Adult-FanFiction.org : Naruto

The Bonds That Never Break	By : Keth Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male > Naruto/Sasuke Views: 4801 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters and I make no money from writing this fanfiction.

Chapter List
- 1
- 2
Author's Note: This story is SasuNaruSasu so if you don't like that (some people are very specific about slash pairings) then heads up. Also, it starts out as more shounen-ai in the beggining, but does become muture (as in sex happening) in the next chapters, so beware that as as well.

This story roughly follows along with the plot of the original manga, except rewritten and changed in a way to support a romance between Naruto and Sasuke. This story is non-canon and has not been copied and pasted from the original material, despite the appeareance of events that occur in the original work, but which I have changed and expanded to serve my purposes and only uses these changed and altered excerpts to inform and support a completely alternate non-canon story of a romance between Naruto and Sasuke going on behind the scenes.

I own nothing relating to Naruto or its characters and by writing this fan fiction I make no money or profit in any way whatsoever.
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Chapter 1: Kiss and Consequences

Alone. I’ve always been alone. I've never known what it’s like to have parents, I've never understood what it feels like to be loved and cared for. I’ve never even had a single friend to play and goof off with either. It’s always just been me, all by myself. The other children all run away from me, they call me names and avoid me like I’m sick or something. The adults always glare at me and mutter things under their breath. I can see it in their eyes, the way everyone looks at me; they all hate me. Now I know they’re afraid of me because of the Nine Tailed Fox that’s sealed inside me. Because of that no one acknowledges me. Nobody cares about me. The only way people are ever going to acknowledge me is if I become strong. That’s why… I have to become Hokage.

Naruto Uzumaki opened his misty eyes, wiping away the tears born from his bad dream. It was a repetitive dream that harassed him constantly over the years, as if mocking his state of social isolation. How could he not dream of how lonely he was deep down? That sadness, that empty feeling always came to torment him in his dreams. Naruto was always the outcast, the unwanted burden sitting alone on the edge of a society that excluded him. How many times had he tried to make friends, only to be rejected and pushed away? How often in his young life did he hear people whispering nasty comments about him, always just loud enough so he would be sure to hear? Naruto masked his inner loneliness, pushed it deep down beneath the facade of his rambunctious, excitable manner and the strew of pranks he committed in order to receive even the slightest amount of attention, whether positive or negative; even getting cursed out and shouted at was better than being ignored and shunned completely. But that loneliness was still there in the pit of his heart, even as he tried to hide it from his persecutors so they wouldn’t be able to see the sorrow they inflicted on him. But more than anything, he hid it from himself, pretending everything was alright and their words did not affect him even when they did, even when those hateful attitudes wounded him so much. When everyone else in his class had graduated from the Academy except him, as he sullenly sat in his usual place of exile on the swing hanging from the big tree out front, watching from afar as all the other kids were joyfully congratulated by their parents for their success… that moment may have been the most alone Naruto had ever felt in his life. People there were actually glad to see him fail and be excluded. It made him experience the brutal truth of just how much disdain there was for him in this harsh world.

Though, that situation wasn’t so true anymore. There was at least one person who had shown him true kindness; Iruka-sensei, his former teacher. Naruto might still have been reviled by all the rest of the village, but Iruka definitely cared about him. The man might have been too strict a teacher at times and an annoying critic of Naruto’s super awesome Sexy Jutsu and hilarious pranks, but after the incident in the forest with the traitor Mizuki and the stolen scroll that he learned the Shadow Clone Jutsu from, Naruto finally understood just how compassionate Iruka could be. The chunin wasn’t tough on Naruto out of spite, but because he wanted the boy to grow and become stronger, because Iruka too understood what a lonely life was like, how painful it was to suffer alone in silence. Iruka had accepted him when no one else would, and Naruto understood now that Iruka didn’t blame him or hate him for having the Nine Tails contained inside himself. He cherished the personal time spent with his sensei, the only person who treated him with kindness, even if most of the time it was only spending a moment eating ramen together or being sternly lectured to. It gave Naruto a warm, unfamiliar feeling deep inside, to have even just one person acknowledge his existence. It made the boy feel just a little bit less alone in the world.

“Oh, crap! I’m going to be late!” Naruto shouted after taking a bleary-eyed look at his alarm clock. It was his first day as a genin–finally he was a true bonafide ninja–and his first step on the long, difficult path to becoming Hokage, so that he could prove himself and finally be accepted by the village. One day he would definitely show everyone what an amazing ninja he was. Naruto took a glance down at his forehead protector–which was formerly Iruka’s, given to him as a graduation present–sitting on the bedside table and smiled widely at the thought.

***

Alone. I choose to be alone. I don’t need other people and I don’t care about the pity they show me or their misplaced good intentions. I just don’t want their annoying presences around me, holding me back from my vengeance. Bonds are nothing more than a distraction that only end up dragging you down. All that matters is that I avenge my family. Nothing else is important, nothing else is worthy of my attention. That’s why… I have to kill him.

Sasuke Uchiha awoke to the sight of his ceiling, the same as he did every morning. The stark white material was plain, empty, devoid of any character or meaning; just like everything else in the world to Sasuke, aside from his one and only goal in life. It was the only thing he ever thought about, the sole reason for his continued existence. He cared about nothing else other than learning more and getting stronger, he was consumed by that and only that thought.

Sasuke blinked a few times, trying to clear the fog from his mind as he sat up in his bed. The only sound that greeted his awakening was the casual chirping of a flock of birds tweeting away merrily outside his window in a nearby tree. Nothing else made a peep in this cavernous, hollow manor he called home. No discussions of what he had planned for today, no sounds of breakfast being cooked, none of the commotion and noise that was normal to a home. All that had been silenced long ago. Sasuke was the only one here now, living out his days quietly, but definitely not indifferently or purposelessly.

Sasuke let out a tired sigh as he gripped his forehead deep in thought. He had had that nightmare again last night. Though, if he were to be honest with himself, it was the only dream Sasuke ever had anymore, whether good or bad; the haunting memories of the downfall of the Uchiha clan. That awful night when his elder brother Itachi slaughtered the whole Uchiha family down to the last person, save for Sasuke himself. It came to him night after night after night, tormenting him with the vivid images of his butchered parents and kinsmen, dark red blood oozing out from their wounds and staining the ground. So much blood pooling into warm, sticky puddles on the floor, so many bodies lying motionless, grotesque and vile in their gory appearance, the faces of his family members twisted into frightening expressions of shock and agony and fear. The nightmare of those sights visiting over and over would have probably deterred most people from thoughts of revenge, terrified them and driven them to depression or plain madness, but Sasuke wasn’t weak like that. His will wouldn’t be broken by silly bad dreams like a frightened child cowering from monsters under the bed. No, Sasuke knew what a true monster looked like. If anything, the recurring horrors he saw in his dreams further strengthened his determination to kill his brother at any cost. It was a constant reminder to Sasuke of just how much had been taken away and destroyed. It reminded him of the importance of his hatred. It reminded him to cast everything meaningless away and forge himself into a weapon to strike down Itachi.

Sasuke shook his head, flinging away the memories that were never too distant from his thoughts. There would be time for his vengeance soon enough, but right now he had to focus on becoming stronger. Without great strength then his dream of killing his brother would remain just that: a dream, an illusion conjured up by a powerless kid. The quicker Sasuke gained power, the quicker he could finally hunt down and bring the end to his elder brother that he so justly deserved.

***

Naruto grumbled to himself with his head laid down dejectedly on the classroom table as the pretty pink haired girl Sakura Haruno fawned over the bored looking jerk sitting on her other side. Sasuke Uchiha was a confident, stuck-up guy who always acted like he was so much cooler and better than everyone else. His skills in every subject were at the top of the class and he was very popular among his classmates for that raw talent, especially with the girls who all adored the dark haired boy, for reasons Naruto just couldn’t understand. Sakura had practically shoved Naruto to the ground in her desperation to get past him and sit next to Sasuke rather than himself. Naruto’s hopes of his crush finally noticing him had utterly failed and he was quickly bypassed for the other boy, though that was nothing new; the only times Sakura ever talked to him were to yell at him or berate him for doing something wrong. Sakura was a cute and nice girl–to pretty much everyone other than Naruto it seemed–and Naruto had developed an unrequited crush on her and wished he could find some way to get closer to her. Unfortunately for him, Sakura wouldn’t even give him the time of day, let alone listen to his confession. She was currently busy making goo-goo eyes at Sasuke, while the boy stared straight ahead off into space, completely ignorant of her existence. Naruto could all but see the invisible hearts floating around Sakura as she gazed adoringly as Sasuke.

What’s so good about that guy? He’s so popular, but I don’t get why. I’m much better than he is anyways! Naruto assured himself. Just because that jerk was a little good at being a ninja everyone came flocking around him like he was a celebrity or something. They should all be paying attention to Naruto, he was the one who was going to become Hokage one day! Naruto clicked his tongue in annoyance. He had been in such a good mood today too, so excited for his first day as a genin and the chance to rub it in the faces of all his classmates who had doubted him and made fun of him, only for it all to be messed up by that damn show off hogging all the attention.

