Self Regained
folder
Naruto › Yaoi - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult +
Chapters:
2
Views:
1,049
Reviews:
3
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Category:
Naruto › Yaoi - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult +
Chapters:
2
Views:
1,049
Reviews:
3
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
I do not own Naruto, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
A Swim with Confusion
Chapter 2 "A Swim with Confusion"
Pairing: Eventually SasuNaru
Warning: None (yet...will reach NC-17 at some point)
Summary: After healing the majority of Sasuke's wounds, Naruto and the Uchiha heir are now regaining their energies before heading out for Konoha again. Why won't Sasuke answer any of Naruto's questions?...and why is he acting so...strangely?
***_***_***_***
Thanks to Inuzuka for the review!! You're right...this is a slow development, but hopefully my characterizations will be more believable as the chapters come out. Dialogue will also get more involved as soon as things start moving. Thanks again! I love the constructive criticism!!
And now on to the next chapter~!
***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_
A shuffling noise filled his ears, dragging him from his cramped, but semi-peaceful slumber. Opening groggy blue eyes, he looked around the cave, blinking rapidly a few times to clear his vision. What was that--
“Oi, teme, you shouldn’t try to sit up ye-- Are you listening to me?! I said--”
“…Dobe…”
“--to stop trying to get up. Oh yes, walking is an even better idea--”
“…Dobe…”
“Why don’t we just spar right here. That’ll be even better for tho--”
“…Dobe.”
“--What?!” Naruto fumed as he stood up, cracking his stiff back in the process and refraining from leaping over the pile of ash and burnt wood in front of him and throttle Sasuke. The idiot was now standing, a little hunched over, but standing and moving across the cave. After all the work Naruto had done for him and the ungrateful bastard was going to ruin it all by falling out of the cave.
“Shut up for a minute.”
All ideas of refraining from leaping the dead fire fled his mind as his legs carried him to stand before the Uchiha. He clenched his jaw and fisted his hand into the robe that Sasuke had pulled over himself, “Do you have any idea what I went through last night?! And you tell me to shut up?!”
Sasuke stood before him, face blank and emotionless as he listened to Naruto ramble on. The blond kept rattling on about healing jutsus and bushes and really Sasuke could care less at the moment. He brought a bandaged hand up to Naruto’s fisted one and pried it from his robe, “Move.”
Naruto blinked, “Wha-- why? You can’t leave…not in that condition.”
And Sasuke once again had to listen to Naruto go on about Sakura and Tsunade and his awesome and amazing memorization skills and he really could care less at the moment. He stepped passed Naruto and began to slowly make his way to the cave entrance, eyes squinting slightly in the brilliant sunlight.
The demon-holder’s jaw dropped as his ‘patient’ glided past him, “Oi! I told you, you can’t leave! Where the hell do you think you’re going?!”
“Outside.”
The blond fumed, cheeks flushing red and eyes narrowing, as he watched Sasuke leap slowly and somehow gracefully down the various overhangs to the ground. He followed, hands fisted in anger as he caught up to the raven-haired ninja and stood in front of him, halting his walk.
“You can’t leave,” he bit out.
“I’m not.”
“Because I sa-- wait…you’re not?”
“No.”
“Then…where are you going?” Now Naruto was really confused. Did Sasuke want food or something because there was some in the cave that Naruto could reheat…
“To the bathroom.”
The blond blinked. And then blinked again, “Oh! I thought…well…ok…uh…you remember where the cave is, right?”
Sasuke merely walked past him leaving the question unanswered. Naruto frowned, but shrugged it off. At least the teme was acting a little more like his old self, right? Right.
He made his way back to the cave and leapt up the overhangs, knocking a few rocks off in the process and listening as they crumbled to the ground. He stood outside the cave and wondered how far Sasuke was going to go and then wrinkled his nose. He didn’t care how far Sasuke went so long as he came back in the end. If Naruto had to chase his ass one more time he was pretty certain he’d beat the Uchiha to a bloody pulp and lock him in a cage in the deepest part of Konoha.
