There was a new cat on his forearm, where the turtles used to be, with a "Yay" written on top of it, right underneath Sasuke's message, telling Naruto that he was home. Over the last three days, there had been new doodles along his arms, but Sasuke couldn't bring himself to write anything back. It was nothing bad. The only person who knew that Sasuke almost killed Naruto was Kakashi, and for what it was worth, Kakashi didn't look like he would rat him out, even if maybe, the right thing to do would be to tell everyone—his brother—exactly how stupid Sasuke was.
From what he'd gathered, Kakashi was pretending that he didn't feel the murderous chakra coming from his brother. Which was very impressive, if someone paused to remember that not that long ago, Itachi put him in a coma that no one, other than the Fifth, could save him from. It was a new level of idiocracy for Kakashi, but Sasuke, like the very awful person he clearly was, really appreciated it.
The bedroom's door opened. "Come on," Itachi said.
It was more like an order than a request, but it didn't matter because his brother had been on edge for a couple of days for reasons that could all be traced to Sasuke's idiocracy. Thankfully, Sasuke was already changed. It was four in the morning, but he was changed and ready to go, as was his brother. They were in the training grounds in less than a minute, and Sasuke was face down on the ground less than ten minutes later.
Itachi helped him up. Only for Sasuke to end up on the ground again fifteen minutes later. The ritual continued for two hours, until two Anbu members appeared, kneeling behind his brother, and requesting an audience with him. Their masks were bloodied, so were their arms, and if they pulled their katanas, Sasuke was sure they were drenched in blood, too. Without a word, his brother disappeared with them.
Sasuke deactivated the Sharingan, pushing himself to his knees, and eventually, to his feet. He made it home to change, running to the Academy before class started.
Two days later, though, and the students were just as excited as they'd been when he first returned to helping Iruka-sensei, who took full advantage of that fact; Sasuke didn't mind, even Himari was hitting the targets now. At least with the students, his mind didn't torture him with the long list of his failings, and for those seven hours, it was…nice.
"Have a good rest of your day, Iruka-sensei," Sasuke said, as soon as Ren and Riku, the last in the classroom, left. "See you next week."
"Have a good day, Sasuke."
He left through the window, carefully avoiding the Hokage's open-wide window and making his way to the training grounds. After school, Megumi, Makoto, and Hana went home, did their chores and homework, and then met at the end of the street to run to the training ground. All of that gave Sasuke almost two hours on his own.
But time went by when he hated himself, so in no time at all, he spotted all three of them running towards him. He'd mention this to Iruka-sensei the first day he returned to the Academy, expecting him to ask Sasuke to stop it, but Iruka-sensei had only smiled and told him that every teacher in the building couldn't help but pay attention to certain students more than other ones. It was their job to teach all students to be excellent shinobi, but sometimes, teachers worked to make some students outstanding shinobi. Which, yes, coming from the teacher who'd had dinner with Naruto every so often, made perfectly good sense.
"Sasuke-sensei," Makoto began, a wide grin on his face, "today is the day I'll climb the tree! All by myself! I can feel it!"
Sasuke crouched down. "That'll be wonderful, Makoto."
And the funny thing is that two hours later, Makoto was, in fact, hanging upside down from the branch of his tree, Megumi and Hana were cheering from the ground, chanting his name, holding each other's hands, and jumping in a circle.
Sasuke's clone helped Makoto down, before disappearing.
"You'll get it soon, too, Hana," Makoto said.
Hana grinned up at them. It was impressive that she honestly didn't seem discouraged that she was the only one who couldn't walk on trees yet; if anything, she seemed inspired that it was possible after seeing her two other friends do it. "Yeah!"
Megumi gave her a tight hug. "It feels awesome!"
If possible, the grin on Hana's face widened. "I can't wait!"
Sasuke cleared his throat, "it'll have to wait until at least tomorrow. It's time for you three to have dinner."
There were three hugs and three high fives, and then they were running in the direction of the residential area. Sasuke made a clone to shadow them, just to be safe. And then, turned to head to his own apartment.
When he arrived, the apartment felt empty, but he heard some sounds coming from his brother's bedroom. It was more likely that his brother was there than someone daring to break into the Hokage's apartment, but he might as well go and check. For some stupid reason, his ears were ringing, but he managed to open the door, Sharingan activated in case—
His brother glanced over his shoulder; then, turned his attention away as he slipped his shirt on. "How was your day?" He asked, his voice coming out softer than it had in the past three days, making it just a little easier for Sasuke to breathe.
Why would he even think that someone would break into, not just the Hokage's apartment, but his bedroom? He was such an idiot. "It was good, thank you," he replied. "I'm…going to heat up dinner," he added, carefully closing the door again, and walking to the kitchen.
When Yuzuru's meal was on the table, along with warm tea, his brother joined him. Very carefully, Sasuke glanced at the empty seat next to Itachi.
He moved the eel around the plate with his chopsticks. At some point, he would bring some to his mouth. And feel terrible because even if the food smelled delicious, it would turn to ash in his mouth. "Did…you fire him?"
"Kakashi?" Itachi asked. Sasuke didn't bother nodding, though. "No, of course not. Why would I do that?"
