"I'll see you as my son when you catch up with my prodigy son." Fugaku, head of the Uchiha clan, said to a bowing Sasuke.
Fugaku was also the leader of the Konoha Military Police Force, and naturally, he saw and heard whenever someone wanted to join them. When Fugaku overheard everyone gossiping about Sasuke wanting to participate, he thought he was going senile early in life.
Sasuke made it clear years ago, at the age of 5, that he didn't want to join the Konoha Military Police Force. Sasuke was there when Konoha realized their mistake of isolating his clan and allowing them to exist within the village as proper civilians. He saw how the police were expected to work twice as efficiently to keep the village.
Fugaku didn't understand why Sasuke would sacrifice his childhood to join his team. He had trouble expressing himself, but even so, he knew Sasuke wouldn't change his mind easily. It took his wife, Mikoto, a former jonin of the village, months to even convince Sasuke to join the Ninja Academy.
All because she remembered that horrifying night years ago. If Sasuke had to defend himself, she wanted him to survive whatever came his way.
Fugaku was a strict man and didn't expect much from Sasuke. He thought Sasuke would've failed and returned home as quickly as he enrolled. He was wrong but he didn't see much progress at all.
So when he saw Sasuke enter the room to try to become a police officer, he told his son three words as encouragement;
"Don't disappoint me."
Sasuke did his best to surpass his father's expectations. He tried with everything he had.
Fugaku simply didn't see any potential in Sasuke as a shinobi. He tried to see the progress for himself for years, but now that Sasuke was 12, almost 13, he thought of Sasuke as a disappointment. He had nothing more to teach him.
"Please..." Sasuke placed his forehead on the cold floor. "Please, father."
"Leave before I call for backup to escort you home." Fugaku sat down and frowned as Sasuke tried to apologize. He didn't want to speak to Sasuke. He was expecting two strong sons and now, he had only had one.
"I'll try harder." Sasuke pleaded.
"Go home, Sasuke." Fugaku looked away from his son, who looked up with denial laced across his expression.
Sasuke tried for years to appease his father. Because his mother was worried about work complications, he avoided the police force. He hated how much work was thrown at the police and the village because of the White Fang's son, Kakashi, and the Fourth Hokage's legacy. Both men gave the village a good reputation and Sasuke knew he wouldn't be able to sleep for days if he joined.
He only wanted to so his father could praise him.
He couldn't even earn that right.
"I'm sorry for disappointing you, father. I bet you wish I was in Shinsui's place, right?" Sasuke stood to his feet and grabbed his sword, hating how heavy it felt.
He used to love how heavy it felt. He could slash whatever he wanted.
Now it felt like a burden in his hand. It meant nothing anymore.
"Putting words in my mouth disappoints me more. I never said that. All I want for you to do is go home. I'll discuss this with you later." Fugaku said, shifting his hard gaze at Sasuke.
"Yes, sir." Sasuke quietly left and closed the door behind himself.
He walked for a while before coming across a missing kid's poster for the Fourth's lost baby. The kid, allegedly named Naruto, survived the Nine-Tailed attack and disappeared into thin air while his parents were recovering in the hospital.
Sasuke never thought about Naruto as anything crucial to think about. Everyone thought it was a good thing the baby was gone. The Fourth scolded more than his fair share of people to defend his lost son's honor.
Sasuke didn't agree or disagree with anyone. He was a baby when the attack happened and Itachi protected him. All Sasuke knew was that Naruto had found his destiny that night. The kidnapper left those words to the Fourth as a parting gift.
"It is guaranteed that destiny will grant Naruto something that you deem appropriate. Keep all eyes open and all ears alert. I did what I had to do." The letter said.
Sasuke joked that someone had kidnapped Naruto to save him. Everyone, including the Fourth, strongly disagreed with Sasuke.
No one believed a kid. Moreover, a kid who didn't consider the fact that no one knew that Kushina was pregnant except for a few trusted individuals.
A logical reason but Sasuke didn't argue about it anymore.
Even so, Sasuke had nothing left to cling to in Konoha. He wanted to know how to get stronger for his father, and just hearing how he was Itachi's shadow was adding fuel to the fire.
"I'm so tired." Sasuke mumbled as he grabbed the missing kid's poster.
