that no other guy could compare to Sasuke. He felt that warm, fuzzy feeling again.

Only this time it didn't stop, it was getting too hot and it was spreading over his body. Naruto started shaking, not again! "Hello again Kit" growled the Kyuubi, Naruto tried to stand but fell back onto the floor and began to shudder "Piss off" he hissed, the fox demon laughed "Well, well, well, I see you have done nothing to sort out our 'problem',have you stupid? Naruto shook his head "can't…train…no…missions" he gasped out, panting heavily between each word. The Kyuubi growled "I guess this means I have take care of this myself then", Naruto started shouting "NO!…won't…let…you…don't'…hurt…Sasuke… he started to convulse and the heat inside his body got worse, just as the darkness began to take over his vision he heard the Kyuubi say "Don't worry Kit, I will fix this problem, now go to sleep" then Naruto lay limp.

After a few moments the boy got to his feet, he seemed perfectly fine until he opened his eyes, instead of their usually bright blue; the irises were now a dark red. 'Naruto' smirked, reveling larger, sharper canine teeth in the place of his usual ones. He walked over to the cupboard and pulled out some clothes, he got dressed quickly, then hurried to the mirror "heh, the Kit doesn't look too bad" Naruto growled in a low, throaty voice, he then grabbed a pair of sunglasses to hide his red eyes and ran to the door, today was going to be…fun.

Sasuke was jogging along to road towards Naruto's house; he was rehearsing what he was going to say to the other boy. He was just going to say that he was drunk last night; he had been so out of it that he thought Naruto was Ino; they were both blonde so it kinda worked. He had been so focused on this that he ran face first into someone coming the opposite way along the road, he started to apologize then realized who he had run into, "Naruto?" he asked a little bewildered by the sight of the guy. Naruto smirked widely "The one and only" he said confidently, only…his voice sounded different. It was deeper…rougher…sexier…the boy also looked a little different too. Instead of his usual weekend wear (Baggy shorts, t-shirt and sandals) he was now wearing black, ripped jeans, a dark red button down top, black sneakers, leather jacket and sunglasses.

There was only one way that Sasuke could describe this new look…incredibly hot. Sasuke stared for a moment but then remembered why he had come to talk to the boy in the first place. He used his serious voice "Naruto, we need to talk about last night" he started, then Naruto cut him off with a chuckle "Oh come on Sasuke relax!" he ran a hand through his spiky, blonde hair "we were just having some fun right?" he then leant over and whispered in Sasuke's ear "I know I wouldn't mind doing it again". Sasuke was a little shocked by the bluntness of Naruto's words, but at the same time, he melted a little bit at the way he had said it so seductively. Sasuke didn't mean to sound so pathetic, but he began to stutter. "Uh…N…Naruto, I think w…we need to talk", after hearing this, Naruto grinned and placed an arm around Sasuke's shoulders.

"Let's head to my place, we can…talk there" Naruto purred and he led Sasuke along the path. Once they had made it to the front door Sasuke turned to face Naruto, but as he did, Naruto grabbed him by the shoulders and shoved him against the door. "What the hell?" Sasuke shouted and started to squirm, Naruto chuckled, but not in his usual cheeky way…this chuckle was far more sinister sounding. To stop the squirming, Naruto pressed his body against Sasuke's, he then pinned both of his hands to the side and leant his for head against the Uchiha's. "Calm down Sasuke" he whispered "I just want to try something", Sasuke froze "w…what do you mean?" he asked, he was legitimately worried for his safety. He didn't like this new, dominant Naruto.

Naruto grinned widely, but not his trademark grin, Sasuke had never recalled Naruto's canine teeth being so large and sharp before. Naruto lowered his head slightly and began to nuzzle Sasuke's neck in an almost affectionate way, Sasuke was speechless. WHAT THE HELL? He thought, last night HE had been the one saying "I'm not gay" and running away the second that things had started to get intimate. But NOW here he was, rubbing his face all over my neck. He stopped his inner rant when he felt something wet touch his neck, he shouted in surprise "Naruto is that your tongue?" he shrieked, he had tried to sound angry but his voice cracked slightly. Naruto stopped and chuckled again "what do you think?" he said mischievously and started to run his tongue along Sasuke's neck.

Sasuke gasped and bucked his hips, trying to push Naruto off, but Naruto took this as a sign of encouragement and brought his face back up to Sasuke's, he then pushed his mouth against Sasuke's. Sasuke held still, refusing to respond to the kiss, it was taking all of his self control but he could not give in to the other boy so easily. "…won't participate? Guess I'll have to make him" He heard Naruto growl to himself then Naruto forced his knee between Sasuke's legs and began to rub it against the front of his pants. "Shit N…Naruto" Sasuke gasped at the feeling. Naruto whispered into Sasuke's ear "enjoying yourself now Sasuke-kun?" Sasuke bit his lip to stop a moan from escaping his mouth, "fuck yes!" he wanted to shout, but something was wrong, this was not Naruto. Naruto slightly loosened his grip on Sasuke's wrists, and Sasuke quickly took advantage of his new freedom and slapped Naruto, sending his sunglasses flying.

Sasuke finally saw Naruto's eyes, not the beautiful cerulean ones he knew, but deep crimson and with slits for pupils. He recoiled quickly, 'Naruto' glared at him, "thanks a lot Uchiha, I was just starting to have fun" he growled and dusted himself off; Sasuke edged away but activated his Sharingan and made direct eye contact. "Let him go right now" he said dangerously, 'Naruto' fell to his hands and knees and started trembling "you bastard!" he shouted and he passed out. Sasuke stared at the crumpled form of Naruto on the ground and his heart began to race "Oh crap! What have I done?" he hissed to himself as he scooped the boy up in his arms and carried him inside the apartment.

He placed the unconscious boy gently on the couch in the living room and sat on the ground beside him, he didn't care if it took all day, he was going to wait until Naruto woke up, so see if he was ok. Luckily, it only took about 10 minutes before Naruto came to. He sat up groggily and rubbed his eyes in a sleepy way, "Wha? Wha…what happened…Kyuubi?" looked around wildly and then caught sight of Sasuke, "Sasuke? What are you doing here?" Sasuke sighed and explained that he had been possessed by the Kyuubi and he had to use his Sharingan to control it. Naruto looked worried "Um…Sasuke…did I do anything…weird while it was controlling me?" he asked in a shaky voice, Sasuke was completely honest, "you…or the Kyuubi I should say, tried to have sex with me".

Naruto froze then looked down at the floor "I'm sorry Sasuke" he mumbled, he then got to his feet and opened the front door "you should leave now" he said, his eyes still not leaving the floor. Sasuke got up and tried to leave quickly but Naruto gently tapped him on the shoulder as he walked outside and he turned, "don't worry Sasuke, I promise it wont happen again" he mumbled once more and he shut the door. Sasuke couldn't help feeling a sinking sensation in his stomach as he walked away. Meanwhile, Naruto sunk to the floor and curled into a ball, what had he done? Stupid Kyuubi! Stupid Tsunade! "Gahhhhh!" he shouted in frustration and punched the ground. He knew what he had to do, he had to see the Hokage, explain what was going on and get back to his missions. He quickly changed into his trademark black and orange jumpsuit and headed for the door.

Sasuke trudged along the road to Kakashi's house; he had no idea where else to go. So much had happened in the past 24 hours and if he didn't tell someone about it he was going to explode! He walked up the stairs to his ex-sensei's front door but just as he was about to knock the door swung open, there stood Kakashi, wearing a pair of overalls, gardening gloves and holding a pair of secateurs. "Oh! Good morning Sasuke" he said cheerfully "how are we this morning? I heard your party was quite the success last night" he said as he made his way towards his front garden. Sasuke shrugged "It would have been better if my plan had followed through" he sighed and he sat down on the grass. Kakashi bent over one of his rose bushes and started to prune "Things didn't go well with Naruto huh?" he said sympathetically, it didn't take Sasuke very long to reveal everything that had happened last night and this morning, it all just came spilling out and he couldn't hide the sadness or confusion in his voice.

Kakashi turned to the boy when he had finished talking and handed him one of the roses he had just clipped off the bush and patted him on the head. "Well Sasuke, I think you need to talk to someone your own age for once" he said simply and started to walk inside, Sasuke leapt to his feet, "What? That's the best advice you can give me?" he shouted. Kakashi shrugged, "you would be surprised how much more you learn from your peers than you're your teachers" he shouted over his shoulder "Try miss Hyuga, she seems like a good place to start" and he walked inside and shut the door. Sasuke stood stunned for a while, and then he set off in the direction of Hinata's house, Kakashi must have been hinting something…what did she know that he didn't? He had many questions racing around his head and he would not rest until he had answers for each one.

"I GIVE YOU TWO WEEKS OF PAID STRESS LEAVE AND YOU COME BACK HERE BEGGING TO START WORK AGAIN? WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?" Tsunade was screaming at a terrified Naruto, who was presently cowering behind the Hokage's desk. She stopped shouting and gave him time to answer. "I…it's the Kyuubi, I…I didn't want to mention it last time because…it's really embarrassing" Naruto answered shakily. Tsunade looked concerned then serious "It's mating season for the Kyuubi isn't it?" she said bluntly. Naruto blushed than nodded, "yeah" he said and fiddled with a loose thread on his Hitai-ate "I need to keep busy or I just lose control and it takes over…I can't let it happen again". Tsunade raised and eyebrow "again?" she said curiously "you mean you've lost control before?" Naruto seemed to shrink a little and nodded reluctantly. Tsunade leant forward "who was it that um 'set you off' so to speak?" Naruto refused to say, it was only when she threatened him with another two weeks of stress leave that he told her. "Sasuke Uchiha" he mumbled and Tsunade froze.

