Illusions That Break

Notes: I know there's been a lot of confusion, and I apologize for that. Hopefully the beginning of this chapter will answer some of your questions. If you're still confused, there will be an A/N at the bottom explaining some things. Please read when you get to it!

Let's just say that when I said 'resurrect the Uchiha clan', I meant it in a whole other way than some people may think. Keep that in mind while reading this. Oh, and thank you to my beta reader, Kristine X3 for helping me out on this story!


:-:-:Part I:-:-:


The moment Naruto woke up in what he assumed was a hospital bed, a stifling amount of guilt consumed him. The feeling even brought unbidden tears to his eyes, but before any of them could escape, he blinked them away. He had no right to cry. He brought Sasuke's family back to life of his own volition. Even though he didn't want to, Naruto knew he wouldn't be able to live on knowing that he could have made Sasuke happy by resurrecting his parents and older brother.

However, Edo Tensei (1) was by no means an easy jutsu to perform. It sure took a huge toll on his body after it was complete. Naruto reckoned that he not only fell unconscious from the physical strain it put on his body but from the emotional strain as well. After all, in order for the technique to work, Naruto had to use human sacrifices – 3 to be precise. The victims weren't exactly innocent, per se; in fact they were enemies who chose to attack at the wrong time and were sadly met with their doom, but it didn't matter either way. Whether the person was good or bad, Naruto hated to kill.

Also, the fact that he performed a jutsu that, that snake Orochimaru used during the Sandaime's last battle, sickened him to no end. Naruto didn't go as far as to resurrect the Shodaime and the Nidaime like Orochimaru did, but it was still repulsive nevertheless.

In Naruto's opinion – along with many others opinions, too – the dead should remain dead. This whole situation from the get-go really bugged Naruto. If he were a more sadistic and cold hearted bastard, he would have marched right over to the now partially occupied Uchiha compound, told Sasuke 'to hell with you!' and let his family rest. Considering the state he was in, however, he was in no shape to do so. Not only that, but he couldn't bring himself to do so.

Sakura was right when he said his heart was way too big. Uzumaki Naruto was a downright softie, and this time, it didn't pay off.

Letting out a slow sigh, Naruto nestled into the blankets and closed his eyes. It wasn't good to dwell on what he did. He would become ill if he let guilt control his life. Instead of wallowing in pity, he should think about the happiness he would see Sasuke express when –

“Oh, that's right. I blacked out before I could fully activate the jutsu,” Naruto remembered belatedly. “Hm.”

A sudden knock at the door startled him out of his near-sleep, making him fully aware of his surroundings. For the first time since waking up, Naruto looked around the room only to realize that he was in his own house.

“Naruto? Are you awake?” the voice of Sakura inquired from the other side of the door. Naruto nodded, feeling stupid for doing so since Sakura couldn't see him.

“Uh, yeah.”

His bedroom door opened, allowing the pink-haired kunoichi to peak in. “Hey,” she greeted quietly. “You're finally up. I was starting to worry about you for a while.”

“Really? How long was I out?” Naruto asked, knowing that for Sakura to get worried, he had to be unconscious for at least two days. He motioned for Sakura to continue into his room so he could talk to her from a closer distance.

“Ah... about 24 hours.” Her eyebrows furrowed. “Not even, I think.”

A small, affectionate smile made its way across Naruto's lips. “And you were worried for me just because I was out for a day? That's unlike you.”

The smile was returned hesitantly. “Yeah, well, this is different. You've never performed a jutsu like that before, so...” she trailed off and glanced at the ground.

Naruto looked at her worriedly, wondering why she stopped talking in the middle of her sentence. “Sakura-chan? Is something wrong?”

The kunoichi didn't respond out loud, just shook her head. Slowly, she raised her eyes to Naruto's and he was struck at the sadness he saw in them. Sakura wasn't supposed to feel bad about what he did, and here she was, sitting in front of him on the verge of tears.

“Sakura-chan,” Naruto started, reaching a hand out to touch her, but she swatted him away half-heartedly.

