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The Blessed Realm	By : susanna Category: Naruto > Yaoi - Male/Male > Naruto/Sasuke Views: 1746 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: Disclaimer: Naruto, his friends and the world he lives in don't belong to me but to Masashi Kishimoto. I write this story only for my pleasure and I don't make any money with it.

Chapter List
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Chapter
Forty-Nine: The Forth Letter

Dancing
did not go well that evening. Sasuke was still upset, both from
teaching the kids and from remembering Itachi, and Naruto, if he was
honest, was too, mainly from meeting the hyperactive kid. He,
however, could cover it up by feeling responsible for Sasuke.

They
made more mistakes than usual, but they spent less time discussing
whose fault it had been. After some time Sasuke, who had been
leading, gave up trying to dance complicated figures altogether, and
dancing returned to be what it had been before they had become
ambitious: holding each other in their arms while moving in harmony.

Sasuke
kept smiling at Naruto, avoiding his eyes except for short moments.
Naruto sensed that Sasuke was still mourning and that he was gentler
and softer than on other days. Often his signs lacked clarity, but by
now they had got used to each other so well that Naruto recognized
them all the same.

Communicating
through the gentlest change of pressure of their hands... Warmth
flooded through Naruto's arms and then into his whole body. Was
Sasuke just gentler than on other days, or was he caressing him?
Naruto felt tempted to caress him in his turn, but he did not dare.
He felt weird: Admiring Sasuke for how he had been with the kids, and
at the same time wanting to protect him. It was as if he was
dissolving. He had always cared for Sasuke, always longed to be with
him again, but now something else was happening: His whole soul went
out for Sasuke, to a point that he was losing touch with the ground,
and he felt that the line that separated them as two distinct persons
was getting blurry. He had to stop it while it was still possible but
he did not know how, and he did not want to hurt Sasuke.

When
the dance class was finished the men assembled outside to decide
whether they wanted to go to the pub now. (They always did, but it
always took them some time to decide.) Naruto told them that he and
Sasuke would not join them this evening.

“Sasuke
has taught taijutsu to a group of children, and he's exhausted now”,
he said, much to Sasuke's annoyance. He was exhausted, to be sure,
but he did not appreciate that Naruto decided in his stead. Also he
was more exhausted from his sorrow for Itachi that had resurfaced
than because of the lesson with the kids itself.

“So
you taught them ninja arts?” the men said.

Sasuke
nodded.

“Did
it go well?” they continued.

He
nodded again.

“Well,
it can be exhausting, most of all if it's the first time. Just take
care!”

They
went home silently, Sasuke still lost in his thoughts, mourning
Itachi but also thinking of Naruto and his words that he would not
let the wound close, and of the feel of the beat of Naruto's heart
against the back of his hand. Naruto was well aware of the tension
between them. He knew that they had got too close and that he should
withdraw to reestablish the line that separated them, if that was
what he wanted. But he did not know what he wanted.

After
some time he got tired of the tension and laid his arm around
Sasuke's shoulder. Sasuke blushed and stared straight ahead.

When
they arrived at their place the patron's daughter handed them another
letter from Sakura. They took it upstairs, and when Naruto opened it
he found again a smaller envelope for Sasuke. He passed it to him,
and began to read his own letter.

Dear
Naruto!

My
letters must be boring to you, and I wish that I had to tell you
something that is not just a repetition of the bad news I sent you
before but something that might give you some joy – but there
isn't anything. We do our best to make life go on, working hard and
overstretching our strength, but even with such a modest aim a lot of
us don't succeed. The death toll is high, and the number of people
who are seriously and permanently injured is even higher. Not
everyone accepts it in good humour as Kakashi, who is still working
as a nurse for Tsunade. Lee for example had a complicated fracture of
the pelvis; it's healed by now, which is a miracle in itself, but
it's not as it used to be and he can't run any longer, or do kicks.
He's lucky that he's able to walk again, and I guess that being a
ninja helped him with this, yet being a ninja was his life, and he
cannot imagine another one.