"You haven't talked to him since I was discharged from the hospital," Sasuke mumbled. Hadn't talked to him since Kakashi saved his life, only to pretend like he was too weak to keep up during a training session with someone who'd just been discharged from the hospital.
"I haven't talked to him in front of you since you were discharged from the hospital, but we spend every other hour together, Sasuke."
Sasuke stared up at his brother. "You've acted like you're about to…fire him."
Itachi set the chopsticks down; if Sasuke hadn't become a teenager under Orochimaru's careful watch, his body would have flinched. "It's one of two things, Sasuke. Either Kakashi and you were sparing and he did pass out from chakra exhaustion, which means that he was acting recklessly, which means that you were also acting recklessly, despite the fact that I specifically asked you not to, or something else happened that is bad enough that Kakashi felt the need to not just lie to me, but lie as badly as he did. I haven't decided which option is more worrying."
Something was pressing down on his chest, the burning in his throat was starting. Sasuke picked up the smallest piece of eel that he could manage, shoving it past his lips. By the time he swallowed it, his brother hadn't blinked once, though thankfully, the Sharingan remained deactivated. "I…"
What was he thinking? He couldn't tell his brother, the Hokage, that he'd been on the floor, unmoving, while his own jutsu came crashing down. He knew he was a certified idiot, but he couldn't be that much of an idiot.
"But if it makes you feel better, Sasuke, Kakashi won't budge, despite my insistent questioning," Itachi said.
It must be his imagination, but the only insistent questioning he knew of was the kind that Orochimaru showed him, on others and on Sasuke himself. Which wasn't something that—anyway, it was fine. His brother wouldn't torture Kakashi—
At least not while he was the Hokage.
But the Third…well, he'd sanctioned the massacre, didn't he? Wasn't that what made them Hokage, anyway? The willingness to sacrifice their own morals and virtues for the sake of the village? Sasuke hadn't seen Kakashi all day, nothing which should be surprising, but Itachi couldn't like Kakashi more than he had their own parents, and he'd still shoved his katana through them for the sake of the village.
"While…" he turned his attention to his plate. "I was training by the cliffs and I summoned a jutsu that…" he sighed. The jutsu was meant to kill his brother, was meant to kill him, too, just a few days ago. He moved some rice around. "That would have landed me in the hospital if he hadn't used the Mangekyou. It was a powerful jutsu, though, and it wiped his chakra. That's all. It had nothing to do with Konoha."
A minute.
Two minutes.
Five minutes.
"I never doubted Kakashi's loyalty to the village, Sasuke," Itachi said. It sounded like there was a sigh caught in his throat. "Thank you for dinner."
The chair scraped back. Sasuke heard footsteps, heard the sink, the water running as Itachi cleaned his plate. Quieter footsteps, heading down the hallway. Sasuke's shoulders shook. The shower turned on. Something hot pricked the back of his eyes. Sasuke pushed the plate away to prevent it from getting wet. He rested his arms on the table, hiding his face on them. Biting down on his lower lip muffled the sounds, at least.
Until he heard the shower ending.
Sasuke straightened his back, wiping his face with the back of his palm. His breath shuddered as he stood up, picking the plate up, but that was fine because the bathroom's door remained closed. Ignoring the knot in his throat, he threw away the untouched food and washed the dish, along with his face.
He slipped out the door, jumping on the roof and making his way to Kakashi's apartment. It only took one knock for Kakashi to open the door, who looked perfectly fine, if just a little tired. Once inside, with the door closed, Kakashi guided him to the bed.
"How are you feeling?"
Sasuke stared up. It was enough, apparently, for Kakashi, who pulled Sasuke's head forward, until his face was hidden against the Jounin vest. The circles on his back made his shoulders shake harder, but it was, unfortunately, a rather common occurrence for him in front of Kakashi at this point.
"I'm glad you're here, Sasuke."
He was so pathetic. Even more pathetic that he couldn't move his body away. "I…kind of told my brother," he sighed, softly.
Kakashi hummed. "I'm proud of you. I know it was scary."
For some reason, he shook his head. "I didn't tell him everything," his voice broke at the end, but he ignored it, and Kakashi did, too. "But I know he understood what I was saying. I…I just came to tell you because he knows you lied to him, but—but only about this, not…everything else." He cleared his throat, "he—he doesn't know about the other stuff."
He couldn't know about the other stuff. Especially now that his brother definitely knew that Sasuke was a coward and an idiot, and so incredibly selfish and stupid. Sasuke's reputation…he wouldn't have anything left, he'd already tarnished everything, but…
"Thanks for letting me know," Kakashi whispered, his hand continuing the small circles.
It was impossible to decide how much time passed. Eventually, though, Kakashi ushered him to the bathroom, handing him a towel, and a change of clothes. And Sasuke just didn't have any fight in him to shove him away. Didn't even blink as Kakashi closed the door, letting him know that he was going to send a clone to check up on Itachi.
Sasuke stood under the water until the hotness began to disappear. The change of clothes that Kakashi offered him was a little big on him, but not as much as it would have been a few months ago, when he returned from Sound. It was a good thing. Probably.
Kakashi was sitting on his bed, an open book resting against his right knee. "Itachi said you haven't eaten yet and I'm hungry."