He went home quietly and packed two bags so he could carry his stuff effortlessly. He made sure to pack food, water, a medical kit, scrolls, defense weapons, clothes and shoes. He grunted as he struggled to close his second bag.
Suddenly, Itachi appeared with two people next to him. Sasuke's eyes widened when he saw his mom and Lord Fourth in his room.
"I can explain!" Sasuke shot up and tried to pretend he wasn't trying to pack his stuff in bags.
Mikoto ran into her son's arms and sighed, rubbing his back. "It's okay, Sasuke."
Sasuke hesitantly hugged his mom back. "Why?"
"I want you to know that I'll be here. It'll be okay. I understand what you're doing." She muttered.
"How did you know?"
"Itachi and I," Lord Fourth gestured to both of them, "saw you staring at my son's poster. I figured you were planning on leaving."
"I'm not abandoning the village. I just want to run away." Sasuke said.
"I know," Lord Fourth handed Sasuke a headband different from the one Sasuke wore. "That's why I'm giving you this. I didn't want you to run away without being able to return home."
Sasuke grabbed the headband from Lord Fourth. "Thank you, sir."
"Just so you know," Itachi kneeled beside Mikoto, "if you need me, just find one of my crows. I'll have them scattered in every nation for you. I'll be there."
Sasuke didn't want to admit that the last thing he wanted was to be saved by his father's prodigy son. He wished to do everything on his own. But he held his words inside and nodded. "Okay, I will."
"Still... Are you sure you don't want to wait until after the jonin exams?" Lord Fourth asked.
"I didn't even want to be a ninja in the first place." Sasuke admitted. "Being a jonin wouldn't do me any justice besides impressing my father."
"Then if you ever want to become one, tell me. I'll make sure you take the chunin exams again."
"Thank you, Lord Fourth."
Mikoto eventually let her son go and watched him walk out of the room with his bags. Itachi followed him to the gate and poked Sasuke on the forehead.
"You might hate me for being our father's favorite, but you will always be my favorite brother. Hatred will never erase our bond." Itachi said.
"I don't hate you." Sasuke put the headband on. "I only dislike how your strength puts me in your shadow."
"I'm sorry for not noticing sooner." Itachi ruffled Sasuke's hair. "Be safe out there."
"You as well." Sasuke turned away from his brother and walked out of the village feeling the urge to cry. He didn't want to leave or stay. He felt like no matter where he went, his heart would always hurt.
He didn't know what he wanted. He just wanted to find his destiny.
He wanted a place in the world.
| Ten hours later |
Sasuke felt regretful for leaving. He didn't want to venture any further into the unknown.
He was about to turn around when he met face-to-face with a strange man. The man looked young, snake-like, and grinned as if he found what he was looking for.
"Looking for someone in particular?" The man asked. "Do you need help finding them?"
"I'm not looking for anyone." Sasuke took out his sword, thinking a kunai wouldn't be enough to defend himself against the stranger.
"Seeing how you're running away... I think you're in search of someone or something. Depending on what I can guess, you're a young Uchiha looking for either power or me. I'm a wanted man, I admit. Though, you look too inexperienced to arrest me." The man said without missing a beat in his analysis.
"I'm looking for power." Sasuke said. He didn't put his sword away. Just in case this was a trap.
"Ah, I got it right. I was wondering if you were a diamond in the rough or among the same."
Sasuke didn't seem fazed at the man's words. "Who are you?"
"Orochimaru." The man said, his eyes watching as the missing kid's poster fell out of Sasuke's pocket. "How about you?"
"Sasuke."
"Would you like to come with me, Sasuke? I can help you become stronger than you ever wanted." Orochimaru offered.
"I'll think about it... What's the exchange for your kindness?"
"I believe you will find out when we get there."
Sasuke pondered for a bit. Orochimaru looked frail now that he was less on guard and seemed as if he was on the verge of dying.
What could a dying man do?
Feeling naive, yet helpless with his options, Sasuke nodded. "Alright. For now, I'll come with you and then I'll give you my answer."
"Wonderful. I'll take us there." Orochimaru made a few hand signs and in a matter of seconds, Sasuke was surrounded by fire.
By the time he blinked, he was inside of a dark hideout. Orochimaru turned on the lights and sighed, turning to face Sasuke.