A loud gurgling noise coming from his stomach brought him from his thoughts and he happily strode over to his sack and pulled out two cups of ramen and set about starting another fire and boiling more water for breakfast.
***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_
When the Uchiha heir returned, his senses were immediately attacked by the strong aroma of prepackaged ramen noodles. His right eye twitched slightly and he forced back the urge to roll his eyes. Some things really didn’t change with time.
He walked into the cave, ignoring the momentary shock that showed itself on Naruto’s features as he sat down across from the blond and grabbed his ramen cup. He looked down at it and broke open his chopsticks to eat.
After a few minutes of feeling Naruto’s eyes on him, he looked up in irritation though his face betrayed nothing, “What?”
Naruto swallowed his mouthful of noodles and smiled broadly, “Nothin’…just feels like old times, ne?”
Sasuke did roll his eyes this time as he returned to his ramen and finished it off. He set down the empty cup and leaned back slightly, controlling a wince as the movement pulls uncomfortably at a wound.
“…Oi, Teme…why did you…help me after our fight?”
The raven-haired boy glanced up, face devoid of emotion as he responded to the quiet question, “Did you want to die out there?”
Naruto huffed, “No. That still doesn’t answer my question though.”
Sasuke shrugged, “Does it matter now?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Naruto paused and tilted his head as he thought on that, “I…don’t know, but it does. I want to know why you would do something like that after you tried to kill me.”
Sasuke quirked an eyebrow, “You wouldn’t have died from that wound. Kyuubi wouldn’t have allowed it.”
The blond bit his lower lip and looked at the fire, “You still haven’t answered my question.” It was still a little strange that everyone knew his secret.
“I don’t intend to.”
Naruto threw his hands up in exasperation, “Why the hell not?! It’s a simple question, just answer it damn it!”
“Why did you bring me here?”
“Because you would have died! I’ve been chasing you around for the past five years, do you honestly think I’d just leave you to die?!” Naruto shouted, his patience was wearing thin after everything he’d been put through for the Uchiha sitting before him.
And for the first time in five years, Uchiha Sasuke smirked that old, confident and cocky smirk, “You really are a dobe.”
…and Naruto exploded into a rant about an ungrateful bastard that, once healed, was going to get the shit beat out of him for his ungratefulness.
***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_
Another day passed with the two staying in the cave. Sasuke, while healing quickly, was not quite strong enough to make the two day trek back to Konoha. He could manage on his own for short distances, but Naruto doubted the Uchiha could survive anything longer than a five hour walk. In fact, Naruto refused to even let him consider it. Of course, he didn’t tell Sasuke that the other reason he didn’t want to head back so soon was because Tsunade’s anger would still be pretty fresh and he really didn’t want to end up in the hospital after meeting with her again.
Naruto stood up, scratching his now full belly as he set aside his plate. He popped his shoulders and let out a sigh of pleasure when the tension eased up a little. Sleeping on a cave floor was not exactly the most comfortable thing, but the bastard was still injured so he needed the sleeping mat more than Naruto did.
Stretching a few more muscles, Naruto rubbed the back of his neck and then curled his lip slightly in disgust. He felt…sticky and gross. Too sticky and gross. Which was probably because he hadn’t showered in about three days now. Maybe longer…did they give him a bath at the hospital? Hm…
“Oi, Sasuke-bastard. I’m heading to the lake. Don’t do anything stupid,” Naruto said to the other boy. Sasuke rolled his eyes, not even replying to such a retarded remark as he watched the boy grab up a change of clothes and leap out of the cave.
A bath did sound good right now. Sasuke looked down at himself and then stood up. He did need a bath and it would be the perfect excuse to--
A slightly predatory smirk graced his lips as he stood up from his spot by the fire and headed out of the cave to follow Naruto’s trail.
***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_
“Ah~,” Naruto sighed as he sunk into the cool lake water. It was summer, so the lake wasn’t freezing cold, but it wasn’t too hot either. It was perfect. Damn near heavenly.