“It's nothing, Naruto,” Sakura insisted, hating it when Naruto was concerned for her. It was odd, but the two of them shared worry for each other all the time. Whenever one was worried, the other would always be worried back. An endless, unhealthy circle of concern, and it only got worse when Sasuke came back into their lives again.

The atmosphere in the room became a lot heavier as Sakura and Naruto sat in silence together, thinking their own morbid and somber thoughts. Before it became too unbearable, Naruto broke the silence by asking, “I need to go over to the Uchiha compound and try to activate the jutsu again, don't I?”

Sakura nodded. “Yes. Sasuke-kun and pretty much the whole Rookie Nine have been cleaning the old place since you passed out. I'm sure...” she trailed off again, cursing herself for feeling such remorse for letting Naruto go through with this. “I'm sure he'd really appreciate it. That is if you think you feel up to bringing back the dead right now.”

Naruto forced a chuckle. He seriously wasn't in the mood to go over to Sasuke's family's old home and 'bring back the dead' as Sakura described it. If he were in Sasuke's place, though, he would certainly want his family back as soon as possible. Sometimes it was nice to be able to relate to the raven-haired teen so easily.

Being careful, Naruto swung his legs over the side of the bed and started to get dressed. “I feel just fine, Sakura-chan, so I think I'll pay good ol' Sasuke a visit and get this settled.”

“Okay.”

After he was fully dressed, Naruto slipped his shoes on and headed for the door, glancing back at Sakura one more time. “Do you want to come?”

Sakura all but missed the desperate tone Naruto's question held. If this was any other time, she would have accompanied the friend she considered to be her little brother figure of sorts. However, this was a matter between Sasuke and Naruto that didn't need any outside interferences.

Naruto was granting Sasuke something that any orphan in the world could only dream for. Those two knew how it felt like to live in the world without parents by their side. Sakura, on the other hand, still had her parents, and she wouldn't wish for it to be any other way.

Simply, the pink-haired kunoichi didn't want to feel like the third wheel when she saw the pain in Naruto's expression when he witnessed Sasuke interacting with his reborn family. She already had enough of that before Sasuke left for Sound, and she was bent on never feeling like it again. She absolutely loved her two teammates with all her heart, but this was something that had to be done strictly between the two of them.

“Nah.” Sakura stood up as well, standing next to Naruto at the door. “I'm going to go home and rest a little bit.”

Disappointment flashed in Naruto's blue eyes for a split second. “O...okay. Be careful.”

Sakura smiled and ruffled Naruto's hair as she closed the door behind her, leaving the blond alone to deal with his trepidation for his upcoming confrontation with his friend.

“Could life get any harder than this?” Naruto wondered aloud, staring at the place where Sakura was standing only a mere few seconds ago.

- - -

The walk to the Uchiha compound later that day would come to be known as the longest walk Naruto has ever taken. Each step he took led him closer to committing sins that were unforgivable but were needed for the benefit of his friend.

Is it really the only way? Naruto thought. To bring back his family from the dead... There has to be another, more sane way to get Sasuke back to normal... I know there has to.

Tsunade said that Sasuke felt guilty for killing the last of his kin. If that was so, then why did Naruto have resurrect his whole immediate family? It's normal to miss your deceased parents. Children and adults who have gone through the pain of losing a loved one live with it every passing day. Would it really be fair to all those other people in the world who so desperately want their families back in their lives as well? Naruto didn't think so.

It wasn't that he didn't wish for Sasuke's happiness – he wanted Sasuke to be happy more than anything – he just thought there should have been a better way to acquire it. But what could he do? It took a lot to please Uchiha Sasuke. Brining his family back would be the ultimate way of going about it, however, and the easiest route.

Tucking his clammy palms in his pockets, Naruto shook his head to rid himself of the constant negativity and doubt nagging at his mind. He had to prepare himself to complete what he started, whether he liked it or not.

- - -

Only once in his life had Naruto ever been to the Uchiha district, but he was just a small child at the time. After the incident, no one went there except for Sasuke on occasion, so when he arrived at the walls that were painted with the Uchiha crests, Naruto was blown away at the compound's massive size. Was Sasuke's family really that big?