I
try to comfort him and encourage him as best as I can. I don't have
any words of comfort or encouragement, however, for those whose loved
ones are dead. I try, knowing it's my job to help them as well as I
can, but I just can't. I feel angry and helpless when I see someone
die who might have lived if Danzou had not sent him to a meaningless
mission when he was not in a state for it. I hear how other people
comfort the mourners, telling them that he died for the sake of
Konoha and that he's a hero now, and how they should be proud and
glad, and that no one has greater honour than those who gave their
lives for their friends. I know that I should say something similar,
but I just can't, not if the mission was ridiculous and unnecessary,
not if it was clear from the start that the team in charge would not
succeed.

I've
talked about it to Iruka. He told me that this is what he has to
teach the kids now, too, preparing them for situations where they
might have to sacrifice themselves. He has received some new
textbooks for history lessons, and a new subject, morality, has been
introduced. It is mainly about learning to be loyal to Konoha and to
the Hokage, to obey his orders and the orders of any other superior,
and to be ready to give your life when necessary. The changes in the
history books are more subtle but he could not help noticing that
while before the stress was on the Hokage who sacrificed themselves
for the benefit of the village it is now on ordinary citizens who
died for the Leaf without expecting any honour or recognition.

He
thinks it is because Danzou knows quite well that people will notice
the difference between him and his predecessors if there are too many
stories about how they sacrificed themselves. They will realize that
the previous Hokage offered protection, and people looked up to them
with gratitude, while Danzou demands that they give their life.
Actually Iruka thinks that the presentation of Konoha's history is
more accurate in the new books, but he resents the message that the
kids should get themselves killed for the Hokage.

I
have told Iruka that you are well and alive in some town far in the
West, and not hidden away by Danzou in some secret place. He's glad
of it, and he sends you his regards. He also sends his regards to
Sasuke. He still remembers him well and wishes him all the best.

Sai
and myself have continued our search for evidence that the Uchiha
clan was murdered on orders of the Sandaime and his advisors, or
evidence of the Uchiha clan plotting a coup d'etat, but so far most
of what we've found is rather trivial. It's all like “I
followed Uchiha Mikoto, she entered a hairdresser's where I could not
follow her, and after I waited for an hour she returned.” There
is also information on Sasuke: “Uchiha Sasuke met with his
brother Itachi, they went into the woods and practised throwing
kunai. I could not hear what they were talking about. After some time
they returned back to their home.” It's boring, and it's
nauseating to realize the amount of interest people take in other
people's private lives. What we haven't found yet is anything
substantial.

I've
discussed it with my mother. She's safe, I think: I've begun to
distrust everyone, but she's not even originally from Konoha, and she
doesn't share the ideals of ninjas. Both she and my father have never
approved of my choice of profession and were glad when I decided to
become a med nin. I think they are worried that I might get myself
killed as a regular ninja. They are worried now, too, but I tell them
that Sai and myself are cautious and won't get caught.

Actually
it's not just that they are concerned about my safety. They also
don't think it's worth the risk. It's not that they like Danzou or
that they don't care if he was responsible for the murder of an
entire clan. It's that they fear that this information won't turn the
public opinion against him. The Uchiha have never been popular, and
they were even less so after the kyuubi's attack. No one had any
issues with them being ghettoized, or protested that the restrictions
were imposed on them on the basis of mere rumours, and everyone
agreed that it was a good idea to have them under surveillance. There
was a lot of resentment that they were still in charge of the
military police, and they had lost almost all of their authority.
Whenever someone got arrested people sided rather with him than with
the police. No one was upset when they were murdered, much to my
mother's surprise who even after ten years of living in Konoha had
not understood the amount of suspicion against them. It was rather as
if everyone had accepted the murder of the clan as the natural course
of events. So she doesn't think that people will rise against Danzou
when they learn that he is responsible for the massacre. She says
that we will have to find something else.

I'm
glad that you managed to persuade Sasuke to stay with you. I am a bit
worried, though. I have done some research on the place you're
staying at, and it seems that their rules of personal conduct are a
bit lax, to say the least. Keep an eye on him, and don't forget your
promise!

Love
Sakura

A/N:

kanazerosukenaru:
Thanks for your review! Yes, Naruto is jealous, but he knows where to
remain silent about it. He does not want Sasuke to fail, and
beginning an argument with him would mean failure.

Sneakyfox:
Thanks again for your review! Naruto is not that bad with kids, but
Sasuke has not included him into his planning... I am glad that you
think that it makes sense; I feared that I would get a lot of angry
reviews after this chapter, just as after the chapter where Naruto is
told to follow.
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