He dove under the water, clad only in his boxers, and resurfaced near a rock with a shake of his head. His blond locks slapped against his face as water droplets dripped down his cheeks and neck in their journey south.
“You still haven’t learned to be quiet, have you?”
Naruto jumped at the calm voice coming from behind him. He turned quickly, eyes wide as they took in Sasuke’s bandaged form sitting on the rock. The Uchiha was clad only in his black pants, robe and rope left behind in the cave and was currently sitting back on the rock near Naruto. A smug smirk lifted his lips at one corner as he looked down at the blond.
“T-teme! Don’t do that!” Naruto barked as he let out a breath. That bastard had scared the piss out of him. He hadn’t even felt him following him.
You’d think that would worry you more.
Shut it, fox. Sasuke won’t do anything. He won’t kill me.
Hn. You really are naïve.
“Talking to yourself now, Dobe?” The amusement in the Uchiha’s voice pulled at Naruto’s nerves and he grit his teeth, “No. Kyuubi just thinks you’re going to try and kill me.”
For a moment something flashed across Sasuke’s eyes. Something Naruto could not quite make out, which was truly confusing and frustrating since it was one of the first signs of emotion the Uchiha had shown.
“I won’t kill you,” came the short reply. It was cold and hard, but Naruto could tell it was the truth.
“Yeah yeah, you better not! I’d haunt your ass in the afterlife,” Naruto said with a smirk of his own.
And when Naruto blinked, Sasuke was no longer on the rock, “Sa--”
“You really are slow, dobe,” the deep voice was nearly a purr next to Naruto’s ear as he quickly twisted himself around in the water. Sasuke was right behind him, smug smirk in place and something dark behind his already dark eyes.
“T-teme. What the hell is your problem?!” the blond shouted as he backed up a little. He tried to tell his body to stop being stupid and retreating, but it wasn’t listening…there was something about Sasuke that was telling it to move.
Sasuke barely tread the water, somehow managing to stay afloat as he looked directly at Naruto, “Why have you been chasing me for so long?”
The Kyuubi-holder blinked, “Huh?”
Sasuke inched forward, decreasing the distance between them as Naruto’s back found the rock, “You heard me.”
“W-what the hell? I made a promise, teme. I don’t go back on them! That’s my--”
“Ninja way. I know. Why did you make a promise like that?”
“I- Because I…did. What the hell does it matter anyway?” Naruto asked, his voice coming out a little shaky as his eyes stayed glued to the Uchiha’s approaching form. Why was he getting so damn close? Maybe he was feverish! Naruto groaned inwardly, maybe his healing jutsus weren’t as good as he’d thought and the Uchiha was suffering from brain damage!
‘Great I probably burnt a few pieces of his brain-’
“Naruto. Did you really only chase after me because of that promise?” Sasuke whispered, his eyes still locked on to Naruto’s.
The blond blinked and when he re-opened his eyes, Sasuke was mere inches away. He could see the raven-haired Uchiha’s lips, could see each eyelash that surrounded dark eyes and…it was freaking him out. “I--I don’t know.”
Those pale lips parted slightly and lifted in another smirk, “You don’t know.”
Naruto hesitated, drawing in a shaky breath (Why was it so hard to breath with Sasuke near him? Maybe he was the one with a fever!), “No. I…why should I answer your questions!? You haven’t answered any of mine yet!”
Sasuke tilted his head slightly, not expecting that kind of logic to come from the blond before him. “True. I haven’t,” was the reply and then Sasuke was gone.
A pair of confused blue eyes blinked at the small ripples moving across the water, the only sign that Sasuke had ever been there. ‘What. The. Fuck?!’