His blue eyes looked up and down the street, seeing only the long wall that surrounded the houses that lay inside. Naruto was so lost in his amazement that he didn't even notice Sasuke standing a small distance away, gazing at him with an unreadable expression. It was when the raven made a slight movement that Naruto was snapped out of his trance.

“Ah, Sasuke!” the blond said, slightly startled. “Sorry. I didn't realize you were there.”

He expected a sardonic kind of retort from his former teammate but nothing of the sort happened.

Of course, Naruto reminded himself. This isn't Sasuke. He's just an empty shell...

Clearing his throat and forcing a smile, Naruto walked closer to Sasuke, inquiring, “Do you have the bodies?”

Sasuke nodded, pointing to three covered body-like forms on the ground a few yards away from the gates. Naruto shuddered as he made his way over, peeling the covers back. The familiar, pale faces and the strong, pungent smell of death made him dry wretch. He hadn't eaten for a more than a day, after all.

As his eyes closed, Naruto's mind supplied him with the proper hand seals to use to complete Edo Tensei that he had used during the first attempt. With an unusual show of deftness, Naruto went through the seals at a decent speed, as if he had performed the jutsu a couple of times before. Truth is, so there would be no room for mistakes, he practiced with the seals at least fifty times the night before. If a risky technique such as this were to go wrong, Naruto didn't even want to anticipate what kind of madness would occur. It was a miracle that nothing had gone amiss when he failed to fully complete the jutsu the first time.

“Kuchiyose no jutsu: Edo tensei.” Thin strings of chakra surrounded the three corpses and formed wooden tombs, encasing them completely. Sasuke watched without expression as the tombs creaked open after some time, the first one revealing his mother, the second, his father, and the third, his brother, Itachi.

At first, none of them moved. Occasional blinking of the eyes would happen, which was normal, but as one minute, then two minutes, and finally three minutes passed by, Naruto started to fear he did something wrong. Was it supposed to take that long for them to start moving? Was that even what his family looked like?

Sasuke, on the other hand, was too shocked to even move. His heart stopped the second everyone was revealed, looking as they probably would have looked like if they were alive today. Something wasn't right, though. They weren't moving. One glance at Naruto confirmed his fear that something was wrong.

“Sasuke?”

His fears were put to rest, for that voice calling his name didn't belong to anyone else but...

Mother...

Turning his head at a slow, cautious rate, Sasuke was met with the same dark gray eyes that he saw in the mirror every day, the same midnight hair as his, and the same pale skin that could only belong to his mother, the most beautiful woman in the world.

God, she was still gorgeous as ever.

“Mother,” Sasuke whispered right before his father started to move, calling his name in the same questioning manner that his mother had used.

“Father...” And as he started to gravitate towards his long-lost parents, Itachi's body started to stir.

“I made sure that all of his murderous intent was locked away and excluded from his personality,” Naruto informed Sasuke, just in case the raven had his doubts. Judging by the expression on his friend's face, everything was all right. A soft sigh made its way though Naruto's lips, coming out rather shaky. Nothing could even come close to expressing the relief he felt at that moment.

There were a few seconds where the Uchiha family went painfully still before Sasuke took the last few steps and embraced his mother. Naruto was taken aback. He had never seen Sasuke show so much intimacy towards anyone before... but this was his own mother; Uchiha Mikoto, who was killed when Sasuke was just a mere child. Of course he would easily run into her arms like he had done.

Sasuke's breaths came raggedly as if he were crying—Naruto wouldn't know if he was or not since his face was buried in the crook of his mother's neck, even though he was a good six inches taller than she. His father moved next, embracing Sasuke from behind with long, strong arms, the kind of arms to expect out of a father. Naruto couldn't even count the times he wished for his own deceased father to hold him in his strong embrace like that. He sighed just thinking about it, never taking his eyes off the newly reunited family for a second.

Itachi stood in the same position that he was in, probably not knowing what to do. Then, finally, he walked to where his family was and ruffled Sasuke's hair in an affectionate manner, trailing his hand down to rest on his brother's shoulder.