"Are you sure?" she whispered, Naruto nodded. The rest of the meeting was very short; she terminated his stress leave and sent him away. After he had left, Tsunade quickly pulled out some paper and began writing furiously.

Dear Iruka

I have some tasks that need to be taken care of immediately. First, regarding Sasuke Uchiha, his restrictions are hereby lifted and he is free to travel outside the village unaccompanied and he can now be given missions worthy of his skill level. I suggest that he be given some missions that need to be completed away from the village assoonaspossible, also, I wish to promote Naruto Uzumaki to the rank of ANBU captain, and his extra training will begin assoonaspossible. Sincerely Tsunade

She placed her pen down and sighed contently, "That should do it" she said to herself "I can't let that evil Uchiha boy harm Naruto".

Chapter 4

It was a beautiful day at the Hyuga estate; Hinata Hyuga was reading a book by the pond in the gardens when she heard foot steps behind her. There stood her cousin, Neji Hyuga and Sasuke Uchiha, she was surprised to see them both and she stood up quickly. "h…hello Neji…I…I didn't see you there" she stuttered, she then turned to Sasuke "Hello…S…Sasuke…how are y…you?" she had become less shy over the years, but Hinata still became a stuttering wreck when she was suddenly pulled into a new social situation. Both boys greeted her, "I was just coming to visit when I saw Sasuke by the gate, so we both decided to come together" Neji said as he sat down "By the way Sasuke, great party last night, I hope you throw another one sometime soon" and he gestured for Sasuke to sit beside him. Sasuke sat down and Hinata quickly followed, "So…why did you b…both come to see me?" Hinata asked shyly, Neji answered first "well, seeing as it is my duty to protect you, I wanted to see if you were all right" he tone became more serious "Did Gaara walk you home last night? He assured me he would".

Hinata nodded "I'm fine and Gaara did walk me home…don't worry he was a perfect gentleman" she added as she saw the questioning look cross Neji's face. She turned to Sasuke "W…what about you Sasuke? Why d…did you come along?" Sasuke stared at the ground as he talked "Are you and Naruto…close friends?" he said softly, "uh huh" Hinata said happily "the best of friends". Sasuke still stared at the ground "did he…tell you…about me on Monday afternoon?" Hinata looked confused for a moment "What do you mean?" Sasuke sighed frustratingly "did he tell you that I'm gay". Neji, who had been day dreaming slightly, suddenly snapped out of his trance and looked at Sasuke with a shocked expression, "you're what?" he squeaked. Hinata, however, nodded calmly "yes he did tell me, why do you want to know?" Sasuke looked back at the ground "did he…say anything…like about how he felt about that?"

Hinata smiled "Oh don't worry Sasuke, Naruto won't treat you any differently, and he's always been a very accepting person, besides, he's gay too so he's probably glad that…" she stopped suddenly and clasped her hands over he mouth "I shouldn't have said that" she squeaked "he trusted me not to tell anyone and I told two people!" she started to shriek. She then started pulling at her hair "Oh my goodness! I am the worst friend ever" but neither boys were paying attention, a servant had just arrived and told Neji that he had an urgent notice from the Hokage; he sprung to his feet and ran off. Sasuke was staring into space in a daze, a nice, fluffy, happy daze…NARUTO WAS GAY! YES! His prayers had been answered! The hot, funny, sweet, kind, perfect guy that he had been obsessing over was gay! He couldn't help the massive grin from forming on his face, he pulled Hinata into a big hug "Thank you Hinata!" he said happily and he got to his feet and almost skipped off, leaving a very distressed and confused Hinata alone in the garden.

Sasuke ran all the way home; once he was inside he punched the air in triumph. Life was too good to be true he ran upstairs and threw himself on the bed, the most important person in his life, his reason for returning to the village, he reason to keep on living…he might have a chance with him! He thought back to when his life had been chaotic, self destructive and dark, Naruto had been the light at the end of the tunnel his only hope and now the thought that the two of them could be together…Sasuke was over the moon. He stayed inside most of the day but in the afternoon there was knock on his door, he answered it at there stood Kiba…again. He and Akamaru were panting heavily "hey Sasuke" he said "Man have I got some news for you" and he grinned "Naruto has been promoted to the status of an ANBU captain" he shouted.

Sasuke was surprised "Really? Wow! Well congratulations to him, I knew he'd get there one day" Kiba scratched Akamaru behind the ears "It's awesome, since I'm a part of his team and stuff, that means we all get special privileges". Sasuke was confused "what do you mean team?" he asked. Kiba laughed "he's a captain now right? That means he gets to choose at team of three people". Sasuke tried to sound casual "who are the other two?" Kiba laughed again "isn't it obvious? Neji and Sai" anger boiled in Sasuke's stomach when he heard Sai's name. Kiba's voice then lowered and he leaned closer to Sasuke "don't get angry or anything but…is it true that you're…gay?" Sasuke nodded, "Neji must have let it slip" he thought and he heard Kiba mutter "well fuck! Shikamaru owes me 10 bucks" to Akamaru but he continued "feel free to spread it, people can't judge me more than they all ready do" he said calmly. Kiba smiled "will do" he shouted as he ran off with Akamaru by his side.

Sasuke watched them disappear into the distance then walked back inside, he had made a plan, he would go see Naruto tomorrow morning to congratulate him and he was going to take the biggest chance in his life and tell Naruto how he felt. He hoped desperately that things would end well

On Sunday morning Naruto woke to the sound of someone hammering loudly on his front door, "Get up dobe, I know you are in there!" A familiar voice shouted, Naruto groaned and dragged himself out of bed, not even bothering to put on proper clothes (he slept in his boxers) by the time he had reached the front door he recognized the voice…Sasuke. He wrenched the door open, "Somebody better be dying!" he shouted at the Uchiha, Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Good morning Naruto, It's nice to see you too" he said then pushed past the boy and walked inside, ignoring Naruto's protests and shouting. He walked into the lounge room and sat down on the couch, "So I hear you are becoming an ANBU captain, is this true?" Sasuke was refusing to look at the boy as he said this and examined his fingernails. Naruto looked puzzled, after all, the only people that were supposed to know this were Tsunade, Kiba, Sai, Neji and himself…then again, this was Sasuke Uchiha, anything was possible.

Naruto shrugged and walked over to Sasuke, looking down at him, "I dunno, you tell me?" the two had a stare off until Sasuke admitted that no sooner had the meeting ended, Kiba ran around the village telling everyone he knew of the great news. Naruto then threw himself onto the couch next to Sasuke and groaned, rubbing his temples with his fingers "I don't know man, what if I suck really badly? What if I turn out to be the worst captain they've ever seen?" Sasuke patted Naruto on the knee comfortingly, "Dobe, you think so badly of yourself, they wouldn't have chosen you unless they thought you were the best of the best" Sasuke assured him. Naruto blushed at the praise but then looked down at his feet "You are supposed to say that…you are my friend" he mumbled. Sasuke rolled his eyes again, "I say it because it's true, everyone knows how incredible you are".

Now Naruto really started blushing "But people say…" he started then Sasuke cut him off "then those people don't deserve to know you" he said with a little more anger in his tone. Sasuke then reached into his pocket at pulled out a scroll. "I got this to congratulate you" he said as he handed it to Naruto, Naruto thanked him and then began to unfurl it, Naruto's eyes widened in shock. "S...S…Sasuke! These are some very powerful and advanced ninjutsu's!" Sasuke shrugged "I thought you would like them" he said, and then returned his attention to his nails. The next moment he felt Naruto jump on top of him and hug him tightly. "You are the best friend ever man!" Naruto shouted happily, but Sasuke did not reply, and it took Naruto a little time to figure out why. Not only was he still only wearing his boxers, but now he was on top of Sasuke, straddling his hips and his arms wrapped tightly around his neck. Naruto swallowed and made to get off him before it got awkward.

But as he tried to move, he noticed that Sasuke had his hands lying on his back and was holding him there, "Umm, S…Sasuke?" Naruto murmured softly, still Sasuke didn't respond but began to move one of his hands up Naruto's back, Naruto's breathing hitched, what the hell was gong on? When Sasuke's hand had reached the back of his head he began to run his pale, slender fingers through Naruto's golden hair along his scalp, Naruto accidentally let slip a moan. Sasuke took this as an invitation to continue and kept stroking Naruto's hair, all of Naruto's reason flew out the window and he moved his hands to Sasuke's chest and began to run his fingers along his dark shirt.

Sasuke decided to take the lead and suddenly pulled Naruto's face down to his own and crushed his mouth against Naruto's, the blonde gasped at this sudden attack on his lips and Sasuke took advantage of this and slipped his tongue into Naruto's mouth. Naruto didn't know what to do, so he just let Sasuke take control, he had never imagined that one day he would be making out with the great Sasuke Uchiha or that he would such a great kisser. Sasuke was going purely by instinct, hoping that he was ok, they stayed there in the same position for a while just gently kissing, until Naruto take some initiative. His hands that had been running up and down the Uchiha's chest, finally stopped at the bottom of his shirt and he began to pull it up.