So many things to consider in that sentence that were best left forgotten. Sasuke rubbed his eyes, making his way to the small kitchen, opening the fridge, which was…empty. He glanced over his shoulder, "what am I supposed to make you dinner with?"
Kakashi stood up. "I'll treat you to dinner. Come—"
"No."
Kakashi walked towards him, grabbing him by the shoulders. "Believe it or not, Sasu-chan, being around people is a good thing. It'll be my treat."
He'd already cried in front of Kakashi and on him, so he dug his heels on the ground, screw his dignity. "I'm not hungry."
"You know, not eating makes people more emotional."
"I'm a shinobi, we don't—"
"I'll carry you down."
Sasuke glared at him, but walked towards the door. Should he run away? To where? His brother was in the apartment and…there was no way to face him and risk seeing his eyes, knowing that his brother finally knew, without a doubt, that his little brother was such a pathetic loser.
He followed Kakashi to the marketplace. Until Kakashi stopped in front of Ichiraku's. Sasuke would have deserted him, except for the fact that maybe Kakashi knew him too well, because before he could turn around, Kakashi grabbed the back of his collar, and practically shoved him into the restaurant.
Sasuke, rather stupidly, blinked as his brain registered the slurping sound and matched it with the orange pants, with the matching jacket. Naruto turned around, smiling brightly, even though his mouth was stuffed with noodles. For a fleeting moment, Sasuke felt his lips curving upward, something warm and light spreading across his chest. He'd almost killed him—because of his lack of patience. And Naruto wouldn't have ever known why lightning obliterated him. Feeling a tempting smile was…inappropriate.
Kakashi nudged him to a stool next to Naruto. "Fancy seeing you here, Naruto," he said. Sasuke glared at Kakashi, who at least looked as sheepish as he would rubbing the back of his head.
"We just got back, actually. Pervy-sage wanted barbecue, but I really missed Ichiraku's ramen, so we split!" Naruto said, in between a mouthful. "It's as good as I remember and totally worth it. Pretty sure he wanted to go to a hot spring afterwards, anyway."
"Kakashi said it was his treat," Sasuke said, making direct eye contact with him, a little satisfied at the pout underneath the mask. "Eat up."
"Wow, thanks, Kakashi-sensei. This is the best night ever."
Naruto didn't exactly sound like he'd like to beat him up. Maybe his brother lied. It wouldn't be the first time. But…actually, it was entirely possible that Naruto couldn't think about anything else other than the fact that now he could have three, hot bowls of free ramen.
Three and a half, actually, because Sasuke couldn't manage a whole bowl on his own; and besides, Naruto was clearly starving. Sasuke did drink a full cup of tea, though, because Kakashi maybe looked like he wouldn't let him leave the establishment without finishing something.
To his credit, Kakashi did pay the entire bill.
They were walking back to Kakashi's apartment—at least Sasuke was walking there, Kakashi had gotten distracted in front of a bookstore, disappearing inside of it, and Naruto…he was walking next to Sasuke, having passed his apartment a few blocks back, so Sasuke could only assume that he was heading to Kakashi's apartment as well, though the reason eluded him. And the thing was that Sasuke didn't have a key to the place, but he was much better at picking locks than he had been a few years ago; besides, Kakashi knew about it based on the fact that not a single alarm or trap went off when they entered the place.
Naruto went to the closet, took out…a jacket, that looked the same as the one he was already wearing, and some pants, that…he had another outfit in Kakashi's closet. Which he took to the bathroom, closing the door, and starting the shower.
He stood there, staring at the closed door, his mind blank, for a few minutes, until he heard the shower turn off. Kakashi's apartment was quite small, so he simply turned around and climbed into the bed. Talking to Naruto felt like a bad idea, but not talking to him…also felt like a bad idea. And Sasuke wasn't a kid anymore, he knew he should probably apologize, but Naruto would make it…weird. Swallowing a groan, he shoved his face in the pillow, shifting just a little to ensure he—and Naruto—wouldn't suffocate.
About twenty minutes later, he felt Naruto crawl over his back, felt as the bed shifted under his weight. The blankets were magically pulled up to his shoulders. Sasuke, very carefully, didn't move.
"Kakashi-sensei needs a bigger bed," Naruto said, as the bed shifted again, presumably because he was trying to find a comfortable position.
"It's not meant to have more than one person," Sasuke said, his voice muffled by the pillow. Naruto probably understood him. It didn't matter if he didn't.
"The floor's right there, asshole."
"I was here first," Sasuke replied. "Your apartment is two minutes away."
"Yours is three minutes away, and you run fast, so it's actually half a minute."
True, but his brother was probably in the apartment. Maybe it was his imagination, but if he couldn't face his brother, it meant that Itachi probably didn't even want to see his stupid face. "Shut up and let me sleep."
Naruto actually did stop talking. For about ten minutes. Until he nudged Sasuke's shoulder, perhaps more gently than was strictly necessary. "I'm glad you're okay."
The pillow was covering his face and that was nice. It was. And Sasuke was okay. Naruto's…life still depended on him, so he was okay, and if he wasn't, he had to be. There was not another option. It took all of five minutes for Sasuke to respond. "I thought you'd be throwing a tantrum."