Naruto's heart clenched painfully. His mouth opened and closed, seeing that he would only ruin the moment if he were to speak right then.

Stealing one more glance at the Uchiha family, Naruto turned around and left them to themselves. Sasuke wasn't stupid. He would soon see that his parents and brother knew that they were brought back from the dead and didn't have any recollection on how they died in the first place. Naruto made sure they would be that way, just so that no questions and confusion would surface.

As he walked away, Naruto didn't look back to see a pair of dark eyes trailing after his retreating figure.

He felt them, though.

- - -

“How'd it go this time, brat?”

Naruto sighed loudly and plopped in the chair placed in front of Tsunade's desk. “It worked, if that's what you're wondering,” he replied, resting his left cheek in his hand.

“Hm, well that's good.” Tsunade grinned and leaned forward. “Was Sasuke happy?”

“Yeah,” said Naruto, remembering how Sasuke ran to his mother and held on to her like his life depended on it. “He was really happy...”

Tsunade studied Naruto silently for a moment. She couldn't really tell, but her favorite ninja seemed a little put out. Sakura dropped by a while before to tell her that Naruto woke up and was headed to the Uchiha compound to try out Edo Tensei again. Tsunade couldn't help but worry for him. It wasn't good to try out a complicated jutsu such as Edo Tensei after just recovering from unconsciousness. How Naruto wasn't half dead puzzled her to no end.

“Anyway,” the Hokage continued, getting back to what she was saying before, “I need you to tell me what it is you've done.”

“Eh? Whaddaya mean?”

“I mean, what attributes did you apply to that jutsu to Sasuke's family? Do they have the same personalities? Do they remember that they were killed? Are they even aware that they're back from the dead? Those kinds of things.”

Slumping in his chair, Naruto wracked through his brain, trying come up with the right words to describe his technique. “Well, as far as I know, everyone has the same personalities as before, with the exception of Itachi. I don't want him to go on another killing rampage and ruin Sasuke's mind even further, so it was necessary to tweak some things.”

“Good.”

“As for the rest of your questions, they're aware that they've been killed, but Sasuke's current parents wouldn't be able to fathom Itachi being the murderer. They know they've been brought back from the dead and are not bothered by it, too.”

Tsunade was shocked, not understanding how one could alter someone's mind such as that. “How were you able to do it?”

Naruto shrugged and looked a little sheepish. “I didn't want Sasuke to be bombarded by angered questions from his family; how and why they were brought back, since I believe they would not be pleased, so I studied and put some extra effort into making them indifferent about the whole situation.”

Amazing, thought Tsunade, gazing at her already known successor. It looked like he was more than ready to become Hokage if he could alter the Uchihas' moral standards and have them not know how they were killed rather than knowing that they were by their own son's hands.

But wait...

“Does Sasuke know about this?” she asked. “Did you tell him?”

“Uhh, no, not yet...”

“What? Why not?” Tsunade demanded.

A somber look replaced the blank expression on Naruto's face before he answered. “I... I didn't feel it was right to barge in, you know, and tell Sasuke while he was being embraced by his whole family that they're just illusions. Besides, I think Sasuke would notice after a while that they're different.”

After thinking it through a bit, Tsunade settled down. “Okay. But you better check on him later on today to make sure everything's running smoothly.”

“Sure, sure,” Naruto waved nonchalantly, standing up from his chair. “I'm gonna go hit the hay before doing that, though. I'm beat.”

“It's expected.”

Naruto smiled briefly at Tsunade and made his way for the door. He stopped short, however, and inquired lowly, “Tsunade obaa-chan?”

The lady in question cocked an eyebrow. “Yes?”

“Are...” Naruto closed his mouth, tentative. “Are you sure that this was a good idea? Y'know... resurrecting them? You're sure there's no better solution to get Sasuke's mind back to normal?”

Tsunade closed her eyes at the blonde's voice, hating how it sounded so despaired. “I'm sorry, Naruto. I told you before that we tried everything.”