An idea popping into his head all of a sudden, Naruto hopped up onto the table and crouched down low in front of the sour guy being gawked at by Sakura, giving Sasuke the best angry glare he could muster up. Naruto was carefully inspecting the jerk through narrowed eyes, trying to understand just what was so great about this guy, and maybe to psych him out a little bit as a bonus too, let him know that Naruto Uzumaki was no pushover! The normally straight faced Sasuke returned the gesture in kind to the blond headed ninja who had so rudely shoved himself into Sasuke’s personal space and started scowling down at him for no apparent reason. Both of the boys were now glaring intently at each other, a fight ready to break out between them at any moment. This was a direct challenge between the two of them, nothing less than a full call to war! Neither of the boys could give up their silent feud now, too proud to admit defeat to the other. Their glowering faces were hardly an inch apart, the intensity of their distaste for each other giving rise to a storm of invisible electric sparks of hatred and animosity flying between them. In the background, the girls of Sasuke’s unofficial fan club cheered and shouted for him to kick Naruto’s ass, further fueling Naruto’s growing anger.

Just then, in a twist of cruel fate, the kid sitting in the seat behind Naruto accidentaly bumped into him, sending the unsteadily crouching blond ninja flying forward… straight into the awaiting lips of his rival. Unfortunately, with Naruto and Sasuke’s faces so close from their heated battle of wills, there was no time to avoid a direct kiss on the lips between the two boys. Naruto plummeted towards Sasuke with no way of stopping himself before he fell onto the big jerk and Sasuke couldn’t react fast enough to avoid the poisonous fateful kiss of this clumsy moron. From the moment Naruto had invaded his space they had both been doomed to suffer this fate worse than death. Their lips came crashing together with a loud, audible smack heard throughout the room. The formerly boisterous group of girls standing close by went silent all at once in utter shock, horrified at seeing the town pariah steal a kiss from their idol when they themselves hadn’t even gotten a chance to do that yet. And now they would never get to; the hated dimwit Naruto had robbed them of Sasuke’s treasured first kiss. From now until the end of time, he would always be known as the one who had claimed the precious first taste of Sasuke’s much desired lips.

Naruto’s mind exploded in surprise at the unexpected feeling of his lips pressed against his rival’s, his eyes flying wide open in terror as he inadvertently locked lips with Sasuke, who himself wore a similarly frightened look. They were both too stunned to even move, temporarily paralyzed with confusion despite the awful lip lock. Beads of nervous sweat trickled down both their pale faces, both completely drained of blood and chilled to the core by this unfortunate turn of events. This couldn’t be true, it had to have been some awful nightmare!

Gah! I kissed him! My most hated of all rivals stole my first kiss! I feel like I wanna die! Naruto cried out in his mind in abject horror, yet was still too shell shocked to realize he hadn’t pulled away from the abrupt kiss yet.

After a couple of tense, revolting seconds of utter confusion had ticked by, Naruto and Sasuke both tore away from the kiss in a flash, gagging and choking dramatically as they rolled around in frustration and disgust at their unwanted act of connection.

“I’m going to kill you, Naruto!” Sasuke spat out warningly as he choked in disgust. However, before Sasuke could follow up on his threat, Naruto’s own suffering was interrupted by an ominous presence looming behind him that demanded immediate attention. Sakura–flanked by a gang of other angry Sasuke groupies–stood ready to thrash him, her face looking more like a demon’s than a young girl’s, contorted into an expression of barbaric anger as a fiery aura of pure rage burned around her. Naruto gulped with fear and tried to explain himself, tell her that this was just a horrible accident, but Sakura would hear none of it and advanced menacingly towards him.

After being pummeled by a furious Sakura in retaliation for stealing a kiss with Sasuke–even if it had been unintended and certainly unwanted–Naruto listened as Iruka-sensei informed his young students that now that they had become genin they would be forming up into teams of three to go on missions.

Three man teams? I’d really like to be with Sakura… But please not Sasuke. I’ll take anyone other than him. Please, please, oh please don’t put me with Sasuke! Naruto silently pleaded to not be paired up with the boy who he could do nothing but argue and fight with.

As bad luck would have it, though, he was placed on a team with Sasuke. Sakura was put on their squad as well, but with the standoffish black haired boy there Naruto couldn’t exactly celebrate being around his crush; Sakura would certainly pay Naruto no heed like usual and ignore him to seek the attention of the other boy. Naruto tired to protest this unjust treatment, this devastating blow to his ego, this most cruel injustice of being paired up with the biggest prick he had ever met to Iruka-sensei, but his teacher would have none of it. The teams were all supposed to be balanced, he had said, putting the best student Sasuke with the worst one, that being Naruto. But the only ‘balance’ Naruto was interested in right about now was balancing Sasuke on a cliff so Naruto could have the pleasure of pushing him over.

“Just don’t get in my way, loser,” Sasuke quietly taunted while still sitting coolly in his seat, staring off into the distance with an annoyed look. Naruto wanted to punch him out for that arrogance, but sadly Sakura prevented that, once again clobbering Naruto with her fists of fury to keep him away from her precious Sasuke.

What a crummy day this had turned out to be; avoided and beaten up by the girl he liked, forcibly kissed by the guy he hated, and now expected to work on a team with those same two, the spunky girl who disliked him and the jerk-faced guy whom he hated. Why did things have to turn out like this? I’ll show him! I definitely won’t lose to Sasuke! Naruto promised himself as he stewed in his seat.

***

Ugh, she called me annoying! It may have been to Sasuke’s face, but still, knowing that’s how Sakura really thinks about me is just so depressing, Naruto lamented while laying in his bed, recalling his failed kidnapping and impersonation of Sasuke earlier that day in an attempt to get closer to Sakura. He had wanted to know her real feelings about him, but in the end it hurt knowing how much she said she actually disliked him and found him obnoxious. Just when he had found the perfect opportunity, just when he had finally figured out what he wanted to say to her, things went south so terribly. Plus, I almost got a kiss with her! I was so close! If my damn stomach hadn’t chosen that moment to act up it would have been a sure thing! That was definitely the worst timing ever. All that effort for nothing. Naruto let out a hefty, discontented sigh and flopped over onto his side.

While lost in his thoughts of his almost-smooch with Sakura, Naruto unconsciously reached out his hand and gently touched a finger to his lips. Kissing had been on his mind a lot recently. Kisses were a kind of connection to another person, a show of affection between two people who cared about each other. Maybe that was why he had wanted to kiss Sakura badly enough to go so far as to transform into Sasuke and trick her; he liked her and wanted to form that kind of connection with her. Naruto wanted her to notice him, he wanted Sakura to see him as more than the annoying guy who always got in her way.

But he had found himself kissing the bastard Sasuke instead. That was a kind of connection to Sasuke that Naruto had never, ever, ever wanted to have. It was already bad enough that they were now teammates. Even that was too much of a relationship with Sasuke for Naruto to handle. Naruto had hoped that trying to kiss Sakura would have washed away the memories of that terrible kiss and purified his lips of the evil residue Sasuke had left behind, but he no such luck. Sasuke had taken his first–and so far only–kiss and unfortunately that could never be undone. The thought of that awful act just wouldn’t go away, no matter how much he tried to scrub it from his mind. Again and again the events replayed in Naruto’s head, his unstoppable slowmotion descent onto the awaiting lips of his rival, the sudden bolt of fear and disgust that went tearing through his body as the two boys impacted together. It was all stuck on an infinite loop in his brain.

In some small, dark corner of his mind, however, Naruto wondered if that accidental kiss with Sasuke had actually been all that terrible after all. Sure, it had been shocking and kinda scary, but it didn't feel all that bad really. Despite his pale, almost doll-like skin, Naruto had been surprised to find that Sasuke’s lips carried a lively warmth to them. For some reason he had expected them to be cold to the touch, matching the boy’s chilly personality and uncaring expression. They had been soft, too, sort of puffy and plump in a weird way. Warm and soft; not two qualities that Naruto would typically associate with the distant and stiff Sasuke. But in truth, it had actually felt kind of nice kissing Sasuke’s unexpectedly soft lips, feeling that connection that he never had before…

“Wait, what the hell am I thinking about!?” Naruto cried out in disbelief and sprung up in his bed all of a sudden, alarmed at his current thoughts. “Of course it was bad. Horrible, disgusting, gross, absolutely terrible!!” the boy shouted aloud in his otherwise empty room, trying to convince himself of his own disgust more than anything. Naruto sat here alone and yet he felt like he was being silently judged by someone for his private thoughts, like invisible eyes were watching him ready to react if he actually voiced those odd thoughts running wildly through his mind about that odd kiss.

“Hmm… Shadow Clone Jutsu!” Naruto called out impulsively after thinking to himself for a long moment, agonizingly debating the topic back and forth in his head until he finally just decided to just go with it and formed the required hand seals, creating a replica of Sasuke in a poof of smoke who stood obediently beside Naruto’s bed. Naruto cautiously looked from side to side around his room like someone about to cross the street, scanning his surroundings in a paranoid manner, despite him being the only one who lived in this small apartment. If anyone happened to see what he was about to do next, even by accident, he would never be able to live it down. He would definitely die of shame!

Naruto stood up from his bed and stared at the Shadow Clone Sasuke, carefully inspecting it for flaws. He could see no mistakes or deformities; he had gotten pretty good with his newest jutsu after all, and took a moment to appreciate his handiwork before realizing that he was basically eyeing and appreciating Sasuke–even if it wasn’t the real one–and instantly became flooded with irritation and embarrassment. The clone stared blankly back at it’s master, awaiting any orders to carry out without a word. He looked exactly like Sasuke, a mirror image down to the individual strands of hair, but something about him was off, something Naruto couldn’t quite place his finger on. The Sasuke clone might have been showing off his characteristic unamused, bored expression and been wearing copies of his clothes, but it lacked any of Sasuke’s harsh atmosphere or the smug, superior attitude that he always carried. It looked like Sasuke, but somehow it just didn’t feel like him.

