Adult-FanFiction.org : Naruto

Cliche	By : CloudNineKitty Category: Naruto AU/AR > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 2134 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor do I make any money from writing this.

Chapter List
- 1
- 2
- 3
Chapter Two
The Notebook (isn't just a movie)
Naruto's right leg bounced impatiently as he sat in his desk the next morning, waiting for Sasuke to walk through the classroom doors so he could beat him to a pulp. He didn't even pretend to listen to Kiba who was telling him about his outing yesterday with Shino and Hinata. He couldn't care less about how cute the dress Hinata bought was or how ridiculous the special effects in the movie were. He had his mind set on the Uchiha. Well, more like his fist…his fist's mind. If his fist had a mind. But still, his mind was…okay, forget it. He wanted to punch Sasuke. End of story. That asshole just better get in the room before the teacher…
"Good morning everyone," Kakashi sensei greeted everyone when he entered the classroom with his assignment book and papers in hand.
…came in the room. Well that just ruined everything. He couldn't punch Sasuke if Kakashi sensei was already there. The one time Kakashi was on time getting to class had to be today. As if knowing he was now safe from Naruto's fury, Sasuke came into the classroom from the other door and quietly took his seat. Naruto growled and hunched over his desk, earning a weird look from Kiba. He didn't like the thought of the Uchiha sitting behind him after what he did last night.
"Today we'll be reassigning desks as well as consigning clean up duty." Haruno Sakura announced from the front of the room where she stood with Shikamaru. While the pink-haired girl had been excited to become a class representative, Shikamaru had been volunteered in his sleep and didn't honestly have a choice because he was the only guy to volunteer – well, bevolunteered. "Everyone please take a slip of paper that will have a number on it. It will be the desk you sit in and your number on the classroom clean up schedule."
The lazy genius walked around the room, muttering about how troublesome this was as students dug their hands into the yellow bowl, praying that they got to sit near their friends.
Naruto grinned up at the other boy as he fished out his own paper, receiving a yawn in return. He looked at his paper and let out a loud cheer that made everyone turn to look at him. He laughed nervously and scratched the back of his neck. He couldn't help but be excited. He knew exactly what desk he was in because it was the one right below the number he was sitting at now. Now he had the last desk in the row and still got to sit by the window. The gods must have been smiling down on him with pity after what he was put through last night.
…Or they were just laughing in his face. Naruto glared at the back of raven hair, biting the inside of his cheek to keep himself from muttering curses. Of all the twenty four desks in the classroom, Sasuke just had to pick the one in front of him. So essentially, he and Sasuke switched places and that was it. He had such rotten luck sometimes.
And what pissed him off the most was that Sasuke was acting like nothing had happened between them. That was a pretty big thing to ignore! You don't just pretend that you didn't molest somebody in their own home! Not to mention he had probably stolen that shinai from the kendo club, and he was probably going to assault that guy from last night with it. Naruto shuddered when he remembered Sasuke pressing the tip against him. Not that he wanted to think about it, but what if that was what Sasuke had been planning to do to that other guy? And he saw Naruto and changed his plan instead.
His head jerked up at the thought and he planted his feet on the floor under his desk. Was Sasuke…gay? Holy crap, that would explain why he never showed any interest in girls. Then again, Naruto didn't know if the boy had any girlfriends while he was in Otogakure. And he did have that one girl with glasses hanging out with him…a cover, maybe? She seemed to generally like him if the way she hugged onto him yesterday at lunch was any indication, but he wasn't showing any signs of mutual feelings for her; though Naruto knew that even as a kid Sasuke didn't show much interest in anything after his parents died.
Naruto decided that he didn't want to think about it anymore and he tried to focus on Kakashi sensei's teaching. He sat there with his head propped up by his left arm, his free hand twirling his mechanical pencil around and dropping it onto his open notebook now and then. Movement in front of him caught his attention and he furrowed his brows when Sasuke sat his notebook up on his desk. He stared at the page where notes were written neatly and he wondered if Sasuke was secretly texting behind the book. His eyes flitted to the top corner of the page and he dropped his pencil completely, his head lifting off his arm.