“...You're positive?”

“Yes.”

Fists clenched and unclenched at the blonde's side. “I believe you,” he said quietly, “but I'm still afraid. I don't want Sasuke to break even more later on.”

“Why would he 'break even more'?” the Godaime asked, once again in total befuddlement at Naruto's words.

A sad smile made its way across Naruto's lips as he faced Tsunade half-way. “That's right. I didn't tell you, did I? Edo Tensei – or my version, at least – only lasts for 6 months. That's how long Sasuke gets to be with his family before they have to be put to rest again.”

- - -

The minute his head hit the pillow when he came home, Naruto fell right asleep. Due to the fact that he slept until 11 o'clock that evening, he wasn't able to check on Sasuke like Tsunade had asked. Oops.

Ah, well, he thought off-handedly, too tired to care; I'll just see what's happening tomorrow. I'm sure he's alright.

- - -

Naruto woke up the next morning with his stomach growling so loud he thought the whole village could hear it. Obeying his stomach's demands for food, Naruto instantly ran to his cupboard to search for some breakfast (ramen to be exact) only to find he had none, not even one cup.

“Well, shit,” he muttered, biting his finger in frustration. “I'll just have to settle for eggs or something.”

Pouting, Naruto opened the refrigerator, got out a carton of eggs, opened it, sniffed, and almost hurled.

“God!” Naruto shouted, trying his best not to gag as he threw the carton into the sink. “How old are these things? They stink!”

Five minutes of searching later, the blond discovered he had a lot of rotten, uneaten food in his pantry that was definitely inedible. He needed to go shopping and get some food before his stomach erupted. So, flying back to his bedroom, Naruto changed into his jounin attire, slipped on his sandals, and teleported to the market. He wandered around a bit, frowning with each step he took.

“It's only seven in the morning,” Naruto said aloud, “and none of the stores are open.”

Grrroooowwwwllll...

Wrapping his arms around his torso, the blond whined and fell to his knees. “S-So hungry... I'll eat anything! Just give me anything! I'll eat it!”

“Naruto.”

“...Except that. I don't wanna eat myself.” Eyes flying wide, Naruto's head whipped around, spotting Sasuke standing inches away, looking down at him with his eyebrow cocked.

“What are you doing?” Sasuke inquired, continuing to give Naruto that strange look. “Did you say you were going to eat yourself?”

Knowing he couldn't look any less stupid and pathetic, Naruto stood up from the ground and brushed his pants off. “Of course not. That's crazy. I think you're hearing things, Sasuke.”

“...Okay...”

Oh, my god, Naruto thought, finally realizing what was happening. Sasuke's here. He's talking to me like a normal guy. He's not crazy! He has his family back at home!

“Ah, yes!” the blond exclaimed, getting abruptly serious. “I'm sorry I didn't come by yesterday to see how you were doing with your family and all. I was pooped, and I winded up falling asleep the second I got home... so, yeah,” Naruto finished lamely, cheeks heating up.

Sasuke was going to tell Naruto it was alright and everything was fine, but he was cut off from doing so when heard a loud growl coming from Naruto's direction. “Are you hungry?”

Cheeks reddening even more, Naruto averted his gaze to the ground and nodded feebly. “Um, yeah. I didn't have any food at home, and all the shops are closed at this hour...”

Sasuke nodded, at a loss for what to do. Yesterday, he wanted to invite Naruto to stay with him and his family for a while, so what was the harm in inviting him now?

“You can come over to my house,” suggested Sasuke, shrugging his shoulders. “I wanted to introduce you to my family, but you left before I could get a word in.”

“Oh, uh, okay.”

“You can eat, too,” Sasuke added, knowing Naruto wouldn't be able to refuse that particular offer.

Blue eyes lit up and a large smile graced his features, the first real one in days. “Cool! Thank you!”

Naruto ran ahead and fell in step with Sasuke, placing his arms behind his neck in a comfortable fashion. If he was only going over to the Uchiha residence to meet Sasuke's family, he might have backed out politely, but since food was involved, he was all for it. As long as Sasuke was by his side, everything would, hopefully, go smoothly.