Shrugging at the differences between the clone jerk and the real jerk that he couldn’t quite explain, Naruto took a single deep breath in anticipation, leaned forward, and abruptly kissed the clone, planting his lips on the fake Sasuke’s. The clone accepted the kiss wordlessly, without trying to shove him away and with no put down or witty remark in response, which was also very unlike the real Sasuke. There was no air of tension or unwantedness in the act like there had been during his previous kiss with the real Sasuke. Instead it felt cold, boring, almost meaningless. The lips were still so unusually soft, the face was still the same, yet something didn’t feel like it had during the accidental smooch. Perhaps it lacked that certain excited energy that had been present back in the classroom, the feeling of tension and fear that had cut through Naruto’s body like a bolt of lightning when he fell onto Sasuke. Kissing this clone didn’t give Naruto that same anxious, excited feeling in the pit of his stomach that kissing the real Sasuke did, strangely similar to the kind of giddy, nervous feeling he got when planning out a particularly brilliant prank.

Huh. It didn’t really feel the same as last time, Naruto pondered, almost disappointed with the results of his test as he slowly pulled away from the kiss. Was it just a fluke the first time then? the boy wondered. Maybe he had just been overthinking things after all. Sure, it had been a kiss, but not the kind of kiss he wanted his first to be. Naruto had wanted to kiss someone he liked and who would like him back, not a mutual enemy. That kind of kiss was completely worthless to him. Just what kind of bonds could he form with that kind of empty gesture? ...But still, Naruto just couldn’t shake the feeling of Sasuke’s lips out of his mind. Disgusting, exciting, frightening, warm, humiliating, soft. There were so many words that came to mind all swirling around in his head at once that Naruto just didn’t know how to describe it anymore.

...Wait, I seriously need to stop thinking about this! Stop and just go to sleep! Naruto told himself, realizing just how ridiculously much time and effort he was focusing on this bizarre topic. He abruptly dismissed the clone and flopped back into bed, unbelievably embarrassed with himself for even considering the act he had just attempted.

***

I can’t believe that annoying girl thought it would be nice to not have parents, Sasuke pondered while laying in his bed staring up at the blank ceiling. Earlier that day he had blatantly told Sakura off after she had made fun of Naruto, the girl blaming his over the top actions on his lack of parents, calling him a selfish brat who ran wild without any supervision, then she actually went so far as to claim that he was lucky not to have parents to tell him what to do, how she would have been grounded if she did the things Naruto did. Sasuke couldn’t help but to snap at her after she said that; he had absolutely zero patience for that kind of talk. That girl couldn’t understand the pain of not having a family to depend on, she didn’t know the sadness of being completely alone like Naruto did… and like Sasuke did. She had no idea what it felt like to have to learn how to do everything on your own at such a young age, how to cook and clean and sew and survive all by yourself, to have no one to ask for help or to rely on or even just to talk to.

How many times had Sasuke messed up trying to cook himself dinner over the years? How many times had be accidentally spilled meals onto the floor while cooking, prepared food the wrong way, or–worst of all–made too much food, the uneaten portions a bitter reminder of people who were no longer there? How often had he been cut and burned trying to use tools and instruments he had never used before and that weren’t even designed for someone his age, getting so frustrated and angry at his failed attempts at cooking that he just felt like laying down and crying? He had been too young to know how his mom cooked meals just the way he liked or what kind of cleaning supplies were the right ones to use or how to do the laundry properly and many other things that his parents had done for him. He had been far too young to become the head of a household. Yes, too young to be the head of a dead house, leader not by merit or worth but by necessity; he was the only one left to be head of the Uchiha clan, forced by circumstance to take on that role upon himself.

Surely, Naruto had experienced all those things as well, and the many other burdens than came with pure isolation, like the soul crushing utter silence, the lack of anyone to call your name or tell you good morning or say I love you. Sakura’s cruel words stirred up a hornet’s nest residing in Sasuke’s heart, an irritated swarming emotion springing forth inside himself as he stood still and listened to her insult Naruto. For some reason Sakura mocking Naruto for his isolation annoyed Sasuke just as much as if she had directed her words at him. He certainly didn’t like the idiot–Naruto was loud, dimwitted, and rambunctious, all things Sasuke found hard to tolerate–but he didn’t deserve so much mean spirited bile. No one deserved to be treated that way, to be made to feel so alone and helpless.

I think I might feel… a little sympathetic towards Naruto now, Sasuke thought with an entirely uncommon amount of concern for himself, but quickly shifted back to his normal tone. He’s still a useless loser, though. He better not get in my way now that we’re teammates. I’m definitely going to get him back for kissing me, too, Sasuke swore to avenge his shattered honor against the idiot who had defiled his lips. He had tried to brush it off and pretend it was no big deal, but how could being kissed, even accidentally, by such a complete idiot not be something to worry about?

Sasuke’s mood suddenly changed upon thinking about that kiss. Memories of the event had hovered in the back of his mind ever since it had occurred, memories that he had been desperately trying to ignore. That idiot’s lips had even left behind the faint aftertaste of miso on his own lips. Just how much ramen did he eat anyways? That shocking feeling of those stupid lips pressed up against his own was such a foreign feeling, though. Sasuke had never experienced anything quite like it. That was… strange. I’ve never done that before. It was gross, but also not so gross at the same time… Sasuke sighed deeply, frustrated with his continuing train of thought. His own contradictory opinions about the matter were seriously getting on his nerves. Was it bad or did he just not actually care about what had happened? ‘Good’ definately wasn’t an option on the table, but maybe ‘alright’ or ‘tolerable’ worked… Kissing itself wasn’t bad or nasty, just not something Sasuke had cared to think much about; he had far more important things to worry about. But kissing that guy… Of all the people in the world, just why did it had to have been him? Sasuke must have brushed his teeth ten times by now, but he swore that he could still taste the left behind miso flavor on his lips.

All that ran through his mind all day long had been thoughts of Naruto. First Sasuke had suffered that blasted stomach twisting kiss, then he had been attacked by Naruto during lunch and tied up for no good reason, and then that annoying girl had to go and put him in an even worse mood than he already was and actually make him sympathise with the loser. All throughout the day Naruto kept inserting himself where he wasn’t wanted, and now that Sasuke was ready to go to sleep he couldn’t stop thinking about him because of it. Being forcibly kissed wasn’t exactly something you could just easily forget about, even if it was with someone you hated.

But even still, it was just one simple kiss with one simple guy. In the end Sasuke tried to convince himself it wasn’t that big of a deal. It wasn’t really all that disgusting; it’s not like the loser had put his gross tongue inside his mouth or anything. Best to just forget it and move on; he had far more important matters than this to worry about. That was what Sasuke had tried to do, put it all behind him and move on. But he just couldn’t. The thoughts stayed glued in his head, irritating Sasuke all day long until now his mind refused to quiet down and rest.

Sasuke couldn't help but wonder why was he obsessing so much about something he usually would have brushed off and quickly forgotten. Whether it was gross or not, he eventually should have gotten over it and moved on to something of real importance. But he just couldn’t ignore this, try as he might. Why had it affected him so much? ...I must be turning stupid to even be thinking about something pointless like this. That loser must have infected me with his stupidity, Sasuke thought melodramatically before pulling the blankets over his head in a huff, seeking to escape his continued thoughts of a certain yellow haired dumbass.

***

Kakashi-sensei was being totally unfair! How was Naruto expected to fight without any food in his stomach? It was hard enough trying to catch one of those damn bells attached to the jounin’s belt as it was, but Naruto was feeling himself getting weaker with hunger as time wore on and Kakashi continued to effortlessly outmaneuver and trick his new students like they were mere toys there for his amusement. So here Naruto was, tied to a stump as punishment for breaking the rules and trying to eat early. Going so far as forbidding Sakura and Sasuke from giving Naruto any food under penalty of failure; they had definitely found themselves a cruel sensei.

“This is no problem!” Naruto shouted out assuringly, but more directed at himself than at his new teammates, as he tried to persuade his own body that everything was normal. “I’m totally fine, I don’t need any food! I feel stronger than ever!” But his words of self-persuasion obviously failed as an almost frighteningly loud rumble came from his stomach, cutting through the otherwise quiet air like a crash of thunder as Sasuke and Sakura silently ate their prepared lunch boxes.

I’m sooooooo hungry! Naruto thought in desperation as he whimpered from famished weakness. There was no way he would be able to get one of those bells without any food; proper nourishment was vital to the use of chakra. Pulling off any jutsu now would be all but impossible without having anything to eat all day long. Fighting with Kakashi earlier had drained what chakra he had and now Naruto was running on empty. His stomach continued to growl loudly, angrily demanding to be fed. Naruto began gloomily contemplating his sorry future of never accomplishing anything, his goals remaining just mirages in the distance, all because of a few missed meals. What a sad life he had in store.

“Here,” Sasuke said all of a sudden with a sigh of resignation. In his thrust out hand was his boxed lunch, held out towards Naruto who looked down at him in confusion.

“Sasuke, what are you doing? Kakashi-sensei said not to!” Sakura protested his action.

“Kakashi isn’t around now. We have to work together if we want to get the bells and if Naruto is hungry he’ll just drag us down,” Sasuke explained plainly, preemptively brushing off any accusations that he was actually being nice that the two of them might have made.