***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_
A/N: Yes I know: What the fuck is up with Sasuke?! It will be explained in time...as well as why Naruto hasn't questioned Sasuke about his wounds. There will also be development with the Kyuubi and Naruto issue and the whole 'secret being known' thing ^_~ This is going to be a multi-chapter fic...not sure how many chapters, but there will be a nice round number of them ^__^
Once again, reviews are much loved and appreciated! Thanks for reading! The next chapter will be out sometime...probably not as soon as this one, but soon ^___^
Pairing: Eventually SasuNaru
Warning: None (yet...will reach NC-17 at some point)
Summary: After healing the majority of Sasuke's wounds, Naruto and the Uchiha heir are now regaining their energies before heading out for Konoha again. Why won't Sasuke answer any of Naruto's questions?...and why is he acting so...strangely?
***_***_***_***
Thanks to Inuzuka for the review!! You're right...this is a slow development, but hopefully my characterizations will be more believable as the chapters come out. Dialogue will also get more involved as soon as things start moving. Thanks again! I love the constructive criticism!!
And now on to the next chapter~!
***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_
A shuffling noise filled his ears, dragging him from his cramped, but semi-peaceful slumber. Opening groggy blue eyes, he looked around the cave, blinking rapidly a few times to clear his vision. What was that--
“Oi, teme, you shouldn’t try to sit up ye-- Are you listening to me?! I said--”
“…Dobe…”
“--to stop trying to get up. Oh yes, walking is an even better idea--”
“…Dobe…”
“Why don’t we just spar right here. That’ll be even better for tho--”
“…Dobe.”
“--What?!” Naruto fumed as he stood up, cracking his stiff back in the process and refraining from leaping over the pile of ash and burnt wood in front of him and throttle Sasuke. The idiot was now standing, a little hunched over, but standing and moving across the cave. After all the work Naruto had done for him and the ungrateful bastard was going to ruin it all by falling out of the cave.
“Shut up for a minute.”
All ideas of refraining from leaping the dead fire fled his mind as his legs carried him to stand before the Uchiha. He clenched his jaw and fisted his hand into the robe that Sasuke had pulled over himself, “Do you have any idea what I went through last night?! And you tell me to shut up?!”
Sasuke stood before him, face blank and emotionless as he listened to Naruto ramble on. The blond kept rattling on about healing jutsus and bushes and really Sasuke could care less at the moment. He brought a bandaged hand up to Naruto’s fisted one and pried it from his robe, “Move.”
Naruto blinked, “Wha-- why? You can’t leave…not in that condition.”
And Sasuke once again had to listen to Naruto go on about Sakura and Tsunade and his awesome and amazing memorization skills and he really could care less at the moment. He stepped passed Naruto and began to slowly make his way to the cave entrance, eyes squinting slightly in the brilliant sunlight.
The demon-holder’s jaw dropped as his ‘patient’ glided past him, “Oi! I told you, you can’t leave! Where the hell do you think you’re going?!”
“Outside.”
The blond fumed, cheeks flushing red and eyes narrowing, as he watched Sasuke leap slowly and somehow gracefully down the various overhangs to the ground. He followed, hands fisted in anger as he caught up to the raven-haired ninja and stood in front of him, halting his walk.
“You can’t leave,” he bit out.
“I’m not.”
“Because I sa-- wait…you’re not?”
“No.”
“Then…where are you going?” Now Naruto was really confused. Did Sasuke want food or something because there was some in the cave that Naruto could reheat…
“To the bathroom.”
The blond blinked. And then blinked again, “Oh! I thought…well…ok…uh…you remember where the cave is, right?”
Sasuke merely walked past him leaving the question unanswered. Naruto frowned, but shrugged it off. At least the teme was acting a little more like his old self, right? Right.
He made his way back to the cave and leapt up the overhangs, knocking a few rocks off in the process and listening as they crumbled to the ground. He stood outside the cave and wondered how far Sasuke was going to go and then wrinkled his nose. He didn’t care how far Sasuke went so long as he came back in the end. If Naruto had to chase his ass one more time he was pretty certain he’d beat the Uchiha to a bloody pulp and lock him in a cage in the deepest part of Konoha.
A loud gurgling noise coming from his stomach brought him from his thoughts and he happily strode over to his sack and pulled out two cups of ramen and set about starting another fire and boiling more water for breakfast.