"This is an underground hideout and it's miles away from Konoha. I assure you that no one here will start a fight until you initiate it."
"How many people are here?" Sasuke asked, following Orochimaru to a random room.
"A few." Orochimaru stopped at the door while Sasuke walked all the way inside. "This will be your room. Feel free to meet me at the end of the hall to see the experiments."
"Experiments?"
"I specialize in exploring knowledge and forbidden jutsu." Orochimaru said matter-of-factly. "I also desire to expand my life into immortality, but that's another story for another day."
Sasuke didn't seem to be interested in the details anyway. "Thanks."
"I don't want gratitude. I believe you will find my end of the deal difficult to swallow in terms of harsh reality."
"Is it murder?"
"Absolutely not."
"Then what is it?"
"You'll see." Orochimaru closed the door and left Sasuke alone in his new room.
"What power does he have anyway?" Sasuke thought to himself as he pushed his stuff under the bed in the meantime. In any case, it didn't seem like they were going to be well hidden anyway, so he didn't plan to hide them. He just wanted to put his bags somewhere for now.
Maybe one day, he would run away from here too.
| Two Hours Later |
Sasuke had unintentionally fallen asleep. He was woken up by the sound of someone shouting somewhere far away. He almost ignored it, but the second time he heard it, he decided to investigate.
Orochimaru did give him permission to wander in that specific location anyway. He was just, coincidentally, doing so while someone was shouting at the top of their lungs.
"It hurts!" A blonde kid shouted as he hit the floor. He had an orange cloak around him as Orochimaru was performing hand signs behind him. "My skin... My face... It hurts!"
Sasuke clapped a hand over his mouth seeing the sight before him. He instantly recognized the face because no one else in the world had whiskers on theirs.
"Why is the Fourth's son here?" Sasuke looked at Orochimaru who waited for Kabuto to hold Naruto's arms back to tighten the seal on the boy's stomach.
Orochimaru fell to his knees in exhaustion and coughed out blood, signaling Kabuto to take Naruto somewhere else. "Sasuke... You have seen it for yourself."
"Yeah, he's the vessel for the demon. What else is there to understand?" Sasuke kept his distance from Orochimaru.
"He's a target for something huge, Sasuke. No one in the village believed me. I took measures into my own hands while his parents recovered. I left them a note." Orochimaru dragged himself into a chair, heaving a tired sigh. "Knowing the Hidden Leaf, they probably think I pulled their leg and left a prank instead."
"Why would you think that?"
"They never think much and point fingers. Lord Third even told me how Naruto wouldn't be safe in the Leaf Village."
"You talked to him?" Sasuke was surprised. Lord Third never mentioned communicating with Orochimaru.
Then again, Sasuke wasn't a part of anything important to obtain that information.
"He was my sensei years ago so of course I spoke to him. He told me minimum information, but it was enough to tell me that Naruto was in danger if I left him in the village."
"You should've said it in a more straightforward way, weirdo." Sasuke inwardly sighed in relief that Naruto wasn't kidnapped for evil reasons.
It was just that a snake couldn't be bothered to explain the truth better to the Fourth Hokage. He made everyone get both sad and relieved at the same time.
Who knew Orochimaru was going to end up being a hero and a villain simultaneously?
"Anyway, Naruto is having trouble concealing the Nine-Tailed beast. He nearly lost himself when I told him that you were here." Orochimaru took something out of his pocket and took a sip of it. Medicine.
Something Sasuke saw in Itachi's room once before Itachi started to hide it from him. He never thought he would consider Itachi to be sick until now.
"What did you tell him?" Sasuke asked, feeling as if there were eyes staring at him.
"Konoha is ready to kill him so the village can be safe. That's what I told him."
"Why did you lie to him?"
"Lie?" Orochimaru laughed. "I just told you that he was going to be in danger."
"No, you said he was a target. You never said anything about the village."
"That boy has more than enough enemies as he is now. Imagine the years he would've suffered through if he stayed in the village."
"You should've told Minato."
"Minato is like an enemy magnet. Lord Third would've been hurt to see Naruto constantly held captive. I, on the other hand, never made Naruto stay here. I told him he could leave as soon as he learned how to use a kunai at age 3."
"Why didn't he leave?"