There was a sigh and then an awkward, quiet chuckle. "Yeah…uh…yeah Pervy-sage threatened to drag me out of the village for another three years if I allowed the nine tails to take over like that again," Naruto mumbled. "I…I can't be away from…from…the village again."
At this point, Sasuke should be used to the heavyweight crushing his chest, but he wasn't because he was an idiot. He hated it. He cleared his throat, "you couldn't manage that long without eating at Ichiraku's."
Another quiet sigh. "Yeah," Naruto said, sounding like he also had something stuck in his throat. The bed shifted again, "goodnight."
"Night," he said, softly. Sasuke stayed awake until Naruto's arm landed across his back, snoring next to his ear, and Kakashi returned home, pulling a sleeping bag from the closet.
The next morning, Sasuke jerked awake. Judging by the bright sunlight coming into the apartment, he was late. He was late. Why was he late? He never ran late, that was unprofessional, and—
"Meh, Sasu-chan, it's Saturday," Kakashi said, from the kitchen, as if his fridge wasn't empty.
Nice. Still, judging by the sunlight, it was time to…do something productive. Sasuke untangled himself from the sheets and Naruto's limbs, as quietly as he could, so he wouldn't wake up. He accepted the cup of tea from Kakashi, even going to sit at the table; Kakashi joined him soon after. But Naruto was there, probably asleep, but maybe pretending to be asleep to eavesdrop, and Sasuke was paranoid, and Kakashi was clearly sleep deprived, a book in front of his nose.
"What are you two doing today?" Kakashi asked, setting the cup down.
Sasuke could tell that half of his attention remained on the book, but oddly, that was comforting. "I don't care what he's doing, but I'm going to train."
Kakashi hummed, turning the page. "I have a meeting in fifteen minutes."
He narrowed his eyes. Kakashi wasn't in…pajamas, per se, but he was certainly not in uniform, not even wearing the forehead protector, opting for physically closing the Sharingan eye. There wasn't even breakfast in sight. "Are…you any good at your job?"
Another hum. "That's probably a better question for the Hokage, Sasu-chan." Another page turned, as he stood up, taking the cup to the sink. Then, promptly disappearing into the bathroom. "Don't overdo it today," he said, when he came out, as he tied the forehead protector.
"Mind your own business."
Kakashi chuckled, squeezing his shoulder as he walked past him. "See you later, Sasu-chan."
After finishing the tea, he watched as Naruto stirred awake. He was calm, rubbing his eyes, half-looking around, his hair tousled. He stumbled out of the bed, mumbling a 'good morning' and walking to the bathroom. By the time Naruto was out, the bed was made, and a cup of warm tea was waiting for him at the table.
"Where's Kakashi-sensei?"
"Meeting," Sasuke responded. Naruto's stomach growled and his eyes darted to the fridge. "It's empty," he said, doing his best to ignore Naruto's pout. Technically, if Kakashi was in a meeting, it stood to reason that his brother would be with him, but they were shinobi, and clones existed; Sasuke just…couldn't risk going back home, even if it was to feed Naruto. "Come on, breakfast is on me."
It was the least he could do.
Even if Naruto had no idea why he was doing it.
He bit back a sigh.
"No, there's food in my apartment."
Sasuke would have laughed, if he did stuff like that. "You've been gone for a week, Karin probably ate the food that you did have by now."
Naruto shook his head. "I have to train." His stomach growled, his cheeks gaining a faint flush. "The final stage is coming up and—"
"You can't train on an empty stomach."
Naruto snorted, his cheeks still colored red. "You're such a hypocrite."
"I'm…trying to be better," Sasuke said. Lied. It didn't matter. Naruto was clearly hungry and he didn't need to be so difficult when Sasuke was just trying to do something nice for him. "We can buy groceries and then I'll cook breakfast."
Eventually, Naruto nodded. If possible his cheeks looked redder, but Sasuke wasn't twelve anymore, so he swallowed the jibe.
It didn't take them long to make it to the marketplace. Sasuke caught a few surprised glances thrown their way, even caught Riku's mom pulling him by the collar and ushering him to the end of the street. Even at the counter, he was greeted with a clearly forced smile, and no mention of his brother, which…he didn't mind, but it was surprising. Sasuke, genuinely, couldn't remember the last time he actually paid for groceries, but he handed over the money and politely thanked the owner. Buying the fish in the next store was the same except this time, he spotted Hikari and Megumi—at least their backs, as their mom was pushing them out of the store. Naruto made to leave, but Sasuke handed him the bag filled with fresh fruits and vegetables, and practically dragged him to the counter, much like Riku's mom had done.
And whille Sasuke was handing over the money, once again, paying for everything, the only thing he could think about was how the fuck Naruto ever got groceries and why he never fucking noticed. The looks that were sent Naruto's way made it abundantly clear that he'd be…escorted out if Sasuke wasn't with him.
Naruto's shoulders remained tense until they were back in Kakashi's apartment.
After Sasuke finished putting the food in the fridge, he turned to him. "I'll get your groceries later."
Naruto shook his head. "I have coupons," he said, sitting down on a chair. A smile was plastered on his face, except it looked painful, it didn't reach his eyes, and it just made everything from the marketplace worse. "What's for breakfast?" He asked, pulling his lips higher up, like his life depended on it.