Tap my shoulder once for no, twice for yes. Got it?
Naruto stared at the message for a minute before Sasuke rolled his shoulders back. He got the hint and he hesitantly reached his right hand forward and tapped Sasuke on the shoulder twice. The other teen immediately set the notebook back down and began writing again. Naruto took a moment to glance around the room to see if anyone was paying attention, but they were all preoccupied with the lesson. Sasuke set the notebook back up and he read the new message.
Are you mad about yesterday?
Naruto resisted the urge to growl at the stupid question and he made sure to hit Sasuke extra hard with his two fingers, twice. The book went back down and Naruto let out a sigh. That asshole…did he honestly think that Naruto would be anything but mad at what happened between them? The book returned into his vision and his breath hitched.
Did it feel good? Be honest.
If anyone looked over, they would see that Naruto's face was completely red and rivaling that of a tomato. Even his ears felt hot, like steam was ready to blow out of them. How could the bastard ask him something like that? He had forced himself onto Naruto! He had rubbed his…his erection against Naruto's and…and kissed him…
Naruto dropped his head to the desk and stared in the direction of the window, trying to force his blush to go away. Damn it, it had felt good. That's why Naruto came after all. Even if it was Sasuke that did it to him, it felt really, really good. No one had ever touched him like that before. His eyelids drooped, and he tilted his head up to look at Sasuke, being able to see his set jaw and his throat move when he swallowed. He was being rather patient awaiting his answer, as if he knew Naruto needed time to think it through. Sitting back up, Naruto rested his head on his left arm again and tentatively tapped Sasuke on the shoulder twice.
Sasuke laid the notebook down and Naruto exhaled the breath he didn't know he had been holding. He glanced around the classroom and noticed Sakura passing a note to Ino stealthily while Kakashi had his back to the class to write on the board. He smiled slightly, remembering how the two girls had a rocky relationship before entering junior high school. They both had had a huge crush on Sasuke, because that was how girls were at that age, and they let it get in the way of their friendship as if he were an indestructible concrete wall. Naruto could only hope that what they had now wouldn't change just because Sasuke was back. He had a pretty good feeling that it wouldn't. Ino was smitten over Shikamaru, even if the so called genius didn't realize it himself. He could probably find the cure for cancer, but hell would freeze over before he realized that a girl was flirting with him.
Sasuke sat his notebook up again and Naruto immediately pushed aside all other thoughts and returned his attention to the other boy's hand writing. He winced when he remembered that he was supposed to be mad at the bastard, but now he was having a secret conversation with him at the back of the classroom. Somehow he was always drawn back to the Uchiha, just like when they were kids. He scanned his eyes over the questions that were already answered before he spotted the new one.
Want to do it again?
Naruto dug his thumbnail into the other teen's right shoulder blade, grinning sadistically when Sasuke's shoulders tensed and he arched away from the pain.
Sasuke sighed, as if accepting defeat, and he set the notebook back down, leaning forward in his chair and erasing the messages on the corner of his page. He seemed to return to listening to Kakashi sensei explain a problem while fumbling around with his teacher's edition of the workbook. Not that it was his workbook since he was one of the worst teachers ever when it came to lesson plans, so he copied other teachers' lessons. A whole twenty minutes passed before the raven-haired teen leaned back again and lifted his notebook, showing Naruto a new message.
Want to have lunch with me on the roof?
Eat with the enemy? Naruto shook his head in order to resist scoffing. He dropped his pencil he had been writing with and tapped Sasuke on the shoulder once. Like he was going to eat with the asshole after what he put him through. Sasuke set the book down and erased his message. He seemed to think for a minute or two, and Naruto turned around in his seat to look at the clock on the wall, seeing that there were five more minutes left of this class. When he faced forward again, Sasuke's notebook was standing straight again.
I need to talk to you. Will you join me on the roof at lunch?
Yeah, and Naruto needed to talk to him too. With his fists. Deciding that the idea didn't seem too bad, he grudgingly reached forward and tapped Sasuke on the back twice. The boy seemed to almost visibly relax, or was that just Naruto's imagination? Either way, Naruto couldn't wait to punch Sasuke at lunch.