Sasuke was a little surprise by this bold action but broke the kiss and lifted his arms so that Naruto could pull his shirt off, once it was, Naruto threw it to the side and they continued kissing, now with more vigor and enthusiasm. Sasuke's hands were still resting on the back of Naruto's head and on his back but now Naruto's hands were resting on Sasuke's hips, gently running his fingertips over them. After a few more minutes of passionate kissing, both boys had to stop to take a breath. They broke apart, panting heavily and blushing furiously. Naruto was the first to break the silence, "S…Sasuke…what are we doing?" he asked timidly, not meeting the other Boy's gaze, Sasuke sighed and ran his fingers Naruto's hair again. "I don't know" he replied softly "but…I have wanted to do that for a long time now". Naruto sat up a bit "What do you mean by…'that'?"

Sasuke mentally face palmed "by 'that' I mean this" he said and he pulled Naruto closer to himself and connected their mouths again. They started the kissing all over again, this time; Naruto became a little braver and began to gently rock his hips against Sasuke's. He felt Sasuke moan a little into his mouth so he did it again, harder this time. It was only a matter of time when things started to get much more heated between the two boys, Sasuke stopped gently caressing Naruto's hair and clumsily grabbed him by the hips and began to grind back. Both of them were now panting into each others mouths, Sasuke suddenly pushed Naruto onto his back on the couch and began to suck on his neck.

"Sa…Sasuke" Naruto panted out "we…ahh…can't do this…Sasuke…s…stop". Sasuke ignored this and instead focused his attention on Naruto's face. The blonde boy was blushing heavily, his eyes were clouded with lust and his lips were still a little red from when they had been kissing so enthusiastically. He ran a pale hand over Naruto's chest and smiled, "the way you are reacting tells me you don't want me to stop" he then lowered his head to Naruto's collar bone and began to suck. Naruto couldn't stop himself from bucking his hips helplessly against Sasuke's as the boy continued his attack on his collar bone. Sasuke had originally planned to confess his love for Naruto today, but what they were doing now seemed like much more fun, he froze when he felt Naruto's fingers fumbling with the button and zip on his pants, he looked up at the blonde. "Take them off" Naruto said simply, so Sasuke complied, eventually his pants ended up being thrown away in the same manner that his shirt had been.

Now both of them were just in their boxers, all over each other and panting heavily. "Bedroom" Sasuke said and he grabbed Naruto by the arm and started to drag him to the bedroom, they didn't get very far when Naruto grabbed Sasuke, pulled their bodies together and started to kiss again, this time it was a battle for dominance. Sasuke easily won when he pushed Naruto against the door frame to the bedroom, Naruto threw his arms around Sasuke's neck and deepened the kiss. Sasuke then started to push Naruto towards the bed, and when the back of Naruto's legs hit the edge of the bed they both fell, Sasuke landing on top. Sasuke took advantage of this new position and quickly pinned down Naruto's wrists and straddled his hips.

Naruto looked up at him "What happens now?" he asked innocently Sasuke rolled his eyes but lowered his head for another kiss, "why don't we start here and see where that takes us" he mumbled against Naruto's mouth as one hand left Naruto wrist and began to tug at the elastic of the blonde's boxers. He tugged the material down slowly then suddenly Naruto squirmed away and pulled some sheets to cover his now naked lower half, "what was that for?" Sasuke asked as he flung the orange boxers away "we are just getting to the good part". Naruto pulled the sheets a little higher and squeaked "It's…kind of embarrassing", Sasuke smiled pervertedly "would it make you feel better if I was naked too" he said in a suggestive tone. Naruto smiled a little "yeah", Sasuke wasted no time in removing his last article of clothing and started to edge closer to the other boy. They were now face to face so they started to kiss again, while they were, Sasuke slid under the sheets himself and moved one hand down between Naruto's thighs.

Naruto then yelped in shock and Sasuke chuckled "you're pretty sensitive" he said as he began to jerk the blonde and he leaned closer to Naruto's ear "almost seems like you've never done this before". Naruto was panting and squirming, right now he was only half concentrating on what Sasuke was saying because all that his mind seemed to be focusing on was that Sasuke's hand was on his dick and it felt fucking amazing. He didn't realize it, but he was beginning to roll his hips towards Sasuke's hand to gain extra friction, Sasuke stared at Naruto in a possessive way and whispered "does it feel good dobe?" Naruto nodded shakily and breathy moans were beginning to escape from his mouth, which only encouraged the Uchiha to do more.

He began to pump his hand faster and started to lick and nip at Naruto's shoulder, this was all too much for the blonde, and all the different sensations were beginning to overwhelm him. "ahh…Sas…Sasuke, s stop!" he moaned and threw his head back against the pillows but Sasuke just moved his hand faster and bit on his shoulder a little harder, "Sasuke, I'm gonna…ahh" Naruto cried out one more time before he came all over Sasuke's hand and his own stomach. He lay there panting, blushing and basking in the after-glow of what had just happened. Sasuke wiped his hand on the sheets and moved closer to Naruto's face, brushing his sweaty blonde hair from his face. Naruto quickly grabbed Sasuke's face and pulled it to his own, and they met in a rushed, desperate kiss.

By now Sasuke was beyond aroused, he had just spent all that time making out with Naruto, grinding up against Naruto and giving Naruto a hand job and now all he wanted was to get rid of his 'problem'. Naruto quickly noticed Sasuke's 'problem', after all, it was digging into his hip, and he broke the kiss. "You're still hard" Naruto stated curiously, Sasuke sighed "it's ok, I can take care of it myself if you don't feel like you're ready…Naruto…what are you doing?" while Sasuke had been talking, Naruto had pulled the sheets down and his face was now level with Sasuke's 'problem'…and hell it was a big problem! He looked up at Sasuke nervously then wrapped his hand around it. He heard Sasuke gasp softly.

"Naruto! You don't need to do that, I don't want to force you…" but he was cut off when Naruto giggled mischievously "You aren't forcing me Sasuke, I want to do this, I want you to feel good too" he took a deep breath and took the appendage into his mouth. "Shit…ahh…Naruto!" Sasuke spluttered as his dick was engulfed by Naruto's warm mouth, a million worries came rushing through his mind, but it all stopped when Naruto started to suck. "Oh my god Naruto!" he shouted, Naruto bobbed his head up and down, and did some impressive things with his tongue. Sasuke's hands were on Naruto's head and he was running his fingers through his blonde hair, Naruto liked the feel of someone massaging his scalp and he moaned, which sent vibrations along Sasuke's dick.

Sasuke cried out loudly and tightened his grip on Naruto's head, he knew he couldn't last much longer; he had already been at his limit before so now it was impossible for him to hold it any longer. "N…Naruto…ahh" his breath hitched as Naruto took him deeper into his mouth "I can't…I'm gonna come!" after hearing this Naruto began to suck harder, Sasuke's back arched off the bed in pleasure, he just found enough strength to pull Naruto away as he came. Sasuke lay on the bed, spread eagle, sweating and exhausted, Naruto crawled back up to Sasuke, pulled the sheets over the both of them and snuggled up to the Uchiha. Sasuke gently stroked Naruto's hair until they both fell asleep, they were both spent and they would need their energy when they woke up.

Tsunade tapped her foot impatiently, Naruto was running late, not a good start for someone who had just been promoted to ANBU captain, she stormed down stairs, Kakashi was sitting on Iruka's desk and fiddling with bits of paper while Iruka tried to ignore it, Tsunade cleared her throat. "Iruka, Kakashi, I have a quick job for you two" she said in her super-serious-Hokage voice, they both jumped to their feet "Naruto is two hours late for his introduction to ANBU training procedures, there must be something wrong, other wise he wouldn't miss such an important session" she glanced at the clock. "Don't worry Tsunade, we will find Naruto and bring him here in one piece" Kakashi said happily, he and Iruka headed for the door she watched them leave then stormed back to her office, if this had anything to do with the Uchiha boy she was going to exile him for sure.

Kakashi was standing at the door to Naruto's apartment and had been knocking for about five minutes, Iruka was getting impatient. "Lets just go in" Kakashi said eventually "he'll forgive us" and he opened the door, they both walked inside, Kakashi was the first to spot the clothes lying on the ground around the couch and got worried. "Oh crap" he thought to himself "Iruka doesn't know about those two! I need to get him out of here!" but it was too late, Iruka recognized the Uchiha clan symbol on the back of the shirt at his feet. Iruka sprinted towards Naruto's bedroom door but Kakashi quickly grabbed him "Uhh Iruka, if you are really sure you want to see what's in there…do it quietly" Kakashi whispered.

Slowly Iruka's trembling hand grasped the door knob and turned it, inside he saw Naruto, the boy he considered his son, curled up with Sasuke Uchiha in bed and both of them shirtless. He wanted to charge in there and rip the Uchiha boy to pieces but Kakashi grabbed him again, he squirmed, struggled and kicked but Kakashi did not falter as he dragged him out side.

"I WANT TO KILL HIM!" Iruka shrieked as soon as Kakashi had taken his hand away from his mouth "THAT EVIL SASUKE HAS TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF NARUTO'S INNOCENCE" Kakashi chuckled "oh Iruka, you are such a mother hen" he said fondly and hugged the raging man. Iruka continued to struggle against Kakashi's grip "THAT UNWORTHY BOY HAS DEFLOWERED MY SON! HOW THE HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO REACT?" Kakashi now was dragging Iruka slowly back to the Hokage's office and began to explain everything he knew about the two boys, by the end of the story, Iruka had calmed down significantly.