Sasuke turned away so he could stop looking at him. Fortunately, he had the excuse to hunt for a pan and pressure cooker, which obviously Kakashi had somewhere. "Don't worry, it'll taste good."
He expected Naruto to say something, but there was not another single word between them, not even when Sasuke placed a plate of fresh sushi, tuna neatly picked in the rice, with pickled plums and carrots and shredded beef garnished with green onion and sesame oil as side dishes. Sasuke even accepted the three pieces of sushi that Naruto brought up to his face without turning away. Even when Sasuke stood to wash the dishes and pack Kakashi's and his brother's lunch, Naruto remained quiet.
"Come on," Sasuke said, holding the two bento boxes. "I'll drop this off at the Hokage's office and then we can train."
Naruto rubbed the back of his neck. "Uh…Itachi said we couldn't spar unless he was supervising."
Sasuke remembered. Apparently, his brother hadn't trusted him, though, if he told Naruto the same thing. Still, Naruto was clearly upset and Sasuke…there were not a lot of ways to make him feel better, except feeding him—which he'd already done—and sparring with him.
"Don't worry about it, we'll just use Taijutsu," Sasuke said, except Naruto still looked like he would protest. So he smirked, "unless you're too scared, loser."
The grin, at last, looked more natural. "I'm going to kick your butt."
Naruto opened the door for him, but Sasuke double checked that it was locked before they jumped towards the Hokage's tower. Although the window remained wide open, just like every other day, Sasuke was…about to disobey his brother and…yeah, waiting outside of the guarded doors, staring at two Anbu masks, was a better option at the moment. They waited for fourteen minutes because he wasn't about to hand over the food to the Anbu because…well, how would he know that they wouldn't do something to the food before giving it to his brother and Kakashi?
Fourteen minutes was not that long anyway, as he quickly found out when the Anbu with the cat mask opened the door, moving aside to let them walk in. Sasuke shoved the food in Naruto's arm, suddenly frozen. Still, he managed to nudge Naruto forward.
His brain started working again once Naruto was by his side, no bento boxes in sight, the door closed, the two Anbu in their original posts.
"They said thank you," Naruto said as they were leaving the building. "And to stay away from Ninjutsu and Genjutsu."
Sasuke glanced at him as they were running on the roofs towards the training ground. "I wasn't aware that you knew how to use Genjutsu."
"So funny, you should have been the class clown."
Sasuke swallowed a chuckle, but Naruto didn't and that…almost made him smile.
After Naruto left to meet Iruka-sensei, to catch up over a hot ramen, Sasuke was left alone in the training grounds. His body was sore, spending hours avoiding Naruto's punches and trying to land his own, and a scorching hot shower sounded tempting, but Naruto had been gone for a week and Sasuke told him that he'd get him groceries later. So, instead of making his way back to Kakashi's apartment, he strolled in the direction of the marketplace as he'd done in the morning.
And promptly did his best to ignore the way that the owners, of the exact same stores, waved away his money with a wide smile.
Sasuke did his best to return the offered friendliness—his brother wouldn't appreciate it if he started a fight with civilians, after all. Plus, there was some satisfaction at the thought that the free groceries were for Naruto, even if Sasuke was the only one privy to that information. Something told him that Naruto wouldn't accept the food, regardless of how fresh it was, if he found out. Even if most of it could be qualified as snacks rather than ingredients for meals; it's not like either Naruto or Karin would cook any meals themselves.
Naruto's apartment was empty, but it didn't matter because the lock was easy to pick. As he suspected, the fridge was empty, as well as the food cabinets. But five minutes later, they were restocked, and Sasuke was folding the paper bag, leaving it on top of the fridge. On the way out, he double-checked that the door was locked.
The sun was barely setting, and enough light remained for people to be loitering around the streets, running errands, meeting with acquaintances—whatever it was that people did, so Sasuke opted for the roofs.
He was three roofs away from Kakashi's place when his eye caught either Hikari or Megumi, huddled under a roof, knees tightly pulled to her chest, head hidden in her knees. From the vantage point, it was impossible to tell which twin it was, but she was alone—neither Makoto or Hana or Satoshi were around.
Sasuke landed next to her. "Are you okay?"
She glanced up. Megumi. She wiped her face, hurriedly, almost expertly, exactly like a brand new shinobi should, but not at all, how an eight-year-old kid should ever act. There was a quiet sniffle. "I'm—I'm fine, sensei."
She didn't look fine, at all; her eyes were puffy and red, and there were deep tear marks running down her face. And Sasuke was heartless, truly, but not when it came to one of his fake students. Who was clearly alone, neither Makoto nor Hana anywhere. "I can't help but notice that you're upset," he began, keeping his voice soft, silently congratulating himself for saying something that Iruka-sensei would probably say. "Does something hurt?"
Slowly, she shook her head, as more tears spilled from her eyes.
But that was nice because at least, Sasuke didn't have to worry about taking her to the hospital. "Did you and Hikari fight?"
Her shoulders shook. And again, the shake of head, except this time, there was a small sigh, too, almost like Megumi had made peace with the fact that Hikari and her were never going to get along.