Naruto ducked out of the classroom just as Sasuke's friends came into the room. He didn't want them to see him in fear that they might call out about what happened last night. Or what they thought happened since Sasuke lied to their faces because he probably didn't want them to know that he was into guys. Naruto scoffed at the idea. Nonetheless, they were going to be disappointed because Sasuke had left as soon as the lunch period started. Naruto stayed behind and chatted with Kiba, Shikamaru, Ino and Sakura for a bit before excusing himself to go to the bathroom. There was no way he was going to tell them about Sasuke.
He went up the stairs, taking two at a time and avoiding all contact from other students as if they knew where he was going and who he was going to meet. With each step he took he could feel the urge to beat up Sasuke growing and it made him break out into a run that got him to the door in no time. He pushed open the metal door and was immediately greeted with a warm breeze that tousled his hair. Not that he minded; he hadn't styled it in any particular way that morning. He stepped out onto the windy rooftop and placed a hand above his eyes to shield them from the bright afternoon sun.
"About time you showed up, dobe."
Naruto grumbled and turned to his left to see Sasuke standing by the fence, facing him with his hands in pockets and his uniform top opened to reveal the same red shirt from last night. The angry words that had built up in Naruto's chest suddenly evaporated and he sighed, shaking his head. The arrogant smirk the Uchiha was giving him reminded him of when they were kids. He missed that Sasuke. That Sasuke was his best friend; almost like a brother. He was his rival, his reason for who he was today. "How did you end up like this?" Naruto said, though the wind stole his words.
"What was that?" Sasuke asked, and the blood in Naruto's veins began to boil.
"How did you get like this? You're so different now! What happened to the old Sasuke?" Naruto shouted. His fists clenched at his sides as he met Sasuke's narrowed eyes with his own glare.
Sasuke kept eye contact for a full, uninterrupted minute before huffing and turning his head away. "Che, dobe. Not everyone can remain a complete idiot for the rest of their lives. People change."
Before he knew what he was doing, Naruto ran forward and shoved Sasuke against the fence, the metal rattling loudly upon the impact, and he trapped him there by gripping onto the holes in the fence on either side of Sasuke's head. The boy could easily get away by ducking under one of the arms, but he made no movement to leave. It made Naruto even angrier that Sasuke hadn't tried to get out of the way even though he had time to. It was as if Sasuke didn't care or didn't think Naruto could really hurt him, or both. And it made something inside Naruto snap. "Do you realize how much you've fucked up your future, Sasuke? You had a chance to make something of yourself in Otogakure and now you're stuck back here in this small town high school that no university cares about! And what, you're in a gang now? You think that makes you tough? Invincible? You can get in so much trouble Sasuke! What the hell happened to you? I thought you were a fucking genius! What abou-mmph!"
Naruto pulled away from the soft yet commanding lips that had covered his unexpectedly, and he pushed Sasuke even harder into the chain link fence that surrounded the perimeter of the roof. "Don't ever touch me like that again." He was surprised by how even his voice was despite the rushing emotions inside him, but he hid it well.
"We're the same, remember? You said it yourself." Sasuke said, catching Naruto off guard with the sudden change in topic. "Neither of us have a family. We know what it's like to be alone." If he had a point to what he was saying, he wasn't going to share it with Naruto. It was like he was saying whatever was coming to mind.
Naruto frowned at Sasuke's words rolled through his head a few times, and he looked at the raven-haired teen in slight confusion. "What about Itachi?"
"Itachi means nothing to me."
"But he's your brother!" Naruto didn't know why he sounded panicked. Maybe because he was worried by the fact that Sasuke had just disowned the only family he had left. When they were younger, Sasuke always looked up to Itachi! He had aspired to be like him! What the hell happened in Otogakure?
Sasuke stared at Naruto blankly. "You should get a job in stating the obvious. You're very good at it."