"I see" Iruka sighed "so…he really does love Naruto" Kakashi nodded happily "so you understand that we cannot tell Tsunade what we just saw?" Iruka understood perfectly, when they had returned, Iruka was the one that gave the explanation for Naruto's abbsence. "He has fallen ill, but thanks to the Kyuubi, he should be well again by this afternoon, he will see you then" he said calmly and Tsunade believed him, as the two men left her office Kakashi quickly held onto Iruka's hand and squeezed gently "It was the right thing to do" he whispered, Iruka leant over and placed a quick kiss on Kakashi's cheek then went back to his desk. After Kakashi had left Iruka began to brood again, "I just hope that they are being safe" he grumbled to himself.

Bright sunlight was coming through the window to Naruto's bedroom; one of the two bodies on his bed began to stir. Sasuke groggily lifted himself up and rubbed his eyes; he looked at the person lying next to him on the bed and smiled. Naruto was still sleeping peacefully, his blonde hair tangled and his mouth slightly open as he breathed. Sasuke leaned over the sleeping boy and gently brushed some hair off his face, Naruto stirred slightly, Sasuke checked the clock on the bedside table, it was the afternoon now. He gently shook Naruto until he woke up, the boy sat up and looked at Sasuke with glazed over eyes…he was still half asleep. Sasuke leant over and gently kissed his forehead, Naruto was suddenly more awake "Hey" he said softly "what time is it?" Sasuke frowned "that's the first thing you are going to say to me? 'what's the time?' what about some tact dobe" Naruto laughed and pulled Sasuke into a hug "I'm sorry Sasuke; would it make you feel better if I said you had sexy bed hair?" Sasuke smiled "ok, I forgive you"

They stayed hugging for a little while then Sasuke gave in "the time is two o' clock dobe" all of a sudden Naruto gave a yelp and jumped out of bed, "I was supposed to go see Tsunade ages ago!" he as he rushed to grab clothes and pull them on Sasuke decided to get dressed too, he was kind of annoyed, he had wanted to stay and talk, stupid Tsunade had to ruin everything. As he walked into the lounge room to find his clothes, he saw a note lying on the kitchen bench; it was in Kakashi's handwriting:

To Sasuke and Naruto

Tsunade is kinda pissed that you were late for the meeting Naruto but I told her that I went to see you and you were sick so don't worry. Sasuke, I convinced (by convinced I mean paid) Kiba to say he saw you training at your house when he walked by it today so she doesn't get suspicious…no need to thank me.

From Kakashi

P.S: Naruto please start locking your doors, we don't want Iruka having another heart attack.

Sasuke chuckled put the rest of his clothes on, Naruto came tearing through the lounge room heading for the front door but Sasuke quickly grabbed him. "Dobe stop, you've forgotten a couple of things" he said softly in Naruto's ear. Naruto stopped squirming and Sasuke shoved the note in his hand "Read this before you see Tsunade" but he kept his grip on Naruto, "what was the second thing?" Naruto said impatiently. Sasuke gently pulled Naruto's face to his own and kissed him, "I just wanted to say goodbye" he said and let go of Naruto. The blonde started to blush "ok…um…well I'll see you later then?" Sasuke nodded, "keep tonight free ok?" Naruto nodded and both of them quickly left. Just as the two of them were about to go in separate directions, Naruto suddenly grabbed the front of Sasuke's shirt and pulled him forward for another kiss. As they heard people walking down the street they broke apart and went their separate ways.

Sasuke managed to suppress his emotions all the way home, but when he was finally inside his house he jumped up and punched the air in victory. "You look happy Sasuke" came a voice from the lounge room; Sasuke spun around and saw Iruka sitting in one of the chairs, sharpening a kunai. "Hello Iruka…I didn't see you there" Sasuke said politely as he approached the man cautiously, Iruka's eyes narrowed "please take a seat, we…need to have a little talk" Sasuke sat down immediately. Iruka began to sharpen the kunai with more violent movements, "well…as you should know by now Kakashi and happened to come across the two of you today when you were in a…compromising position" his voice was serious. Sasuke was starting to feel a bit nervous now, "I apologize that you saw us in that state sir" he said quickly, Iruka narrowed his eyes when he picked up Sasuke's worried tone.

"Naruto is a sweet and naive boy" Iruka said as he stood up and began to pace around the room "and being his father figure, it is my duty to protect him and to perform the usual fatherly duty of interrogating whoever he is dating" Sasuke tried to say something but Iruka cut him off "Sasuke…do you really and truly care about Naruto?" Sasuke "yes sir", Iruka continued "and do you promise to not to hurt him or try and take advantage of his innocence?" Sasuke looked shocked "I would never do such a thing". The two had a stare off but eventually Iruka gave in "Ok Sasuke, I trust you…but I just want to assure you right now, that if any harm comes to Naruto I will personally hunt you down and rip you limb from limb". Sasuke was a little disturbed, he had never heard Iruka speak in such a violent way before, Iruka headed for the door but Sasuke quickly stopped him "Um Iruka, I was just wondering if you see Naruto you could pass on a message?" Iruka looked suspiciously at him "Ok…what is the message?" he asked shrewdly. "Could you tell him to meet me at Ichiraku's at 8:00 tonight please?" Sasuke asked in a hopeful voice Iruka nodded curtly and walked outside, slamming the door. Once Iruka was out of sight Sasuke collapsed on the lounge, man that was intense!

Naruto began to trudge his way home, who knew that there was so many rules about being an ANBU captain? Half the time he had spent with Tsunade was spent going over all the rules and regulations he had to follow now that he was in this new position. Then again, he had been really distracted during the first half hour that she had been talking…he had read the note Kakashi had left him and he was mortified! He and Iruka had been in the house when Sasuke and himself had been asleep!...And naked! He spent most of the morning freaking out; Iruka didn't know he was gay! Or how he felt about Sasuke! And he had just walked in on it! How the hell was he going to face him again? Just then Iruka came around the corner…oh crap; they stood there looking at each other for a while, not sure how to approach each other. Naruto finally ran up to the man and hugged him "I'm so sorry Iruka!" he sobbed "please don't be mad! I really, really love him and I'm so sorry that didn't tell you everything earlier!" Iruka was a little shocked.

"Naruto…it's fine, as long as you are happy and…he treats you well, I don't mind. Besides, I think we both have been keeping secrets from each other" Naruto stopped hugging him suddenly, "what do you mean Iruka? Is there something I should know?" Iruka sighed, it was time to come clean, "You see Naruto…Kakashi-and-i-have-been-in-a-relationship-for-five-years!" he said very quickly, it took Naruto a couple of seconds to figure out what he had just said, then it hit him. "WHAT? You and Kakashi? Oh my god! Why didn't you tell me sooner?" he was caught between the shock of finding out that Iruka was gay, that Kakashi was gay and that…they…were…together!" he stood there spluttering for a moment then he eventually calmed down. "Ok then…thank you for telling me Iruka" he laughed nervously "I guess we really do need to start being more honest with each other.

Iruka fondly ruffled the boy's blond hair "by the way, Sasuke wanted me to pass on a message to you" Naruto looked scared "y…you've been to see Sasuke?" he asked cautiously. "Iruka nodded "just to give him the concerned parent interrogation…and you'll be happy to know that he passed" Naruto inwardly whooped in happiness, Sasuke passed Iruka's examination. "Sasuke said to meet him at Ichiraku's tonight at eight o clock, anyway, I'll see you around Naruto" and Iruka departed. Naruto watched the man walk away, eight o clock at Ichiraku's? What was Sasuke planning? Was it…like a date? Naruto felt his stomach growl, he might as well get a snack before he went to Ichiraku's, and he headed home. As he walked into his apartment he felt the same uncomfortable heat crawl into his veins and start to shake him, the Kyuubi was back.

"Hey Kit, I'm proud of you" the voice growled happily, "piss off!" Naruto shouted, "Hehehe, that's not very nice…but I forgive you, after all, you managed to get your self some action" Naruto began to shake more violently "Sasuke isn't just 'some action' so don't speak about him like that". The Kyuubi's heat was beginning to fade "Fine, I won't speak badly about the Uchiha kid, but trust me, this isn't over yet, you still have a week to go" and the voice died away. Naruto stood panting for a moment, at least that encounter with the kyuubi had been better than the last one, he made his way to his bedroom, he didn't feel like a snack anymore. He opened the door to his bedroom…it was a mess! The sheets on his bed were tangled and strewn about, there were random articles of clothing lying around…man speaking of which, he had to have a shower and get dressed before their date…or whatever it was.

Chapter 5

Sasuke fiddled nervously with his bangs, it was 8:10 and Naruto was no where to be seen, he glanced at the clock again, surely if Naruto couldn't make it he would have sent him a message? Just when he was looking hopefully at the entrance again, the energetic blonde walked in, he was dressed in a simple black shirt and jeans…suddenly Sasuke felt over dressed. He had freaked over his appearance for about an hour, double checking his hair and outfit, nevertheless, the moment he saw the boy he jumped to his feet. Naruto waved and made his way over, Sasuke had no idea how they were going to greet each other but obviously Naruto didn't care, as he gave Sasuke a big hug. They decided to sit in one of the booths at the back of the restaurant, the moment they sat down though…it got awkward. "So…uhhh…I'm here like you asked" Naruto said as he smiled nervously.

Sasuke smiled "I take it that Iruka isn't all that opposed to me then?" Naruto shook his head, "nope, he said that even though he grilled you, you did pretty well…um what exactly did he say to you?" Sasuke shrugged "oh you know, he just threatened me if I ever hurt you and kept reminding me of you 'innocence' but I don't think he is in any position to judge your 'innocence'…especially after this morning" Naruto started to go bright red and quickly picked up a menu "l…let's just order o…okay?" he spluttered. Naruto hid behind the menu until the waitress came, while he was ordering, two girls walked into the restaurant…one with short pink hair and the other with long blonde hair.