"Where are Makoto and Hana?" He asked.
She sniffled, wiping her nose. "Home."
It was almost dinner time. And Megumi's breaths were steadier. "Are you heading home soon?"
She moved her face back to her knees, her arms tightening, presumably as she tried to make her body into a tiny ball. Not heading home soon, apparently, but the reason remained…unclear, though it apparently didn't involve her sister. Did they have other siblings? Not that it would help any, Sasuke was having…a situation with his own brother, he was out of his depth trying to figure out, let alone, console Megumi. Still, his body refused to flee from the scene.
He bit back a sigh. "I'll carry you home, okay?"
There was a tiny nod and Sasuke took that as an invitation to lift Megumi, her hands wrapping around his neck, the shoulders shaking a little more aggressively. But he'd gotten a good look at her as he was picking her up and she didn't look hurt. Very carefully, he bit back a sigh, opting to rub circles on her back, instead.
"You know," he began, as he jumped onto the roof. "I'll be training tomorrow, if you guys want to join me. Maybe we can cheer Hana—"
"You…don't hate me?"
Sasuke halted. "No," he said, as firmly and softly as he could manage. "Why would I ever hate you?"
Honestly, even if Megumi did something that could be classified as "hateable", Sasuke genuinely thought that he was never going to hate anyone ever again. Not only did the emotion itself take an enormous amount of energy, but it also made him into an idiot, more than he already was, and anyway, an eight-year-old was not someone who Sasuke could hate.
"I…" she sniffled. Sasuke felt her hands grip the back of his shirt. "I…saw you this morning with your friend and didn't say hi," she mumbled into his shoulder.
Either Megumi needed to drop out of the Academy or Sasuke needed to become her Jounin instructor to protect her; otherwise, the shinobi system was going to wreck her. There was nothing in her voice to suggest that she was pulling a prank on him, which really meant that she had been sobbing by herself in a deserted alleyway, because she felt…guilty for not greeting him hours ago. How long had she been crying there? Alone? How long was she going to keep crying there if Sasuke hadn't happened to have run into her?
He went on his knees, gently setting her on the ground, too. Looking at his brother or Kakashi in the eye was an awful feeling, most of the time, but he understood that it was the easiest way for them to make sure that what they were saying was, at least, being heard. Very carefully, as gently as he could manage, he nudged her until she was looking at him. "I would never hate you, Megumi. You can say hi now, it's—"
"I…" she shook her head. Her eyes trailed to the ground. "Mom said it was a shame you—you were with—with him. And…I didn't say hi. I wanted to!" She wiped her cheeks, anger flashing across her eyes for a second, before disappearing with a small sigh. "But—but I didn't."
Oh. Sasuke pulled Megumi into a hug, rubbing small circles on her back, as her shoulders shook more aggressively. "Sometimes," he said, biting back a sigh. She was clearly doing her best to stifle the sobs. "People we care about say or do things that make us feel bad at the end and it can be scary to not listen to your mom and dad, and you should always listen to them," he added, hurriedly, because he didn't have to have a parents' meeting with her parents, especially to hear them complain that he told their daughter not to listen to them. "But if that upsets you, you can remember it next time, and then you can try to say hi next time. It can be very scary to do something your parents don't want you to do, but you're studying to be a shinobi, and eventually, you're bound to do things that your parents might not like. A lot of the time, doing the right thing, or things that are going to make you feel good, can upset the people you care about. It's part of growing up."
Megumi hid her face on his chest, her arms going around his neck. He understood the message, so he stood up, continuing the circles on her back. "Let's get you home, okay?"
"No!"
He bit back a sigh. "It's late and—"
"I wanna say hi."
Weird. But okay. Whatever she needed to feel better. "Hi."
Megumi shifted a little. The tears were streaming down her cheeks, but her lips were pushed into a tiny pout. "Not…to you, sensei."
Oh. "Are you sure?"
She nodded her head quickly, sniffling. "It's not very nice to ignore someone's friend like that, and I don't wanna be a mean person."
Why was she studying in the Academy? Maybe she hadn't realized yet that shinobi were fucking assholes. But he kept that information to himself because…again, shinobi were fucking assholes.
"Okay, you can say hi to him," Sasuke said. Megumi settled her head on his shoulder. "His name's Naruto," he continued. "I'm pretty sure he's eating ramen with Iruka-sensei."
"Iruka-sensei?" She asked, clearly surprised, despite the fact that her voice came out muffled.
Sasuke hummed. Another roof, two away from Ichiraku's. He wasn't able to track Naruto down, but he was almost sure that he'd still be rambling about his training to Iruka-sensei over the third bowl or ramen. "Iruka-sensei was our teacher too, you know, and he really likes Naruto."
"Was he a good student?"
He landed on the street. "No," he said, softly. "But he always tried his best and now he is as strong as I am."
"Really?"
"Yes, but try not to tell him that. It's a secret." He paused one store away from Ichiraku's. "Do you want to wipe your face?"