Naruto growled and lowered his arms to his sides. "While we share similar pasts," He took a step backwards to put some distance between him and Sasuke. It was almost exhausting being so close to him, like Sasuke was sucking the energy out of him. "We didn't follow the same path." When Sasuke arched a single eyebrow, Naruto realized that he had to explain his words better. "I chose to make something of my life…you had to go and be a jerk about it."
He didn't wait for Sasuke to respond. He didn't want to hear anything the Uchiha had to say now. This was not the same boy he called his best friend five years ago. That was made clear to him last night. He wanted nothing to do with this Sasuke anymore. So he decided to make it final that there was no longer anything between them by turning around and heading to the door. He wanted to get off this roof and never look back again. He would pretend Sasuke wasn't sitting in front of him in class. And if the boy dared to talk to him or force himself on Naruto again, he was going to kick him in the groin so hard that his testicles would recede into his body and never come back down.
"What about the promise you made me before I left?"
Sasuke's voice was loud, and it made Naruto stop in his tracks. Heck, even the wind seemed to stop at the question, like it was waiting for Naruto to answer. But he couldn't. He felt as though someone had tied concrete blocks to his arms and legs, and he couldn't move. Not until Sasuke spoke again.
"You said you'd be here waiting for me when I got back."
Naruto shook his head, and his whole body seemed to shudder with it as if to rid the feeling of being weighed down by the Uchiha's words. He turned to face Sasuke, jumping slightly at the close proximity of the other boy. He hadn't been expecting him to be right behind him.
"Yeah, well…" he began, regaining his composure. What was he supposed to say? He never went back on his promises. But this…it was too hard to keep. He couldn't stick by Sasuke when he's become like this. After what he did to Naruto last night. After what he said about the only family he had left meaning nothing to him. He made the promise, expecting to be excited for the boy's return. But now he felt like he was being slapped in the face with his own words. Sasuke knew he didn't go back on his word, and he was trying to use that to his advantage; to get the upper hand on him. Naruto wasn't going to let that happen, though. "I wasn't waiting for this."
"You can't expect me to be the same twelve year old as before."
Naruto hadn't expected the punch even though he saw Sasuke raise his arm. And the second hit that was delivered to his stomach made him double over, gripping his middle. He growled and launched his body forward, slamming his shoulder into Sasuke's chest. He quickly leaned up to uppercut the Uchiha, but Sasuke moved his head out of the way so he opted for digging his elbow into the others collarbone.
They continued throwing punches and kicks at each other, and it hurt a lot more than when they fought as kids. Though this time it seemed they actually wanted to harm each other, or at least Naruto wanted to hurt Sasuke. It was obvious that they were both frustrated with the other, even though Naruto felt like Sasuke had no reason to be mad at him. Sasuke was the one who had screwed up his own life. He was the one that molested Naruto in his apartment last night. The memory caused Naruto to hit Sasuke in the cheek a lot harder than before, and the Uchiha stumbled back a few steps.
Sasuke pressed a hand to his aching face, his breathing slightly off from their activity though he was able to stand up straight. The wind had picked up again and it was blowing his bangs in his eyes. "You've gotten stronger." He muttered.
Naruto couldn't help but smirk at the acknowledgment. He and Sasuke were finally equally matched in one thing, though he wasn't sure if he should be happy about it being fighting. He didn't have time to make a snarky comment, however, because the door to the roof opened. He inwardly groaned when he saw who it was. Hands suddenly yanked his arms behind him and they were held in a vice-like grip by the burly teen with bright orange hair. He glared at Sasuke, but the boy with crooked teeth stepped in front of him, blocking his vision.
"Sasuke, are you okay?" the girl with glasses cried, forcing Sasuke to move his hand away from his cheek that was starting to swell. What was her name again? Naruto couldn't remember though he was sure he heard it last night in his apartment. Not that he cared.
"Want me to take care of this kid once and for all, Sasuke?" the silver-haired teen asked. His purple eyes narrowed and his fists rising.
Naruto's teeth clenched when he noticed that the teen had a flick blade in his right hand. He almost pushed back against the tall boy holding him captive, but he didn't want them to know he was scared, which he wasn't. But while he was thinking about it, holy shit this guy was going to fucking stab him!