Maybe this guy isn’t such a bastard after all, Naruto remarked to himself in amazement at Sasuke’s completely unexpected act of defiance against Kakashi. Any guy who shared his food in this kind of situation couldn’t have been all bad, right? Was Sasuke actually… being nice to him? No, maybe not nice, but he was being less of a jerk than usual to be sure. This was a very odd course of action for Sasuke, for him to show any amount of kindness or tolerance towards Naruto at all. He had never done so before, always treating Naruto like an annoyance and a pest beneath himself. Maybe Kakashi’s stern lecture had gotten to him or something.

Earlier Kakashi-sensei had given his new students a major chewing out about their lack of ability to work together. They had failed to get any of the bells because they all had no trust or respect for each other as teammates. They worked as individuals, not as a group striving together to accomplish their goals. Teamwork was the most important part of being a ninja was what Kakashi had told them. Completing missions required a high level of understanding between comrades and without that group effort it would lead only to failure and death.

Teamwork. It was something Naruto had never tried or even thought of trying before. It was difficult for him to trust people or get along with anyone because of his wariness of being hurt. You couldn't really trust anyone when all people did was persecute and belittle you. It had happened to Naruto before after all; a few years back Naruto had cautiously approached and tried to become friends with a group of kids in his class who surprisingly had said yes to him. Naruto had been elated at the prospects of finally making some friends, people who would actually accept him, but he quickly found out they were just tricking him so they could manipulate and bully him even more than they already did. They had never meant it in the first place. Those kids had flat out lied to him. It was all just a big fucking joke to them. In the end he was even worse off for having tried to trust them, felt even more isolated than he had before. Every time Naruto put himself out there and tried to make friends he was rejected, every rejection leaving him a little bit sadder and a little more bitter. Ever since then Naruto had kept his guard up even more than he previously had around people, swearing not to trust anyone.

Naruto had teammates now, though. He had to place his trust in them, and they in him, for the sake of the mission. In order to continue his path to becoming Hokage, Naruto had to both gain and give respect and trust, learn to rely on people, starting first with these two. It was tough, and deep down the thought of being betrayed and hurt again was very scary to him, but maybe… Just maybe… If he tried, then maybe he might be able to build the bonds he had always wanted.

Naruto had only been fed–with their assistance since his hands were tied up at the moment–a few bites of Sakura and Sasuke's own lunches before Kakashi reappeared in a poof of dust with a booming, threatening voice.

“You guys… pass!” he said cheerily, quickly shifting his demeanor to a much more agreeable tone.

“We pass? How?” Sakura asked in utter confusion.

“All the other teams listened to every word I said. You guys are the first who disobeyed me. Ninja who break the rules are garbage, that's true. But ninja who abandon their comrades are even worse than garbage. You stuck by your teammate even though I warned you not to and didn't abandon Naruto. So you pass.”

“...Yay! I did it! I’m a ninja! Ninja!” Naruto cheered merrily, little tears of happiness welling up in his eyes. Kakashi-sensei… he was pretty cool. He obviously cared about his comrades and had strong feelings about teamwork. Naruto found he admired that attitude and almost immediately decided he wanted to emulate it from now on. The jounin’s value for cooperation and friendship was something that Naruto had long wanted for himself, to fit in and be respected and have friends of his own that he could depend on. Maybe here on Team 7, with a sensei and teammates like these, he had finally found a place for himself to be accepted. Maybe he could finally have the same connections to people that others did.

“Hey, where are you going?! Wait, come back! Unite me you guys!” Naruto shouted ineffectively as Kakashi, Sakura, and Sasuke all suddenly stood up and walked triumphantly off, content in their success, leaving him still tied to the stump. Naruto took it all back; having teammates was definitely the worst!

***

Dammit, dammit, dammit! Naruto cursed to himself in disgust and irritation. He hadn’t been able to do anything at all. Sasuke had been so calm, so powerful, so cool that it really pissed him off. Sasuke had jumped into danger without even a second thought, he had been so confident and in-command in that situation; hadn’t he been even just a little bit scared?

Even after Kakashi had seemingly been sliced to bits, Sasuke hadn’t shown even a twinge of self-doubt and fearlessly charged out to repel their attackers. As Team 7 escorted the bridge builder Tazuna back to his country they had been attacked by surprise and Kakashi-sensei had been taken out by the assassins. And when these clawed assailants had moved on to strike at Naruto next he had done nothing to stop his own impending doom. He just stood there like an idiot, too afraid to even try to save himself. But Sasuke on the other hand had jumped in and rescued him so effortlessly, like it was nothing at all. Even Sakura had done her duty to protect their client, stayed true to the mission and threw herself in front of Tazuna as one of the clawed men came charging at the old man. And still Naruto did nothing. In the end Kakashi-sensei was actually alright and had saved them all from their attackers, but even so. Naruto hadn’t been able to do a single damn thing. He had been weak and worthless. What kind of ninja was he exactly?

Naruto had been petrified, frozen in place with fear and unable to bring himself to do anything useful, yet Sasuke so expertly took command of the situation and saved Naruto from the assassin's attack. That had been the worst part. In that moment as Sasuke jumped to his rescue and fended off the attack that would have surely killed him, Naruto couldn’t help but admire Sasuke for his courage and strength. His movements, his confidence, his skill, everything about the black haired boy had been so magnificent in that split-second as he went soaring into the air, then came crashing down onto the enemies like an amazing black bird swooping down from the skies to his rescue. But that was exactly what Naruto hated the most right now, what relentlessly tore at his ego. He didn’t want Sasuke’s help. Naruto didn’t want Sasuke to save him. Anyone but him would have been fine. Being saved by the smug bastard Sasuke was so embarrassing, so humiliating and irritating that it almost physically hurt. But he still knew that if Sasuke hadn’t of saved him he might have been dead right now, leaving a very bitter taste in his mouth.

Argh! Why are we so different? I practice jutsu every day, I study and train hard too, I’ve completed lots of missions. Things were supposed to be different now. He was part of a team now. He was a true ninja, he was supposed to be stronger now. Naruto had lagged behind his rival for so long in their time back at the Academy, so after all his hard work he had thought they were finally on even ground. But even now, after everything he had learned and experienced, he was still so far behind Sasuke. Why can’t I ever keep up with him?! Naruto’s self-pity party was suddenly interrupted by Sasuke calling out to him, waking him from his thoughts of frustrated despair.

“Hey… You okay, little scaredy cat?” Sasuke asked in an undeniably belittling, mocking tone. The damned smug look on his face right now as he basked victoriously in Naruto’s inner turmoil… Naruto had never wanted to punch someone so hard in his life. And he would have too, if only Kakashi-sensei hadn’t told him to stand still because of the poison coursing through the wound on his hand inflicted by the claws of their attackers.

As Kakashi and the others chatted on about the attack on their lives Naruto could do nothing but clench his teeth in frustration. The poison in the wound on his hand stung, but being made fun of, especially by Sasuke, stung even more. I’ll show him who’s the scaredy cat. He wouldn’t let this happen again. Never again. Next time it would be Sasuke who needed help, Sasuke who was the one not able to do anything. He would just have to get even stronger. That look in Sasuke’s eyes, that feeling of being looked down on. Naruto was so sick of seeing that look. He would force Sasuke to recognize him and accept him. He was tired of being seen as the last one in class rankings, the loser, the perpetual screw up. One day he would show Sasuke what kind of ninja he really was. That jerk had made a fool of him for the last time.

As Naruto drew his kunai from its holster and suddenly stabbed in into his wound to release the poison, he vowed that he wouldn’t let himself be afraid anymore. He would be a strong ninja, one worthy of becoming Hokage one day. Then Sasuke and everyone else who had made fun of him would regret it and be sorry. He swore on the burning pain he was experiencing as the kunai dug into his flesh that he wouldn’t allow himself to be a joke anymore and he wouldn’t lose to Sasuke anymore. He would never back down and he would not run away anymore.

Everyone reacted in shock as they watched Naruto recklessly take the blade and jam it into his own hand. Even Sasuke looked at the sight baffled and amazed at his teammate’s unexpected actions. And as he looked at Naruto wincing in pain, standing there in resolute determination instead of his former fear, perhaps just a tiny bit of newfound admiration and respect washed over Sasuke’s face.

***

“Ugh, I’m so tired,” Naruto complained weakly, barely able to stand on his own two feet.

“That’s because you trained until you could barely walk, stupid,” Sasuke berated Naruto as he limped along leaning against the taller boy, his arm braced around Sasuke's shoulders for support. They had worked all day long, from sun up to sun down, on focusing chakra in their feet and running up trees. Naruto had practically worked himself into exhaustion, expending all of his seemingly boundless energy on mastering the technique. Both of the young ninja had successfully gotten to the very tops of the tallest trees around and were now caked in grime and dirt due to the strenuous effort required.

At first Naruto had lagged irritatingly far behind Sasuke in the difficult training and was tossed off the trees forcefully, unable to get the hang of the technique, but after some helpful pointers from Sakura and a lot of determination to compete against his rival, Naruto had steadily progressed his way up the tree bit by bit until he was finally keeping pace with Sasuke. Sure, he hadn’t exactly been able to beat Sasuke outright, but for the first time in his life Naruto was able to match him in ability in the end, which was almost as good. Maybe that would finally get that bad mooded guy to finally realize that Naruto was no joke and to pay him some respect. As an added bonus, that embarrassed face Sasuke–who was having his own troubles performing the tree running–had made when he asked Naruto about the tips he had gotten from Sakura was just oh-too-sweet! Stubborn, prideful Sasuke actually looking ashamed and asking Naruto for assistance: it was almost as tasty as a big steaming bowl of ramen!