When the waitress finally left Sasuke quickly reached across the table and grabbed Naruto's hand "Dobe, we need to talk…we really do" he said in a low serious voice, Naruto looked down at his hand which was being held very tightly and very obviously on the top of the table. He sighed "fine, what is it that's bothering you Sasuke?" Sasuke was silent for a moment "this morning I came over to your place…I didn't just want to congratulate you…" he took a deep breath, it was now or never "I wanted to tell you that I have feelings for you and I have for a long time"…shit, that came out badly. Naruto was frozen, Sasuke wasn't sure what to do, he tried to let go of the boy's hand but Naruto was gripping it too tightly. "Naruto? Are you ok?" Sasuke asked cautiously, suddenly Naruto pulled his hand forward and hugged him tightly, almost squeezing the breath out of him.

Sasuke was a little confused "Naruto? What are you doing?" the two of them broke apart, Naruto looked a little confused at what he had just done then started to talk rapidly, as if he had been dying to say these things "I'm sorry Sasuke, I don't know what came over me, I guess I'm happy, not super happy but happy happy, I think I've had feelings for you as well" he then slapped himself in the forhead "oh crap! I wasn't supposed to say that! I mean I'm pretty sure I like you but I didn't know you felt that way about me so I had to tone it down…crap! It's like word vomit I can't stop!" Sasuke quickly stopped him from talking by quickly leaning across the table and giving Naruto a light kiss on the cheek.

Naruto was instantly quiet, he started to sink down in his seat "thanks for stopping me, I was beginning to ramble" he mumbled shyly, Sasuke could see him going red again. Sasuke chuckled "it's ok Naruto but we really do need to talk, so sit up and let's discuss this eye to eye". Eventually Naruto started to open up; they started off with the most obvious topic. "so…are we gonna tell people" Naruto asked as he fiddled with a napkin, Sasuke tried to answer as casually as possible "I would like to, but I think that we should wait, people might not be as…accepting as we would like them to be" Naruto looked a little disappointed. Now it was Sasuke's turn to ask a question, "who is Sai to you" he said angrily, Naruto giggled "not jealous are we Sasuke?" Sasuke folded his arms "No, I just don't like him…or the way he looks at you, or the way he talks to you, or that way he touches you…actually, I really hate it" Naruto started to laugh "Sai is nothing to me, just an acquaintance and a team mate, you have nothing to worry about".

But Sasuke continued "Then why do you put up with his flirting? Why do you want him on your ANBU team?" Naruto patted Sasuke on the hand in a reassuring way, "I put up with his flirting in hopes that he will get bored and learn to behave himself, and I want him on my ANBU team because he is strong and follows orders" Sasuke felt a little better hearing this…but he still didn't like the guy. The waitress walked over and set their food down on the table, but just as Sasuke looked up to thank her he saw them…Sakura and Ino sitting two seats away. "Shit" he hissed and he ducked his head, "whats wrong?" Naruto asked as he blew on his ramen, Sasuke kept his voice low "Sakura and Ino are close by, I don't want them to notice us" no sooner had the words left his mouth a loud voice rang across the room "Sasuke? Naruto? Is that you?"

Sasuke groaned in annoyance as the two girls made their way towards them, "Hey girls, what's up?" Naruto said politely as they squeezed into the booth with them. "Oh not much, just didn't feel like cooking" Sakura said as she made herself comfortable, Ino moved really close to Naruto, practically pushing her chest in his face "well, I needed to get out of the house and see people, I just got my nails done, it would a shame to waste it on Kiba" she said as she flipped her hair. "Slut" Sasuke mumbled under his breath, Naruto and the girls started to talk, Sasuke knew he was just trying to be polite but he still felt pissed that he was paying attention to them instead of him. He noticed that Ino was being flirtier than usual, touching Naruto and laughing loudly at everything he said and Naruto being naive wasn't noticing…Sasuke was getting pissed.

He tried to ignore it by eating his food noisily and focusing on the wood of the table but his last bit of tolerance broke when he saw the stupid girl begin to play with Naruto's hair… "So Ino" Sasuke interrupted loudly "shouldn't you be getting home soon? It's a weeknight and you have work tomorrow right?" Ino pouted "but I'm having fun, and besides, Naruto doesn't mind, do you Naruto?" she then rubbed her nose against Naruto's. Sasuke snapped, he reached across the table, grabbed Naruto by the collar, pulled him forward and kissed him…really possessively…practically sticking his tongue down Naruto's throat. He felt Naruto try to pull away weakly but Sasuke held on tighter forcing the boy into what could only be described as a tongue wrestling match.

When the two of them broke apart (mostly because Naruto needed to breath) Sasuke glared very pointedly at Ino, "I don't want to ever want to see you touching my boyfriend again" he hissed Ino and Sakura just stared with their mouths hanging open. Naruto was still a bit dazed and Sasuke took advantage of this by grabbing his hand and holding it possessively. Ino started spluttering "Y…you guys are?" and she looked really confused, Sakura however was beginning to grin, "I knew it!" she squealed happily. Ino suddenly got up, mumbled something about getting home to Kiba and ran out of the restaurant. Naruto turned to Sasuke looking annoyed "what was all that about not telling anyone? You know that she's gonna tell Kiba then he is gonna tell everyone else!" Sasuke returned to his food, "I didn't like the way she was all over you, she's lucky I didn't rip her apart".

Sakura sat there grinning in a victorious way "Yes! I was right about you guys! Shikamaru owes me 20 bucks" both boys focused on her now, "What?" Naruto shouted "You mean you guys were betting on us? How the hell did you figure it out?" Sakura chuckled to herself "well, everyone has had their suspicions about Sasuke and the way you chased after him for so long was a bit of a hint" she checked her watch "also the day that you watered the garden for me, Sasuke was practically drooling all over you" she then stood up, "I should go talk to Ino, I'll try and convince her not to tell anyone". Sasuke thanked her and she left, Naruto still looked a little confused "you were drooling all over me?"

Sasuke mentally face palmed, stupid Sakura, did she really need to mention that? The rest of the "date" was fairly enjoyable, they chatted, laughed and finished their meal, but as they left Ichiraku's they noticed that the waitress that had served them was giving them a strange look, then Sasuke remembered that she had been fairly close by when Sasuke had flipped out and kissed Naruto, but he chose to ignore her. Sasuke decided to walk Naruto home, as it seemed to be the polite thing to do but once they made it to his door it got awkward, "I hade a fun time…excluding the Ino bit of course" Naruto said shyly "so…Uhh… I guess I'll see you tomorrow?" Sasuke nodded, Naruto opened his door, "um…bye then" but just before he could close it Sasuke quickly grabbed him by the t-shirt and pulled him into another kiss.

This time, Naruto responded enthusiastically, wrapping his arms around Sasuke's neck and pulling him closer. The two boys stayed this way for a while until Sasuke pulled away suddenly "sorry" he panted "but I we had kept it up I don't think I could have controlled my self" Naruto giggled "ok, we'll leave it at this then" and he lightly pecked Sasuke on the cheek and walked back inside. They said good bye one last time and he shut the door. Sasuke sighed happily and made his way home; it had been a pretty successful night despite Ino's interference, as he rounded a corner he caught a glimpse of Kakashi's house, he felt tempted to stop by…until he saw Iruka through one of the windows, so he sped up his pace. He made it home in pretty good time, he collapsed onto his bed feeling pleasantly light and carefree, and for once in his life he felt that things were finally working out for him. He turned off the lamp and drifted off to sleep, looking forward to the next day, something he had not done for a long time.

It was another beautiful morning in Konoha and Naruto Uzamaki was strutting proudly into the Hokage's office. "Good morning Tsunade!" he shouted happily "How are you?" Tsunade lifted her eyes from her paperwork with a heavy look on her face, "I've been better" she mumbled and she motioned for Naruto to sit down. Naruto was a little confused, he had received a letter from Iruka early this morning, stating that Tsunade wanted to see him immediately; he assumed it had something to do with his captaincy position. Tsunade closed her eyes and rubbed her temples, "Naruto…"she said wearily "how often have you been seeing Sasuke Uchiha?" oh…it was one of those conversations, "well…a lot actually, the last time I saw him was last night, we went to Ichiraku's" he replied bluntly, he wasn't going to avoid these questions, no matter how awkward it was going to get.

She continued "how would you describe the nature of your evening with Mr. Uchiha?" oh crap she knew! Ino must have blabbed! Naruto refused to back down; "Well…as you probably knew or guessed by now, it was a…date" he had a bit of trouble saying the last word, it just sounded so corny. Tsunade started to rummage through the papers on her desk, "so are you both officially in a relationship now?" she asked in a more serious tone, Naruto thought of how Sasuke had called him his 'boyfriend' last night, "Yes" he said happily "we are". Tsunade sighed exhaustedly "Naruto I'm afraid I have some bad news for you" she said and she placed a hand on his shoulder "I have reason to believe that the true purpose of Sasuke developing a relationship with you is to gain control or even release the Kyuubi" Naruto felt sick, no…that couldn't possibly be it…Sasuke loved him! Didn't he?