He peeked past the crooked toothed boy to make eye contact with Sasuke who was trying to fend off the girl fawning over his minor wounds. It wasn't like Naruto had made him bleed or anything. Geez, that girl was acting like Sasuke was going to need to get his arm amputated or something.
Finally Sasuke seemed to acknowledge what the other boy had asked, and he looked at Naruto's wide eyes. "That won't be necessary, Suigetsu." To Naruto's relief, said boy lowered his hand and reluctantly stepped away. "Jugo let him go." At the authoritative tone, Naruto was released immediately.
Naruto moved away from the group, refusing to turn his back to them. He never took his eyes off Sasuke; his throat feeling like someone had stuffed it with cotton balls. Black eyes that always looked down on him as a kid now looked so tired and lost. Sasuke was in a dark place right now, and a part of Naruto knew that the Uchiha was reaching out to him. It reminded him that Naruto was Sasuke's guiding light as a kid. And maybe, even after five years of being separated at the most crucial parts of their growing up, he still was. Maybe Sasuke hadn't become as bad of a person as Naruto thought. He was reaching out a hand to a familiar light, a sensation that he recognized as safe because he wanted to jump from the ship he was currently sailing.
Naruto didn't know what happened to Sasuke while he was in Otogakure, but he intended on finding out. Right there, on the rooftop with three other teens there as unknowing witnesses, Naruto decided that he wasn't going to relinquish his promise to Sasuke. He was going to be there for Sasuke now that he was back, because Sasuke needed him even if he wasn't saying it out loud. Naruto was going to save his best friend, his rival.
As if having said all of that out loud, Naruto nodded to Sasuke who seemed to be taken aback by the action. However, whatever he saw in Naruto's determined expression he liked, and he gave a curt nod back. Naruto turned to the door and quickly exited the roof, amused by the confused look the boy named Suigetsu had.
He made it back to the classroom just in time before lunch ended. He was glad, too, because it didn't give his friends any time to ask him about what had taken him so long in the bathroom before the next class started. He took his seat, grinning when Iruka sensei came into the room and told everyone to settle down. It wasn't until twenty minutes into the lesson that Naruto realized Sasuke was not going to be returning to class. He had half expected it though.
He heaved a sigh and rested his chin on his palm, allowing his mind to wander away from Iruka's gentle voice. He turned his head to look out the window. The trees were blowing, the clear blue sky like a backdrop behind them as they shuddered. There weren't any clouds in the sky on that day either. He closed his eyes as he thought back to the day that he made the promise to Sasuke.

Naruto forced his legs to slow down until they halted completely, and he placed his hands on his bent knees as he tried to catch his breath. "Sa-hah-Sasuke!" He swallowed to keep his throat from going dry and he forced himself to stand up straight.
Said boy turned to look at him from where he sat. His voice held no sentiment as he spoke, but that was typical of the twelve-year-old boy. "What do you want, usuratonkachi?"
Naruto plodded over to Sasuke's side and sat down on the edge of the dock next to him, his bare legs hanging over the edge like the other boy's. Now that they were older, their feet almost touched the surface of the green lake water, but not quite yet. Naruto let his left flip-flop dangle from his foot, the heel tapping against the water. "I've been looking for you."
"You knew I'd be here."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Tell you what?" Sasuke asked, facing forward again. He knew exactly what Naruto was asking, though. He had purposefully kept the information from the idiot. He couldn't bring himself to tell him.
"That you're moving to Otogakure! I just ran all the way from the Yamanaka's flower shop after hearing the news, ttebayo!" Naruto puffed out his cheeks in annoyance, looking at the seemingly serene boy. However, by the slight twitch in his eyebrows he knew that Sasuke was trying to keep his face passive. He was always trying to put up a mature front, even when he was alone with Naruto. He would learn a few years later that Sasuke had a superiority complex towards him.
"You're an idiot for running. It's not like I'm leaving today." Sasuke looked up at the sky. There wasn't a single cloud to block the sun, so he was forced to look back down.