After the rather awkward conversation in Tazuna's house in the Land of Waves, with Naruto shouting at Tazuna's grandson for his weakness and indecisiveness, the little boy had run off and Kakashi went along as well to comfort the hurt child. Naruto, completely unrepentant for his forcefulness, opted to clean up after a long, hard day of training. He could still barely walk however, his legs weak and rubbery, so Sasuke had to help lug him into the bathroom, and once he was there the dark haired ninja decided to bathe along with Naruto to conserve water.

Naruto sighed absentmindedly as he slipped into the bathtub after scrubbing the layers of dirt and sweat off his body. Something had been bugging him recently, but he couldn’t make heads or tails of it no matter how much he thought about it. Ever since he had been assigned to Team 7, and even more so since the start of this mission in particular, it had been gnawing at him. Just why on earth had he been paired up with Sasuke? He wasn’t just whining or complaining about it anymore either, like a child throwing a tantrum when he didn’t get his way. Naruto had really begun to wonder what the reasoning behind the two boys being put together on a team had been. Iruka-sensei had said all the genin squads were supposed to be balanced, but Naruto didn’t really understand what that was supposed to even mean. How could he ever find ‘balance’ with Sasuke? The two of them were very different people with clashing personalities. They didn’t get along at all and could barely go five whole minutes without fighting or arguing. They had absolutely nothing in common and shared no interests or hobbies either. Just how were they supposed to work together and be a team then? Whoever had decided that they should be put together in the first place must have known or been informed of the kind of confrontational relationship the two of them had; it was no secret in class back at the Academy that they hated each other. So then why had two people who disliked each other so much been selected for the same team? Had it actually just been chance, random names being drawn from a hat or something like that, or had someone–maybe Iruka or the Hokage–picked out the two of them specifically for some reason? ‘Balance’ meant they were supposed to become equals, that they were supposed to grow and change, didn’t it? It meant that by being together they would learn and gain something from each other, right? But just what the hell could he learn from Sasuke besides how to be a massive jackass with a dumb face? And what the heck was Sasuke supposed to be gaining from him?

Naruto sunk deep down into the water until only his head from his nose up still stuck out and sighed again, causing a stream of bubbles to splash up and pop. Maybe he was completely off in his thinking. Maybe it was just because Sasuke was so good at everything he did, so damn irritatingly smart and talented and great and Naruto just… wasn’t. Maybe there really wasn’t any deeper meaning to it.

But as Naruto continued to force out a little volcano of bubbles in the bath water something finally clicked in his head. It wasn’t exactly true to say they had nothing in common. There was one thing they shared, something so obviously huge that Naruto couldn’t believe he had missed it all this time: they both were orphans. And on top of that, they both had no friends their own age, Sasuke avoiding relations with people unless absolutely necessary and Naruto being avoided by those same people like he was a plague victim. Was that it afterall? Were they made teammates because they both were alone? Had they been placed together because someone thought they would be able to understand each other? Naruto usually didn’t like thinking this way considering how much Sasuke got on his nerves, but if he were to be brutally honest with himself there had been times when he was younger when he had thought that maybe the only other person in the village who might have understood how he felt would have been Sasuke, and that maybe Sasuke also felt… No, forget about it, Naruto told himself as he stopped blowing his stream of water bubbles. He didn’t feel like dragging up all those old feelings again. Better to let them stay buried where they belonged. However he had felt back then made no difference to things right now. In the end they were rivals and teammates forced to work together, that was all that mattered now.

One thing was certain, however. Even though Naruto swore he would never be able to cooperate with Sasuke, when Kakashi-sensei had been caught by the assassin Zabuza’s Water Prison Jutsu they both were forced to put their differences aside and work together to save their teacher. The plan they had hatched up on the fly and without even so much as speaking to each other had worked remarkably well and ended up saving the day, freeing Kakashi and stopping Zabuza in his tracks. In the end Kakashi’s lesson of teamwork had been put to the test and proven to be true. It wasn’t that they couldn’t work together then. If they really tried at it then they could; they even made a pretty good pair, able to understand each other's tactics and react quickly to how the other was thinking. So maybe that was what balance meant after all: finding a sense of teamwork, cooperation, mutual trust.

As Naruto sat soaking in the large tub that dominated the room contemplating things he took a sideways glance at Sasuke’s bare back while the raven haired boy was seated on a wooden stool placed underneath the shower head, scrubbing himself with a washcloth as the water poured down on him. “Hey, Sasuke…” Naruto called out timidly as they bathed together in the cramped bathroom.

“Hm?” Sasuke questioned without turning to face Naruto, focusing on continuing to clean himself of the filthy residue of a long day’s hard work.

“Th-thanks for helping me get back here. And for the other day when I fell out of the tree and you caught me, too…” Naruto chuckled nervously. This was a very strange situation he found himself in, sitting together with the guy he hated most in the bath. That damn kiss back at the Academy made things even more awkward too in Naruto's opinion; he had a hard enough time of looking Sasuke in the eye as it was without them both being in the nude. Sitting together naked with the guy he had kissed. His biggest rival. And they were both buck naked. Naruto just couldn’t get over how weird this all was for him. He wasn’t used to being so… uh, ‘open’ with other people, so it was making him feel pretty self-conscious right about now.

"Sure," Sasuke replied simply, almost sounding uninterested, like saving Naruto from colliding into the ground had been only a passing thought to him. If he thought this situation was strange, he certainly didn't show it. He merely continued on with cleaning himself, pouring a bucket full of water over his head and rinsing out the soapy suds from his thick, dark locks.

Naruto sure was relieved Sasuke didn’t decide to gloat or make a big deal of it. The other day he had wanted to show off his awesome tree climbing skills to Kakashi-sensei and Sakura, and okay, maybe he had gotten a little bit too overconfident in his new ability. His footing had faltered and Naruto went plummeting out of a very tall tree and would have smacked right into the ground if not for Sasuke grabbing his ankle and saving him from becoming a pancake on the ground. Sure, it had been annoying to be saved by Sasuke again, but just this once Naruto decided to give the guy credit where it was due for royally saving his butt. Chalk the feeling up to teamwork.

Sasuke finished his scrubbing, then stood up from the stool and unceremoniously slipped into the tub next to Naruto, who shifted aside to make room for him. Sasuke slowly dipped his body into the tub, letting his sore muscles adjust to the soothing hot temperature of the water. All the while, Naruto did his best to look away from his rival’s naked body and toward the wall; the only baths with other people he had ever taken were at the public bathhouse back in the Hidden Leaf Village, but the guys there tended to avoid him and give him a wide berth whenever he showed up, so it was a pretty solitary experience. He had no siblings or close friends to ever bathe along with either, so being in such a personal setting alone with just Sasuke was pretty unnerving for Naruto.

Naruto's heart thumped loudly in his chest, badump, badump, badump. For some reason sitting like this, so exposed and open next to his rival, was making him very anxious. Sasuke's eyes were shut tight as he leaned back, sinking his body down into the relaxing water, so thankfully he couldn't see just how much his presence was bothering Naruto. A light pink blush spread out across Naruto's face as his mind raced. A certain question was burning in his head.

Should I look? No, no! That's creepy, don't do that. ...But still, I am pretty curious how I compare. Naruto continued to tensely stare at the wall, debating if he should take a look over at Sasuke’s nude form. Naruto had never seen another guy's ‘thing’ before, so he was filled with a natural, if dangerous, curiosity. He wanted to know what other guys looked like down there: was he bigger or smaller than they were? Did he have more or less hair? How did his own penis look compared to those of other boys his age? Naruto was filled with the kind of insatiable curiosity about his own growing body and how it compared with others that boys starting puberty often got. The desire to learn more about his changing body had hit him as he had recently entered puberty, a bundle of new hairs coming in all over the place in little patches and his penis had noticeably grown in size as well, becoming slightly longer and girthier than it had been before. With no father, brother, or friends to discuss the tumultuous changes with–asking Iruka about it would have been way too embarrassing to handle–Naruto realized now might have been his only chance to learn just how he stacked up with the competition. And who better to compete with at this than Sasuke, his eternal rival? On the other hand, taking a look at another naked guy seemed just too strange to even begin to think seriously about. What kind of weirdo peeked at other guys in the bath? This situation was already awkward enough to deal with as it was. Inner turmoil tore his opinions in two: to look or not to look?

Hmm, I guess there’s nothing wrong with just taking a tiny peek, right? Naruto finally decided after much internal debate. Just one quick look at Sasuke’s penis would be enough to satisfy his curiosity, just to see how he measured up. Naruto carefully leaned over slightly closer to Sasuke, keenly aware of his dangerous position. The last thing he would want was Sasuke opening his eyes only to find Naruto staring intently down at his crotch. He would surely be dubbed a pervert and a weirdo for life if he was discovered! Through the clear water Naruto could plainly see Sasuke's foreskin covered boyhood bobbing in the water, floating above his nearly hairless little nutsack and accompanied by a handful of jet black hairs growing above the young member in a fuzzy patch.

What, he’s bigger than me!? Damn you, Sasuke! Naruto fumed in disappointment, comparing Sasuke’s penis to his own flaccid member in his mind. They looked similar, both with foreskins pulled around the tips and vaguely the same shape, except Sasuke’s was a bit longer and Naruto’s was a tad thicker around. They also had roughly the same amount of pubes clustered together–only a small forest of bushy hair on each boy, since they were still young and had much maturing to do from here–though Sasuke’s dark black hairs were more visible against his pale skin than Naruto’s little light blond forest of pubes were on his darker skin tone.