Megumi shook her head, not moving from her position, except for her hands that seemed to tighten around his neck. Sasuke continued walking, biting back a sigh of relief when he spotted Naruto's easily recognizable, orange pants in the restaurant. He was, in fact, rambling about some training that Jiraiya put him through to improve his self-control. Sasuke walked inside, watching as Naruto turned, opening his mouth, probably to greet him, before Sasuke could—and that was absolutely unfair because the least that could happen would be for Sasuke to also feel when Naruto was approaching—only stopping as his brain presumably caught up to the fact that Sasuke was carrying an eight-year-old kid in his arms.
"Good evening, Megumi," Iruka-sensei, thankfully, said, "Sasuke-sensei."
Sasuke felt Megumi shift in his arm, the hold on the back of his neck loosening, but remaining, to greet Iruka-sensei, presumably with a wave, but Sasuke's attention remained on Naruto, whose face clearly indicated that he was searching for the easiest and fastest way to flee. Which obviously, Sasuke wouldn't allow him to do because then, he'd have to chase him, and that would just be a waste of time. Megumi had been upset, presumably since the morning, because she hadn't greeted Naruto, and Sasuke was absolutely going to burn Naruto's ass, and his own as collateral, if he made it even slightly more difficult for Megumi to just say 'hi' to him.
Iruka-sensei, at least, seemed to maybe read someone's mind, though, because he placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "We're about to start, care to join us?"
Sasuke shook his head. Maybe Iruka-sensei was about to start, but Naruto had two, empty bowls in front of him. "We just dropped by to—"
"Is—IS THIS SEAT TAKEN?"
Megumi was pointing at the stool next to Naruto, with a shaky finger, her face bright red, though it was difficult to tell if that was a side effect of her holding her breath. Her eyes were wide, staring at Naruto.
Naruto, very slowly, blinked. "No."
But Megumi remained latched to his neck, so Sasuke took a seat. A second later, Megumi shifted, still on his lap, but facing the counter, at least. Her back was rigid as she darted glances in Naruto's direction, clearly not breathing, probably trying to decide if Naruto was as dangerous as she was led to believe; Sasuke rubbed circles on her back, until she visibly took a deep breath.
"What do you want?" He asked her, glancing at the menu.
Megumi glanced back at him. "Never been here, sensei."
"What do you recommend, Naruto?"
Naruto, apparently also seemed to be having trouble breathing. Iruka-sensei, fortunately, gave him a light pat on the back, which apparently got his brain working. "The pork one is good."
What a lackluster review for something that he loved. Sasuke bit back a sigh because Megumi was staring directly at him. "He's an expert on ramen, I think you should give the pork one a try."
Megumi nodded. And then, they ordered. Iruka-sensei was talking about the new initiative to assign missions to Genin, under the supervision of the Academy teacher, when Megumi reached out to poke Naruto's arm, letting her arm drop to her side immediately. Naruto turned his attention to her, but she was staring down at the bowl, her ears bright red along with, presumably, the rest of her face, hidden by her hair.
Sasuke glared at Naruto, mouthing a 'hi' to him, and nodding at Megumi. He should have just snuck an explanation in their arms, but he'd been preoccupied with the crying kid in his arms.
Fortunately, eventually, Naruto got the message. "Hi," he said. He sounded awkward, but maybe just to Sasuke, because Megumi glanced up at him. "What's your name?"
"Megumi," she said, barely above a whisper. Her shoulders rose with a deep breath. "What's—hi! Hi! What's your name?"
"Naruto. Nice to meet you."
"Nice—nice to meet you, too," she said, and then turned her attention to the bowl in front of her. Until a few minutes later, when Naruto was talking about his summons, getting older, too, which was…news to Naruto, apparently, when Megumi poked his arm again. "It's good."
"Yeah, it's my favorite one!" He cleared his throat, "I'm glad you like it."
Megumi offered a nod and a thumbs up, which was…sweet, even as she turned her whole attention back to the bowl. But Iruka-sensei, thankfully, asked another question about the toads, which sent Naruto rambling again. Until all three bowls were empty, and Iruka-sensei was taking money from his wallet.
"Megumi, I have to stop by the Hokage's office for some papers, your house is on the way, would you like to join me?" Iruka-sensei asked, as he was standing up, nodding warmly at the owner.
"Yeah, sensei," Megumi said. She shifted to give a side hug to Sasuke, and then jumped to the ground. Sasuke also got a high five, "see you later, Sasuke-sensei."
"Bye, Megumi," Sasuke responded, returning Iruka-sensei's wave as he was leaving the establishment.
Megumi was walking behind him, but then she turned on her heels, only to twirl again, about five times, shaking her head, until eventually she ran up to Naruto, offering a high five. "It was nice to meet you!"
Naruto, thankfully, returned the high five. "You too."
"Bye!" Megumi waved and ran towards Iruka-sensei, taking his hand.
Sasuke would have smiled, but he could feel Naruto staring at him, and Naruto didn't need to see that. Instead, he stood up, nodding his thanks to the owner, hearing Naruto's stool move back too as he stood up. They were on the street a second later.
"You didn't eat," Naruto said, as they landed on a roof.
"I wasn't hungry," he responded. And even if he was, which he was not, it would have been difficult to eat anything with Megumi on his lap, and she obviously hadn't planned to move to her own seat. "For the record," he began, landing on Kakashi's door. Naruto was next to him. "I wasn't trying to interrupt your reunion with Iruka-sensei."