"Because he saw the village and heard how hateful everyone was of him. He stayed with me to be safe."
"In return for what?"
"He lets me talk to Kurama whenever I feel like it. I need that beast's knowledge from the wars he was forced into. It'll help me with research."
Sasuke didn't seem shocked or fazed that people would weaponize a Kyuubi in war. The world was as cruel as everyone expected.
"Is he sick?" Sasuke asked, remembering the state the boy was in. "I saw... Um..."
"Oh, the tubes. He's suffering from an illness. It's not fatal but it's costing him his ability to feel normal. He can't fight outside and he hates feeling restricted." Orochimaru slouched in his seat. "I told him to adventure into the world, but knowing that boy, he couldn't shake his fear of being found by Konoha."
"I see..." Sasuke mused.
"Believe it or not, a smile comes across his face these days."
"How can someone with tubes attached to him smile so easily?" Sasuke pondered.
"Can I talk to him?" Sasuke wasn't the kind of person to initiate a conversation with a stranger.
However, Naruto struck his curiosity.
And he had to admit... Sasuke found his features unique, especially those distinct whiskers of his.
"Sure, but... Naruto has a tendency to withdraw from strangers. It took Kabuto weeks just to earn his trust all over again." Orochimaru rolled his neck and Sasuke saw scratch marks on his skin. "His rage mode has consequences also."
"Is anyone else able to resolve this?"
"Jiraiya is an old friend of mine. He comes wearing a headband similar to yours. He delivers the necklaces that Tsunade wears so Naruto can control himself better."
"That's all?"
"I can't risk Konoha taking Naruto back and blaming me when they can't fight against the Akatsuki or his rage mode. I'm planning on telling them soon. Don't worry." Orochimaru looked over to see Naruto nervously looking from behind Kabuto on the other side of the room. "I believe Naruto wants to see you too."
Sasuke glanced in Naruto's direction. "Minato isn't weak and neither is his wife."
"I never said that." Orochimaru stood up slowly, holding onto the chair for support. "But the Akatsuki aren't afraid to team up to get their hands on power."
"So... What? We let Naruto hide behind these walls?"
"Naruto is his own person. If he isn't ready, don't pressure him. He's going to be brave on his own terms." Orochimaru walked away, waving Kabuto over to follow him.
Once Kabuto and Orochimaru left, Sasuke slowly approached Naruto, who ducked behind a capsule with a mysterious liquid inside of it. He trembled as Sasuke stood a few feet away from him.
"I'm Sasuke Uchiha." Sasuke held his hand out to Naruto. "I'm sorry for scaring you. I ran away from the village and I'm new here."
"Are you here to kill me?" Naruto stuttered.
"That wouldn't make me any better than a murderer, right?"
"But... Those people said I'm a demon."
Sasuke scoffed. "And they say I'm Itachi's brother. Not Sasuke. His brother. They fear and shun everything they see."
Naruto's eyes looked at Sasuke's hand. "How strong are you?"
The question caught Sasuke offguard. "Uh... I'm average in strength, I suppose. I can fight alone in C-ranked missions."
"That's so cool..." Naruto sounded unsure, as if he didn't want to express his excitement.
Sasuke decided to think of something to relax Naruto's nervousness. "What jutsu is your favorite?"
Naruto blinked. He cocked his head in thought. "Um... The Shadow Clone jutsu seemed cool."
"Do you want to try it?"
"Orochimaru said it might not work how I expected it to."
Having grown aware of the ears listening to their conversation, Sasuke said, "I bet he's the type to get paranoid if his experiments don't work." He joked.
"I'm not an experiment." Naruto slowly approached Sasuke's hand, reluctantly shaking. "So... Will you help me with the jutsu?"
Sasuke nodded. "Yeah, I will."
Naruto finally expressed a tiny bit of excitement by smiling a little. "Thanks."
"I guess I could train under Orochimaru for a while." Sasuke thought to himself.
| Weeks Later |
"Sasuke...?" Naruto peeked his head into Sasuke's room. "Are you asleep?"
Sasuke didn't know what to do. This was the first time Naruto came to him instead of the other way around. He slowly sat up and nodded, wondering if Konoha had already found him.
He knew Naruto wouldn't forgive him if Konoha found Orochimaru's hideout. He was stern on not going anywhere near the village.