"No!" he shouted "what proof do you have?" Tsunade looked seriously at him "you yourself said that when the Kyuubi made advances he controlled it" Naruto refused to give in, "what else?" he spat. Tsunade narrowed her eyes "did Sasuke only attempt to get closer to you after the Kyuubi incident? Only after he found out that it was getting stronger and attempting to posses you?" Naruto opened his mouth to argue but then it hit him…yes…Sasuke only started show his feelings after the Kyuubi had taken over…was everything he said a lie? Was it all so that he could gain control of the beast inside him? He began to clench his fists tightly, that bastard! He trusted him! Tsunade studied his face as his expression grew darker, she pushed a piece of paper toward the boy, "this is a form that orders Sasuke's exile…it has mine and a number of other signatures, but it needs the signature of the current ANBU captain…"

She handed the form to him "I think it would be for the best that he was away from the village, at least until the Kyuubi has settled down, what do you say?" She tried smiling at him in a comforting way but Naruto wasn't looking at her, he was facing the window and he was breathing heavily. Was it really the best thing to do? He thought and wrung his hands together; yes…it was…if Sasuke really loved him, all he had to do was stay away for a week or two. He picked up a pen and signed the paper, there, that wasn't too hard. Tsunade folded it and put it in her drawer, "thank you Naruto, you made the right choice, this is why you will make a good captain" and she gestured to the door. Naruto quickly left, he didn't want to hang around the building any longer in case he ran into Sasuke, and he broke into a run and headed for the shinobi training grounds.

Sasuke was having a really good morning, he had wolfed down his breakfast, got dressed rapidly and practically sprinted to the Hokage's building, all because he hoped to see Naruto today. But the second he stepped inside the building he knew that something was wrong, Iruka and Kakashi were standing together talking in hushed voices and when they saw him walk in they quickly stopped. "Good morning Kakashi, Iruka, are there any missions for me today?" he asked as he approached them. Kakashi completely ignored the question and walked right past him on the way to the door, Sasuke was confused "Iruka, what was that all about?" Iruka looked down at his paperwork, "the Hokage wishes to see you" he mumbled and ignored the question. Sasuke had a bad feeling about this, but he proceeded to Tsunade's office regardless.

He didn't even have to knock before the door swung open, there stood Tsunade "ah good, you're here…come in" she appeared fairly tired and agitated, so Sasuke reminded himself not to irritate her. She briskly walked back to her desk and picked up a sheet of paper, "you need to read this" she said as she handed it to him "right now", Sasuke wondered why she sounded so serious until he began to read…no…no way…that's not possible! "Exiled!" he shouted at her "what the hell is this? I can't be exiled!" he had unconsciously activated his sharingan and was now glaring at her with red and black eyes. She snatched back the paper and pointed to a number of signatures at the bottom of the page, "it has my signature, all the members of the council of elders, your current supervisor and the current ANBU captain…it's all there".

Sasuke's stomach suddenly did a back flip "the current ANBU captain? You mean… Naruto agreed to this?" Tsunade nodded, "I called him here this morning, he seemed to agree with what I had decided" Sasuke collapsed into the chair opposite her desk "but…we…I mean I thought that we had something…I thought that he cared about me" he buried his face in his hands, "I did hear from Naruto that you two were in a…relationship" Tsunade said calmly as she folded up the paper "however, didn't you wonder why Naruto suddenly decided that he wanted to go out with you?" Sasuke quickly lifted his head "what is it? What do you know? What did he tell you?" he asked, desperate for some answers.

Tsunade revealed how every spring the Kyuubi goes into heat and that she had mistakenly taken him away from his usual missions, which left him with copious amounts of repressed sexual energy that needed to be burnt off. "I think that the only reason he pursued a relationship with you was because of those grounds" she said bluntly "try not to take it to harshly, but I'm sure that once spring has passed he will no longer care about you or your 'bond', it's just unfortunate that you got your personal feeling involved before I could explain everything". Sasuke sat in stunned silence, the only reason Naruto that Naruto had been with him was…because of that stupid Kyuubi? He stood up quickly "did Naruto sign that form with any hesitation?" Tsunade shook her head "no, he agreed that it would be for the best" hearing those words Sasuke ran from the room, he wouldn't let anyone…especially not that bitch, see him cry.

Kakashi was wondering the streets, feeling guilty and depressed, what had he done? Was what he did really the best choice to make? Earlier that morning he had been called to Tsunade's office, she had asked him to sign a form that would mean exile for Sasuke. Of course he had refused, but when she told him that she knew of his secret relationship with Iruka and that she would not hesitate to have him moved to a different village, he gave in. after all, what were the chances that Naruto would agree to signing that form? But he had still felt ashamed with himself when he had seen the Uchiha earlier, he looked so happy…happier that he had been since he returned to the village, and it was all thanks to Naruto. Just then he saw Sasuke running full pelt in the direction of his house. Kakashi stopped; he should probably go visit Sasuke to see if he was ok. So he set off in the direction of the Uchiha estate.

A little while later he was knocking on Sasuke's door…he didn't answer, he knocked a little louder, still nothing. He began to hammer on it "Sasuke! If you don't open the door in 10 seconds I'm coming in through the window!" he shouted…10 seconds later he clambered through the window and took a look around, nothing seemed out of the ordinary…but he was sure that Sasuke would be here. He walked into the kitchen and saw a note lying on the bench, curiosity got the better of him so he took a peek, it was addressed to Naruto and himself…what? He picked it up and began to read…oh no…oh shit…this is bad…very bad! Kakashi held the letter tightly and sprinted from the Uchiha mansion, he had to find Naruto!

Naruto was moodily carving his initials into a stick he had found in the training grounds, he had meant to train…but he was too depressed and just couldn't find the energy. Sasuke had lied to him, the bastard said that he loved him and now he was exiled…Naruto didn't know what to do with himself, he suddenly heard someone shouting his name franticly, it sounded like Kakashi, he turned just in time to see his former sensei running towards him before the man tackled him to the ground. "What the hell Kakashi?" he shouted, the man shoved a piece of paper in his face "you need to read this right now!" he shouted back, Naruto quickly snatched the paper and began to read:

Dear Naruto and Kakashi

I apologize for any imposition I have caused you since my return to the village but I assure you, I have made plans so that I will never inconvenience the two of you ever again. This morning I was informed that I had been exiled, I know that it is protocol that the village is searched after the sun sets in case the one that has been exiled is still with in the walls, so I assume that they found this letter and have brought to at least one of you. If that is the case than I am probably dead.

This was not a rash decision; I have been contemplating it or a while now. Before I returned to the village I had no purpose, no reason to live, I had killed Itachi…my life's goal and I regretted it with all my heart. I did plan to commit suicide soon after but Naruto found me before I could make any final plans. After seeing Naruto I forgot all my thoughts of dying, because I had found a reason to live, just to be around him was enough to give me the will to carry on. I promised that my new purpose in life would be to protect him and help him achieve his goal of becoming Hokage and perhaps in time he would learn to love me back.

Thank you Kakashi, you were a great source of guidance since I returned and you were always there to support me don't think I would have lasted as long as I did if it weren't for you. Seeing as I have been exiled, and by the assistance of the two people I cared most about no less, I understand that my feelings were not reciprocated, there is no need to explain, as Tsunade informed me of how the Kyuubi behaves during spring and that all I was to Naruto was just a source of tension relief. But, seeing as I now know that he never had any feelings for me I see now that there is little point to my pathetic life.

I wish you both the best for the future and apologize once again for any inconveniences I have caused.

Sasuke Uchiha

Naruto stood frozen, his eyes wide and still attached to the page, as if they were desperately looking for some sign that this was just all a sick joke, he began to shake…no…no…this wasn't possible…NO! His eyes turned bright crimson and red chakra began to spread across his body. Kakashi placed a hand on the boys shoulder "Naruto calm down! I saw Sasuke not too long ago, he's probably still alive" Naruto violently ripped the mans hand from his shoulder "GO FIND TSUNADE!" he shouted "GO AND TELL HER WHAT HAS HAPPENED, TELL HER THIS IS ALL HER FAULT!" he thrust the note back and Kakashi and started to run. He had to find Sasuke! He had to find him and stop him! But where the hell could he be?

The Valley of End, so many memories…it should be a fitting location, Sasuke thought. He looked over the edge of the giant statue where he stood, it was a long way down it would be impossible for anyone to survive that kind of fall…or jump. He moved a little closer to the edge, this was really it, after years of fighting so hard to survive, sometimes he had just been clinging to life. Like all those years ago, the time he had thrown himself in front of Haku's attack to save Naruto… That name…Naruto…Naruto…he lifted his eyes toward the heavens and sighed, him, he had been the reason to keep living…to keep going but now…was it really worth it anymore? He closed his eyes and hung his head, at least Naruto will be better off when I am gone, he thought, he may feel sad for a while but that pain will soon pass…It always does…

He took another step; he was so close the edge that he was teetering slightly in the breeze, at least his last thought would be of him, the one he loved. "Naruto" he whispered "I'm sorry" and he took another step "SASUKE!" a voice screamed and someone grabbed him around his waist and he was pulled backwards, Sasuke opened his eyes, what the hell? He was then turned around violently so that he could see the person that grabbed him. His eyes met with the tear streaked face of Naruto…his Naruto, "WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU DOING SASUKE?" Naruto screamed, more tears falling from his eyes. Naruto then pulled Sasuke so tightly to his chest that it began to hurt the Uchiha.