"I'm not stupid," Naruto mumbled. "I kind of figured when I saw you carrying a kid."
After picking the lock, he pushed the door in. The light was on. Kakashi, out of uniform, glanced back from the kitchen, presumably cooking something inedible. There was a tea kettle warming water, and three cups next to it. It was pathetic that Kakashi clearly knew they were coming, but Naruto had already made his way to his closet, this time picking clothes that clearly did not belong to him judging by the color and length of the pants, and promptly disappeared into the bathroom.
Sasuke took a seat, biting back a sigh. Telling Naruto that Megumi had been sobbing because she was mean to him sounded like a good idea, but it also sounded like that information had the potential to hurt Naruto in ways that Sasuke couldn't even imagine. At the very least, it would acknowledge the fact that Sasuke was now fully aware of the shit way Naruto was treated which, for some reason, Naruto had obviously been trying to hide from him.
By the time that Kakashi set a cup of tea and plate with white rice and barbecued tripe on the side, along with steamed cabbage, Naruto remained in the bathroom and Kakashi had sent Sasuke too many worried glances.
"I ate already."
There was a pout underneath the mask. "Aww, Sasu-chan, I made it with love."
He snorted. "What makes you think that love will make it taste good?"
"What do you mean? It works when you use it."
Sasuke almost threw the food at him, but he was the one who bought the groceries, and that would be a waste of money. That he actually spent because he had, apparently, been next to Naruto. Biting back a sigh, he brought some of the cabbage up to his face, staring. It didn't smell bad. It probably didn't taste awful, either. And other than the three pieces of sushi that Naruto offered him at breakfast, he hadn't actually eaten anything. He wasn't complaining. Obviously, he still had weeks to go before his body really needed to swallow something, but any second, Naruto would walk out of the bathroom, and obviously, he was a little upset, pretending not to be, and he'd just be more upset if he saw Sasuke not eating.
He swallowed. When the plate was half empty, he pushed it away. "I'm okay," he said, because maybe, it looked like he wasn't, but he was—mostly, because he was a little worried about Naruto.
"Is Naruto alright?"
Sasuke sighed. "He came with me to get groceries."
Kakashi, too, sighed, as if Sasuke didn't have to explain a single thing. It was a little messed up, though, because that meant that Kakashi had known, all along, how fucked up people actually treated Naruto. Even—well, wasn't Naruto the reason that Sasuke was pardoned in the first place? That ultimately, his brother returned to the village? That Sasuke killed Orochimaru the first time? That Sasuke didn't drop dead after Orochimaru revived and put Sasuke through hell that he honestly shouldn't have survived? Wasn't Naruto the reason that Orochimaru wasn't parading around Konoha wearing his face as a puppet?
"He's been trying to avoid that," Kakashi whispered, clearly to lower the risk of being heard by Naruto. "So give him some grace and don't bring it up unless he does."
Sasuke leaned forward, so he, too, could make sure that Kakashi was the only one who heard. "Why hasn't my brother done anything? Something like the Fifth did? I mean—"
"For the same reason the Fifth didn't do anything, Sasuke," Kakashi responded. "The nine-tails' attack remains fresh in Konoha's history and—"
"So does the Uchiha's massacre!" Sasuke hissed. He glanced at the bathroom, the water clearly still on.
"Yes, but there was a fall guy for that, remember? You murdered him. Fortunately for our sake, Danzo happened to be a scumbag who was actively running a secret military force to undermine the Hokage's importance and authority. The nine tails' attack doesn't have a fall guy like that, Sasuke. Actually, Danzo used the Uchiha clan as the fall guy, and we all know the problems and pain that caused. The other option would be the Fourth, but he was a hero in the village long before he died."
Sasuke's jaw was clenched, but not as tightly as it would have been before he trained under Orochimaru, which was nice, especially as he could feel a strange mixture of fury and indignation settling in his stomach. "He was an asshole for sealing a—"
"Watch it, he was my teacher," he said, standing up to pick up the plates. His shoulders were tensed, clearly, but Sasuke didn't fucking care.
He rolled his eyes. "So being an awful teacher was a choice to uphold the tradition or just because you felt nostalgic and missed your fucking sensei?"
Kakashi hit the back of his head. Harder than the first time, but Sasuke managed to pause the impact against the table, a millimeter away. But still, his nose wasn't bleeding. He turned to glare at Kakashi's back, who was washing the dishes. He pushed the chair back and was about to stomp out of the place, but—
Well, this was still better than his own apartment. And Naruto was still in the bathroom, done showering, at least, but still there. He pushed the chair. "It's not fair."
"No, it's not," Kakashi responded, turning to look at him. He leaned against the counter. He walked closer as the bathroom door was opening. "But you're one of the people who know best that nothing's fair," he whispered. And then nudged his shoulder in the direction of the bathroom, "shower."
Truly, he would have punched Kakashi, but Naruto was watching, and that might…be a bad idea. Obviously, Kakashi was someone important to Naruto and it wouldn't do anyone any good if Naruto lost control inside the apartment, clearly at range to tumble down the village. Instead of punching Kakashi, he grabbed a change of clothes, and locked the bathroom door.