Naruto leaned in just a tiny bit closer, looking back and forth between his own penis and Sasuke’s, studying their differences and mentally measuring them again to make sure he hadn’t miscalculated. Nope, Sasuke was definitely the longer one Naruto finally relented, though not all that willingly, after about the fifth time of comparing.

As he leered at Sasuke’s private parts Naruto also couldn’t help but notice as his eyes wandered over Sasuke’s form that the dark haired boy was more muscled than he was, likely a byproduct of his rigorous training. Now that he thought about it, in this light Sasuke actually seemed to be pretty good looking, his features all smooth, handsome, and complimentary. Maybe that was why all the girls in the Leaf Village had a thing for him? Because he had a nice body to go along with his pretty boy face, despite his lousy personality? The light muscle lines on his abs made Naruto jealous; he wasn't as well-built as Sasuke was. Those muscles were still young and undeveloped, but Naruto thought their overall appearance looked more attractive and manly, more grown up than his own body did. Perhaps he should lay off eating so much ramen for a while and train harder? Naruto’s eyes inadvertently washed over that body, he just couldn’t resist himself from soaking in this rare blatantly open visage of his rival; those strong muscular arms, the powerful leg muscles, his eyes then tracing an invisible line from Sasuke’s pale neck down to the two remarkably pink nipples standing out starkly against the white skin of his abs and pecs, on to the boy’s taut stomach where just a few dark hairs were coming in beneath his navel signifying the beginnings of what would one day be a treasure trail leading south, and here Naruto’s eyes drifted further downward as well, back down to the thing that had started his gawking in the first place… He hated to admit it, but even Naruto had to agree that Sasuke was a pretty handsome guy after this thorough examination of his rival.

While he was busy secretly ogling Sasuke a strange burning feeling rose up inside Naruto. An excited, lusty emotion overcame him and he soon realized that his own member had begun to rise and stiffen, poking out of the water defiantly. What the hell?! No, no, no, no, no! Stop doing that! he berated his own penis inside his head. If Sasuke saw him like this it would be a thousand times worse than if he caught Naruto peeking! If Sasuke caught him sitting there staring at him with a hard-on Naruto would be killed for sure! Seeing a washcloth hanging on the side of the tub he snatched it up lightning quick and covered his crotch with the rag, desperate to hide his predicament from the teammate sitting just inches away from him. No waaaay! This isn't because of Sasuke, Naruto assured himself. I'm just tired and it's been awhile since I took care of it so my brain is just being weird. That's it! There was no way, no damn way, that he had gotten hard looking at Sasuke. Because of their current mission, because he was always together with his team, Naruto hadn’t found a good opportunity to be alone and masturbate in a long while, so the stress was building up in his little body. Growing boys needed time to be alone and let off some steam, so to say, and Naruto had no free opportunity to do so in a long time. Any guy would get an unwanted boner or two if put in that same situation. That was definitely all this was, there was nothing more behind it. Go down! Please go down! he begged his member, but it paid him no mind and continued standing proudly at attention.

"Is something wrong?" Sasuke questioned, opening his eyes to see what was going on after hearing and feeling all the sloshing water created by Naruto's sudden rapid movements to contain his embarrassment.

"Nope! Everything's just fine! Heh heh," Naruto nervously chucked, shying away from Sasuke by leaning his whole body as far away from him as he could and nervously averting his gaze, desperately trying to hide his throbbing erection behind the thin camouflage of the washcloth. Sasuke just raised an eyebrow at the blond ninja and shook his head, thankfully not noticing his teammate’s poorly concealed boner. Argh, what the hell is with me lately?! I keep doing weird things… because of Sasuke… Memories of that time he had impulsively kissed a Shadow Clone of Sasuke flashed in his head as he tried to contain his erection. Why the hell had he done that? It wasn’t something he should have done, but he had and now it was messing with his head. And on top of that, now this was happening, despite him not entirely wanting it to… Weird actions and thoughts kept happening to him whenever Sasuke was involved. Naruto tried to convince himself otherwise, that it was just his newly pubescent hormones running wild and that there was nothing odd going on at all, but as Sasuke stood up and got out of the tub Naruto found himself compelled to take a covert look out the corner of his eyes, couldn't help but stare at the two toned mounds of the boy’s butt as beads of water dripped down those firm, pale posterior muscles. ...Something was seriously strange with Naruto's head lately. It's all because of that damn kiss, now I keep thinking strange things… That stupid accidental kiss back at the Academy had set off a crazy series of events that Naruto just couldn’t escape anymore. Naruto grumbled bashfully as he gripped the cloth tightly to cover his erection, his face now a deep crimson as he sunk back into the water to blow more bubbles of frustration.

***

The air was so frigid it stung against Sasuke’s skin and chilled his lungs as he tried his best to dodge the attacks coming from every direction. Dozens of cuts covered his body, wounds inflicted by the storm of needles thrown at him by the rogue ninja Haku. Many of the wounds were only superficial scrapes and cuts, but they still burned with pain in the open exposure to the icy air. Being surrounded on all sides by the masked boy’s Crystal Ice Mirrors–and on top of that being inside a thick, dense cloud of fog created by his partner Zabuza’s own Hidden Mist Jutsu–gave this bridge an eerie, heavy atmosphere and made this battle seem like it was some strange, hypnotic dream. But the pain of being pierced by those long stabbing needles over and over again as he and Naruto tried to find a way out of their icy prison was all too real. The image of Haku shifting from mirror to mirror as he attacked Sasuke and Naruto, always too fast to catch, was a mystifying, unnerving sight. Again and again Sasuke and Naruto tried to force their way out of the jutsu, but to no avail, and each time they tried to escape they were stopped by Haku and forcibly pushed back into this nightmare house of mirrors. Haku was just too lightning quick to pin down and deal with effectively. The glimmering ice mirrors stood like imposing fortress walls, barring them passage outside as they futilely tried to bust their way out of their containment.

That stupid Naruto. Sasuke was so frustrated with him at the moment that he swore when they made it out of this mess he would give that loser a good clobbering for being so reckless. He always had to be the big hero trying to save the day and always ended up in trouble because of it. That loudmouthed show-off just had to go and mess things up and now he was stuck in here with Sasuke as punishment for his rashness. That moron had run into the jutsu’s area of effect to come ‘save’ Sasuke, and now they both were stuck in here, getting toyed with by the masked assassin as needles plunged into their bodies from every which way. So what if he had good intentions in trying to help Sasuke, it was more important to use your brain over your feelings while in battle. It had been a massively stupid move, considering how much easier a dual attack on Haku from both sides would have been for them, but Naruto’s courage and determination to assist a teammate in a bad situation weren’t something Sasuke was exactly faulting or looking down on… He was still going to beat that idiot up, though. They could have been spared all this trouble if only he had used his peanut brain to think things out rationally.

Even if Sasuke was starting to catch on to the timing of Haku’s movements and been able to scorch the rogue shinobi with his Fireball Jutsu, the two imprisoned boys’ chakra wouldn’t last forever and they were starting to be worn down by Haku’s relentless blitz attacks from all sides. Unless they did something soon it would only be a matter of time until they lost this fight. Naruto was already exhausted from using too much of his chakra, struggling to even stay conscious anymore let alone fight, and Sasuke was barely hanging on trying to simultaneously defend himself and at the same time trying to keep his weary teammate from getting any more wounded than he already was. Naruto could barely stand on his feet as it was, forcing Sasuke to roughly shove him out of the way of the barrages of needles as they rained down on them. It may not exactly have been gentle treatment, but it was the only way to protect him at the moment; survival took priority over being nice. In order to win against this dangerous foe they would need to team up and work together again, but… It was just too late for that anymore. After many failed attempts at escape Naruto had reached his limits and had finally collapsed as his weary legs gave way and he passed out from the great strain on his body. The boy just had nothing in himself left to give. The pain and the effort were simply too much for him to bear anymore and Naruto slipped out of consciousness, sprawled out into a heap on the ground.

Sasuke felt himself beginning to wane as well. Slowly but surely he was being pushed back. Bit by bit he was weakening as his strength was draining away with each attack from Haku. But there was one last thing to use, one last trump card in his arsenal. Sasuke focused intently on Haku’s movements, determined to not miss even the slightest muscle twitch. When Haku threw another stream of needles towards his prey, Sasuke grabbed hold of Naruto’s unconscious body under his arm, activated his trump card, and swiftly moved out of the way with miraculous timing. Though the technique wasn't perfected yet, Sasuke’s use of his Sharingan had saved both himself and Naruto, but he couldn’t rely on its chakra draining power forever. Eventually Sasuke would run out of energy as well and when he did that would be it. He dropped Naruto back down and readied himself for another round of assaults, desperately focusing on the battle and not his pressing thoughts of possible defeat. His keen eyes tracked Haku as he lept from mirror to mirror, preparing for what Sasuke knew would be the assassin’s last all out attack, one more move to try and finish this battle once and for all.

Haku surged forward out of his mirror like a bolt of lightning, ready to strike with deadly intent, and Sasuke prepared his own defence and counterattack. But Sasuke suddenly realized in horror that he wasn’t the one being targeted at all; the intended victim for Haku’s attack was Naruto, who was passed out and unable to defend himself; in that state it would be a simple thing for Haku to remove him from this fight permanently. The masked boy blew right past Sasuke, ignoring him for the moment and blazing fast towards Naruto as he sliced through the air intent on striking the easier target first and dealing the collapsed boy a final fatal blow.