***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_
When the Uchiha heir returned, his senses were immediately attacked by the strong aroma of prepackaged ramen noodles. His right eye twitched slightly and he forced back the urge to roll his eyes. Some things really didn’t change with time.
He walked into the cave, ignoring the momentary shock that showed itself on Naruto’s features as he sat down across from the blond and grabbed his ramen cup. He looked down at it and broke open his chopsticks to eat.
After a few minutes of feeling Naruto’s eyes on him, he looked up in irritation though his face betrayed nothing, “What?”
Naruto swallowed his mouthful of noodles and smiled broadly, “Nothin’…just feels like old times, ne?”
Sasuke did roll his eyes this time as he returned to his ramen and finished it off. He set down the empty cup and leaned back slightly, controlling a wince as the movement pulls uncomfortably at a wound.
“…Oi, Teme…why did you…help me after our fight?”
The raven-haired boy glanced up, face devoid of emotion as he responded to the quiet question, “Did you want to die out there?”
Naruto huffed, “No. That still doesn’t answer my question though.”
Sasuke shrugged, “Does it matter now?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Naruto paused and tilted his head as he thought on that, “I…don’t know, but it does. I want to know why you would do something like that after you tried to kill me.”
Sasuke quirked an eyebrow, “You wouldn’t have died from that wound. Kyuubi wouldn’t have allowed it.”
The blond bit his lower lip and looked at the fire, “You still haven’t answered my question.” It was still a little strange that everyone knew his secret.
“I don’t intend to.”
Naruto threw his hands up in exasperation, “Why the hell not?! It’s a simple question, just answer it damn it!”
“Why did you bring me here?”
“Because you would have died! I’ve been chasing you around for the past five years, do you honestly think I’d just leave you to die?!” Naruto shouted, his patience was wearing thin after everything he’d been put through for the Uchiha sitting before him.
And for the first time in five years, Uchiha Sasuke smirked that old, confident and cocky smirk, “You really are a dobe.”
…and Naruto exploded into a rant about an ungrateful bastard that, once healed, was going to get the shit beat out of him for his ungratefulness.
***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_
Another day passed with the two staying in the cave. Sasuke, while healing quickly, was not quite strong enough to make the two day trek back to Konoha. He could manage on his own for short distances, but Naruto doubted the Uchiha could survive anything longer than a five hour walk. In fact, Naruto refused to even let him consider it. Of course, he didn’t tell Sasuke that the other reason he didn’t want to head back so soon was because Tsunade’s anger would still be pretty fresh and he really didn’t want to end up in the hospital after meeting with her again.
Naruto stood up, scratching his now full belly as he set aside his plate. He popped his shoulders and let out a sigh of pleasure when the tension eased up a little. Sleeping on a cave floor was not exactly the most comfortable thing, but the bastard was still injured so he needed the sleeping mat more than Naruto did.
Stretching a few more muscles, Naruto rubbed the back of his neck and then curled his lip slightly in disgust. He felt…sticky and gross. Too sticky and gross. Which was probably because he hadn’t showered in about three days now. Maybe longer…did they give him a bath at the hospital? Hm…
“Oi, Sasuke-bastard. I’m heading to the lake. Don’t do anything stupid,” Naruto said to the other boy. Sasuke rolled his eyes, not even replying to such a retarded remark as he watched the boy grab up a change of clothes and leap out of the cave.
A bath did sound good right now. Sasuke looked down at himself and then stood up. He did need a bath and it would be the perfect excuse to--
A slightly predatory smirk graced his lips as he stood up from his spot by the fire and headed out of the cave to follow Naruto’s trail.
***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_
“Ah~,” Naruto sighed as he sunk into the cool lake water. It was summer, so the lake wasn’t freezing cold, but it wasn’t too hot either. It was perfect. Damn near heavenly.
He dove under the water, clad only in his boxers, and resurfaced near a rock with a shake of his head. His blond locks slapped against his face as water droplets dripped down his cheeks and neck in their journey south.