- - -

The house that Sasuke lived in smelled funny was the first thought Naruto had upon entering. It had been abandoned for almost eleven years, so Naruto guessed that was the reason is reeked of mildew and just plain oldness. He made a note in his mind to tell Sasuke to get some air-fresheners the next time he went out shopping.

Not only was the house stinky, it was also felt very empty. According to Sasuke, his family was asleep, but Naruto still felt like he and Sasuke were the only ones occupying the house. Was it because the Uchiha's were illusions? He had no idea.

“You can get anything you want out of the food pantry or refrigerator,” Sasuke told Naruto, wandering out of the room. “I'm going to go check on my parents.”

“'Kay.”

But it was a nice house, Naruto's mind amended, imagining Sasuke living in there as a child. It was surprisingly easy to picture a little Sasuke, running around the house in his bare feet. Naruto smiled as he fondly imagined his friend as a child.

As he put some butter on a piece of toast, Naruto noted that this was one of the first times he had ever been in a traditional Japanese home. The way the wooden floorboards sounded when he took a step was weird, yet soothing, the tatami mats in the living room felt a little painful on his sensitive soles, and the small table in the center of the kitchen that he was currently eating his breakfast at was rather strange. He was so used to the modern accessories that he used in his apartment, so everything he did in this house was really kind of awkward. And because he was kneeling so much, his legs were starting to cramp.

“Ow,” muttered Naruto, wincing as he stood up to wash the dirty dishes. “How the hell does Sasuke's family do this everyday?”

“Well, it's not easy at first, but you get used to it over time.”

Naruto's scrubbing motions froze. He recognized that voice... didn't he?

Whirling his body around slowly, Naruto's gaze was drawn to what he thought was the most beautiful woman he ever saw. Her sweet voice was one of a mother's, and it made him feel as if no other place besides there was safer. And her smile was so comforting, so loving, even though the two of them hadn't officially met before then. This was what Naruto imagined a mother would be like. This was Sasuke's mother.

And suddenly, while everything felt so right at that moment, everything was all wrong. Naruto couldn't decipher why, though.

“I see you two have met,” Sasuke stated as he entered the kitchen. “Naruto, this is my mother, Uchiha Mikoto,” he introduced, directing his hand towards her. “Mother, this is Uzumaki Naruto.”

With Naruto still frozen in place, Mikoto reached her hand out and took Naruto's in hers. “It's very nice to meet you, Naruto.” That same sweet smile adorned her soft face. “Sasuke's told me a lot about you – how you used all of your power to bring us back to life...” she trailed off, her smile suddenly wiped clean from her face. Naruto didn't want to do anything else but to make it appear again.

“Ah, it's all right,” Naruto insisted, breaking out of his stupor and putting on a smile. “It was my choice to do so, uh... Uchiha-san!”

Sasuke's mother smiled again, albeit a little less convincing than the last time. “Good. I'm really glad you were able to such a thing and not have gotten seriously hurt! You must be a very smart young man!”

“Actually, mother, he's an idiot,” Sasuke muttered to her from behind his hand. Naruto heard plenty, however, and squawked.

“Sasuke!” Mikoto exclaimed, jabbing her son on the side while giving the blonde an apologetic look. “I'm sorry for my son's rudeness, Naruto. You must have to deal with that a lot, don't you?”

Naruto rolled his eyes. “Yes, ma'am. Sasuke's a killer, I tell you.”

Mikoto chuckled. “I'll have to set him straight. After all, supposedly Itachi, my husband, and I have been out cold for almost eleven years! We barely got to raise Sasuke and teach him manners.”

Suddenly feeling extremely out of place, the blond began to walk towards the door.

“Well, I hate to eat and run, Uchiha-san, but I really gotta get going,” Naruto said, not wanting to interrupt what time Sasuke wanted to have with his family now that they were back. He was sure they had a lot to catch up on. “I'm supposed to be preparing for my next mission with my ANBU squad, so I'd better be off.”