Damn! He’s aiming for Naruto! Sasuke reacted in surprise, not thinking that the assassin would make a strike at Naruto. I have to… I have to save him! Please let me make it in time! Sasuke uttered as a silent plea and propelled himself forward as quick as he could, uncaring at what would happen next, unconcerned with whatever harm could befall him. Haku was jetting forward towards Naruto so swiftly he could barely be seen. If Sasuke didn't make it in time… No, don’t think about that, just move it! he demanded himself, pushing his tired body to its limits for this single purpose. After everything that had happened, after all his idiot rival had put him through, Sasuke couldn’t just sit back and let Naruto get killed. He didn’t understand his own motivations for doing so, it made no sense to him. It wasn’t like they were friends, nor did he particularly care about Naruto, but his body moved before he had the chance to think about it. He sprung into action before he even realized he was moving, all on instinct and the desire to save that loser teammate of his. Subconsciously, something inside Sasuke didn’t want to see him get hurt, some part of himself desired to protect Naruto right here and now regardless of the risks to his own life. If he failed… then Naruto would surely die. He didn’t want to see another person fade from existence right in front of him. Sasuke didn’t want to experience that kind of feeling ever again, to feel so useless, to be left so empty and helpless as he failed to prevent more deaths right in front of his eyes. Not again! Never again! If Naruto died here, even if he won out over Haku in the end, Sasuke knew he would never be able to forgive himself. He knew he had to save Naruto no matter what the cost. Sasuke could only remark astoundedly on how unlike himself his current thoughts and actions were as he leapt in front of the oncoming projectiles.

***

Naruto lay crumpled in a heap on the stone bridge, utterly stunned at the sight before him. He couldn’t believe it. This couldn’t be happening. The image of Sasuke’s back was all he saw as he stared up in horrified confusion. Those broad shoulders that had moved into the trajectory of Haku’s deadly weapons in order to shield him from their menacing sharpened tips took up the entirety of Naruto’s field of vision. Sasuke had taken a barrage of needles that had been coming his way, stepped willingly into the path of the attack to prevent Naruto from getting harmed. A mess of the needles were jammed into nearly every part of his body, jutting painfully out of Sasuke's arms, legs, even piercing through his neck. Blood trickled out dozens of puncture holes scattered across his body, joining together with the little streams of blood formed by all his previous injuries. The whole sight was positively frightening.

“Why? Why would you save me!?” Naruto shouted at his unexpected guardian. “I never asked you to save me!” he screamed out in bewildered frustration. He just couldn’t comprehend it; why would Sasuke of all people do something like this? The same Sasuke that mocked him, the same jerk that he always argued with relentlessly, the same person that Naruto constantly strove to prove his strength to and desperately wanted approval from. Why would that guy go so far for him?

Naruto realized it had happened again. Sasuke had saved him from trouble yet again. Once again Sasuke had protected him and Naruto had been useless. But this time… this time was entirely different from all the rest. This was just awful. On this occasion Naruto felt no annoyance or irritation or drive to do better next time. There was only a great sense of confusion and shock. Why would Sasuke do this? Why would he sacrifice himself for Naruto’s sake?

“I hated you, but… I don’t know why, my body just moved on it’s own…” Sasuke gasped out as an explanation as he tottered unsteadily on his feet and tears of pain welled up in his eyes, then he suddenly plummeted backwards, causing Naruto to lunge forward to catch the grievously wounded boy in his arms. His face was exceedingly pale and his skin was noticeably beginning to lose its warmth. I hated you too, but… But I didn't want something like this to happen! Naruto cried out in his head, but he was too dumbstruck to say his thought aloud. His mind just couldn’t comprehend these events. This had to have been a bad dream.

Cradled in Naruto’s arms, Sasuke went on to mention his quest to kill his brother in a strained, raspy voice, but after that he said something exceedingly odd. “Naruto… Don’t let your dream die, too…” he pleaded with Naruto not to perish here with him as well, to keep his dream of becoming Hokage alive. He was almost being… encouraging and supportive. Like he wanted his last breaths to mean something, to say something important in his last moments to push Naruto forward. As if his spirit would be the guide to that dream. How strange it was that his final words were ones that were kind and not accusing ones full of resentment. How odd that he was so unusually open as he made his dying declaration, forcing Naruto to become his last witness. After Sasuke had said this final thing to Naruto he became quiet as his eyes gently fluttered closed and his body went limp in Naruto’s arms. Stop. Stop talking. I don’t want to hear these things. I don’t understand what you’re saying. ...Please don’t go. I still have to show you how strong I am. Why would you do this? I just don’t get it. Why?!

Naruto couldn’t die here. Just like Sasuke had said, he had a dream, something he needed to accomplish no matter what. That was why he kept fighting back, even though it seemed pointless to resist against Haku’s superior skills as a shinobi. But he couldn’t give up on it, especially not now. Surely Sasuke had a dream too, something he desired in his heart more than anything in the world. He must have had things he wanted to do with his life all the same. But now… Now he would never get to.

Small, bitter tears dripped from out Naruto’s eyes down his cheeks. He tightened his grip around Sasuke’s arms, clutching his teammate’s ragged body closer to his own, refusing to believe that his comrade was really dead. Haku talked on, commenting on Sasuke’s sacrifice, about how Sasuke found the strength to protect a certain person who was important to him even knowing what would happen to him by doing so, and how the life of a ninja was full of pain and sacrifice, but it was all just muttered noise to Naruto, distant and unclear. All he could focus on was his dead comrade resting in his arms, his wet eyes staring down unbelievingly at the now motionless body of his rival. The boy’s skin was pure white, like freshly fallen snow, and his body was just as shockingly cold. He didn’t budge an inch, he wasn’t breathing, he had no pulse. It didn’t seem possible, but Sasuke really was gone. Naruto half expected Sasuke to suddenly open his eyes and launch a string of insults his way, telling Naruto how useless he was and to focus on the battle at hand. But he didn’t. His body remained lifeless and unmoving. This was too unreal. Someone important? What kind of garbage was that? He wasn’t important to Sasuke. No way. There was just no way. They hadn't been friends, they didn't even get along, but still… Sasuke is a big show off and he can’t say anything nice to me even if his life depends on it. He’s a smug jerk and he’s mouthy and stubborn, too. But still… But he still didn’t deserve to die!

“Shut up,” Naruto warned Haku as the boy talked on, sick of his lecturing and meaningless words in this heart-wrenching moment. Something inside him had broken, been twisted and snapped in his sense of loss. Naruto’s grief quickly evolved, it morphed into an intense anger that burned red hot inside him. He felt changed, overcome by a relentless, uncontrollable wave of pure hatred towards the person who had killed his teammate, that bastard rival who had sacrificed himself for Naruto.

“I won't forgive you! I'll kill you!” a fierce, unfamiliar voice from deep inside himself rang out as Naruto furiously charged at the masked boy, intent on paying him back in full for the life he had snuffed out. Naruto became a bestial figure, transformed into an entity that was fueled by pure hate, changed into an animalistic form of true power. There were no more tears, only bloodlust and unrelenting rage, the desire to completely crush and annihilate Haku in a terrifying rampage of destruction. Sasuke had had his own dreams. He had a goal, a personality, a team, a home, a life. And now he had nothing. Naruto’s rage induced inner demon would make sure that just like Sasuke, Haku would lose all these things too, that he would claim vengeance for his fallen comrade. The incredible power of the Nine Tails was unleashed in a terrifying blast of desperate fury and mourning.

***

Naruto stared solemnly at the lifeless body of the once fierce demon ninja Zabuza, who had slain the corrupt tyrant Gato and finally fallen under the hail of swords of Gato’s hired henchmen. As he did so, Sakura’s sudden shout from behind him startled Naruto and roused him from his sullen thoughts of the two now deceased Hidden Mist assassins, who perhaps weren't as evil as they first seemed. What she so happily yelled out to him… It couldn’t have been true. He had watched Sasuke die, felt the energy ebb away from his body. That loss had sent him into such a fury that Naruto had very nearly killed Haku in retaliation.

But sure enough, just as she had so joyously cried out at him, when he turned around Naruto saw plainly that Sasuke was standing on his feet, perhaps battered and exhausted, but luckily still alive. The wounded boy weakly raised his hand at Naruto in acknowledgment. Naruto laughed slightly as tears of joy welled up in his eyes. He's okay. He's really still alive, he reassured himself of the realness the sight before him. An overwhelming sense of relief descended on him, the fear and worry and horrible sadness he had experienced after Sasuke’s supposed death now replaced by a sense of calm gratitude for his comrade’s safety.

***

Even a few days after the savage battle with Haku and Zabuza on the unfinished bridge Naruto still refused to leave Sasuke's side while he was recovering from his wounds. Kakashi and Sakura had both tried many times to lure him away, assuring him that Sasuke would be alright, but Naruto adamantly refused each time, vigilantly watching over his slumbering teammate like a protective mother hen. Naruto spent all day waiting next to his side and slept on a futon close beside his at night as well, almost as if he was afraid that if he left then Sasuke would disappear, like the boy really had perished in that battle and this was only an illusion, afraid that the only thing keeping him alive now was Naruto’s constant presence. Sasuke spent most of the days sleeping away in Tazuna’s house, resting up his weary body and healing his terrible wounds, while Naruto sat not so patiently next to him. Naruto was bored out of his mind with nothing to do all the while but think, but he was still unwilling to leave his teammate's side, dutifully keeping watch over Sasuke in case he needed help with something. Naruto thought he owed it to Sasuke to watch over him after Sasuke had saved him from being impaled by all those needles. Sasuke had actually been willing to give up his own life in order to protect Naruto’s, he had so carelessly and uncharacteristically acted in his defence. Of course, Naruto obviously knew that being next to Sasuke wouldn’t affect his healing at all, that there was no real reason for him to continue be there, but for some reason he still wanted to be in that spot, beside the jerk that had saved him. This was the least he could do to repay Sasuke.