"N…no I won't let you, n…not ever, do you hear me!" Naruto chocked out "p…please don't, you can't leave me, not again you can't…p…please!" Naruto started sobbing harshly "I can help I know I can, j…just let me help, no matter how b…bad it is I can fix it just PLEASE DON'T! You can't leave me alone like this!" Sasuke tried to remove himself from the other boy's embrace but Naruto just held on tighter, "Why are you trying to stop me?" Sasuke asked, Naruto then held him out at arms length, still gripping him tightly but staring him straight in the eyes. "BECAUSE I LOVE YOU!" he shouted "I have loved you for so long Sasuke, I love you more than you can possibly imagine". Sasuke's heart skipped a beat; Naruto just said that he loved him.

Naruto then pulled him into another constricting hug "I can't lose you Sasuke, I have lost everyone else…I can't lose you…I love you more than anything in this world, in my entire life, please Sasuke…you can't do this"

Naruto then buried his face into the crook of Sasuke's neck, Sasuke lifted his hands and placed them on Naruto's back, he felt tears welling up in his own eyes and he let them fall. He clenched his hands into the fabric of Naruto's jacket and pulled him closer "Naruto…" he breathed, Naruto then lifted his face to look at Sasuke again; he notice that tears were now running down the other boy's face. He lifted one hand and began to gently caress Sasuke's cheek while wiping away the tears at the same time; Sasuke closed his eyes and enjoyed the feeling of Naruto gently touching his face.

After a few moments Sasuke opened his eyes, inky black met deep blue, "I love you too Naruto, I've loved you for so long…do you really feel the same way? I mean Tsunade told me-" He felt Naruto tense under his hold, "Are you going to believe her over me? Why else would I be here Sasuke?" he whispered "Why else would I have chased you for so long, trying to bring you home?" his voice grew a little stronger, "Why else would I have fought so hard to gain your approval and respect?" Sasuke was a little shocked; he had cared for him for all those years? Naruto's voice then grew fierce "If you really love me, then stay, live, stay for me because if you go…then I go…I die too, don't you understand?" Sasuke's eyes widened at this statement. Both boys stood there, staring into each others eyes, with a desperate, painful longing.

In Sasuke's mind, a voice was screaming that this was it, he had to do it, it was now or never and he pulled Naruto into a heart stopping kiss. It wasn't like their other kisses, rushed and fuelled by lust, it was perfect and in that moment Sasuke finally found his reason to live again. They didn't know how long they just stood there kissing but they only broke apart when Naruto suddenly began to drag Sasuke from the top of the giant statue and towards the forest that lay nearby. Only once they were a reasonable distance from the statue did Naruto loosen his grip on Sasuke, "please come back to the village" Naruto asked as he intertwined his fingers with Sasuke's. Sasuke chuckled darkly "I'm technically exiled Naruto; If I set one foot back inside Konoha they will arrest me" Naruto squeezed his hand "then I will get arrested with you, come on" and the two of them began to walk back to the village.

Kakashi and Iruka were sitting impatiently by the entrance to the village; Sai, Neji and Kiba sat not far away. After Kakashi had stormed into the Hokage's office and explained everything that had happened, Iruka, Naruto's team and he were ordered to be stationed by the entrance in case Sasuke returned to the village. In the distance they saw two figures approaching, Kakashi's mood lifted, Naruto had found Sasuke in time! They were both ok! The boys came closer and Kakashi could see that they were holding hands, only when they just about to reach the entrance did any of the group say anything, it was Kiba. "Naruto, Sasuke! Are you guys all right?" the boy shouted Naruto nodded and gave the thumbs up to his friends but as soon as they had passed the gate the group was required to stop them.

Iruka and Kakashi grabbed Sasuke, while Kiba and Neji grabbed a hold of Naruto, neither boy struggled. Sai then walked in front of the group and started to read aloud from a scroll he held, "the Hokage has ordered that once ANBU captain Naruto Uzumaki and the exiled Sasuke Uchiha have entered the village they are to be placed under arrest and are to be brought immediately to the Hokage's office" he rolled up the scroll and sighed. "please do say anything too incriminating while we've got you or else you will get in more trouble" the two of them stayed silent "we better get going" he said in his deadpan voice and the group began to walk. Before they even made it to the Hokage's building the party was met by a large crowd standing at the entrance, there stood Hinata, Sakura, Rock Lee, Shino, Tenten, Ino, Gaara, Shikamaru, and Temari. Once they saw Sasuke and Naruto they all rushed towards them at once.

"Sasuke, Naruto I'm so sorry!" spluttered a sobbing Ino as they grew closer, Sasuke ignored the girl because he quickly got distracted by all the voices and all the bodies surrounding him. "Naruto! Sasuke! You had me worried sick!" shrieked Hinata and gently punched him in the arm, Gaara grabbed Naruto and pulled him into a hug "I don't ever want to hear about you running off in such an unstable state again ok?" Naruto nodded and once again squeezed Sasuke's hand, Sasuke felt a hand on his shoulder, he turned to see that it was Neji. "Look at all the people that showed up" he said and he gestured to the group "the second that they found out that you had been exiled and that Naruto ran off to stop you from doing anything out of desperation there was no stopping them". Sasuke looked at the group, "how did they find out?" he asked.

Kakashi looked guilty "well, after I informed the Hokage…I may have visited a few people" he said as he stared at his feet. All these people…Sasuke was amazed, so these were the ones who would have worried and come straight here…wow. He was touched…then Kiba reminded them that Tsunade was probably waiting, so they headed inside. He wasn't sure of what the two of them would have to face when they confronted her but honestly, he felt a lot braver knowing that whatever she would do to him Naruto would stay by his side regardless.

Chapter 6

The group shuffled awkwardly into Tsunade's office and they saw the Hokage sitting at her desk, with her head resting in her hands, Kakashi cleared his throat loudly and Tsunade looked up at them. She surveyed the group with a blank expression but the moment her eyes rested on Sasuke's face she glared at him, "I hope you're happy" she spat "after all the trouble you caused, I don't know what I'm going to do with you". She stood up and walked around her desk until she was face to face with him. "With all due respect Hokage Sama" Kakashi interjected "if he had not been exiled in the first place then none of this would have happened" Tsunade slammed he fist on her desk, causing a large crack to appear "every one expect for Naruto and Sasuke leave!" she snapped.

The others began to hastily leave the room, and as soon as the last person (Iruka, who quickly gave them an encouraging smile) was gone, Tsunade locked the door. She sighed and faced them; "there is no need to explain, Kakashi has already informed me of everything that has occurred since I last talked to you both" she walked back to her desk and leaned against it. "Naruto I only have your best interests at heart, I hope you understand this" Naruto laughed darkly "my best interests? Is that enough of a reason for exiling the person that I care most about?" Tsunade shook her head "Naruto you don't understand, it's just your hormones and the Kyuubi that are making you feel like this"

It was Naruto's turn to shout now "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU KNOW ABOUT MY FEELINGS? I HAVE HAD FEELINGS FOR SASUKE FOR YEARS AND THEY HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THE KYUUBI!" Sasuke had never seen Naruto so angry and Tsunade too looked taken aback "Naruto…even if you do feel this way, there was always the chance that Sasuke would pretend to feel the same way just to gain control of the Kyuubi" Sasuke's stomach began to churn, he looked her directly in the eye and began to talk, using his deadliest tone of voice. "I would never do such a despicable thing Tsunade, just the thought of someone using Naruto in that way makes me sick" he pulled Naruto close and held him "Trust me Tsunade, I would never, ever hurt him, I love him more than you can possibly imagine…I would have killed myself long ago if it weren't for him".

Naruto shivered in his arms a little "Sasuke, please stop talking about…k…killing yourself, I can't stand thinking about it" he then snuggled into Sasuke's shoulder. Tsunade watched the two boys for a moment, her expression changed from, shock to confusion then to exhaustion, "I'm sorry boys" she mumbled as she shuffled through the papers on her desk "I should have thought it over or talked to you both beforehand" she then ripped up a single sheet and threw the pieces into the bin. "You are both free to go, Sasuke, you are no longer required to leave the village" and she walked back to he seat, Naruto's head shot up "you mean…everything's sorted?" he asked brightly "thank you Tsunade…" but Tsunade raised a hand to silence him "please just go, I have some thinking to do" and she began to massage he temples. Sasuke and Naruto quickly left the room, both relieved and confused about what had just happened.

They sprinted down the stairs, still hand in hand and met the large group of people outside. They didn't even need to explain what had occurred in Tsunade's office, the second the group saw the positive looks on both their faces they all sighed in relief, and in Sakura and Hinata's case, shouted happily. After they had all wished the couple good luck and offering their help if it was needed the crowd quickly dispersed, probably thanks to Kakashi who had been herding people away, saying that they needed time alone. They began to walk back to the Uchiha estate, Sasuke beside Naruto with his arm around his waist holding him close and Naruto with his head resting Sasuke's shoulder. They had just reached the front door when suddenly Naruto punched Sasuke in the stomach…and not too gently either.

"What the hell was that for" Sasuke coughed, Naruto's eyes began to well up "For almost dying! Don't you ever do that to me again you Teme!" Sasuke began to chuckle "It's not funny!" Naruto screeched Sasuke pulled him into another hug "Don't' worry" he whispered soothingly into the other boy's ear "I will never leave you, so don't' worry ok?" after that little incident, they finally made it inside, it had been a long day but it was about to get longer, the two of them had a lot to talk about.