As if interrupting Sasuke's sleep, he whispered, "Should I leave?".
Sasuke shook his head.
"Can..." Naruto looked away nervously, "Can I sleep next to you? Orochimaru and Kabuto went to Konoha and I'm scared."
Sasuke didn't seem surprised that the two of them left so late at night. Orochimaru wasn't the type to wait around when he found another body to use. He kept moving as if the world would end any second.
"Sure." Sasuke moved closer to the wall so Naruto could squeeze in behind him.
Either Naruto was running a fever or Sasuke underestimated the summer weather that night.
Sasuke didn't move a muscle, but made a mental note to tell Orochimaru that Naruto was running a fever. It seemed Naruto needed more medicine.
| The Next Day |
"Good news and bad news." Orochimaru said as Sasuke ate his breakfast.
"Not while I'm eating, Orochimaru." Sasuke complained.
"It's not that bad, Sasuke."
"You said that last time and I ended up traveling miles away to find food."
Orochimaru pointed to Kabuto across the room. "He went with you."
"He left minutes later because they had a sale on glasses."
"Fine, I promise it doesn't involve traveling."
Sasuke sighed, taking another bite of his breakfast. "Tell me the good news first."
"Minato isn't pressing charges on me."
"And the bad news?"
"He's visiting tomorrow."
A loud bang echoed throughout the room. Naruto had pushed his chair back so far that he ended up falling to the floor. Kabuto rushed to Naruto's side as the blonde struggled to get his words out.
"Great, now you done it." Sasuke stopped eating. He couldn't believe he had to face Lord Fourth again.
"I'm not supposed to defy the Hokage." Orochimaru shrugged. "Besides, he promised to be gentle with Naruto."
"And what will the Akatsuki do? Knock on your door to politely ask for Naruto?" Sasuke asked sarcastically, knowing that the Akatsuki would be merciless in their plans.
He had seen what they could do up close. It seemed so unreal that Sasuke almost regretted leaving the hideout in the first place. Luckily, he wasn't spotted but he wished he stayed hidden.
"Come on, Sasuke," Orochimaru stood up. "Minato is coming here in disguise. It'll be fine... In more ways than one."
"You're making things worse."
"I'm only telling the truth."
Sasuke stood up, groaning. "I'll going to train for a while. Don't interrupt me."
As Sasuke walked away, Orochimaru said, "and brood while you're at it."
"I'll do whatever I want!"
Sasuke did, in fact, brood. He was terrified that Naruto would end up in the Akatsuki's hands. Naruto was doing so well with training that a single person could mess it all up.
He was just accomplishing his Shadow Clones and defense training. Naruto was so close to being able to fight D-ranked-level missions one day. Sasuke wanted to help Naruto until he had to leave.
Leaving without a memory for Naruto to remember him by was cruel to Sasuke.
| The Next Day |
Minato came in disguise as promised. Sasuke cautiously spoke to him and eventually helped Naruto approach him. Minato nearly broke down seeing his son in the flesh.
Naruto was clinging to Sasuke as he tried to keep calm. He spoke to Minato for a few minutes with Sasuke beside him before zoning into the conversation. Sasuke left without Naruto noticing and stood behind a wall, making sure to leave his shoulder in view.
Naruto was doing alright. Sasuke didn't need to worry.
Especially not because Naruto insisted on having his tubes removed. Of course not.
Anything could happen to Naruto at any second. Sasuke was calm. His Sharingan wasn't activated to keep an eye on Naruto's chakra.
He was... scared.
He cared about Naruto and didn't want him to get worse. Even if his illness wasn't fatal.
| Later That Night |
"My mom's coming tomorrow," Naruto said, appearing next to Sasuke.
Sasuke nodded and grinned at Naruto. "I'm happy for you."
"It's all thanks to you!" Naruto hugged Sasuke tightly before rushing off to get his tubes done again.
Sasuke stood there motionless. That was their first hug.
And Sasuke didn't know why his cheeks burned from that hug.
| The Next Day |
While Naruto spoke to his mom alone, Sasuke ventured outside to find his brother's crow. He attached a letter to it and walked back inside the hideout minutes later.