I was really worried. I was so sure he was dead. When those vicious needles had stabbed through Sasuke and he had turned so ghostly white, so cold, so lifeless and limp in Naruto’s arms… Even now after a few days distance from them it was still upsetting to remember those images. Naruto recalled how overcome with grief and rage he had felt after that pivotal moment. The fear, the guilt, the shock, so many unexpected emotions coalescing into a storm of anger and vengeance. He had never expected himself to feel that way, especially not over Sasuke; he had always been the bitter rival, the foe to overcome and triumph over, not someone to worry about and desire to watch over and feel compelled to avenge.

As his days of guard duty over Sasuke’s exhausted form went on, Naruto began to realize that his feelings when it came to Sasuke were much more muddled than he would have cared to admit. And he also realized his thoughts about Sasuke were completely contradictory sometimes… But maybe that was okay. On one hand he was a smug, annoying jackass who just loved to insult Naruto, but on the other hand there were times when a less abrasive, more tolerable Sasuke poked through his usual tough demeanor, like when Sasuke had shared his food back when they first became genin and when he helped Naruto get back to Tazuna’s house after they had had a hard day of competing at walking up trees. Sometimes Sasuke actually seemed not so bad. After these occasions Naruto had now started to wonder if maybe it really was possible to work together with Sasuke. Maybe he really could be able to truly trust someone else besides only Iruka-sensei. Naruto didn’t know if it was by fate or by chance or whatever the circumstances had been, but right now he was glad to be Sasuke’s teammate, thankful that they had ended up working together as comrades. The boy didn’t care anymore about the why behind it, only that he was together with a dependable, trusting team. Sure they fought a lot and didn’t get along all that well or have many things in common, but maybe with some work that could all change too.

Naruto still wanted to prove himself to the dark haired boy of course, to make Sasuke start respecting his efforts and determination, but after all this Naruto understood there was some kind of invisible connection between them that couldn’t be denied anymore, both of them linked together by this remarkable, devastating, changing series of events on this outing that was supposed to be an ordinary C-ranked mission and turned out to be anything but. Naruto still didn’t understand it completely, couldn’t describe how exactly he felt about Sasuke anymore. Sometimes, it was true, he would like nothing more than to kick the overconfident boy’s ass and was frustrated and irritated by him like no other, but Naruto was stunned how often good thoughts of Sasuke had starting passing through his mind since they had teamed up. After all, how could he not think at least a little bit positively about the guy who had saved him from certain death? Even if Sasuke was a big jerk a lot of the time, Naruto believed there had to be a good side to him buried deep down somewhere in him trying to get out. If there wasn’t then Sasuke would have just let Naruto get killed and fought Haku by himself, Naruto knew that much. So maybe like the way that Naruto didn’t completely hate Sasuke, perhaps Sasuke also didn’t loathe Naruto as much as he claimed to. But whatever their true relationship, whatever kind of ties that bound them together for whatever reasons, there was now a bond between them–faint and tenuous, but still noticeable–that Naruto was thankful for. He had spent too much of his life alone, he needed these new connections he had formed. He was glad to be on Team 7, glad to have a place at last where he felt like he belonged.

Naruto sat staring down at the boy carelessly slumbering away on a futon just next to his own, watching Sasuke’s chest reassuringly rise and fall slowly as he quietly snored, resting his broken body. He looks so peaceful right now. Definitely better than when he's calling me an idiot, Naruto laughed to himself, noting how calm and gentle Sasuke looked in his sleep, almost like a whole different person. Naruto’s eyes locked intently on Sasuke's partially open lips as he breathed softly in and out then in again… Those same lips that he had inadvertently kissed way back before they had been assigned to work together. That seemed so long ago now with all that had happened on this mission, so many unpredicted events occurring, so many unexpected emotions flooding into Naruto during his first real outing from the Leaf Village. Those soft pink lips seemed to beckon to him, telling him that everything was alright, that there was still a strong will to live left in Sasuke’s body. Naruto suddenly found himself recalling the way that first accidental kiss had made him feel: disgusted on the outside, but inwardly, buried deep down underneath his revulsion, it had felt… good. Confusing and annoying and definitely not bad at all.

He had to do it again. Just once more to satisfy his curiosity would be enough. Naruto had to know what it felt like with the real deal and not just with a clone. He needed to know what a real kiss felt like, not just an accidental once, but one that actually meant something. No matter how revolting the thought, no matter how conflicted the feelings, right now Naruto wanted to feel that odd, stomach twisting power of connection to Sasuke just one more time.

Acting on rash impulse, but still wary of waking Sasuke, Naruto carefully leaned down, hovering over the sleeping boy’s face for a moment as he appreciated Sasuke's peaceful features, then planted a quick, light peck on Sasuke's mouth ever so softly. He didn't know why he did it, why he was so curious to feel their lips touch once again considering how confused and tangled up inside the previous kiss had made him, how much agonizing he had done over that one little kiss. Something about the act just felt right, as if it were the only correct thing to do in this situation. It was like something compelled him to do it. This tiny, cautious kiss wasn't anything like the accidental first kiss in the Academy classroom–forceful and exciting and unexpected–but also wasn't hollow and empty like his kiss with the Shadow Clone had been, either. It was gentle, warm, full of conflicting, confusing emotions Naruto had no idea how to label or name.

"Just what do you think you’re doing, loser?" Sasuke called out softly with his eyes still closed, scaring the living daylights out of Naruto, who leapt back from the prone boy, preparing himself for Sasuke's inevitable wrath. He was crouched down in a defensive position, readying himself to have the everliving snot beaten out of him.

"N-nothing! Nothing at all!" Naruto rapidly stammered out. He couldn't think of any good excuse or explanation at the moment. What could he possibly say, ‘I slipped’? That wasn’t believable at all. He had done something ridiculously stupid and crazy and now Naruto had to face the unfortunate consequences for his actions.

"Right,” Sasuke replied, sounding completely and understandably unconvinced. “Well, if you want to do 'nothing' again make sure I'm awake before you do it. Kissing a sleeping person is really weird, you know?" Sasuke declared, his eyes still closed and a weak but wiseass smirk growing on his face.

Naruto's mind must have completely overloaded, because to him it sounded like Sasuke just said it was actually okay to do it again. Was this some kind of trick? Or had Sasuke become delirious with sickness? Cautiously testing his luck, Naruto nervously placed his palm on Sasuke's cheek, cradling it gently in his hand. It was so warm to the touch, relievingly different from the last time he had touched Sasuke’s bare skin. Perhaps Sasuke was still running a bit of a fever; his face was somewhat red and he was sweating a bit after all. Naruto reminded himself that he would have to ask Kakashi to get Sasuke some more medicine later.

"Sasuke," Naruto called out softly to the boy lying below him. His partner opened his eyes after hearing his name, staring up at Naruto without any of the usual hard-edged look in his eyes. He seemed almost appreciative for once, unusually tame and tolerable. "I'm really glad you're okay," Naruto told him plainly, his voice cracking slightly at the memory of Sasuke's body lying motionless with all those needles stuck in him, that remembrance almost causing him to cry again, even though he knew Sasuke was safe now. Don’t die, you jackass. Not for me. I don’t want that, Naruto berated Sasuke in his head, but couldn’t work up the courage to say it aloud. There was no way he would let something like this ever happen again. Naruto was too proud to let Sasuke save him and show him up anymore, he would continue to compete against that bastard until Naruto beat him single handedly and earned his respect, but also… They were too connected to just let Sasuke throw his life away for him again. Naruto would never allow Sasuke toss his dreams and hopes and everything else away like it was all nothing again. After all, wasn’t that also part of being a team; supporting each other’s dreams and protecting each other’s lives?

“Hn,” Sasuke merely grunted in response to Naruto’s statement, unable or unwilling to say anything at the moment. He merely continued staring up eye to eye with his loser squadmate, into those remarkably blue eyes that looked so worriedly down at him. His calm demeanor assured Naruto that, at least for now, everything was alright between them. The moment was unusually peaceful for the two boys who rarely did anything other than shout and fight with each other, enveloping them like a warm, gentle summer breeze.

Sasuke had said it was alright. So Naruto impulsively decided was going to do it again and damned be the consequences! Naruto knew it was weird and that he would regret it later, but oh well, at this moment he would let his impulses take control and deal with all that afterwards. Naruto leaned in close again and fearlessly planted another bold kiss onto Sasuke's lips. This time, Sasuke went along with the movements, accepting Naruto's attempt completely as their lips brushed together in quiet relief. Naruto was learning quickly that there were many different kinds of kisses, all with different meanings and emotions and intents behind them; this kiss was the most passionate one of all. If he and Sasuke were on better terms he might have even called it a caring kiss, a loving kiss, as pleasant and warm as it was. As it stood though, things would likely return to normal all too soon, with the two of them constantly competing for supremacy and a stream of insults coming from the mouth Naruto was pressed up against. But right now? Right now was perfect the way it was.
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The Bonds That Never Break