“You still haven’t learned to be quiet, have you?”
Naruto jumped at the calm voice coming from behind him. He turned quickly, eyes wide as they took in Sasuke’s bandaged form sitting on the rock. The Uchiha was clad only in his black pants, robe and rope left behind in the cave and was currently sitting back on the rock near Naruto. A smug smirk lifted his lips at one corner as he looked down at the blond.
“T-teme! Don’t do that!” Naruto barked as he let out a breath. That bastard had scared the piss out of him. He hadn’t even felt him following him.
You’d think that would worry you more.
Shut it, fox. Sasuke won’t do anything. He won’t kill me.
Hn. You really are naïve.
“Talking to yourself now, Dobe?” The amusement in the Uchiha’s voice pulled at Naruto’s nerves and he grit his teeth, “No. Kyuubi just thinks you’re going to try and kill me.”
For a moment something flashed across Sasuke’s eyes. Something Naruto could not quite make out, which was truly confusing and frustrating since it was one of the first signs of emotion the Uchiha had shown.
“I won’t kill you,” came the short reply. It was cold and hard, but Naruto could tell it was the truth.
“Yeah yeah, you better not! I’d haunt your ass in the afterlife,” Naruto said with a smirk of his own.
And when Naruto blinked, Sasuke was no longer on the rock, “Sa--”
“You really are slow, dobe,” the deep voice was nearly a purr next to Naruto’s ear as he quickly twisted himself around in the water. Sasuke was right behind him, smug smirk in place and something dark behind his already dark eyes.
“T-teme. What the hell is your problem?!” the blond shouted as he backed up a little. He tried to tell his body to stop being stupid and retreating, but it wasn’t listening…there was something about Sasuke that was telling it to move.
Sasuke barely tread the water, somehow managing to stay afloat as he looked directly at Naruto, “Why have you been chasing me for so long?”
The Kyuubi-holder blinked, “Huh?”
Sasuke inched forward, decreasing the distance between them as Naruto’s back found the rock, “You heard me.”
“W-what the hell? I made a promise, teme. I don’t go back on them! That’s my--”
“Ninja way. I know. Why did you make a promise like that?”
“I- Because I…did. What the hell does it matter anyway?” Naruto asked, his voice coming out a little shaky as his eyes stayed glued to the Uchiha’s approaching form. Why was he getting so damn close? Maybe he was feverish! Naruto groaned inwardly, maybe his healing jutsus weren’t as good as he’d thought and the Uchiha was suffering from brain damage!
‘Great I probably burnt a few pieces of his brain-’
“Naruto. Did you really only chase after me because of that promise?” Sasuke whispered, his eyes still locked on to Naruto’s.
The blond blinked and when he re-opened his eyes, Sasuke was mere inches away. He could see the raven-haired Uchiha’s lips, could see each eyelash that surrounded dark eyes and…it was freaking him out. “I--I don’t know.”
Those pale lips parted slightly and lifted in another smirk, “You don’t know.”
Naruto hesitated, drawing in a shaky breath (Why was it so hard to breath with Sasuke near him? Maybe he was the one with a fever!), “No. I…why should I answer your questions!? You haven’t answered any of mine yet!”
Sasuke tilted his head slightly, not expecting that kind of logic to come from the blond before him. “True. I haven’t,” was the reply and then Sasuke was gone.
A pair of confused blue eyes blinked at the small ripples moving across the water, the only sign that Sasuke had ever been there. ‘What. The. Fuck?!’
***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_***_
A/N: Yes I know: What the fuck is up with Sasuke?! It will be explained in time...as well as why Naruto hasn't questioned Sasuke about his wounds. There will also be development with the Kyuubi and Naruto issue and the whole 'secret being known' thing ^_~ This is going to be a multi-chapter fic...not sure how many chapters, but there will be a nice round number of them ^__^
Once again, reviews are much loved and appreciated! Thanks for reading! The next chapter will be out sometime...probably not as soon as this one, but soon ^___^