It had almost been an hour since Sasuke left and Naruto was being cradled by Kushina. Sasuke didn't intervene since Naruto hugged her back.
It was only after he returned to his room that he was able to fall asleep. He wasn't tired, just too bothered to do anything else.
However, his nap was interrupted by Naruto, who climbed into his bed hours later. Sounding a bit too cheerful.
"Sasuke, I think my parents will visit more often. They said once a week should work with their schedule."
Sasuke hummed and rolled over. "Congratulations."
Naruto stiffened. "Are you upset?"
Sasuke rolled over to face Naruto again and accidentally flopped over him. It was too late to move now. Sasuke was too tired to try. "No... I'm not upset. I'm just sleepy. I promise."
Naruto relaxed. "Okay, I was wondering why you sounded disinterested."
"Yeah, I'm just sleepy." Sasuke let Naruto hold him as they slept.
He didn't mind the friendship they developed. It felt nice.
It felt like a good type of new.
| Years Later |
Whatever happened to that shy, distant Naruto? Because Sasuke could barely breathe trying to keep up with him.
Naruto wanted to run miles into the grass after fighting ten ninjas together. He still had tubes but they were connected to a small device on his hip.
Sasuke didn't know how much his 21-year-old body could take. He might collapse at this rate.
He definitely ran out of chakra the second he started running. He couldn't move a muscle.
"Sasuke, I can see another passageway!" Naruto practically bounced on his feet to run farther. He almost ran a head of Sasuke.
Luckily, Sasuke had enough sense to call for a break and flopped on top of the soft grass. He listened as Naruto laid down beside him and sighed.
"You're an old man." Naruto muttered.
"Shut up. You just have too much energy, Naruto." Sasuke panted.
Naruto laughed loudly. Sasuke didn't know what was funny. He didn't say anything funny.
"You look like a tomato, Sasuke!" Naruto pointed at Sasuke's face.
"Back at you." Sasuke turned his face to the side.
Sasuke didn't want to admit Naruto looked cute right then. He was already too deep to say anything about their bond.
But Naruto had other plans.
He turned Naruto's face towards him. Sasuke almost jolted from how close their faces were. "What?" Sasuke said without thinking.
"Orochimaru lied," Naruto mumbled. "I'm dying soon. My illness got worse."
"Oh..." Sasuke's heart broke. He didn't expect that.
He thought Naruto was getting better all that time.
"And I want to kiss you before I die."
Sasuke didn't object. After all, he has feelings for Naruto too.
"Before you do, why me?" Sasuke asked.
"Because you asked me what I liked when we met. I knew it was going to be special because no one knew at the time what I liked. You asked and I liked that you did."
"It was a conversation starter."
"A special one."
Sasuke almost rolled his eyes but he didn't. He only closed them. "I guess this will be special too."
Naruto scoffed. "Yeah, I guess so."
Sasuke's heart jumped when Naruto kissed him. As a way of showing Naruto how much he cared about him, Sasuke led the kiss in an effort to show him how much he loved him.
Even with Naruto on the grass beneath the sun, Sasuke couldn't get enough of the memory of him. He was going to lose him.
And there was no way to stop it.
| A Few Weeks Later |
"Naruto, we might have to change locations again," Orochimaru said, gesturing to the tied-up shinobi by the destroyed entrance of the hideout.
Because Minato was visiting so often, the Akatsuki kept finding Naruto and refused to stop coming after him. Even Sasuke had to develop a new jutsu to protect Naruto at night. The Susanoo wasn't meant for bodyguard situations, but with Naruto's life at stake, Sasuke didn't have a choice.
And moving locations wouldn't stop the attacks either. It would just delay them for a few days.
"No!" Naruto slammed his palms on the table, shaking the beakers and tubes on top of it. "We have been through fifty hideouts and you never found a way to keep us hidden!"
"We don't have a choice, Naruto. They're aiming to use your illness to gain power. Minato has already sent the ANBU to the next location. We just have to arrive there by the end of the week." Orochimaru said, unfazed by Naruto's shouting and declining of the news.
"This isn't fair!" Naruto repeatedly hit the table as if to punish the furniture for his frustration. He cried as he ignored his coughing.
Kabuto was standing a few feet away with the medicine already in his hand, waiting for Naruto to calm down and give it to him. Naruto, however, did not show signs of calming down.