The blond frowned. That was the thanks he got for rushing to see his best friend who that would be moving soon? "When are you leaving?" Naruto asked, skimming the surface of the water with his sandal. The droplets from the spray formed rings on the lake, and Sasuke watched them carefully until the disappeared.
"Tomorrow," He answered quietly.
Naruto had been afraid he'd say that. He pressed his lips into a thin line to keep them from quivering. When he was finally able to calm down, he spoke. "You'll come back, right?"
Sasuke sighed and he leaned back on his arms. "I don't know. I'm going to be starting a new life there."
"You gonna miss this place?"
"Hn,"
"Teme…" Naruto growled and narrowed his eyes in annoyance. "You are going to miss it here. You're going to miss Ichiraku ramen."
"Che, I never liked it to begin with. You were the one who always dragged me there." Sasuke said with a scoff. And made him pay, but that was left unsaid. He began kicking his legs at a slow rhythm; Naruto soon joined him though he moved faster. He always thought that the idiot had too much energy.
"Yeah, well you're going to miss me dragging your anti-social ass places!"
Sasuke only smirked and shook his head a little, though not in disagreement.
It made Naruto smile, and he began kicking his legs more powerfully. "Sakura-chan and Ino aren't going to be fighting over you anymore."
"Thank God."
"And we won't be able to go to the valley to play by the waterfall."
Sasuke looked at him. "Maybe that's a good thing since you tainted that place. You also tainted the school."
Naruto knew exactly what he was talking about, and his face heated in both embarrassment and anger. "You shut up! Those kisses were complete accidents! It's not like I wanted to have my first and second kiss with a teme like you, ttebayo!" His bottom lip jutted out in a pout and he whipped his head to look in the opposite direction. Geez, the jerk just had to go and bring up their kisses. It wasn't his fault that he was accidentally pushed into Sasuke during a staring contest at lunch. And the second was an accident too!
At the beginning of the current summer break, they had been playing a game with the rest of their friends by the waterfall. There was a rope tied at an angle across the water between two boulders, and it had a pair of tennis shoes tied together by the laces dangling from the middle. The point was to take turns jumping from each boulder to try to retrieve the shoes. If you failed, you landed in the water and had to go back to wait in line to try again. However, because Sasuke and Naruto were so set on trying to beat each other at everything, they both ended up leaping off their rock at the same time to get the shoes. They crashed into each other in the air, lips connected, and they fell into the water with a large splash. When they both resurfaced, they began hacking and coughing while blaming the other and shouting insults.
Naruto sighed at the memory. That wasn't at all how he wanted to lose his first or second kiss. But what was done was done. He looked at Sasuke and suddenly jerked at a thought. Could it be that Sasuke was resentful about the kisses even though they were mere accidents? Naruto didn't want Sasuke to feel like he had stolen his first kiss. He wanted Sasuke's first kiss to be special as much as he wanted his to be! Of course, all the girls there in Konoha knew about his and Sasuke's kisses since they were there to witness them. But Sasuke was moving to Otogakure where no one knew.
"That's it, ttebayo!" Naruto cheered, making Sasuke cringe next to him at the sudden outburst. "The kisses didn't count!"
"What?" Sasuke muttered, looking at him incredulously.
"The kisses didn't count because they were accidents. So if you get a girlfriend in Otogakure, you can share your real first kiss with her! Say 'thank you, Naruto-san'! Man, I'm such a genius sometimes."
The raven-haired boy seemed to think this through for a minute before shaking his head. He smirked at Naruto before saying, "You're as dumb as ever. It doesn't work like that, dobe."
"It can work that way! I don't want to recognize them as real kisses for myself either, so they don't count at all!" Naruto punched the air above his head with his fists as if that would make it final.
Sasuke turned to him suddenly and leaned forward, tilting his head to the left before pressing his lips against Naruto's. The blond stiffened next to him, arms still suspended in the air, but didn't make any movement to pull or push Sasuke away. The Uchiha closed his eyes for a few seconds, allowing for his and Naruto's breaths to mingle before he moved back slowly and sat straight. "There. Now I officially have your first kiss, and you have mine."