It was a week after the incident at The Valley Of End and Sakura was paying a quick visit to Sasuke and Naruto, once the Uchiha mansion came into view she adjusted the basket she was holding and waved at the two figures that were sitting on the front porch, but only one of them waved back. As she got closer she realized why, Naruto lay asleep, his head resting in Sasuke's lap and Sasuke smiled at the pink haired girl and he put away some scrolls he was reading. "Afternoon Sasuke" she whispered, "hey" he said softly back "what's up Sakura?" she placed the basket next to Sasuke "Lee and I just wanted to share some of our tomatoes with you, we've grown so many, it seems a shame to keep them all to ourselves" Sasuke looked into the basket "thank you very much, please take a seat".

She sat down next to him and she noticed that he was softly stroking Naruto's hair, "so how are things?" she asked as she watched, Sasuke smiled again "things are perfect…I don't think I've ever felt happier" Sakura frowned " what about Madara? I know you've been thinking about going after him" Sasuke tensed "I was…but I am not going to attempt something that could kill me, I have too much to live for". Sakura grinned slyly, "so…if you don't mind me asking…how 'intimate' have you two been so far?" Sasuke's eye twitched "that's none of your business" he said quickly, she giggled "still haven't done yet eh?" he gently smacked her on the head and she just giggled louder, which caused Naruto to stir.

She quietly stood up and began to leave "don't worry, I'm sure you'll get some action soon enough" she whispered and dodged a tomato thrown at her "see ya" and she left. Sasuke sighed and resumed stroking Naruto's hair "…you've been awake the whole time haven't you" he said in an annoyed tone and the boy lying in his lap began to laugh "what gave it away?" Naruto asked as he sat up, Sasuke rolled his eyes, "the change in breathing pattern when she began to talk about sex" and he ruffled Naruto's blonde hair. Naruto laughed and grabbed a hold of his hand, pulling him close, so that their noses were touching. "I'm willing to give it a go if you are" he whispered and Sasuke froze…well that was pretty forward, he looked into Naruto's eyes "are you sure?" he asked "because I I'm fine if you aren't ready yet" he was cut off when Naruto suddenly kissed him.

"Stop…treating…me…like…a…kid" he said between each kiss, then he stopped and pulled Sasuke to his feet "inside, because I don't want Kiba walking past and getting an eyeful" Sasuke nodded and the two of them practically sprinted inside. The second the front door closed behind them, Sasuke grabbed Naruto by the shoulders and pushed him into the nearest wall and began to kiss him roughly, grinding his hips against the other boy's. Naruto's hand made their way along Sasuke's shirt and began to unbutton it, not breaking the kiss. Feeling Naruto begin to unbutton his shirt Sasuke decided to return the favor, by briefly parting their lips and practically ripping Naruto's shirt over his head, he leaned forward to start kissing again but Naruto stopped him and placed his hands on Sasuke's chest. "We need to get to your room, otherwise we are just going to end up doing it here in the hallway" he giggled.

Sasuke smiled, grabbed the other boy's wrist and practically dragged him to his bedroom, once they made it Sasuke pushed Naruto backwards on to his bed, then crawled on top of him, just hovering over him. He started trailing kisses over Naruto's neck while his slid his hand down to undo Naruto's pants. Naruto started blushing when Sasuke pulled his pants away, but Sasuke quickly distracted him with a heated kiss, Naruto wound his arms around Sasuke's neck and pulled him closer, deepening the kiss and began to rub his crotch against Sasuke's. "No fair Teme" he panted heavily "you're still wearing your pants" Sasuke chuckled against Naruto's mouth "so I am, would you mind helping me?" he then rolled onto his back so that Naruto could sit up. Naruto quickly got to work on relieving Sasuke of his pants, and when they were gone he noticed that Sasuke was just as hard as himself.

After his pants were gone Sasuke quickly shot up and grabbed Naruto by the back of the head and crushed their mouths together, this time, he began to rub his hand over the tent in Naruto's boxers. Naruto began to moan into his mouth and his breathing became uneven. "Naruto" he whispered as he began to slip his hand inside the boxers "don't hold back, I want to hear your voice" Naruto gasped loudly as Sasuke's hand closed over his dick and began to pump it. Sasuke felt Naruto's hands cling to his shoulders as he moved his hand faster, Naruto began to pant heavily but let slip a small whine when Sasuke began to slow his strokes "moan for me Naruto, want to hear it" Sasuke said slyly and gave a sharp jerk of his wrist, Naruto let out a strangled moan and began to gently thrust his hips in time with Sasuke's hand. He was about to come when Sasuke stopped suddenly, "why did you stop?" Naruto asked in a dazed voice "I was almost there" Sasuke said nothing, but gently pushed Naruto onto his back and straddled his hips, he brought 3 fingers to the other boy's face and simple said "suck".

Naruto was a bit confused, but then it hit him, so he tentatively took the fingers into his mouth, he decided to tease Sasuke a bit…after all, he did stop right before he was about to come. He made quite an effort of licking each finger slowly and sensually and made sure to suck extra hard on the digits. "Fuck" Sasuke gasped "you little tease" Naruto smirked around his fingers, all that filled Sasuke's minds was what a talented mouth the blonde had, and that his wished it was giving this kind of treatment to another part of his body. He quickly pulled his fingers out of Naruto's mouth and with his other hand, began to remove both their boxers. Once again, Naruto became shy and tried to cover himself with his legs, but Sasuke placed his knee between them to keep them apart.

Sasuke lowered his hand and Naruto fidgeted nervously then gave a small yelp of surprise, "are you ok?" Sasuke asked, Naruto nodded, the intrusion just felt uncomfortable but it didn't hurt, he took that statement back the moment Sasuke added a second finger. Naruto groaned uncomfortably and tried to shift away, "shhhh, you need to relax, or else it's going to hut more" Sasuke said in a soothing tone and began to scissor his fingers, Naruto winced, but tried to relax his muscles. When Sasuke added a third finger Naruto cried out "Sasuke…a…are you sure you need to do t…this?" Sasuke gently kissed him on the forehead "I'm sorry, but I need to prepare you, don't worry it will feel better soon I promise". Naruto clung onto Sasuke's arms for support and after a few moments it happened, he felt a jolt of pleasure shoot up his spine.

Sasuke smiled "looks like I found it" he mumbled to himself, Naruto gasped as he felt Sasuke prod the same spot and the feeling happened again "Oh my God Sasuke! More!" he cried out, the pain was beginning to dissolve into pleasure and he needed to have more of that wonderful sensation again. But instead Sasuke removed his fingers, placed Naruto's legs around his hips and looked him directly in the eyes. "Naruto are you sure about this? If it hurts too much then tell me to stop ok?" he gently brushed some blonde hair out of Naruto's eyes, Naruto nodded his head quickly "please Sasuke, I don't think I can take it much longer…I need you inside me" hearing those word sent Sasuke over the edge and began to push his length inside the boy. Naruto's breath hitched and he screwed his eyes shut in pain, Sasuke was a lot bigger and a lot longer that three fingers.

Sasuke kept going slowly until he was all the way in, then it took every ounce of self control in his body to stop himself from pounding the boy into the mattress. Naruto took a little time to adjust to the foreign feeling inside him, but after a little while he simply looked up at Sasuke and said "move", Sasuke began to slowly thrust his hips into the blonde, fuck it felt amazing! Naruto was so hot and tight around him, he knew he wouldn't be able to control himself for much longer, and then he hit the stop that made Naruto moan loudly "Ahh…Sasuke right there! Again!" Sasuke began to drive himself into that spot again and he watched Naruto writhe and moan underneath him. "Naruto, you feel…so good!" he groaned out while he thrusted "you're so tight! Oh my god, ahh, you have no idea how long I've wanted to do this Naruto". He felt Naruto's hands begin to claw at his back "M…me too S…Saa…suke!" Naruto was panting and moaning harder than ever.

Sasuke then reached down and began to pump Naruto's dick in time with his thrusts, he wanted Naruto to come before him, Naruto was at his limit "Sasuke! I'm gonna…gonna…" but Sasuke began to groan to "m…me too...ahh…I'll pull out" but Naruto's legs tightened around his hips, keeping him from moving, Naruto shook his head "No…ahh, I want you to come inside of me…ahh" Sasuke had never heard anything so hot and he drove himself into Naruto harder than ever "SASUKE!" Naruto shouted loudly as he came and coated his stomach and Sasuke's hand. When Naruto had climaxed he had unintentionally clenched himself around Sasuke, Sasuke thrusted one more time "NARUTO!" he cried out then came deep inside the boy. They both lay there panting and covered in sweat until Sasuke pulled out and collapsed next to Naruto, "Sasuke, that was…amazing" panted Naruto after a little while, Sasuke smiled "so were you" and he pulled Naruto close to himself.

They lay there in each others arms and Naruto was just beginning to drift off to sleep when he felt Sasuke kiss him on the forehead and whisper "I love you" Naruto smiled sleepily "not as much as I love you Teme" and he drifted off. Sasuke was about to fall asleep himself until he felt Naruto dig his nails into his arm, he looked at his face and saw that his eyes had turned red. Sasuke was about to activate his Sharingan when 'Naruto' spoke, "Uchiha, do you really love this boy?" the Kyuubi growled, Sasuke nodded "Yes, and I hate it when you try to control the person that I love" the Kyuubi gave a bark like laugh "ok, point taken, I'll go now" and Naruto became limp again. Sasuke lay down next to Naruto and closed his eyes, for the first time in a long time he fell asleep without brooding on the pain he had suffered over the years but instead on how lucky he was to have someone who would be there to make sure he would never feel that pain again.

The End

(I would like to thank my editor lightning; she sat through the whole thing and helped me fix it. Thank you!)

also, this is my first fan fic! if you could please leave a review that would be awesome.