Sasuke knew talking to him wouldn't work. Naruto nearly became hysterical last time and said things that still stung Sasuke's heart to this day.
"You never had to move because of your position in the social class! Don't pretend that you know what I'm living through! You're just someone running away from his problems and acting as if he wants to be near me! You don't! Because you know that a demon won't survive long as your friend! We might as well stop being friends to survive!" Naruto screamed weeks ago.
Ironically, they had been enjoying the early stages of the relationship when Naruto heard the news. Sasuke, even when Naruto shouted, didn't say anything that wasn't comforting.
He didn't want to say anything that wasn't comfort. Naruto was hurting and it felt selfish to pity him.
Sasuke never wished Naruto's life on anyone. Not even his worst enemies.
Not even his own father.
Despite their on-and-off reconciliation throughout the years.
"You can't fight thousands of shinobi at once, Naruto," Orochimaru said, watching as Naruto started to pace beside the table. "It's not ideal to attempt it."
"I wouldn't have to try if I was normal!" Naruto grabbed his shirt where his heart was, presumably causing him more pain than Sasuke could imagine, and pointed at the Uchiha with rage in his eyes. "I wish I had it easy like him! I wish I could blend into a world without being hated on!"
Sasuke still didn't say anything. He remained silent. His facial expression didn't change.
However, his heart broke even more when he saw the blood stain Naruto's shirt. His wounds opened again. Naruto strained himself too much that day.
"Sasuke is an Uchiha. People want to use his eyes for evil and you think he's calm about his life." Orochimaru sighed. "You should know better than to consider that."
"I don't want to leave, okay?! He's...!" Naruto's hyperventilation must've reached its limit as he slumped forward. Sasuke caught Naruto just in time and hugged his boyfriend.
"I'm sorry..." Sasuke muttered.
"How about it, Sasuke? Do you think it's time?" Orochimaru asked, fixing his table back to the way it was.
"I still think it won't work."
"You agreed to the deal when you first came here."
"Accepting Kurama to give Naruto a normal life feels painful to live through. I'm not even allowed to go near him once it happens." Sasuke helped Kabuto put Naruto in the nearest chair, watching as Naruto sat motionless with his eyebrows furrowed.
"He's going to die whether you say yes or no. This is just to put Kurama somewhere so he doesn't fall into the Akatsuki's hands."
Sasuke didn't want to agree right away. He decided to be selfish and wait a few days before Naruto had to die. Naruto wanted to spend his last days with Sasuke anyway.
It was just going to be hard to walk away from Naruto to protect the village. Sasuke didn't want to admit it...
But he was scared to stay alive.
He was going to outlive Naruto.
| A Few Weeks Later |
Naruto almost suffocated Sasuke when the two tried to part ways. Sasuke had the Kyuubi's chakra inside of him and Naruto was safe to spend his last days with his parents and new friends.
Sasuke didn't want to return to the village and see Naruto's grave. He wasn't ready to do it.
He was beyond prepared to part ways.
But he had to. He agreed to do this.
"I'll miss you, Sasuke." Naruto kissed Sasuke for a long time and cried.
Sasuke cried too. "I'm going to miss you for the rest of my life, Naruto."
"Thank you for being my friend, Sasuke." Naruto gave Sasuke his necklace, smiling sadly. "Try not to cry too hard at my grave. I want ramen cups as a parting gift to the afterlife... Just like old times."
Sasuke nodded. "I will... I promise... I will always do it for you."
Naruto awkwardly poked Sasuke's forehead, trying to mimic Itachi's gesture of affection. "I love you, Sasuke."
Sasuke was surprised that Naruto did that and cried harder. He didn't know Naruto paid attention to that.
He felt worse for saying goodbye.
Sasuke poked Naruto's forehead in return. "I love you more, Naruto."
Minutes later, Naruto left with his parents to live his final days in the village miles away from Sasuke. Naruto smiled on his way out while Sasuke sobbed loudly.
Naruto wasn't only going to be miles away from him, he was going to be a million miles away from him.
More miles than they spent together when Naruto was alive.
"You were my destiny, Naruto. Thank you for making me stronger." Sasuke fell to his knees. "Thank you for finding me when I needed you the most all those years ago."