The kiss had been gentle, but it still shook Naruto to the very core. His entire face exploded into a bright red color and he let out an unintelligible squawk as he shoved Sasuke off the edge of the dock. A hand reached forward suddenly and clutched the front of his orange t-shirt, making him slide forward before toppling over the edge as well and landing face first in the water.
Both boys resurfaced at the same time, glaring daggers at each other.
"Usuratonkachi,"
"You kissed me!"
"You got me wet."
"Yeah, after you kissed me!"
"That's because you were being an idiot."
"You're an asshole, Sasuke!"
"Why are you so loud?"
"I'm not-" Naruto's mouth clamped shut as he looked down and watched a flip-flop float past his chest. His lips split into a wide grin before a snicker slipped. Sasuke snorted, either just as amused as Naruto or because Naruto's attention span was equivalent to that of a gold fish, and it sent Naruto over the edge. He burst out laughing, his head leaning back as his legs kicked extra hard to keep him above the water.
The corners of Sasuke's lips quirked in a tiny smile, and he reached for the flip-flop. He looked around for his other shoe, spotting it under the dock and he swam over to retrieve it.
Naruto finally calmed down and he turned to look at Sasuke slap his sandals onto the dock. The boy kept his hand there, and he turned to look at his friend, a single eyebrow arched questioningly. Naruto let another string of chuckles escape him before he turned around to get his own sandals which hadn't gone too far. He also put them on the dock and rested his left arm on it, gazing at Sasuke.
"When you come back…" Naruto said, suddenly becoming serious in both expression and tone. "I'll be here waiting for you. So you better come back."
"Are you going to miss me, dobe?" Sasuke asked teasingly, which made the blond's blush return tenfold.
Naruto slapped his right hand into the water, splashing Sasuke. He used the distraction to hoist himself out of the water and onto the dock, shoving his flip-flops out of the way so that he could lie down on the old wood. Sasuke joined him, though he moved with a lot more grace, and settled down next to Naruto. Neither one said a word while they lay in the sun to dry off, not even when their hands touched between them. They didn't have anything to say. For the first time since they've known each other they were going to be separated. They had no idea what the future held now. They were going to be in different schools, be surrounded by different people, living in different towns. Did this mean they could still be best friends? Rivals?
Was Sasuke going to replace Naruto and find someone new to hang out with? Was he going to find someone else to compete against to see who was number one? Was Naruto going to replace Sasuke? Was either of them going to get a girlfriend? What if Sasuke did get a girlfriend? He wouldn't want to come back to Konoha when he had someone he liked, maybe even loved, in Otogakure.
Naruto decided that he didn't want to think about that. He knew this was good for Sasuke. The Uchiha had worked hard to get the best grades in Konoha Elementary, and now he was getting recognized by high schools from all over. To receive an offer such as the one from Otogakure was a big deal. He was going to be able to make it in a high-level university that had an amazing reputation, and he could become anything he wanted. Hell, he could become the Hokage without a doubt, which was the special title for the mayor of Konoha, not to mention Naruto's dream job. He couldn't think about Sasuke returning when the boy had a possible bright future that didn't involve necessarily Konoha or anyone in it. Not even Naruto.
He was just going to have to work harder here in Konoha so that he could remain equal to Sasuke. He'd have to study harder because he was in a public school, and he'd have to become stronger physically too. He couldn't fall behind even though they were in different towns.
Before he knew it, the sun had set and the sky turned a dark purple, stars finally being able to reveal themselves to the town below. Naruto didn't move when Sasuke sat up, his dark blue t-shirt and white shorts completely dry along with his hair; it stuck out in the back as usual, proving that it was natural.
"I'm going home." As if noticing the announcement was a little abrupt, he decided to add a reasonable explanation. "Itachi will start looking for me if I don't get back soon."
Naruto nodded his head, not looking at his best friend. He didn't want to say goodbye. Not yet. He couldn't muster the words, knowing they'd be the last they shared for a long time, if not forever. Instead, he squeezed his eyes shut to refuse any tears that tried to form, and waited for Sasuke to leave.