Waving as Naruto started to back up and turn around, Mikoto said, “Oh, well, it was really a pleasure to meet you. Be careful on your mission, too!”

“I will!” he assured, and with one small wave, Naruto started out of the house with Sasuke on his tail after announcing that he would walk him out. The blond was thankful for that, since he and Sasuke had some things to talk about.

Once they were outside, Naruto was shocked beyond belief when a pair of arms surrounded his waist and pulled him close. Sasuke was hugging him.

Hugging.

Reluctant to voice his concern, Naruto stayed in the same place, questioning weakly, “Um... Sasuke? Are you okay?”

He was responded with a nod of the head. Naruto couldn't see the action, but he could feel the tips of Sasuke's hair brush against his shoulder. Another moment or two passed by when Sasuke pulled back, muttering a quiet, but audible 'thank you'. Naruto smiled slightly, not exactly knowing what his friend was thanking him for, but said 'you're welcome' back anyway.

“So,” Naruto started awkwardly, wanting to leave right away but knowing he had to stay. “I see you figured out –”

“Yeah,” Sasuke cut in, obviously not wanting to talk about it.

“I was worried that you might not have realized, and I'm sorry if I confused you,” Naruto went on, wanting to clear the air a bit with the raven even though he could see his words were starting to aggravate him a little.

“Naruto,” Sasuke said, not wanting the blond to say anything else. “You don't have to apologize. I can take care of myself.”

“Ah, I know. I was just a little...” Naruto scrunched up his face, hating how corny his next words were going to sound. “I was just worried about you, okay? I've never done a jutsu like that before, and I wasn't even sure it worked properly until I talked to you today, and you—”

A slap to the head shut Naruto up effectively. Sasuke inhaled deeply, knowing before today he was going to have to deal with the spazy blond idiot.

“Sorry.”

“Hn.”

Naruto inwardly smiled. If he had any doubts on how Sasuke would act after his parents came back, they were all gone now. He was behaving the same (excluding the hug) as he used to when they were thirteen: arrogant, slightly bratty, and somewhat kind. For the first time in weeks, it felt nice to talk to Sasuke again.

At least this time he actually said something. The same personality from before was just an added bonus.

“Naruto.”

His name being called snapped Naruto out of his momentary reverie. “Huh?”

Shifting on his feet in what appeared to be in a nervous or awkward way, Sasuke cleared his throat. “I was wondering when will you be back from your mission?”

“Hmmm,” Naruto hummed, putting a finger to his lips in contemplation. “If all goes well, I should be home sometime around next Tuesday. Why?”

Sasuke nodded. “Do you know if you are free Wednesday night?”

“I'm not quite sure.” Naruto shrugged. “But I probably am.”

Sasuke frowned. This was going to be a little harder than he thought.

“Would you like to go out to dinner then?”

Naruto was a little surprised. Sasuke, asking him out to dinner? He didn't even do something like that before he left for Sound.

What could this possibly mean? The blond thought suspiciously. Is he hiding some ulterior motive?

Deciding not to think too much on it, Naruto put on another smile. “Sure! Just tell me when and where you wanna go and I'll meet you.”

Now that he thought about it, being able to be alone with Sasuke would be a good way to patch things up between them. Naruto was actually relieved, in fact, that Sasuke took the initiative to get them together, since he would probably be too scared of doing so himself.

- - -

TBC

- - -

1) – Edo Tensei is the jutsu Orochimaru used to bring back the Shodaime and Nidaime in episode seventy-something during his battle with the Sandaime, as you already read above.

Okay, I think everything is pretty much explained in the chapter, but I'll ramble on anyway. -smiles- Basically, when I said 'ressurect the Uchiha clan' I actually meant 'bring Sasuke's family back to life'. Sorry about the confusion. I'm not a huge fan of m-preg (though I do like to read one occasionally), and I probably will never write an m-preg.

For future reference, if Sasuke's parents really were to be brought back from the dead, Sasuke's personality would be a little different, am I right? So, if you find that he is a little OOC in some parts, it's because of that.

Thanks for reading, and please review!