"Naruto,"
He sat up with a start, knowing that whenever Sasuke used his name it meant something important. He twisted his body around to look at Sasuke who was already halfway up the hill that the dock was connected to, flip-flops in one hand while the other occupied his pocket.
"Promise,"
Naruto narrowed his eyes at Sasuke. "Huh? Promise what?"
"That you'll be here waiting for me when I get back."
Blue eyes widened a fraction and they began to burn with the threat of tears. Instead, he forced them back and smiled brightly at the Uchiha. "I promise!"
Sasuke smiled as well, a genuine smile that Naruto rarely saw and no one else in the village ever got the honor of seeing. It faded just as quickly as it came, and he turned back around.
Naruto watched him reach the top of the hill and go right, heading for his house. He lay back down on the dock and stared into the night sky, still grinning. Sasuke was going to come back. He had to, even if it was just to come back for Naruto.
In retrospect, he really should have gotten Sasuke's new address so they could write to each other, but he forgot to ask and after a while it didn't seem to matter because he was sure Sasuke wouldn't forget about him or his promise.

"Naruto!"
Just as the teen began to lift his head to answer to whoever was calling him, a fist came down on the back of his head, making him hit his forehead against the desk. "Ow…" he whined, sitting up and rubbing his nose that had also been part of the impact.
"You slept through the rest of the classes!" Sakura scolded him, Ino and Shikamaru standing behind her, one trying not to laugh while the other found the ceiling tiles more interesting.
"Sorry, Sakura-chan, I had a lot on my mind and I guess I fell asleep." Naruto arched his back and looked ahead of him. Apparently some small part of him had been hoping that Sasuke would eventually come back to class even if he was an hour late. The desk hadn't even been touched, but his bag was missing. He couldn't remember if Sasuke's bag was there or not when he got back from the roof, though.
"Leave it to Naruto to fall asleep while actually using his head for once." Ino teased, laughing when the boy pouted.
Shikamaru sighed, and he actually seemed to put effort into it because his shoulders raised and then dropped. A little. Or maybe he just twitched. "Troublesome."
"Yeah, yeah, let's all make fun of poor old Naruto." Naruto huffed. "Is there a reason you're all ganging up on me?"
Sakura smiled politely and pushed a lock of hair behind her ear, but it fell right back into place. She didn't seem to care, which made Naruto wonder why she had pushed it away in the first place. Girls were weird. "Would you like to go out with us tomorrow night?"
Naruto's eyes trailed from Sakura's face to Ino's and then Shikamaru's before moving back to the pink-haired girl. "You three?"
"Mhm," Sakura hummed cutely that reminded Naruto why he used to like her.
"What's the occasion?"
Sakura suddenly leaned forward, grabbing the lapel of Naruto's school blazer when he retreated from her. She placed her mouth next to his ear and whispered, making Naruto's cheeks heat up. "Honestly, Ino is too shy to be alone on a date with Shikamaru so she asked me to join them. So if you could just come as my 'date,' Shikamaru will feel less awkward. Okay?" She pulled away and gave him a stern stare, silently informing him that he didn't really have a choice in the matter.
Naruto laughed nervously and knocked the girl's hand away. "Sure, sounds fun. Count me in." It wasn't like he would be against it to begin with.
"Great," Sakura said, and both she and Ino smiled knowingly at each other. Girls. "Then tomorrow after morning classes, let's meet up by the First Tree."
"Sounds good," Ino agreed aloud even though Naruto knew that the two girls had already planned on where to meet long before they included the two boys.
"Bye Naruto! See you tomorrow!" Sakura said with a pretty smile before turning around and grabbing Ino by the arm, pulling her out of the classroom as she struggled to call her goodbyes to the other two teens.
Shikamaru exhaled loudly and turned to leave as well. "What a drag."
"See you tomorrow, Shika." Naruto called after him, earning a raised hand as the lazy genius strolled out of the room. He sighed when the retreating back disappeared and looked to Sasuke's empty desk again. What a drag indeed. How could he start helping Sasuke if the guy cut class on the second day of school? He was not making this easy for Naruto.
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